tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-88669236304348821402024-03-05T00:46:03.578-08:00On the Sands of the SaharaA glimpse into the life of the Hebert FamilyDonnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.comBlogger173125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-87245714994831735612012-10-13T16:11:00.002-07:002012-10-13T16:13:32.010-07:00A Week With Malaria...and a few other things<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">It’s been a bit of a rough week for us here in Niger. If you’ve read "A Brief Look at a Day in the Sandbox" you got a
glimpse of one day this week. What wasn’t
communicated there was my fear in hearing that there was no medicine in
town for my sick baby. Talk about a
moment of helplessness. I knew that it
would probably, most likely be on that bus that would eventually show up at
some point before the end of the day, but I also knew that it was quite
possible that it wouldn’t. And if it
didn’t show up that night, I guess it wouldn’t have been the end of the
world. We could have sent someone to
Tahoua, 2 ½ hours away, early the next morning and we would have had it by that
afternoon. Still, though, my fear was
there. Once it was confirmed that she
did have malaria, I wanted to start treatment right then and there!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">That was Monday.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">On Tuesday she didn’t seem too bad. Her fever from the night before had come down
and she no longer felt super hot to the touch.
That evening there was a little less throwing up with medication administration. I was feeling optimistic. Again, that night there was fever all night
long.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Wednesday morning the power went off at 6:00 AM. This is not uncommon. In fact, what is uncommon is a day without
any power cuts. Their frequency and
length varies, but lately they haven’t been too bad, often only lasting a few
minutes. The day continued and Emma’s
fever persisted despite around the clock medication, cool baths and
compresses. On Monday and Tuesday she
still played some throughout the day but this day she was lethargic, not making
hardly a peep, when she wasn’t sleeping her head was buried in my chest. I was scared.
She’d already has two out of the three doses of malaria medication and I
had expected her to be doing better at this point, not worse. That afternoon after she woke up from her nap
not in any improved state I called on of the doctors at Galmi, the SIM mission
hospital about 5 hours away. He said he
might expect her to maybe be the same, but not worse. He said we should probably think about coming
in if things continued this way. I
decided that if she had not improved by morning we would make the trip. By this time it was nearly 5:00 PM. The power had come back on (briefly)but the
water had cut off in the middle of giving her a cool shower. Thankfully, though, much to my relief, her
fever came down. She only spiked a fever
once in the middle of the night but it came back down quickly after a dose of
Tylenol.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"></span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">
Thursday morning she was still afebrile. I passed her off to Donnie to go get
dressed. When I came back I noticed a
rash starting on her face and it was quickly spreading. Another phone call to the doctor to say that
she was doing better, but what about this rash?!? He said it was probably viral, which was what
I thought too. It looked kind of
measle-like and I recalled the red eyes and copious amounts of green nasal
discharge a few days back that I didn’t think anything of at the time. So not only did she have malaria, but she
also had some other virus on top of it that may or may not have been measles…my
poor baby! Despite the quite alarming
looking rash, she had a better day. She
was still quite clingy and cuddly but was starting to ask for food and water. </span></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMGEQOSlD9zCEvynmbaKRVvUOlo03_UfooILoh8YknIF8tDrnnit8lVOxl-YRUAvYL7BADbEjf5zhPNxSZDSVqFfHvXU0E-piYt3wkoRyUgNWWEPHSUxx3WzHIhQ1rdqMCGdcN-JaO1Ocd/s1600/better.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMGEQOSlD9zCEvynmbaKRVvUOlo03_UfooILoh8YknIF8tDrnnit8lVOxl-YRUAvYL7BADbEjf5zhPNxSZDSVqFfHvXU0E-piYt3wkoRyUgNWWEPHSUxx3WzHIhQ1rdqMCGdcN-JaO1Ocd/s1600/better.jpg" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">By the end of the day she was playing independently for brief
moments. She started to make some
vocalizations and I even got a little smile and a laugh out of her. What a relief!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">With all of this, we had less than 3 hours of power in three
days and virtually no water since Wednesday afternoon. This morning (Saturday)the power came back
on, but we still have no running water.
And, did I mention that October is the mini hot season in Niger? Most days it gets up to 94F <i>inside </i>the house. Our air conditioner (that is just for our
bedroom, mind you) isn’t working at the moment and Wednesday morning I
discovered that the water shut off valve in our wash machine is broken…we
noticed a puddle, I heard dripping and opened up the door and a whole load full
of water came gushing out! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I don’t share this with you all to feel sorry for us, so
please don’t! Some people ask what it’s
like to live in Niger. I share this
because this is what real life is like here sometimes. Not by any means all of what life is here,
but definitely a part of our reality. And
I know we’re not starving, and we have money to buy medicine for our sick kids
(when it’s available!), and compared to most Nigeriens we have it pretty darn
good, but sometimes it’s hard for us and we struggle. So please, you Humboldt folk who live with
the luxury of outside air conditioning (oh, how I miss it!), think of us when
you step outside. All of you with
reliable power and water, think of us when you go to flip a light switch, or
turn on your faucet, pray for us that we would have the grace to deal with
times like these that try our patience and make us wish we were home. When you look upon your healthy children,
pray for ours to remain healthy too. But
more than that, pray that we would keep our eyes on our Him, the Author and
Finisher of our faith. Pray that our
ministry here would be fruitful and that our time spent here would not be in
vain.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-88839019713308498932012-10-08T23:57:00.002-07:002012-10-09T00:29:57.617-07:00A Brief look at a day in the sand box People often ask what our days are like here so I will
share my day today with you.<br />
6:00 Get up and put tea on and have quiet
time as we wait for the hospital worker to come and draw blood from Emma
and I. We both needed to see if we have malaria.<br />
7:00 Haruna our local
hospital worker comes by the house to draw the blood. He uses an
unconventional item to tie our arms off while he draws our blood. (it
looks like an old backpack strap) after he draws the blood he caps the
two needles and leaves them next to the chair he is sitting in. As he is
leaving we give him the equivalent of $10.00 for coming to the house so
we do not have to wait at the hospital.<br />
8:00 I go to the project office to
work on grain bank administration. Allison is texting the doctors at the mission hospital 6 hours away to see what local malaria medicine we can
use to treat Emma with if she has malaria.<br />
11:00 We find out Emma has
malaria. I go to the local pharmacies to get the medicine for Emma. None
of the pharmacies have the medicine due to the high amount of malaria
cases this year. One pharmacy tells me to come back in the afternoon to
see if the medicine came in.<br />
12:00 Go home to eat lunch and have
siesta.<br />
3:00 Back to work at the office.<br />
4:00 Return to the pharmacy to
see if the medicine came in. It didn't come in we have to wait to see if
it is on the bus that is coming to town. I then go to the hospital to
see if they have any medicine there. None available. I did get to visit
with three different families I know.<br />
6:00 Come home from work and take
clothes off the line.<br />
7:00 Return to the pharmacy to see again if they
have the medicine. This time they do! Thank you Jesus!! The medicine
costs $12.00 I then return to the hospital to drop off a cot for one of
the families I know who has to spend the night at the hospital.<br />
8:00 Back home to give Emma her medicine. We start to give Emma her medicine
and she is not taking it to well. She then throws up all over me (I have
a weak stomach and I am trying not to throw up) just before Jeff stops
by to see how Emma is doing. We have to start all over giving her the
medicine. This time we are able to get it in her. Just after we finish
the power goes out. Outside to turn the generator on.<br />
9:00 We eat dinner
and give Micah his bath.<br />
10:00 Power comes back on Back outside to turn
the generator off and switch to local power. We then get the kids ready
for bed. Every day we each say what we are thankful to God for that day.
Today Micah is thankful he got to make cupcakes with Mama. Allison and I
are thankful for the hospital worker that came by and that the medicine
came in today. After we pray and put Micah to bed<br />
11:00 I take a shower
then write email<br />
11:45 Bed time Thank you Jesus!
