Internet Woes

So we were without internet for the entire week...and boy was it hard! There was an investigator here from IJM working with Jesse, so Jesse was having to work long, late hours. And when our internet is down that means that our vonage phone doesn't work either....so I felt very detached from everyone. It's amazing how the internet, for some strange reason, makes me feel connected to home. So sorry that there haven't been too many updates this past week. Unfortunately this upcoming week wont be much different. Jesse leaves tomorrow morning for Tailand. He will be gone for a week & is taking his computer with him. So I will try to get over to the internet cafe, but can't make any promises that I will be able to update much. But the vonage phone is up a running, so I can always update you that way too! : )

Music Class

Rachel & I have been going to a music class on Thursday afternoons. We have been going with our new found friends, Lynette & Alesha Joe (from Scotland). I think the girls enjoy just being together and could really care less about the music, but it's fun for all anyway. Unfortunatly they are taking a month long break, so we will have to wait till September to go back.

Bath Time

Since we don't have a bath tub in our place, but Rachel loves to take baths, we had to get a little creative. John had brought over a big tupperware tub as one of his "bags", and is graciouslly letting us use it for Rachel's new tub. It is quite small for Rachel, but she doesn't seem to mind. She especially loves pouring the water out all over the floor. Although whenever we have been to a hotel & they have a full size tub she gets very excited about having all the room to play. Good thing she is only 3!

Rachel's Birthday Party

For Rachel's 3rd Birthday she wanted a "Cinderella Party". Since we don't know too many people here yet, we just had a small get together. A couple from church & their two daughters, the couple from Scotland with their two kids, and Jesse's assistant John & his girlfriend (who had just arrived from the states). But it was nice. Rachel had fun playing with her friends & loved her Castle cake. Wish you all could have been here too though! Here are some pics...

Our Pastor

So our pastor and his wife invited us over to lunch last Sunday. When we got to there place he went up to change, & came down with a Nebraska Husker shirt on. He sure did know how to make Jesse's day.


They are leaving in a couple of weeks to head to the states for 3 months. She is from Washington State & hasn't been back for 4 years! We are bummed that they are leaving for our sake, but know that it is a trip that will be a much needed break from all they do here. (They also run that home called Lotus Buds--so they have 21 kids to take care of.) Right now they are looking for a young couple to take over for the next generation...if you are interested let us know. : )

Our First Package

Last Friday we got our first package! What a wonderful treat! Rachel was so excited to get some Dora fruit snacks...she screamed and then jumped around for about 5 minutes.


It's crazy how much you miss food when you’re in another country. The food here is actually not bad, but cooking for me has been hard. I'm not much of cook to begin with, and I don't have an oven, & when I go to the store and don't really recognize much on the shelves, it makes it that much worse for me. So to get some easy to make meals is wonderful!


P.S. Rachel loved the bubble wrap too! : )

Our Place

So I've just realized that I never put up pictures of our place....so sorry that these have taken so long to get up but here is our "home sweet home".

This is our dining room & living room:


This is the kitchen-with wash machine (you can also see the big jug of bottled water--only $2.50):


This is Rachel's room:


Our room:


Here is a view from our balcony:



So there you have it... we would love to have you over for dinner! Just let us know when you can make it! : )

Playing In the Rain

We went to dinner with a couple & their two kids on Monday night. They just arrived in Sri Lanka from Scotland & are here till the end of August. They have a little girl who is 1 month younger than Rachel & a 1 year old little boy. Rachel & her new little friend had so much fun together. Durning our meal it started to rain, and Rachel & her new little friend decided to that it would be fun to go play in the rain. They had a blast.

Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage

For Rachel's BIG reward for potty training we took her to the elephant orphanage yesterday. It turned into a long day, but was fun none the less. We were going to rent a car for the day, but when we found out it would cost about $60 we decided to go by train instead. Our train tickets round trip cost about $2.30 for all of us for a 2 1/2 hour trip. I'm still in awe of how cheap public transportation is.

We got to see them feed some of the younger elephants, and then they bring all the elephants to the river to bathe. So we got to see that too. The elephant you see us by is pregnant. We were there for about 2 hours & then back on the train for another 2 1/2 hours. Although our train ended up being late so it took us more then 3 1/2 hours. Needless to say we were beat once we got home. But it was neat to see the elephants up close.