thoughts..

Went for a run this morning and was listening to Toby Mac (great music to run to) and really listen to one of his songs. I've heard it a hundred times but never really paid attention to the words before and it really touched me, about while we're here on this earth, what we are created for. It's easy to forget sometime and get so focused on other things that really aren't important. Here are some of the Lyrics:

Whatever happened to a passion I could live for
What became of the flame that made me feel more
And when did I forget that...

I was made to love you
I was made to find you
I was made just for you
Made to adore you
I was made to love
And be loved by you

You were here before me
You were waiting on me
And you said you'd keep me
Never would you leave me
I was made to love and be loved by you

Summer School

Started summer school at the Children's Home this week, 9am to 12pm, 4 days a week. Basically just trying to get the kids up to a K or 1st grade reading level and helping them to have a basic understanding of English. So lots of read-alouds, abc games, rhyming, etc. It has been going great so far (2 days into it:) and they all seem to be really enjoying it. The children are extremly smart, they just haven't been taught. Also teaching them manners, hygine (stop peeing outside the door!) and getting them used to a school type setting.

This week we're also helping to monitor the kids as they get up and go to bed. The Ma and Pa have been saying it's been tough getting them motivated in the morning and to settle down at night. So the Borns have got the mornings and we've got the evenings for the next week or two. I had a great time tonight as I was there for dinner with them and devotions and got to kiss them good night. We just need to get a bit more organized and things will be running smoother. These children have never really been used to a schedule before so we need to get them used to getting up and going to bed early so that they will be ready for that when school rolls around.

The ABC memory game

Fun Afternoon

We had all the kids over from the orphanage this afternoon, 10 in all. We're going to try and do this once a month to give the Pa and Ma the afternoon off. It was a lot of fun as they got to go on a trampoline for the first time (they couldn't stop giggling), play with lego, build puzzles, look at books and raiding our guava trees. They also watch Finding Nemo, I'm not sure how much they understood but they seemed to really like it. I enjoyed just getting to sit with them and getting to know them all a little bit better. I even got baby Bernadette to sit on my lap for half an hour!

I've been doing Bible classes with the kids twice a week and only now am I starting to understand their lack of schooling and basic knowledge. The 5 children that came from the remote village of Ngom, don't even know their colours (10-14 year olds) and barley speak Pidgin English, let alone regular English (My pidgin is certainly improving though). But they kids are already starting to speak better and understand us more. They are smart and learning a lot. This summer we are going to do summer school with them to get them to a K or 1st grade level before they start school in September. Praise God we have some young ladies coming out for the summer to intern with us so they will have their work cut out for them. We've also had math teacher offer to volunteer. I have a lot of flash cards, word games, etc. that I can use too (hey, I'm a home schooling mum :).

Bible Class (in the dinning room)
We get a few neighbourhood kids join us too.

Cheese making

When we were back in the States one of my good friends got me a cheese making book. Cheese is hard to come by in Cameroon and it's super expensive as it's all imported. I love cheese so much I thought this would be fun to try and make it. Anyway I had a crack at it last week and made a soft cheese to start of with, cream cheese. It turned out really well and tasted great if I do say so myself! Josh said it was "perfect" (that's my boy!). I'm going to have a go at a harder cheese next, cheddar maybe. After setting the milk and cream I let is drip for 12 hours.

Yummy!

Our newest kids

Here are pics of our 5 newest children at the Helping Hands Children's Home. We might be getting 6 more children next week.

This is Rodine, not too sure of the spelling. The people that signed the papers for the children, often don't know how to spell so we are still trying to work out how to say and write their names. We're not sure of his age but it's probably around 14. He can barely read and write his name. He is very skinny and seems weaker than the other kids. We have been giving him extra milk and potions of food everyday. Next week all the new children will go to the doctors for testing for Malaria, TB, Typhoid and HIV (All our children go though this). He is a lovely boy though and really pays attention to Bible class.

This is Blessings. We're not sure of all the new kids' age but he'd around 14. He is the only child we have that can actually read (it's at a first grade level though). He also knows the most about Jesus than any of them. He is a super nice boy!


This is Karil, who has some bad feet problem (the pic is after the doctor cut all the dead skin away, you should have seen them before!). Seems like it is a severe fungus infection and an infestation of chiggers (parasites). He is very shy and it's hard to get him to look at you when you talk to him as he always looks down. When I took him to the doctors office his eyes were as big as saucers as we drove down town. These kids had never been out of their village before so seeing paved roads, cement buildings, vendors, and lots of cars is a whole new experience. Kari can read very little but knows most of his letters. Praise God his feet are looking a lot better already and healing nicely. Please keep them in your prayers.

This is Nestol. He's a very bright kid, always happy (he has the longest eye lashes I have ever seen!). He has had some issues with his feet too and it was really hard for him at the doctors (I was crying with him). He is always the first to try an answer a question in Bible class and very willing to learn, he should be reading shortly.

This is Perseverance. The first night we got her, she was so quiet and withdrawn. She wore a ragged dress that was about 2 times to big for her (her only piece of clothing). We got her cleaned up, feed, put her in some clothes that actually fit her and she was like a new girl. I hardly recognized her the next day. She is very friendly, and her and Ocilia have become best of friends. She also loves Jude and carries him around everywhere when I'm there.

Helping Hands Children Home is up and running!

