DRC Day 28

Thankfulness.
Today I'm taking a break from the whining, worrying, and lamentation to focus on thankfulness.

These are some of the things I'm thankful for today:

1.  That my kids are safe and healthy.

2.  That my kids are WITH ME!

3.  That we have had this time to bond, relatively undistracted.

4.  That we have been safe and healthy in Kinshasa for this whole time.

5.  That Isaac is mostly hanging in there, and John has been able to spend this time with him.

6.  That Amber has been able to rearrange her work schedule time and time again to stay here over extended periods of time.
7.  That Eli is learning a few English words. ex. Hello, ByeBye, Banana (tho usually used in reference to an apple), baby, Eli, Raya, Isaac, Mommy, Ababa.  We're really working on Please, but haven't quite gotten there yet.
8.  That Raya is such a happy, calm baby.  (She reminds me of Isaac!  Although I didn't actually know him as a baby.)
9.  That we are one more day closer to leaving for HOME!
10.  That my family and friends have been so supportive during this hard few weeks- praying, laughing, and crying with us.
11.  That we have made good friends with our (former) neighbors here in Kinshasa, and Eli has had good friends to play with often to pass the hours.  (Nakupenda, Twigas!)
12.  That my kids have learned to sleep past 5:30 AM.
13.  That I can skype home as often as I like.
14.  That David has been working hard to get us home.
15.  That the weather here has been beautiful every day.
16.  The opportunity to snuggle my precious babies to sleep every night.
17.  Ice cream, cookies, and chocolate.  (We exploded our bacardi in the freezer.  Oops!)

New plans again.  Tomorrow David is going to stop by the USE around 9AM and if it's not busy he'll send a car to get Valerie and I so we can show up there and talk to them in person.  If they seem busy, he'll let us know that and just have us call instead.  (The problem being that we don't actually have appointments, and if we just show up unannounced, we may wait a very long time there without ever being seen.)

I asked him about extending my visa, and he said to wait and see what they say tomorrow.  Based on that, we'll decide whether to go ahead and extend it, or just try and flee the country asap.

And one more story of the great Murphy's Law- USE Kinshasa Edition.  David had called Friday morning and asked what day our medical appts were.  (Which of course made me freak out that they hadn't gotten my papers yet--3+ wks later- but he asked, and then hung up as soon as I answered so I didn't get a chance to ask what was going on.)  Apparently they USE couldn't find my kids' medicals.  So David had to go back to the clinic, and they looked it up and said well, we sent them on this day at this time.  So then he went back to the USE, by which time they had located my papers... in someone else's file.  I think maybe someday this will all be funny.  :)  I hope.  (I don't think this will hold us up.  I'm just glad they found them!)

Please keep praying!  For our kids' visas to be issued (hopefully tomorrow!), for Darren and Valerie's kids' visas to be issued very soon as well, and for their girls, who were back to the hospital today for follow up blood work which showed that Josee again has malaria.  It's only a matter of time before they both have it again, since they need longer term treatment that they probably won't get here, and they need to get home!

Mmmmm...

Playing in the Covers

Raya's recommended napping position

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. The creation waits in eager expectation for the sons of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will.

Romans 8:18-27