On the Barbie!

Ray and his father in law, Roger, finishing off the sausage sizzle on Easter Monday.

Here we are gathered round the good stuff with Ray and Caran, there sons Samuel and Zachary, and Roger and Grace. We didn't know any of these guys two weeks ago, but they have bent over backwards to help us.

About the Blog Title Poll

And the answer is . . . "something having to do with a barn." :) It was kind of a trick question. :) It just so happened that we were "stalled" in our attempt to get out of Indo at the time I was creating the blog. But actually, I've wanted to create some kind of a blog to keep family and friends in the loop on our lives and to post things the Lord is laying on my heart. I had been thinking of a name for it . . . something creative and with significant meaning.

Several years ago, I was humorously impressed with a verse in Proverbs:

Proverbs 14:4 says "Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox."

Basically, life and ministry can be a messy thing. This is something I've really seen in the field of cp. When you look at Acts and how the first ch got started, you realize that there was no easy and neat way for the new believers. It was messy. But you can't let the messiness stop you from moving out, because in great messiness comes great things!

So - "Install" refers to the "stall" being "full of oxen" - so get ready for a mess - but expect God to bring in a bumper crop! (and, of course, 144 in the web address refers to Proverbs 14:4).

Thanks for voting!

Thanks for taking the time to vote on what the meaning of our blog name is. Unfortunately, I've got about 3 minutes left on my time at the pay-through-the-nose wireless connection at McDs. So I'll have to fill you in later on who was right and where "Install 144" comes from. Until then . . .

Pictures of our house

Front of our house and the car that we've been loaned. Once the "bubby" comes, we'll have to put him on top!

Inside our house: living room, kitchen, dining room, through to the back yard. Anybody want to come for a visit?

Easter Sunday

Happy Resurrection Day! This morning we were treated to an Easter service message on Living in a Friday world with Sunday coming. Many times, we see and experience difficult things, but the resurrection of Jesus teaches us that we always have hope. He not only helps us now, but even when things don’t seem to be going our way, we have the hope of victory forever as His return.

For the past two weeks, we’ve encountered a heap of “Fridays” but there have been beautiful and miraculous “Sundays” continuously following: new friends, babysitting for the kids, cleaners working on our house, extra financial help, ministry opportunities, parks nearby to enjoy Easter picnics . . . the list could go one.

I don’t have much time – am signing on at a local McD’s for about 15 minutes. Just wanted to let you know that we’re alive and well. Thank you for continuing to pray us through this time. I tried to post some pics of our house, but having trouble uploading right now. We’ll try to get back on line in a couple of days.

Setting Up House

Today we hired someone to help us clean the house that's on loan to us (she cleans the church -Subiaco Church of Christ - that has been helping us get set up. The church, by the way, is pastored by an American, graduate of Dallas, and he is the chairman of the board for Pioneers of Australia).

The house belongs to a doctor who has a ministry to drug and alcohol abusers, which means the house itself usually doesn't get taken care of. In general, it's in good condition, but just filthy. Even the lady we hired walked in and winced in disgust. So our challenge will be to whip it into shape, which has not been an easy task, but we're working on it. We're hoping to have it livable by tomorrow so we can move in.

Aside from the cleanup, another challenge, in terms of keeping in touch with all of you guys, is that there's no phone or way to hook up to the internet. I'm looking into options, but haven't found any in our price range or that would be suitable.

We'd appreciate your continued prayers as we continue this transition. I can't say this enough, but God has provided immeasurably more than we could ask over the past week. His wisdom is well beyond ours, so we know that He's working these "puzzle pieces" together to create a beautiful picture. Some days, though, all we can see are a bunch of ill-fitting puzzle pieces, and it's those days in particular that we need your prayers so that we can fight for joy. Pray too that we can find ways to be a blessing to others. I found the Lord laying this on my heart to pray during the week last week and want to continue praying this. That even in the midst of our challenging circumstances, God will use us to encourage and comfort others.

Pictures of the Flight

Gidday mates! Our Aussie accents are really very horrible. Although, Aidan is starting to pick it up. We spent the day driving around Perth, eating at Hungry Jacks (aka Burger King), getting lost driving around Perth, and going to the hospital for another appointment. Before I call it a day, I wanted to post some visuals of what our day was like yesterday. You'll notice smiles on all of our faces as we are relieved to finally be on our way. It all started with a simple desire to find better care for Kim and the baby and ended up to be quite the saga.

Arriving at the Malang Air Force base and our first look at the air ambulance.

Kim is strapped in and we're preparing for take off.

Delaney is happy to have a great seat. Not like her dad who had to sit in the bathroom for take offs and landings.

Kim's medical escorts from Singapore, Doctor CJ and Nurse Rachel.

