What $2 will buy you in produce in Mozambique

I went to one of the local roadside markets for some produce and was so pleased to buy all this for only $2.  There were even a couple more potatoes and onions but I used them before I remembered to take the photo.  Believe it or not, these prices are higher than they have been, as is everything else here.  The fuel prices rising affects everything else (as in the rest of the world) and the prices of rice and other essentials have risen dramatically.

And although $2 is a great price for me for locally-grown and likely mostly organic produce, keep in mind - that's the average Mozambican's daily wage.  Imagine working all day and being able to buy that comparably small assortment of veggies for your effort. 

Happy Birthday Dad!

(This post was meant to be on July 24th, not 25th!)

"A Real Missionary"

I read the following entry in a daily devotional journal comprised of stories about missions.  I could completely relate!

"A Real Missionary"

"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain."  Philippians 1:21

"Missionaries are ordinary, everyday people.  I grew up thinking they were super spiritual: that they didn't need money to live on because they had an extra dose of Jesus and that their kids were delighted to receive old clothes and ragged toys because they were somehow "different."

Now I know better.  I fall under the category of "missionary" and I have one of those kids who is supposed to be different but really isn't.

I thought becoming a missionary meant that I would have great stories to tell that would wow my Christian friends back home.  My story, however, is of an ordinary person, struggling to learn a foreign language, frustrated because there is no such thing as privacy where I live, and battling thoughts of criticism directed toward the people I am here to love.  And my story is also about how God is changing this everyday gal, from the inside out, to live a life of divine proportions.

Mine is a marvelous story because He brought me all the way to 'Mozambique' to show me that I am complete in Him.  He is teaching this weak individual, with human limitations and hang-ups, that His power truly is manifested in weakness.  God's promises become real as I encounter the world outside or as I crack open the language book to study.

I am learning that it is not just about victories.  it is also about obedience that costs, unrecognized sacrifices and unanswered questions.  Ultimately, it is about following Christ."

You think US gas prices are high!

I STAND CORRECTED!!!!

My friend who read this same blog entry deduced that the person writing it must live in a more remote area of Mozambique and thus, pays more for gas than we do here in the city area. I also had another Mozmabican blogger comment that the last time she had calculated it, gas was about $6 a gallon.

I think it's gone up since then, I know non-diesel has, which is what I use. So, more likely I pay between $6 and $7 a gallon.

I apologize for not checking my information before posting it for the whole world!

Thanks to someone else's blog who took time to do all the math - liters to gallons and mets to dollars - I know now that I pay ($9.20 a gallon-wrong! Thankfully!) for gas!!!!

And it continues to rise, although not as quickly as prices were rising in the US while I was there. But the dollar is weakening so the exchange rate continues to weaken as well.

Factor in that I live 25 minutes from the nearest grocery store and 40 minutes from the heart of the city (in normal traffic) and that's a big chunk of change spent on fuel!

Wow. At least I know Who controls my pocketbook!

Vanguard Girls

This is Sarah and Naomi who are students at Vanguard University in southern California.  They committed to come serve with me in my dorm for two months, May 14 to July 14.  Little did they know that they wouldn't be "alongside" of me the first month and they'd be here all alone!  They arrived while I was in the US with my mom and just jumped in with both feet.  They stayed here at my house and did whatever they could to be a blessing to the boys, even with no Portuguese!  

 

They did such a great job and the boys loved them and were sad to say goodbye yesterday.  It was so nice to have them here, helping with projects and the  Afternoon Program and mostly, just lavishing love on the kids.  

I am so glad I had the chance to get to know them and work with them!

Max's look-alike Dad

What a surprise we had the other night when Max's dad arrived for a visit!  I didn't even know he had a dad!  Turns out Max has visited with him a few times at his sister's but never mentioned it to us.  His dad lives most of the time in South Africa.  Max had lived there as well with his mom, coming to live with us when his mom died.  We all thought the dad was out of the picture.  But there was no doubting this is his dad - they look exactly alike and even their voices are the same.  I wish I had kept a photo of Max with half-closed eyes because he looks just like his dad even in that pose.  (Below, with his step-mom and dad.)

