The Moffits

2012-02-01T19:55:00.000-08:00

Sensitive Sisters

Josh and I each have one sister. And, those sisters are very sensitive to the needs of others. For example, when we came back to the States after 7 years overseas, we needed them to provide us with fresh nieces and nephews. And since they are so sensitive, they both complied. They may say that they were already planning on having more kids, but I like to think they each gave birth this year just for me!

In December we got to meet my sister's new little one, number four in their family, but ranking first place in the 'race to be the first one born on the Moffit's furlough'.

Let me introduce you to Tyler....

Cuddles with Daisy.

Cuddles with Ally (whose birthday he shares!).

Cuddles with Aunt Belinda.

Coming in second place in the 'who was born first' division, but sharing the lead in 'how much the Moffits love me' division is the beautiful Connley, Josh's sister's second little boy...

Cuddles with Aunt Belinda.

Cuddles (or whatever you call that) with Uncle Josh.

Cuddles with Daisy.

Almost cuddles with Neo.

Cuddles with Ally.

Thank you Bethany and Jess for your sensitive reproductive schedules! We are so BLESSED to be here for these two beautiful miracles.

2012-01-26T09:32:00.000-08:00

Bravo! Bravo!

Our hometown happens to have the coolest children's librarian ever. Well, she's not just the librarian..she's a magical machine of endless energy and love directed at the kids in this town. And as such, she directs a few children's productions at the community theater each year. I'm not sure what is more impressive, the kid's performances, or her 'Sound of Music-esque' attitude towards the kids - the perfect example of how to be 'firm but kind.' So, to Dori I say, 'Bravo, Bravo!'

But, in the words of Lorenza the Magnifica (as played by the beautiful and talented Daisy Moffit), let's talk about 'the real stars of the show'....those delightful Moffit girls!

Last Saturday was the final performance of the Brookings Harbor Community Theater's production of Pinocchio. Josh, the fun half of this parenting team, suggested the girls audition for the play, and man am I glad they did! I should have known that my 'somewhat Filipina' daughters would take to the stage like fish to water!

Daisy played the puppet master, Lorenza the Magnifica. She was thrilled to play the part of the villain, complete with black cape and everything. With her sinister lines and all black ensemble, she captured the audience's imagination as she weaved a tale of wooden puppet turned real boy.

But to her ying, was Ally's yang. Ally, a sweet puppeteer in Lorenza's puppet show. Seated on a stool with her adorable 'puppet' at her feet, she delivered timely lines, sang beautiful songs, and made Pinocchio's adventure come to life.

Folks came from near and far to see these amazing young thespians. And by near, I mean the Brookings Moffits. And by far, I mean Perkins from Medford and the Lemleys from CJ. But, all drama aside - I kid you not, all four shows were sold out! Three cheers for the kids! Three cheers for Dori! Three cheers for the BHCT!

2012-01-18T09:58:00.000-08:00

Snow!

So, all of you who are from anywhere east of the Rockies, please don't roll your eyes and launch into one of your 'You-call-that-snow?!-I'll-tell-you-about-snow!' speeches. Just hear me out, and be happy for our 1/4 inch dusting last Sunday.

See, Brookings doesn't get snow. Well, I take that back, I remember it snowing when I was a kid. Once. It lasted one day. This is the land of rain, not snow. So, imagine our DELIGHT when Josh yelled down the stairs Sunday morning, "IT'S SNOWING!"

The weird part? We've just had two months of sunshine. In a place that gets rain from October through June, it's been an odd winter. Then, it's snowed. No transitioning into winter this year. But, it still had that 'Brookings flavor.' Meaning, the weather changed every 5 minutes.

First, we have snow. Can you see those tiny flakes?! This is at 8:15 a.m.

This is at 9:05 a.m. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

Oh wait, the weather has changed her mind again (I'm assuming the weather is a girl in this scenario). This is the next morning.

What makes my heavenly Father so particularly cool in this situation, is that my kids had never seen falling snow before. Not for a lack of trying to see snow. In fact, we went hunting for snow twice last month. No snow. Anywhere. So, because God is gracious and the giver of good gifts, he just brought the snow to us. Thank you God for making a magical memory for my missionary munchkins.

2012-01-08T20:50:00.000-08:00

The Weirdest Thing...

So, I go to bed the other night, and when I wake up, my firstborn seems to have turned into a teenager overnight! How does this happen??!?!?!

(Isn't she beautiful!)

2011-12-28T12:08:00.000-08:00

Misc.

I'm behind on my blog update-in'...so, here's the last month, Seuss style:

"Straight hair-in', body bare-in'...

Josh's trail blaze-in', for Nana- hair raise-in'.

Snowball injuries sustained,

Family traditions maintained.

Decorations by the dozens,

Crazy, crazy cousins.

Sand dune playin',

Christmas dayin'!

The end.

2011-12-24T08:39:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-14T08:02:00.000-08:00

Birthdays!!

This year, the girls celebrated their birthdays in a somewhat unusual way (for our family).
There was no butchering a pig.
There were not 100 neighbors at the house.
They were not sung a 10 minute rendition of 'Happy Birthday'.
No, this year we definitely veered off the well-beaten path of Filipino-style birthdays, and enjoyed a nice romp in the woods of 'traditional American birthdays'.

There were lots of firsts for the girls at this year's birthday celebration.
First time both sets of grandparents were there, AND all the Moffit aunts and uncles!
First time opening birthday presents in front of people!
First time having a 'restaurant' birthday!
First time a cousin has been born on Ally's birthday!

Not to be outdone by my sister, I too custom-made the kids cakes. For Daisy, I went with a rectangle, and for Ally the more rare, but always adored, square. Dad may or may not have done 80% of the work.

This guy does it all...from piano lessons to billards, my kids are going to be very well-rounded! Daisy gets her pre-party pool lesson from her paternal grandfather, as the maternal side looks on.

Now it's the maternal grandfather's time to shine as he presents the girls their birthday gifts via magic, as the paternal grandfather looks on.

As the party rages on, my brain slowly begins to melt (have I ever mentioned I'm not much of a party person??), so I hand the camera off to Kevin, and he gets some amazing action shots of the 'present-ripping-into' event.

Ally holds up a birthday card from her cousin Devon. Due to the fact that Devon's mom gave birth to Ally's cousin ON Ally's birthday, they weren't able to make it to the party - we'll considered that an excused absence!
While the girls partied and the adults visited, Neo played nicely with his cousin.

I always love being a Moffit, but some days more than others- like the day I try and throw an American-style birthday party for my girls, but have no idea what I'm doing, and forget to bring a knife to cut the cake, and forget balloons, and forget candles, and so my poor mother-in-law has to make 2 trips to the dollar store to help her party-challenged daughter-in-law save face, and my sister-in-law has to tell me how to arrange the birthday candles on the cake, since apparently I'm also geometry-challenged. Ah. Thank God for the Moffits.

All in all, I think our foray into the wonderful world of American birthdays was a success. There was family, there was food, there was fun, and my 12 year old and my 10 year old came away with arms full of presents, hearts full of love and a special memory to carry with them no matter how old they are or what continent they find themselves on!

2011-12-07T20:01:00.000-08:00

"I Love It!"

Sometimes it's just so fitting to follow up an event with , 'I love it!' This week has been full of those moments.

Starting with the Christmas Light Show....

Taking in the Christmas lights with Grandpa and Grandma Di...
Love it!

A bobcat just sitting in the driveway...
Love it!

My baby girl turning 10...
Love it!

My baby girl's cousin being born on her birthday...LOVE IT!!!
(this is baby Tyler, isn't he PRECIOUS!!!)

2011-11-30T15:09:00.000-08:00

Ting Pasko!! (Christmas Time!)

Isn't the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas delicious?! The anticipation of Christmas is almost better than the actual day!

So, a few days ago Josh boldly braved the bat closet and pulled out the tubs of Christmas decorations. Alas, there's no tree yet to decorate - but doesn't the outside of the house look happy!

2011-11-26T10:08:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-21T08:05:00.000-08:00

Family Time

Papa Bear Moffit started a twice-monthly Moffit dinner. We do it at a different home each time, and we eat different food, but it's always the same people....family! Oh how we are enjoying family time! It was at our place a few weeks ago, and like all good Moffit get-togethers, there was...

Showing off for Grandpa...

Yoga with Grandma...

And music somehow worked its way into the evening too!

2011-11-14T14:46:00.000-08:00

I Fought the Yard, and the Yard Won.

I love working in the yard. I love weeding. I love mowing. I love using the weed-eater. I love it all. But it doesn't love me back.

First, I threw my back out a few weeks ago, trying to start the lawn mower. Which never did start. Rrrr.

Then, last week...poison oak.

Day one:
Looks like a botox job gone bad.

Day two:
Scary, puffy eyes.

Day three:
Looking better.

Day four and five:
Looking and feeling great!

Day six:
Are you serious! Josh - take me to the doctor!!

5 days on the meds and I am feeling like I almost have my face back to normal! Whew. And, the yard isn't all bad, check out this beautiful visitor from last week!

