Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

Check out the monsters that haunt the outside of our house waiting in eager anticipation to attack me when I step outside at night!

Slumber Party!

Here are some more pictures of our slumber party. The last picture is in the morning. We went to sleep about three a.m. and woke up to little Ellie, the puppy, licking everyone and biting their toes. We had a great time, the girls were hilarious!

Sleepover Fun!

We had Sipee, Bina, Suama and Sussie over for a sleepover. We had such a blast! We watched movies, ate smores, played games, had a dance party and stayed up super late having silly conversations and some serious ones as well. It was a great time to get to know the girls a little deeper; sleepovers are great for that! What a blessing these girls are...

The "Boys"

So here are the "boys." These fellas hang out at our house almost as much as the youth do. They would stay all day every day if we let them. They love playing in the backyard with the soccer ball or on the swings. Recently we have let them play in the kindergarten room attached to our house. Below are some of the results of the treasures that they found in there. These boys range in age from about six to sixteen. We have been able to read some bible stories to them but our main goal is loving them and giving them a safe and fun place to just be kids. Like the youth, many of these kids' homes are not the best places and we are so glad that we are able to give them a place where they feel safe and happy. They have become quite comfortable at the house. I love it when they all come in and say "Hello Auntie Jessica!" :-) It melts my heart.

A Typical Day At Home!

Below are some pictures of a typical day at my house. And this truly is a normal day around here! I love every minute of it.

(first picture) - Movie time! It is pretty standard to see the youth hanging out in the sitting room watching a movie or tv. We bought a dvd player and some dvd's so the teens are loving it.

(second picture) - This is me just coming home from a trip to town. We had to get some groceries and a couple of other things. The wheelbarrow was a great help because the other stuff was pretty heavy.

(third picture) - A little dance party in the backyard.

(fourth picture) - Bina and Sussie heading home after having dinner at our house. That would be another common occurrence. Some of the youth are at our house for dinner at least three times a week. Bina and Sussie didn't want to get their hair wet from the rain! Sussie has a difficult family life and has just recently shared tiny bits. Bina, whose sister is Sippee (Picture below), live next door. Their mom is in the military and goes out a lot on weekends. They have a hard time with that as well. Please be praying for us and for these girls. We love having them over and I hope that we are able to continue to be Christlike examples to them. Also pray for wisdom as they open up more and seek both Linda, my roommate, and I out to talk about what is going on in their lives and what they are struggling with.

Who's Who in the Neighborhood

Let me introduce you to a few neighborhood friends. Some have appeared on the blog before.

(first picture) - This is Dankie (pronounced Donkey). She is Laticia's mother. (Laticia's pictures are farther down) Anyway, Dankie loves to come over and drink tea or coffee because we have American flavored tea and French Vanilla Coffeemate. She is interested in having conversations about "church things" but really isn't walking with the Lord. Please be praying for her.

(second picture) - These three are affectionately known as "the girls." From left to right we have Sipee, Sussie and Bina. These three girls practically live at our house. They are great girls and I absolutely adore them. They are beginning to trust me more and open up about things. They are coming to our house this week for a sleep over with a couple more girls. They love watching movies at our house. Sussie and I share a love for cheesy dance movies! There home lives can be difficult and I am so glad that they feel safe and loved t our house. I praise the Lord for these girls because they helped me a lot when I first arrived and didn't know anyone!

More Abigail Pics...

I never get tired of looking at pictures of my beautiful niece. I look at these and I just wish that I could hold her. I am so proud of my little sister!

(first pic) - Mom (Angela), Abigail and Dad (Shawn). What a happy family!

(second pic) - Is that a smile?

(third pic) - Looks like Pappi is all worn out by his granddaughter! ;-)

Wild Namibia!

On our way to the city we drive through a whole lot of nothing. On this trip though we were fortunate to see a giraffe in the trees. Here are the pictures. These are just for you sisterfriend!

Hoba Meteorite

Here is a little Namibian lesson. Just outside the town I live in, Grootfontein, is the Hoba Meteorite. It is the largest meteorite known in the world. On my way to the city for the weekend, we stopped and checked it out. I am sitting with Christy, Mick Reineer's adopted daughter. It is pretty big. This is one of the first "tourist" things I have done in Namibia.

