Some pineapples growing in our yard.  We've picked the one that fell over and it's in the fridge waiting to be eaten.  Notice how dry the 'yard' is.

Some boys by the fence behind us.

It's cashew season.  Elianna with a cashew apple.  Notice how the nut grows under the apple.  There are a lot of cashew trees on our property.

You all probably know the saying "All in a day's work."  Well I'll just apply it to this week. 

One thing we've experienced here is many deaths.  I've often thought that some of my african friends have experienced far more death in their lives than I have.  This past week another baby died.  This was the 2 year old daughter of one of the believers here.  She was born with a hole in her heart and that set her back developmentally and in many ways.  She was a bit younger than our son Ian who was 2 in December but didn't even walk on her own yet.  A common belief here is that if a child is born and is 'retarted'  or handicapped in some way or another that they are not a real person but a demon or had an evil spirit.  They often try to poison the child.  People wanted to do this to little Hawa but a missionary lady stepped in and helped her get the medical care that she needed.  This was a struggle for the family though because she required regular medical attention at the capital and they often didn't have the money to pay for it.  Anyways her parents were planning to take her to the capital for treatment because  she was getting sicker but they realized the doctor they needed to see wasn't there.  They took her to another village to do 'bush' medicine on her.  It was after this that we received the word that she died.  In some ways it seems better because we know she's free from pain but in many ways it's very hard.  Please pray for this family.  Her father is a believer and some think that her mother is but has never been public about it. Pray that they'll be able to be a testimony through this.  I was thinking about how I would feel if it was my child and it hit close to home since Hawa was the same age as Ian.  I would be devistated.  I know they are hurting but when i went to give my condolenses the mom greeted me and asked about my baby, my baby when her baby has just died.  I'm so thankful for my kids but have been reminded that they're not mine really they're just on loan.

This week has also been filled with lots of battery work for Pete.  We create our own power by using solar panels and storing the power in large batteries for use.  We also use a generator to boost the batteries etc.  This powers everything we use, fridge, freezer, washing machine but very importantly now our ceiling fans and small fans that we have at our beds at night.  Well Pete's probably spent 6+ hours this week or more on our batteries.  We found out that one was bad so he unhooked it but the batteries still weren't charging where they should be.  We're not sure if it's resolved but should know tonight.  I forget how thankful I am for those batteries till they're turned off and there is no power on a 100F+ day!  I'm so thankful for Pete and all he knows and has learned about solar power etc.  It can be really frustrating for him though if he can't figure out the problem and if it turns out to be a big problem it takes a long long time for new batteries etc to come! (like a couple months) That might not sound like a long time but it can be if you're scrimping on power.

Oh yes and this morning one of  our dorm kids found a big cane rat while out walking.  Two of them trapped it and they took it to their biology teacher who allowed them to kill it (with a bb gun no less) then the dissected it for class.  It's not every day that that happens.

Also this is the time of year when our kids are climbing trees and picking local fruits to enjoy eating.  Mangoes are coming into season...life is good!:) 

We have another month or so till our first rains.  The days are getting really hot and the motivation runs low but we're hanging in there.

 

 

I cannot believe that I haven't posted since October.  As I take a minute to think back though starting in October and for several months afterwards life was a bit crazy.  I know that's no excuse but it does let you know that we haven't been sitting around twiddling our thumbs...does anyone really have time to do that?  The end of October brought some of our coworkers leaving very unexpectedly.  So that brought extra responsibilities for us and thus we were busier for a few months. 

 We finished up our first semester of school in December and then we had our annual field conference.  It was a really encouraging time.  A team from the states came to do a childrens program and the Pastor of some coworkers came to speak to the adults as well as a worship pastor.  It was amazing.  Normally it's Pete and I leading music, I on the keyboard and singing and Pete singing with me which is ok but we love being in the audience singing.  The Pastor really challenged us from the Word.  He focused on God being the God of the insignificant.  He reminded us that often we miss the work of God because we don't see Him in the insignificant. We often feel that we're insignificant in what we're doing but God uses and loves to use insignificant tools and things we think are unqualified..  Another great reminder was that we don't own anything it's all a gift from our Father including our kids.  There were many other great things but those were some that really reached out to me. 

