Someday I might come a little closer to getting this whole blogging thing figured out.

You see, up until this point, I haven’t had to do much in the way of discipline. We have been blessed with an amazingly sweet and extremely cute (not that we’re biased or anything!) little girl. These days, however, I find myself wondering who replaced that joyful, cuddly little sweetheart with the little stinker who likes to tell Mommy, “NO!” and who occasionally (dare I admit it?!) tries to hit Mommy. Now don’t get me wrong, that sweet, cute, cuddly little rascal isn’t a terror, but, like all kids, she has her moments. And, to be honest, for all of the books I’ve read, people with whom I’ve talked, and experience I’ve had teaching and babysitting, I often find myself wrestling with various methods of discipline….how will it affect each child and what will the effect of that type of discipline with that particular child be? Is it the right, the best, the most effective means of training and teaching?

The questions, and they’re heavy ones, run through my mind and my heart–sometimes to the point where it’s overwhelming and I wonder if my children will ever “turn out right” … without having to carry the crushing burden of my mistakes. It’s in those moments (and in fact, every moment I am a mom), that I have to let go. All I can do is lay those worries, those fears, those dreams I have for my children at the foot of the cross, trusting that the God of the Universe and the Lover of my soul, cares far more for my children than I do (though quite impossible for me to comprehend). And HE has a plan for their future. A plan to prosper them and not to harm them, to give them hope and a future (Jer. 29:11). Even when I fail (though no excuse to not try), in all things, God works for the good of those who love Him (Ro. 8:28).

Just a few nights ago, I cried out to the Lord and surrendered my own inadequacies and uncertainties. What encouragement He brought to my heart through the words of a mommy blogger I like to read! Here’s the link to those words. “Proclaiming Our Purpose in Parenting” by Megan at SortaCrunchy. What release!

I hope you’ll visit her site and be encouraged as I was.

soooo, this blog will stay the same for now. Though the posts that are forthcoming might seem completely random and unrelated, I’m hoping I will at least get back into the swing of writing (fingers crossed)!

Here’s to turning “the best of intentions” into action…I hope!

That discouraged me.

Isn’t life about being real? We spend so much energy wearing masks and sugar coating things. But how can we grow and learn from each other and really share the journey if we’re not real?

I’ve had other people that read of my struggles and inferred that I hated our time in the jungle. I am so, so sorry if that is what came across. There are so many things I loved about being in the jungle. The idea that I hated our time in the jungle couldn’t be further from the truth. Yes, there were many trying situations, and it certainly was an adjustment, but I believe with all of my heart that God had us there for a reason. I would never trade all that He taught us and the ways He grew us and our time there for anything in the world!

Though many might not agree with how I shared, and though that disapproval does discourage me, I don’t–and wouldn’t–take back what I wrote. Writing for me is a way of processing. It’s a way of making sense of what God is doing and teaching me. It’s a way of finding myself and being “real,” especially when it might be hard to be that real in person. And it’s a way of recording the little (and BIG) details of my Abba’s incredible faithfulness.

So I write…and I try not to hold back…because I want you to know that life is hard and struggles are present, but our God is good! And that makes it all worth it. Though the struggle may be overwhelming at times and the circumstances dark, I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He is there with me. He has allowed it for a reason, and He is using it for my good. For ‘if there was a better, easier, or faster way to teach me what He is trying to teach me, He would do that’ (paraphrase from Chip Ingram’s podcast God as He Longs for You to See Him)!

So I write…and I will continue to write.

Stay tuned for updates about the past 2.5 months … and the coming addition! Baby #2 is due soon…very, very soon!

Once things settle down just a bit I will update you all more thoroughly. Thank you all so much for praying for us! Please continue to keep us in your prayers as we transition back into Stateside living!

God (as always) has continued to be so faithful, however. It seems that on the days I am most worried about what we are going to eat or how I’m going to feed Isabella or even those days when I am weary of lacking protein or fruits and vegetables, God sends a sweet reminder that He is the One who provides for ALL of our needs! On more than one of those occasions over the past couple of weeks, someone has knocked on our door with a small fish to cook up or bananas from the garden or some other little bit of variety to our diets! Last week Keila shared a couple of cans of tuna with us, and boy, did we feel like we were eating high on the hog! Now, I must admit that I still miss ice cream (and think about it almost every day! ), but I am just continually blown away at the blessings God bestows on us when we are so undeserving. We are so thankful for how He provides!

Today we have even more reasons to be thankful! Mike and Keila arrived this morning from an overnight trip in Esmerelda, and though we weren’t able to fill everyone’s lists, people were replenished with flour, powdered milk, etc. Some even were able to get some eggs!! We also heard great news that the fuel the village has been waiting for will be arriving soon!!! We’re celebrating by running the generator an extra hour today…another blessing!!!

For many different reasons, it’s sometimes hard to see the blessings from where we’re standing, but they are always there! We cling to the promise that He is our Provider, and He never lets us down!

Chorino and Davey knew where they were going and after spotting the bee’s nest from the river, we pulled up and climbed over the bank to set to work. Priscilla, Yoneida, Tanya, and I got to sit and enjoy each other’s company while the guys did most of the work. Actually, I should clarify that–Chorino did most of the work. The whole process was absolutely amazing! Josh caught it on video and once we’re back in the States I will try to post the video. It was one of the coolest things to watch.

Let me tell you, there is a lot of work involved in getting the honey! I’m sure I’ll forget some of the steps, and I might not say them in the correct order. You’ll just have to wait with baited breath to see the video. Suffice it to say, Chorino climbed that tree so many times to get things set, smoke the nest to put the bees to “sleep,” and get the honeycomb. Once he did all of the work, the hive just fell apart out onto the bank of the river and honey was just pouring down like rain from the tree!

We rushed down to collect the giant chunks of the hive. It actually helped that it fell into the river because it put out any fire remaining in the nest and also helped wash some of the bees away. This particular type of honey is made from an all-black bee. They don’t sting, but they bite…and they are still territorial!

Once we gathered as many of the chunks as we could, we set out again…and enjoyed our spoils along the way. To eat the honey, you’d take chunks of the hive and find the “pockets” of honey. You’d just poke a little hole and suck the honey out. It is the sweetest honey…so delicious!!! There are, however, some pockets where the honey is sour–watch out for those! It is definitely an unexpected flavor when you’re enjoying the sweet, sweet honey!

Click here to view pictures from our excursion: Honey from the Jungle

I will try to get the video posted as soon as I’m able. It’s really neat!

These are pictures of Isabella, one of our many game nights…this one with a smaller crowd, and our favorite bananas. They are called askaneema and they are perfect. They are smaller than the bananas in the States and much sweeter. The perfect size (not too big and not too small) and flavor! This is definitely something we’ll miss. All of the different types of bananas come on stalks like that and we hang them in the house until they ripen. Yum, yum, yum! We also posted a picture of a stalk of plantains…something else we’ll miss. Though you can buy plantains in the States, they’re just not quite the same as fresh from the Gardens.

Please click the following link to view the pics: Family, Game Night, and our Favorite Bananas