Really? He's Old Enough?

I remember it like it was yesterday.

Josiah Paul Hefft was 9 pounds, 9 ounces, dwarfing all of the other babies in the nursery at BroMenn Hospital in Normal, Illinois. My claim to fame during his birth: I laughed all the way through it.

No, I'm not superwoman. [Superwomen are those amazing ladies who do the whole thing without drugs.] The anesthesiologist couldn't get my epidural to fully kick in, so he "did it up right" and I couldn't feel a single thing. I couldn't even wiggle my toes. Bless that man.

Josiah wouldn't really eat for the first 24 hours, which worried me a little [ok, a lot], but on the plus side, he slept all the time. I should have taken those God-given opportunities to catch up on sleep, considering I hadn't really slept much the week before he was born. But, good grief, I finally had my own BABY! I had to hold him and admire those cute little fingers and toes. I had to trace the beautiful curve to his chubby chin. Those were good days. [Well, except for the lack of sleep part and the crying part and the messy diapers part.]

I remember it like it was yesterday, which is why it blows my mind that my just-yesterday little one is now 5 years old and going to school.

His first day was Monday. He's normally an early riser, but we heard him up and at 'em especially early yesterday morning. He was overjoyed to pack his new backpack that Grandma Helmers had given him [even though in the Reception class all they bring is a snack] and get on the carpool bus to head to school.

I was nervous that he might be a little apprehensive, being that it was his first day and that he was starting class mid-year. But when the teacher rang the bell for class to begin, he buzzed passed me like I wasn't even there. Nope, he was definitely not nervous. I'm sure it helped that two other kids from our housing compound and another little girl we got to know at language school are in his class too.

I'm grateful that, at least for now, he's loving the idea of school. He has many, many years of school ahead of him.

But it still seems like just yesterday.

A Weekend in Dar

Our week without a husband/daddy was a long one. [Single moms - I have a whole new respect for you!] But I'm happy to report that we made it.

Sure, the kids watched more movies than usual [How else is a mommy on her own supposed to get a shower?], I never seemed to get a cup of hot coffee in the mornings [it was always cold by the time I had the time to drink it], and - even though I'm ashamed to admit it - one night after the kids were FINALLY in bed, I sat down and cried out of sheer exhaustion [just so you know, it was highly cathartic]. All that said, we made it just fine.

Paul was gone to Dar es Salaam all last week with the translation team to check portions of Acts and Revelation with a translation consultant. He had a good week learning the ropes of his new role on the team and figuring out how he can best use his skills to assist the project. They worked hard.


So, after a long week of working hard in different ways, we decided it would be fun to reward ourselves with a short weekend holiday in Dar back together again as a family. The mosquitoes are horrible there and it's hot and humid this time of year, so it's much more comfortable here at home, but in Dar, you can shop for things you can't get in the smaller towns and you can go to the beach. We jumped at the chance.

Thankfully, the kids and I were able to get an affordable rate flying with Missionary Aviation Fellowhip from Dodoma to Dar es Salaam, so our trip was only 2 hours as opposed to 6 or 7 by bus. We got to fly in a six-seater Cessna 206, a model affectionately referred to by my missionary pilot father-in-law as "the Sky Pig."

I don't love flying, but my kids do - thanks to my dear father-in-law and his aviation-loving son, my husband - so they did great on the flight. And "it was only a little bumpy," as Anna took to telling people when asked about her experience. I must admit, it was cool to see Dodoma and other parts of Tanzania from the air.


We had a nice weekend together as a family. I found a few more things for our house and we had a blast swimming at White Sands, a lovely ocean resort on Mbezi Beach with beach front access, clean pools [that can be a problem here in Tanzania], good food, and affordable day rates.



We had so much fun, we were all exhausted - in the good, sleep-inducing way.

It's good to be together as a family again.

The Paul Hefft Salon

After moving to Dodoma one of my burning questions was this: "Where do I get my hair cut?" I expected the answers I received (knowing a little from friends and family about the typical missionary experience), but secretly I was hoping for a much different reality. If you are a mzungu (white person) here in Dodoma, your best option for hair cutting is to either do it yourself (and, really, how does one cut the back of their own head in any sort of straight line?) or have a trusted friend do it for you.

Last night, I reached the end of my rope. After five months without a haircut, washing my hair in dirty river water for four of those months, and general dissatisfaction with the style of my hair, I asked Paul if he would be willing to try and cut it. Being the "go-getter" type, he agreed.

The before picture:

First, we did a little research on the internet - a simple, medium-length bob didn't seem so difficult. Then, I wet my hair down, we grabbed our hair cutting scissors and clips, and he gave it a go.After half an hour or so, the work was done. My hair was shorter and healthier. And, personally, I think he did a really good job. He even gave me some basic layers.

