Just the other day Steven and 5 of our children boarded a plane bound for Paris, France, then 8 hours later settled into their seats in the back of the next plane flying straight to N'djamena, Chad. The flights went well and they arrived safely at our home just in time to snuggle into their very own beds that they haven't seen in a year. It's hot and humid right now as the rainy season is still going strong.
The neighbors were excited to see all those that arrived with lots of laughter and happy tears and hugs all around.
Steven is put right to work as the generators are not running at this moment, but he and Dan are working to get them going.
Alex, Payton, Emma and Keturah are taking their last camping trip before school starts back up. Our year here in the states has seen sadness, happiness(of course!), new friendships, old friendships renewed and great connections with our L.B. churches in this area. What a wonderful, generous church God has established here in the Pacific Northwest. You should all be very proud of the way you allowed God to work through you to touch our lives. It has been overwhelming at times and we see God's hand over us through it all.
Of course it is hard to leave our mothers and fathers, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, cousins, grammas and papas, and dear friends. We are grateful for our time and memories with them and will cherish and think of them often while in Chad. God has put that call in our hearts to be in Chad, especially when we are working and living among it's people. We are blessed(happy) to live and work in Africa but most of all we are honored God has called upon our lives to do the work He has for our little neighborhood and the Welcome Center and those that come and stay there.
We have encouraged many this year to come and stay at the Welcome Center for a time. We hope you do! That would be so fun to show you around.
Psalm 34: 8-10
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Friday, October 22, 2010
Under Duress
Hello Folks,
I am writing this update under duress. I say this because Alex just grabbed me and said, "Here, write. 'Everyone' wants you to update the Blog." I said, "Everyone? What does that mean?" She said, "You know, people".
So... because I want to honor Alex and "Everyone", I will give an update...
About 2 months ago several of the kids and I came back to the States after being separated from Janice, Alex, Payton, Keturah, and Hudson for almost 2 months. What a great reunion!
About 6 weeks ago we moved into a great 5 bedroom home that was essentially given to us for our entire stay while we are here in the States. The home came fully furnished with a pantry full of food plus everything else we needed. Thanks to our Brothers and Sisters at Hope Church and Maple Park Lutheran Brethren Church for blessing us with their unconditional giving.
About 4 weeks ago Janice gave birth to our 11th child. We named him Samuel Owen Flude. Both Janice and Samuel are doing great. Receiving new kids never gets old. All the kids are enjoying their new brother.
Life is good. We are enjoying our time here but there isn't a day that goes by that Janice and I don't think about all of our friends in Chad and our home there. It is a strange thing to feel as though we've got part of our hearts here and part in Chad.
We are all looking forward to the holidays. It will be great to spend more time with family and friends and celebrate the Birth of the Savior.
Until next time....
About 6 weeks ago we moved into a nice 5 bedroom home that was essentially given to us to use for the year we'll be in the States. The house came fully furnished with a pantry full of food
I am writing this update under duress. I say this because Alex just grabbed me and said, "Here, write. 'Everyone' wants you to update the Blog." I said, "Everyone? What does that mean?" She said, "You know, people".
So... because I want to honor Alex and "Everyone", I will give an update...
About 2 months ago several of the kids and I came back to the States after being separated from Janice, Alex, Payton, Keturah, and Hudson for almost 2 months. What a great reunion!
About 6 weeks ago we moved into a great 5 bedroom home that was essentially given to us for our entire stay while we are here in the States. The home came fully furnished with a pantry full of food plus everything else we needed. Thanks to our Brothers and Sisters at Hope Church and Maple Park Lutheran Brethren Church for blessing us with their unconditional giving.
About 4 weeks ago Janice gave birth to our 11th child. We named him Samuel Owen Flude. Both Janice and Samuel are doing great. Receiving new kids never gets old. All the kids are enjoying their new brother.
Life is good. We are enjoying our time here but there isn't a day that goes by that Janice and I don't think about all of our friends in Chad and our home there. It is a strange thing to feel as though we've got part of our hearts here and part in Chad.
We are all looking forward to the holidays. It will be great to spend more time with family and friends and celebrate the Birth of the Savior.
Until next time....
About 6 weeks ago we moved into a nice 5 bedroom home that was essentially given to us to use for the year we'll be in the States. The house came fully furnished with a pantry full of food
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Tuesday, 3 August 2010
Hello!