Finally in Perth! Kim is loaded into the ambulance that will take her to King Edward Hospital.

We're in the land Down Under!

What a day we had yesterday! I'm still trying to process it. A Singaporean doctor and nurse arrived at our house in Indonesia at 8:15am. They checked Kim over and told us that she was doing OK to fly and we could come along. Wohoo!

Kim got into the Air Force base ambulance (no other airport in Malang) and the kids and I got into a friend's car to get to the base. As we arrived, we all got the first glimpse at the Lear Jet that was going to take us to Perth (yes, you read that right - Lear Jet. We actually flew a Lear Jet - with our own personal pilots, personal doctor and nurse on board). It was quite small and cramped inside, considering all the medical equipment, but we didn't have a problem fitting in. At 9:15am, we were in the air, stopping in Bali to process our exit from Indonesia, and then on to Perth. And that's about how fast the whole flight took.

We arrived in Perth at 3:15pm and Kim was transported by ambulance to King Edward Hospital for a thorough check up. The kids and I had to process through the regular way, and we were met by Gloria Loh, and friend of a friend of a friend, who took us to the hospital.

Kim was in the hospital until about 10:00. They conducted several tests on her, including a test that gives a fairly good indication whether she'll go into labor over the next week. It was a great relief and answer to prayer to hear that the test came back negative. Both because Kim was doing so well, and because they didn't have any beds left, Kim was able to check out with an appointment for later on today.

We made our way to Gloria's house for the night. Aside from the doctor's appointment, we will be working on setting up a house that we've been graciously allowed to use. Our access to the internet may be spotty, but I'll try to keep updating on our continued adventure when I can.

Thank you all for remembering us in prayer and keeping us covered. We are so grateful that you have been walking with us through the past week.

Closing up shop

I have to shut down my computer and get all the last minute details arranged. It looks like our flight this morning will really happen. Or at least, I have to go through the motions as if it's really happening. Just got off the phone with the Singapore air ambulance company. They wanted to know what kind of meals we would like (that's a good sign, isn't it?), as we'll pick up food when we stop in Bali. OK. Thanks for praying. Please keep praying especially for Kim and the baby that they will have a safe and uneventful flight. I'll post more once we're set up in Perth.

Possible flight (updated)

Now we're not sure of anything anymore . . . but we have another plane coming from Singapore arriving at 7:00am Sunday morning to take Kim to Perth (so that's one dilemma solved). Earlier in the day, I was able to get our tickets changed to open dates (another dilemma solved), but with this new air ambulance, we're being told that even the kids and I will be able to go along . . . is that too much to hope for at this point?

We're not telling the kids right now. (In fact, I'm trying to keep from telling myself, just so I don't get my hopes up). They've been through so many changes this week that we can see the emotional effects. As well, there is the possibility that when the medical team arrives, they may tell us that we can't go, only Kim. They wouldn't want the kids on the plane should something begin to happen and Kim would need to give birth en route.

I may try to get another post up at 7:00am on Sunday (that will be 8:00pm EST Saturday in the US). If not, then you'll know that we are in the air and I'll post once we get set up in Oz.

A New Day in Indo

All packed up and no place to go . . . yet!

It's 7:15am Saturday morning. I just woke up, after the first full night sleep I've had in a long time, and called Med Air to check on the status of Kim's plane (they kindly offered not to call throughout the night!!).

I don't know what happened, but somewhere along the line, the air ambulance company that we had yesterday got the boot. -- Do you think someone else saw the same pattern we did? Ya need to have planes that actually can fly. I am relieved, though, that they are looking for a new one.

We've got two dilemmas now, and they are biggies. If Med Air cannot find a reasonably priced flight to Perth, our insurance company may send Kim to Singapore - I'm still checking on this, and haven't received a firm answer (Singapore is where they would normally go in this type of situation. However, when we made the decision to get Kim out of the country, we made plans ourselves to fly commercially to Perth. We chose Perth because we immediately had housing and transport available to us, as well as a doctor, and a host of contacts. Our only problem was, after all those plans, the airline refused to allow Kim on the flight. And so did any other airlines. So we were left at the hands of our insurance company to decide which country to medevac Kim to. It was looking like Singapore for a number of hours, but then they miraculously chose Perth). So we hope that she can still go to Perth, because . . .

The kids and I already have tickets to fly to Perth tonight. As I mentioned earlier, we leave Malang at 1:00pm for a 7:15pm flight. We have to leave so early because there's been a major disaster between here and Surabaya for the past two years -- we call it the mud flood -- which at times completely cuts main roads off. So what once was a two hour drive to the aiport, can be at times a five hour drive. You never know, so you have to leave early. Our concern last night was that maybe Kim would be leaving after us. Now an additional concern is that she may be going to a completely different country.