I guess we have one more talent to add to his long list of abilities. (Although, he's made me promise that I won't offer his services to any of our friends.)

The First Real Meal

One of the things I missed the most in the last 6 months of transition was having my own kitchen. Sure, it was great to have every meal catered and to not have any dishes to clean up, but Paul and I both love to cook. So by the end of language school, we were both in a serious state of cooking withdrawal. How does one medicate a serious state of cooking withdrawal? Well, get in that new kitchen and cook everything you've been missing for many, many weeks and months, of course.

In our first week in our new house, we've made spaghetti sauce (starting from fresh tomatoes), chocolate cake, buttermilk biscuits, cinnamon rolls, pancakes, beans and rice, and pigs in a blanket. Everything has tasted so good, but I must say that our first real dinner created in our new kitchen was the best!

Mexican food, a family favorite, is hard to come by in Tanzania, so our first home-cooked dinner in our new house had to be Mexican. We had great fun creating a chicken fajita feast.

Anna and I made flour tortillas from scratch. Paul then used a few of them to fry up some homemade tortilla chips.My master chef hard at work:

We also made guacamole and fresh salsa. Washed down with a bottle of cold coke, we were all quite satisfied at the end of our meal. Yum!Cooking is good medicine!

Our New Home

After many months of transition (since June to be exact), we have a real home again!

We arrived in Dodoma last Thursday (after 2 flat tires on our way here from Iringa) and have been working on unpacking and settling in since then. We are living on a housing compound of another organization working in this area, and we feel blessed to be here. Our neighbors and colleagues have been extremely helpful and welcoming, which has made the moving in process a bit less hectic.

I'll post pictures of the inside of our house once we get a little more settled.

Graduation

Today, we graduated from language school. We're in no way fluent in Swahili, but we have the foundation we need to communicate on a basic level and continue to progress in our ability to speak and comprehend.
It's hard to believe that we have been studying Swahili and living here for 16 weeks now. We had the privilege of studying with 3 other members from our organization, Jacob, Tine, and Ellen. We have become good friends during this time, and it will be difficult to say goodbye to them. At least we know we'll get to see each other again at our branch conference every year.

We've also enjoyed getting to know Kay and Les, the Riverside Campsite directors. They have made us feel so welcome here, like family. We'll miss them.
We're grateful for our nanny, Mama Gretia as well. The kids have grown to love her, and they will miss seeing her every day.As I look back at the whole experience, it really has sped by. In the last 4 months, God has taught me a lot about myself and revealed Himself to me in many ways. I keep thinking of that old hymn I Need Thee Every Hour. Boy, isn't that the truth? Without Him, I cannot get a word of Swahili out of my mouth or understand anything that is said to me. Without Him, it is impossible to parent my children in a godly manner. Without Him, I can't be the wife my husband needs. And the list goes on. I'm so grateful for the power and strength God provides His children through the Holy Spirit. I am blessed.

And so it begins...the part of the journey we've been anticipating for months and months. In the morning, we'll get in our car (which is loaded to the gills) and make our way to Dodoma. All of us are excited to begin unpacking our things, making friends, and finally settling in to our own home. Paul is looking forward to starting his ministry with the language project, and Josiah can't wait to start school in January.

I'm excited to see what God has in store for this next phase.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. And once again this year, we have so much for which to be thankful. We serve an awesome God. We have amazing kids, great families and friends, and wonderful co-workers. God provided a spectacular partnership team to help us come here to Tanzania, and He has been with us every step of the way as we have been adjusting to life here and learning Kiswahili.

I'm also thankful that language school is nearly complete. Today, we finished our final day of classroom learning! The next step is leaving tomorrow morning for a 7-day home stay with a Tanzanian family in Iringa town. After our home stay, we'll return to the campsite for a home-stay debriefing, oral and written Kiswahili assessments, and graduation. We'd deeply appreciate your prayers as we finish up and prepare to move to our new home in Dodoma.

Before I end for today, however, I'll leave you with a few pictures from our first Thanksgiving here in Tanzania. Paul, our friend Ellen, and I cooked a traditional American Thanksgiving lunch for the four other families here at the campsite. All four families are European and had never experienced Thanksgiving before. We were definitely conducting some "food experiments," considering the fact that we were cooking on/in a charcoal stove. But thankfully, everything except my yeast rolls (which didn't rise - I'll blame it on the high altitude) was a success and received rave reviews (if I can say so myself).

Sweet potatoes and carrots boiling on the stove:Making cornbread for stuffing and apple cobbler:
Ellen putting the finishing touches on the sweet potato casserole:Taking the stuffing out of the oven:
Finished products ready to serve:
Our friend, Les, carving one of the 4 chickens we roasted:Our family at dinner:

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!