Never a dull moment around the ol' Flude house. So far today we've continued our efforts to get everything packed or put away in anticipation of our mini-move over to the Welcome Center and our Home Assignment a few days later. The girls have been doing a fantastic job keeping us from starving. Tonight we are having Mexican!
I was informed a few minutes ago that Tawnee threw up. She's been complaining of a headache since last night and has felt a bit nauseous but otherwise has been ok. Doesn't appear to be anything serious at this point but, true to our form, it is hard to keep everybody healthy every single day.
Rain has let up a bit in the last day or two but I've noticed that the humidity has started to creep higher again and that normally means rain is on the horizon.
Janice and the kids are camping all this week in eastern Washington. Those of us here are happy for them but also jealous as the spot where they are is a family favorite.
Hope you all have a great day.
sf
Never a dull moment around the ol' Flude house. So far today we've continued our efforts to get everything packed or put away in anticipation of our mini-move over to the Welcome Center and our Home Assignment a few days later. The girls have been doing a fantastic job keeping us from starving. Tonight we are having Mexican!
I was informed a few minutes ago that Tawnee threw up. She's been complaining of a headache since last night and has felt a bit nauseous but otherwise has been ok. Doesn't appear to be anything serious at this point but, true to our form, it is hard to keep everybody healthy every single day.
Rain has let up a bit in the last day or two but I've noticed that the humidity has started to creep higher again and that normally means rain is on the horizon.
Janice and the kids are camping all this week in eastern Washington. Those of us here are happy for them but also jealous as the spot where they are is a family favorite.
Hope you all have a great day.
sf
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Wednesday, 28 July 2010
Hey!
Today is Tawnee's 6th Birthday. So, we all went to town and had lunch at a real sit-down restaurant. While were were in NDJ we went to the post office. There was a box of stuff waiting for us! (Thanks Marcia!) We opened the box at the post office. Inside were all kinds of goodies. But, the best was already backed pizza crust, pizza sauce, and pepperoni! Wow. We had a great pizza dinner. Afterwards we sang Tawnee "Happy Birthday" and watched a movie. Fun times.
Weather's been rainy and cold. High today was only the high 80's.
Tomorrow, we plan on just hanging out here, doing nothing in particular.
Hope you all have a great day.
sf
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Today is Tawnee's 6th Birthday. So, we all went to town and had lunch at a real sit-down restaurant. While were were in NDJ we went to the post office. There was a box of stuff waiting for us! (Thanks Marcia!) We opened the box at the post office. Inside were all kinds of goodies. But, the best was already backed pizza crust, pizza sauce, and pepperoni! Wow. We had a great pizza dinner. Afterwards we sang Tawnee "Happy Birthday" and watched a movie. Fun times.
Weather's been rainy and cold. High today was only the high 80's.
Tomorrow, we plan on just hanging out here, doing nothing in particular.
Hope you all have a great day.
sf
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Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Tuesday, 27 July 2010
Hey there,
Last night the kids and I were talking about what we're gonna do "when we see momma". I told Tawnee, "You are gonna be crying cuz you missed her so much." She looked at me, rolled her eyes, and said, "Dad, they're gonna be tears of joy!"
Like, duh, Dad!
The kids report only 18 days left to go. This is getting to be like a Christmas countdown only less expensive! So far the only cost, besides a bit of food during our layover in Paris, will be a trip to Dick's Drive-In on the way home from SEATAC. (We all figured a good dose of grease and fat right off the bat would be an apt way to celebrate our arrival.)
See you later.
sf
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Last night the kids and I were talking about what we're gonna do "when we see momma". I told Tawnee, "You are gonna be crying cuz you missed her so much." She looked at me, rolled her eyes, and said, "Dad, they're gonna be tears of joy!"
Like, duh, Dad!
The kids report only 18 days left to go. This is getting to be like a Christmas countdown only less expensive! So far the only cost, besides a bit of food during our layover in Paris, will be a trip to Dick's Drive-In on the way home from SEATAC. (We all figured a good dose of grease and fat right off the bat would be an apt way to celebrate our arrival.)
See you later.
sf
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Monday, July 26, 2010
Monday, 26 July 2010
It is a funny thing when, despite the fact that my wife and some of my kids are 1/2 a world away, I get reports from "helpful" individuals that it would be good if I blogged every now and then so that they can know what's going on. Well, isn't that the reason I sent Janice home? OK, not the reason at all, actually. So, without further adieu here's my latest installment of "What's going on in Chad, Africa".
