With Love from Ukraine...

what did you say?!

2012-02-06T22:22:00.000+03:00

Did you ever speak "pig latin" as a kid? You know, the "language game" where you take the first letter away from a word, add it to the end of the word and say "ay" with it. (For example, my name would become "olene-Jay.") I played this with my friends and cousins as a kid, and it made me feel smart... like I really knew another language. It sounded so foreign and was just silly, childish fun!

Fast-forward to the adult years and sitting in language school. Let me tell ya, the process of learning a language is not that simple! In fact, the teachers in our language school did not even speak English. (Unless you want to count the word "adjective," that they mispronounced.)

So, how do you go about learning a foreign language when you can not even understand your teacher? From experience, I can tell you that it is complicated!

As a continuation of this series The Missionary Wife's Perspective, I want to list some things I have thought, observed, and taken note of in the last ten years on this topic. These thoughts are not words of wisdom, by any means. They are just a recording of a missionary wife's perspective on surviving learning a new language.

1. How many of our supporters and prayer partners give much thought to the need of the missionary to learn a language? If you silently agreed with me that you are in that category, I can assure you that I was there at one time too. When I thought of becoming a missionary, I thought that language learning would go a lot like this:

Bible college? Check.
Deputation? Check.
Airline tickets? Check.
Learn the language? Check.

It wasn't until I was "in the trenches" that I realized how many missionaries get stuck on that last point. A surprising number of missionaries never do really learn the language of their people. This point alone is such a source of discouragement, that many have packed up their bags and gone home, feeling like failures for never truly adapting to their field. So heartbreaking!

2. To me it seems that the missionary's wife usually faces the biggest discouragement in the area of language learning. This is especially true if she has little ones at home to care for, or if she is homeschooling. While her husband is out mingling with the people, she is home and unable to see much progress in her own language development.

3. For us, we feel it is better to learn a language from someone who does not know your native language. Now, I could have really argued this case with you years ago whenever I truly thought our teachers needed to know English in order to explain themselves to me. However, I have since come to see the benefit of being forced to understand them.

4. Spend your first year on the field dedicated full-time to language learning. Don't jump with two feet first into the ministry that first year (just "one foot" is sufficient in the beginning). The results will be so much better in the long run. We were advised to do this and are so grateful!

5. I remember our first few weeks in Ukraine, sitting in a park, observing people speak Russian. We just could not believe how beautiful the girls were... until they opened their mouths and started speaking. Russian sounded gutteral and harsh to us back then. Obviously, we don't think that anymore now that we speak it. I remember wondering how difficult it must be for mothers to comfort their babies with such rough words. And how did boyfriends propose to their girlfriends with gentleness?! [On the other hand, ask a foreigner what they think English sounds like, and you just might be amused to hear their answer!]

6. What is the hardest language in the world to learn? The one you are studying, of course! I checked with Wikipedia, and their experts claim these languages to be the hardest to learn: Arabic, Cantonese, Mandarin, Japanese, and Korean. I'm pretty sure that Russian was supposed to make that list!

7. Any missionary can tell you that, over time, we seem to forget some of our own native tongue. Not only do I find myself grasping for the right word in Russian, but when I visit "back home," I find myself drawing a blank when I'm looking for the right word in English! Apparently our brain storage for language capacity can only hold so many file folders per language!

8. Learning a new language can be very humbling. Here you are an adult, trying to speak, and you can almost feel someone reach out and pat your head with a sympathetic "good girl, at least you are trying" touch. Just like a baby, you are starting at the bottom, and unfortunately, for even the smartest students (which is not me!), there is the "toddler stage" that we all have to go through. Stringing three or four words together and hoping with all of your heart that they formed an intelligent thought is completely normal!

9. You will never speak with your family the same way. Your words and sentences will always be sprinkled with "flavors" from both languages. How much richer your vocabulary becomes when you have more than one "language dictionary" to choose from!

9. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. For every new word you learn or for every grammatical ending you learn to say correctly, you are that much better because of it. So, little mama who is at home with her little ones most of the day, baby steps are steps. Don't give up! Nearly 10 years into this journey, I am still learning. Like learning to play the piano, it is a long process and we all have different rates at which we learn.

10. Being that "little mama" at home, I learned to face the fact that my home situation was not going to change. I am going to be needed at home for many, many years; therefore, language school was only an option for me for a short while. But, I learned to overcome this setback in a different way. I hired a young lady to come to my home (one who did not know English) and work in the house with me and talk to me as we worked. (The key here is that she is not a maid, but rather someone to work and fellowship with. Busy mamas do not have time to "just" sit and study, but this method is so much more effective anyway.) "This is a broom and right now we are sweeping the floor." "This dough needs to rise for 30 minutes." These are the types of conversations that have taught me to speak Russian.

11. Some of the very dearest friendships I have in this world are with those who do not speak English. All of our conversations take place completely in Russian. And my life is so.much.richer because of these friendships. Was it worth those long, frustrating hours of learning? Oh, you better betcha!

12. When I am "back home," I now have my own secret language. No more childish pig latin for me.... I can speak a real, foreign language! And, best yet, I can share the Gospel in another language!

So, prayer partner, pray fervently for your missionaries who are learning a foreign language. And missionaries, don't get discouraged, even if your language was not on Wikipedia's list either. {smile}

You can do it!

A Balancing Act {with video}

2012-02-02T23:38:00.001+03:00

One thing that we have always rejoiced about is the fact that we live in southern Ukraine. Even if you are living in a northern country, if you are living in the south of that northern country, you are bound to have the warmest weather that is possible there!

Since we are on a peninsula, we have always referred to our area as the "Florida" of Ukraine. Okay, so our weather is definitely not Florida weather, but it does have a nice sound to it. Our village has also been jokingly named "The Bahamas." With those names tagged to us, it sounds like we are living in the tropics, don't ya think?

Nonetheless, we are still pretty north in this world, which means we get cold winters. (See the comparison between Ukraine and the US/Canada in the map above? Hopefully this will give you a clearer picture of how north we are.) And yesterday, our high temperatures were still below zero fahrenheit!

