April, Almost May Already? Crazy!
Time truly does fly. Where does it go? We love to keep up with our blog to update all of our three fans out there, mom, mom and dad. But sometimes life gets incredibly busy. We have been busy hosting teams, building at the new property, living life and building relationships. God has been so good to us, He is faithful to provide for all of our needs, He has been faithful in keeping us safe and He has been at work in connecting us with tons of people in every sphere of society. God truly is good, all the time.
Praise the Lord for sending us help! An awesome group of four men from South Africa stayed with us for almost a month doing hard labor: digging septic holes and building a long road from the dock to the multi-purpose building. It was a great time growing in Christ together and doing manly stuff, zip lines, hiking and exploring the caves together. I am always amazed how quickly we can bond with other brothers and sisters in Christ. I also love the transparency and sharpening that happens. Geoff, Quinton, Mulder and Vilas encouraged us sooo much! Blessings to you brothers!
Things are pretty crazy around here right now. We hope to move over to the new property in 1-2 months, we’re working hard to reach that goal. We have another family moving down in two weeks and another in September – we are sooo excited!
Below is a photo journal capturing some of the events of the past six weeks or so:
-
- Sweet last moments with the Ngobe team
-
- Truly sweet
-
- We will miss our Ngobe team
-
- Ethan working on his excercises
-
- And up…
-
- Now replacing the calories burned
-
- Ya, good workout
-
- Starting the septic hole 1 of 2 on the new property. Good job, Chris!
-
- Starting the framing on the kitchen / eating / training center / medical clinic / trading post
-
- Two multi-family houses on the new property
-
- Awesome visit with Charlie, Heather, Ruth & Dwight who visited from Washington (the Thompson’s church)
-
- Worship led by Dwight, great times with the body of Christ
-
- Amalia teaching how to make ‘Johnny cakes’
-
- Amalia is a coconut killing machine
-
- We love our coconut
-
- Making coconut milk
-
- Mmmmm good
-
- Bella doing one of her favorite things, cuddling
-
- Ellie doing one of her favorite things, building a store and playing with Guinny
-
- Awaiting another team, this time from South Africa
-
- Arrival of the team means time to eat
-
- Soon after arriving the hunt began for dinner, boa it is
-
- Skinning and gutting, always a great show for the kiddos
-
- Skinning was pretty hard, two guys holding, two guys pulling
-
- Looks like he had something to eat not too long ago
-
- Boas eat rats, here’s proof… should we cook this guy up too?
-
- Boa filets
-
- Mmmm Boa
-
- Yummy Boa
-
- Mmmmm good
-
- Ready to be fried. We ate the whole Boa
-
- Spending time with a local gringo family, one of the very few with children
-
- Ethan loves the beach… water, boats, getting dirty and picking up every bug in site
-
- Rose and Ellie digging tunnels
-
- Ethan checking on Ellie’s progress
-
- Heading back home we found Chris, Ashley and Vilas watching dolphins
-
- We love seeing dolphins!
-
- Our pineapples are almost ready
-
- Another beach day with some of the guys
-
- Boat ride home
-
- Sunday meeting in the village sharing testimonies, songs and prayer
-
- The S.A. team sharing a song in Afrikaans
-
- Everyone loved it! The Ngobe thought is sounded so strange
-
- Simon & Amalia’s house
-
- The S.A. team helped us out sooo much building the very long path to the main training building from the dock
-
- Almendro is the wood. It’s so hard you have to predrill to get a nail to go through it
-
- Sacks we used to move the gravel from a nearby island, hauled in our 46′ long cayuco, 4 trips later we have a good base
-
- The kids are tuckered from helping clean up
-
- The second septic tank hole begins, this one we hit rock about half way
-
- Needlefish that washed ashore, check out those teeth.
-
- Ellie holding one of the local babies
-
- Vilas finds a turtle for the kids
-
- Easter Sunday breakfast – what a FEAST! Thanks Jen!
-
- Easter egg decorating
-
- Thank you, Jen for all of your hard work. You blessed us so much!
-
- Let the hunt begin
-
- Let the competition begin
-
- After the hunt begins the jump rope competition, these guys were good
-
- Work it!
