A grand completion! Here are the stats...

After 144 hours, or 6 full days, and 192 episodes we've finished watching all 8 seasons of "24."  Ok, I know, its just a TV show, but we were a little addicted, and it sounds a lot worse in writing than when we were in the midst of Jack Bauer's heroic escapades.  But really our bigger achievements are as follows: we have reached 80% of our recommended budget, baked over 600 Christmas cookies, surpassed 160,000 miles on our car, and received 26 shots between the four of us in a months time (resulting in crying boys, resulting in many-a-toothbrush from the health department, and multiple ice cream cone outings before 11am). 

All that (okay, minus the "24") constitutes our last preparations for heading overseas.  Right now we are enjoying beautiful sunny 80 degree weather outside of Orlando, where we'll attend a pre-field orientation this week. We will then travel up the east coast to meet with more individuals interested in partnering with us.  As we move closer to departing (hopefully we'll learn the date this week?!?), we are getting more and more excited, and more and more worried that we will forget to complete all we need to before leaving the US.

Thank You...

...to whomever left this generous gift on our porch! We are so blessed by how all we need is being provided through folks like you. Since I mentioned it, I may as well write that we are currently at 78% of the promised financial support we need before heading overseas. Whooohooo

How do you cook a turkey?

A woman asked her mother how to cook a turkey.  Her mother went through the preparation and cooking.  When the mother finished, her daughter asked her why she cut off the top of the turkey during preparation.  The mother thought about it, then said that was how her mother taught her.  So the women then went to her grandmother to ask why she cut off the top of the turkey.  Her grandmother told her that was what her own mother taught her.  Thankfully the woman's great grandmother was still alive.  She then asked her why she cut off the top of the turkey.  "Oh," she said, "my oven was too small for a whole turkey."
As the Christmas season is in full swing, I am strongly considering which of our ways of celebrating are simply traditions, done because that is how we've always done them, or do they truly have meaning.  Some of this maybe due to a 3 year old in the house that constantly asks "why."  But, even more so it may be due to a class called Form and Meaning.  As we hope to teach truth to a completely different culture, we need to consider what is truth and what is simply part of our culture that isn't important to transfer to others. 
As parents now too, John and I are trying to be very intentional with our children as to what we are celebrating this Christmas.  So as we put up decorations and consider activities, I am evaluating if the form (tradition, decoration, activity) really communicates the meaning I desire.  I've decided upon an advent calender, that counts down the days to Christmas.  Each day moves through history, explaining how the birth of the Son was a long awaited promise.  We have a couple nativity sets to decorate with and will bake a birthday cake for the 25th.  I've always looked forward to unloading my stocking Christmas morning, but I haven't found a good way of incorporating that form with the meaning we are teaching our boys.  Let me know if you have any ideas!?!

Happy Birthday Whitman

Erin did it again, decorating an amazing cake featuring Whitman's latest enunciation: "bvoon"s.

 

He loved playing in them as much as eating them.

 

 

A new favorite: Not a lick of frosting left on those crumbs!

 

 And a bedtime science lesson (nope, no helium here) for the newly minted one year old.

Just the beginning!?!

We stayed the night in New Orleans prior to visiting Pensacola.  While there I, Erin, wanted to experience some authentic Cajun food.  So for dinner that night we ate Gumbo, Cat Fish, Shrimp, Alligator, Meat Pies, and Frog Legs.  Yes, frog legs. 

They were pretty good, tasted like grilled chicken to me.  Caedmon actually favored the frog legs, and the shrimp!  It felt like a brief view into our future, trying new foods, in another culture, overseas.  These options were pretty safe though, where as overseas it may be very different. 

These pictures are from October 31st.  I'm use to bundling up on Halloween; this year we were able to actually play in the water. 

Caedmon took this one!

No Phone!

Yesterday we visited the beach where I spent 7 of my first 9 summers, near Pensacola, FL. In all the excitement of visiting the place for the first time in 20 years, I forgot I had our cell phone in my pocket and well... the rest is history. Enjoy some photos and know that email will be the best way to get a hold of us for the next few days (update: we got another phone, so you can reach us at the same #).

Where it all began!

