New equipment for Work

  Buster's mini escavator was worn out.  So, he tried to see if he could trade his in for a new one.  Guess what?  Bobcat said yes!  Today they delivered the new  Bobcat.

 

   

   

      

This Bobcat has two buckets.  Buster is learning how to change them out.  

Buster has already dug a hole this evening and has a job lined up for a ditch in the morning and too leaks in the afternoon.  

The Lord is good to supply the tools he needs to do his work.   Daily He loadedeth us with benefits.

Almost complete!

  Buster has done an excellent job!  The new addition to our main bathroom is almost finished.  Today we are varnishing the walls, ceiling, and floor.  We will go pick up the shower door, towel rack, and perhaps curtain rods.  It will be ready for use.  After our company we will reprint the rest of the bathroom.  We have old wall paper that needs a little updating.  The closet in the room needs to be taken out to make more floor space.  

I have looked and looked at pictures in magazines.  I do have an idea what style I would like to have.  The results will end up being a touch of what I have in mind, a little of what we have on hand, and then a little of what Buster has in mind.  The result will be a unique style that will fit us perfectly!

   

  

Our project update

  We only have about 7 more days to get this project finished, but it looks like we are on schedule to get it done.  Buster did work hard last night and earlier today.  

  

      

The wood floor is in and so is the beaded board up for the ceiling.  This afternoon we did go get the faucet for the shower and the light fixture.  More pictures to come!

So exciting!

Buster's bad back

  My husband is the kind of man that is just like my dad.  He can do anything he sets his mind to do.  He could probably do anything, but there are many things he just hasn't gotten interested in yet.  Our daughters wanted to grow up and marry someone just like him.  It took them awhile to find their man, but they found men that can do anything they set their mind to do. 

Buster seemed a little bored I guess, so he joined the Volunteer Fire Department.  Bad back and all!  He has enjoyed each meeting and each fire call.  He can crawl into bed so tired that he thought he would never be able to go to sleep, and the fire alarm goes off!  Up he jumps and off he goes like a young man that hasn't faced back surgery, knee surgery, and all the other pains he faces.  He will feel pretty good for a few days too.  

Last weekend the fire deptment had a demonstration at the Sassafras festival.  We did get to see that.  We could park right by it so even Nannie went to watch.  Buster's job was to operate the pump.  

    

You can tell who Buster is, he is wearing black.  He does have a fire suit like the other guys.  He wears a fire pager on his hip all the time.  Now he has one of the older fire trucks parked here at the house.  He has been fixing it up in his spare time.  It neede new lights on top and serviced.  He has smoothed out a few dents and polished it up too.  I will get a few pictures of it soon.

Our Pickles

  While we were in Missouri visiting with Eli and Lori we went to an auction.  It was very interesting.  The auction was put on every Friday by the Amish community close to where they live.  We bid on boxes of vegetables and pots of mums.  I did enjoy the entire morning.  

  We gave most of the vegetables away when we got home, but the cucumbers no one seemed to want.  So Buster and Nannie put up Bread and Butter pickles and Red Pickles.  They  did have fun.  Leave it to Buster to find an easier way to do things.  He used his meat slicer to slice all those cucumbers.  It worked great.  

We will enjoy those Red Hot Pickles for Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations.  The family likes them.

  

Inside the changing project

  Here is the inside of the bathroom.  The bathroom will open through the window. 

What a blessing to have more room.

This weekend Buster took some lumber to have a friend plain it.  He will use the planks for the flooring.  He is out there working this evening.  
  

A special time

  Saturday our election polling was open for early voting.  Nannie wanted to go to the polls and vote this year.  

       

After voting we were going to go to the Sassafras Festival on the square.  We couldn't find a place close enough for Nannie to get out and walk.  She didn't want me to leave her while I went to find a spot to park.  We needed someone else to go with us.  I should have thought ahead of time.  

We were glad we voted anyway!

 

Our project - getting started

  Buster has all the details worked out in his mind.  Yesterday he used this "Big Ugly" tool.  He bought it years ago on EBay.  It has saved him many an hour of hard labor.  Once you dig a hole in the concrete you have committed to the course of action for your job!

   

    The shower stall will sit right here.  

A new project at our house

  We have been thinking about putting a shower in our family bathroom for years.  We just couldn't justify taking out the old claw tub.  Buster came up with a new idea!  Why not expand the bathroom and keep the claw tub?  That is a wonderful idea!  

                

Buster is going out onto the porch by cutting a door through the logs where the small bathroom window is located.  He will put in a shower, a wall, new floor, and ceiling.  We even have a deadline!  November 12.  It is a big project but, when he sets his mind to a project - he gets it done.  

