Back in Cameroon

Well, we made it back to Africa and we are just about back to Cameroon time.  Jet lag had us all in a headlock for a few days there. It was a LONG 3 days of travel to get here, never easy with kids, 12 pieces of luggages, and 12 carry-ons, but we all made it in one piece, praise the Lord! On the way back to Bamenda, the Landrover started having brake issues so we had to slow right down (welcome back to Africa!). We didn't get in till it was dark. And as we pulled into Bamenda, all the electricity was out over town (welcome back to Africa!). 

Some friends were waiting at the house for us (and a dinner had been cooked). As we pulled up, it was pitch black, we were trying to hug people, the dogs were going crazy barking and jumping up on us, it was absolute chaos! Then we decided to run down to the orphanage (we had already called to tell them that we were not coming as it was so late). They were in the middle of devos when we walked in and it took them a few seconds to register who we were (a combination of it being pitch black and them not expecting us). Then we literally got squeezed alive. It was so lovely to see all of them again, they have all grown so much. We headed back to the Children's Home the next day (when the lights were on) and they had a presentation for us with songs, a drama, and even two speeches, they are some special kids! Check out the link below to see their welcome song for us. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vQ9m4887CA&feature=share

Lots of catching up to do with the house, ministry, and homeschooling ( I am ROCKETING away at school with the boys), so it is going to be go go go for the next few weeks. Still hoping to catch up on my blog, and post about the other States we visited while in the US. I need a few more hours in the day!

We brought all the kids back towels, practical yet still a present to make them smile

Sooo good to be back!

The bus in front of us going to Bamenda; now I've seen pigs, goats, chickens, and even dogs on top of buses before, but never a shark!

Our lunch stop on the way up to the NW; Soya, our favourite (grilled meat)!

Baby Godwill... one year on

Can you believe it, it has been a whole year since we went on that long trip out to the village of Benadae to see tiny baby Godwill. Just 4lbs at three weeks old, we knew that if we didn't bring him into the Children's Home he wouldn't last much longer. He got some extra TLC the first few months of his life (from our co-workers the Borns who looked after him tirelessly night and day) and he soon started gaining weight. Today, he is a healthy, happy one-year-old! He is starting to cruise around furniture and I'm sure by the time we get back in December he will be toddling around. I can't wait to get my arms around him!! A massive THANK YOU to everyone that prayed for this little guy, gave us much needed advice on how to fatten him up with out making him sick, and for those that give financially to cover the extra cost of hiring a lady to care for him, formula, and all the expenses that comes from having a baby. 

Godwill when we first got him, poor little fellow!

Shortly after we got him, he had to spend the night at the hospital as he was so dehydrated

Baby Godwill today!

To read the complete story of how we got Baby Godwill, read it in my blog post a year ago:

http://schilinskifamily.blogspot.com/2011/11/long-day.html

Muscatine, Iowa

At the start of September we headed to Muscatine in East Iowa to spend a week with Jake's Step-Mom, Heidi. She lives on the edge of town with about 4 acres. She has stables with a couple of horses plus lots of other fun animals; a pot belly pig, goats, dogs, cats, kittens, sheep, peacocks, turkeys and chickens (a regular petty zoo). The kids just loved it, it felt a bit like home in Africa with all the animals and open spaces (and plenty of chores!). Heidi gives riding lessons to local kids so the boys got plenty of time to ride and plus some great advice. It was a little different for them to sit on saddles and not use the horse's knee as a stepping stool to get up on the horse, but it was also nice for them to ride horses with a bit more "get up and go" than they are used to.

I got to ride a lot too! This horse was amazing, you clucked to get him to walk, kissed kissed to get him to trot and told him to blow to canter! Very obedient and absaloutly beautiful. It was a little different for me to ride the "western style,' the horse has to keep his head down the whole time and I had to hold the reigns a little differently, but I had a ton of fun.