<br />
So that was a glimpse into what life was like today in
the sandbox.Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-75511373991494440482012-10-08T23:50:00.005-07:002012-10-08T23:50:52.496-07:00Garden of Life<br />
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">V</span>egetables…….chances are you have them readily available to
you. All you have to do is go to your local grocery store or farmers market and
providing you have money you can feast on a great variety of produce. I wish
that was the case here in the sandbox.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Here in Abalak most of the time
our produce is limited to onions and pumpkin and some potatoes now and
then. Our closest “produce vendor” is 2 –
3 hours away depending on how bad the roads are. Upon arrival at the sandbox
version of farmers market you never know what is available that day. There have
been some trips in years past that I have returned to Abalak with only a little
bit of onions. I only bought the onions because they happened to be a little
bigger than the marble sized ones we sometimes get in Abalak. Some trips yield Carrots
Cabbage Potatoes Eggplant & Bananas. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; font-size: large;">B</span>ecause
of the lack of produce in our village we decided to start a local garden
outreach. A local Christian and I started with the little area and the few
seeds we had available to us. A couple seasons later and we are seeing much
needed produce in Abalak. In addition to
the much needed produce we are also seeing lives changed. People that stop by
are getting prayed for and can listen in on the bible teachings. Widows are
having a means of food not available to them before and some are learning new
gardening skills to provide for their families. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Last
week we were getting things in order for the garden season and one of the
things to do was to get the water pump serviced. So we dropped it off with the mechanic
and left him to his work. When the work was done we went to pay him and he had conveniently
left his labor cost out of the estimate. When he said how much labor was going
to be I almost laughed in his face. It would be like going to the store and
when arriving at the checkout the total for the gallon of milk that normally
costs you 4 dollars now costs you 600 dollars. Silly I know! So we began the
great past time of haggling for a “normal” price. During this process I can see
that the mechanic is flustered and something is upsetting him. I was praying it
was not me. He finally says that he was in a hurry and had an out of town job
waiting for him and just give him a reasonable amount so he could be on his
way.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif; font-size: large;">A</span>t this
point I realized that I had a choice to make I could give him the sum asked and
send him on his way upset and me not exactly content either…..or as I prayed
God said to give him more than he asked.
So I decided to do what I felt God told me to do which meant that we
were going to have to send his friend to find change because I did not have the
exact amount. During this time I began to talk with Leo the mechanic and share
with him some of the character attributes of God. He suddenly became less agitated
and began to look me in the eyes. He then proceeded to tell me that his “out of
town job” was really a trip to go pick up his wife who had left because of
family pressure from them not having kids. We talked much more about his
situation and got to pray together for him and his wife before he set off on
his journey! <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You never
know what can happen in situations as you go about your day to day life when
you take a moment to listen to what is really going on with those we cross
paths with.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;">M</span>ake it
a point to keep your eyes and ears open to see what the people you cross paths
with are really saying.<o:p></o:p></div>
Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-18210825147160250372012-07-26T04:16:00.001-07:002012-07-26T04:16:14.193-07:00Niger Public Transport<br />
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<span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">O</span>n Monday of this week our family needed to travel to “town”
which is two hours away to do some banking and check on post. We were also
going to spend some time with fellow YWAMers that are doing a Kings Kids
outreach there this week. Our lovely Bush Beast as we call our vehicle is not
yet running and needs a bit of work before it is functional. We had to take
public transport to get there. In Niger you have two man public transport
options. One is a Toyota minivan that they shove as many people as possible
into it (like a <b><i>clown car</i></b>) and then on the top and sides overload the vehicle
with all of the passengers belongings which can include and is not limited to
many forms of livestock that you wouldn’t normally attach to the top of a minivan.
They cram as many people as they can into the vehicle and you likely end up
being squished into a pretzel like form in between two large housa women with
babies in their laps. This is the slower option as the vehicle makes many stops
and will likely break down a couple of times before arriving at your
destination. The other option is the
bus. They have busses like greyhound except you have about as much seat space
as when flying economy on a small plane without the reclining seats and the
cushions are well past their prime. We like to call this <b><i>Mr Toads Wild Ride in the steely
trap of death</i></b>. If you are not of the praying persuasion you will likely
be during this wild ride. </div>
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<span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">T</span>he road between Abalak and
Tahou is not really a road it is more like an <b><i>exhibition of the many different
potholes that can destroy what once was a road</i></b>. Some of them seem like
they are big enough to swallow a small car. These potholes don’t deter the bus drivers
in the least from getting ready for their racing career. As they speed along and through the pothole
exhibition you are praying that the bus will not tip over, or that you won’t
shatter your kneecaps or your skull as you are lifted off the seat. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: .5in; text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 115%;">T</span><b><i>he steely trap of death </i></b>was
our choice of public transportation. Micah tried to nap while on the bus but he
wasn’t too successful. Every time he bus would plow through a pothole and he
was lifted off his seat his eyes got as big as saucers and he said hold me
tighter papa. We were thankful to put
our feet on solid ground again after two hours of Mr. Toads Wild Ride. While
waiting to get our bag from the luggage compartment four men were hard at work
under the front of the bus hammering and wrenching on something that wasn’t right.
<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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We just wanted to share a Niger travel moment with you. Have
a great weekend!<o:p></o:p></div>
Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-2993688496776395952012-04-25T20:45:00.003-07:002012-04-25T20:45:45.550-07:00Our Big Trip<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><i><br /></i></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Wow! It's been nearly three weeks since we started making tracks for our cross-country support raising trip. We left Arcata early on the morning of April 9th. This is the route we took--Arcata to Reno, to Salt Lake City, to Colorado Springs, to Kansas City (we spent two nights there), to Nashville, then to Dalton, Georgia where we stayed for a week. What a trip! We've driven over 2,600 miles. I was so thankful to have finally arrived in Georgia, knowing that we'd get to stay put for awhile, and that it was the end of really long days of travel until it's time to turn around and go back home at the end of May. Now we're half way through our week in Florida and next week will be arriving in Picayune, Mississippi where we'll stay for nearly a month. </div>
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Here are some pictures from our first day of travel...</div>
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The first day of travel was only about 6 1/2 hrs of drive time. We wanted to stop and do some fun stuff along the way. We have a friend, Nicole, who's living in Redding and lucky for us she had the day off, so we stopped and hung out with her for a good chunk of the day.</div>
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Micah and Nicole</div>
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After hanging out at her house for awhile, we decided to take our lunch and go check out the <a href="http://www.turtlebay.org/sundialbridge">Sundial Bridge</a>...</div>
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After lunch, we continued on our way. I'd never been past Redding on 299 and was looking forward to this part of the drive. It was quite beautiful. On either side of Redding we kept seeing these really pretty purple bushes--</div>
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Anyone know what these are?</div>
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Every so often we had to stop for the little ones.</div>
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Isn't he just fedorable?</div>
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That night we stayed at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno. It was free! I think Micah's favorite part was the race car out in front. I hope it made up for the pool being closed :(</div>
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We only had to stay in hotels for the first two nights, and we only had to pay for one of those nights. Every other stop along the way we knew people there and someone would put us up for the night. Micah made lots of new friends along the way! Too bad he won't be seeing any of them again anytime soon :( Thank you to all of you who put us up for the night (or two...or had us over for lunch)...you are much appreciated!</div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-20204129621840447612012-04-23T12:42:00.000-07:002012-04-23T12:42:06.477-07:00Red Clay State ParkSaturday afternoon we ventured out with the Spier family to Red Clay State Park in Georgia. It's an old Cherokee village. You can see replicas of houses and sleeping lodges, fields of wildflowers. We brought out some frisbees and balls to throw around...<br />
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We also walked a little trail that followed a stream that flows from the Blue Spring.</div>
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Amazing, isn't it?</div>
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Of course we had to stop and splash around and get our feet wet!<br />
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And my little monkey wanted to climb a tree!</div>
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And then I just had to take some pictures of him in the flowers...I LOVE these!</div>
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<b><i>Thank you Spier Family for a lovely outing and a lovely week!</i></b></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-71742566535184409622012-04-20T12:42:00.000-07:002012-04-20T12:42:16.574-07:00My Little Golfer<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
This is a few weeks back. Donnie decided to take Micah golfing with him, since he enjoys it so much.</div>
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<br />Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-12112569294099168722012-04-20T12:39:00.000-07:002012-04-20T12:39:22.789-07:00Coloring Easter Eggs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
The day before Easter, just two days before we began our epic cross-country trek...</div>
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Last year our Easter package arrived in Niger just in time for Mother's Day, so we did a Mother's Day Easter Egg Hunt, but the little dude wasn't so into coloring eggs then. This year was a little more fun, especially since he got to do it with Cousin Maddie.</div>
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She's enjoying this too!</div>
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The finished product.</div>
<br />Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-49531669189767398482012-04-18T12:24:00.004-07:002012-04-18T12:29:57.707-07:00Emma at Four Months<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Tt0RUe4CCTS4gjpi0j00tYMqctXhCAZporKMoSRBFaZ5__zLJlsI9ECzMkMj2lLZ-GZuUxRWwqFqdAzFTMdFwqdiQQvLCBdYNuj7XpMOL94sUKCJjfxHcEP1ZoxLVr-AlqyKJqSiTjqE/s1600/IMG_2287.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8Tt0RUe4CCTS4gjpi0j00tYMqctXhCAZporKMoSRBFaZ5__zLJlsI9ECzMkMj2lLZ-GZuUxRWwqFqdAzFTMdFwqdiQQvLCBdYNuj7XpMOL94sUKCJjfxHcEP1ZoxLVr-AlqyKJqSiTjqE/s400/IMG_2287.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5732824738599973666" /></a>Here she is almost a month ago...just keeps growing and growing! She's in the last week started to roll over more consistently and is nearly sitting up on her own!Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-12069940508154912572012-03-19T23:34:00.002-07:002012-03-20T00:06:43.668-07:00Trip to Woodland<div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 100%; ">A couple of weeks back we went to go visit our teammates who are now living in Woodland for the time being. It was nice to spend some time with them as we've only seen them a few times since they came back to the states a year ago last November. Micah is a year and a half younger than Caleb and a year and a half older than Abby. It's fun to watch Micah and Caleb play now, when we were all in Niger he was still so much smaller than Caleb, so they didn't play too much together then. </span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></span></div><div style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: center; ">The first day we visited the Sacramento Zoo and then the day after that we went to...</div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtnqr3bWpE1K2FEB8BldXgeDWLQufW-XlT181d4GHXATZ9EVLT_FsBZi6va8k8R9FM6vIRP9BJMja3f6d33WxUTP593HPBSzlcSB8HzNYbAMtjZZRacMaDXFezlzYbbroYjgrDIAlOzZD/s1600/IMG_2153.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPtnqr3bWpE1K2FEB8BldXgeDWLQufW-XlT181d4GHXATZ9EVLT_FsBZi6va8k8R9FM6vIRP9BJMja3f6d33WxUTP593HPBSzlcSB8HzNYbAMtjZZRacMaDXFezlzYbbroYjgrDIAlOzZD/s400/IMG_2153.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721864986905545970" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span >the Jelly Belly Factory!!!