Comfort to a Mother's Heart

I have to share a tremendous blessing with you. I won't take you back to share the entire story of the birth of our stillborn son, Timothy Michael, on December 11th, 1998, but I do want to go back to a memory of our last furlough, 2013-2014. We were finally going to be driving somewhat of a different route in order to allow our daughter to see different Bible colleges. Taking the route we did allowed us to travel through Oklahoma and show our children many places which are very special to my husband and me. One of the most important places for our entire family was the Rose Hill Cemetery in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma for it is there that we buried our first son almost eighteen years ago. It was hard to believe that we had not been in Oklahoma since 1998. We left for the field in 1999 and since we had no supporting churches in the state, we traveled further north during furloughs from that time. That meant that since burying our son there, we had not been back to even see his grave site once.

So, understanding that, due to the fog we were in emotionally during our son's funeral. We went to main office first in order to request a map of  "Baby Land", the area set apart with a sidewalk in the shape of a heart, especially for families to bury their precious little ones. There they gave us a handout with the plot number and position of Timothy's burial plot. 

As we made our way to Baby Land and located where the plot should be based on the map, we were not able to exactly locate where Timothy was buried. I thought that they at least marked the gravesites with small numbered blocks to show where each grave was located. But, there was nothing in the area of his grave. All of  a sudden tears began to well up in my eyes and I was trying so hard to not let them fall down my cheeks so that the kids wouldn't see me crying. It was already a somber occasion for our family. Now, I couldn't exactly show them where their brother was buried. As we stood there for a bit, all holding back tears, we took a photo of the Baby Land marker like the one pictured above except with the kids standing on each side of it and that was all we could do more. We wanted to somehow document our time there. We all got in the car to make the short drive to our next stop, the hospital where my husband had worked during his college days and our early married days. As he took our oldest son to meet some of the guys he worked with, I wasn't feeling like talking much so I took the other two kids to a Starbucks on the campus of the hospital and we ordered a fun drink to sort of cheer everyone up a little. 

It was a rough day for me. My heart ached for not being able to somehow purchase a grave marker for our son. Our life had taken us away from that area and I had no idea how I could make this all happen over a long distance. 

We returned to the field and my heart still ached over our visit that day to the cemetery.  Then I started thinking about the friends we visited during our time there in Oklahoma. What if one of them, like the dear lady who was the only person other than my husband and the funeral home representative there with me on that day when we buried our first born son, could help me?

I contacted her through Facebook and asked her if she thought she might be able to go in and talk to the ladies in the office about setting up payments to order a grave marker for Timothy's grave. I knew exactly what design I had wanted all this time so I asked her to check with them to see if they could etch what I wanted on the marker. 

She wrote me back and told me the payment plan had been initiated and that a lady from the cemetery would be contacting me via e-mail. I was SO excited!
Long story short, I had two ladies who ended up dealing with our account, both of which were super sweet and patient while we discussed the details of the marker design. 

Here is the result:

The lady who helped me last even took photos for me to see the marker up close and in relation to Baby Land area.

Timothy's marker is to the right of the one with the vase along the inside of the sidewalk (in the left "hump" of the heart).

I can't tell you what this means to me and our family. What a relief it was to know this was taken care of and to have it done exactly as I had wanted. I am so thankful for dear friends and kind people who understand the importance of such a need. I pray God's blessings on them for providing comfort to a mother's heart from across the globe.

November Family News

We had a big job to tackle as a family this month. Since we tore down an existing building which housed our stove/heating system and an old barn we used for storage and as a winter area for goats later in the summer than we had hoped to, it took us longer to build the new structure than we had planned. In October we were finally able to get the roof on with the help for a few days of some other missionary men from the area. But, the walls and ceilings still needed to be closed in and sealed up before the winter weather came our way. This winter weather came to us much quicker than usual with temps in the first week of November already reaching -16 to -20 Celsius and temps forecasted to reach -30 Celsius by the middle of November. 

There were several days when the entire family worked to get the walls up and the insulation in place so that the heating system could be connected and the pellet stove could be used to heat our home. We use an electric system when the temperatures are more mild but the pellet stove was already needed this year with the colder temps. 

