A little different: A picture look into our lives from the past few months.

Just a tad different

Just lean a little to the left and it looks straight

Living in Indonesia has been an adventure already.  Many things are different or even hilariously opposite from what we would called "normal" in America.  We have learned a lot about the culture here and have started building relationships with those around us as we continue to learn the language.  Here is a photo look of some things we have experienced and some things that "are a tad different."

Home and Family Outings

Aaron and Jocelyn getting read for a ride.  Notice my neighbor in the background? 

Alvin is one of our neighborhood kids that my children often play with.

Jocelyn out by the neighbors yard with her shoes spread out on the street.

Racing down the street together in front of our house.

Our street is a great place to ride bikes, not much traffic.

Our lovely abode 

Aaron posing in front of our gate.

Sometimes our house comes complete with a swimming pool... after a good hard rain.

View from our front porch to our gate.

Many vendors and deliveries happen by scooter like the one above who is selling a type of bread

A local waterfall we went hiking to with our MAF team...

...and it is about "this" tall.

Playing in the river, and but mom won't let us "fall" in.

Kids are waiting to play a game where they have to eat this treat hanging on a string with no hands.

I think Jocelyn didn't know about rule of "no hands" but I think she likes the "shrimp" flavored crisp snack. Personally I don't like the breath it gives me afterward.

Roads and Traffic

Roads and traffic are a big adjustment here in Indonesia.  This is one of the main highways that goes through central Java, and connects the major cities together.  It is not that wide, but people drive trucks and buses on it all the time, and everyone just has to go slower.

A "truck" full of sugar cane.  Why do two trips when you can make it in one???

Our two-lane highway can instantly change into three-way-passing-lanes.  Notice the passing scooter in the center?  By the way I am in the passenger seat on the incoming car.

When there is only one route, traffic jams can occur.  I think we are waiting for stop light at the bottom of the hill to change colors.

Riding home in the rain, just another day at the office :)

Visitor from Home

We were so blessed to have Renae's mom come to visit for a short 6 days

Mom and Renae happily playing a duet with Aaron helping in the background.

A spectacular view of Mount Merbabu, a dormant volcano that overlooks Salatiga

This is our language school, IMLAC, that we have been studying at for the past 8 months.

Posing at the "water cooler" where we take our breaks at IMLAC

Touring the school grounds where Caleb attends.

Inside Caleb's 1st grade classroom

Mom bravely rode our "family suburban" and yes we have fit all of us on there in the past.  Although now we have a second scooter to help even up the load and be a little safer.

Fishing at a pond with bread and sticks

Caleb caught his first fish, but would not touch it.

But Jocelyn on the other hand, is most interested in the touching fish.

Indonesian Sights

Houses like these are not an uncommon sight here in Indonesia.  They will build a house out of whatever materials they can get their hands on and where ever.

Scooters are one of the main modes of transportation, so they also can be turned into your local "food trucks"

A usual sight of small stores and scooters.

Mosques are very prevalent here, there are about an average of one per block.

Kids hanging out at a local mosque

Father and daughter taking an interested in the "bule" (which means foreigner) who is taking their photo. 

This vendor carries this stove on a pole and then cooks this delicious rice, coconut and sugar treat right in front of you.

First he packs it into those tan cylinders and then has the steam from the coals and water below cook it.

School Field Day

Team Black at the Elementary school game day.

Pak Budi, one of the grounds men at the International school that I get to talk to regularly with.  I usually chat with him when I am dropping off or picking up Caleb.

Caleb play a team game where they all have to take a step at the same time

Jocelyn and Renae reading at the school library

This is a relay game where you need to pick up an eel from the bucket and then run back and put it into a small bottle

Caleb ran really fast and was able to get the eel in the bottle in record time...I wonder why?!?

Next they had a raft race across the pool.

They had a little help so they wouldn't all fall in.

Thank you all for your prayer support in our lives.  We are blessed to have your come along side of us as we get use to a new "normal" here in Indonesia and learn a new language.  One huge praise is that Renae has only 2 more units left till she is done!  That is an amazing accomplishment and I am so proud of her.  As for myself I am "pelan-pelan" (slowly) getting my mind wrapped around the different structure of how to speak Bahasa Indonesia and convey deeper meanings and thoughts than just pointing and grunting at what I want in a store :).  We are still planning on moving to Tarakan (our assignment in North East Kalimantan) mid February when I am finished with language school.  You can continue to pray that we will find strength to do what is needed for our family and then do our homework afterwards too.

In His Arms,

Tyler & Renae

Welcome to Indonesia

 Tile roof on a home with a rice paddie for a backyard, a common sight here in Indonesia 

This morning I woke up to find a very large cockroach in the bathroom.  Not even 20 minutes later, there was a spider bigger than my hand in the same bathroom.  Welcome to Indonesia.


