April FAQ

Q: What did you do for Easter?

A: We went to Lushoto, a small town high up in the mountains, about 7-8 hours drive away. 

Q: What were you thinking?

A: We weren’t. Well, I mean, we were looking forward to spending some quality time with the Cawley family. What we had forgotten was that there is no such thing as a vacation with two small children. NO SUCH THING.

Q: How long did you go for?

A: The plan was three nights. We barely made it two because 1) IT WAS SO COLD (yes, we were all born in Canada, yes, I’ve acclimated to the +30 degree plus humidity climate of Dar), 2) Brie. Crying. Not sleeping. So much for putting the kids down and hanging out and 3) Judah started getting a temperature. 

Q: Is that…?

A: Yes, that is Brie in the shower. That is where she slept the second night. 

Q: Did you take Judah to the doctor?

A: Yes. We arrived back home on Wednesday and then monitored him on Thursday. He continued to heat up so we took him in that late afternoon. I dropped Loretta and J off and proceeded to run errands since we aren’t always in that part of town for the shops, etc. 

Q: Is he ok?

A: Yes, he is now. We suspect he had Roseola, since he broke out in a rash. He burned up that night, over forty degrees, and then had a low grade fever for the rest of the time. All in all it took him eight days to get better and we are thankful. 

Q: So what’s all that?

A: That night we took him to the doctor, while I was running errands with Brie, our car door lock failed. I was locked out of the car with two packs of ground beef in there…mmmm. Our friend and neighbour Patrick came to the rescue, drove us home while we left our car in town. 

Q: Why didn’t you open another door?

A: Only one door lock worked on the car. I know, brilliant. As it was beginning to get sticky in the past few weeks, I had actually stopped locking the door, but thinking it was better after some lubricant spray, I continued to lock the door like I normally did, that night for the last time. 

Q: So, what did you use the unlock the car?

A: At our office, there were (surprisingly) a number of people who had ‘experience’ breaking into their ‘own’ cars or a ‘friend’s’. I had no less than three methods ready to use: 1) door hanger between glass and door 2) pry open door at the top corner, then use hanger with tape for the lock and 3) pry open door again, and slide cable down to lasso lock. 

Q: What worked?

A: The solution ended up being secret answer number four. Our friend Patrick, again to the rescue, had heard from a friend to lift the door handle, insert modified coat hanger and just try to push the button up. It worked! (Ok, I was shocked.) We had all the locks replaced so they all work now!

Q: Any more pictures from the trip?

A: Yes…

And more from Dan’s camera, including our epic hike!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/11149561@N08/sets/72157633159142145/

Something New

March has been a particular month of experiencing God’s goodness. Perhaps, it has only been special because we have been made aware of just how good He is; He is good all the time. 

One of these blessings has been meeting new friends – two families who moved to Dar in December to plant a church. It’s been years in the making for them, uprooting their families (three young kids each) to obey God’s call. In some ways we feel like it’s been years in the making for us too. Being involved in the early stages of a church plant is something we’ve never done; we feel ready and inadequate at the same time. It is ultimately bringing us to our knees in prayer like never before.

Here are some images from our “fun day,” an opportunity to invite friends and build community. The point was, we are planting a church but we’re just normal people! What made it fun? Sliding down a massive blow-up water slide, eating apples hanging from a string (kind of) and building sand castles. Fun indeed!