Not the best day

Where does this story even start? I guess chronologically, it began at 15. On the back roads of Weld County with my dad repeating (in ever increasing volume) to "stay out of the trash!" Meaning, I like to hug the outside of the road. I have this un-overcome-able fear of getting smashed in the face. Be it by a ball (I can't NOT flinch) or an oncoming car or whatever. Did I mention this has been un-overcome-able?

Now it's day 12 of our fast, day 3 with Justin working on the big island, and our day was stretching out before us with little hope. Ok, that might be a bit dramatic. Anyways, Avery asked if we could go to the beach. I have not taken the girls by myself for 2 reasons. One, the road is rough. Wrench your axle, pop your tire rough. Second, I was leery of being alone at the beach with my girls.

This is what the beach usually looks like during the week. Usually amazing. So the girls beg to go, and I relent. I call Justin to tell him where we're headed and give some nice ladies a lift on the way. Everything is going great. We're cruising through the forest, swerving between trees (I may have forgotten to say I also like to drive fast), fishtailing in the sand just a wee bit and BAM BAM!!! I'd been of course hugging the bushes on the passenger side...where a tree stump was hiding...which removed both side mirrors from the car (there is, well, was a mini one at the front corner) and gouging a cute squiggly line almost the entire length of the car. Of course when I called to tell Justin, he asked how I was going so fast I didn't stop between the 2 mirrors. Ha!

So there we stopped. The girls hopped out and frolicked down into the crystal blue water. I set up our home-base and pulled out a book. Not a soul in sight but a handful of very young boys. And then I see them. A teenager and an early 20 something. They pass by politely. A few minutes later they circle back. Coming behind me...with my eye on them...they approach and I get my first indecent proposal. Needless to say I told them off and we left.

I drove home a little slower, and I will never go to the beach alone again.

Heaven must be something like this...

Team Day last week found us at the local beach (deserted during the week thankfully), basking in glow of the sun, the sky, the water and the laughter tinkling up from the water's edge.
It's a beautiful thing to see your children thriving and growing and laughing and loving.
To hear them pray for the children without beds and mosquito nets at night.
To watch them walk up to an ancient old man wearing full local dress, stick out a pale, tiny hand and attempt to say, "shikamoo", the respectful greeting for elders (said she-kah-mo).

Thanks, Lord, for bringing us here.

On the flip side, this month is Ramadan. The season of fasting. From food, drink, talking badly about others and es-ee-ex. Well, during the daytime anyways. Once the sun sets, all bets are off. Sometimes that is taken to an extreme, negating all the "good" one has done during the day, but who's to say?

We too are fasting this month (a feat never before tackled by yours truly) and praying desperately for God to show Himself to the people here. For His TRUE self to appear in dreams and visions, calling some to Himself. For a gnawing hunger for Truth to eat at the empty stomachs during the day, yet not be sated once night falls. For us to be shining lights drawing others to His LOVE, FORGIVENESS, GRACE and MERCY.

Pray with us, won't you? Pray for strength to keep up with the eating, snacking, drinking children during the day. Pray for cheerfulness beyond circumstances. Pray for purposeful fasting joined with prayer and drawing close to God. Pray that this "holy" month would explode in a miraculous showing of His glory that would truly make this month HOLY!

Thank you! It's awesome to be joined with you across the oceans and continents...through prayer.

The Lighthouse

Built in 1900, this beast is a marvel. A marvel it's still standing that is. But the view? You guessed it: breathtaking!
The stairs are exactly the width of my hips, about 4 inches deep and straight up, up, up. And yes, we did have to troop all 7 children up them to the very top.
The kids loved it, loved the fact that the railings are oh, so much less than safe, loved to look around and see nothing but air, clouds and sunny sky.
And there ends the touristy tour of our little island. Wanna come see it for yourself? Karibu sana! (You are most welcome!)