Two nights ago our son was up in the night because of a stuffed up nose.  By the time I was almost asleep again, daylight was almost here (5 a.m.) and I could hear the first call to prayer for the day from the nearest mosque.  Welcome to Indonesia.

 

Last week Muslims all over celebrated Hari Idal Adha (day of sacrifice).  The day of sacrifice is celebrated to honor the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son (who they believe is Ishmael) as an act of submission to God's command.  At most mosques there are several cows or goats that will be sacrificed.  They then divide the meat into portions, 1/3 for their family, 1/3 for neighbors and relatives, and 1/3 for the poor and needy.  What an interesting glimpse into what the ritual of sacrifice must have looked like in the Old Testament.  Tyler was able to witness some of the ritual at a nearby mosque.  Welcome to Indonesia.

 Goats waiting for the sacrifice on Idal Adha

 A cow, surrounded by happy onlookers, already with its neck slit

A couple of months ago we attended a Muslim neighbors celebration before his first visit to Mecca.  One of the 5 pillars of Islam is to perform "Ibadah Haji", or naik Haji, which is this trip to Mecca.  Any Muslim who is physically and financially capable of performing this is required to do so.  Our neighbors had a huge celebration in our street, with a tent set up, catered meal, singing and a sermon.  We felt honored to be included.  We could feel the excitement for reaching  this achievement.  However, our hearts were also heavy.  All this excitement, buildup, and fanfare for a religious ritual that will not bring our neighbor any closer to the one, True God.  Oh Lord, may Your name be lifted higher here.  Welcome to Indonesia.

 

A short film of the gathering at the Ibadah Haji.

A friend recently shared how when she walked home from language school each day, she would hear the call to prayer.  It reminded her of a song about the name of Jesus being lifted higher.  In a country where the main religion is being broadcast 5 times a day, it can be easy to just get used to it and not notice it after awhile, instead of letting it serve as a reminder that we want the name of the true God, of Jesus Christ, to be on those loudspeakers.  We want His name to be praised above all other gods.  Would you join us in praying for Indonesia, and praying that our neighbors and friends here would see Jesus lifted higher in our own lives?

  

Ibu-Ibu Meeting

One thing I appreciate about Indonesia is the importance of relationships between neighbors.  Neighbors know each other, they will greet each other in the street, visit if someone is sick, help prepare for weddings, funerals, and other events.  Sometimes they can be like your second family.  In Salatiga, each neighborhood "Kampung" will hold two meetings a month, one for the men and one for the women.  These meetings are meant to discuss neighborhood business, collect social dues, share some new interesting information, socialize, etc.

When we were still pretty new here (maybe our 2nd month), I had the opportunity to host the monthly women's meeting in our home.  Even though I had hardly any language at that point, I had the help of one of our coaches (Pilates) from school and my house helpers also.  We worked together to prepare for the meeting.  Little did I know all the details involved!  We had to borrow several "tikars" (mats), enough glasses to serve tea to all the ladies, order several snacks plus the snack boxes for the ladies, then put together all the boxes, plus I baked one of the snacks for the snack boxes.  It ends up being quite a bit of work and cost, but in the end the meeting itself is almost no work for me since all I have to do is smile and try to understand a word here or there!

the tikars we borrowed from a neighbor.  We clear out our front room and everyone sits on the rugs

In the end i think about 30 women came, but sometimes there can be 40-50

the snack boxes each women would take home with her

Some women sat outside on the front porch because it was full inside

I am so thankful for the opportunity to serve my neighbors in this way.  While building relationships has been slow because of our limited language, it is nice to be able to help in other ways, like hosting this meeting.  A lot of times a smile and generosity can go a long way.  Now that we're farther along in language school we can have a little more depth to our conversations.  We look forward to continuing to build relationships with our neighbors, and pray that they would see a difference in our lives because of Christ.

for us all....  Renae

Tarakan "vacation"

Recently we had the opportunity to go to Tarakan on a school break.  Even though it was during vacation time from language school it gave us a chance to find out what it was actually like in Tarakan and to visit some old friends from Moody days.

We had a really good time with our friends, encouraging and being encouraged by them.  I (Tyler) got to go see the hanger and future place of work.  I was very excited to see, hear and touch airplanes after being in language school for 4 months.  The children were ecstatic to have playmates 24/7 for 5 days and it was a great time for the parents too since they played so well together.

 Aaron next to the Kodiak wheel

 Maintenance happens in the open hangar here in Tarakan.  

Too hot to do it indoors.

Aviation Gas is stored in these 50 gallon barrels

 MAF Kodiak sitting on the ramp ready to go.

