So Long Ordinary

Without a whole lot of other perks or forms of entertainment, we get pretty excited about new restaurants opening in our city.  Even better is when the restaurant wants to cater to homesick foreigners as well as introduce fun local foods. Our neighbors recently opened a new restaurant and it's by far the best place in town now.  They make a pretty stinking amazing Mie Tarik  or homemade, pulled noodles that you can watch them make right in front of you.  Since we've eaten there, they've added fajitas, nachos, and burgers to their menu and we hear it's all good.  Can you say "giddy?!" When we first tried out the new place, we were surprised to see that they have a real, wood-fired pizza oven.  Their pizza has...real cheese!  In a town where the closest thing we've had to a order-out pizza was a weird pizza crust smothered in a sweet ketchup sauce and topped with fake cheese and hot dogs, this is a big deal.  We make pizza at home every week bu...

Some days, my Indonesian language skills are woefully inadequate for the conversations I'm having.  Okay, most days.  Ugh!  I wish there was a way to transplant what I actually mean into the brains of the people I'm conversing with...or that I'd wake up with a miraculously improved Indonesian vocabulary that would flow from my mouth freely, elegantly, and perfectly pronounced.  That'd work too.  As it is, I blubber along, feeling like a huge goofy dork.  Because I am.  There's really no getting around this. Granted, I am suddenly having deeper conversations on subjects I've never spoken of in Indonesian before.  I should be happy that things are going deeper, that I'm being allowed into a deeper level of knowing and connection with my Indonesian friends.  But instead, I just feel dorky.  They are pouring out their hearts and I'm saying things like "Well, that's hard."  or "I don't know." or "What does that mean?" or ...

Where to start?   Madison and I were just chatting about some visitors from the States coming to our house tomorrow.  This is a couple that does Member Care for MAF and just wants to spend some time getting to know us and see what life is like for us here. We're looking forward to having them.  When I told Maddie that the guests are arriving tomorrow she said, "So, when I wake up there will just be people with big noses standing outside my door?"  Ummm... I had to ask why she thinks these people will have big noses (she hasn't met them yet) and she said, "Because they're Americans!"   We've been back in Indonesia for four months!  It's been a rough adjustment back to life here.  I think we're finally getting there, though. Honestly, we just got too spoiled on furlough. Those things we were used to before furlough (heat, humidity, ants, separation from loved ones, crazy driving) are taking some time to get used to again.  Homeschool has b...

You know it's bad when you see people you haven't seen in four years and all they have to say to you is, "You haven't blogged in a very long time!" Okay, yes, I've been a little quiet on this space these past few months. To tell the truth, furlough has been a bit of a roller coaster for me, and I'm still trying to find my bearings here in the land of plenty.  America, you are way too much for me.  Truly, I still have panic attacks every time I walk into a store.  I want it ALL - because it is there to buy.  And then, I realize, I don't need that - it doesn't fit into a suitcase...or, I'd be sweating buckets if I wore that in Indonesia....or, maybe bowls made out of bacon aren't exactly the best use of my money.  Or are they? Building a snow man with cousin Audrey (February 2014) Can I tell you how much I am loving waking up in my parents' house every morning, hearing my kids teasing my Dad or my Mom reading a book to them in her little ...

First of all, a huge thank you for all the kind comments on my last post.  I love hearing from you - through comments on this blog, Facebook, emails, phone calls, real life conversations, and the grapevine ! It was a little hard to put such an honest post out there, but you've all encouraged me so much with your words.  Thank you. It feels like ages ago, but it was only a few weeks ago that we took the girls and the dog down to the MAF dock to play in the river.  The river was pretty high, which creates the perfect little shallow pool to play in. We took a lunch and made a picnic of it. Check out that huge log that floated down the river!  It was the perfect place to play. We should totally do this more often.  (Except maybe not take the dog?  This is where she got the water in her ears that started the ear infection that we're still battling!) While the girls played, I sat on the bench and watched the monkeys play - and by monkeys I don't mean kids.  ...

