We are home!!

Greetings from New Enterprise!! Wow does that sound weird!! Well we are home as most of you know! We came home earlier than expected and have been enjoying spending time with our family!! We have been busy moving back into our house! We are almost done! Thanks to family and friends and our church family!!! I actually have a few more blog posts that I would like to do about our time in Africa!! So many pictures and experiences! Then about once a month I am going to do an update on our family for all our friends back in Cameroon!! We miss you so much!! We really didn't want to say Goodbye!!!

The week before we left Mbingo was so crazy! We were trying to soak up as much as we could and spend time with our new family!!! Before we left we had a baby shower for Chuck and Angela! They are expecting a baby boy in July!! Isaac will be a big brother!

All the Ladies at the shower!! (and of course Isaac too)

 All the Men!

Megan and Angela

Megan was so excited to plan a shower!! 

We had really cute food!!!

Egg baby carriages!!

Megan made Baby Barrier a rag rug for his room! Cathen liked to wear it as a hat!!

They got cute little jumpers made out of African cloth!!

Isaac is going to make a good big brother!

Randy, Elliott, Godlove, and I had a water balloon battle!!

Our church in Mbingo.

Inside during the service.

Our last day with Marlis!!! It was hard to say Goodbye!

Before we left our choir sang for everyone. I miss getting together and singing!

The kids played their recorders and sang! Aunt Kaye came every Thursday and had music class with them! Joey also did this but was in Kenya for the little recital!

Gretchen and Cathen playing!

Saying goodbye to Aunt Elsie and Aunt Geri!

 

Telling George goodbye and leaving for Yaounde!

Our last picture in Bamenda!!!

 

Leaving Bamenda!!!


Well hope everyone is having a great summer! Will post more in a few days! Last week our church had its bible school! It was fun! I enjoyed being back and making crafts with the kids! My favorite of course was the tie dye shirts!!

Our shirts we made!

Gretchen singing the bible school songs!

Meg and her best friend Leah teaching the kids B-I-B-L-E in sign language!!

This picture is for you Christy Lee!!!! I made snow cone cupcakes for snack one night!!! All that was missing was your homemade ice cream!!

Walking around Mbingo

Hello everyone!! Greetings from Mbingo!

Elliott has finished school!!! Megan is almost done! She has Algebra for a few more days!! Elliott and I are still working on his multiplication facts just for fun! We have been enjoying the beautiful weather here!!! Warm with a nice breeze everyday!!! It hasn't been raining until late afternoon so we have been playing outside and taking walks! 

This past Saturday, we went to Noah's 7th birthday party! We met Noah and his family at SCA, the home school retreat. His family had his party up here at Mbingo at the resthouse. Some went for a hike on Saturday morning. Randy took Elliott, Megan, and Gretchen on the hike. Jen and I went up a little later! They had a homemade pinata that was a real treat for all the kids.

Some friends from SCA and some new friends we just met

The pinata!!

Elliott taking a crack at the Bull!!

Megan having a swing!

Even Gretchen got a turn!

The boys climbing a tree!!

The gang that went on the hike! They went to the back waterfall.

 

Gretchen having a snack at the waterfall!

 

The view!

The kids and I have been going on walks around the compound. We have enjoyed getting out and meeting new people and seeing all the sights.

Megan and Elliott with the hospital sign down by the main road.

 

Gretchen likes going to market and getting lollipops from Mercy's store!

 

We went on Tuesday to market. Tuesday is Meat Day!! This is why Randy is not eating very much meat over here.  When we first got here it was his job to go to get the meat for the week. Thankfully, Marlis took over that job!  I like that the head is laying there by the pole!!! I am sure that someone bought it and will use it!!!

 

This is one of the workers at the Bamboo shop.  They make furniture, side tables, shelves, and stools out of bamboo. Wish we could put some of these things in our trunks to bring home! It is so beautiful!

 

This is Susanne. She works in the Embroidery Shop here at Mbingo. All the embroidery workers live in New Hope village not far from Mbingo. They are all discharged Leprosy patients who have settled at the edge of the hospital property.  In the past, these people have been outcasts from society, but through education and treatment they have been accepted by everyone and are welcomed in the community. The opportunity they have to work has given them a sense of belonging and they have made friends. 

All of these women have come to know Christ and now have the hope of eternal life and know they are important to someone(God) and are never alone. They are able to accept their handicaps because of Jesus Christ and the opportunity to work and be part of the community has given them a chance to use their skills and have a sense of purpose in life. 

