Close to Home

Due to unexpectedly being diagnosed with TB, our family will not be returning to Mongolia for at least a couple more months. Although we were looking forward to going back, we will certainly enjoy some more time around here with family, friends and church! This is "The Cabin," our favorite hangout, on the family farm where I grew up on the Santiam river. It's my "homeland" or, you could say, the closest thing to heaven on this earth. And a pretty nice place to be semi-quarintined for a couple months!

More Oregon Fun

Another fun outing this past month was the Enchanted Forest. We met up with some cousins and spent a whole day among the kiddie rides and fairy-tale creatures. It was a LOT of fun even for us big kids (very nostalgic). Eden liked it too, even though she hasn't heard any of the fairy-tale stories yet! Even with the roller-coaster and log-ride I still think the boys liked running around in the Indian cave-maze the best.

We're not in Mongolia anymore...

No, this is not Mongolia...it's the Oregon coast! These last couple weeks we have spent a lot of time with our families in some really neat places. Krista's parents live in Reedsport so we spent several days visiting sand dunes, tidepools, and the beach. Then we were off to spend a few days at a hot springs resort in the Cascades. Surrounded by green trees and warmth... we are a long ways from Mongolia!

Airports

Travelling with 3 small kids can be a challenge. Especially when it takes 2 car rides, 3 airplanes, a host of metal detectors, and about 30 hours to get home! Thankfully they all did great ... notice we are mostly smiles and only one plane left to fly! Of course real french fries and a grande latte go a long way in making us happy (even if they do cost twice as much in the airport). It is sure nice to finally be "home" for a couple months. We're not in any hurry yet to do the 30-hour trip back to Mongolia!

One of the Boys

Well, we'd say Eden continues to adapt very well around here. I don't think that they ever let her play outside very much, so now she is out in the dirt every chance she gets. She also likes to wrestle with the dog and the cat. Fortunately for her, this has been our earliest thaw and the weather is great (but a bit windy and sandy). We even planted some potatoes and everybody helped out. She hopes there is lots of dirt in America, because here we come!

Family Picture Time

It's that time again, as we get ready to go back to the States for a couple months... family portrait time. As if it is not hard enough with two active boys, now we also have a TWO-year-old! So we figure 4 out of 5 good smiles is pretty good (what is Zeke doing?!). Here we are, standing in front of our small ger (yurt) church in Tosgon (a rural suburb of Darhan, in northern Mongolia). It's certainly a long ways from the US of A!

Birthday fun

It has been a month of birthdays...first Saiah and Eden, then Zeke, and now Krista. Of course they got wonderful packages from the States (except Krista, she got a vacuum from the market)! And no, Zeke did not get a new little brother...that's Isaiah in his new personalized carry-on. He's quite the world traveler! And they are all VERY excited to be going back to "America" to see their grandparents (and fastfood is probably somewhere near the top of the list too).

Home Sweet Home!

She is here! We have waited a long time to bring our girl home. God gave us His heart, He provided the means, He heard our prayers and taught us how to seek Him more deeply. Her name is Eden Glory. "Eden" means delight, and so does her Mongolian name "Bayasaa." She is adjusting well beyond our expectations and she is truly a delight. But our greatest delight (and glory) remains in the love and faithfulness of our great God - Father to the fatherless and Redeemer of His lost children!

Third Time a Charm?

This was our third visit with Bayasaa. We didn't have any "officials" with us this time, so we could stay and play for as long as we wanted! It took about 30 minutes for all the kids to warm up to us...and then we were flooded, especially Zeke! We were also able to meet with Susie, our social worker from Holt, who hopefully made some headway with the "higher-ups." We are praying that the final committee will meet this week. Bayasaa's birthday will be March 16th...

Fine Lookin' Fellows

This is my crew! In the back (left to right) there is Munko and Olambayar, our maintenance guys, and Sansar, the newest addition who has begun researching cultural traditions related to funerals and death (tough first job!). In the front we have Dawaa in the middle, my "right-hand man" and good friend, and then Saihnaa and Gerlay on the ends, who have driven three water wells and will begin implementing the slow-sand filters they've constructed next week. Right now, though, we are all dressed up and ready to welcome the new Mongolian year. Happy Tsagaan Sar!