{Below} See the snow/ice around the inside of our front door?!

It has been a balancing act for hubby to keep our home warm. In a village with low electricity, no gas, and the prices to fill a gas butane tank being very high, he has had to get smart. So, what do we do? We use a little of each of our resources!

{Below} These butane tanks are filled with gas and used to heat our bedrooms. Because this is the most expensive route for heating, we keep these on very, very low.

{Below} Water heater under the window. We have one of these in each of our three bedrooms.

{Below} Hubby keeps our wood-burning stove going at all times of the day. He keeps a pile of cut wood in our garage and brings it in as he needs it, allowing time for the moisture to dry out of the wood. He gets up throughout the night to make sure the fire does not die out, and we are ever so grateful for his hard work!

{Below} The floors in our main room are heated by water pipes running underneath the tiles. The heat in them is produced by electricity. We have learned that our home gets/stays the warmest when these tiles are working on high energy. Since our electricity in this village is quite low, we allot as much electricity as possible to keep the floors running on high. This means that we are only able to run one appliance other than the refrigerator. So, we make choices throughout the day... either the washing machine, the stove, the boiler (to heat water for showers), the microwave, vacuum cleaner, etc... Yes, it is a balancing act and if someone forgets to turn something off before turning something else on, all of the electricity shuts down. But, if we balance it all just right, we are able to keep our house cozy warm!

Normally, the heat from the tiles is sufficient for keeping our main areas warm, but in extremely cold weather like we are having now, we have to burn wood for warmth as well.

We are ever so grateful for a warm home. I am truly thankful for a husband who works all day and even through the night to make sure we are comfortable. And, so far, not one of us even has a cold! How's that for a miracle?!

Speaking of balancing acts, guess who started walking yesterday? Since I am so proud of my just-turned-one-year-old, I wanted to share his first, sweet, tottering steps with you, my friends!

If you are reading this through e-mail or through a reader, click here to see the video.

Cold hands, Warm heart

2012-01-30T22:42:00.001+03:00

Photo Credit

This week we are concentrating on staying warm. Our temperatures this week are in the teens and below.... Yes, even below zero at times.

I'm an Oklahoma girl. Hubby is from Mexico. We've lived here nearly 10 years and still have not "warmed up" to these freezing temperatures. So, please excuse me as I step away from my normal duties to wrap a blanky around my baby and hold him a little closer. And when I'm not doing that, you just might find me at the kitchen sink, enjoying washing dishes with my hands under the hot water. And those layers of clothes you see? In my home, it is quite the modern fashion to wear layers these days... lots and lots of them.

If you could be near us, you just might smell smoke on us.... that woodsy, fireplace smell that emanates from our wood-burning stove.

If you could look in my mug, you just might see and smell coffee or tea with honey.

And, when I go to bed tonight, if you could see me, you would see that I have moved my baby's bed out of his room and into mine, right next to my bed. Gotta be sure he is covered well all night.

Yes, it is cold.

But, I am not worried about us. When I wanna shiver, I think about our church people and wonder if they are warm. Most of them do not have cars, so they trudge through the snow and feel the fierce wind in their faces as they walk to catch a city bus. We lived through that our first year here, and it is not a life of ease.

When your thoughts turn towards your missionaries this month, pray for those in cold countries. And pray for their people that they love so dearly, especially those who do not have all of the modern conveniences.... like vehicles and "warm enough" homes.

Now, time for me to go add some honey to that cup of tea that has been brewing...

A Year Already?!

2012-01-27T11:25:00.001+03:00

Though I can hardly remember what life was like before he came into our lives, it also seems hard to believe that a year has passed since I held him in my arms for the first time.

We started our birthday celebration the evening before the big day, with a meal at McDonald's after church. Our McDonald's here (our only "link" to America in this city) was recently remodeled. It was a 2.5 million dollar project that boasts its splendid luxury. This two-story fast food restaurant looks like it dropped out of the sky and landed next to our city train station. It is quite a treat to eat here, and it is family tradition that we go to McDonald's for each child's birthday.

{Below} First french fry from Daddy. I can promise you we do not normally feed our babies this type of food. He probably will not get another french fry until his 2nd birthday! But, a birthday is a birthday, and we all need to splurge a little...

{Below} And, just to prove his transition into "toddler-hood," he made us a pretty little mess to clean up when we got home.

{Below} Micah's gift from his Mimi, who faithfully sends a little shopping money for each of her grandbabies on their birthdays.

{Below} The "binky cutting ceremony." When our Brianna turned one, we cut the rubber off of her binkies and this has now turned into a tradition for the babies in our home. Before you think we are too terribly mean, remember that Micah does not even know it is his birthday!

{Below} Binkies all ready to be thrown away. Micah did have a super fun time playing with them before they were tossed!

{Below} Always the center of our attention and love, this child never lacks for a playmate!

{Below} Who knew that carrot cake could make such a good track for a toy motorcycle?!

{Below} Then, off to the bathroom to meet Daddy and the hair clippers

{Below} Those sweet, sweet curls that I twirled round and round my fingers countless days and nights will be missed.... Oh, so missed....

My big boy is growing and joining the ranks of being a kid, right along with his brothers and sister.

Happy Birthday, my sweet baby boy! No matter how old you get, you'll always be my baby.

Giveaway at cotton+wood

2012-01-24T01:02:00.000+03:00

Do you like to sew? I do... but mostly in my dreams since most of my time is spent {joyfully} being a Mommy! Maybe if I had more time to sew, I would have curtains in my living room by now.

My friend Rebecca from cotton+wood has a fabric giveaway that you will not want to miss if you are a seamstress!

I know Christmas is long over, but sweet Rebecca interviewed me on her blog last month about our Christmas traditions and memories. You can read that interview by clicking here. I love being considered Rebecca's friend! And, I love her beautiful blog design. Isn't it just pretty?!

Head on over to cotton-wood to enter this fun giveaway. Hope you win!

Grab my button!

