We. Are. Outta. Here.

Hi Everyone,

It looks like we will all make it out....except our two KC team members will be a day late. :-( This is a tremendous disappointment, but we are thankful they can make it at all!

Please keep us in your prayers and thoughts while we are away:

• That Team Tasfa will be unified and flexible;
• That we will accomplish all that God asks us to do;
• That we will bring great glory to Him;
• That our team members will be changed forever;
• And finally, that we will deliver hope, love and lasting change to the dear people we will serve.

Our friends, family and communities have rallied around this grass-roots effort that is TEAM TASFA. I could tell story after story after story about all the ways people have helped and encouraged each of us. So many people have done so much....not for us....but for the people of Shanto, the children of FOVC, and Children's Heaven, and Korah.

Am I scared? Terrified! Do I struggle with leaving my kiddos? Absolutely. May I press resolutely ahead, in response to this call and opportunity. Amen!

"The One who is calling us is faithful, and He will do it."

1 Thes. 5:24

Help!

Twenty-six members of Team Tasfa are scheduled to meet at the Newark Airport tomorrow afternoon.

So far, the flight out of Colorado has been confirmed, then briefly cancelled, and now it is again scheduled to go on-time.

The news isn't so good for everyone on our team. Tomorrow's flight out of Kansas City has been cancelled, and two of our members are scheduled on that flight.

Nobody can get through to the airline, and I don't know how to advise our team members.

Please pray that nothing will thwart our plans to serve in Ethiopia!

Packing Party!

The Colorado Contingent of Team Tasfa had a BIG packing party Sunday afternoon.

Kids lunching.



The local Girl Scout Troop made sooooo many dresses, complete with a pair or panties and a little doll for each girl.

 

Our former neighbor and excellent friend, Hailey Ewing, models a dress!



The Colorado Contingent....Ethiopia, here we come!



Thank God for organized, engineering types who were able to make sense of all of the donations,
and help us get everything packed up!

TWO WEEKS & a birthday & some pictures!

Let me begin by getting this out of my system:

We are leaving in two weeks!!!!!!!

Ok, back to business.

Dave's parents came to town this weekend to (finally) meet Bereket and visit the rest of us. It was good to see them again!



Nana and Grandad and a bunch of grandkids (plus a grandschnauzer)

Amelia spent a lot of time trapping Nana in the bathroom with her!

Life has been so crazy and busy, we didn't tell Bereket that his (randomly assigned?) birthdate of November 29 had come and gone with a birthday party. Instead, we held a proper celebration Sunday night. Honestly, in our defense, he didn't know the date had already passed. And it was much better this way, with Nana and Granddad in town, and DAVE in town, and a house in which to celebrate, etc etc.



Note the semi-homemade birthday cake...that is my tray and we installed the candles!
With all the sprinkles and drizzles, the birthday boy was thrilled!

Yes, he's a boy, and yes, he's attracted to guns.

Brother and Sis together!

First birthday gift!

Yep, we're already sorry we bought the Nerf gun.

Abby the Techno-Sis assembles the PlayMobil hero set.

A boy and his dog!

A boy and his daddy!

The aftermath!

Finally, I guess I am dealing with my Mary and Martha issues. Trying to discern between what I need to do  (help my kids get to Christmas, prepare for our trip, pay attention to my kids, go to work, not ignore my kids, focus on the meaning of Christmas, take care of my children...do you see a pattern here?) and what I ought to do (create really fabulous Christmas cards and decorate the whole entire house for Christmas).

It has not been easy for me, but I am scaling way back on things that don't really, truly matter, in order to make time for the things that do really, truly matter. Many, many boxes of Christmas decorations remain packed away in the basement.

I'm trying to be more of a Mary and less of a Martha, but I'm not a Scrooge---we do have a Christmas tree!

And I think this Christmas time will be a really special one for the Howletts Six.

"He's the Mother Teresa of Ethiopia"

Here is another excellent article from the Denver Post, about a doctor people call "The Mother Teresa of Ethiopia." This American doctor, who lives and works in Ethiopia, and who has adopted five sons there, is also featured in the excellent book, There Is No Me Without You.

I cannot wait to get the new book, This is a Soul: The Mission of Rick Hodes. Let me know if you have read it, or seen the HBO film, Making The Crooked Straight.

Oh, to be chosen to change the world!

We Did Move

We spent last week moving to our new house. Well, the kids and I spent the week moving. Dave spent the week in sunny, beautiful Detroit--that dirty dog!

So.....if you have been waiting to hear back from me about anything, I will try to get unburied this week. We spent several days without any internet, and I am very behind!

Dave just realized that exactly 10 years ago, we had lost most everything. Most significantly, we had both lost all hope. It was a very dark time for us.

I appreciate that Dave is striving to live with thanksgiving and gratitude. He says he never, ever dreamed that our situation would be redeemed and greatly blessed over the course of ten years. He never dreamed we would have two more children. That we would have such a great family and such rich friendships. That we would be back in our beloved Longmont, and at Rocky Mountain Christian Church. That we would have traveled to many places in the world. That we would have such a beautiful home. And that God would have worked so much in our hearts and lives, to heal so much pain and to begin to free us from many of our fears. All praise to Him.

P.S. We leave for Ethiopia in three weeks!