Our Mountain Getaway

We just got home from a week and a half in the Smokey Mountains!! We originally had only planned to stay a week but we had a little mishap with the truck. We noticed after we had spent almost all week driving on those crazy mountain roads that one of the wheels was making a little funny noise. Well, Arnett looked and found that our wheel bearing was going out. Praise God for His protection and that we had made it all week without any accident!! We took the truck to the shop first thing Monday morning (we noticed the noise on Saturday afternoon). Unfortunately, they couldn't fix it until Wednesday afternoon!! So, we decided to rent a car and spend a few more days in the beautiful mountains. I mean out of all the places in the world to be stuck in, we were stuck in the mountains!!

So, we did a lot of nothing while we were gone. It was great. Zeke and I had two days that we stayed in our PJ's all day!! Did I mention that, it was great!! We also watched a lot of movies. Those little "Red Box" DVD rental thingy's at Wal-Mart are GREAT!! We kept them in business for sure this past week and a half!! Arnett and I discovered something we both LOVE doing and that is going antiquing!! We visited several antique shops. Praise the Lord we don't have a house here nor do we have a lot of money cause if we did, we would have been in lots of trouble!! One day we went to Cades Cove, a National Park in Tennessee. They have lots of deer and bears!! We saw 70 of deer and 1 bear. Here are a few pics. Of course, Arnett was in hog heaven!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Beautiful mountain scenery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Big Buck!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course the most exciting part for us was all the snow we got to see. Being from Florida any time you get to see snow it's a real treat. So, after spending almost 2 years in Africa snow was an even bigger treat. We so know God was the giver of this extra special treat for us and we give Him all the Praise and Glory for it!!

Zeke and Daddy all bundled up ready to go play in the snow.

Zeke and Mommy in the snow.

Beautiful!!!

Our beautiful family.

We also were able to let Zeke try out sledding while we were there. I know these pictures may be a little blurry but I think they show just how much fun he was having. When we decided it was freezing and we all needed to go inside to unthaw, he pitched a fit. He absolutely loved sledding and didn't want to go inside, even though he was frozen!!

Zeke and Mommy enjoying sledding!!

Zeke and Daddy taking a turn!!

We praise the Lord for giving us the opportunity to getaway as a family. It was much needed and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Until next time...

An update...

Well, for all you faithful readers out there here's a quick update as to what's been going on since we arrived in the states...

We got in and had an amazing time surprising our grandparents. Here are a few pics of surprising them that day. Needless to say, the pictures say it all...








Then we spent a few days surprising all our friends. Sadly, we don't have pictures from all those surprises.

Then we spent a few days adjusting to being back in America. We have spent time with family and friends too. We've also been doing what we enjoy. Shopping for me, even though I just can't seem to buy that much. No need to buy any clothes, I have plenty here and the winter clothes that are out now won't do me any good in Africa. Arnett has enjoyed hunting too. He's killed a 6-point so far and as I type this he is in the woods.

We had a great Thanksgiving. We spent the day at my aunt and uncle's house. Enjoying lots of good food. Then the Saturday after Thanksgiving we had a big lunch at Arnett's parents house. We were able to see lots of family and once again, eat lots of good food.

Zeke has done well adjusting to being here. He sure is a little trooper. For Christmas we got him a "Flintstones car". We went ahead and gave it to him early so he'd have lots of time to play with it. I don't know if we'll be able to take it back to Mali with us, even though, I'm doing my best to find a way!! Here are some pics of him enjoying his new toy...






Monday, we're heading on a mini get away, just the three of us. We're going to the mountains for a week and we are so excited. Even though, checking out the weather forecast we are going to freeze!!

Thank you all for joining us on this journey. We covet your prayers and can't say Thank You enough. We ask that you please pray that God would use our time in the mountains and our remaining time at home to totally refresh and restore us. Ask that He would prepare our hearts to head back to Mali in January. Until next time...

We've arrived

Greetings!! I must first apologize for my lack of blogging over the past 2 months. Honestly, things have been pretty rough for us and quite frankly, I just didn't feel like blogging about it. It was hard enough living it out every day and to write about it just wasn't an option. So, please forgive me.