Not a roller coaster.  Just Brooklyn and one of our Indonesian MAF staff taking a quick boat ride at sunset. If there's one thing I've learned, its that life is full of ups and downs, bitters and sweets, incongruities and inconsistencies.  Now multiply that by 1,000 and you have missionary life in a nutshell.  I'm learning to be okay with all the mixed emotions constantly ebbing and flowing in my heart - the longing for other places, the love for where I am, the gut-wrenching loss of time with family, the thrill of new friends becoming like family, the dream of leading a life following hard after Jesus, the tears that come as I count the cost. Right now, I'm a wreck.  Full of emotions that I expected and other emotions that have taken me off guard. I want to go.  Yesterday.  And I also want to... stay ? I absolutely love that we are going "home" to Colorado.  There just aren't words that express the kind of excitement I feel about our upcoming furlough...

I find it hard to believe that this was our FOURTH Thanksgiving in Indonesia already!  Ever since arriving in Indonesia, our Thanksgivings have always included several other nationalities and this year was no exception. We got to host this year's feast in our home and we enjoyed the company of our American, British, Dutch, and Indonesian friends.  It's fun to share this tradition with them and they have a lot of fun, too.  This year our Dutch friends even brought one of their favorite Dutch dishes for us to try - it was delicious!  I love our International Thanksgivings.  Each year, we have been able to enjoy real turkey and most of the fixings we take for granted in the States.  To give you an idea how rare turkey is here, I got this year's turkey (a 13-pounder) in Jakarta for about $45.  Funny enough, we actually found a LIVE turkey at the pet store in town.  They wanted $50 for that one, so I guess my frozen turkey was a good deal.  When a...

Oh, we've had a great few weeks since my last post!  I mean truly   great weeks with all sorts of little blessings that have shot our end-of-term weary arms full of the energy we need to reach our furlough in just FIVE more months. I think I'll start with the most obvious..... I mean, really.  Who ever would have thought? I know I never imagined meeting Harrison Ford in Central Borneo. I'm just blown away by this life we live.  It's amazing.  Sean and I often talk about how crazy our work in Indonesia has been - dealing with the rich and powerful as well as the most down-trodden and needy.  It really throws us sometimes. Three years in, we're still learning how to navigate two such different worlds - neither of which is our comfort zone. Mr. Ford really impressed us, though.  Not because he's a huge movie star (though I was most certainly starstruck), but his attitude was so humble and kind. He's a normal guy.  I was touched at how he took the ti...

On one side of us, there is a huge, expansive house with chandeliers and multiple servants and a swimming pool. On the other side of our comfortable home lives my helper and her family in a small, musty wood house with holes in the floors and boards rotting away. I've been listening to my helper a lot, lately.  I consider her a friend and her value to me is far more than simple friendship or househelp.  She's my mentor, my cultural buffer, my sounding board, my teacher, my advocate in murky relational waters.  She's an example to me in her Christian walk, in her tenacity to do what is right despite huge opposition.  She has such a different life - one I can't really imagine, no matter how often she describes it to me.  How is it that somebody living just on the other side of my fence can have such a drastically different life?  It is just one more strange dichotomy that defines my life here.  In the past month or so, her family has ...

Folks, life as I know it has changed drastically.  A Hypermart just opened in our little city - that's an Indonesian version of Wal-Mart.  It is clean and bright and fully stocked with more stuff than I've ever actually seen in Indonesia.  All in one place. I am in awe. I am having a major culture shock moment. I am dreaming of limitless dairy supply. This new store is a major attraction and the place is crazy beyond crazy after it's grand opening on Wednesday.  Sean and I took the girls to brave the craziness on opening day.  We couldn't stand to wait, we were so excited!  But I went back today for the first time to really do some real grocery shopping.  I went early, so I could find a place to park.  By the time I left, it was mass chaos and I was glad I was done. But my culture shock has nothing to do with the loads of people.  I live in Southeast Asia.  I'm kinda used to that.  No, it was the pure luxury of options!  I...

