Survivors of the Storm

We survived the hurricane! Actually, the hurricane winds had pretty much dissipated over the ocean by the end of the week but the rain that had been contained in the storm hit us on Saturday night. Now, we have seen plenty of rain living in Seattle. However, the rain that hit us last night was like a monsoon! We all ran outside and played in it for a while. A bunch of the college kids grabbed their boogie-boards and were surfing down the grass hills on campus. One of them took Sam for a ride. It was really fun!

Another tooth bites the dust for Sam. That's three teeth in a little over three weeks. He looks like a hockey player with his front two teeth gone. I'm beginning to think that he's exercising some early entrepreneurial tendencies as he seems to be working very hard to keep the tooth fairy revenue flowing. He normally receives one dollar per tooth which he then takes down to the vending machine for a treat. After losing the last tooth, he was negotiating to receive three dollars since has has lost three teeth. Nice try Sam.

We finally got our car back on Friday! It is nice to finally have some freedom to leave the campus and explore the island a little bit.

We went to church this morning. We have been attending Solid Rock church since arriving in Kona. The music is rockin', the pastor is hilarious, and the kids love the sunday school program. They have air hockey tables and video games for the end of sunday school so Sam really digs that. Katie loves the art tables they have and we always find her there when we go pick the kids up after the service.

This afternoon we may go to the beach. Angie and I have some homework to get done though!

Aloha!

GORDY THE GECKO!

The Storm Approaches

Good morning from Kona!

Things are going well here. We have definitely settled into a routine. The last week and a half have been very busy with our class schedules. We are still waiting for our car to be repaired and have therefore been hanging out on the base for the most part. Last Sunday, one of our friends with a car drove us to the beach. Angie and I took turns snorkeling and the kids swam in the waves. We just found out that there was an 18-foot shark spotted on Monday at the same beach we were snorkeling at. Yikes!

The biggest news around here is the approach of Hurricane Daniel. This reached category 4 status during the weekend. However, as the hurricane moved into colder waters, it has diminished to what is now Tropical Depression Daniel. Nevertheless, we are taking many precautions at the base and are taking down all the tents, kitchen equipment, and anything else that could be affected by wind and moving it to the Ohana Court. We are hoping that this turns out to be nothing more than just a stormy weekend. It will remind us of Seattle!

The family is doing well. Sam continues to help me everyday on my job duty which has evolved from van driver duty more to campus janitorial duty. We walk around the campus and empty recycle bins, dump garbages, vacuum offices, clean windows, wash vans, etc. He is building a really strong work ethic for himself and works hard beside me, even when it is really hot. I keep offering him the chance to run home and play at the park but he wants to stick with me. People seem to enjoy seeing us work together and we are starting to get nicknames around the base.

Sam and Katie love their school and we have been really pleased with how much they are learning.

We have been spending a lot of time as a group, family, and individually praying and discussing where we are feeling led to go on our outreach. There has been a slight change in direction as to where we may go. We hope to have a decision sometime in the next week or so.

Thank you all for all the cards, emails, and prayers. They mean a lot to us.

That's all for now from hurricane country. Aloha!

A Day in Pictures

Here is a visual timeline of one of our typical days...



The food line


















The community eating area













One of our lectures (can you find Angie?)













Lunchtime with our friends













Ben's small group:
Jim (San Francisco, CA), Greg (Minnesota), Jin (South Korea), Will (Chico, CA), and K.B.(South Korea). (from left to right)










Picking up Sam and Katie from school. Their teachers:
Miss Mary and Miss Rachel (from left to right)
















The Thursday night campus gatherings. The view of the Ohana (Hawaiian for family) Court from our door.












Sam and Katie getting ready for bed in their loft












Angie working hard on her homework.

Week #2

Aloha! We have just finished our second week of training school and it has been a very full week. Our speaker this week was David Hamilton. David is the son of United Methodist missionaries and grew up in South America. He has been with YWAM for over 25 years and helped start YWAM bases in Chile and and other locations in South America. He spoke this week on the character and nature of God. It was pretty mind boggling. Of course, a week is not enough time to learn everything about God. In fact, eternity is really the only adequate amount of time to discover all He is!



We had a nice surprise early this week. Ken Heeter, one of the co-founders of Cornerstone Advisors who retired last year, called up to say he and his wife were vacationing in Kona. They took us out to a nice dinner on Tuesday night. It was great to catch up with them and have a dinner that wasn't cafeteria food! Sam and Katie were babysat by Courtney, the 14-year old daughter of one of our group leaders. They love Courtney and she is really great with them. She took them on a nature hunt around campus. When we came back they had created a home for several geckos with one of our tupperware containers. Angie was thrilled with that!

As I mentioned before, I have a 2-hour work duty everyday that primarly entails maintaining the campus (cleaning), washing vans, and then driving the vans about once a week. Sam has been coming to work with me everyday and working hard alongside me. It has been great father-son bonding time.

We had one disappointment this week. The used car we purchased last week had a major break down. The car was an "as-is" purchase and the amount of miles on the car left it outside the Hawaiian Lemon Law rules which means the dealer has no legal obligation to help us out. Of course, we knew the risk of buying a temporary used car was that it might break down. We didn't anticipate that would happen in the first week though! That night we reflected on James 1:2-4...

Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.

So, we prayed about it and the next day I borrowed a friend's car and drove to the dealer to appeal to them. They agreed to take a look at the car and potentially repair it for us. So, I had the car towed back to the dealer on Friday. We should hear back early next week on the diagnosis and their proposed solution. Angie and I have had a peace about the situation and know it will all work out.

