4 Years Old

I cannot believe my little girl is FOUR years old. Golly-day!  I am so very proud of the sweet little girl she is and of the little lady she is becoming.

 A daddy's girl to the core, and to say she has him wrapped around her little finger would be the understatement of the century.

  

Blowing out the candles.

The little girl beside Kate is Jovana, Kate's BFF.

Poor Thomas. He was partied out, so he crawled under the coffee table and hid for awhile.

The birthday breakfast.

She was showing off her first two presents.

Thomas helped me make the cake. He was part of the clean-up crew.

The cake: she wanted a Little Mermaid cake WITH the crab and fish. 

Sweet Kate Joy, Oh come let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord our God our Maker. For His word has given you life. Praise the Lord for His merciful kindness is great toward you. He knows your frame. He shall cover you with his feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge. For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. Seek Him early because His lovingkindness is better than life. He is your help therefore in the shadow of His wings you can rejoice. His right hand upholds you. He is your defense. Trust in the Lord and do good. Feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself in the Lord and He shall give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust also in Him. Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him, for He created all things. Abide in His love so that your joy may be full. (From The Bible)

 We LOVE you baby girl!!!

Tea Party and American Goodies

I decided Kate and I needed some good girl time last week. With little Thomas running around, there is lots of ball throwing, jumping off couches, wrestling, running around our couch screaming, playing with cars, etc. Don't get me wrong, he does his fair share of playing with dolls and Kate's kitchen set, but the dolls normally end up getting their heads slammed up against the wall for awhile and plastic food, plates, and tea cups normally end up getting thrown at Kate's head.  Yep. He is a wild man.  So Kate and I were long overdue for a real girlie tea party complete with cloth napkins and all.

We made cupcakes for our tea party.  This is right where she sat the entire time they were in the oven.  

 Then she helped me decorate them.  She did so good!

We sat the table with my tea set from Prague, cloth napkins, and some beautiful silver spoons sent to her from Grandma and Grandpa.

The tea was a delicious cheery koolaid. Yum. It provided a great feminine mustache.

We had so much fun being girlie and chatting about life.  I love my girl!!!

Below is a picture of only some of the American goodies my mom and dad sent! THANKS SO MUCH!  Most of the items pictured have already been devoured.  What a special treat!!!! Ya'll are the best!

Pindjur -- More Roasted Red Peppers

Last week we got together with Ane, again, to make Pindjur, another Macedonian specialty.  Ginna and Hannah were able to come along and help out with the process this time, and we had so much fun.

Pindjur consists of roasted red peppers, tomatoes, carrots, onions, parsley, oil, salt and vinegar.  It is super yummy. 

Watch out, Ginna will cut you! :)

The peppers doing their roasting. We roasted, peeled and seeded 30 kilos of red peppers.

After all the peeling, we put all the peppers in big potato sacks to sit over night so some of the water would drain out of them. Then Ane took them down and ran them through a food mill.

Here are the tomatoes boiling. We used 10 (?) kilos of tomatoes.  Then added two liters of oil!

Here are the milled red peppers waiting to jump on the fire.

While we waited for the tomatoes to boil down to a paste like substance, Ginna and Hannah took the girls to the playground and Ane and I studied the Bible together!

We added 10 kilos of shredded carrots and the chopped onions.

And Hannah stirred and stirred and stirred. It's a workout.

Ginna took over the stirring for a while.  We all took our turn, because you have to stir constantly or risk burning it.

Then after a couple of hours we jarred it.

We left a little in the pot, got a loaf of fresh bread and enjoyed a Macedonian lunch. We earned it!

Aren't they pretty!

In my opinion, pindjur is way better than ajvar.  Here is a recipe, if you would like to try it at home. This recipe is written by lady who is married to a Macedonian. They are living together in the states so the recipe is tailored to ingredients and means you have right down the road. Enjoy, and don't forget to pray!

Great Article on Work in Europe

A colleague just wrote a great article on the darkness in Europe and the work that it is going on here.


Karen Pearce, a writer with our organization says:


          "A disturbing trend is people who refer to themselves as secular Christians. They join churches because they see the positive aspects of being involved in programs with moral teaching, but they are not at all interested in pursuing spiritual conversations.  The church becomes more of a community center than a place of worship."


Check out the whole Article.

Family Pictures

 Brian hates the below picture, but it's all we have. I'm putting it up here until he takes another one. :)

Click here to see more Fall Fun.

AJVAR!!!!

Ajvar is one true Macedonian specialty.  It is a red pepper relish.  I spent almost two whole days with Ane and her family helping them make ajvar.  

Here we are peeling the roasted red peppers.  We peeled about 65 kilos (143 lbs). 

While we peeled, we sang some Macedonian Christian songs and just enjoyed one anothers' company. I LOVE Ane!!!

 Here's Lade roasting the peppers.  He wanted proof that he did actually help. :)

More peeling. My hands smelled like red peppers for days.