If you pray for my boys, please pray for Max.  He has such potential to make wise choices and be a blessing to others.  He's very bright too, learning lots of English and last year took top marks in his class.  But he often chooses poorly and gets into trouble.  Two weeks ago, he ran away and slept for one night on the street.  That was scary for all of us.

I've often felt like Max is walking a tightrope and his toehold is precarious.  He just seems like a young man who can go either way, for good or for bad.  And if he chooses bad, here, it can get really bad.  So please keep him in your prayers, that his loving Heavenly Father will be able to break thru any walls around his heart and Max will hear and receive His words of love, peace, joy and life!

Welcome Elizio!

Joao hadn't even left yet when Elizio arrived!  He was brought to us by Social Welfare who found him abandoned a ways north of us.  But he says he's from Khongolate which is the district right next to us so I am hoping and praying that's true and we'll quickly find his family.  I pray this is a case of him being lost rather than abandoned and we'll be able to reunite them. 

Elizio knows his full name, although I didn't quite catch it to write here, and he's five years old.  And, he is Scrappy!!!  They call him"esperto" here which means clever.  And that he is!  He has charmed us all immediately!

That's often the sign of a secure, well-adjusted child which gives me even more hope that he has a loving family who wants him back!

Until then, we'll just have to try and keep Elizio and Elidio straight, both boys in Room 3!

(He got new shoes, a school shirt, toothbrush and cup and he exclaimed "Muitas coisas!"  which means "Many Things!"  )

Tchau Joao!

One of my little darlings, Joao Ruben Mathe, has left our family to be reunited with his own!  And while I rejoice with him, I will miss him.  He gives the sweetest hugs and kisses!  I'll miss that.  I'll miss his smarts, his grin, his kindness and his love.  But I won't miss knowing that he's separated from his family.  I'm so glad to know he's back with his mom and his siblings.  And he couldn't be more thrilled!

Joao has a bit of a strange story.  He arrived about two years ago with his dad, with a letter from an agency saying he had been living on the streets with his dad and could we care for him while they helped his dad find a job and a home.  If I remember right, and I wasn't present when he arrived, I think there was even a representative from this agency with them.

Well Joao would ask all the time if he could go home, could we call his mom or dad and can't he go visit?  He would ask me, the Tias here in the dorm and many weekends, would go ask Felipe, our Head Educator, with tears, "Can't I go home Mano Felipe?"

But we had never heard from the dad again (until recently) and all attempts to contact this agency to find information on him had failed.  Well, it's no wonder - it was a scam.  Joao's dad had actually taken him from his mom, forged the documents, probably had a friend pose as an official, and left Joao here without telling the family where he was.  His dad came back recently and admitted everything.  The staff here took Joao to his mom's accompanied by the dad, where he got to stay the weekend.  He came back so happy!

Now it's mid-year, school wise and Joao has been transferred to a school near his home and is living with his mom again.  His dad lives nearby, in waking distance but everything seems to have been forgiven and Joao is delighted to live near both his parents.  Some things I'll never quite understand. 

But I do understand that God created family and it's so important to support that whenever and however possible.

And I do understand that while Joao might miss us once in a while, he couldn't be more thrilled to be home!

(For some reason, I can't add any more photos into this post with Windows Live Writer right now.  I'll try and adjust it later but at least you can see how gorgeous he is!)

But brothers together make me happy!

This is Simois, on the left, with his little brother Daniel.  Daniel lives in the Baby House so they don't see each other too often but I was talking with a couple people about wanting to invite Daniel over to play with Simois and Sarah took me up on it and brought him this morning.  Simois goes to pre-school two mornings a week so the other days, he's here in the dorm with Feliciano who is developmentally delayed and a lot of fun (but no verbal skills!) and Domingos who is blind and developmentally delayed and doesn't really interact at all.  So it's a double blessing for Simois to have his brother come for playtime! 

