POSH!!!!!

Over the course of these past 2 weeks as numerous (numerous as the sand on the seashore it seems) friends come to see us and pray for us, share scriptures with us, encourage us and praise God with us that we are alive . . . I believe my favorite (or at least most memorable) comment goes like this . . . “Only you can go through such a horrendous accident and come out with your French pedicure intact—Yes, you are POSH, Mary Britton”—well stated by Kathryn Brown and echoed by at least 4 other women (men don’t notice these VERY IMPORTANT things!!!) So, in case you wondered, quite apparently, my toes are the epitome of posh.

OK, so moving on to other news, but only so we can keep the men who follow the blog interested . . . as you can see, a cast, a few bruises and some lacerations (that's great men stuff isn't it?) don’t slow Kevin down AT ALL! He even climbs into the top bunk by himself! Though I have to admit I have chosen to NOT WATCH when he does it!!

His birthday was Monday the 23rd (he turned 5) and he received a punching bag and gloves from Toby and Acacia. The 3 of them have had a great time punching and laughing and falling down. Don’t worry, the cast is still intact and Kevin is healing very well. And he is adept at getting pretty girls to push him around in his wheelchair.

In this picture, his friends Julia Dangers and Elisha McFarland are giving him birthday cards they made for him. After giving the cards they all went on an explore with the kids taking turns pushing Kevin. What will they do for adventure when the cast comes off? I don't even want my imagination to go there . . .

Geoff is back at work, though still feeling some pain occasionally in his thighs. I was still having a very difficult time with the pain in my legs even mid-week this week. But I turned the corner about Thursday. The swelling has lessened significantly and I have less pain. After Geoff and I had three basically sleepless nights due mainly to pain and discomfort, we're sleeping well again, but find that we are pretty tired come 9 p.m.

Thank you to all of you that have emailed us and called! We are very grateful for the friends and family support, love and prayers we have received!!!

We're ALIVE!!!

Do these pics really require captions??????

"Look here, you people who say, "Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit." How do you know what will happen tomorrow? For your life is like the morning fog — it's here a little while, then it's gone. What you ought to say is, "If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that." Otherwise you will be boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil.
Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it." James 4:13-17

Last blog we mentioned about our plans to go to Kampala many times in the next few weeks for various reasons . . .well, hmmmm . . . how are we going to do that when we now have NO VAN as it was totaled on Sunday when we were in a very serious accident?

Details? You want details? If you had the opportunity you could ask any New Hope staff member or surrounding villager if we should even be alive--seeing the van alone they would say NO, but knowing our GOD, the answer is YES, HE SAVES US!!!

The end result is Geoff is VERY sore, but has one small scratch on him, Toby has one small scratch, Acacia has a fat lip and minimal swelling to her left hand. Mary and Kevin sustained the most trauma. Kevin has a broken right leg and some face lacerations with a few stitches. Mary has a few face lacerations and a lotof swelling and bruising to her legs. Both of her legs were pinned under the dashboard for 30-40 minutes.

So what happened???? Well, on the way home from Kampala (and we were almost home--20 minutes away) we had come down a straight stretch of road and were approaching a corner when a huge truck OVERLOADED with charcoal SPEEDING was suddenly at the corner. Geoff blasted the horn and immediately the truck driver slammed on his brakes and started to slide. Because he was overloaded, his load shifted with his out of control response and tipped over. Geoff steered us as far away from the truck as possible, but missing the truck completely was not going to happen. Good thing Mary wasn't driving because as soon as she saw the truck sliding our direction she closed her eyes!!!! Her eyes only opened when it was all over. Unbelievable. Charcoal everywhere. Geoff immediately realized he HAD to get out. The steering wheel had him pinned and, if you ask him, he can't tell you how he got out, he just did because he knew he had to tend to his family. He handed Kevin to Toby and Toby got Acacia and Kevin out of the van and onto the safe side of the road. Geoff began the long process of trying to get Mary out. It's agony to have your kids screaming for you and you can't get to them!!!!!!! He called Vicki Dangers to tell her of the accident and asked that someone come quickly. While they were on their way (Uncles Jay, Fred, Keith, Joseph, Jonnes) our friend and administrator of the Kiwoko Hospital drove up and told us he had called their ambulance. All the while Geoff was desperately trying to pry Mary out with a "come along" hooked to different vehicles that had happened upon the accident. To no avail--the dash wouldn't move. When Jay arrived with a long pipe he finally was able to get the dash to move enough for Mary to slip her legs out. After all that time the swelling was too much for her to stand on them so Geoff piggybacked her to the waiting ambulance. All our staff there stayed to empty our van of stuff (we had just purchased some solar equipment for the new house, groceries for a month, and supplies for a new staff family that is arriving at the end of March.)

