Remembering

Today is the anniversary of the earthquake in Haiti. It was the eve of my 50th birthday. I attended a mission committee meeting where we were just beginning to learn details of the devastation. Jim was gone, and I went home and spent the night watching CNN in the basement. I never watch CNN. I was also texting with Nana Lois, which would continue throughout the week.

I prayed for my friends in Haiti. I prayed for my Haitian friends. It would be several days before we received word that our American group was safe. We cried when we learned that sweet baby Jude and one of the young Sisters had been killed.  Sometimes we just cried.

This is a picture of Jude, Jed, and Jennifer.  Bondye beni ou Jude.

Here are some before and after photos showing just a tiny bit of what happened that day.  I took this picture of the National Palace in Port au Prince in November '09.

This was the guest house in Fondwa.

My friend Jesula's house before.

And after.

And these last two are a couple of my favorite pictures taken by Jennifer in November.  They are slowly rebuilding in Fondwa.  The students are attending school in temporary structures, and enrollment is as high or even a bit higher than before the earthquake.

Especially in the faces of the children, I see hope.
 

And I pray for a bright future for these precious little ones.

 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—

   where does my help come from?
 My help comes from the LORD,
   the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip—
   he who watches over you will not slumber;
 indeed, he who watches over Israel
   will neither slumber nor sleep.

  The LORD watches over you—
   the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
 the sun will not harm you by day,
   nor the moon by night.

  The LORD will keep you from all harm—
   he will watch over your life;
 the LORD will watch over your coming and going
   both now and forevermore. 

Psalm 121:1-8

Gummy Bug Lab

Jennifer gave Matthew a Gummy Bug Lab kit for Christmas, and last week on her day off, they were able to attempt the experiment.

First, they read the directions.

They measured the gummy powder.

They selected a flavor...

and mixed it with water...

with the stir stick.

Matthew learned how to use the pipette, which is like a big eyedropper.  Aunt Fer uses them at work sometimes.

He carefully squeezed the gummy potion into the mold.

Whose big hand is trying to get in on the project?  Big Jon!

Such concentration!

Aunt Fer finishes up.

They had a great time working together on a fun project.  Unfortunately, the gummy bugs didn't set up, and we didn't get to taste them or get a picture of the finished product.  They did have enough gummy mix to make another batch, so we will try it again someday.  Hopefully we will have better results next time.  And honestly, Matthew didn't care as much about the finished gummy bugs as he did about the time he spent with Aunt Jennifer.  : ) 

Who Dat Wildcard Weekend!

Big game this afternoon. Saints vs. Seahawks in Seattle.  It's cold, gray, and raining in Seattle.  Shocker.  In honor of the game today, here's a picture of Shy and Fer in their new fleur de lis fashions.

And this one was sent this morning by Darci.  Haleigh says,

"Geaux Saints! 

Who Dat!"

And just for fun, the best NFL commercial ever!

Happy New Year!

We spent the first day of 2011 celebrating Christmas with the Sturges side of the family at the home of my parents.  For several years now, instead of traditional gift giving, we have had a grab bag gift exchange.  We have a 10 dollar limit, and it can be a new gift, a re-gift, a homemade gift, or any creative combination.  We draw numbers to see who gets to choose first.  When it is your turn, you can either steal someone's already opened gift, or select a wrapped one.  The stealing makes it fun, and it reminds me a little of "Let's Make a Deal."  Is it better to take a sure thing, or go for something better behind door (bag) number three? 

Here are all the gifts in a pile waiting for the fun to begin.

Jennifer opens a big box of microwave popcorn.  I wonder if she'll be able to keep that until the end?

Cheryl, Dara, and Shylah watch as the gifts are opened.

Jon, Adam, and David wait their turn.

Ted tries his basket on as a hat.

Evan's turn to choose a gift.  Hmmmm.... which one should I take?

Just what I wanted!  A Santa plate!

What will Dara find in her bag?

An assortment of popcorn!

Sam gets a lovely and practical flashlight.  You never know when you might find yourself in the dark.

Shylah is thrilled with her appliance remote.  Almost as good as a clapper.

Andrew watches as Boomie opens a delicious package of Oreos.

Jenny finds an iTunes card.

But Cheryl got the most coveted gift of all, a Justin Bieber calendar!

Please don't steal this one!

Dara can't believe her eyes.  Or maybe she's plotting a way to claim this for her own.

David has a nice new extension cord.

After Ted's basket of goodies was stolen, he had the chance to select again, and received this beautiful scarf.

Quite the fashionista.

Michael had number 1, so at the end of the game, he had the opportunity to take any of the gifts.  Although he considered the flashlight, I think he stuck with his Wendy's gift card.  You can't beat a Frosty.

Haleigh helped with the wrapping paper.

Matthew and Haleigh didn't participate in the grab bag, but there were gifts for them too.  Matthew had to act surprised when he opened...

the Lego set he picked out with Nana at the Children's Museum.  Oh, was he ever surprised!

Darci and Matthew helped Haleigh open her gift.

A sweeper!  It's never too early to start helping around the house.  :)

Evan got to open a very belated graduation gift.  A blanket!  It even has the logo of the school which must not be named.  Your Aunt Susan must really love you Evan!
 

After the gifts, Nana enlisted Jim's help in preparing the dessert, Bananas Foster a la Brennan's.  We felt just like we were in New Orleans.

They discussed the proper interpretation of the recipe.

And someone suggested a fire extinguisher.

Nana added a little rum... and... success!

We didn't even have to use the fire extinguisher.  Maybe we should move to NOLA and Jim can get a job at Brennan's?

Ready to eat.  Beautiful and delicious!

After the food and the fun, Evan curled up for a little rest with his new blanket.

Of course, Christmas is ultimately about celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. We are blessed to live in families in which we can share the love, the grace, and the peace that God has given to us. 

"We love because He first loved us." 1 John 4:19.