2012-01-23T01:02:00.000+03:00

I have been blogging for nearly three years and have just now added a button to my blog! {blush} The only reason I was able to get around to it was that hubby is gone... again. Yep, he has headed back to our capitol city on the train to pick up my passport, so the kiddos and I are home alone for two nights. Yes, this is definitely one of the downsides to the mission field.... separation due to paperwork. Sigh.

So, now that I have just made you aware that my blog has been missing something, would it surprise you to know that I still do not have curtains in my living room either? Hmmm... must be a connection somewhere...
So, back to this handy dandy button of mine. I sure would be tickled pink if you (my blogging buddies) would add it to your sidebar and then leave me a comment to let me know did.

Snow Fun!

2012-01-21T00:40:00.006+03:00

One thing about living in Ukraine is... we're always guaranteed beautiful, white snow! The last couple of years (with building our home), we have SURVIVED it. This year, now that our house is sufficiently sealed off and heated, we are ENJOYING it!

{Below} Snowflakes in Micah's hair and on his eyelashes. Pure sweetness.

{Below} Our kids built a snowman at church with their friends, and Davey sacrificed his scarf and hat for his "new friend"

{Below} At home in our backyard

{Below} Micah watching from the window, in the warmth of his home and jammies

{Below} Beautiful, pudgy fingers

{Below} Ever been clobbered by snowballs and laughed through the whole process? Micah has!

{Below} No winter is complete without homemade snow ice cream! You can find the recipe we use by clicking here.

PLAYING IN THE SNOW

Look outside the window here, the snow fell deep last night

Let's get our coats and mittens on, and have a snowball fight

We'll build a fat and jolly friend, who'll watch us as we play

We'll even dare to take a ride, on grandpaw's wooden sleigh

We'll make some angels in the snow, and sing the carols sweet

We'll make ourselves some sugar ice, it's grandmaw's favorite treat

We'll end the day inside again, around that glowing fire

We'll sip the eggnog Sister makes, and then we'll all retire

But while we're all so fast asleep, the dreams will start to flow

With memories of the day that we, went playing in the snow

Author Unknown

Popsy's Last Prayer Letter

2012-01-17T12:16:00.004+03:00

"Popsy," as he was lovingly called by his family and friends, surrendered his life to the Lord and went to the mission field at the age of 44. The year was 1960. He had pastored the Bible Baptist Church in Waxahachie, Texas, for eight years and then surrendered to give his life to missions. He went to Monterrey, Mexico, with four children. No mission board would accept him because he was, in their words, "too old." This determined man, knowing God had called him, went anyway.

Popsy was the first of three generations now serving in missions. Three of his children followed his leading and returned to Mexico as missionaries with their own families. (His fourth child has bravely served our country in the Air Force and is one of hubby's heroes.... and he should be since hubby is named after him!)

Now, twelve of their grandchildren, along with their families, are also serving as missionaries throughout the world. (My hubby is one of those twelve.) Makes me wonder if Popsy really was "too old" to become a missionary?!

{Below} Mt. Hebron Baptist Church (choir pictured), started by Popsy and continued by his son Tommy.

{Below} Mt. Hebron Bible Baptist Institute, which Popsy started in 1963.

A missionary friend recently sent us a copy of Popsy's last prayer letter, which was written just a few months before his death. I have retyped the letter (below it's picture), and I hope that it blesses you as much at it has blessed us. What a privilege to be a part of this amazing heritage!

February 19, 1990

Dear Friends,

I feel impressed to dictate this letter to you this morning, to be mailed after the Lord takes me home. By the time this reaches you I will have seen the Glory of the Lord, walked on streets of gold, with not a tumor in nor on my body, no swollen leg, no hemorrhaging, no pain and no crippled arm!

I want to let you know that only through God and His impressing you (then your submission to Him) to support the work of Mount Hebron, there have been thousands of souls saved and hundreds of preachers sent to all parts of Mexico to fulfill the Great Commission.

I feel the responsibility to let you know how much I appreciate the faith and trust you put in me to so graciously and sacrificially support the work through almost 30 years in Mexico. All work at Mount Hebron will continue, your work will continue. God has given me children and a wife who have a heart for the work equally as I.

Through the years, God has blessed the work, I believe, because of the confidence and unity of our friends and Mount Hebron. I do appreciate everything so much. Only God knows the true results of your and our labours together. There have been many valleys but we always seemed to be higher after we came through. I have no doubt but you who have sacrificed will have a great reward in heaven.

I am asking that you please continue your support to Mount Hebron. The obligations and responsibilities for my boys and wife will not decrease at my passing.

The support will be handled by my wife with help and counsel of pastor friends and, of course, our sons.

With this request I must say, "I'll meet you in the morning." Philipians 4:17 and Romans 8:28. May God richly bless you is my prayer. Please keep up the good work. "It has been worth it all."

Your former missionary to Mexico,

Dr. L.H. Ashcraft

Popsy met his Creator, his Saviour, his Father on March 11, 1990. His beautiful wife, lovingly called "Mimi," joined him March 14, 1996.

Oh, how I pray that the Lord would find us faithful too! That we could serve Him 30+ years and say, like Popsy said it so well, "It has been worth it all!"

{Below} This video (narrated by Jonathan Ashcraft, Popsy's grandson) gives a much better description of Popsy and the work that has continued years after his Home-going. I hope it will encourage you as much as it has encouraged me!

(For those reading this post through a reader, click here to see this video on YouTube.)

To Sheila Campbell's prayer team:

2012-01-12T12:47:00.003+03:00

Many have asked for an update, and I'm thrilled! It means you are praying with me for a missionary mom in need!

Here is an update from yesterday from Sheila's sister Angie:

Update on Sheila Campbell: So far so good, Sheila had the bone marrow transplant today. The next month or so will be critical to find out if the transplant takes and for Sheila to not get sick! Her immune system is non existent at this point. Thank you so much Christina for undergoing the pain to be a donor for our Sister!!! Please pray for Christina as she recovers from the procedure today! Sheila will be taking approx. 27 different meds. and going to Johns Hopkins every day for the next month or two for many different procedures including 2 more very strong chemos and hopefully that will be it for the Chemotherapy. Thanks everyone for your prayers on our families behalf!

