We can’t let too much more time pass before we wish a Happy Birthday to our Aunt Brida, who is my grandfather’s sister.  She turned 100 in July, and we had a great time at her birthday party in Indiana.  It is about an hour from my grandparent’s house to her house.  Toby has been excited for a long time at the prospect of seeing this famous relative and went around telling people that he has an aunt who is 100 years old!  She is dearly loved by many, and we are so pleased that we were able to participate in this joyous event.

Here’s a photo of Aunt Brida with her great-great nephews. – C

One thing that we always do when we go to Ohio (where my grandparents’ farm is, and where my parents are living now) is to visit Tabitha’s grave, which is only a few miles away from the farm.  For those of you who don’t know, Tabitha was our second child, who died shortly after birth from a condition called Anencephaly.  It is a neural tube defect, like spina bifida, which does not allow the brain to form normally.

Tabitha died more than six years ago, and we were so grateful she could be buried near family.  My mother visits often to put beautiful flowers there, and sends us photos occasionally when she puts up a special arrangement.  It is comforting for us to know that her grave is well-tended, and she is buried between my great-grandparents and my uncle, who also died at birth of anencephaly.

As the years go by, her loss grows easier, and we have found that working through and acknowledging our grief rather than just ignoring it has helped a lot.  We’ve learned a lot about what to say (and what not to say) to others who are grieving, and our levels of compassion for others have increased.  Not to say we wouldn’t rather have our daughter back, but we also believe that God teaches us through suffering.

What a beautiful picture we have of Tabitha:  she is perfect, rejoicing in heaven.  We look forward to seeing her one day.  Meanwhile, her loss is felt a little more deeply when we stand at her grave and remember the short time we had with her.  We tell her brothers about her, and wonder together what it would have been like to have her here with us.

I’d like to tell others how to prevent neural tube defects:  all women of childbearing age should be taking at least 400 mcg of folic acid daily.  You can get this amount in a prenatal vitamin, or take folic acid by itself.  I was taking that amount, but in some people a higher dose is necessary, up to 5 mg per day.  If NTDs run in your family, you should take the higher dose.  There are other things that can cause anencephaly too, but taking folic acid is the best way to prevent it.  Please tell your friends and family about this.

Meanwhile, I continue to be owner of an online group which supports women who have lost or will lose their baby to anencephaly and I believe that Tabitha’s legacy in my life lives on there.  We have learned a lot through her life and death, and continue to miss her.  – C

Since we returned to the USA on July 19th, there have been a lot of fun things to enjoy! Of course the immediate things were time with Kevin’s family in Connecticut and enjoying the beauty of the northeastern summer. Corn on the cob, swiss cheese, McDonalds, chinese food, and New York style pizza were all high on our lists for fun for our tummies. Maybe that’s why Kevin and I gained so much weight since returning! The kids are enjoying the fresh milk we get here, and lots of cheese (too expensive in Moz to eat much).

There was lots of other fun besides gastronomical though. We left for Ohio only a week after arriving, and enjoyed a Yankees game with Kevin’s brother and his family in Cleveland. I thought the kids would be overwhelmed in that big stadium, but they took it in stride. The next day, we went to a big pool and playground, and on arriving at the farm there were all kinds of motorized vehicles to drive, including the big tractor, the ATV, the lawn mower (sans blades), and even an electric wheelchair (which Toby used to pull a trailer).  And yes, that is Spiderman riding in the trailer behind the lawn mower!   Other fun things were a trip to the Columbus zoo, thanks to free tickets, along with a trip to a nice waterpark, again with free tickets.  And there were many trips back to the little woods, where we drove the ATV around on paths and enjoyed seeing the fireflies at dusk.  There were all kinds of toys for the kids to play with, and some very nice neighbor kids.  For us grownups, the best part was seeing family and being away from “work”.  We had such a nice time with my (Cami’s) parents, grandparents, sister (who had flown in), aunts and uncles.

We left Ohio and traveled back to Connecticut, leaving there shortly after to go to a friend’s cabin on Lake Winnepesaukee in New Hampshire.  It was so beautiful there!  Kevin’s parents came up for several days and celebrated Kevin’s 41st birthday with us, and later my cousin and niece visited us.  We took the kids on a train ride along the lakeshore, and ate outdoors on the pier after showing the kids the video arcade!  They thought that was just THE BEST.  The video arcade, not the view.  🙂

But, the fun was not to last.  The time soon came to return to Connecticut and get Toby started in school.  He is in 3rd grade in the public school and seems to be doing very well so far, making lots of friends as usual.  He has already missed one birthday party because we are away many weekends, visiting, but I’m sure he’ll be invited to more.  Ben’s big fun has been the Rescue Heroes toys that his older cousins have loaned him – there must be over 50 pieces to the set and he spends hours out in the yard arranging them and going on missions.  It is such a joy for the kids to be with their grandparents here and we look forward to more visits to Ohio to see their other grandparents and other family members.

