another shot of the kitchen. Isn't the cup drying system efficient? :)

the commode is separate from the shower and sink area which is convenient.

the girl's room where all four of us sleep. (and what you see is truly as big as it is) but we're having a good time :) Thank God for sisters :)

That's the inside of the house and maybe someday when time permits i'll post some of the outside.... -bye for now- Martina

Ok several people have asked for a 'tour' of the house.... so here goes...

this is right inside the front door (livingroom)


To the right is a table (our diningroom) and beyond that, the kitchen. Mom keep making comments like "this is just like cooking when i was a little girl :)" hmm... :

the office where we all 'fight' for the computer... :) it will also be Daniel & Monica's schoolroom and our sewingroom where mom gets to sew on a machine like they had 'when she was a girl' :)

The boys room, which seems large for only two.....

COMMUNION SUNDAY IS A SPECIAL DAY!



What energy these people put into commemorating the Lord's Supper! It gives you an entirely new outlook at what it really is all about. This is new to them and so real. God really has delivered them from some dire situations. Glen Helmuth asked Bishop John and his wife, Millicent and family from Rabour to officiate since Merle Beachy is on furlough. The brethren stood in a circle on one side of the pulpit and the sisters on the other side and broke bread and drank wine together.

Later the sisters washed feet out behide the church on a reed mat. It was interesting seeing white hands washing black feet and visa vera. The water got dirty from all the dust the people walked through coming to church. Watching little ones were very intrigued.

The attendance was 210 with several new people attending. There are new ones coming constantly, many are sincere but some also come for the loaves and fishes. They need to be interviewed. Most can hardly believe the good news of the gospel and are so happy to hear about it.

Everyone one was in a jolly, happy mood, as is typical after sharing communion together, and we visited a long time. David and Myrna was hounded by their little friends who wanted to touch their skin,hair and clothes. It's a little hard for them to understand.

We arrived back at Glens at 2:00 and hungry. I think we need to be eating a large Sunday breakfasts. Rosanna had invited the Pastor John and Millicent family and interpeter Tom and Pamela and family. John's were very interested in hearing about Martina and Jamien's relationship. They had known known the Lloyd Beiler from when they had served Rabour. One of their sons is named Lloyd. (Wilburforce, our language teacher, named their youngest daughter Bethany.)It was good learning to know them. People are the same wherever you go no matter what the skin color.

The first Lord's Day in Kenya

The weather is beautiful with the temperature in the mid-80's and low humidity. The equator sun is warm but in the shade it is very
pleasant. Our first Sunday in the Kajulu church was quite interesting. From Kisumu town, we drove out into the country about 7-8 miles into a mountian setting. We passed many, many people walking. Many look sad and even angry. When we arrived at church how refreshing it was to see these happy faces. The church building itself is nice and the services interesting although we kept being distracted by our surroundings. The place was full and this congregation is only 6 years old. We could hardly believe the amount of children that were there. Along the wall, on both sides of the auditorium, girls and boys were seated on benches from front to back. Many of them were orphans. Occassionally the young usher would go along and poke a sleepy one or shake his finger at what he thought was unruly. David and Myrna would be well surpervised sitting with the others. Our American ushers may have to begin this Puritan practice. The attendance was about 170 people.

Jennifer, a middle-aged widow lady with 5 children, had a number of us for lunch. Some of us walked the 2 miles while Sam and Glen Helmuth delivered others to their homes. Again the setting was poor according to our standards but very clean. It was much like many of us would remember playing house in the woodshed and eating out there. The food was cooked over an open fire and very tasty. Even the 2 youngest ate their fullest.

David, our Ukrainian son, is our least shy one. He soon won the hearts of children and adults. He loves holding babies much to the mother's delight. They were all jabbering away, David in English and the women in Luo. Elida, the lady in blue, used to make 'booze' for the mountian men. The local women were happy when she quit after becoming converted.

It was a jolly group we interacted with. Jennifer's daughters love to sing and in 4-part harmony. They presented a small program welcoming the new pastor and saying good-by to Glens. It was touching! We as a family sang several songs too.

Keep us in your prayers. The language classes keep us busy and the whole adjustment is rather stretching.

