tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27487487365964561082024-03-12T23:45:08.739-04:00Journey through 2010A journey, one picture at a time, through the life of our family in 2010...my attempt at project 365Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.comBlogger229125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-79944036838777306402012-02-16T17:14:00.002-05:002012-02-16T17:24:25.160-05:00New Blog!!!Since it is now 2012 and my blog title is still journey through 2010, I decided that I needed a new name and a new face to my blog. I made it a point not to choose a name that had anything specific like names or dates - it is simply a blog about life from my point of view. So, from here on out, all my posts will be made at my new blog, <a href="http://beccaspointofview.blogspot.com/">www.beccaspointofview.blogspot.com</a>. <div><br /></div><div>This blog has 200 and something posts that I was sad to lose. But, after reading through blogger, I found out how to import all of my posts from here, onto my new <a href="http://beccaspointofview.blogspot.com/">blog</a>! So, if anyone wants to go back and see what 2010 (and 2011) was actually like, they still can!</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm excited about my new blog name and am really thankful to all my readers. While traveling across the United States, many of you have commented on how much you enjoy reading my blog. I really appreciated your kind words. It is fun to journal about life on the mission field, and I love giving everyone a different perspective. So often we hear the men's side of life on the field, and it is good to see things through a different lense from time to time. </div><div><br /></div><div>I look forward to journeying through 2012 (and beyond) with you! </div>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-8149504038909412912011-06-23T02:30:00.004-04:002011-06-23T07:22:50.993-04:00NetCastersIf you aren't familiar with Netcasters, I'll briefly explain it.<div><br /></div><div>You are probably familiar with the little Sunday School song, "I Will Make You Fishers of Men." That is what this program is all about. It is basically an intense training course on how to effectively share the Gospel and lead people to Christ. Those who participate have to memorize a ton of scripture and steps on how to share the gospel. There are training sessions every day to equip. One day I plan to take it myself. It is very time intensive and bringing the kids to Bamenda from 7:30 in the morning until 8 pm. every day it just impossible at this point. When they get older though, we will definitely take part. </div><div><br /></div><div>So the first day there were 60 people in attendance. That day is just straight teaching. Nobody goes out for "Catching-Catching" as they call it. On the 2nd day, our church had 80 people in attendance! Wow! We even had a few come all the way from Benakuma! One of my Sunday School kids is even taking part in the program (11 or 12 years old) and Ben said he is so bold it is unbelievable! :D After a morning of training, the group pairs up into teams of 2 or 3. The head of each team is a believer who has experience sharing the gospel, and they go out. Basically they go door to door, or business to business. After a couple hours of sharing the gospel, they come back for testimony and praise time. On day 2, Ben's group was busy sharing the gospel with a group of men and he was late and missed the entire testimony time. He finally heard an amazing testimony yesterday (day 3) and I had to share it on my blog. </div><div><br /></div><div>A group of 2 Cameroonian guys went out to share the gospel. On day 2 it was really rainy and stormy in Bamenda, so it is amazing how many people recieved the gospel that day. Anyway, David was sharing the gospel to 3 guys and they listened, but basically ended the conversation with ... We need to think about it. David kept pressing them with the fact that today is the day of salvation. He gave an example and told them, that at any time, lightening could come down from this heavy storm and strike them dead. If they didn't repent and believe the gospel, they would spend eternity in hell. He told Ben yesterday that right at that very moment, lightening struck the spot where those three guys were standing - and literally knocked two of them off their feet! One man said he felt the lightening strike his hand! You better believe that right that second all three of those guys bowed their heads and put their faith and trust in Jesus!! </div><div><br /></div><div>It sounds unbelievable doesn't it! God works in mysterious ways! :D</div><div><br /></div><div>Yesterday the group was down to about 65 and they had another amazing day of "catching-catching" Tonight the Netcasters group that came from the states to teach this program is coming over for dinner. It is Emma's birthday, so she wanted to celebrate with a crowd. And there are about 20 of them! So she definitely got her crowd! lol! I made one cake and now need to make another one. I've got ice cream ready to freeze and I'm making taco soup and serving it over rice to make it go further along with cornbread casserole. Hopefully it will be enough food. And thank the Lord - both the power and water came back today! I'm in desperate need of both!</div>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-89493470711382116512011-06-20T17:28:00.014-04:002011-06-20T18:16:38.733-04:00June Update<div style="text-align: left;">Oh man, there is a lot to share...so I best get right down to it!</div><div><br /></div><div>I have been enjoying our summer break. I am still keeping the kids busy with their vacation station books. We are also really focusing on learning our times tables, since Drew has a weakness in that area, and Kate should be memorizing them now too. The kids are doing well and don't mind the bit of school I push on them each day to keep them caught up.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ben found a special treat in Bamenda a couple weeks ago. They are long gone by now, but we managed to stretch them out for a few days anyway:</div><div><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZHV0FaH1KlRO7vIEB5ulpVGooBQGRT5UZBhbhe0a_3aml6b9r1Cjtv3LHkv_L9BPC8eBFBfkhWZmbfSPeZDAJXaem01yrZVznQsA_k9JyxOBbPfnhoRHuvU9VBAvV1I8MjCHmFxhofnrl/s1600/DSC07743.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZHV0FaH1KlRO7vIEB5ulpVGooBQGRT5UZBhbhe0a_3aml6b9r1Cjtv3LHkv_L9BPC8eBFBfkhWZmbfSPeZDAJXaem01yrZVznQsA_k9JyxOBbPfnhoRHuvU9VBAvV1I8MjCHmFxhofnrl/s400/DSC07743.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620418528061785234" /></a><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbs5mi3Nqq6Apsly7G5Ov1XcFq8VP7bhb8C1hrHs7owfjBiswGPxjwwrJsUAYCbLJATk9UHSUHITINdUMQ_RjmcPDbRjk52J24U9Kafb0kr34K-xW67M7_OTSMsRlE0glE9DSG9lvTVdZ/s1600/DSC07746.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 337px; height: 400px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCbs5mi3Nqq6Apsly7G5Ov1XcFq8VP7bhb8C1hrHs7owfjBiswGPxjwwrJsUAYCbLJATk9UHSUHITINdUMQ_RjmcPDbRjk52J24U9Kafb0kr34K-xW67M7_OTSMsRlE0glE9DSG9lvTVdZ/s400/DSC07746.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620418533633614562" /></a></div>Yummy! Who doesn't love Lucky Charms?! It is my favorite cereal...or one of them anyway. I'm kind of a sugar cereal fanatic. <div><br /></div><div>The kids have also been doing well with their piano. They love their teacher, Miss Sarah and she has been such a blessing to teach the kids each week. One of our favorite days of the week is Tuesday because we go up to the Needhams for piano lessons. Check out this dinosaur of a fruit that Aunt Barb had on hand:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4LnVXyaFZKjguB1ooeIKrbj8lZKT_5VoIDxZuYX8cT8GlCtPn5Ntpm6MtjtlVKX-EyciM2P0a6B2nxi3TrzdL1Maar-FLNWuwUgX0oZlJpcAvrlaYuYQ2QLe643DWDxon650aj4YjTCRk/s1600/DSC07768.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4LnVXyaFZKjguB1ooeIKrbj8lZKT_5VoIDxZuYX8cT8GlCtPn5Ntpm6MtjtlVKX-EyciM2P0a6B2nxi3TrzdL1Maar-FLNWuwUgX0oZlJpcAvrlaYuYQ2QLe643DWDxon650aj4YjTCRk/s400/DSC07768.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620420011131981330" /></a>Last week the kids finished up their final piano lessons and Sarah held a piano recital as well. It was so nice. Our three kids prepared music and there were two Cameroonian girls that Sarah and April have been teaching. Sarah also played some beautiful solo numbers.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO32Lohgr4p_jgBEMcoNKui5DSU58w8mSGsDtK7-f1r_NWHfRJvAA7mA0z4FhA0hOROO_hg8TiDmRC1MuBuaFnIhatks9E0fQc3njJPNgbo38SXcnOoTT-zK4cOAvbtwUOK3XIN58Pg_xC/s1600/DSC07759.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO32Lohgr4p_jgBEMcoNKui5DSU58w8mSGsDtK7-f1r_NWHfRJvAA7mA0z4FhA0hOROO_hg8TiDmRC1MuBuaFnIhatks9E0fQc3njJPNgbo38SXcnOoTT-zK4cOAvbtwUOK3XIN58Pg_xC/s400/DSC07759.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620420946197740690" /></a></div><div>The kids did a great job and we got the whole thing on video for the grandparents as well. :D</div><div><br /></div><div>We have a new restaurant we have been going to on Mondays for the past few weeks, Friman's. It isn't really new to us, but we don't take the family there very often until recently when my girls have gotten a hankerin' for Fufu and Njamajama. It is a very typical Cameroon dish that my girls love. Kate and Emma are really funny - they make the perfect pair. Kate prefers the Fufu, and Emma the Njamajama. So, they eat a bit of both, but end up swapping for their favorites near the end of the meal.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7Oam0BlXye1b8X-W916GFmoNrvw2U4dFxCAo5TnFcMgs8YXeQ3hdOEOTXdWIZgH6QYk3GVzCet_4fgjDsR8a5XQ82hTSvgMOlKc7n8EPF2AfzOp8tPmCvteJKYd9qAqJKbxUtnPKNm2J/s1600/DSC07787.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7Oam0BlXye1b8X-W916GFmoNrvw2U4dFxCAo5TnFcMgs8YXeQ3hdOEOTXdWIZgH6QYk3GVzCet_4fgjDsR8a5XQ82hTSvgMOlKc7n8EPF2AfzOp8tPmCvteJKYd9qAqJKbxUtnPKNm2J/s400/DSC07787.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620422897287018578" /></a>Well, most of you know that our furlough is fast approaching. 17 days to be exact. :D In preparation for furlough, I wanted to get a suit made for Drew. I figured buying him a suit in the states would cost near an arm and a leg, and we got one made for 30 bucks. It isn't finished yet, but I've seen how well the suits look here, so I have no doubt it will look professional when it is finished. Here is a shot of the suit man measuring Drew.</div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihTW-GKTxALbJ2N_S_2l4gu6533nLFB_4sOeqDxv8OdILn9Bz6fwxc4IaIxs28GrO5GAu9cJoylsg__afATmWw7DOGaMZFH6wz4ObytWqz9JKtbClsJbJLCz63URpw3ZOslWLrolpw72ys/s1600/DSC07789.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihTW-GKTxALbJ2N_S_2l4gu6533nLFB_4sOeqDxv8OdILn9Bz6fwxc4IaIxs28GrO5GAu9cJoylsg__afATmWw7DOGaMZFH6wz4ObytWqz9JKtbClsJbJLCz63URpw3ZOslWLrolpw72ys/s400/DSC07789.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620423673574879858" /></a>I am also going to get an outfit made for myself - something I've never done successfully. This time I have a trusted seamstress, Mirabel. She came to the house today and took my measurements - I can't wait to see the finished product. Here's hoping it fits ok! :D</div><div><br /></div><div>This past Friday we had a meal in our home for our church leaders from both Bambili and Bamenda. I'm always a little nervous hosting Cameroonians b/c they don't ususally like my cooking. I figured I'd go with a favorite all over the world, Spaghetti. It was a hit! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA_c4TJns5KjbBALaJbJk7qGPL3pT2okpX-YqQAsPw8qzAxV9KDMpvqfJz4fqNZwFfTBWYE7_Do8wqq1uup4pbQEMbcApP4P2adUAzJbA3KI5yASGM9evcDu3wOZG4pwqV3itdpvpnRHUy/s1600/DSC07794.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA_c4TJns5KjbBALaJbJk7qGPL3pT2okpX-YqQAsPw8qzAxV9KDMpvqfJz4fqNZwFfTBWYE7_Do8wqq1uup4pbQEMbcApP4P2adUAzJbA3KI5yASGM9evcDu3wOZG4pwqV3itdpvpnRHUy/s400/DSC07794.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620424166673193906" /></a></div><div>Something new that I learned on this night... Cameroonians like butter. I put it on the table thinking...maybe some of them will have it. I know my kids will anyway. My kids barely had any and the rest of them took down an entire cup of butter for that meal. Wow. I also had french bread of course, to go with the butter, carrots and green bean medley (that sounds so fancy - really just carrots and green beans steamed together) and carrot cake for dessert, which they also loved. We had a great time of group prayer after our meal. We are so thankful for these leaders in our church and are just praying that one will step up and commit to becoming a pastor for one of our churches. Please pray with us.</div><div><br /></div><div>This past Sunday we had a wonderful baptism service. Brother Walters was baptized.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqoPjsMCZdHXTvcPUkjt3bsnxbH7Wtks_rdW3IfbdR5uPdMMuescDJgtDw-ZXVGOkdFHr1S7err8ChwPuMaBtrSNMoK-ct6fyzmfwG608M16g-UXQseM1rN_gnmR3kgF7ToxVJXfadRwV/s1600/DSC07814.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhqoPjsMCZdHXTvcPUkjt3bsnxbH7Wtks_rdW3IfbdR5uPdMMuescDJgtDw-ZXVGOkdFHr1S7err8ChwPuMaBtrSNMoK-ct6fyzmfwG608M16g-UXQseM1rN_gnmR3kgF7ToxVJXfadRwV/s400/DSC07814.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620424861900745074" /></a></div><div>This man has an amazing testimony of God's miraculous work in his life. His first and foremost miraculous work was his spiritual birth of course, but he also had a brush with death and God spared him. And amazingly enough, his brush with death occurred in America. He came to the states many years ago as a student. Late one night he picked up a man needing a ride. Unfortunately he could tell immediately this man was on drugs. The guy pulled out a knife and made him drive to the nearest ATM machine. He demanded that Bro. Walters pull all his money out of the bank, which he did at several thousand dollars, and gave it to the thief. They got back in the car and the man told him to take him back to where he'd picked him up. Somewhere along the way, the guy must have had enough presence of mind to realize that he could be identified unless he did something, so he took his knife and slashed Bro. Walters throat. The man ran off, and bro. Walters made it to the nearest phone booth, dialed 911 and the next thing he knew he woke up in the hospital several months later. The doctors told him that when they found him, he was clinically dead. And of course he was in a coma for some time and they never knew if he'd ever wake up. Thank God that this man received two new lives - a physical one and a spiritual one. </div><div><br /></div><div>The last thing I want to mention is something very important taking place this week. Our Bamenda church has the privilege of hosting a Netcasters seminar. Pastor Mark Gilmore from Falls Baptist in Wisconsin has come out with a team, to train believers how to share the gospel effectively. The days are full - from 8 in the morning until 6 in the evening. All the sister churches were also invited. We are running our bus from Bamessing all the way to Bamenda and back each day. Pray that the bus keeps running. Pray for fruit that remains as hundreds of Bamenda residents will hear the gospel this week. And how encouraging it was for our church to see this group on the first day of Netcasters:</div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiajcVfcDL5EU42lbnol3GLKaMaXO2uNNUcnM49VteNWrB90KcVxJ4-ykXuTBURAJUU2arSNPCCatKMlKenU1Y-UGmEncHieKIwKDZfsycyAgTeccjiYzPSQbneDx8teCL6UcUhyMU6Bam8/s1600/DSC07831.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiajcVfcDL5EU42lbnol3GLKaMaXO2uNNUcnM49VteNWrB90KcVxJ4-ykXuTBURAJUU2arSNPCCatKMlKenU1Y-UGmEncHieKIwKDZfsycyAgTeccjiYzPSQbneDx8teCL6UcUhyMU6Bam8/s400/DSC07831.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5620427979651201202" /></a></div><div>Thank you to so many of you who read my blog. I really appreciate it. I hope it has been a blessing and help in keeping up with our ministry. I also hope to see some of you on furlough in just a couple of weeks!!</div><div></div>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-63228856571753672482011-05-11T15:04:00.000-04:002011-05-13T16:47:23.463-04:00May UpdateI absolutely love rainy season. My favorite time of year, and it is now in full swing. Today it was rainy, and is now breezy and very cold! I love it! In fact, if it weren't for the fact that I'm cozy in my kitchen with the oven and burners going, I'd be snuggled under a blanket with my warmest socks and sweats on! It is like a cold fall day (which is my favorite time of year in America by the way).<div><br /></div><div>The last few weeks since family camp have been busy, but not nearly as busy when the kids were in school. We have been spending the mornings doing our "<a href="http://www.bjupress.com/resources/vacation-stations/">vacation station</a>" books. They are awesome workbooks put out by BJU press, that give the kids a review of what they have learned about over the past year. It will hopefully keep them sharp so that when they head back to school, they won't forget what was learned this year. We have also been studying the states. The kids can sing the 50 Nifty United States song and we have been quizzing capitals and other facts of the first five states. We delve into California next and I'd love for them to be able to fill out a map of the US and also know the capital city of each state...but we will see. I bought some candy, and if they want a piece they either have to answer a question about one of our states, or they have to sing for me! lol! I have been working with the kids on music and they have a lot of songs prepared for our furlough travels. My mom is anxiously awaiting their return so they can sing in church and she can beam with pride and joy! They are doing a great job and I'm so thankful for kids that truly love to sing!</div><div><br /></div><div>The kids have been taking piano lessons too, and we had a really fun day at piano lessons this past week! Rosemary Craven got some horses together and after the kids had their lessons they rode horses for a while. Then we had a picnic lunch outside on the grass and after lunch the older Needhams kids took my kiddos down the water slide! We forgot our camera, but I'm pretty sure that Abby Sanderlin got some pictures, so I'll have to beg them off her. They had a blast and slept like babies that night! They were so exhausted!</div><div><br /></div><div>I tried something new this past week that I've never tried before...making donuts! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoIx-MV9_lF2wdZ5VqBS6JgYNt8H5IOs2eS4QX7V2ln0_5L_FU3Zle1-pvFWCBeuEiqLyx6x3-_95FkvEPATW5RBfiUfChKPncZOMeyH5FuQSJkh5Tu0vfgMJ_MHZO225RNYKJ1wVYPNBK/s1600/dinner.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoIx-MV9_lF2wdZ5VqBS6JgYNt8H5IOs2eS4QX7V2ln0_5L_FU3Zle1-pvFWCBeuEiqLyx6x3-_95FkvEPATW5RBfiUfChKPncZOMeyH5FuQSJkh5Tu0vfgMJ_MHZO225RNYKJ1wVYPNBK/s400/dinner.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605770400237225442" /></a></div><div>I used a biscuit cutter to cut the donut and a bottle cap to cut out the centers. When I'm home I'll pick up a donut cutter. They are really cheap and it will be fun to have one to make donuts. I was surprised at how easy they were! And the family loved them!</div><div><br /></div><div>I also wanted to share this picture of my Mom on mothers day. She and my aunt took my grandmother out to lunch. I love this picture of of all of them!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsMYQPEw4wsMocU7zQjAbIPK4VIiD-SAD-gAQucrlIzlYvzepHcPZ4LqlDq6eaiGEv75wBb-QFSRBf3xyo3forDwANNbcCCJo6E4GQcSo2lm33MHVF4XB6RIUizbvoX3lwcbGObA-d3SDs/s1600/mom-grammie-auntie+copy.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"></a></div><div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsMYQPEw4wsMocU7zQjAbIPK4VIiD-SAD-gAQucrlIzlYvzepHcPZ4LqlDq6eaiGEv75wBb-QFSRBf3xyo3forDwANNbcCCJo6E4GQcSo2lm33MHVF4XB6RIUizbvoX3lwcbGObA-d3SDs/s1600/mom-grammie-auntie+copy.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 315px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsMYQPEw4wsMocU7zQjAbIPK4VIiD-SAD-gAQucrlIzlYvzepHcPZ4LqlDq6eaiGEv75wBb-QFSRBf3xyo3forDwANNbcCCJo6E4GQcSo2lm33MHVF4XB6RIUizbvoX3lwcbGObA-d3SDs/s400/mom-grammie-auntie+copy.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605768286761820642" /></a></div>I spent the early hours of Mother's day up sick...blech! Ben was gone for a three day weekend to Benakuma to encourage the churches out there. It was just me and the kiddos. They spent the morning doing who knows what while I tried to catch a few winks of sleep to make up for my long night. They did watch movies and I do know that they made a mess! Oh well...thankfully nothing bad happened! lol! But, I did get a really great early Mother's day gift before Ben left for Benakuma...<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgry7z9u1MVi-k4ViIlXaVAfqjwwSdFccTjBBwovq2CUbbvYjiVMVXMzaXj55lP6M2tw98js2GT3S8ElFuxFbGEiSBlC3_X_B2W8lVv-AGghwr9yr7l4aIm5Hczv-yPhChsHiB8OhT8K1bW/s1600/My-Kindle.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgry7z9u1MVi-k4ViIlXaVAfqjwwSdFccTjBBwovq2CUbbvYjiVMVXMzaXj55lP6M2tw98js2GT3S8ElFuxFbGEiSBlC3_X_B2W8lVv-AGghwr9yr7l4aIm5Hczv-yPhChsHiB8OhT8K1bW/s400/My-Kindle.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605773481073110786" /></a><div>Yeah, I scrapped it! haha! I have been thoroughly enjoying my Kindle and have already read two books that I got for free! How can you beat that!! My scrapbook page tells the story of how I came across my Kindle earlier than I should have...Oops! Mom sent it to Ben in a package and she had wrapped it very carefully with Ben's name on it. I was going crazy when the box came, opening up everything...I didn't even think twice when I opened that package! Before I'd even gotten all of the brown paper off of it, I saw what it was. Ben walked in about that moment and I said, "I don't think I'm supposed to see this...am I?" It was originally an anniversary gift, but he knew how much I wanted it, so he switched some things around and decided to give it to me for Mother's day. What a guy!! I'm so glad he did too, b/c I am really enjoying it!</div><div><br /></div><div>I wanted to share this adorable picture of Emma and her new smile. Her front teeth are coming in and she looks so cute! I just grin everytime she looks at me. It completely changes her whole look!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyaFMLHInuJDKQNYnj06PCMH41n44VrxQnlyMDuOmlTYSPs-3mRcqy3jbycCeRv7Tfaca_sdmU_KiOkkLbonfzRyQWdfW1IeEd4oNi4hC-l2-GzjVXYMGO3bXk8E2vK_HklfckdhmGK-ol/s1600/emma.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyaFMLHInuJDKQNYnj06PCMH41n44VrxQnlyMDuOmlTYSPs-3mRcqy3jbycCeRv7Tfaca_sdmU_KiOkkLbonfzRyQWdfW1IeEd4oNi4hC-l2-GzjVXYMGO3bXk8E2vK_HklfckdhmGK-ol/s400/emma.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605775420194711602" /></a></div><div>She and Faith Ann suck their thumbs, and and since Emma's new teeth have started coming in, I have determined to make them quit. I have this nail polish called Mavala Stop. It worked for Kate who was a die hard finger sucker (she sucked her pointer finger) and so I know it will work for Emma and Faith. It is a big pain, b/c they have to be careful about picking up food even or the stuff will get on it. I told them I didn't care if they had to experience a little bit of discomfort...I was going to get them to stop! It is ruining their teeth...Hopefully it will work quickly. </div><div><br /></div><div>Well, less than two months until furlough...and counting! We are getting excited and definitely looking forward to it! I know the next two months will fly by really fast. They always do. </div> <p class="MsoNormal">Until next time!</p>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-90545500948596245222011-04-25T17:19:00.014-04:002011-04-25T18:23:11.144-04:00Family CampLife has been busy. But a good busy! So, I'll give you an update on what has been happening in the Sinclair house.<br /><br />First and foremost...We are done with school! Yahoo!!! Family camp was coming up and I was really pushing the kids to finish. We'd gotten behind with some lessons b/c of sickness, so by doubling up and doing extra work the kids were able to finish the Friday before camp. Emma still has a little bit of work, but we are just going to do it together a little bit each day. No pressure. :)<br /><br />I have been doing a little bit of sewing. Here are my latest projects. First is a dress I made for Kate.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8bPugCwKAMCP2wAupEpOKIN6p6qc8bQLi3IFJNVRaj-SfyQR_3n5nXdXx5WlzeB2b2o2f8f7Q-6-aGkMmqI22F3Axa6GYdbP6R8BAOEb2CgvuJPmrTGCgXph-9RVx0eQA2tHOh2Ce2yJ_/s1600/DSC07517.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8bPugCwKAMCP2wAupEpOKIN6p6qc8bQLi3IFJNVRaj-SfyQR_3n5nXdXx5WlzeB2b2o2f8f7Q-6-aGkMmqI22F3Axa6GYdbP6R8BAOEb2CgvuJPmrTGCgXph-9RVx0eQA2tHOh2Ce2yJ_/s400/DSC07517.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599634855885805186" /></a>and I also made her a twirl skirt.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDJ77dnshhp8RZGC7cBKvVSRbgWfFDMfO6b205OY7-1Miy686y5IUwXv7uys8Q9Cd9-p6_3wPzX5j6kGEMYryXSByCdERTwMgp5jWbd-t1D5cEISRXb1M2zYf9ng6kEEbPlkJF80TKB7m/s1600/DSC07527.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaDJ77dnshhp8RZGC7cBKvVSRbgWfFDMfO6b205OY7-1Miy686y5IUwXv7uys8Q9Cd9-p6_3wPzX5j6kGEMYryXSByCdERTwMgp5jWbd-t1D5cEISRXb1M2zYf9ng6kEEbPlkJF80TKB7m/s400/DSC07527.