The peppers doing their thing on the big outdoor stove. The pot is some corn on the cob for a later snack.

The peeled and seeded peppers. 

Day 2: I got there at about 10 and Ane already had the mixture in the pot.  She and her mom had run the peppers through a food mill the night before.  

The mixture: 65 kilos of peppers and 2 liters of oil.  You let it boil...

And boil...

And BOIL for about 4-5 hours while stirring constantly (except for a break to take pictures of course).

Ane added some chopped eggplant, a few spoonfuls of yellow mustard, and A LOT of salt. Then you jar it.

And boil the jars for 15-20 minutes to seal them. We made about 25 large jars.

Here are some other red peppers she "sewed" together that will dry out in the sun. She will use these through the whole winter.

Ajvar (eye-var) is not my most favorite Macedonian specialty.  To me it tastes a lot like pimento, but the Macedonians LOVE it. It is a staple in their winter diet. A lot of times they will have a jar of ajvar, some sirenje (white cheese) and bread for a meal.  If you are interested in giving it a try, you can find a recipe here or here with video.

Going Home

After a few days of poking, prodding and testing, I am headed back to Macedonia.  Thanks for praying for me.  I wasn't given any real definitive answers as to what is causing my problems, but I was given some new meds to try.  Praise the Lord that all of my tests came back within normal range except for a Vitamin D deficiency which is easily fixable.  God is faithful.  Perhaps, my tummy troubles are just the thorn in my flesh that will keep me humble and on my knees.  Once again, I am so grateful for the tremendous ministry of the IMB and the prayers of my brothers and sisters in Christ.

Budapest

Brian finally got his way. He and our awesome organization (thanks IMB supporters) sent me off to Budapest to try and figure out why my stomach hurts ALL the time.  So, I am here, enjoying (?) a lot of quiet time, a city with tons of American fun, and a doctor that actually listens to me.  But all of that means Brian is at home enjoying being Mr. Mom.  He's the man and I have NO doubt in his abilities to hold down the fort, keep the children clean, fed and happy, and also (semi) do a little work on the side.

Please pray for us all as we are apart for an indefinite period of time.  I shared with a worried Macedonian friend yesterday (via facebook) that she has no need to worry. I am in the mighty right hand of my sovereign creator and sustainer.  He sustains me daily, and he has sustained me through a time that left the doctors beside themselves in utter confusion.  He is faithful. He is good.

Also continue to pray for our sweet friends the Dovers. Josiah just started his second round of chemo yesterday. Continue to pray that his body responds well to the treatment, that he be healed and that most of all our Healer be glorified in it all. You can follow their story on CaringBridge or Facebook.

I will leave you with this quote by John Piper, "The prospect of eternal suffering is the most sobering truth in the world."  None of the above is easy, but we have hope. We have LIFE. Pray especially for those who are muttling through their days without this hope we have in Christ.

Шопска Салата

Have you been wondering, what on earth can I do with all of these delicious tomatoes and cucumbers from my garden?  Well, I have the answer.  You can make the most delicious salad there ever was: the шопска салата (shopska salad).  YUM!

 Here's what to do:

• Cut your tomatoes and cucumbers into bite size pieces.
• Mix together with salt and pepper to taste.
• Add chopped onion and green pepper if desired (They add so much deliciousness!)
• Mix in a little olive oil and vinegar. (You don't need a lot.)
• Throw in some fresh parsley, finely chopped.
• Add some crumbled/shredded feta cheese (the closest thing you can get to the amazing Macedonian сирење (sirenje) to top it off.
• Prepare yourself for one amazing salad. And make sure you have some delicious fresh baked bread to sop up the juice at the end.

It sounds so simple, right?  Well, almost all of our volunteers will agree it is one of the best things Macedonian cuisine has to offer.  Give it a try, and while you make it and eat it, pray for those here who don't yet know Christ as their savior.

"We are the Body"

Yay! Yay! YAY!  There is finally a music video to one of the best songs ever written.  Take a listen!

Mandi Mapes | "We Are The Body" from AsiaStories on Vimeo.

Happy Independence Day Macedonia

We LOVE living in Macedonia, especially in Ohrid.  Today is Macedonia's Independence Day --the one when they declared their independence from Yugoslavia.

Happy 20th Birthday Macedonia! May your next 20 years be filled with kindness from your neighbors, brotherly love among your citizens, success in all your endeavors, jobs for all people, and MOST of all the love of God! Know that we pray for you everyday!!!

"May [God] grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans!
May we shout for joy over your salvation,
and in the name of our God set up our banners!
May the LORD fulfill all your petitions!"

Pslam 20:4-5

 "Да ти даде според желбата на твоето срце, и да ги исполни сите твои намери! Ќе се радуваме за твоето спасение, во името на нашиот Бог ќе ги дигнеме знамињата. Господ да ги исполни сите твои молби!" 

Пслам 20:4-5