Kevin and Mary required an overnight stay in the Kiwoko hospital. Geoff stayed too and it was in the night that his muscles began to scream at him. All the adrenalin he had used to sustain him in the crisis was gone and the body began to tell him all about it.

We are now home and spending the week together. Geoff, Mary and Kevin are very sore. Toby and Acacia are fine. Geoff took off a week of work and we're keeping the kids out of school so we can be together to focus on the greatness of God and the miracle that we are all alive here together!!! Of course, there is a lot of rest and elevating of limbs going on!!! Kevin's break is a "good" break--no setting was required before casting. A few weeks and he'll be back to normal. His facial lacerations are healing well and we think there may not even be any scarring!!

So, keep in mind always that God is in control, He is mighty to save, His love is perfect and He is trustworthy!!!!!

Thank you for all of those who pray for us, our survival is dependent on it. If you have a testimony of God putting us on your heart to pray this last weekend we would like to hear from you as we have two testimonies so far of people here in the community that were moved to pray for us on Sunday.

BLESSINGS TO YOU!!!

Going to Kampala

We'll be going to Kampala many times these next few weeks. This past Tuesday started it all when Vicki and Jennie Dangers and I surprised our friend Kathryn Brown with a birthday celebration day in Kampala! She turned 40 in January, but was in South Africa at the time, while Vicki was in the States. So, with our busy schedules, it took us until March to get the surprise pulled off!! Her husband, Steve, taught the kids, hosted all the rest of ours for break, taught my music class and babysat ours for the afternoon while we drank cappucino, had pedicures, manicures and a lovely Indian lunch! L to R me, Jennie, Vicki, Kathryn

Toby serving the scrumptious delicacies the kids cooked up a few days ago. They got most of my kitchen utensils out in order to open their own restaurant for the afternoon . . . They love to COOK!!! Yum Yum

Today we are going to Kampala after lunch. We will be staying with Gillian in the apartment the hospital rented for her. We are looking forward to a break in the non-stop busy-ness of our lives.
Mary continues to improve everyday. Back to normal in all activities. Even added exercise back into the mix and it didn’t diminish the energy level, but increased it!!! Hopefully we will swim this weekend with Gill and the kids and also have a date while Gill babysits!!
Mary had a great devotion time with David family on Wednesday about being the Salt of the Earth. Did you know that Salt is so important that it is used in everlasting covenants and was required in sacrifices in the Old Testament? It was used when God made the covenant with David for His Kingdom to last forever! Good stuff. The kids were amazed and seemed to soak it up.
Also had a fantastic Bible study with the girls on Sunday, too. We’re studying Colossians. Why is it that most commentaries skip commenting on Colossians 1:24-29. What’s the problem with that passage? Pretty straight forward as far as I can see. Any comments on why everyone seems to skip that section? It’s great to know that as a believer I am able to, as I minister according to the call God has for ME, endure difficult circumstances in addition to what Christ already suffered when He ministered, so that the church can fulfill the word of God. And the mystery of Christ being alive in us is no longer a mystery, but reality in our life as He works mightily in us. What’s so difficult about those ideas that no one seems to want to put it in a commentary?????

I said at the beginning of this that we will be going to Kampala many times these next few weeks. WHY? There is a new family coming March 30 and we are buying their furniture and household items to get them set up. We have numerous little things to buy for our new house as the construction keeps progressing . . . we'll be totally moved in by end of April ????? And also, Geoff is taking 2 different sets of vocational students to see some of the exciting items they can produce with the skills they now have. And lastly, Mary is finishing her steroid medicine next Friday and will need to get follow up liver panel labs.
Anywho . . . gotta go get into the school house . . . the boys are waiting.

