http://julieanderson.myadventures.org Julie & Ellie Anderson: Life and Ministry in Swaziland - en-us Fri, 5 Sep 2008 17:20:00 GMT 30 http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=cleansed-cherished-child-of-god http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=cleansed-cherished-child-of-god In Swaziland they refer to the "Three C's" of how a guy can get a girl to sleep with him: clothes, cash, cell phone. It's sick but true...not just true that they talk about it, but true that many girls actually have sex w/ a guy because he gives her one of the above. The camp for 200+ highschool girls that took place here this past weekend focused on a new set "life giving" C's: Cleansed, Cherished, and Child of God. It was GREAT.   My favorite part of retreats like this is getting people out of their normal setting, and being able to witness the sense of freedom there is when they get a small escape from the hard circumstances they may face in their every day lives. I've seen it at the women's retreats I've helped coordinate, and it was definitely evident this past weekend as well. I especially loved hearing the girls sing during worship. Here are the words to the song they loved the most and sang the loudest.   I have a Maker, he formed my heart, before Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=lets-talk-about-becca http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=lets-talk-about-becca Today I want to talk about my good friend and co-worker, Becca!   Over the last year I've heard Becca say, "I don't know what I'm doing!" quite a few times. The amazing thing is that you look at her life and ministry over the last 2 yrs and it's obvious that she knows exactly what she's doing--she's trusting the Lord for big things and following his lead in everything, even when she feels inadequate.   Becca helps coordinate "Cherish" Bible studies for highschool girls in Swaziland. The 8 wk studies focus on Identity in Christ and Sexual Purity, and are done in small groups that allow for lots of sharing and processing. They have been very effective.   Last year Becca did the study with around ten girls in one school. This year she was able to hire 2 of the girls from original group (who experienced HUGE transformation as a result of what God did through the study), and another Swazi girl who heard about the project, to help get the studies into m Fri, 8 Aug 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=were-growing http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=were-growing Hi Friends...it's been a while since I posted an update. Sorry about that. :)   The summer (winter here) months are always busy ones with lots of teams coming through. I'm not as involved w/ the short term teams as I used to be, but I've enjoyed hanging out w/ the teams we've had here during the last 2 months. They've really been an encouragement and blessing to our ministry to the women here and also personally as well! One group gave my house a new paint job, another helped host the retreat for the women in June, another brought me cans of green chilis from the States!...things that may seem little but are huge to me. :)   Here's a picture of medical check-ups happening at our retreat in June.     When I titled this blog entry,  "We're Growing," I was wondering if some of your first thoughts were, "Does she mean her family is growing? Has Julie found another baby she can't live with out?!"  Don't worry--people ask me quit Tue, 29 Jul 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-retreat-update http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-retreat-update It's Monday morning, and I'm pretty impressed that I made it into the office after a packed weekend. Although, I'm thinking a short nap on the office floor may be happening soon. :)   The women's retreat was a success! There were a few glitches along the way...we were without water for about 20 of the 48 hours we were together, and the pastor who was supposed to speak Saturday morning arrived about 7 hours late...but I think overall the women really had a refreshing time.   My favorite part of the weekend was Saturday night when the church group here from Colorado threw a birthday party for all of the women. There were balloons, streamers, KFC and cake, but the best part was the presents...each woman received her own Bible! I hope I can post a video clip of them receiving their Bibles sometime soon, because everyone needs to see how excited they were! I had tears in my eyes as all 50 women, packed into one room, sang and danced while holding the Word Mon, 23 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-retreat http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-retreat Hi...I only have about 5 min. to write this, but just wanted to get a quick note out asking people to pray for the women's retreat we have this weekend for our Timbali Craft ladies! Please pray that it would be a refreshing time for the women, and that they would be challenged in their faith and know the deep love the Father has for them! Praise the Lord there is a group here from a church in Colorado that is helping me with the wknd! I'm off to the meat market to buy dinner... Julie Fri, 20 Jun 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=pray-for-philar http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=pray-for-philar Please check out our Timbali Crafts