 

 

 

Today I found out what Jama Jama is made out of! It is huckleberry leaves! It is actually called Huckleberry Soup but the pidgin English name is Jama Jama!

The kids helping Marlis in the kitchen! Actually Elliott was playing with his Marvel action figures in the huckleberry leaves!

 Elliott and his friends!

Job, Americk, Jesse, Elliott, and Godlove

The kids were taking turns jumping off the bank! 

 

Elliott's turn!!

Prayer requests: Please continue to pray for the people of Cameroon. Prayers for the doctors and all the patients of Mbingo Baptist Hospital. Prayers for the Sparks family and the Browns as they travel to Kenya for a conference. Prayers for safe travels from Douala for Rick, Debbie, Lindsay, and Cathen! Gretchen is excited to see her friend again!!!

Continued prayers for Randy's dad Jim. 

Happy Birthday to my Grandma States!!! We love you and miss you!!! Can't wait to celebrate with you when we get home!! Also a Happy Birthday to Tracy!! Hope you both had a great day!!

And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.     Philippians 4:7

Weekend Away

Hello family and friends!!! Well our visas were extended! Thank you for all the prayers! The past few weeks have been busy! The kids are almost finished with school!! Elliott will be done by the end of next week! Megan is a little bit longer yet! Well just Algebra!! They both will be done so they can enjoy our last few weeks here at Mbingo!

I went to Bamenda and stayed with friends for a few days this past weekend! It was nice to visit and see the rest of Bamenda! 

Our Mbingo family!! 

I stayed with Aunt Elsie and Geri when I went to Bamenda. Elsie took me shopping in the main market on Friday! She has been here for 16 years so it was neat to hear all about the culture and traditions! I rode in my first taxi!! On Saturday, Geri and I went to Bafut to a women's co-op! They make clothes and all sorts of different items! The drive there was so beautiful! 

Here is the entrance to the compound where the store was located.

Geri looking at all the different items to buy!! I could have bought one of everything! This is the room where the ladies work!

On Sunday morning I attended church. We went to the CBC church. It was huge!! When I took this picture I was only half way to the back of the church!!

Sunday afternoon I went to Holly and Jake Schilinski's house and then to the Helping Hands Children's Home!! I met Holly, Jake, and their children at SCA! They were celebrating April Birthdays at the orphanage. 

Helping Hands Children's Home

Holly and the kids! They are answering bible trivia to see who gets seconds on cake! :)

Audrey and Blessing

Audrey is here helping at the home and staying with Jake and Holly for 6 months!

 Some of the kids! 

This is one of the girls bedrooms!

 

Braiding the girls hair!

 Some of the boys playing soccer!!

There are 30 children at the home! They were so friendly and welcoming!! I loved spending time there and wish I could have stayed longer and got to know them better!!

While I was there I passed out faith bracelets and a little booklet! After I was done passing them out the children sang me a song!! It was beautiful!!!! Then as a special treat we watched a movie!

Some of the kids showing their bracelets!

 The wall around the home has some paintings that some visitors have painted! This one says "I will not leave you as orphans. I will come to you." John 14:18

I have the information on how you can help the children at the home! You can make a donation or even sponsor a child with a monthly donation! The work that Jake and Holly are doing is really amazing!! The mission that they are with just bought land between Bamenda and Mbingo! The plan is to expand the home so they can help more children!!!

On Monday, Jen, Megan, and Elliott came to Bamenda to pick me up!! We also spent the day shopping and sightseeing! 

Megan and Elliott trying on hats at Joseph's shop!

We ate out at PressCafe!!

Elliott and I had the Hamburger! It had onion, tomato, lettuce, and a fried egg!! 

Our first hamburger since we left the States!!!!

Jen had the noodle salad! Megan had the tuna melt! Both were very good!! 

 The traffic and roads in Bamenda are crazy! Well, just not Bamenda but all of Cameroon! Traffic laws do not really exist over here! The motorcycles pretty much go where ever they please! Cars drive two wide or on the wrong side to pass someone! I finally got some pictures!

This is looking down on of the main streets in Bamenda! We take this road to get to the CBC. 

Stands like these line both sides of the roads!

Gretchen outside church!

On her way to church in her new African dress!

They are growing up way to fast!!!!

Elliott found another BUG!!!!!

This one was 5 inches long!! So big and gross!

Please pray for accreditation for the CIMS and PAACS programs from the Cameroonian government!  Prayers for the patients and doctors here at Mbingo. 

Praise God and Thank God for the release of the French family that were kidnapped in northern Cameroon a little over two months ago!

Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love. Ephesians 6:24