housebuilding progress!

Most of you already know that we are in the middle of a busy housebuilding season.  Nathan has been in Maliyali for the past three weeks, working so hard to build our tribal home!  I haven't really shared any about housebuilding yet on my blog, so I'll try to get you up to date...

If you remember, Nathan and David (and two other guys) spent two weeks milling lumber in February.  They worked SO hard for those two weeks, and God blessed the work and gave them the wood they needed!  We were all so thankful that they were able to find such good trees close to Maliyali.  Otherwise, they would have had to hike to a spot far away, mill the lumber there, and then helicopter it to Maliyali.  Praise God they didn't need to do that.

When they got done with the milling trip, they came back here to Wewak for our area conference, and just to spend time with us.  We were very grateful for that time!  Because too soon, it was time for them to go back in to Maliyali, this time for more than three weeks.  That is a LONG time to be away.  

We were so excited that some friends from home could come over here to help!  So about three weeks ago, we got ready to welcome Nick, Clint and Aaron here to Wewak... 

waiting for their airplane...

and...they made it!

We brought them back to our house--and they were loaded down with luggage.  We were so excited and thankful for the many people who sent us things we needed (or wanted, lol!)  What a humbling thing.  

Clint teaching Kaine how to do a rubix cube...which is a huge craze among boys in our home church.  We SO appreciate our friends and how they make such an effort to keep our kids included with the kids back home, even though it's not easy from this distance!

It was so much fun and such a gift to have uncle Aaron come!

We love our friends and how they invest in our kids.  Kaine had fun playing Risk with the guys :) 

We also had the opportunity to introduce them to our town of Wewak.  These kids sure got a kick out of watching Nick and Aaron wrestle in the ocean!  They drew quite a crowd :) 

The guys had a day to rest and overcome jet lag, and then it was time to helicopter into Maliyali.  Here was the first group to go in:

(from left):  David, Nathan, Aaron, Ben and Bill (two New Tribes missionaries who went in to help out--Bill led the guys as the "foreman"), Clint and Nick.

We had a tearful goodbye--saying goodbye for three weeks was not easy.  Especially for this girl.  She has shed many tears over her daddy these past few weeks!

Nick, Aaron and Clint spent about 9 days in Maliyali, and then it was time for them to fly out.  They came back to Wewak (Nathan and the other guys stayed in there though), and I was SO excited to see pictures of our house for the first time!  Here are some of the pictures they took and showed me:

the beginning stages...

 working on the floor...

Setting the very heavy bush pole... 

 The Maliyali guys worked right alongside our guys!

putting on our metal roof!  I can't wait to have rainy nights on that roof :)  

 This is a picture of our house while standing in the loft.  As you look over the edge (there will be a railing there)...to the left is the kitchen, and to the right is the living/dining room (where Aaron is standing)

 What a privilege that our friends were able to see and experience living in Maliyali.  The guys had a great time and Nathan said the Maliyali people absolutely LOVED them!  

Thanks for coming over guys!  And thanks to Jess, Amy and Jill for being excited to send them! We love you guys!

Then, a few days ago, Ben (see him from the picture of the men who went in to work) came out of the tribe and emailed me a few more pictures.  It was fun to see the progress!

Standing at the front door...

  Can't wait to start cooking in our kitchen!

Looking into the loft...we will use it for storage and also our kids' playing area (aka legos) :) 

I love our house and I cannot wait to live in it.  It will be small but wonderful because Nathan and so many friends are pouring their energy, sweat, tears, and probably some blood into it :) 

So, there's the first housebuilding update.  It was been almost three weeks since I saw Nathan, and I haven't been able to talk to him either, except for short texts about once a day (I'm thankful at least we have that communication.)  He texted me last night and said that he's been working from 5:30 am until 8 pm...and he's feeling overwhelmed that there is still SO MUCH to do.  Emily and I are so beyond proud of our husbands and their hard work.  Building a house in the remote jungle is hard enough, but when they are also away from their families for this long, it has got to be wearing on them!  Please pray for them if you think about it.  The good thing is...tomorrow morning they will begin the long hike (10 hours) out--and they'll be home on Wednesday!  Can't even describe the happiness that we all feel over that!  I'll post another update after Nathan comes out:)