Life

Life is crazy. But amazing. Mike and I spent an incredible 10 days in Nairobi. It definitely was life changing. Now where do we go from here? The day Mike went back to work, his boss laid him off. Now we are in the process of figuring out where God wants us to be. Does he stay at AT and T or does he move on? Our hearts are in Africa. Do we go there for mission work, or do we stay here and go there for short term work? Do I continue to school or do they go to traditional school? These are all the questions pondering us right now. MY heart tells me the kids stay home. They are not ready to go. I love having them home. Even though it can be exhausting, I wouldn't trade it for anything. I know my kids so well. We want to be involved in ministry somewhere. What do we do, where do we go. We love Africa and the people there. Just this past Sunday, our team did the "Arise my Love" dowel rod routine. We did great! Couldn't be more proud. There were two slide shows that just took us back to where our hearts are. We miss Doreen and the other children tremendously. But just thinking about a return trip to Nairobi and seeing those kids again, brings so much joy. I want to share that with my children. Someday, I hope they will also be able to go.
As we approach Thanksgiving, I am so thankful for so much. Even though Mike is unemployed right now, I am thankful for the time he is home and that he was also able to go to Kenya with me, that he was able to take that time to go. I am thankful for my children and the ability to keep them home to school. I am thankful that we have a home and food and clothes. I am most thankful that I have been rescued by my eternal saviour. This will be a hard time for us, but one of thanks for many things. And mathare area 2, I am always thinking of you................

Kenya reflection

As I sit here trying to collect my thoughts this holiday season, I wonder what Christmas is like for those in the slums where we were. No Christmas tree, no stockings, no wreaths, no lights, no music. These are the things that remind us of Christmas. Not the real reason Christians celebrate this wonderful time. This is the time to remember the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. "Christ Mass" as it originated was the time during the winter solstice to reflect on the birth of Jesus. This is forgotten now. Christmas was not always accepted in the early years. It was thought of as paganistic. His death and resurrection were of more importance. Now, Christmas is a selfish time, a time not of reflection but of giving and taking. I ask myself, what do the kids in the slums get during this time. I don't have an answer. I can only say, for some of them, they have HOPE. Hope in the eternal life of Christ. Hope that they will be with Jesus. Hope that they will get out of their living conditions someday. That their life for themselves and their family will get better. Hope in the Mission of Hope to help them acheive that.

We saw children drinking filthy, maggot infested water. Children with crust filled noses. But they had smiles. Big, white smiles. You couldn't help but smile. They didn't know any different than what they had. They don't know any different life. But as the children were older, you could see the smiles turn to saddness. They lose hope as they are older. Their faces say it all. My heart breaks for the older kids, the ones who know if they don't get out of here now, they will lose ALL HOPE. We sponsor Doreen because we don't want her to lose that hope. We don't want her family to lose that hope. We want her to excel and exceed all expectations. We want her to live the life that God wants for her. We want her Christmas season to be all the time. Not just one day a year, but every day. It all starts with ONE.

Kenya

We had a long meeting today as we prepare for our trip to Nairobi. It was exciting and it made me realize just how close we are to leaving. It made me really miss my children. I know that that is going to be huge for both Mike and I. We have faith that God is going to keep them safe. I have to be honest, I am scared. I don't know what to expect except that it will be an emotional and life changing trip. We have had months of preparation and I still don't feel prepared enough. But I trust that it is out of my hands and in the hands of the Lord. 1 John 3:16-17 says, "We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. But whoever has the world's goods and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?" I love this verse. It reminds me of why I am going. I am going to give back what the Lord has so freely given me. I am filled with emotion but I am so excited to be doing this. I know I am going to draw closer to God and He is going to take me out of that place of comfort that I have been in for 38 years. More to come I know...................

Finally, a day at the beach

Andrew and Jacen

Gabby

Will

My little cherubs!

Yikes! Kelp!

We finally went to the beach yesterday with a friend of mine. Danielle brought her two kids to Wallis Sands and we followed..........What a blast! There was no sun but that didn't stop them from going into the water (freezing cold!) and boogy boarding. We found out that Alyssa has an allergy to the cold. Weird I know! We had thought something was strange a few weeks ago when she was at a pool party and came out of the water with her legs and torso covered in hives. I gave her some benadryl and that seemed to help. But she went back in and then it happened again, but fainter. So she stayed out of the water that day (crying and all). I felt so bad for her, but she was so itchy! Then a few weeks after that, we went to another pool party and the same thing happened. Only, she has been in this pool before. So that was weird! We saw the doc and he told us that she has an allergy to the cold. He knew exactly what it was right away! He told us it was rare but it does happen! Then to confirm it, as soon as she went into the water at the beach, boom! Hives! Yikes! She was so itchy. So I gave her some benadryl and back in the water she went. Then she had them but they were very faint. Poor thing! My poor kids! Allergies galore! Weird ones too. She is also allergic to bananas.