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span ><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span >I can't tell you how many times growing up we drove by that place on our way to Stockton to visit family. I always wanted to stop and visit...finally, I got to!</span></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqevfToeSk9zzCDdIM2iqaGq08W_t2554ccR6z5iSEolvzflqQcg_0yLyM5l7M-oVCNUQD_Le4hyqMlPzr0cZRseccRNF1-_nTcK9pOZ_yKWXjd1IIkxLC4XhVjV5L2htxki9e5NCJBLLQ/s1600/IMG_2156.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqevfToeSk9zzCDdIM2iqaGq08W_t2554ccR6z5iSEolvzflqQcg_0yLyM5l7M-oVCNUQD_Le4hyqMlPzr0cZRseccRNF1-_nTcK9pOZ_yKWXjd1IIkxLC4XhVjV5L2htxki9e5NCJBLLQ/s400/IMG_2156.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721864981744640114" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">When we arrived they were filming a commercial for the Sacramento River Cats, so this guy and the big Jelly Belly were running around for the camera. Micah got in on a little of the action.</div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWoEMjWeETcXxux2EWqyOxJ67Vhx4U2BmKJEmo7w6QNEZ1rpL8ueESIsZ79a_DJsFlE_Xg85w3-daFt5e71gWsWJ59LDTp_dxQeOJTt9RCLrx1K1OZQRVeIUOjS5TPgcAzQTmZ-83Af1Q/s1600/IMG_2158.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWoEMjWeETcXxux2EWqyOxJ67Vhx4U2BmKJEmo7w6QNEZ1rpL8ueESIsZ79a_DJsFlE_Xg85w3-daFt5e71gWsWJ59LDTp_dxQeOJTt9RCLrx1K1OZQRVeIUOjS5TPgcAzQTmZ-83Af1Q/s400/IMG_2158.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721864746403362914" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">He LOVES mascots! (We took him to an HSU basketball game awhile back, all he talked about afterwards was the Lumberjack, he called him "The BIG Guy".)</div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwLAKPt-VlsC9r-a7x7Nqtbz7f3yk89N4kfMeFqMvgmdsPatGH-psH4ps60ZZi8b2jhhiAMeC-mNetVXChUOzqlPX1_qIMrSKt3cRcBBqWT83UeZdsy9-VsIKvDNp2mI8PDY8iJolQTlWZ/s1600/IMG_2162.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwLAKPt-VlsC9r-a7x7Nqtbz7f3yk89N4kfMeFqMvgmdsPatGH-psH4ps60ZZi8b2jhhiAMeC-mNetVXChUOzqlPX1_qIMrSKt3cRcBBqWT83UeZdsy9-VsIKvDNp2mI8PDY8iJolQTlWZ/s400/IMG_2162.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721864739278586802" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">The big Jelly Belly and the River Cat went along on part of the tour with us...I think it was Micah's favorite part.</div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWcQrbvpESk2elb1dndHNodbgrYDK7gMGFUFtb_zwDAhUFFD08Ydak4Qf0rBsZKGXF1Ourr2hkjZ02MAs6n96ZiSYN9UZIw8Dv98yMKtIrGdVEjBasaT_XyHfcW4-r0yTdTuFYSU5YK39/s1600/IMG_2177.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJWcQrbvpESk2elb1dndHNodbgrYDK7gMGFUFtb_zwDAhUFFD08Ydak4Qf0rBsZKGXF1Ourr2hkjZ02MAs6n96ZiSYN9UZIw8Dv98yMKtIrGdVEjBasaT_XyHfcW4-r0yTdTuFYSU5YK39/s400/IMG_2177.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721864732459698818" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Harry Potter in Jelly Bellies.</div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtv9oa-8C5R0NmwqzZQrnlVQCXH-Jizaa-Kx-3JS-yAE8e0Tm_FKvYA5PjQCR6zT0cEKL-HgkWRqfT-OtMHyAm-52k7AkRe_iIFRR5UrOLCouGBdFGqZT0Y7vzha8-iv3K4e6To1iNvYFf/s1600/IMG_2178.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtv9oa-8C5R0NmwqzZQrnlVQCXH-Jizaa-Kx-3JS-yAE8e0Tm_FKvYA5PjQCR6zT0cEKL-HgkWRqfT-OtMHyAm-52k7AkRe_iIFRR5UrOLCouGBdFGqZT0Y7vzha8-iv3K4e6To1iNvYFf/s400/IMG_2178.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721864730314218738" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">We had to wear these hats while we were on the tour. For privacy reasons we couldn't take pictures while we were on the tour. We saw where they got packaged to be sent out, we saw the machines where the outer jelly bean coating was applied, we saw where they kept all their ingredients, we learned a little bit about the food scientists that work on coming up with the different flavors, we saw the machine that sorts out the Belly Flops from the other jelly beans, and we learned that all the Jelly Bellies that fall on the floor get swept up and sent to a pig farm for the pigs to eat. We had a few samples along the way and then at the end of the tour they gave us each a small box of Jelly Bellies and a sample of candy corn.</div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCn2oQwNkwdHFNsxOkGS5Bx5LlrJCFD_-RDuTpesXfKNmnCTll6a6Dv2MxVbmXH1YXlTNHyHpljSqvfEuRi_sr_mnALqc3Ga_n9JHx0UMeUtt2ovs-_IskZWzHRok5nx7O6ZQD8TV0DnBQ/s1600/IMG_2181.jpg" style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 100%; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCn2oQwNkwdHFNsxOkGS5Bx5LlrJCFD_-RDuTpesXfKNmnCTll6a6Dv2MxVbmXH1YXlTNHyHpljSqvfEuRi_sr_mnALqc3Ga_n9JHx0UMeUtt2ovs-_IskZWzHRok5nx7O6ZQD8TV0DnBQ/s400/IMG_2181.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721864729469622210" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Kid in a candy store.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">Before we left we went back to their store to try some more samples and buy some Belly Flops :)</div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-89166635703228417072012-03-19T23:13:00.002-07:002012-03-19T23:28:55.647-07:00February 24, 2012<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAPYN87xl8oOhIe3Crddh0CQMuMZPhYqHq842lSUVEV3A90ZmBTyCkCtg2dFTVzKU4zamCk2fwGbib7OToTXozi1D8VmMbKHTrGbsc08fCnVpTzFq1lGCBr_KPJ-pf2bRk0cRoYy1AXEmO/s1600/papa+bday.jpg" style="font-weight: normal; font-size: 100%; "><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 387px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAPYN87xl8oOhIe3Crddh0CQMuMZPhYqHq842lSUVEV3A90ZmBTyCkCtg2dFTVzKU4zamCk2fwGbib7OToTXozi1D8VmMbKHTrGbsc08fCnVpTzFq1lGCBr_KPJ-pf2bRk0cRoYy1AXEmO/s400/papa+bday.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721858638217519746" /></a><div style="text-align: center; "><span style="font-weight: bold; ">Happy Birthday to Donnie! </span><span style="font-weight: normal; font-size: 100%; "> Earlier in the day Micah, Emma, and I brought Donnie some balloons and a present at work. </span><span style="font-weight: normal; "><span >(The present was a T-shirt that said, "i make beautiful babies" with a matching onsie for Emma that said, "beautiful baby"...hehehe :)</span></span><span style="font-weight: normal; font-size: 100%; ">Then that evening family came over and we celebrated with a crab dinner followed by a decadent </span><a href="http://http://www.mangiodasola.com/2010/02/chocolate-mousse-cheesecake.html" style="font-weight: normal; font-size: 100%; ">chocolate mousse cheesecake </a><span style="font-weight: normal; font-size: 100%; ">. Micah helped blow out the candle :)</span></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-77343270959508422432012-03-19T23:12:00.002-07:002012-03-19T23:13:23.438-07:00Precious Little Feet<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx3wffdOPLDbKmSXmi__BdnTyHYgmtC3X_ppgH8MjRoSBkTKeQg9Kp03ZbLld9u4yEcWFZHtALit9c6MWXBsX2YrX9GPJs-t38NYsCKGJwLfUxgyNr9aU4RIKlMFllXjWgVj6ALJyFfOSb/s1600/e+feet.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjx3wffdOPLDbKmSXmi__BdnTyHYgmtC3X_ppgH8MjRoSBkTKeQg9Kp03ZbLld9u4yEcWFZHtALit9c6MWXBsX2YrX9GPJs-t38NYsCKGJwLfUxgyNr9aU4RIKlMFllXjWgVj6ALJyFfOSb/s400/e+feet.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721858321439942674" /></a>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-50273756161916923342012-03-19T23:10:00.001-07:002012-03-19T23:11:57.439-07:00January 19, 2012<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmyyBCqwT_W69N5TX6TasoaHR4rZh-4YNMa1u17il2L0IYzFrKVbOycd4AR3hoiF9OHsfjYjB36LJTPS416MNVM9xcsvlwCycuoz9DN__LRC4rzEvcTHtuewafHcwB3ZToeVLdWWwGnV_M/s1600/m+and+e.