So, I want to explain the title of this blog, "We've arrived" I wish I could say that it means that we have arrived at mastering the Bamabra language. However, I think we could live in Africa for 25 years and never feel that we have arrived at that point. Even though a few weeks ago we did take a language test and we both passed. Praise the Lord for this!! The evaluators told both of us that we have become Bambara, what a compliment!! We were thrilled and we Praise God for blessing us with the ability to learn and speak another language!! He truly will equip us to what He calls us to!!

So, back to the title and it's meaning... It means we've arrived, as in we went on a trip and we have arrived at our destination. So where exactly is that destination?........

AMERICA!!!! That's right, we're in America!! We got in last Wednesday night, after about 25 hours of traveling. It was an extremely long day but God helped us get through. Zeke was a trooper too. God blessed us with so many blessings along the way. Like, getting a whole row to ourselves on our first flight of 5 1/2 hours. Zeke slept pretty much the whole first flight. Then getting 3 seats instead of 2 on our second flight of 9 1/2 hours. Then, Zeke slept 5 hours out of the 9 1/2 hours we were in air! Then on the last flight of 45 minutes, Zeke slept the whole way!! Is God good or what? Once again, we give God all the glory and Praise Him for such smooth travels!!

So, what are we doing here? Well, we are here on vacation and a time to rest and get refreshed. Like I said earlier, things have been rough and we needed a break. We had originally planned to be home for 3 weeks at Christmas time but we realized that 3 weeks and at Christmas would not give us the break or the rest that we needed. We got approval to extend our stay and we'll be home for 2 months. Then we'll return to Africa and finish the task God has called us to.

We want to thank all of you who regularly check our blog and pray for us. Please, don't write us off yet. We're still here and still plan on keeping up with the blog!! Things you can be praying about:

1. Our believer's in D-village. We gave them a device called a mega voice before we left. On the mega voice are quite a few Bible Stories (50 or more, I can't remember). Pray that they would meet regularly and listen to the stories. Pray that they would continue to grow in their faith.
2. Our time in the states. Pray that we get lots of rest and rejuvenation. Pray that God would give us His eyes as we prepare to go back to Mali in January.

Also, I want to send a BIG, HUGE HAPPY 30th BIRTHDAY wish to my wonderfully amazing husband!!

Thank you again for your prayers! Until next time...

Playing outside...

Today we went outside so Zeke could play some. They also came to fix our leaky roof. To fix it they have to mix up some cement and put more on the roof (it's a flat roof). They had brought a donkey cart load of sand and just dumped it in our courtyard. Well, of course, Zeke found the sand. He enjoyed playing it. Here are a few pics I was able to take.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, while we were outside Arnett worked on fixing our clothes line that had broke. Zeke tried to help his Daddy, however, it only tangled the line up worse. Here are a few shots of him trying to help his Daddy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then, Zeke got curious as to what I as doing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We hope you enjoyed these! Until next time...

Sad News...

Well, I wish I had some good news but, unfortunately, I don't. We found out yesterday that Baby Solomon passed away a week ago today.

Two weeks ago today, as they were told to do, the villagers took Solomon and Grandma to the doctor on a motorcycle and were given more formula mix and another dietary supplement for  Grandma to try to make her milk come in. They returned back to the village and continued mixing formula for the baby for a  week. Sadly, Solomon passed away a week later. Thank you all so much for praying for Solomon and Grandma.

In other news, we're doing well. Due to Zeke being sick or myself being sick it had been a couple of weeks since he and I had been out to D-village. I was starting to feel pretty purposeless here. Praise the Lord, we were able to go out last week and God renewed my sense of purpose. I was able to have some good one on one time with three of the women in our village. I was also able to help them make shea butter. Since I had done it before in another village I sorda knew how to do it. They were really impressed by that! We'll be going back out to D-village this week. Going along with us this week is a local believer. God has truly blessed this man with the gift of evangelism, the ability to tell stories, and sing. He can also relate to the Africans so much better than we can. Please pray for him as he'll be sharing in the village this week. Pray that our visit will bring glory and honor to God and that many will come to know Him.

Thank you for your prayers, you are vital to our work here!! Until next time...

Quick Update...

I just wanted to write a quick update on Baby Solomon and Grandma.