Tutor Time

One of the funnest times here has been the "tutor time." I have told the kids and youth that they are welcome to come and do their homework at our house if they need help. They all know that if they haven't finished their homework then they can't play at our house. So every once in a while a kids will come at 7:30 or 8:00 at night needing help with the homework that is due the next day! Usually we can help unless it is Afrikaans. The funnest part is working with the youth. It is not uncommon to see four or five teens spread throughout the table and sitting room working on homework. I am usually stationed at the table with all the school supplies we bought for the house and a pile of scrap paper going over fractions or story problems or some African history lesson. One night a week all the youth bring their homework over and then we cook dinner together and eat watching a show on TV. Sometimes we play cards or spoons or they hang out in the playroom behind our house. This past Wednesday we had seven teens over to work on their homework and hang out. We had sort of a goulash type dinner with this great African sausage, corn, and garlic bread. It is an easy dinner to make for all the kids because they can seriously eat. There are never any leftovers! Afterwards we had chocolate chip cookies that we received in a package from Linda, my housemate, who had received a package on Tuesday. The youth and I all sat eating and laughing while we watched American Idol auditions. It was a great night. This has been sort of an unexpected aspect of ministry. Both Linda and I absolutely adore these kids and are really blessed by them. Please continue to pray that we can not only build relationships with these youth but that the Lord can provide opportunites to share the truth of Christ with them. Also pray for wisdom in talking with them and helping them deal with problems. Lastly pray that Linda and I can be Christ like examples.

PRECIOUS!!!

Here is the beautiful Abigail, my lovely little niece! Oh, I can't hardly stand it she is so cute. The picture below this one is of my four year old cousing Emily holding her newest cousin, now the youngest in the family. That is a spot Emily has held for a long time. The third picture down is of Abby's Great Grandparents, my dad's parents. Abby also has a great great grandmother.

So Cute!

If anyone of you know me at all than you will understand that it took hardly anytime for me to fall in love with this little girl. Laticia is so cute I can hardly stand it and she is finally starting to like me! She loves to pick up the stuffed bunny and bear and says "nona" which means baby. She likes for me to put the baby inside the back of the shirt because she sees and has been carried on her mom's back. She also sticks the bunny and bear under her shirt to "feed" them like her mom does with her. Oh, she is too precious!

Too Cute!

Laticia is the daughter of one of our neighbors and she is so cute. She is a bit wary of Linda and I and she is scared to death of the puppy that Linda has. This is a picture of us at our house, it is one of the first times she has willingly let me hold her. Please pray for her mother, she is very curious and loves talking about "church stuff," but she doesn't have the relationship with Christ and doesn't live a Christ like life. Pray for wisdom for Linda and me in the words we say and that we can continue to be a Christ like example.

Fun Photos!

I took these, I thought they were fun, enjoy!

(first pic) - I love this because it says "Oregon Like Pine." For those of you who don't know, Oregon is the state I am from in America. I was so surpirsed to see this in Namibia!

(second pic) - I took this picture on the ride up North to the wedding. It is not for any reason but I just thought it was a cool picture. The feet are mine (obviously), the middle feet are Shahidas, and the last feet are of the woman who caught a ride with us.

Village Life

This is the house grouping of Frieda's husbands family. It is surrounded by a fence and there are several huts and houses within the fence. The huts are used for several things including sleeping, food storage and cooking.

(first pic) - A traditional hut.

(second pic) - Food storage for when there isn't rain.

(third pic) - The family taking and making morning tea. There are aunts, uncles, grandparents, kids, cousins and any other family who live here at any given time.

(fourth pic) - A traditional meeting area for the men when there are guests. The male guests go and sit in the area and then the men will come and sit and talk with them.

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Bathing...

Bathing in a village setting is always a fun experience. I had this experience while I was in Uganda but every time is always an adventure. Here are some pictures of the experience so you can share it with me!

(first pic) - Here is the bucket of warm water that is used for bathing. This is all the water I got.

(second pic) - I am tring to show the height of the bathing area. It only went up to about my shoulders, actually slightly below. The bathing area is in the back of some of the houses so there were people all over the place. Privacy was not really a big concern! ;-)

(third pic) - The entrance to the bathing area. The wall to stand behind is quite small so I had to be careful about moving around while bathing!

Sights from the North!

(first pic) - Workers in the field; they were super stoked to have there picture taken.

(second and third pic) - Here are the family sites. There is a fence around the area made of sticks. Inside the fence are a bunch of huts or houses. Some are for livin and some are for storing and cooking food.

(fourth pic) - This is Shahida (the little girl) with her Grandmother and her mom Frieda. Frieda and Shahida are part of the family where I did my homestay. The Grandmother was very sweet and thought it was hilarious that I could greet in Oshivambo. She gave me a beautiful basket as a gift that is great.