2011-11-05T10:38:00.000-07:00

Halloween

The fun part of being back in the states after nearly 7 years, is experiencing American culture with new eyes. One of the things that has struck me this furlough, about our culture, is how artistic we are. We decorate for every holiday, and Halloween alone has carving and costumes! We are a creative bunch, we Americans!

After our pumpkin-carving party at Grandpa's a few weeks ago, we continued the artsy Halloween festivities with a pumpkin-painting party with all the Moffits. It was impressive. I like to think of us as the VonTrapp family - but we paint instead of sing!

Then, on Halloween, we dressed up a Native American, a Cowgirl, and a Pirate...and off we went to trick-or-treat. First stop - Grandpa's!

We got a lot of candy, saw some very cool Halloween decorations (like dry-ice bubbles!), and finished our 'tour' with a stop at Uncle Caleb and Aunt Taylor's and of course Grandma's.

2011-11-01T16:01:00.001-07:00

Neo=American!

It came!
It came!
It came!
No longer a green card holder, our son is a full-fledged U.S. citizen!

I went to the post office today with a receipt for certified mail (and a few other things to mail while I was there). The lady gave me the envelope containing Neo's certificate, and also a customs slip to fill out for the package I was mailing. Well, I moved over to another counter to fill out the customs slip, but I was so teary and sniffley from opening Neo's COC , that she brought me over a box of tissues and said, 'This is nice, usually people are upset when they get certified mail, it's nice to see someone so happy about what they got!'

Then, the man behind me in line came over and said, 'Before I go I wanted to come over and say, 'Congratulations!'' (I may, or may not have yelled out to everyone in the post office, 'It's my son's certificate of citizenship!').

2011-10-28T10:23:00.000-07:00

"What is that Animal?"

That's what Ally yelled out while we were eating dinner the other evening. So, we all jumped up to see what she was talking about and there, right outside our window, was a herd/family/group of elk (can you tell I'm not a hunter??)! First the lovely ladies came into the yard, first one, then another, then another...

Then, the bull came following behind! So BIG, and so majestic. What a special treat for us to see!

Also, just for the record, if you want to look like an ignoramous, respond to the question 'How big was he?' with, 'Super big!' Apparently, the correct way to the answer that question is to say how many points are on the antlers!

2011-10-21T16:14:00.000-07:00

More Harvest Happiness

I really do LOVE this time of year, and find it absolutely delightful to be able to enjoy it this year in the western hemisphere.

One of my more recent pleasures...decorating the banister. I have to laugh when I think about what my friends across the ocean must think of tying 'dead' leaves to the handrail...but in the culture I happen to be in today, it's considered pretty!

Another delicious delight - apples! All kinds of apples! Although I do miss pineapples and papaya and the other tropical fruit we've gotten used to in the Philippines, I am thrilled at the apple variety on this side of the world! But the best part of apple season?- Dawn's amazing apple pie!!

And of course, pumpkins! Mounds and mounds of pumpkins at every grocery store! The kids (with a little help from parents and grandparents) carved up some pretty awesome jack-o-lanterns! And Grandpa cooked up some yummy seeds! In our other home, we cook pumpkins and serve them over rice, but making faces out of them is pretty fun too!

2011-10-11T07:40:00.000-07:00

Autumn!

When we're living overseas, the slippery slope into holiday homesickness always begins with my sister's blogpost about their trip to the pumpkin patch.

Dad and my sister's family go to the Baggenstos Farm corn maze and pumpkin patch every autumn, and we just watch from afar. But...this year, we were invited to go along too! It was a blast!

There was a playground, and bales of hay to play on, a country store, hay rides, a jack-o-lantern corn maze and a great, big pumpkin patch!

The kids tried to find the biggest pumpkins they could lift!

Papa and the grandgirls head into the maze!

Meanwhile, back at the hay bales, Neo defies gravity.

The big kids jumped, and jumped...and jumped!

Happy Fall!

2011-10-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

Para ki Kimx2, puun ki Neo

Tagswimming a ta wahig.

Tagdula kay ki Ate Daisy daw ki Ate Ally.

Tagsakay a hu board.

Tagswimming a duma ki Naomi (sa ig-agaw ku).

Diya a ta barn.

Kumusta ka Kimx2?

Tagbulungon a imu.

Daw a pa namahaw daw pan sa kinaon ku.

Tagdula a usahay hu mga toys ku.

Imantu igdiya a ta balay hu lola ku.

Sigi, bye-bye!

-Neo

2011-09-29T08:24:00.000-07:00

Neo

There is a very cool 'barn' shed at the place we're staying. And it's got all sorts of cool stuff that 4 year olds love to play with. Things like antlers and buckets and wood! Neo spends many hours playing up their with 'his stuff'. Here, he's making a train track for his antlers to ride on.

2011-09-23T16:36:00.000-07:00

Hot Date, Bad Pictures

Josh and I spent the weekend in the Bay Area, celebrating our anniversary. Thankfully, our love is sweeter than the photos we took on our trip.

'Get a picture of me with the skyline in the background!....Oh, too light (and blurry)...try again.'

'Um, too dark...try again.'

'Uh, sure, whatever, good enough!'

The three of us at the stadium (that would be Josh, myself, and my chin).

'Oooh, I'll get an 'artsy' photo of Josh and some famous pitcher....Uhhh, yeah, not so artsy (unless you're into big nostrils and little, blurry baseball players).'

I was afraid our 13th year of marriage might mean bad marital luck, fortunately it looks like it's only affecting our photography skills!

2011-09-20T06:54:00.001-07:00

Captain Ally

Last Friday was 'Pirate Day' at Ally's school. Well, we didn't exactly bring a chest of pirate gear back with us from overseas, so with the help of some Halloween gear from Freddie's and Daisy's scarf, I think we managed to produce ourselves a pretty darn cute pirate! The funniest part was hearing the other moms in the store muttering, 'Pirate stuff, pirate stuff, where's the pirate stuff?'

And - Ally's class won cookies for being the most 'pirate-y' classroom!

2011-09-16T07:16:00.000-07:00

Fall

2011-09-15T09:22:00.000-07:00

This and That

The summer is winding down, and so are trips to the river and the beach. Labor day was spent relaxing with family at Josh's favorite old swimming hole.

The girls prepared date night for Josh and I. They prepared all the food, and they even got dressed up and 'waited' on us.

Ally said, 'We're like pioneers.' That was after an afternoon spent making jam and cooking and freezing beans.

My adorable little helper. He's become a huge fan of housework...now that he's discovered the Swiffer!

2011-09-09T06:20:00.000-07:00

Real School!

My girls have been wanting to go to 'real' school for most of their childhood. And, the idea of someone else doing all those lesson plans and correcting all those papers sounded pretty good to me too! So, last Tuesday, their 'dreams came true'. Ally started 4th grade at the same school where I attended 4th grade. And Daisy started 6th grade at the same school where her dad attended 6th grade!

Aunt Jess and Grandma were 'school shopping heroes'. They took the girls out, and in one day had everything on their list bought - and found some pretty sweet deals too! So, with new school supplies in hand, we took Ally to meet her teacher and choose her desk. The best part about Ally's class...her Fil-Am (Filipino American) teacher!

And for Daisy, well, it turns out that in middle school you get your own locker and you get to go from classroom to classroom depending on the subject! Yesterday we went to an open house at her school and met the tarantula in her science classroom (ick).

What's been great for me, as a mom sending her kids off to school for the first time ever, has been the staff. Ally's teacher and principal and vice principal have been amazingly helpful and supportive of Ally. They make us feel like she's the most important kid in the school.

And Daisy goes off to school under the guidance of our favorite math teacher from high school, who is now the vice principal at the middle school!

So, it's been a week of adjustments, a few tears, lots of stories and memories and overall a very exciting time!

And Neo and I, well, we're having fun driving everyone around in our mini-van, running errands, having coffee at Grandma's house, or just spending the day at home together!

2011-09-01T21:34:00.000-07:00

Berry Pickers

We are living out in the country, with the deer, the lizards, the bugs, the trees....and lots and lots of blackberries!!

So, the girls and I went blackberry picking the other day. After an hour, we had three big cups full of berries, and we were ready to bake!

YUM!

2011-09-01T21:30:00.000-07:00

Neo's Finger

Belinda: Do you think Neo should be using a knife?

Josh: He's fine.

(5 minutes later....)

Josh: Uh oh, my bad.

Belinda: (stony silence)

Neo: (after being bandaged) I want to go to Lapoc and show Uncle Mark!

2011-08-24T08:00:00.000-07:00

Race Day!

Josh ran his first Stateside race a few days ago. It was a 20 mile trail race (and a very rough trail at that!). We all went to see him off and then came back about 3 1/2 hours later to cheer him over the finish line! We are very proud of our runner!

Josh and the kids before the race begins.

And they're off!

After the race, Josh and his proud wife!

Josh and his sore muscles spend some quality time in his Aunt's hot tub!

2011-08-22T22:19:00.000-07:00

The Lake

We love to come up to Washington to see some of the other Moffits. And we love that they live right on a beautiful lake!

The girls love rowing the windsurfing board around the lake, while Neo collects lilies, Josh makes beautiful music, and I, well, I mainly just sit like a big, lazy slug on the dock....except on the day these pictures were taken.