Monday was the day that they were supposed to take the baby and the grandma to the hospital. When we left the village last week, the villagers agreed to take them to the hospital. They have a moto in the village and could get them there on it. Well, as suspected, Monday morning we got a call from the villagers. "Are you coming today to take us to the hospital?" We replied, "No, we aren't. We can't come today, tomorrow, or anytime this week. We thought ya'll were taking them to the hospital." They replied, "Well, we have a moto but the baby is too small to get tied onto Grandma's back to ride to town and Grandma doesn't want to hold him on the moto that far." They then decided to call the doctor and see if just the grandma could come. We never got a call back on Monday or any other day this week, so we aren't sure exactly what happened. One Praise, Solomon is still alive. Please continue to pray for him and Grandma. Ask the Father to sustain them both and help Solomon grow big and strong.

I also wanted to share a few pictures of our growing little monkey. I say little monkey, cause he's climbing onto EVERYTHING!! He'll push the chairs away from the kitchen table, climb on the chair, and then onto the table. He definitely keeps us busy!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Until next time...

The hardest thing...

Wednesday, I think I experienced one of the toughest things since we moved to Africa. We were getting ready to head out to D-village to get some work done in the field. Yes, I was actually going to help some in the field!! However, as we sat down to eat lunch we got a call from Sonny in S-village. (S-village is where they did the farming project last year.) He informed us that one of the ladies in the village died while giving birth Tuesday but the baby lived. He said they had no money to feed the baby and wanted to know if we could help. Of course, my first reaction, "I'll take the baby and feed it!" Once my emotions calmed down, I realized that was not the best option. So, we called Shirley (our current team leader), got some advice from her, and headed to the village.

When we got there, we were taken to see the baby. It is the tiniest baby I have ever seen in person. It's arms are no bigger around than my thumb. If this baby was in the states it would be at a hospital in the NICU. I held back the tears, it's not appropriate to cry in Bambara culture, especially over an infant. We then went and did the formal greetings of the chief and elders. We then started asking some questions. The baby was born Tuesday morning. The mom started having some problems, so they took her to the hospital, where she later died. We asked why one of the many nursing women in the village hadn't taken the baby and started nursing it? The reply, "That's not our culture. We know it's okay for you Americans to do that but that's not how our fathers or grandfathers did it. It's just not our culture." I wanted to scream! HELLO!!! This child is dying and you have the means to feed it but you don't cause it's not your culture?? I was beyond frustrated!!

We decided to take the baby to the hospital to have it checked out by a doctor.  The villagers had appointed one of the older women (I'll call her Grandma)in the village to look after the baby, so she and the baby's uncle went with us. The doctor looked the baby and said it was doing as well as could be. The uncle then spoke up and said, "We can't feed this baby. Is there somewhere it could go and be feed?" The doctor, then realized what the problem was. The villagers had no money and wanted to give the baby to the orphanage to be cared for. The doctor then explained to them that there was a place for babies to go and be cared for BUT if they sent the baby there they would not be able to go get the baby later. The doctor explained to us that a lot of people here think they can take their babies and have them cared for and go get them later. We also told the villagers, that we didn't agree with that decision and we would have no part in helping if that's what they decided to do. The doctor then told them it was perfectly fine for another woman to nurse the baby. He said if they agreed to do that, he would pay for the woman's food, so she could have enough milk to nurse the baby. The uncle, then said he would take the information back to the elders and would call the doctor Thursday morning and let him know what they decided. The doctor sent them home with 2 bags of formula and an antibiotic.

So, we headed back to the village, first stopping to buy the medicine. We were going to buy a bottle but they didn't have one small enough for the baby to eat from. Thankfully, I had one of Zeke's medicine droppers with me. When we got back to the village, I helped Grandma prepare the formula and she fed him with the medicine dropper. The uncle explained everything to the elders. The next morning, the uncle came to tell us that a decision had been made. They had agreed to let a lady nurse the baby. However, the lady they chose was the Grandma. We said, "WHAT?? She has no milk!" We explained to them that we didn't think her milk would come in as it has been years since she had a baby. They called the doctor to tell him their decision. The doctor asked, "Is the lady you chose, the old lady that was with you last night?" They said, "Yes." The doctor then said, "Okay,  that's fine.  But you have to put the baby on her breast a lot and get him sucking so her milk will come in. But keep giving it the formula. Then, bring the baby and the grandma back to the hospital on Monday." My reaction, "DO WHAT?" However, I am no doctor and I believe that with God all things are possible, so I couldn't argue with them. However, we did tell them that if Grandma's milk doesn't come in they will have to find another lady to nurse the baby. Thankfully, they agreed to do that if the need arose.