This is what happened within the first two hours of getting to Heidi's. We put Jordan on the back of a horse with another little girl and led them around the arena. As they were getting ready to dismount, the horse sidestepped and off they both slid. Jordan whacked her chin on a rock and it just split right open. The other girl landed on her side, but other than being a bit sore, was fine. Thankfully the little girl's mother was a nurse who quickly ran home for supplies, cleaned out the wound, and cauterized it with silver nitrate which pulled it together nicely (saved us a trip to the ER). Jordan was a trooper and put up with it all very well, she's a toughie! She does have a nice scar though!

We had the most awesome day with Jake's Grandparents while there. They took us out to an Amish town called Kalona. It was absolutely beautiful to see all their pristine farms with their laundry flapping on the clotheslines, to see them riding in their horses and buggies down the road. We went to a few of their stores and got lots of goodies including wasabi peas (who would have thought!). I enjoyed seeing their simple way of living and would definelty like to do some reading on their culture as it is pretty fascinating. One of the highlights of the day was going to a cheese shop that had the biggest selection of cheese I have every seen. It also had sausages and and different meats. Best of all it had free samples. I am not joking, we spent half an hour at the counter taste testing (I was in heaven!). We bought plenty that we enjoyed for weeks to come. All in all it was a super fun day. 

Grandma Harrison set up a scavenger hunt for the kids. She then chased them for their "loot" dressed up a pirate (Jude was pretty scared!). 

Heidi came out to Cameroon earlier in the year. She got the stars and the sign made by our welder friend while there. We're going to show him what his finish product looks like.

Grandma Heidi and the kiddos (Jordan in her new cowboy boots)

Hannibal, Missouri

We have this awesome little app on our phone that shows us where all the free RV dumps sites are (a necessity, let me tell ya). As we were traveling up from St. Louis to East Iowa, I noticed that there was dump site in Hannibal, MO. It sounded so familiar yet I couldn't think why. Thanks to google, I soon discovered that it was the home town of Samuel Clemens, one of my favourites. I have pretty much read everything Mark Twain has written, I love his short stories but A Tramp Abroad is probably my favorite.  And of course I have read Tom Sawyer to the boys and I must have talked to Josh about him before (I didn't remember) but he knew a bunch about him. The joy of being on the road, especially in an RV, with no strict deadlines, is that we could pull over and spend the afternoon in Hannibal. First we went to the Mark Twain Museum and then his childhood home.

There was a lady there (Gladys Coggswell) that was impersonating a slave during the civil war. She was pretty captivating and as we were the only ones there she really honed in on us. She even taught the boys a song (The Three-Eyed Cat).  We all really enjoyed it. 

There was a bunch of original Norman Rockwell sketches and paintings in the museum... very impressive!

Giving Tom a hand....

Mark Twain's House

Afterwards we had homemade root beer floats at a little diner, delicious!! So if you ever find yourself in Hannibal, Missouri, I highly recommend you stopping and checking out the museum.

"Let us endeavor so to live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry" Mark Twain

Bible School Mini Reunion

At the end of August we headed to our good friends that live just outside of St. Louis. We went to Bible School with Genevieve back in the late 90's. Her house is a central point in the US; an optimal place to have a school reunion. As you can see, none of us have wasted time in "multiplying" (and there were two kids missing that couldn't get out of school!). Thankfully Genevieve has a massive house and we had the RV so we all managed to fit in. It was so nice to have a few days just hanging out, drinking tea, playing guitar, hiking, playing games, being silly, enjoying some girl talk, and just having fun. I don't think we went to bed before 1:30am (which is super late for people with kids!). All the children got on great and had a blast running around and exploring. My boys got introduced to geocashing while there and enjoyed hunting locations (we have been searching for more since). 

Geocashing

After everyone left we had a couple more days at our friends. We had a lovely day out and about in St. Louis. I got to check something else off my bucket list; going up the Arch (I need to sit down and make a new list as I'm nailing so many of them this trip!).

