You Know You're an MK When . . .

While there have been books published with phrases to complete this sentence, Aden and Wiley have given us some fresh ideas to remind us that they have a unique life experience. So, from a 2- or 3-year-old's perspective, . . .

You Know You're an MK When . . .

. . . you start sentences with the phrase, "When we go on furlough" or "When we were in the States"

. . . you are fascinated when you drive down the road and pass cars or trucks.

. . . one of the highlights of your day is watching whatever cars happen to drive near your house.

. . . you only use your car seat when you are going more than 20 minutes away from home.

. . . your pretend play includes building a new hospital, then moving patients from the old hospital (bedroom) to the new one (living room).

. . . you wear a doctor's mask all day, pretending to be "Dr. Bubu Jim" or "Dr. Uncle Bill" and discussing your cases for the day. (Related stories coming in a future blog post)

. . . it rains and your first response is, "Oh, good! Now we can get water in our tank!"

. . . you hear an airplane and know what airline it is.

. . . you hear a helicopter and ask if it will land in the field near your house.

. . . you think that doing your chores means gathering sticks so that you can make a fire to cook dinner.

. . . your toy cars, on their way to remote places (such as Ukarumpa), have to stop and wait for the tribal fighting to move back to the bush before going on.

. . . you believe that you have to talk into your computer when calling relatives who are far away.

. . . you play "church" - in more than one language.

. . . someone turns off the lights and you think the power went out.

Let the Games Begin. . .

Aden and Wiley are just 20 months apart. Wiley has finally reached an age to where he can play with Aden and it works out great most of the time that there is always a playmate right here in the house. Or does it? They definitely have their moments, but I suppose that is just how it is with brothers.
The competitive spirit has awakened in each of them, although perhaps in Wiley more than Aden. Everything has potential to become a competition. It starts with the toys and who gets to which one first, although the best toy is ALWAYS the toy that the other person has. It moves into the kitchen to see who gets to stand on the stool and watch/help Mommy with what she is doing. It even is being seen in a chore. Helping to set the table is a job that nobody seems to ever want to do...until the other boy is asked to help. All of a sudden, both boys want to help (not help together, but be the sole helper of course). It is carried over into the bathtub and who will be the first to get in. The boys each have a hooded towel. Aden's towel has a hippo on it, while Wiley's has a frog. In order to get the boys out of the tub, Daddy only has to ask, "who will be the frog tonight?" and Wiley quickly yells, "ME" and is jumping out to make sure he is ahead of Aden. Later, when it is time to brush teeth, we only have to ask who is going to brush their teeth, and the race is on. Aden has actually learned to pull back at the end and lets Wiley win, knowing that Wiley has a harder time with not being first to the sink. Wiley is also very territorial (and this could have something to do with being a middle child), often 'fighting' for his spot on the couch next to Mommy and Daddy. I suppose these things are probably not too unusual for two brothers so close in age. But another dimension awaits us. Here comes the third boy, and he is only two years behind Wiley. This should be fun!
Recently, Mommy and Daddy were talking to Aden and Wiley about their roles as big brothers to Noah. The boys were quick to talk about what they would teach him as he got bigger. Aden said he would teach him how to ride a bike, draw pictures, play cars, etc. Incidentally, Wiley added that he would be teaching him the same things (and I am sure he intends to do it better and before Aden does). Had to see that one coming. Mommy and Daddy, of course, had to ask about who would be helping to teach him other things. With each question, it was a competition as to who would get that job, as they both yelled, "ME!" Finally, the question was asked, "Who is going to help teach Noah how to share?" With not a second of hesitation, Wiley quickly yells, "ADEN!" And so the competition drew to a close for once.

Here's Hoping that Pictures are Still Worth a Thousand Words...

Well, our intentions were in the right place. However, the reality is we have a three year old, two year old and seven week old in the house. We really wanted to go back and fill in the three week gaps, but are now thinking that we will be doing well to pick up in the here and now. Sorry to all of you who were anxiously awaiting the recap. In a feeble attempt to fulfill our promise, we will try to give a summary here in pictures, although I am sure it won't do that time period any justice.

First of all, we enjoyed a great visit with Grandpa Dan and Grandma Karen
(click image to enlarge)

Noah's baby shower (2 1/2 weeks old) - on arriving in his bilum, he was greeted by the paparazzi.

Noah's first Sunday in church, with Grandpa and Grandma

We took a 5-hour road trip over a very rough road to Ukarumpa, in order to have all the boys sighted for new passports. One of the highlights for Aden and Wiley was seeing the horses on the Wycliffe/SIL mission station

For the first month of his life, Dr. Susan had all of Noah's checkups on our coffee table - the baby scale found a temporary home in our living room until the new hospital opened.

Our quarterbacks at the Harvest Party in the park - Wiley came with his game face on

One of Noah's first smiles (amazingly reminiscent of Aden!)

One Last Hoorah!

Note: This blog is going to jump ahead a few weeks. We fully intend to blog about things from the past few weeks as well, but may have to go back to them after this.

Tonight was a special night because it was the last night before the official move into the new hospital. Tomorrow, patients will be moved over into the new hospital wards, and on Monday the new outpatient will officially make the "new" hospital simply "the" hospital. (You can read more about the move, complete with pictures, on Dr. Andy's blog. )
As you may remember from previous posts, the boys really like riding their bikes and pushing their toys around the smooth, empty sidewalks of the new hospital. Some nights, when we have been outside, we have noticed that the new hospital is quite lit up to where you could easily see where you were going on the sidewalks, despite it being nighttime....



Are you thinking the same thing Aden was thinking? An idea was formed. We would try to have a "night ride" sometime as a special treat for the boys and something different to do with our evening. Well, the days were slipping away from us due to sickness in the family over the past three weeks and it looked like we had missed our opportunity...until tonight! Everyone was well and it was the last possible night to ride. The plan was to go for a short 'errand' walk, eat dinner, and then head down to the hospital with the bike and dump truck. On our walk, Aden had mentioned our plan to Cilla and Lydia. They wanted to join us. During dinner time, we received a call from Allison Dooley. She and her two sisters also wanted to join. We called Uncle Bill and Aunt Marsha to see if they wanted to join in the fun. By the time, we got down there, all of the MKs, parents and most of the families had heard the news. There were bikes, scooters, rollerblades, dump trucks and just about anything that would roll available for riding. We spent one last evening, under the lights, with almost the entire mission family present. It was quite a memory.
Aden was flying around on his bike, weaving in and out of people, much to mommy and daddy's amazement. (Note to selves: find a helmet for the boy!) Wiley pushed a dump truck around and seemed perfectly content to do so. Noah was there, but slept through it all, and was passed around frequently.
We had a lot of fun, and were glad that we were able to leave without being any of the first patients in the new hospital.
We also left realizing that tomorrow a new era will begin in the life of the Nazarene Hospital in PNG. Please pray for the transition over these next few days and weeks. It has been a long time coming. May the Lord be glorified.