After conference we enjoyed a really nice Christmas break.  We thought about going to the capital but decided not to and just stayed home.  We did take our annual beach trip.  Our kids love it more every time.  There's nothing like staying on the beach and being able to play and swim in the warm waters of the Atlantic, chasing crabs, watching fishing boats, having campfires with hot drinks and smores. 

We've been back in school/dorm for about a month now and like usual time is flying by.  We had a great month of cool nights and mornings.  60F in the morning when you're used to 75 - 80F feels like it's freezing.  For that month we pull out the blankets and sweat shirts.  It's warming up now though and the mornings are much warmer.

Well, things are a bit crazy here.  I hope to post some pictures but will do it later!

 

 

Explanation of pictures

Some recent pictures from the village.

We often give away cardboard boxes, here's one thing they get used for.  Baby beds.

A picture of how they make some shortbread type cookies.

The oven - a fire underneath a big pot with the cookies in it and then a piece of roof tin on top with more coals/fire on top of the tin.

The kids like going to the village to find/catch baby chicks - here's aidan with one.

Ian with a huge goose egg that he got.

Our goat had kids this week.  Twins and Pete and the kids along with some of the dormers got to watch them being born.  There's a girl and a boy.  They're just about 4 days old but have already changed quite a bit.

Some english muffins that Faith made.  They actually really look like english muffins that you'd buy.  They weren't as crunchy but still really good.

Ian with RaHndell, one of the dormers watching him play a game.  RaHndell really likes Ian and little kids.

Ian reading with Pete - he loves to read books right now.

 

We're already 4 days into October.  I'm not sure what the weathers like where you are but October always brings a bit of homesickness for me as I think of fall and the fall weather back home.  There are things here that remind me of fall.  It's the season of squash, not pumpkins but tons of green and white squash in all sizes and shapes.  I always buy some to put around the house as fall decorations.  The weather is cooler, it's not raining as much.  It seems like the days are dry and we get big storms at night.  The nights are pretty cool while it's raining.  The days are pretty clear with nice blue sky and birds always singing.

 

We are also finished with the first month of school and are enjoying a 3 day weekend.  The time hasn't seemed to fly quite as quickly as last year....we'll see if it continues that way.  It's a different year with different students and personalities.  In some ways we feel a bit more drained and tired but we're also a year and a bit into being on the field.  Life here has a way of making you feel tired all the time.  I know for many of you life at home does the same thing.  Faith's been able to participate in a Beth Moore Bible Study on the fruit of the Spirit with some other missionary ladies.  It's been a real encouragement but a huge challenge to her.  Pray for us that we'll be in the Word and strengthening ourselves in our Father and His truth.  Sometimes the cares of life can weigh on us...I'm sure it's the same for each of you.  I'm not trying to say we're discouraged but there are and have been some challenges lately.  Pray that we'll see clearly God's vision for us here and for our mission as there have been and continue to be changes. 

 

 

Pray for us as we continue to get to know our dormers and their families and interact with them.  Pray that we'll be an encouragement in their lives.  A praise is that Pete's been able to be involved with a young guy from the village who is a seeker.  He may actually already be a believer but is very afraid of his families reaction.  He has asked his dad for permission to study the Bible and his dad was not at all in favor of that.  Pray for this guy and Pete and others who are involved in his life that they'll know how to encourage him.

 

Ok, I guess that's all for now.

 

 

 

Wow, I didn't realize that I hadn't posted since June.  I was sure that I had but maybe I started to and had issues.  Anyways...I should put a counter on here to see how many people actually look at the blog.  Sometimes I wonder if it's worth it with facebook but I know there are those who don't use facebook. 

Well the summer is somewhat of a blur now.  At the time it surely wasn't.  For nearly 2 weeks in July Elianna was really sick.  I think she threw up for 10 days and for at least 6 of those kept very little food down.  In the end we think it was amoeba or something like that.  She lost a lot of weight but has gained it back and is doing fine.

During that time we found out that school would be delayed a month due to various reasons.  It was a relief to us since we had been so preoccupied with Elianna.  Another big thing that Pete was busy with in July/August was some theft here at our mission center.  It involved some of our guards.  It was a sad situation.  In the end several guards lost their jobs since no one would confess but we knew it was one of them stealing.  Our 'normal' logic and reasoning don't always work here with the culture.  That was finished at the end of August.