2011-08-22T22:12:00.000-07:00

Birthday Flowers

What can I say,
It was a beautiful day,
At the house I did stay,

While Josh took the kids away to play!

2011-08-18T21:02:00.000-07:00

Wiggin' Out

We spent last week wiggin' out at my sisters. Not just because there were 6 kids and four adults under one roof for 5 days...but we literally wigged out (as can be seen in the photos below).

Our visit started out with a celebration of Naomi's life. The kids swam and played and ate cake...and the adults wore wigs (for some unknown reason) - which of course the kids then had to try on too!

Ally wearing a wig at her cousin's birthday party.

Neo and his beautiful cousin spend some quality, non-wig time in the water feature.

Josh encourages his nephews to wig out a little before the party.

Daisy and her aunt share a special moment...while a somewhat howard-stern-looking,
wig-wearing adult looks on.

2011-08-07T14:34:00.000-07:00

The Fair

Josh loves the fair, me, not so much. But, in the name of 'family fun' I decided to tag along to the good ol' Del Norte County Fair last week. You know what amazes me about the fair? In this world of constant change - the fair is still exactly how it was when we were kids! Same exhibits, same animals, same rides (the zipper will never die!), same smells, same sounds, same delicious funnel cakes.

I loved the quilt exhibit, the kids loved the rides, and none of us loved the pigs.

Ally flies through the air with the greatest of ease.

Neo enjoying the rides (while I have a mini nervous breakdown!)

Bumper Babes

A real, little, red caboose...CHUG, CHUG, CHUG!

Inside the caboose.

"Only THEY can prevent forest fires!'

2011-07-26T10:45:00.000-07:00

The Redwoods

I'm not bragging...we really do live in the most beautiful place on earth! And we've been to a lot of places on this earth! We've got the ocean, the rivers and the redwoods! It's almost too much grandeur for the senses to process!

Last Sunday, after church, we took a stroll through the redwoods....

Little boy, big trees!

The whole family inside the roots of a fallen giant.

Proving to Grandma that there ARE trees bigger than all nine of us linked together!

Ally and I enjoying the vandalism.

Even the slugs are big in the redwoods!

2011-07-21T14:20:00.000-07:00

Dad's House

When the pressure of missionary life heats up, I often find myself daydreaming about a BBQ in Dad's backyard. And last week, we didn't have to daydream about it, we got to go in real life!

Dad, Debra and Ashley put on a fun-filled and delicious weekend. Great grillin', great fun, great family time!

Dad and Josh enjoying a morning cup of coffee

The Grill-master at work!

Pool time with newly-acquainted cousins

Giggles and hugs with Nana

The kids and the grandparents at the park

The lazy pool-side princess

2011-07-14T18:40:00.000-07:00

Moffit Time!

It's been absolutely FANTASTIC spending the last two weeks with the Moffit clan. We've had BBQ's, trips to the beach, trips to the river, trips to the store (complete with Grandma pushing the grandboys in a great, big car cart!), and lots of ice-cream at the Port!

Rafting with Grandpa

Silly cousins

Riding in Grandma Di's cool jeep.

Watching the musical Moffits

Burgers and family, the perfect pair!

Watching fireworks with Grandma.

2011-07-07T16:23:00.000-07:00

Lasts

Our final weeks in the Philippines before we left for home assignment were full of 'lasts'. Last meals with friends. Last meetings. Last parties. Last church services. Lots of lasts and lots of goodbyes and lots of tears. But all those emotional lasts were a reminder that the last five years have been meaningful and rich - and that's what made saying goodbye so hard.

Our last Sunday. Daisy and Ally and their group of friends sang a song together.
As you can see, some sang, some turned around and cried.

We had a yummy meal with our newest neighbors. They fixed us their famous pork barbeque...
too bad we just discovered their recipe as we were leaving!

Our last party with our 'sakop'...all the people who are connected in some way to the Moffit household. They sang us songs, said special goodbyes, then after all the tears, we played games, laughed and ate yummy food.

Our last team meeting. Amay even made us our favorite meal...a whole chicken slow-cooked in Sprite!

Our final meal with our Filipino 'parents'.

The girls threw a final slumber party for their 'sisters'.

2011-06-13T12:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Bertha

'Sister Bear', 'Queenie', 'Bethany', 'Berth'-
The most-est-ly, fantastical sister on earth!

When I grow up, I want to be like her...
I mean, when I grow down, cuz she's so much short-er.

If y'all could meet her, you'd know what I mean,
she's a plannin' slash cleanin' slash organizin' machine!

Just hand her a broom and she'll clean any mess -
and she'll do it in exactly three minutes (or less).

But she's not just a cleaner, not just a list-maker,
she's a cooker, a blogger, a chauffeur, a baker.

She knows lots about words like 'clippers' and 'curly',
thanks to the heads of her boys and sweet girly.

But all of these talents don't even compare
to the person beneath all that Aslan-like hair.

Her mind is amazing, like an elephant really.
She remembers each memory, not matter how silly.

And yet her fine mind's still not the best part,
Cuz in that wee person is a GIGANTIC heart!

With this huge heart she makes everyone feel
like it's totally fine to be totally real.

It's o.k. to be quirky, it's o.k. to be flawed,
she never makes me feel weird for being so odd.

And the laughter that comes bubbling out of her heart
reminds me that 'funny's way funner than 'smart'.

And so on her birthday in her far-away home,
I hope that she giggled because of this pome. ;)

2011-06-12T19:29:00.000-07:00

Terminology

When we were students, studying to live in a cross-culture environment, we use to say things like;
‘Tribal people’
‘Those people’
‘Villagers’
And the worst, ‘Our people’

But after 5 years living among these amazing people, our vocabulary has changed. Now, we cringe when we hear our friends labeled as ‘tribal’, ‘ours’, ‘those people’, etc.

Instead these people now have names, titles, relationships. They are now our brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, grandparents. They are our neighbors and friends. Some we know as teachers, officials or church-mates.

We no longer see this place as ‘our village’ or these people as ‘our people’, actually, we are grateful that they even allow us to live here. The truth is, we are THEIR people in THEIR village! What an honor.

Dinner with friends. Well, they feel more like family to be honest!

The only world Ally knows, one full of black hair and eyes, dark skin, laughter, and friends who speak a language different to the one spoken in her home.

2011-06-05T19:24:00.000-07:00

Home

Our lovely neighbour, Mrs. T, has been teaching the girls Art. One of their assignments was to take photos of their environment.

So, here are a few of the things which make up our environment:

Pigs. Yep. Lots of pigs. They are stinky and noisy and when they are getting butchered it is one of the creepiest sounds in the world. But- they are also a great money-maker and the meat is delicious, which is why so many of our friends here own them!

Flowers. Lots and lots of beautiful flowers. If you grow Calla Lilies, you can sell them to the flower-buyer for a peso each!

Houses. The houses here look different to the homes in the states, but it’s what our kids are used too. All the homes here have a kitchen with a fire ‘shelf’ for cooking. Most have a porch, a small outhouse out the back and a fence around the yard. Some floors are dirt, some are cement and some are split bamboo (that’s my favorite, you can just sweep the dirt right through the cracks!).

And of course, their environment wouldn’t be complete without a picture of their own home. The longest our family has ever lived in one place. A house we love, full of memories and all things ‘Moffit’.

2011-05-29T19:22:00.000-07:00

Chef Daisy

One of our more ‘culinarily-gifted’ friends offered to teach Daisy some new recipes. Here is Daisy with her leche flan – better than any I’ve ever had (even in a restaurant!).

2011-05-22T19:17:00.000-07:00

Manila

Manila is a big, hot, noisy, dirty city. And we love it. We love shopping. We love relaxing. We love eating Subway sandwiches. So being ‘stuck’ in Manila for 10 days for more of Neo’s paperwork was absolutely wonderful.

The kids hanging out on the playground.

School, unfortunately, comes with us when we go to Manila. Even Neo-boy fit in some study time.

Manila means lots of soda, snacks, and one-on-one time with Mom and Dad.

2011-05-15T14:07:00.000-07:00

Mother’s Day

We happened to be in Manila on Mother’s Day this year. So while the father was off watching the Pacquaio/Moseley fight, my sweet babies made me an amazing breakfast.

Daisy made a delicious egg casserole and Ally made a yummy fruit salad! And then we all took a picture together…well, minus my head.

2011-05-03T20:36:00.000-07:00

Most Ignorant

In this country, the lower grades (kindergarten and first grade) are given ‘Most’ awards at the end of each school year. And I, as a mother who is experiencing the Filipino school system for the first time, deserve ‘Most Ignorant’. Seriously, having Neo in preschool this year has been an excellent way for me to flaunt my ignorance about how they do school in this country.

The kids just had their closing ceremonies today, and I made it through without looking too dumb, but that’s only because I got all that out of my system last week. Last Monday was the meeting for the parents to let them know all the details for the closing ceremony.

First, the teacher listed off what award each kid was to receive. Neo was to get ‘Most Neat’. Well, I’ve seen the way he writes, and believe me, it is not deserving of an award. So, I said to my friend sitting beside me, ‘He has horrible handwriting!’ She said, ‘Ate (older sister), that means neat as in CLEAN, he’s always clean when he comes to school!’ Oh.