27 different medications?! Going to the hospital every day for up to two months?! And, wow... makes me wonder if I am the kind of friend that would do something like Christina has done for Sheila. Like you, I would certainly hope that about myself.

Some have asked how I know Sheila. We graduated from the same college, Oklahoma Baptist College, though she finished a few years before I did. When I was still in high school she worked as a secretary in our school office and always had a sweet smile for everyone.

I'm still praying for Sheila and will pray until I'm told Sheila is fully healthy again. And even then, we'll keep praying for this missionary family and their work in the Philippines. Will you do the same, friends?

Uncertain times {update}

2012-01-10T23:28:00.002+03:00

I have been humbled by the many of you that have written to ask about our visa situation and what the future holds for us here in Ukraine. I posted one time about it, and countless of you took me very seriously. I am just so grateful for that, too!

The short answer is, there is no answer yet.

Hubby left on an overnight train last night to begin the first step of our process, that of renewing my passport. My passport does not expire until June or July (sorry, I forgot which), but to renew a visa, the passport has to have at least 6 months of "life" on it for the new visa. After spending the day at the American Embassy, hubby is on the train again tonight, returning home. In 10 days or so, he will make the 12-hour trip back to the capital city of Kiev to pick up my passport. [Have I ever confessed on here that I really don't like it when hubby is gone? I just really love being around that man!]

The next step in this paperwork process is being invited by an established organization (which, for us, will be our church here, Simferopol Baptist Church). Then, that invitation will have to be approved. It seems the problem that we might be facing right now is that this region of our country is seemingly not wanting to accept any invitations. No invitation = No visa.

It is really too early to know our fate yet. We have until March on our current visas and are redeeming our time here. We are already gearing up for our annual married couples' Valentine's Day banquet! I always love celebrating with my Love and the sweet couples in our church.

The positive side to this entire issue is that, after leaving Ukraine in March (we'll just be visiting a neighboring country long enough to officially leave the country.... we're thinking Italy {sounds exotic, doesn't it?!}) we can come back in for three months just as tourists, no matter what the outcome on our visas is.

And, maybe by then, the laws will have changed (in our favor) again.

Please know, that for each pray that is offered on our behalf, I am sincerely grateful.

Update on Sheila Campbell...

2012-01-09T23:36:00.000+03:00

Remember my prayer request for Sheila Campbell three months ago? Sheila, a missionary's wife, had to leave her beloved mission field of the Philippines with her family because she was diagnosed with Stage 4 lymphoma cancer. Tomorrow is an important day for this dear family.

Here is a Facebook message Sheila wrote to her friends last week:

My dearest friends, I know it has been so long since I have written on here but I want you all to know that each and every post has been deeply appreciated by me. I could never even begin to express how much of a blessing and encouragement your love and prayers have been to me this past year. It has not been an easy journey and I know the road ahead will not be easy either but I believe that God is in control and I also believe that your prayers have carried me through so far. I had another catheter placed in my chest on Wednesday and I began pre-transplant chemo that day - I will have chemo until Monday and then have total body radiation. The transplant is scheduled for Tuesday. The doctors have told me that the next few months will be tough so I am asking for your continued prayers. Please also pray for my boys the next few months as I will be in Baltimore and not able to be around them for some time. I love you all and I pray God will bless each of you who have reached out to me through your posts, notes and most especially your prayers on my behalf.

Makes our own problems seem so small, doesn't it?

Sheila's transplant (that she mentions above) is tomorrow. Will you join me in praying for a missionary mom in need?

Beautiful Brianna

2012-01-06T11:28:00.000+03:00

My one and only daughter.

My very best girlfriend in all the world.

I prayed she would be beautiful.

And God answered my prayers.

An unforgettable Christmas

2012-01-03T20:02:00.001+03:00

Yes, Christmas 2011 was a day we will not forget for a long time. The flu hit our family strong and hard, and right in the midst of gift-giving, we were taking breaks to take care of weak, vomiting children. Icky, I know. I don't even like typing it. Momma was sick too, so our hero Daddy bravely fought this battle alone. So do you just postpone Christmas until everyone gets well? Nope. Not at all. Even through their foggy sense of reality, these kids knew this was THE day to find out what was hiding behind all of that pretty wrapping paper.

{Below} Notice poor Nate lying on the couch... I can pretty much tell you for sure that Daddy was helping a poor, sick Brianna in the bathroom at this moment. Ugh!

{Below} Everyone is back and ready to get started...

{Below} Hubby's traditional reading of Luke 2 about God's gift, His Son, is the way we kick off "gift time."

{Below} Each year, a dear supporting church sends a Christmas box months in advance. The gifts inside are already wrapped and labeled and have been chosen specifically from a wish list we are asked to write out.

{Below} Once again, our supporting church has outdone themselves!

{Below} Each person in our family received two gifts in our Christmas box... These are the second gifts. Once again, Brianna received some more furniture to go in her Fisher Price Loving Family doll house. I'm pretty convinced that Brianna's doll house has more modern conveniences than I have in my real house!

{Below} The next half of these pictures are of our gifts to each other. Don't you just love to see what other people got? I do! We told our children that this year they would each get a "big" gift from Daddy and Mommy in addition to their stockings full of "little gifts." We really splurged on Micah's "big" gift as you can see here...

{Below} And, true to baby fashion, he likes the wrapping more than the gift itself!

{Below} Brianna recently outgrew her favorite dress of all time... a dress that had a matching doll dress. For Christmas, we had a seamstress in our church make her a new set, made out of red curdoroy. This was her "big" gift.

{Below} Nate's "big" gift was a new chair for school! Even as sick as he was, he could not contain a big smile at his excitement!

{Below} And Davey got one too! (Thank you, Mimi, for helping us buy these chairs... they were actually pretty much from YOU.)

{Below} We obviously had a chair theme going this year, because this was my gift from hubby... a new chair for my desk! Yes, we definitely had a lack of seating in our house and were constantly lugging chairs all over the house for school, meals, and office time. Problem solved now! (And another big thank you to Bro. Larry and Mrs. Vicki for the Christmas money you sent that helped us get this beautiful chair. I love it!)