We have returned to where it all began, at least our training and our life as parents; Caedmon's birth place.   Yes, that means John has finished his linguistic write up and completed his linguistic practicum with the Cherokee language.  This is an example of the word "sofa" written with the orthography (alphabet) John selected (a symbol representing each sound)
                                         gʊn³nuuun³hiiin²dan²³ gan⁴skiin⁴lown³piin²³     
and a sign in Oklahoma with the word "stop" using the actual orthography used by the Cherokees (a symbol representing each syllable). 

On our way into town we stopped at the hospital where Caedmon was born. It was really special to me, Erin, to reminisce about meeting Caedmon for the first time and now be able to show him.

We are staying on campus where John took linguistic classes and Caedmon went to childcare. We've already met with one couple, great friends from a small group, and have plans each night this week, a big praise! We are thoroughly enjoying our time here, the slow pace (no papers for John to write), seeing old friends, and the living accommodations. It seems like each new place improves our accommodations. In Oklahoma we had one room for the four of us with shared facilities. In Missouri we had an apartment with a kitchen but a common wash house, down the walkway, for bathing. Now we have a hotel like room with a shared kitchen, but our own full bathroom. 
We are glad to be moving along on our journey, but our time in Missouri was a blessing. We were able to connect with many friends and enjoy the lake.  We were even blessed with a buyer for John's motorcycle. Next time he rides one may be with all four of us on it!

One down, One to go!

Yesterday I (John) finished the first half of my write-up, describing the tone, sounds, stress and syllables of Cherokee. What a learning experience! For one, I now know what to do differently as I collect data next time, to make the analysis MUCH easier. I'm right on pace to finish the whole paper on time, and I'm thankful for that. I appreciate your continued thoughts as I crank up my grammar analysis today.

Also, we're extremely encouraged by the financial partners who continue to come on board. We have had no meetings since August 5, but since that week our promised support has gone from 39% to 65%. We are thankful for every person who is committed to partner with us in the big adventure ahead, and amazed at the Provider's provision. Praise Him with us!

Please be thinking of us

We have arrived safely in Missouri, where I (John) will begin my Cherokee write-up in the morning (a daunting task!). Upon our arrival here yesterday we got the following news from a leader of our organization, and would appreciate you remembering us as we make decisions in the days and weeks ahead:

...we will need to delay your arrival in Asia.  ...we decided that we need to delay plans to add new personnel until we are able to work through some issues to gain clarity about our purpose and role there in the ministry.  These are important to the foundation we are building on there, so we just want to make certain that as you and others join the work that there is a high level of clarity as to why we are there and what we are doing. 

In February we should be able to project a suitable arrival date for you at that time… and hopefully before that time.  But realistically, the earliest projection for your arrival, should all go well, would be March 2012. 

...If you feel you cannot wait and need to move on to another field opportunity (especially in light of the rather open ended arrival projection), please let us know your thoughts.

What a week!

This week has been extremely encouraging. Our promised support has grown from 50% of our recommended budget to 59% in the 8 days since I wrote our newsletter. Wow!

Beyond that, I (John) am picking up new tools for language analysis all the time, and also for organizing all the words, sentences and stories we're gathering (nearly a thousand entries by now). That's why we came to Oklahoma, so I'm encouraged by that as well. 

Please remember me I as try not to get overwhelmed by it all, and try to keep the big picture in mind whilst slogging through the weeds--it seems every question I get answered creates 2 new questions as I work through the ins and outs of Cherokee grammar. 

Eight more days of data collection remain, then 3 weeks of interpreting and synthesizing it all (resulting in a 100 page paper), so I appreciate your thoughts along the lines of making this hard work as profitable as possible.

Our First Stop: Camp?

We are back in the Midwest for the next 6 weeks. John is putting into practice the tools and techniques he has learned during his linguistic studies. The boys and I, Erin, are getting some much needed time together playing and relaxing. To describe what is it like here think Family or Summer Camp.  Our group of 30 adults and children share all our meals in the "dinning hall," taking turns cooking and cleaning.  We as a family sleep together in one room and share a common bathroom and living area with the group.  We do have cell phone service, but internet is one good ol' dial up connection shared by all.  It is amazing how you don't realize how much you use something until you are with out it (wireless interent). 

So far we are figuring out how to live in a very close community.  We just finished week two of buying groceries and cooking.   40 bananas do not last more then 5 days in a warm kitchen, regardless of varying ripeness.  Quadrupling my cornbread, banana bread, and brownie recipes worked well.  And an eight month old can still be bathed in the sink!  The next 6 weeks will be a great opportunity to grow, if we're willing to be humble and gracious, in team work and interpersonal relationships as we all live closely together. 