But the worst was when they announced the kid who was to receive ‘Most Active’. I was appalled. I was looking around to see that poor mother whose kid is the class wild-child. But, to my surprise, she seemed perfectly happy. I thought, ‘I would want the earth to swallow me if my kid was getting an award for hyper-activity!’

So, at coffee time, I asked the ladies, ‘How do you understand the word ‘active’?’ They said, ‘Oh, that means that the student quickly answers questions and obeys right away when told to do something!’ Oh.

What almost made me laugh out loud, though, was the issue with the chickens.

First, the teachers said, ‘The moms have all complained about how much each one is supposed to contribute for the closing ceremonies, so only the moms of the children receiving honors will have to contribute.’ I was like, ‘What?!’ But, my friend assured me that that is perfectly acceptable and normal. So, the chicken discussion ensued.

Turns out, the whole gang shows up for the preschool ceremony. It’s held in the village square. The captain comes. All the village officials come. It’s a big deal. And it’s the parents job to feed all these important guests. So, these ‘parents of honor-rolls students’ divided into groups to discuss how to pay for the chickens. I couldn’t understand why it was so difficult. Just divide how much the chicken costs by how many parents there are. Simple. Except, I didn’t realize that they are also responsible for COOKING it!! Oh.

So, today was the big day. The closing ceremonies. It was noisy, it was hot, it was crowded, it was FUN. The kids sang and danced. They got their awards pinned on their shirts. They shook hands with the captain. And each of us parents swelled with pride when our little guy or girl received their awards!

And thankfully, no one gave me ‘Most Ignorant’.

On our way to the village square.

Aiza is really the one who deserves a medal. She takes Neo to school everyday!

Mr. Most Neat and Best in Memory, and one proud Mommy.

2011-04-26T20:28:00.000-07:00

Shine

My baby is so big now. Can you still call them ‘babies’ when they’re 11? Well, a few weekends ago a big ‘first’ happened in our home. It was the first time Daisy got to attend a youth group function, and the first time she went somewhere overnight without her sister!

Our good friend, Jane, held a two-day seminar for all the teenagers 11 and up. It’s called the Shine Program, and it teaches the young ladies about how valuable they are to God. Daisy wasn’t sure she wanted to go, until she saw this:

They had lessons on value and confidence and not judging others by their appearances. They had make-overs and a fashion show. And we could hear peals of laughter all the way down at our house! Then on Sunday, they all sang a special number in church.

Afterwards, the moms and the daughters went to a special meeting together. There, Jane did a great job of teaching a quick overview of the 5 love languages. Then the girls all received a certificate and they all gave their moms (or aunties or older sisters) a special gift to tell us how much they love us.

Not only did Daisy have a blast, but we were so, so proud of Ally. She could have chosen to pout and cry and feel sorry for herself that she couldn’t go, but she didn’t. She smiled, and she was excited for her sister. And besides, ‘Ally time’ was pretty fun too!

2011-04-19T20:19:00.000-07:00

Books!

We are so spoiled. We have a schoolroom full of school-books. We have a bedroom full of children’s books. We have offices full of self-help, spiritual and resource books. We have the internet, where we can order any book, on any topic, at any time. We have libraries, bookstores and book clubs. We are so spoiled.

But imagine if there were NO books in your language! None.

That’s what makes us so happy and proud of all the literature and curriculum our team has been able to produce over the years. The people we work among now have, in their very own language, huge portions of the scriptures and lessons to go along with them, they have books for women, lessons for men, a new children’s book, a songbook, medical books, a midwifery book and even a book that gives a short overview of every book in the Bible.

Our kids are even getting excited about all these books, and Daisy bought three new books for herself the other day! A new book of Mark, a new songbook and a new book of Luke!

2011-04-12T20:39:00.000-07:00

Romans

Not as in the civilization, but as in the book of the Bible. That’s what our life is centered around these days. Our co-workers are translating this book into the local dialect, and Josh and I are preparing and teaching the lessons. Well, Josh prepares and teaches, and I do the correcting/editing. It’s a lot of work, and a lot of ‘re-dos’ before we get it just right. But, it’s worth it all to see people understanding Jesus Christ a little bit better each week.

A sample of what a lesson looks like after it’s been checked. Lots of mistakes means lots of potential for improvement!

Josh teaching one of the Romans lessons.

2011-04-05T21:29:00.000-07:00

Mom’s Day and Dad’s Day

There’s Father’s Day and Mother’s Day, but that’s so unoriginal. Our lovely daughters decided to just pick two random days and make them special for each of their parents. So, on Dad’s day, they made lunch all by themselves. Then they baked Dad’s favorite cookies, peanut butter!

Then it was Mom’s turn the next day. After church they didn’t invite any friends over. Then, they treated me to a mani-pedi, we went for a walk, and we made no-bake cookies.

We felt very special and very loved!

2011-03-29T19:57:00.000-07:00

Sa Pilipinas- The Philippines

I downloaded three years of pictures off my phone the other day, and discovered some fun pictures I had snapped of random ‘Filipino-ness’.

Look at these veggies that came as garnishes with our sandwiches! Filipinos have a way of sneaking in beauty in the least likely places.

Cracks me up that this sign is hanging in the bathroom of the nicest mall in town. Who exactly was doing their dishes in here? How did they bring them in? Is this a common problem? Makes me laugh.

Can you believe this is the lobby of a …..hospital??? Now, the average Filipino, unfortunately, is not treated to piano music and marble floors when they go to the hospital. But, when Josh got his ACL operated on, I couldn’t believe the grandeur of this place! I wouldn’t want to be sick in this place…I want to go on a date here!

I took this picture to PROVE that you CAN get a massage while you are enjoying your Whopper! Seriously, in the Philippines, Burger King often offers free massages to their customers! Now, I’m more of a ‘Eat my Whopper in peace’ kind of gal, but Josh, he’s like, ‘A Whopper with a side of deep-tissue-knot-removal please!’

I mean really, how can you not love this country?!

2011-03-22T19:45:00.000-07:00

All That for M&Ms???

One day I was skyping with my sister back in the states, and she said, ‘I just got back from the store. I went there to buy some M&Ms’. I was dumbfounded. All the way to the store for a bag of candy???

Then I remembered that ‘normal’ people actually can ‘run to the store’ when they need to.

But, here are a few photos of our trip ‘to the store’, and the reason why we would never go just for a bag of candy!

One hour down the mountain and we get bogged.

Thankfully, a group of friends from our village were behind us on their motorbikes and helped dig us out.

Two hours down the mountain and we get a flat. Thank goodness for the tiny village that happened to have a tire repair ‘hut’!

Eventually, 4 hours later, we made it to town. Stayed for a week and did all the shopping necessary for the next 6 weeks!

2011-03-15T19:44:00.000-07:00

A Recipe for Fun

Mix:
1 hose
1 basin
3 kids
And the great outdoors
Season with squeals of laughter.

2011-03-12T19:23:00.000-08:00

Babies

Two special little lives have just made their grand entrance into the world!

Our beloved co-worker’s daughter just had her first baby, a little girl we call ‘Shine’. We already knew that our co-workers would make fantastic grandparents, because they’ve spent the last 4 ½ years being terrific grandparents to the three little Moffits!

Shahanna and the three Moffit kiddos

Ally holding her Apu Elsa’s first grandbaby

And then, a few days later, precious little GraceLee (well, that’s what they’re going with for now, baby names have a tendency to change a few times around here before they find one they want to stick with). This little life is the daughter of my best Filipina friend and the woman who taught me how to speak this beautiful language – Amor. Amor lost a baby boy about 5 years ago, so baby Grace is truly that, a reminder of God’s grace.

Amor and I and GraceLee

Seriously, could she be any more precious. Look at that dimple!

2011-03-01T19:41:00.000-08:00

Twin Tub

I had someone write me a while back and ask me how life is different for a missionary woman living overseas than it is for an American woman living in the states. Well, to be honest, I had a hard time thinking of how it’s that different. I’m so used to my life, that it all seems so normal to me now.

So, I’ve been trying to look at my life through the lens of someone who has never lived overseas and try and see the differences.

Which brings me to my washing machine.

Ever heard of a ‘twin tub’? Well, it’s this:

You get the hose and fill up this side:

Then you add the clothes and soap and turn it on. Turning it on makes it slosh back and forth for about 20 minutes. Then, you take the clothes out of the twin tub, and rinse them by hand in a basin like this:

Then, you put them in this side of the twin tub:

This thing spins almost every drop out of the clothes. Seriously, I can’t believe how well it wrings the clothes out.

Then, you take them out, and hang them on the line.

So, yeah, I guess when it comes to doing laundry, there are some differences in the life of a missionary. But, you won’t hear me complain. For one thing, I have friends that come and work at the house and do all the laundry for me (that’s a post for another day). AND….all my friends here wash their clothes by hand!! That makes the twin tub look pretty good!

2011-02-22T19:47:00.000-08:00

School Days, School Days

A little peek into the Moffit classroom….

Ally, the 3rd grader, hard at work.

