Surprise visitors

Today after nap Gracie was in for a real treat.  While she was sleeping a small caravan of camels came onto the compound and took a rest in the side yard outside our house.

Dean was still home, too, so we all went to greet the camels.

With a little help Gracie was even able to give the camels a snack.

The caravan was actually a planned "camel ride" for some of the guests staying on the compound.  We didn't go along (maybe next time), but we enjoyed their visit.

Bye-bye camels

Well, today is Wednesday which to us means "market day."  Dean and Marc ventured out seeking fresh produce: garlic, carrots, oranges...unfortunately no bananas today.

Here's a better look at the market:

Vendors pack tightly into lean-to-type stalls set up for the day.

Bags filled with various spices.

We've learned it's polite to taste, not smell them, when discerning what each one is.

Here's an interesting shot showing the various local modes of transport.  

How many do you see?

Four

(By foot, bicycle, moto or camel)

Dean had hoped to catch a donkey cart and baby riding on his mother's back in this shot, too, which would have added two more very popular "ways to go."

We'll keep trying.

On the way from the hospital to the market, Dean actually passed the camel caravan in route.  

Can you spot them?

Camel caravan mid-right above.

And the aforementioned donkey cart as well as couple car/trucks.

Here is a look at local architecture along the way to <hur<h.

Now for a few pictures of Gracie at play...

Living on the edge

(and, yes, she was being supervised)

The above picture was taken at the construction site for the new duplex being built on the compound (it's adjacent to the playground so we visit there daily).  We, along with the Carrigans, are very blessed to be chosen as the first occupants for these lovely homes.  More pictures of the construction soon.

Gracie loves pushing her "baby doll" in the "stol-ler," a very thoughtful loaner from a family here.

"Painting with water" has been a hit the last couple of days.  

Dianna finds this to be a great way to keep Gracie entertained while Dean's at work and there are house chores to be done, such as meal prep or cooking.  

What's the latest from the kitchen?

Fresh Baked Bread!

We appreciate emails and messages with condolences from our family and friends at home.  These past few days have been a mix of ups and downs, but God is faithful to His promise to give us grace sufficient for each day.  A song which has really resonated with us today is "Faith to be Strong" (from album Carried Along) by Andrew Peterson:

Give us faith to be strong 

Father, we are so weak 

Our bodies are fragile and weary 

And as we stagger and stumble 

To walk where you lead 

Give us faith to be strong 

CHORUS: 

Give us faith to be strong 

Give us strength to be faithful 

'Cause life is not long but it's hard 

Give us grace to go on 

Make us willing and able 

Lord, give us faith to be strong 

Give us peace when we're torn 

Mend us up when we break 

This flesh can be wounded and shaky 

When there's much too much travel 

For one heart to take 

Give us peace when we're torn 

CHORUS 

Give us hearts to find hope 

Father, we cannot see 

How the sorrow we feel can bring freedom 

And as hard we try 

Lord it's hard to believe 

So give us hearts to find hope 

CHORUS 

Give us peace when we're torn 

Give us faith, faith to be strong

Again, thank you for your prayers and support.  We dare not do this alone, and we are thankful that we never do for He will never leave us nor forsake us.

Strong in Him,

DD&G

Celebrating Life

In light of our recent loss, we are taking time today to celebrate life.  Sharing pictures of Gracie experiencing life at Galmi seems like a great way to share some of our life's joy with you.

Gracie has made friends with the other children living on the compound.

Here she is getting a wagon ride.

Hanging out with new friends.

This is the duplex where we are currently living.

Free rides.

And for all the moms out there, no, Gracie did not get a turn.

We are very blessed to have a playground on the compound.  This is a daily event for us and the Carrigans (at least for Dianna, Stephanie and the kids that is).

Gracie loves the see saw.

To prevent injury we encourage her to tag-team with another older person.

Kids are creative with use of the equipment (as you can see above).

"Up peas"

To her dismay her two little feet stayed on the ground.

Spinning with someone more her size.

Eli takes a turn spinning the girls.

These baby swings are also a popular spot.

Even when we are in the house, Gracie finds new ways to play...

like Peek-A-Boo!

So as you can tell, Gracie is enjoying life here, and we are so thankful for the joy she brings!

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The latest news from the kitchen:

BAGELS!!

Who knew this tasty treat could be so easy?

The recipe came from The Wycliffe International Cookbook.  

A special thanks to the Birkys for giving us this essential before we left.  

First step is a basic dough (yeast, sugar, salt, water and flour) that rises for 40 minutes.  

