Coloring

      This past week a boy on our kids soccer team told our 6 year old after a month of playing together, "You don't belong here.  You have white skin and all the rest of us have black, so you should play somewhere else."  The rest of practice he kept calling him stupid because of his different coloring.
     It didn't make us angry.  It didn't make us quit.  While we hurt over our son's tears, we explained that God made us all beautifully different on the outside.  And one of the reasons we are here is to show God's love and spread it and we have to even more so with this little boy. It made us sad as someone has not taught him to love all yet.  It was a good learning lesson for all of us.
     And a good reminder that there is so much work to do here in the world!  Just this week a sweet young mom came forward at church to accept Christ as her savior for the first time - because her kids had been encouraging her to come!  Kids can have a huge impact on the Kingdom, and I pray mine are doing that while they are in soccer and each place God takes them!  (By the way - this week at soccer they were friends!)

     It did make me angry, though, when we heard a neighbor and dear girl we mentored each week in St. Vincent had a baby recently.  She is just a child- still and has her own now.  The same occurred with her mom at that age and her grandma.  But still.  She was only 10 when we laughed and played with her and now such a young mom at 14.  This is a dear family close to our hearts that continues in this cycle and we pray they'll remember God's love and for God to bring justice in this situation.  We pray she can be a young lady to change her circumstances and raise her child to know God.

A Whirlwind

WISE put on their first youth retreat - so many came to help - speaker friends, game friends, our students, local ministers, etc.  We were thrilled to see youth growing and fellowshipping and look forward to the future of WISE. 

The van that was left here by the former owners is over 20 years old and died :(  A used one is over $40,000 so we are praying we can get it going or get another one somehow.

Uncle Andrew came to help do all the organization, sound, etc of the retreat.  So our cousins came along to entertain us!  Our kids had a blast!

5 kids, a 1 year old with a recurring ear infection, and a 4 month old still getting up at nights - means Brice and I's new room is the living room.  Brice reminded me of our blessings - we have a mattress to sleep on!  

We love cousins near our age!

The retreat seemed never ending with late hours and early mornings!

Christmas at WISE is always special.  Each of us bring our favorite local dish- so there was Bajan food, American, Haitian, Jamaican.  Yum!  Then, E-town sent gifts for all the students and staff.  And then we all have a gift  exchange of homemade things we give each other.

Our family photo - still hard to believe we are 7!  Would not change it for anything!

Naiyah has prayed for a best friend for so very long here- and she has one and we are thankful for this sweet girl.

Kensington loves her friend Jasmyn- who is just a few months longer.

One of our student's had a son who was sick and not able to come back this term.  We love our students and miss him and praying his son can get the treatment he needs.

Mizzou Campus House came back and they always spoil us, encourage us, and are family to us.  We love Lance and Becky and how they come each year!

Our kiddos play tennis and played in a tournament on the island.

My shoulder got injured and for about 6 week I could not lift anything - which was a bit hard with 2 babies....  Mrs. Pam came down and helped us!  She is family and we were so grateful she came for a week!   And during this time, Kensington decided crawling on the table is her new favorite - along with  turning on the shower and cleaning the toilet with toothbrushes - ugh.

And our kids also finished up this term with a piano recital.  We sure do live in an amazing community.  We are so thankful where God has us.

Things that made me tear up......

     Yes, I am highly emotional and cry at the drop of the hat with post-pregnancy hormones.  But, some very neat things this month made me tear up this month:

- Our 3 students from Dominica lost their homes and all their belongings from the hurricane last month.  And yet these boys give so much of their lives to love here.  They have carried on with strength only from God.  They continually think of their families struggling to find shelter and food back home and yet they live each day with such joy as they study to go back to love others to the Lord in 2 years.  One of the students has a young son my youngest son's age and he has patiently helped my son build bird traps to catch birds here, all the while I can see he is missing his son so much.  He recently said that he was so grateful to be at WISE and that while he may not go back to be a preacher one day, he will be a better father and able to lead His son to the Lord.

- Our students in our home Bible study shared their testimonies - they give up so much to come study from here.  Leaving jobs they won't have once they go back, family, familiar foods, and cultures.  And yet they write us letters and tell us constantly how thankful they are which makes us feel so blessed to be here.

- We recently went to an event with the students.  One of them declined to go.  Finding out later- he did not even have $1 and thought he would have to pay for the outing. We take so much for granted on spending a $1.