Daisy, the 5th grader, looking so studious.

O.k., here’s the thing. I hate clutter. I hate messes. It gives me stress, and I can’t concentrate. So, I’m constantly nagging my little students to ‘keep your stations clean!!!’ Which makes this next photo of my desk to ironically hypocritical!

Yeah Mom, practice what you preach!! This is what it looks like when the teacher is grading papers, entering grades on the computer, making cards, writing thank-you notes….I know, excuses, excuses.

Our maps. The world, and our beloved Philippines. We’re proud because we mounted and hung these ourselves!

Neo the cutie pie, playing patiently outside the schoolroom door.

Ally's writing assignment: "Meeting Neo for the First Time"

I was never so happy as when we brought Neo home. He was in Cagayan De Oro at that time. When I got out of the truck it was really hot, I almost sweated! When we stepped inside I saw a big play area and lots of toys and some kids. Then we arrived at a room full of babies. A woman went into the nursery and picked up the baby we were going to adopt. Mom and Dad hadn't met him yet. Neo- the baby boy was so cute and little! Dad held him and then Mom held him. I was really happy and excited that we were going to have a new baby!"

2011-02-15T20:15:00.000-08:00

How Many Monkeys?

How many little monkeys can you spot in this citrus tree?

Hint: count the flip flops underneath it!

We have two citrus trees in our front yard that attract kids like bees to honey! Yeah, I get annoyed with the constant stream of kids asking for fruit….but, hey there’s no cases of scurvy in this neighborhood!!

2011-02-08T20:12:00.000-08:00

A Royal Visitor

Or should I say a royally cute visitor. Remember little Princess? She lived with us for 2 ½ weeks back in August. At that time she was 20 months old, but weighed less than what a 6 month old baby should weigh. Not only that, one eye was swollen shut and her ruptured eardrum was constantly dripping. She couldn’t sit up and she had lost her voice. After two weeks with us, not only had she recovered from her various sicknesses and gained over a kilo, she had also stolen our hearts.

However, once we returned her home to her mother and brothers (all 9 of them), she didn’t want anything to do with us. She was afraid we would take her away from her family again. It was so sad. But, after a few months, she started giving us hugs when we saw her at church. Then she started letting us hold her again. And then a few weeks ago, wonder of wonders, she asked to come home with us after we had visited her at her house!! We were delighted. She came and played and was supposed to spend the night, but once it got dark, she decided she wanted her mom and we took her home. But, hey, how wonderful of her to give us at least a short visit.

Oh how we love our little Princess!!

2011-02-01T19:07:00.000-08:00

From My Window

Here are a few snapshots I took from the window of our house the other day.

A carrot harvest. When carrots are harvested here, most of the workers pull up carrots, while a select few of the men sort them by size. Then they put them in huge sacks and haul them up to the road to be taken to town on a vegetable truck.

Giant Bamboo

Josh visiting with a friend, who is taking a break from plowing.

A grapefruit tree

An ‘empty’ horse trotting down to the carrot-field.

A ‘full’ horse climbing back up from the field.

And that’s what I saw from my window.

2011-01-25T18:35:00.000-08:00

My Big Kids

There are times when all the sudden the kids seem older. Like they go to bed little and wake up big. These three pictures capture this amazing process perfectly.

Daisy, modeling some of the accessories she bought with her Christmas money.
.

.
.
Ally flaunting how fashion savvy she is.
.

.
.
Neo-boy ice-skating. I think he had better balance than all of us!
.

2011-01-18T22:26:00.000-08:00

Flowery Reception

Once a year we take a two week break to attend our annual missionary conference, get stuff done in Manila, and just relax.

And more often than not, this is the kind of thing that greets us when we get home…

While we’re away, the ladies that work in our home continue to look after it and take care of the animals, and they always do something special for us to welcome us home. Sometimes flowers in a vase, cards, banners, or all three!

Translation- Welcome home our siblings in Christ. Thank God that you are healthy. And hopefully you are all happy. We love you siblings. Thank you for loving us. 2011 Welcome Family Moffit.

We are very blessed to have such beautiful friends!

But the flowers on the door weren’t the only ones waiting to welcome us. The vine that my beautiful friend, Ab, gave me over 3 years ago FINALLY bloomed for the first time!!

That God even made flowers in the first place amazes me and makes me love Him even more. And then that our friends continue to use them to show their love just adds to their beauty!

2011-01-11T19:08:00.000-08:00

December, Part 2

You keeping up? You ready for some more Moffit December chaos?? Strap on your seatbelts, there’s more!

Next came another very special day … Daisy’s 11th birthday! No ants this time, just good, bug-less fun.

Then, it was Neo’s preschool party. They did a dance (well, everyone danced except Neo- he’s more of a ‘stand perfectly still while everyone else dances’ type), we had a very loud and confusing gift exchange and then a delicious lunch of chicken, bread, rice, noodles, sticky rice and ‘suman’ (a dessert that is basically mashed up root crop wrapped in a banana leaf).

And no Christmas season is complete without a party for everyone who works in the Moffit household. Including spouses and kids, there’s almost 50 of us!

The morning that we were cooking and preparing for this party, I was whining to some of the ladies that Christmas is hard for me because I miss my family back home so much. But, as I watched our sakop (‘our group’) laughing and playing and dancing and just enjoying each other’s company, I was reminded that although my American family is far away, God has filled the void with a big, beautiful Filipino family, and I’m SOOO blessed to be able to spend Christmas with them!

The next day, it was my Bible study group’s Christmas party (are you beginning to realize that Filipinos LOVE to party?!).

And then FINALLY Christmas Day! On the 25th, the Moffits closed up the house, hid inside and had a nice, QUIET day! Ahhhh.

Would you believe that altogether we had 13 party invites in the month of December and ended up attending 11!!

Needless to say, we’re spending a lot of time relaxing this month!

2011-01-04T19:26:00.000-08:00

December, Part 1

December was so incredibly CRAZY that it’s going to take me two posts to get it all in. But please, hop on board and take a ride on the insanity train that was my December!

December was ushered in while we were on a team vacation. Our church-planting team is made up of us, an Australian family, and three Filipino families (all from different language groups!). So, every few years we take a team vacation, get away from it all, and just enjoy our blended ‘family’.

Then, about a week later we celebrated a very special day … Ally’s 9th birthday!

But, where we live, even the simplest birthday celebration can turn into a drama when the ants get into the cupcakes. And not just any cupcakes, a Betty Crocker box mix that we had been saving! So, we got out the hair dryer and made those ants wish they’d never heard of Betty Crocker!

In between all the fun, however, the work continued. These three girls are the newest members of ‘Team Moffit’. They are training to be ‘lesson checkers’. Here they are diligently whittling away on a mountain of lessons needing to be checked.

And then there was ‘family day’ at church. An ALL DAY event (starting at 9:00 a.m. and going until midnight!) consisting of church, lunch, games, dinner, talent shows, singing competitions, a Christmas play, movies……

Our girls were an angel (Daisy) and a shepherdess (Ally).

2010-12-28T19:28:00.000-08:00

SuperDave

Josh and I are lacking in the carpentry/handyman/anything that involves a hammer department. But, we know a guy who is a whiz at that sort of thing. So, with tool box in hand, he came and spent 2 days fixing up the place. He started by re-doing the laundry area. Now, laundry 'rooms' here are a bit different than a laundry room back home. Our washing machine is great, but it's a wet, sloppy process, with the clothes needing to be taken OUT of the machine, rinsed by hand and put back in again! So over time, the laundry area has basically rotted! But, those days are over, thanks to SuperDave.

The old, rotten cabinet

This is what they found under it, ants and rot!

A more waterproof laundry area!

And he even made us this beautiful new table (with a little help from Neo, of course!)

2010-12-21T19:22:00.000-08:00

Mini Missionaries

Josh and I are the official missionaries, but our kids never cease to amaze us with their own 'missionary' work.

I came home from a Bible study the other day to find the girls on the sidewalk playing Uno with a group of kids. Kids ministering to kids! Very cool.

Another way the girls help out is by putting together all of Josh's Bible lessons on Sunday mornings. He needs about 25 copies assembled, which he passes out to the Bible teachers.

The kids also help us look after visitors, help with sick people, and help around the house too! We are so thankful for these three wonderful little mini missionaries!

2010-12-14T19:18:00.000-08:00

Paper Cranes

Daisy did a unit on Japan, and learned about paper cranes. One of her projects was to learn how to make a paper crane, teach her family, then work out how long it would take her to make 1,000 paper cranes. And how long would that take her? 58 hours!

2010-12-07T19:11:00.000-08:00

Pets & Pests

I love my new kitty....and my new kitty's fleas love me!

2010-11-30T19:04:00.000-08:00

Scholarly Ally

Ally has been working hard in school this year. She's an amazing 3rd grader! She tries her hardest, writes neatly and has even designed her own experiment!

Her experiment? "Is yeast the only agent that causes bread to rise?" She tried baking bread 4 different ways and discovered that although baking powder works, yeast is still the best.

