In Salem OR - 21 weeks

It is so good to be in Salem again!! The Base, friends and where the calling came to us the first time.
We had an opportunity to come and bring some equipment to the program that we use to run here from Minnesota. Such a blessing with the financial help and the Van that the Church in Minnesota is lending us. God is faithful!!!
We just came to know that our both insurances are going to work together for the prenatal and deliver of our baby. We were worrying about the cost and how much we would have to pocket out on the cost... again, He is taking care of us!
Jess is looking prettier and prettier every day, she still pretty small and you have to really look to see if is a baby there, and the baby is kicking and moving all the time.
We are having a ful days here of visits and meetings with people that support us and work at the same agency. It is so good to see freind and be loved by them. Fun to hear their histories and that their lifes are moving too and the Lord is taking care of each one.

We will be going to WY on the 15th for few days and back to MN on the 20th.

Sorry for no pictures, I have to post some later

Blessings!!!

Stateside!

Whilst we officially arrived home over a week ago, the actual adjustment to the arrival is just now starting to take place... We are both overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of this place- the trees, the grass, the rich blue sky... We can't help but make "oooo" and "ahhh" sounds on a regular basis. We've been overly blessed to have a comfortable place to stay and the use of a vehicle- a fabulous mini-van (which Eddy and I think is the handiest invention- tons of space, removable seats, standing room... what a concept!). Our friends and church have welcomed us back with open arms and we've been bustling about sharing meals and stories together.

We decided it might be a good idea to take a few days, just Eddy and me, to sort of debrief a bit, get away and "breathe". I (Jess) decided a trip "up North", as they say here in MN, would be just the thing. And that would have been the case had I checked the weather forcast... doh! Duluth, MN, the port city on Lake Superior, and the coastline up to Canada, CAN be absolutely beautiful; but can also be absolutely horrible! (Curious? Listen to Gordon Lightfoot's "The Edmund Fitzgerald") So, completely unaware of the gail of 40 mph winds and 30F temps that awaited us "up north", we ventured out in our handy mini-van, packed to the gills with firewood, camping equipment and food. We'd even spent a few hours carefully planning out our geocaching goals -- Grab a cache in Canada!! (never heard of it? You're missing out! www.geocaching.com)We should've guessed there'd be problems as we started out way too late, driving out of the cities around 1pm- guess Africa is still in our blood... We scored our first "find" an hour or so outside the cities, a relatively easy park and grab with a short venture into the woods. The next one followed suit, easy hike to a quick find. We were on a roll! Until... we were back on the highway and I glanced down towards Eddy's legs and saw... a TICK!!! Ugh! And then another! And another! And another!!! (FYI- it's wood tick season in MN...) We honestly should've stopped then. From that point on we were itching and scratching and shaking and just plain PARANOID. But we kept on trucking- all the way up to the frigid Superior. We managed to find a few more cahces, but our hopes of a quiet get-away, with campfire time and walks along the placid lake shore were dashed. We took a few pictures, tried to take in the icey beauty, jumped back in the van and raced back to sunny Minneapolis.
Otherwise, we are well! I'm around 20 weeks along and officially started looking more pregnant a few days ago- and we've even been feeling the little guy move! My mom arrives tomorrow to visit for a few days and Eddy will be running a half-marathon on May 31st. (He's training for the Twin Cities Marathon in October.) We're hoping to take a trip out to WY to visit some friends in the beginning of June and then back to MN to help lead a Church outreach up North.
It's definitely a bit surreal being back and we're still trying to figure out which end is up, as they say. But each day gets a little easier. Making sense of living the last year in the Land-of-Sand and adjusting temporarily to life back in the U.S. has and will have its challenges-- maintaining vision while seeking out refreshing and "plugging" back in to our social networks. We trust God will triumphantly lead us through this next chapter of our lives, as he always has!
Photos: A couple of dust shots- the usual view of the Nile, followed by the view during our 5 day Habuub... Eddy in the stairwell- it was swept a few hours before... geocaching in MN- Eddy's the dark glob in the background... Our first cache in Duluth- freezing!... Eating Tobies famous caramel rolls and caching- does it get any better?... Eddy pointing out into the frigid surf, where some college guys were boogie-boarding... fools!!!... Eddy finds a cache in Duluth- debriefing at its best!

Fatima or Ahmed?

