Adventures With Sarah!

I think it’s been two months since I’ve written… more? Maybe. Our move to a village-ish road just minutes walking from the school, (fabulous for Mark and all of us) hasn’t felt like a village move at all. We’ve been so busy that the adjustment has been very easy, considering that isolation was a small fear for me out here. But, indeed, no problem! God is good!
I’m gonna leave most of the writing to the kids because they’re so much fun and capture my life pretty well too (whatever makes them happy usually makes me happy… whatever they’re having trouble with usually bothers me too… so on and so forth).
Just one quick blurb of interest…. In November this year, Lord willing, our family will become a party of five! We made it through the first trimester (I say ‘we’ because all are impacted when mom feels gross, exhausted and grumpy). We know very little except all is well and we will have this little one in Canada as we have our other two. The only difference will be that we will not travel around this time. Our last baby delivery/passport obtaining/multi thousand dollar trip around North America fried me for good. I vowed to Mark and myself that I would never do it again with a brand new baby and I’m sticking to it! We will fly to Vancouver and plan to stay in the Abbotsford area somehow and not travel from there. I feel lots of remorse not to see so many of you but then I think of the reality and I know this decision is absolutely necessary! We’ll keep you posted as things develop! We appreciate your prayers for good health and development for the baby and a safe pregnancy. Thanks! Lots of love! Sarah

Adventures With Jodie...

I love living in Africa! It’s ‘spring’ all the time! I swim… I play outside in my underwear… I ride my boda boda (three wheel bike) every day… I help Seth plant stuff and we pour gallons of water on leafs that we plant and soon they will be trees!....I play with my cats every day (they catch rats so the rats don’t come in our house)…and I love to cook with mom. My favourite thing to make is soup and I put in all the vegetables and the meat. I even get to help pour in the flavour stuff. When we’re not cooking real food then we’re making play dough food and putting it in a drawer that is our play oven.
My brother is my best friend. I love to play with him most of anything. Sometimes he tries to boss me and tell me how to do everything but that doesn’t work with me. I tell him no way. Then if he keeps trying to boss me then I start crying and someone comes and tells him to stop bossing. So I have a trick…. Sometimes when I want to be the boss then I start crying too and people are supposed to think that he was trying to boss me. But usually that doesn’t work. I guess that’s not a good idea.
Guess what? I’m going to be a big sister! Mom’s tummy is getting a little chubby and sometimes I pat the baby. And sometimes Seth is too rough with mom and I shake my finger in his face and tell him very sternly, ‘Don’t squish the baby!’ I will be a very good helper with the baby because I have my own baby Kira that I got for my birthday when I was two and I take very good care of her.
I like to pick my own clothes. I do not like pretty things at all! If someone says it is pretty I don’t want to wear it. And I also decide for myself if I think something is pretty. Then I tell mom I don’t like it. I want to be handsome like Seth. I like comfy boy clothes and if mom or dad tells me I look handsome then I’m happy because I just want to be like Seth. Sometimes mom says I don’t get to decide what I’m going to wear and she picks and then I have a hard time with my attitude for a few minutes. Then I forget and start playing.
I better go. I have lots of playing to do. Bye bye. Jodie

Adventures With Seth...

I am such a big boy now. I turned four! Soon I will be five and ready for school. I keep telling dad that I want to be big like him and that one day I will be a dad too. There is so much to tell but two exciting things that has happened recently is that a team from dad’s old school came to our house to stay for a while and I got to go with dad on a safari with them. Us guys went and Jodie stayed home with mom… It was a long trip and we even stayed a night and saw lots of animals. Wild ones like giraffes, water buffalos, elephants, hippopotamuses, crocodiles, baboons and many other cool things. Then not too long after we got back dad had some time off from school and we built a ladder for Jodie and my bunk bed. We used lots of tools so I had my tool belt from grandpa Mike on. The ladder works great and now even Jodie can come for a visit on my top bunk. Until next time see you later and before you know it I will be turning five and also have a new little baby sister or brother.
Quote of the month: While driving by a row of electric poles along the side of the road Seth says: ‘Is that a clothes line for God?’

Adventures With Mark...

In many ways it seems like we have been gone for a while already from North America and yet it seems like just yesterday that Uncle John dropped us at the airport with our 16 bags and carry ons. It has been very crazy since we have returned with school very busy and lots to catch up on. We had a team from my old school in Abbotsford, MEI with 12 fabulous students some of whom were my former students. That was very fun and rewarding to see these young people most of whom I had not seen since grade six. It was great to see these young adults come alongside the students here in Uganda and bless them with love and different activities. Yes, I would admit that as an educator it is the biggest reason we do what we do or perhaps I should say that it is the biggest reason I do what I do. To see lives changed and that zeal for life and helping others that young people bring is so exciting. Seeing and working with young people from Canada and Uganda has also helped me focus on my own little family as they continue to grow up. I am trying hard and enjoying every minute spent with Seth and Jodie. God has blessed me with two, soon to be three great kids and fantastic students at our school and young adults from MEI that I can be proud of. Continue to make a difference wherever you are placed…