Saturday, February 27, 2010

Meet Chloe

Chloe is the sweet baby girl belonging to our friends Ryan and Crystal. I'm
savoring every second I get to hold Chloe. It'll be tough to say good bye to
the Penningtons.

The Rump's B&B

We're enjoying the comforts of home at the guesthouse in Ukarumpa. The
managers are even 'wantoks' who understand things like faspa and rollkuchen
and 'mada shlopes'.

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Packin' up...Shippin' out

It's really starting to feel like we're leaving. We've been busy packing up
two crates to ship home. All the stuff that helps make us feel at home is
going back to where it came from...and we'll be following close behind it!
Now we have the challenge of fitting the rest into 8 suitcases. Do you
think we can do it? :) Last night Andrew took the boys on their last
motorcycle ride on the faithful Honda. We sold the bike - didn't take long
and we're thankful it sold so quickly. This weekend we're heading up to
Ukarumpa to say our last farewells to our dear friends who have become like
family to us here in PNG.

40 more days....

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Flying Fox

Madang is known for its large population of flying foxes. Our security
guard, Max, killed this one with a stick a few nights ago - batted it right
out of the air. Those things make my skin crawl! Yeech!

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

you might hear...

Our English might sound a bit funny to you when we see you next so I thought
I'd give you all a heads up. We've been Pidginized. Here are some words you
may or may not hear Bill and Snax Beef say (we do on a daily basis):

1. kakaruk - chicken
2. balus - airplane
3. bagarap - broken, ruined
4. rubbish - garbage
5. kros - upset, angry
6. pipia - litter, garbage
7. bikpela - big
8. oloman! - oh man!, wow!
9. plenti tumas - way too much
10. pekpek - poop
11. rait man! - good man!, way to go!
12. salwara - ocean
13. abus - meat, animal
14. nogut tru - literal translation, no good true - equivalent in English
would be 'a whole lot', or 'an awful lot'
15. pastaim - first
16. lukim yu bihain - see you later
17. kisim kol win - catch the cool breeze
18. kaikai - food, verb to eat
19. pulap - full

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

co-ops

I had the most vivid dream last night that I was back in Winkler. It was
snowing. I was scared to drive, so my Mom drove me to Co-op. We got out of
the car into knee deep snow. The wind was howling and it was frightfully
cold, but I enjoyed it. We made our way into Co-op. I was overwhelmed by
the selection. I didn't know where to start. In the freezer section they
had bags of Saskatoon berries frozen in these Canada Post bags. I stood
there for a long time looking at them, contemplating whether I should buy a
bag or not. I thought Bill and Beef Snax were really enjoy them. I decided
against it. I figured my Mom would have some in the freezer that she'd be
willing to share. I walked the isles of Co-op in complete awe, fighting
back tears. Then suddenly I whispered to my Mom, "Let's get outta here and
go to Superstore." Then I woke up.

Beef Snax with his Papa

smart fellers or fart smellers?

A little of both....

Tuesday, February 02, 2010

something sweet today

Life isn't always peachy here in Madang. I'd definitely say the last few
weeks have been a bit of a rough patch for me. Definitely. I don't know if
you've ever felt homesickness, but it's a sickness that doesn't have a
remedy...other than going home. Other than homesickness I've been feeling
just kinda discouraged and unmotivated. A dear friend of mine knew I was
down and suggested that I write down something sweet every day. It can be
something that the Lord showed me or something that lifted my spirit. This
has been so helpful and it helps me keep positive when things are tough
going. Throughout the day I'm finding myself looking for that 'sweet
thing'. I thought I'd share my list thus far...maybe it'll encourage
someone. Sometimes it's the little things in life that are the sweetest.

Jan 29 - God gave me the verse Is 44:1-4 and it hit a deep spot in my heart
Jan 30 - Verse from Dad Matt 19:29 - a promise to hold on to
Jan 31 - snorkeling with W & J and seeing some tropical fish...and a sea
cucumber.
Feb 1 - 2nd hand shopping with my new Swiss girlfriends
Feb 2 - Helping the kid at the checkout that didn't have enough to buy his
packet of Beef Snax.

Thanks AJ.