Saying Goodbye

Don't worry, WE'RE not saying goodbye to YOU... it's us saying goodbye to some fellow missionaries. Yes, part of the life of a missionary is saying goodbye, and we've done more of that than we care to in the last six months. Since we said goodbye to our friends and family in early January, we've now said goodbye to four missionary families. But we understand that the only constant in life is change, and we also know that the families that left have all felt God's calling to new assignments.

This time around, we are saying goodbye to the North and Cyr families. The Norths leave tomorrow and the Cyrs on July 10th. This is going to be an especially hard one for Jake because Jordan North and Nkele Cyr are his two best friends. He doesn't really grasp the concept now, but we imagine that we will have one sad little boy on our hands once he realizes what has happened. However, we know that he will make new friends and will be just fine once he has done that.

Well, the big news this week is that everyone is WELL! We were all so sick of being sick, but we're back in the saddle again. Jake is eating like a big boy and back to doing all of the things he likes to do. For right now, those things are:

1. Swinging on his new swing

2. Making his parents nervous by jumping off of EVERYTHING

3. Making up stories having to do with dinosaurs, dolphins, lions, sharks, pirates and swords

4. Watching movies

5. Playing with his puppy

6. Hitting his dad with empty paper towell rolls (actually, Dad started this one, so he deserves it right back)

Well, the big news of this week is that we have discussed it as a family, and we are going to try out a new section in our weekly update. We'll see how it goes over... your feedback is appreciated. :)

Jake's Quote of the Week (with parental commentary)

"I like to go potty sitting down because Jesus goes potty sitting down." - Jake

(As at the time it was spoken, I'm not really sure what to say here, so it will be more of a disclaimer than a comment this week... The views expressed in this quote are solely the opinion of the speaker and do not necessarily represent the doctrines and/or beliefs of the Church of the Nazarene... or his parents)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We are so thankful for health, it is so much easier to do the tasks that God has set before us when we actually feel like getting out of bed in the morning! Thank you for you prayers, they worked!

Also, a praise/update on Dr. Enoch Litswele, who is out of the hospital and back at his home, continuing his recovery.

We ask that you remember the following needs in prayer this week:

-- The North and Cyr families, as they go and prepare to go to new assignments.

-- The group from the Africa Regional Office that is currently in Kansas City and heading back to Joburg next week.

Until next week,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Still a Bunch of Sickos...

Well, that's not entirely true, Jeremy has fully recovered from his illness and is back to 100%, and Tricia is mostly just battling severe allergies, but the ol' Jakester is still sick. He was better for a few days, seemed on the road to recovery, but over the weekend his cough and fever came back. So, we took him to the doctor today and he has two ear infections and a throat infection... bummer. But today we got him a whole bunch of medicine and the doctor thinks that he should be better in a few days. The joys of a child in preschool... :)

In other news, we are finally settled into the newly remodeled portion Africa Regional Office. Jeremy helped coordinate both the remodeling and the move of everyone from their old spots to their new ones, so it's a nice sense of accomplishment to see it done. Now that she has a desk, Tricia is going to start going into the office on a part-time basis (she works from home most of the time) so that she can get filing and things done that can't be done remotely.

Jeremy's supervisor, Fred Otto, is back from home assignment and is getting settled back into the office, so things are getting back to normal for Jeremy. Of course, as soon as they do get back to normal, the Financial Services office will be undergoing an accounting system change in late July. It's a good thing though, as it is the same system that Headquarters is on.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot... the pictures this week are from our trip to the Lion Park this weekend. It's about 20 minutes from our house and has about 40-50 lions, in addition to zebra, giraffes, ostriches, and a few other animals. Jake and Daddy got to pet the lion cubs while we were there! Jake also had fun using Mommy's digital camera to take some pictures of his own! We'll let you guess which one he took. :)

Praises and Prayer Requests

We praise God that this past week we received word that our fellow missionary friends, the Shinglers (intern missionaries to Ukraine), who welcomed a new baby girl, Geneveve Grace, into their family! Please remember them in prayer as they balance a new baby and intensive language training.

Thank you for your continued prayers for the following needs:

-- That Jake gets to feeling better, as he's been sick off and on for over two weeks now. We know that God will see him through this next year as he battles with all of the new "bugs" he will face at preschool.
-- As we prepare to say goodbye to the North and Cyr families, we pray for God's blessing on their new assignments. The Norths are going to serve at headquarters in KC, while the Cyrs have accepted a missionary assignment on the Caribbean Region.
-- With the departure of these families, Jake will be the only missionary kid under 15 in South Africa. Please pray that he finds some new friends to play with!

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake

Happy Birthday to Jake!

Well, this post is a little late because we all have been sick for the last week and a half, but here it is! There has been a nasty flu/upper respiratory thing that has been going around Joburg for a few weeks, and the new missionary family was sure to get it. Jeremy missed two and a half days of work with it and Jake missed over a week of school. Thankfully, Tricia did not get the same thing that the guys had, but has been struggling with her allergies lately.

However, we are back in the saddle! For those of you that knew about it and were praying, thank you! So, it has been an action-filled two weeks, but here's a quick summary of the things that happened:


Jake got a new puppy (a Boxer) for his birthday...














He had a birthday party...



















He played a lot of fun games at his party with his friends from the neighborhood...













And even got to have a party at school with his class!












So, Jake has had a couple of big weeks, despite the sickness. Mommy and Daddy have been taking care of Jozi, his new puppy, and Jake has been having fun being three. Thanks to everyone that sent cards and packages to him, he really enjoyed getting the mail!

Praises and Prayer Requests

While we are very thankful that we are not as sick as we were this time last week, we're still not back to 100% for some reason. Jake especially is having a hard time with this one, and still has a pretty nasty cough. Please remember him in prayer this week.

As a follow-up to a prayer request a few weeks ago, we have received word that Dr. Enoch Litswele is doing much better in a hospital in Nelspruit, South Africa. Please keep praying for him and his family, as he still has a way to go in his recovery.

Please also pray for our continued adjustment to our new jobs and lives here in South Africa. We are so blessed to have such a great support system behind us!

Until next time,

Jeremy, Tricia & Jake