We thought you might enjoy a photo of our yard these days. Having a bit of a flood in the yard isn't that serious, but we are getting a little tired of wet, dirty feet! Yesterday some friends came to visit and we put a little bridge over some of the water-- their shoes weren't expecting to be soaked! The other thing that is always a bit interesting when there is so much standing water is the fact that the septic system doesn't seem terribly well contained... and while it is an incovenience here, it must be a huge deal for the many people in town who use an outhouse and have a flooded yard.

On a cleaner, happier note, this is the french manicure I got the other day. It's fun to be pampered, to do something that is not essential in the midst of a life that often bubbles down to the basics!

We are spending today getting caught up after Garry's trip and trying to organize our thoughts and priorites for the next 10 days that we'll be at home before leaving as a family. Garry came home with a stack of paperwork to work through and a lot of notes to think through, so I imagine he'll be holed up in his office for much of his time home.

As far as the flight program here, it is still raining and not showing many signs of really clearing up. Thursday's flight was postponed at least until Saturday. Garry and Jason will be figuring out what to do next with a team of 12 people arriving here on Saturday and hoping to go in to a tribal location on Monday... and the supplies for the house they're planning to work on were planned for Thursday and today-- and neither has happened yet. (With the best possible weather this time of year it's unlikely that we will be able to make 2 flights on any given day!) Pray that this time will be a time of trusting God and that everyone involved will be quick to hear the Spirit's promptings in the midst of changing plans!

Tomorrow is the day that Garry comes home-- yeah! The boys are in bed already and I'm just finishing up a few things before heading that way myself. Garry flew back to Manila from Mindanao today and then finished up some business in the city. He says he's rather tired of travelling:).

Kevin spent the better part of the day carving a wooden serving spoon and working on his gift for Garry. Kaleb was busy on his gift as well.

It's been raining lots here... the better part of the past 3 days. Today it really poured, and I came home from town to find most of the yard under several inches of water. Thankfully most of it has drained out, though things will be quite wet for a while yet. Without a clothes dryer my lines are getting pretty full and I'm beginning to wonder what they might smell like by the time they get dry! Last rainy season many people in town had to take laundry to the local laundry and pay to have it rewashed and dried because there are no laundromats and nobody has a dryer!

The next two days also have heavy flight schedules, which is always a concern when a large weather system comes through-- I think we may be getting the side of a typhoon or something, which can last a while! Because a team is coming from the UK to help in one of our tribal stations, the coming weeks are also scheduled full, so life will be interesting, no doubt.

It's time for bed, so I'll sign off now and wish you each God' richest blessing this day which you're just beginning and we're just finishing!

"He who thinks that he is finished is finished.... Those who think that they have arrived, have lost their way. Those who think they have reached their goal, have missed it." --Henri Nouwen

What an accurate commentary on our spiritual lives-- if we ever come to believe we've got it all together, we will know for sure that our lives are really tangled up! God's desire is for us to enjoy the grace He freely lavishes on us. But when we choose to make our own way, to do things on our own, then we miss God and the grace.

The last few days have been busy, and a bit frustrating. I haven't been able to get on the internet for several days, which felt rather crippling, particularly now when Garry's gone. Lack of internet service has, however, given the boys and I extra time to spend together. We enjoyed a game of Monopoly and have been slowly learning to rules of badminton and challenging one another at that. We've also been out for coffee a few times, gone shopping, and spent a lot of time doing school and the other "normal routines" of life.

Belle is doing a great job on the radio and will soon be working "solo". Neva is learning the routines of our home and seems to be enjoying herself more. Kevin got a book in the mail the other day (thanks, Aunt Brenda-- great timing!) and has been enjoying that. He's also been working on a neat gift for his dad's birthday, but since that's a surprise I can't tell you what it is. Kaleb made his dad a gift today as well, which turned out very well, due to much ingenuity. Now he's cut one of his old shirts up and is making it into a cowboy vest. How he thought up to sew the arms on the front for pockets I'll never know!

May God bless you the same way He's blessing us-- with a growing relationship with Jesus!

Another great day at our house... a day to believe that God is in control and is moving forward His agenda to reach the world and grow us into the Church He desires us to be! The day started late... but early enough considering our present bedtimes! Belle did radio today while I did some school with the boys. Then a friend came to help on the yard, so the boys spent a fair amount of time outside, cleaning up the yard.

Jen stopped by for coffee and we had a good visit. Then Mirielle and Kellan stayed for lunch while she did some running around. It was rather fun to have really little people around for an hour or so! Kaleb had fun showing Mirielle his tree fort and how to get up and down the tree.