Sick boys make me sad

Angelo and Joao are both down with tummy bugs.  Joao's has lasted about three days, it kind of comes and goes.  They've both been tested for malaria and are negative so that's good.  BUT, the silver lining is, I now have a couch that they can lay down on!  It's wicker so it's not the most comfortable, but still, it's a couch!  I love snuggling with boys there! I'm glad they have a comfy place, out of the "fray" where they can sneak away when they're not feeling well.

More of Geronimo!

I couldn't resist posting a couple photos of Geronimo taken today in my house.  Isn't he a pumpkin???  He loves this hubcap, uses it as a play steering wheel.  He has us all charmed! Please keep praying that he does well in his adjustment!

Geronimo!!!

That's the name of our newest little six year-old darling who's just arrived an hour ago.  He and his sister were referred to us by a medical clinic, our home visit team determined that they would indeed benefit from being here.  Although he looks quite healthy - and quite gorgeous, huh? - he's on a second-line treatment for medication.  That means the first-line treatment wasn't successful.  There are currently only three options so please pray that his body will respond well to these current meds. 

Also I ask that you would just saturate Heaven with prayers on behalf of him and his sister, Alciana.  It must be so hard to leave your mom and home and everything you know and suddenly be in a huge children's center.  Please pray that he will know God's peace and presence and will quickly feel at home here.  Please pray for God to speak to him in such a personal way, that Geronimo will be able to trust in Jesus with the faith of the child that he is!

I don't know his whole story yet, as he's just arrived, but wanted to tell you about him so you could begin to pray for him and his sister!

Thabo is dancing with Jesus!

I've written many posts a bout our   precious Thabo who came to live with us in May of 2007.  Now he's gone to live with his Father in Heaven where there are no more tears and no more suffering!

Thabo died so peacefully Friday morning in his bed at home. 

In the morning he asked his Tia (one of the Mozambican women who provide care in his home for he and four other boys) if she could wrap him on her back, as young babies and children are carried.  He's never wanted to do that before because he legs couldn't straighten so it was painful for him.  As Vella said, he must just have wanted to feel so close to her. He then asked to go inside and sit on Vella's lap.  After a bit he was restless and wanted to lay down.  After just a few moments, still holding Vella's hand, he took his     last breath.

We received this as an amazing gift of God because with all of his health problems, he could have suffered greatly.  It's so precious that he even had special time with both Judite and Vella before he died, what a gift for them as well.

I'll never forget hearing about Thabo's arrival at the center while I was in the US.  People often ask why I stay here so long, or when I'm coming home or why I do what I do.  When I heard about Thabo's terrible neglect I thought "he's why I do what I do, so he can know he is loved and cared for, precious to me and to God."

For the last several months Thabo has been out of our dorm, beginning with a four month stay in the hospital, then living in our clinic and finally living with Vella in a much smaller environment.  I was blessed to have been part of his care and am so grateful that he had so many others who absolutely poured loving care into his life. 

We will all miss him terribly.  He was a bit like a little celebrity here at the center, everyone knew and loved Thabo!  Everyone is sad he is no longer with us but we are all confident he is safe, secure and happy in Heaven with his loving Father and Jesus.  I'm excited he can stand and walk and run and dance.  And I'm quite sure he finally weighs over 22 pounds as God has given him a new body!  We rejoice in his eternal healing that he's now enjoying.

 

Ros and her husband Steve, our directors, took Thabo out after church many, many Sundays with their group of young kids on their regular outings.  This one obviously to the beach.  You might notice his shoes look a little big - he loved those shoes, even though they were huge on him!   

 

 

 

This is Tia Judite who loved him so well and was with him when he died.  This is our local pool.

 

 

 

Here he's with Tia Victoria at the natural history museum in the city.  She took such good care of Thabo as well. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lovely Khosa Thabo,

July 28, 1999

to

June 27, 2007

Oops, I forgot to tell you I'm home!

