April 19th through May 26th
The school went on a field trip to Tuba City on the Rez and visited the Navajo Cultural Museum and then went to see the fossilized Dinosaur footprints located just outside of Tuba City. I didn't go with them, so I don't have a lot of details about the trip. The museum appeared to be an interactive one, where the kids got to small models of hogans out of sticks and to use a weaving loom and different cultural activities. There was an exhibit about the Navajo creation story. It is a very interesting story if you want to read it. Jerry and I borrowed it from the library here. It is called "Dine bahane". Apparently there was a dust storm while they were viewing the dinosaur tracks. They made a quick tour of it outside and then headed back to the buses.
While the school was on the field trip, I went to Window Rock, the capital of the Navajo Nation and the seat of the government. It was a very nice drive. I traveled there to attend an orientation for the Navajo Tribal Clothing program. Each year, the Navajo Government provides articles of clothing for every child who has a Navajo census number and is enrolled in school. This year, the clothes provided were a coat, jeans and a pair of sneakers. This is a wonderful program and a blessing to the Navajo families that are eligible to received the clothing. The orientation was very informative! I have to say, it was one of the only times I have felt conspicuous because of my ethnicity. I was not the only Caucasian person at the meeting, but I was one of three that I could see.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Kelcy's Update
April 19th through May 27th
Kelcy had a rough couple of weeks during this time period. She had what turned out to be a really bad virus which lasted three weeks. She would get better and then worse again. She ended up at the doctor one day and then two days later in the ER getting IV fluids. She finally got better! She celebrated Abby's birthday and received some gifts of her own from our friends and family. Thank you all for remembering her! She really appreciated it! Kelcy was very brave at the ER and told Abby when she saw her that it hurt, but not too much. Miss Springer is teaching Kelcy to write her name pretty well and to write some other letters and number. Kelcy still goes to class one day a week and she loves it! She is so proud to show me her work when the day is over.
Kelcy enjoyed the work group from Murray Christian Fellowship as well. Stephanie and Andrea had another big fan! She loved all of the girls!
Kelcy is getting very sophisticated in her imaginary play, assuming all kinds of roles and writing in roles for me. It is so cute to hear the girls say that Barbie is going back to her hogan (instead of house). They have an all new vocabulary of "dust storms", "hogans" and the Navajo words that they have learned.
Kelcy loves to sing and she is getting really good at it. Some of her favorites are: "God of Wonders", "Above All", "Here I Am to Worship", and of course "Wheels on the Bus.". She learned to use Jerry's Ipod touch really quickly and picks out music using the menu (of course she can't read, so she uses the pictures).
Kelcy is so funny. Some of the things she says are just hilarious. She is just like her Daddy in a lot of ways. Miss Springer says that Abby looks like Jerry, but has my personality and that Kelcy looks like me but has Jerry's personality. She walks to the beat of her own drum. She seldom lets what other people say or do influence what she is doing. She told me the other day "It doesn't bother me when other kids don't want to play with me." This is because while Abby and Jessica were together, ocassionally one of the two would come to me and say "No one will play with me." Kelcy was looking at the situation and saying "What's the big deal? Go play by yourself". Big concept for a three year old!
I could also mention that Kelcy has begun to discover the power of words. She hears words that she knows that we don't approved of and likes to say them by saying "_______, that is not a nice word." Thankfully, they are not REALLY bad words yet. Just things like "fart" (as opposed to passing gas), "stupid-head" (thank you, Lilo and Stitch movie), and butt (instead of bottom, which I prefer).
Kelcy had a rough couple of weeks during this time period. She had what turned out to be a really bad virus which lasted three weeks. She would get better and then worse again. She ended up at the doctor one day and then two days later in the ER getting IV fluids. She finally got better! She celebrated Abby's birthday and received some gifts of her own from our friends and family. Thank you all for remembering her! She really appreciated it! Kelcy was very brave at the ER and told Abby when she saw her that it hurt, but not too much. Miss Springer is teaching Kelcy to write her name pretty well and to write some other letters and number. Kelcy still goes to class one day a week and she loves it! She is so proud to show me her work when the day is over.
Kelcy enjoyed the work group from Murray Christian Fellowship as well. Stephanie and Andrea had another big fan! She loved all of the girls!
Kelcy is getting very sophisticated in her imaginary play, assuming all kinds of roles and writing in roles for me. It is so cute to hear the girls say that Barbie is going back to her hogan (instead of house). They have an all new vocabulary of "dust storms", "hogans" and the Navajo words that they have learned.