We are planning to have a missionary family stay with us for our Mission Conference.  It is the Dan Post family.  To me they are heros!  They were missionaries in Ivory Coast when Joe and Laura were there.  They were so helpful to Joe and Lo when they had to evacuate due to the civil war.  This family kept Joe's household goods while Joe and Lo were in the states.  We have visited with the Posts in Africa when we were there.  We are looking forward to visiting with them.  This family came out of Africa with what they could put in their suitcases.  What can we do to be a blessing to this precious family?

The changing moment in America

  The last few months we have been very busy at our house.  My blogging computer has been off line and I haven't been able to find time to blog on my other computers.  I usually try to do work at the work computers.  Sometimes I do spend a little too long on Facebook.

We are facing an historic time in our country.  I do not think we are exaggerating the importance of the choices we must make in just 12 days.  

The choices are clear and simple to me.  On the side of President Obama we have progressive, godless, anti-American,  ideas that are destroying our way of life.  On the side of Govenor Romney we have free enterprise, God fearing,  patriotic, ideas that are familiar to our way of life.  The choice is as I see it is, do we want to continue with the American dream or do we want to have Obama's dream for our future?

The Changing Moment



Looking at the new ceiling



Looking at the floor



Lo practicing before church

As I said before Buster wasn't impressed with Africa.  He still couldn't understand why God would send his son to this smelly, dirty place.  Of course he enjoyed playing with the kids, seeing the people, driving around the area, and getting the feel of the area; but still he just couldn't see the reason.  He saw the Christian-like sayings on all the Taxis and stores, the churches every where, and modest dress of the ladies.  Why did Joe and Lo need to give their lives here?  We raised the kids to serve the Lord.  This is what we had dreamed about for years, but the reality of the location was overwhelming. 

On Wednesday evening we got ready for church.  The kids were excited to show us their church.  I had visited this church when I was here five years ago.  So much had changed.  The ceiling was beautiful!  The floors were polished concrete.

A few young adults came and a young teenager.  The services began.  Joe was leading the singing with Lo playing the clarinet.  I started listening carefully.  It was absolutely beautiful singing.  It filled the room entirely.  I could sing as loud as I wanted and could not hear myself.  What beautiful singing.  Not us, you know we aren't know for our singing; but the people in church were singing with their entire hearts to the Lord.  The people gave testimonies of how the Lord was so good to them.  Joe preached a very good sermon with teaching points and challenges to live for the Lord.  Our hearts were full.  It was such an enormous surprise, our hearts were full when the services were over. 

"Until I went into the sanctuary of God: then understood I their end."  Psalm 73:17.

As parents we want our children to serve the Lord.  We want them happy.  On the other hand, we really don't want them to face danger every day.  We don't want them that far from home.  But God worked in our hearts that evening and showed us that He had Joe and Laura in Africa for His purpose.  He would take care of them.  He would use them to share the gospel with these people.  He would use Gilbert, Danny, and Bonnie to spread the gospel to the young people.  We trusted the Lord when they left for Africa.  This was different, we could see God working with this faithful family.  

We both slept much more soundly that night as we rested in the knowledge that God was working in this family and church. 



There are lilies in Joseph's yard!



The Market Circle

The boys playing pipes.  Papa was having so much fun!

We needed to get material for the curtains and Velcro.  After another great breakfast Laura made and a good cup of coffee we started of to the Market Circle.  Papa was still wondering why Joe and Laura were still here in Ghana.  Certainly they could find a nicer place to serve the Lord!  He was ready to tell them that he thought they needed to pack up and come home.  He was starting to be able to notice the people instead of just the atmosphere.  As we would drive down the road people would wave and yell, "Pastor Joe"! 

As we started going around the Market Circle we looked at the variety of stores and shops.  When we slowed down or stopped on the road kids would be calling into the windows, "Danny" or "Bonnie".  Adults would wave and yell, "Pastor Joe". 

The Market Circle is one mile around.  The shops are on both sides of the road all around the circle.  At intervals there are entrances into the circle.  There is a maze of little booths to fill the area of the circle.  Joe and Papa kept the kids in the car while Laura and I entered into the maze.  It would take hours to walk the entire area of the circle.  So we started at a little sewing shop just into the entrance.  We asked if they knew where to get Velcro.  They didn't understand what we wanted until I showed them my flip flop with Velcro ribbons on them.  They said they we should try to shoe shop.  It was a booth a few feet closer to the entrance.  I asked for 2 yards of Velcro.  We got it with no problem.  What a blessing.  Next we needed to find some material that would make some bright curtains for the house.  We found some yellow for the living room and pink for Bonnie.  It didn't take very long, but the guys and kids were in the hot car waiting for us.


Oops the trash is overflowing.