Shame on me!  I've been back in Mozambique for one week and one day and I forgot to tell you!  I'll blame it on the disco in the community behind my house that is blaring it's music so loud and so often that it fogs my mind!

This has been a bit of a rougher adjustment back for me than normal.  I guess because my time home this visit was for the specific reason of caring for/being with my mom and even though I had lots of down time, it was still tiring.  And tough to leave. 

So I keep reminding myself, "slow and steady wins the race" and that there's no pressure to jump in and go wild right away.  God is so kind to help me remember to not carry this burden on my own and cast my cares on him for He cares for ME! 

So please say a prayer for me if you think of it.  And if you've been praying for my mom, she still needs you!  Larry called me last night to tell me she's back in the hospital, one week after beginning chemo.  She had a fever, an unexplained infection and they have given her a blood transfusion and several tests.

She's in a room by herself and everyone has to mask and gown up before entering.

But, the good news is, she's eating normally, looks and feels good too.  The best news is, her oncologist did a palpable exam on her abdomen and couldn't feel the masses that were there!  Praise God, He is so good!

We love books!

Thanks to the generosity from two sources, we have loads of new, beautiful books to read in our dorm! 

The first gift was from my former colleague, Gail.  She was a nurse here who looked after my dorm's medical care, among many other nursing responsibilities.  She now works at a hospital ER in Kentucky called Good Samaritans.  They pitched in together and sent us a H U G E box of fun books.  Such amazing generosity!  I couldn't believe how many fun and cool books there were!

The second group that sent books is a friend named Jarilyn who visited here twice, in 2002 and 2003. She did a ton of research and found Portuguese kids books in the US!  Three of her friends pitched in to cover the cost and we received a beautiful box of Portuguese books as well.

I gave them out together and then each group went into their rooms to read with their Tias.  I think it was the quietest "reading" session they've ever had - everyone was thoroughly engrossed!  I took turns going from room to room reading.  Even if the books were in English I just translated (loosely!) as I read along.  Most of them don't read very well or if they have English books, they just love looking at the photos and naming the objects or making up a story.

Thanks everyone for blessing my darling boys in such a tangible way!

Gardening Dreams

Isn't it amazing that the Lord of all the earth, the heavens, the universe, still speaks to us personally?!?  Isn't it amazing that we can have a thriving, growing relationship with Him?!?  I'm so excited when I remember that and let it sink in.

Yesterday, I spent a lovely afternoon at my cousin Sally's house here in New Jersey.  She and her husband Bill have created a beautiful garden.  It's lush, it's natural, it's creative.  It's healthy, it's growing, it's inviting (The photo below is NOT their garden!  I don't have a photo yet but I didn't think this post would be complete without one and this one resembles Sally's.  When I take a photo of their's, I will replace the one below!).  They also have a pool so it was great fun to spend the first day of the heatwave (98 degrees) there.  I took a break from the cold water to walk around the garden. 

While I was exploring, I found myself praying a prayer I have many times before - "please Lord, help me not to envy others."  Because often when I am in a warm, family-friendly home or a lovely garden, I wish I had one of my own.  And I wonder if I ever will.  So I am on my guard to quickly take this desire to the Lord, to admit it to Him but also guard my heart against envy.  I want to be content with the life He has given me at every step and stage.

But this time, God was so kind to take me beyond mere contentment . . .

As I looked around this beautiful yard, the Lord showed me that I am working on a garden of my own.  My darling boys are the garden I am working in and the harvest has the potential to last for eternity!

Wow!  What an amazing thought. God is using me to do the hard, tiring, unglamorous work of breaking up unhealthy soil.  To do the hopeful work of planting seeds that are deep enough they won't blow away. To do the steady work of watering so that strong, deep roots take hold.  To do the tedious work of pulling weeds that sprout up again and again.  To be on guard against the little foxes that spoil the vines.  To work hard and faithfully so that beautiful, healthy fruit grows in this garden.  Eternal fruit.