Kelcy loves to sing and she is getting really good at it. Some of her favorites are: "God of Wonders", "Above All", "Here I Am to Worship", and of course "Wheels on the Bus.". She learned to use Jerry's Ipod touch really quickly and picks out music using the menu (of course she can't read, so she uses the pictures).
Kelcy is so funny. Some of the things she says are just hilarious. She is just like her Daddy in a lot of ways. Miss Springer says that Abby looks like Jerry, but has my personality and that Kelcy looks like me but has Jerry's personality. She walks to the beat of her own drum. She seldom lets what other people say or do influence what she is doing. She told me the other day "It doesn't bother me when other kids don't want to play with me." This is because while Abby and Jessica were together, ocassionally one of the two would come to me and say "No one will play with me." Kelcy was looking at the situation and saying "What's the big deal? Go play by yourself". Big concept for a three year old!
I could also mention that Kelcy has begun to discover the power of words. She hears words that she knows that we don't approved of and likes to say them by saying "_______, that is not a nice word." Thankfully, they are not REALLY bad words yet. Just things like "fart" (as opposed to passing gas), "stupid-head" (thank you, Lilo and Stitch movie), and butt (instead of bottom, which I prefer).
Abby's Update
April 19th through May 27th
Birthday!
Abby turned 5 years old! We celebrated with the cake she requested: pink cake (strawberry) with pink candles and Dora on top. She really enjoyed the idea of getting older this year. She also enjoyed all the cards and gifts that she received! Thank you all for remembering her! It really helps her to know that you all remember her!
Losing Teeth!!!!
All year long Abby has asked "When am I gonna lose teeth like Jessica?" Of course, Jessica is over a year older than Abby. I kept telling Abby that sometime after she turned 5 years old she would being to lose teeth. I didn't realize how quickly that would be! It less than a week after her birthday when I noticed one of her bottom teeth "wiggling". She was so excited! The tooth hung in there for about a week and a half. It kept tilting farther and farther forward. Finally, we realized that it was being pushed forward by the tooth coming in underneath, which we could already see! That little tooth was hanging on by a long root in the front of the tooth. So, Jerry decides it is time for the tooth to come out. He reaches for the first likely thing he can find, which is yarn. If you have never tried to use yarn to remove a tooth, I can tell you that it didn't work for us. It kept slipping off the tooth. Next, Jerry tried floss and it worked like a charm. Abby didn't even know her tooth was gone until we showed it to her. It bled just a little bit, but didn't hurt at all. Abby had learned from school (Miss Springer always tells them the truth, which I love!) that there is no tooth fairy, so we didn't have to have that conversation. However, she still wanted to put her tooth under her pillow. Instead of money under her pillow, she asked for a doughnut (Could she BE more like me?)
A work group from Murray Christian Fellowship came during the second week of May. Abby really became attached to two of the girls, Stephanie and Andrea. I guess I would call it "hero-worship". She really loved spending time with them and I appreciate how kind they were! I am sure that she really wore them out at times, but they insisted that she was fine.
Abby had her friends Jessica and Shyla spend the night at our house over the Memorial Day weekend. They had a great time and got along very well!
Abby has changed so much this year! She has grown taller and looks more like a young lady. She has learned to read and write very well! She has learned some games and their rules, like soccer and T-ball. She has lost her first tooth! She has learned to tie her shoes! It is so amazing. I think that this is her biggest year of accomplishments so far (not counting her first year of life, of course).
Abby is getting a little nervous about the end of the school year. She has never experienced this before and she always has a hard time with transitions at first.
Just the other day Abby said "I wish that we lived in the hogans". My thought is that she thinks it would be funner to live there, or that she would get to spend more time with the work group members while they are here. I asked her "Why do you want to live in the hogans?" Her response, "Because those people get to go home."
My heart was effectively broken.
Birthday!
Abby turned 5 years old! We celebrated with the cake she requested: pink cake (strawberry) with pink candles and Dora on top. She really enjoyed the idea of getting older this year. She also enjoyed all the cards and gifts that she received! Thank you all for remembering her! It really helps her to know that you all remember her!
Losing Teeth!!!!