The landlady stopped by to collect our rent, so we had a nice visit this afternoon. And I had a nice chat with Neva, asking her if she'd like to keep working here, since her two-week trial is nearly over now. She'd like to stay, which is great! In between I worked on some bookkeeping, wrote a few e-mails (yes, I probably owe you and e-mail or two, based on the number that are in my inbox!), and cleaned up the house a bit.

Schwabs invited us for supper, so we will head over there soon. It's great to have good partners! Trust your week ends well, as ours has...

Life is always a bit interesting when Garry's gone... not so many decent meals, out-of-routine bedtimes, and often a lot of running around. This time hasn't been much different! This morning the boys and I went to the travel agency (again!) to purchase the tickets for our trip at the end of the month. Then we stopped for coffee (okay, milkshakes for the boys!) on the way home. Belle was doing radio while I was gone so I was anxious to get home and see how things were going. She had a very poor copy but seemed to be doing well. It was a role reversal see her with a headache at the end of the morning while I had none... those radio headaches have been very real for the past months when we've had a lot of interference.

Several months ago we met a couple who run an orphanage and have a son Kaleb's age. They had invited us for lunch today, so when we got home I put some frosting on the brownies the girls had made and we prepared to head to their place. It was so neat to see what God has put on their hearts to do-- to provide a positive home environment for orphans here in Palawan and see them adopted into Christian families all over the world. They currently have 14 kids, most of them ages 3 and under.

I also enjoyed talking to Narcy about cooking here as she is interested in eating healthy and has lived here for a long time. She gave me some yoghurt starter and also some Indian coriander to grow. The boys had a blast on the home-made water slide at their house! We were soon home, looking around the yard for some good soil for the herbs. Keith also gave Kevin some ideas about gardening, so Kevin is industriously working on a small raised bed in which to plant some vegetables and herbs!

Garry is learning lots and enjoying the meetings in Manila, from what he says. We know that God orchestrated this trip and are enjoying seeing that reality unfold!

Happy rainy afternoon! Today has been busy getting last minute financial reports in order for the field committee, packing for Garry's trip, and doing a few last minute fun things with the boys. Now Garry is at the hangar helping Jason with a special "frame" for carrying large pieces of tin roofing in the airplane. What a privilege to be a part of what God is doing here!

These separations, though short, are not our favorite part of the job. Yet we know that this is what God has for us. The boys and I are making plans to do some interesting things while Garry's gone. And Garry's time away is already planned quite full, so I don't think he'll have time to miss us very much:).

This morning Delores also came to say her final goodbyes.... it is so sad to see her go. She's spent a lot of hours at our house and has become like part of the family in different ways, so we are going to miss her. The opportunities God gives us to be involved in people's lives are nearly always unexpected and always a blessing! Such it has been with Delores-- good times, bittersweet times, times of sharing and learning together.

Do you ever make donuts?! I haven't done it for a lot of years, but the boys and I were looking for something interesting to do and decided on donuts. So this morning found our kitchen a mess of dough, hot oil, and donuts in all stages. Kevin made the toppings-- glaze, cinnamon and sugar, and plain sugar. They turned out quite well (thanks for the recipe, Mom Barkman!). We ended up with more than we had bargained for, so invited a few friends to help us eat them!

When we were finished making donuts the boys returned to their other projects. Kevin is making a knife out of an old sawblade he found. Unfortunately, the steel is harder than his grinding bits, his file, or anything else he's tried to sharpen it with. I believe he'll think of something yet:). Kaleb is enjoying looking through art books and doing different projects. Today he did an oil pastel picture and a project where he cut out the armour of God and pasted it on a knight.

This evening we went to the sports complex and had a good walk while the boys played soccer. That felt good after several evenings of not being able to work it in!

The inspection is finished and the airplane is flying again! Today Jason is picking up some passengers from a tribal station so the daughter can head to boarding school in Manila. As we watch so many friends say "goodbye" to their kids at this time of year we are reminded to pray for them.

Garry is back in his office, taking care of the many e-mails and office details that have been set aside over the past two weeks. He enjoyed his time flying again and also working on the inspection, but he'll be glad to get his inbox cleaned out as well! On Tuesday he heads to Manila then Mindanao, so there is also a short list of "honey-do" things to take care of before he goes.

Last week Garry found out he needed a chest x-ray and ekg for his flight medical he'll be renewing in Manila. I was at the doctor's office getting some blood work done, so when he came to pick me up he asked the receptionist if they could do the test there and if he could make an appointment. She told him they could do the tests, "right now!", so in 20 minutes he had everything in hand! That's the fun side of medical care here. The other side is that since you can seldom make an appointment, you may go sit in the doctor's office for an hour or more, only to find out the doctor won't be in today.