{Below} My gift to hubby: a couple of books and the DVD Gifted Hands. David read the book Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story as a young boy and has always admired this man who grew up in a single-parent home and went on to become the first surgeon to successfully separate Siamese twins.

{Below} Stocking time!

{Below} "Kinder Eggs" are a popular treat on our side of the world that our kids love. They are hollow chocolate eggs (the size of a real egg) with a surprise plastic egg inside that opens to reveal a small toy. We found these jumbo-sized ones made especially for the holidays, and our kids were thrilled to see how huge they are!

{Below} The after-the-gift-opening mess, with each child busy with their new, fun surprises

Wow! We have so much to be thankful for! We spent Christmas 2010 in America since our Micah was nearly ready to be born then. Two years ago, we were home and the backdrop to our Christmas tree in our living room was gray concrete slabs and sheet rock. We have come a long way since that time!

When your whole family is sick like we were the week of Christmas, let me tell ya...

there's no place like HOME!

Bookmarks for Mimi!

2011-12-30T11:02:00.000+03:00

Today is my mother-in-law's birthday. So what kind of gift can the grandkids give their Mimi when she lives 7,100 miles away from them? Picture bookmarks!

This is another idea I saw on Pinterest and just knew I had to do. You can click here to see the original idea. You can also use this idea and make some fun magnets for your refrigerator, which I haven't tried... yet.

First of all, I took pictures of the kids and had them pretend they were holding onto a rope. This didn't take much persuasion at all. They were more-than-willing little actors and enjoyed coming up with their own poses. In fact, I later had so many pictures it was difficult to decide between them all. However, I ended up trying to choose three different, unique poses for each child.

Our nearly 11-month old baby was the most difficult to pose since he doesn't sit still for long. It is challenging to take a picture of him that doesn't turn out blurry since he is a man-on-the-move. We finally decided to sit him in the bathtub (to corral him) and hold a toy over his head. This was the result:

I then cut the pictures out and made a little customized flower pot for the baby, so that he did not look like his body was cut off. This worked out well!

I then had the pictures laminated at our local ~~Kinko's~~ printing shop, cut 'em out again, cut little holes in 'em, and added some beautiful rope-like string I already had.

{Below} And, here they are, lying in a Bible opened to our Mimi's favorite Bible verse, Nahum 1:7.

{Below} Our three silly big kids, excited to send their creations to their Mimi.

{Below} Brianna, signing her Mimi's birthday card

We love you, Mom, and hope these little bookmarks bring you many smiles, delight, and pleasure to your daily morning Bible-reading time!

Happy Birthday!

Christmas 2011 at Simferopol Baptist Church

2011-12-26T23:45:00.002+03:00

(All thanks to the Van Sants for these pictures. We were in church Christmas day, but with sick children; therefore, taking pictures was not on my list of priorities!)

In deaf church...

{Below} Deaf pastor, Slava, preaching

{Below} Signing/singing "Silent Night"

{Below} Deaf children (with their families) receiving presents

And in hearing church...

{Below} Receiving gifts!

Doesn't it just feel right to be in God's house on Christmas Day?!

Tour My Home - part 8: {main area}

2011-12-21T00:57:00.003+03:00

Part 1 {The outside}

Part 2 {Garage entryway}

Part 3 {Brianna and Micah's Room}

Part 4 {Main bathroom}

Part 5 {Master bedroom}

Part 6 {Master bathroom and closet}

Part 7 {Boys' bedroom}

Welcome to... the grand finale! This last area, the main area, consists of our living room, kitchen, dining room, and office space. In reality, this living space is the whole second half of our house, and I am showing it all to you in one post!

I don't think you will ever know how much we sacrificed to get to this point in our home. (You can actually see a little of it here and here.) But, let me tell ya... it was worth it. We scrounged and saved to get to this point, and are now enjoying the benefits.

{Below} I am standing in the door of Brianna and Micah's room, taking this picture. If you turn right, you will be heading out the back door. If you turn left, you will find the master bedroom and both bathrooms. But, since we've already been to those spaces, let's walk straight ahead!

{Below} Welcome to our big, open space! I timed this post just right so that you could see it decorated for the holidays.

{Below} That door to the right leads to our boys' bedroom...

{Below} Since we do not have dryers in Ukraine, many people have asked where I hang our clothes during the winter.... Here is your answer... (Yes, I would prefer that they be hidden in a bedroom somewhere, but I don't like the mugginess it creates. They dry faster out in the open, and we hardly notice them anymore.)

{Below} This is hubby's desk. I also want you to notice the picture hanging on the wall, which is what we gave him for Father's Day this year. Love it!

{Below} This is my desk which sometimes has a laptop setting on it (when hubby hasn't taken it to the church to work).

{Below} My view from the kitchen sink. I see nearly everything that goes on in my home (but my kids still think I have eyes in the back of my head... LOL!

{Below} No such thing as dishwashers here, so are you wondering where I put my clean, wet dishes to dry? Wonder no more.... See that drying rack that is disguised as a drawer? Pretty smart invention, eh?

{Below} You might remember our wood-burning stove that faithfully kept us warm our first two winters in this home. We are actually thinking of selling it now! Our tile floors are heated, and now that we have worked the kinks out, we love them. The only heat we have in this entire area comes from the floors, and we stay cozy warm this way. Gotta see (feel) it to believe it!

{Below} See that hole in the ceiling? One day we dream of building a wooden staircase in that wide, open area that will lead to the attic. And, in the attic, we plan to build our three boys a big bedroom!

{Below} Since hubby and I both play the piano, having a piano in our home was a very high priority. I am teaching all three of our oldest children, and when they "outgrow" me, we will find them a "real" piano teacher.

{Below} Looking back to Brianna and Micah's room (left) and the main bathroom (right)

Left to finish in this room:

* Baseboards

* Staircase

* Curtains

* Large, area rug for living room

* Light fixtures in several sections of this area

* Office cabinets and bookcases to replace the two desk (and our big boys will get the desk for their homeschooling spaces to replace their tables.)

* Decorate, decorate, decorate....! I still have all kinds of decorating dreams for this room... But, one day at a time...