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599635948984051554" /></a>I found this great pattern on www.youcanmakethis.com. I love that website by the way. There are tons of gorgeous patterns and they are all downloadable pdf files. You just print them, cut out the pattern peices and sew away. They are so much easier to follow than simplicity or any other brand pattern name! Yesterday I had a lot of fun sewing clothes for American girl dolls. While at Family camp a family there had their car broken into. It was some kids and they stole some odd things. One of them being the girl's American girl doll clothes. Not the dolls mind you...but the clothes. Go figure. So, the twirl skirt pattern that I'd made for my girls came with an American doll version. I couldn't wait to try it out. I also found some more free patterns at www.libertyjaneclothing.com Here is one outfit that I made...it turned out so cute!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPl9kYFgkOjiEhioiQvIStO8ZAfQmIWtoAJOsh_QofPN06nWxeTcS_72iNj9-4lWiypaP3mvLAbo4i8trC3BVwaH4lM-jixpoOEQNOSpDAlaMPMcfo2HeZewzz2xwKdoWFByOHosRsRQoy/s1600/DSC02538.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPl9kYFgkOjiEhioiQvIStO8ZAfQmIWtoAJOsh_QofPN06nWxeTcS_72iNj9-4lWiypaP3mvLAbo4i8trC3BVwaH4lM-jixpoOEQNOSpDAlaMPMcfo2HeZewzz2xwKdoWFByOHosRsRQoy/s400/DSC02538.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599637306616150786" /></a>Down the road when my girls get an American girl doll...I will be able to make them some cute clothes!<br /><br />Some fun family things we have done lately:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq2xlgwVxU8cAQYhP4FBG0MFADeWfTlykhifZ055FCtpEkP2MTSXyrZdTP3vLU24Bi1ND1LLIv5kWD0fRgksnu008ztnelsQ9hHwfUuDQqRn5f3a0cTlqs1OxfPEB-zKgWi__JEr23rwjZ/s1600/DSC07530.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq2xlgwVxU8cAQYhP4FBG0MFADeWfTlykhifZ055FCtpEkP2MTSXyrZdTP3vLU24Bi1ND1LLIv5kWD0fRgksnu008ztnelsQ9hHwfUuDQqRn5f3a0cTlqs1OxfPEB-zKgWi__JEr23rwjZ/s400/DSC07530.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599637740840485458" /></a>Playing in the sprinkler. That was fun!! We have regularly scheduled rationed water now, which has been such a blessing. Every couple of days we get a full day of high pressure water. I take advantage of those days and get lots of laundry done. I also get in at least a couple showers! haha! Well, we decided on one hot day that it would be fun to dig the sprinkler out.<br /><br /><div>We also had a family bowling night:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhithu-p_Rzp15FD51v0zrp6twxOZwJBjYYS4pp7tH6Jl97LFOIkXwDYaRDOkjR5l2hce1__GzPnrQavZ4W3EUd3gbJh8PIvoJenhiyJE8GvOrNlbg_0pK-V8We1T6ZS6tGvOOoQUBU3TfI/s1600/DSC07553.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhithu-p_Rzp15FD51v0zrp6twxOZwJBjYYS4pp7tH6Jl97LFOIkXwDYaRDOkjR5l2hce1__GzPnrQavZ4W3EUd3gbJh8PIvoJenhiyJE8GvOrNlbg_0pK-V8We1T6ZS6tGvOOoQUBU3TfI/s400/DSC07553.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599638373354044242" /></a>Our bowling ball (one of those dryer balls) was not very effective. Ben finally dug out my HUGE exercise ball! That did the trick! Lots of strikes occurred after that! lol!<br /><br />Ben had the opportunity to meet the U.S. Ambassador.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0mc1fa-EQqriFUUKUXMiSLRo-cIcUJ8-_Lw59gKIKoAbiM4Y9tVtGamTOaPH69otVguKvMeTUp4oS2HP7XNZI8FmPjwL6fNeU0bVpXf682bpY_y9WFRk81GLDgGgupsh0Zhgey2XM00e/s1600/DSC07526.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0mc1fa-EQqriFUUKUXMiSLRo-cIcUJ8-_Lw59gKIKoAbiM4Y9tVtGamTOaPH69otVguKvMeTUp4oS2HP7XNZI8FmPjwL6fNeU0bVpXf682bpY_y9WFRk81GLDgGgupsh0Zhgey2XM00e/s400/DSC07526.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599639532191685650" /></a>Tom Needham, a missionary near us, invited the ambassador up for a breakfast. He invited all the missionaries as well, but it was a little too early for my liking. Plus I wanted to keep the kids focused on school as family camp was the next week. So he went up and spent an hour with the ambassador. Keep praying for our CBF government approval. We brought the need once again to the ambassador's attention, and he promised he would keep bringing it before the president's office. All we need is the president's signature and we will have complete legal authority to plant churches. As an added bonus it will also make living here significantly cheaper!<br /><br />The next big event was our missionary family camp. Each year all the fundamental, gospel preaching missionaries, gather up in Sabga for a conference. Sabga is about 20 minutes from our home, so we stay at our house and host some of the other visiting missionary families. This year we had Don and Ann Wright in our home. That was a treat. Some of you that comment on my blog may have noticed that Ann frequently comments on here. It was such a treat to have them in our home!! All of the other visiting missionaries stayed up in Sabga.<br /><br />Our conference started on Monday night. Dr. Wayne Van Geldren and his wife came to be our speaker. All of the missionary ladies divided up the cooking responsibilities. Since I am pretty much by myself right now, I decided to do the meal on Monday night. I figured I'd have all weekend and all day Monday to prepare. So, I was a little loco and chose to do Tacos! haha! I paid a Cameroonian to make 150 tortillas. Ben and I ground up 10 lbs. of meat. I made a bucket full of chips. Two huge bowls of Salsa. Three jars of home made dressing and two big trays of salad fixings. I also made up a big bowl of nacho cheese sauce and made up a bowl of sour cream as well. The meal was an absolute hit. I was SO completely stressed by the end of that day, and was really thankful that I'd chosen to get my meal out of the way at the beginning of the week! lol! But thank the Lord it turned out yummy and that there was enough to feed over 70 of us!<br /><br />We had three sessions a day and the children had their own special meetings of missionary and Bible stories and crafts. There was a zip-line for them to play on, and a volleyball net and a fun day of play in the water with a home made water slide. We came home exhausted at the end of each day, but it was a wonderful week. I always enjoy the fellowship with the ladies that I only get to see a few times a year. Some only once a year! Our family prepared several special music numbers. In fact the very first night Drew and Kate sang a special.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3x3s7oD4OvAktkVYgXWcMEaKhd9n7YHuxUv6_yB3-gYEbkvMYQcYTSyMLxmTIMi6jsBuJDtbchC5p6KSqLG4sImyXOiRdbIRE9VijW8JKJCY1xkX1_IlD9c3tpa5olRr4dfITmGRUYQzS/s1600/DSC07555.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3x3s7oD4OvAktkVYgXWcMEaKhd9n7YHuxUv6_yB3-gYEbkvMYQcYTSyMLxmTIMi6jsBuJDtbchC5p6KSqLG4sImyXOiRdbIRE9VijW8JKJCY1xkX1_IlD9c3tpa5olRr4dfITmGRUYQzS/s400/DSC07555.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599642164376424402" /></a>It was kind of an odd night. Right before the service started a big storm blew in. Tom was afraid of hail, so we had to bring both of the airplanes in the hangar. We all crowded chairs around as best we could. For the rest of the week, however, the planes were parked outside the hangar and we were able to sit like we normally do. Even in the craziness Drew and Kate sang and did a wonderful job. One of these days I'll have to post a video, but they sing parts so well. We also sang two family specials the next day. I had the privilege of singing a duet with Christine Mossman. We both love to just sing through music. It was SO fun to sight read music. I haven't done that for a while. We sang a beautiful choir number and also a ladies group number. During one practice I wanted to just sit there and cry...the words, the music, the parts...I just really enjoy singing and miss being able to sing through arranged music like that. It was an extra special blessing this week.<br /><br />The kids also did a choir number<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqMOUu0sspwXEq5Fz4PqFHF_TKV7yCNFbQTitPeNnANlPxe7hZfnUx6u17LnWw4idsEfTiRDC84cywvpVrUZ1SkYCiUrTHhU9ECyZ5CfoIvZzaSTrL42o6GTzgIoF2zflQGD5ZMZp47Fh/s1600/DSC07562.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCqMOUu0sspwXEq5Fz4PqFHF_TKV7yCNFbQTitPeNnANlPxe7hZfnUx6u17LnWw4idsEfTiRDC84cywvpVrUZ1SkYCiUrTHhU9ECyZ5CfoIvZzaSTrL42o6GTzgIoF2zflQGD5ZMZp47Fh/s400/DSC07562.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599643893842540402" /></a>The boy to the left of Drew became Drew's buddy during this week of camp. I was so thrilled that he found a friend. Caleb Wright lives in the far north of Cameroon, so we only see the Wrights once a year, but since camp, Drew has already gotten an email from Caleb. I think they will become great friends. One of these days we want to take the kids up to the far north. The Bachman family and the Wright family serve up there and both are great friends. They don't get too many visitors, and I know it would be a neat experience for our family.<br /><br />And I have to show you pictures of the make-shift water slide<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6PJ4VpgC281aZpqwBF8vEd3G2qdH0sgMfeIWJKIhiyzYaUZ0crB0XUeLHPEsThCoDRtlUkuoAdITQwIuFY5xURqh64e7D_8u5nj8PmWsZRg6MJtbOswxyQLcsKusz8NTkIGrb6k5ayQZU/s1600/DSC07557.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6PJ4VpgC281aZpqwBF8vEd3G2qdH0sgMfeIWJKIhiyzYaUZ0crB0XUeLHPEsThCoDRtlUkuoAdITQwIuFY5xURqh64e7D_8u5nj8PmWsZRg6MJtbOswxyQLcsKusz8NTkIGrb6k5ayQZU/s400/DSC07557.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599644910259942226" /></a>The kids had a blast playing on this all afternoon. There is a nice waterslide that Tom made out of cement. But it had a big hole in it and wasn't repaired in time. So Kathy Needham came up with this great idea and the kids didn't even miss the other slide. They had so much fun!<br /><br />The sessions and the preaching were so refreshing spiritually. I was challenged in so many areas. One of them being in my parenting. We received some great teaching this week of camp, and I am so thankful for the amazing week that God gave us!<br /><br />So, that is an un-condensed update! lol! Now that the kids are done with school, we have started a summer school of sorts. They do review work every morning to keep them sharp on the skills they learned this year. They are each reading a book they have chosen and we are also reading one book orally as a group. For fun we are going to study each of the 50 United States and I'm hoping they can fill out a blank US map by the end of the summer. And I also have a goal of Drew and Kate memorizing their times tables! So, while school is done, we will have a much longer summer break than normal and I don't want them to forget what they have learned!<br /><br />Next big thing on the agenda...our trip home!! In about 10 weeks we will head home to the U.S. and we will now start counting down the days!</div>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-82138915495722566742011-03-26T08:45:00.009-04:002011-03-26T09:48:33.544-04:00Don't Faint!Don't faint because you are actually reading a blog post from me! haha! I've been busy, and lazy mostly. lol. But I wanted my Mom to see some pictures, so thus a blog post. I figured you all might like to see too!<br /><br />We have been busy with life in general. Kids are so close to being done with school. Only 25 lessons left and in some subjects less than that. I'm anxious for them to be done as well. Of course, they are more anxious. We recently started three of the older kidso on piano lessons. So that is extra time for them, and Ben and I. Tom and Barb Needham's daughter, Sarah, just graduated with a major in piano, so she was happy to offer lessons. It is good teaching practice for her and of course great for my kids. They were so excited the night before that they couldn't sleep. Once I started buckling down on their practice time though, Emma came to me and said, "Mom, I don't really want to take piano. I just said that I did because I wanted to go to Uncle Tom's house." haha! I said, "Tough! I am making you and you will thank me for it later." On the day of their very first lesson, they came back all excited to tell me all about...piano?? No. They couldn't wait to tell me all about Goliath:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoLhe3OJfiaXxWawpIHRZbDD-nsmBrueB1VZDAHn4tHo8MFrU20KflEVZpFhxt4_bYdJcpNNwLLBY5oEC93S91fmU73Tt3-zGn19SWHPVppqwc09FbJ3IPc82A312y5TYf9orpWTZDF-Ak/s1600/chameleon.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoLhe3OJfiaXxWawpIHRZbDD-nsmBrueB1VZDAHn4tHo8MFrU20KflEVZpFhxt4_bYdJcpNNwLLBY5oEC93S91fmU73Tt3-zGn19SWHPVppqwc09FbJ3IPc82A312y5TYf9orpWTZDF-Ak/s400/chameleon.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588371220436475650" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPOY8h36zCJzNoNgn6Pf6Av7lfMGcwVyrzDo2j7hH6iUJEvpSyn4oOWWX_aeSnl6FyqZr_9RG83xStr0sxORsgiP07-kCMECm1yXFCxJMqMN4vYk2d6JAs4jYnN7K5mSLnrUM1f49DGODK/s1600/chameleon+close.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 252px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPOY8h36zCJzNoNgn6Pf6Av7lfMGcwVyrzDo2j7hH6iUJEvpSyn4oOWWX_aeSnl6FyqZr_9RG83xStr0sxORsgiP07-kCMECm1yXFCxJMqMN4vYk2d6JAs4jYnN7K5mSLnrUM1f49DGODK/s400/chameleon+close.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588371218005299410" /></a><br />Now that is one big chameleon! Unfortunately, since then, Goliath has somehow escaped, so I guess I'll never get to meet him. :( lol!<br /><br />Some other fun treats that our family has been able to enjoy lately:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjuiMrQkBs3tw08mC9-FGT_nnODhD1J4QKcbjxO02YBPcarbQ4JKF0AX1GrIg-jcU-7fHbz3Ab7hT5S7CE63mMLw9Q4sy4tTQ2vFLZ4BdwqJTq969Xk2rG2_xhAIFGp2nou3VVEqltw4Dx/s1600/cherry+coke.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjuiMrQkBs3tw08mC9-FGT_nnODhD1J4QKcbjxO02YBPcarbQ4JKF0AX1GrIg-jcU-7fHbz3Ab7hT5S7CE63mMLw9Q4sy4tTQ2vFLZ4BdwqJTq969Xk2rG2_xhAIFGp2nou3VVEqltw4Dx/s400/cherry+coke.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588371862448845218" /></a><br />Yummmmm... and also this:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh67mnu4P1az0oHuxnLR5xKTbfYd5kpVrDpf-QtIx3cdXwYNa2N7GuodTOqtb9xnsVd1yxVqLYf1lNn1HnSDPV7ibuJY1O_UdTRLobbmckRJU0CQfs7CJuzfleLZLOxHggBtX9C9xKdOp5V/s1600/strawberries.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh67mnu4P1az0oHuxnLR5xKTbfYd5kpVrDpf-QtIx3cdXwYNa2N7GuodTOqtb9xnsVd1yxVqLYf1lNn1HnSDPV7ibuJY1O_UdTRLobbmckRJU0CQfs7CJuzfleLZLOxHggBtX9C9xKdOp5V/s400/strawberries.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588372794264709058" /></a><br />Ben found these canned strawberries in town that came from Europe and they were so yummy. I made strawberry shortcake and what a treat!<br /><br />The ministry is busy. This month is missions month and we have had different guest speakers on Sunday. Ben finishes off this Sunday with a message and we will be taking our Faith Promise committments. Praise the Lord, our church was able to support Pastor Felix this past year and we are praying that the committments will increase this year and we will be able to take on another national missionary. <br /><br />I picked up my needle and thread again and tackled another pattern. Simplicity is supposed to be so simple...NOT! haha! I get so stumped on patterns, but with the help of YouTube and google I figured it out and made a dress for Emma. The material is pretty downright ugly, but it was a free gift from our insurance company here. I figured it was the perfect thing to practice sewing on. I wouldn't cry too much if I messed up. I even made buttonholes! Of course, Emma is thrilled no matter what the material looks like!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsKwG__pGq8k5gFaVvcjOAwsB4BgPJUrjQoZ5QWltej4354ujX158ZhOP_3n7lxLlg_tsq20ti_qYPHmR9emQR5IbbtXcAuFHia-2i9qdvaUuMmOiJsujaFwDHtP-e3qCD5HQWn8miMjeY/s1600/Emma.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsKwG__pGq8k5gFaVvcjOAwsB4BgPJUrjQoZ5QWltej4354ujX158ZhOP_3n7lxLlg_tsq20ti_qYPHmR9emQR5IbbtXcAuFHia-2i9qdvaUuMmOiJsujaFwDHtP-e3qCD5HQWn8miMjeY/s400/Emma.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588375352424663938" /></a><br />I think that is pretty much it for an update. We have our annual family conference in about three weeks, and we are pretty excited about that. We look forward to that every year. I will be sure to give you an update of our week when that is done. And by then, we will also be done with school. I still plan to spend an hour every day doing school work with the kids to keep them sharp. Our summer break will be longer than normal, and if we don't do some practice math facts and sentence diagramming, they will forget everything! And then we are of course looking forward to our furlough the beginning of July!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-64082417326302491342011-02-17T13:52:00.003-05:002011-02-17T14:12:15.586-05:00A Word from our Sponser...Ben went to Benakuma this last weekend. This trip was quite a bit easier than the last, and he didn't have any exciting labor and delivery stories to share, but they had a great weekend and saw souls saved and believers encouraged. As always, he came back bursting with Benakuma news. He shared a neat little nugget that I could never put into the proper words. So, I asked him to write it down. I know it will be an encouragement to you:<br /><br /><strong>I know this is weird. The same day Becca changes her banner to read, “Missions from a Mom’s Perspective” she asks me to write a post on her blog. I am not sure what that means, but here goes. :D<br /> <br />This past weekend Tommike and I went out to minister in Benade and Benakuma. We saw at least six professions of faith and we were greatly blessed by the tremendous growth of Faith Baptist Church of Benade. This church is not even four months old and the small room they are meeting in is already packed! The church in Benakuma is talking about buying their own plot of land to build a church house, and next time we hope to have a good group baptized who have been recently saved. Praise God! The ministry in these two villages is very challenging both physically and spiritually. It is physically challenging because some weekends we must trek for hours and miles up and down rough terrain to reach these villages. It is spiritually challenging because we have entered a region that has been dominated by Satan and his dark realm for generations. He is seriously at work on the individuals and families who have come to know Christ in these remote villages.<br /><br />On Sunday morning I was singing a congregational hymn with the people of Faith Baptist Church in Benakuma. The church house is constructed of mud blocks, six trusses and a corrugated aluminum roof. The floor is dirt and the “pews” are rough hewn wooden benches. The church has three small wooden shutters that open and allow a little air and light in for the service (this village has no electricity or running water). During the week, the one door and the three shutters are closed tight and the church house is completely dark except for Wednesday night prayer meeting, Saturday evening Bible study and Sunday Morning worship service. That is why I was very surprised on Sunday morning to look to my right and notice a small Banga shoot (palm nut tree) poking up through the dirtfloor of the right aisle in the church! My first thought was, “How in the world did that seedling get water and light to germinate and begin growing inside a room that is completely locked in darkness all week?” During the next congregational song, I discovered the answer. I pulled my camera from my pocket and took this picture</strong>.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFkgFT8k9t5EK3XmMhOfzSKMRpC5orNHhzr7_ko73IjK-5dXRYCniPqsp3LImNuV7QoqGcr0zYqncMMTG5XWcEo2InqlJxQ0C_pnJ-l600MWZ0egY4FXohHIBFl7GDh7Fw61gdXFOrUrhR/s1600/plant.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFkgFT8k9t5EK3XmMhOfzSKMRpC5orNHhzr7_ko73IjK-5dXRYCniPqsp3LImNuV7QoqGcr0zYqncMMTG5XWcEo2InqlJxQ0C_pnJ-l600MWZ0egY4FXohHIBFl7GDh7Fw61gdXFOrUrhR/s400/plant.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574736607406744322" /></a><br /><strong>You see, the metal roof contains several nail holes. These holes apparently allowed just enough sun and rain to fall and to bring forth life in this room almost entirely concealed in darkness day after day. My heart was moved as I considered the comparisons between myself and the nail hole above this seedling. Benakuma and Benade have been strongholds of darkness since they were established generations ago. The god of this world has blinded the minds of these people since birth (2 Cor. 4:4). All of the sudden, the I AM led a couple of missionaries to punch a hole in the darkness of this region. God has used these small “nail holes” to bring a few drops of water (John 7:38) and enough light (Matt. 5:14) into this realm of darkness - and life has sprung forth! This Banga plant is young and fragile, just as the young believers of Benakuma and Benade. Please pray for God’s daily grace and strength for these precious people, and please pray the Lord of the Harvest that he would send more laborers to Cameroon who would be willing to be nothing more than “nail holes” for Jesus. </strong>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-31266608914209070652011-02-16T03:26:00.008-05:002011-02-16T05:28:46.993-05:00Extended StayWell, it has been just over two weeks since we returned from taking the Yeiters to the airport in Douala, and I have to share our exciting experience. Life in Africa is always an adventure and you never quite know what is going to happen. You have to take one day at a time. Although - that is really life in general. It's just that when a trip like ours takes place in the states, you have triple A to call and a taco bell and a Wal-mart next door to make it a bit less stressful. :D<br /><br />The trip started out with, "How much longer til we get there" 's from all the kids before we even really left Bamenda! haha! We were packed in pretty good between all of us and the Yeiters luggage and it was an unusually hot day. So, it wasn't the most comfortable ride, but we told the kids to enjoy each other's company and have fun. Easier said than done I can assure you - but all in all, they were pretty good for the duration of the trip. Especially considering the trouble we ran into close to Douala.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifX6s3HJx5N39UFFbymhpjh6rPuSubPh8tP1Y2bL-JJ2IQB_W9cBucHKjcsjFh7L2AAqq6Z7rKtJTQ7BtQ6gnjzdNsn0rXbvUR2kLWBe3GbErpGubYQC8hMdKhk6ii1Avc4u7TAMYsqwXx/s1600/DSC07330-copy.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifX6s3HJx5N39UFFbymhpjh6rPuSubPh8tP1Y2bL-JJ2IQB_W9cBucHKjcsjFh7L2AAqq6Z7rKtJTQ7BtQ6gnjzdNsn0rXbvUR2kLWBe3GbErpGubYQC8hMdKhk6ii1Avc4u7TAMYsqwXx/s400/DSC07330-copy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574208610455056258" /></a><br />You can kind of see Trinity in the back of the van, snuggled between all the luggage. She fell asleep that way lol! Too cute. <br /><br />Well, everything was going along just great until we were about 30 to 45 minutes outside of Douala. The van started to overheat (deja-vu from my Mom's visit). We obviously pulled over...cooled it down. Whew! The van was steamy!! and we were all so sweaty. Well, it cooled down and we continued on our way for a very brief time. It started heating again and again the guys tried to cool it down. This time some local men helped to carry some water. Off we go again...but then the van started making this terrible grinding noise. Yikes. So, Ben just had no idea what it was and was too afraid to go any further. Especially after we'd just paid to have the engine rebuilt! God orchestrated every bit of it though. We broke down in front of Jonathan's house. This man lives and works in Douala, but he is from the village of Babanki! He was from our province. Ben told him, "I was just in Babanki this morning!" So instantly we had a connection. He allowed us to pull our van into his little yard. He also offered to find a friend who could carry us to the airport. And he said it was no problem to park the van there for the night. He had a big security light and a nightwatchman, so the van would be safe. Wow! God worked it all out!<br /><br />Well, We had to wait quite a little bit of time until his friend arrived with the van, and keeping the kids entertained was a feat. I'd brought a book with me that I tried to read to them. Susan took over and sang some songs with them. Jonathan was so thoughtful and brought out chairs for all of us to sit in. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1ovFTre3vzygNVvafS2Fl-eMwtMwj1cMKdVX7K81U4fefYXAB4xdcRmTKrBo7i9N5BdEpqRaar2kJcOZLYtK0UTgwWJHaO50jacJvYKAH-JEnOLgzqdDD-vt9OlQ7NnUh_yJ0GUPcgRw/s1600/douala.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy1ovFTre3vzygNVvafS2Fl-eMwtMwj1cMKdVX7K81U4fefYXAB4xdcRmTKrBo7i9N5BdEpqRaar2kJcOZLYtK0UTgwWJHaO50jacJvYKAH-JEnOLgzqdDD-vt9OlQ7NnUh_yJ0GUPcgRw/s400/douala.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574212533796072674" /></a> Finally that little van arrived. There were 12 of us...and Yeiters had their 12 peices of luggage plus their carry-ons - and we had a carry-on size suitcase with our stuff in it. This van was a 9 passenger. Hmmmmmmmm. Well, in Cameroon fashion, we all (including luggage of course) made it into that van! Unreal!! Susan and I were in the front passenger seat with 3 kids, and Matt and Ben were in the back with 5 kids. Because of how everything worked out, we weren't able to go with Yeiters to the airport. We had Jonathan's friend take us to the Mediterranean restaurant so we could eat and we said our goodbyes while the Yeiters continued on to the airport to find something to eat there. <br /><br />We went to the Mediterranean twice while we were there and would you believe I forgot to take a picture both times! I'm so mad at myself. Well, we were exhausted, but hadn't eaten a real meal all day, so we ordered some pizzas. After we ate we hailed a cab and went to the Baptist guest house to crash for the night. I took a shower...Ahhh! I haven't had a real shower in weeks! It was such a treat. <br /><br />The mechanic met Ben at 8 the next morning and they took a taxi out to the van. The kids and I got up and ate breakfast outside. They served tea, so we had fun having omelets, bread and a tea party. We went back into our room to wait for Ben b/c it was so hot. When you are really bored...even french cartoons will entertain you! haha! In the mean time - Ben dropped the mechanic off and put him to work. He headed back to the guest house, so we could spend the day as a family. Ben learned right away, that the mechanic would need to work on it all night, so we were spending an extra night in Douala. The kids were excited! <br /><br />We decided to go shopping, so we left the guest house and walked until an empty taxi pulled up, and we hired him for the day. His name was Gaston...the kids loved that. ha! We went to all the fun stores that we only get to go to a couple times a term. I bought some stuff - not too much, but we enjoyed looking. Each time, Gaston would park outside and wait for us. We finally finished around lunch time and had him drop us off at the ice cream restaurant we always go to. We paid him and decided to walk back from there. We enjoyed burgers/fries and ice cream!!