Random Thoughts (by Thom)

Some randoms updates from Mali~

• My birthday fell on Christmas and Columbus Day this year! Well, only one of those was official but each year our mission orders a big shipping container which we fill up with stuff. Each missionary gets a certain amount of space each 4 years and we can pay extra if we want space on the other years. We decided it would be nice to clothe our girls the next two years so we reserved space this year. October 8th the container arrived and we got to see and use all the fun stuff we packed back in May! I'm especially enjoying my Dr Pepper and Amanda loves have pepperoni for her pizza again. Miri and Hannah aren't yet in the 18 month old clothes we packed but they're having a blast with some of the toys and books we've pulled out.
• Clearing items through customs is always interesting but things went fairly smoothly. In the end it did cost me a little: 2 cans of my Dr Pepper!
• Miriam and Hannah are now Miriam and Hannah! Even though the adoption was finalized last January, because of some mixups we didn't get their names legally changed back then. Up to this week they've legally been Wassa and Founé Dembele. Our lawyer has been working on this process for a couple of months and this week he got them finally changed. We are now the very proud parents of Miriam Ruth Wassa McMurray and Hannah Marie Founé McMurray. We decided on having 2nd middle names because we wanted to save a piece of their heritage in their names, but didn't want to give up any of the other names. They were all personally significant to us. By the way, Wassa means "to be satisfied" and Founé means "twin".
  
• Our next step is to get new Malian passports for them and then we'll start the US Citizenship process.
• I have family and friends who are Boston Red Sox fans but I've loved watching the Colorado Rockies' run to the World Series. Sorry Dan and Stan, but I'm pullin' for Rox over Sox. Games start at midnight here and I get to watch them on ESPN International. It's been worth a lack of sleep so far this post-season.
• As a mission field we've been thinking and praying about the future a lot lately. We've had a lot of turnover in leadership lately and we're looking for what the Lord has in store for us. Both the field and the Koutiala Hospital are currently seeking long-term solutions for leadership. It's interesting to see where God is taking us.
  

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Pros and Cons (by Amanda)

Living in Mali definitely has its ups and downs, but I need to remind myself that all places have some bad with the good. I could write a list of all the negatives, but I could probably write one just as long of all the positives. So here is a small start to the negatives: one - no McDonald's. Two - no other fast food. Three - dust, sand, heat and even more heat! OK, that's as far as I will go because I have a wonderful story to tell.

God is marvelous. He makes things that could be bad turn out to be a blessing. I was out yesterday morning learning how to help out another missionary and on the way home I wanted to stop and pick up some groceries. I love to grocery shop here because I never have to carry my own bags and I always get friendly 'hellos' from the workers. So the girls and I finished up our shopping got help from the workers there and loaded ourselves into the car. Unfortunately, there was a slight hitch; the car wouldn’t start. I knew immediately that it was the battery because we had problems with it earlier this week but we thought they were taken care of.

So here I was stranded at the store; the girls needed naps, I needed a nap, the car was full of groceries but wouldn’t start. I called Thom and told him that I was going to get a taxi and pack us all in to come home. Let me tell you the thought of taking a taxi with all my groceries, the twins, and their stuff was not a pleasant thought. I got out of the car and told a security guard that I needed a taxi and he asked me what the problem was. My first thought was, "O, here's another delay because he wants an explanation of the problem."

Now here is where God intervenes, but not in the way I expected. You see, before I got out of the car I asked God to please just start the car. He, of course, did not. The security guard, though, talked to his friend who suggested they pop the clutch. It was in French so I didn't understand all the words but I got the idea. I have learned how to drive a manual here in Mali but not how to pop the clutch. I ended up giving the keys to one of them and they did it. They started the car within a matter of moments and I was on my way with a big thank you to them and a song in my heart to God.

Here at the end, for balance's sake, I want to tell you just a few of the lighter positives about living here: One - I never carry my own groceries, even into my own house. Two - I never pump my own gas. Three - have I said it is always warm here? Four - the people are wonderful.

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Growing Up (by Amanda)

I have so many greetings that I want to give everyone. First Thom and I really appreciate the prayers from the family of God. We got so much feedback letting us know that you were praying for Miri and it was a wonderful comfort knowing how much you cared. Second, I would like to let you all know that she is much better and we know that without God it could have been much worse. Thank you.

As you can see from the many pictures our girls are growing like weeds and they delight us with the new things they learn daily. They like to dance and clap with music and are so much fun to watch. They giggle and laugh and have begun feeding themselves. Their favorite food seems to be spaghetti and that is (obviously) a mess. We are so excited to see them grow and mature and although I'm sad to see them leave behind the baby times I am constantly reminded that is what our Father wants us to do. We need to be men (and women) of God and put our childish ways behind us. So as I watch my babies grow and delight in them I want to be that for my heavenly Father; I want Him to delight in me and say "bravo" on the new steps that I have learned. My children are such a blessing to me and I praise the Lord for giving them to me and allowing me to learn from them.

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Miriam is Doing Better

We're so thankful that Miriam seems to have responded well to the treatments for malaria. After a few days with a high fever the medicine kicked in and she's mostly back to normal. We have seen a fussier Miri and that is normal. A common side-effect of malaria and malaria medicines is personality changing. Hopefully she'll start to get back to her happy self soon. As this picture, which we took tonight, demonstrates she's on her way.
Miriam and Hannah (l-r) love their rocking chairs!

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Another Prayer Request

Miriam hasn't been feeling well lately. We thought it was because she's teething again (now up to 8 teeth!) but her fever was persistent and climbing. Amanda took her to the doctor today and he diagnosed it as malaria. He prescribed some medicine that should help her be better in a few days but it's still prayer concern for us. Malaria is Africa's number one killer, more so than AIDS, but much of that can be attributed to inadequate access to medicines. Thanks for praying for Miri.

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Baby Pics! (by Thom)

We promised, didn't we? Amanda, the girls, and I returned safely from our trip to Koutiala yesterday. After church this morning we went over to the house of Pastor Christophe and Jeanne to visit and see the baby. Everyone was healthy and they were very touched to hear how many people told us they were praying for them.
A quick cultural note: In Mali it's common to not name a baby until it is one week old. There is a big party and they celebrate the baby and name it then. I do know what they're going to name him but I'll hold off until after the party to pass that tidbit along.
Want to see a few more pictures? Click here.

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Congratulations! (by Thom)

Our great friends, Pastor Christophe and his wife Jeanne Dembele, welcomed their 6th child into the world yesterday! Amanda, the girls, and I made a trip to Koutiala yesterday to deliver some medicine to the hospital there. About halfway through the 6 hour drive my cell phone rang. It was Pastor Christophe with news that Jeanne had a baby boy. They did need to do a c-section but the last update I had was that mother and child were doing well. He weighed in at a hefty 8 lbs 12 oz, quite heavy by standards here. I've been told that the average birth weight in Mali is around 5 pounds. Thanks to everyone for your prayers! We're returning to Bamako on Saturday and we'll see them then. Hopefully we'll be able to pass along pictures.

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