So we had a great time at the beach. Ran into Mike's cousin Joel's cousin Martina. Small world! But we had a blast!

Time part 2

Lately I have been feeling like there is just not enough time to get things done. Not only do I have to prepare for our trip to Nairobi, Kenya but also do the day to day stuff with taking care of my family. So why am I at the computer when I have so much to do! I just need to gather my thoughts. We spent this past weekend at our church for an Africa training CHE session. CHE stands for Community Health Evangelism. It brings together the physical aspect of community health with the spiritual aspect. It was very informative and exciting. The people in the Mathare village need to learn how to equip themselves to take care of family and build up their community. We will give them those tools to help themselves. They need to be taught how to protect themselves from the diseases that they get from uncooked meat, dirty water, etc and how can they make their community a better place. They need to learn to depend on themselves in order to better their community. I so want to help teach them. They never even think to wash their hands, face, etc. They walk around in muck and myre without shoes and get parasites because of the infected water from feces and all sorts of gross stuff. In America, we take for granted all of the things that we already know how to do and we don't think twice about it. But the people in the Mathare slums have no idea how to take care of themselves! Nobody has taught them. They need to be taught. I would love to take shoes for every single person there. But that is just not possible. I may have an opportunity to help with some school screenings and do some microscopy work which will be very exciting. We will possibly be able to see the little girl that we sponsor. That is truly something to look forward too! I am just amazed at the fact that some of these people don't know how to boil their water so they can have disease free meals. But if we can teach them, they in turn can teach others and then they can teach etc.... then they learn how to depend on their community instead of volunteers. That is amazing! Jesus walks along beside us, but He gives us the tools to use every day. We need to give the Africans those tools to use as well. They need the hope that only Jesus can bring. We will hopefully show them that hope. Life is so desolate in the Mathare slums. I am afraid of what I will see but I am so excited at what God can give to them through me. I am excited to see what the Holy Spirit will do.
We found out that our insurance won't cover our travel immunizations. But through numerous calls, I have found cheaper ways to help out with some of the shots. I guess I am just amazed at the fact that we are not the only ones who's insurance won't help. Numerous friends have said that their insurance doesn't cover travel shots. So I guess insurance would rather cover the hospitalizations from the diseases instead! Regardless, I found cheaper shots through respectable services. But we will still have to go to the travel clinic for some of the shots.
We have raised about 60% of our support. But with the cost of the immunizations now coming out of our pockets, we need to raise a little more than we thought. But God has been good and I know He will provide for us.
This trip will be a "trip of a lifetime". I know that it will change me. I am excited and scared as to what those changes will be. But I am so ready for them. I am hoping to come back a stronger wife, mother, and Christian. But only God knows what will happen.
So if you pray, please pray for our safe passage to Nairobi and a safe trip home. Otherwise, just keep us in your thoughts. We are scared but excited.
So now it is back to preparations and taking care of the family. Please remember us in your prayers.