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxHaIFhUpPmndkLFCclbqmC47411Wfm80FuPSp-XCHfTh1mYKScJtZYxq709UIA3g5pGeiLyZGLBELoTB-X9LODKz4wm01hzEYlFHuUDV34j3ncoRW4KMGCHuLW7ru8jBUdz0CPhrg92yk/s1600/ice-cream.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxHaIFhUpPmndkLFCclbqmC47411Wfm80FuPSp-XCHfTh1mYKScJtZYxq709UIA3g5pGeiLyZGLBELoTB-X9LODKz4wm01hzEYlFHuUDV34j3ncoRW4KMGCHuLW7ru8jBUdz0CPhrg92yk/s400/ice-cream.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574216035739236322" /></a><br /><br />We had the whole afternoon ahead of us and nothing to do but wait, so Ben suggested we go swimming. Well, there was no Wal-Mart next door, so we had to improvise. Kate wore her jammie pants, and her shirt from the day before...Emma wore my tank top and Drew's shorts. Drew wore his clothes from the day before. All in all it worked out, and they swam ALL afternoon! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQkN8QMooU0_aAGD5mYdOPnQOOTSOl2oIsWJgh3mHuAL-38ey_hGZzDhZAWkJNZ4KBu-mwQKylHCHqx8A6qgv4I6CdnWpd5re4hkdMCysK6q2XqmQfQdZ27arD6VySVAtqauxUmv7eCZaE/s1600/swimming.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQkN8QMooU0_aAGD5mYdOPnQOOTSOl2oIsWJgh3mHuAL-38ey_hGZzDhZAWkJNZ4KBu-mwQKylHCHqx8A6qgv4I6CdnWpd5re4hkdMCysK6q2XqmQfQdZ27arD6VySVAtqauxUmv7eCZaE/s400/swimming.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5574217140790163490" /></a> I went and made Faith take a nap. She finally fell asleep and when she woke up, we got ready and walked to the pizza restaurant. We sat down and enjoyed pizza with feta cheese...Yumm! The kids were so wasted though, that they didn't eat as well as they had the night before. That pool wore them out! When we finished we got a taxi and headed back for bed! We went to bed early b/c everyone was so tired. <br /><br />The mechanic finally came with our repaired van at 11 the next morning. Thankfully the problem was a lot milder than it sounded when we were driving it. The alternator housing came loose, causing the fan to slow down, causing the engine to overheat. We hit the road and had no problems the remainder of the trip. Another treat we enjoyed was rain our second night in Douala. I woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of it pouring on the roof. We also ran into rain a few times on the drive home, which made the trip home 100 times cooler than the trip there. In some places, almost too cool for the windows to be open. Since then we have had several days of rain, including yesterday. It thundered and threatened all afternoon and evening. It never did actually just dump on us, but rain fell a little bit and I'm hopeful and excited about the rainy season coming!<br /><br />Rain eventually means water. Though, I'm not sure we will feel the effects of it before we leave for furlough the beginning of July, but I'll enjoy the rain whether we have water or not. The water situation has become frustrating, but it is a fact of life I'm learning to deal with. Ben finally sat down and talked to the water chairman and the plumber on Monday, and told him that he needs to ration the water, so that everyone can get a little. We are supposed to now get water Mon-Wed-Fri nights. That will keep our tank full, and the laundry caught up. So while I won't necessarily get a shower, I'll still be able to flush my toilets at will and wash my clothes! <br /><br />I'll be back in the next few days to update on normal life and Ben's recent trip to Benakuma!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-78096520483429135562011-01-30T15:32:00.002-05:002011-01-30T15:51:29.098-05:00Movie Night!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlhenkv2m1WzUtTAVxk1QdFtoRg3MkqXbloD9fRtCaaBwgLNJdkCH17LzZuUdpVAMuNMrm7nOc9EudKf60xr-TluCtWU2tZIkGbSWBX6pTppkErSwYl-endLqUG19cBOV_kqweRhyphenhyphenqOvId/s1600/movie+night.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568080243591992594" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlhenkv2m1WzUtTAVxk1QdFtoRg3MkqXbloD9fRtCaaBwgLNJdkCH17LzZuUdpVAMuNMrm7nOc9EudKf60xr-TluCtWU2tZIkGbSWBX6pTppkErSwYl-endLqUG19cBOV_kqweRhyphenhyphenqOvId/s400/movie+night.jpg" /></a> Ever since Toy Story 3 came out, we have been dying to see it. I bought it several months ago and we have been patiently waiting to watch it. Sam Sanderlin's mom came out for a visit and she packed it in her luggage so we could get it out here and so we planned a big family movie night to watch it.<br /><br />We don't always watch movies on the "big screen", but I thought it would be extra special for this extra special movie! So, Ben dug out the data projector and we turned the couch around and took all the pictures off the wall. Pretty cool, huh? Our own little movie theater!<br /><br />It was a great movie and it made us laugh a lot, and get teary at the end (well...I did anyway) and we had a great evening as a family!<br /><br />Tomorrow our co-workers are headed back to the states for a few months, and so we are taking them to Douala as a family. When I first moved here, a trip to Douala with all my kids didn't sound enjoyable at all! But now...I'm really looking forward to it! haha! We will get to eat at the yummy pizza restaurant and maybe even grab a yummy burger (can you tell we don't get out much!). I plan on stocking up on lots of great goodies for the kitchen that we can only get there. I'll be sure to take a photo or two of our Douala adventure and share!<br /><br />While Susan is away I'll become the primary piano player (poor church people!), so I have been copying music from my "Fake" book and practicing quite a bit. Have you ever heard of the fake book? It is the only way I can play the piano ... it is all written in the key of C and I just have to learn the chords to play with it. I bought the books on Amazon and it gives me quite a repetoire of music that I can play for church. I know the song leaders will be thrilled to have Susan back a few months from now, but it will give me some more piano practice anyway! Pray for us as we will be a bit busier the next few months with our co-workers gone. Especially for Ben - he is taking his final Masters course in March, while preaching at both of our churches and also taking on the new responsibility of a Men's Saturday Bible study...among all the other things he does (moral instruction classes, visitation etc...). He is a hard worker ALL the time and he never ceases to amaze me. I am blessed to have such an amazing husband.<br /><br />Ok - I'm off for now! 'Night!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-40948154843575265072011-01-26T13:25:00.014-05:002011-01-26T18:34:35.645-05:00Januray almost over??Seriously...can you believe January is almost over??? I can't. And I've been a bad blogger. So many of you have conveyed to me how much you appreciate the blog and enjoy reading it, and I want to say a big thank you for taking the time to read it. It means So much to me! And I apologize for not being as faithful as I should be.<br /><br />I wanted to give a quick update on Hederine's funeral as I promised I would. Our church had a good group of 10 that took the time to spend the day and be a support group for Okerike. While the family wasn't Baptist, they were very cordial and let us have a big part in the funeral. The dad made a statement that Hederine was an adult and made the decision to choose Baptist as her faith rather than presbyterian. We aren't always accepted very well in situations like this, so it was a blessing that the family was so welcoming. Ben was gone most of the day. I'd planned to go but came down with a terrible cold/sinus infection. I spent most of the day on the couch. But Ben and Matt drove their cars to carry our church people. Here is a photo of most everyone that went:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWQHK7BhZ1tbFo3EvpDPh_2Xa5gIex2M9HoOouHxdPfGWbQcnb73c9CSnaEfMsF4-Yq5_E5AtvXzZLWWxWJuiat6Rk2zDMwlmtxjBAc19NmIWC3gVxIrm-PDc7Plwfhv_6C6wMdC6SqsP/s1600/funeral+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdWQHK7BhZ1tbFo3EvpDPh_2Xa5gIex2M9HoOouHxdPfGWbQcnb73c9CSnaEfMsF4-Yq5_E5AtvXzZLWWxWJuiat6Rk2zDMwlmtxjBAc19NmIWC3gVxIrm-PDc7Plwfhv_6C6wMdC6SqsP/s400/funeral+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566568363947685810" /></a> Ben also snagged this photo of the burial:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9q66B3qDw7dTT_5tBYlajJ_m6gCFA_kybntSHqeVRDJjgsxdI7xC9AMcreVbg8eb_CFzbuQxTtBmWYlUap8u8YiVpSTOZepX3k_CLHq6PcGVyFZujwTaBqK1KKMM2lx3tyjebZaf0WvN_/s1600/funeral+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9q66B3qDw7dTT_5tBYlajJ_m6gCFA_kybntSHqeVRDJjgsxdI7xC9AMcreVbg8eb_CFzbuQxTtBmWYlUap8u8YiVpSTOZepX3k_CLHq6PcGVyFZujwTaBqK1KKMM2lx3tyjebZaf0WvN_/s400/funeral+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566568881865944738" /></a> Okerike is doing so well and we are just continuing to pray for God's grace in his life. And we continue to praise God that Hederine is in heaven today! It makes all the sacrifice of living here worth it...and I so need to remind myself of that when I miss my family or when I haven't had water for over a week. In the long run, those things are insignificant when I reflect on people like Hederine that are in heaven today b/c God allowed Ben the priviledge of sharing the gospel with her husband!<br /><br />In family news there isn't too much new. We are plugging away at school and all of us are suffering from coughs and nasal junk. Poor Drew and myself have been coughing in stereo the last week. I'm sure our family is sick of us! I am tired of coughing and so ready to just get all this ick cleared up. <br /><br />This is how Kate spends her days:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVLkljaLgSsLCDqTp_N9IrHKmbqK92HoRWCKhlYWBoyhzPRoT62AWpzPHQ8ryHyFiWNuPEpvxQLFB627WvPxqD1-ViODOsRcNzKsWVY6EIXvP2EErbIboBxYOu97C6UgZ9J3lAJgG78qMf/s1600/kate%2527s+skates.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 264px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVLkljaLgSsLCDqTp_N9IrHKmbqK92HoRWCKhlYWBoyhzPRoT62AWpzPHQ8ryHyFiWNuPEpvxQLFB627WvPxqD1-ViODOsRcNzKsWVY6EIXvP2EErbIboBxYOu97C6UgZ9J3lAJgG78qMf/s400/kate%2527s+skates.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566587394478259538" /></a> She wears her skates more than she wears shoes. And even more recently Emma has given them a try. They always scare the daylights out of me when they first put those things on. Emma has got her balance down, but she hasn't quite figured out how to make herself go. She and Kate came up with a system though. They each wear one skate and skate through the house like it is a skateboard, pushing themselves along with the other foot. It is hilarious. <br /><br />Faith Ann is my girly girl. She loves to dress up and dance around like a little princess and she loves her baby dolls. She wanted me to tie her baby onto her back. It is all she's ever seen, and she thinks this is how you carry a baby.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-XvPJgheUt_WEHftqMatX7-QWXDe2FUl6lCnkKIzlS-0a5fLjv8NWR_U-ANLCnxDyixwClEAln72aI5a89fkkY2YgYKARR1CYiHDRbwomHV-NYchvylcWjBE6c1cudQW0gumJh-tI-Vf/s1600/baby+faith.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT-XvPJgheUt_WEHftqMatX7-QWXDe2FUl6lCnkKIzlS-0a5fLjv8NWR_U-ANLCnxDyixwClEAln72aI5a89fkkY2YgYKARR1CYiHDRbwomHV-NYchvylcWjBE6c1cudQW0gumJh-tI-Vf/s400/baby+faith.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566588443232995826" /></a> OH, and excuse the outfit. I did make her change before she went out into public. Haha!! I was also giggling at her in church the other night. She was SO proud of herself in this picture,<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy6XHmPUh9H-h2781jieNnLDCwo34ai1lKDIpQS5AwdlWICS651263nlBm1KPz01QTT-fAwkBhS_2kRSs95RLjCeD_Yb-Xwl7Iq5kM-ISY2ncTanX1Wr-4HyBd7KQIDP8SF_N4_v83BF-P/s1600/big+faith.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy6XHmPUh9H-h2781jieNnLDCwo34ai1lKDIpQS5AwdlWICS651263nlBm1KPz01QTT-fAwkBhS_2kRSs95RLjCeD_Yb-Xwl7Iq5kM-ISY2ncTanX1Wr-4HyBd7KQIDP8SF_N4_v83BF-P/s400/big+faith.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566588796026247298" /></a><br />She said, "Mom - look! My feet touch!" She sees the rest of us propping our feet up on the bench in front of us, and she told me that she was a big girl now because her feet could finally reach. SO cute! <br /><br />I had a little photo shoot with the girls the other day. It had really been a while since I'd tried to take decent pictures of them. They turned out pretty cute and I've had fun scrapping them. I always love taking photos of Emma in natural light. She has the bluest eyes!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxB1rv_EeDHajbGb5Srwz6M7ebi00REL34mWcY9tfZ7NYO87nWxIDVYsaMimybD1Ruc0DZjh7N7_LvEF4nq519liCHDeO7VJZZUbyiSFbD1QLyh7yyKhHZ00wzWsSvLIspkrhRXBJB73sy/s1600/emma.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 352px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxB1rv_EeDHajbGb5Srwz6M7ebi00REL34mWcY9tfZ7NYO87nWxIDVYsaMimybD1Ruc0DZjh7N7_LvEF4nq519liCHDeO7VJZZUbyiSFbD1QLyh7yyKhHZ00wzWsSvLIspkrhRXBJB73sy/s400/emma.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566589629528714674" /></a> I wanted Kate to give me a genuine smile, so I told Drew to come over and make her laugh. He got some genuine giggles out of her!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7vw1vdwRXdUQA7BJJhX1GIOER6bDveKEo_W_577U8XXXZ6IWNThAvDelf6DBAcrTplZmb0ePOSXD-Ex7oF_bN1aCQ243XBwAzJnlPLZwubRFLztsIUJDpBG8SWtuPOeu9IyVCUIMTfcv/s1600/kate.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ7vw1vdwRXdUQA7BJJhX1GIOER6bDveKEo_W_577U8XXXZ6IWNThAvDelf6DBAcrTplZmb0ePOSXD-Ex7oF_bN1aCQ243XBwAzJnlPLZwubRFLztsIUJDpBG8SWtuPOeu9IyVCUIMTfcv/s400/kate.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566590098839232530" /></a> And then there was Faith Ann who can almost always giggle on cue!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCYQg0CX61dXg8epKGwcAiTrPj0AJw3VRTla1vgjFtnmfKwpAxSa9ccBydQ36P4JtDZhn7N_yQCJP01t7He79llBbeiHDB8Wusc0fhdBRrLe9pLPCER0BZpZCl3aqNGpOtlQ7Zm8os7Ty3/s1600/faith.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCYQg0CX61dXg8epKGwcAiTrPj0AJw3VRTla1vgjFtnmfKwpAxSa9ccBydQ36P4JtDZhn7N_yQCJP01t7He79llBbeiHDB8Wusc0fhdBRrLe9pLPCER0BZpZCl3aqNGpOtlQ7Zm8os7Ty3/s400/faith.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566590662460849666" /></a><br />Hmmm, lets see. Anything else interesting go on recently? I feel like I have a lot of catching up to do. Oh! One more thing... Ben recently ran into a couple of Americans in Bambili. We don't usually see too many of those! haha! Jacqueline is a Peace Corp worker and is teaching at ENS (a teacher's college) here and Eva is a Fullbright student who is here for a year as a teacher's aid. They were thrilled to be in contact with some other Americans, so we invited them to church and also to dinner the next week at our house. They came to church and then to dinner the following Friday and we had a great time of fellowship with them. Since then Jacqueline has come to church 2 more times and we know she is Catholic. So pray for more opportunities to share the gospel with these ladies. Just being Americans we have a connection with them and they loved coming to our house for dinner. I made taco salads and they about fell over they were so excited. We plan to have them over again and I'll be sure to get some pictures of them! The girls love Eva. She is just out of college and she braided the girls hair and they took to her immediately. Jacqueline is middle aged and has grandkids of her own. Drew enjoyed her though, because she is a science teacher and he was pretty pumped to show her his new microscope that he got for Christmas. <br /><br />Anyhoo...I think that is about it. Thanks again for all those that read - and I'll try to make my next post a little sooner! G'night!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-75621064278853725222011-01-13T04:50:00.004-05:002011-01-13T05:24:11.825-05:00This Temporary LifeThis life is so temporary and we were reminded of that this past week when a young member of our church passed away. Her husband called us with the news and Ben and I wept together. Not because of Hederine's death. We are rejoicing because within the last year, She trusted Christ and is at the feet of her Savior right now! The thing that really broke our heart was the baby she left behind that will never remember his mother. Let me tell you Hederine's story.<br /><br />About a year and a half ago we were having some internet trouble and Ben was in a cafe checking his email. The power went out. When that happens, expletives fly and people are usually not happy because whatever they were doing just got lost. Everyone was sitting around hoping that the power would pop back on and chatting in the mean time. Ben heard one man near him talking about how his brother had just died, and how he didn't have one thing prepared. He was having to go around and arrange the funeral and pay for this and that. Ben said, "Do you mind if I ask a question? Are you prepared for your death? What if you were to die? Are you prepared? Where would you go?" That man listening was a Nigerian man and his name was Okerike. Ben had many listening ears, but as he shared the gospel Okerike was the one that trusted Christ that day. He began attending our church and not too long after that, his Cameroonian wife, Hederine, trusted Christ as Savior. They were both baptized and became members of our church in October of 2009.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKhRGLGP-zo_C8u1sFTGf60z8OQlsAAhsRvyTxQMSZykHmKwGhF5uh3PnC-pKOgIrirzhAAQbxoObfl5ziZUeaTKaflilbmSxec1E5L3xzdDbmb5I2Vm3yxgl3ISpy6i0RMArVPwc1eZH/s1600/hederine.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPKhRGLGP-zo_C8u1sFTGf60z8OQlsAAhsRvyTxQMSZykHmKwGhF5uh3PnC-pKOgIrirzhAAQbxoObfl5ziZUeaTKaflilbmSxec1E5L3xzdDbmb5I2Vm3yxgl3ISpy6i0RMArVPwc1eZH/s400/hederine.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561609104075768354" /></a> Hederine was pregnant at the time. You can kind of see her baby bump in the photo. In March of 2010 she "put to birth" a baby boy and they named him Dick. We went and visited her in the hospital. Pastor Lee Atkinson was here visiting us at the time, so he had the priviledge of meeting Hederine. Here is a picture of her sweet newborn boy:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV1wv9yKsxZ_IOsdanSQPkKvxjqhN1BCnWGKNaxQdeXnYYUfnPyYkB1RepsP6j1tL3hK_gbo5-ILodxnqVArGPOQQx67N_JEB0P0t7pv0jkuz5UMATkN7Tr-PI1PqVYbcMPJdhDOSq7FXB/s1600/Dick.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV1wv9yKsxZ_IOsdanSQPkKvxjqhN1BCnWGKNaxQdeXnYYUfnPyYkB1RepsP6j1tL3hK_gbo5-ILodxnqVArGPOQQx67N_JEB0P0t7pv0jkuz5UMATkN7Tr-PI1PqVYbcMPJdhDOSq7FXB/s400/Dick.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5561610295655421458" /></a><br />Around November of this last year, Hederine became ill. From what we were told, her husband was trying to treat her in the house. He is considered a type of medicine man in Nigeria, though not of the witchcraft type. He was attempting to treat her naturally with herbs and things of that sort. She became so ill after two weeks, that he finally admitted her into the hospital and she was diagnosed with cerebral malaria. We visited her one Monday as a family. I wouldn't have even recognized her she was so thin. She looked so different. But she was sitting up, eating, and while visibly very weak, she seemed to be improving. She was finally discharged from the hospital. Her husband claims that a difficult trip out to her village for Christmas caused her to relapse. She was re-admitted to the hospital after the holidays. Ben went to visit her and he came home and said, "Hederine is really sick. We need to pray." He said she was strugging for every breath. He spent close to an hour with her and prayed with her and read scripture. He called them every day to check on her health. Okerike kept saying she was improving. Wednesday of last week, however, Okerike called us to tell us that she had died that morning. <br /><br />I'd say she is about my age. Maybe even younger. It is hard for me to grasp how a seemingly healthy young woman could get sick and die so quickly. It is a reminder of the brevity of life and I'm so thankful for the boldness that Ben had in the internet cafe that day, to share the gospel with Okerike and later with Hederine. I'm so thankful that she chose to trust in Christ. Like I said earlier, what really saddens me is that Dick will never remember his Mother. He really hasn't even been with her very much the last couple of months of her life even. But every time Ben visited her in the hospital, Dick was all she would talk about. Our hearts are saddened for the family and we pray that during this difficult trial in Okerike's life, that he wouldn't become bitter or angry with God. <br /><br />Would you pray as well, that God would bring the peace that only He can bring? Would you also pray for the funeral this Saturday, as Ben preaches and has the opportunity to share the gospel with her entire family?Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-80315314116138786092011-01-03T14:06:00.017-05:002011-01-03T15:43:15.500-05:00Happy New Year<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil2lipsrwovTIsxas09f1VwzfaRCVKmy5D4xoc7bLcrjyyJfOKFGxQnJvaISRd2ZYaoJH2iPOY6hCo5CclSKhjMZ7iot8UFg7M-sgvaPOUTG3O78phjAxBkvNYWVfQaUFl8Z4osPsPvss9/s1600/family+pic.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil2lipsrwovTIsxas09f1VwzfaRCVKmy5D4xoc7bLcrjyyJfOKFGxQnJvaISRd2ZYaoJH2iPOY6hCo5CclSKhjMZ7iot8UFg7M-sgvaPOUTG3O78phjAxBkvNYWVfQaUFl8Z4osPsPvss9/s400/family+pic.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558062688102464290" /></a><br />Happy New year to everyone. I hope you are excited about 2011! The new year is a really big deal here in Cameroon. They spend the day celebrating and eating just like they do on Christmas. Surviving another year is such a great reason for them to celebrate here. New Years at our house wasn't a big feast and celebration. I started my new years resolution diet right after Christmas, so we weren't eating. But I am no-less thankful for all the God did for us in 2010. This 2010 blog is a testimony and record. I'm considering printing it, actually. I think it would be fun to read down the road. <br /><br />Well, I should make my Mom happy tonight. :D She's been pestering me to update my blog. Sorry I'm so behind. Here is a re-cap of our Christmas.<br /><br />We celebrate Christmas eve. I've been doing that since I was born I think, and that is just how Christmas is for me. I couldn't think of doing it any other way. And in fact, it works very well for us here. Christmas day is spent at church and then entertaining vistors all day, so having a private family time would be impossible. The kids woke up Friday ready to open up their presents! lol! I said...not yet. I have a lot of work to do. I spent the day preparing a fun meal. We had a 7 layer dip, that wasn't actually 7 layers, but it was yummy. I made home-made tortilla chips (very time consuming). I had to cook, grind and re-fry the beans for the 7 layer dip (also very time consuming...and this is why I don't cook when I'm in the states :D), I made sugar cookies and chex candy (thanks to Susan who gave me the chex cereal for my Christmas present! Yummmmmmy!). I also made pizza pinwheels. Those called for cresent roll dough, which of course I had to make from scratch. They turned out so-so. Not exactly the pizza-y flavor I was hoping for, but you live and learn. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxyponmJ9xz4V3PdGvNwkchk54Mw8XZ_LEvq8M0BXyxbijG4oMaL5EThIxHJqmGnP1YJOeS5MjR9gHv_hcVOepIYyCltj3zYetWsx3Evei29I3wk9HGo9XmZj1oyphzH5_ZKApsZzeeMfE/s1600/goodies.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxyponmJ9xz4V3PdGvNwkchk54Mw8XZ_LEvq8M0BXyxbijG4oMaL5EThIxHJqmGnP1YJOeS5MjR9gHv_hcVOepIYyCltj3zYetWsx3Evei29I3wk9HGo9XmZj1oyphzH5_ZKApsZzeeMfE/s400/goodies.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558051192333858434" /></a><br />Anyway, it was a fun night of snacks. By the time I got everything ready it was around 5 p.m. We had some visitors and more delays and the kids were chomping at the bit! haha! Finally we opened presents!!! Yay!! Thanks to my Mom's visit in Nov., we were able to have a really great Christmas this year. Here are a few pics:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPsFT_TIIQ2frZJRp1CjK1fA7XLao0AHxbmMwOQDen8wIjWzp47ua4TRVv-dPrYJpASx3O_DAJ60K69ANjUn3hCBZ2vi01u32yqJWeBxOBuU4nlzx54AbDUkmJ7SLYg472GvzgtLqsSuF_/s1600/bible.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558041254497509970" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPsFT_TIIQ2frZJRp1CjK1fA7XLao0AHxbmMwOQDen8wIjWzp47ua4TRVv-dPrYJpASx3O_DAJ60K69ANjUn3hCBZ2vi01u32yqJWeBxOBuU4nlzx54AbDUkmJ7SLYg472GvzgtLqsSuF_/s400/bible.jpg" /></a> I think this is one of my favorites of the whole night. Emma has been wanting her own Bible and Mimi got her a really great kids Bible with a Bible cover. As you can tell, she was beyond ecstatic! We go around and read one chapter of the Bible as a family each night, and her brother and sister have their own. Now that she can read, she has been commenting on how much she'd like one. This gift was the best present she got, according to her!