Caedmon loves all the social interaction; he has 3 friends here, his age, from our time in Missouri.  Every time he walks down the hall to our room he peeks into each open door to say hi.  Whitman is learning how to feed him self small bits of food (and thoroughly enjoying it) and has transitioned well to just 2 naps a day.  John is enjoying working with the Cherokee language and I am enjoying getting to know people from Missouri better. 

A culture indicating experience...

Just an hour after we left to drive half way across the country, we realized we forgot all our toiletries.  Two bags (small totes) worth.  They did not merit the additional 2 hours it would have taken to turn around.  So we drove on. 

My, Erin, first thought...we can just buy replacements.  Whoa, is that not an indicator of our culture or what?  Not only did I expect to be able to re-acquire all that I now did not have, but I also knew that we would pass through multiple places where we could buy the same items.  This was an interesting window into our culture and a beautiful reminder of how blessed we are with the resources and opportunities to replace the minor yet highly appreciated items we had left behind. 

Rollin' on through another birthday

What's wrong with this picture?

Oh boy where do I start!? Our primary mode of transportation will soon be a motorcycle (i.e. me driving and Erin and the boys piled on behind me), so I thought it would be a good idea to prolong all our lives and get some training. Well, yesterday I completed a grueling 15-hour course in riding and safety. It was the most humiliating experience I've had in a while (there were 15 year old girls riding and doing just fine while I felt so inept and was out there sweating bullets), but the good news is after it was all said and done, the instructors had mercy and passed me.
Now it's time to get more practice... If you've got a smallish motorcycle (we'll probably be riding a 100cc to 150cc bike over there) that you'd allow me to practice with between now and January, let me know. We'd be forever indebted for the part you played in lengthening our lives.

Want to become flexible or creative?...become a parent!

Today was Caedmon's first dentist appointment.  He saw John and I (Erin) go to the dentist yesterday and had many questions and skeptical looks.  We discussed what the dentist would do and briefly what they would not do ("they not hurt me" according to Caedmon).  With all that said, Caedmon was a champ.  He just sat there, let the hygienist brush his teeth (with his new tooth brush), floss, and let the dentist look, poke, and paint fluoride on.  This is how I hoped it would go, but it was not how it all started.  Right as I began to nurse Whitman after checking in, Caedmon URGENTLY informed me he needed to use the restroom.  With Whitman in my arms, we ran to the bathroom.  Unfortunately, we didn't quite make it and of course today was a day I forgot to pack a second set of clothes for either child.  So, I proceeded to wash Caedmon's shorts in the sink all the while continuing to feed the baby.  It did just happen that the shorts Caedmon himself had selected this morning were swim trunks.  So, with the underwear off and the trunks still damp, we returned to the waiting room where the hygienist was waiting for us.  Caedmon proceeded with incredible cooperation and sat on Whitman's blanket every time he sat down, which again was fortunate because who needs a blanket in the middle of July (thank goodness for a cool day).  I am definitely growing in flexibility and creativity by means I never imagined! 

On the Road Again

Summer is flying by for me (John), and it has a lot to do with the fact that we are in the middle of a 2 week blitz of Western Oregon and Eastern Washington. It has been a lot of fun sharing our dreams with dozens of friends and family, and exciting to see the wide variety of responses: bewilderment, understanding, and everything in between. We're glad to be able to share the needs of some of the most marginalized people of the world with some of the most privileged people of the world, thankful that we unworthily find ourselves among the latter.
We're all well, and glad to spend much of the past week with Erin's parents. Now it's time to head off for the second leg of the trip which will include breakfast in the town where I was born, lunch with one of Erin's college professors, and dinner with my aunt and uncle.

"Tip Your Head Back...

 

 ...We're Coming Through The Nose"

Anybody wanna guess the cost of 3 passports? Just to simply leave our great country on an airplane... Oh and I should tell you that we took the photos and printed them ourselves, so factor that in...Picked a number yet?
After $43.75 for a birth certificate for our youngest (no, you don't get a complimentary birth certificate when you're born), and then $105 + $105 + $110 for the passports, you're sitting at a healthy $363.75 just to legally leave the country...not to mention plane tickets. You've gotta be kidding.
Yes, and Erin gets to come too-- Fortunately (?) we dropped the $110 for hers 2 years ago so it's good for another 8.