Going up!

Jake looking a little queazy (he doesn't like heights!)

Being up in the arch is so unique as you are suspended over nothing. It's pretty incredible!

Jude enjoying the view

After having a picnic in the park we headed to the St. Louis Zoo (which is free!!). 

We also visited the Lewis and Clark Museum. Both the boys have studied their expedition (and been a little obsessed with it) so it was great for the history to come to life for them. The museum had a treasure hunt for the kids that got them to really read all the info and pay attention to the different displays. They had an awesome time (and I don't feel so guilty about not getting as much school done as I should be).

They had fun dressing up

And we had another picnic by their statues.

Genevieve also set up an evening for us to share with some of their friends from church about our ministry in Cameroon. We were blessed and made some great new contacts, always a good thing while on furlough! I praise the Lord for these "down" times that we have had on the trip, the Lord always knows what we need at the exact right time. 

Missouri

Toward the end of August, we stopped in the town of Washington, Missouri for a few days to visit our good friends, Ed and Roberta Simons. They have run their own "Ma and Pop shop" meat market there since they were first married at a young age. Ed has won a massive amount of awards for his sausages and bacon. Needless to say, they know the butchery business! 

We first met the Simons in Cameroon in 2008. They came to Africa a few years before that with an organization that sent craftsmen to Cameroon to train people in different trades. Even though they never got to teach their skills on that trip, it was a time where they fell in love with the country and the Lord put a real burden for widows and orphans on their hearts. Since that time they have been working hard all year long, then closing up shop for the summer so they can come to Cameroon and work with the needy. They have a real passion and are extremely hard workers.

When we first met them I asked if they could butcher a pig for us; it is very iffy buying pork in Cameroon as it is all open air market. You have to be so careful with pig meat as it goes off so quickly. Ed told us he wouldn't butcher a pig for us, but would teach us how. They took three days with us and our co-workers and really explained the whole butchering process, from selecting the pig, to make sausages, to how to cook them. It has been a huge blessing and makes life a little more comfortable overseas (we try to butcher a pig about every 4 months). It is alway a blessing to have ribs, chops, roasts, lard, and sausages in the freezer! We also sell some to other missionaries who enjoy them immensely as well (we can never keep up with the demand!).

It was so nice to meet them at their own home and see their business first hand. They spoiled us rotton with all the amazing food that they process (no less than 3 types of meats per meal!). We also had a lovely time of fellowship and it was great to talk and reminisce about Cameroon.

Some of the goodness they shared with us

Waiting expectantly for my steak :D

One of our goals for Win Our Nations in Cameroon is to make it more self sufficient. Cameroon has wealth in it and we know that there is more than enough to sustain orphanages and bible schools. This is one of the reasons that we started the two car washes out there. They serve as a two-fold purpose: providing stable jobs for about 12 people as well as increase funds for the Children's Home. Because of the car washes we are able to put our elementary children into one of the best private schools in town (not quite what the West would picture as a private school, but far better than the government schools here). 

So we are always praying and thinking about other business ideas that would serve the same purpose. A few that we have tossed about are an internet cafe, taxis, and bus rentals. Since learning how to do the butchering, we have been toying with the idea of a "Helping Hands Meat Market". Now the city we live in has 350,000 people yet you can't buy any meat that is precut (we have to choose our lump from a side of cow and then it is whacked off with a machette!). There is no reliable place to buy frozen chicken or a place to buy sliced ham or orther deli meats. All of the other big cities in Cameroon do have supermarkets that sell this kind of thing. For example in Yaounde I could buy ground beef, frozen chickens legs, sliced salami, and pork chops from a store (made life a little easier). And these places are usually busy so we don't see why it wouldnt work in our town. So when we go back we are praying about the possibliy of opening a place up. Something small to start with, where one can buy frozen chicken and rabbit (provided by Helping Hands Children's Home of course), as well as some sausage and ham. Of course a lot of work and training would be involved  and it would be vital to find a good manager. 

