2012 resolutions

I know some people don't agree with new year resolutions, reasoning that if one wants to change something, they should do it now and not wait till "tomorrow". Personally, I  really like them, having a set goal really helps me, and gives the boost that I seem to need sometimes. Last year, my resolution was to lose all my "baby weight". I plowed into food right up to December 31st and then just went for it in the new year. I've lost a total of 26 pounds this year (got to my goal weight!). I've been exercising regularly and not drinking so much soda (not getting pregnant helps a whole lot too!), so I'm super glad I set that goal for myself.


What are my goals for this year? Well, here are a few:


~Reply to emails as soon as they come in and then delete or put the email in a folder. Our inbox currently has 1906 emails in it! And I do procrastinate when it comes to emails, thinking I'll write back in the evenings, but then I'm usually too tired in the evenings to get on the computer and do much, so then I forget who I need to reply.


~Guard every word that comes out of my mouth. "He who is slow to anger, is better than the mighty; And he who rules his spirit than he who rules a city. Proverbs 16:32." This is especially for my kids, when I've had a long day, and they're whiney or bickering, it's so easy to get frustrated! And that's when it matters the most, right?


~Run a half marathon if not a full marathon when we're back in the States


~Practice typing on my typing instructor (it's actually Josh's). I'd like to get up to at least 60 words per minute, I'm up to about 40 right now :(. Ten minutes a day!


~Not to get agitated or stressed out when we travel back, no matter how obnoxious the flight attendant might be, or how unhelpful the airline may be, I'm just going to smile and let it slide (I can feel my heart pacing already!) 


So there you have it. As alway, I'm asking the Lord for the strength to carry through, so thankful for His grace upon my life! 


We head to the beach tomorrow to go camping for a few days, sooo excited. I have tons to blog about with so much going on this past week; hopefully I'll get to post about it all when we get back next Monday. Happy New year to you all (or Happy Happy as they say here)!!

On Wednesday I had all the older girls from Helping Hands come over to help make Christmas cookies (plus our two wonderful cooks at HHCH). We all had a lot of fun and just about managed to fit in my kitchen. 

They next day the older boys came too to help decorate them. So I wasn't sure if I would do just simple frosting or go for royal icing. I decided with the latter and it worked out great! I have never worked with royal icing before but got the recipe from a friend (thank you Harmony!) and it turned out amazing. The kids got VERY creative!

 168 decorated cookies! They all did an awesome job and I think this will become an annual advent. We'll take our cookies with us when we head to another orphanage on Monday to do an outreach. The children will play with the other kids, sing songs, do a drama, and speak to them about the true meaning of Christmas. 

Our Christmas tree

Jake did it again, he found us another wonderful Christmas tree. Now here you can buy shinny, flimsy, cheesy, plastic trees imported from China for ridiculous prices or you can wait till Christmas Eve to buy a branch of pine tree from someone on the side of the road (which we used to do). But for the last few years we have been scouting out Chistmas trees, we usually ask someone if we can lope off the top of their cedar tree. It's not always picture perfect but it works. I can't stand fake trees and just love the smell of real pine. Well this year, Jake and the boys went out driving around neighbourhoods looking for a good cedar to chop the top off and found the one below. It was in someone's front lawn, already shaped! Bold Jake knocked on the door and asked them if they were willing to sell it. The man had a few of them so he didn't mind and Jake came home with it. It is more like a hedge than separate branches but it looks and smells great! We had a lot of fun decorating it (with the help of Claude) and putting our stockings up. Jude is really loving it, he keeps saying, "It's almost Christmas, Mama." 

The next couple of weeks are busy, I didn't realize how full until in church today we were trying to figure out what day we could have a leader's retreat for the new year. This week I'm still doing school with the boys but our Christmas schedule is as follows;

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Monday afternoon is normal; staff prayer meeting, Kid's Club and library at HHCH. 

Tuesday afternoon is Staff meeing. 

Wednesday afternoon I'm having all the older girls of Helping Hands come over to help me bake Christmas cookies (what for you ask?). 

Thursday afternoon the boys have French class like usual and then all the Children's workers from our church are coming over. We're going to be wrapping small presents and making Christmas hats for Saturday's outreach. 

Friday afternoon I'll be taking all the Christmas cookies down to the Children's Home so that all the kids can decorate them, should be fun (and messy!). Then in the evening we're hosting, "It's a Wonderful Life" party. 

Saturday afternoon we have our "Christmas Celebration" at church. It is an outreach to the kids and their parents in the church's area. Today after church we took all the older kids out in the quarters and we handed out invitations to children and parents. The kids had a blast! We are believing for 200 people. They'll be singing, games, Christmas drama, carols, snack, film, and a short message at the end (please keep it in your prayers).