The final product

2010-11-23T07:55:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween! (a little late)

Josh swingin' his toolbelt in the 'knock the cups off the table' game

Neo 'fishing'

Daisy baking some heavenly cookies

2010-11-15T23:48:00.000-08:00

Little Things

Who doesn't love little things?! Well, here are a few little things that have made me smile recently.

Being able to help with our beautiful friend and neighbor's birth. Here is little Clint getting his first bath by his adoring Aunts.

Another little life. This one and his mommy barely survived childbirth, but here he is the next day, alive and well and so, so precious!

Who doesn't love a kitten! Here is 'Conan' bonding with Josh.

.

A cute, little boy on a cute, little chair!

2010-11-08T20:33:00.000-08:00

Playing Outside

Daddy and the girls hanging their new birdhouse that they made together. No birds ever actually lived in it (I think due to the fact that the wind kept it constantly spinning and the bird may have thought it was a carnival ride), but it's made a beautiful home for our new little kitty (yes, we took it out of the tree first!).

Neo 'helping' his Apu mow the lawn.

Daisy planting and weeding.

Three little Moffit birds in their little Moffit nest.

2010-11-01T20:25:00.000-07:00

Random Tasks

My life is surprisingly ordinary. Although I live on the top of a mountain somewhere in Asia, and I spend about 60% if my time functioning in a foreign language, I still do everyday tasks. I wash dishes, potty train kids, work on the computer, watch sitcoms. But, my life does give me some strange opportunities to do some random tasks.

Like the other day when Manang Diding came over to ask if I could remove some stitches left over from her goiter-removal surgery.

Or last week when I spent the entire evening pushing corn kernels off of the cob, to use as chicken feed.

Those are just a few examples, but there are more. Like picking lice, buying fish off a motorcycle-riding-fishseller, running downstairs to turn off the hot-water heater every time there's a black-out (which is a few times a week), etc, etc.

Ah, all in a day's work!

2010-10-25T22:22:00.000-07:00

Clouds

We grew up in foggy place. And to this day I love clouds and fog. So, I'm very thankful to be living in a place that gets fogged in on a regular basis.

2010-10-19T20:03:00.000-07:00

Daisy

Daisy is now in 5th grade, and busier than ever. She's either doing homework, cooking, watching her brother, sewing, playing on the computer, or a myriad of other tasks. Here are a few peeks into Daisy's world:

Daisy was climbing the citrus tree a few weeks ago and got her first bee sting...actually stings! We have a kind of bee here that doesn't leave his stinger, making it possible for him to sting over and over again. She got three nice stings on her face. In this picture, she's just a bit red in the cheek, but the next day her face was so swollen she looked like she was sucking on a jawbreaker!

Daisy did a unit in school on New Zealand, here she's teaching us a lummi stick routine!

Then, she did a unit on Australia (can you tell she's studying the Eastern Hemisphere?). She made some delicious, lamingtons. They were a bit flat, but taste DELICIOUS!!!

2010-08-24T02:37:00.000-07:00

A Time to Cry....A Time to Laugh

August has held a lot of tears. But, there is a time to cry and a time to laugh. So here are some things about August that have made me laugh (or at least smile!)

A picture of Josh preaching, that looks like he's singing! 'Amazing Graaaaace...'

My friends on the doorstep singing Happy Birthday and bringing flowers!

My kids!

Riri, my little friend who comes to our house every day at 4:00 to eat a nutritious meal and have a glass of milk. After one month, he's starting to fatten up and looking so handsome!

2010-08-06T16:12:00.001-07:00

I Said, 'What About Breakfast at....Joshua's'

My studly husband holds a weekly Bible Study/Breakfast on Saturday mornings with about 6 of the Bible teachers. Each week they do a rough overview of each book of the Bible. Josh even gets up at 5:00, cooks the rice, meat, eggs, etc!!

Benji, stop grinning at the camera, you're ruining the shot!

That's better, very serious!

2010-08-03T19:05:00.000-07:00

Pahina

Pahina means 'working bee'. And now that I have an 'iskwila' - a kid going to school, I get to attend the monthly working bees at the school. All the moms bring their machetes and we chop the grass by hand!! Not your typical PTA activity in the states, I'm guessing, but it gets the job done! And it makes me laugh too.

Marita chopping, while Manang Idi chit chats.

Proof that the white woman knows how to wield a machete!

The finished product, one big ol' sack of chopped grass!

2010-08-03T18:34:00.000-07:00

Ally's Heart

My middle kid is a bit of a sassy pants at times. But, she has a tender heart. If you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up she'll tell you all about her plans to open a children's home in the slums of Manila. She even drew up a floor plan the other day, and her and her sister made a model of it with boxes and tape!

2010-07-15T01:57:00.000-07:00

All In The Family

Neo happens to have some of the world's coolest cousins. And it was only a matter of time before he followed in their footsteps......

Cousin Silas

Cousin Hunter

Neo!!

2010-07-14T22:39:00.000-07:00

Sleeping Beauties

2010-07-02T17:26:00.000-07:00

What a Trip!

There are times that I look around me and think to myself, 'This would never happen in a group of American ladies.'

That happened a few weeks ago, when these pictures were taken.

These are pictures from our trip home from a 2-day ladies seminar in a town about 4 hours away.

Looks like fun, doesn't it!!

Well, can you believe that all these ladies are smiling and laughing and waving and singing despite the fact that we are riding on the back of a flat-bed truck. We're sitting on wooden boards that have been laid across the bed like benches. It's POURING rain, and we're all sitting under a big tarp.

Like I said, if that were a group of American ladies, I'm pretty sure there would be a lot less smiles! In fact at our annual conference every year for the western missionaries, tensions always rise when it's time to get on the bus and noone wants to sit in the back. And that's an air-conditioned bus with soft, recline-able seats!! I can't help but wonder what sort of reaction there would be if a flat-bed showed up instead of the bus!!

If there's one thing I've learned from Filipinos- even the most miserable situations can be fun if you just start laughing!

2010-06-18T23:57:00.000-07:00

First Day Of School!

Last Thursday was a BIG day in the Moffit household!

The first Moffit kid to ever attend 'outside' school (meaning not at home) went off to school.

Neo started preschool...or as it's called in Filipino English, 'daycare'.

He had his bag, paper, pencils, snack, nanny and chair....o.k. so the last two aren't what you might bring with you to school in America, but it's what our little guy brought.

Because there is a shortage of desks and chairs, the kids brought their own. And because Josh and I work full-time, Neo's babysitter (and our lifesaver!) will go with Neo to school each Tues. and Thurs. morning.

Another great thing about going to school, is that Neo will learn his third language there! He is doing a great job with English and Tala-andig, and now he'll learn the trade language, Bisaya (and even a bit of the national language, Tagalog!!).

Off goes the little pupil.....

Almost there. It was pure excitement, until the first step in the door, then Neo decided he was ready to go home. But he stuck it out and survived his first day of school.

So happy to be able to sit next to his good friend, and our neighbor, Kim-kim!

Lots of moms and kids - and one amazing teacher! But, we've been warned, starting in August, all the moms can wait outside!

2010-05-30T02:06:00.000-07:00

Points of Interest

I put my camera in my purse when we went to town last week, so that I could get a picture of this:

The two most recently bespectacled Moffits! Aren't they cute!!

But, since I had my camera with me, I took a few extra snapshots. A few funny pictures, and a few cultural ones. . .

We drove behind this guy for about 2 hours. And we couldn't stop laughing. We have no idea what message his mudflap is trying to convey, but it made us laugh!

In case you can't read it all: "Jesus I Trust In You, Tail of Sardines"... Deep stuff!

I love this guy sleeping on his motor bike. More proof that Filipinos can sleep ANYWHERE!

I was so relieved when I realized that the hairspray I bought was saloon proven! Oh what a difference an extra 'o' makes!

We stayed at a hotel overlooking the mall where we do most of our shopping. A very modern mall, with everything you could need; Two grocery stores, tons of restaurants, 4 cinemas, dr.'s offices, department stores, etc. Here's the view from our hotel window. Well, half the view....

Here's the other half. The Philippines is a country of such extreme contrasts. A huge, modern mall, butted right up against a squatter village. But the contrasts don't end there...

In that squatter village each house has one of these... a matter of priorites...do we spend the money on a new roof...or a t.v.?! :)

Actually, it's just a matter of differing priorities. Where an American will pour sacks of money into making her house absolutely perfect - but will go to the store looking like a total bum, in sweats and a ponytail, a Filipina can live with a house in need of major repair, but she would never dream of going anywhere without first taking a shower and looking her absolute best!

And of course, no trip would be complete without a few dramas on the road. We just heard that this part of the road is so bad that it made it on the local news yesterday!

2010-05-05T03:40:00.000-07:00

What a THRILL!

5 1/2 years ago, we were a couple of 20-somethings with a whole missionary career ahead of us and non-stop adventure everyday.

Each day held new wonders. Our first trips to the open-air market.....buying a turkey for Thanksgiving (live, and delivered on a motorcycle).....discovering poverty......battling cockroaches....etc....etc....

But, these days, well, life is a bit routine. The initial thrill is over. Poverty and cockroaches are ordinary, everyday events, and we've found a place to purchase frozen turkeys.

So, what the heck do you take pictures of? What do you write about in blog posts and updates?

