Five Hundred Twenty Five Thousand Six Hundred Minutes...

... how do you measure, how long since I've blogged?
Sorry 'bout it.
It's been a.... well, it's been a minute.

Reader's Digest Catch Up:

Christmastime in Tanzania // A Poem in Pictures

'Twas the weekend after Thanksgiving and all the walls were bare
So we set out to decorate with an excited little Bear.

  

12 {more} Signs We've Adapted to Life Overseas

If you haven't seen the original post, you should check it out here.

31) We can tell who's driving down our road based on the sound their car makes.

31) Similarly, we can also tell who's at our gate by the sound of their horn's honk.

32) When I saw pre-shredded & packaged cheese at the supermarket, I took a picture of it.  I'm so used to buying block cheese (and for a pretty penny at that), it was hard to believe the shredded stuff was there. (But no way was I paying that price for it!)

33) No one in our family is any longer afraid of tarantulas.

A DIY Christmas Overseas

It's our 3rd Christmas in Tanzania... and our third Christmas of DIY-ing the decor associated.  Please know that we don't have a Hobby Lobby, Dollar Store or Jo-Ann Fabric's store around here.  This is legit-DIY - developing country style! :)
We keep adding to our collection every year and this year might be my favorite one yet.
Let's get started on a little tour of our Christmassy Home:
One of our first items of Christmas decor from three years ago -

  

Because I Just. Can't. Even. {Think About the Holiday Season in America}

It started at Thanksgiving time.
It's our 3rd Thanksgiving in Tanzania, and this is the year that it hit me the hardest.
I missed my people.  Our people.  Back in America.  I missed them somethin' fierce.
But.
I didn't want to be in America.  Not even a little bit.
For reasons like (and mostly related to) this:

This ad popped up on my phone after using a photo app.  I literally said aloud, "What in the -- are you KIDDING me?!" And I snapped a pic of it so I could show my husband later.  He had the same reaction.

A(nother) First

Today was the first time I have ever had an inkling of feeling unsafe in this country.

Please don't panic.

I do not live in fear, and neither should you.  Fear is not from God.  We are safe.  

But today, as we drove up the mountain a little ways for a hash, we encountered a bit of a harry situation.

Re-Entry (ish) Revelations

A lot of things have been happening lately that we weren't expecting.
Our family trip in July/August.
Some {new} friends arriving in Tz for a visit and bringing with them a Target bag full of goodies and surprises for our whole family.
A four-day whirlwind missions/meet-up trip.(pts. 1, 2 and 3 here)
An on-the-edge couple of months about our futures here in Moshi (don't worry, it's all working out, I hope to be able to write in detail about it all soon!)
Anyway.  Among all those things, one thing I really never expected, was dealing with re-entry after my latest international excursion.
I didn't really think I'd have issues in South Africa, but I did.  And once I processed those and was good with them, I thought I was in the clear.  But then I got back home.  And my brain, well, it just refused to brain.

On Moving, Arachnids, Culture Shock and Accents {part 3}

{this is part 3 of my three part blog on #takingSAagain, for part 2 click here, and part 1 here}
I had a lot of anticipation about Sunday morning. When we were here as a family back in July we got the {rare} opportunity to attend an Acts service on a Friday night, and it was absolutely incredible. So I knew Sunday was going to be nothing short of amazing.

What I didn't expect, was to feel God's presence the way it fell during worship.

On Moving, Arachnids, Culture Shock and Accents {part 2}

{this is part 2 of my three-part blog on #takingSAagain - for part 1 click here}

After getting into our rooms at the lodge, I was chatting with my new roommate and Dawn & Brian in my room when Alison came in with a concerned look.  "I don't want anyone to worry but..." she started.  I was intrigued.
She continued to tell us that a very large, very harry spider was just found (and killed) in one of the other rooms.  "It was this big!" she said, holding up her hands about the size of a baseball.
"Oh, that's probably a baboon spider or something similar from the tarantula family.  They're no problem, you might get tingly or have a little pain if they bite you, but you won't die." I say.