Looking Down the Center

We made it. This time Mama waited at the top to take the picture.

T minus 73 hours

Well, summer vacation is almost here! We've been working hard all summer and are ready for a vacation! In 73 hours Danny's parents arrive for a two week visit. This will be our vacation time as well. Pray that Danny is able to get everything done at the school before Thursday.

Yesterday evening we returned from our housesitting adventure. It was nice to be in a slightly more comfortable home, but we were definitely ready to be home! It was great this morning to be able to leave for work at 8:50 instead of 8:00.

Hmmm, let's see, what else can I say to prolong this post before getting to the part you all really care about. . . Went grocery shopping today, was nice to be able to simply walk home with the groceries, though the 30 lbs were definitely getting heavy by the end of the trip. The swimming pool was a soothing treat.

Thank you for all your prayers and congratulations. Betsy has been feeling much better for the last few days. This was good as we had dinner with friends on Friday and Saturday, then moved back home Sunday. Please continue to pray for us (especially Betsy and LW) during these next 7 months. We look forward to having another look at LW (little Whittaker) when we go back to the doctor August 11.

News You've All Been Waiting For

On Wednesday, July 6, we got to see the heartbeat of our little baby. Now we know why Betsy hasn't been feeling well lately. Everything in the ultrasound looked really good. The doctor set our tentative due date as February 19th. We are very excited! We covet your prayers as we prepare to be good parents. Below is a picture of the ultrasound. Our next visit to the doctor is in a month, we will keep you posted on new developments.

Little Whittaker

Computer Maintenance

Well, I continue working at the school getting the computers up and ready for the coming year. With the 65+ computers at the school, this is a big process. I've been enjoying it so far and have learned a lot from Andrew the IT director for the school. Friday I had the wonderful adventure of helping Andrew at Simlim. Simlim is a mall devoted to computer supplies. Somewhere around 300 separate shops selling all different types of parts, it was an interesting time, about 7 hours of walking around the mall, haggling with shopkeepers, and carrying supplies back to the van. It was fun, yet tiring, didn't get back from the shops until 8 pm.

I've also been growing a bit tired of the commute. It takes about 45 minutes to get to work, and about an hour to get back. After the 10 minute commute all year, that is a long time!

Summer Vacation

Well, we are settling in with our new summer routine. It has been nice being in a new home. We are house-sitting for one of the school families. It is a nice home and much larger than our own. As part of our responsibilities, we are taking care of their dog, and dwarf hamsters. So home life is busy with walking the dog and taking care of our 7 dwarf hamsters (4 of our own and 3 that we are hamster sitting). To fill up the rest of our time, we have been working at the school for 7 hours each day. I've been enjoying the time working on the computers, and even more I've been enjoying not having any homework to bring home at nights or on the weekends!

Betsy has a slightly lighter load at RDA over the summer, only volunteering in the mornings, but is keeping busy by working as a receptionist on Mondays and Tuesdays at the school.

Our schedule will continue in this way for the next few weeks until we move back to our place in the middle of July to get ready for my parents arrival on the 21st.

School's out for summer!

Wow, the school year has come to a close. It is hard to believe that a full 10 months have passed since we arrived here. Today I finished my job of cleaning up after the year and am officially on summer vacation. Tomorrow I start my summer job! I will be helping Andrew with the maintenance of the computers at the school. I will be working through most of the summer doing this, it will be nice having the pressures of teaching gone, but still having a job!

Most of the faculty are in the process of leaving for the summer break. Only a very few of us are staying in the country for the summer. It will be a quiet summer, but Betsy will continue volunteering at RDA, and she will also be working at the school in the office 3 days a week. These summer jobs will help us with our summer expenses, but could also be a bit of a strain. I look forward to the real vacation that will come in July when my parents arrive for a two week visit!

Love you all!

Special Olympics

This last Saturday, June 4th, was the Special Olympics held at RDA. I, Betsy, was given the great opportunity to help in this event. Some of us leaders started the program with a demonstration of the leading technique we use at RDA. Then students performed dressage tests. I had two independent riders take the test. They did well, and I was so proud of their achievements. I was very nervous because I was the one calling out the pattern of the test for each rider. If I had made a mistake, it would have ruined the test. Thank you, Lord, for getting us all through!!

After the dressage tests, we had relay games for other riders. These riders were led to the start line in a trot, dismounted, then ran on foot through the relay. The races were all very close until the end of the second race. One student tripped and bumped his knee. He was the last rider for his team, so the whole crowd cheered as he got up and finished the race. Now that is sportsmanship!!