Then, as the temperatures dropped more, David, our oldest son, and myself were the ones who spent the final hours connecting the stove and installing the chimney.

One day, after working outside until mid-afternoon, the kids and I enjoyed a trip to the city with Dad. He treated us to dinner and a new dessert treat called "Bubble Waffle"! You choose a chocolate, vanilla, or "classic" waffle with 'bubbles', filling for inside the 'bubbles', choose ice cream or whipped cream inside the waffle, a fruit or chocolate topping, and finally sprinkles or no sprinkles. :) It is definitely large enough to share!

We so enjoyed this Thanksgiving at home with our family. 

We were even able to buy our first whole turkey.

This year's holidays are extra special for our family as this is the last time for a while that our daughter will be able to be home with us for Thanksgiving or Christmas. Because of that, we are trying to "spoil" her a little more while we have a chance. So, that meant that she got her wish of goose meat for Thanksgiving. She was happy! 

Our family minus Dad taking the photo.

October Family News - 2015

I am hoping to start a new thing here on my personal blog where I share family news highlights to give everyone a better idea what is happening specifically with our family. Also, with our daughter leaving for college next summer, this will be a good way to record our memories of her last school year. 

So, we oddly begin in the month of October. October was a busy month. There were quite a few activities major events that I was really ready to have checked off the "to do" list. 

First up was the MK (missionary kid) Harvest Party. One of the other missionary ladies and myself have planned and hosted this every year for the past five years. 

It has become quite the event with lots of decorating and hours of preparation but, it is really worth it to see how much everyone enjoys the fun. We just get a bit anxious about how we are going to pull off all of our big ideas! I will post some more about that when I get all the photos from the other ladies who took them. 

Dessert table at the Harvest Party

A more important date on the calendar was for a dentist appointment with an orthodontist and possibly the oral surgeon to discuss whether or not our daughter needed her wisdom teeth extracted.I have to admit I was a bit nervous for her to have this "operation" done here in Russia. We have great private dentists who are very professional. Every now and then you can find a not so good dentist but we found a great clinic with wonderful staff.  Although Beka was even ready to have them removed, the orthodontist felt that they are not pushing on her other teeth nor hindering her in any way. So, it was decided that she would not have them removed. Beka was disappointed, believe it or not. She feels that they are bothering her and are the cause of her headaches and ear pain. As we were leaving the dentist's office I started remembering how they are here about removing tonsils. They do not like to remove them and hardly ever deem it "medically necessary". So, maybe removal of wisdom teeth is also considered unnecessary. Guess we will wait this one out and see!

The other big "event" this month was the tragic death of my laptop. This wonderful piece of equipment has served our family well through two furloughs and years on the field. Our home church helped us with the purchase of this laptop years ago. 

It became mine after my husband purchased a newer one back on our last furlough when we found some great "Black Friday" online deals. We knew this laptop was probably near death and wanted to replace it while we were stateside. So, we gave my laptop to the service guys who we trust to fix our electronics. They had it for weeks! Even through the Harvest Party when I had lots of planning and e-mailing to do, I was without my "right hand"! My laptop has most of the photos, e-mail addresses, and other information that I use every day in correspondence and ministry. I felt lost. Worst concern of mine was photographs. Would I lose all of our photographs from the last five years? So, for Beka's first dentist appointment back in September, my husband dropped us ladies off while he drove to check on the laptop. Still no news. Weeks more passed.
Finally, when we were in town for the orthodontist appointment we stopped by the repair shop again.They gave us our laptop back, not repaired. Turns out they were waiting so long to see if they could find the part that was needed but since it is so old, they were not able to find it. Sad day. But, the great news is that my husband can take out the hard drive and recover all of my information and photographs! Yeah! That was a big relief to me.
So, the bright side is...I have now almost made it to another Black Friday! We shall see what deals we can find this year. I am praying God provides a laptop asap. And, yes, there are now actually a few stores here in Russia that have special sales for Black Friday. So, I hope I can share really good news in November's update.

Thanks for reading!

Running to Jesus

A few weeks ago our family received the news that a favorite family member had been taken to the hospital due to very high blood pressure and dehydration. 

I read the news to the family once I had read it from a Facebook post. 