Happy Thanksgiving! This is a day like any other for us in Indonesia - Sean went in to the office and we'll be doing English Club later today. (The girls and I are taking the day off from school, though.)  We'll have our big Thanksgiving meal on Saturday with a large group of friends - most of whom aren't even American!  I love that about our missionary life - friends from all over the world who will willingly join us for our own traditions as though we were family. We ARE family, actually.  I'm thankful for them, these Dutch and Swiss and Indonesian and British and American friends who help make the holidays special despite the fact that we can't be with our families back home.  It helps, ya know, having each other. Maddie was up early this morning and wanted to join Sean and I on our morning walk.  She was excited to practice riding her bike.  Sean has raised her training wheels so she's a little wobbly but she had a great time...unt...

  Let me just say, everybody is fine.  But that picture up there, in Brooklyn's sweet note to her Daddy, pretty much sums up our weekend.  Blood.  Lots of it.  Flowing out of Sean's foot.    On Sunday afternoon Sean was using a weed-eater to try and tame our wild, jungle grass in the yard.  This weed-eater, rather than having a nice, docile nylon string was basically a little metal machete propeller.  Which, incidently, is not so safe when you accidently get your foot in its way.   Ugh.  Let me just say that seeing my husband's foot bleeding profusely was mighty disconcerting.  I worked in a dialysis unit, mind you, and regularly dealt with people's blood.  But when it is somebody you love, it just can't be helped to feel a little woozy and worried at the sight.    Praise God, it wasn't a toe and Praise God it wasn't any worse.  We were able to drop the girls off with our teammates and get him to t...

As you know, we took a break from English Club for about 6 weeks.  It was a nice break, and I feel very encouraged and excited about some changes we've made.  One of the main changes blessings is HELP!  With a new teammate here who is pleased to help teach and plan the classes, I'm feeling less stressed about handling the up to 60 kids that come to English Club each week.  Plus, we've found a way to divide up into groups so we can be sure to get the most out of our time with them.  For our first day back, we had a special treat for the kids.  Tacos!  I've yet to meet an Indonesian who knows about this marvelous, heavenly food and we thought it would be fun to share it with them, since they were learning the word anyway!   It was no simple task gathering all the ingredients - Amber, my friend, did a great job of gathering and preparing the treat.  If you'd like to learn more about that day and the kids' reactions...

A view of sunrise from our backyard captured by Sean several weeks ago. It is a lovely Saturday morning - a bit overcast, so it isn't too hot.  I love that we had a full night of rain.  These smoke-free days are a true gift after experiencing our first smoke season in Palangkaraya.  A true gift. I am tired this morning.  I stayed up too late reading in our new hammock on the back porch.  I love cuddling up with a good book in an overstuffed chair next to the fire on a chilly day.  Since that isn't going to happen here, I've found my alternative - relaxing in the hammock on the porch while it rains outside!  It got a little chilly even. I had to go turn off the fan.  Despite my late night, the girls (who went to bed at their normal time) were up before 6 a.m. asking for help with the DVD player and help getting their cereal.  Then, Sean got a call to go do a medevac flight for a woman having difficulty in childbirth.  So, all hope of...

After a spell of being pretty much the only Americans in Central Kalimantan, it has been a real treat having teammates again.  MAF'ers!  Americans!  People with kids our kids' ages!  Teammates.  We've had so many.  Loved so many.  Said good-bye to so many.  But I tell ya, we are grateful for them all.  Because being out here "all alone?"  It's hard.  There's just something about having somebody else around from your own culture that makes you feel more energized, more able to deal with the difficulties and ups and downs of this missionary life.  I know that having teammates and friends on the field - let alone those that really "get" you is sadly rare. We've somehow managed to have the best teammates everywhere we've served.  Maybe God knows how much we need them?  We are blessed again with new teammates who make the load we carry feel not quite so heavy.  (Their container full of household th...