website that is finally up and running! www.timbalicrafts.org You can help us out by sending this address on to your friends and recommending that they check us out! THANKS! ------------------------------------------------- Pray for Philar... Philar is one of the women that I work with here. She's 62 years old, is HIV positive and suffers from asthma and TB. Besides cooking at the feeding center, she also takes care of (with the help of one daughter) nine of her grandchildren who have either been orphaned or abandoned. About 2 yrs ago, one of Philar's toddler age grandchildren become severely malnourished while in the care of her (the child's) father. One of our AIM teams helped get the child into a hospital about 1.5 hours away where they are able to treat malnourished children. Philar lived at the hospital for an entire month to be the care giver for the child. Just yesterday I saw a picture of the child, and she is now looking chubby and h Fri, 16 May 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=flowers http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=flowers Okay, so not everyone is going to like this blog, but I'm pretty sure that my mom, alice, marcia and a few others will appreciate it. :) Last week I got to go on a little overnight prayer(/nap!) retreat all by myself. My friend Kate watched Ellie and I had a full 30 hrs of time with the Lord. It was GREAT. I stayed at a little "country lodge" up in the mountains w/ tons of gorgeous flowers all over the grounds. Before I left the next morning I just spent about an hour snapping pics of them all. While I was at it I was just reminded of the beauty of God's creation, of His amazing creativity, his attention to details, and that if he cares so beautifully for the flowers, he'll do so even more for me! Hope you enjoy a quick look at some of God's beutiful creations in this part of the world! Tue, 15 Apr 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=a-week-in-ellies-life http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=a-week-in-ellies-life I'm in South Africa today. It's amazing the difference a 3 hour drive can make in your surroundings...as I type this I'm sitting in a nice coffee shop, enjoying some high speed wireless internet. I may even go see a movie this afternoon. I know this probably sounds really materialistic of me, but sometimes it just feels so good to be in a mall. :) Thought I'd take advantage of the fast internet to send out some photos of what Ellie's been up to. She's one of the busiest little people I've ever seen! Here's a few glimpses of what it's like for Ellie, growing up in Africa... Once of twice a week Ellie is out in the rural area with me while I'm meeting with the women. Here she is enjoying a plate of corn meal mush (porridge) with some of the other kids at the feeding center. I think more than the enjoying the food itself, she likes that she gets to eat it all with her fingers. :) Can you pick her out with her new short hair cut? She's 3rd from the right. She also comes along on MA Tue, 18 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=i-wish-i-was-a-nurse http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=i-wish-i-was-a-nurse I wish this story had a nice and neat ending, but it doesn't. I'm sharing it just to give you an idea of what a "typical" day can look like here, the situations people here are facing, and some of the frustrations of trying to get things done!! Last week I met a little boy named Bevulile (or something similar that starts with a "B"). He's 10 yrs old, an orphan, and HIV positive. He's the nephew of one of the women I work with (Jabulile), and lives with his granny. When we went to his house last Tuesday he was sitting on a grass mat under a tree in their front yard (large dirt area). His arms and legs are about size of Ellie's (3 yrs). His cheeks are swollen, his hair is thinning. He missed most of last school year because of being sick. They said he was too weak to walk any more than the 15 feet to the outhouse. I'm not sure if it is all just from the HIV/AIDS or malnourishment...probably a combo of the two. Language and cultural barriers can make communication SO HARD &am Thu, 13 Mar 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=the-big-wedding http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=the-big-wedding This wknd my friends Dennis and Zwakele were married here in Swaziland. Dennis has been on staff with AIM for the last 3 and a half years. Zwakele is from one of the main churches we work with in the rural area where our ministry is focused, and is also on staff with AIM. THE WEDDING WAS A BIG PARTY with lots of dancing and shouting. It was the most fun I'd ever had at a wedding!  