Lastly, some other students and instructors had prepared a drill ride (patterns on horseback). I was not supposed to help with this because it was with a class on Tuesdays and I don't volunteer that day. But one of the leaders couldn't make it, so I filled in. It was lots of fun!!

I've included some photos of the event with captions explaining each. So, now you can have a glimpse of that great day!!

I led Harley in the leading demonstration. This type of leading is called "Hands Free" because the horse is led mostly with voice commands. With riders, we still attach a lead rope to the head collar of the horse for safety. But as you can see, we did not have them attached in this demonstration. This photo was taken at the end, when we "bowed" with the horses.

This is my first rider performing her test. You can see me in the back calling out instructions for her.

This is my second rider. He was very nervous, but he accomplished his goal of completing the test without a single mistake in the pattern.

My two students came in third and fourth in the dressage test. Well done!!!

Here are two competitors in the relay games. The adults with them are "sidewalkers", people who walk beside the rider on each side to keep the rider balanced. After the riders were dismounted, the sidewalkers ran the course with them.

This relay racer was one of my students on Thursday mornings. I always enjoy her smile!

Time comes earlier here

This afternoon Betsy and I went with a few students from the school and got to watch Star Wars Episode III in an early release. The movie actually started at 4PM on Wednesday the 18th, which was early in the morning on the 18th back there in the states. It's kind of fun knowing that we were one of the first to see the movie. It was a good movie, but it ends the way we expected! It was also an interesting study. The theatre wasn't even half full, I couldn't believe all the empty seats. It was fun to spend some time outside of school with the students as well.

Vinegar

A couple of weeks ago I learned a new use for vinegar, maybe some of you already know this:

I was having troubles with my stomach (use your imagination), wasn't sure if it was food poisoning or bacteria or maybe a parasite, but it lasted a few days. well, one of my coworkers mentioned drinking vinegar to kill anything in my stomach. So that is what I did, a glass of water with a tsp of vinegar. It tasted NASTY! (I drank it in the bathroom in case I couldn't keep it down.) It actually wasn't as bad as I expected, but I won't be taking it up as a regular drink. Apparently what ever was in my stomach didn't like it either, the vinegar cured me!

So, now we have another home remedy!! Yippee for avoiding the doctor!

Sunday School

This past Sunday I had my first opportunity to teach Sunday School. It was a fun time, and I think it was enjoyable for the kids. It was nice to finally get a little more involved in serving at the church. The lesson was on Samuel anointing David to be King, and having a heart for God.

At school, we continue to fly toward the end of the year, only 3 weeks of school left. As always, there is still a lot of things that I would love to cover before the end. Oh well, we have covered much. Pray for wisdom over the next weeks. After the year is over, most of the staff will leave the country for the summer. We look forward to the two months to explore Singapore and enjoy ourselves here, but we also know that it will tend to be very quiet. Of course, when July comes, so do my parents! It will be a lot of fun to have them here for those two weeks.

Betsy had a good week at RDA, she put in a lot of time on Thursday and Friday preparing for a fundraising dinner that was on Saturday, but did not have a chance to speak with her friend. Pray that she will have an opportunity to share with him this week, and that he will be open to God's message.

Answered Prayer

I (Betsy) have been learning so much lately in a Bible Study I attend every Wednesday morning. The big challenge God set before me was to learn to fear Him, as talked about in Kings. We have been studying the period in history when Israel splits into the northern and southern kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Some of the kings did not fear the Lord and faced serious consequences. I want to abide in Him and fear Him but cannot do either without Him. Because of my desire to constantly be aware of God (fearing Him), one of my many prayers lately has been that my countenance and attitude constantly reflect Jesus to all the lost around me. God gave me the answer, "you are," in a most amazing way.

One of my friends that volunteers at the RDA told me last Thursday, "I can see Jesus in you!" He went on to mention that he had known many Christians, but none like me. He asked me if I knew for sure that I would be going to Heaven when I die simply because I believed it was true. I emphatically answered, "YES!" He said, "See, you know it!" He also talked about his not knowing and finding out when he died. I didn't get a chance to talk to him about it at the time. Please be praying for a divine appointment this Thursday. I want God to speak to my friend. I want him to start a relationship with the Almighty, one true God!! Praise and Glory be to the only God of the universe and His great work here!!!!!!

A hawker center

Thought we would give you a picture of a typical local hawker center (yes mom, that is the correct spelling). Many different stalls selling all kinds of different foods.

Dinner with friends

A group of teachers out to eat!