Today we had our final visit with our friendly Dr. Samir to see one last $30 glimpse of our little bundle of joy... and... We our happy to announce that we are having a BOY!!!!! It's apparently very apparent! More importantly, everything looks completely normal and he is developing well; even putting me/him a week farther along than we thought.

And the weather... always making sure we experience the full scope of possibilities here in the land-o-sand! The temps soared this past week, hitting a high of 125.4F one day, followed by several days above 120F. Then in fine desert form, the sand storms, or Habuub, have hit in full force. It's been pretty much constant habuub-ing for the past 4 days. We've tried to keep up with the cleaning while packing up, to no use. Even now, visibility is down to 1/8 mile and we're wiping our eyes and coughing INSIDE the house. We just hope it lets up eventually so we can do a final cleaning before heading out of here on Thursday morning (2am).

Nile Valley Academy is also closing up shop after this next week. We will only be there 2 more days, finishing up grading, cleaning and preparing things for the summer. We've been busy this past week with awards ceremonies, higlighting those students with exceptional skills in athletics and who played on teams. Eddy and I both realized what a pleasure it has been to work with these students and how much we're going to miss them. Most of the students are begging Coach Eddy to stay on another year... as always, he's won their hearts!

I'm not sure if we'll have time to write before leaving here on Thursday... We'll be flying out of here via London and landing in Minneapolis on Friday. While the heat, sand storms and stress of school have us anticipating our break, we do wonder how we will handle and adapt to this next chapter of our lives. Living here has been amazing and tough, adjusting to language, cultural and religious diferences has been at times overwhelming, aside from the daily life struggles that everyone experiences no matter where one lives. We are relying on God to continue to lead us and speak to us, refreshing our vision and passions while continuing to use us wherever we hang our hats. We plan on maintaining our blog throughout our time in the states... We have so appreciated your prayers and encouragements... Thank You!!!

Photos: At Dr. Samir's, getting an ultrasound... Our little baby boy, measuring in at 17 weeks 4 days- and look closely- there's the proof that he's a boy! The Habuub... during and the aftemath- and which continues to rage outside- ugh! The awards ceremony held at the school... Evidence that it got above 125F- ridiculous.

The Energizer Mutt

Meet Toffee; pronounced like "toe-fee", not "tah-fee". He's your basic, friendly neighborhood "watch-dog". He lives on the ground floor of our good friends Mike and Suzanne's flat. A nice Khawaja family owns him; they've lived here about 10 years and are heading back to England in June. Over the months and years we've gotten to know Toffee quite well. He's a bit of a street mutt, always on the prowl, looking for another fight and returning with another wound. Over time he's become quite attached to us, loping (or limping) over when we stop by, rubbing his scabby, crusty infected eyes on our clothes and occasionally, following us wherever we go.

For example, in December, when a few of us ran the "First Inaugural Khartoum International The Four Bridges Fun-Run to Save Darfur Half Marathon", he ran the first 6 miles with us. That's right, that pathetically malnourished, half alive pup trotted half way across the city with us. Needless to say, you can bet we got quite a few more stares for not only being Khawajas jogging in the city, but having a mangey mutt galloping along side us.

And more recently, he yet again, donned his loyal cloak and accompanied Suzanne and I on an outting to our local Suuq (big, open market). Let me preface this by pointing out that DOGS DON'T GO TO THE SUUQ. It's like an unspoken rule. Even the multitude of strays stay out- as if they have an instinctive sense and know they're just not allowed. So, there we are, two fair-skinned, light haired Khawajas non-chalantly walking into the Suuq accompanied by Toffee the Wonder Pup. The amounts of stares, calls, frowns, comments, questions and followers that four-legged accompaniment brought on was unimaginable. We tried frantically, desperately, yet overtly, to send him home- the stern "go home Toffee", both in english and arabic, had no impact. It was no use.

We stopped in a pharmacy; good ol' faithful Toffee stopped in too. The owner was NOT amused. We tried to explain that this truly in fact was not our dog; he wasn't buying it. We stepped into a street vendors clothing booth; Toffee browsed with us, IN the booth. It was awkward, uncomfortable and emabarresing. Finally, desperate and exaserbated with our furry friend, we resorted to sneaking into a rickshaw (a 3-wheeled, semi-enclosed form of transport with a 2-stroke engine), thinking that going anywhere in a motorized vehicle would comfuse him and he would eventually, hopefully, wander home. Of course there was a small traffic jam, as the Suuq is located in the middle of the local bus station. So we waited, unmoving in our roasting little rickshaw, slyly peering out the sides, watching Toffee's response to our mysterious disappearance.