Some things that made it different than the typical wedding you and I might be used to: --Things got started aout an hour and a half late --The flower girl threw candy into the crowd rather than dropping flower petals -- The wedding party did an coreagraphed dance down the aisle to techno music, and took about 10 min to get from the back of the church to the front. --The wedding cake was a fruit cake! (we finally figured this out after a confusing conversation with the baker, saying the normal wedding cake took 3 months to make and would last up to 5 yrs!) --They take an off Sun, 17 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=back-in-swazi http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=back-in-swazi Ellie and I are settled back into life in Swaziland. Besides making the long journey by plane, there are a few other indicators that assure us we have arrived back in Africa...the temperature is about 80 degrees warmer than Iowa, there are lizards crawling our walls, and people tell me I am looking fat, and mean it as a sincere compliment :) (i.e. it means that my parents took good care of me while I was away, which is of course a very true statement!), just to name a few. I've especially enjoyed reconnecting with the Swazi women I work with. We had our biggest pay day ever last week, with some women getting as much as 800 Emalangeni ($115). One of the cute grandmas got her pay envelope and started fanning herself like she was about to pass out, the whole time saying, "Oh, oh, ooooo, oh, eeeee," etc, etc. One of the other women ran up and put her ear to her chest to "make sure" her heart was still beating. It was hilarious. I also got to meet some of the new babie Mon, 4 Feb 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=welcome-to-2008 http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=welcome-to-2008 It's THREE DEGREES in Iowa today. I think the wind chill is in the negative double digits. Ellie and I celebrated the New Year by not leaving the house all day long! :) We leave for Africa on January 16th. We're looking forward to getting back to life and ministry in Swaziland (where the temps were in the high 80's today!). 2007 was good...probably the least stressful year since moving to Africa. I love ministry with the women I work with in Timbali Crafts. We saw lots of growth last year, and I'm praying for more in 2008 so that even more women and their families can be provided for financially and spiritually. Ellie will soon be three (Jan 18) and her two favorite things are singing and making messes...the other day she sang me an action-filled medley of 'The Itsy Bitsy Spider,' 'We Wish you a Merry Christmas' and 'Happy Birthday.' There's a video clip below that will give you just a glimpse of what a great personality she has. I was trying to get it posted by Christ Tue, 1 Jan 2008 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=world-aids-day-2007 http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=world-aids-day-2007 WORLD AIDS DAY: December 1, 2007 Today is World AIDS day. Here are some of the latest statistics on HIV/AIDS and it's affect on the world: 25 million people have died of AIDS so far currently there are 38 million people infected with the HIV virus (90% in Africa) there are 15.2 million children that have orphaned by AIDS 8000 people die everyday of AIDS 6000 children are orphaned every day because of AIDS In SWAZILAND: 42% of it's 1 million people are HIV positive there are over 120,000 orphans the life expectancy for women is only 33 years [More stats are available at: http://www.nat.org.uk/page/426 ; Stats and some great videos at www.worldvision.org] The statistics have gotten worse in the 3 years since I moved to Swaziland. Right before I came to the States, there were a few headlines in the paper that were very telling of the situation there...things like: "Population of Swaziland Drops Below 1 Million," and "No Adult Population in Swaziland by Fri, 30 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=life-in-the-usa http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=life-in-the-usa We have a new and improved "add video" function on our blog now, so I'm going to give it a whirl while I'm in the land of fast internet. This clip was taken during a visit to a "Care Point" (feeding center for orphans) by a friend who visited back in August. It's pretty cute, and worth whatever you have to go through to make it play! Ellie and I have been in the States for nearly a month now, and have been enjoying time with friends and family and many little things unique to the US that we've been missing in Swaziland. Here are a couple cute pics of Ellie enjoying life in the USA: (LEFT: Ellie in her cave woman costume.   RIGHT: First night home with the cousins at the Mexican restaurant!!! PTL for Mexican food!) People ask us if we're experiencing culture shock being back in the U.S. I wouldn't really call it "shock"...more just "realizations"...  >>There are lots of times when I see a new product in the store I've never heard of (can someone Fri, 9 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=were-coming-to-america http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=were-coming-to-america COMING TO AMERICA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Tomorrow morning Ellie and I catch a ride to Johannesburg to catch our 6pm flight to Minneapolis via Washington DC. Please pray for safe and peaceful travels. I just wanted to hop on line quick and post our itinerary for while in the U.S. This is what we have so far, with a couple other things still in the works: Oct 11: Arrive in Minneaplis Oct 12: Drive to Iowa Oct 13-14: Missions Conference at Oakdale E Free Church, Meriden, IA. I'll be sharing during the Adult Sunday School hour on the 14th. Oct 15-18: Mission Conference at Northwestern College, St Paul, MN. I'll be sharing during chapel on the 18th. October 28: Sharing at "Africa Sunday" at my friend Khanh's church in Minneapolis. (I don't know the name of it!) November 4: Share during Sunday morning service at Grace United Methodist Church, Lee Summit MO, and women's Bible study that evening. November 11: Missions Sunday at Brook Tue, 9 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=can-chickens-fly-from-swazi-to-the-us http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=can-chickens-fly-from-swazi-to-the-us Ellie and I leave for the U.S. in just 10 days and we're running in a million different directions, as you will see reflected in the eclectic content of this blog post!    