Within a few seconds I turned my head and started to call out to our son, Ryan, to ask him something about his school work.

This is what I found him doing, with tears streaming down his cheeks...

He ran to Jesus.

What a huge wave of gratefulness swept over me! 
Praise the Lord! 
He gets it! 

Then I thought about it...
we as missionaries could work ourselves out of a job if we could just get people to grasp this concept! 

We see spiritually hungry people turning to 
drugs,
alcohol,
sadly, even suicide.


Why do we worry,
why do we struggle,
why do we fret,
why do we search endlessly for someone who understands our problems,
why don't we just run to Jesus!?

What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere?

We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer.

Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share?

Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?

Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.

Do your friends despise, forsake you? Take it to the Lord in prayer!

In His arms He’ll take and shield you; you will find a solace there.

A little love flowing through our home!

On the actual Valentine's Day we were a little busy taking care of a new convert that had to make several visits to the hospital. So, for us as a family that meant that we would have to make up for not being able to celebrate Valentine's Day on the 14th . 

No problem! I enjoyed the more relaxed schedule!

Here are a few ways we showed our love to one another this year.

On the 14th, while my hubby and I were gone on one of our hospital trips, the kids made us a giant cookie,

in the shape of a heart, of course!

Then for lunch the next day, I surprised them all with these...

made from good old hot dogs, cheese, and ketchup!

Friday night before bed the kids were telling me how they wanted to make us breakfast on Saturday morning. They did just that complete with candle light, menus telling us that they only serve scrambled eggs with ham and cheese, coffee, and orange juice, and waiters (our sons).

It was really sweet!

Then, for the "Corny Valentine" award, I left this on my hubby's desk...

Corny, but I happened to put his favorite candy inside there so he was happy!

Finally, for Sunday I made these for the kids....

These are fun!

 I Love OUR Family!

Love is...

...when your husband writes your initials on the side of an old Russian house with a pressure washer.

He Loves Me!

Yes, I'm a pretty "lucky" gal!

Family Day At the Zoo

One of the family outings we enjoyed this summer was a trip to our zoo here in Krasnoyarsk. We also counted this outing as a reward of the boys finishing their school year. Our schedules got a bit "off" with all the house construction this year so the school years are sort of blending together.

Even though Krasnoyarsk as a whole is not the cleanest of cities, the zoo grounds are beautifully maintained and groomed.

I thought you might enjoy walking along with us through the park.

Old style Russian stove in the children's petting zoo area.

 We have animals of all types almost as many as the zoos in America. Obviously the cold winter climate is a consideration as to what sort of "tenants" can live here year round.

The polar bears were quite active on this day and put on quite a show for us. A lady who is one of the veterinarians here at the zoo told us that this big guy to the right, Felix, loves to wait for a big crowd to gather by his cage, pace around a bit sticking only his paw in the water and then jump into his pool splashing them all!

Silly boys!

Timothy loved this "Wanted" poster since it was written in English.

This is one of my favorite picture spots!

Beka loves Tiger Lillys!

Momma and her kids.

One of our newest zoo residents is the giraffes! There are four of them now after one died. The whole process of their transport and arrival at our zoo was big news!

People feed the animals so much that they will come right up to the fences to see if you have any treats to offer. It can be a bit dangerous to stand too close to the fences!

Beautiful flowers with little or no weeds!

Love the entrance to the water terrarium.

We found a great "hang out" for the boys!

The zoo also has a small amusement park located at the front of the property. The zoo is on a hillside so the park is almost at the bottom of the hill. 

Since we were celebrating the boys finishing their school year we treated them to a few rides.

Beka was excited about crashing into her brothers on the bumper cars.

Posing by the mammoths as we were leaving the zoo.

We took the family to one of our favorite restaurants for dinner after walking all day at the zoo. 

After enjoying good food we went home for dessert and 

presents (rewards) for the completion of a good school year.

Present time! 

The anticipation is killing us!!!

At this point in their lives the boys love anything with a million small pieces so they received just that - lots of little parts to put together Hero Factory guys.

A big Hero Factory guy to share.

Mater Operation Game! This should be fun!

I am always so thankful for times like these to make special memories together as a family.