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 266px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmyyBCqwT_W69N5TX6TasoaHR4rZh-4YNMa1u17il2L0IYzFrKVbOycd4AR3hoiF9OHsfjYjB36LJTPS416MNVM9xcsvlwCycuoz9DN__LRC4rzEvcTHtuewafHcwB3ZToeVLdWWwGnV_M/s400/m+and+e.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721857881202639618" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">My beautiful babies!</span></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-57748255626851449592012-03-19T23:09:00.002-07:002012-03-19T23:10:15.345-07:00My Baby Girl and Me<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWWxqr0zzXUZMonaku_Jh20G1qoIoZvyYahy0Be3_J_tGDTmlvI9Js0E6p6g79TIdf2vdU7MyLMT7p_lzmAOV4_uDaeXKtSxtseQwGzkRVQAYw0Aro28nG3LugntvGdHby1BmVKy-I0Ms-/s1600/IMG_2120.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWWxqr0zzXUZMonaku_Jh20G1qoIoZvyYahy0Be3_J_tGDTmlvI9Js0E6p6g79TIdf2vdU7MyLMT7p_lzmAOV4_uDaeXKtSxtseQwGzkRVQAYw0Aro28nG3LugntvGdHby1BmVKy-I0Ms-/s400/IMG_2120.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721857666930032626" /></a>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-33123838744400147182012-03-19T23:08:00.002-07:002012-03-19T23:09:24.199-07:00Cutest little mohawk you ever did see!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCfS9W1YQiB8FeouPcJu0dyjQYE7MJRkcDQe9WRnT_IhVU2CyLqoAYeWkBiBMClQahvEaOx6kb1kiS6IAWpFsKlbbcKl4OCeVu4FmtRSgMeogb-myqcN7E9YFJWj2a5Ye8xbVrX9bhCU-7/s1600/IMG_2141.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCfS9W1YQiB8FeouPcJu0dyjQYE7MJRkcDQe9WRnT_IhVU2CyLqoAYeWkBiBMClQahvEaOx6kb1kiS6IAWpFsKlbbcKl4OCeVu4FmtRSgMeogb-myqcN7E9YFJWj2a5Ye8xbVrX9bhCU-7/s400/IMG_2141.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721857417752200178" /></a>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-66482890336423968102012-03-19T23:06:00.001-07:002012-03-19T23:08:06.098-07:00Emma Rolled Over<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj686wlrWeMQxhX-yCsa8PhPHYYISDNr_vx8Mct4dSorn5tKpu4_vza-2gsIcFb3rfpmRrCfWuPzuEvG-XYxwPoPiobvtjNWt3EW-hUIQ_Oa4wSgU2P74R5R6g7_J8FixWwaNxqlwe9KYHY/s1600/IMG_2221.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj686wlrWeMQxhX-yCsa8PhPHYYISDNr_vx8Mct4dSorn5tKpu4_vza-2gsIcFb3rfpmRrCfWuPzuEvG-XYxwPoPiobvtjNWt3EW-hUIQ_Oa4wSgU2P74R5R6g7_J8FixWwaNxqlwe9KYHY/s400/IMG_2221.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721856991457946322" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">This was about a week ago. And she hasn't done it again since!</span></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-75530973398669112132012-03-19T22:57:00.004-07:002012-03-19T23:06:36.814-07:00Micah's Accessories<div style="text-align: center;">This kid cracks me up! It wasn't enough just to put clothes on to go outside. He grabbed my necklace that was sitting on the kitchen table and tried to pull it over his head, then took his papa's hat, and to complete the ensemble, added his frog slap bracelet!</div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHimr5oIttt_xRt7bZL61jxUimMcCd7rQ5Cfi4Y-c4mBo8ubCzuzGpdUB4aUQT0V44VERaFLQfl_lHmCwOeYl603jLILc-1zCBdRfgYuhSld4xOkMlESqEPFJ27oBOdMbVxiZHjmzchwSz/s1600/IMG_2234.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHimr5oIttt_xRt7bZL61jxUimMcCd7rQ5Cfi4Y-c4mBo8ubCzuzGpdUB4aUQT0V44VERaFLQfl_lHmCwOeYl603jLILc-1zCBdRfgYuhSld4xOkMlESqEPFJ27oBOdMbVxiZHjmzchwSz/s400/IMG_2234.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721854685729311186" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">He loves hats, especially this one. He has some of his own, but this one is Donnie's and it's pretty new. The first time he saw it, he had just woken up from a nap and his hair had been trimmed that morning. He took it from Donnie and put it on his head saying, "New haircut, new hat!", as if to say, "Sweet, a new hat to go with my new hair!"</div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcjAvch3HlUyR8Nc_ZDY72ifEbVPpWjAahw4RICVnNWvYTy98uYAzosFDNio_m7R3fcjMGx5ZqnfsRTVSDaL10ozAH-5WljTtTVPpUsy8BHYL1c32PVIhzSUF3RMlI7J9Fz86LZWL3jTgW/s1600/IMG_2226.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcjAvch3HlUyR8Nc_ZDY72ifEbVPpWjAahw4RICVnNWvYTy98uYAzosFDNio_m7R3fcjMGx5ZqnfsRTVSDaL10ozAH-5WljTtTVPpUsy8BHYL1c32PVIhzSUF3RMlI7J9Fz86LZWL3jTgW/s400/IMG_2226.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721854683650996770" /></a><div style="text-align: center;">Love those curls!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-40269467383315125162012-03-19T21:52:00.003-07:002012-03-19T22:56:28.982-07:00Nap Time Today<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">It was time for Micah's nap so Emma and I joined him in his tent for a story or two before he was supposed to go to sleep. Emma fell asleep as I nursed her and read about Curious George and his bike. When the story was over Micah told me to go, he was going to sleep with Emma. But then she woke up. He still wanted me to go, telling me to put Emma "right here" next to him, he was going to cuddle with her. I did leave, but just to grab my camera :)</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></span></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq0BF2ThT1ZqyZj80ksQe4jwLjq5p0iuyiSSpJUllafMR6Xt0sCl79GN3_hte1SG2r-SA3KI4NibJb3UnEJEZ7bnANyYbE166gInWKFKusp0wP6a_6T-1A0_lX-VqP1TLYqROfNveQhf98/s1600/IMG_2256.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq0BF2ThT1ZqyZj80ksQe4jwLjq5p0iuyiSSpJUllafMR6Xt0sCl79GN3_hte1SG2r-SA3KI4NibJb3UnEJEZ7bnANyYbE166gInWKFKusp0wP6a_6T-1A0_lX-VqP1TLYqROfNveQhf98/s320/IMG_2256.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721852391169024290" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">This boy loves his little sister.</span></div><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiamTwQX-8HphJBVy5QIwNI95uYhMj0pK7fOx-W3JvMHyrK871zDLK1Yta7lZ96ZgIksuIsXb3RIQZXrB4du7_J-_LO9YDiO-sIj8lSFbDdhvhSnBgN_iRRPXt8Mmz5HMczRzFo4z4CRnaO/s1600/IMG_2257.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiamTwQX-8HphJBVy5QIwNI95uYhMj0pK7fOx-W3JvMHyrK871zDLK1Yta7lZ96ZgIksuIsXb3RIQZXrB4du7_J-_LO9YDiO-sIj8lSFbDdhvhSnBgN_iRRPXt8Mmz5HMczRzFo4z4CRnaO/s320/IMG_2257.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721852390967140738" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj8ZHscA3YUPiV8IWtXgMJrMSVt4UdyNBszYr0eLrCzNRUUGc1v9xWGg9DoMYrfmqSUjp3JQj-Q3RyCHxiCqG313Ffa2phlCZKVcvHpDRToDp1bQd76JLN-Mk3zDSeg0PZMVL_u7RIAJjy/s1600/IMG_2261.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj8ZHscA3YUPiV8IWtXgMJrMSVt4UdyNBszYr0eLrCzNRUUGc1v9xWGg9DoMYrfmqSUjp3JQj-Q3RyCHxiCqG313Ffa2phlCZKVcvHpDRToDp1bQd76JLN-Mk3zDSeg0PZMVL_u7RIAJjy/s320/IMG_2261.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721852387097584018" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Pretending to be asleep.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; "><br /></span></div><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdi3DXAjPvCwKJwTqhvgqCrCumC2Ymo5qwpBaaB0bKcy77GcJpt8y-FiguV9kbBW1zz_yh2io9KxkRSd2HuG0xUtTNQGmKuj-3i4taRBNt_qoIO8Rw_Isc77CcxAWbeR6EKsXLYDT7IzHv/s1600/IMG_2263.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdi3DXAjPvCwKJwTqhvgqCrCumC2Ymo5qwpBaaB0bKcy77GcJpt8y-FiguV9kbBW1zz_yh2io9KxkRSd2HuG0xUtTNQGmKuj-3i4taRBNt_qoIO8Rw_Isc77CcxAWbeR6EKsXLYDT7IzHv/s320/IMG_2263.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5721852383610772450" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 100%; ">Could they be any cuter?