So, that about wraps it up! I really hope that you enjoyed this "Tour My Home" series. I enjoyed having you come along. Do you feel like you know us better now?

God has been so good to us! Even though we have seemingly made many sacrifices by leaving our comforts back home, the Lord has provided for us in great, big ways that we do not deserve. Yes, we have had to be smart with our decisions and spending, but that is no different than if we lived anywhere else in this world.

Thank you, Lord, for this beautiful home You have given me. And thank you, hubby, for seeing your dream of providing me my first OWN home ever fulfilled.

I am forever grateful.

Family Christmas pictures 2011

2011-12-15T11:32:00.000+03:00

In America, having family pictures printed as Christmas cards has been popular for years. But, that is something that is not done here in Ukraine yet. Since I love all things "picture," I have been thinking about making up my own.

Until I discovered Pinterest and came across this idea...

And, since one idea breeds another, I immediately knew I wanted to do this for Christmas and thought, "Candy canes instead of tootsie pops sure would be PERFECT!" The only problem is, we do not have candy canes here. No problem, then. Ukrainians don't associate candy canes with Christmas anyway!

I got started on my project right away. We haven't worn short sleeves here in a couple of months, so you can see that this picture (below) was not recent.

Then, I uploaded my picture to the amazing online photo-editing program Picnik. I enhanced the colors, added festive hats, "snow" (do you think they will believe it was snowing while my kids were wearing short sleeves?!), and a frame. Then, I added the Russian text (Merry Christmas and Happy New Year) through another program [from Paint.net that is downloaded to my computer] since the online program Picnik does not type Russian text. And there you have it! (below)

Still not done, though. Then, we bought lots of little suckers...

I got an X-acto knife, ruler, and old cutting board...

...cut around Nate's hand and added a sucker!

And here it is, all complete!

When I finish this project, I will have enough to give each family in our church here on Christmas Day!

So, there you have it... our version of a family Christmas card to give out this year. Thoughtful, inexpensive, easy, and just down-right fun! I mean, who doesn't love to receive candy from cute, smiling kids?!

Good News from a Far Country

2011-12-12T11:50:00.001+03:00

As cold waters to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country. Proverbs 25:25

Growing up in a missions-minded church, I often heard this verse quoted as it pertained to encouraging missionaries. "Write your missionaries an uplifting letter. This will help the missionary like cold water quenches the thirst of a man in a desert."

As a teenager, I remember having contests in our youth group, and for each letter we sent to a missionary during that contest, we received points to win a prize. I wrote letters until my hands ached, trying to write as many of our 300+ missionaries as possible! I never accomplished the goal of writing every single one, but I can guarantee you that I showed up to church with a stack of letters to proudly turn in that I had painstakingly spent many hours writing.

Click here to join me at Baptist Missionary Women to read the rest of this post... (written especially for missionary ladies)

Tour My Home - part 7: {boys' bedroom}

2011-12-09T23:19:00.001+03:00

Part 1 {The outside}

Part 2 {Garage entryway}

Part 3 {Brianna and Micah's Room}

Part 4 {Main bathroom}

Part 5 {Master bedroom}

Part 6 {Master bathroom and closet}

(Below) Enter at your own risk... You have been warned!

Welcome to Davey's (age 9) and Nate's (age 7) room! This is a very small space, but one we hope they will live in for only a couple of more years. The big future plan is to one day build a big room in our attic that all three of our boys will share. For now, this is their happy space:

(Below) This is Davey's bed and desk. When we bought his bed, we had no furniture at all for him. This all-in-one bed answered all of our needs at once, providing us a place to store all of his clothing, books, and toys.

(Below) This is Nate's bed that we bought when he was just a baby. Hubby's mom was coming to visit us from Mexico {yay!}, and we needed a place for her to sleep. We already had Davey's bed, but we did not want her climbing up it. So, we bought this bed for Nate prematurely, and it now has very special memories attached to it!

(Below) I found these fabric boxes at Target several years ago for $1 each and brought them to Ukraine with us. They are the perfect solution for storing small toys such as cars, blocks, army men, etc...

(Below) And this is where our Davey (4th grader) homeschools each day. (He homeschools using A Beka DVDs - which is why he gets a TV in school!)

(Below) I labeled this picture to show you where the boys' room is located in relation to the rest of the house.

(Below) A fairly new feature to our home are these shelves in the boys' closet. We had them put in at the same time we had our master closet built. They are one of my favorite things about this room!

(Below) I still need to add some pictures to the walls. Recently I found this picture on Pinterest which is the perfect solution. Everything about it is perfect.... the words AND the colors! I look forward to eventually having it printed, framed, and mounted.

Left to do in this room:

1) Closet doors

2) Finish decorating

3) One day I'd love to replace the carpet. The carpet that is currently in this room was leftover from a previous apartment and it is actually too small for this space. We were able to hide part of the problem with the beds, but if you look closely you can also see where we had to add a strip of different carpet in the doorway. (However, this problem is not too big on our list of priorities.)

Next (and last room) to this tour.... the BIGGIE, coming up next! The last room will include our living room, dining area, kitchen, and office space... which are all in one big area. Can't wait to show it to you, especially since it is all decorated for Christmas right now!

How Can We Pray for You?

2011-12-05T19:44:00.000+03:00

Ever wondered how to pray for a missionary? Then, this post is for you! Over the past few years of traveling and attending Missions Conferences, I picked up some prayer sheets and thought I would share them with you. Here are some great plans that these churches came up with that I hope are helpful...