CAN A CHICKEN FLY FROM SWAZILAND TO THE USA?   Last Thursday, during my meeting out with the women who are part of the craft co-op, I sat down on the floor beside my friend Ruby, to chat with her as she sewed the buttons on her bags. I told her that we were leaving for the States soon, and that I was excited to see my family. Ruby is the woman who calls herself my "Swazi Mother" and she met my parents when they were here in April. She asked how long the journey was to my parent's house. I told her that by the time you included that driving on both ends of the trip it would be about 3 days. The Ruby looked up from her sewing with a smile on her face and said, "Do you think I could send a chicken with you for your parents?" AH!!!! Isn't that the sweetest thing you've ever heard?! I've been wonde Tue, 2 Oct 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=the-purse-stories http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=the-purse-stories It seems that at least a couple times a week I get an e-mail from someone requesting to buy some of our swazi handbags. Usually there is some sort of crazy communication chain that has put them in contact with the purse project i.e. someone's friend's brother's mother-in-law received a bag from a neighbor that visited Swaziland this year, and now they want to order 25 bags to sell at their office...or something like that. :) There are also some pretty funny and encouraging stories that have come through via e-mail. I thought I'd share a few of them in this blog. These are excerpts from emails I've received from people who are helping to sell the bags in the US: This is from a friend who visited Swaziland this summer and took back bags to sell: >>>>The purses have literally flown off the shelves. I sold 12 in one visit to my dentist alone. The next day, a real estate agent, who is a friend of the dentist asked that I come over and do a "sales presentation" a Tue, 28 Aug 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-camp http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-camp "We Love Because He First Loved Us" "We Love Because He First Loved Us." 1 John 4:19. The topic of God's love is, of course, pretty broad and HUGE, but at our women's retreat here in Swaziland last weekend, we saw it demonstrated in some very specific ways, as we looked at the important truths found in that little piece of scripture. The retreat was held at a huge house AIM has rented in the city of Manzini to house teams and also events like our retreat. It's only about 20 minutes away from the rural area where the 30 women attending come from, but with a nice bed all to themselves, indoor plumbing, electricity, and no piles of clothes waiting to be hand washed, I think it seemed like a weekend away at a 5 star hotel to them. The women were especially excited about the big bath tubs, and after the first night one of the women told me she had woken up at 3am, and was so excited that she got up and took a bath right then.  :)  Tue, 17 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-camp-coming-up http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=womens-camp-coming-up Just wanted to post a quick request for prayer... We have a women's camp coming up this weekend. The 45 women that are volunteer cooks at neighborhood care points and who also sew the Timbali hand bags will be the ones attending. Please pray for all the preparations happening this week and that it will be a relaxing and fruitful weekend. Our theme is "We love because He first loved us," and we'll be talking a lot about God's great love for us, but then also the love we need to have for each other and those around us. I'll be teaching some and so will my friend Marcia Borg who is here for a couple months. Pray for the Lord to have control over all we say! Pray that we all come away with a greater sense of the Lord's love for us and motivation to be a vessel of that love to others. Pray specifically for the relationships among the women--that trust would be built and that they would learn how to better love and serve one another. I'm sure I'll have a some good pic Tue, 10 Jul 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=the-latest-statistics http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=the-latest-statistics We've had our first real blast of winter in Swaziland. I heard there was 5 inches of snow in Johannesburg a couple weeks ago, and people were scraping frost off their windshields in Swaziland's capital city, Mbabane. We're at a little bit lower elevation, in Manzini, so no frost for us, but we've definitely been making use of our fire place. My flip-flop sandals, which I tend to live in most of the year, are getting a much needed break, and I've been digging out my warmer shoesmaking sure no insects or rodents have set up camp inside of them while they sat unused in the closet for many months. J   Our busy summer/winter season is underway. Teams and other visitors seem to be arriving daily. I'm excited about a few visitors from my home church who will be landing here in June. This can be a busy time of year, but it's always nice to see some new faces, and there's a bit of excitement that comes from large numbers of people ministering together.  