Day 9

Technology is awesome! I've been able to keep in touch with my family pretty easily via the Internet and my iPhone. Makes me feel not so far away! I love my family and miss them dearly.

She:

and Him:
Jordan's been pretty busy preparing for class. The big day is tomorrow. I feel like a sad and joyful parent sending him off!


More house tour pics coming up next!


Nikki

Day 8

It was good to be at church today, even if I only understood some of the message. But hopefully that won't be the case forever since we start studying the language with a tutor tomorrow!

She:
and Him:
Jordan starts teaching this week in the final block of the school year. He's been working hard to make sure he's all ready!

Day 7

Spent the morning with Luke, Kelly and Scott, some of our teammates, getting a few family photos before baby number two comes, and planning a few art projects for their nursery.  But my favorite picture came when we took a break to get a snack, and Scott got ahold of the peanut butter jar.  His entire right arm was in the jar.  Needless to say, I passed on the peanut butter.

She:

and Him:

Jordan's picture is a view from Community Baptist Church Pasig after the Saturday night Youth Jam service.

Hope enjoy your Saturday.

Nikki

Day 6

Not only do you get a picture from me, you also get a recipe to follow!  My breakfast.

She:

and Him:

Another peak into Jordan's office.  He's quite the fan.



RECIPE:

Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola
(from here with a few add ins.)


Preheat oven to 300

Then whisk together:
3/4 cup sucanat
1/2 cup dutch cocoa
1/2 soy milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 packet Starbucks VIA
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. almond extract

Then add:
5 cups rolled oats
1/2 wheat germ
1 cup chopped walnuts

Stir it all together and then spread it out in a single layer on two *prepared cookie sheets (*greased, silpat, or parchment).  The cook for 30 minutes, rotating cookie sheets half-way through.  Allow the granola to cool completely, then break into pieces and store in an air-tight container.  Makes about 8 cups.

Come in & Stay Awhile

I'm so excited to share pictures of our home with you!  I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful place that I love to call home.  Honestly, we wouldn't have this home without all of the people who have supported us along the way in getting us here, so thank you!  I owe you so much and I'm glad to have little pieces of my friends and family throughout our home, as well as treasures I found all throughout or travels.  So come on in and stay a while!

This is what you see when you enter our place. We're starting out here, and I'll show you the details of the entryway, as well as my little artist nook on the other side there, but you'll have to wait till next time to see the rest.  Here's a view from the other side:

This is a needlepoint picture I picked up in Hutch as well as the wooden frame around it.  So I guess it holds double meaning for us.  And the little clay America box was done by another budding artist in the family, Jordan!  He wanted me to point out that the emphasis is on the state of Kansas with the handle.  He's Kansas blood through and through.

Then there's some artwork I did a while back that we put up for us to remember the Seasons, since there are really only two here: hot and hotter. ;)

And back on the left side, some Randy Bacon Photography (love) and one of my favorite things I picked up, this bird mirror.

The living room would then be on your right, but we're not ready for that yet...still on our way down the wall to the artist nook.

This next piece is also a favorite of mine that crossed my path just before we shipped out.  We had a garage sale through our church in Hutch and someone donated this owl lamp for us to sell, but I snagged it for myself.  It now graces my home here in Manila and I LOVE IT!

**I took this picture at night, so you could get the full effect of its awesomeness!
And now to:

I love this cozy little corner but if you've ever seen me work, you know it will actually be a challenge for me to stay in this space; I like to spread out!  ** pardon the ugly cardboard blocking the whole in our wall.  We haven't gotten around to remedying that yet.**  But the view is quite inspirational!  So much sunshine!

I'll definitely have plenty to keep me busy with, and this space will definitely serve it's purpose in all of my planning and creating!  I even have some of my favorite things above me:

My favorite poem and painting: The Lady of Shalott by Lord Alfred Tennyson
                                                   The Lady of Shalott by John William Waterhouse
**you should definitely check out more of the works of both of these fine men.  So magical.  So romantic.
Some more RB Photography of me and my darling husband.
A butterfly poster.
And a Dry Erase Board I made from an old window.

And that concludes the first part of our tour.  But be sure to stick around for the rest.  I have lots more to show you!  Ta-ta for now!

Nikki

Day 5

Nothing too exciting to share today...I spent the whole day cleaning the house.  But that does mean I'm ready to start showing it off.  So expect a "Home Tour" post very soon!

She:

And Him:

A glimpse into Jordan's office/the man cave.  He sure does love his books.  And ole honest Abe!  But who doesn't?

And once again Jordan and I seem to be on point in taking the same kind of photos.  I promise we don't talk about it.  I guess that's why we're just perfect for each other.

Keep an eye out for that home tour post.  It's in the near future!

Nikki

We Live Here!

I had to tell you more from our weekend.  I'm still playing back images in my head, and looking through all of our pictures.  It was just unreal!

I absolutely love living in a big city, but it was amazing to get out and see what else these islands have to offer.  Earlier this weekend we headed over to meet up with Pastor Greg to get in a little scuba lesson, so we would be ready for our day trip.

Jordan and I got all suited up and were ready for our adventure in scuba to begin.  I was excited and nervous all at the same time.

There is definitely nothing flattering about scuba gear!  But it's totally worth looking silly to be completely mobile in the water.  I was also amazed at how much all of the equipment weighed.  And after I got it all on, it struck me.  Having all of this stuff on my back, and a weight built on was heavy, but I actually used to carry around that much extra weight, plus even another 60 pounds on top of that.  It was just crazy to me.  I don't know how I ever lived like that.  We passed our first day of instructions,  now it was time for some real fun!

The drive there was absolutely beautiful.  And we definitely saw some new aspects of the culture along the way.  As soon as we got to where we were staying, we got everything ready and headed out on the boat.

We found our spot and it was time to dive.

Jordan went out with the first group.  And I waited in the boat for everyone.

It was pretty relaxing to sit out on the water just taking in the views.  It seemed fitting to have a time of reflecting back on the year and praising God for all He had done for us, and to finally be here.

 Pretty soon, everyone surfaced and then it was my turn.

I was a little nervous, but I was determined to overcome a little anxiety.

Focused on making sure I made it out of the boat with all of my gear.  I told you there was nothing attractive about scuba diving.

As soon as we were in Jake and Micah found this sweet star fish.  I was too busy adjusting my googles, so I missed it.  But there was plenty of other cool things to see.  This is where we pause in the pictures, because I was underwater for a while checking out a reef and a cave.  I so wish I had an underwater camera to show you all that I saw.  It was pretty amazing!  I only freaked out for a second when I looked all around me and saw only water, and thought about how I was just breathing through a tube off of a tank, but I quickly regained my composure and focused on all that was around me.  Bright blue starfish, an eel, clown fish, purple and pink coral, the list goes on.  I just kept thinking to myself...I can't believe I'm actually doing this right now!

I was nothing but smiles!

The rest of our day was spent relaxing, reading, playing a rousing game of speed scrabble, and ended with some challenging conversations.  There are some exciting days ahead of us.

I think 2012 is off to a pretty great start!  It's gonna be a good year.

Nikki