Prayer Sheet Option #1:

Difficulties To Pray For In Missionary Work

1. Distance: Of Travel To The People

a. Airplanes - mechanics

b. Boats - wisdom in navigation

c. Foot - shoes and boots

d. Trucks - tires and engines

2. Deception: And Savage Manner of Living

a. Pressure of being out of place

b. Pressure of living in an ungodly society

3. Disasters: In Learning The Language

a. Learning culture behind the language

b. Proper vocabulary

4. Doubt: And Disbelief Of God's People

a. In giving

b. In loving

c. In writing

d. In Visiting

5. Dire Needs: And Necessities Of Life

a. Clean water to drink

b. Supplies

c. Visas

d. Tools

e. Vehicles

f. BURDEN

6. Danger: Of Being Hurt Or Killed

Prayer Sheet Option #2:

How to Pray for Our Missionaries (notice on this one that the first letter of the day corresponds with the first letter of the prayer request)

Sunday - Spiritual life

Monday - Money

Tuesday - Temptation

Wednesday - Witnessing

Thursday - Team members

Friday - Family

Saturday - Safety

Prayer Sheet Option #3:

How To Pray For Your Missionaries

Sunday - Our Relationship With God
a. Personal growth in the Word of God
b. An effective prayer life
c. Sensitivity to the Holy Spirit
d. Empowerment by the Holy Spirit
e. Victory over Satan and the flesh
Monday - Our Physical And Emotional Life
a. Good Health
b. Protection from disease and other hazards
c. Protection from hostile governments, religions, and nationals
d. Safety while traveling on planes, subways, buses, trams, trains, bicycles, taxes, animals, and on foot
e. Deliverance from discouragement, loneliness, and depression
Tuesday - Our Family Life
a. A marriage that is a good testimony to the nationals
b. The children's education
c. The raising and training of the children
d. Strength for the children, especially teenage children, to withstand the world's temptations
e. The children to love the Lord and the ministry
Wednesday - Our Ability to Communicate
a. Good success in language school
b. Ability to communicate God's Word with clarity
Thursday - Our Ministry
a. Boldness to witness
b. Open doors in schools, orphanages, prisons, etc.
c. Wisdom in preaching and teaching
d. Receptive hearts towards our witnessing, teaching, preaching, counseling, discipling, etc.
e. Fruit that will remain
Friday - Our Need For Fellow Workers
a. Nationals to get their hearts stirred for service
b. Christians to surrender to God's call on their lives and come to the field and help us
Saturday - Our Country Of Service
a. Stability in the political realm so we can remain in the country
b. The leadership of the country to allow freedom in the distribution of the Gospel
c. People to have their eyes opened to the deception of their false religion
d. Protection of our country from natural disasters and catastrophes that would kill our people

If you have ever taken time out of your busy schedule to pray for a missionary.... thank you... from the bottom of my heart.

Abigail Miller's music... a family favorite!

2011-12-03T10:50:00.001+03:00

A church that has been very faithful to support our ministry for ten years now is Grace Independent Baptist church in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. {Thank you, friends!} An evangelist family sent out of that church is Paul and Abigail Miller and their nine children (whom we have never met... yet!)

A few months ago, the Millers very graciously sent us the MP3 files to this CD:

I cannot tell you enough how MUCH we have listened to our music from the Millers! Abigail has the voice of an angel... Her music is conservative, Christ-honoring, wholesome, and just beautiful! Our oldest son, Davey, who is 9 years old, listens to Abigail Miller on his MP3 player during our daily "quiet time." It is completely normal to hear him singing the title song "I Can Go In" as he goes about his day. And, I love that! I love to hear my children express the joy of their salvation through song!

Abigail Miller website link

Abigail Miller has her own website with five CDs for sale. Let me encourage you to hop over there and get yourself some good music! You can even download individual songs for just 99 cents.... what a deal! [And, if you're going to just download one... let me strongly encourage you to download "I Can Go In." You'll be glad you did.]

So, even though we have put all of our regular music aside for the holidays (gotta love that Christmas music!), you can still hear Abigail Miller's music splashed in with "Silent Night" and "Joy to the World" in our home this season!

Tour My Home - part 6: {master bathroom & closet}

2011-11-29T22:29:00.001+03:00

Part 1 {The outside}

Part 2 {Garage entryway}

Part 3 {Brianna and Micah's Room}

Part 4 {Main bathroom}

Part 5 {Master bedroom}

I have kept you in suspense, haven't I? It has been awhile since I have given another tour inside of our home, but just look at it this way: You are my guest, and I am doing everything I can to keep you around longer! We don't get too many guests out here in our village!

The next room up is the master bathroom and closet... one of my favorite spaces in all of our home. I love the colors; I love the comfort; and I love that everything in this space is pretty much done! Most of all, though, I LOVE that I always have water now! This is the first time I have been able to confidently say that in all of the years we have lived here in Ukraine. Building your own home with your own well has its advantages, for sure!

{Below} Thought you'd like to see the Russian writing on our bathroom products. Kind of neat to see American products with Russian on them, isn't it?

{Below} That walk-in closet is a dream come true! We had the shelves and rods put in this past March, and let me tell you... I have been in heaven ever since then. Before that, all of our clothes have been stored off and on in Rubbermaid boxes. And, after nearly a decade of doing that, it was getting old. To be honest, it was getting pretty easy to just wear what was folded at the top of the stack because digging through the box and messing everything up just wasn't worth the hassle. So, yes, I'm sure you can see why I am in heaven now!

[And, by the way, we store everything in here... books, school supplies, extra linens & blankets, DVDs, scrapbooking and sewing supplies, etc...]

{Below} Everything is accessible, out in the open, clean and neat.... What more could a gal ask for?

One funny thing about this closet: Our main builder could not understand what this "small room" could possibly be for. He said, "I don't get it. It is too small to be bedroom, and it can't be a bathroom since that is going to be next to it. What could this space be for?" I think I've mentioned before that Ukrainians use wardrobes/armoires instead of built-in closets. I'm sure if he could see how it turned out, he would be pleased!

{Below} My faithful washing machine that keeps purring like a kitty. You can read all about how I do laundry in this post. Not too much has changed since I wrote that post. [No, we still don't have a dryer, though last week I saw one here in our city for the first time ever for sale. And it only cost $2,000! No thank you. Hanging clothes on a rack never looked so good.]

{Below} I brought this laundry organizer back with me from America and it fit in this space like a glove!

{Below} Here is a close-up of the tile. See the pretty flowers that are a part of the design?

Thanks again for stopping by to see my pretty space! One of my friends calls this area my "office." I can see where she gets that... since this is where I usually start and end my day!