Now it's already mid September.  School started on the 1st.  We have 6 dormers.  Three girls and three guys.  All teenagers.  It's going pretty well but is busy and intense.  I forgot how much energy it takes at the start.  Getting to know new dormers etc.  For me it's an increase in meal/food prep.  With a couple kids that commute into school  and our family/dorm there are 13 every day for lunch and 11 for all other meals.  We have 3 very hungry teenage boys among those numbers.  Anyways it's busy... with a 20 month old and homeschooling a kindergartner and the dorm.  Pete is a huge help but there are times he's not around during busy times.  Aidan is in 3rd grade now, it doesn't seem possible.  Ian is a fun, lovable 20 month old.  He is talking quite a bit and starting to put 2 words together.  In the last month he's really gotten into reading books and will come to you with a book and say 'book.'  Even thought we read 2 or 3 times a day he would love more!:)

Well that's a brief catchup and I"ll attach some pictures with this.

 

Pictures:

Faith eating with friends in the village

celebrating the 4th of July with sparklers on a rainy night

Ian pulling a wagon

Pete working on replacing a counter top in the dorm

Our coworker in the village teaching children, both the Word of God and french and math

loving brothers

Propane bottles (used to fuel our stoves) going to get refilled in a taxi ( there were 23 in total) not just for us but all our fellow missionaries as well.

Our kids in long pj's - we went to a hotel for a few days with A/C, we always bring our warm clothes for it.

rainy day fun making playdough

First day of school Aidan 3rd and Elianna Kindergarten

Full tables at lunch  with the dorm

family self portrait

Our little guy

Right now my pattern seems to be posting about once a month.  I'll try to do better this summer!:)  For those of you on facebook, I do post pictures there a little more regularly.

We finished up school and dorm at the end of 2nd week of May.  We were pretty tired at the end and the tiredness hasn't dissapeared over night but we are feeling more refreshed.  Aidan finished 2nd grade really well.  He had a great year and loves school.  He's become quite a reader and has read 6 or 7 chapter books of about 100 pages each since school let out.  Of course he loves playing the wii when he gets to.

 

After the end of school we decided to take a break away to the capital city.  For the first few days we stayed at another mission's guest house.  We invited one of our school teachers to come with us for a few days.  It was fun shopping and eating out!  She came back mid week and we moved to a nice hotel with a pool for the remainder of the week.  The kids loved the pool and Aidan has really taken off swimming, we loved the A/C although we froze at first, and eating out and not cooking was a real treat.  The bummer of the week was that Pete got pretty sick with amoeba, the blessing was that we were close to a Dr. and he got tested and treated right away.  Ian was prety fussy but it was a nice break from ministry and routine. 

 

We came back home to regroup and prepare for the summer.  We're covering a few extra things for people who are on home assignment until school starts and we have returning coworkers.  We're helping with the guest house and guards.  We've done these ministries before so they're not completely new.  Pete is getting involved in working in a couple of fields.  I hope to go work for a day or 2.  I think we've been reminded of just how hard our village friends work to just live.  Everything is done by hand, clearing the field, burning the field, turning/tilling the field, weeding, harvesting.  Pray that the extra time Pete has with these guys will show them the difference of Christ in His life.

 

We haven't gotten a french teacher but are just working on our own.  Aidan's picking up a few more phrases just playing with kids.  I'm just doing some extra studying/review on my own and the kids and I have been going through rosetta stone.

 

Aidan celebrated his 8th birthday.  It really doesn't seem possible.  He and Elianna are really enjoying their time together but they're quickly learning the fine art of bugging each other.  Overall they're great friends.  Ian is always running along behind them hoping to keep up.  He runs nearly everywhere he goes.  He's starting to copy more words and we anticipate him starting to talk more soon.  He loves playing outside.  I'm going to include a picture of Elianna with a little baby whose mom died, probably of AIDS.  He was given to on of our coworkers in the village here, he's 3 months and was 3 kilos when she got him.  He has now tested positive for the same disease and is in the hospital.  Pray for him, his name is Alseny.  Other pictures are from Conakry and Aidan's birthday.

