We're here - finally!

Well, we finally made it to my parents house on Wed. night about midnight. It has been an adventure already! For those who haven't yet heard the story....

We ended up leaving Cochabamba about 9:45 on Sunday night, even though we were on the 8:00 flight. Aerosur canceled our flight and bumped us to the 9:15 flight which didn't actually leave on time (we were kicking ourselves for not getting on the 8am flight, but found out later they canceled that one too - so we would have been in the same boat anyway!). We knew we were pushing it (our American flight left Santa Cruz at 11:30) but we still thought we might have enough time to make it. We landed in Santa Cruz and Josh went to pick up the bags while the girls and I raced to the American counter (where I was first in line by the way!) where we waited... and waited...

Apparantly the American employees had already checked everyone else through and were all upstairs (being shortstaffed) where they were handling the gate check-in. So we waited for about an hour and a half until the plane had left until someone came to attend to us. At which point they told us that there was no space on the next day's flight, and they would put us on standby. We had to be back at the airport at 6:00 the next morning.

At this point, the kids were loosing it. We made it to a hotel about midnight, (on the way in the taxi, Michaela said "I want to go home." And I thought, "It's going to be a long 2 months."), where we crashed. As Michaela got into bed, the sweet thing said, "Thank you, Lord." Our children sure help put things in perspective.

After a restless night of sleeping with a 3 year old (Josh slept with Eliana, and I don't think he slept much better), we all got up at 5:30 to make it to the airport at 6:00 - only to find a horrendous line! Apparantly everyone else (not having little children) showed up at 5:00. We stood in line for an hour and a half, navigated airport taxes, security and customs only to arrive at the gate to be turned away. The flight was too full. We had to come back the next day and do it all again!!

This time we headed to La Quinta (our favorite place to stay because it has apartment style rooms with a kitchen, and I was desperate to wash and sterilize bottles. I have never mourned the ease of nursing so much as on this trip!) We spent a nice day (as nice as it can be with 3 grumpy kids who are running off of 5 hours of sleep), although Michaela and Jana started coming down with a really bad cough.

The next morning we hauled ourselves to the airport again. The line was much shorter, but when we arrived, they informed us the flight was full - again! - and if we wanted to ensure our seats on the flight, it would be $800 per ticket! I looked at them like they were crazy - did we look like millionaires?? At this point all 3 kids started crying at once, the attendent went to talk to his manager - and wonder of wonders, they waived the fee and got us on the flight (although we were sitting in 3 different seats!) I don't know if it was out of pity or the fact they were plain fed up with 3 fussy children!

The flight actually went pretty well - we got our seats switched around and ended up sitting all together. The kids did well and we arrived in Miami at around 4:30... I have never been so tired or so glad to get somewhere!

We enjoyed a day in Miami (it was supposed to be 2 days) with the Holways (our coworkers from Memphis) and then boarded another flight to Detroit, where we arrived about 11pm on Wed. It was so good to be at my parents finally! We touched down to the announcement that the Red Wings had won the finals - aahh, Detroit!

The next day we took the girls to the doctor because Jana's cough had become much worse and she was showing signs of a urinary tract infection - I sure missed my Dr. Monroy (and his prices) - but the doc was real nice and we got an antibiotic for her and thankfully she's doing much better.

Other than that, we've just been getting ready for our big road trip and enjoying a few events with the Livonia church - one of the churches that provides half our salary. And of course time with the grandparents and Uncle Matt. Nyanya and Babu watched the girls one afternoon so we could go on a date for our anniversary. We saw the new Indiana Jones movie - complete with Dr. Pepper! - did some shopping and went out to eat. Might I say that as much as my parents enjoy the kids, we are wearing them out - although "we" wear me out too!

We leave tomorrow for Memphis - keep us in your prayers and hopefully I'll have some pictures to post soon.

