My bottom half is African

Wow, it's been so long since I have posted anything! There have been so many things going on that I have felt a bit overwhelmed about what to share and what to let roll off. So, I'm sorry if you haven't been able to sleep at night in anticipation of the next great thought shared by the Ropieckis!
We are homeless and all of our belongings fit into a 10x10 storage unit. It's a little liberating and a little sad. We are staying with my dad. Big shout out to the poor man that gave up his bed, his personal space and his quiet! We are really enjoying spending time with him, but I know he is a little bit excited about having his bachelor pad back!
Both Michael and I have been back to SL for visits now. Michael's trip went well, but trying to get details out of him can be a little tricky. I can report that he is totally smitten with the kids at the center and Todd reports that he probably is African way down deep.
My trip was wonderful. I was able to learn so much. I "fake shopped" as Michael likes to say. I found prices as well as availability on items like food and housewares. I also got to see the new sections of land. I'm pretty sure we are moving to the Garden of Eden. It is gorgeous! I also fell further in love with the kids at the center and just the people in general. What an incredible place.
Mike is scheduled to leave in 3 weeks. It's going too fast!! We are trying to fit in as many friends and family visits as possible, as well as an array of speaking engagements......whew!! In the midst of all the craziness though, we are loving this time in our lives. We have had so many awesome people step in and do so many things. The stack of thank you notes I have to write is insane. We are overwhelmed most days! Thank you to all of the individuals that have stepped in and done so much to make this project a reality for us. I hope we do you proud!
Aubrey was able to speak to her merge group at church. Although I haven't seen the video yet, I have heard she did an incredible job. She is excited to go but spending as much time with her buddies as she can!
Anna is.......Anna. Love that girl. She is excited to have friends that live in another country but for the most part just wants to get through today and make sure that her sisters obey her!
Ella is convinced we are moving to India and can't wait to live with the "Indians". When she says Indians she means Native Americans. So you can see all the ways she is confused! She also wants to nail down if they will speak "American" to her or not. Oh, her redneck is showing! She will really be surprised when we arrive on a continent where her parents are big white freaks! I can't wait! She's also pretty sure that we should consider Disney World as an alternative to moving to Africa on account of there are fewer shots she would need. Africa is a lot like Disney........oh, wait, it's not.
We are all in between. We aren't starting to see "American things" as less important. But we still don't understand all the African things we need to know. And I'm not sure that being in this world not part of it, isn't what I should have been feeling all along. So we are all a little African and a little American. African Americans? Hmmmm.....