 

I'll try to add some pictures from the last month.  Some of the things we've been involved in.  Pete helped regrass several roofs.  Our houseworker built a 'kitchen', an outdoor building to cook in during rainy season.  Oh year, we're into rainy season now and the rains are increasing.  Pete took some neat picture of the clouds before a storm one night.  Views from the field he worked in.  Other pictures are from Conakry and Aidan's birthday. How could I have forgotten, at the beginnig of May Pete and I celebrated our 10th anniversary. I made a special desert and set up a table in our backyard and we had a candlelight desert after the kids went to bed.

I had great intentions of updating the blog at least weekly but it looks like it's more like monthly! I also wish that I was a motivational writer but I'm not, that may be why I don't update this often! As I sit here and reflect back on the past month many things have happenend. Rainy season is almost upon us.  We've had 2 small rains which is pretty surprising since it's not even May yet.  They do bring relief from the intense heat.  Over the past month the temps have soared into the hundreds F.  The highest our thermometer has read was 110F but others have seen as high as 115F.  The humidity is high now to so some days are just rough.

 

In mid march we had our school break for a week.  We went to the capital city for a week.  It was the first time we had been back since our arrival last June.  It was a nice, enjoyable break.  We enjoyed eating out and shopping.  We also realized again that we really enjoy living in the more of the village setting but do enjoy our visits to the city.  Here it's much easier for the kids, they have room to roam, run and play.  We're into our last quarter of school, actually we're down to our last 2.5 weeks of the year.  In many ways it's really hard to imagine that we're almost done with the school year.  It has had ups and downs but we have seen God's faithfulness all along the way.  I think this past month has had a lot of down times.  Discouragement among our coworkers, lack of personnel for our school for next year, hard times in pressing on in what God has called us to.  I'm sure that you all go through those times as well.  We do see God working in the midst of these times.  Aidan has had a great year of school, he loves school.  He also loves climbing trees and can climb really high!  The kids love picking whatever fruit is in season.  Elianna is holding her own on climbing trees as well.  We've been doing preschool this year and she is really getting ready to read.  She doing it more on her own than from what I've taught.  Aidan and Eli are both great helpers with Ian.  Aidan will get up with Ian in the mornings and help him until he needs a diaper change or he can't contain him anymore.  Ian is a really fun active little guy.  This past month some of our coworkers took us to a nearby river.  It's about a 20 min bike ride away.  It's a great place to play and swim and play.  A couple weeks ago all the dorm kids stayed at the dorm for the weekend and they planned what they would like to do.  It was a packed out weekend with such things as sports, pizza, games, staying up late, shopping, eating out, going to the pool, movie, making bagels, going to the river and swimming and boating (we borrowed a dugout canoe), our bagels, bag and keys getting stolen....It was a great weekend with tons of fun.  We were exhausted afterwards.  Things keep coming to mind.  We also enjoyed a beautiful easter sunrise service at a local river with our coworkers.  Pete had the privelage of joining in the baptism of several of our coworkers boys.  Right now we're working on drying a bunch of mangoes to enjoy when mangoes aren't fresh anymore.

 

We've had a great year with the dorm kids.  Pray for them as 2 of them are going back to their home countries for home assignment.  This can be a big unknown for them.  We're really excited and know this will be a time that God will use in their lives. 

 

We're hopeful as we look forward to the summer.  It will be a break from having kids in the dorm and our 'main' ministry.  We'll be filling in some gaps as other coworkers go on furlough etc.  We'll be helping with our mission guest home and some other odds and ends.  We also have some plans and ideas that we're really excited to see how God uses them.  Aidan, Elianna and Faith are planning to work on French.  Pray that God will lead us to the right person to be our teacher for the summer, possibly someone from the local church in town.   Pete is planning to plant a field in the village with a friend.  We're also developing a plan for planting a field to benefit the village as a project.  We also hope to be spending more time in the village developing relationships, during the school year we're more bound by a schedule in regards to being in the village.  We also have plans to do some projects in the dorm and renovations.  Hopefully soon we'll be able to share how God is working through these ideas we have. 

 Ok, now I'll attach some pictures of the last month.  Most of them are self expanatory. 

It never ceases to amaze me how one month just flows into another.  I mean it's already the middle of March.  I can remember exactly what we were doing a year ago at this time but it seems like an eternity since then also! 