- Our littlest Greeley is getting dedicated this Sunday for baby dedication.  We picked 2 people to stand up with us as her prayer warrior and supporter.  One of our past students and now staff we have grown to love as an auntie is standing up with us.  Seeing her choke up and feel honored when we asked meant so much to see how well loved our kids are here.

- My kids love each other so much.  The 3 bigs help with the 2 littles, with chickens and dogs, with laundry, and with dishes. They love God and teach us so much.  We feel so blessed (and tired :) ) that God gave us all 5!

- My husband God gave me.  I recently celebrated my birthday - we always do simple gifts- letters to one another and a candy bar is tradition.  We started this in Haiti as it was all we could afford and now just cherish it.  My note this year on the envelope said - To my wife and mom of 7.  The fact that he acknowledged the 2 babies we lost to miscarriage ( 9 and 2 years ago) meant the world to me.  He loves me so well and helps in so many ways- the biggest right now doing the midnight bottle feed, so I can get some extra rest :)

God Moment

    Groups coming means encouragement, so much work being done, a busy crazy time, and seeing old friends and making new ones.  This time week we had a really neat experience that we were able to see happen.  Often times we may hear from what others experience when they get back, but don't see the change firsthand.

    It can often seem when groups come that it is about work projects getting accomplished, and while that helps so much - it is much more than that.  This week because of a cancellation a brother came along with his family.  He had fallen away from the Lord and while here was immersed in life here.  He heard the students testimonies they shared one night.   Then, he
said he was having trouble finding a place to serve, so we mentioned the 2 bikes we had on campus were out of commission from so much student use (a chain was broke and a wheel had come off).  He fixed those and then wanted to purchase 4 more for the students ( Keep in mind things are so expensive here and a bike can run about $350 US).  His brother told us this was very out of character for him to do.  And then at the end of the week he shared a testimony of wanting to recommit himself to the Lord at the end of the week from all he had experienced!  We love seeing God work and seeing his kingdom grow!

October Life

A few pics of what happened in October!

Kensington has kept getting ear infections - the doctor says she needs tubes, but can't do here.  So, we have been praying she has no more until we are back on furlough next year.  Pray she can sleep well- she has been up lots of nights from this.  But her joy and fun personality keep us smiling.

Brice and I moved into the living room - hence the mattress there :). With Kensington sleeping little this allowed all the kids to not be in the same room and wake up from her crying.  These sisters sure do love one another :)

Our teammates arrived!  They have 2 little ones also and we found a community doing Trunk of Treat here - so the kids got to make costumes and dress up!

We are surviving most days - but loving it too.  Here Brice is holding the babies while I try to get dinner cooked.  A real life moment right now...

We started back our tradition of a student a week coming over and eating with us and spending the evening.  We love asking them questions, praying for them, and playing with them.

We have lots of students living here now and a lot of them are very talented in worship.  We are enjoying hearing them lead worship.

So much rain here.  A blessing - have not been able to do as much laundry with the rains.  And another blessing - the kids got to boat around to places on campus :)

The days and nights seem full, but we are still taking time to enjoy family time and God's beautiful creations - like the cliffs near us.

A full, crazy life!

    So enjoying life right now.  It resembles this picture a little.  Very hot, so we are enjoying popsicles (Kensington's first)!  Baby Greeley sleeping away.....   Keeping our 1 year old busy and buckled so we can get schooling done.  But, to be home is so very great.

    Upon arrival we were told and stamped on our passports to get student visas or kids have to leave in 3 months.  The process seemed overwhelming- submit a letter to the department of education, be granted an interview there, then submit to immigration to see about approval.  All these require lots of driving from where we live, waiting, and juggling kids.  Thankfully we had a group here from Elizabethtown, KY and while I usually try to just do things ourselves- this time I asked them for help watching the kids so we could get all these meetings done this week.  And we did get them done and approved and it also felt like Brice and I got a few dates with the driving time and no kids along.  So we are good to go until we do the process over again next year :)

Student visas granted!

   
     I wish everyone could know our students personally and hear their stories.  We heard today immigration granted the student visas!!!   Daily staff was calling, praying, and checking on their status.  Yesterday we racked our brains....and remembered a friend had a friend at immigration.  She gave us some great advice in a certain letter to take.  Staff took it in and ....they are coming!

     Ebi here has waited over 2 years for classes to resume at WISE to finish his degree and he finally is coming back!  Thank you, Lord!!!