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMIqMgEbXtfsiJZSO04V8x-eM9F61OHJwOzMhWkoUooYcaE7LVBYDMSwUEygXt4nQIPOWjW4z5fDP9GYWxP_GQiNJz4sdzDBtpaWOeZcMnP-a1lVbhb646VPSqZVP7xT3ksEiG2zRXL322/s1600/tink.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMIqMgEbXtfsiJZSO04V8x-eM9F61OHJwOzMhWkoUooYcaE7LVBYDMSwUEygXt4nQIPOWjW4z5fDP9GYWxP_GQiNJz4sdzDBtpaWOeZcMnP-a1lVbhb646VPSqZVP7xT3ksEiG2zRXL322/s400/tink.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558042060832243298" /></a> This was Faith's favorite of the night. She loves Tink and she squealed SO loud when she opened this. It always makes a mom happy to know that she got the right gifts!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0W2ZppCD0Pbv44nAVRyLFjzabOqYwNdxBWxUlWcCBr5EWFLGtW8yXiII1k8WSeOWhdbToC8_mSAouZfDLnnFDdre_9gNFEUlZcQ9zgffaD1J4R0Q809FpnpGThG_ju9OmT_1rm5bd2ni8/s1600/wii.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0W2ZppCD0Pbv44nAVRyLFjzabOqYwNdxBWxUlWcCBr5EWFLGtW8yXiII1k8WSeOWhdbToC8_mSAouZfDLnnFDdre_9gNFEUlZcQ9zgffaD1J4R0Q809FpnpGThG_ju9OmT_1rm5bd2ni8/s400/wii.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558042484981673698" /></a> The kids were pretty excited about their new wii games too. Sports and Sports Resort is fun...but having some new things to play has been exciting for them.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWtYy8bIK3KdXql3r1n-FpDPiO3TYIWxI-YVLzOSTTLWtIhkx4CL0yaILu6zuyGOXQ8eP-tKUGkXNpTEQHHt0xeMyt4qJJQQU-aYkL9tsxJUg02JJatmEjGRlmJB-BqqYtrYYKS2aLhbQv/s1600/spidey.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWtYy8bIK3KdXql3r1n-FpDPiO3TYIWxI-YVLzOSTTLWtIhkx4CL0yaILu6zuyGOXQ8eP-tKUGkXNpTEQHHt0xeMyt4qJJQQU-aYkL9tsxJUg02JJatmEjGRlmJB-BqqYtrYYKS2aLhbQv/s400/spidey.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558042898201162898" /></a> Drew loved all the spidey stuff he got. He has been mentioning for some time how he wanted character sheets for his bed like the girls have. Well, they don't make character sheets for queen size beds really. I found a set of batman sheets at pottery barn but they were outrageous. Well, once Mimi knew what Drew wanted, she set out to find something. She snagged these bright sheets on ebay from some place in Hong Kong I think. We were both a little leary, but they are great! Great quality and they fit great and Drew loves them! Another winner of a gift! Thanks Mimi!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNY3vHa9Td8p4xsc0iFURqVl_eIgftTjmsbIZi5MwF_JfZb0XG0WH3qAqk1aGAYhUTuZBPDg808FglN-ByvYXcdnOmFQoNHFhy-cLbqnFCXJf3efOvmSeerKXFBtF3bocJWdbGFRDqL2jS/s1600/nails.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNY3vHa9Td8p4xsc0iFURqVl_eIgftTjmsbIZi5MwF_JfZb0XG0WH3qAqk1aGAYhUTuZBPDg808FglN-ByvYXcdnOmFQoNHFhy-cLbqnFCXJf3efOvmSeerKXFBtF3bocJWdbGFRDqL2jS/s400/nails.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558044201287893250" /></a> Isn't this great!? haha! I did this when I was a kid. I got these fake nails and put them on. I knew Kate would love a nail kit. I might regret it at some point...but I've set some strict rules down about not taking out the nail polish unless she has permission etc... Sometimes Kate acts and thinks later, but hopefully we won't have any disasters. The set came with several nail polish colors, nail stickers, a nail dryer, and a couple sets of fake nails. They brought fun entertainment for about a day. Kate ditched them after the first hour, and then Faith Ann put them on. She had more fun with them than Kate did I think! <br /><br />Ben had to take a break at one point to check on our Christmas dinner....<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Tj9ccPGIqIsVU-ErI85lMlUJThfwjgNQIeimmSM7jX820xe6NWbfRQoCbc9wTl4TPtYl_ZQCt7RfVLwx1SwaUT08B_wdoEnLEy3XFbKzYzw6bqzpNIo42LMjRRNVKZAAB3K2T2fpuiYZ/s1600/pre+dinner.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Tj9ccPGIqIsVU-ErI85lMlUJThfwjgNQIeimmSM7jX820xe6NWbfRQoCbc9wTl4TPtYl_ZQCt7RfVLwx1SwaUT08B_wdoEnLEy3XFbKzYzw6bqzpNIo42LMjRRNVKZAAB3K2T2fpuiYZ/s400/pre+dinner.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558045142611293746" /></a>Yep, still there wandering around the courtyard. :D<br /><br />Michael, our nightwatchman, did the dirty work later that night. He cleaned the bird up all nice and pretty for me. I stuck her in the fridge and got her ready for cooking the next day.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim6fGDR-V2wVAY0od5KeyNrsecRCARrNu798QIOqhyN7u8KfLdu8f4cv4V98Ku45z4pnI24KhJODgKbJ3dDPhpzd4pQIM2XgRV6iXIJ8PU3_ziNyigTqe3ClzEP58Ur1qZZqi1pnxNYVGp/s1600/ready+to+cook.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim6fGDR-V2wVAY0od5KeyNrsecRCARrNu798QIOqhyN7u8KfLdu8f4cv4V98Ku45z4pnI24KhJODgKbJ3dDPhpzd4pQIM2XgRV6iXIJ8PU3_ziNyigTqe3ClzEP58Ur1qZZqi1pnxNYVGp/s400/ready+to+cook.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558054217114423426" /></a> My new oven has a rotisserie in it, so this is the first time I'd ever used it. It looked neat while it was cooking, but in the end, I think sticking the bird in a pan would be just as effective.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMLvchkHzS1aFku3ztJFBSFBlNWFdMLsLX0DrvtydEwU_jkdhEzsjhN-c9hNTs0hMAl8syTV2dkWseTk5G7ZsjLMenFAufVeXnZb5LyeBYGE-KnL-tfwiskIMpwZ2kTjDINoLCaYSbytz/s1600/cooking.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCMLvchkHzS1aFku3ztJFBSFBlNWFdMLsLX0DrvtydEwU_jkdhEzsjhN-c9hNTs0hMAl8syTV2dkWseTk5G7ZsjLMenFAufVeXnZb5LyeBYGE-KnL-tfwiskIMpwZ2kTjDINoLCaYSbytz/s400/cooking.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558054929864349570" /></a><br />Then the final product! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZZmuesxgaLduAkc0pRCplQHq37kRoE4H74AkBlOL3nsAMgzIJyDVgBkUNxr2KuFrd6GzpO6fzpUhh9S0EfXzVca4EpdKb2zFxw1Me6j51dGgldgsIvZCyl65kWTJgUCGAj7cWk9HupOP/s1600/done.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkZZmuesxgaLduAkc0pRCplQHq37kRoE4H74AkBlOL3nsAMgzIJyDVgBkUNxr2KuFrd6GzpO6fzpUhh9S0EfXzVca4EpdKb2zFxw1Me6j51dGgldgsIvZCyl65kWTJgUCGAj7cWk9HupOP/s400/done.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558055515233661330" /></a><br />A nice treat for Christmas dinner. Unfortunately I didn't plan well enough in advance and all we had to go with our bird was rice, but the kids didn't care. We had tons of goodies from the night before still hanging around so we ended up snacking the rest of the day.<br /><br />Our Christmas service was great. I kind of organized a program in advance and typed it all out. We were ready to go at 9 a.m., but unfortunatly nobody else was. We kept trying to move ahead, but we were missing all the people involved in all the parts of the program! lol! We kept singing and singing, and rearranging the schedule around. Finally everyone showed up, and it ended up being a great service. The kids sang, played bells, did a drama and they loved being a part of it. Here is one photo of some of my Sunday School kiddos singing a song:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCs9ute7YBESduvlBY_QvaN2xC57uSb20p0EIam8IRaAf37QL_PEHiWmzW9t87EswvDcAMX1fUZQWzd_wuqNpQsy8eg9RvHUGBgSmv5i7Kj2fJlJzFXqetyelbrhGYhtVAfesdJL6umthQ/s1600/ss+class.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCs9ute7YBESduvlBY_QvaN2xC57uSb20p0EIam8IRaAf37QL_PEHiWmzW9t87EswvDcAMX1fUZQWzd_wuqNpQsy8eg9RvHUGBgSmv5i7Kj2fJlJzFXqetyelbrhGYhtVAfesdJL6umthQ/s400/ss+class.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5558057590633501426" /></a><br />So, in conclusion, we had a great Christmas and New Year. We are back to the grind of school and pushing to stay focused for the second semester. This year we have many things to look forward to...one thing is a 6 month visit to the states. Of course I'm pretty excited about that. I always enjoy a break from the extra work it requires to live here (ie. cooking! haha!) and it is always nice to get a reprieve and see our friends and family...because I miss you all! Thank you for being faithful readers through 2010! Next blog post will be about a possible new name for my blog! :DBecca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-56728287350667057612010-12-22T13:44:00.012-05:002010-12-22T15:18:45.071-05:00Kate is 8!We had a blast of a party last night for Kate's 8th birthday. It was so much girly fun! Kate woke up ready to open her presents. It killed her to have to do school and then have to wait until after we ate supper to open gifts, but she survived! haha!<br /><br />She requested lasagna, which turned out SO yummy!! I made it the night before to save myself some stress and it was so moist and delish...if I do say so myself. I made garlic herb braid and a salad. We invited Yeiters over and our evening was a lot of fun! Here are some pictures to sum it up:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXPA5r7y9ebdr4FAG8Ig8GunCmIgBiEaudAWTs2aqdOuqTeaTuee0V0DgeGMyeDF9xQucgby9X-9SfQgQclgo1qdkM2I78IMcYuKo1HHaQesJ3BlHbMvajofLIvr7mjA9DbsAiAWzY5IIv/s1600/emma+and+cake.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553582528539343042" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXPA5r7y9ebdr4FAG8Ig8GunCmIgBiEaudAWTs2aqdOuqTeaTuee0V0DgeGMyeDF9xQucgby9X-9SfQgQclgo1qdkM2I78IMcYuKo1HHaQesJ3BlHbMvajofLIvr7mjA9DbsAiAWzY5IIv/s400/emma+and+cake.jpg" /></a><br />Emma wanted to bring the cake in. When I handed it to her, she was like, "This is too heavy!" So we brought it in together. Kate requested Hello Kitty, and I went the easy way out this time. Mom brought this little thing from a cake shop and I just plopped it on there. But hey, the kids were still impressed with the "flower" frosting (thanks to the star tip!) and all is well!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7qSKu6PGe0I13ncgcUwujXcLwJ9wjO0cIrdoc44aUp5L4JtRRETzmHhI5pjeCwXdzK6ISrLbhf9en2dsek1stgOw7LE_OuDRB1rTX1lmaXff5thVa9DEOZn2ghSw0D7Eg0c-vAVPjcvj/s1600/cake.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553582521356558850" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho7qSKu6PGe0I13ncgcUwujXcLwJ9wjO0cIrdoc44aUp5L4JtRRETzmHhI5pjeCwXdzK6ISrLbhf9en2dsek1stgOw7LE_OuDRB1rTX1lmaXff5thVa9DEOZn2ghSw0D7Eg0c-vAVPjcvj/s400/cake.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6qM9G1ozV6ULK2Gl8_Sq2qccG2DwYfQx6uiIxo0vy3LmzVIsF1NEIxjMVURSL38_a849C5Ys0pQs0Fg0vkkqwc6AKUa_d7C8BUyeGnnEKKXcwT-CfMstFQLQ8_Gv_MVMqYqynFvcNmmKc/s1600/napkins.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553582517241436274" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6qM9G1ozV6ULK2Gl8_Sq2qccG2DwYfQx6uiIxo0vy3LmzVIsF1NEIxjMVURSL38_a849C5Ys0pQs0Fg0vkkqwc6AKUa_d7C8BUyeGnnEKKXcwT-CfMstFQLQ8_Gv_MVMqYqynFvcNmmKc/s400/napkins.jpg" /></a> The girls were a HOOT the entire night screaming and oohing and ahhing over all things girly. The Hello Kitty napkins and plates were a hit!<br /><p>Kate surrounded by her friends. She got some great presents and I think she was thrilled. She got a barbie, which is something she really wanted. (You should have heard the girls when that gift was opened!) The Yeiters gave her some really cool gifts. One was a pet shop pen, that had a little tiny remote control car that is stored in the top of the pen. Kind of hard to explain, but Kate said it was her favorite gift.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG9cuTit53B1nRMd-ntycSyFmvYupzHzbBlseg4-7q2-iuENDYNPWiepGWals_-Mh-iIm7n-TFGHWyq6ol7CQVMKxxgS7v0_3BoOWOFDeisBNk8OuFg6Kme2fKpxbwQVHatbRb9GMkTweo/s1600/presents.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553590484468275538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG9cuTit53B1nRMd-ntycSyFmvYupzHzbBlseg4-7q2-iuENDYNPWiepGWals_-Mh-iIm7n-TFGHWyq6ol7CQVMKxxgS7v0_3BoOWOFDeisBNk8OuFg6Kme2fKpxbwQVHatbRb9GMkTweo/s400/presents.jpg" /></a> All in all the evening was a success. </p><p>There is a lot of other stuff I haven't blogged about. It is a busy time of year. That is my excuse for now haha! This past Friday we went to Yeiters for a Christmas party. The kids had a blast exchanging gifts and it was just an overall fun time. We got a super gift for Yeiters. They are pickle lovers, and we found huge Sam's Club jars of pickles at an American import store in Bamenda. There is a bit of a story behind it all, but they were so thrilled with their gift. There were two jars left in the store, so we bought them both so Matt and Susan didn't have to share! :D Susan got me some Chex Cereal. My favorite Christmas dessert is the candy that you make with that. There are a ton of different names for that candy...Chocolate treasures, Muddy buddies, dog chow! Whatever the name it is yummy stuff and I make it once a year if I have the cereal on hand. I was so pumped about my gift. It will make my Christmas eve snack night complete!<br /><br />My sewing machine has been staying busy. I bought a pattern for barbie clothes and had to try those out. Wow...it takes some patience to sew those little tiny seams, but the girls have been ecstatic with the results. Here is my most recent dress. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg84eUxohf9qrVglbnTpUkJWCbSTgPXp8PC3_httdIh-CYQNLPhC0kertfeOHr2Oa4bmCSDkk4NuMFtXHs9OXPP0S50NzDHoSLzmOQ_Hbv0NSlppMK4NGjVPKYq04eAsEXiT4PA7tYTUOQ6/s1600/barbie+dress.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 278px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553582515113673010" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg84eUxohf9qrVglbnTpUkJWCbSTgPXp8PC3_httdIh-CYQNLPhC0kertfeOHr2Oa4bmCSDkk4NuMFtXHs9OXPP0S50NzDHoSLzmOQ_Hbv0NSlppMK4NGjVPKYq04eAsEXiT4PA7tYTUOQ6/s400/barbie+dress.jpg" /></a><br />I'm also using my newfound sewing skills to create organizational helps around the house. I made this for the girls barbie dolls. Emma is a quick one. She saw me making it and said, "Mommy, we only have three dolls, but you have five pockets..." Hmmmm...little stinker! haha! I told her that she needed to keep a secret and then explained that Kate was getting a barbie for her birthday. Then Emma said, "But that is still only 4 dolls and there are 5 pockets." She was obviously fishing for some hints to what is under the Christmas tree! I told her the extra pocket was for accessories! :D Anyway, here is the little barbie holder that I made.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgavl9m2SRzLlZu5x7KVf4X5eE52gWGoIQAwZjo0PctyW1-6VYSc_9SNrEYUJFEWFnkvp0FzVPJc4ndIGyvreepyPGoUnrB8RakL_XN9CgotB6izJWlF_bgadxmqPgLjO5PTggH_3qqHFky/s1600/presents.jpg"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBM3-wCZ-OxuJy4CzyAbnM9Wtooy5pYI3cJKc1Q4_DYcB2Ve7NRQdcT5Od9PxUCJFZyrWSgJFEJkU1KvRaKg93Is5jVTIokpCDaXtNslNT0KEMPz8M1KnXvwPTO8n9TKNV1MrQw89c4btP/s1600/barbie+rack.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553593944142107570" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBM3-wCZ-OxuJy4CzyAbnM9Wtooy5pYI3cJKc1Q4_DYcB2Ve7NRQdcT5Od9PxUCJFZyrWSgJFEJkU1KvRaKg93Is5jVTIokpCDaXtNslNT0KEMPz8M1KnXvwPTO8n9TKNV1MrQw89c4btP/s400/barbie+rack.jpg" /></a><br />We are looking forward to Christmas. We have a great program planned for our Christmas morning service. This is the first year that we have a lot of special music planned and things of that sort. I'm pretty excited about it! I'll be sure to update with pictures after this week is over. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas as well!</p>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-15439564611409370262010-12-10T12:55:00.011-05:002010-12-10T15:42:46.354-05:00Happy FridayI always love Fridays. I'm not sure why...maybe because it is pizza night. And even though I have to make it, we all love pizza, so it is still a treat! :D<br /><br />Today was spent doing school with the kids and then off to the sewing room for me :D I found some of the girl's old jeans in the closet and decided I was going to do something with them. I found some directions online and tackled the project of turning those jeans into a skirt. It was surprisingly easy and I finished it in about an hour. That doesn't include the time I spent ripping the seams though. Oh my word!! They have like three layers of stitching in jeans! It took me a while to rip the seams and I was very thankful it was a kid's size 5 and not an adult pair of jeans! Once I ripped the seams it was cake from there. I was really happy with the results and Faith loves her new skirt! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz2UtZsEREo09MUkjVDPpXdVWFRGGdqavRYWkTsSzKoi8A43GSxCUXleZb_Yies4ivWrlK0x08kyC4ZwOqb4YH0WgfznTwEli2JdW-8jCunWyUbY_cu6-xqnhKfOEERKnFLQgwC7WCmBtJ/s1600/DSC02322.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz2UtZsEREo09MUkjVDPpXdVWFRGGdqavRYWkTsSzKoi8A43GSxCUXleZb_Yies4ivWrlK0x08kyC4ZwOqb4YH0WgfznTwEli2JdW-8jCunWyUbY_cu6-xqnhKfOEERKnFLQgwC7WCmBtJ/s400/DSC02322.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549126109086847538" /></a>This past week was a pretty busy one. I'll start with this past Sunday since I got some pictures on that day. It was a rough day for Emma. She woke up and got dressed for church. Before we were even out the door she sliced her finger open with a razor blade. We'd been digging a jigger out of Faith Ann's foot (yes...another one!) the night before, and the razor blade didn't get put away. Emma didn't even know what it was and cut the pointer finger of her left hand open. We were late for church because I needed to get the bleeding stopped, and it took a little while. After church in Bambili, Drew kept complaining that he didn't feel good. He was coming down with a sore throat, headache and just all around yuckiness. He has since been coughing his brains out and not sleeping well at night. Anyway, I stayed home from Bamenda with everyone but Kate. She went to church with her daddy. We worked on our little drums while we were home. Drew and Emma took turns making theirs. Here are the finished products.<br /><br />Emma's...she stepped out of the box and chose pink as her color! <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCO74xPvg5J8Q2UWCwb9zZ0_2kv8V8nXfNhG-TNqHIpd_y6lVTpns54z4Jywg5G8ZKQGcQs1UdO-2KYxfCiZuVc5QKN-HHUPKHyR78BwUG8yD6BnyoTFmVi9Ql9_hyphenhyphen72IS5o8d3LOwspb/s1600/DSC02314.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyCO74xPvg5J8Q2UWCwb9zZ0_2kv8V8nXfNhG-TNqHIpd_y6lVTpns54z4Jywg5G8ZKQGcQs1UdO-2KYxfCiZuVc5QKN-HHUPKHyR78BwUG8yD6BnyoTFmVi9Ql9_hyphenhyphen72IS5o8d3LOwspb/s400/DSC02314.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549127600474305810" /></a><br /><br />Drew's:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMKR3YvtdeJqB_JXGh5GwRy6eA16f9ZNZkpX2AJbo2iUww3wX74kDveg5EfQYSlcWADGYFDPEQ2TiUFg1Z5gxQcke1pzXy4F1P_dq5zTMjmz6XrC0PpmM1PqZRJu_MznvV_j4s3Zb4agX/s1600/DSC02317.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuMKR3YvtdeJqB_JXGh5GwRy6eA16f9ZNZkpX2AJbo2iUww3wX74kDveg5EfQYSlcWADGYFDPEQ2TiUFg1Z5gxQcke1pzXy4F1P_dq5zTMjmz6XrC0PpmM1PqZRJu_MznvV_j4s3Zb4agX/s400/DSC02317.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549128011508911266" /></a><br /><br />And Kate's:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAq2pWRu1UzCxm32QlfDSetFgklEikLi49zVpBwUuWw2RxLrUkJltNzAgZhDVTdf6zEKUKaOHYWLcWq-cH3Bf9KDKaZsNy7KCDiBWBRXKf43FpJJkkA2mhgRJfH2oSB21jspTnG8xdCs8d/s1600/DSC02315.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAq2pWRu1UzCxm32QlfDSetFgklEikLi49zVpBwUuWw2RxLrUkJltNzAgZhDVTdf6zEKUKaOHYWLcWq-cH3Bf9KDKaZsNy7KCDiBWBRXKf43FpJJkkA2mhgRJfH2oSB21jspTnG8xdCs8d/s400/DSC02315.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549128405977957378" /></a><br />Kate made hers as soon as she came home from Bamenda. She was helping me glue with the hot glue gun and a huge glob of glue came from the gun. I don't know what Emma was thinking, but before I could get a big loud "NO" out of my mouth, Emma had stuck her finger in the glue. Oh man...she was screaming and Kate was screaming. (Kate is so dramatic! haha). I felt really bad for her because burns are one of the worst things. They just keep on burning and burning. She said she thought that it was already hardened and not hot. I had drilled into them how hot the glue was and to avoid touching it. Poor Emma. So, we got a container of ice water and she stood at the counter soaking her finger and crying for about an hour. I knew it hurt and there was nothing I could do. I just wish we could take the pain for our kids. By the time she sat down to eat, she wasn't crying anymore, but her finger was in ice water the remainder of the day. At bed time she finally took her finger out of the water and we put some neosporin on it and a bandaid. Poor girl...her pointer fingers had a rough day on Sunday. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxoE7eZDuKiOnu7U1b-ujVasS4Z_4o_JmLHPZh40FrqbkRJ74kiK84-GSA_ud7hQzLcaPjlmvXF5JyiUigF_ZLPTXB9uC9ZwmSYPTnrXPsJsTbQWwE4L2sFQQdNEoC4ptNlVW0jCED9I2n/s1600/DSC02313.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxoE7eZDuKiOnu7U1b-ujVasS4Z_4o_JmLHPZh40FrqbkRJ74kiK84-GSA_ud7hQzLcaPjlmvXF5JyiUigF_ZLPTXB9uC9ZwmSYPTnrXPsJsTbQWwE4L2sFQQdNEoC4ptNlVW0jCED9I2n/s400/DSC02313.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549129864761660306" /></a><br />The rest of the week has been busy for Ben. Friend day is coming up and he has been out inviting and getting gifts to give all the friends that come. He had a hiccup in his plans on Wed. The president of Cameroon, Paul Biya, came to Bamenda to visit for the first time in his entire presidency (of 30 years!). Ben tried to get stuff done in town but he ended up having to turn around and come home. He thought he was going to get thrown in jail at one point! He got on the wrong street at the wrong time! The presidential motorcade was coming down that street and he got stuck. He parked on the side of the street until a police officer came and yelled at him and told him to get OFF the road. So he pulled off the road right in front of a store. A short time later a man in a suit came and got right in his face and yelled at him. Ben told me when he got home that it really shook him up. He had to get out his ID card and the guy kept yelling to GET OFF THE ROAD!!!! Ben had no idea where to go and told the man that he was off the road. But when he would try to ask, the guy would just keep yelling at him to get off the road. He finally found his way off the road and drove into the quarter (basically a neighborhood of homes...no roads really run through a quarter). He stayed there until the motorcade was through and then stayed there a little while longer just to be safe! :D <br /><br />Later that night after we got the kids in bed, I kept hearing a banging noise. I thought someone was outside and I tried to look out the window to see if I could see someone. Through the bushes I saw lights off in the distance and it dawned on me that it was fireworks! This is the second time we have ever seen fireworks here. The first display we'd seen was for new years and it was pretty puny. This display was for the president, however, and it was the longest fireworks display I have ever seen in my life! We got the kids out of bed and after watching them for 20 minutes (at least!) I finally sent them to bed. I can't imagine how much money went into that display. And they were beautiful too! It was definitely a treat that night. The kids kept saying it was the best night of their life! haha! I don't know how far away the fireworks were from us. We are about 12 miles out of Bamenda, but I'm not sure how far out as the crow flies. Ben did dig out his camera and attempt to get a shot, and this is how it came out:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb3KSCXhYkOZcoEpWjU8BvmxCNotw5bKRgdRZPNldBheYG6Yfaam34UfsVlSV_bj3EUWsis8uTo9k4EZhgjFAshezZ93RS-Kl8pgPbcloPiejRg2Ykcl8BIMHWbwjh-316ojubYJ_Fgh2I/s1600/DSC07140.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 303px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb3KSCXhYkOZcoEpWjU8BvmxCNotw5bKRgdRZPNldBheYG6Yfaam34UfsVlSV_bj3EUWsis8uTo9k4EZhgjFAshezZ93RS-Kl8pgPbcloPiejRg2Ykcl8BIMHWbwjh-316ojubYJ_Fgh2I/s400/DSC07140.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5549150251271405058" /></a><br />Not very impressive, but I can assure you that it was a very impressive show. It was impressive for us all the way out of town. I imagine in town it was amazing! I bet most Cameroonians have never seen anything like it!<br /><br />So, anyway, that is a bit of an update from this last week. As I mentioned earlier, this Sunday is our annual Friend Day. We encourage everyone to bring a friend, and we usually have quite a crowd. It is a great opportunity for the gospel to go forth and we are praying that we will have many visitors. Pray that our family can get over this icky cold. I can feel a sore throat, and sinus headache coming on tonight, so I hope I'm not getting it. Drew has struggled with it all week. The cough is what he's really been battling. So far Kate is the only one who has been unaffected. We have certainly had our share of sickness this season change, but I'm thankful it has been minor things. <br /><br />Until next time...Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-57112612689022283232010-12-04T16:13:00.014-05:002010-12-04T16:48:18.984-05:00Trim The TreeI thought I'd share a cute little ornament idea that you can do with your kids. Or for youself if you are feeling crafty! :D
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<br />One of my readers, Melanie, is one of my digital scrapbooking buddies. She mentioned in one of her comments recently that she was looking for cute ornament ideas to make with her daughter. By the way Mel...thanks for reading and always commenting. I really appreciate it! :D
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<br />So, in school this week, Drew's Bible teacher made an ornament for the craft in one of his lessons. I told the kids that we'd make it after school sometime this week. We put it off and put it off. Finally tonight I dug out all of the materials and gave it a test run. I plan on doing it with the kids tomorrow night, but I thought it would be fun to show you how to make it.