This past week has been Spring break for us.  We took a few days and went to the capital city.  Got some work done on our car, specifically the AC fixed.  It was nice to drive home with the AC.  We went out to eat and to a pool.  The big hit was getting fresh fruits and veggies though.  We brought back as much as we could.  Now our fridge is jammed full of carrots, apples, pineapples, mangoes, green peppers...  We can't get some of those things here where we live unless they're in season so we stock up when we can.  This is the first time we've had mangoes this year, they'll start to ripen up this way in a month or so.  I can't explain the feeling of eating some delicious fruit with yogurt and granola!  Anyways, I think you get the idea.  Right now we don't have any supply buyers on the field due to some medical issues.  We have to do all our shopping and stocking up on supplies.  We or rather Pete tries to go once a month and buys meat and other things in a town about an hour away.  He went this past week and they had gotten an new shipment of things from the states.  There are several expat mining companies here so several stores stock things from the states.  We were able to get a few special treats in time for my birthday!  This morning we enjoyed fresh blueberry muffins (with frozen blueberries) there was also cheese that  we got.  Anyways, lest you think all we do is buy, stock and think about food, that's not the case.  This just happened to be a bumper week for enjoying special things.  We've had a great week as a family.  We were able to attach a child seat to my bike for Ian and yesterday we all took a nice bike ride to the river.  This afternoon the dorm kids will return and we will begin our last quarter of the year.

 

Please pray specifically for our mission school next year.  We are in (desperate) need of high school teachers.  If you are interested or know of anyone who might be send us an email.  I'll attach some recent pictures as well. 

 

A summary of the pictures: 

Ian with his Guinean soccer shoes, he's on his 2nd pair already!

Valentine cookies

Aidan is now burning the trash and enjoying making fires!

A tea set Eli got from one of our dorm daughters for her birthday.

Making pizza pockets...we had all of our dormers families over for a pizza night...there were 22 adults and 3 babies.

A sword fighter already at the age of 14 months.

Our veggies.

Our climber...he can climb into his booster seat and wants to climb on anything he can.  We're not so into it:)

Working on a puzzle ball Eli got from Grammie and Grandpa for her birthday.

Cute Ian.

 

 

 

 

I know we or rather I made this resolution to be more faithful in keeping the blog up to date.  In light of that I guess that twice a month isn't too bad?  I'm going to attach some pictures from the last few weeks.  The big event was Elianna's 5th birthday last week.  She got to celebrate for several days.  On Wednesday the 17th we had a party in the afternoon with some of her little friends here and because a friend was in from a nearby village.  It was a fun time.  I enjoy the planning and preparing but don't feel that I do so well at the execution.  We made some paper flowers, played ring toss with a fun set that we made and blew bubble snakes, ate cupcakes and ended off with water balloons.  Many of the ideas were thanks to the magazine "Family Fun."  I have a subscription and someone sends it to me every few months.  I really appreciate it because many of the crafts/ideas are basic and don't require fancy things that we can't get here.  Elianna also shares her birthday with David one of our dormers and Lizzy one of our teachers.  On Friday we celebrated with KFC chicken (homeade) and oven fries and a jello poke cake.  Saturday we went to the pool and enjoyed the day with Kayla another one of our dormers and her brother Colton.  Sat. morning Pete started to notice a stiff/sore neck.  From Sat. - Wed.  it was really sore but has been really improving.  This week is busy here because our mission is hosting a translation workshop.  Most of the missionaries from the villages are here and attending sessions on translating.  We're not sitting in on the sessions but do have some extra kids around for snack and playing in the afternoons.  Almost forgot the temperatures have been soaring lately.  We're heading into the hottest time of year.  We saw 107F last week and almost everyday it's over 100F in the afternoons.  There are a few really hot hours where motivation can be really low.  Enjoy the pictures.  As I was attaching pictures I thought of a few more things to add.  There's a pix of Ian wearing an outfit that was Aidans:)  Also our supply buyers have had to return to the US due to medical concerns so we now have to do all our own buying of supplies.  A few weeks ago we bought a 50kg sack of flour and divided it out into buckets.  How long would it take you to go through 50 K of flour?  We're getting to the end of our.  Mainly because I help with a little tortilla business every week that consumes around 8kg of flour.