The Big City

Relaxing AND stressful. What a pleasure to stay in a nice highrise, surrounded by an assortment of restaurants and cable TV, for a few days. And yet, the traffic and chaotic errands add heaps of frustration. But best of all we were able to visit Bayasaa again. We continue to hope and pray that the final committee will approve us in the next couple weeks...

Boys Will Be Boys

Growing up with two sisters there are just some things that Krista will never understand about little boys. Why does everything, from sticks to toast, turn into a gun? What is the fascination with small cars and mini-soldiers, ALWAYS crashing or fighting? Why do they feel the need to jump from several steps up on our ladder/stairwell, at great risk to life and limb? And why in the world would Saiah put his underwear on his head and run around his preschool class? Well, at least his teach thought it was hilarious. For obvious reasons we will not include a picture with this blog...

Christmas Blur

That week of Christmas was such a blur that I forgot we had pictures! Here I am entertaining the crowds. It was fun to tell new people about the amazing (and somewhat strange) birth of Jesus...especially because there are so many similarities to Mongolian culture. The signs and wonders of Jesus' birth marked a humble yet glorious destiny far beyond even that of Chingis Khan. Long live the King!

Shadows of Dreams

Land of the blue sky...and icy toes. It is now -20s (a mild winter) and I finally pulled out my thick wool socks. I may even need a scarf soon! I like this picture because it sums up our city and much of Mongolia. There is a huge post-communist infrastructure...that flour factory in the distance is HUGE, and very empty. Many of the development efforts are now hollow "monuments to failure," a sign that the Russians forgot to invest in the most important things - people. So many Mongolians continue to set up and survive in their traditional gers, living in the shadows of their industrialized (now computerized) dreams. May God grant Mongolia peace and self-respect as it struggles to become like other nations...

Family Christmas

Once our 2-day "Birth of King Jesus" extravaganza was over we were able to relax in our own home over Christmas break. Of course several of us had colds and our house can be a small space with two boys, but it was a pleasant and refreshing time overall. This is our candlelight carol session (right before the unwrapping frenzy). Now we are back to work and school, with our minds full of exciting goals for 2007 and our hearts full of passion to share our King.

Our Little Angel...

This is Zeke, our oldest son (6). His English school did a small Christmas program, and here he is playing the angel Gabriel. Isn't he sweet?! Of course the next day, when I asked him to stand up with us in church and sing a praise song, he responded, "It's my life and I can do what I want." Thank you, Disney. Upon later discussion we discovered that is a quote from "Mighty Ducks 3," and that our lil' angel has a photographic memory when it comes to cartoons and movies...

Our team

Over a year ago our team in Mongolia was down to four people...now look at us! And most of the bigger kids are away studying in Taiwan! We are truly blessed to have each of these special people. Sure, sometimes it is difficult - gender, age, culture, personalities, etc. On our team we have brothers and sisters who have been born in the U.S., Canada, Korea, Vietnam, and South Africa (plus Isaiah was born in the Philippines!). But we are all citizens of Heaven, striving together to bring others home through Jesus.

Lookin' like Christmas

Well, it's been white for quite some time now, but we just put up our Christmas decorations this weekend. The boys had a blast (notice all the branches decorated within their reach). Sure it's a 3-foot plastic tree (we put it up on a box to look taller), but there is just something about celebrating our King that warms the heart and lightens the spirit! We plan on inviting about 60-80 neighbors (over 2 nights) for a Christmas feast and to introduce them to the birth of our living Khan.

Mischievious

This is our youngest, Isaiah. You will probably notice right away his charming looks and the glint in his eye. His Mongolian pre-school teacher sure does! Every day she calls him a "mischievious little boy" with delight. Mongolians, like most cultures, think that naughty boys are adorable and obedient helpful girls are a blessing. Sometimes we aren't so sure! He always makes us laugh, though, and we certainly enjoy having an extrovert in the family.

Friends in the Family

I had a lovely trip to Baronghara yesterday (our first sub-zero day!). My partner Dawaa and I met with some church leaders to talk about ways the church can use projects to reach their community and/or better support their "elder." This is the "elder's" family...no, not the older man, and no not the husband (although he assists). Her name is Batjargal and her husband in Munko, and they have a lovely joy-filled family (even though their only income is grandpa's social security). Please pray for them!