Update

Wow!  Where does the time go?

Before we left, someone in our church described this period of time (at about 5-6 months of being in-country) as going by the fastest.  They were right!  I can't believe it's been so long since I've updated the blog!  Please forgive me!

June and July kept us hopping for sure!  My cousin Michael and his wife, Stephanie came to visit!  It was an AMAZING time with them!  They also brought a huge bag of goodies and notes from people back home.  It really was like Christmas in June!

I shared with them how overwhelmed I was with such a range of emotions.  God saw fit that just the week before, we suffered another miscarriage, which was, as you can imagine, a big low point of emotion.  Soon after, my cousin (one of my best friends!) came and spent some amazing time with us, as you can imagine - a HUGE high point of emotions!  So the second part of June, I really spent a lot of time processing all these emotions.

One thing that I was reminded of is that we are still the same people in a foreign country as we were in the U.S.  We still have the same struggles and the same family and friends who love us.

We've really settled into life here.  Culture shock (that hit me hard at first! :) ) is over.  Thank goodness!  Then the excitement of everything being new and adventurous has settled.  (although we still get a great chuckle out of a lot of new and fun things here.)   We are in such a comfortable place of feeling at home in our routine, apartment and various tasks we have found.  Jason has found a good rhythm with his job, and I am volunteering once a week at a place I'll share more about stateside.  I've found where to buy delicious produce every single day (we have a market just a couple blocks from our house  - AMAZING! I will definitely miss the market!)  and which stores here and there that carry foods that taste similar to home.

During this rainy season (June - Sept) I have only taken my camera out once due to humidity.  I have a few phone snapshots, but to be honest, I don't like taking many photos here.  When the people see my camera, I feel it really changes the dynamic in which we interact, and I don't like that too much.  I want to just blend (as much as possible!  Haha! :) )  So, I don't have a lot of photos to share as of yet.

Speaking of the rainy season, please be in prayer for the people of Myanmar!  The flooding this year hit the more northern regions very hard!  Please pray as many families lost all they had, and living conditions and food are a big problem.  There is more I can share about that, but if you're interested, please write to me.  I won't take up more blog space.  Just please pray for the situation!

So, overall things are going well for us.  He is faithful, and we are the same people we've always been.  That's not to say this time isn't an amazing experience for us - it is!  We are also growing so much and learning tons.  August is already slipping through our fingers!  Jason will finish up his teaching at the university and will be doing more (than he already has been) travelling outside of the city for some workshops.

If you would, please also pray for Jason, he's been battling an off and on virus and sinus infections basically since May.  It's been rough for him, including a chronic cough.

We love you all!  Thanks for being interested!

 

Noteworthy...

Here I am, still playing "catch-up" with my blog posts, taking every advantage I have for good internet to upload photos!  :)

March, April and May were amazing months for me!  I was able to have an extraordinary opportunity of teaching English class at an orphanage about an hour outside of our city, 3 days a week.  A few different orphanages from the area (one from about a 3 hour bus ride away!) Sent a handful of orphans each to participate in this summer school opportunity.  They do not have good English training in their schools, and are too poor to afford tutoring, so this was a very big opportunity for them.  However, I believe my heart was blessed more!  These children have really nothing in this world, and yet their hearts toward the Father were so sincere, so loving.  I was really encouraged by their sweet spirits and eagerness to learn.  Here are some photos from that time:

 Somedays I taught inside, somedays I had 20 students, sometimes 70! (depending on how many teachers were available that day) and sometimes, I taught out under the trees. :)

Here is my Myanmar helper, SUCH a great helper, who translated and explained concepts in their language at times:

This day Jason was able to come and help with my class (and take some photos :) )

The director of the program filling out their certificates on graduation day:

Our feast on graduation day:

One of the teachers with the students on graduation day:

Some of my students on graduation day:

One of the teachers (and my friend) with one of my spunky students. :)

This is my most precious memory.  This girl came from one of the poorest orphanages.  I never saw it, but I heard it would break my heart.  They have literally nothing.  Most days she didn't have a lunch, and I was told that the home she stays at only has enough for one meal per child per day.  But, the last day, she brought me this gift - her stuffed bear.  I almost cried, I was so overwhelmed by this gesture of love an appreciation.  This is just one example of the beautiful hearts of these precious children.