So, I made sure Grandma knew how to prepare the formula and helped her feed the baby one more time. I prayed for her and the baby and we left. It was the hardest thing I've had to do. Thankfully, once again, God has given me a great deal of peace about the situation. I don't agree with the decision they've made but they made  a decision that does go against their culture. And a decision that doesn't have them dependent on the white people. Please pray for Solomon (our name for the baby) and the Grandma. Pray that God would give strength to this tiny little one. That he would grow big and strong. Pray that milk would come for the grandma and that Solomon would be receptive to drinking it.

Also, Zeke has come down with laryngitis. Please pray that he would feel better soon. Neither one of us got much sleep last night. Thank you so much for your prayers! Until next time...

God is in control...

For years God has been dealing with me on the fact that He is in control and that I am not. Yesterday was one of those days where we had to just trust God. Trusting Him that He knew best. Wednesday afternoon I started spotting. I was a little concerned but knew that God was in control. Wednesday night the spotting grew worse but had stopped by yesterday morning. I went ahead and called the doctor to get in to see her. They said to come right away. So, I went and picked up a fellow colleague who speaks French and away we went. We got to the doctor and she did an ultrasound. Sadly, there was no heartbeat in our little one. We were greatly saddened by this news but at the same time there was  peace.

Years ago before we ever had children one of my biggest fears was the thought of having a miscarriage. I thought if that ever happened to me, I wouldn't be able to handle it. Years before children however, God gave me a peace regarding my children. He assured me that, 1. He was in control and 2. until He was ready for me to take care of them, He would do it for me. That peace is still with me today. I am saddened by the loss of this dear one but I know that he or she is safely resting in the arms of the one who loves him or her way more than we ever could. I Praise God for His peace that surpassing all understanding. I Praise God for the fact that He is in control. I Praise God for the fact that while I don't understand why, I know He has our best interest at heart.

In Romans 8:28, He promises:
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

We thank you so much for all your prayers concerning us. We know that because of your faithfulness to pray, God has surrounded us with His peace, love, mercy and grace. Thank you again. Until next time...

Zeke Update...

Zeke here. I know it's been a really long time since I typed anything on our blog. Please forgive me as I have been busy learning to walk, talk, and well just being a kid!!

I had a great time in London with my Mommy and Daddy. It was also really nice to see my Nana and my Mimi. I sure do have them figured out, cry and they'll do whatever I want them to!! I didn't do this too much but there was one night they kept me while Mommy and Daddy went out on a date. We had some fun walking around outside and playing on the elevator!! I sure did love to push those buttons.

I'm also getting around by walking more and more. Another thing I love to do is climb! Just this afternoon Mommy and Daddy found me standing on the dinning room table. Needless to say, I keep them on their toes at all times!!

One exciting thing that has happened is that Mommy and Daddy say I'm going to be a big brother! Now, I'm not exactly sure what that means yet but Mommy and Daddy keep saying something about a baby coming in March. Mommy's been really tired lately too but other than that she's been feeling great!! Daddy says this baby wasn't in their plans but it that it was in God's plans and His timing is perfect. We're all really excited about this coming addition to our family. Please pray for Mommy and the baby. Pray that everything would go well and everyone would be healthy.

Sorry I don't have any cute pictures of me to add to this post. Mommy hasn't take any since we've been back from London. I'll try to get her to take some soon and add to the blog. Until next time....

London

Last week God blessed us with the ability to take a much needed vacation.  We were also blessed by our mom's being able to join us. We spent a week in London, England. It was great!! We went to several war museums, Windsor Castle, Kensington Palace, Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, the Tower Bridge, and spent several afternoons relaxing in one of the many beautiful London parks. Oh, of course we ate lots of good food, such as, McDonald's, Burger King, KFC, Subway, Starbucks, Cinnabon (I know what some of you are thinking...good food?? Well, when you live in Africa and haven't had any good ol' American fast food, it becomes good food!!). It was so nice to get away and spend some time with our mom's. Oh and to spend some time in an English speaking country!! Here are some pics from our trip. Until next time...

Zeke, Arnett, Lynn, and I at Kensington Palace.

 

 

 

Mom and I at Kensington Palace.

 

 

 

 

 

Arnett, Zeke and I waiting on the subway.

 

 

Arnett, Zeke and I at Windsor Castle.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lynn, Zeke, Mom and I at Windsor Castle.