Well, if you're as pathetic as I am, you yell to your husband, "Quick, take some pictures of me printing!!"

Yes, folks, there I am. Printing. Yes, using a printer. That's how thrilling my life has become. I use the printer and then make my husband photograph it.

But, the truth is. That's my life. I'm a mom who homeschools. I'm a wife who corrects Bible lessons in my office. And once a week, I attend church. So, when an adventure like using the printer presents itself, I'm not going to let that kodak moment pass me by!

But, the exciting part, is that I'm printing books. A book Josh made. 26 Christian character lessons for the men training to be Bible teachers!! Hey, now that is thrilling!

2010-05-05T03:32:00.000-07:00

Rain!

Did you know that tropical islands can have droughts? Turns out they can. The rain stopped in February, and the well dried up in March. Thankfully, we still have a spring we can fetch water from. Yes, that's right, I said, 'fetch water'. Sounds like a phrase that hasn't been used since pioneer days, but it's actually still a part of every day life where we live.

Not having water has been good. It's good for Americans to have to 'rough it'. It makes us appreciate how other people live.

But, I have to say, after two months of only flushing solids and taking bucket baths, it's a happy day when it rains....as you can see below!!

2010-04-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

Neo Boy!

Dong, Neo-boy, Mr. Samok, Mr. Utut, he goes by many names, but he only has one main job in life...to be the Moffit's favorite little man. Here are some pictures to prove it....

I mean, come on, how cute is that!

His Ate Ally loves to use him as a supporting actor in her theatrical productions.

Daisy loves to find shells with him at the beach!

And Daddy likes to pretend like he's giving Mommy a break by taking him for a walk, when he's really just wrapping him in very dangerous animal life!

2010-04-08T17:31:00.000-07:00

Celebrations

I'm glad life is broken up by celebrations. We've had three celebrations this last week...well, three major ones anyways.

Manang Uning turned 40!! Here we are at her house after being a fed a delicious meal of chicken, noodles and rice!

Ayza, Neo's babysitter got married!!

The girls completed four days of standardized testing at a school in a city about 6 hours away. The best way to end a week of tests? - snorkeling of course!!

And the celebrating doesn't stop here... we've still got two more weddings coming up, and a BIG celebration when our co-workers finish a major translation check in a few weeks on the book of Luke!

I think God likes celebrations too. He certainly did command his people in the Bible to celebrate often. I suppose celebrating is just a way of expressing thankfulness, and I know for myself, I have a LOT to be thankful for!

2010-03-25T16:55:00.000-07:00

Through a Different Lens

Our co-workers recently had some visitors come and stay for about 2 weeks. They asked them to just take as many picture as possible.

Here are some of the things they saw through their camera lenses, that I want to share with you...

They saw a village clinic, completely run by the Tala-Andig people themselves. A place where fevers, and coughs and worms and kidney infections and other various illnesses can all be cured. And they saw Bheng, the gentle lady who runs the clinic. One of the most faithful workers I've ever met.

They saw people in village after village being taught God's Word by faithful Bible teachers. They saw large groups and small groups. They saw people praising God in song and worshiping God through the study of HIS Word.

They saw ladies coloring. Not a big deal to a westerner, we were practically born with a crayon in our hand, but here, it's a real talent and valuable ministry. Most of these ladies never picked up a crayon until they were adults, and they've had to practice the hand-eye coordination it takes to color a picture. They are the ones who color all the drawings that the Bible teachers use when they teach God's Word.

They saw both Filipinos and Westerners working together to bring God's message of hope to an entire people group.

They saw new leaders being born into the church. Leaders who can help each other to serve the believers and guide them as they grow in the Lord.

2010-03-25T16:41:00.000-07:00

My Kids

A little photo update on the world's cutest kids.....

Here is Ally beaming with pride after finishing her first creative writing story with her new teacher, Mrs. B. We are so proud of Ally. She loves writing, and more than that, she loves editing her writing. We're hoping that kind of humility stays with her her whole life!

And Neo, here he is just chillin' and watching a movie. Neo's three favorite things right now? Movies, chocolate and going 'bye bye'!!

A sleep over. The girls love having their friends sleep over. And it's especially fun when it's friends from a different village! Here they are all as snug as 4 bugs in a rug!

Last week I assigned a performing arts assignment for the girls. They had one week to make up a dance, with costumes, to perform for Daddy and I. Well, they took their assignment very seriously, spent a LOT of time preparing and treated Josh and I to a spectacular display of 'clown dancing'!

The highlight of the week, though, was getting a surprise in the mail from Papa back in Oregon. He made a movie called 'Storytime with Papa' and told them the story of the three little Moffits. The girls loved it. Here they are laughing at pictures of them as babies with food on their faces!

2010-02-22T03:25:00.000-08:00

Gangrene

I've had my first experience with gangrene. Everything you've ever heard about it is true. It's horrible.

We know a man here who has been paralyzed for about 15 months, after a bamboo tree fell on him in the jungle.

We've helped him off and on over the last year. Treated bed sores, treated various infections. We took him to the hospital for a check up and therapy.

Two weeks ago, his sister-in-law told me that we wasn't doing well, so Josh and I stopped by. Even before we got up onto the porch, we could smell the gangrene. I asked him to uncover his legs, and one glance told me this man was in bad shape.

So, for a week I went to his house every day. Sometimes twice a day. Some of my co-workers came with me to help dress his wounds. It was so bleak. This poor man, covered in sores. Some the size of a grapefruit. Black, oozing, reeking.

And yet, what made me cry almost every day was the hopelessness. His family has given up on him. He can't do anything to help himself. He was thankful for the medical help, but it's when we would wash his face for him, or pat his head that he would burst into tears.

Eventually, I had to tell him, 'Manong (older brother), you will die if you don't go to the hospital. I am out of medicine, and I'm not a doctor. Even if I came every day for a year, this wound probably wouldn't heal. When I come back in the morning, you need to tell me what you and your family have decided. Will you go to the hospital? It's free, and we'll pay for you to get there.'

In the morning, he told me, 'I can't go. My family won't agree to it.'

So, he will die.

Now, I stop by about once or twice a week. Sometimes with potatoes, or a bit of rice. Last time with my friend, Mrs. Pems, who brought toys for the kids. But, we don't clean his wounds. We just show that we care.

And the smell is back. So is the swelling. Last time I visited, his nephew was waving a plastic bag over his legs to keep the flies away.

I suppose I'll be attending a burial soon.

I've certainly learned a lot, though. I've learned that I have limits. I'm not a doctor, and I can only do so much. I've also learned that I can't force people to make the right decision. I can help, I can make suggestions, I can encourage, but I can't force. I've learned that life on earth is smelly and painful and full of tears and helplessness, but that there is a hope and future for those who are willing to receive it. I've learned that I long for heaven more than I'm even aware of on a daily basis. I've learned that there is still purpose in treating an untreatable sickness. That even if the wound doesn't heal, the care soothes the soul.

That's what gangrene has taught me.

2010-01-30T00:25:00.000-08:00

Better than fishin'!

You know those pictures that men love, the ones where they're holding up a huge fish and they have a big, silly grin on their face. Well, I don't fish, so I've never really understood the thrill of a big catch....until last week. After a year of watching a waiting, I finally harvested my root-crop garden. And, let me tell you, who would've known that digging up monster yams could be such a good time!

But, it wasn't just yams. My taro garden was also ready to be harvested. Here I am with three big taro roots. We eat the leaves regularly (they taste like spinach!), but this is the first time we've been able to eat the root. I made yummy taro cakes out of them.

So, if you're looking for a good time, come on over, we'll dig up yams! Wahoo!

2010-01-17T03:20:00.000-08:00

My Little Seamstress

Daisy loves to sew. She's been sewing little things by hand for a while now, but this Christmas she got a new little sewing machine, a sewing kit and some fabric. So, today, she helped me make a new kitchen curtain. I think we did a pretty good job. Then, when we were done with that project, she made her cabbage patch kid a new pillow - all by herself. I think that turned out pretty good too!!

Mommy feeding the fabric through the machine, and Daisy manning the pedal!

The official pin-girl

The finished product

The finished pillow

2009-12-27T22:53:00.001-08:00

A Tropical Christmas

This year we spent Christmas on a remote island with our good, good friends who are also missionaries with us here in the Philippines.

Much to Neo's delight, the trip involved three different modes of transportation (or 'broom brooms'). Two airplane rides, a van ride and a boat ride!!

No snow and ice for us this Christmas. We were sweating, drinking fresh coconut juice and swimming in the ocean for our Christmas festivities.

Not only was our Christmas tropical, it had a German flair too, as we celebrated Christmas on Christmas eve instead of Christmas morning. But that wasn't the only international flavor, we missionaries are so used to doing things the non-traditional way.... our Christmas dinner was fajitas!! Yum.

But, tropical islands, German friends, good food, coconut juice and swimming aside, the only REAL reason we had any joy at all this Christmas is because of Jesus. He's the one who created the beauty of this island. He's the one who gives us the ability to enjoy and savor good food. He's the one who puts the beauty in friendships. And he's the one who gives us true life.

Merry Christmas.