</span></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-82007653248259975282012-03-19T21:29:00.003-07:002012-03-19T21:52:35.974-07:00A little rambling before I get started...You'd think that being in America it would be so much easier keeping up with my blog as opposed to being in Niger...but that has proven not to be the case. We've been home for nearly 8 months and I think I've managed to do just two posts. I have to admit, pictures being lost with the stolen computer before leaving Niamey kind of put a damper on things, and I don't think I've fully recovered from that loss. But now we're just three months out from going back to Niger (my how this last year has flown by!) it's time to get caught up! In just a few short weeks we'll be heading back east to make the rounds, we'll be gone for about six weeks or so, we'll come home for about a month and then near the end of June we'll begin our journey back to Niger. Sometimes people ask me how long we'll be gone for this time. I don't really know. We're planning for three years but nothing is set in stone, we're just going to go and see how it all works out.<div><br /></div><div>Ok, so now on to more posts!</div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-73391451518747245382011-08-15T16:40:00.000-07:002011-08-15T16:51:55.131-07:00His First Box of Crayolas<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXrDvXfqBJo-A0B9zdxv-oSyaFN84DEYCmlqPKZJc10Qyp9a3MYtWx7a40vzXkOQKNzxta-fqmKKQwgqdHVNR3tAGAdbyaaCEyfek6_0ofIUxvcS8Bewe-dCQiPNU5GQ5C4SemimoAFBQS/s1600/IMG_0575.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXrDvXfqBJo-A0B9zdxv-oSyaFN84DEYCmlqPKZJc10Qyp9a3MYtWx7a40vzXkOQKNzxta-fqmKKQwgqdHVNR3tAGAdbyaaCEyfek6_0ofIUxvcS8Bewe-dCQiPNU5GQ5C4SemimoAFBQS/s320/IMG_0575.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641234092760052530" /></a>
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0a1JRBMLYVMcwdWo_KZSs4ZOgqpLExxYAtz4JNHVyjtSKbkZ5O6hf6pGhnvisz_uWvnaoZAXi3p9J_8HL6PN6x8OUQ4G7XGltCZyBtJUEYqS1XwQhObjYDzHTqAq63gAschRTktixg0mf/s1600/IMG_0570.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0a1JRBMLYVMcwdWo_KZSs4ZOgqpLExxYAtz4JNHVyjtSKbkZ5O6hf6pGhnvisz_uWvnaoZAXi3p9J_8HL6PN6x8OUQ4G7XGltCZyBtJUEYqS1XwQhObjYDzHTqAq63gAschRTktixg0mf/s320/IMG_0570.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5641234084712753394" /></a>
<br />Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-79097786563087011492011-08-14T14:58:00.000-07:002011-08-15T16:39:58.452-07:00It's been awhile......since my last post. Four and a half months, actually. A fair bit has happened since then. When I last posted we were in Niamey and I had just found out that I was expecting our second child. The hot season was just starting to heat up and power and water cuts were becoming longer and more frequent. At that point we had two and a half months left in Niger. I spent a fair bit of that time in my house...between the extreme heat and morning sickness I didn't feel like getting out much. I was thankful when I started to feel better and could get out and see friends again. <div>
<br /></div><div>Security always remained and issue and much of the time we had armed guards in our yard at night. And then, two weeks before we had planned on leaving we were asked to evacuate. There were heavily armed vehicles spotted heading in our direction. We had less than 24 hours to pack our bags and leave. (Some people have asked what we did with all of our stuff...well, the beauty of owning our own home over there is that we didn't do anything with it, we just packed up what we were planning on taking back to America with us and then locked up the house and the storage shed and were on our way.)</div><div>
<br /></div><div>And then we sat in Niamey for two weeks while we waited for June 16th to arrive. The guest house where we were staying only had room for us for the first week so half way through our stay in Niamey we had to change guest houses.</div><div>
<br /></div><div>The night that we moved there was a big rainstorm, the first one of the season in Niamey. During that rainstorm we were robbed. They took our computer (which had all of our email contacts and three months of photos from last year that never made it to the hard drive plus my memory card with my more recent shots...our Mother's Day Easter Egg Hunt among them), and wiped us out of all of our cash--CFA, euros, and dollars. The money was in a cash box under Donnie's side of the bed. They had come into our room while we were sleeping. They'd even grabbed Donnie's jeans and took what cash he had and his phone. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>Needless to say, we were under a fair bit of stress having had to have left our home under the circumstances we did, then getting robbed, and then not knowing what awaited us when we finally made it back to California. We were pretty sure of our housing but had no jobs to pay rent yet and no vehicles.</div><div>
<br /></div><div>We left Niger on June 16th. We then spent almost two weeks in Alabama and Georgia visiting Donnie's family and some supporters. We arrived in California at the end of June a few days later made it up to Humboldt. Thankfully, by the end of July we had both secured jobs (not quite sure how we'll survive after I quit, though). Donnie's back working at Ploletski's Appliance Center and I'm working at one of the nursing homes. I was able to take my car back from my mom (which leaves her carless) and we bought a $600 clunker that we hope won't be a money pit and will last us for the duration of our stay here.</div><div>
<br /></div><div>Micah is doing great adjusting to life in the states. On July 25th we celebrated his 2nd birthday and then had a party the next weekend. Donnie's having a little bit of a hard time being gone all day long and just getting to see him for a few hours in the evening most days but I think overall we're adjusting back just fine too. Aside from gestational diabetes (which I knew was coming and will hopefully be as well controlled as last time), the pregnancy is going really well and our LITTLE GIRL should be arriving sometime around Thanksgiving.</div><div>
<br /></div><div>Ok, so I think that about covers it. </div><div>
<br /></div><div>PS: If you haven't heard from me in a long time via email send me an email (hebertnomads@gmail.com) and make sure still I have your email address!</div><div>
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<br /></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-78594770481080472052011-03-30T03:21:00.001-07:002011-03-30T14:27:47.285-07:00Animal Loans<div align="center">So, as you may recall, last year was a very bad year in Niger. After two years of little to no rains, and the ever present problem of overgrazing in the zone, there was no pasture left and people's animals were dying as they desperately waited for rains and pasture to come. </div><br /><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN4FnPrqk4s1JSRlPYZydImZkz6zEVHsiHkFfvo38C8VvhvmDjYCJ-SE29-kHoSfNhMM38h9uQFUQyVxnXuMb_FIqUXjVKLJZ68bmzss7-PjMMHNZOxmY39-5yB1pH5EKgTh-8PRRfg2RG/s1600/dead+animals.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589847648676991394" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN4FnPrqk4s1JSRlPYZydImZkz6zEVHsiHkFfvo38C8VvhvmDjYCJ-SE29-kHoSfNhMM38h9uQFUQyVxnXuMb_FIqUXjVKLJZ68bmzss7-PjMMHNZOxmY39-5yB1pH5EKgTh-8PRRfg2RG/s320/dead+animals.jpg" /></a> Dead animals were everywhere and rotting stench was in the air.</p><br /><p></p><br /><p align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinEgJLnjZNR0TH8yf8xd_YwXEGd3PHVCmyaiFt2DeX13mEKQNglOYWXJ2YLUQXdrNczRYRaSRdE7zHNxMrTuLCo8wguJY646D8OoSkSkDaoUuHm9yVy0e-mTVp_CfZMPw57KoNBgh5d234/s1600/pile+of+bones.