Thu, 31 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=deliverance-from-egypt http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=deliverance-from-egypt On Thursday I was out with the women for our regular meeting. We've been making lots of bags lately this month we've made over 300, and they are pretty much all already spoken for. Here's a picture of my friend Ruby working on the sewing machine that is at the care point she cooks at. Ruby is my Swazi mother. When my parents were here she told my mom, "I am number one! you are number two!" Of course I don't agree with that, but it's nice to have a mother in Swaziland! :) When we meet to cut fabric we also have Bible Study and prayer time. Since January we've been working through the major stories of the Old Testament. We look at an OT story, and then study the parallel truths in the New Testament: We started out by looking at creation and the fall, then studied Romans 5, where what we gain "in Adam" and "in Christ" are compared. When we studied Jacob's encounter with God and his resulti Tue, 1 May 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=lindiwe http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=lindiwe Today is Saturday. Ellie and I went to the grocery store earlier to pick up few things. It's always my goal to avoid the grocery store on the weekends because it is so crowded and crazy...but almost always we inevitably end up there at some point! Today as I pulled in I spotted Lindiwe, one of the women I work with in the rural area, and her daughter. Lindiwe walks with a limp, and even though there is a large scar on her upper lip, she has one of those smiles that just lights up her face. I wrote about Lindiwe in a blog post a few months ago. A couple of times in the last several months she has asked for prayer for her family situation: her husband was having an affair, and had decided to start studying to become a medicine man. He wasn't taking care of the family, and her children were struggling in school. Lindiwe flagged me down and I pulled over and rolled down the window: "Ninjani (how are you!)!" Lindiwe flashed a big smile and replied, "Niyaphil Sat, 14 Apr 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=banana-and-bambi-in-africa http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=banana-and-bambi-in-africa My parents arrived in Africa this week and Ellie and I are SO HAPPY they are here to see us and our life here!!! In the weeks previous to their arrival, Ellie and I studied pictures of them and worked on saying, "Grandma and Grandpa," but the closest Ellie has gotten so far is "Banana" (grandma) and "Bambi" (grandpa)...which is actually pretty hilarious, so we might just stick with that. It's always interesting when "two worlds collide" (Iowa and Africa), but also really good. I think mom and dad are enjoying finally being able to put faces to the many names they've heard, and see first hand the places I've tried to describe to them on the phone. We're just enjoying hanging out with them and showing them around! Yesterday I was able to take my parents to the hospital where we found Ellie. I'm so thankful they were able to see where Ellie spent her first few weeks of life, and where myself and friends prayed and took care of her...clueless as we were! Sat, 24 Mar 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=just-a-couple-pictures http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=just-a-couple-pictures Just wanted to post a couple pictures of the women receiving their sewing machines last week. The machines look ancient, but are brand new Singers. They are hand cranked machines, since the women do not have electricity. Here are the ladies clapping for the new machines! Fri, 23 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=new-sewing-machines http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=new-sewing-machines Yesterday we were able to present the women involved in the craft co-op with 8 brand new sewing machines! Up until this point, the women have been sharing just a few machines that some of them owned, or paying part of their earnings to use a neighbors machine, etc. These new machines mean a bigger profit for many of the women, and also means that each of the 8 feeding centers will have a sewing machine there for the ladies to use. Once the volunteers gather fire wood, haul water and get it on the fire to boil, they have a bit of waiting around time that will be perfect for getting some sewing done on the new machines. The money for the new machines came partly through donations specifically for the machines, and also through some of the profits from the hand bags. We are so thankful for how the Lord has provided! Last year at this time we were just tossing around and praying about ideas of how we could help these women earn an income. While it still&nbsp Fri, 16 Feb 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=ellie-turns-two http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=ellie-turns-two Ellie had her 2nd birthday this week! We had