On Overdue Update

Wow!  It’s been long since I did an update for everyone. 

I can’t believe that it’s almost the end of 2012. And no, not the end of the world, just the end of 2012. :-)

So much is going on at In Step.  We have 121 children now and we have three major building projects: dorm, school and clinic.

The In Step Children

A few weeks ago, we were at 120 children but went down to 119 children. One of our younger children, Larry, was fostered out through the children’s office by a Kenyan couple who couldn’t have children.  From what we know, they are a nice couple and totally fell in love with Larry.

Just a few days after Larry left, we got a call from the children’s office that there was a two-week old baby that had been found on the side of the road in a village. Carla went and picked him up and he was named Nathan, after our visitor Nate who had been staying here.

A week later, we got another call that there was a two-day old baby at the CPU (children’s protection unit – through the local police station). Sean and I picked the baby up that evening from CPU and kept him overnight at our house.  His name is Raymond, also named after a guy staying at In Step right now.

Baby Raymond was SO tiny. He didn’t have a diaper on and so his pajamas were completely soaked through with urine. That was all I could smell when I picked him up.  I put a diaper on him (even the newborn size diapers were too big for him), put a onesie on him, wrapped him in a new blanket and brought him home.  Sean and I gave him a bath as he still smelled like urine.  He slept a lot and only woke up to be fed. He did not like having his diaper changed as it meant you had to move him from his comfortable, fetal position. J  He was a pretty easy baby for that one night; he had his last feeding before 11:00 pm and didn’t wake up until 6:00am. We were impressed, especially with him being just two days old.

The next day was ladies’ bible study at our house and all the ladies were lovin’ on him. Sean was not happy with having to share Raymond with all the ladies. I don’t think Sean ever wanted to let him go but he had to as Carla was taking Raymond to In Step with her after bible study.

So, we sit at 121 kids right now. Who knows what the number will be next week. :-)

Our school age kids are also off of school. They completed their school year last week and are off until the second week of January.  We, the staff, have put together a chore rooster/schedule for them. When you have 26 children off of school and needing things to do (to stop boredom and trouble from finding them!), we knew we had to keep them somehow busy. We’ve divided them into teams, assigning a team leader and two kids to that leader.  The leader is to make sure that their team is in their appropriate station and helping to work for the time frame.

The chores include: cutting the grass, helping in laundry, helping in the kitchen, looking after the cows and cleaning/sweeping up the compound. They do the chores in the morning until lunch time and after lunch; we have fun-time planned with them.

Some of the things they are doing in the afternoon are: having separate girl/boy time with us, learning to needlepoint, playing soccer, having bible study, sitting under a tree and reading and having movie appreciation time where they watch a movie and then questions are asked, lessons learned, etc (you all know who’s leading that one!).

The Building Projects

The dorm just had its second floor cement laid and right now it’s curing (strengthening – I don’t know) for the next month.  We still need major funding for it to be completed. This is also the future home of Sean and me.

The school is being built classroom by classroom. We had about $8,500 raised toward the school from various people, including The Piano Studio in Newmarket, ON and so we’ve been able to build two good size classrooms thus far.

The clinic is ALMOST complete. We just need about $20,000 more to finish it.  It’s just the little stuff now: tile, paint, bathroom fixtures, electrical, etc. 

The Kenya Election

Most of you may not know but the Kenya presidential election is to be held on March 4^th, 2013. As many of you do know, the previous Kenyan elections did not go very well and it was made known all over the world.

We ask everyone for prayer.  It’s a sensitive time for the country, starting now.  There are changes that the government has made and most of the Kenyan people aren’t even aware of it.

Also, the presidential candidates have to register on December 4^th (subject to change as nothing ever really seems to stick to the original plan when it comes to the government) and two of the probable candidates are on trial with the ICC currently (due to 2007 election violence). The High Court in Kenya has to rule if the two are going to be eligible to run in the elections due to them being on the ICC trial. This decision has to be made by the end of this month.  If it is ruled that these two possible candidates can’t run, we could see some issues arise as they are two very popular people to be running for the presidential seat.