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589847648176559298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinEgJLnjZNR0TH8yf8xd_YwXEGd3PHVCmyaiFt2DeX13mEKQNglOYWXJ2YLUQXdrNczRYRaSRdE7zHNxMrTuLCo8wguJY646D8OoSkSkDaoUuHm9yVy0e-mTVp_CfZMPw57KoNBgh5d234/s320/pile+of+bones.jpg" /></a> Some NGOs would come through and collect all of the dead carcases and burn them so that other animals in their hunger wouldn't try to eat them. </p><br /><p align="center"></p><br /><p align="center">Thankfully, rains came and in the end there was good pasture. Unfortunately the first rains up north were torrential and cause major flash flooding. Many lost whatever remaining animals that had managed to survive the drought.</p><br /><p align="center"></p><br /><p align="center">After the rains came and the pasture began to grow the post-crisis work began. A large part of that work is helping people restock their herds. We do this through animal loans. The way the loans work is that the project (JEMED) buys the initial stock of animals for members of a community chosen by that community. They keep the animals for a number of years and when the time comes for them to reembourse those animals, instead of them paying it back to the project, the animals (not the same ones, but others of the same age and quality) are loaned back out to other members of their community. Around Christmastime our church raised some money to help buy animals. Here are a few pics...</p><br /><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYQXn4vgM-lcwHwsC0bwaS36x7ScYIWu15iOmUK4sBSajm48MR8YkWiYQjlxAYNRPFCuOnpw1fFn9ZeteDYCG_rbSrZNYom_gi-6joNFMXhSNJRDiR9GOIYrnxRNUYlIpom7nJbtofZQMW/s1600/at+the+market.jpg"></p><br /><p align="center"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggkujcNDCUoED5t1Iv1uzEMI_hSrz-FFC2t2i62BKZolcyqZYAjf_Qp_qi7nKeImNDoYvm_1ph3UTfeJ2MheUFh6u8roALp88AxatjkEUsDgQCedBkf3uN4-fBxPONekgs-xZbI3z0sMT5/s1600/IMGP7083.jpg"></p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589817407034581906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggkujcNDCUoED5t1Iv1uzEMI_hSrz-FFC2t2i62BKZolcyqZYAjf_Qp_qi7nKeImNDoYvm_1ph3UTfeJ2MheUFh6u8roALp88AxatjkEUsDgQCedBkf3uN4-fBxPONekgs-xZbI3z0sMT5/s320/IMGP7083.jpg" /> <br /><p align="center"></a>Animals waiting to be branded after being purchased in market.</p><br /><p align="center"></p><br /><p align="center"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NpMpu_kJjQg/TZME_nH-cxI/AAAAAAAABCE/zSRkQWfka"></p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589817053377622802" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCxKMfjACZAE1Xdp4zZoEzUj4UX9SrWSDUXmnVDuwiWy3fdKJR0sBSj6k7omBYwdwnNDZAyEkR8Ud-A-KggXdodX6mWLuo5Rmwt7AwQEtaghWCEMe6gDaJtUXUprieH3DHKyPeAYUjLfhN/s320/branding+fire.jpg" /> <br /><p align="center"></a>The branding fire.</p><br /><p align="center"></p><br /><p align="center"></p><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR59sRTk7wREw7xfGZJ_r9g8VqnXEstFF2yP2f4vxcE9PLdJFiMnRHUXVbxsgGJIZGMlVPSF6Kj3v7L3eg7053gNuOGnme1ae0pc-wP1Ls3xIC7LpCQzICKoxElh5j35XJvRLf_bG9owhy/s1600/beneficaries.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589817052210663826" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR59sRTk7wREw7xfGZJ_r9g8VqnXEstFF2yP2f4vxcE9PLdJFiMnRHUXVbxsgGJIZGMlVPSF6Kj3v7L3eg7053gNuOGnme1ae0pc-wP1Ls3xIC7LpCQzICKoxElh5j35XJvRLf_bG9owhy/s320/beneficaries.jpg" /></a> Some of the beneficiaries. These are Wodaabe from the village of Tagalalt. Mallam on the far left is the president of the site, the others are two of his brothers. </div><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><div align="center"></div><br /><div align="center"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6Tw6720q-Iu3u__I8nxfxUl9WTF-EXfuYTsxx0IV7WO6zJADlflywDX_iJajW4QVrtWCG7XDMpWLi_BquU5wkj8CSWekp116ggxEoz_gelekmcsDccgHolVTv4T-Y9g84mAqrcmfJtNG/s1600/more+cows.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589817043451622674" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI6Tw6720q-Iu3u__I8nxfxUl9WTF-EXfuYTsxx0IV7WO6zJADlflywDX_iJajW4QVrtWCG7XDMpWLi_BquU5wkj8CSWekp116ggxEoz_gelekmcsDccgHolVTv4T-Y9g84mAqrcmfJtNG/s320/more+cows.jpg" /> <br /><p align="center"></a>Cows.</p><br /><p align="center"></p><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfuz-u9TrEaWRMXBTiiZ5euUvg4WCK7UMpXlsxlIDF6-2O_U0tqnoYwbcK2JkUy44CNKhH8w2-x5mDwDHEb_gnvas4Hcss0zgqru5Yiy06qMG2neKxuCmYkE4BOlbZN7GUq9b5mhC5ERGw/s1600/little+sheep+herder.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589817046664120962" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfuz-u9TrEaWRMXBTiiZ5euUvg4WCK7UMpXlsxlIDF6-2O_U0tqnoYwbcK2JkUy44CNKhH8w2-x5mDwDHEb_gnvas4Hcss0zgqru5Yiy06qMG2neKxuCmYkE4BOlbZN7GUq9b5mhC5ERGw/s320/little+sheep+herder.jpg" /></a> My little sheep herder. </div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-64880105983355706122011-03-28T05:06:00.001-07:002011-03-29T05:23:03.309-07:00Chez Hebert<div align="center">A few weeks ago now we moved into our new house. You'd think I'd remember the date, but I don't. Not exactly Christmas like we had hoped, but we made it in just under a year after construction began and we are happy to be there just the same! It was a very long and arduous process, but worth it in the end.</div><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tJyTMAn5c84I__3Z5A4diGYekoDA7Mbc68kF_eO7yJN0uQ3jpZkEc1NVb_lc8Vy9M7u_bLlqCzFcgcJLFE3GL57k2gSSFh8CAUly7LUFrfmnhqzRm099hKznmqswn_vLtJmLoE4KNDLi/s1600/IMGP6769.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589107649321876834" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-tJyTMAn5c84I__3Z5A4diGYekoDA7Mbc68kF_eO7yJN0uQ3jpZkEc1NVb_lc8Vy9M7u_bLlqCzFcgcJLFE3GL57k2gSSFh8CAUly7LUFrfmnhqzRm099hKznmqswn_vLtJmLoE4KNDLi/s320/IMGP6769.jpg" /></a>Here's Micah helping Papa mix paint back in December. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOjzt3ALmYyTojnmOC5scVXpJiw-HTY9MwEiFzh-8jIA4c7llWLVXpvSps-PdEpBNkVMNz2AFpgY9TFrQ1FyTXSOPZkaZUObezlyiKiSGSNH8BNhYuU9sC159m4CQVbJQ5F1KccrSMxNe6/s1600/IMGP6760.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589107646141648546" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOjzt3ALmYyTojnmOC5scVXpJiw-HTY9MwEiFzh-8jIA4c7llWLVXpvSps-PdEpBNkVMNz2AFpgY9TFrQ1FyTXSOPZkaZUObezlyiKiSGSNH8BNhYuU9sC159m4CQVbJQ5F1KccrSMxNe6/s320/IMGP6760.jpg" /></a>We spent far more time painting than we ever imagined that we would! And as you can guess, at times it was a bit of a challenge with a toddler running around. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwB49e4WJpnIhy_Cj4NTOsLsNaKjB4xljZW5eyRKwcQrZc_yhjcUI9hFPZi5GiYjgznpb27ZOnvxxV14svbA0UrtzUBNPqYBhE0Uz2zVMN8j16E62eOI3xFhzqbgeK7smO1GlCkQfW-5Fv/s1600/IMGP6752.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589107647407788930" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwB49e4WJpnIhy_Cj4NTOsLsNaKjB4xljZW5eyRKwcQrZc_yhjcUI9hFPZi5GiYjgznpb27ZOnvxxV14svbA0UrtzUBNPqYBhE0Uz2zVMN8j16E62eOI3xFhzqbgeK7smO1GlCkQfW-5Fv/s320/IMGP6752.jpg" /></a>Playing in the piles of sand and gravel left over from construction. I think the yard is going to take a lot of work to get it looking nice. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjGj8bAL6MqPshCzjHEgydTEtEXF-xUwkb2EPCqarFwUpZPoE56ySjVtiEFk58VuvRZ0mKSQZKdhVw_01oHNSwJ-o17GyIRW_YFAl-kpPW4d3_19FIzdjWgS6oQ5qotsBFqnUtjBRKRFAj/s1600/IMGP6752.jpg"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmirj2gtrxQkrHMOWNtcBly0WB07U-gC3t-r5ei25wUSS39YVf3BsQ7TqQmgliC_xzTYKXgyIQ8wsguOpjN4JeSEa7Wc9_OnV3v4rKiBj5pJuvAP099rOaq-ZhnbIyF3HiaTgfn7QLldSj/s1600/IMGP6752.jpg"></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_MshHhHWL2sh37bPnI5BbE4oTRrWMXPWDC02-vy24QHzKxbdWFB8iEU5k1iOU30ZFr4MrqPJQuWqU5bRfaqRidogHLq3BHu81sOlW9y7E_6yA5KO09fRTOhdxmYQKzkIuBvNN7IVl304z/s1600/kitchen.