 The work horse of the MAF fleet the Cessna 206. 

 The Kodiak came in for an inspection and now we get to see

 what is underneath all the cowlings.

The kids having fun running around the hangar

 Tyler and "his" future airplane.

 Jocelyn is not as excited to be next to an airplane as Tyler is.

 Playground at the small missionary school.

 The lunch room at the kids future school.

 One of the two classrooms at the school.

 The kids having lunch on the porch.

Blessed to hang with great friends!

We still have a long ways to go as we study the language here, but we are really thankful for the preview of our future home and teammates.  

Counting the losses

Mt. Merbabu, a dormant volcano near us.

Always in life there are ups and downs.  Sometimes it feels like we're just stuck in the "lowlands" without a way out.  Other times we're sailing along just fine on a beautiful path with the mountains in front of you, just waiting to be climbed and experienced.  We have surely experienced both.  However, the last month is a month where we can say that we have walked in the valley with no mountains in sight.

As some of you may know, we found out we were expecting our 4th child shortly after we returned to Indonesia.  A little over a month ago, at 4 months pregnant, we lost our precious baby boy, Micah, in a miscarriage.  Our hearts are still broken over this, and we continue to grieve and process the loss.  Here is a loss we weren't expecting, and one we still count almost every day.

We've had some other things that have challenged us physically.  We've been asking "how much do we trust God with our health, safety, and well-being when there is no 911 to call, no ER to go to, or trusted hospital around the corner?".  Counting another loss....good medical care available.

This weekend, Tyler's youngest brother gets married.  We are thrilled for him and his bride-to-be, but sad about missing out on the festivities on such an important day with family.  Counting another loss.

We've been sad a lot in the last month.  We have grieved (still grieving), felt pain, been afraid, and felt disappointment.

Even now, we continue to feel these things.  We may be in the valley for a while, but we do feel Christ walking alongside us, and, if we let Him, He carries our burdens for us.  I sometimes wish things could  be different.  I would take my baby back in a second.  But, I wouldn't change the ways God has met me in the deep, dark places. We know that the pain won't last forever.  We know that the only reason we have hope for anything on this earth is because of our hope in Christ.  We may not feel "happy" all the time, but we don't have to plaster a smile on our face.  We are called to trust the Lord, no matter what comes into our life. We continue to be challenged with just living in Indonesia and all that implies, plus raising our family while studying and doing language learning, and processing everything else.  We appreciate your encouragement, and especially your prayers.

The weather is beautiful here, and as rainy season has ended we can see the mountains that surround us.  Our path, however, is still in the valley, but maybe we'll glimpse the mountains sometime soon.  Meanwhile, we try to rest in the God's love for us, and that He is always good, always kind, and always watching over us.

Language School

Language school is keeps on "trucking" on.  Seems like we have been studying for a long time but when we count the days it really hasn't been all that long.  It has really only been a little more than three months since we started, and we are seeing a difference in our ability to grasp conversations concepts and make ourselves understood...for the most part :)

"Sediket-sediket, pelan-pelan manjadi bukit"

little by little, slowly slowly a hill is made.

 That is how our teachers keep encouraging us in our small and steady progress in grasping the Indonesian language.  One instance was when I (Tyler) was just returning home our neighbor came out to greet us and ask where I had been.  I replied with out much hesitation and explained why I was out and that I had to go out again to pick up my other son from school soon.  It kind of surprised me how easy it all came out after months of hulted words and wrong syllobus.  Now that does not mean I am fluent now.  It just means I have some good days and other bad days when all I say is:

 " Saya mau pergi de mana saya lalu selasi"

"I want to go where after I went finsih"

Then I am back to just smiling and laughing at myself.  Which is not bad, keeps me humble and the locals entertained.

Here are some pictures of IMLAC our language school:

Some students performing at an Easter celebration we had at the school.

Instead of an egg hunt we hunted for scraps of paper that had words on it and had to put them all together to complete a Bible verse.

Teams usually consisted of families

Mountains in the background and hallways light with the morning light.

Students fill the hall for morning break-time.

A good friend of Renae's.  Hot tea is a usual break-time snack here in Indonesia, even though it is around 80 degrees.

Ibu Wulan, one of our many language teachers

Our Unit 2 class all together

Ibu Maria, helping us to comprehend that mysteries of grammer.

Renae and I passing our Unit 2 exams and holding up our Unit 3 book.

We are nearing the half way point of our Unit 3 section of language school.  It seems to be going alright although there is a ton of grammar concepts right now being taught at us but we don't really get to review it in the class before we are on to the next concept.  Part of the reason for that is some students only take three units so the school is trying to get all the building blocks out there but will review them later in other units.  You can continue to lift us up in prayer as we try to master these "building" blocks coming out way.