Exploring...

I apologize for not posting anything for way too long... Our internet has been mostly out, and when it is on, it does not have enough bandwidth to load photos.  Please bear with me as you get to experience a taste of life here in Burma! :)

A few weeks ago, I was able to take a fun treck up to Inle Lake with my friends, Julie and Karen!  These are just some snapshots with my point and shoot, but I hope you enjoy this peek at Inle Lake in Myanmar!  It was just a gorgeous place.

 Fishermen on the lake, known for guiding the paddle with their leg, freeing ups their hands to maneuver their nets.

This woman is taking the center out of the lotus flower stem, rolling them together to create a "string" of lotus "thread".  They then use this fiber to weave fabric.  So labor intensive, but gorgeous!

This is the canal back at the village where we stayed at a local Inn.

Water buffaloes! :)

Surrounding rice patties.

Here is the small inn where we stayed near Inle Lake. 

And the modest kitchen from which they fed us.

It was an extremely enjoyable trip, except the bouncy bus rides in and out of the valley!  :)  But, very much worth it.

Explanation...

Hello friends!

I have not posted here in TOO long.  The reason is, that our internet has been so slow.  It is impossible for me to upload photos, and works only in the mornings to upload text.  Soon I will be in Thailand, and hopefully I will inundate you with uploaded photos. :)

We are doing well.  Jason starts a new term today, and the rainy season is upon us.  The cooler temps have been a sweet relief!  Tomorrow my cousin Michael and his wife Stephanie come for a visit, and I can't wait! :)  I am volunteering here and there, and I'm really excited to see the work going on in Myanmar!  I'll share more details back on our shores. :)

Love to you all!

Stephanie

Expedition

A couple weeks ago, we were able to take a few days break in Bangkok!  We had some medical appointments, but also met up with my good friend, Julie and her friend Karen!  (Who is now our friend too. :) )  Julie was my roommate over 10 years ago when I lived in Russia.  She was working on Mercy Ships in Madagascar and was travelling around SE Asia.  We had a great time in Bangkok together!

 (photo credit: Karen)

Bangkok, although only a 1-hour flight from Yangon, is so much different than Yangon.  It's much more advanced and developed, bustling with shopping and food and entertainment.  I had a great time in Bangkok, but to be honest, I missed the simple life in Yangon.

One great thing about Bangkok, though, is the food!  They have every American chain imaginable.  I was in heaven! :)  Had amazing pizza to quench my cravings for a while.  I was just a tad excited about that. 

(photos by Julie :) )

But, even after all that, we are happy to be back in Yangon, the simple life, not as crazy as Bangkok. 

Valuable...

This precious little girl is always with her mom at a little corner stand we go by every day.  One day she was playing with a can by the street, and I took these photos.  I gave copies of the prints to her mom and she was so happy. I've made a little friend, her mom always smiles and waves at me, and the little girl blows kisses.  Friendship doesn't need a language... <3

Viva!

Remember that great apartment I was telling you about?  Here are some photos!  

We live on the 7th floor of this building, the one with the green netting on the balcony. See that small box on the bamboo pole?  That is our receiver for nearby wifi. That's where we can sometimes receive your nice emails!  ...when it is working correctly. :)  The reason I haven't posted photos in a while is that the signal has been too weak to upload photos recently.

This is our friendly guard station and gate.  But, what I really want to point out is the wiring to our building... do you see it? :)

I also took some photos of the inside, but I cannot seem to find them now in my photos.  I did have a card corrupt, so I may have lost them.  I will upload more photos when I can, but I thought I'd take advantage of the fast internet this afternoon and at least get these three posted.  


...Ok, two days later I have more photos of the apartment.  I'll just add them here to keep them all in one place.  As you can see, God blessed us with a really nice place to live!

 The view from our Kitchen balcony!

Our room...

As you can see, we have a lot of nice space!

So you see your Christmas photo on the wall? :)

Guest room!!!  Come and visit!! :)