Sam's big news of the week is that he lost a second tooth. The tooth fairy has left him $1 for each tooth and he gets really excited about walking down to the campus vending machine and picking out a treat.

On Friday night, the performing arts group put on a concert for the base that included Hawaiian dancing, hip-hop dancing, fire dancing, and lots of music. The kids loved it. Katie ran up close to the stage and was dancing with some of the other little girls as they watched the dancers on stage. At one point of the hip-hop number, Katie stopped and watched very closely. Then she started shaking her booty and getting her groove on in a major way. It was pretty hilarious. It is so cool for us to see them exposed to different cultures and cultural traditions and expressions.

We'll try to post more pictures later this weekend.

Ben, Angie, Sam, Katie, and Geicko the Gecko

Kona Greetings

Hey everybody!

We are getting used to living the Hawaiian life. Today we went to the beach (finally) for the first time, and it was pretty fun. After initially being quite frightened of the waves, Sam and Katie were jumping and screaming and having a good time. I, as a mother, was very cautious with my little chicks, as the waves occasionally got very big. I actually took Sam out a little too far with me and we got caught up in a big wave. I never let go of him, but we did go under for a minute, which really upset Sam (and me!!). Sam and I both got a little shook up and that gave both of us a bigger respect for the ocean!

We are excited for this coming week as it will be the first "regular" week that we will have. The past week was full of meetings and orientations, and social gatherings to meet and get acquainted. It was exhausting!! Ben has also started his new work duty with the Campus Services Department which includes about 2 hours per day. Approximately 2 days of the week he drives people in a van to town to the local Walmart, Costco, and Longs Drug Store. The other days he helps with the upkeep of the campus (yes, that means cleaning the vans, dumping garbages, washing windows, and even cleaning bathrooms!) Sam and Katie get out of their school at 3pm at which we come home for snacks, then either play at the park or go to the pool to swim.

We have enjoyed our lectures, especially hearing from Loren and Darlene Cunningham (founders of YWAM). Darlene was my favorite. She is very dynamic, and she was so encouraging. Her main topic of focus was that God has given each of us unique gifts. But just as important is that the gifts He has not given us are still a part of His plan in order to develop those gifts or work with others who have those gifts. She encouraged us to seek God to discover who we are in Christ and that He will direct us. She also reminded us that God puts dreams in our hearts and he is faithful to fulfill those dreams. In between our lectures Ben has been having fun interpreting some words and ideas to our Korean classmates that they were not able to understand during the lecture.

In our classes we have received journals in which we will be having "homework" every week. We actually have to turn them in!! We also have a book report to do ! I haven't had homework in 10 years! I'm not very excited about that.

We are so glad to be here with each other, in this beautiful paradise. I cherish every morning I wake up to sun, sit and look out at the ocean and drink my coffee. God is so good to us.

Sam and Katie are continuing to adjust to their new surroundings. They are having a lot of fun and making a lot of friends. They do occasionally get homesick, (which is hard on me and Ben). Usually it is when they are very tired, and need to go to bed.

Thank you for continuing to pray for us. We feel God has brought us here to grow with each other, and also to grow closer to God. God is working in Ben and my life, and also Sam's and Katie's.

We miss you all! Thank you for your emails, keep them coming!

Angie

P.S. Sam lost his 3rd tooth on Friday night!

Sam, proud of his missing tooth.

Enjoying the beach

Watch out for the waves!

Sunset from our room

Happy 4th of July!!!

ALOHA!!!

We just returned from a 4th of July celebration sponsored by YWAM on Ali'i Drive which is the main cruising street right on the waterfront. The event included live music, face painting, break-dancing, fireworks, and more. It was great.

We are starting to get into a groove here. Our weekdays generally consist of the following schedule:

6:30-7:15 AM - Breakfast is served
8:00-12:00 - Kids go to school and we go to class which includes Bible teaching and team building work.
12:00-1:00 - Lunch
1:30-2:45 - More class and outreach training for our missions trip.
3:00-5:00 - Angie picks up kids from school. Ben goes to his daily work duty which is driving shuttle vans to and from town/airport.
5:00-6:00 - Dinner
6:00-bedtime - Free family time

The kids spend most of their free time playing hard at the playground and searching for geckos with their friends. Yesterday, Ben went to a local car dealership and scored a sweet deal on a used PT Crusier to get us around the island while we are here. We will plan to sell it when we leave (any takers)?

We feel like we are starting to get the insect roomates under control a bit. Ben went to Wal-Mart the other day and bought an arsenal of roach traps and spray. We shall see how effective they are. We have realized that the ants will be here to stay regardless of what we do. The best we can do is just keep everything wiped down at all times and leave absolutely no food or crumbs out.

Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. Have a great week!


Angie's beautiful home-made budget decorating of our living room wall

Sam playing with a resident gecko

Aloha Kakahiaka (good morning)!

It's Saturday morning here in Kona. Last night they had an official welcoming ceremony for all the new students which included hula, fire dancing, rappers, breakdancing, and several other dance presentations representing some of the different nations represented by students here. It was very cool. Sam was especially into the breakdancers and Katie of course loved the hula dancing.

We are settling into our new home pretty well. We have discovered that we are sharing our room with several families of cockroaches and geckos. That takes a little getting used to. The heat is also a little hard to adjust to as well. It has been in the 90's with quite a bit of humidity and doesn't seem to cool down that much at night. Since our room does not have air conditioning, we all take cold showers right before bed to try to sleep easier.

We miss everyone. Aloha!

Angie settling into our new home




















Our living room















The children's playground (where Sam & Katie spend a lot of time)
















The view from our living room of the community eating area