Next divide the dough into 12 pieces, shape into balls and poke hole using thumb.

A variation can occur at this time.  

While rolling divided dough into to balls, we chose to knead in some extra ingredients.

Left: chili pepper and sharp cheddar cheese

Middle:  cinnamon, allspice and dried fruit bits

Right: plain

Let the bagels rest for 20 minutes.

Then place them in boiling water (with slight bit of oil).

Recipe was not clear on how long to boil the dough, we went with couple minutes on each side.

Final step is to let them bake for 15-20 min at 450 F.

None of our cookie sheets fit in our oven so we improvised by using an inverted cake pan.

Final product.

We enjoyed these for breakfast this morning.

This is definitely a recipe worth repeating!

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Oh, and for all who are wondering what the typical dress is for women,

here is the outfit Dianna wore to church this morning.

It is traditional for women to where top, skirt and head wrap (which can be fashioned in various ways, some ladies are quite creative) made from the same fabric.  Married women also wear a thin shawl over their shoulders (sometimes head, neck and shoulders).  

This outfit was borrowed from the STA (short term assignment) closet, a great idea to have folks leave things they won't use back in the states so others can use them here at Galmi.  We took our fabric to the tailor yesterday, so hopefully our outfits will be ready next week.

Thankful to He who gives Life,

DD&G

Knit Together, Not Hidden

Well, once again we share news with heavy hearts.  Last night we miscarried.  This came as a shock as we had not even known we were pregnant.  Some of you may recall a similar post from last September.  The loss of two children in such a short time period is hard and confusing.  Even though we do not understand why the Lord has given and taken away, we trust that He has a plan and a purpose.  Baby K3's life was short, we estimate 4-5 weeks, but as with Baby K2, this life is meaningful.  We share this news that you might pray for us and with us during this time.

Words from Psalm 139 comfort us once again.  We are all fearfully and wonderfully made, knit together in our mother's womb, not hidden from God in that secret place, but known by Him. We buried Baby K3 in a small cemetery accompanied by words from this psalm and a prayer coin.

We know that we are not alone in our circumstances and that others grieve similar losses and others even seemingly greater losses.  It is our desire that we be open and share with others that God might be glorified through our lives, as short or as long as they may be.

Due to our current distance from home, we have not been able to personally share this sad news with many of you (as we would have liked and preferred); please accept our apology for a general notification. Families here have been very encouraging and supportive of us, offering prayers and encouragement as well as acts of kindness and generosity (watching Gracie, making granola, sharing fresh produce, making dinner).  It is a blessing to receive the love of Christ's body, even on the other side of the world.

Leaning on Him,
DD&G

A taste of the Market

Yesterday (Wednesday) was market day, a weekly event here in Galmi.  Traders come from out-of-town to sell their various goods.  We enjoyed perusing the stalls finding things familiar (oranges, onions) as well as unfamiliar (aromatic spices, peanut paste rolled into balls).  Non-food stuff was also available (soap, rope, plastic bins/basins, hardware, kindling, charcoal); basically a one stop shop for all one’s basic needs.  Thankfully we were accompanied by a couple who has been here for a while, which enabled us to ask questions and purchase items we needed.  Stephanie and Dianna found fabric and plan to have traditional style outfits (skirt, top and head wrap) made to wear to church and other cultural events.

The market was about a 20 minute walk from the hospital.  This photo was taken as we approached the back entrance to the market.

Along the way we stopped in a few local “shops” where one can find staple items (soap, dry beans, rice, tomato paste, pasta noodles, matches, flavored drink mixes etc.).  

We often end up using hand gestures to communicate our needs.

We were pleasantly surprised by the variety, and we were particularly excited to find couscous (one of our all time favorites grains).  We will certainly be making return trips to these local shops.

This tasty treat is made from black eye peas which are ground into a powder then made into a dough and fried -- like a hush puppy with a spicy kick.  These ladies made a fresh batch just for us to try.

The kids stayed home -- we figured that given the distance walked in the mid-day heat and heavy crowd would be a little too much with them in tow, at least for our first time.  Maybe we will venture out another time when she can come along.  If we had to pick what would be Gracie’s favorite part, it would definitely be the animals.

Camels are frequently seen, as are donkeys and goats.  Gracie is quick to point them out every chance she gets.

Gracie has become friends with two dogs on the compound.  She loves to pet them and talk to them: “Hi, doggy.  Hi, doggy...”  

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Thankfully they are older dogs and their passive natures are a good fit for our gregarious toddler.  The other kids enjoy them, too.