And for the grownups too, there is work to be done.  We’ve been trying to get prayer cards done, newsletters out, and computers all set up.  Kevin has spent a lot of time writing sermons and has preached at one church and we’ve given presentations at three.  We made a new display board, which was a challenge, and have been having many nice visits with friends and supporters. I’ve already traveled out to Oklahoma to see family members, and we’ve made two weekend trips away to see supporters.   I’ll post our schedule here soon, when I figure out how to do it, and look forward to a busy fall, but one full of all kinds of fun (and work!). – C

It came time to fly back to the USA on Saturday, July 17th and we were ready!  Maybe not emotionally, as we were nervous about the trip and about what lay ahead, but all the bags were packed and we stood by the door 45 minutes before our ride came to pick us up, everything prepared.

Our dear colleagues, the Slaytons, gave us a ride to the airport, which was appropriate since they were the ones who picked us up when we arrived 3 1/2 years ago.  At the airport, our faithful guard, Fernando, met us and stayed with us until we got on the plane.  He remained at the balcony, waving and watching until we took off.  What a dear man – we are so thankful that we found him an excellent job before we left and he will be well-provided for.

The boys were excited and interested to see everything, and we were surprised to see the small plane that would carry us 30 minutes east to the coastal city of Pemba, then on to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania.  As we took off, Benjamin had such an excited look on his face and gave us the thumbs-up.  It was the first plane ride he could ever remember taking, as he hadn’t been in an airplane since he arrived in Moz, at 11 months old.
We deplaned in Pemba, then re-boarded for the two hour flight to Tanzania.  On arrival, we had to go through passport control and buy visas for our overnight stay, which was a long process, and it wasn’t until two hours later that we arrived at the AIM guest house for our overnight stay.  We are SO thankful that we arrived with all our luggage intact as Dar is known for theft from luggage.  That night, we walked to a nearby bar (complete with a live band, dancing, and lots of people), which was the only place for dinner, and discovered that Swahili really is the lingua franca of Tanzania.  We asked the waiter if the chicken was roasted or fried and he replied “yes”.  Ok, there was no choice!  it was fried, which is probably best since then any local germies were boiled to death, and our stomachs suffered no repercussions.  We were brought a basin of water at the table to wash our hands, we ate everything with no silverware, and then another basin was brought to clean up afterwards.  After 3 1/2 years in Moz, the kids didn’t even bat an eye.

Here’s a photo of us waiting for the taxi in Dar, with our four pieces of luggage.  We sure came home with a lot less than we went out with it, and most of it is presents!

We boarded our Emirates flight to Dubai (5 1/2 hours long) at 4:40 the next afternoon after another taxi ride back to the airport, and it was uneventful except that Ben fell asleep as we landed.  I pinched him, shook him, shoved chocolate in his mouth, but that kid was in a coma.  Kevin carried him off the plane, we wheeled him in a kind of stroller to the next plane, and plopped him in his seat there, and he continued to sleep for 9 more hours!  Which was a good thing, actually.  We were disappointed that our flight was a little late getting into Dubai, which meant we had no time to look around that very interesting airport.  We were through there at 2 am, and the place was buzzing with activity.  Paul Slayton told us that most of Dubai’s flights take off at night because during the day the air is too hot for the jets to get enough lift.

Our 13 1/2 hour flight to New York went fine, and it was funny to see so many Americans on the plane.  We have seen so few Americans in the last years, besides missionary colleagues, that being surrounded by them was a wierd experience.  There were college girls in very short shorts, sitting near the Middle-Eastern ladies clothed in black Burkhas.  Rather an unwise choice for the girls, I would say, but they were oblivious.  Each seat had its own tv screen with a huge choice of movies, tv shows and video games, and when Toby wasn’t sleeping (he slept most of the night) he was happily playing video games.  Ben woke up about 4 hours before we landed, and also enjoyed playing (completely unsuccessfully) the video games.