 

I don't need to envy anyone else's garden.

I have often prayed since I first became a Christian that I would be a tool in God's hands that He can use however He wishes.  Who knew I'd be a garden tool!?

(PS:  In NO way do I mean to imply I am working in this garden alone!  God is using many other "tools" (people!) in my boys' lives!  And He is the Master Gardener who invites us to work with Him!)

When I am Weak ~ HE is Strong!

I've been here in New Jersey three and a half weeks now and I'm looking at at least another two, possibly more. Although I am so thankful to be able to help my mom when she needs it, I've also felt very far from my darling boys in Mozambique. It's been on my heart to do whatever I can during this time to still be a blessing to them.

It's always true, but especially while so far away, the very best thing I can do for them is pray! So I've been spending more concentrated time bringing them (and my work) before the Lord.

I've also been praying for my Mozambican staff, which we call Tias or Educators, you'll hear me refer to them both ways. I have seven ladies that are working with my boys. One is the Head Educator and works M-F. The other six work in two shifts, three at a time, four days on and four days off.

These ladies have such a huge impact on my boys and their growth and development! If their hearts are truly captured and full of passion for serving the boys, there's no telling where they'll go! But they're not all there because of passion - they need a job! So they each bring varying degrees of heart to their job.

So I have been praying that each of them will be filled with the passion and compassion of the Holy Spirit and that they will be filled with vision of how God can use them in these boys' lives! I am praying they will love their jobs and work with their whole hearts, as unto the Lord! I am praying that we can work together to transform the boys!

But I have a confession to make too - I feel very weak in leading them or working together with them as a team. In fact, if I had to rank all the areas of my work from top to bottom, I would put "leadership of my Tias" at the bottom. I find it very challenging for a variety of reasons, including language and cultural differences to name just two. In fact, I think I have often given up.

However, I am greatly comforted by the fact that in my weakness, Christ has promised that HE IS STRONG! And I want this to be an opportunity for Him to be glorified through my weakness. So I decided to confess to everyone how weak I am in this area so that when God does amazing things in and through my Tias, He will get all the glory!

If you think of it, please pray with me that God will be free to work in my Tia's lives exactly as He wishes. Pray that they grasp how much God loves them, that He has a purpose for their lives and how that purpose includes working with OUR boys! I want to partner with them to be instruments God can use to

My mom's current setback

I was supposed to be on a plane right now, three hours into my flight home to Mozambique.  But on Monday, Memorial Day, my mom was making the bed, pulling the blanket up and she heard a snap, crackle pop and turns out she broke her arm!  Just pulling up the blanket!  Poor thing! 

Although that is bad enough, my mom has Cerebral Palsy and is paralyzed on her left side.  The break is her right arm.  This leaves her completely incapacitated.  She cannot do the most basic things, like scratch an itch on her face, nor can she provide for her own personal hygiene.  Just one example, I cut up a banana for her, thinking she could probably grasp it (with her left hand) and eat it herself, even if it was awkward but although she could indeed grasp it, she couldn’t turn it toward her mouth to get the banana in the right place,  She can’t turn her left wrist like most of us can.  So she needs constant care and I didn’t feel I could leave Larry, her boyfriend, with that sole responsibility, while I am still here and can delay my departure. 

She had a biopsy over a week ago on masses in her stomach and we still haven’t received the results.  We think we will tomorrow, as today would have been the day except the holiday.  I have no idea how the treatment needs for these two issues may conflict or not. 

So I didn’t feel I could now leave.  I feel horrible about missing Children’s Day, a big celebration on June 1st, and I was really looking forward to going home so this requires an emotional and mental shift for me.  But I am so glad this happened before I left so I can be here to be a blessing to my mom and Larry. 