We don’t know how the 2013 elections will be but we have been advised by our embassies (US/Canada, etc.) to be cautious and take all necessary precautions.  We hear different sides: 1) no, there won’t be violence because the Kenyan people learned their lesson from the 2007 elections to 2) of course there will be violence; nothing was fixed after the previous elections.

We are preparing here at In Step as well as personally for the possibility of things not running entirely smoothly. We are beginning to stock up on things that we’ll all need, especially in case of road closures and us not having access to things being delivered into our town (groceries, fuel, phone and internet credit, propane, etc.). 

As the US Embassy said, “Prepare for the worst, hope for the best.”

Prayer Requests

Here is a list of things that you all can pray for:

• Funding for the school, dorm and clinic to be completed. These are all necessities.
• Sponsoring of the kids. You can sponsor a child for as little as $10 per month. Please visit the website (www.rehemainstep.com) for pictures and stories of the kids. 
• Wisdom for the Kenyan High Court as they make their decision and do what is best for the people and the country.
• Wisdom for the Kenyan people to express their frustration with the elections (and whatever it may come to be) in a healthy way and not a repeat of the 2007/2008 violence. 
• Safety and wisdom for all of us missionaries on the ground and for our homes and projects during this tension filled time (this is especially important over the next few months). 
• Prices not to escalate too high (or at all – since it’s already expensive) so that we can all stock up on necessities in preparation.
• That the right president will come into place in Kenya and that he will be a president who is for the people and this country and not for the corruption and self-fulfillment that has hindered here for so long.

Thanks to everyone for your continued prayers and support.

Much Love,

Meredith

And We Just Keep Growing....

In two days we went from 112 children to 114 children.

On Monday, July 23rd, Jeff got a call from the children’s department. There was a two year old that needed to be placed at In Step.  We didn’t know about this until he got home and dropped off a new little face at the front door.

Here is Bravin Ekiru.

Just after he arrived at the home. 

Bravin’s mother had died and his grandmother just couldn’t take care of him any longer so she brought him to the children’s department.  He’s a very friendly little boy who has the face of a man with many years of wisdom and really cute chubby cheeks.

He fit right in at In Step; he wasn’t bothered by the dinner chaos and sharing a table with 112 other siblings. He was so happy with his food; I don't think he realized he wasn’t alone. J  He’s adapted to the routine very quickly and has a ton of new brothers and sisters to love on him now.

Then the very next day, Tuesday, July 24^th, Jeff came home from town and asked Carla if she wanted to go to town and pick up a baby. I just about fell off the chair, “Yes, we’ll go. We’ll go!”

Carla and I got in the car and drove to the children’s department to pick up our next new addition.

His name is Jason Wangolo.

About a week after being at the home. 

Jason’s father died some time ago of AIDS. His mother died about two months ago of TB and was also HIV positive.  Jason’s mother was the third wife to his father and the first nor second or fourth wife wanted to or couldn’t take care of him.

Jason is nine months old and very malnourished, as well as positive with TB. When we got in the car to drive home, he started to scream, not cry, scream. He didn’t want the bottle; he fought me; he’d arch his back. He was mad. I rolled up his shirt sleeve to find his fingers; if he didn’t want a bottle, maybe he’d want his fingers. He found them and started sucking on two of them (so cute!). He managed to fall asleep for about.....oh, five minutes and then started to scream again. Carla and I couldn’t even talk to one another, it was so loud.

He wouldn’t eat; he wouldn’t sleep, nothing worked. We had to use a syringe to get some milk down; he had to eat. He was SO exhausted. I had taken him into our room so that I could try to get him to sleep.  I rocked back and forth while he screamed. I turned to Sean and said, “Let’s just pray over him.” 

So Sean laid hands over him and we just prayed. I asked for curses that I felt had been said over him, be broken. Sean prayed that God would comfort him so that he could sleep. We prayed that he would eat so that we could get him to gain weight; get him healthier. 