Furlough Schedule

Well, furlough 2008 is upon us. We are crazy busy trying to get everything ready to leave on Sunday (what to take/ what to leave, house stuff, ministry stuff - neither Josh or I are sleeping very well). Keep us in your prayers as we will be traveling Sunday night with 2 lap babies and a 3 year old - and for the next 2 months will drive over 5000 miles with stops in 9 different states. We are mainly looking forward to seeing so many of you - our family and friends. But also to interstate highways, Walmart shopping, Starbucks coffee, and 4 part harmony singing!

June 1- Depart Cochabamba
June 2-3- Arrive Miami, Miami w/ Holways
June 4- Depart Miami, arrive Livonia
June 5-8- Livonia
June 9- Travel to Memphis
June 10-11- Memphis with the Huffards
June 12- Travel to Brownwood
June 13-19- Brownwood
June 20- Travel to Red River
June 21-24- Red River
June 25- Travel to Brownwood
June 26-July 2- Brownwood
July 3-5- Indiahoma, OK
July 6-7- Wichita with the Harrolds
July 8- Travel to Estes Park, CO
July 8-12- Sikes Family Reunion in Estes Park
July 12- Travel to York/Seward
July 13-14- Seward with the Barnacles
July 15- Travel to Coldwater, MI
July 16- Travel to Livonia, arrive Livonia
July 16-27- Livonia
July 28- Aug 1- Stephens family vacation
Aug. 2-3- Livonia (pack)
Aug 4- Depart Cochabamba

Happenings

Here's some pictures of some of the latest ministry "happenings".
- Josh finished up his preaching seminar this last weekend. He shared with me that it's been one of the most rewarding classes he's ever given. He broke up the class in three weekend sessions: one in March, one in April and one in May. He had about 15 students: half were leaders from our congregation, and the other half came from churches around the country. It was a great oppourtunity for these Christian brothers to rub shoulders and also recieve some specific training on how to preach and study the Bible.




- The men took advantage of the end of the rainy season to have their annual men's campout. Lots of male bonding time!


-The youth had a movie night where they watched "Guardians of the Sea" - a very good movie by the way - and afterward had a corresponding devotional. The youth group is really blossoming, and the great news is that another one, Bruno, is planning to be baptized on Sunday!

Happy Birthday, Josh!

My husband turned 31 last week. I was thinking that I've only been able to celebrate 10 of his birthdays with him - only a third of his life, and yet how marriage melds you, until it seems like you've been a part of this person forever. How thankful I am to have been an integral part of these last 10 years. I couldn't have asked for a better and more faithful life partner.

Anyway, I guess last week was one of those ministry moments where you see for a brief minute the benefits of all the time and energy you've invested in people and in a work. One of the brothers, Gaston, decided he wanted to throw Josh a party. Well, generally, we are a family that prefer to do more quiet celebrations here at home, but at his insistence, we eventually gave in. And it grew from a simple lunch party to a whole church dinner party! Everyone showed up at Gabriella's house, who had graciously agreed to host the party - Gaston cooked 8 chickens for everyone - everyone pitched in to help with the cost. And Josh felt very blessed by the demonstration of everyone's love. As I looked around the room, I felt a mixture of emotions - naturally we are so excited about our furlough. After all, it's been 2 and a half years since we were back. But at the same time, I'm thankful in a way that it's been that long, because I felt that night what a family we have become here, and how I will look forward to coming home to Bolivia and seeing these familiar faces again.

Happy Mother's Day!

You may be thinking this blog is a little late - but actually the Bolivian mother's day was just yesterday. Josh and I decided we would celebrate Bolivian mother's and father's day - thinking it would be easier to remember with the advertisement that goes on here. (Who are we kidding? We still have to remember to call our parents on the days the US celebrates!)

Anyway, Michaela's day care had a special program last week for the mothers. Michaela had to dress up as a clown. They would have some singing and dancing and saltenas for a snack. Michaela even had a solo - she was supposed to sing her ABCs. We were looking forward to seeing if that bit actually happened. The day rolled around - we had a screaming fit as we tried to put the costume on. (Thanks to my mom for the costume. It is actually a bunny costume she made for me and my sister, but it worked good for a clown too!) But as soon as I painted her face, she thought it was pretty cool.


