babies!

here they are!

please meet:

Julia: Trena's adorable bright daughter :)

William: last-born baby boy :)

Joseph: adorable little baby boy. dimples that melt your heart.

Lizzie (lou-lou): sneaky little girl with a great laugh. (recently shaved. its an understatement to say i was surprised when she came back from the backyard with no hair!)
Eli: one of the funniest little boys i've ever met.

Hopey: beautiful, sweet baby girl. seriously look at those eyes.

MIAH MIAH! (jeremiah) fabulous, screaming, ball of beautiful joy:

love to all,

sus

p.s. please excuse small photos...first time uploading took longer than expected so tried to do it fast with slow internet :)

african life 101

the first 48 hours have indeed been a whirlwind but have been a great start! a few notes on "african life" from what I have seen so far:

- driving=unlike any american driving ever. opposite side, people everywhere, honking and passing on a regular basis.

- babies= fabulous. don't think i'll be getting sick of the smiles, giggles, and cuddles anytime soon. (the songs? maybe at some point...not yet) we took one from the baby house to town today and he stared absorbing it all with wide eyes and mouth open

- women= in love with the babies and wonderful. i've been absorbing their routines etc. and it has been a time of adjustment but overall it has been great and they are loving and welcoming me with open arms :)

- animals= goats, chickens etc. in the back yard, cows etc. wandering in the streets. helloooo africa.

- language= must learn Swahili words soon, great language.

- time= most flexible/non-existent as expected. never get your mind set on something because you never do know...good and bad in the lack of structure. very different than anything american.

God has been incredible faithful (luggage was lost initially sidenote: trying to communicate that i need my bags shipped etc. right when i get off the plane threw me right into it but now it is HERE!) and is giving me courage and strength every step of the way.

excited to see what the next 4 months brings..

will write more soon! :)

love, grace and peace,

sus

Your Love is everywhere

"Your Love is everywhere,

Your Love is everywhere

open me open me

Your Love is everywhere

Your Love is everywhere

won't You let it flow through me

won't You let it flow through me."

as i am down to the point in this "pre-journey" where i can count the number of hours until i go to africa, this song (sung in church today) couldn't have spoken more clearly to my heart. (so much that shaking and tears occured...)

God's Love is so big. so so beyond big. it is in every corner of His earth, to Nakuru and back again. Its comforting in the midst of the 58902 goodbyes that have been said and it speaks to my heart that God will be loving on and speaking to each person I hold close to my heart while we are an ocean apart and will be loving on those precious babies I will be holding in 3 days.

for those wondering what a "schedule" might be here are some rough estimates (i have learned in traveling to never set plans for they are sure to change and you never but this is at least the plan)

Mondays - market shopping and baby outings w/Jully (baby caretaker) or Angie (manager)

Tuesday-Thursday - knitting group in the mornings, assist w/babies in afternoon

Fridays - shadow/assist Joyce, their social worker. usually out or at another home

Weekends - whatever may be ahead of us for that weekend!

My bags are packed (thanks to becca loney's incredible packing skills) and I am ready and waiting.

God may your Love flow through me.

love to all,

sus

power in weakness

not really sure how to express how i feel at this current time...leaving for an experience that is sure to change my life/living out of the country for 4 months is not quite a normal "everyday" thing..

currently:

- my room is COMPLETELY trashed. packing for 4 months is overwhelming and intimidating so instead i seem to just make piles of things to be packed (rather than actually packing them) and then sit and eat the oreos (that are meant to be packed) while surrounded by said piles.

- i have daily friend/family-dates. which is great. loving the opportunity to see, spend time with and talk with those i love most. leaving the country creates a chance to do that in a short period of time. which leads me to my next point:

- food. hitting up ALL of my favorite GRap restaurants (some twice) in order to make it 4 months without (for example) marie catrib's chicken cranberry sandwhich. mmmmmmm.

- i am a knitting fool. i am bringing bulk yarn and needles with me to teach women a "sustainable" tool. which gets me VERY excited (and a little nervous...must channel my inner-teacher). so now? i am visiting michael's multiple times per day and trying many different patterns. (also knitting gives me something to do while thinking, something i am doing quite a lot of..)

today i had a bit of a panic moment...

who am I to go and spend time with, teach, disciple, and live amongst women, babies, and in a country that has experienced more than i can imagine..

how am i to relate to them...

i am not "rob-bell-esk" with my words (point proven right there)...how will they ever learn from me...

but then i realized that it is not going to be me. God is the one who has brought me to this place in my life, he has clearly brought this opportunity before me and shaped it in a way that is fit just for me. and He tells me that "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness." (2 cor 12:9) and then i was able to breathe easy once again.

i am weak, He is strong.

i need grace, His grace is sufficient.

i need to be empowered, He will do just that.

i am confident that He will equip me and use me, if i am weak, then he will be strong.

to close, a quote i need to read daily:

"O God, I have tasted Thy goodness, and it has both satisfied me and made me thirsty for more. I am painfully conscious of my need for further grace. I am ashamed of my lack of desire..Begin in mercy a new work of love within me. Say to my soul, 'Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away.' Then give me the grace to rise and follow Thee up from this misty lowland where I have wandered so long."- A.W. Tozer

Grace and Peace to you.

2 weeks

what are you doing in 2 weeks?
I will be going to kenya.

lastnight was the first of probably many crazy dreams about me getting to the airport and realizing I only packed my carry-on etc. etc.

i'm ready to get this adventure on the road!

knowing.

i recently heard a sermon on philippians 1:9
("and it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment")

as mentioned in this verse, i want my knowledge to flow from my Love.

we can have knowledge but not know.

if we don't do what we have knowledge of then we don't know.

I see that Paul is telling us here that our prayer should be that our love may abound from knowledge which is really knowing.

i want this trip to Kenya, every interaction, conversation, the experience as a whole to take my knowledge and turn it into knowing. knowing what it is like to be in His kingdom. to be His hands and feet. to love these children unconditionally.
i want knowledge that leads to particular actions that leads to love in the world. the type explained in phil 1:9.

and that is my attempt at putting into words my current prayer for my time in kenya.
which, oh that's right, begins in 1 month.

may the Peace of God be yours today,
sus

(p.s. just so we're all tracking: some things i KNOW already= "excited" doesn't fully contain my current thoughts on this trip. its too understated. i am countingdownthedayscantreallythinkofanythingelseexcited.)

hello december.

DECEMBER is upon us. beautiful snow and all. yesss. love it. also meaning its close to 1 month (41 days to be exact) until the big journey begins!

Support is coming along WONDERFULLY! I am almost there! and am excited to see how God continues to provide which could go towards needs of the baby home. I am also very excited to see how God is really equipping me with a team of prayer warriors who will cover and support my entire time in Africa. The affirmation and peace that transcends understanding (considering I'm traveling to a completely new continent alone for 4 months...which would typically terrify me..proof alone of the Spirit) is because of the prayer support from all of you.

I am off to brave and soak up the first real snow before traveling to a warm sunny country (which I will NOT hate by that point..)

May the Peace of God be yours today!