I'm not 20 any more... right?

One of my most favorite things about life right now is having my AMAZING friend Margot around.
She is from Cape Town, South Africa and we have been waiting for her to come for nine months, she finally got the work permit through. It' SO FUN to have her around every week!
We are the same age, she is actually older then me by a few months. Anyway, Margot is single, and VERYU FUN, full of life. which everyone loves including me!

Being around her has made me think and evaluate my self more, I think because we had so many good times in South Africa back in 2004, when I was single with no children, and the wold world ahead of me... you know the feeling right?

This is a photo of me and vinjelus brother in spring of 2005 having the time of my life!
Anyway, so I have been evaluating things because here Margot and I are the same age, but it seems like she is still 19 and I am... well I'm not. Margot stays out late, wears funky shoes : ) haha Works the crowd... which I used to do. It took a few weeks for margot to realize things weren't the same... now with a toddler who desperately needs consistency, and a baby girl who is nursing ALOT I can't really be care free anymore... and I haven't really noticed it until she came, and I kinda wanted to be.



Here is a photo of Vinjelu and I the night we got engaged, I was 19, he was 24. An amazing night, he asked me to marry him at dinner, after we went out walking, stopped and kissed as traffic wizzed by on the dark road in windhoek, Namibia. We were so happy and care free, it was an amazing night.
So... I guess I went through a moment of wanting that again... BUT and this is a BIG BUT!

I LOVE MY LIFE
I LOVE MY HUSBAND
I LOVE MY SON
I LOVE MY DAUGHTER
I LOVE WHAT WE DO
I WOULDN"T CHANGE A THING!
I love being a mom, YES it means I cant just go waltzing off to the movie everyone elese is going to see, or to the pub for a random fun night, but I LOVE putting my kids to bed, giving the bath, reading the stories, singing songs while they fall asleep. Those moments are amazing. And how Incredible is it that they are mine... I get to watch them grow up.
And I have a husband who is incredibly loving, and we keep it fresh! Not just in bed, but yes in bed if you must know. We right music together, thats so much more deep then the flirting we used to do when we were single, right?!
We have children together, we cook together, we discuss all kinds of things, I love having him here, he's my best friend ever.



I guess I say all that to say, being single and wild was fun and I am happy Margot is still in that phaze, but I LOVE my life, and vinj and I keep it real, fun, and exciting even with the responsibility of our children (and we still want more! haha) , bills, etc.
I am excited to live each day out.
Although there will be a few wild nights once our kids are old enough to sleep over at grandma and grandpas house together!
Haha, life is good.
Isn't it!

Seth The little Cook

Seth LOVES cooking, probably like alot of kids I am thinking, but my kids are special RIGHT! haha
He comes at supper every time saying, "mommy cook!, PLEASE"



This day I gave in and let him pretend to cook with a pan, spice and potatoes....



What do you do when your kid wants to cook around a hot stove? Do you just say no and let him cry while you cook? Any suggestions?

The good things about moving....

Every time I thought of my mom and dad and not being near them, I would start to get a tight chest, and would panic thinking "I can't do this!"
This would be followed by tears thinking of how much I will miss them, and how deep inside I feel so guilty for leaving them, and taking their grandchildren nontheless! (Not to mention AWESOME son in law Vinjelu!)
I've though of several idealistic plans to see them or for the whole family just move with us. But I pray they are not so idealistic.
We are moving to Zambia in about four months, on one way tickets to Vinjelu's home, and to my childrens other culture. This, as I said has caused literal panic attacks, and has brought many tears in my room alone, I love my family as many people do, and I count my mom as my best friend, we talk everyday, and my dad couldn't be more precious, and like most daughters I hang on his words and approval... we have an amazing circle of friends around us who love and care for us on a regular!

SO WHY MOVE!? Thats the big question right, and I am suppose to have this great answer that makes alot of sense, and has merit and all that. But usually when you are following God you look like a fool (right dad). This is very unfortunate for folks like me who are prideful and like to be organized and appear very sane...

We get alot of questions like
"Will you have toilets?" - Yes we will, at least on the ywam base we do !
"Running water?" - As long as we have electricity the well brings us water into our taps, granted the water is only cold, if you want hot water you have to boil the water...If there is not electricity, then we have a pump, you pump it out and you run with it, so either way, you have running water!
How will you live?! What if your kids get sick?! All good questions, and we will answer them if you have any questions like these.

Anyway, in the last 4 weeks I have had an unexplainable peace take over, physically I don't feel panic attacks (so far) and just generally feel ok about it all.
I would like to NOTE that vinjelu is not MAKING us go to Zambia or anything of the sort, I WANT to go, if you can believe it from the beginning of this post, missions brings many emotions and often separates families. You are always torn as a missionary I think. At least I am, and so is Vinjelu.

So I would like to point out a few things we are SO looking forward to in Zambia...

#1 LIving off the Land

Back when I was 8 turning 9 my parents made a cray move to New Norway, and for a spring and summer we lived on a farm roughing it quite alot, and I always loved that. We lived from our garden (mom still got groceries...) but in my 8 year old mind we were living off the land, fending or our selves. Vinj and I both look forward to gardening, walking out to pick oranges off the tree to make juice, veggies for soup, or salad... tomatoes for a sandwich, picking eggs from the chickens, and milking the cow for some milk.... Our kids will have some serious chance to work for their food, and appreciate the way food is produced.
Can't wait for this, you can grow all year round in Zambia if you have water for it, so we will be!!!

#2 Wendy

Wendy is a best friend, who we have missed ALOT many times, especially as we have had children and she still hasn't met them. Wendy is coming to visit in July and help us with finishing our house. She lives in Namibia, and has to take a bus to Zambia, it is a LONG ride to Lusaka from Windhoek!

#3 Room to Play free

On the base there is a little girl Seths Age who will be a GREAT play mate everyday with the kids. But one thing we look forward to is the open space for the kids to play! No more apartment and cold weather to keep us inside, they can play in the dirt, and I know they will have a blast, much like I did for that summer on the farm in New Norway, memories I will never forget. I am happy my kids will have this!

#4 Tobi-Chuma- Vinjelu & Wightson and Linda & Baby coming!

Wightson has been Vinjelus best friend for years, and his wife Linda is my friend as well, they are expecting a baby right around the time we are arriving! Vinj has missed wightson ALOT over these past years being in Canada, and I look forward to him having that friendship more tangible!



Vinjelus Brother Tobias lives in Zambia with his girl friend and our nephew Vinjelu Jr, we are SO looking forward to Seth havign a boy cousin to play with there as well, He has LOVed spending time with Titus here in Canada, and we know he would miss that. It will be so great having family in Zambia as well.

I will post more another time, but for now, I am at peace, I will miss my family tremendously, but I am also excited to experiance Zambia with my husband, it is HIS home, and our kids are also Zambian. . .

Thats all for now....