Ed and Roberta are blessing us with a lot of butchering things to ship in the container (knives, seasonings, casings, etc.), that will be a big help in the starting up process. I ask that you would join in prayer about this whole venture. 

One of the car wash businesses in Cameroon

In the Lone Star State (with internet!)

Well, we made it to Texas safe and sound! We actually arrived a day early as we decided to just drive on through the night and get here. Jake's Dad, John, was expecting us Wednesday night and we pulled into town at noon on Tuesday. Jake called him up to asked him what he was up too, he said he was down at the taxidermy shop (we are in Texas remember). John asked Jake where we were at and Jake responded that we had passed Albuquerque now (no lie, we had!). As soon as we hung up the phone we walked into the shop, it was so much fun! Needless to say John was happily surprised. It was also very special as it was the first time he got to see Jordan. Thanks to Skype, Jordan already recognized him and they had big hugs straight off, so sweet!.

Praise the Lord John has internet at his house. The last four places we have stayed at during this past month have had no internet. We have felt a little disconnected from it all (we have internet on the phone but hard to write long emails, blogs, Skype, updates, and all the rest on it). Thankfully our good friend Ronald McDonald helped us out when needed, but it is lovely to be able to sit in your PJ's and write a blog again. Hoping to have another Skype session with all the kids at the the Children's Home soon too (miss them sooooo much!!).

We are here for three weeks (with a few days of travel to south Texas) so I'm planning on catching up on all my emails and this blog. So much to post about; Yellowstone, Oregon, Redwoods, California, the Grand Canyon, so stayed tuned for some pretty amazing photos. Well, I'm sure you can guess where the below photo was taken, thought I would add it as they say you should never post a blog without a photo. So here she is:

Still catching up on August

We're currently parked in a Walmart parking lot (halfway point to Portland, OR) and finally have some decent internet (thank you, McDonalds!). Just had an awesome time in the Midwest visiting family and friends and then spent two amazing days at Yellowstone National Park. But I will get to all that later, first let me catch up on August. 

Early August we spent a week at my folks' time share in Pidgin Forge, TN. It is a sort of cabin resort up in the Smokey mountains; it is absolutely beautiful up there. Let me show the week in pictures:

My parents got to spend a couple of days with us and spoil the kids before my dad flew out to India. It was lovely to spend some relaxing time with them.

The massive water park right on the property

Fun on the lazy river (we spent a lot of time in there!)

The kids got to handle some cool birds that were there

We took a 5 mile hike up to Cave Alum... and we saw a black bear on the way! My first ever sighting of a wild bear!

We wanted to do at least one of the many fun "touristy" things with the kids, but if you have ever been in that area, you know everything is pretty expensive. I had been looking online at prices for the aquarium and saw that they had a discount for homeschoolers. We decided to check it out and when we got there, they reduced he cost from over a $100 to $42. We were pretty pleased with that but then as we went to pay, the cashier told us that someone had just paid for our tickets. With puzzled faces we turned around and there was a lady we had met in Africa a couple of years back. Her husband is a doctor and had volunteered at the Baptist hospital in Cameroon for a few months. They have 4 girls and came to the homeschooling co-op that we are a part of. They are a very sweet, in-love-with-Jesus family. Once we leant them our vehicle so they could go to the beach but in broke down on them while there! We've always felt bad about that but they were very gracious. Anyway, they are now living in Kentucky and she had just come down to Tennessee to have some mother-daughter time with one of her girls. She had spied us walking down the street from a restaurant and decided to follow us. It was so great to see her! And really, what are the odds that we would meet her?? It was totally a God thing, a little nudge from my Father, letting me know not to sweat the small stuff, He can cover the cost of us going to an aquarium :D. 

The kids LOVED it!

I had the Caridigans' Lovefool song going through my head all day after this :D

Awesome memories!

Next blog post: Missouri!