Landing in America.  What a surreal experience.  We felt like we had stepped into the twilight zone, and yet it was all so familiar.  As we went through passport control, the agent said “welcome home” and it was such a – RELIEF.  Since we left America, we are always greeted with suspicion at border control posts, and we always wonder if we will be allowed to pass, or if we will be hassled.  But in America, we are welcome.  It seemed like we waited forever for our luggage, in an enormous baggage terminal, and finally we stepped out to be greeted by Kevin’s family and it was a beautiful thing.  How could it be that only two mornings before we were driving out of Nampula on those bumpy roads, desperately poor people along the sides of the roads?  People with things balanced on their heads, cell phone cards for sale beside the road, dust rising up, baskets of tomatoes and piles of bananas for sale everywhere?  Now we were in an enormous parking garage, everything cemented or landscaped with GRASS.  As we drove north to Connecticut, we stared at all the stores beside the highways, stadiums, the skyline of Manhattan.  Wow.  The kids actually handled it really well, and were more interested in the cookies their Grandma had brought!  We picked up Kevin’s brother’s family, and went off to McDonalds for lunch, where the kids ate blissfully and were so excited at the Happy Meal toy.

Well, that is enough for now.  We are so thankful for a smooth trip and that our luggage and ourselves made it safely.  We are enjoying the good things that the USA has to offer (including way too much GOOD and fattening food!) and most especially seeing our families.  That is the best part.  More to come soon. – C

We had some goodbyes to say not too long ago.  The last two weeks before we left Mozambique on July 17th were full of busyness and sadness, as well as excitement for the road ahead.

The hardest people to say goobye to were the monitors.  We had a special lunch for them the week we left, and Kevin was able to give them some final teaching on leadership, as well as give each of them a packet of materials and a calendar.  There were tears in  many of the guys’ eyes as they said goodbye to us and we could see they had trouble believing we would return to Mozambique.   A Mozambican friend of ours visited Canada last year, and he said to us after he returned that he can now appreciate how much we have given up to serve in Mozambique.  I think that our monitors suspect as much, and know how hard it will be to say goodbye to family and return to Moz.  We will pray for the monitors this year, that they will be strong and faithful, and that God will protect their families from sickness and harm.

We also said goodbye to various churches and friends.  Here’s a photo of our houseworker Teresa’s family.  She is a lovely woman who helped us faithfully, and always with a smile on her face.  It was very sad to say goodbye to her, though we are glad that her husband is able to provide for the family so we don’t have to worry about her family going hungry because we are not there to give her a job.  It is awfully hard to find jobs in Nampula.

Here’s a photo of Ben with his little friend from Portuguese preschool, Kelvin.  He’s a sweet little guy who befriended the “wierd” kid who didn’t fit in.  We’ve found that in all the schools where our kids have gone (not English-speaking schools) there is one child who reaches out to the stranger.  We hope our kids will do the same for others.

It was also sad to say goodbye to our dogs, and to our missionary friends, many of whom have upheld us during some very difficult times during this term.  Some of them will not be there when we go back, and we have no idea when we will see them again.  Such is the life of a missionary!

As we finished up our work in Nampula, finished packing the last box and said the last goodbye, we looked at each other and said “Whew!  We made it!”.  We feel like it is a big accomplishment to have completed this first term and as we look back over the last 3 1/2 years (we arrived in Moz on February 11th, 2007) we remember many very dark days as well as many very happy ones.  We do love it in Mozambique and fully intend to return if it is God’s will (and He will provide the support we need if it is!).  Meanwhile, it is heart-wrenching to say goodbye to those we love, and a little hard to part with our “stuff”, which is safely in storage along with our wonderful LandCruiser. – C

On Toby’s last day at the Morningstar Academy, there was a sports day.  There were all kinds of races including rope climb, long jump, and, well, races.  The highlight of the day were two soccer games, the moms against the first through fourth graders, and the dads against the fifth through eighth graders.  Here’s a photo of the moms team: I was the goalie (being unable to run around due to back problems).  As goalie, I ensured a win by the kids when I let one get past me.  The dads creamed the older kids, much to everyone’s surprise, and they are still sore about the betrayal.
m USA and Brazil), Toby, and Kathriona (from Zimbabwe).

