Georgia Aquarium - The Robertsons check out the world's largest aquarium

My parents, sisters, brother-in-laws and our four nephews spent last weekend with us. It was the first time they'd all been to Atlanta in over two years. We spent the weekend hanging out in traffic :( and visiting the Georgia Aquarium. The aquarium opened last November and it’s already had two million visitors (I think most were there last Saturday). Despite the crowds, it's pretty awesome. It has 8 million gallons of fresh and marine water, and more than 100,000 fish from around the world. If you get to visit, do the "Ocean Voyager" section last. It's amazing! I think the rest of the aquarium would be a letdown if you saw it first.

We also grilled out and lounged around in the backyard. Check out photos from the Aquarium and the pile of sand in my backyard. The sand is for leveling the yard, but turned out to be the highlight of the weekend for the boys...they were drawn to it like a magnet :).

Click the image below to see pictures from the aquarium.


Georgia Aquarium's Website

Gina's Bosnia letter to family and friends

Dear Family and Friends,

I want to take a moment to share some very exciting news with you. I’m going to Bosnia this summer on a short-term mission trip! I will be part of a team from North Point Community Church going to support the members of our partner church, the Evangelical Church of Capljina (pronounced chop-lin-a). We are going to encourage them as they continue to grow and create irresistible environments for the people of Capljina. Our team will be focused on helping the church reach out through English classes.

As many of you know, Jason and I have had a connection to Bosnia for a few years now. We were first introduced to the people of Bosnia through close friends. After hearing about their challenges, we knew we wanted to get involved. Last summer, Jason had the opportunity to help through a short-term construction trip. Then, in January, we had the incredible opportunity to host two college students from the church (it was quite a miracle for them to get to visit the States!). We want to continue building these relationships, and I feel blessed to have another opportunity to do so this summer...(finish reading here)

Jason's thoughts on Gina going to Bosnia

Gina leaves for Bosnia in less than two weeks. This is the first time Gina will be out of the country without me, and the longest she’s ever been away from home without me. In the last three years, I’ve spent a combined two months out of the country...without Gina. I certainly didn’t take leaving Gina at home alone lightly, but it’s definitely different being on the other side. When you’re the one going, you're focused so much more on the planning and excitement of the trip (and maybe even some of the apprehensions). When you’re the one staying, you don’t have those distractions. There’s definitely a feeling of loneliness. Don’t get me wrong, I definitely missed Gina when I was away, and there were certainly times when I felt incredibly lonely, but I think the one staying feels it the most.

So back to Gina and Bosnia. She’s going with three people from our church, North Point Community Church, to teach English. They’ve done a lot of preparation work; way more they I did on my trip to Bosnia last year. I know they are going to do a great job and will be an amazing treat for a small town in Bosnia. They’ll be there for 9 days. Copper (our 90-lbs ‘coon dog) and I are going to miss her, but we’re so proud of her and the heart she has for people in need.

I want to say a special thanks to all those how have supported Gina through prayers and money. This is the third time in less than a year that one or both of us has had an opportunity to go on a short-term mission trip. We’ve raised money for each trip, and each time our financial needs were met. We were nervous about this trip though, knowing most of our family and friends had given to our earlier trips. Amazingly, we got the money for this trip faster than our did for our prior trips.

I’ll try to post a couple of trip updates while she’s there, so check back June 11 through 19.

Jason