I felt bad at first. Poor guy; just trying to help, guarding the khawajas on a day at the Suuq. But people were STILL staring at us in the rickshaw, and at him as he turned circles scanning the multitude of people for us. Finally, looking totally perplexed and confused (and very pathetic), he slowly turned around and trotted off into the crowds towards home. Suzanne and I, still not gaining any distance in our rickshaw get-away mobile, thanked the driver for the 5-minutes stuck in traffic and hesitatingly crept out of our hiding place. Glancing over our shoulders, and avoiding the numerous stares and comments, we high-tailed it to a different section of the market, praying Toffee hadn't caught on to our antics and was still heading home. And apparently the charade worked, as the rest of our shopping trip was most uneventful...

What's Left: We're down to just 2 more weeks here... School is winding down and we're in the process of finishing up classes and closing down. The weather has remained hot, never dipping below 110F (it's 11am and 113F), but thankfully, we've had fewer power cuts in the last 5 days... making things much more tolerable! These next few weeks will be spent cleaning and packing; all our belongings being stored in a friend's shipping container.

Photos: Toffee, rubbing his infected eyes on Eddy's shorts... Eddy and Timo, a family friend who will be moving to the north to contiue the family business... A small going away party for Mike and Suz and us thrown by our organizatin friends... The view outside our flat window... and Toffee, always on the look-out...

Gracious Uncertainty

Before we meet for school everyday some of the staff gather for devotions, each taking weekly turns throughout the year to lead these 15-minute re-focusing times. It's our turn these next 2 weeks and I had spent some time trying to plan what I was going to say. I was thinking to share some cool life experience with a neat truthful tie-in, when last night, at 8:30 pm our power was cut. My plans changed a bit... It wasn't that the power cut deleted my little talk or that there was no more power to finish composing it. Rather, it was how things continued to transpire that inspired me to change the topic.

It was close 105F outside when the power cut and reaching 100F inside. With no fans running and no swamp coolers cooling, it would likely become much hotter. We immediately called some friends who happen to live in an area with lots of prominent businesses and business owners and therefore, have virtually no power-cuts. We threw ourselves at their mercy and begged to stay the night with them. They gladly welcomed us and Eddy and I slept in their living room, swamp coolers whirring about us.

Now this all sounds nice and good, we handled the situation well. But what I neglected to report was our rather awful attitudes throughout this time. We were discouraged, frustrated, angry, hot, irritable, grouchy, catty to each other... and the list goes on. And as the night progressed and I had time to reflect, I realized how much we wrongly assume about life and living, especially here in the Land-o-Sand. Certainty. We, especially as westerners, take so much for granted, assuming so many things are assured, trusted, reliable and dependable. Things like electricity, health care, national security, food, shelter, clothing, governmental assistance, our "rights" as citizens, freedom, etc. When in reality, and Biblically speaking, almost nothing is certain! God promises us that- as it says in scripture... who knows what tomorrow will bring? The only thing truly certain, in things, events, life, is God himself, all else being certainly uncertain!

As the saying goes (sort of)... Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we respond to what happens. So in light of this promised and experienced uncertainty, we fall on the grace and mercy of God and ask him to work in us a response that is glorifying to him and encouraging to others. 'Cause we can bank on all sorts and lots more of uncertainty in this place!

Visa Update: We have successfully renewed our visas for another year- thank God Eddy is Brazilian! It cost us a pretty penny, but almost guarentees us re-entry next year. We are now in the process of getting our exit/re-entry permits (we literally cannot leave the country without them... they usually cost around $900... nice.)

Pregnancy Update: I'm working on my 15th week, and all seems to be progressing just fine. We'll go in for another ultrasound before we leave.

School Update: Only 11 more days of school... whew! We're in the process of closing things down, returning library books, cleaning the nurses area, etc. Eddy is trying to figure out what to do with the kids when it's 117F outside; or more simply put, how to keep kids from dying during PE.

