A great day of worship and rest – and we didn’t travel further than a mile from the mission.  I’m glad to share some pics from today, but first, one more of Sammy from yesterday.  Dats took this picture and wanted to make sure everyone got to see how very cute Sammy is.  Dats gave him an empty Coke bottle after lunch yesterday and Sammy had a blast playing with it … and licking it, apparently. Now back to today.  Dats was up, dressed for church and out the door by 7:00 AM – planning to play with the puppies…

We have spent just over 24 hours in Haiti now, so I thought I better get on the ball and post some pics.   A lot can happen in a few short days. P.S.  I am pleased to report that after careful observation, it is our conclusion that the curtains in Haiti are normal sized.  Pass the word to the kids in Grundy Center!

… one of those kids you read about in news magazines or see on TV.  The kind who gain notoriety for all the right reasons – they have collected big money for a sick friend’s hospital bills.  Or they have started a new ministry like distributing blankets to the homeless during winter months.  Or they raise awareness regarding some often ignored problem or injustice.  The circumstances differ but the stories always have some things in common: 1)  They arrest the attention of even the most cynical adults – who, even in spite of themselves, feel a glimmer of hope for the future.  2) The kid is…

          As I was recently writing our annual Christmas letter (I know it’s January 26th … don’t judge!), I arrived at the traditional “run-through-the-ages-and-characteristic-activities-for-each-child” part of the letter and I got to reflecting how great our kids have been about this whole “preparing for the mission field” life that we’ve dragged them into.          From day to day it’s just … life – and I don’t always give them enough credit for what they endure.  We’ve taken them from their own house and moved them into Grandma’s house … where there is ONE bathroom and three bedrooms total:  Melissa and I in one,…

At one point today Melissa and I watched a woman wrestle her screaming toddler out of the kids’ museum where our little princess was hosting her birthday party.  The diaper-clad boy was tucked under his mother’s arm and was wailing, kicking, and wearing only one shoe – the other shoe was clutched tightly in mom’s free hand.  Mom marched as quickly as possible down two flights of stairs and toward the front door while her son let EVERYBODY in the place know exactly how upset he was.   Melissa and I were sitting on a bench while our kids were scattered all over the building –…