Happy Easter!

Happy Easter!!!!

Our African clothes we had made for Easter! We didn't get Gretchen's in time but we will have plenty of pictures when we do!!

Wow, Easter already! It feels like I just did our Christmas blog!! Time is flying!! Well I hope everyone had a blessed Easter holiday! We had a nice holiday and shared it with our wonderful family here at Mbingo! 

 

Jen, Randy, and Megan went to Bamenda this past week to drop off paperwork to start our visa extension. While they were at the CBC, they got to visit the library and get new books for everyone! They got to visit with Aunt Elsie too! We should know in the next couple of weeks if we get our extension or not! 

We tried to dye eggs on Saturday but had to switch to decorating them with stickers instead! Grammy sent us some really good recipes for natural dyes but they would not color the brown eggs!! We tried grape juice, paprika, coffee, and beet juice! Thanks anyway Gram!!! 

 

Starting to dye our eggs!

See still Brown!!

Megan still having fun!

Elliott moved on to stickers! Of course he used Star Wars stickers!!

Gretchen and her Mickey Mouse egg!

Our "Uncle John is a weirdy" egg! Even in Africa, Megan still gets you John!!!

Time to put the stickers away!! She was getting a little sticker crazy!!

All the eggs!!

On Sunday morning, Jen, Randy, and Elliott went to the sunrise service. They got up at 4 o'clock in the morning and the drums started at 5 o'clock. Everyone marches up Mbingo Hill in the dark to have the service outside. As they march, they play drums and sing songs! Elliott really liked going! After they marched back down, they stopped and got Megan, Gretchen, and me to go to church! I didn't go with them up the hill but just watching them pass and hearing the music and singing was very powerful! Jen took some pictures of everyone marching and some at the top of the hill!

 

 

Elliott and Jen at the place where they had the service!

Walking back down from Mbingo Hill!!!

After church we had a Easter brunch with the other missionary families. We had a egg hunt, good food, and great fellowship! We hid some eggs with candy in them and hard boiled eggs too! 

 

Everyone hanging out in our living/dining room! The other good news was that Dennis and Nancy arrived back at Mbingo on Friday so they were able to join us!!

Getting ready to hunt some eggs!

The Gang!! (Isaac, Gretchen, Joey, Elliott, Cathen, and Megan)

The boys!

Gretchen and Cathen giving hugs!! It kind of looks like they are dancing!! Too cute!

Marlis likes to teach Elliott or show him things that are from here. She is always showing him new bugs or telling him about the culture. She shares with Megan too. A few weeks ago she brought him palm oil nuts. They use palm oil over here and she said they cook or boil the oil out of these seeds or nuts. When you crack them open, inside is a nut that tastes just like coconut. 

Here are the palm oil nuts.

Marlis told us that palm oil nuts and coconuts come from two different palm trees.

So when Jen went to Bamenda she bought a coconut to show Elliott. Marlis opened it and we all tried the water and ate a piece of coconut! I will say I am not a fan of either!! Actually no one liked the water! I can't get past the texture of coconut to like it! Not sure what we are going to do with it! Try to find a recipe!

Marlis cracking open the coconut.

 Marlis getting ready to show Elliott how to get the coconut out of the shell!

Our friend Ben brought his kids by our house one day while his wife was at the hospital for an appointment. This is their 4 month old baby! He was so cute! He really liked Megan!

We have had some pretty intense rain storms in the past couple of weeks! The clinic at the hospital flooded. Jen said she was in seeing patients and all of sudden the water was up to her ankles and rising!!!! Of course Elliott enjoys all the rain and water! The rainy season lasts until the first of November. Everyone says that after the first month the rains calm down and it becomes just a nice steady rain for a couple of hours a day. Everything is turning so green!! It is beautiful! Also the crickets!!! I have never heard so many crickets in my life!! Not even at Camp Meeting!!! Elliott found a new animal that we are going to study for science! It is the Laughing Frog! It is crazy! When we walk at night it sounds like someone laughing! I like the sound just not the frog!!!

I almost forgot we had a chicken die!! Elliott and Megan are fighting over which one of their chickens died! Elliott said it was Megan's and she said it was his! So I decided that it was our dear chicken Phil! (Named after Chick-fil-a) Megan went to feed and water them and came back in and said I think we have a dead chicken! Marlis went out and sure enough he was hard as a rock!!! Of course, all the kids had to look at it and walk with Marlis to get rid of it! I felt like we were on a funeral march for our chicken! Gretchen was running after Marlis yelling "Wait for me, Marlis!!!" Marlis probably thinks we are crazy sometimes!!

I want to say Happy Birthday to my sister Em, Randy's dad Jim, and my Grandma Pepple!!!! Wish we were there to celebrate with you all!! Also my mom and dad had a anniversary that I forgot about until the next day so Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!!! Continued prayers for Thad, Brandi, and Mike! Brandi got to talk to him on Sunday so I'm sure that gave her a little comfort and peace!! Prayers for Jim as he continues with chemo. Prayers for Debbie and Rick Bardin who are leaving this week to go back to the U.S. for a month. Prayers for all family and friends who are fighting illness! Prayers for our visa extensions that God's will be done. Continued prayers for the patients and doctors here at Mbingo! 

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11