Photos: Pool time again! We jumped at the chance of chaperoning a pool party for a multitude of middle schoolers... anything for a swim! Neat tricks? Eddy still can't move his next freely! I've had a strong hanckering for cantalope- and we found these Galia melons, a close cousin.. delicious! We went with some friends to explore a park/zoo in the city- sort of, or rather, very depressing... (that's a giant replica of what they serve coffee in).

Peak Heat, Pools & Pregnancy

In case you were wondering, it's still hot. We're guessing the "coolness" of winter/spring is long gone and are settling into the sweltering heat of summer. We're also expecting our friendly Habuubs (sand storms) to start as well... good ol' Land-o-Sand! What we would give for a little Oregon rain here!?

As the temperature rises, the one thing we all desperately crave is WATER- any form really. Drinking water- we keep a 3 gallon cooler/jug filled 'round the clock, with added frozen bowls of water to attempt to keep us cool; we'll go through it everyday. Showers- we praise God that our little flat has an electric pump that sends up water, allowing us to rinse off the sand and dirt... and while the water isn't cold (or even cool), we're not complaining! Pools- there are a few clubs in the city that have decent swimming pools and similarly decently steep membership fees that don't fit the budget. However, a few of them do allow guests daily entrance for about $10. While this seems a bit pricey for a day at the pool, we consider it a gift from God when it is 118F in the shade.

This past weekend was Coptic Easter and we had a couple days off from school. So we grabbed some food, towels and friends and headed to the German club for the day. This club tends to draw a more local crowd. As we got ourselves situated we couldn't help but glance around at the other patrons. To our left, a European in a tiny string bikini. And to our right, a woman in a burka (the long head/ body covering gown; only exposing eyes). That... that my friends, you don't see everyday. Needless to say, despite the scantily clad khawaja, it took us awhile to feel comfortable enough to get in the water!

And finally, why not a pregnancy shot?? Just this week I've had people commenting that I'm looking more pregnant... I've started my 14th week. Now you can be the judge...!

Photos: Easter party at our friend's house- us, Mike & Suz and our German friends, Christian and Silke... Our weekly organization meetings... At the German Club- relaxing- the cabanas really add soemthing!! My preggo pics- 5 weeks, 10 weeks, 14 weeks...

Spring in the Land of Sand

Really, it's all just variations of summer. We've started to see the thermometer creep up over the last few weeks; well, perhaps "soar" or "sky-rocket" are more accurate! We've been steadily over 110F all week, with a high a few days ago of 118F. And with the warmer temps always come frequent electricity cuts, stretching our tolerance and patience. But praise God, the power usually resumes before the day is over and/or the food spoils... and His grace is always sufficient!

I'm (Jess) finishing up my 1st trimester, and aside from some occasional dizziness, am feeling much better! The heat has made things a bit more uncomfortable, but we try our best to stay hydrated and take frequent rests (me especially!)... Eddy hasn't been as fortunate and came down with a digestive bug a few days ago. We stopped counting trips to the bathroom yesterday, losing track during the wee-hours of the morning. We since have started him on a course of antibiotics and he seems to be on the mend. I forced him to stay home today, believing a day without teaching PE in the blazing hot N. African sun might save him from severe dehydration and complicating his condition.

Occasionally, with the routine of life, we tend to forget the realities of where we live... a developing nation, fresh from civil war, with serious health problems and risks. We were painfully reminded of those realities today. A dear local couple we know lost their first child, a 6 month old, due to blood poisoning, ultimately leading to kidney failure. A dedicated, like-minded inter-tribal pair who have struggled to be accepted by their in-laws; Recently married after years of waiting; Proud and loving parents to an adorable baby boy... Our hearts and prayers go out to them as we trust God to bring comfort during this incredibly difficult time.

Out with Cops III

I have to tell this one:
And it did happened again. Got pulled over going to the gym class this time. I was quite in the hurry and had two hard classes right before.. so wasn't too happy at the moment. When I saw the cop, my mind just said " no way, all that we need now!!" The cop almost jumped in front of the car for I stop. I opened the window and he asked for my license... again, I gave my expired, laminated Brazilian license... he looked at it and asked where is my new license, this time in broken english... I just looked at him and told him " this is good, I don't need a new one!" and he told me again "where is the new one?".. I got a little more "on fire" and told him "I don't need a new one, this is good!". So he looked at me and look at the license, gave the the license and told me to go.
Third time in 10 days, not a fine, praise God!!!

