Striving for a God-honoring daily legacy amid life's beautiful adventure.
On the last day of June we got to celebrate the first wedding ceremony in the church here. Matt and I got to be “god-parent” type roles in the wedding, which added in all kinds of cultural lessons.
We’re so proud of this couple and how they, as new Christians, are fighting to honor God in their hearts and their home. Please join us in praying for this couple, J and I.
Things slowly slipped into normal again after my parents returned to the States. We had a minute to visit with our teammates in the capital before returning to our quiet city. Our church celebrated children’s day the day after we returning to our city, so the girls enjoyed the celebration of children complete with a kids message, games and much yummy food options. We all came home full, happy and exhausted.
We tried to settle into a semblance of normal the following week. Homeschool was back in full swing and the kids flourished, as usual, frolicking in the backyard between school subjects. The house started to look clean again -ha!- and we celebrated the launching of the first worship service in Chopi-land (that one deserves it’s own blog post, for sure!).
Three weeks, we have had three ‘normal’ weeks in all before the schedule takes off again. We had our moments of getting used to the dynamics of 6 little ladies, instead of our usual four, after coming off of a few weeks separated. It never ceases to amaze me that no matter how long or how short we are apart from each other, each kid adjusts back to each other differently. Having said that, I think our crew is getting more used to the ebb and flow of schooling together being interrupted by various trips and trainings between our two households. It’s nice to see the adjustment time shortening as it becomes old hat to be together again.
We are THRILLED to welcome our friends from South Africa to the mix for this last week of June. Simultaneously, Matt and I are taking on “Godparent” type rolls in a wedding (you know, cause we’re addicted to crazy) and preparing for a journey that I will write about later. The wedding business is another cultural learning curve, but we are thankful to get the opportunity to celebrate the example of a Biblical marriage between two dear church members.
So while our “normal season” coming back after the time with my parents has not really felt too calm or normal many times, we’re thankful, once again, for the wonderful crazy goodness of living and serving here in Mozambique.
We have been jumping into the homeschool year (we school on the late Jan/early Feb to November school year just like the rest of Africa) and here’s a few pictures of our happy new norm to share.
The bigs have been enjoying some quiet art time during the littles’ nap time. Thanks again Goga and Gopa for the awesome drawing instructional books.
We have enjoyed school this year with our fellow Missionary friends here serving at the local hospital. We made a world cake together in celebration of our completion of the first two weeks of school’s focus on the world. We got a bit creative (our norm) since ingredients and decorations can be challenging here, but it sure was a tasty lesson.
We will be traveling throughout the world this year in school (complete with fake passports) and to help us on our travels, so many of you wonderful people have videoed yourselves reading us stories about other countries and science topics, like ecosystems from around the world. To say we have enjoyed hearing your voices and sharing a story together is the understatement of the year!
And then of course, sometimes you just have to liven up Spelling by spontaneously giving spelling words through spare tube connector joints. Hehe. Abi was delightfully surprised when in the middle of her focused writing, I leaned in and gave her the next spelling word whispered through the tube. Hehe.
It can be really busy teaching and involving 6 little girls whom are overflowing and bounding with energy. And this year we have the added joy and challenge of not just teaching 3 different school levels to accommodate for the age differences, but 5 different school levels as we catch back up on the older two’s English education after a year of no grammar, spelling, different math, relearning how to write in print, and a few other things for last year’s Portuguese school. That being said, we are all thriving and really enjoying our time together in our little one-room schoolhouse.
On rainy days we also enjoy doing a dance video or two thanks to the fun world of YouTube kids dance videos. Here’s a little film so you can dance along too. 🙂
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And I leave you with a few excited presentations of their Kindergarten+ (thanks to a few three year olds) Creation lessons from the first two weeks.
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Ok, back to the lesson planning books for me. 🙂
We love you all!!!
I was listening to an audio reading of Genesis while I was folding clothes this morning. The children were playing together while the littlest napped, permitting me full attention to give to the listening amid the monotony of laundry.
And it hit my ears.
“Who told you that you were naked?” The narrator read with a tinge of desperation in his voice.
And through those words God reminded my heart of his desperation for mankind.
Sermons can and have been written on God’s compassion, willing Adam and Eve to confess their forbidden fruit sin. The Omniscient God did not need them to verbalize their sin. He already knew the question’s answer. But He gave them the opportunity to feel the relief of confession. The relief of releasing some of the guilt. Not adding salt to the wound by telling the truth.
