just another "normal" day

Each day here pretty much starts the same . . . get up, make some phone calls, try to get some type of exercise in, breakfast, then off and running the rest of the day. Today was not any different. After we were all up and ready to go, a few of the girls headed out to the "mall" (I use this term VERY loosely) to meet some of our friends (none of which ended up coming . . . hmmmm), then we went to the other end of town to enjoy some smoothies. While we were there, we were invited to a K'rdish family's home for lunch. Of course, this means not only an hour or so, but the whole afternoon is then spent with the family. It was such an enjoyable time and the family was wonderful! It's really a neat experience to be with an entire family (I'm talking, grandmother, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles, cousins, everyone!) who don't speak too much English. It can get quite difficult to follow conversations, but it is so neat to learn from them! After we left lunch, we were off to the new center for the hanging of the sign! What an awesome thing to watch. Thanks to Darrell and all the team members (especially the Salem team) for making this happen!



a ton of food

just the ladies

unveiling the sign

working up to the top (this was a process)

great job!!!

What a "Bazaar" day!

Yesterday was termed 'Bazaar' day, and did it fit nicely! The day began with a departure breakfast for two of our team members, then quickly sprang into action with four of us heading to the Bazaar to do some shopping. I can honestly say, that the Bazaar is bazaar! I'm not quite sure how to explain this place. 1) It is HOT! 2) It is very overwhelming 3) Bargaining is not my strong point, but this is how you shop for everything. The Bazaar bombards all of your senses with stimulus, so by the end of a trip there, you are exhausted from all of the new smells, sights, etc. I unfortuantely did not take many pictures, but here are a few. Maybe I'll be able to better explain it when I'm home.

the 4 of us getting ready to head out

making the kabob skewers

on the way into the Bazaar

yes, there were 5 of us in the backseat of a compact car

yek tawaw

In English, that would mean one finished! We finally have one room finished (at least as far as the paint is concerned). I am sorry to say though, that there was no dancing involved in painting this time. Oh well, there will be many more rooms to come. There were only three of us that ventured down to the new center the other morning to tackle one room. Since there is only g'vt electricity in the new building right now, we only get electricity for about 3 hrs. at a time, then it's off for 3 - 4 hours. So, we were only able to get one room finished the other morning.

Tomorrow, our first two team members depart to head back home to the states, but then we have three new people coming to help out at the new center. This is a huge bl'ssing because we are all so busy with classes and the old center right now. We still have the Kids Club two mornings a week, evening classes 4 nights a week, and coffeeshop one night a week. And now, Christine and I have the privilege of tutoring a 13 year old in math 8 hours a week. He is such a joy to work with and is so excited to learn more! Needless to say though, we are all running our separate ways most of the day, which is making heading down to the center to do lots of work a difficult task. With new team members coming (specifically to work on the new center), I am confident that we will get the center (mostly) put together before we all head out on Aug. 7th or 8th! I can't believe there are less than 3 weeks left! Cr'zy!

Almost finished!!!

All done!

Painting away!

Now that we have the "big cleaning" out of the way (except the 2nd floor) it is time to start the painting process. We were given a blank canvas in which to create a home environment on the 1st floor of the new center. The other day, the 7 of us headed down to get the process started, which basically meant priming the walls. I do not think I have ever seen so much of something soak into a wall!! It is so dry here that by the time you take the brush out of the bucket, the primer is almost dry before you hit the wall. Since the rooms are fairly large, there was much to be done, so thankfully we were all able to pitch in and get moving!

Seeing as we do not yet have AC in the new center, it was pretty hot and stuffy in these rooms. Well, you can only imagine what the paints fumes were like about 10 minutes into our painting adventure. There were several rooms that needed to be worked on, so once one room was "cut in" the rollers got to work finishing the walls while the rest of us headed to another room to get it started. Since we all enjoy working with music playing, we opted for my iPod for painting. Those that know me know that I have quite an eclectic taste in music, so you can only imagine the random mix of songs that was blaring throughout the 1st floor. After several hours, "Can't Fight the Moonlight" came on and Michele had the brilliant idea of heading to the other room to perform for Ross and Lara. (sorry there are only photos, not an actual video). I have to say, it was quite the performance, to which Ross replied, "I think the paint fumes have done their work!"

K'rdish Lessons

Ever since we have arrived, we have been going to K'rdish lessons once a week. Although they are not "official" lessons, they are extremely helpful with some basics, not to mention highly interesting (to me at least). We have not ventured into any written language yet (mostly because it is very difficult and to me it all looks like squiggly lines), but just some basics of speaking here. Not only do we get language lessons, but we also have many discussions about culture here vs. stateside, as well as the reasons for all of us being here. It is a wonderful time for us to get together and learn about life here, both the struggles and the triumphs. One of the couples that is living here has us over for lunch together then some study time, it is definitly one of my favorite parts of each week. I am really going to miss lessons when I come back home, but I hope to be able to still study somehow once I return to the states.

Hanging out with the "Zeke-man" before lunch

Our own little study group

Prenatal Clinic

One huge undertaking that is happening right now is getting the new center ready to go. We've done the cleaning to get all the construction stuff out (minus the second floor where the men are still breaking down walls). Earlier this week, a few of us headed down to help Cheryl set up her clinic. She has a special place in her heart to serve pregnant women and help them through this amazing experience; she was so excited to get her clinic set up! Now she has some medicines, an exam table, and an ultrasound machine to use in her clinic. Please p'ry for this clinic and the work that Cheryl will do here for the women of Ir'q. Here are a few pictures, but there will be more pictures to follow of the clinic once it is completed (we still need a sink, counter, cabinets, and fixed curtains).

The ultrasound machine

Christine on the exam table

Ross getting ready to hang curtains

A Special Day

Although I have only been here a short time, my heart has grown immensly for the people here in Iraq. I have had many conversations with many different people about many different things. I have heard what is on their minds and some of their hearts. Today we were able to celebrate Cheryl's birthday with some of our K'rdish friends. It was decided amongst the women that we would just simply "pamper" her for the day. This day began with making sure that she did not do any of the work she normally does to serve us in the house. I made breakfast and had items prepared for lunch. The guys did some cleaning and the rest of the house pitched in to clean dishes and help prepare the main lunch meal. Following the meal it was set that we would all head our separate ways (but end up in the same place as a surprise). We managed to mostly surprise Cheryl with manicures, pedicures, and massages for her and the rest of us.

Our "spa" supplies

We were privileged to have three other women join us for this mini-party. What we were able to offer them was simply care and compassion through service. We all took our places to give them manicures and pedicures. In this region, feet are considered to be disgraceful, and these women were shocked beyond belief that we, Americans, would sit on the ground and wash their feet for them. One even commented on the "atmosphere" that we created, but none of us was willing to accept creating the atmosphere. It was He that gave each of us a servant's heart for these women. It was an amazing afternoon to be able to sit and serve by simply "pampering" others.

Kirsten's dining room transformed into a "spa"