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<br />Here is what you need for materials:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpi2tm0fwfkK5aAO9wxxRqgmHjRiwCntKa31g0g22e6x0zXbGPcYX_kGuY5HHazIenKuhjvdUc4eE_gNt8A53-ShjATHuksfQ2jYPRqLc4pq0bqSWzRIt4F5qHigH1qJAHBG0WpyQEGgm6/s1600/DSC02303.JPG">
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpi2tm0fwfkK5aAO9wxxRqgmHjRiwCntKa31g0g22e6x0zXbGPcYX_kGuY5HHazIenKuhjvdUc4eE_gNt8A53-ShjATHuksfQ2jYPRqLc4pq0bqSWzRIt4F5qHigH1qJAHBG0WpyQEGgm6/s1600/DSC02303.JPG"><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546939781997424866" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpi2tm0fwfkK5aAO9wxxRqgmHjRiwCntKa31g0g22e6x0zXbGPcYX_kGuY5HHazIenKuhjvdUc4eE_gNt8A53-ShjATHuksfQ2jYPRqLc4pq0bqSWzRIt4F5qHigH1qJAHBG0WpyQEGgm6/s400/DSC02303.JPG" /></a></p>A toilet paper roll cut in half, two different kinds of ribbon, one piece of white felt and one piece of red (or color of your choice), tothpicks, hot glue gun, scissors. I think that is it! :D<p>You don't need both the green and the red felt. You just need to choose one color other than white. You can get creative and go outside of the Christmas "box" and pick pink if you want to! Also, the shape of your ornament is made by using the toilet paper roll. I cut mine in half with my serrated bread knife and it worked great!</p><p>Ok, using a pencil, trace the end of your toilet paper roll onto your piece of white felt. Cut it larger than the shape you have drawn so you can actually glue the edges down over the toilet paper roll. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmJz2ML7ra94vx_zX4keB9Bgi3qT2wP-htJQ4dY0Y6yFzQXMGuhQAyOQPfg78A_vx-QgcWsTjT9J_9Yu3uzCQQSLVOKP0xqhUD-6Ey5-WyyZfAc7BGDxRXeitK7vK837FkwtgCl6Fkbspv/s1600/DSC02304.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546941303737924770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmJz2ML7ra94vx_zX4keB9Bgi3qT2wP-htJQ4dY0Y6yFzQXMGuhQAyOQPfg78A_vx-QgcWsTjT9J_9Yu3uzCQQSLVOKP0xqhUD-6Ey5-WyyZfAc7BGDxRXeitK7vK837FkwtgCl6Fkbspv/s400/DSC02304.JPG" /></a>
<br />Using a glue gun, glue it over the edges of your toilet paper roll. Make sure you press the felt into the glue real well. Do this for the top and the bottom of your roll. </p><p>Next you will need to cut a strip of red felt the width of the roll. Next time I cut mine, I will actually cut it slightly shorter b/c it looked a little messy when the red was right up to the edge. You can judge about how long you need to cut it by wrapping the felt around the toilet paper roll and making a mark. It is better to cut it a tad long too and go back and trim. Here is my piece: <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBTchOgFO0am_xuoMb0OS63kFTLdEvDCfJvvNV-bjrTWwFy7qSCHmlt8rhsryon3oZLvMjZaUuciRfi7WD9twLu54XteGoyoe9x-zPTLfrjoI36dzzaEQi3oMNq76XkAZPDwi3R88zmFGv/s1600/DSC02305.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546941646379550354" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBTchOgFO0am_xuoMb0OS63kFTLdEvDCfJvvNV-bjrTWwFy7qSCHmlt8rhsryon3oZLvMjZaUuciRfi7WD9twLu54XteGoyoe9x-zPTLfrjoI36dzzaEQi3oMNq76XkAZPDwi3R88zmFGv/s400/DSC02305.JPG" /></a>
<br />You will then glue the red piece all the way around being sure to cover the edges of the white pieces of felt. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPDSu0lHMDg2hQDwYnlWZEmyxtBFAIR4IZOCf_a9zSuyPNsLqjU_rNWCsATV_skd3JMuxgQfQuKZ9oLO2ktEs6amWOplrhrjsR2oW5Z_V7DLNr_fmcBMKn1fSK6jyYrPy7MSWsL-ruzUfN/s1600/DSC02306.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546941951801571202" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPDSu0lHMDg2hQDwYnlWZEmyxtBFAIR4IZOCf_a9zSuyPNsLqjU_rNWCsATV_skd3JMuxgQfQuKZ9oLO2ktEs6amWOplrhrjsR2oW5Z_V7DLNr_fmcBMKn1fSK6jyYrPy7MSWsL-ruzUfN/s400/DSC02306.JPG" /></a>
<br />Once you have the white and the red felt on, you are going to take a small ribbon and glue it in V shapes all the way around your roll. I just tacked it at the edges rather than glueing every inch of the ribbon.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcNSOBD59KrFXJLF23iCZwfIFPQh3a9I8JoINZLo0eFybY3bqngkn2eNJ_CsJR1orEy-vD8VoNQaz41U_pxe7uZpRDvxb24RTMP-BoU8OKjGo5OjOVzS7WvsF_EjWFd5llPQ3ByFWw_QGe/s1600/DSC02307.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546942487543941394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcNSOBD59KrFXJLF23iCZwfIFPQh3a9I8JoINZLo0eFybY3bqngkn2eNJ_CsJR1orEy-vD8VoNQaz41U_pxe7uZpRDvxb24RTMP-BoU8OKjGo5OjOVzS7WvsF_EjWFd5llPQ3ByFWw_QGe/s400/DSC02307.JPG" /></a>You will cut a small piece of the same ribbon to make a hangar. Glue it near the top edge of your drum. <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546943262067788226" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibs2oWo4ZP2QemSmLenge-0VUw7g4uNgpo_fJ1pnXdCqicl6dzuJYZrSmSqUdWsZxeIRISPV6Q2-MgJQGR-45HliGcIoIqRNYDq1DwIMzQv8d-6VjwKs3w6kKUQBhX_bPgtBk1A1eE4XQ7/s400/DSC02308.JPG" />You can see that the place where you glue it will be hidden by the final piece of trim. Then take a different kind of ribbon to trim the edges. This can also hide all the seams where you glued the felt down. I had silver on hand, but Drew's teacher used gold. Get creative!</p><p align="center">Take two toothpicks, cross them and glue them somewhere on the top of your drum for the drumsticks.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76HS2PMII8MQXw87OhH7bOn8Tm6zE2LGQkrxjwMKZTHLhxRAfe4nyU_IpsvUqalRrCpwqGbxqdHNLmdubXgYs89smvdIu_4ZrVGFkV05HRZ9O6FYE3EEXq90DM4Woiyg34YKR38zAMtwi/s1600/DSC02309.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546944750359356914" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg76HS2PMII8MQXw87OhH7bOn8Tm6zE2LGQkrxjwMKZTHLhxRAfe4nyU_IpsvUqalRrCpwqGbxqdHNLmdubXgYs89smvdIu_4ZrVGFkV05HRZ9O6FYE3EEXq90DM4Woiyg34YKR38zAMtwi/s400/DSC02309.JPG" /></a> And Voila! You have a cute little ornament on your tree!</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx4P6pMMI_Ag2dma0npYvtMwU4gNaCW6EJotjKJTLUfVvJHm-a6oUGw4fQJkpRTbbRSnrDNhEKHJX7Y-EI4eJLq2oNKXUIbEwPlxy0oE0C1RoCI8MdXDm0-Rwp24qOYweeahN4oUg9-7Nh/s1600/DSC02310.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546943608126612386" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx4P6pMMI_Ag2dma0npYvtMwU4gNaCW6EJotjKJTLUfVvJHm-a6oUGw4fQJkpRTbbRSnrDNhEKHJX7Y-EI4eJLq2oNKXUIbEwPlxy0oE0C1RoCI8MdXDm0-Rwp24qOYweeahN4oUg9-7Nh/s400/DSC02310.JPG" /></a> </p>
<br />Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-67886553067975353422010-12-02T04:47:00.014-05:002010-12-02T06:12:59.785-05:00It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas!In my house...and on my blog! Do you like my new blogwear?? I think it is pretty cute. I am a CT member for Zoe Pearn Designs at <a href="http://sweetshoppedesigns.com/sweetshoppe/manufacturers.php?manufacturerid=25">The Sweet Shoppe</a>, and she lets us download her products and show them off for free. The first time I set up my blog by myself, I about pulled my hair out. Her instructions, however, were SO easy! <br /><br />It is also Christmas in our house and we are really enjoying our tree. We planned to decorate the tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It was a good plan too, b/c the kids really didn't want to leave Foumban, but the plans to decorate for Christmas did give them something to look forward too. The kids helped Daddy organize all the branches by color, and used their imaginations in the process!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp9wdDUFdwhgHaiqmSROZjL4NV8rPoyf8nFs_tHxCsHOaNjnIN3TLXE8OSpshv399pwW4Ey76qJOIFo0dur-3k47qNsTVqV0QtLlFk2BIMk8oc-CWPZAoXGvdrXRRJdH-HHq9EFABM5sv5/s1600/Faith+Reindeer.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp9wdDUFdwhgHaiqmSROZjL4NV8rPoyf8nFs_tHxCsHOaNjnIN3TLXE8OSpshv399pwW4Ey76qJOIFo0dur-3k47qNsTVqV0QtLlFk2BIMk8oc-CWPZAoXGvdrXRRJdH-HHq9EFABM5sv5/s400/Faith+Reindeer.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546021601947724754" /></a>The kids loved going through all the ornaments again. Grandma often gives them ornaments with their name and date written on it. The kids love to go through the boxes of ornaments to find their own! Kate has several of her own ornaments. Since she is the second oldest, she's collected a few more, not to mention that she was the first girl in our family and she was also born a few days before Christmas. She has a lot of Baby's first Christmas ornaments! She enjoyed finding special spots in the tree for hers.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvBfxZrhozL0BcWDsP89_H51mgEzgYg-p_rjBXwgzXnyOHkkJKs4FVb7XSGmGmpsRBJ_fs2Cu0ss-KL_YK3zrkIGnM0_LSCDGd28sbQ1K4JmnkrhDuA6vkfSdJftOKbXc3X6Pen5ub5T5m/s1600/Kate+Decorating.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvBfxZrhozL0BcWDsP89_H51mgEzgYg-p_rjBXwgzXnyOHkkJKs4FVb7XSGmGmpsRBJ_fs2Cu0ss-KL_YK3zrkIGnM0_LSCDGd28sbQ1K4JmnkrhDuA6vkfSdJftOKbXc3X6Pen5ub5T5m/s400/Kate+Decorating.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546037164342328722" /></a><br />After we finished the tree, we had a blast making ornaments. I've had some of that crayola air dry clay sitting around for a while and I've made ornaments with it before. It works great. So we dug out the Christmas cookie cutters and went to work creating some new ornaments for our tree. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WwAfQKF3EMo6Hobx428wUKWeCZReOrG28fl2KZlUD0fWRhqxRmYfxDL9uQdnHKiRlE7OeSLfKkWWZskRrTjTZgNS-9wyHPqs3FbZnG8yTzFMPyxAYMGW9E52IQd6zT7-SiO8FnDpxZo1/s1600/ornaments.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WwAfQKF3EMo6Hobx428wUKWeCZReOrG28fl2KZlUD0fWRhqxRmYfxDL9uQdnHKiRlE7OeSLfKkWWZskRrTjTZgNS-9wyHPqs3FbZnG8yTzFMPyxAYMGW9E52IQd6zT7-SiO8FnDpxZo1/s400/ornaments.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546038490397124562" /></a><br />We used the eraser end of a pencil to make the holes. I think Emma ended up making the most. She really enjoyed it.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtI849qyrbCIv-PJMdYOg9fkNuPTqQtQBtkKW6o7EWgbNFDA652-kxl7ZHBjntnAee9pd4fDwKyazNSjqU2pLcm7RA4Oxgg5IgwTJ6qg8dnyOm9zCwJz_zbR_Qk_hvsw8ETiwU_Zl2orr_/s1600/emma+clay.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtI849qyrbCIv-PJMdYOg9fkNuPTqQtQBtkKW6o7EWgbNFDA652-kxl7ZHBjntnAee9pd4fDwKyazNSjqU2pLcm7RA4Oxgg5IgwTJ6qg8dnyOm9zCwJz_zbR_Qk_hvsw8ETiwU_Zl2orr_/s400/emma+clay.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546037558961709634" /></a><br /> Drew used up most of his clay to hand make his own ornament...Rudolph! I think he did a pretty good job for free handing it!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhleRKYVQOW76IgNTjS8ckFpvFlOfLwTDvOM1IhNBU1RR3mySV7l-4bi12EfdOtQmxa2InEMfZT7SFdQcD3JeElJSWODc9o7ArY5bUg6wXEsRhjR3gy7F-o_81aduWSKX9pC4M1dBiHkyEy/s1600/rudolph.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 287px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhleRKYVQOW76IgNTjS8ckFpvFlOfLwTDvOM1IhNBU1RR3mySV7l-4bi12EfdOtQmxa2InEMfZT7SFdQcD3JeElJSWODc9o7ArY5bUg6wXEsRhjR3gy7F-o_81aduWSKX9pC4M1dBiHkyEy/s400/rudolph.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546037937509059074" /></a><br />After letting it dry for 24 hours, out came the paint. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxFxkDwHVjJF5iyphTM7M9R0s4Ehw3q6ZqfcATnzc1WHtNRrtiLoDFSsumh3-Mof3PopUms18Zef_yRp8w6hKcyzTvq2nlxqoYqei9wjnJCAGAIcc1QJRmlgdjiMxerPLFihYeHtIqcPQ2/s1600/drew+paiting.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxFxkDwHVjJF5iyphTM7M9R0s4Ehw3q6ZqfcATnzc1WHtNRrtiLoDFSsumh3-Mof3PopUms18Zef_yRp8w6hKcyzTvq2nlxqoYqei9wjnJCAGAIcc1QJRmlgdjiMxerPLFihYeHtIqcPQ2/s400/drew+paiting.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546038224378884258" /></a><br />The kids loved this part the most I think and some of their creations went from clean and pretty, to messy! haha! (Don't tell them I said that!), but they had a blast, and when all was said and done, they look pretty hanging from a ribbon on the tree. Speaking of tree...Here is a shot of it, along with our 2010 ornament that my Mom brought with her when she visited.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5_bjhe4YUBPb5lbop-6Qy76CRwx4lmd6uOrtix-accLReeIdBwg2HWPtZnVPFiXjU8lk01bJba3WnDdhjCVCUXDi8GysLNVb1jaBSawElO5eR-CmQB5TKYcYqHx5hy_PU_5TNIUFRPABc/s1600/tree.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5_bjhe4YUBPb5lbop-6Qy76CRwx4lmd6uOrtix-accLReeIdBwg2HWPtZnVPFiXjU8lk01bJba3WnDdhjCVCUXDi8GysLNVb1jaBSawElO5eR-CmQB5TKYcYqHx5hy_PU_5TNIUFRPABc/s400/tree.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546039210905717378" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUJPfgeWAqDpwPzgUP0pApkKl46po_DZF3BybDWobsGHlr12Eao_F1Wc8ZKQ66nzbzAN3owoZZYDhtWsy93vg8BpLlgkIYw7nvXRiUiHwAtwHSXeX4KZquuGBuppT6ohVuWXW8Hhwp7sgm/s1600/Family+ornament.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUJPfgeWAqDpwPzgUP0pApkKl46po_DZF3BybDWobsGHlr12Eao_F1Wc8ZKQ66nzbzAN3owoZZYDhtWsy93vg8BpLlgkIYw7nvXRiUiHwAtwHSXeX4KZquuGBuppT6ohVuWXW8Hhwp7sgm/s400/Family+ornament.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546038925867213986" /></a><br /> A couple more things before I close out my blog post. I have to share a little treasure that Ben found in town:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7KdhibM9wln37wksHWN4IecP-f9CKSoziJUhQjbOoXFKauj6plCtJ9PNKVHjMnInQfjrqxkl2lX80gLFCFJS6u2d2o1AOrb6abalQDnHsJ89Ufn5v9T8pHIAKYS3utsRvUzMJ6jr1Vlh9/s1600/tomatoes.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7KdhibM9wln37wksHWN4IecP-f9CKSoziJUhQjbOoXFKauj6plCtJ9PNKVHjMnInQfjrqxkl2lX80gLFCFJS6u2d2o1AOrb6abalQDnHsJ89Ufn5v9T8pHIAKYS3utsRvUzMJ6jr1Vlh9/s400/tomatoes.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546039545037162114" /></a><br />It's definitely the little things that make me a happy girl. :D<br />And another blessing of the day....<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGmbgaeucL7sI7DgW9IDNSQTHHl7FDQTD7EsXuyHLVQYj8ihb0XVMyVWTDR5mevh02CC296PIXnhdmki2a2fc1G1Og0C8bx3sHGCtDqAoSvUAIBLDn5F1jIKtCT2uksEJJBZXMGwoKToMQ/s1600/DSC02302.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGmbgaeucL7sI7DgW9IDNSQTHHl7FDQTD7EsXuyHLVQYj8ihb0XVMyVWTDR5mevh02CC296PIXnhdmki2a2fc1G1Og0C8bx3sHGCtDqAoSvUAIBLDn5F1jIKtCT2uksEJJBZXMGwoKToMQ/s400/DSC02302.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546039852673941058" /></a><br />I know it doesn't look like it...but it is actually...WATER! Looks Yummy, huh? :D Even as I type this we have our outside taps running to clear out all the muck. I figured that once the water finally came on that it would be pretty gross and I was right! It has mostly cleared at this point, though I wouldn't quite wash dishes with it yet unless I boil it. The plumber informed us that their might be several breaks and mishaps before this new source is hooked up and added to our water line, so we will be keeping all our spare containers filled. Now that I've had a week to practice living without running water...I know that I can manage and I don't think I'll panic as much as I have in the past. I've learned that you can actually live without running water, and we really consume more water than is actually necessary!<br /><br />Ben and I were laughing today because as soon as the water came in...the power went out. Ben said, "What are we going to do when we get to heaven and we have the river of life running freely for all of eternity...and there will be no power outages because the "SON" is there!" What a great thing to look forward to! I think that our family might have an even greater appreciation for it after this year than ever before!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-84582796807739124552010-12-01T08:50:00.008-05:002010-12-01T09:46:19.781-05:00Holiday RecapI haven't posted since Thanksgiving! Shame on me. I hope yours was special...and I'll take a moment to tell you a little bit about mine.<br /><br />The Yeiters met us over here around 10-ish to head to Foumban (a three hour trip from here). We switched people around so we could ride and caravan together. Ben and Matt captained the lead car. Their passengers were Drew, Autumn, Riah, and Kate. Susan and I captained the second car with Faith, Trinity, Emma and DJ. It was nice to switch around like that. The kids enjoyed the three hour trip a lot better with their friends! We arrived at the Mossman's house and helped put the last minute meal preparations together. It was a ridiculously hot day, and Foumban is even hotter than Bamenda, so I knew it would be a scorcher there. However, the Mossman's home is situated on top of a hill, and the breeze that blew through there made their home so comfortable! It was really refreshing!<br /><br />Our meal was YUMMO! We had chicken (no turkey here for us), Mashed potatoes, two kinds of stuffing (all our stuff was home made!), carrot souffle, sweet potatoe casserole, Green bean casserole, corn and dinner rolls. We spent the afternoon visiting and did a lot of laughing. Susan and I split up familes...we got all the ladies to sit at one table and sent our hubby's to the next table! haha! So much for Thanksgiving being a family occasion. In reality though, we see our husbands every day...and love them VERY much! :D However, we do not get to have a group of ladies together often, so we took advantage of the situation. I know the men enjoyed their time of fellowship too!<br /><br />We gathered again in the evening for a time of praise. Many of the families prepared something and the kids did choral readings, piano solos, and musical numbers of some kind. My kiddos sang "All that I Need" from one of Patch the Pirate music books, while I stumbled through the accompaniment. Excuse all the red eye in the picture. In fact, I tried to fix mine, but it turned my whole face to greyscale! Oh well! :D<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNE5jo4Hm2nQYIWPXN7nMhYvfc07m9zCKqh96KDN-c6aGJPIMrpfR42FQsEGlMRsv8nx5hbHPBPpkFDiZPTh2N2rXynH61ekiQ2Ts6bTFwvt4cc-q7vSlCq7zXbKb7BBdoPGmtCpB6XbnV/s1600/DSC07124.JPG"><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545714411612445170" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNE5jo4Hm2nQYIWPXN7nMhYvfc07m9zCKqh96KDN-c6aGJPIMrpfR42FQsEGlMRsv8nx5hbHPBPpkFDiZPTh2N2rXynH61ekiQ2Ts6bTFwvt4cc-q7vSlCq7zXbKb7BBdoPGmtCpB6XbnV/s400/DSC07124.JPG" /></a>They did a great job. You can see my poser, Emma. She was the only one who really made a mistake. She was so busy posing for the camera that she forgot to sing the chorus!<br /><br />The next day was relaxing as well. I think they had a picnic and a hike planned, but I suggested that we just hang around and visit. Everyone was all for the idea! Many of the missionaries were leaving on Friday (Wrights and Ellen were headed to Zambia, and Rosemary was headed to the airport to start her trip to Greenville, SC), so with such a small group it was a nice plan. We stayed through lunch and then started our trip home. This time we caravaned with the Sanderlins, but we didn't switch up people.<br /><br />So there you have it...our thanksgiving in a nutshell. We came home to no water. And we haven't had water since. So, that was a little depressing, but God has really given grace and I have learned to manage. My blog readers know that of all the challenges we face here, water shortage is my greatest. I don't know why that is the case...it just is. But I haven't had a choice and God has given me grace and peace of mind to deal with it. It does drain our time a lot more, but in the same token it gives us more opportunities. Ben has to make a daily water run, and in the process he stands in line with neighbors, all waiting to fill their buckets, and he has opportunities that we otherwise might not have with water flowing in our house. Here are a few girls he got a picture of one day. In fact they helped him fill all his buckets.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiClaVI8VjzuM5HogTfldC7oRsuQAsFFFEEZKXm_F_lPS4fEmjGLoT0Wwhevfb7TtdKjqBf6e23eL66qcqxDmdcZZPFWEOB04N3GUYFea65CRBgZULRebNFiHcs4_piRYe2k2qTx5fJSze-/s1600/DSC07127.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545717048853451602" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiClaVI8VjzuM5HogTfldC7oRsuQAsFFFEEZKXm_F_lPS4fEmjGLoT0Wwhevfb7TtdKjqBf6e23eL66qcqxDmdcZZPFWEOB04N3GUYFea65CRBgZULRebNFiHcs4_piRYe2k2qTx5fJSze-/s400/DSC07127.JPG" /></a>Spunky little things, aren't they?<br />Since then he has been bringing the kids to help him fill the buckets. Here is Faith Ann helping out.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG754HNglPOLjATMXCHw7871t39tCc_4i-X5xoFNt8SHWK7auJNqXfFuHaE0QtXLB5VyIB0BFm5YKkD6uhlqs50Uu2RziDOb-E6sIFUhK52QF997GfAFPpMaHpoHfPXL_FFrol1ui0Mz2I/s1600/Water+Hole.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545718315100072274" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG754HNglPOLjATMXCHw7871t39tCc_4i-X5xoFNt8SHWK7auJNqXfFuHaE0QtXLB5VyIB0BFm5YKkD6uhlqs50Uu2RziDOb-E6sIFUhK52QF997GfAFPpMaHpoHfPXL_FFrol1ui0Mz2I/s400/Water+Hole.jpg" /></a> I know they are working on the water and I would appreciate it if you all would pray for them to find the problem and for it to be fixed soon! It would be a big help to us...and also to my pile of laundry! haha!<br /><br />Another ministry I've started is a one-on-one discipleship with the ladies in the church. Last school term we had a ladies Bible study, but with this year's school schedule it has been really difficult to find one time that is good for everyone. It is nearly impossible when they even hold classes on Saturdays. They have no free days here! There are some new believer's in the church, and I thought it would be good to have a discipleship class. If we can find a time to meet as a group...fine. Or if it is easier for me to meet with them individually, then I'll do that as I'm able, but I felt that this would be the best choice for this term. So,for now I've begun meeting with Ernestine. I had the privilege of meeting with her after a Sunday morning service several weeks ago and she trusted Christ as her Savior. Since then she has been attending church each Sunday and I approached her about going through the Spiritual Growth Series that my husband wrote, and she seemed very excited to learn more about the word of God. <br /><br />My sewing ministry is progressing...haha! Just kidding! It isn't a ministry. It has turned into a "Me-time" activity. So, I guess it is my ministry to myself! :D Honestly though, I really enjoy it and love the challenge of tackling a project. My mom always asks me what my next sewing project is going to be. I made lot of bags and I wasn't sure what to try my hand at next until we started decorating for Christmas this past Saturday (which will be another post with pictures later). We were hanging all of our stockings and I realized that I'd forgotten to get Faith Ann her own. I keep meaning too, but once the decorations are away it is out of sight and therefore out of mind. Last year I stuffed my stocking with her goodies and she was fine with that, but this year I wanted her to have a stocking. So, I decided to make one. Or at least try to make one.<br /><br />Mom had brought some christmas material with her when she visited. I'd asked her to slowly buy some on clearance b/c I thought it would be a good thing to wrap gifts with. It can be used over and over. So I took one of the pieces of material, along with some peices of felt that I have for the kids school projects and an old curtain and came up with this:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBsQcg7lyyid8oSyoqF3HTtRVRydcsO4IzRgn5alNmVi0rOPy5zU-npJ2xJgMHyE8QAod0UtpPX6QRh9TU0szkdElXLOZl9QajMdhIzo3YC9nkZJx3alaycVY0O0fwFv_uNhxMx14-M6TO/s1600/DSC07129.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5545719717356704482" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBsQcg7lyyid8oSyoqF3HTtRVRydcsO4IzRgn5alNmVi0rOPy5zU-npJ2xJgMHyE8QAod0UtpPX6QRh9TU0szkdElXLOZl9QajMdhIzo3YC9nkZJx3alaycVY0O0fwFv_uNhxMx14-M6TO/s400/DSC07129.JPG" /></a>It isn't perfect, but Faith Ann is thrilled. Now that I'm looking at it, it is the perfect stocking for Cameroon...it has all the colors of their flag! haha! I was going to omit the yellow, but that is Faith's favorite color (for now anyway) and she wanted it in there. The patterned fabric is candy canes and yellow stars. I'm pretty happy with the end result. I am wondering though...do most people who sew have to use their seam ripper as often as I do? Probably not!:D </p>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-29293112311066041932010-11-23T15:21:00.008-05:002010-11-23T15:56:58.645-05:00Love You Sew!I'm having "sew" much fun sewing! Since my last post I have made two more purses and a skort for Faith Ann. I just want to try out patterns to see if I can do them! The skort, as simple a pattern as that is, still had me scratching my head and maybe even fuming at some points. Not really fuming...just frustrated I guess. I don't know why I can't wrap my brain around the instructions sometimes, but I was determined to figure it out. And thank the Lord...I did! :D Here is Faith with her new skort...made out of recycled curtains.<br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542845068707842594" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0QKcgkv_7KuvPAgNEB9i8AFWRzRAExS1GBMcJXDWUi-OzrMqOnco41AcI4CcvRRm9P0WIkD7LEImfid6YGahuolF6phNwYRC7I-AS7YZrN8vzPc0Ovj2XFCZPABtpK2N2SsoKvgt7dRPM/s400/Faith+skort.jpg" /><br /><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvcqxfGzmxUyLbtxHPxlNAoy_qwGaUte1215lSonVMierVCmjLQiGIo63Pzs1SfuudprfphyEW1Vi7jkNmlDjzogCxoL1fVumvvAxRMBpOEljWjx8nclouThAomRM3W-WEuYtDOBDr9R2/s1600/Faith+Skort+2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542845799836293538" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvcqxfGzmxUyLbtxHPxlNAoy_qwGaUte1215lSonVMierVCmjLQiGIo63Pzs1SfuudprfphyEW1Vi7jkNmlDjzogCxoL1fVumvvAxRMBpOEljWjx8nclouThAomRM3W-WEuYtDOBDr9R2/s400/Faith+Skort+2.jpg" /></a>It turned out alright. She won't be wearing it too much longer. Next time I'll play with adjusting the sizes, but she seemed pretty happy.