Oh the phone just rang. It was the health department. So once you're out of the country, if you're picky and want to avoid acquiring stuff like Japanese Encephalitis (sounds desirable), you can own a vaccine for a measly $500 per person. Don't want to worry about rabies? Just tack on a meager $750 per person.

It's in moments like this that we remember you, and thank The Owner of Everything for giving us partners whose occupations provide goods and services people will actually pay for.

Airplane!

Last weekend we got to walk around and sit inside a WWII era plane that visited the Walla Walla airport. Needless to say Caedmon loved it! He was impressed by the 12 onboard .50cal "shooting deers" and its tires which were bigger than he is. Afterwards we walked around some smaller planes (in the background above) which Caedmon wanted to ride in, but he conceded to checking out their exteriors from the ground when he saw that many, which were covered in blankets, had already gone "nigh nigh."
This plane is flown and maintained by volunteers of the Commemorative Air Force out of Mesa, AZ, who actually pay to do their jobs.

Trying New Things

One of the things I (Erin) am looking forward to about moving overseas is trying new foods.  I thoroughly enjoy trying new foods and learning new ways to cook and bake.  Unfortunately most of my experimenting and learning recently has come from necessity.  For Christmas a dear friend gave me a vegan baking cookbook.  No we are not going vegan, but due to a cow's milk intolerance, none of the boys in our family nor I (since I'm nursing) can have any cow's milk products.  I was quite uncertain how we'd be able to enjoy baked goods without butter or milk.  Well my new vegan baking cookbook taught me how to bake cookies, cakes, and even scones without butter, milk, or even eggs (though we eat eggs without problems).  It has been so interesting to learn about baking without these standard ingredients and to actually have delicious baked goods to eat!  Then just yesterday I learned another new way for baking, without the oven.  What, you say, how do you bake without the oven?  Well, to be honest this too was out of necessity.  Our oven decided to quite working, which I didn't think much of until I came across a recipe in another cookbook I just got from my thoughtful mother-in-law.  I prepared cinnamon rolls from my regular recipe.  I then placed the rolls in a metal pan covered with tin foil which sat on top a little rack in a large stock pot filled with two inches of water.  I then boiled the water, "steaming" the cinnamon rolls until baked through.  It was AMAZING, it really worked.  The cinnamon rolls cooked through and were delicious.  The only difference was the tops and edges didn't brown or turn crisp, but they were baked!  Who knew you could bake on the stove. 

Part of the reason these new methods are so exciting to me is we don't know what types of conveniences or even ingredients we may have to live without while overseas.  I am very excited to learn there are ways to make some of our favorite foods!   

quick quiz

eternal life
Where does your mind go when you hear those 2 words?
[really...take a moment...what are you picturing?]
Is it something you've ever experienced? Or is it something you're waiting for, something far in the future?

Saturday night I (John) got to speak on the topic in a believers' meeting near Seattle. I presented my thesis: all of us are created to experience "eternal life" right here and right now. The apostle John defined it this way:

Do you know Them? That is, do you expect to hear from Him when you open His Word? Do you regularly speak to Him?
If this is something you experience, then you are experiencing eternal life already. If not, why wait? I waited 12 years from the day I believed 'til the day I began this human-divine dialogue. I wish I hadn't. If it sounds intimidating, well, it's not rocket science; in fact it's no more complex than any other relationship you have--speaking and being spoken to. What's more, you were created to experience it, so it'll come more naturally than you may think.
The next time you read His Word, know that He intended it to be living and active, just as it claims, and it is the primary means by which you can know Him even now.

Lewis & Clark...Interstate Edition

Missouri to the Pacific in 9 days -- Eat your heart out Meriwether & William

After 24 appointments with prospective partners between Missouri and Walla Walla, we head out Saturday for more! Why? We are trusting the Big Man Upstairs to build a rock solid foundation of askers and givers to launch us, the goers, into effective service among those who need His Word and Witness the most. We are grateful for safe travels and incredible hosts. Thank you!

You Ugly!

John got to speak to a large crowd at graduation and this is what he chose to wear...gross! But he had good reason. He spoke about the ugliness of believers divided, and the alternative attractiveness of believers who are actively loving one another. The suit (AND TIE!) were props to burn into our class's  mind the challenge to love every true believer regardless of organization affiliation, and to avoid the ugliness of disunity as we scatter overseas.