A little while later, I had him in the rocking chair; he fell asleep for awhile. When he woke up; he didn’t cry. He actually started to smile when some of the kids came around and were talking to him. He still wouldn’t eat though.  Overnight though, he managed to take most of a bottle and then this morning, he took a full bottle from Sean.

We’ve been monitoring Jason closely over the past two weeks. He’s now talking, smiling and has even learned to hold his own bottle. We have him rolling over now (with a bit of help sometimes) and he only cries (which is just little whimpers for the most part) when he’s really hungry or overly tired.  

All I can say is, “Thank you Jesus!”

Much Love,

Meredith

Random, Yet Heartfelt Thoughts

It’s been heard all over the world; the violent act in Aurora, Colorado.  I just read the names of the 12 people who died in the shooting. The youngest being a six-year old girl and the eldest being a fifty-one year old man.  One of the victims was celebrating his 27^th birthday that day and would have celebrated his first wedding anniversary today. Oh how I ache for his wife (as well as all the rest of the families).

There is a wonderful blog being passed around Facebook (I even passed it on) from a Christian woman who was in Theater 9 at that time. She went with her two daughters to see the premiere of The Dark Knight Rises.  It is her take on the event as well as her incredible, increasing faith in God through their ordeal.

Here’s the link if you haven’t read it yet:

http://aminiatureclaypot.wordpress.com/2012/07/20/so-you-still-think-god-is-a-merciful-god/

After reading Marie’s blog, I asked God yesterday, not in a doubting way but in an inquisitive way: “Why did you create us? Why did you create all of this if bad things like this happen?”

He answered. “Love. Because I love all of you.”

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” 

John 3:16 NIV

In Marie's blog, she writes: “God made man in His image with the ability to choose good and evil. Unfortunately, sometimes man chooses evil. God is always good. Man is not. Don't get the two confused.”

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” 

Romans 12:21 NIV

"Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves.” 

Romans 12: 9-10 NIV

And then God showed me something and then it just....clicked.

Why do we have children? Because well, we’re just supposed to?  Because that’s the next thing to do in our walk of life?  Because we don’t want to buy a dishwasher? Because we want a legacy? Because we want to love them? Because we want to nurture them?

Why bring children into a world that is filled with hate, murder, rape, racism, etc.? Because there is still good somewhere in this world. Because there is still love somewhere in this world.

We bring children into the world, knowing that there is going to be hurt, heartache, sadness that will at some point enter into their lives. We don’t want it to; but realistically, in an imperfect world with imperfect people, it will happen.  We give them the tools as they grow up to help them stay on the right paths in life but eventually the decision of what to do and where to go, is theirs.  We can point them in the right direction but ultimately, they choose the road to walk down.

Free will.

That’s what God has given to us. Free will. He wanted us; He didn’t need us but He sure did want us.  Love can’t be forced.  It wouldn’t be considered love then.  He doesn’t want to be loved by us because we HAVE to love Him because He’s FORCING us to love Him. He wants us to love Him because we have CHOSEN to love Him; to FOLLOW the path He has for us. It’s a path that always leads to a promise fulfilled, whether it be here on earth or in heaven.

One thing that God didn’t promise was that life would be easy. Again, we’re imperfect people who have flamed an imperfect world.

In the book of John, Chapter 16, Jesus is speaking with his disciples.  Jesus is preparing them for the time when they will no longer be with him (he will be later crucified) and the verse is applicable to us now as much as it was to the disciples then.

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”  

John 16:33 NIV

When I was in a young adult’s group about ten years ago, we had someone visit our group.  He brought a puzzle.  Not knowing what the picture of the puzzle was, we each took only one piece out of the two hundred and something piece puzzle. There were about fifteen of us.

We each went around the room and described what our piece of the puzzle looked like; try to figure out what the big picture of the puzzle was. After we all gave our thoughts and suggestions, the visitor showed us the completed puzzle picture. We were WAY off.