Time part 1

It has been quite a while since I last posted. So much to talk about. First off, I had a glorious Mother's Day with my hubby and wonderful kids. We started off at church and then headed to the baseball field for Andrew's baseball game. Then we headed off to Olive Garden for dinner, but it was a 2 1/2 hour wait, so we decided to go to Lui Lui's instead. It was wonderful. Then we just came home and I vegged out for the rest of the day. My present was a new camera. I am having fun with that!
Now we are into the baseball season. This is Zach's first year of tball and he is thrilled! He loves it. He is going to be a pretty good ball player. Andrew made the Cal Ripken majors this year. He plays on the Red Sox with his best friend Jacen. They have grown up together on the same baseball teams and Jace lives right next door to us. We are enjoying the games. Andrew has decided that he likes basketball so he passed up trying out for the 11U summer team to go to basketball camp instead! I love watching basketball.
Alyssa has opted not to do any sports this summer. Her game is soccer and she is a pretty good little soccer player! Alyssa and I went to the American Girl store in Natick Mass with my mother. What a great place! It all started when Aly and I went to an American Girl fashion show with some friends of ours. That was a blast. So we decided to go to the store the next week. I was pretty good with my wallet. Alyssa's doll got her hair done! It was pretty cool! I will definitely do it again. It is definitely worth the trip. Great Christmas gifts!
Mike and I are getting ready for our mission trip to Africa. This Sunday night, Crossway is hosting a movie called "Journey to Nairobi" and it entails the trip of a church in California. It will show some of what we will be encoutering. I am looking forward to that! I should be getting my passport in the mail soon and money is slowly arriving for us. Hopefully we will both be able to go still! God is amazing! If he wants us to go, then he will provide for us. I am so excited for this trip. I will start blogging about it when it gets closer.
School is just about over. We tested last month and the kids did fantastic! Now they are just finishing up what they have left. I am pleased with the way things went this year. Andrew is finishing 6th grade, Alyssa 2nd and Zach Kinder. Then comes the part of the summer when I have to get ready for the next year. 7th grader, 3rd grader and 1st grader! I can't believe it! I am so enjoying having them home though. Andrew is turning into such a gentleman. I love watching them grow.
Time is so precious and I cherish it every day. It is wonderful to watch them become not only siblings but friends as well. More later

tree sapping

We finally did something that I have wanted to do for a very long time. We tapped two maple trees! I am so excited. I can remember tapping trees in my home on Berkely Street. We would tap the trees and then on our wood stove, we would have a cast iron pot that we would boil the sap in. The smell was fantastic! It was so much fun! I don't have the wood stove, but I will improvise and teach my children something that I loved to do.

Africa

Well, we did it. We put down our deposit for our trip to Nairobi in October. I can't tell you how excited we are. It is definitely going to be a life changing experience. This is something I have wanted to do since I can remember. No one on this earth should live the way that they live in Nairobi. I want to do my small part to make that change. We will be there approximately 12 days (travel included). The trip itself is going to cost us around 2-3,000 dollars each. We are going to try and raise support for the trip. Even though our economy is so bad right now, I feel that what little money we do have, can be spent to help those in the worst conditions ever seen. We have running water, toilets, food to eat, warm showers and so many wonderful luxuries and these people have nothing. They live in sewage and drink from that same water! That is unacceptable! Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. We are going to do God's work and spread His Good News to those who are less fortunate than us. I will update more as I learn more. God bless you all!

Birthday party

Alyssa had her friend party last Saturday. We took the kids to Roby Park for about an hour of sledding and then we went back to our home for pizza and ice cream sundae's. It was so much fun. I think the pictures speak for themselves!

Awana Grand Prix

So Andrew had his Awana Grand Prix (which is like the Cub Scout Pinewood Derby) on the 17th. His car design was a dolphin. It was amazing. Mike and Drew did a great job. It was all Andrew's idea. For those of you who don't know Andrew very well, he has a passion for animals especially the aquatic kind. The dolphin car was great! So we spent our Saturday late afternoon at Calvary Bible Church in Derry where Andrew raced his car. He didn't win a trophy for placing in the race, but he did win third prize for best car! We were so proud of him. This was his last year for the Grand Prix so it was really nice that he came away from there with a reminder of his best work!

So much going on

My birthday girl!! 8 years old!

Exciting basketball games!

This is my sister, Andrew and my grandmother!

So precious!

She and Andrew were goofing around and he tripped, fell on her and her face smooshed into the carpet. This is a rug burn!

So much to do and so little time it seems. Yesterday was Alyssa's 8th birthday. We had a great day. It started out at Andrew's basketball game at 9 in the am. Alyssa didn't care for that very much. However, she had a great day and got lots of new stuff for her birthday. Stuff she doesn't necessarily need. But she will use them. She used her birthday money for an mp3 player like her brother. And that thing has been attached to her ears since! Then today, Andrew had an audition in Boston at wgbh for Fetch with Ruff Ruffman a show for kids where they have to do challenges to figure a project out. It was really neat, however, there are 2000+ kids that audition and only 6 make it. Andrew's attitude was great. He said to me, "if it's God's will, then it is God's will." I was so proud of him. His best friend Jacen tried out too and I asked Drew, that if Jacen got it and he didn't how would he feel. He beemed at me and said, " I would be so happy for him!" Again, I was so proud of him.

The business continues. Back to school tomorrow and skiing on Friday. I am so thankful that we had such a great Christmas and we were all healthy. Now, however, the illnesses arrive. Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and New Year. MIke and I are considering a mission trip to Africa in October. I will follow up with more in the near future. Please keep us in your prayers for that decision.