</p><p>The project that I worked on today has to be my favorite of all of them so far. I found this purse pattern on www.youcanmakethis.com If you have never been to that site you should check it out. It is so cool. They sell downloadable pdf patterns, which is great for someone like me, who can't just go running to Joanne Fabrics or Wal-Mart. So, I found this cute purse pattern and bought it and it turned out SO adorable!! Check it out:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5lOjYOa94qFSxumonPm41DQfBdZsjuP2bTM_Gd8uvx4xOhGMbDtwvYk2cnwAlnVv2BNZlJ67U1XxE25rme9hcQTLHNsO5YeUtHu8xYrd4tTzsHo0Qd06Epmqjsvu41hpVNPgtTpkDr4YE/s1600/Autumn+purse.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542846592068304178" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5lOjYOa94qFSxumonPm41DQfBdZsjuP2bTM_Gd8uvx4xOhGMbDtwvYk2cnwAlnVv2BNZlJ67U1XxE25rme9hcQTLHNsO5YeUtHu8xYrd4tTzsHo0Qd06Epmqjsvu41hpVNPgtTpkDr4YE/s400/Autumn+purse.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYIhoxVlflwqcydhHTt-2OKSdO5M5st_zuxFixYsYNwsPGC_bxbBDNQytU5oQU9wdLJa5rNJs2jkcEHepJtgS7kRJPLpl7KrIaR3Wn-dLDCZhBVlLUm-kKjnLyBmaVRrvVZIXEX_zk5L-g/s1600/Autumn+purse+2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542846965249268578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYIhoxVlflwqcydhHTt-2OKSdO5M5st_zuxFixYsYNwsPGC_bxbBDNQytU5oQU9wdLJa5rNJs2jkcEHepJtgS7kRJPLpl7KrIaR3Wn-dLDCZhBVlLUm-kKjnLyBmaVRrvVZIXEX_zk5L-g/s400/Autumn+purse+2.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnaym7nrOtXqOZCCTjK8rmSCnOjRUx5-UERywxQFtMrPBDMdSOTk-8u_dTuUksLpEuCgzjvh3zRZCbft0riP-oIDRtSGhBM16ODYjBlL7Fv-UvGPHhki7mU6BMXwp_dl6L_GadDtZgvuSl/s1600/close+up+flower.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542847277310217458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnaym7nrOtXqOZCCTjK8rmSCnOjRUx5-UERywxQFtMrPBDMdSOTk-8u_dTuUksLpEuCgzjvh3zRZCbft0riP-oIDRtSGhBM16ODYjBlL7Fv-UvGPHhki7mU6BMXwp_dl6L_GadDtZgvuSl/s400/close+up+flower.jpg" /></a>I think the flower is my favorite part. I found a tutorial on you tube on how to make them and it was so easy. All I did was cut out different size circles from the same fabric that I used for the lining. It is a polyester fabric of some sort and with a candle I just singed the edges of the circle very carefully so as not to light the house on fire. :D As soon as the fabric melted it curled inward and once I layered and stitched them together...voila! I had an adorable fabric flower! Here is Emma, my poser, showing off the purse. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-UZJ3nkyLjupmBFgw3jaA7Lb45yqRkd2SPfvCbYG7BLayCPax5vgQLNKROQLX5bFMcuNVuYD1jmdjH_X0oWgCiImM8fXbAlU_e3-5kJJm63-FvkaHJslPJ2ey95b8XMND79SATEPWshD/s1600/Poser.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5542848589608993138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq-UZJ3nkyLjupmBFgw3jaA7Lb45yqRkd2SPfvCbYG7BLayCPax5vgQLNKROQLX5bFMcuNVuYD1jmdjH_X0oWgCiImM8fXbAlU_e3-5kJJm63-FvkaHJslPJ2ey95b8XMND79SATEPWshD/s400/Poser.jpg" /></a> Yep, you can already see the dry season hair style setting in. Of course someone should tell that girl's mother to brush her hair for crying out loud! haha!</p><p>Speaking of dry season, it is here, unfortunately, and to celebrate we already have no water. :D We are starting off with a bang I guess. I might as well settle in and get used to it, otherwise it will be a miserable 5 months. Supposedly they are hooking up a new water source which will add to the supply, so that might help. But I'm not holding my breath. I'd rather be mentally planning on not having water, and if I do have extra...I'll be super surprised!<br /><br />We had a suprise guest tonight. Pastor Daniel from Benakuma came here to have his treadle sewing machine repaired. He shewed up around dinner, and we had enough to feed him. I cleaned out the guest room, which was a MESS b/c of all my sewing projects and he is staying the night with us. Tomorrow he should hopefully get his machine repaired. We learned that the amazing woman that gave birth to "Pastor Ben" the last time Ben was there, is his sister-in-law! Wow...small world. Well, really the village is small, so it wasn't a huge surprise that they were related. But it is still neat. </p><p>Tomorrow I'll be cooking up a storm for Thanksgiving, and on Thursday morning we will drive the three hours to Foumban to spend Thanksgiving with fellow missionaries. We always enjoy our time there and are greatly looking forward to it. I will come back with pictures and I'm sure stories to tell! I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving holiday as well!!</p>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-85786871520440820202010-11-18T16:00:00.014-05:002010-11-18T18:16:27.375-05:00It's Me Again!I bet you thought that I'd left and decided to never come back! Right? Well, you can't get rid of me that easy!<br /><br />It has been almost an entire month since I last posted! But it was a very full month and I will try to give you a brief re-cap.<br /><br />My Mom came to visit and the preparations before her arrival and all the hoop-lah that accompanied her visit took up most of my time. I really didn't even give my blog one thought while she was here.<br /><br />We decided to go to Douala as a family and pick her and Gerald and Kathy Whitely up. The trip there was long, because we were anticipating seeing Mimi!! But the kids did great and we arrived early enough to grab a bite to eat and check in at the Baptist Guest House. We headed to the airport and stood outside on the big veranda that overlooked the tarmac. We heard and saw Mimi's plane come in and waited until we saw her disembark until we headed to the luggage area. Ben got special access and was able to meet them inside baggage claim, but the kids and I went to the second level of the airport where we stood on a balcony overlooking the baggage claim area. It was nice and breezy up there actually, and a great place to wait. Normally they kick you out of there and make you stand outside in the heat, but thankfully they were too busy to notice us.<br /><br />I told the kids that as soon as they saw Mimi or Mr. Gerald or Miss Kathy to all whistle together. I gave them a little demo of the whistle and we all practiced it. It's actually the Whitely's special little "E-I-E" call that they made up. Those who know the Whitely's know exactly what I'm talking about. So, we finally saw them enter the baggage claim area. I told the kids to whistle as loud as they could and they finally looked up and saw us waiting up there. What was SO, so cute was when Kate saw them. I heard her trying to whistle, but she was so happy and excited, and fighting back tears that she just kept blowing and blowing with all her might, trying to get a whistle to come out of her mouth, but it just wouldn't come. Oh man, that girl melted my heart! When we finally met up with Mimi she just ran to her crying and said that she just couldn't help it...she was so happy. Goodness...I'm teary even typing it! She is just like me actually. I was teary b/c I was so happy to see Mimi too!<br /><br />Praise God every piece of luggage arrived in tact! That really is almost a miracle here! One of these days I need to type out the Yeiters recent luggage story. Theirs was missing for a month! Anyway...we left the airport and headed to a restaurant called the Mediterranean.<br /><br />Seriously...that has to be the yummiest pizza joint. It even rivals my pizza! haha! :) It is owned by a Greek family and their pizza is amazing. We got veggie and feta cheese pizza. MmmmMmmm! It is a good thing there isn't one located in Bamenda or we'd be broke!<br /><br />We spent the night in Douala and headed home the next day. Our trip back was way more fun with Mimi and the Whitely's in the van. We did however have a breakdown. We kept overheating. The first time Gerald and Ben found a ruptured hose. They rigged it and got it repaired. But not long down the road it overheated again. We were in a purely french speaking area and this kid walks up to us and says in french that he is a mechanic. He was so young...I wouldn't even say he was 20 years old. But when all was said and done that kid flat knew what he was doing and God sent him directly to us! We lost a couple hours, but we finally arrived home safe and sound and very tired!<br /><br />The next couple weeks were absolutely crazy for Ben and Gerald. Gerald was booked solid in all the area schools to share his creation/evolution lectures. Evolution is taught here in all the schools and nobody has ever been taught creationism. Gerald has several video presentations and replica fossils and he lectures on this issue with the ultimate goal of using it to share the gospel. He had 17 meetings and he probably averaged about 200 students in each meeting. Here is one picture of him teaching the smallest group of students during his visit.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxXqrdt2piNaSvaZ8nfVwH4my5U1UTNO6LpNiXwdLsOeVLVOenWAjpiFyBbsS6qzWcll8ogXOCDGvuIr5IDU5pwCnz402J58-GevTH5Y0yfwdlVAxsEbSrMLnpKxMTlC8QUp2-TG9uZeIn/s1600/DSC07092.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541007438618524962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxXqrdt2piNaSvaZ8nfVwH4my5U1UTNO6LpNiXwdLsOeVLVOenWAjpiFyBbsS6qzWcll8ogXOCDGvuIr5IDU5pwCnz402J58-GevTH5Y0yfwdlVAxsEbSrMLnpKxMTlC8QUp2-TG9uZeIn/s400/DSC07092.JPG" /></a>While the guys were out and about we were basically home a lot. The only downside to the entire visit was that the kids were sick. Really really sick. Drew came down with the virus first, but he ran a fever for so many days that I finally started treating him with an antibiotic and for malaria as well. The kids hadn't been this sick in a while. They wouldn't eat...all they would do was lay around and sleep. It was terrible. I was thankful to have a couple extra Mom's here to offer their advice and it was nice that we could all just be home together rather than running around.<br /><br />We did venture out the first Saturday to a ladies meeting in Sabga. Mom and Kathy and I shared a plate of Fufu and Njamajama. Well...basically they tried it and I ate most of it. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjAXM3q5bW-gvgCxZjnVC1uB-96kLRKuWZfuLSqWr4PeyOB5RNgfri_RLumApEgxmHZwSJvg5QAUNKYIR-zI3zT0y9AwSeIbp9tbSiu4m2LIuBTLac2QGhT6LCRIdA5QjzAm4JoxbJyeXU/s1600/ladies+meeting2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541008315208762354" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjAXM3q5bW-gvgCxZjnVC1uB-96kLRKuWZfuLSqWr4PeyOB5RNgfri_RLumApEgxmHZwSJvg5QAUNKYIR-zI3zT0y9AwSeIbp9tbSiu4m2LIuBTLac2QGhT6LCRIdA5QjzAm4JoxbJyeXU/s400/ladies+meeting2.jpg" /></a> Then, on the next Saturday we hosted a missionary ladies luncheon. I reserved a spot at the new restaurant our family discovered and talked to the Chef. He planned a buffet meal to feed all of us and it turned out wonderfully! The ladies came from Foumban and all of us ladies here met together and had a great time of fellowship. The food was delish...and Kathy was our guest speaker. We had a great time!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhedkb5zFCGAXCpWmBrg3E7eP4ypdVOhw9UT1h8CR3zYmPGY-79Y7xuMJAIvoKuRqKQ87Xhf1b7erAWf_iaIER_OpEP-__JfqXLDYM4apPmNllvk69ZJ6zIsJEDUjCdfHgvXsfmp6q9Qewf/s1600/ladies+meeting.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541009019441264722" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhedkb5zFCGAXCpWmBrg3E7eP4ypdVOhw9UT1h8CR3zYmPGY-79Y7xuMJAIvoKuRqKQ87Xhf1b7erAWf_iaIER_OpEP-__JfqXLDYM4apPmNllvk69ZJ6zIsJEDUjCdfHgvXsfmp6q9Qewf/s400/ladies+meeting.jpg" /></a><br />Mom could never get over all the critters we constantly have here. We are always oohing and ahhhing over something. We found this huge beetle on our porch one morning. Drew and I will chase stuff down to have a better look. I got a good shot so you could see the perspective of size.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpCHKgJzdZ9aBFl20sTQ-kxhDpe-iuOHVZaOwJDgj7Cm4Fao0kOY2CFt9FwJSt2_FE-dPY-MHv7qYgo9tHL7oE0vCqtp1TPAwzmTDtuD67YRszuPpUPNnS78emMs-Jh0zFB1OQTNunfypT/s1600/DSC02060.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541009684077284002" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpCHKgJzdZ9aBFl20sTQ-kxhDpe-iuOHVZaOwJDgj7Cm4Fao0kOY2CFt9FwJSt2_FE-dPY-MHv7qYgo9tHL7oE0vCqtp1TPAwzmTDtuD67YRszuPpUPNnS78emMs-Jh0zFB1OQTNunfypT/s400/DSC02060.JPG" /></a><br />Mom also had a picnic with the kids one day and I got this great group shot of all of them. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt-lCPCfh4QwA9lGG4uBtye3IQwZNOnfF-42h5UMlX9wPhUDZRyVoHGojvPWLk0dS2q_qxON1ACph1cet0C26c1SbLzYuEA4IWAEWcvRBb2XPJg6sg1iUkVMo0zypmJt7B6Vrx5TssqSpJ/s1600/Mimi+with+kids.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541010200365971058" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt-lCPCfh4QwA9lGG4uBtye3IQwZNOnfF-42h5UMlX9wPhUDZRyVoHGojvPWLk0dS2q_qxON1ACph1cet0C26c1SbLzYuEA4IWAEWcvRBb2XPJg6sg1iUkVMo0zypmJt7B6Vrx5TssqSpJ/s400/Mimi+with+kids.jpg" /></a><br />On the last Monday that they were here, we decided to go into town as a family. Kate was still kinda down and out, and Emma and Faith were coming down with the nasty virus, but they weren't into the worst part of it yet, so we decided to go ahead and go. We ate at the same restaurant where we had the ladies luncheon and then went to the Pres-Craft store so they could pick up some souvenirs before leaving. The owner of the Pres-Craft is new and we actually couldn't determine his nationality. He was white and had some unique accent...I'll let you know if I find out. :D He told us to check out the coffee shop next door. So...we did! I'm not a coffee fan, but my Mom can't live without it. We bought a coffee pot just for her visits. Anyway, we went next door into this really adorable coffee shop. Mom got a cappucino! Can you believe it? And she said it was really good! They served it with sugar and this adorable little heartshaped biscuit. Wow...who would have thought we'd have a "hip" coffee shop in little 'Ol Bamenda?! Here's Mom enjoying her cappucino:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJqqDKkuLyH5z6LEdP4Aq5Ga6xSH_d6IaOwtp-veLf9FxzYtG2LsRSMskdbi9e4ylWyjy-0vUhR0MgVqmVqItcuNgWHLysHlrXgCUdQO9UVb1dWzrRGVcs0wozbnYoo67ZKxdqpJF_vD_6/s1600/coffee+shop.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541011703348624578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJqqDKkuLyH5z6LEdP4Aq5Ga6xSH_d6IaOwtp-veLf9FxzYtG2LsRSMskdbi9e4ylWyjy-0vUhR0MgVqmVqItcuNgWHLysHlrXgCUdQO9UVb1dWzrRGVcs0wozbnYoo67ZKxdqpJF_vD_6/s400/coffee+shop.jpg" /></a> I'm not sure how well it will catch on to the Africans...the shop was full of white people only! In fact, Mom and the Whitely's commented that they'd never seen so many white people in Cameroon before. We met a group of kids in the coffee shop that were from various parts of the states, and then on the other side of them was an older white couple. We never had time to speak to them. It will be interesting to see if that place can actually stay in business. There may be more white people than ever before, but I'm not sure there is enough to sustain an entire restaurant.<br /><br />Our goodbyes were sad, but it really won't be long until we see them again. Less than a year before we head back to the states for our next furlough. We will start checking off dates on the calendar and looking forward to our visit to America (specifically Taco Bell)...Did I just think that out loud?? :D<br /><br />Since their visit I have taken up a new hobby. :D Kathy mentioned my sewing machine that is in the guest room where they stayed and I told her I'd love to learn to sew. She said "Well, while we are here, I'll teach you!" I was pretty excited about that. I always tease my Mom that she failed in two areas. She never taught me to play piano or to sew. Both things I've had to learn in my adulthood. She knows I'm just kidding! Anyway, on the day that Mimi had a picnic with the kids, Kathy and I dragged out the sewing machine. We had spent a previous afternoon with the pattern and material and she taught me how to read the pattern and I'd already cut out all the pattern pieces. I was ready to sew it. So, in a few hours time, I made a skirt for Kate all by myself with Kathy's teaching! I have been her pupil since I was a freshman in high school...and she hasn't lost her touch. She is still a great teacher!<br /><br />I dug out the sewing machine this week with plans on using it to make Christmas gifts. I found a pattern for a little girls purse and tried to make it. The first one turned out cute, though I didn't follow the pattern completely. I rigged it to make it work. I spent a lot of time just staring at the pattern instructions and the material. There was one part I couldn't wrap my head around, so I just took the basic pattern and made it work. I used our market bags from here as the lining and I'm content with the finished product. In the future I'd love to actually do it the correct way, but for now it works ok.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsUkE2_VJ0RwxGlud2OSyOa4_8Vp8c-EAxm7_HwvY9b3B_HRbALy_7u1XKy6dcf2qS26ZBI-UkpxYuN-FiPgnjgZIT6bOZKlV2Fox-vWs0Hk35F65D7SyZ3i701O477rrWxSILOLaHSEzm/s1600/DSC02217.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 305px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541013757443853282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsUkE2_VJ0RwxGlud2OSyOa4_8Vp8c-EAxm7_HwvY9b3B_HRbALy_7u1XKy6dcf2qS26ZBI-UkpxYuN-FiPgnjgZIT6bOZKlV2Fox-vWs0Hk35F65D7SyZ3i701O477rrWxSILOLaHSEzm/s400/DSC02217.JPG" /></a><br />Here is a shot of the market bag that I cut up and used for the inside of the bag: <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4RCf_FFos7emVTnyJJklqUJKm-VJKrjZ8DhXixVvlsD9nVk_WAevaq1OmDEXLPXQJWzABwiELs6YCKa9PDIKPG-kF1JLodOzb0UKBIPdWhb3Mmu5wavEo9SmKhtXuZDquvHxJlo6xv3Jr/s1600/DSC02219.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541014384620822546" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4RCf_FFos7emVTnyJJklqUJKm-VJKrjZ8DhXixVvlsD9nVk_WAevaq1OmDEXLPXQJWzABwiELs6YCKa9PDIKPG-kF1JLodOzb0UKBIPdWhb3Mmu5wavEo9SmKhtXuZDquvHxJlo6xv3Jr/s400/DSC02219.JPG" /></a><br />The part of the pattern instruction that I couldn't get was really bugging me. I spent some time reading and watching sewing tutorials on you tube until I finally figured it out. I actually found a helpful blog with pictures that helped me understand! So, today, with a little more knowledge under my belt, I tried purse number 2. I used a different pattern and did leave out the fusible interfacing (as I don't have that), but I'm SO happy with the results!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF0Z7EIUUX8D_aVx4JEK8H7KnpVfkdx2CIUj6GsPv5zXCybgDQn9uu4ZopH5FTe4v1obkcSzhFm9CVE6WnzFDrmL5xtJYEFy5o_2xIHcT_6GSHjkolLCZwRqZbduixzUz-Jn4edDJC8ppM/s1600/DSC02220.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 303px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5541015173680144082" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF0Z7EIUUX8D_aVx4JEK8H7KnpVfkdx2CIUj6GsPv5zXCybgDQn9uu4ZopH5FTe4v1obkcSzhFm9CVE6WnzFDrmL5xtJYEFy5o_2xIHcT_6GSHjkolLCZwRqZbduixzUz-Jn4edDJC8ppM/s400/DSC02220.JPG" /></a><br />Isn't it cute?! I love how it turned out and the great thing is I used all scrap fabric. I used to have red curtains hanging in the kids toy room. I kept them when we changed them out and I'm glad I did. They make a cute little purse if I do say so myself! :D<br /><br />Ok, so I hope I haven't bored you completely. I'll try to stay updated and please, please keep reading! And if you have time...leave me a comment! Cuz I love comments! :DBecca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-89319585640176257942010-10-24T14:33:00.011-04:002010-10-24T17:03:24.985-04:00Catchin' UpBen came to me tonight and dropped the camera and cables in my lap and said, "This isn't a hint or anything." haha! But I knew what his hidden meaning was... "Make a blog post!" :D<br /><br />I really do need to catch up. I Hope you've missed me!<br /><br />First up...Our NEW car!! If you've been reading my blog, you know how I completely destroyed the driver's side passenger door. Well, Genesis came to my aid that night and picked up the car and took it to his body work guy. I finally got a hold of Ben in Benakuma and he decided to re-do the entire car. It was rusted out in so many places and in bad need of a makeover. The guy did a great job and our car looks brand new! He even took out all the seats and scrubbed them! I didn't even recognize our car!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi94PZNSyaWYW9qvJogBgMN9_Yn8l2DthrMoDldTj5xbGdJNatZB_fnmvZaNV2KiJY5KpRCs_yLt0LBxKN5ZzG8VqNshOcSj9GbNzwGJsdNbUPRxTrsJpduDzDZD7U7tm8yhqR8jNnK-I1H/s1600/DSC06914.JPG"><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531686283432181234" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi94PZNSyaWYW9qvJogBgMN9_Yn8l2DthrMoDldTj5xbGdJNatZB_fnmvZaNV2KiJY5KpRCs_yLt0LBxKN5ZzG8VqNshOcSj9GbNzwGJsdNbUPRxTrsJpduDzDZD7U7tm8yhqR8jNnK-I1H/s400/DSC06914.JPG" /></a></p>The kids have been diligently working in school and we have a big chart that we made. We mark off the days as we do them. It is fun to see the days disappear. Though we do have a lot of boxes to check off, it still helps them as they work toward a goal. With our kitty and puppy, they usually spend their free time outside. On Saturdays kids usually come up and they play outside with them. We didn't have any kids come up this past Saturday except Louis. He is deathly afraid of our dog...almost ripped my arm off one day trying to hide from Penny! I thought he was gonna pee his pants he was so scared! So, when Louis comes we hook up the dog so he'll stay. It was kind of a rainy day on Saturday, so Drew went outside to just visit with him. Drew had been reading one of those chick tracts and thought he'd go through it with Louis. Ben snapped a picture of them. Drew was reading the tract and then looking up the verses and reading them. I thought it was so cute! Our little missionary in training!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhLp9IAdVm0CqbNnbDonXGt0hZDCHkSKesN7fnWHz7cPZWZTY_IxvMiIZ_tVaEPs1yfkE4Y9Rb86i70NVGAP_cWCKzzRxxxt9JaA9siHGWQpOYYoaKyDWdzP_Bew-yFMECPm7tF2EWb9C/s1600/DSC06938.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531688069806288338" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEhLp9IAdVm0CqbNnbDonXGt0hZDCHkSKesN7fnWHz7cPZWZTY_IxvMiIZ_tVaEPs1yfkE4Y9Rb86i70NVGAP_cWCKzzRxxxt9JaA9siHGWQpOYYoaKyDWdzP_Bew-yFMECPm7tF2EWb9C/s400/DSC06938.JPG" /></a>And speaking of Penny, Ben found a great treat for her this week. He went to the meat market and saw one of those big cow bones lying there. He asked the meat guy what he did with those. Well, they burn them and feed them to the pigs. Ben asked why they did that...and I don't think that he'd ever been asked that before. His answer was, "That's just what we do!" Well, Ben asked him to dash us (pidgin for 'give us') one of those bones. He gave Ben two of them and he gave them to Penny as a treat and she loved it! This picture cracks me up. Ben wanted to get in there and get a shot of Penny eating her bone...she obviously didn't want to be disturbed! <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjleC4L0wPfvvk1bSm1GFZLXPxFS6Go8ebYtlhEZgCpYW38fn7EbTStn3UyD9Sv48YAl1rxINPJJyUE73Ew18S7Pflqb5gK35iKBlKY3qz_HR9FTAcgk80wYYYq4HHFbY3CeJCJd6agIxyg/s1600/DSC06916.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 289px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531689162934842162" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjleC4L0wPfvvk1bSm1GFZLXPxFS6Go8ebYtlhEZgCpYW38fn7EbTStn3UyD9Sv48YAl1rxINPJJyUE73Ew18S7Pflqb5gK35iKBlKY3qz_HR9FTAcgk80wYYYq4HHFbY3CeJCJd6agIxyg/s400/DSC06916.JPG" /></a> And you can see that Penny and Cuddles are starting to get along better. She was even willing to share her bone with the cat!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEx2oFU_EexRx9Mw1zJCLbcFllTd8_ZZDlFUY4h2vYCBuSvi1Lh8hMi8k7oyxR0W_hCI3matbBimDV8DXot-OuCKxTuH9FDZ8frxmJbs1lR52C2DkeVRbhMsq1vrO_h1GymjzCP5yRZ0YY/s1600/DSC06925.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531689768400271986" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEx2oFU_EexRx9Mw1zJCLbcFllTd8_ZZDlFUY4h2vYCBuSvi1Lh8hMi8k7oyxR0W_hCI3matbBimDV8DXot-OuCKxTuH9FDZ8frxmJbs1lR52C2DkeVRbhMsq1vrO_h1GymjzCP5yRZ0YY/s400/DSC06925.JPG" /></a> And here is another sweet picture of them getting along. They do fight like cats and dogs (lol! I kill myself) Seriously though, sometimes Cuddles sounds like she is getting her head ripped off, but she survives and I'm tired of locking her in the store room. She is holding her own now, and I just let her roam and I think she is enjoying her freedom. Plus, I have a mouse in my kitchen and I need her to start earning her keep!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKamBwMueQslyUcKo2pOYH40fzqYrOqL5cNVEOSTk63T1Jp-oNlMWOrbkfvZk0llD3t_0nLPt74g8frtwpB42T7cQHBrSJFwvX4Hwuu09Y0V_YrJVgc7wOF4MjpC0__TFGMyjX5HrpUDf3/s1600/DSC01875.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 290px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531700867845697282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKamBwMueQslyUcKo2pOYH40fzqYrOqL5cNVEOSTk63T1Jp-oNlMWOrbkfvZk0llD3t_0nLPt74g8frtwpB42T7cQHBrSJFwvX4Hwuu09Y0V_YrJVgc7wOF4MjpC0__TFGMyjX5HrpUDf3/s400/DSC01875.JPG" /></a><br />The kids came up with this great strategy to draw perfect pictures. They lay a coloring paper over our big magnadoodle and trace it. They are so proud of their creations and we have had coloring papers scattered all over our floor for a week now!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8KDjNaKx7AYj-DvnazOvvN63b668Ka-315NTs3var0UfzsgAZDlmkegjaeBiQbZ2US1fKNjvw18dYHzmeonA9jUssCwKwWl_42sK5QzGT7bh1sQTS4jGBHsiDv7LpS3pEHE78CNj3gMvm/s1600/DSC06941.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531690791749187186" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8KDjNaKx7AYj-DvnazOvvN63b668Ka-315NTs3var0UfzsgAZDlmkegjaeBiQbZ2US1fKNjvw18dYHzmeonA9jUssCwKwWl_42sK5QzGT7bh1sQTS4jGBHsiDv7LpS3pEHE78CNj3gMvm/s400/DSC06941.JPG" /></a>I know these pictures are completely out of order, but they are from the last couple of weeks, so you get the point. Here is a picture of our neighbor, Jude. He is a good friend and we were sad to say goodbye to him as he moved to Younde to go to school. He takes care of our mowing and yard work, and so on his last day of work, he wanted a picture of himself with the lawn mower. He didn't say why, but I just giggled at him and told him I'd be glad to take his picture. He wanted the kids in it too.