2009-12-27T21:11:00.000-08:00

In the St. Nick of time!

My sister sends our Christmas presents from home every November (along with other 'non-Christmas' related items, like allergy medicine and clothes for the people in the village) ....some years we get them in time for Christmas, some years we get them in time for Valentines Day. This year, we got them the day before we left for our annual trip to Manila. Whew.

Yeah! Box day!!

A sewing kit from Nana and Papa!

Ally's new baby.

Neo all snuggled up in his new choo-choo blankie from Aunt Bethany!

2009-11-02T17:58:00.000-08:00

Happy. . . October!

Whether you're a 'Harvest Party-er' or a 'Halloween Celebrator' - Happy October from our family to yours!!

Three little punkins with their three little punkins!

An interesting combo - Robber, gypsy, train, hula girl and wizard.

Cutest Choo Choo Train EVER!

2009-10-11T20:29:00.000-07:00

My New Office

2009-10-11T20:01:00.000-07:00

Gotta Laugh

Missionary life would be impossible without a sense of humor. Especially if you need to go to the hospital. Despite the fact that we are more adjusted now to life in the Philippines than we are to life in the U.S., my recent hospital stay still gave me lots to laugh about.

Thanks to a lumbar strain, I found myself in the hospital for 2 days. Since the lower back pretty much controls all body movement, I found myself flat on my back and completely helpless.

The most amusing part of my hospital stay was my m.r.i. The m.r.i. machine was located in a building across the street from the hospital. And, since I couldn't walk or sit up, I was wheeled, on a gurney, through the hospital, OUT the front doors, DOWN the street and into the building that housed the m.r.i. machine. I was soooooo embarrassed and such a spectacle (not a lot of white ladies being wheeled down the streets in the Philippines!), that I just pulled the sheet up over my head - which probably didn't help since I then looked like a corpse!

I did the same thing as I was being wheeled down the halls of the hospital, but my friend quickly reminded me that 'They can all still see your white toes sticking out!'

Another funny thing was the advice I was given. Filipinos love to give advice, solicited or not. For example my taxi driver on the way to the Emergency Room suggested I get a massage. Filipinos think massages cure everything. And a friend of a friend who came to be my 'watcher' (the nurses don't take care of you at the hospitals here, you have to provide your own 'watcher') told me that this happened because we built our house near a big tree and didn't ask permission from the tree spirits.

Luckily the doctor knew what it was and I was given the right medicine!

As amusing as it all is, it just shows how deep superstition runs in the culture here. And why we have given our lives to share the TRUTH that sets people free from fear.

Here I am being a very obedient patient and doing my 3 days of bed rest - sorta. If I can't go to my office, my office can come to me!

2009-09-24T17:12:00.000-07:00

11 Years!

2009-09-23T01:01:00.000-07:00

My Helpers

Some countries function on a 'helper/boss' basis. Like this one. There are no washing machines and dryers and vacuum cleaners and dishwashers to do all our work for us, so people do! We have 8 ladies who work at our house on a rotating schedule. They do everything from wash the clothes to weed the gardens. And they are happy to do it, we get our work done and they get a paycheck! It's very foreign to us as westerners, but actually, a really wonderful system.

But, the two most important helpers in our house are 7 and 9 years old. One of my worries is that because we have so much help already, our girls will become lazy and dependent on other people to clean up after them. But, actually, the ladies that work for us are doing a great job of teaching Daisy and Ally. On the days they don't have school, they each pick an 'Ate (older sister)' and help her all morning. They are learning to wash clothes, fold clothes, wash dishes, weed, etc, etc.

I'm so proud of them, and sooooo thankful for them. It's not just the housework either, they are two extra pairs of hands to help out with Neo too!

Ally 'helping' to 'alam' (pick out the rocks) from a sack of rice. I think the lure of looking pregnant took over the desire to help out.

Daisy is my 'Morning Neo Cuddler'. She crawls into bed with him and waits for him to wake up while I either jog or take my shower or tend to visitors, etc. She's amazing and such a great sister!

Here, Daisy is learning how to knead bread with her Ate Marita. Marita, by the way, has gotten so good at making bread, she runs laps around me! She is definitely more qualified to teach Daisy than I am!!

Ally and her Ate Enday are busy weeding the flower garden. They started out washing walls, but it turns out Ally can't reach very high, so they moved out to the garden.

2009-09-15T19:18:00.000-07:00

Neo's Room

Once upon a time, I had a beautiful office (see below). But then, God gave me a beautiful son, who needed a bedroom. So, after almost two years of Neo sleeping in our room, this week, he moved into his newly remodeled bedroom (and Mama's moving her office downstairs!).

Night night, Neo!

2009-09-08T01:09:00.000-07:00

Baby Love

I love babies. I can't explain it, but I just can't get enough of em', especially the sweet little ones that fall asleep on me. The highest of all compliments!! So, here are some babies that will make you smile.

This 'pile o' babies' all attended our recent ladies seminar with their mommies. So many of these little ones have such a special place in my heart. Some because they have healed broken places in their mommies hearts. Some because their mommies are like sisters to me and some just because they are soooo cute.

These two ladies live next door to Josh's best friend, 'Benjie'. The baby in the front is named 'Daisy Grace'! :) And the baby in the back is a precious miracle. Her name is Princess. And it should be. She is number 9....8 boys, and then Princess!! Last month she nearly died of pneumonia, but God in his grace spared her life and she continues to be the joy of that family!

O.k., now on to MY baby love. I know he's two and half now, but he's number three and 5 years younger than number two, so he's always gonna be my baby. Here he is helping Daddy make a Bible lesson.

Here he is sleeping like a little angel. He will only go to sleep surrounded by his treasures. His buddy 'Yertle the Turtle', his 'choo choo', his 'broom broom', his 'night night' (blankie) and 'Sponge-a-Bob' (I don't know why he adds the 'a'). That Sponge Bob blanket is the best thing we've ever stolen (sorry Sis and Bubba).

A boy and his puppy. Melts my heart. His older sisters are terrified of our dog, Paquiao, but Neo loves him to death. Whenever he plays outside you can hear him calling, 'C'mon Chopchow!'

Oh that face. Don't you just want to kiss it!!

2009-09-05T00:31:00.000-07:00

Boring Post

You've been warned. This is a boring post about my garden. There is one person in the world who will find this remotely interesting...that's my sister. The rest of you feel free to move on to a more exciting blog.

This is my 'root crop' garden. This is my proudest accomplishment. I've got sweet potatoes to the far right. You can see a big rock, and the green all around it are sweet potatoe tops. Then the tall-ish plants in the middle are called cassava, they are also like a sweet potato. Then the great big leafy plants to the left are called labog and they are also similar to a sweet potato- but not really. All of these are considered acceptable substitutes for the people here if they have no rice. They are boiled and then eaten dipped in soy sauce or fish sauce. And, you can eat the leaves to, like spinach!

This is my pumpkin plant. I didn't plant it, it was here waiting for us when we got back from Manila, and it already has a big pumpkin growing on it! It's not helping out the lawn much, but I'm proud of this pumpkin monstrosity!

This stuff is called 'Angelica', it's amazing. It's an herbal medicine. And what you do, is take a leaf and pound it a bit with a hammer, then put it anywhere on your body this is sore and wrap and ace bandage around it and IMMEDIATELY you can feel a cooling effect! It's so cool!!

This is a kind of squash - I think it's called chayote in English. My family hates it, but I cook it all the time because it is so easy to grow. The best thing about it is that it's easy to hide in a meal - it takes on the taste of whatever you cook it with! And you can eat the leaves (below)!!

This picture is just to prove that my entire garden is NOT boring green!

2009-09-02T20:45:00.000-07:00

Family Happenings

Neo still continues to be the cutest little boy in the world. Here he is with his face covered in Cajeta...which was supposed to be for his banana, but once mommy turned around, he dove right in!!

The girls make us so proud. Here they are helping their Uncle Nick clear rocks out of his potato field. Such hard workers!!

Here is our 'family'. These are the ones we call 'Amay and Inay (mother and father)'. They are our precious co-workers and here they are singing under my bedroom window at 4:30 a.m. on my birthday!!

This is a picture of our whole team (minus the Howells) at a wedding in a village about 6 hours away. Filipino weddings vary as much as American ones. Some are small at held at the home of the bride, some are huge and held in churches. This was one of the latter.

2009-08-17T17:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today I'm 31 (gasp!)

Here are 31 things I'm thankful for:

1. Josh
2. Daisy
3. Ally
4. Neo
5. All my family and friends in America
6. All my family and friends in the Philippines
7. My health
8. Money in the bank
9. Food in the cupboards
10. A vehicle
11. The Word of God
12. Salvation
13. My job
14. My house
15. My beautiful co-workers who serenaded me at 4:30 this morning
16. My sister's family and my Grandma who sent over a LOT of chocolate
17. Each day
18. The end of each day
19. Kids who are thriving in school
20. The way Neo makes us laugh every day
21. Emails and skypes from people I love who are far away
22. Filipino food
23. My bed
24. Paquiao our new puppy
25. Flowers
26. Rain
27. Presents
28. The love of God
29. Our supporters
30. The mountains
31. Life