People: I come home in ONE WEEK. Crazy, i know! I still have a lot of mixed feelings about leaving. We have the best kids in the world, and, as excited as I am about going home, I really don't know how I'm going to say good-bye to all forty-five of them. 

As one of my final blog entries, I would like to introduce you all to Elijah- probably the most entertaining child I've ever had the pleasure of knowing. 

He can frequently be found running around, screaming at the the top of his lungs or singing some version of "Mighty to Save."

As you can see, he's pretty much a fashion guru. He's in the process of learning how to use the potty, but he rarely lets an "accident" cramp his style. 

He also weighs more than any two-year-old should, so my arms have become really toned from lifting him into a double-stacked crib. And he's hands down the best tooth-brusher out of all of our babies. 

I can honestly say that I'm going to miss this little tub of love and his sloppy kisses. 

Also, get excited, because there are many, many more pictures to come as soon as I get back in the States.  :) 

I love you guys! Thank you for all of your prayers and support. 

If any of you have been following the news lately, I'm sure you heard about the bombings in Kampala this past week. From what I know, there were two bombs that successfully went off in two separate locations, but with added security they have managed to stop a few attempts since then.

Everyone here in Jinja is fine- all of our kids are okay (Praise God for that!).

Please be praying for the families of the people who were killed and injured. The hospitals in Kampala are still overwhelmed trying to treat all of the victims. And pray for safety here- that God would bring peace to Uganda and Burundi, which appear to be the target countries.



This past week, Morgan and I stayed at a home that serves as a care center for children with cancer and their families. The kids stay at the home while they are receiving treatment or awaiting test results in Kampala. We helped with some administration work while we were there and were able to spend some time with the children and their families, which was a blessing. Most of the families we met cannot afford the tests, let alone the treatment, needed to heal their children. They rely mostly on God to provide healing or to bring in the financial support they need. It was really inspiring to see the faith and the joy these people display while battling such an aggressive disease.

One of the boys at the home is named Dennis. They told us when we arrived that he had been diagnosed with Leukemia and couldn't afford treatment. Just two weeks ago, they had thought he was going to die because he was so sick. They prayed and asked God to heal his body, and God was faithful to answer. He is now healthy and his blood count is back to normal- just TWO weeks later. They are praying every day for more miracles like that one.

I feel really blessed to have been able to spend time with the families in Kampala, but I really missed our kids here. It's SO great to be back in Jinja. It's starting to sink in now that I only have two weeks left before I head back to the states. Please pray that God would work in and through me during that time and that I would make the most of it.

God has still been teaching me so much about what it means to trust that He is good- always. He doesn't guarantee that we will be safe or comfortable or healthy at all times, but He does guarantee His unending love and promises to never leave us.

Jesus says in Matthew 10: "Don't fear those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. Aren't two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father's consent. But even the hairs of your head have been counted. Don't be afraid, therefore; you are worth more than many sparrows."

God is always good and He never leaves us.

Well, friends, you heard right. I got malaria.

Thank you for all of your prayers- I appreciate that so much, and I’m feeling better every day. I think I’m now well on my way to becoming a true African, which is really exciting.

More importantly, please be praying for the rest of our family here. Lydia, our oldest girl, has been sick pretty consistently for many months. She has been put on an IV again to keep fluids in her system, and she could really use prayer for strength. Kevin also is being treated for pneumonia, so pray for his recovery.

As I was lying in bed last week trying really hard not to throw up the biscuits William kept insisting that I eat, I kept thinking mainly about two things: 1. How much I hate mosquitoes and 2. How good God is.

Because even though God doesn’t always take away our pain, I find so much comfort in the fact that He is right there in the midst of it all. No matter what, He never leaves us and He is always good.

In the gospel of John, before Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, scripture says that Jesus saw Mary and the people crying and that He was angry in His spirit and deeply moved. Then, when they took Jesus to see Lazarus’ body, He wept. My Bible has a footnote saying that the Greek word used here for angry is very strong and probably indicates Jesus’ anger against sin’s tyranny and death.

Sickness and death anger God. Sin angers God. The pain that we feel as a result angers God. Because it’s not the way things were created to be. Something along the way broke down and so we experience the repercussions every day.

HIV happens. Malaria happens. Death happens.

Jesus wept with the people as they mourned the death of Lazarus. And He weeps with us still.

That’s the beauty of it all. He never leaves us. Not when we’re facing illness or death or brokenness or loneliness. Max Lucado writes that “Jesus doesn’t give hope by changing the jungle; He restores our hope by giving us Himself. And He has promised to stay until the very end.”

How incredible is that? That GOD who made the universe sits by my bed when I’m sick and mourns with us when we lose someone we love.

If you do one thing today, please tell Him how good He is.  

Children are endlessly entertaining.

Here are some things my children have said to me since I've been here:


"If you eat a lot of food, your stomach will get really big and you'll have a baby."

"Mommy, I love you so much... can I please write in your hair?"

"Mommy, why do you have hair on your arms like a man?"

"If I move to America, will I become a mzungu (white person) like Michael Jackson?"

Me: "Kevin, what rhymes with the word dog?"
Kevin: "Purple!"


Gotta love 'em :)