And that little exercise has stuck with me for over ten years. Why?

Because it’s exactly the way life is.

We are each our own piece to this HUGE puzzle. I only my piece and perhaps a few of those around me but we’re just one little part of it. We don’t know what the big picture is; why things happen the way they do. We can’t see it all.

I’ll say it again, as I did in a blog I wrote a few weeks back (to read that blog, click here).

I don’t understand why things are the way they are. I don’t pretend to.  And that is why I choose to have faith in God; who has every little piece of the puzzle laid out in a completed picture that I can’t even imagine or comprehend.  God has the road mapped out; I just have to CHOOSE whether to walk His road or one of my own.  I didn’t do very well in my younger years when I chose my own road so I think I’ll stick with His. He created the heavens and the earth; so I know He is more than capable of mapping a road for you and me that will lead us to a place we couldn’t dream up even if we tried. And it will be a place that we can enjoy for an eternity.

“Faith is CONFIDENCE in what we HOPE for and ASSURANCE about what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1 NIV.

Much Love,
Meredith

Good Girl

On the second Saturday every month, In Step has a birthday party for the children who have birthdays in that month.  A large cake is made, ice cream is bought, juice is stirred and the bubble containers are topped up.

All the children became FREAKISH when it’s Happy Birthday Day.

We get all the children onto the veranda and seated (hopefully) quietly.  The aunties go down the tables and wash the children’s hands as we cut the cake into about 140 pieces (includes staff working on that day), dish them onto the plates along with a scoop of ice cream. One of the kitchen ladies pours the juice into the cups and we are set to go.

 The list is read of whose birthday it is in that month and each of the children come up to the “front” of the veranda, as we all cheer, clap and shout, “Yeah [insert name here]!” When they are all lined up, we sing Happy Birthday to them.

Then the birthday kids serve the rest of the children their cake and ice cream.  Once the plates are licked clean (yes, our children do that!), they get served their glass of juice. After the juice is done, they go outside and we come running out with bubbles in hand and blow bubbles as the kids chase (sugar high has kicked in at this point) the bubbles to see who can pop it first. It’s such a fun yet, tiresome morning.

This past Saturday was July’s Happy Birthday Day.

The bigger kids have a good reach on the bubbles so they usually get the majority of them as they take off through the sky. And usually the two year olds are just left in the footprints of the bigger ones.  So I like to get down to the younger ones levels and blow bubbles right at their height and watch them chase the bubbles, laughter exploding from their lips.

Every time one of the little ones would catch a bubble, I would yell, “Good girl/boy [insert name here]!” with a huge excitement. So for example, little Sean caught two bubbles and I yelled, “Good boy Sean!”

After awhile, one of our younger girls, Theresa, who’s four, caught on to what I was doing. But rather than cheering on the little ones for catching bubbles, she would cheer me one.

I would blow bubbles and suddenly I’d hear from Theresa, “Good girl Mama Mary!”

For the next 10 minutes, every time I blew the bubbles, the sweet voice of Theresa would keep me going: “Good girl Mama Mary!”

Who knew being encouraged by a four-year would be so awesome.

Much Love,

Meredith

Life & Death: Both are Hard to Swallow

Facebook is bombarded with births of babies.  Friends and family back in North America having babies.

Life.

It’s beautiful. It’s miraculous.

It’s difficult. It’s temporary.

I always love when a new life is born.  And yet sometimes I cry. 

I have longed for children, to be a mom, for more than three quarters of my life. No seriously, I have.  It’s a sweet story as to why but I’ll save that for some day.

On Tuesday, In Step got two babies: three-month old Adam (who is named after our friend Adam Pollock who is working with In Step right now with construction) and three-week old Austin (who is named after a team that is here – they leave today – and they are from Austin, Texas).

Baby Adam is a preemie.  His mother left him at the hospital after giving birth and never returned.  It’s believed that she thought he was going to die, being a preemie and so she just ran.  It even took a long time for the hospital to contact the children’s department that they had an abandoned baby there. Why? Who knows but history shows that they too assume the babies in that condition will die. And when they don’t, they then call the children’s office.