Mattie

I figured it was about time for a change of senery here :) Mom still wants to post about our first Sunday but hasn't gotten around to it yet... these pictures are from Sunday night. Lake Victoria is very beautiful and has become a favorite place in Kenya! :) It was a little cloudy but it was still a lovely sunset.

Here are the adults relaxing... Rosanna, Mattie, Sam, and Glen. We've had a lot of fun with them already and are going to miss them when they leave in several months. :(

Melody (Glen and Rosanna's daughter) has made us feel so welcome here!

thats all for now- we'd love to hear from you in comments ;) - Martina

p.s. and if you want that sunday post you might have to 'let mom know' :) :)

This morning Monica and i walked to Nakumatt (the Kenyan Walmart) to do some shopping. It hardly even feels like you're in Kenya when you walk into this place. We had a good time with Joanne and Bethany before they left this evening. We were very sad that they couldn't be here longer :( But it's so good to be with Rosalie again! :) I guess a lot of you will be seeing Joanne and Bethany before too long. They have a long trip home... Kisumu to Nairobi to London to Atlanta to Harrisburg. Not to mention all the layovers in between :(
-Martina

We just sent out an email update (it's the same one that we have on this blog) but if you would like to have it via email, please email us at samattie8@gmail.com and we'd gladly put you on the list.
Thank- you :) -Martina

After 2 uneventful flights, we Kauffmans and Fishers, arrived in Nairobi, Kenya on Thursday evening. (We had met the Fisher family in London.) One of our 24 tubs did not come through and Lees had 2 out of 27. Glen and Rosanna Helmuth, whom we're replacing, were there to meet us. Randy and Wilma Lapp came for Lees family. We were a weary bunch and glad to sleep at the Mennonite guest house before doing anything else. The next morning, Glens took us to "The Java House" for an outdoor breakfast. The drive to Kisumu is an experience in itself; people, people, PEOPLE everywhere.....and God keeps track of all the hairs on everyone's head! The 5 hour drive pretty BREAKFAST AT THE JAVA HOUSE much involves speed bumps, pot holes and inching through conjested towns. And of course, being the typical toursists we still are, we "oohed and aahed" at the zebras, gazelles, and baboons feeding in the ditches along the way. ( This is the first animal picture I promised my Bender nieces and nephews.) What unusual ceatures to see in the wild! We would only see these in world books and never thought we'd ever set foot in Africa.

We FINALLY arrived at our house in Kisumu and guess who the children went to see first! Rosalie, Joanne and Bethany Beiler! They live behind our house in what they call the servants quarters! They had just returned from 'mudding' a house and didn't think they were too presentable! We didn't care, we were just glad to see a familair face in such an out of the way place! Later, the compound folks got together for supper and welcome for us. It was good to meet everyone. We are now dealing with jet lag and as tired as we are, sleeping is difficult until 2:00 in the night. Did I say difficult? I meant impossible! This is compounded with barking dogs, and finally when blessed sleep finally does come in the wee hours of the morning, we are awakened by the chickens in our back yard and unfamliar squawking birds noises. We womenfolks also have dealt with a 24 hour flu bug we picked up somewhere. We did see some masked people in London.....perhaps trying to avoid the swine flu.....

The weather here is beautiful! The equator sun is very warm but the shade is surprisely cool, due to the low humidity. Brightly-colored birds and flowers are fascinating to say the least. We'll have to do some studying to indentify these tropical items. The fruit we'll be missing in the Kauffman's orchard are being replaced by delicious pinapples, mangos and banannas.

We likely will be updating on Monday mornings. Our internet service is very poor in the evening. Please stay posted. Mattie

Hello folks, we are here! :) we've had trouble connecting to the internet which is why we haven't posted anything. We had a very interesting day at church. :) Mom will hopefully be able to give a more detailed version of our travels and experiences.... and maybe with some pictures. *fingers crossed*
Thanks for your interest in our lives. -Martina

We had a great time with family here this past weekend for Roger & Rhonda's wedding! It was so special to have them all here right before we leave. And yes, it's down to 8 days. :O we have nearly everything packed just some last minute things to do yet. Monica & I leave for tour tomorrow morning and come back on Monday. Then it will be a flurry of activity around here till we leave at noon on Wednesday.
- Martina