Praise the Lord all is going well at the Children's Home. A month ago we received our first orphans that we got from a village called Ngie. First, their is a little boy called Kingsley, his folks died a while back, he was malnourished and anemic when we got him. He is a super precious child and ALWAYS has a smile on his face and gives the biggest hugs.

KINGSLEY

Next are three siblings who's mother died a few months back when a tree fell on her while farming and pushed her into a fire. The children all had different dads, some of whom are dead, one who wants nothing to do with them. Their grandma was looking after them but she is very old, has a serious (and I mean serious) leg infection so she can't walk, and all the kids were struggling to survive. They all had very yellow eyes and were anemic when we got them. The oldest is Ocila (8) who is like a Mum to her little baby sister Bernadette, she basically did everything for the baby, looking after her 24 hours a day. OCILA

BERNADETTE

Then there is her little brother Marvelous. When he came he was very shy and sad but now he is just a bundle of joy and always has a mischievous smile on his face (he keeps the Ma and Pa on their toes :). His baby sister just adores him! Bernadette has really filled out in the few weeks she's been at the HHCH, she just eats and eats.

MARVELOUS

They are all sooooo incredibly precious and we just love them to pieces already. Baby Bernadette still won't come to me but she is warming up to me. Here's a pic of what they were like before we took them. They're in the front room of their mud house, can you see the difference in them already!
Then just two days ago Jake and Tim when out to another village about 6 hours away and got 5 more kids. It was very rough roads so Jake had a lot of fun. We got another girl, Perseverance, and 4 boys, Nestor, Kari, Rodin, and Blessing. The are all in the 10 to 12 age range but they don't know for sure (one thing we need to get made for all the kids are birth certificates). They all seem to be doing well, Nesto has a fungus or something on his toenails (we'll head to the doctors on Monday) but other than that they all seem healthy, PTL. I will get pictures of them up in a day or two. Please pray that these new children will adjust quickly to their new surroundings, they all lived in mud huts before with no electric or running water, had very primitive bamboo beds that they shared with a lot of people. They had absolute rags for clothes. So to come to a place that has concrete floors, a mattressed bed with blankets, and 3 meals a day is a BIG change for them.

The only problem we've had with the children so far is trying to get them to drink a cup of milk a day. They've never had it before and don't like it :-). They will soon get used to it.

Also pray that we will find sponsors for all these children quickly, we are still starting up at the Home so there is still lots that we need to get (tables, chairs, wardrobes, pots, plates, etc.). We know that the Lord will provide for everything!

Team Photos

We said good-bye to our WON team on Thursday. It was sad to see them go, we had such a great two weeks with them. Check out the photos below and see all the great things the team got to do... maybe you would be interested in coming on one or even your church sending a team out here, we have lots of work to do and it will be the experience of a life time!

A huge THANK YOU to all you team members, what a blessing you were!!

Nancy, Allison, Bill, Brandee, Terrell, Lisa, My mum Phyllis, Jessica, my dad Malcolm, & Femi

A hard working bunch!

Allison and Lisa painting the ceiling

Good job Femi is tall!

My Dad doing some plastering

What the orphanage looked like before they started painting

One of the two buildings they painted

Bill hanging out with Bernadette, our first baby at the orphanage

Traveling out to a village

At house in the village

Out in village

The Girls with their tailor made dresses

Dancing in Church!

Nancy sharing her testimony at church

Terrell Singing a song at church

Our Hike up to Mbingo, breath-taking!

Good food (yes that is a fish's tail)

Having some fun with local kids

Visiting a beautiful waterfall

The cave behind the waterfall

Jessica teaching HIV awareness to students at a secondary school

Visiting Prespot, a little pottery place in the middle of nowhere

The team is here

Bernadette, our little baby at the Children's Home

Well, our team from Florida is here! We've been have a great time, with lots and lots going on. We also received our first children at the orphanage almost two weeks ago now, so exciting, things are really moving along. We're super busy with the team right now but will give more details when I get time (team leaves next week). The children are doing great though and are just so special, we praise God that He has brought them into our care. Anyway, need to get some sleep, it is super late and have an early start tomorrow. Have so much to blog about, will soon, I promise!

Our team up the Mbingo mountatin

Painting at the orphanage with team

Keeping busy!

Internet has been really bad the last week, so has the electric, it goes and comes, goes and comes... all the joys of rainy season (plus mosquitoes). Other than that, all is going great. At the orphanage the rooms are just about ready, toilets are getting tiled this week. Jake and Tim went out to a village today to see some orphans… we should know by Friday if we are going to receive them or not, very exciting, our first kids!

Then the team from our home church in Florida will be here next Friday... Jake and Tim leave on Monday for Yaoundé as they still need to do some set up for buses, hand the WON paperwork into an office down there, go to the American Embassy to get Jude's social security number sorted out, do a bit of shopping (cheese!) and then pick the team up. I'll be home alone with the boys for a week getting as much homeschooling in as possible so we can have two weeks off while the team is here, as well as making sure all the last minute things are set up for the team. Can't wait!

As requested here is a picture of Patrick and Anna the Pa and Ma of the Children's Home. They moved in last month and have been such a blessing! They are amazingly hard workers, keeping everything spic and span and always have a smile on their faces. We really praise the Lord for them!

FYI, Jude Said "Daddy" for the first time tonight when Jake walked in the door, soooo cute!

Quote of the day

My brother called me the other day, so when we sat down for lunch I asked the boys, "guess who called me today?" Lots of thinking going on so gave them a clue, "someone in America". Seth, is all sincerity, asked, "Barack Obama?"