Yesterday we went to the doctor again and look at the baby. Jess was a little nervous about somethings and we went just to make sure that everything was fine. After few hour we did another ultrasound and the baby is fine. Has a little over 2 Inches (5.06cm) and is moving a lot. No marks behind the neck and seems to be perfect. The doctor told us that seems to be a boy but still to soon too confirm. We could see the vertebrae and the ribs.. The hands and feet are there and the baby can really move. Seems like he is laying with a pillow, so cool! Tears again and a great relief! 12 weeks today, almost second trimester.

This weeks has been hot, today 110F.. poor Jess, so hot inside the little ferrari without AC but, it is such a blessing don't have to catch the bus.
We are in the new visa process, if everything would go fine, we should have it by few days.
I'm running again, on May 31st I'll be running a half marathon in Minneapolis and I want to run a full marathon in October before the baby comes. Exciting and exhausting...
Jess put a little party for me last Friday. We had some close friends coming and so much fun to have few different nations getting together to eat some meat like we do in Brazil.

Blessings!!!

Photos: Our Little Soboll, already practicing soccer kicks! Eddy at work- grilling on our roof top hosch(patio/veranda/balcony area)- we all agreed it was the best tasting meat we've ever had in the Land of Sand...

out with the Cops II

And today again.... coming back from the Gym class to the school, after pick up some beens and fish food a Cop pulled me over. Second time in last than 10 days... may be I have to let my facial hair grow again.... Anyway, he asked for my drivers license and I gave him my expired, laminate copy and told him I was a teacher and from Brazil. he took the license to his superior inside the official vehicle. The guy look and look at it, but can't read Portuguese.... The cop came back and asked me again, Are you a teacher?? My answer yes and a soccer coach... He smile and let me go. At least he didn't come inside my car or ask for a ride God is good..

Jess still throwing up, not as bad as was but a little. We are very excited about the baby and yesterday she started complaining about the pants... We wan tot go to the doctor everyday to see our baby, in few week we will go. This is her 11th week and growing...
I've talked to one of the founder of the school today about next year and the doors still open to come and coach for the school and start a soccer school after the school hours. He was very excited and seems like it will work it out for next year.

We are dealing with visas now, still early to renew, so we are wondering what to do to be able to come back with no much problems.. it will be very costly and time consuming, but we have to do it.

Photos:
Kailani, Jes's Brother's baby that came on Feb 21st. Gabriela, first grandchild of Eddy's family, came on March 21st, Eddy's sister expecting Mariannah for May. The year of the babies!!!

Blessings!!

Out with Cops!

Fridays I meet with two other guys for some accountability and time together. This last Fri, as I was on my way driving on the empty streets of downtown, because it's a day off, I stopped at a red light and waited for the green to go. I saw a policeman sitting on the corner of the street, stand up and come on my way. As I saw the timer for the light, it still had 23 seconds to be green, I could not go. Because of corruption here, when a cop approaches, check your pocket or run... but I couldn't!

So the guy tap on my window and asked for my Drivers License. Being a Brazilian here I have some advantages around. I gave him my copy laminated expired license from Brazil and it wasn't enough, he wanted my passport too. He made me pull over to the curb and got inside the car with me (!). In my head I just wanted to tell him that he wasn't welcomed in my car... (for the culture here, not acceptable). He wants my passport and because I didn't have it with me he wanted 30 SDG.(+/- 15 bucks). I told him I didn't have it and he got a little upset. He wrote on his hand 60. I started thinking that he was raising the fine. So, he told me to drive somewhere, I told him, "No-wait, the light is red", and he kept telling me to go! So, I just said (in a mix of Arabic/English), "no, no sir, it is red and put your seat belt on!!!

After the light turned green I drove for a block or two and then, fed up, pulled over and I told him that I wasn't going in that direction. I needed to turn around, and kept telling him to put the belt on. (He didn't anyway...) He asked me, "where is your Arabic?" I told him, (in Arabic) I'm from Brazil and we speak Portuguese, Arabic is too hard... The situation was getting kind of hot inside the little "Ferrari" and he was so disappointed!!! I told him that I would keep a copy of my passport inside the car form now on, I was just afraid of loosing the passport... He made me turn around and drop him off at the same stop light. He was pissed that I didn't buy him breakfast... and I went on my way happy for another Friday morning meeting.