 

 

 

Zeke wasn't too sure about this guy!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arnett, Zeke and I at the Tower Bridge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arnett and I at the Tower of London

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zeke and I.

 

 

 

 

 

Arnett, Zeke and I at the Tower Bridge.

 

 

 

Arnett, Zeke and I in front of the London Eye.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zeke playing in one of the parks of London

 

 

Arnett and I in the park.

A lot going on lately...

WOW! It's been a busy, busy two weeks. On June 11th I turned 28. It was a great day. The day started off with Arnett waking up and getting Zeke, which allowed me to sleep in. Then he surprised me with breakfast in bed. We didn't do much that day but that evening we were able to go out on a date which was great too!! The following day, Saturday, we had planned to go to the grocery store and out to eat. We woke up to really hot weather and no power, so I came up with the idea of going to the pool first, then to the grocery store, and then to eat. Arnett said okay, so I started getting ready. Well about 10:15 or so a group of the ladies we work with show up at our house. He had arranged a ladies day at the pool for my birthday. So, they were a little shocked when they arrived and  was already in my bathing suit but it worked out perfectly. One of my dear friends, Krista, made me a deliciously, yummy chocolate cake. So, before we headed to the pool we ate cake. It was a great day and we had lots of fun!! The first picture is of me and the baker and the second one is of me and Alyson.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The week following my birthday we went out to the village. It was supposed to be the week I started meeting with the ladies. Well, it didn't go as planned, which normally nothing does in Africa. At 9:00pm none of the ladies had showed up. I decided to go find my friend, Mandy. She was at her house shelling peanuts. I asked her, "We aren't going to study tonight?" She replied, "Well, we can." I could tell she didn't want to so I just let things stay as they were. I did tell her that next week I wanted to meet with them, she said "Okay." Then, she and our village mom agreed to tell all the ladies about it. I was a little disappointed at first but God assured me He was in control. I also learned that these ladies aren't used to meeting so I'm going to have to be pushy with them. So, even though it didn't go as I had planned, it was an okay trip.

This boy rode Zeke around for an hour or so. Zeke loved it!!

 

 

 

 

 

Our cute little bush baby!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The weekend of the 18th, our entire team went on a team retreat. We went to a place on a lake that's about 2 hours outside of town. We had a great time. We had a hot dog roast, played cards and lots of board games, watched some movies, and just hung out. We had a great time!!

Arnett and Zeke

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zeke and I

 

 

 

 

 

 

Zeke playing in our trunk aka our suitcase

 

 

 

 

 

 

This past week was another good but busy week. Arnett and Mitch left on Monday for the village. Praise the Lord, they were able to get a lot accomplished in getting things ready to begin planting. Zeke and I went out on Wednesday. I made sure this week that the ladies knew we were going to study. Of course, after dinner, I still had to go get Mandy. However, on our way back to our hut to do the study, they started telling all the other women to come. Praise the Lord 9 women came!! The story time went great. I was able to  tell the story and ask the questions. However, the majority of these women aren't believers, so my original plan of just walking through the stories with them is having to be refined. So, please keep that in your prayers. I'm seeking the Lord's direction in exactly how He wants me to lead these ladies.

On Thursday, of this week we had a birthday party for Zeke. I know it's a month late but on his actual birthday no one was in town. This past weekend we had a big meeting for everyone in Mali, so EVERYONE was in town. He was not a fan of all the attention, he gets that from his Daddy! So, the whole, giving him a cake of his own didn't go like I had thought it would. He did finally get into some. Here are some pictures of the day.

Zeke's cake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Before the party started.

 

 

 

 

 

 

He's not too sure about this...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trying to show him how to dig into the cake.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

See it's good!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Still not so sure...

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Mom are you crazy? I'm not sticking my hand in that!"

 

 

 

 

 

"Daddy, I just want out!!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

He finally got the hang of it and enjoyed his cake!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

This past weekend we had a Mali Meeting with all the people in our company that work in Mali. It was a great time of fellowship and worshipping in our heart language.

Praises:

1. The work in the village continues to go well!!
2. A great team retreat!
3. We are all healthy!!
4. Zeke is a happy and growing 1 year old!
5. The time we had with our colleagues and the ability to worship in English!!

Prayer Requests:

1. Rain for the village.
2. The men and women's storying groups.
3. Direction in leading the women's group.
4. Continued good health.

Thank you for walking on this journey with us!! Until next time...