When we arrived at her daycare thought, it was to discover that apparently parents here rent professional costumes for events like this. All the other kids were wearing real, brightly colored silk clown costumes complete with wigs and everything! Oh, well, I still thought Michaela looked pretty cute.

The program started... All the other kids were singing... Michaela just stood there. Josh and I started to laugh after a bit - remembering that we had told the head teacher upon enrolling that our daughter was very advanced for her age... you sure couldn't tell from her performance!


Her solo rolled around. She sings the ABCs like a pro at home, but after about a mintue of just standing at the microphone - they whisked her away.

And then came the real laughs... instead of just standing there, she began to play with her bow on her costume.

Like this...


And this...


Josh and I were rolling.

The finale rolled around and Michaela finally came out of her daze. They did a clown dance, and I guess she finally decided to get with the program.


All in all, it was a fun morning. I'm sure this is just a taste of all the future programs we have to look forward to.

My pride and His all-sufficiency

Piggybacking off my last post: every child is different - even out of the womb. As much as our 3 girls look alike - they all looked very different to me. There were differences in how they wanted to be carried (Eliana wanted to be carried facing forward), how they went to sleep (Michaela loved to be swaddled), eating habits. And Jana has her own set of preferences. Lately, much to my dismay, she's been refusing to nurse. She wants the bottle!

With Eliana, I shot myself in the foot because I didn't make her take a bottle from an early age - and she never did take one, and the switch over to a sippy cup was a battle. With Jana, I have pushed both the pacifier and the bottle (for my ease, and also because of the fact that we'll be traveling so much this summer). And I think that's part of the reason she has decided she likes the bottle better.

But I also think my body is tired after 3 pregnancies in 3 years and I'm not producing the milk she needs. I noticed a change in sleeping habits - waking up more frequently. And then the other day Jana wouldn't (or couldn't) nurse and cried and cried. I finally mixed some formula for the first time and the poor kid drank it like she was starving. Since then, I've had to give her at least one bottle a day.

I'm one of those moms who really enjoys nursing, which has been the hardest part of all this. I enjoy the physical closeness, the knowledge that my milk is best... and let's get real, the fact that it's only something mommy can do - at this age, I'm everything to my baby. And that's where the pride part comes in. I like being able to tell a Bolivian that my baby nurses (most assume if you're rich that you automatcially will have a c-section and give formula). Pride.

But the reality is - I can't be it all for my children. That's where His all-sufficiency comes in. He is everything to me - and I have to turn over everything to Him, even my children.

I thank God I live in a day and place and am on a salary where I can buy formula for my baby. I know she will be healthy. And so I cried about it some, and then gave it over to God - asking Him to be it all for me - and for my baby.

May His all-sufficiency be obvious in your life as well.

Gifts and Personalities

It's amazing as a parent to watch your children grow and learn and to notice similarities and differences between them. Of course, you always hear how every child is different, and you know it cognitively, but to see it in action... well that's something else. And of course, you always doubt if, as a parent, you're reading too much into it because, well, they're your children, so of course they're talented. But, at risk of looking foolish, I'm going to go out on a limb and say I think my children have certain talents even at this young age. Eliana is our musical child - she loves music, dancing, and rhyming words. She's learned some words and phrases solely from the rhythm. And Michaela is our artist. She loves painting, coloring, and lately - drawing on the magna pad my parents sent for her birthday. The other day she came to show me what she drew, and I have to say - I thought it was pretty good for a 3 year old. (Remembering back to my art class in college and kid's development stages, she is very advanced for her age!) Anyway, I took a picture to preserve it and here it is below. And in case you can't see it - it's a person - complete with eyes, mouth, nose, body, arms, and legs!

Visit from Matt

We were blessed this last month with a visit from one of Josh's good friends from college and grad. school days. Matt Bogard came down for about a week to visit the work here. He's searching for God's direction in his future and wanted to see what work in Bolivia was like. We enjoyed our time with him (especially Josh!) and did a variety of things that would help him see what daily life is like here in Cochabamba. And of course, no visit to Cochabamba is complete for a first time visitor without a trip to the Cristo statue. Here's our newest family picture overlooking the city. Unfortunately, we don't have one picture with Matt! How terrible is that!