We are at the 10th week of pregnancy. This week the little peanut can put his little arms around the tiny heart/chest and his nails are coming on his fingers and toes.

The hot season is here, this last week was around 105-108F during the day, praise God for energy and swamp coolers.

Blessings!!

Photos: A day at a Nile beach (up river a bit) with our friends who have access to a boat! Our homemade sun shelter, a king sheet, courtesy of our friends in MN!... Eddy and Mike playing frisbee in the Nile... Eddy coaching the NVA crocs in their final game- and a win!!

Little Soboll!!!

We decided that around 9-10 weeks we should take a trip to our local OBGYN to check on our little growing "mini-us"... And today was the day! But before diving in, let me give a little history. I'm (Jess) a nurse; I know perhaps a little too much, or maybe not quite enough, about the realities of pregnancy. My morning sickness had kicked in around week 7, leaving me nauseated and 5 lbs lighter, but started to dissipate these last few days... Causing growing concern inside of this hyper-aware nurses' mind. Perhaps there was something wrong? So instead of the usual giddiness of going to the doctor for a first Ultrasound, I was a bit more... resolutely realistic.

The large office with multiple rooms was clean and simple. Our appointment was for 5:30pm and we arrived in western style on-time. Close to an hour later (...Africa time) we were led to a small office where we gave our basic information. Then we were directed to the in-house lab, where 2 workers in plain clothes hand-pipeted my blood samples and looked under the microscope to count my blood cells... wow, so old school! After another hour passed, and now with the results of my iron level and blood sugar in hand, we waited to see the MD. Around 8:00pm we were shown into the US room. A pleasant doctor asked the routine questions and then onto the table I went... and there after but a second, was our little soon-to-be bundle of joy, measuring in at a little over an inch, heart beating and arms moving! After hearing the heartbeat and seeing him twitch around the screen, we were virtually speechless. To which the doctor laughed and patted the ultrasound machine saying, "thank God for the good American technology!"... Ha!

We were totally over-joyed! What an incredible miracle! And, the cherry on top? The whole thing, doctor's visit, ultrasound, labs... cost a whopping $35!!! Gotta love living in Africa.

We're both much more excited now and are thinking we'll hit the MD's office on a regular basis if an ultrasound is that cheap! Our next officail appointment is for the middle of May, right before we leave. Otherwise, everything looks good... Keep on growing little One!!! : )

Photos: First official picture of Mini-Soboll... Second official picture, with heartbeat showing... Yes, we're already the irritating couple that whips out pictures of their kids whenever there's a dull moment!

Glad that school started again!!

We are thankful for the opportunity and the time that we are spending at the school. Even that is taking so much time from our time and we would love to be in the East right now, the schedule and the routine help us alot. Jess is preparing another reading run with the kids and I'm with the classes. I want to start playing baseball with the older ones. It is funny that I made a comment with one of the parents about baseball and he told me that here no one plays that and he prefer that I teach his kids dance or gymnastics. GREAT, imagine coach Eddy with a pretty tight gym clothes. I'm not Nadia Comaneci.... it would be great!! Who does gymnastics here anyway??

This week we have a meeting with some guys that are interested in starting something in the are of sports here, may be another NGO with the focus on sports and child development in the Sport activities. Is an area here that hasn't been touch yet. If you want to put your kids at a soccer school, you have to be a part of a club, which cost lots of money. So we will see how this is turn around. This generation is almost lost, for the next one.... still hope.

Here is how is our baby doing:

Your pregnancy: 9 weeks

See the big picture

How your baby's growing:

Your new resident is nearly an inch long — about the size of a grape — and weighs just a fraction of an ounce. She's starting to look more and more human. Her essential body parts are accounted for, though they'll go through plenty of fine-tuning in the coming months. Other changes abound: Your baby's heart finishes dividing into four chambers, and the valves start to form — as do her tiny teeth. The embryonic "tail" is completely gone. Your baby's organs, muscles, and nerves are kicking into gear. The external sex organs are there but won't be distinguishable as male or female for another few weeks. Her eyes are fully formed, but her eyelids are fused shut and won't open until 27 weeks. She has tiny earlobes, and her mouth, nose, and nostrils are more distinct. The placenta is developed enough now to take over most of the critical job of producing hormones. Now that your baby's basic physiology is in place, she's poised for rapid weight gain.

