Last Chance for the Beach

Yesterday was an incredible day! We couldn't believe how beautiful the weather was, and how warm it had gotten again. We decided to take advantage of the afternoon, after the kids got home from school.

So, we hopped in the car and headed to our favorite place in Virginia!

Our good friend annA was there waiting, letting us park for free by her apartment, and showed us the best spot on the beach.

We had the best time, ever!!!

Last Chance for the Beach, Part 2

We enjoyed running on the beach and sitting in the sun, as well as watching the birds do tricks in the air and watching the jets fly into the base.

We did a little groovin' and playing frisbee.

And we even attempted to ride the big waves in the chilly water.

Capturing the Perfect Shot

Anyone have tips for taking a family photo without making threats on your children's lives? We desperately need to update our prayer card...but we are having much trouble getting a good photo.

Do you know how hard it is to get all 5 of us looking the same direction with a halfway normal expression on all 5 faces?

We might resort to a photo of just Nathan and I and put a *** on the prayer card with a footnote saying "***by the way, we have 3 kids".

Incarcerated

Asher wouldn't believe us when we told him there were consequences for taking a cookie without asking...then Officer Lester showed up! He dropped by on Saturday while we were having a picnic lunch with my family in PA. We all got that tense "uh-oh, what's this about?" feeling when he pulled up the driveway and "blipped" his siren. It turned out to be my parent's friend who has been riding in their township for the past few months, just stopping by to say hello. So we took the opportunity to get some good your-going-to-jail photos. Nandry would not get in the group picture below...all the kids were a bit intimidated when Officer Lester first got there. Oh, and our kids are finally saying "police" now instead of "gendarmes".

On Display

This weekend we are participating in a mission conference at EBBC in PA. Last night they had an international potluck dinner with lots of yummy food and all the missionaries did a short presentation afterwards. Nathan and I set up a mongulu (Baka leaf hut) in one of their classrooms and invited people in for a visit to the rainforest. I know that our kids enjoyed playing in the mongulu, and I hope that the hut made a lasting impression on everyone that came...even if it's just made of PVC and fabric leaves. Thanks EBBC for hosting us and feeding us and special thanks to the folks that stayed late to help us move the hut to the foyer!

Seeing Family

This weekend Nathan and I were able to go to a World Team banquet in PA, where we saw some of our fellow workers from Cameroon. It was so great to spend a few hours with them and it felt like we were with family. It was good to be able to share some of our joys of home assignment and frustrations with "reverse culture shock" and be encouraged that we are still normal (well...). Then, Saturday, we spent the whole day with Mom & Dad Crane attending the Truth Project (thanks again for inviting us along and getting us tickets!!). It was nice to be able to have some time with them as well as see Curt & family Saturday night and Chad & family Sunday AM. The kids spent the weekend with the Conrods in VA and even went out to Moyock to be spoiled by Aunt Sherri (here are some pics on her blog: http://thereagan-smiths.blogspot.com/).

Help! I need an interpreter!

We got a call tonight that Boaz' S.S. class needed a teacher for the next couple of weeks, they couldn't find anyone to fill this position, so could we do it? I said that we could do it tomorrow if they couldn't find anyone else, but we couldn't commit after that. They were going to e-mail us the curriculum and any special instructions. Here's part of the special instructions that we got (we are kind of giggling about it):

I will be in C210 tomorrow around 915. Your class will be meeting behind the kindergardeners. The kindergardeners are on the carpets facing the stage A-D from left to right. Your class is B so you wil be behind the second carpet on the right side facing the stage. After about 20 min your calss will move to room C201 where Boaz was picked up last week.

This should be interesting!

The day that just got better and better

Last night Boaz woke up numerous times complaining that his ear hurt. We gave him Tylenol and kept a hot compress on the side of his face for a while. He still woke up every half hour whining that it hurt, until about 2am. This morning, I let him sleep in while I sent Nandry off to school. He wasn't feeling too bad when he did wake up, so we did another hot compress and got ready for school. He was there by 9am. Well, throughout the day I kept praying that he would feel better and have a great day. He came home with a ribbon pinned on him and a special prize from his teacher for being "Boy of the Day". How cool! Then, when Nathan sat down with him to do his homework, it went really well for the first time this year. He didn't struggle with concentrating, he just got right to it and finished it quickly and easily. THEN, to top it all off, Boaz finally got the hang of riding a bike by himself. That was the thing he was most proud of today and most excited to show me. We are so proud of him for all his great accomplishments and successes, and so thankful for a great day!

More Amusement Parks

This was our last big adventure before school started. Boaz in the front with Abby, Asher not keeping his head inside the car while it's moving with Emma, and Jacob, Nandry and Katherine in the red ladybug car. I think Nandry's a bit too old for this, though she did enjoy making sure 2 year old Katherine was ok.

Boaz is the responsible driver, keeping his eyes on where he's going. Our kids are really enjoying their cousins on both sides of the family. We are so thankful that our kids have these instant friends (cousins) who we'll be able to keep in touch with even though we are gone for years at a time...because it's kind of required somewhere that you visit your family more than once on your furlough, right (Christmas and Easter - kind of like church)? And besides, it's SO MUCH fun.

Asher, ready for take-off

We are officially renaming Asher, "Tigger". Nathan and I've realized that Asher never walks anymore. He always leaps, bounds, hops and boings wherever he is going. We've noticed also how many picture we have of him without both feet on the ground. In these two shots, he's airborne. Sometimes, I'll have to get a picture of this, he even flaps his arms like he's going to take off and fly away!