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMXoQ6Y45zK2bOs78Ta_d_bgkQj5kgWY8DXXnjaS0zHmNIbNBgKPBvYJSNytjMDVyyj_RZ9IOeaxUmaM4mrmUy5KNXfRkf93Zt7w6GoUy77_DYSBuEkYuOubkeEdA0gEQFy8o_hpV82l9a/s1600/DSC01853.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5531695881098410546" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMXoQ6Y45zK2bOs78Ta_d_bgkQj5kgWY8DXXnjaS0zHmNIbNBgKPBvYJSNytjMDVyyj_RZ9IOeaxUmaM4mrmUy5KNXfRkf93Zt7w6GoUy77_DYSBuEkYuOubkeEdA0gEQFy8o_hpV82l9a/s400/DSC01853.JPG" /></a> We are sure going to miss him, but he'll be back over the holidays. <br /><br />That is pretty much everything new. I've been working on gathering pictures for a series of posts I want to start doing. It will be entitled "Fashion Faux Pas Friday." So be looking forward to that. I think you will get a kick out of some of our African Fashion Faux Pas! :D<br /><br />My Mom leaves tomorrow to come here!!! I'm so excited and hope to update on her visit from time to time while she is here. She is so nervous about checking in bags, so I'm asking you all to pray for a miracle! haha! We need to save some money, but the airlines aren't very helpful anymore. An international flight is allowed one bag. Do you have any idea how impossible that is for a missionary to be restricted to one bag! A second bag is $50, and any additional bag after that is $200! We used to....a loooong time ago, get two bags at 70 lbs each. Then it went to two bags at 50 lbs each. And now it is one bag at 50 lbs. Pretty soon we will have to pay for any luggage at all. Really frustrating, but that is our life. We just need to deal with it and do the best we can. So in order to get some of the things out here that we'd like to have we have to pay for them. The problem is that their tickets are broken up into two separate trips. So some airline personnel are telling us that we will have to pay for the extra bags in Atlanta...AND in Paris. ugh! Some are saying we don't have to. My mom has done everything she can possibly do to try and get our luggage through for free on the Paris end at least, but to no avail. It is going to be in the hands of whoever is at the check-in counter that day. So, pray with us that God will work that out and save us some money! We know that God will provide and it is always neat to anticipate how He is going to do that!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-5618350705650926522010-10-11T05:40:00.019-04:002010-10-11T14:14:32.328-04:00Benakuma and BeyondWell, I mentioned in my last post that Ben was going to Benakuma for the weekend. He left Thursday and had plans to start his trip out in the small village of Benade (prounced BEN-uh-day) which is about an hour and a half beyond Benakuma...provided you can get a bike to take you there! :D <br /><br />Well, the roads were SO bad that they made it to Benakuma after dark but couldn't continue on to Benade until the next morning. After a night's sleep in the Hotel Bonanza they began their journey to Benade. They got two motor bikes and the trip took just over an hour. They would frequently have to get out and walk so the bikes could make it through the thick mud. There were also no flat stretches of road either...it was all uphill and downhill, uphill and downhill. Here is one shot of the road.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM9IJg93W53UNknSEyZBclItuNN2D8vhOkGey-WrzouYxsKmNFV6Ogiv1fDY9IzfRinepx5GCyn4g_7uwHtgGL-gGcdI2OvxAIzZYlGVcYpUPpisGYhU5srOyyZezDm1FRbMTq5utipmA_/s1600/benakuma+1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM9IJg93W53UNknSEyZBclItuNN2D8vhOkGey-WrzouYxsKmNFV6Ogiv1fDY9IzfRinepx5GCyn4g_7uwHtgGL-gGcdI2OvxAIzZYlGVcYpUPpisGYhU5srOyyZezDm1FRbMTq5utipmA_/s400/benakuma+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526728006970041378" /></a><br />They finally arrived in Benade and spent most of the day visiting. The village is quite small, so it didn't take them long to meet a lot of the people. They noticed a crowd at the health center and went there and met the family of a woman who was in labor. Well, the lady came out while they were there and Ben had a word of prayer with her and her family. She'd been in labor all that day, and all through the night. Ben found out the next morning that she still hadn't had the baby. He and TomMike began the trip back to Benakuma, only this time they didn't have a motorcycle taxi. They had to go on foot. Ben said the trip was exhausting! They had to treck 20 minutes to the main road, and then from there it was uphill and downhill once again through muck and mud taking them 4 hours to reach Benakuma! While they were trecking along, they heard a motorcycle coming from the the direction of Benade headed towards Benakuma as well. Ben recognized the lady immediately...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLJK-F6uwcNMeP9-GufukwDwYrnYD1fjP64CBeDNqjg58TcEUbO9_Rh9126Uq_s3v0IGuKKO2qB61cdiuQgiuqUkVq2t0xKrWqVW8xNlwyhhqVAfz4L1yjlMec7NH-DOu1k8u9dHKikES0/s1600/benakuma+3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLJK-F6uwcNMeP9-GufukwDwYrnYD1fjP64CBeDNqjg58TcEUbO9_Rh9126Uq_s3v0IGuKKO2qB61cdiuQgiuqUkVq2t0xKrWqVW8xNlwyhhqVAfz4L1yjlMec7NH-DOu1k8u9dHKikES0/s400/benakuma+3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526731220454983250" /></a> Yep...the lady who has now been in labor for over 24 hours! Riding a motorcycle!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxKRNhzeHhyphenhyphen47v3gtRZUDylNJfuTOf-wk6CvVqK6eDdtXYO1OT4BSLt-teIqFNTZxBE-Wb5fwSJpTjEgMjVPv2x8j5ne8biartnhXwIMWwPhT4s8a9ipN44O15FqJGvByXS3CTIfqET1z/s1600/benakuma+4.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTxKRNhzeHhyphenhyphen47v3gtRZUDylNJfuTOf-wk6CvVqK6eDdtXYO1OT4BSLt-teIqFNTZxBE-Wb5fwSJpTjEgMjVPv2x8j5ne8biartnhXwIMWwPhT4s8a9ipN44O15FqJGvByXS3CTIfqET1z/s400/benakuma+4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526732017348885906" /></a> Mind you she also had to treck the 20 minutes to the main road, and an additional 20 minutes before the bike picked her up! And I thought I was doing good having a baby in my plush hospital bed, with cable television and no pain meds?? This woman wins the mother-of-the-year award! <br /><br />Once she arrives in Benakuma, it is possible that she had to climb this hill to the hospital as well, as the motorcycles won't go up there, but I can't say that for certain. Considering all she'd done so far though, she might have!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEhsl37cUtJmPUtnbySuvuFp6Ifg8XVmxw5Tg9OyxXSEy3rQ0LScBckWuf_0XPao7ffsMmI2RAgKSOJxcfK7Ip1za9gztiPrlHbp7vf5Zwd-hlbGSQ82UCNMmGMJX3dZwFaPKyWHhMTSC6/s1600/benakuma+6.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEhsl37cUtJmPUtnbySuvuFp6Ifg8XVmxw5Tg9OyxXSEy3rQ0LScBckWuf_0XPao7ffsMmI2RAgKSOJxcfK7Ip1za9gztiPrlHbp7vf5Zwd-hlbGSQ82UCNMmGMJX3dZwFaPKyWHhMTSC6/s400/benakuma+6.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526733124967926034" /></a> Here is a shot of the big fancy hospital she finally gave birth in sometime Saturday evening.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgufzSupNgepu0BYU73H3FVv5qO9F5lEshH5ZkF7cMMWiHg8dLz7YnDQOdCrkoa98cqtwgNBu-aCoJBlkPfsedj07QgYR1PwnXDLelRPc1CqNhAR6qzwPIr2jny8FeljsUOHbyYvmXb-UwL/s1600/benakuma+7.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgufzSupNgepu0BYU73H3FVv5qO9F5lEshH5ZkF7cMMWiHg8dLz7YnDQOdCrkoa98cqtwgNBu-aCoJBlkPfsedj07QgYR1PwnXDLelRPc1CqNhAR6qzwPIr2jny8FeljsUOHbyYvmXb-UwL/s400/benakuma+7.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526734242036399394" /></a> Ben and TomMike heard about her delivery and made it a point to go and visit her Sunday before they had their church service and ultimately left to head back to Bamenda. In honor of Ben's visit out to her village, she named her baby after him. So, meet Pastor Ben and Pastor Ben: <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrHUbD6jrG6A_53DgPmWUPTDGVR0LnVhP5CX1Kef_EXvydPqnX4Ex0oxujnzs1t7zDvEKd6MK7op_RQaXmf7KussEnbVkzdm3O0eK31IE8JTSM-PbM5Zs8wm9A6Zu21_Krt36EgVmV1U9x/s1600/benakuma+10.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrHUbD6jrG6A_53DgPmWUPTDGVR0LnVhP5CX1Kef_EXvydPqnX4Ex0oxujnzs1t7zDvEKd6MK7op_RQaXmf7KussEnbVkzdm3O0eK31IE8JTSM-PbM5Zs8wm9A6Zu21_Krt36EgVmV1U9x/s400/benakuma+10.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526735423326210066" /></a> Here is a close up shot so you can see how adorable Pastor Ben is:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTmFgntbNqKV6TkMBjCE_zUq2atk8NEaNKtMnu9bICKQUmAgm0LyveuxBFY3nnPy8XK_qXevK-P4Q5AKAw0MpQpk23tuoQx7ZASpaGLcJnYtBrs9tMxpFuQZsBShIPhe3zcQI27OQwm2lI/s1600/ben+closeup.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 330px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTmFgntbNqKV6TkMBjCE_zUq2atk8NEaNKtMnu9bICKQUmAgm0LyveuxBFY3nnPy8XK_qXevK-P4Q5AKAw0MpQpk23tuoQx7ZASpaGLcJnYtBrs9tMxpFuQZsBShIPhe3zcQI27OQwm2lI/s400/ben+closeup.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526736400802001906" /></a> Oh...Oops! I meant to post this Pastor Ben:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPQGRDUvvFzwrx3sXx0REAz5taGyxu6K9kgu2qVExs9T6ArY04X3lf2nMBLDU0JIDTZWTCjVqDuGiI9r1xp4m3gLBDkSkmjTOs2x__wnQ-FUUyCPqBoLSJDoJ5V62AvnwJGa3_ta5W5hDW/s1600/benakuma+8.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPQGRDUvvFzwrx3sXx0REAz5taGyxu6K9kgu2qVExs9T6ArY04X3lf2nMBLDU0JIDTZWTCjVqDuGiI9r1xp4m3gLBDkSkmjTOs2x__wnQ-FUUyCPqBoLSJDoJ5V62AvnwJGa3_ta5W5hDW/s400/benakuma+8.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526737063623858306" /></a> haha! <br />And here is the Mom of the Year award winner herself:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWhYmg0CW5sb5A1r9t1ES7RSMFZ97W35Wpa1ap-5rgdXKPD6zUttMoTBnwHSfkUStTOlE7gBv6A5lVIHUXgCk7AJp5qM7Z1UfWkzmiy-VyvqJ5vamU40FjBSYjsKj6am0DzNcxp6u1FRo-/s1600/benakuma+9.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWhYmg0CW5sb5A1r9t1ES7RSMFZ97W35Wpa1ap-5rgdXKPD6zUttMoTBnwHSfkUStTOlE7gBv6A5lVIHUXgCk7AJp5qM7Z1UfWkzmiy-VyvqJ5vamU40FjBSYjsKj6am0DzNcxp6u1FRo-/s400/benakuma+9.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526737641356953634" /></a> Oh, and to top it all off, this woman told Ben that she was going to TRECK back to Benade that day!! Ok...4 hours of exhausting up and down hill climbing?? She just had a baby??? She didn't have the money to pay for one extra night in the hospital (it would cost her the equivalent of 2 u.s. dollars), so she just planned on heading back home. Ben wouldn't even hear of it! He paid her hospital bill (which cost a total of $20 u.s. dollars) and gave her an extra 5,000 cfa to stay an extra night and pay for a motorcycle the next day to drive her back to Benade. I'm still shaking my head...<br /><br />And that is the end of my version of Ben's trip to Benakuma! So many great things happened though...many people trusted Christ and Ben came back overflowing with things to share. So, in order to get the full view you'll definitely want to read his summary <a href="https://docs.google.com/fileview?id=0By_tW0SqDvgaZjkyNzIwNjEtNjUyYi00NDZmLTljMmYtNTQ5NWM3ZmJmNjg3&hl=en">HERE</a>. <br /><br />As for the kids and I, we survived the remainder of his time away just fine. Thankfully after the car incident, there were no more blunders on our part and God kept us safe. We had a little bit of sickness over the weekend, but thankfully everyone is doing well now and we are all thrilled to back together as a family again!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-44476740014609234092010-10-07T05:04:00.000-04:002010-10-11T05:38:08.895-04:00Happy Birthday To YouHappy Birthday to Drew! You look like a monkey...and you smell like one too!! Haha! That is what Uncle Jay's card said for Drew's birthday and Drew sure got a kick out of it! My brother is really talented with computer and video stuff! He made a card for Drew on his computer with a special video message from his uncle Jay!<br /><br />We are certainly thankful for the 10 years that God has given Drew. Especially when the doctor's said he only had two months to live after he was born. If you've never read Drew's story, you can check out www.cameroon4christ.com to find out about our miracle. This website hasn't been updated in quite some time, but you can at least click on the link to read Drew's story. <br /><br />My mom is coming to visit in three weeks, and she is bringing all of Drew's birthday presents. But I did have a little something to give him on his actual birthday and told him I'd make him a cake. But then when Mimi comes we will have the big celebration. Ben was leaving for Benakuma at around 11, so we decided to do our happy birthday wishes at the breakfast table. Here is Drew with his gift. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmC5e85EPKrCI_EKTCKDsQX_3IKUP5tNlmRBqviZfX_e5ExeSkHz0u-Yr97xGE16wWQkkPhmDHx7ANUmxwRWDQVtEAcVD_TLH5Y8KIAa3C7HdAAyxMUZTr08aiW_aSlXfFWGNo58BwSTLz/s1600/drew+bday.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 268px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmC5e85EPKrCI_EKTCKDsQX_3IKUP5tNlmRBqviZfX_e5ExeSkHz0u-Yr97xGE16wWQkkPhmDHx7ANUmxwRWDQVtEAcVD_TLH5Y8KIAa3C7HdAAyxMUZTr08aiW_aSlXfFWGNo58BwSTLz/s400/drew+bday.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526715399466305042" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm6pKPIEAhYmzhCAMiPNjspc_4lzQzNCBInCwcIm2EHgkLS3xZq3bicqW1uMQwFjenAQ4Ai6y5o6_bucWbY2ZJarWcAqz22Ni5K5vCT7bT4ys3bnKCprRE90ezcaJmLLYT1sCK4nQx3lp5/s1600/drew+bday+2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 268px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgm6pKPIEAhYmzhCAMiPNjspc_4lzQzNCBInCwcIm2EHgkLS3xZq3bicqW1uMQwFjenAQ4Ai6y5o6_bucWbY2ZJarWcAqz22Ni5K5vCT7bT4ys3bnKCprRE90ezcaJmLLYT1sCK4nQx3lp5/s400/drew+bday+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526715395149223106" /></a><br />I love this kid! It takes nearly nothing to excite him! He is SO easy to please! I got him a small spiderman figure and a spidey coloring/acitivity book. He was pretty pumped about it. I always love watching his reaction. He shows his emotions all over his face! Not all my kids are like that. :D<br /><br />Ben left at 11 and I pushed the kids through school. They were so ready to be done and to play. I started working on the cake so that we could come home from church and eat it. I told the kids that was going to be supper! haha! They were pretty excited about that! So, I pulled the cake out of the oven, and herded the kids to the car. We were running a bit late. I pulled the car out and ... "Crunch!" I stopped...and looked back...only to realize that Faith hadn't shut the car door. This was my very first car accident. I know some of you know what it feels like in the moments after you make the dumbest mistake! You wish you'd turned around one more time! I heard a car door shut, and mentally thought all the doors were shut. Faith started crying immdiately b/c she just knew it was her fault. Poor girl. I told her it was all Mommy's fault. I should have double checked. So...there was no going to church. We were late as it was, it would take us 30 minutes at least to walk there. I tried calling Ben and couldn't get a hold of him. I finally called Genesis. I figured he could help me. He said he would come and get the car and get it repaired. So, he came after dark on a taxi, helped me tie the door b/c it wouldn't even shut and he took it to town. He has a friend who does body work. Thankfully this mistake took place in Cameroon...and not in the states! The repair work is a fraction of what it would cost me in America! And I learned a valuable lesson...To be more careful! The car is still in the shop because Ben decided to have the entire car repaired...new paint job and everything. Our car is rusting out in several places and it has needed a big repair on the body for a while...I just facilitated the process! lol!<br /><br />So, once the car was finally taken care of...the kids and I enjoyed Drew's birthday cake! I felt I could relax a little knowing that the car was in good hands. I'm thankful for Genesis who came to help out so quickly! <br /><br />All in all I think Drew's birthday was a good one for him. He is counting down the days til his big party though! Of course...we all are, because that means Mimi will be here!Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-85505875457820315842010-10-05T04:56:00.010-04:002010-10-05T05:59:52.040-04:00Life in the Fast LaneIt has been a busy week here at the Sinclair house. Between bouts of mild sickness (fevers - sore throats), funerals, and just plain trying to keep up with school, we have been running at a fast pace. I'll try to update with pics and give you the rundown of what is new in our lives! :D<br /><br />We are enjoying our new kitty. It is a battle of sorts...trying to keep the girls away from that cat long enough to do their school. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuO03Z38x4ma7iOa6lvELoTeBuXGWo-XGVSJM10XWk7hQGRyJqsktxb1KRO7VAbw47xpQaa9obD_IZoDQxCbARZ8uOapIqb_yxxtrm8SHe-48jD-KsrbuM7-ArDmwzBHEW06L8D_Dydcnp/s1600/girls.jpg"></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuO03Z38x4ma7iOa6lvELoTeBuXGWo-XGVSJM10XWk7hQGRyJqsktxb1KRO7VAbw47xpQaa9obD_IZoDQxCbARZ8uOapIqb_yxxtrm8SHe-48jD-KsrbuM7-ArDmwzBHEW06L8D_Dydcnp/s1600/girls.jpg"><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524484272102625922" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuO03Z38x4ma7iOa6lvELoTeBuXGWo-XGVSJM10XWk7hQGRyJqsktxb1KRO7VAbw47xpQaa9obD_IZoDQxCbARZ8uOapIqb_yxxtrm8SHe-48jD-KsrbuM7-ArDmwzBHEW06L8D_Dydcnp/s400/girls.jpg" /></a>Whenever they get a break, it is off to our store room to play with her. I have to be very diligent to keep her away from Penny though. I tried to put them together, but Penny is just crazy rough with her! She picks her up around the neck and just shakes her for all she is worth! So, my new strategy is to chain the dog up during most of the day, and allowing the cat freedom to roam around. Then at night I unhook Penny and we shut the cat into the storeroom. Once she gets bigger, she will be able to hold her own, and Penny will learn to steer clear!<br /><br />Penny is good for some things though...home clean-up in particular! :D <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26KigWEqm8J6jfpp47Tv9jsi1pvAGBH2tWR13-iuQcvk_J139VQ_X7xKt9i2t9JrpDeV78Sk9UB_i4ptJgiMWh_omc1RteR-FcPbTGMGb1tGuK7Wp8j1-FpkEUtH3_gMPytjSUQc2Iwd_/s1600/Penny+cleaning.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524485774402161074" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26KigWEqm8J6jfpp47Tv9jsi1pvAGBH2tWR13-iuQcvk_J139VQ_X7xKt9i2t9JrpDeV78Sk9UB_i4ptJgiMWh_omc1RteR-FcPbTGMGb1tGuK7Wp8j1-FpkEUtH3_gMPytjSUQc2Iwd_/s400/Penny+cleaning.jpg" /></a>I dropped an egg on the floor and called Penny in to clean it up. She was unsure about coming in at first, and kept flinching every time she saw me move. She's used to getting whalloped when she comes in the house! haha!<br /><br />On Friday, Ben packed up the bus with generator, screen, water, tracts and other supplies and headed to town to pick up 7 guys to head out to the village of Nginikom. The wake keeping for Emmanuel was to be held that night, and the men were prepared to be up all night and to share the gospel with as many people as possible. Ben said it was such an encouragement to go out with these mature believers, who were so on fire to share the gospel. The family was quite divided about our church being involved in the funeral any way. They were so afraid of the Catholic priest finding out that baptists were there. When your eternal destiny lies in the hands of a man, I can understand their fear! But Emmanuel's mom allowed our church to take part, thank God! Late in the evening Ben showed the Jesus film in the Pidgin dialect. He said it was SO good for people to see that because they were able to compare the baptism of Jesus by John, with photos of Emmanuel's baptism by immersion. A lot of people were talking about it, and many people were once again afraid that the Catholic priest would find out! On Saturday I came to Nginikom with Matt Yeiter and a couple more people from our Bamenda church, Ezekiel and Genesis, and we piled my kiddos in the back boot of the car. The ride out there took Ben two hours in the bus and about half that time in the little red toyota that Matt drove. The view is absolutley amazing out that way. There is no point even posting photos, b/c they don't even begin to do it justice! We arrived to a mass of chaos in my opinion. There were different groups of music bands playing their traditional instruments and drums. A MASS of people arrived shortly after we did to come and view the body that was set up under an ornate canopy for the viewing area. I finally merged my way to where our church people were (it took me a while) and I found Emma who was white as a sheet! Poor girl! She had a rough time on the curvy hour and a half drive there, and then we arrive and are just stuck in this mass of people! Thankfully she bounced back once she was able to get a little bit of fresh air. All the men were standing to the side of the viewing canopy singing out of the hymn book. I joined them for a bit, and then Matt stood on a pile of mud bricks, and with the aid of a microphone he preached the gospel to those that were filing through the line to view Emmanuels body. There was a crowd gathered around listening intently to the message. I was surprised they could stay focused with all the racket going on around them, but they hung on every word that Matt preached! Off to the right was a traditional xylophone - a loud cacaphony of sounds that comes from men beating on different lenghths of wood planks that are balanced on the trunks of a banana tree. Beyond that, men were dancing to the music in a big hole. As a few men shoveled dirt into the hole, the group would continue to pack it down over the casket by dancing back and forth. It was very interesting.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaddC6KZYngfiy5uP2XUeLK3Yr6fDAgieFoYdUgIDookR0xycLf51rUfts2Y-UzssDWd3TAqBdY1h2jzd1cmYed3cL79xJodgmi71ONxw7JHvzvG4CVvtPbXZkXv0X3weeC6AB1VbdNOTq/s1600/funeral+band.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 396px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524486728982126482" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaddC6KZYngfiy5uP2XUeLK3Yr6fDAgieFoYdUgIDookR0xycLf51rUfts2Y-UzssDWd3TAqBdY1h2jzd1cmYed3cL79xJodgmi71ONxw7JHvzvG4CVvtPbXZkXv0X3weeC6AB1VbdNOTq/s400/funeral+band.jpg" /></a> You can't really see it, but the hole is directly behind the group of men in this picture. And that house was Emmanuels own house, so he was literally buried right outside his front door.<br /><br />Here is a great shot of Matt preaching.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5_jM3IbXCqT5c_cpINHsEjfKOfN4n1bahi_rAQ28nLdBSqcZTDFdf4z6n_zrS9_K1JXTvUX9pYM6XXBRMGLnya0OYEwTiYFnWs92XDVPaD7NlUfje5p_71WpN3F8ZV2CJG05S77X7IURS/s1600/Matt+preachin%27.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524491186082608514" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5_jM3IbXCqT5c_cpINHsEjfKOfN4n1bahi_rAQ28nLdBSqcZTDFdf4z6n_zrS9_K1JXTvUX9pYM6XXBRMGLnya0OYEwTiYFnWs92XDVPaD7NlUfje5p_71WpN3F8ZV2CJG05S77X7IURS/s400/Matt+preachin%27.jpg" /></a> There is one funny in the photo...I'm sure it won't take you long to point it out. :D As we say here..."TIA" ...This is Africa. You can also see Eugene holding the little speaker, that amazingly puts out quite a bit of sound!<br /><br />We really weren't there for very long. After Matt preached, and we went over to the actual burial site, we went to one of the homes of the family members and they fed us some fufu, njamajama, fish, and jellof rice. The kids were pretty excited as they love African food. Kate enjoyed picking out the fish heads for herself out of the pile of fish that they served us. It started raining right before we left and we were a little afraid we wouldn't make it out of the village. The roads are steep and incredibly slippery! Wow...I could barely walk! It was like an ice rink! Matt's car had some trouble...swishing and slipping it's way out of the village. I couldn't believe the bus made it out. We decided some angels were pushing the back end! We have had that bus in the shop a few times in the last couple of week repairing the 4wheel drive, so, it really was a miracle we made it out! After all was said and done we know of 16 people on Friday that trusted in Christ, and 8 people on Saturday! The salvation of Emmanuel's family has been at the top of our prayer list for quite some time. He was very burdened for his staunchly catholic family members. Sometimes God uses a death to draw people to Him, but I know Emmanuel wouldn't have had it any other way. Praise God for what he did this past weekend in Nginikom!<br /><br />Here are a few more family pictures from this week. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQUjmb7ASnheahB1a0mvG0stP8Pw3fSoSdqHrzNmaSDdm0EPRZCuGpLVQBO0RTPjg85XO6rPzUUZyuR0YrINOK4arLCHqo0GtAvjFJIO1YzwX9sJbbrs7ztjXTQOAbzlQTfLuDBPPapPZc/s1600/Drew's+growin%27.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524495370309109778" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQUjmb7ASnheahB1a0mvG0stP8Pw3fSoSdqHrzNmaSDdm0EPRZCuGpLVQBO0RTPjg85XO6rPzUUZyuR0YrINOK4arLCHqo0GtAvjFJIO1YzwX9sJbbrs7ztjXTQOAbzlQTfLuDBPPapPZc/s400/Drew's+growin%27.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY93IVD0w128kKDsYs8iVovcURvA3DHRxC-dI3sQLEom-27S40mpke8-InCbZmDxBKT-cnRe3WZDp6H9B77XMFxJ5EC0lJ1d8vUZ4HMzkwOwPtcOOKIhFJV64IwVYFeq2Yq_ymEjEC_0IM/s1600/Faith's+growin%27.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524495365125650626" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY93IVD0w128kKDsYs8iVovcURvA3DHRxC-dI3sQLEom-27S40mpke8-InCbZmDxBKT-cnRe3WZDp6H9B77XMFxJ5EC0lJ1d8vUZ4HMzkwOwPtcOOKIhFJV64IwVYFeq2Yq_ymEjEC_0IM/s400/Faith's+growin%27.jpg" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqFveUY4leqRdOj2Yw1rsYQ5R6PjkYVDzVgqorLTrKY1o-xK8Z0xYdsV5Y0UQWnTalU3qIrOIlVqfsRqUN74U-gaQYZriZOLr-3nqCrpkTYbG7G1NuSzK1qsr3A9vTN3IuQheTiSaGWbnw/s1600/Emma's+growin%27.