All year long Abby has asked "When am I gonna lose teeth like Jessica?" Of course, Jessica is over a year older than Abby. I kept telling Abby that sometime after she turned 5 years old she would being to lose teeth. I didn't realize how quickly that would be! It less than a week after her birthday when I noticed one of her bottom teeth "wiggling". She was so excited! The tooth hung in there for about a week and a half. It kept tilting farther and farther forward. Finally, we realized that it was being pushed forward by the tooth coming in underneath, which we could already see! That little tooth was hanging on by a long root in the front of the tooth. So, Jerry decides it is time for the tooth to come out. He reaches for the first likely thing he can find, which is yarn. If you have never tried to use yarn to remove a tooth, I can tell you that it didn't work for us. It kept slipping off the tooth. Next, Jerry tried floss and it worked like a charm. Abby didn't even know her tooth was gone until we showed it to her. It bled just a little bit, but didn't hurt at all. Abby had learned from school (Miss Springer always tells them the truth, which I love!) that there is no tooth fairy, so we didn't have to have that conversation. However, she still wanted to put her tooth under her pillow. Instead of money under her pillow, she asked for a doughnut (Could she BE more like me?)
A work group from Murray Christian Fellowship came during the second week of May. Abby really became attached to two of the girls, Stephanie and Andrea. I guess I would call it "hero-worship". She really loved spending time with them and I appreciate how kind they were! I am sure that she really wore them out at times, but they insisted that she was fine.
Abby had her friends Jessica and Shyla spend the night at our house over the Memorial Day weekend. They had a great time and got along very well!
Abby has changed so much this year! She has grown taller and looks more like a young lady. She has learned to read and write very well! She has learned some games and their rules, like soccer and T-ball. She has lost her first tooth! She has learned to tie her shoes! It is so amazing. I think that this is her biggest year of accomplishments so far (not counting her first year of life, of course).
Abby is getting a little nervous about the end of the school year. She has never experienced this before and she always has a hard time with transitions at first.
Just the other day Abby said "I wish that we lived in the hogans". My thought is that she thinks it would be funner to live there, or that she would get to spend more time with the work group members while they are here. I asked her "Why do you want to live in the hogans?" Her response, "Because those people get to go home."
My heart was effectively broken.
Monday, May 4, 2009
April 6th - Apirl 18th
Who thought it would be a month since I last updated this blog? I guess all of you who are checking frequently for updates! Time seems to by flying by.
The highlights
Mr. Bill started a Tuesday night Bible Study at Red Sands Christian Church! Yea! We have had three sessions so far, and I am really enjoying being in an adult Bible Study class again. We have covered the “Beautitudes” in Matthew so far. We run no bus for this service. We have had eight at each night. Abby & Kelcy do not have a “class” of their own, so they usually play or watch a DVD while we have class. Of course, that now means that Mr. Bill is the Director of the Mission, is teaching the third grade during the week, and he is creating/teaching lessons on Sunday morning (twice: Dilkon & Red Sands), Sunday night (Dilkon), Tuesday night (Red Sands) and Wednesday night (Dilkon). Yes, he is a busy man.
Resurrection Sunday
We had a lovely Easter service at Red Sands Christian Church. We had a low turn out for Sunday School Class, but ended up with 25 people at church without running the buses (everyone came in their own vehicle). We had a potluck meal today, with one of the families providing the ham for the meal. It was one of their own pigs that they had had slaughtered. It was so kind of them to do that! Mr. Bill brought baked beans, Miss Springer brought scalloped potatoes and rolls, I brought vegetables and dip and some drinks. We also had large submarine sandwiches, chips and cake provided by other members of the congregation. After lunch, Mr. Bill got to hide the colored and plastic eggs for the kids. I think we had eleven kids to hunt eggs. They had a great time. Abby’s friend Jessica was there and her sisters and brother. It was a little windy, but I think they all had a great time!
Mission Board Meeting
The Navajo Trails Mission Board Meeting was the weekend after Resurrection Sunday. It was wonderful to see Mr. Doug and Mr. Keith and all of the board members. We had a great meeting Friday night at the local Mexican restaurant. We all got to know one another a little better and talked about what the future could hold for the mission. Everyone was full of ideas. We made notes of contacts people have that might help in the recruitment of additional staff members. Abby & Kelcy played in the floor of the restaurant with their Barbie dolls and colored in their coloring books. They behaved very well, I thought. On Saturday morning, Mr. Bill and some of the other board members made breakfast for everyone. The menu included: pancakes, sausage, bacon, toast, scrambled eggs, milk, orange juice or coffee. The men had also began the lunch preparations by starting the beef roast and vegetables cooking prior to the meeting.