You know, I can remember for at least 20 years now, my mom saying that if anything ever happened to her right hand she’d have to go into a home to be cared for.  She’s been afraid of that nearly her whole adult life I think.  Not afraid of the home exactly, just afraid of being incapacitated.  Even today she said, you can put me in a home if you need to.  Of course we won’t and hey, no one there would be coming to scratch her itches anyway!  So it’s interesting that this has happened. 

She has surgery on Friday and will have  metal rod inserted in her arm. As long as her GP says she's in good enough health.  She meets with him tomorrow after all her pre-op tests at the hospital today (EKG, blood work, chest x-ray).  Her spirits are up which I think must be a result of people praying for her.  Please keep her in your prayers!

Making my first pie and crust from scratch!

 

 

Here's the classic 1950's cookbook I chose to learn how to make a pie crust from scratch.  I think there were 11 pages of directions, including lots of cool photos.

Love this old sifter!

 

 

 

 

 

Not so pretty, at this stage I was worried!

 

 

 

 

 

Mom helping cut the strawberries while I cut the rhubarb. Ain't she a beauty?! 

  Delicious!  I was SO proud of this pie, the crust was super, flaky and yummy!  I loved it!

Update on my Mom

I have been so happy with how my mom's been doing these two weeks I've been here.  Beginning the day I arrived, she's been eating more and more each day (bringing her weight up to about 102 now) and we've been getting out of the house each day so she's been getting some exercise as well.  Overall, she's gaining strength and feeling better.

Although most of her lymph system responded well to the chemo she finished at the end of April, today, she had a biopsy of a mass in her stomach that her doctor said is a different type of non-Hodgkins lymphoma.  The results will tell them more what they're dealing with and what type of chemo she will need to treat it. 

Her doctor did say that he didn't think she had the luxury of waiting one or two months to begin chemo.  I think that's what is bothering my mom the most - she really had wanted to wait to get her weight/strength back before beginning chemo again. 

I know many people are praying for her and for me and I appreciate it so greatly!

Here she is enjoying half of her Mother's Day pressie of a mani/pedi!

 

Heading Home for Another Visit

Just a quick note to let everyone know I'll be heading to the US tomorrow, Friday, to spend three weeks with my mom.  She's been battling cancer for three years and is having a tough time right now.  The doctors don't think this is due to the cancer, per se, but the chemo.  So we're hoping this is a rough spell that she'll pass through.  Even though I just left her a month ago, I really feel she needs me during this time and I have total peace to go.  Please pray for my mom and for me.  And for my boys who are sad I'm leaving after such a short time.  My staff are sad as well but totally understand my need to go. 

A Yard Sale In Mozambique?

Who'd a thunk it?  Not me!  But boy was I excited! 

The Marine Guard House (where the Marines live who are on duty at our Embassy here in Moz) hosted it and lots of expats came and sold their stuff. 

It was a bit overwhelming to walk around all that stuff, especially as most of it is from the US, with a smattering of things from other countries.  Most of the people selling work for the Embassy or NGO's who've had posts in other countries previously. 

But I quickly found my stride and here are some of the treasures I came home with.  Lest you think I exercised incredible self-control, this is probably about only 30% of the stuff I got!

I didn't come home with the two boys, those treasures I already had!  But Domingos got these new shoes and a cow toy that makes lots of noises.  He's blind and developmentally delayed so I thought he might engage with this toy.  Simois got a new shirt from Target, tag still on it!

Here's an assortment of the highlights, including the blanket which has a mint green reverse side.  A Sit and Spin!  I couldn't believe it!  An Eddie Bauer backpack, racing cars, a black dollie, a skirt and top for me, some books, Spiderman, lots of videos, a mechancial monster/dog/thingie.   You can barely see the edge of a shield on the left - I got a whole dueling set.