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524495352943778290" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqFveUY4leqRdOj2Yw1rsYQ5R6PjkYVDzVgqorLTrKY1o-xK8Z0xYdsV5Y0UQWnTalU3qIrOIlVqfsRqUN74U-gaQYZriZOLr-3nqCrpkTYbG7G1NuSzK1qsr3A9vTN3IuQheTiSaGWbnw/s400/Emma's+growin%27.jpg" /></a>We measure the kids every few months. They didn't grow as much as they did the last measurement. Faith Ann had the biggest growth spurt. We didn't get an actual photo of Kate b/c she is the one under the weather now with a fever and sore throat. </p><br /><p>Ben had a good laugh at Drew's bear, Barry, this morning:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT5JOZ5_gcUvYlUg9yw-75dpbSdNB5Oi1RkxkXl48tJiBMLlm-rjhmg55q8dFp-4bJ8IjxDH3sj8xd-CSONhcmNvIdR1IiY01RI-aPzVtspuCa5akcWdwGBqxPl5ipCwHMM2B2NdZ7_GeU/s1600/Barry.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5524496205166373634" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhT5JOZ5_gcUvYlUg9yw-75dpbSdNB5Oi1RkxkXl48tJiBMLlm-rjhmg55q8dFp-4bJ8IjxDH3sj8xd-CSONhcmNvIdR1IiY01RI-aPzVtspuCa5akcWdwGBqxPl5ipCwHMM2B2NdZ7_GeU/s400/Barry.jpg" /></a> haha! Poor Drew and his glasses. Last time we were home we went to one of those discount eyeglass places...eyeglass world or something like that. We got a great deal on his glasses, but they have been nothing but trouble...we have those things wired and glued and rigged to stay together. The next time we are going to have to invest the big bucks and get some nice glasses. And we will just have to pray the ones we have through the next year until we can go home next.</p><p>and speaking of home...only 3 weeks until my Mom and the Whitely's come! Yipee!!! We are so excited!! Drew's next milestone is his birthday in two days. We will have a very small celebration Thursday night, and then when Mom comes, we will have the big party (basically b/c she is bringing all the presents lol!). So...I guess that is all for now! </p>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-26394518941780026292010-09-28T14:45:00.013-04:002010-09-28T17:38:52.371-04:00Overdue Update :DWow...blogger is going to actually let me post tonight? I don't know what it is, but I have been having so much trouble with blogger lately. I haven't been able to post anything the past couple of days. Every time I try to log in or create a new post, I get an error 500. The last time it was an error 400...I guess I should look for the big 600 next time. Anyway, sit back, grab a coffee or a soft drink. This is gonna be a long one! haha!<br /><br />First of all I 've decided to give up on my 365 project. I'm just going to enjoy keeping track of life via my blog. I have a daily record (or almost daily) of events up until about the beginning of Sept. That isn't too bad. And I'll definitely keep you up to date, I'm just not going to go crazy trying to get a picture everyday, and dealing with the guilt feelings of not having taken any photos etc... I'm just going to blog, at my own convenience, and I know I will enjoy it more. Not to say that I didn't enjoy the 365 project...I did. But, now I'm done. <br /><br />Another thing I'm considering is changing the name of my blog. Which I think means my followers will have to rejoin etc... Unless anyone knows of a way to change names without doing that?? Any advice would be appreciated. I wasn't really thinking when I created my blog...obviously. Why I would create a blog name with the year in there was really dumb. So, help me out...what should I name my blog? Provided that name is available of course...but leave me a comment with some ideas.<br /><br />Thanks for the help with the kitty names btw. The kids decided on cuddles. My opinions don't count too much anymore in this house. At least when it comes to naming pets anyway. They love that cat, and she is getting to be pretty cuddly. She loves to purr and gets her motor running as soon as we pick her up. I have kept her pretty confined to the laundry room. She has a litter box in there and we keep the door shut. I'm afraid of her getting brave and venturing out in the yard and getting eaten by the neighbor dogs like our last cat. And I'm a little afraid of how Penny will treat her. I try to put them together a little bit everyday for some supervised play time. Penny is all puppy though, and just wants to rough house with her. I was watching them today and laughing at them. Then things turned a little scary, as Penny muckled onto the back of the cats neck and picked her up. She looked right at me and I was sternly saying her name, "Penny, no!" But I think she thought it was a big game of catch. As soon as I started towards her she took off running right out of the courtyard gate with the cat still in her mouth. Ahhh! I took off through the house to meet her in the front, since it appeared that was the direction she was heading. Well, she never came around so I went back into the courtyard and she sauntered right in, and then little Cuddles came walking in after her. So...thankfully Penny didn't kill her. I just don't know what to think. I don't think Penny would ever intentionally kill her...but she is SO rough! She LOVES to play and she sees that cat as a live playtoy I guess. She bats at her and nips and jumps. Poor kitty.<br /><br />We thought we'd lost Rex this week too. We have this plant in our house, and the kids will put Rex on the leaves for whatever reason. Well, Drew evidently put Rex there and forgot about him. I noticed him looking the plant over very closely at bedtime and asked him about it. He told me he'd left Rex...and now he was gone. Sure enough, he was gone. Which means that he fell off the plant, and onto the table, and then fell off the table and onto the floor. That little guy is tough, let me tell ya! So, all during devotions, while Ben was reading, I was walking around the parlour with my eyes open. It is a chameleon for crying out loud! They are hard to find! Sometimes we will all be searching in our window and be staring straight at him, and not even see him! I thought for sure we'd never see him again. I never did find him that night and cautioned the kids to be very careful where they stepped, b/c I figured he probably made his way down the hallway and was hiding in a bedroom somewhere. Well, the next morning (yesterday), Drew found him. He was in our bedroom and was crawling on the base of our oscillating fan. Of all people to find him, too. Drew, with his terrible eye sight, spotted him! haha!<br /><br />We found a new restaurant for our family day. The Hamburger Place, as the kids like to call it, had some trouble with their employees. Evidently the cook left and ran off with a bunch of their kitchen supplies. Now, we are in Africa after all, so all the kitchen supplies probably didn't amount to much. Their kitchen is about the size of two of my closets...but they couldn't serve anyone without those supplies or without a cook for that matter. So we went in search of another restaurant. I'm always skeptical. You just never know what you will get here. You might order rice and it be full of rocks or dirt b/c they didn't clean it. You might get an organ or a piece of meat on your plate that you didn't really want. So, restaurant eating is done with caution, and when you find a good one...you stick with it. Well, this restaurant (I don't even know the name of it!) was a winner. It was in a very nice, fancy-ish dining room, and it was all clean. They had a big flat screen tv on the wall, and handed us the remote when we sat down. So while we waited for our food (which is usually a long time...another African thing) we were able to watch The National Geographic channel. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2fXZmCMo7beHasrRoS0bEsp9DkzTJYF8LadPYMIxX5ALjhgzkJbzdqAMCQ9uWo0MMey4iTCUkxVL6MURMsZfxiVhJwczUEo4VH8fTAvvbH_fyWUsOgwsdC__ibmh1-hDlnQsZTj92kec-/s1600/DSC06689.JPG"></a><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522061164471833442" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2fXZmCMo7beHasrRoS0bEsp9DkzTJYF8LadPYMIxX5ALjhgzkJbzdqAMCQ9uWo0MMey4iTCUkxVL6MURMsZfxiVhJwczUEo4VH8fTAvvbH_fyWUsOgwsdC__ibmh1-hDlnQsZTj92kec-/s400/DSC06689.JPG" />It was so nice! We watched some show on animals in Russia...and it kept the kids content while we waited. We got really yummy chicken, and french fries, and Ben and Emma got fried plantains. The kids love it and even Drew strayed from his normal order of plain spaghetti, and got chicken this week! So, we definitely found a winner. You can take a gander at their menu too, if you'd like. If you click the image it will make it bigger.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUEL0nOHvsty3_Xo6zjKJX_Ug3RlPMwl26Uya18X_xAOCka6iBHkr1oBMNLMsICOLU3e4DJEURy_5dkQfXZlC1kSwCJ7INYk4ggLpWi5-p5-U0w9hfih1ZXlYxgxF9_kR5A3sKmgso3Yhm/s1600/DSC06729.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 329px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522062028226385138" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUEL0nOHvsty3_Xo6zjKJX_Ug3RlPMwl26Uya18X_xAOCka6iBHkr1oBMNLMsICOLU3e4DJEURy_5dkQfXZlC1kSwCJ7INYk4ggLpWi5-p5-U0w9hfih1ZXlYxgxF9_kR5A3sKmgso3Yhm/s400/DSC06729.JPG" /></a> On Sunday the kids sang a special in church. Kate came to me and said she'd like to sing, so I picked out a song that she could sing for a special. I decided to see if Drew could handle carrying the alto part, and if Kate could carry the soprano part while Drew carried the alto part. haha! They did great! Drew has an amazing ear for music. I don't know if all kids his age begin to harmonize. I remember wanting to sing alto SO bad. I used to sit next to Mrs. Russell in church because she always had such a strong alto voice. She must have cringed every Sunday as I slid in the pew next to her because I couldn't carry that alto part at first and sounded awful! I was in junior high I think, when I was determined to learn that part. It seems to come naturally for Drew. So, he picked it up in no time, and with some work, Kate did a great job staying on the melody line<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgefkz5_Yn4-KPrx2UnK2Ak616LQmpgbowqVwK3CU8OLP3piQkFvGyntx2Hpc4k2kXrLtr93mjjJmOJd4aC4kbgv2me-zw23YzbgHGroivYe3stl6omfDj32QEMxE-juVBDqA7BwoIrrzH_/s1600/DSC06709.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522063437675376434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgefkz5_Yn4-KPrx2UnK2Ak616LQmpgbowqVwK3CU8OLP3piQkFvGyntx2Hpc4k2kXrLtr93mjjJmOJd4aC4kbgv2me-zw23YzbgHGroivYe3stl6omfDj32QEMxE-juVBDqA7BwoIrrzH_/s400/DSC06709.JPG" /></a>...and my fingers managed to find all of the keys so I didn't mess them up with my piano playing either!<br /><br />We left our service in Bambili and headed to church in Bamenda. We saw this interesting sight along the way:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUc-dkd9KG78o46P8pDqLrIzQNWKRmLhFwTTnkVyD_J8wuWGLvnZf4QVzMaKP_X4hHAThxuNcqaCXw_XsYtb7EEgU0-EhJh6EdHKyReNtiacn2AAX-DJpnGLrFEpfUkAhQ4km3McCpIA77/s1600/DSC06716.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 293px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522072576105015890" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUc-dkd9KG78o46P8pDqLrIzQNWKRmLhFwTTnkVyD_J8wuWGLvnZf4QVzMaKP_X4hHAThxuNcqaCXw_XsYtb7EEgU0-EhJh6EdHKyReNtiacn2AAX-DJpnGLrFEpfUkAhQ4km3McCpIA77/s400/DSC06716.JPG" /></a>Those are not birds...they are bats. Weird, huh? The sky was just FULL of them!<br /><br />As we were pulling into our church lot, Ben got a call from Emmanuel's caretaker, Andrew, who informed him that Emmanuel had just died five minutes ago. It was a sweet, but somber service in Bamenda on Sunday. We had a time of prayer for Emmanuel's family, who still doesn't know Christ. He mentioned them in prayer regularly - he was really burdened for his family. He has a neat testimony actually. Matt and Susan Yeiter had regular mechanical problems with their washing machine when they first got one here. It was a used model, and the lady they bought it from promised to send a mechanic out to repair it. Well, Emmanuel was the tech guy. He came out and repaired it, and before he left that day Matt shared the gospel with him. Emmanuel didn't make a decision though. Shortly after that, the Yeiter's washer broke down again. Guess who came back to fix it...and guess who heard the gospel again? I think their washer broke down three times, and after hearing the gospel several times, Emmanuel finally trusted Christ. Sometimes God takes us through frustrating circumstances for an ultimate purpose. Emmanuel was a different person from that day on, and a faithful member of our church in Bamenda. He was a true servant...always working behind the scenes at the church doing a lot of maintenance. If Matt and Susan hadn't gone through the frustration of being without a washer...and had they not taken advantage of that situation by sharing the gospel with their technician...Emmanuel would be in hell today. I'm so thankful that Matt took that opportunity and was able to lead Emmanuel to Christ. For the last couple of months, he'd been in SO much pain. Through our tears we were rejoicing on Sunday, that Emmanuel was suffering pain no longer! Here is a picture of him on the day of his baptism.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmb0iU_oGNTVZALTNiaevkE-TJhAMnP6GtEkz7JrSJ1tw1wjgZnnWjl4bT8-KWaNptbvoczxXyHcaekdlYAbtl2b2mpqD9tZUwsCKB_RnkYn37fPMmgFaQ9MJ_z9u9o1K3LOCeM6e55vK/s1600/Testimony.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522070403613163346" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXmb0iU_oGNTVZALTNiaevkE-TJhAMnP6GtEkz7JrSJ1tw1wjgZnnWjl4bT8-KWaNptbvoczxXyHcaekdlYAbtl2b2mpqD9tZUwsCKB_RnkYn37fPMmgFaQ9MJ_z9u9o1K3LOCeM6e55vK/s400/Testimony.jpg" /></a> So, this next week will be a busy one for Ben. I think on Friday he will spend the night out in the village with people from our church for the wake keeping.<br /><br />As you can see I'm kinda working my way backwards. :D On Saturday the kids played hard outside. They also went to visit our neighbor, to deliver thank you notes for the kitten that she gave us. I cracked up at Kate's note and had to share it:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYeM7XiLDkrlkRU0fykh0fIVZ_t6gKwrhD-O-9-e2PpUJCMKZgDRwyEc9IUbTyCAImKx0AlwzGlg7qySspA6CMy7b48oYmEyK3CX1AEMf6v92vDydW8325iUxBe8xcsWNTZfVogY-3iT-H/s1600/DSC06707.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 285px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522071951458311202" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYeM7XiLDkrlkRU0fykh0fIVZ_t6gKwrhD-O-9-e2PpUJCMKZgDRwyEc9IUbTyCAImKx0AlwzGlg7qySspA6CMy7b48oYmEyK3CX1AEMf6v92vDydW8325iUxBe8xcsWNTZfVogY-3iT-H/s400/DSC06707.JPG" /></a> In case you can't actually read it, it says, "Thank you for the kittin - you are the best - she is soooooo cute - I love her sooooo much - why would you give that kittin - why, why, why - oh well - thank you for it enyway." LOL! No punctuation, or anything. She just finished her first chapter in English on writing...so I guess we have some more work to do. But it sure made me laugh!<br /><br />Kate went to town with Ben on Friday. He is starting to take the kids every once in a while. She loves one-on-one time, so it is very good for her.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnMvEh9Ok2e3JYi6dfq41xUbP2xMNkWo0LJpt0OPSvH078q7ERgLSnB-sSJuvg71uuXM0q-Iq_Ef0D1H0VCTuIhLjcSqzj-zzj1Py9W9KPiti2pwbB6d6TwmRUNT_YZfGOfjqCioVhIn2F/s1600/DSC06703.JPG"> <img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522073997988107810" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnMvEh9Ok2e3JYi6dfq41xUbP2xMNkWo0LJpt0OPSvH078q7ERgLSnB-sSJuvg71uuXM0q-Iq_Ef0D1H0VCTuIhLjcSqzj-zzj1Py9W9KPiti2pwbB6d6TwmRUNT_YZfGOfjqCioVhIn2F/s400/DSC06703.JPG" /></a><br /><p>I got this cute shot of Emma and Penny on Thursday. Penny is gettin' big!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK28ulO8BsuhHYV7ZITnpdUvy7DXiJbxnSlRpsBBB6D_1KHOLNlTWXYpyGB7fkzaF89NSJQPunkIUqs2hr8Htv7CnFg54fhCAeMeDc9q6Hb1gyvdKzEMp7MBYlSXoh_PSlnPmGqlxQTZF2/s1600/DSC01696.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 268px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522074614423737042" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK28ulO8BsuhHYV7ZITnpdUvy7DXiJbxnSlRpsBBB6D_1KHOLNlTWXYpyGB7fkzaF89NSJQPunkIUqs2hr8Htv7CnFg54fhCAeMeDc9q6Hb1gyvdKzEMp7MBYlSXoh_PSlnPmGqlxQTZF2/s400/DSC01696.JPG" /></a></p><p>On Wednesday, Ben came home from church and the power went out. We were all amazed that even though it was dark we could still see to walk around our house! Usually when the power is out here, you can barely see your hand in front of your face! It is SO dark. But the moon was SO full and so bright. The sky was so clear too, that Ben said you could see one of the planets. I didn't get a shot of that, but we tried to get a good shot of the moon. There was one bright star that really shone underneath it too. It was too beautiful to describe and obviously the picture doesn't do it justice. We were all outside as a family staring at the sky! Our nightwatchman must have thought we were crazy!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY2SvOMkqLwdC2pa1ADUyhVTIJJX8h01CBhX5MdvpCnhl21mQDw1q90wi8bv-LRRAiBuYAZ7KvzNuHJN-Y5xEa5qfNMCYUecWSSbRn7n4w-d2PzQahu80Djwam2vob-z23b_5dzH26nkNS/s1600/DSC06700.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5522075453272261826" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjY2SvOMkqLwdC2pa1ADUyhVTIJJX8h01CBhX5MdvpCnhl21mQDw1q90wi8bv-LRRAiBuYAZ7KvzNuHJN-Y5xEa5qfNMCYUecWSSbRn7n4w-d2PzQahu80Djwam2vob-z23b_5dzH26nkNS/s400/DSC06700.JPG" /></a> Well, I could share more, but I'm afraid I've bored you as it is. 4 more weeks until my Mom comes and we are getting excited and counting down the days. I'm also so excited about Bernadette, a girl that I just hired to help me in the kitchen! Woot! Today she came and washed all my dishes, cleaned my stove, washed my kitchen windows and I taught her how to make coffee cake! So, having her help out with stuff like that will help me stay on top of the kids and their school work. It just gives me a little breather a few days out of the week. She comes from about 9-12:30. She and her hubby are serving in a church about 15 minutes from here. They are newlyweds and are really struggling financially. They have been begging for work. They came this past week actually to tell us that they only had 100 francs in their pocket (500 francs is 1 dollar) and that was the last of their money. They wondered if we had any work that day for them to earn some money. So, this job really helps them, and it really helps me too. She will learn to bake and I will have help with our breakfasts. And...the dishes!! I hate dishes!! That alone would be worth it!!! </p><p>Ok...I'm done! Have a great day!!<br /></p>Becca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2748748736596456108.post-11829066549696912072010-09-18T16:54:00.010-04:002010-09-19T11:03:07.068-04:00Saturday Evening PostIt is Saturday evening, and I know that I promised you an update yesterday with pictures, but I do live in Africa after all, so I guess I shouldn't make promises. Anyway, our internet was out all night and Saturday morning until 9. So, I honestly couldn't post. :D (for once I have a good excuse!)<br /><div></div><div>My week was a blur. I am not sure I could even recount any details, but I did get all the pictures off the cameras that will hopefully give all of us a smile!<br /><br /><div>First up...My silly kids!<img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518362818011219458" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHayDqzf1fWffWHP4btASuRmpL-5h_klyJOJ87M2u_xYyt32zMgkoMUls8_t4EDBYs1H2CFxpJFuo-S_gW8z3WQF0vzLfHax7pXTqqlsNiCliwpLgg_b9qwxj1p-Aw4cSL8E81JuHR-y2m/s400/snow+bound.jpg" /></div><div>I'm not sure what sparked this idea, but they were getting ready for a big snowstorm. I had to laugh at Drew's hat choice. You can see Faith Ann in the back lookin' kinda sad. I'm not sure why she wasn't participating in all the fun. But she decided to imitate her siblings the next day, and this is what she came up with for snow attire:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJ76NHHcVp1VPAjJjkVFbVi7HWjZLrwwS58ok9esfZ-M2r6N7XYSNYKvR2V08D2e2Tmtz53UhQGUWe958vBGwf3hxq7xK4WWoWLpK8HppW_X-BzgrxeB0mDJZpbajHJfihKSUwLvRtIff/s1600/silly+faith.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518363660038802978" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJ76NHHcVp1VPAjJjkVFbVi7HWjZLrwwS58ok9esfZ-M2r6N7XYSNYKvR2V08D2e2Tmtz53UhQGUWe958vBGwf3hxq7xK4WWoWLpK8HppW_X-BzgrxeB0mDJZpbajHJfihKSUwLvRtIff/s400/silly+faith.jpg" /></a> Gotta love the princess panties...</div><br /><br />Drew is a pretty good artist in my opinion, though I am sure every parent must say that about their kids. He is always asking for paper to draw on. Here is his interpretation of Monster's Incorporated:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24Pz1gihHElteyaE4fujXhSNs0ZyVgQeDJl3ULyg9bQv04EIS5Oe4_26YN0i__U964d_NlybtIJNSe6HgrBcj0_M4KdjBgrMrRiDLQQydZvywt7N2gs005uozcb2w11hNZbREc6VWy8yX/s1600/Drews+picture.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518364902392905090" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh24Pz1gihHElteyaE4fujXhSNs0ZyVgQeDJl3ULyg9bQv04EIS5Oe4_26YN0i__U964d_NlybtIJNSe6HgrBcj0_M4KdjBgrMrRiDLQQydZvywt7N2gs005uozcb2w11hNZbREc6VWy8yX/s400/Drews+picture.jpg" /></a> Ben has been spending much of this week at Mbingo Baptist Hospital with Emmanuel from our church in Bamenda, who is very ill. He learned that he has tuberculosis in his bones. Evidently it is literally deteriorating his bones. He has some fractured bones right now even, and is in constant excruciating pain. He was already a small man, but Ben says that he is literally a skeleton. Today Ben and Matt along with Primus and TomMike went to visit him. Primus couldn't even stay in the room he was so broken. He is barely recognizable - he has wasted away to almost nothing. While they were there, Ben always has opportunities to pass out gospel tracts. He got a picture of one man reading Drew's story...the perfect thing to read at a hospital!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDeOf66pOvkEvgOprj2Zkujwfb8xNM9uJCfgYUc81Bn07W3fAvVO2hcVoKhsME3XagsnX6mNIjZY5xPsgbG4Z04-RNEXL57U7aF-962gShdfXRt7T861th5vDNtLb3MDbsYHrRoC7OgWQB/s1600/Mbingo.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518366473890092434" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDeOf66pOvkEvgOprj2Zkujwfb8xNM9uJCfgYUc81Bn07W3fAvVO2hcVoKhsME3XagsnX6mNIjZY5xPsgbG4Z04-RNEXL57U7aF-962gShdfXRt7T861th5vDNtLb3MDbsYHrRoC7OgWQB/s400/Mbingo.jpg" /></a> Thursday was meat day. I suddenly realized on Wed. that we were out of ground beef. So Ben went first thing in the morning to get some fresh beef.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifi6rA5a9bUf4DJw5JoY_-n2yBWZZp5D6XFquxpi2Fd-lN-fzpiiU8impqxLyoZAtddXuT9s_vK1kcrxpTIWfZ9gFozqqNBEaX_tGxCHUa9RtOu1FVEL9hERbqhMGJxrXyzSEhU1qPqap5/s1600/meat+market.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518368236642401570" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifi6rA5a9bUf4DJw5JoY_-n2yBWZZp5D6XFquxpi2Fd-lN-fzpiiU8impqxLyoZAtddXuT9s_vK1kcrxpTIWfZ9gFozqqNBEaX_tGxCHUa9RtOu1FVEL9hERbqhMGJxrXyzSEhU1qPqap5/s400/meat+market.jpg" /></a> Once he buys the meat, he brings it home and begins the trimming process, which is a LOT of work. But Ben has it down to a science. He didn't have time to finish everything unfortunately, so I had to finish it up and do the grinding:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyxKz5GtoAAe-th8HBy4wCAOBJeazXt_gcwhBnalYPQbhbOq8_ibDuRoaMPWhXe-VkNLMGGyFWRETLZ8LXs3h-zy3YDCCGR5EyKcyw7GDHL98FVGg3kp6LIGEC-T6-_6N-cUHMnEGOx_tb/s1600/meat+grinder.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518369063978431938" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyxKz5GtoAAe-th8HBy4wCAOBJeazXt_gcwhBnalYPQbhbOq8_ibDuRoaMPWhXe-VkNLMGGyFWRETLZ8LXs3h-zy3YDCCGR5EyKcyw7GDHL98FVGg3kp6LIGEC-T6-_6N-cUHMnEGOx_tb/s400/meat+grinder.jpg" /></a></div>We interrupt this broadcast for a public service announcement....this is a test....this is a test of the emergency blogger system... Ugh! So, I have this whole post ready except for this last picture and the introduction to our new family member and I suddenly get this blogger message...Error 400. What?? I couldn't do a thing on blogger last night. Couldn't log in, access my dashboard, upload pictures nothing. I shut down my computer and rebooted. I finally gave up and headed to bed, but not before googling that error message. Evidently it is a random message that people get, and they recommended clearing my cache, or switching browsers...etc...Well it was too late. I figured I'd just come back tomorrow - now today - and finish my post. Thankfully no error 400 today. So, here is our new pet. And I need your help. We need a name for this little guy, who is so cute btw. She has taken up residence in our laundry room, complete with litter box and seems quite cozy in there. She loves to whine and meow, but she also loves to cuddle and purr, so I think she is getting comfortable with us.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7euLBLkp0lq7HNdvxiRzmPXXNg1XcBWO4YLzTWhmw6n2mtaI4o_2T1X0ewY9jfDHQXbu1QjhrdLA6Wm_lTf_A_KIGMAwG02OOIQUc0FGsu4H8ZKrTJLDbntQFLxAhk5MJfAnO7UdQgPp/s1600/new+kitty.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518637641220813010" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ7euLBLkp0lq7HNdvxiRzmPXXNg1XcBWO4YLzTWhmw6n2mtaI4o_2T1X0ewY9jfDHQXbu1QjhrdLA6Wm_lTf_A_KIGMAwG02OOIQUc0FGsu4H8ZKrTJLDbntQFLxAhk5MJfAnO7UdQgPp/s400/new+kitty.jpg" /></a> Ben came home from his visitation on Thursday and said, "I got a surprise...bring a bowl of milk." I knew what that was and squealed. The kids still didn't catch on. So we all rushed to the laundry room, and there was our adorable new kitty! So again, I need names people! :D Respond with some ideas and I'll run them by my kiddos. If we choose the name you responded with....you win..............drumroll please........<br /><br />nothing, except for the fact that our adorable kitty will bear the name you have chosen! :DBecca Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02047949555002708415noreply@blogger.com4