-
- Relaxing on Easter
-
- Ethan goes in to calm mode when in the hammock
-
- We love our Ellie
-
- We love our Bella
-
- Ellie took a hard fall while being pushed on the hammock, chin first and split it open. She didn’t want us to stitch it so we prayed and put butterflies on it.
-
- A couple of days later this wound split open again, re-butterfly-d, prayed and in the end it healed up ok
-
- Trying out a local food cart in Bocas. Our family outing treat!
-
- The kids like the upstairs seating
-
- I drink your milkshake, I drink it up
-
- Strawberry – boa
-
- Strawberry – orange
-
- Chocolate – banana
-
- Rainy day in Bocas
-
- On on way to the border
-
- Border run to renew our visas with Terry, Liz, Chris & Ashley
-
- This run was corruption free, thank You Jesus
-
- Awe, look at this sweet couple. We love these guys!
-
- Shopping in David for many much needed items, Ethan finally gave up in one of the stores… with couches
-
- Terry found a screen that says ‘Even a woman can easily install this door curtain’ – I love Panama
-
- Staying with Dan & Carol at their 5-star bed and breakfast also known as their home
-
- Ethan loved jumping off the porch
-
- Eating at a steak restaurant – yes steak, something we haven’t had for a year!
-
- I love steak!
-
- Ethan loves steak!
-
- Bella loves steak!
-
- Ellie really loves steak!
-
- Reunited with Liz and Carol – what a fun day the girls had
-
- Pose Bella – good job
-
- A package came from home. Ellie is wearing a traditional Ngobe dress, she’s practically indigenous now.
-
- Thank you, Grandma!
-
- Ya, thanks Grandma and Grandpa!
-
- The moon can be incredible in the morning!
-
- Worship time
-
- Bella loves coconut
-
- Ethan loves Bella
-
- Sometimes the girls take some… well… interesting pictures. Geckos in the house, ummm, hugging
-
- Hummingbird nest
-
- Hummingbird eggs, we love watching the mama come sit on them
-
- Worship time!
-
- 14 year anniversary lunch (Shirlene wouldn’t let me take a picture of her) I love my wife, best wife I’ve ever had… the only in fact 😉
-
- Ethan is obsessed with boats and motors – seriously
-
- Worship time on the dock
-
- Love the presence of God
-
- Yes you can worship while laying down
-
- Mulder monkey
-
- Mulder teaching the art of climbing coconut trees
-
- Ellie attempting her first climb
-
- She made it to the top!
-
- Then took down a few coconuts – Ellie truly is an island girl
-
- Bella’s working on her climbing skills
-
- The hummingbird hatched! Amazingly small
-
- A week later and she’s looking good
-
- Off for a ride in the canoe
-
- Amy’s birthday and of course Shirlene Shirlene the baking machine went in to full production 😉 Happy Birthday, Amy!
-
- Customers at Los Secretos teaching the girls how to swim
-
- On another trip to Los Secretos, Quinton and Vilas showed how to have some fun in the pool
-
- Ellie having a try
-
- Bella gets inspired too
-
- After about a month of bonding with the S.A. team it was time to let them go
-
- We are REALLY going to miss them, what an incredible group of Godly men
-
- Jay’s birthday (Jay was with us helping out for 6 weeks)
-
- While Jay was here he felt the Lord prompting him to be baptized
-
- He asked Simon from the village next to us to baptize
-
- It was an amazing time, the village got together to watch a gringo be baptized in their laundry washing hole
-
- Jay gave his testimony, Shirlene interpreted
-
- Simon sang a song and Amalia read from her Bible
-
- Awesome
-
- Truly awesome
-
- You could feel the joy in the air
-
- Gene and his family came to watch
-
- Got a call in the night, a local stepped on something and was in severe pain
-
- After a half an hour of Shirlene & I (Bobby) working, numbing, cutting, digging and finally pulling out this chunk of wood
-
- Jonathan sure was happy to have this thing out
-
- Valor’s birthday pancake cake. Love his face!
-
- A sad and happy day, the Thompsons made a move to Dolega near David
-
- Goodbyes with tears
-
- Off to Bocas with the Thompsons
-
- We will miss you Thompson family!
-
- God’s promise
-
- Latest photos of the property, the path base is finished
-
- About 400 bananas planted, hundreds of yuca, dasheen, cacao
-
- 200 more fruit trees going in this week – can’t wait!
