Ashby and Abram: October 2016

I got to take my real camera on a walk on one of our last sunny days, to capture the fall colours here on the farm in Renfrew.

Surprise surprise- I'm behind on blogging again. Lots has happened in the past few months! We are now on home assignment, which is another way to say furlough. Which is another way to say that we are spending time as a family, spending time with extended family, visiting friends and supporters, and hopefully relaxing somewhere in there as well. Living in Africa is draining and difficult- I don't mean to complain, only to explain why we are traveling at this time. We love living in Tanzania, but our mission (AIM) knows that people need "down time", where they are not "on". Living in a village has us in the spotlight almost constantly. We are hopeful that these next few months give us time to reflect, relax, and connect with people who love us and support us in what we do. But I digress- here's what we've been up to lately:

AUGUST (still in TZ) was a really difficult month- all four of us had malaria, and I had strep and a sinus infection, as well. Taking care of sick boys when you are not feeling well is HARD. Abram was very busy, wrapping up work projects and dissertation research. The boys were busy exploring, growing and learning, and I was busy trying to pack and prepare for our upcoming trips. We left our home in TZ on August 31, to drive to Nairobi.

Moments before we got in the car for our 11 hour drive! James accurately demonstrates how we all felt at 6am.

SEPTEMBER was a whirlwind of travel. We spent a week in Nairobi, a week in Oklahoma, and a few days each in Missouri, Indiana, Illinois and Minnesota. Highlights included a Kidd family reunion in the Ozarks, a Rauch family wedding in Indiana, time with friends in Illinois, and time with each of Abram's brothers. The boys did remarkably well with the constant upheaval, but I think they are glad to be settled now.

In OK with cousins. We love getting to see D get to know his family!

The Kidd cousins, together for a crazy and fun weekend in Missouri

My brother and James, at my brother's wedding

In Nairobi, we really enjoyed our time at Visible Grace. I was shooting video (to be used for fundraising and at our annual auction in November), and we also got to tour the new house, which is almost finished and ready to be filled with new kiddos next year! We only get to visit the kids a couple times a year, so it's always a blessing to see how they're doing and be amazed at how quickly they are growing.

Ashby, David and the VG kids

In Indiana, the day after my brother's wedding, David turned two! We were so grateful to be with my family, since last year we didn't have either biological family with us. It was simple and perfect- a song, a cake and a couple gifts. (Shout out to my sister for providing a "2" candle and a "happy birthday" banner.) We sure love this growing, talking, squirming, mischievous boy!

OCTOBER has mostly been here in Renfrew, in Ontario, at Abram's parents' farm. We've been here 2.5 weeks now, and the boys seem pretty settled in and comfortable. They are finally sleeping in their own rooms, after 5 weeks of sharing rooms and beds on the road! David loves playing outside and helping Grandad with chores, and James loves the extra attention and cuddles he gets from his grandparents...and I love having extra help with diaper changes! James is now almost 7 months, and is crawling and has two teeth. Eek- slow down baby!

Picnic lunch on possibly our last sunny day of the year.

We will be here in Renfrew for 2 more months before flying to visit my family in the States. The time is going so quickly- I can hardly wait to be with my family, but it's hard, because once we leave here, we won't be back for a couple years at least. It's not easy to love more than one home. It's always a balance between enjoying the one you're in (and we have four places we love now), and longing for the one you're not with. But for the meantime, we are trying to soak up every moment here in Canada, while missing and thinking of our friends back in Africa, and looking forward to time with friends in the States.

Though our internet is better here, I'm still finding it hard to blog, because the boys are so busy! Maybe I'll have time to blog more in 18 years or so... (will we still have internet then??)