Prayers for Bolivia

One of the blessings of being on a team is the fact that each person brings their own giftedness to the team. Jeff Forbess has the gift of linguistics - both in English and in Spanish (and I'm sure whatever other language he put his mind to learn). He just posted a blog that requests your prayers for political peace in Bolivia, and because I know that I will never be able to put it as well as he has, I ask you to read his blog post and join us in prayer for this country. Thank you!

Fun with Family

Jenny and Erik and Zion came to visit us this last week from Sucre. I am thankful to have at least some family living in the same country with us! We had a good time visiting about our different works, about kids, and everything else under the sun. We did some shopping and even had time to go for an ultrasound for Jenny to find out if they're having a girl or boy. We celebrated Michaela's 3rd birthday with them too (more on that to come!). Here's some pictures from their visit.

Can we say "mug shot"? I don't know why they were so serious. And the mark on Zion's chin was from learning to climb the ladder on the slide.


We went to a place called Langostura about half an hour from Cochabamba that has paddle boats, a play ground, a zip line and serves good fish.


How precious is this picture?! Jana with her Aunt Jenny.


All together now... And I promise that is NOT a beer bottle in the foreground. It's a type of juice called Jugo de Valle that comes in bottles here.

Pictures of Jana

I've been trying for weeks to get a picture of Jana smiling - and can't seem to get it timed right. The following picture is the best I could do...


We also went to get some professional pictures done. We had some done for Michaela at 2 weeks; Eliana was a month; Jana... well, we didn't get around to it till 2 and a half months - but they turned out super cute. Don't worry, grandparents! We ordered you guys some copies that we'll distribute on furlough...

Cross Cultural Moment, Anyone?

For all of you who have ever lived or spent much time overseas.... Have you ever had one of those moments when you're walking down the street and see someone wearing something that you wish you could just go up to them and ask if they REALLY know what their clothing says??? Well, one of the sisters at church just gave Jana the sweetest little outfit - and I'm quite sure that she didn't know what it said. When Josh and I opened it up, we nearly died laughing! I just don't know how I'm ever in good conscience going to put the following outfit on my baby!

The 3 Amigos

At risk of being redundant - I used the same title as Laura did on her blog - but it just seemed too perfect. I still can't believe we all have babies born within a month of each other! It'll be just as fun watching these 3 grow up together as it has been watching our other "3 amigos" (see previous blog) grow up together.

Church and Team "Happenings"

I realized lately that our blog has become slightly family focused. Perhaps that's because mom, who is in charge of the blog, is here at home - and so that's what gets posted. Which is not to say that the work doesn't go on - and that Josh is very busy with a variety of ministry activites. Here's some highlights from what's been going on.

- The youth and the young at heart begin playing volleyball as an outreach on Saturdays in January.
- Maggie and Palmira were baptized in February!
- End of February, Roland Bowen, a member of the missions committee at our sponsoring congregation of Austin Ave., makes a visit to help out with preaching and teaching responsibilites while all the new daddies are still getting back in the groove. Thanks, Roland!
- The youth have an outing to welcome their new members at a local pool in March.
- We have a team get-to-gether on Good Friday to spend some time in prayer and give the kids a chance to hunt Easter eggs.
- We celebrate Easter Sunday with an evangelistically focused service, inviting lots of friends and canvasing the neighborhood. The kids and youth perform some special skits, and the fellowship meal afterwards allows us to visit with the many visitors (we had about 80 in attendance!)
- Our small group, which usually meets at the building, decides to rotate the last Tuesday meeting of every month in members' homes to allow for a little more familiarity.
- And please be praying for this coming weekend: Josh is teaching a weekend course(the last weekend of March, April and May) at the contact center on preaching and Bible exegesis, which is open to churches across Bolivia. He's expecting 10-15 students - and they'll have lunch at our house - my first big hospitality event since Jana's birth.
-The first weekend in April marks the men's annual campout as well. Please be praying for that too.