Photo: Jess and my sister, both pregnant right now. My sister in law either... and Jess sister in law just had a third baby. Three girls, lets see what our is... but we have to wait!!

Blessings!!

Spring Break

This week we are on our Spring Break at the school. Reality, we are BORED. It is nothing to do here and to make worst Jess can't keep food in. Throw up is something of our daily routine now. The toilet sees her and say: "again?" She loss already around 5 pounds and is not feeling so hot. I was reading about pregnancy and feels like the she has all symptoms that are available douring pregnancy. Unrested arms and legs, headache, vomiting, morning sickness, emotional changes and so on. I'm so proud of her, she is trying to keep the good side of things. She still taking the tablets for pregnancy and trying to keep the iron coming...

Were were planning on going East this week but it felt through. She wasn't feeling good and the feeling of tension outside is pretty high so we were wondering about security the most. The situation with the Government still pretty much in the air and we just have to be careful.
The school starts again on Sunday, we are so looking forward to that. We are making plans for the future and we booked our tickets to go back to the States on May 14th. We were planning on going back in June or July but this tickets are for a year only and if we don't use it we will loose it. So Minneapolis, here we come!!

Your pregnancy: 8 weeks

See the big picture

How your baby's growing:

New this week: Webbed fingers and toes are poking out from your baby's hands and feet, his eyelids practically cover his eyes, breathing tubes extend from his throat to the branches of his developing lungs, and his "tail" is just about gone. In his brain, nerve cells are branching out to connect with one another, forming primitive neural pathways. You may be daydreaming about your baby as one sex or the other, but the external genitals still haven't developed enough to reveal whether you're having a boy or a girl. Either way, your baby — about the size of a kidney bean — is constantly moving and shifting, though you still can't feel it.

Blessings!!!

Inside for a few days...

We are staying inside this last two days because the news about the president and all that are happening here. Politically is not a good time for this part of Africa, specially for the refugees on the west that are seeing their most needed help from the NGOs leaving forcedly by the Government. This NGOs mostly provide clean water, medical care, food and all that the people need to survive as a refugee. We are deeply sad!

Jess is about 7 weeks now and she is not feeling so hot lately. Look at my wife just shows me that how amazing are the woman body and how amazing is the process of making a new person inside. It is hard though to see her throws up, don't eat much, sleeps more and pees more. What an amazing woman, what a change!! I'm so proud of her to just keep going and still smiling (most of the time).
We just found out that we have to go home a little early that we were planning too. Our tickets are good only for one year, with that said, because we came on May last year, we have to leave on May 14th. If we don't leave, we will loose the tickets (around 2000 bucks). So we will be going to MN on May 14th and we will decide from there where we suppose to be for the birth... (Brazil? Hawaii? Oregon? Minneapolis? Florida?Colorado Springs?) few things are in place, My parents are planning on coming for the birth, weather wise, green card applications and location location location...
Our plans are to come back in the beginning of next year, probably mids of January. All depends on green card, new passport for the baby, visas to comeback, tickets... just s few things.

Your pregnancy: 7 weeks

See the big picture

How your baby's growing:

The big news this week: Hands and feet are emerging from developing arms and legs — although they look more like paddles at this point than the tiny, pudgy extremities you're daydreaming about holding and tickling. Technically, your baby is still considered an embryo and has something of a small tail, which is an extension of her tailbone. The tail will disappear within a few weeks, but that's the only thing getting smaller. Your baby has doubled in size since last week and now measures half an inch long, about the size of a blueberry.

If you could see inside your womb, you'd spot eyelid folds partially covering her peepers, which already have some color, as well as the tip of her nose and tiny veins beneath parchment-thin skin. Both hemispheres of your baby's brain are growing, and her liver is churning out red blood cells until her bone marrow forms and takes over this role. She also has an appendix and a pancreas, which will eventually produce the hormone insulin to aid in digestion. A loop in your baby's growing intestines is bulging into her umbilical cord, which now has distinct blood vessels to carry oxygen and nutrients to and from her tiny body.


Blessing to you all!!

Ahmed or Yasmine??

And here comes..... JESS IS PREGNANT!!