Here's the best thing I got - if it works!  A Canon Rebel camera! It's not digital but it was $20!!  The battery is dead so the lady gave me her phone number so I can call her if it doesn't work but she said it does.  She said she thinks she even has another lens at home she'll give me.  The lady who sold me this, with her co-worker, volunteer at something called International Club of Maputo where they support NGOs.  So they gave me lots of clothes and some games.  Several people gave me free things when they found out I work at an orphanage.  One person told me to come back at the end and whatever kid stuff she had, she'd just give me.  It ended up being a BIG bag of things! Mostly for the Baby House but that's awesome!

These earrings are a special find.  I've been buying jewelry with this stone for my mom each time I've passed thru London on my way here.  I love it too!  So now I have something for myself in this gorgeous green stone!

This might have been the best overall bargain (especially if the camera doesn't work!).  It was $1.00!  There's absolutely nothing wrong with it, I think it's such a darling basket!

The most amazing thing I found was this chopper.  Only the day before, I had thrown mine in the trash because I had broken it trying to chop clams and left one in the shell, not good.  The very next day, here's exactly what I need.  God is so sweet to even bless us with the little things!

Well, I'm off to find homes for these and all the other goodies I came home with!

Saturday, in the Park

During school holidays, I wanted to get the boys out of the center for a bit.  You might remember from my post a few days back that we went to the reservoir.  Last week, we went to the city park for a picnic lunch!

Who can remember the first time they ate ice cream?  I think Aurelio will be able to!  He's our newest boy and everything we did was accompanied by a big "wow!"

 

 

 

Yummy tuna, cheese and tomato sandwiches, hard boiled egg, chips, an apple - oh it was exciting!  Afonso loved it!

 

 

 

 

  Adilson, a budding football star, before we were asked not to play on the grass!  At a park!  I guess it is looking a little bare in that spot!

More baking fun!

There aren't any photos to prove it to you but none of this batter ended up splattered all over the kitchen!  Just a bit of flour that didn't make it in the bowl.  But here's the end result - yummy banana spice muffins that the boys enjoyed helping make and loved eating even more!

Cake Making in Mozambique

Well, I cheat.  I still use the box mixes I love from America.  I always bring a couple with me when I've visited the US.  They are just so good.  And I don't know what it is, but the flour or the sugar or something here is different - the homemade cakes here just aren't the same as at home!

So today I decided to make a yummy cake for our Staff Meeting.  I had forgotten that I had had to buy a new hand mixer because my last one broke the first time I used it - the ejector button pushed all the way into the handle and that caused the speed indicator to stick and that was the end of that!  (that was my second mixer by the way, my first one had broken too.  when the second one broke, I asked around to see if I could borrow one from anyone and every person who had one - you guessed it, broken! but I digress.)

So I plugged it in, stuck it in the batter, turned it on and - nothing.  No power.  So I shut it off and went outside to look and see if everyone was without power or just us (sometimes we or the dorm next door does something that trips the breaker and only affects us two dorms).  I couldn't really tell as it wasn't dark enough for lights so I was heading back to my door when the power came back on - yay!  EXCEPT, not yay, I quickly discovered that what I thought was the off position on my new mixer was really the highest setting so I walked in to the mixer whirring away and chocolate cake batter everywhere! 

I decided to laugh thankfully and not cry. I also decided to scrape that batter off every half-sanitary surface and make that cake.  Hey, it's from America!  I can't waste it!  (and I did not consider the floor even close to being half-sanitary so what

landed there did not make it into the cake!)

After it was baked however, I did decide I couldn't in good conscience bring a cake made from scraped-off-the-toaster batter to Staff Meeting - well, more for me!

I love having Pedro visit!

It's school holidays so Pedro came to visit for the first week.  It does my heart good to spend time with him.  I love his heart for God and people, his joy, his smarts, his sense of humor (including his giggle) and the way he wants to help his friends here in the dorm to know more about God and, let's I'll be honest that I love this part -

how to obey Mana Laura!

We always have so much fun together.  I recently bought an Uno Attack game from someone in the city and we had a lot of fun with that.  We went out to eat a couple times and of course he joined us for the dorm adventures.

Even standing on his head he looks like he's getting so tall!