Saturday volleyball


Palmira's baptism


Roland preaching


Our old red Chevy is well used during events like the youth outing!


Easter egg hunting


Josh preaching on Easter Sunday


Our CAFE group

Our 3 Little Ladies

We were enjoying a beautiful day outside - and this picture was the result - the first one I've been able to get with all 3 girls by themselves!

Eliana

In an attempt to be fair (like she will ever know - but to ease my guilty conscience :), I decided I should do a blog and post some pictures solely of Eliana. She is learning so many new things these days - has conquered stairs, is now moving comfortably around the yard, climbing the slide, lots of new words, blowing bubbles, dancing, eating with a spoon, putting herself to sleep (yeah!! Sure makes my life easier). But one of her favorite things, since we live in the middle of a dairy farm, is to stand at the fence and watch the "vacas" (cows) as she calls them in the neighboring field. On a side note - I think these days of Michaela at school will be good for Eliana. We'll get to spend some time together and she'll get to play a little without her older sister bossing her around so much. Sisterly affection and rivalry sure starts at a young age : )

Michaela starts "school"!

Today was Michaela's first day at her day care. We've been looking for a good fit for us for a while - thinking that Michaela would enjoy the social interaction and that it would really benefit her Spanish. We checked out quite a few - some were not too thrilled with our desire to send her only 2 days a week; others were too out of the way; others not clean enough.... We finally decided on one right on the way into town - Christian, bilingual, a nice garden/play area, smaller with only 10 kids in her class. They even get to go to the tennis club on Wednesdays for tennis lessons. The first day went well - she went in happy and came out happy (although we did have a little resistence in putting on the uniform.) Here are a few pictures.

Michaela - ready to go


Michaela working with her new friends


The play area

Thank Goodness for Teammates!

Josh always buys a Sunday paper - it helps us keep up with news politically, but also helps us know what's going on locally. A couple weeks ago he saw advertised a Russian ballet on ice, coming to Cochabamba. Who would think? So seeing as we had been reading a book to Michaela about ballet, we bought tickets. Sunday night at 7:30 was sold out, so we bought tickets for Monday. They wrote 5:00 on the tickets, and we were excited, thinking that was a much better time for us and we'd be able to take all 3 girls. We showed up at 5: 15 - better late than never, right? - and stood in line, thinking they would open the doors soon. We waited and waited - and finally struck up a conversation with the lady next to us - turns out the thing didn't start till 7:30! Here we are with 3 kids standing on a street corner in the middle of Cochabamba. Not to mention the fact that the only reason we brought Eliana was because she would be happy at 5:00 - we knew she'd be climbing a wall at 7:30. At this point, it's 6:00 - so I pack up the kids and take them to get something to eat at CineCenter while Josh calls our teammates the Sandovals to see if they can watch Eliana. As we're walking into CineCenter - I see Butch coming toward me, talking on the phone to Josh. Wonder of wonders - they were there eating as well - so we got something to eat, I passed off Eliana and we went back to find Josh (who had stayed in line) just as they were opening the doors. In spite of the crazy time factor - the ballet was lovely. Michaela was enchanted - Jana slept the whole time. We ended up leaving at intermission (too much of a good thing is not good at all) because it was getting late. But I'm very thankful for flexible teammates who will baby sit at a minute's notice. Not to mention all the other things our teammates provide for us!

One Month Old

I wish I was more of a photographer, especially after seeing some other baby pics on other blogs - but this snapshot will have to suffice for now! Jana is now one month old. Eating well, sleeping - well, she has her good nights and her not so good nights. But she's taking a bottle (praise God! Eliana never did!) And a pacificer (Amazing! I can't believe it - my other 2 never did that either! It sure makes my life easier.) And at the least she's survived her 2 older sisters for a month! We've even gotten a couple good smiles out of her the last week.

Team Picture

Our team has changed a lot in the past 8 months! We are now only 4 families, and just recently added 3 new team members: Malakai Forbess, Jana Marcum, and Grant Bull. Welcome to these 3 new little ones!