But in that voice lies a deeper level. A deeper heartbreak chosen to be shouldered by the Ever-Loving Father. The disaster of the fall’s consequences had begun. And even though I wasn’t there, I think this audio Bible’s narrator got the tone just perfect. His desperation. His heartbreak for the newly lost mankind looking back at Him through the eyes of Adam and Eve. Never again to frolic in the garden together. Never again to share in closeness as before.
No, God doesn’t need us, dear friends. But here in His voice in This Genesis verse His heart pours out. He wants us.
Thank you, Lord, for still wanting us… even in the heat of our rebellion.
“Blessed” somehow fails to describe the depth of Your gift of adoption.
– Please, Lord, keep teaching my heart to listen to Your Voice.
I read an article this morning during the routine 6am nursing session. The author spoke of casting off the pressures that pinterest, blogs and facebook posts put on being the over-the-top parent to your children. The need to have the most creative, perfect vacation or birthday party or day of homeschool for that matter is ridiculous. It becomes about our status and quite honestly, our pride.
But I found it sad that the author failed to remember times when her parents played with her and her siblings. I get that family dynamics require parents to work from home at times. I get that family dynamics sometimes require both parents to work. I get that the house doesn’t clean itself and dinner doesn’t cook itself. But I still remember my “picking up an extra shift” Daddy staging pillow fights with us. I still remember my “returning to school to get a better job” Mommy baking cookies with us, even inviting in the neighbor kids to share in the flour mixing. Sure there was a the balance of my sister and I walking home from school together and coming to a quiet house where enjoy a premade snack of carrot sticks from the fridge or celery with peanut butter that Mom made before she went to work. And then we’d proceed to entertain ourselves for an hour or so until Mom got off work.
It was a balance. We still went to the children’s museum, climbing the rock climbing wall alongside of Daddy and racing Mom in the timed sprint display. And I remember self-entertaining on Summer days or during Mom’s study sessions.
I strive to be a parent of equal balance. Yes, I expect my little girls to play independently at times. Their imaginative delight should not be tied to me entertaining them. But I miss so much if I don’t don a princess crown regularly, or instigate a pool noodle sword fight. I miss too much if I don’t wrestle them in a game of tickle fight until our sides ache from laughter at our floor frizzed hair. I miss far too much if I don’t use the curb as a balance beam or dance unashamedly to a Disney song with a twirling ribbon.
What do I miss? I miss expressing my value in doing life with them. That their hearts matter. Right where they are. In whatever little imaginative phase they choose to live in in that moment.
I’m not saying this author’s Mom didn’t love her. HA! Not saying that at all. I’m just saying that in the swing back from our culture’s need to make Motherhood about a Mother’s status and pride, don’t forget to dabble in your children’s play regularly. No don’t buy their love with vacations and regular showerings of toys until they have so much stuff that you can’t even play with it all. Materialism creeps in so quickly.
But don’t miss out on the opportunity to just sit and read together and play together. Because just like I tell my little ladies, “we’re the only family we’ve got. So let’s do life together.”
At the end of the day, I want more than the title of Mother, Provider or Caregiver. And it has nothing to do with me. I want to leave a legacy in their hearts that we walked through their childhood together because their worlds mattered so deeply to me that it was worth the sacrifice to make them my dreams.
I wouldn’t have it any other way. They are such a blessing.
The baking day was a success. We made two different variations of a cool-whip cookies, strawberry bread and granola from scratch. We invited over a dear friend, Heather, and her toddler son to join in our day. The kids enjoyed stirring and pouring and making a royal mess with complete delight. How else are they going to learn? And who can judge them? I’m a messy cook too.
In the naptime quiet, I baked some strawberry breads and made some more cookie batters. Then Heather returned, exchanging her toddler son for her teenaged daughter, to finish up our work. We froze the cookie dough in individual family servings (which for us is 6 cookies) between parchment paper and wax paper so that come cookie baking time we could simply peal the wax paper off and throw the parchment paper and cookies onto a tray for quick baking.
We also froze away some pumpkin bread batters for another winter day treat.
In all it was a fun baking morning/afternoon where everyone could help at their initiative and talk/play with friends. Definitely a repeat kind of day!
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