There's this great swimming pool about 30 minutes from our house.  It is a lovely spot, set far away from the city of Palangkaraya and tucked in a quiet village on the only hill for miles around.  We love going there on Saturday nights.  We order chicken curry and watch the kids swim.  I like to get in the tepid water for a quick swim and enjoy the little chill-bumps that raise on my skin when I step back out of the water into the fresh night air.  Last time we were there, there was a huge storm rumbling as the sun set.  By the time the kids were in the pool, it was a downpour.  Our friends were with us, and while the kids jumped into the pool, we adults found ourselves a spot out of the rain where we could visit. Every time the lightning struck, I'd glance nervously around, start counting the seconds that passed before I heard the thunder.  I was a worried wreck.  Five precious little people, including 3 of my own, w...

While Sean and Brooklyn were gone, I tried to venture out at least once a day with the girls - to the store, to KFC - even though these kinds of outings on hot days when the whole country is out and about, really wear me out. My friend and I (her husband also went on the trip) spent a very long time standing in line at KFC, sweat dripping down our backs while we watched our kids weave in and out of dozens of kids on the playplace and we cheered them on as they dodged the cheek-pinching fingers of adults enamored with their pale skin, blue eyes, and blonde hair. When we finally got to the front of the line, the ice was gone and the original recipe chicken was sold out. No matter. I rattled off a different order than the one I'd had in my mind for the past 30 minutes.  The cashier handed me an evaluation card. He expectantly waited for me to fill it out while he watched. I had the option to check the box with the smiley face or the box with the fro...

Sean and Brooklyn left for a trip a couple of days ago.  It was a lovely, rainy morning but the electricity was already off at 5 a.m. They'd planned on riding the scooter out to the airport but because of the rain, we took the car and the little girls and I dropped them off. I stopped at the donut shop near our house on the way home, and the other two girls and I have been making the best of it since.  The electricity has been going off a lot and, after that one rainy day, it has been really hot and humid.  There have been tears - big, salty ones running down little sisters' cheeks as they discover just how much they love and miss their big sister.  There have also been giggles - quiet, silly ones as little sisters take advantage of a big sister not around to chase them out of her bedroom. I've been trying to remember to do all the chores and remembering all those odds and ends that Sean always takes care of that I totally take for grant...

The girls have these books about four big chickens who get into all sorts of trouble.  I adore these books and so do the girls (and so does my mom, who gave them to us).  They are hilarious adventures...and becuase we have chickens, we know how accurate the books really are.  Just so you know, chickens are stupid and ridiculously skittish.  I love having them for the eggs and the entertainment value. I was washing dishes the other day when one of our hens suddenly jumped up pwocking and squawking and rammed her head into the wall next to the window over our sink.  She jumped a good 20 feet in the air and for the life of me, I can't figure out why.  No other creature was around, nothing was chasing her.  One of our hens, we're not sure which one becuase they all look the same, has found a fun place to lay eggs even though she has a perfectly lovely nest box for that.  To this hen, right next to Sean's saw and the spare umbrella in the garage seems ...

The sweet, smokey fragrance of incense wafts through the house... The incense was bought this morning in a desperate attempt to cover up the stench of rats living (or are they already dead?) in our attic space.  I seem to be the one who smells that death-stench most often - it appears to be concentrated right above my side of the bed.  Of course.  I'm not going to lie.  It's rank.  And because it is so rank, I am grumpy.  And I always feel somehow infected and creepy whenever I get a whiff of it - what is up with that?  It's just air, right?  Even if it is air that stinks.  It can't actually infect me with something can it? Something had to be done.  I'm not going up there to remove the dead rat or the live ones if they are there... and I think they are because we hear them at night...shiver.  Sean is not going up there to remove the dead or alive rats or any combination thereof.  We can't bring ourselves to ask a friend to do ...