Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the Logsdons!

2013 began while spending last New Year’s Eve with my family during our winter visit to Minnesota.  We spent a week hanging out and playing in the snow.  It was at this point that we began the irretraceable steps that would bring us half way around the world.  Both feeling called to go, we joined an organization that connects teachers and international schools from around the world.

This journey continued in February when we made the journey to San Francisco, CA for the Search Associates International Job Fair.  Not certain what we would find, we went with an open mind repeating only what my mother said, “No Middle East, no war zones, and no China.”  Ironically our job offers came from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and China.  On the second day of the fair, we accepted a job teaching at Qingdao No. 1 International School of Shandong Province, Trent teaching first grade and me teaching kindergarten.  This left an extra day for us to do some sightseeing in frigid SF, where we enjoyed seeing Alcatraz (from a distance), the Golden Gate Bridge and taking a bus tour of the city.

We spent the rest of the school year preparing to say goodbye to the co-workers, friends, and students that we’ve been working with for years now at Walzem and Copeland/Walker.  Angie ended up becoming the Bilingual/ESL coordinator for her district when the old director suddenly resigned, which left her with a far greater work load than her normally demanding 2 combined campuses.  All her hard work paid off though when she was named “Teacher of the Year” for her campus and was also given an “Above and Beyond” award for her assistance to the district. 

In May, when the tornadoes hit Moore, Oklahoma, Trent and I took a few days off of work to go help with disaster relief with Samaritan’s Purse.  It was a horrific sight- the devastation was mind-blowing, but the people we worked with and helped were so kind and appreciative.  I know that it is an experience that Trent and I will both treasure in our hearts for some time to come.

The summer was spent packing, having garage sales, and working on buying our little duplex in Cibolo where we’ve been living for the past few years (we are now home-owners!!!).  We spent a week in Minnesota where we celebrated “Christmas in July,” watched my mom and sister skydive, and celebrated my brother’s graduation from the University of Minnesota.  When we returned, we spent as much time as possible with our church, friends, family and kitties before our impending departure.

At the end of July, we followed our calling and headed to the airport with our 4 suitcases and big box of teaching supplies and took the flight to Qingdao, China where we’ve been for the last 6 months.  While the adjustment hasn’t been easy, we’ve been so blessed by the people here, our students, and the fellowship we’ve become a part of.  We’ve enjoyed the travel benefits that our job offers as we’ve been to Beijing, Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos.  We look forward to more travel opportunities in the next year and a half as we recently signed our contract for a second year.  If you would like to follow our story, we have a blog at logsdonsbigadventures.wordpress.com, we’d love to hear from you!

Here’s wishing you and yours a blessed, joyful, and fun-filled 2014!

Love,

Trent and Angie

If you’d like to write to us or send us pictures, we always love getting snail mail!  Our address here is

Trent and Angie Logsdon

Qingdao No. 1 International School of Shandong Province

232 Songling Rd

Qingdao, China 266101

If you want to check out our classroom websites:

mrtrentsclass.weebly.com

mrsangieskinderclass.weebly.com