Sunday after church I'm heading to a ladies cookie exchange, one missionary lady puts it on every year and it is always a really special time.

Monday: We head out to another orphanage that's about an hour away (with close to 40 children). This is going to be "outreach" for the children of Helping Hands. We want to make sure that they realize it is important that they reach out and be a blessing to those around them too and not always just be on the receiving end. So that is what all the Christmas cookies are for, to hand out to the kids there. We'll also be taking some of HHCH chickens with us too. The kids are going to hang out with them, play football, jump rope as well as sing some songs and do a drama. They are soooo excited (as am I!).

Tuesday is Seth's Birthday. Usually we get too busy to do much for him but this year I planned early. We are heading to the pool at a hotel just out of town with a bunch of friends for a few hours then back to our house for cake (he wants a dragon this year) and tacos. I can't believe my boy is going to be 9. 

On Wednesday and Thursday we're hoping to slaughter and process a pig so we can have sausage and a pork roast for Christmas (plus some lard for pies), yum!

Friday we have an all day retreat at church, prayer and planning for the new year. 

Saturday we'll be finishing up and last minute shopping and I'll be in the kitchen a lot, I'm sure.

Christmas day, our plans are still up in the air but for sure we'll be spending the morning at the orphanage, cooking breakfast, reading the Christmas story, and opening presents. Always a lot of fun to see the joy on the children's face.

And then, on the 26th we head to the beach to camp for 5 days with our good friends the Youngs (I'll be ready for a break!). This is probably going to be the last year we can go camping on the beach as a deep sea port is being put in at Kribi and they are tearing the whole place up, so sad! So that is the next few weeks in a nutshell. 

We are all missionaries. Wherever we go, we either bring people nearer to Christ, or we repel them from Christ. (Eric Liddell)

The thing I love most about the Sonlight curriculum that I use with the boys is all the missionary biographies they put in with the history books. Josh is study the Eastern Hemisphere this year and "Eric Liddell, Something Greater Than Gold" is one of the books that we just finished. I enjoyed it so much, I haven't been able to get it out of my head, I've been thinking about it all week. Now, I saw Chariots of Fire when I was a kid and knew that after Eric ran in the olympics he went onto be a missionary in China and died there, but that was about it. What I didn't know was that Eric was born in China since his parents were missionaries there. They faced many challenges with the different wars going on at that time. His family went on furlough to Scotland when he was six and Eric and his brother was put into a boarding school. His folks went back to China and Eric actually didn't see his dad again until he was 19! (his folks were hard core missionaries!). Eric actually played rugby for Scotland before he was a famous runner. I did know that he refused to run on a Sunday even with the chance of winning a gold. What I didn't know was that it seem the whole of Scotland was against him, calling him a coward. Yet he refused to give into the pressure, stood firm on what he believed, and won a Gold in another race anyway. He then became an absolute hero in Scotland which opened up the door for him to to spread the gospel all of the British Isles. He was this huge celebrity, at his prime, yet he decided to go to China and be a missionary teacher. He met his Canadian wife there.  After being there a few years the Japanese invaded China and Eric was asked to move to another area of China to help in a hospital and preach the gospel there. However it was too dangerous for his wife and daughters to go. So after prayer and consideration, he decided to head off and leave his family to enter this perilous province. He was robbed, shot at, and in constant danger yet manage to spread the love of Christ wherever he went. He and the other missionaries eventually had to leave as the Japanese took over the hospital.

They decided it was too dangerous for his pregnant wife and two daughters to stay in China so they headed back to Canada without Eric. Then Japan bombed Pearl Harbor causing Great Britain and the US to declared war on Japan. So of of course Eric along with all the other missionaries and people from the allied countries became "the enemy." Eric with about 1800 people (including Hudson's Taylor son) were put into an internment camp. They were pretty much left to look after themselves and weren't treated badly, they were even allowed to bring their own beds with them. Food was scare but no one was starving. Eric became "Uncle Eric" there to the many children and youth who he spent so much time with, teaching them, organizing sports, and keeping their moral up. He continued to show the love of Christ through his selflessness to those around him, bringing peace and joy. Six months before the camp was liberated, Eric got sick and died, it seems of brain tumor. He never got to see his youngest daughter, at least not in this life. Throughout the whole book it talks about how people just loved Eric, he was always calm, he never got angry, he always had time for people; a wonderful example of the love of Christ. Certainly a challenge to me! He was so dedicated to what God had called him to do. He could have returned to Canada when his family did but he decided not to. He took his calling seriously!

Now I am wanting to read some of the memoirs of the people that were in the prison camp with Eric, pretty fascinating stuff. My brother and his wife have named all his kids after famous missionaries (William Carey, Amy Carmichael, Elizabeth Elliott). If they get pregnant again, I'm going to recommend Eric Liddell, a truly amazing missionary!