Some Things Never Change

Hello from Gabs! Some things never change....like the girls building and playing under a home-made fort. Amazing what you can do with a blanket and heavy books...and a great imagination! The girls loved to make 'forts' in their rooms back at home....now they enjoy making forts in their new home...in the living room where there is plenty of space.

We are settling in to life in Gabs. The weather here is great!!! The season is changing to fall....so the days are getting cooler...and the humidity is decreasing greatly. The lows are in the low 60s with highs in the low 80s...and a wonderful, refreshing breeze. Just wonderful. Feels like spring back in NC. Sorry we missed all the snow back at home. The girls were bummed to have missed that...but the snow in Germany made up for that.

We're getting in to a good routine. School in the morning, and finishing up after lunch - then off to run errands in the afternoon, or play outside or in the pool. Our school days are shorter than before we left, since we're waiting on the remainder of our school books to get here.


Many have been asking about our house. Here are a couple of pictures of the front - one half, and then the other. (I haven't figured out how to use the 'stitch' feature on my camera yet to make one big panoramic pic.) The house is a single-story (which is common for Gabs), and it is L-shaped. The main parts of the house (living room/family room, dining room, sunroom, kitchen, laundry room, office are all in the front part, and the bedrooms are in the other part). Don't see many two-story homes here. I really like living in a single-story home. When the girls are in the front living room, and I'm in the 'back' in one of the bedrooms, I can't easily hear them. That can be good or bad - depending on what they're up to. :-)

For those who look closely at the pics, yes there are bars on the windows. That is standard for many of the homes around here. We also have a high wall around our 'compound', as it is called - with a remotely controlled gate. At the top of the wall is an electric fence. Sounds scary, but it really isn't. This is 'the norm' for living in Gabs. As a new friend here told me, "Eventually, when you look out your windows, you will not notice the bars." She was so right. Recently, as I was looking out the kitchen window, I was in awe of the beautiful sunset - and didn't notice the bars. You just get used to it. Also, we have a long, curved driveway (bricked) that the girls enjoy playing 'tennis' or frisbee on. They look forward to when their bikes and scooters arrive! Oh, and we have a pool in the backyard, too. :-)

For those who have mini-vans - and remember me saying "I don't want a mini-van, I like my 4-door sedan..." Well, yours truly is now driving a Honda Odyssey minivan. This one was made in Japan - thus it doesn't have the typical sliding rear doors, but has car-like doors, AND the steering wheel is on the right side of the car. Here are a couple of pics - and no, those 'uh ohs' on the van were not made by us....but the previous owners. Fits right in with the other cars here!










At times I still can't believe I'm living in Africa! A year ago we had NO CLUE we would be where we are now. I am so thankful that the Lord is in control of our lives, that HE knows what the future holds for us, and that HE reveals HIS plans for us in HIS perfect timing. Our desire is to walk in obedience to His leading. We know His ways are perfect. His ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts.