Changing Sites

New Blog Site

I am switching from blogger to wordpress. It seems that wordpress is much more reliable. I know change is hard.

“Change is the law of life and those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.” —John F. Kennedy

Let me know which you think is easier or better. I took the picture of the lightening storm in Sao Paulo a few months ago. I like the fact that I can change the photo in the header and switch things up if I want to.

Click below for the new site.
New Blog Site

Women's Bible Study

Bernice leads a Bible study with Pastora Silsa here in Pinda at the Pastors house. They have anywhere from 5-10 ladies every Tuesday. I can't wait till I am advanced in Portuguese like Bernice. She is preaching and translating for others while I still shuffle through my flash cards on using verbs.

WInter Break

Our seasons are opposite this side of the equator. Tommy and Nicky are on winter break. They have had a month off from school. Their vacation ends next week. We have gone to the zoo and to the movies during their break. Most of their days have been spent playing video games. Here are a few pics of them on break and playing video games with our neighbor Joao Lucas. They have also spent a lot of time with Starbucks (Bucky) their Basset Hound.

QUICK QUOTE

Excellence is not an accomplishment. It is a spirit, a never-ending process.
-Lawrence M. Miller

Growing like bamboo!

We have been in Brazil for 15 months. I often post pictures of Tommy and Nicky. The most common reaction is about how much they have grown since we have moved here. I wish I would have measured and weighed them so I could post before and after figures...oh well. I compare them to bamboo chutes. They are growing nearly as fast and are definetely as strong! I found out that they make baseball bats from bamboo as well. Useless information:

BAMBOO IS:

The fastest growing woody plant on this planet. It grows one third faster than the fastest growing tree. Some species can grow up to 1 meter per day. One can almost "watch it grow". This growth pattern makes it easily accessible in a minimal amount of time. Size ranges from miniatures to towering culms of 60 meters.

TAM Flight 3054

The tragedy of TAM Flight 3054 has been dominating the local media. Here is a link from International Herald Tribune. Please remember the family and friends of the victims in prayer.

Tommy's 1st Sermon

Tommy spoke at last nights family devotion. He prepared a sermon on children being secret weapons. His text was Matthew 19:13-15,21:16 and Colossians 3:20. Nicky joined in with choosing the worship song Open the Eyes of My Heart.

A Day in Sao Paulo

We had to go to the US Embassy in Sao Paulo to pick up Bernice's passport. We decided to spend the night and let the boys enjoy the city. We went to Starbucks, Applebee's, Blue Tree Towers, the cinema and to an authorized Apple service center to drop off the Mac mini. Our neighbor below us also complained that our dog was walking too loud. We had to put slippers on Bucky...he is not crazy about the new kicks. Here are a few pics.

Parabens (Congratulations!)

Here is a picture of Nicholas's report card. Tommy received great marks too...unfortunately he lost his report card. We are proud of them both. The scoring system is different here than it is in the USA. Ten is the highest mark one can receive and zero is the lowest. It is very rare to receive a 10. Tommy and Nicky co-teach their english class and both received the score of 9. Nicholas broke the scoring barrier with achieving a TEN in Physical Education...way to go Nicky!

QUICK QUOTE

“We’re alive for one reason—the outpouring of the Spirit of God on everything He’s given our hands to touch—family, city, my nation and the nations of the world,” he says. “We’ve not been assigned to hang out until He returns—we’ve been given a message and a power that completely revolutionizes life. Why would anyone want to get up in the morning and not shape the course of world history?”

--Bill Johnson

Found this in Charisma Magazine article.

HCC in Manaus

Here are some more photos of Harvest Christian Center's trip to Manaus. These pics were sent to me from Jennifer Fagan. I will be able to post more pics as the team sends thems.