Here is also a photo of Toby with his teacher, Peggy Dancey, to whom we are so grateful.  Toby’s school experience up to now has been so wonderful, full of all kinds of interesting projects and solid education.  Thanks to Peggy (and his part-year teacher last year, Kelly Jarvis), Toby loves learning, loves going to school, and is reading at a level beyond his grade (he’s into Hardy Boys books now).  He’ll start third grade in September at a public school in Connecticut, and we hope that his experiences continue to be positive.  Many, many thanks to Peggy and the other teachers at Morningstar for their significant sacrifices (leaving home and family, and raising support) to minister to our children and provide them with a stable, loving school environment, preparing them for their transitions back and forth from their home countries.  I think many fewer missionary families would be working in Nampula if not for this school, and certainly there would be a lot more tired missionary moms who had to homeschool!  We look forward to Toby’s return to Morningstar for Fourth Grade, and hope that Peggy Dancey will still be there when Ben starts first grade in 2012. – C

Here’s a photo of Kevin and I in front of the chapel at the Fort at Ilha da Mocambique.  This chapel is the oldest european-built structure in the southern hemisphere and was built by the Portuguese in the late 1500s.  The fort was built later and was a base of operations for them in their control of trade and land off the coast of Africa.  Kevin and I enjoyed spending a couple of days with colleagues and visitors at a beautiful beach.  Unfortunately I was down sick the whole time, but at least it was a beautiful location.  Mozambique has a lot of history, most of it bad, and you can read about it by using google.  I say it is bad because there was so much oppression of the peoples of Mozambique, as there was with pretty much every colonial invader around the world, but in Moz it was especially harsh.  -C

This is a photo of the three dear folks who flew all the way from Western Canada (Vancouver) at considerable expense to minister to our children during our recent conference.  The AIM conference was held in Nampula, for 39 adults and 11 children, from June 21-28th and was a very busy time.  Barb Woodring came, along with Noah and Phil Balzer (father and son) to care for our children during all the meetings, but it was much more than that.  they presented a full-on VBS program complete with surprises every day, treats brought from Canada, special events, and a birthday party with presents for each child!  They had the kids every day from 8:30-12:30, 1:30-5:30, and then from 7-8.  I don’t know how they maintained such a level of energy to the end of the week, but they did it with smiles on their faces.  The theme of the week was “God’s Promises”, dealing with covenants, and they used a lot of hockey-related images during the week too. Noah and Phil had brought their hockey gear and did skits for the kids as hockey players, and there were hockey t-shirts, jerseys, and hockey sticks for all the kids.  There was even a day of “hockey training camp” and it was hilarious to see the kids running races dressed in adult hockey gear.  They had such a blast and we are so grateful to Barb, Noah and Phil for their sacrifice of time, money and energy to minister to our kids.  It was a week they’ll never forget, and we hope that they all come back again next year! – C

Well, we had hoped to avoid malaria this year but unfortunately I came down with it 10 days after returning from South Africa.  I must have caught it in Maputo on my way back.  I was down for a week with that nasty stuff and was glad to be rid of it.  One of the treatments I took had sulfa in it, which I didn’t realize, and so I had some itching along with the malaria misery (I am allergic to sulfa).

Toby had malaria (his fifth time) at the end of June, just as our conference ended.  He always gets really pale and has a sore stomach, so we know to take him in and get him tested.  He’s had a problem before with reoccurrances, so we’ll be sure to bring a malaria test kit and treatment to the USA, as hospitals tend to “freak out” when you show up with malaria and want to admit you!  But hopefully there won’t be any reoccurances.  Poor Toby always wants to keep going when he is sick – doesn’t want to miss any time with his friends.  He has recovered well, though he looks a bit thinner and we must fatten him up in the USA! – C

We moved out of our house on June 2nd, and moved over to the SIL missions compound across town, into the house of friends.  I was so sad to move out of our house, which had been a real refuge in times of trouble during these three years.  The move went smoothly and we were grateful for the help of all of our AIM colleagues in town, who came with their trucks (everyone has trucks here, which helps on moving day!) to move our things across town to the 40-foot shipping container at the AIM property.  We are thankful for this container, where all our belongings will be safe and dry during this next year while we are gone in the USA.  It does get quite hot in there though, so we’ve found another home for our DVDs and computers while we are away.  The container is packed full – moving an entire house was a new experience for me, as we’ve never lived in more than an apartment, really.  It was a big job and my back was pretty sore at the end of it.  Right now we are in the furnished house of a friend, which is a huge blessing. There has been much less to pack up at the end, and we are getting ready to pack the suitcases to go to the USA on Saturday, 17 July.  We leave here at 9:30 am on that day and fly 3 hours to Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, where we spend the night.  The next day at 4 pm, we fly to Dubai, a 5 hour flight.  After a 3 hour layover in Dubai, we take the 13 hour flight to New York, where we’ll be met by some very happy grandparents! – C