 

At the Thai Restaurant where he tried to use chopsticks!

His first time at the beach with real waves!  Normally the boys only go to the bay.  He was tentative but loved it!

Sad about Selso

Friends, I'm sad to add this post that Selso has run away back to the streets again.  Almost two weeks ago actually, but I have been behind in blogging, and it wasn't until I saw him on Friday begging at a street corner that I remembered I hadn't told you all about it.  He ran from us (Pedro was in the car with me) which broke my heart.  It's hard to love a boy and raise him for two years and have him run from you, even if I can understand a little from his point of view why.  We still want to be his friend, even if that means quick visits on the street. 

We will not use force to bring him back and it isn't decided whether he would even be allowed back if he wanted to come.  You see, this time, he took four boys with him.  He even tried to get our new seven-year old, Gaspar, to go with him.  He knew having a little one would bring in more money.  So, since he's posing a temptation to others, we will have to use great wisdom in deciding if he can come back if he seeks us out.

But the members of our street ministry team, myself and the other missionaries who see him in the city - we all want to keep in touch with him, bless him and pray for him and see how the Lord wants to use us to help Selso.   How I wish he would choose to love and follow Jesus and entrust his life to His hands.

Please keep praying for him!

(This gorgeous photo of Selso was taken by my friend and Iris visitor, David Ford.  Looking at it makes me cry.  Anyway, David's website, davidford.com.au, has lots of amazing photos of our children, as well as many others.  I want to make sure and give him credit for his talents!)

Are there crocodiles in there?

We've just begun two weeks' holidays so I thought we'd do something fun.  There's a reservoir about 1 or 1 1/2 hours from here that I've been wanting to take the boys to.  My plan was to take one room at a time, in lieu of the afternoon program, but decided it would be to book the ministry bus and we could all together.  So off we went on Wednesday morning for lunch and a swim.  We met up with some visitors who were at our Iris center in Boane.  So there were 46 of us all together.  It was such fun and having the whole dorm together on the bus certainly felt like an adventure! The boys absolutely loved it, as you can tell!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Home to bugs, noise and lovely boys!

Ahh, it's good to be home, especially after a long bit of travel with more than a normal share of hiccups.  But God is amazing and already had a solution to each dilemma.  I felt very peaceful even when not knowing what would happen next!

I arrived home on Sunday and it was so good to see the boys!  It was also so lovely to realize how many people had been praying for my mom and me as so many approached me and asked how she is. 

Some things that weren't fun, in no particular order:

- bugs and bug debris in every cupboard, on every dish!

- sand, although Sarah was a doll and cleaned up so much for me, it still seeps into every drawer, every book, even the cushions.

- spiderwebs in the kitchen cupboards

- being awoken at 6 the next morning and realizing the days of lazing in bed late in peace and quiet are gone again!

To end on a good note, here's some of the pleasures:

- having a pristine fridge/freezer after the power was off for an unknown time while I was gone so Sarah cleaned it out, along with the . . .  maggots!  Gross!  Even CSI couldn't have found a trace of them!

- Pedro awaiting my arrival with tangible excitement

- Joao Macamo not needing to ask Sarah "when is Mana Laura coming home?" every day

- Aurelio, a new boy with a big smile and an evidently huge heart racing to see who this "Mana Laura" was he'd heard about and welcoming me with a big embrace!

- Lots of hugs and kisses and shouts and cheers from all the boys!

Mom's 70th Birthday Party

Me, Sean, Mom, James and Sandra

Before the guests arrived. 

 

 

The Happy Septuagenarian!

We had a lovely time celebrating my mom's 70 years.  She was thrilled seeing so many loved ones, nearly 60 people came!  But the highlight was my sister and two of her sons coming out of the kitchen as a second surprise.  For those of you who've met him, can you believe how tall and grown up Sean is???

It was a joy to come home to surprise my mom with a special celebration.  She's blessed so many people throughout her life, most especially me!