See the big picture

How your baby's growing: This week's major developments: The nose, mouth, and ears that you'll spend so much time kissing in eight months are beginning to take shape. If you could see into your uterus, you'd find an oversize head and dark spots where your baby's eyes and nostrils are starting to form. His emerging ears are marked by small depressions on the sides of the head, and his arms and legs by protruding buds. His heart is beating about 100 to 160 times a minute — almost twice as fast as yours — and blood is beginning to course through his body. His intestines are developing, and the bud of tissue that will give rise to his lungs has appeared. His pituitary gland is forming, as are the rest of his brain, muscles, and bones. Right now, your baby is a quarter of an inch long, about the size of a lentil bean.



Unbelievable!!! We are so happy!! Just looking at the pictures about the 6th week and we just cant believe how one of 210,000 little guy get inside another weird "egg" and becomes a person, a World changer, a new family!!
We were in Kenya and after Jess got a little late, we got the test at a pharmacy. i didn't know that two lines have to show up in three minutes after 5 drops of urine. After 5 seconds the two lines were there. I thought that it might go away after three minutes and it didn't go.. so we just start looking a t each other, tears and the reality comes in... Baby on the way!! Parents!! Future!! Family!! Education!!God some help!!!

We are a little scared and excited at the same time, we will be a family in last than 8 months... We both don't know if we want a boy or girl...
Jess is feeling a bit a nauseas and a little more tired than the normal, It is hard to look at my girl and see that she is a little uncomfortable with the feeling on the body!
It is all good!!

Blessings!!

Crocs Finally Win!!!

Yesterday it finally came for the Boys U11 soccer team that Eddy coaches. We won the first on the season (2x1) and specially on the "house" of the undefeated team of the season.
First we had the girls played. Jess led the team greatly but, with our goal keeper kicking the ball to their striker, the goal was inevitable. The girls ran until the end but could not put the ball on the net.
The boys, after arriving at the school and being called losers by the other team and students, set together and we talked. I told them that I was tired of being called that and I just wanted the win. Play hard but play fair!! Two minutes before the game started I got one of our player and asked him to guard their best player: "don't worry about the ball or the game, he is not playing today!" and it did worked. Our two rotating guards did a great job! On the half time we were wining by one goal that their defense player kicked in by mistake. They tied the game right at the beginning of the second half and I told them, keep going guys!! At 7 minutes, our mid fielder kicked at the goal, the ball touched the defender and went slowly between the keeper's lags, the ball didn't even touched the net, it was really sow. The team and the parents went "nuts". 13 minutes to go, screams from the fans and coach: "Go Cros, STOP THEM" and it did worked out!! Our first win after the whistle blew felt like a dream.. players on the ground celebrating like the "World Cup winners", parents smiling and my heart so happy.
With some sorrows form the other team we shook hands and told the other team that they did a great job.

About here, things are pretty hot about the Government situation. Was ready announced on the news that on March 4th it will be announce the decision for the future of the President. The Brazilian Embassy highly recommended to us to leave this week yet and just wait outside for whats is going to happen at this Country. We decided in not leaving because of costs and all of the teachers of the school are staying too. We have some food stocked and we will make sure that we have enough for at least a week. We hope the power don't get cut because during the day is already getting pretty hot (102F today). Next week is our spring break and if the things are calm, we are planning in going East to see what we are called for!!

Nairobi- Mashallah!!

It has been an absolute blessing be able to spend some time in Kenya. Nairobi has grown in leaps and bounds since my (Jess) last visit some 23 years ago, when I was a whopping 12 years old... It's much more developed, with movie theaters, shopping malls and western-style stores. We have done a little shopping, watched a couple movies (yay!!!) and enjoyed wearing western clothes out in public!

The conference started a few days ago and what an encouraging time it has been! Over 40 some people from all over the world are meeting to discuss the same people- and see what's on the heart of God for them! Meeting new people and re-acquainting ourselves with others has given us fresh vision... and excitement for the future!

The meeting will finish tomorrow and we'll have a few more days in the city before heading back home. While we have had an incredible time, we are eager to get back to working at the school, our soccer teams and being at "home"... I think we're finally adapting!

Politically speaking, things are heating up and we're trying to be wise and lay low. Being out of the country is helpful, but makes getting back in a little bit more tricky... We will pray, trust and keep you posted.

Photos: Eddy in a market in Nairobi... Some locals playing soccer in the land of sand- nice pitch eh?? (And how about the local with the donkey selling laban, or milk, in the background?) A cool flower in Kenya... Jess and Eddy geocaching outside of Nairobi- near Karen's house, from the movie Out Of Africa...