When Baby Adam was born, he weighed 2.4 pounds. When we got him on Tuesday, he weighed 3.5 pounds. He’s SO tiny for a three month old. In fact, he is smaller than Austin (who is only three WEEKS old).  But he looks like a fighter; he’ll pull through this. He’ll fall in love with formula and have the sweet leg rolls that everyone always loves on babies.

Austin has a similar story although he wasn’t a preemie. His mother left him at the hospital too. It’s not known as to why and it probably never will be.

But these baby boys are so little and so gorgeous.  

Life. It’s beautiful. It’s miraculous.

Yesterday (Wednesday), In Step got a newborn baby girl. They named her Lynn (after a Kenyan friend of Jeff and Carla). She literally was a newborn. She was born yesterday morning/early afternoon.  Her mother gave birth to her and left her in a maize (corn) field. A passerby found her and took her to the police station. She was released by the hospital, the police and the children’s department into In Step’s hands. When she arrived at In Step yesterday evening, she was only hours old.  And after being at In Step for only a few hours, she died in the arms of one of the members of the Austin team.  She went from arms on earth to arms in Heaven.

Life. It’s difficult. It’s temporary.

It constantly aches me; it breaks my heart on so many levels.  There are women in this world, myself included, who LONG to have babies and who can’t. And yet there are some women in this world who have babies with no problem and yet throw them away like a piece of garbage.

It’s hard not to judge; it’s hard not to be angry. Not at God but at these women who don’t understand what an amazing gift they’ve been given.

“Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them.” Psalm 127:3-5 NIV.

“People were bringing little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, he was indignant. He said to them, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.’ And he took the children in his arms, placed his hand on them and blessed them.”  Mark 10:13-16 NIV.

I don’t understand why things are the way they are. I don’t pretend to. If I did, I’d be lying and foolish. But I have faith.

“Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” Hebrews 11:1 NIV.

Much Love,
Meredith

Child of the Week

We've decided that each week, we will highlight a child at In Step. We'll post a picture or two of that particular child, as well as their story and update of them. 

So here's our first Child of the Week:

Brian Wanjala

Brian Wanjala (about age five) came to In Step in May of 2011, along with his sister, Everlyne.  They were taken from an abusive home where Brian received a broken leg (and Everlyne was badly burned).  They found safety and love at In Step.

Earlier this year, the Kenyan courts committed Brian and Everlyne to In Step. They can now officially call it "home".  That was a great day for both of the children and for us at the home. 

Brian is such a happy boy who loves and protects his sister dearly.  When we would take Everlyne to the clinic if she were sick, he would be upset because he wasn't with her to watch over her. He's a great big brother. 

If you wish to sponsor Brian and are in Canada, please contact me at: canada@rehemainstep.com. I will be happy to give you information needed to sponsor him.

If you are in America, please go to: http://www.rehemainstep.com/getting-involved/donations-sponsorships/.

Thank you so much,

Meredith

Feeling Loved by Lovely Ladies

Sean and I got back from In Step today and this is what our gate and house looked like:

The Front Gate

So Pretty!

I loved it!!

The Front of the House - flowers EVERYWHERE!!!

Are they not awesome???  Melted my heart and brought a smile to my face.

Now I have flowers all over my house. I love it.... 

Thank you so much ladies: Amy, Kim, Julie, Carla, Carrie, Lindsay, Katie, Taryn, Theresa and Jennifer. It meant the world to me.

Love you so much.

Meredith

It's Not Just a Date

Today is May 29^th, 2012.

Today is probably, for most of you, just like any other day. It’s a work day for most of you, a school day for the rest. Or perhaps you are enjoying your maternity leave or your retirement life.

But today isn’t just any other day for Sean or for me.

Today was the due date of our baby. 

I know if the baby had made it to full term, she more than likely would not have been born on her due date but it’s the date she was due, nonetheless.

She? Did I just write she?

Yes.

We obviously didn’t know the gender of our baby as I miscarried too early to know.  When we miscarried, we had been given advice from a few friends that we should name the baby. But we didn’t know the gender. Then perhaps we could find a gender neutral name.  Maybe.

While we were in Canada, someone recommended that we read a book called, “Heaven Is For Real” by Todd Burpo. Todd’s son, Colton, is rushed to the hospital with a burst appendix. They didn’t think he was going to make it but he did. Quite awhile after the surgery and release from the hospital, Colton tells his father about his trip to Heaven, which of course, shocks his father.  He even tells his mom that he met his other sibling in Heaven. The one she had miscarried before having Colton; the one that Colton never knew about.  Colton had told his mom that the sibling had been a girl and she was waiting on a name from them.  Colton’s parents never knew the gender of their baby and so, they never named her.

Then one afternoon, Sean and I had a date. We went out for lunch and got to talking about our baby and I felt really strongly about giving the baby a name. We too didn’t know the gender but when I asked Sean what he thought our baby had been, he had said, “She was a girl. I just know it.” I had always felt in me that she had been a girl as well. So we really thought about a name, looked up meanings to names, etc.  We wanted it to be a special name.

So, we’d like to share with you, the name that we gave to our sweet baby girl....

Hannah Faith Stewart

Hannah – means “favoured by God” or “grace”

Faith – means “belief in God and acceptance of God’s will”

It fit perfectly.  

It gave us an amazing peace and we have been covered in God's grace. It is His will and we accept that for whatever reason He may have. 

It’s not to say that this last month hasn’t been difficult because it has. Knowing that I would be in the last part of pregnancy and yet, here I’m not, is hard. Knowing that there is no baby shower, no crib in the next bedroom, no tiny, sweet clothes in the closet and no hospital bag waiting by the door, is crushing at times. I have cried a lot of tears this past month but the tears, although valid and comforting, have also brought more healing. I have faith in my Father. Some days I can say that my faith feels only as small as a mustard seed but I don't doubt His faithfulness and love toward me. And that His will is beyond beautiful, even when I don't understand. 

I do wonder what Hannah would have looked like. Would she have had my dark and curly hair or would she have had a bit of red in her hair like Sean’s goatee? Would she have had Sean’s beautiful blue eyes or my brown eyes?  Either way, she would have been beautiful.

Someday we’ll meet her.  I wish it were today but I know that there is a someday.

Hannah, although we’ve never seen you, or never held you in our arms or kissed your cheeks, your Mommy and Daddy sure did want you and sure do love you. 

Until we see each other in Heaven, sweet Hannah.

So much love,

Mommy

Sunday Scare

On Sunday afternoon, Sean was in the kitchen starting to wash our lunch dishes. I was in the sitting room (which is a family room back in North America), getting ready to put a fresh coat of clear nail polish on my finger nails.

I had done my right hand first and then went to move on to the left hand. I had the bottle of nail polish in my left hand and the brush in my right hand. I was leaning toward the table to put the bottle down, when it slipped out of my hand.

I looked down to grab it and at the same time, it had landed the right side up on the floor. However, with the lid not being on it and the force of the hit to the ground caused a huge glob of it to go flying straight up and out of the bottle. I was looking down at the time to grab it and that huge glob of clear nail polish landed straight into my left eye.

I screamed.

At first, since he wasn’t in the room, Sean thought that a gecko or a “flying snake” (as I like to call them) had scared me. But then my scream was getting more horrifying and constant. He thought I was electrocuting myself (there’s a reason he thought that – another story for maybe another day – but it wasn’t me).

He came running into the room and saw me bent over in pain, my hand covering my eye. “Oh my gosh! What happened?”

“I GOT NAIL POLISH IN MY EYE!!!”

And like everyone else who has heard this story, the first question was, “What? How did you get nail polish IN YOUR EYE?” (Read above again for the answer!).