The airstrip (which is in our backyard) is another marvel for Gracie.  Today she was thrilled that the “airpane” returned to pick up a couple of ladies and take them back to the capital.  

The majority of folks gather to greet the plane -- either to welcome or bid farewell to its passengers.  Today two ladies were leaving, so goodbyes were in order.  This is the same 4-seater Cessna that transported our families; you can now appreciate why it took two separate trips to get the 7 of us here.

Local folks also enjoy watching the plane land and take off.

Today was also a cooking day for us.  We have been blessed by invitations to dinner the last three nights, so tonight was our first meal on our own: eggplant, chickpeas, onions, tomatoes and garlic sauteed with spices and served over couscous.  Yum!

Other random accomplishments:

• Survived first week of cloth diapering...still committed but scrounging around for every disposable we can find : )

• Successful flour tortillas

Gracie is definitely a fan of these.  

We anticipate these will be incorporated into meals regularly.  Plus they make a yummy snack.

• Batch of yogurt from powdered milk.  Turned out tasty, just a little runny.

From the hospital end, Dean is mainly working in the obstetrics right now.  He sees a lot of patients and unfortunately not all of their stories have happy endings.  Both Dean and Marc are working hard to acclimate to this new environment:  language barriers (French and Hausa), less familiar diseases (malaria, tetanus), different formulary and treatment options, etc.  Please continue to pray for their stamina, encouragement, emotional stability, and health.

Dean hopes to share in more detail about his experiences and what he is learning.  But for now our days seem long and nights seem short, which leaves little time for writing (although this posted ended up being rather long).  We anticipate this will change as a more familiar routine develops.

Savoring His Blessings,

DD&G

We are online!

Our internet connection is up and running, and we are excited to be back online.  We've not yet managed to read our backlog of emails -- but we have seen that many folks have written and we really appreciate the encouragement and support.

We are now at Galmi Hospital and settling into our new home and community.  We had a safe flight in a small four-seater plane (need to find some pictures to share because it was really neat).  Gracie was very excited about the "air-pane" and even more excited to see her best buds Eli and Hailey (along with many others) standing and waving to her at the airstrip entrance when we landed.  

Dean (along with Marc) has begun orientation on the wards while Dianna and Gracie (along with Stephanie, Eli and Hailey) have begun "shopping" and stocking the pantry/house.  If you would enjoy reading more from the Carrigans perspective then checkout thecarriganslife.blogspot.com.

Yes, there have been lots of adjustments...but by God's grace we are all adjusting well.  

Today, for instance, we three (Dean had the afternoon off from the hospital) hand-washed our clothes using 3 plastic basins, powdered soap, a hose and, well, our hands (all 6 of them).  Although it was hard work, we actually had a lot of fun, too.

There is a lot to process as we acclimate to a new culture, new geography, and new responsibilities.  We are thankful for others who have gone before us and are now here with us to guide us through this process.  We have been warmly welcomed into this community -- meals in others' homes, assistance with shopping, tips on daily living, etc.  Most of all, we are thankful for our Father who always goes before us, providing for us and loving us, unconditionally.

Safe in His Arms,

DD&G

1/13/12

Safe Arrival

We are happy to announce that we have safely arrived in Niger!  

This picture was taken in the yard of the guesthouse where we've been staying.  

Gracie loves the swings!

The last two days have been adventuresome -- transatlantic plane flight, shuttling luggage, orienting to guest house and SIM policies, as well as shopping for groceries.  We have been warmly welcomed into the SIM community and appreciate everyone’s contribution to making our transition as smooth as possible.  

Little Miss Gracie has proven, once again, to travel well.  Although she did not sleep (on the planes) as much as we had hoped...

she remained happy and cooperative throughout the "20-something" hour journey.  

Enjoying breakfast somewhere-over-the-Atlantic

Since landing, she has transitioned extremely well.  We are still working on regulating our sleep cycles and overcoming some jetlag, but as her shoes and clothes can attest, Gracie plays in the red dirt as if she has known it her whole life.

There are many more details to share -- especially considering we were unable to blog over the holidays and should catch up on the sweet time we had with family and friends -- and in due time we hope to do so.  Currently, we do not have internet access; apparently the entire city of Niamey has been without reliable internet these last few days.  We anticipate our internet access will improve upon arrival to Galmi, where we should be in a few days.  

So, this entry will be posted later...but writing in now in an attempt to encourage the habit of regular updates!

God has safely delivered us,

DD&G