Updates galore....

Hellllo! Ok, been meaning to write a new post on here. Especially since the last one was such a downer! Hello JOY that comes in the morning. Thank you Jesus.

Oh geeze, just went to search for a particular verse on Joy to go with what I just said but the verse of the day on biblegateway.com (great website by the way) spoke in volumes even more....

“But none of these things move me; neither do I esteem my life dear to myself, if only I may finish my course with joy and the ministry which I have obtained from [which was entrusted to me by] the Lord Jesus, faithfully to attest to the good news (Gospel) of God's grace (His unmerited favor, spiritual blessing, and mercy).” - Acts 20:24

This was actually the very first verse that Jesus spoke so clearly to me when I felt a stirring to move to Africa at the age of 15. Wow. And now here it is, applying in the same way but with more depth.

Ok, onto a ton of updates.

First let me show you some of the most beautiful children on the planet. Just snapped these pictures today...

Euni

Angeline

Pretty sure I don't even have to tell you this little beauty's name...

David and Victor playing soccer... excuse me... football. These boys are brothers.

Mary Clementine and Mercy Ebei. Not sisters by blood but by adoption!

I always hate the part in our life when it comes to asking for money. I could tell stories to pull at your heart but I'm just going to put it bluntly. Our kids need more sponsorship, end of story! If you feel led to make a world of a difference in the life of one or more of these children, you can go to mattawchildren.com and sign up to sponsor. And even better, you sign up to change a child's life and they end up changing yours in the process. Hearing where they came from and watching them grow up in a new home with a hope in life will wreck you forever in the best way possible! We are so thankful for those of you already sponsoring the Mattaw Children. Our sponsors help us follow through with the overall vision of Mattaw: rescue a life, redeem a soul, release the Kingdom. Please consider sponsoring a child for only $35 per month. If you have any questions or having trouble signing up, you can email us at: mattaw@yahoo.com.

And as for my husband who is busy as can be. He's been out all day everyday prepping the ground for teams to come out this summer. We have our first team coming in next week! They will mainly focus on vbs type stuff with our children and children in the surrounding villages. They might also help prep house four for the following team that will come in the day before they leave. The second team has raised money to build house four!!! Do you know how much this makes my heart leap with JOY?! Oh it does. Here are the bricks that have been pumping out of the brick machine for house four to be built...

The roof of house four and in the background is the completed house three.

Here's a random update. Bud planted what is below to make a mixture referred to here as "cow candy". It'll help plump our mama cows up.

And speaking of cows, this one's about to pop! (excuse the hiney shot, didn't realize that when I took it!)

Our completed chicken coop. No chickens yet.... wanna buy some to put inside? (another way you can help our self-sustainable projects, email us for more info!)

Have a great weekend! Oh wait, that means it's Friday! Fruit Friday, here again before I knew it..

Ok, today the fruit is nothing out of the ordinary, although it is no Chiquita banana! Today I introduce you to a typical banana found in Kenya. (excuse the not so great background, the lighting was good here)

They're thicker than the ones we'd eat in America. I think a bit sweeter too. My little monkey's eat them pretty much on a daily basis...

And sometimes we don't have to go to the market to buy them but simply step outside and walk down our driveway...

Yes, that is four little puppies there. We still have all four! Been trying to get Brittany and Austin settled and prepared with supplies for two of these babies. A new culture, new house, new life AND new puppies all in their first week might have just sent them running home! Ha, not really. But they can be quite a handful.

You can see here how thrilled they are to have Claire pull and tug on them all day. She loves them.

And that's about it for today! Many more updates to come. Let's hope all power and internet stays on! Love y'all!