Sean led me to the floor and had me lay down. I tried to open my eye and all I could see at first was black. I burst into tears thinking I was blind.

Sean ran and got water and tried to get me to open my eye. It was excruciatingly painful; the burning/stinging sensation was overwhelming. All I could do was cry.

Finally, we got my eye open and I was no longer seeing just black (thank you Jesus!) but everything was very fuzzy.  It was like the nail polish had coated my eye ball (which it probably had).

And so Sean began flushing my eye out with water. The white of my eye was as a red as a Macintosh red apple. I still couldn’t really open my eye; we were forcing it open and my vision was still very blurry.

After about forty-five minutes of flushing my eye out, I started to see a bit clearer. Sean flushed my eye out for another half an hour before I could see clearly.

However, there was still a piece of something in my eye. If I moved my eye to look around or closed my eyes, I could feel it scrapping across my eyeball.  It was not only a nuisance but a painful one at that. I could never quite find it or flush it out. At times it would “disappear” and then it would just show up again if I moved my eyes or blinked (which is A LOT!).

I went to bed on Sunday night with discomfort; my eye had been through a big trauma and it was still really red. I was exhausted and fell to sleep very quickly.

On Monday morning, the alarm went off and I woke up, feeling a bit like a pirate. My left eye was crusted shut. Pretty, isn’t it? And my sweet husband still kissed me good morning. What a blessed woman I am!

So Sean went and got warm water and a q-tip and gently wiped at my eye lashes to remove the crust from them. After about a minute, I could open my eye and I had perfect vision and the piece of whatever that had been in my eye, was gone.

Yay!!!!

It’s now three days later and it’s all good. I can totally see; however, it is still a little sensitive.  I do find myself randomly checking the vision in that eye by covering the other eye and looking out the left eye.

So what have we learned from this experience????

Don’t wear nail polish. J

Much Love,
Meredith

An Overdue Update

It’s been awhile since we’ve sent an update out.

We’ve been to and from Canada and we’ve had friends from our home church, Newmarket Alliance, come and stay with us for about two weeks.  That in and of itself, was amazing.

It’s always so wonderful having family/friends come and visit us overseas.  It’s nice to have a bit of our other home come and visit our life and home here. I think that it gives the people back home a small glimpse or sense as to what life is like here for us. It shows the love for the kids; the love for the people and country but yet, also a small glimpse of the struggles and difficulties that we face.  A few weeks can’t give our family and friends the complete picture but they have a little bit more of a better understanding and when we visit Canada again, they will understand a bit more when we need to be encouraged, fed and rejuvenated.

The rainy season is officially upon us. It rains every single day...oh except for that one day earlier this week.  Every afternoon at In Step, it consists of 109 children trying to release the abundance of energy that they would normally expel outside; instead they’re on the 100ft veranda – all together in one room. Colouring only lasts so long. Songs only last so long. Barney or Sesame Street only last so long. It’s an exhausting time for everyone.

Rainy season also means terrible roads in the community we live in and the roads out by In Step. Sean had a guys’ night here last night and it was supposed to start at 7:00pm but it didn’t actually start until about 9:30pm.  The town council thinks they fix our roads (yeah right!) but when you plough a dirt road and don’t pack it down in the middle of the rainy season, well the road just becomes a farmer’s field. So vehicles were stuck, vehicles stalled out, vehicles were left on the side of the road overnight. But they all had a great time, laughed a lot and have a great story to tell about their night.   I love that the men have guys’ night!!

Rainy season also means random power outages. Well, we always have power outages, even in the dry season. It’s as if there is a rain drop in China, the power here goes out. But the power outages are far more frequent in the rainy season. Like right now, for example, as I type this, the power is out.  I’m just thankful that we do have power, when we have it.  It means I keep a freezer with meat in it; it means I can keep milk and cheese and yogurt (as long as the power doesn’t stay off for too long!).