Absolutely nothing.
Thanks for checking in.
Bye
Oh, not funny, eh? Well, what have we been doing? Lots of stuff, much of it in preparation for leaving on the 15th of August. Here, let me just give you a list of the things....
- A good friend came for 2 months and did many, many projects around the Welcome Center. He even managed to have enough time to build a very nice BBQ. It's gotta be the nicest BBQ in N'Djamena. Thanks Marty!
- Completing various other mini-projects so that when the Holzners get here Marcos isn't running around frazzled trying to get stuff done instead of taking care of his family and making sure the guests at the Welcome Center have what they need.
- Trying to decide what we want to pack back to the States and what we want to stay here. I find myself asking "Do I really need that when I go back? Do I really want to bring it back here when we return in 2011?"
- Since we will be moving to the Welcome Center before we leave for about 1 week we have also been trying to decide how much stuff we will really need to take with us for that 1 week stay. After all, it'll just have to be put back in the house when we leave. (The Holzners will be staying in our house for the year so this necessitates our move.)
- I've also been spending a fair amount of time working with Janice on the things we will need for our stay in the States. Things like car insurance, cell phones, doctor's visits, dentist appointments, etc., etc., etc. Oh yeah, and we'll have 3 new drivers in our family as the oldest 3 will all be spending large chunks of time behind the wheel learning how to drive. This activity, alone, will keep Janice and I busy.
- The kids and I have also been comparing notes on the bizarre dreams we've all been having. For some reason, almost from the moment Janice and the kids left, we all started to have very strange dreams. Not sure what that is all about although we have had a few good chuckles as we've talked about them amongst ourselves.
- We have also been trying to find ways to occupy our time. The current game of choice is Acey-Ducey. Earlier it was Uno. There's also been a few games of Risk and a game of Settlers thrown in for good measure.
I am sure there's much I've left out. One thing we have noticed is that since Payton isn't with us there seems to be more food in the house for the rest of the family. Didn't really realize he ate as much as he does. I'm thankful that at this time Grandma has the responsibility of feeding him. My advice: buy lots of mac and cheese.
Until next time.
sf
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Absolutely nothing.
Thanks for checking in.
Bye
Oh, not funny, eh? Well, what have we been doing? Lots of stuff, much of it in preparation for leaving on the 15th of August. Here, let me just give you a list of the things....
- A good friend came for 2 months and did many, many projects around the Welcome Center. He even managed to have enough time to build a very nice BBQ. It's gotta be the nicest BBQ in N'Djamena. Thanks Marty!
- Completing various other mini-projects so that when the Holzners get here Marcos isn't running around frazzled trying to get stuff done instead of taking care of his family and making sure the guests at the Welcome Center have what they need.
- Trying to decide what we want to pack back to the States and what we want to stay here. I find myself asking "Do I really need that when I go back? Do I really want to bring it back here when we return in 2011?"
- Since we will be moving to the Welcome Center before we leave for about 1 week we have also been trying to decide how much stuff we will really need to take with us for that 1 week stay. After all, it'll just have to be put back in the house when we leave. (The Holzners will be staying in our house for the year so this necessitates our move.)
- I've also been spending a fair amount of time working with Janice on the things we will need for our stay in the States. Things like car insurance, cell phones, doctor's visits, dentist appointments, etc., etc., etc. Oh yeah, and we'll have 3 new drivers in our family as the oldest 3 will all be spending large chunks of time behind the wheel learning how to drive. This activity, alone, will keep Janice and I busy.
- The kids and I have also been comparing notes on the bizarre dreams we've all been having. For some reason, almost from the moment Janice and the kids left, we all started to have very strange dreams. Not sure what that is all about although we have had a few good chuckles as we've talked about them amongst ourselves.
- We have also been trying to find ways to occupy our time. The current game of choice is Acey-Ducey. Earlier it was Uno. There's also been a few games of Risk and a game of Settlers thrown in for good measure.
I am sure there's much I've left out. One thing we have noticed is that since Payton isn't with us there seems to be more food in the house for the rest of the family. Didn't really realize he ate as much as he does. I'm thankful that at this time Grandma has the responsibility of feeding him. My advice: buy lots of mac and cheese.
Until next time.
sf
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