So, now that you know our dilemmas . . . please pray. We have no idea how this is all going to work out. This has been a week, though, of watching God do impossible things. So we know that whatever He works out will be the best for Kim, the baby, and the rest of us.

OK, now I'm off to eat oatmeal pancakes. I'll let you know more as soon as I hear from Med Air.

Still Waiting Part 2

Kim's still not off the ground yet (but she's still smiling . . . Oh, that's just cuz I had the camera pointed at her). One thing I'm experiencing over the past week is that nothing is for certain. Here's a small picture of our timeline today:

1:30pm - We received a call that the medical plane was on its way to Jakarta. Aha! Yes, finally we can get going (the plane was originally scheduled to be in Malang by 7am this morning).

1:45pm - Oh, wait a second. Just as we were walking out the door to head to the airport, the Jakarta based company called and told us to stay put. Mechanical problems and the plane had to return to Jakarta.

3:30pm - Attempt number two. The plane was on its way. Kim and I loaded up the car, kids were at a friend's house, and we headed off.

4:30pm - My cell phone rang just as we arrived at the desolate Air Force base/part time airport. The plane again had to return to Jakarta - cabin pressure problems.

We waited around for a half hour and then were told to go back home and await further instruction.

6:00pm - Attempt number three. The plane is on its way - we've learned not to celebrate at this point, by the way. We were told, though, that because the crew had already flown their limit, they would not be able to continue on. The doctor on board would come to our house and examine Kim at 9:30pm. The plane would depart with Kim at 7:00am Saturday March 15.

9:30pm - I receveid a text message, "We would like to apologize that our aircraft would not be able to fly to Malang tonight due to technical problem."

Umm. Anybody sensing a pattern here? We're still not sure what's going to happen next. One other wrinkle in this now is that the kids and I did get our entry permits and air tickets earlier today. We leave at 1pm on Saturday to make a 7:15pm flight in Surabaya. Hopefully, Kim will be on her way by then. If not, I have no idea what we're going to do.

The up side to all of this is that we're almost done packing, we're all together for another night, and I'm going to bed before midnight for the first time in four nights. That's if no one else calls me in the next five minutes.

Still waiting

I got to bed a 3:30am and was promptly awakened every hour and a half with calls from Med Air. They are doing a great job. I just wish I could get some more sleep. They are waiting on the medevac company (I think it's in Jakarta) to set up an itinerary. Until that happens, we're just in a holding pattern for Kim. They still say it's gonna happen today.

Meanwhile, I'm trying to get the kid's and my visas for entering Australia (should have been a very simple process, but simple has eluded me this week) and our airline tickets. Pray for the visas to come through before the tickets.

Flight to Perth Update

Praise the Lord! We just received word that Kim will be taken by air ambulance to Perth on Friday morning (just a few hours from now actually - I've been pulling a bunch of all nighters this week). Med Air, the group from our insurance company, has already arranged for Kim to be admitted to a hospital in Perth for a thorough check up.

Kim is really doing well. A lot of what the Med Air group is doing is for precaution - well, that and the fact that no airline would take Kim in the condition she is in. The fact that she will be headed to Perth really encourages her, even though she'll be doing it alone.

The kids and I will be getting the next available flight out of Surabaya to Perth. It will most likely be on Saturday.

First Post Ever

Well, here I am . . . in the midst of trying to get Kim (and the rest of us) out of the country and to Australia so Kim and the baby can be in a safe place for the remainder of the pregnancy. And I'm creating a blog of all things!! This may not last, both because I don't know if I'll be any good at always posting, and because of other safety issues (and I think you probably know what I mean).

However, with the sudden plans to temporarily locate to Australia, and so many of you guys graciously remembering us in prayer, I thought that maybe this would be a good place for you to get updates. It's free! And this way I can post anytime and you can check in anytime to see what's going on. It will save me from having to create email updates every hour - cuz our plans have been changing about that often.

So, here's the latest . . . we had plans to fly to Perth on Friday night, but the airline would not allow Kim to fly. That's the bad news. However, our insurance company has been a real help. They were originally going to send out a medical escort to fly with us. Now that Kim can't get on the flight, they are making arrangements for an air ambulance for Kim. That's the good news. Although, the kids and I will not be able to fly with her. So we'll have to take a separate flight and try to catch up with her. That's the bad news. We're waiting word from the Med Air group on Kim's flight, and then I have to get back to our travel agent to book new tickets (since we had to let our last booking go this afternoon).

But in all of this, the good news is that we can rest in knowing that God is in control of all these things. We have seen him move mountains throughout the week (we've also seen mountains rise up out of nowhere).

So that covers my first post ever. I gotta run to catch a bite to eat. The rest of the fam is sitting at the table waiting for me. Potato pizza!