That high sidewalk is a cover for the sewer ditch.  Buster looked down into that and saw the water meter for a line to the grocery store.  We are sure that is the main difference between America and other countries.  It is our care of water! 

We headed back home and to work on our projects.  Of course, we had to take a rest too.  The kids really need a rest, not to mention Nana! 



Getting those curtains done

We didn't wash the material before I sewed it because Laura wasn't too sure that it wouldn't fall apart.  She started helping me cut out some pieces that we would use for tabs with Velcro on them.  Laura started getting a headache.  She went on and did something else for awhile while I kept sewing.  The kids wanted to help me so much that they came up with the idea that they could push the peddle for me. 


My peddle-pushers!

After supper Laura tried to help with cutting out again and then she really got a headache and sick to her stomach.  It didn't dawn on me until during the night that Laura must be allergic to whatever was on the material for a treatment.  It could have been formaldehyde or something like that to keep the material from molding and to keep the bugs out of it.  Whatever it was it really bothered Laura.  We stopped and washed the material by hand carefully to keep it from falling apart.  
While the material was drying I went on to other more important things.  Bonnie and I had dolls to play with.  The doll that I sent to Bonnie before had problems with her hair do.  I needed to get it fixed.  Bonnie got a doll and more clothes from the missionary that was leaving the country. 


Bonnie's new doll and doll clothes. 



Bonnie loves her dolls. 




A Day of Adventure

The Almond tree in the back yard.  The people in the village say
this tree has the best Almonds.  They don't stay on the ground
long enough to get any for themselves.  It makes me think of the book,
The Pineapple Story. 

After a wonderful breakfast we went to town.  Going "to town" here is much different than going to town at home.  There are no Wal-marts, McDonald's, Hobby Lobby, or other stores that I love to visit at home.  Here the stores are more like fruit stands.  Some of the shops have upgraded to small containers that have doors that lock.  These stores carry very specific items.  The stores have Bible names like:  "Jesus Saves", "He will Provide", "Thy Will be Done", "Blessed Assurance", and one of Joe's favorites "Naked I Came".  Some stores carry items like fresh bread, eggs, cooking oil, or vegetables.  One near Joe's house is a small hardware store.  There is a carpenter's shop, material shop, and a tailor's shop.  Each of these little shops are very limited in the items they carry.  Joe explained that they are very superstitious people.  The people usually do not know the Lord, they are just trying to have a good omen for their stores.  You can tell the impact that Missionaries have had on the people.  They have a form of religion added to their own religion.



Each school has a different colored uniform.

The village Joe lives in is called Kansawurado.  The roads are lined with these small shops.  It is amazing to me how you find things that you want.  I guess it just takes time and much exploring to know where things are. That is Joe's speciality.  He loves to meet people and visit with them.  I think that is how he has found much of what his family needs. 

Shops upstairs and down.



Laura and I had talked about curtains for her living room.  The bars that they had installed for security sure left an unwelcoming spirit in their house.  It was a little startling. 



Bars on the inside of the windows.

The walls are made of solid concrete blocks.  It is difficult to hang curtain rods and nails for pictures.  Laura thought we could use the bars themselves for the curtain rods.  I thought it would be a great idea if we could find some Velcro.  I only inserted this little story because we were going to think about where to find Velcro while we were shopping in town.  

Papa had no idea what to expect.  It is so different than our life that it is almost overwhelming to try to take all of the sites in while you drive around.  The first experience was the Post Office.  You use one door to check your mail and see if you have a package.  Today they did not get a package.  But, if they did then they would have to come outside to go into another door and present the package slip to the person at the counter.  They would take the slip and you would go to another window.  The same person would greet you at the other window to give you the package.  The person would open it to be sure that no contraband was inside.  Then you would go back to the first window to pay any duty on the box.  Mind you it was the same person at each window. 

We went on to the Coca Cola plant to try to buy juice and sodas.  Today they didn't have Coke, just juice.  The kids need to take juice to school for their lunch.  Laura makes such good ice tea we really didn't need any Cokes today. 

We were going to go to a grocery store.  This one is much like our type of stores.  It is air conditioned inside.  Nice.  On very hot days this is a nice place to cool down and get a few things you need.  A Lebanese man owns this store.  Some things are just out of our price range, but at least you can get some things that are familiar.  It is more like the Dollar store than any other of our stores.

We decided everyone was getting hot and tired.  We needed something to drink and a break.  So we went to eat at a French restaurant.  Joe said they had eaten there many times and knew it was air conditioned and a nice clean place.  



It was so cool and restful.



We had a great lunch.  It was fun to listen to the kids talk and discuss things they liked.  We had such a good time.  Joe is a good host!