Next part of the tour: the boys' room!

Happy Thanksgiving {2011}

2011-11-24T20:49:00.001+03:00

Not our best family picture ever, but.... that's us (and everyone is looking!)... today... wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving! Thank you for faithfully reading this blog, praying for these six little missionaries, and... thank you for making me one happy gal to have YOU as friends!

And how 'bout a sweet smile from my baby-turning-big-boy that is nearly 10 months old? Is it just me, or does that 4-tooth grin make your heart go pitter-patter too?!

Sending Gifts

2011-11-22T00:05:00.001+03:00

Missionaries, I need your help writing this post. Comments are not only welcome, but strongly encouraged!

With the holidays fast approaching, I want to encourage my readers to think about adding a missionary family to their list of "people to shop for" this year. [And, if you add my family's name to that list, friend, I'll never speak to you again....I promise.... This post is not for my family!]

On my recent post Surving the New Adventure, we discussed the missionary families who have been on the field less than five years. Later, I got to thinking about how easy it would be to encourage them during the holidays. So, while you are out shopping over the next couple of weeks {think Black Friday soon}, why not pick up a little something for a missionary and send it? In fact, you can even wait for those mega clearance sales that start up just after Christmas when stores are eager to sell out their leftover holiday goodies at deep discounts. Trust me, missionaries don't mind receiving something from the states.... at any time of the year. {wink}

I hesitate writing this post for fear of sounding like I need a gift {I already have five amazing gifts by the names of hubby, Davey, Nate, Brianna, and Micah... and each are non-returnable. I also have more blessings than I could ever list for you in a lifetime!}. However, I am taking the risk at the chance one of you just might take me up on the offer and decide to send a little love package in the mail to a missionary. And, who knows? That may be just the encouragement they need to show them they are not forgotten!

So, what kinds of things are appropriate for sending a missionary? What kinds of things do they miss? How expensive is it to ship? What about customs costs once they go to the post office to pick up their package? With the help of my missionary friends, we are going to help you out with these questions. [Here's your cue to chime in with your thoughts, missionary friends. Please feel free to correct this list, add to this list, comment, etc.]

Ideas of what to send a missionary family:

1. Think "English"

Most missionaries serve on a field where English is not spoken. This means that things that are in English are a special commodity, such as books, DVDs, CDs, home decor, puzzle books, games, magazines, etc... and are always a welcome gift.

2. Think "personalized"

We have very few items that are personalized with names available in our country, and the items that we occasional find personalized are distinctly Russian names here where we serve. If you know the names of the missionary children, a unique gift from America would be something with their name on it.... pencils, cups, clothing, blankets, stickers, ornaments, etc...

3. Think "lightweight"

It is definitely expensive to send things to another country. If you have ever done it, I can just see you nodding your head in agreement right now. It can be very easy to spend more in shipping than you spent in buying your gift if you are not careful. I won't even start to try listing lightweight things here, but if you can stick with lightweight AND flat, it would be easy to tuck your little gift in a regular envelope to send. This could be very inexpensive! (Think about a package of hot chocolate, a seasoning packet, a package of stickers or baseball cards.)

Here is a link to calculate shipping costs through USPS. But, don't forget to talk with your missionary about other shipping options. Sometimes the missionary is experienced and has found other methods for shipping at less expensive rates than the good 'ole post office offers.

4. Think "American"

Many of the stores and products you see on a regular basis are things missionaries miss the most. Why? Because those things are specifically American products and only sold in America. This may take a little bit of research on your part, but a few ideas might be: Bath & Body Works, Cracker Barrel gift shop, etc...

5. Think "special treats"

I think that most of the time, missionary families miss the tastes of America more than anything. Whatever used to be a favorite snack when a missionary lived in America becomes a craved for, tangible piece of "back home." I loved Reese's peanut butter cups when I lived in America the first 23 years of my life. But now, because we do not have them here in Ukraine, when I eat one I suck on it and let the flavors just ooze slowly down my throat. Honest. They are that good! For my hubby, it is Starbucks coffee beans that he finds pleasure in grinding, then smelling (over and over again), and then slowly drinking. And, for as many missionaries as there exist, there are that many longed-for-"back-home-only" flavors. Don't believe me? Go check out this post at Mrs. JohninGhana where 63 comments were left for a recent giveaway for missionary mamas only. In that post the missionary mamas were asked to leave a comment telling of the best thing they could ever receive in a box from America.

6. Think "Christian"

Basically, anything that you can get at a Christian bookstore is something that most missionaries can not get on their field. Things like Patch the Pirate CDs, Adventures in Odyssey CDs, or any other type of listening pleasure for the children would be fun. Have a favorite Christian DVD? Your favorite missionary family might like a copy too (sometimes, just hearing the English is a pleasure all in itself)! And, of course, great Christian books are always welcome in missionary homes!

7. Think "holiday"

Things that you see all around the grocery store aisles during the holidays are usually not the same things missionaries are seeing in their grocery stores / markets at that time. Think about Valentine candies, Easter bunny chocolates, candy corn at Thanksgiving etc... Most of these traditions are American-only traditions!

I really hope I have inspired you to send a care package soon. If you do, let me know! I'd love to hear about it! And, if you're a missionary, please share...

What would you enjoy receiving in a box from America?

The Work Schedule of a Missionary

2011-11-14T23:18:00.001+03:00

Hubby recently wrote an excellent article for North Valley Baptist Church in Santa Clara, California, to be posted on their North Valley News site. He did an outstanding job, and I wanted to share it with you as well. And, by the way, I cannot say enough great things about our friends out in California who are some of our dearest friends on this earth. {Hi friends, if you're reading!}

So, without further ado, I introduce you to my favorite guest blogger of all time...

One of the challenges of living on the mission field is keeping one’s perspectives in order, never losing sight of what the priorities should be. A possible pitfall for the missionary is that, in contrast to a staff member back in the States, he is his own on-site boss. Though there should be a system of accountability, often this is not the case.

Understanding this dynamic, the missionary would be wise to follow a few principles to ensure that he is being effective on the mission field...

Click here to read more!