Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Garry's in the air again today, though he has spent the better part of the day sitting at one of our locations waiting for weather. I imagine he had a good time with our friends there! He was just able to get to his second stop now, at 1 PM. From there he only needs to come home, so hopefully he'll make it before the weather closes in again. Days like this remind me why dry season is nice for flying!

I've been busy talking on the radio and texting weather reports back and forth! Actually, we did school this morning:)! Now the boys are off to the badminton court for a lesson and I'm going to spend some time in the office while I listen to the radio.

These days we've been reminded again how blessed we are to do something we love. We are so privileged to serve, learn, and grow here in this flight program where God is continually teaching, stretching, and blessing us!

Monday, July 30, 2007

Good afternoon! How is your Monday beginning? Ours is nearly finished already! Garry is picking up Larry and Brian from the airport now and we're looking forward to seeing them in a little while!

We had a great start back to school for a new year! This afternoon the boys and I played badminton-- they played a long while and I joined them for a short time. They've just come home "starving", terribly sweaty, and tired! That's a good thing for two young boys!

We had another blessing this week... Kaleb's math course suggests the use of cuisenaire rods, something I don't have here. I've been looking at them online, but the postage is awful! Then yesterday afternoon Garry had the idea of asking our friends on another island if there might be some in the homeschool supplies. And there are! So we should have them at the end of the week. God's little reminder that He knows what's going on and He cares!

This week our sewer problems are getting fixed-- at least we think they are! An engineer and his workers are in our yard, digging a big hole and setting up pipes to drain the rain water off the roof. The ground is so wet that the hole keeps filling up with water and they have to bucket it out. Doesn't smell very good, so I'm thankful that I'm not the one digging in there!

Friday, July 27, 2007

Good morning! Today I wanted to let you know about one of the projects that is going on with NTMA here in the Philippines -- repairing an airplane that was damaged in an accident some years ago. Brian and Larry, two NTMA co-workers, are just completing a month in northern Luzon, working on this project. They have been doing sheet metal work and also painted the fuselage. Though we don't need this airplane right away, we will need it when we move on to the next island and the work that it needed was huge.

We're so thankful for their willingness to help and also for the willingness of their families to let them come-- the boys and I have often been the ones at home while Garry has traveled, and it's not always easy. They have done an incredible amount of work in their short time here!

Garry was able to spend some time with Brian and Larry when he took 2773 to northern Luzon a couple of weeks ago. He enjoyed it! This week they are coming to see the flight program here in Palawan and we're all looking forward to seeing them!

Meanwhile, here at home we've enjoyed a fun week off school. Monday we're back to school again, but with renewed energy after some good time off! The boys have been busy working in the yard, helping Garry in the hangar, and playing badminton. In fact, last evening our whole family went to play badminton!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

It's been a long time since I've been at my desk or blogging. We've had a great week! On Thursday Curtis and Veronica and their family came to visit. We enjoyed lots of good talk time, good pizza, and a swim in a hotel pool! It was wonderful to hear about their year here in the Philippines (they've been working with Mercy in Action, doing midwifery and community medical work). It was encouraging to hear the "God story" of how they got to the Philippines and their year here!

The kids enjoyed having other kids their age here. The older kids played games and did a lot of talking. The younger ones enjoyed the tree fort, Lego, and other fun.

Garry got home on Saturday morning. He had a profitable time in Aritao and Manila. The work the guys are doing on the airplane in Aritao is amazing-- what a blessing! He was also able to spend a few hours with our aviation friends who are studying language in Manila. Both these families are in Aritao this week, helping pack up the airplane that is headed back to Arizona for refurbishment.

This week we've been catching up on some office work and celebrating the "official" end of the boys' school year! Tomorrow evening we're having some friends over for cake and ice-cream to finish our celebration!

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Yesterday evening I was thrilled to get these photos of Garry arriving in Aritao!Thanks, Larry! Garry said he had run into a little weather enroute, but nothing serious.

He spent today working on preserving the engine in another airplane that is stored in Aritao as well as spending time with folks at that location. He was thrilled to get to see Larry and Brian, friends that are here from Arizona working on 405. That airplane was involved in an accident and still needs quite a bit of work before it can fly. Larry and Brian are long-time friends and Garry's enjoying catching up on their lives! He's also had some time with Steve and Ja, our co-workers in Aritao, which is always a blessing.

The boys and I had a great day. We did some desk work before heading to the badminton court for exercise. We enjoyed a talk in the sunshine. Kaleb made a kite. Kevin worked in his garden. We went to the store and picked up some art supplies, a thesaurus, and a few other odds and ends. Then we went to the coffee shop for a little break! This evening Kevin beat Kaleb and I in a short game of Monopoly. And now, it's time to be off to bed!

Sunday, July 15, 2007

ON THE WAY!

That is, Garry is on his way to Aritao with the airplane that is headed to Arizona later this month! He is over half way there already, and things seem to be going well. He made one stop on the way to add fuel to his tanks and pick up a couple of things. Praise God for excellent weather today!

The boys and I are taking a bit of a break from school, though we've been in the office doing some planning, talking and reading. Kevin and Kaleb are headed to the badminton court soon and I'll go later to join them!

PS A quick update on Friday's flight: soon after I posted Garry called and told me he was back on the ground, fixing his airspeed indicator. Weather went downhill while he was working, and it was after lunch before he left for his flight! Less than an hour before sunset he was back in Puerto, and we were all pretty thrilled that he made it back!