We had a great meeting. There was a lot of information exchanged. Everyone was very positive and the board made a lot of unanimous decisions. After the meeting, the board members went down to the school to see the building and to see the new equipment purchased with the Labels for Education program. It is well worth the effort to clip those labels and send them in. The students have seen a great benefit from the program!
Sunday morning Mr. Keith preached at Dilkon and at Red Sands. Mr. Jack, one of the board members, was still here for the service. I had my “usual” four in Sunday School class. We have been doing a series on Elijah and Elisha. They are really remembering the Bible stories and are beginning to memorize scripture. I taught “Wee Worship” this Sunday, so I did not hear Mr. Keith’s preaching. The kids had a great lesson about helping others and how they can help people in their families. After church, Keith headed over to the Grand Canyon and we went home to rest until church at Dilkon that night. The pot luck meal at Dilkon was this Sunday night and Mr. Bill was making pork roast with vegetables. We headed out about 4:30 for the 6PM Dilkon service. I needed to stop at the store and pick-up some rolls for the meal, so we left about 15 minutes early. We enjoyed the message from Mr. Bill about what it means to be saved and how we are saved. Then we enjoyed a fellowship meal afterward.
The highlights
Mr. Bill started a Tuesday night Bible Study at Red Sands Christian Church! Yea! We have had three sessions so far, and I am really enjoying being in an adult Bible Study class again. We have covered the “Beautitudes” in Matthew so far. We run no bus for this service. We have had eight at each night. Abby & Kelcy do not have a “class” of their own, so they usually play or watch a DVD while we have class. Of course, that now means that Mr. Bill is the Director of the Mission, is teaching the third grade during the week, and he is creating/teaching lessons on Sunday morning (twice: Dilkon & Red Sands), Sunday night (Dilkon), Tuesday night (Red Sands) and Wednesday night (Dilkon). Yes, he is a busy man.
Resurrection Sunday
We had a lovely Easter service at Red Sands Christian Church. We had a low turn out for Sunday School Class, but ended up with 25 people at church without running the buses (everyone came in their own vehicle). We had a potluck meal today, with one of the families providing the ham for the meal. It was one of their own pigs that they had had slaughtered. It was so kind of them to do that! Mr. Bill brought baked beans, Miss Springer brought scalloped potatoes and rolls, I brought vegetables and dip and some drinks. We also had large submarine sandwiches, chips and cake provided by other members of the congregation. After lunch, Mr. Bill got to hide the colored and plastic eggs for the kids. I think we had eleven kids to hunt eggs. They had a great time. Abby’s friend Jessica was there and her sisters and brother. It was a little windy, but I think they all had a great time!
Mission Board Meeting
The Navajo Trails Mission Board Meeting was the weekend after Resurrection Sunday. It was wonderful to see Mr. Doug and Mr. Keith and all of the board members. We had a great meeting Friday night at the local Mexican restaurant. We all got to know one another a little better and talked about what the future could hold for the mission. Everyone was full of ideas. We made notes of contacts people have that might help in the recruitment of additional staff members. Abby & Kelcy played in the floor of the restaurant with their Barbie dolls and colored in their coloring books. They behaved very well, I thought. On Saturday morning, Mr. Bill and some of the other board members made breakfast for everyone. The menu included: pancakes, sausage, bacon, toast, scrambled eggs, milk, orange juice or coffee. The men had also began the lunch preparations by starting the beef roast and vegetables cooking prior to the meeting.
We had a great meeting. There was a lot of information exchanged. Everyone was very positive and the board made a lot of unanimous decisions. After the meeting, the board members went down to the school to see the building and to see the new equipment purchased with the Labels for Education program. It is well worth the effort to clip those labels and send them in. The students have seen a great benefit from the program!
Sunday morning Mr. Keith preached at Dilkon and at Red Sands. Mr. Jack, one of the board members, was still here for the service. I had my “usual” four in Sunday School class. We have been doing a series on Elijah and Elisha. They are really remembering the Bible stories and are beginning to memorize scripture. I taught “Wee Worship” this Sunday, so I did not hear Mr. Keith’s preaching. The kids had a great lesson about helping others and how they can help people in their families. After church, Keith headed over to the Grand Canyon and we went home to rest until church at Dilkon that night. The pot luck meal at Dilkon was this Sunday night and Mr. Bill was making pork roast with vegetables. We headed out about 4:30 for the 6PM Dilkon service. I needed to stop at the store and pick-up some rolls for the meal, so we left about 15 minutes early. We enjoyed the message from Mr. Bill about what it means to be saved and how we are saved. Then we enjoyed a fellowship meal afterward.
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