-
- The training, kitchen, eating, clinic, store building – getting close
-
- Multi-family house 2 getting very close
-
- Multi-family house 1 super close!
-
- Inside of our soon to be new house, just need interior walls but beyond that open studs, ceiling and raw wood is good for us
-
- View from multi-family house 1
-
- Multi-family house 2 on the left, multi-purpose building on the right
-
- Multi-purpose building, getting so close, roof in two weeks
-
- Well, it’s getting late so good night to all of the 3 readers of this blog 😉
Make that four, No 5 people!!! Erik & I always read it too. =) Thanks for the update. Hope Ellie chin heals well. The kids were very excited to see how a pineapple grows, and I am so impressed to hear about the various medical procedures that you are having to do. We are praying for you all. – Angie
Hi, I don’t think that I would want to eat a snake, but the drinks sounded yummy. I miss you guys. I like your hammocks, they look fun. We are going to be taking swimming lessons soon too. It was cool to see how the baby bird hatches and the rainbow was very pretty! -Clara
Yes… Dad and I are your biggest fans!!! LOVE the update and all the photos!!! Love & miss you all! Pray for you every day!
Mom O X O XOXOXOXOXOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Now you have 6! But Im your number one fan so everyone has to shuffle down the list. Love you guys. xx
LOS QUIERO Y LOS EXTRANO MUCHO!!!!!!!!! I’m proud of all you. And so happy to see that you are fixing up my home for when I come. 🙂
Comment
If I kept count, I think I am #7
So I may be considered fan #7 … I wont fight the Nana’s & grandparents 😉 but #1 amongst the Wood addicts! with withdrawls … NEED our fix! 🙂
WOAH!! I am blessed and amazed see results of help the Lord’s bringing you. The work you are doing is crazy hard, sweat labor! Progress on the housing has taken off, looks awesome 🙂 Ellie, you’re TOUGH jungle girl now…like the cool scar! Bella, miss your smile, cuddling and giggles! Ethan, you’re strong like your daddy!
Thankful you have internet to be able to post pics and update us ALL!! Praying every day for you. Jessica will post a note later Love and miss you bunches! ox
Hey! It’s Erika from the Belize team! I just wanted to say that I’ve been praying for you guys and have a couple of pictures saved on my phone! I loved jumping in the mud with the girls and becoming best friends with Ethan! Missing you all!
5.10 a.m. Made it all the way to the last foto. Inspiring — you guys are amazing.
Hello Babito, amor, muñecas lindas y niño precioso! The chidren are changing so much! They are taller and even more beautiful. I love to see the progress at the new place. It looks wonderful and you have a real path now! 🙂 Papa also reads your blogs and very much enjoys your writings, most specially after being on the posting sites. May our Lord continue to bless your efforts to honor Him, may He bring you closer to Himself and to all of us. Mil Besitos! Los queremos mucho!!
Glad to hear you guys are doing well, your stories are always encouraging. Thanks!
I was getting ready to make what we affectionately call “Panama oatmeal bars” around here and thought that I should check for any update on your blog….we are so excited to see all that has happened since we were down to visit! We feel a real connection to your sweet family and will continue to pray for God’s provision and blessing on what you are doing. We also want you to know that God has done so much in us through that trip and continued so since we have been home….thank you so much for your amazing hospitality and welcoming us with open arms. We know that we will see you again, whether that be in this life or the next. Looking forward to following your family’s journey through future posts 🙂 Also, say “Hi” to Chris and Ashley for us….we really loved getting to know ALL of you!
Can’t wait to see your home finished!
It’s truly amazing to see the great work God is doing in panama. From where you guys were and where you are now! I can’t not wait to see what God is about to bring an where this is going to be heading. Love and miss you guys :))) lots !!! Just by reading your blog, make me feel the Holy Spirit all over me. Continue praying for you :)))!
You Can Add Our Family To Double Your Readership. We Are Always Checking For Updates And You Are Always In Our Thoughts And Prayers.
hey guys! love to see all the photos, Israel and I think about you guys often and miss you tons. It may be time for a catch up via facetime soon! 🙂 Pray for you guys often and long for that day we will see you all again!