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589106872316772354" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_MshHhHWL2sh37bPnI5BbE4oTRrWMXPWDC02-vy24QHzKxbdWFB8iEU5k1iOU30ZFr4MrqPJQuWqU5bRfaqRidogHLq3BHu81sOlW9y7E_6yA5KO09fRTOhdxmYQKzkIuBvNN7IVl304z/s320/kitchen.jpg" /></a>Our spacious kitchen with more cupboard, drawer, and cabinet space than I know what to do with! I'm thrilled to have a place for everything and to not have to have stuff on top of cupboards and on counters collecting dust. I also love that I have an overhead fan in here!</div><br /><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRC5QDXCSqbbZMZkpYhCud6Uya-ajo7hBtQ3_5mQYnXIdHdij4FRb0ygMzCF1WrCvrnoFNK5dsoUTDZ_RwVULBcrdlJggj4J_X0pDtFOrxnK8oJmLV-NcBzioOxhCApakNRPrcN-RwLEvY/s1600/water+bidons.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589101607550518578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRC5QDXCSqbbZMZkpYhCud6Uya-ajo7hBtQ3_5mQYnXIdHdij4FRb0ygMzCF1WrCvrnoFNK5dsoUTDZ_RwVULBcrdlJggj4J_X0pDtFOrxnK8oJmLV-NcBzioOxhCApakNRPrcN-RwLEvY/s320/water+bidons.jpg" /></a> The only drawback to this place is the water cuts. Now that the hot season is started we essentially have 12 hour water cuts everyday beginning around 8 or 9am. Kind of annoying when you would really love to take a shower at siesta, or there are dishes that need doing, but we make do. We have these 20 liter jugs that we fill up with water to get us through the day for cooking, cleaning, and bathing until the water comes back on late in the evening.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaglnal0Idr-uvuc8p8CFOnwi50rfQ2YrMw_flWEbaQbNr4yUVAQRjjgIwtS1dsxvD4TH3JuceIVaq2D5E-m_ZThy24CK_EhyrKTtGk_oHbCnA0bKrTmTicTWihCxQaW9JaYAs-gcyzgoV/s1600/living+room.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589101601179100194" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaglnal0Idr-uvuc8p8CFOnwi50rfQ2YrMw_flWEbaQbNr4yUVAQRjjgIwtS1dsxvD4TH3JuceIVaq2D5E-m_ZThy24CK_EhyrKTtGk_oHbCnA0bKrTmTicTWihCxQaW9JaYAs-gcyzgoV/s320/living+room.jpg" /></a> View of the living room from the kitchen, it's kind of a light sage green in color. (I mixed all the colors myself...it was quite an adventure.) We have an L-shaped open floor plan, the dining area is just to the left.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVPJrxlVsDk3M4XXRGjlyotsa7z8hSVkbOPF3B6Lo6Fb7om7cRMRogxWrJaWWTN8ZuviMB6g2qDcyNVepwqM7nU-8YeagmaAeN8fyejIx_N5lyQMkMiOcTxVd-x1gCwz6x2KPsylhCaIC-/s1600/bathroom.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589101602761402290" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVPJrxlVsDk3M4XXRGjlyotsa7z8hSVkbOPF3B6Lo6Fb7om7cRMRogxWrJaWWTN8ZuviMB6g2qDcyNVepwqM7nU-8YeagmaAeN8fyejIx_N5lyQMkMiOcTxVd-x1gCwz6x2KPsylhCaIC-/s320/bathroom.jpg" /></a>And here's the bathroom. It's the color of the sky at dusk. We put in a hot water heater so we can have hot showers in the cold season (or in the hot season, if there's water!). There's also an overhead fan in here too, which makes taking care of business in the hot season much more comfortable.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I didn't take pictures of the bedrooms as they're still in disarray. Micah's room is a nice sky blue and ours is a pretty shade of yellow.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>We've heard that some people have asked, Why are Donnie and Allison building their own home? And can they even do that there? (Yes, we can!) Nothing in Niger is ever easy, very few things are up to Western standards, and "Renters Rights" do not exist here. We've heard stories over and over again of folks who have dumped money into fixing up a rental house here in Niger only to be evicted or to have the landlord come and double the rent. It costs a lot of money to fix up a place. Even though property values have sharply increased over the last 5-10 years, it was actually more cost effective for us to buy our own property and build our own place. We figured that in about six years or so, the money that we would have spent on fixing up another place and renting would have paid for our house. It's definitely been an investment on our part (all of our savings, basically, and then some), but the place is OURS. We will always have a house to come home to in Niger. We don't have to worry about landlords kicking us out or raising the rent. So, in a nutshell, that is why we bought property and built our own house. </div><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-90742676472605629152011-03-28T05:00:00.000-07:002011-03-28T05:05:58.106-07:00Micah and Enoch<div align="center">Enoch is the gardener for the neighbors across the street from the YWAM house/office in Niamey. He also fills in as night guard for us from time to time. He's almost always around, even when he's not working and he and Micah have become very good friends. Micah LOVES Enoch, and I think Enoch loves Micah, too.</div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuik6mNLmfXnLiWlNijJBJ4FfJVXHcIFBXxKbhRXmYl9W1dXQ8kTH5kYWjCmuJSX1J3hpeZ1_TQYkwJ5joEumWyM3YcKz9PG3mQpkwAPH18JudMnb9HoPWRBRA2l3xYF-galiv3uQOC4gX/s1600/micah+and+enoch+3.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589100050008272402" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuik6mNLmfXnLiWlNijJBJ4FfJVXHcIFBXxKbhRXmYl9W1dXQ8kTH5kYWjCmuJSX1J3hpeZ1_TQYkwJ5joEumWyM3YcKz9PG3mQpkwAPH18JudMnb9HoPWRBRA2l3xYF-galiv3uQOC4gX/s320/micah+and+enoch+3.jpg" /></a> <br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfch2jbz0U1VgfAujyMk-4XKM3MU5lb4omh7HXl0ZJSj__Fk0AFuNSN1dQ8NCaCUkr2QYZjmZ_jDfyT2NkXhY1IgoS72BkiQGKMZfigCqTkPCWsOXHwQw0fsMEA9WBP45MWz-PK39PiNj/s1600/micah+and+enoch+2.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589100046592334578" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfch2jbz0U1VgfAujyMk-4XKM3MU5lb4omh7HXl0ZJSj__Fk0AFuNSN1dQ8NCaCUkr2QYZjmZ_jDfyT2NkXhY1IgoS72BkiQGKMZfigCqTkPCWsOXHwQw0fsMEA9WBP45MWz-PK39PiNj/s320/micah+and+enoch+2.jpg" /></a> <br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB6OgMXYK4rQHB55-N3RYPmttdHMx6Pa6A99rLKXkDouR3g8PgVu9g3Hj2uRQc73Ae2ESNx7PlwoYFkVVrAHvvwiBCm_xFlwx2ibe_XWo7IViuWFv6wiNBryGUfmmQGBt43t2rJ8rFe9wR/s1600/micah+and+enoch+1.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589100044601043250" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB6OgMXYK4rQHB55-N3RYPmttdHMx6Pa6A99rLKXkDouR3g8PgVu9g3Hj2uRQc73Ae2ESNx7PlwoYFkVVrAHvvwiBCm_xFlwx2ibe_XWo7IViuWFv6wiNBryGUfmmQGBt43t2rJ8rFe9wR/s320/micah+and+enoch+1.jpg" /></a> <br /><div></div></div></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8866923630434882140.post-55615969462112667162011-03-25T07:13:00.000-07:002011-03-25T07:18:19.419-07:00Neem Flowers<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZezcuy3P3KHAzq_aicWv9J2ZLeVrwc8rfscssSvsQ4dYwUvXoCGpv078moMvq5-9jNx1j_gLh4LXHxHx9vW_JGHpKDoGbuqAIiASt7jSaejDhewFohuCJlEDTAUw-NKCu83317aWsk9X/s1600/neem+flowers.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588021678760287298" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFZezcuy3P3KHAzq_aicWv9J2ZLeVrwc8rfscssSvsQ4dYwUvXoCGpv078moMvq5-9jNx1j_gLh4LXHxHx9vW_JGHpKDoGbuqAIiASt7jSaejDhewFohuCJlEDTAUw-NKCu83317aWsk9X/s320/neem+flowers.jpg" /></a><br /><div></div>Donnie, Allison, Micah, and Emmahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04224348375343257246noreply@blogger.com0