Jack and Gill

Here's one more picture of the baby house fun on Tuesday! I wanted to get in a picture of Gillian. Geoff took her to Kampala yesterday to get established in her apt near the hospital. They are still not ready to begin work on the NICU, but she can help out in some of the other set up. She will return with us on Saturday (we have to go grocery shopping then) so that she is here to go to Murchison Falls on safari on Sunday with our team here from Canada. The rest of the month she hopes to do some more touring in the midst of helping at the hospital.

Even though we are missing having Gillian around, not to worry, our house stays busy as Geoff returned with yet another visitor yesterday. Jack travels all over east Africa as a leader with the Lutheran church. They are heavily involved in education and have a vast number of schools spread throughout Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya over which he and other leaders supervise building and expansion. He's been traveling for almost a month now and wanted to see what New Hope and specifically the vocational institute are doing. It's been very enjoyable to visit with him--hear his perspective of what he's seen and done and to share victories and challenges in the work we all do.

And God's timing again is amazing!!! Geoff had planned to begin the process yesterday of purchasing our solar equipment. Jack was with him and was able to confirm that what Geoff was buying was not just an adequate piece, but of very high quality. Here's the kicker . . . Jack owned his own solar business in the states!!!!! He has come the same week we decided to purchase!!! Though Geoff has done vast research on solar, having Jack here is icing on the cake--helping us to get all the right stuff--not too much, not too little, and from quality companies!

Thank you God!

Well, until next time . . . we're doing better on keeping you up-to-date, huh?

School at the Baby House!

Gillian took the kids to our baby house today for extracurricular school activities. Toby, Acacia, and Kevin played with the babies, read them books, took a walk and helped out

wherever they could. They were so excited to go that they spent an hour last night gathering toys and books.

Toby’s assignment was to spend time with Hassan. He is an 8 yr old who has cerebral palsy because his mother tried to kill him when he was an infant due to, as it is termed around the village, “the mother going mad.” There is not much understanding of post-partum depression here and treatment, therefore, is non-existent. Hassan will be receiving one on one care soon by a young lady coming from the UK. We are even building a house for him in David Family--ground has already been broken. For now, however, he is well-cared for by the general baby house staff, though his interaction with other children is minimal. Gillian has discussed Hassan’s state with a doctor friend who has done a bit of research with intelligence and responsiveness in CP kids. He will be coming out to visit New Hope and will include a visit with Hassan when he comes. They are convinced that he probably understands what is going on around him, but just can’t physically respond. Gillian wanted Toby to read to Hassan and take him for a walk as they are close to the same age. So, Toby picked out a special book and read it to Hassan, showing him the pictures. Toby was thrilled that Hassan seemed to be listening and enjoying the interaction. The best part according to Toby, however, was getting Hassan into his wheelchair and taking a walk.

Acacia read to the babies and played puppets with them while Kevin read, showed pictures and played. They will go again tomorrow to spend the morning with the babies again! I’m thankful my children are getting an education beyond the 4 walls of a school building!

DUDE! Where's your hair???

Tonight Geoff went over to the guesthouse to touch base with one of the members of the team that is here from Canada. Of course the boys followed and they were all gone about 30 minutes. I was washing dishes when they returned jumping and laughing on the porch. "MOM! LOOK!" squeals Kevin rubbing his shaved head. I'm shocked, "DUDE! Where's your hair?" And with an exhuberant cheesy smile, "IT'S OVER AT THE GUESTHOUSE!!!!!" Now, as a mom, I see the God given uniqueness in each of my kids . . . and with Kevin, besides keeping us in stitches from laughing most of the time, we've enjoyed his amazing hair--surfer dude, full, thick, blonde, curly, sticking out wherever. If I can't live on the beach, at least let me "hear the surf" when I look at my little surfer boy. After all the above exchange, Geoff appeared on the porch timidly saying, "I know I'm in trouble for that, huh?" No, I'll get over it . . .surfer hair or not, I love all my boys, big and small!