Sean and I are doing well, health wise.  I haven’t had malaria in almost a month. Yay!!!   Today has been a bit of an emotional struggle for me; it’s Mother’s Day.  I would be due with our first baby in two weeks.  I didn’t think Mother’s Day would be hard (I assumed the due date would be the only hard day) but it turns out, it is a difficult day for me too. 

Tears are healing so I let them flow today. My husband’s hugs are comforting so I welcome them continuously. God’s promise is encouraging so I cling to it always.  

A random update but an update nonetheless.

Much Love,

Meredith

Assistance Needed...gulp!!!

Many of you have heard Sean and I say that asking for things for the children is not a problem but asking for things for us is VERY uncomfortable.

So you can imagine how difficult this blog is for us to write. Gulp!

There are two major financial needs that Sean and I have right now. They are: plane ticket money and health insurance money.  

For plane tickets, we need about $3,000.

For health insurance, we also need about $3,000.

If you would like to financially give on either of the above, here’s where to send the money to:

In Canada

In Step

301 King Street East

Mount Albert ON

L0W 1M0

Please make cheques payable to:  ASSISTS PROJECTS and in the memo line or a letter attached, write “Stewarts”.

In America

Please click on the link:  http://www.rehemainstep.com/getting-involved/donations-sponsorships/

Where it says “I’d like to use the donation for”, say “Missionary Sponsorship”.  Another box below will come up and type in “Stewarts”.   

Should you have any questions, please contact us at:  instepcanada@gmail.com

Thank you in advance for your support.  We so greatly appreciate it.

Much Love,

Meredith

Bibles For Our Older Kids

Sean and I have a very hard time asking for things for ourselves, whether it’s a financial need or a material need. But when it comes to needing things for the kids here, we have no problem with that.

So, with that said.....

Sean and I would like to start a weekly bible study with our twelve older kids at In Step.  This is where you come in.

We want to surprise each of the older kids with their own bible but we would like them to all be the same bible (more or less) and the same translation (so that the kids don’t get confused as we read through the Bible).

Would any of our family, friends, readers of our blog, be willing to buy a new bible for our twelve older kids????

Here’s a link to the bible that we’ve chosen for our kids:

http://www.amazon.ca/Niv-Teen-Study-Bible-Richards/dp/031072273X/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1327598931&sr=1-3-fkmr0

It doesn’t have to be from the above link but this is the book that we would like for the kids to have.

If you would like to purchase a bible, here’s where to send it to (or drop it off if you are in the area):

Newmarket Alliance Church

1140 Gorham Street

Newmarket ON

L3X 8W4

Canada

Sean and I thank you in advance for doing this for us and our kids.

Much Love,

Meredith

A Short Update

It’s been awhile since I updated.

As many of you are aware, December was a difficult month for all of us at In Step. We lost sweet Cindy-Lou on December 18^th, 2011. Carla and I were with her when she slipped away in Carla’s arms. It was a peaceful death.

We miss her.

I miss her.

But God has been faithful to us in our healing.  Although sweet baby girl is praising Him in Heaven, we are praising Him on earth for giving us the time that we had with her here.

God has given us 106 other beautiful faces and smiles to love, protect and raise.

It’s a complete joy and yet so overwhelming at times.  To be given a responsibility to help raise children from ages 0-18 is amazing. And scary.  I don’t know which is easier, giving birth to a child (which I haven’t done yet) and learning as you go and as your child grows or having every age bracket from newborn to late teens all at once.

All I do know is that we pray a lot for wisdom and seek counsel from Jeff and Carla who have raised their own children.

Yes, it’s a learning curve; a huge one at that but it’s worth it. 

To hear Abby shout a hundred times a day, “La-la Larry!”

To hear Tommy say, “Mama Mary. Nakupenda (which means I love you).”  

To see Naomi come running to me for a hug every time I walk into the room.  

To see Paula give me her scrunchy nose smile.

To give a sweet baby girl a life filled with love and affection for the almost eight months that God gave her on this earth.

Yeah, it’s worth it.

Much Love,

Meredith