Ordinary Beauty

My days are filled with small things...small people (my kids and neighbor kids), small steps towards growth (in patience, love, communication, friendship, physical exercise etc.), and many small delights (flowers, conversations, laughter, rainbows). Please enjoy with me a few of the ordinary things (in my home and around the area where I live) that I have noticed that are very beautiful.

Who can resist a baby's beautiful smile? :)

This is an amazing fern-covered fence!

Ariella with the beautiful fence.

A beautiful day! And fun on the swings!

The beauty of gently holding a baby rabbit.

Ariella is picking flowers with a very sweet Indonesian girl.

This is Zoe playing "airport"...a game where she brings her doll in her stroller to the airplane that she sets up (plastic chairs in front of the washing machine). The stroller is stowed under the sink, and then she and her baby (or babies) travel to Indonesia. One day when playing this I explained to her that Indonesia is where we live now...and she told me that Indonesia is her "favorite world." I think the beauty of her creativity and play and happiness to be here is delightful!

A rainbow seen from our back yard.

Daniel reading a bedtime story to Zechariah.

Zoe enjoying the beautiful fire pit.

I hope you enjoy these glimpses into my life. Life with my kids seems to take more patience than I have and some things in my life seem to take more courage than I can muster up. But I am trusting God to help me to be patient and brave. And gratitude for the beauty around me helps me as I slowly grow and learn. Where do you see beauty in the ordinary things in your life?

3 Months Old

This little guy is 3 months old (as of 2 days ago).

Newborn 

1 week old

1 month old

2 months old

3 months old

It's amazing how slowly and quickly time goes by! Zechariah Joseph was born on January 7th and was huge then (11 pounds)...but has continued to grow bigger and bigger (17 pounds now). His smiles light up his face, and he is trying to communicate with coos and other sounds. He turns toward me when he hears or sees me, even from the other side of the room. That makes me feel very special! We love him so much!

Berpiknik

Hi there!

It's been a long time since I've written anything here, but what better day to start back up than my 35th birthday?

I have been back in Indonesia for almost a month now, after nearly 2 years in the US. My family is living in the new-to-us city of Wamena, in the highlands of central Papua. Today my husband and friends Karin and Doug planned a picnic to celebrate my birthday. I was excited to see more of the beautiful region where we are living!

First we planned to drive to the hydro plant...but the road was newly washed out.

Look, a pig!

Then we headed towards the yellow bridge near the big washout area. On the way we saw the place in the river where CMA missionaries first landed a float plane in this region in 1954. The people living nearby are proud to be close to the place where the Gospel first entered this region. Some churches hold Easter services here, and this area is open to people who want to picnic. But we thought it might be hard to keep the girls out of the river (and very dangerous if they went into it!!).

We were not able to get to the yellow bridge because that road was filled with mud. We tried walking there, but it got too squishy. The girls enjoyed walking in the mud and rocks.

Then we backtracked a bit to an area with a very fun (and well-maintained) foot bridge. We walked over the bridge and down a path.

Here are the 3 little pigs!

I like the steps to get over the pig-fences.

Here is a little garden.

We walked back over the bridge and had our picnic in a pondok--a wooden structure with a floor and a roof. Karin packed lots of yummy food for us!

Afterwards the girls played in the grass nearby.

Everything is new to me here, and there is so much beauty...I like the wooden fences and the traditional huts (honai), flowers, people walking everywhere, mountains in every direction. Flying around here is amazingly beautiful too! I will share photos of that another time!

This afternoon I also had a surprise birthday party at my neighbors' house. I am grateful for so many people who care about me! Transitions are hard, and my emotions are mixed. I am very grateful to be here in Wamena, though, I'm grateful for the friends to miss who live elsewhere and for the friends for me and for my family here. I am grateful for my God who is always with me, wherever I am. And look at this--I have lived another year! It will be interesting to see what this year will bring!