This is the scene over here....

As you can see we are in the throes of packing. Trying to cram all our stuff into 14 rubbermaid totes and 7 backpacks is a challenge not for the weak... But Hugo is up to the task. He is feeling quite good these days having passed his final government exam... whew... This does not give him his Mechanics license but is one of the crucial steps needed to attain the license. He still has to do about a years worth of tasks in his logbook.
Good news, we have been granted permission to obtain a work permit!! This is big news!! We hope we can pick it up in Holland but the process does take 2-4 weeks and we are only planning to be in Holland for 3... Never a dull moment!!

Down to our last week...

Well, we're down to our last week in Canada. Our time here has flown by unbelievably fast! It's been a good time of reconnecting with family and friends. Our children have really enjoyed our time here. As they are older now it will be more difficult for them to leave than the first time we left Canada. I feel sad about that but I know that they will enjoy reconnecting with their friends in Papua too.
Hugo still has one more government exam to write. He has been studying studiously. If he does not pass this exam he has to redo all three so it's a big deal.
We've packed up the majority of our things, the things we don't need now. Our crate is sealed up and scheduled to be picked up next week.
However, we still have no visa and things aren't looking too positive on that end so prayers are appreciated.
It's hard not to feel stressed. There are so many unknowns right now. It's at times like this in particular that one is challenged to simply trust in God's plan. Not an easy thing for us sinful control-freak humans to do.

Life...

Life in our house is definitely in high gear these days. On the weekend we managed to get our crate packed up! Yay! One more thing off the list. Just waiting for the customs approval from Indo before getting the shipper to pick it up. The shopping list is dwindling down to a few necessary items... relief is in sight... Hugo is busy studying to do his last 2 government exams towards his M1 AME license. (small airplane mechanic) He also managed, together with P V, to replace all the single-paned windows in our home with double-paned ones.

Yesterday we had the pleasure of sharing our experiences with a grade 12 Comparative Religions class at Credo High. That was fun! I love the comments teen-age boys make!! Our authentic bow and arrow from the village of Boma was a hit! When Mrs. Vandergugten told the class that I had graduated from Credo I piped up to tell them that I was part of the class of 1992. The class informed me that they hadn't even been born yet then.... OUCH!!
Christiaan is sporting new hearing aids and trying out his new FM (thanks to a church in Holland). He is very excited about having an FM system that doesn't require cords.

Last week we managed to get in a family photo shoot with Karin Louwerse. We've never had a really nice photo done so it was high time! Check out the photos on Karin's blog: here If 20 people comment we can get a free 8x10!! That's exciting!! They're great photos!

A Day at the Vancouver Aquaruim...

Aidan turns 9!!

So last Thursday Aidan turned 9! He was very excited for weeks leading up to the big day. We gave him a lego set, a webkinz, and his first Bible with a cover on it. The next day he had a combined birthday party with another boy in his class. That was lots of fun! Then we had his choice for supper, McDonalds... After that we went to Cloverdale church where we did a presentation. It was a long day, but a fun one!