Tonight Ben and i got to go on a dinner cruise with 25 other couples! We had a wonderful time sitting back and spending time with friends, meeting new friends and even winning a prize. They had a hawaiian theme and we had yummy food catered. There was a quiz that husbands and wives had to take and then compare their answers, Ben and i got the highest score 11 out of 12 and won coffee mugs and Kenyan coffee. We haven't had a chance to do anything like this together as a couple since we have moved overseas and it was such a blessing to have a night to focus on each other and our marriage
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Another 106 degree day of weather here! We are handling it most days fine by keeping the coolers on or spending the afternoon in our one room with air-conditioning. But, it wears on the body to keep fighting to stay cool so we often are exhausted. Jamin and Reese love their bath times since it give them time to cool down. Here is Jamin wishing for a bath...

I have been so terrible in keeping this blog up to date as of the past few months - hopefully tho i'll do better now. We have been back 'overseas' for about 2 months now and getting into the swing of life here.

Jamin is walking all over the place now and turned 1 on Sept.8th! He is so funny and loves to make faces and get everyone else laughing. He has learned to climb and i've been finding him on the coffee table and standing up on chairs. Keeping me busy, but it is so much fun to watch his little personality form that i can not complain one bit!

Reese is now doing school every day. I really can't believe it. We had planned on doing homeschooling with her when the time came and so recently she has been eager to 'do school'! Every morning we sit down together and go through a few books people have given us (because i'm still trying to figure out what i'm going to use curriculum wise), read books together, work on bible memory, sometimes sing, sometimes go into the kitchen and work on a recipe of her choice, etc. She is growing into a beautiful little girl and is such a huge help to me. We have gotten into a good schedule and she happily helps me set and clear the table every meal, keep Jamin away from the ipod dock, pick up her toys and bring Daddy his coffee around 10:00am every morning.

Ben is in love with his job now. He is doing Bible Translation, working with teams to help them translate accurately, checking their translations and helping them understand the original Greek text. It is wonderful that he can do some of his work from home as he often pokes his head out of the office and shares what he has figured out or discovered. I love watching him pour himself into this role God has prepared and equipped him to do.

I have been busy not only with homeschooling Reese, but also hosting the local girls who come to visit us. We serve them food and drink, offer them a place to get out of the hot sun and toys and books to play with. I have also tried to teach them the alphabet etc, but it is alot of work! I have a new Bible Study that God provide for me. I feel so excited about this because this one has some women older than me and I have been feeling the need for some wisdom and godly women to teach me.

Jamin walked into the office while Ben was working and wanted to help Ben for a few moments!

Sorry it has taken so long to update. We are so busy here. It seems as if the world is going at top speed here at my family's house! We have been taking time to go for long walks here in Kankakee with my new (to me) used Maclaren! I had prayed about finding a double stroller and God provided for me over and over again. He is so good to me. Ben has been spending lots of time working on translation stuff, getting ready for the classes he will be teaching when we get back. We are also involved in a short film that my brother and Ben have been working on for over 6 months. They are about to do some shooting and we can't wait to see how it all works out.

I have so many pics and can't wait to show you all how much fun we are having. In the mean time thanks for keeping up with us and praying for us. We never expected to be here in the states right now but are thanking God every day for this gift - this time of rest and time with family. He is so good to us!

Hi friends! We traveled back to the States one week ago today. My sister Lib was such an amazing help as we had to travel about 15 hours by air. Both kids did really well and we were so glad to get 'home' to America! Our first stop was Panera Bread to have some coffee and bagels. We missed bagels!!

We spent a few days sleeping of the jet lag and filling our tummies in Kankakee with my family. It is so wonderful to be back with my parents, brothers and sisters. I have missed them so much! But, one of the best things about those first few days was the rain. Reese had a blast getting soaked, watching the rain and using the umbrella.

Now we are in Phoenix with Ben's family. Our objective here is to get doctors visits in and shopping done. There are lots of things we have been waiting to buy and so it's going to be fun. Tonight we are going out to dinner with the grandparents at P.F. Changs. We are so looking forward to it!

Our days are numbered as we get ready to go back to the States! One week and counting till the day we fly out. God is so good. I never expected that we would be able to go home this year, but He is so merciful and loves to give good gifts to His children. We will be in Phoenix with Ben's family for about 3 weeks in June and then with my family in Chicago for about 6 weeks. Reese has been telling us how much she misses Grandma and Grandpa and so we know that she is ready for this trip too!

This past week we took Lib to the beach. It turned out to be really fun especially with the sandy popcorn and muffins Jamin provided us with! Both kids loved playing in the water, Reese to much, as we had to constantly tell her to come back to us. And Jamin just crawled through the sand and into the water without realizing how close his little head is to the ground! Oh, well... We got some good video which Ben is going to use for our next Update Video. This will be episode 8 that will bring everybody up to speed visually on our last year.

This year has been a good and busy year. How did the time fly by so fast? I say over and over every day how I can't believe how Jamin is growing. He is so cute, I just can't stand it most days. He gets kisses all day long and chased around the house. Can you fall more in love with your kids? I feel like they have become so more precious to me than ever before. God has been so good!

Elizabeth made it safely here last week! What a huge blessing to have her visiting. We have been eating yummy treats that she brought us like granola bars and almonds and catching up on reading the magazines she brought. My mom sent Reese and Jamin some new books and they have been so excited to read read read.

Small commercial! There is no library where we are living and especially nothing for our kids. This sure makes it hard for kids and moms when we have to read the same 10 books over and over again. So, a few friends and I have been trading our kids books back and forth. That was a great idea until we all kind of exhausted them too! I have a vision... a solution to it. Start my own library for the other moms and their kids in the area. We would all benefit, especially the homeschooling moms, from a quiet room with couches, rugs and piles of books. My plan is to have anyone interested in donating used books for our library send them to a central location in the states and have them brought over here when there is extra luggage weight available. My vision is to get small groups, bible studies, youth groups, and homeschool groups exited and eager to help collect books for us. I'll keep you posted on how it all pans out!

In the mean time, here are a few photos. This is me with my Pumpkin Fudge! Ben made it for me for Mother's Day and it was overwhelmingly wonderful. I was amazed that it set so beautifully and only he knows how much I LOVE pumpkin fudge!