Shannon's week at a glance

Ups and downs, highs and lows, here's a few: Justin mentioned to a good neighbor friend that he was planning on starting a small chicken farm and was working on a chicken feed from local food. Well, the next day he brought over 3 hens for eggs! So far we think one is laying...occasionally. Justin is building a rockin' coop, with less than rockin' materials, but we make the best of what we've got.
We brought home some Kikkoman soy sauce from Mombasa and have been having amazing vegatable fried rice. Tonight will be number 3 this week. It won't last long at this rate!
Oh yeah, I turned 30. Haven't decided which list this falls into, but the cupcakes were yummy. Last and still freshly painful, I got arrested. No cuffs cause those have long since been sold on the black market I'm sure, but I AND MY THREE CHILDREN were dragged into the police station and yelled at for a while till I closed up and said I wanted a man to come to speak for me. Thank you Lord, we have a team leader who is fluent and familiar with the system as well as a local friend who is one who will be heard. The story is kind of long, but the short of it is that when we shipped a vehicle over from Zanzibar they switched one of two of our license plates and so they don't match. Anyways, I am home and fine and the adrenaline is starting to wear off. Our car is grounded till we fix the problem, but I walk a free woman. Angry but free. Oh well, welcome to corruption and I'm glad my first time is over with!

Justin leaves again for the big island tomorrow to meet with the higher ups in the government to try and push his water desalination project through. He is working on a machine that can pump ocean water through it and change it to clean drinking water for smaller islands and remote areas around our island. And it uses only solar and wind power to run. I will let him tell more about this later. Thanks for your prayers!

First Haircut

It's getting a little crowded at bath time...my girls are getting so big.
Braelyn even qualified for her first hair cut. It wasn't much, but always worth documenting.
These are the fallen wisps of mullet she is no longer sporting.
She's looking up in this picture so it's not really this long, but you have to have an after, right? Her words continue to trickle in. She's attempting Mimi (finally, hooray!) and ME! (for those moments when I say, "who wants candy?") and please which also comes out as NI! Not too much variety, but it's coming along!

Back on the Farm

Who would have thought? Yesterday my weekly pre-teen guests stopped in, but this time they stopped giggling and running away long enough to stay and play. We drew on the driveway with chalk. They played keep-away with a beach ball.
And they attemted a giant princess puzzle. Wow. Can you fathom never having seen a puzzle? Not understanding how to put a face piece ABOVE the chest? Trying desperately to force a skirt piece into the sky hole just cause it's blue? These are normal, bright girls, who just haven't seen more than the fields they run through each day. Maybe someday...Lord, how can I help them?Speaking of bright girls, somebody finished her Kindergarten Phonics curriculum!
I know, 2 months is insane. In the past 3 years of very poor home-schooling, apparently I did teach her something worthwhile. So today she started her first First Grade Book and loved it. She's so proud. It takes about twice as long now, and that's a bit much, so we are all re-working life to figure out how to make it work.
Avery weasled her way into school today too. She's been asking me when, oh when can she learn how to read too. So today she got to start the first Kindergarten book. She told Justin it was "easy-peasy, lemon-squeazy". Meanwhile, Braelyn grabbed whatever book she could get her hands on, and wiggled into my lap every time I thought she was occupied. Ah me. Good thing we have all day...every day...for the rest of our lives...

Civ-il-i-zation!

It's funny to us that the place it took months to feel like we could survive in has become such an outstanding vacation spot! We have thoroughly enjoyed our days in Mombasa and will be sad to see grocery stores and date nights recede into history once more.But in the meantime...

we will swing our hearts out,

swim till we can't swim no more,

bask in the glory of sunny smiles,

revel in the uniqueness of the coast,

and eat as much ice cream as is humanly possible! We head back home on Friday, leaving Ginger on the big island on our way. What a joy she has been to us! What a joy for the blessing of stepping back into modernity for a week! Our hearts are full of too many blessings to name. Please pray for safety as we head home and for peace and joy to accompany that homecoming!