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Garry's flight was postponed yesterday, much as we thought it would be when we looked at the satellite picture. He spent most of the day in the office, catching up on some things. We invited our co-workers, Egil and Rita, for lunch and had a good time together.

Later in the afternoon the boys went to play badminton. Garry and I joined them for the last hour or so, glad to get some exercise after a long day of waiting.

This morning the weather was good, then deteriorated quickly. Around 10:00 we got another good weather report, and Garry is now ready to take off. We pray he makes it to his destination and back home again today!

Thankfully we've about finished school for the day!

Wednesday, July 11, 2007

This is what we're looking at this morning as we talk to different missionaries regarding the weather. Garry is hoping to fly down south to take some folks home and bring some others to town, but it doesn't look very promising at this point.

We ask our locations for a weather report and also look at the satellite picture for an overview. Palawan is the long, skinny island on the south-west corner of the Philippines, presently covered in a dark purple spot! This shows the intensity of the weather by color-- the more red, the more severe. And the swirling effect is a typhoon that is pulling the weather toward it in circles. Weather is pretty amazing!

The boys and I are off to school now... reading aloud, then breakfast, and then the rest of our desk work. We're all thankful it's cool today-- what a blessing! We trust you have a good day also!
Good evening! How are you today? We've had yet another interesting day here. It's been raining most of the day, due to the beginning of typhoon season. It's wonderful to be cool! Garry's been watching the weather satellite and we're hoping things clear up so he can fly down south tomorrow, but we'll see what happens.

This afternoon the power went off for a while, and a call to the power company let us in on the fact that they didn't have an idea when it would be fixed. I took the boys to the hangar to help Garry and stopped for coffee on my way home. Right away I noticed that there weren't any lights, so I asked if they had a generator. Though their other coffee shop does, this one doesn't. Hoping for some quiet and time to think, I decided to order an iced tea instead of coffee. I'd barely asked for it when I heard the two young people at the next table mimicking me and laughing. Oh, well! A sandwich? No, they're frozen! Oh, well! So much for that idea, so I came home.

Garry and I often walk in the evenings, and it's not uncommon for young kids to follow us, trying to walk like "foreigners" or to be asked, "What's your name?" (the first thing they must learn in English class!) many, many times by different people. These are small examples of things that can make us feel different and out of place. So tomorrow when you go to town and feel "lost in the crowd" know that it can be a great feeling!

Monday, July 09, 2007

Garry's in the air again today, taking some folks home. They were nearly to their destination when they had to turn around because of bad weather. Typhoon season seems to be upon us, making flights more interesting and delays more likely. While this isn't a huge deal in everyday flights, at the end of the week Garry is scheduled to fly an airplane to Luzon. This is a longer flight and there aren't a lot of places that he can stop, so we are asking God for a day of clear weather to accomplish that flight!

It seems that there is something alluring about a treehouse to girls as well as boys. Yesterday a friend came for coffee. Her daughter (age 3) and Kaleb spent a long while sitting in there, playing with the rope, talking, and so on. It was quite fun to watch them! They came to town to get some dental work done for the little girl, and are quite glad to go home again!

As usual, the boys and I have our desks piled high with school and our minds filled with math problems, phonograms, and lessons from history. It's such a privilege to see our boys growing and learning, not only academically but through the circumstances life presents us with!

Friday, July 06, 2007

Good evening! I can hardly believe another work week is finished and it's time for the weekend. Yahoo! The boys have been spending some extra time at the hangar this week and I've been using the quiet to finish some bookkeeping stuff. I've made some progress, but there is still some left to do:).

We've also been doing school this week, and I thought you might enjoy this shot of Kevin doing his reading. He's in the middle of "Captain's Courageous" which is a great read for anybody who hasn't read it yet!

In between we've had some other interesting things happen. On Tuesday our Filipino co-workers from down south came to town and spent a few hours with us. Garry gets to see them quite often when he flies, but Linda and I haven't had a good talk in quite a while. We enjoyed catching up a bit on one another's lives. Then we worked on some bookkeeping issues together.

Some other friends are also in town, and on Wednesday Donna and I had a ladies' coffee. It was great to spend some time together! Last evening they treated us to dinner at Shakey's Pizza, one of the fun places to eat in town. The boys particularly enjoyed Bill's drawing abilities and jokes!

It's such a blessing to spend time with friends and be mutually encouraged! I pray you have friends in your life who bless you with their time and thoughts!

Sunday, July 01, 2007

Happy Monday! We trust that you, our Canadian friends, enjoy Canada Day! And to our American friends, Happy 4th of July this week!

Garry is up the air already this morning, taking people home to their location and bringing others back to town. It shouldn't be a long flight day, but will be interesting because he gets to bring a dog back with him! The boys and I are just getting started on school.

A couple of weeks ago a friend brought us the game Jenga. We've been enjoying it and have been amazed at how tall those towers can get!

The boys have been busy with Lego over the weekend, and have made a large castle. This may be due in part to the fact that we're studying Scotland's fight for freedom in the early 1300's for history!

These days we've been impressed again with the power of prayer. We have a wealthy Father who is looking for sons and daughters to share His wealth with, children who will choose to ask Him for all they need and depend on Him alone. We often think we will grow to maturity and be able to do it on our own-- NO WAY! We will always be totally dependent on our Father! Wonderfully, totally dependent and able to be at rest. What a blessing!