all the toddlers from a local home for abandoned babies over on Friday afternoon, and the dozen or so kids running around our yard made for a great little celebration. In the midst of hotdogs, games, cake, and sticky hands and faces, it was amazing to look around and think about where all these kids have come from, and even more amazing, the plans God has for their lives. Many of you know Ellie's story of being left at the hospital. Many of the other children came to the baby home from the same hospital Ellie was in. Some have HIV/AIDS. Some came to the home seemingly unable to see or hear but are now able to do both. Some were left in abandoned houses for days before being found. Now, after coming to the baby home where there is lots of great love and care, they are running around shouting and smiling, and displaying the awesome love of God. I also wanted to share a story from one of my meetings with t Sun, 21 Jan 2007 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=merry-christmas-for-swaziland http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=merry-christmas-for-swaziland Due to computer problems, this Christmas blog is getting posted a bit later than what Id hoped!   Due to computer problems, this Christmas blog is getting posted a bit later than what Id hoped!   Ellie and I had a great Christmas in Swaziland, celebrating with lots of our missionary friends here. Ellies aunties Katy and Jacci were with us for Christmas morning and spoiled her pretty well. J We were really excited to find a small bottle of real maple syrup here to go with our breakfast Christmas morning! Christmas dinner was at another friends house with several other missionary families. We continue to be thankful for the great missionary community were connected with here! The weeks leading up to Christmas were filled with Christmas parties and preparations. We had a Christmas Party at the beginning of December for the children that attend the feeding Thu, 28 Dec 2006 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=christmas-parties-the-skinny-committee-and-lessons-from-the-life-of-joseph http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=christmas-parties-the-skinny-committee-and-lessons-from-the-life-of-joseph Ellie and I (and friend Jacci) just returned from a trip down to the coast to spend Thanksgiving with some American friends there. We had the complete turkey dinner, plus a couple days worth of leftovers. The main difference between our holiday and yours was probably that we ate our dinner in shorts and tank tops, and rather than hitting the big day after Thanksgiving sales at the mall, we headed to the beach (dont be jealousit was way too windy). Now its almost December, and even down here on the bottom of Africa, people are gearing up for the holiday season, although it looks a little different than the Christmas seasons I grew up experiencing Last week I was out with the women I work with in the rural area. We had been sitting around cutting fabric for quite a while, when all of a sudden they started having a rather loud discussion (in Siswatti). One woman walked around, and pointed at each of the women one by one, and each woman sho Thu, 30 Nov 2006 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=hoola-girl http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=hoola-girl Hi everyone... Ellie and I are blessed to be part of a great missionary community in Swaziland...Southern Baptists, Assemblies of God, and everything else between. We usually get together on Saturday nights for a potluck meal, worship and Bible study, but this past Saturday night we had a "Harvest Party" for the kids. Ellie was a "hula girl" and she was CUTE! The pictures don't even begin to do her cute- ness justice. :) I also wanted to post a picture of the house we moved into in August. We continue to enjoy getting settled. It's very pink, which isn't my color of choice, but since getting Ellie I seem to be surrounded by it anyway, so why not a whole house! :) That grey concrete thing in the front yard is a "braai" or what we'd call a barbeque pit. A braai is an essential element to any good party in this part of the world...so we're glad to have one. A little follow up to my last posting... It's been great to see some of our prayers for the women answered. Th Tue, 31 Oct 2006 00:00:00 GMT http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=back-in-africa http://julieanderson.myadventures.org/?filename=back-in-africa Ellie and I have been back in Swaziland for a couple weeks now, after our visit to the U.S. We are glad to be back, but are missing some of our favorite things in America : family, friends, free refills, high speed internet, Target, Mexican restaurants with bottomless chips and salsa, good Christian bookstores, cool whip, etc.    We've also enjoyed getting back to some of our favorite things in Swaziland : green mountains, jacaranda trees, sweet chili sauce, the women we work with in the rural area, avocados everywhere, etc. And there are a few not so favorite things that weve experienced since arriving: a bat in our house, a big snake in our yard, sporadic running water, flat tires, slow internet etc. BUT life is good and were happy to back in our own space, jumping back into relationships and ministry.   We moved into a new house right before our trip, so since weve been back Ive spent Mon, 16 Oct 2006 00:00:00 GMT