Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all! I went to the U.S. In December for classes to complete my Bachelors degree in Maternal Child Health. The classes were in Cincinnati, Ohio. I had a great time at the courses and learned a great deal :) I was able to make a brief stop in Michigan, my home state, to see family after my courses were finished.

I loved seeing my sweet niece, Heidi, and my nephews, Matt and Josh. They are truly joys to me and I hope each will come visit us abroad sometime in the future.

I got to stay with My brother, Rick and my SWEET sister in law, Kristin. They are always gracious, loving and joyful!!! I love being in their home. It feels like second home to me :)

I also was able to get to Frankenmuth, MI with my family. We had the traditional German chicken dinner with all the trimmings, YUM! I spent time chatting with my sister, Heather, whom I miss terribly. We laughed and joked like always as if no time had gone by :)

I shopped with my mom for a large consumable shipment while I was home in Michigan. here are sone if the photos of part if the items we shipped. Thanks to Mom for all her help, I could not have done it without her:)

Our first Christmas in Mali was great! 85 and sunny was weather for the day. The kids are glad that Santa does indeed make it to Africa!

We made gingerbread houses, frosted cut-out cookies and hosted a dinner party for Kelly's co-workers. We are often glad to be out of the major commercialism of an American Christmas. It is just less pressure and helps you focus on the reason for the season.

Now we look forward to our first visitor. My dad arrives in Mali in a few weeks and we all can't wait!!! Our children adore all their grandparents and "Grandpa B" is no exception :) they are already planning what to do with him and what to show him. All I can say is bring sunscreen and your swimsuit, Dad!

I will post more as we have events cone up. For now, HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!!!!!

Lately I have spent MUCH too much time dealing with the medical problems of our family! I have been struggling with vertigo since Kelly left, Faith has a raging infection in her toe and Luke has a large pustule under his eye. There have also been several cases of "Bamako Belly" and a few other ailments that are not completely appropriate to mention to all in the blogosphere ;)

This always happens when Kelly leaves, without fail! I was hoping it was over with just me struggling with vertigo while caring for our children. But, no such luck! As I struggle with all this I am so THANKFUL for the Embassy Health Unit. The nurses and staff are excellent! There us no "first world" medical care in Mali. I am optimistic that the health of us all will begin to turn around this week. In the meantime please pray for us all!

Kelly and Grace are visiting an Orthopedic Surgeon in London for a couple weeks. Grace is doing AMAZINGLY well, Praise God! She is having outpatient physical therapy this coming week and has made remarkable progress. She has also loved seeing the "London Eye" and Buckingham Palace.

We had a great Halloween celebration with our American friends before Kelly and Grace left Bamako. The kids enjoyed getting to "trick or treat" and seeing all the standard American candy :)

The other photos are of one of the rock cliff parks here in Bamako and of tile "squattie potties" on the side of the road for sale. I will try to post some of the more interesting everyday photos commonly seen in Bamako.

This weekend is Tabaski, it is a sacred holiday for Muslims. They commonly sacrifice a ram. Rams were bleating like crazy yesterday! Today is truly "the silence of the rams". Have a good weekend and to this in Bamako, "Bonne Fete"!

I have been wanting to share with you about my "mon ami" for quite awhile now. Everyday, since our Durango arrived, I have been driving our kids to and from school. After dropping off our three oldest I take a road that has gangs of young boys begging. They remind of the gang of petty thieves in Charles Dickens classic tale, "Oliver Twist".

I know that these gangs of boys are most likely sent out to beg by a "pimp", of sorts, to get the money they can and bring it back to the "boss".

As I watched these boys each day, one stood out to me. He would run after my car to be right next to me when I came to a stop at the stoplight he was camped out at. At first I didn't give him anything only cheered for his fast running and asked him in French "Ca va?" he would answer with "oui, ca va." which means "yes, I am fine."

After a few days of this running I would look forward to greeting my friend. One day when I did not see him immediately I began to grow concerned. I wondered was he hit by a car while begging or beaten for not collecting enough money? After some time he eventually found my car. My car stands out and I am thankful for that, in this situation. I rolled down my window and said "Mon ami, ca va?" he smiled so big and responded with his usual response that he was indeed o.k.

His smile near tore my heart out! I could tell he was thrilled that I had called him "Mon ami" or "my friend" in English. I gave him change that day and have been doing so everyday since. I don't know where that money goes and frankly I shutter to think about it. I hope and pray he gets to keep sone to eat. I wonder does he have a family? Has he ever had the privilege to attend school? I wish I could take him in and undo all the wrongs in his life. I can't fix everything for him. That is overwhelmingly sad at times forvme to think about. But, for now I can befriend him. We can both look forward to each others visit. I will cheer for him as he runs and he will smile for me. I am glad in this situation I know the one who has this boy's life, and my own, in his hands. I am not completely helpless, I can pray! I will pray for my friend and ask God to show me why it is this boy that he has allowed to touch my heart. I will pray for his safety and security. I will trust that God can work in this boys life and mine, in mighty ways!

The photos attached to this blog post are of my friend running and smiling for me. The other photos are sone of the crazy traffic I drive in each morning. Have good day, Crystal

Grace is healing very well! I am so proud of her. She walks with her walker and is moving around much better. I am so glad to see her fierce Independence and will power!

In other news we made cheese this weekend from fresh milk we pasteurized. Kelly is my hero! He went with an acquaintance to a market, picked up the milk and mad cheese with kids all morning on Sunday! We now gave mozzarella and ricotta cheese to eat and store :) yummy!

Due to Kelly's hard work we had home made pizza on Sunday. We celebrated Faith's eighth birthday with the pizza and chocolate cake. I can't believe how old Faith us getting. She is so FULL of fun:) Happy birthday,Faith! We love you ~~~

We received some new bikes last week. The kids were so excited to ride! You can't really ride bikes on the road safely in Bamako. Thank God we have a vacant lot,that we call the "Rock Farm", close to our house that is perfect for riding bikes.

Grace even got to go with us. She was bummed to not get a chance to ride her new bike, but also happy to just be outside.

The best thing was watching the Malians stare at us, the strange Westerners. I am sure they were wondering "what is on those children's heads" and "why aren't they just riding their bikes on the rode?"

We had a great time and I an sure we will be at the "Rock Garden" riding again soon : )

Today the country of Mali celebrates 51 years of being an independent nation. In 1880 the French colonized Mali and some of the surrounding nations. On the 22nd of September 1960, Mali had gained complete independence from the French. The French influences still remain strong in the country. The national language is French.

Today we celebrate independence with our Malian hosts. We of all nations can understand the celebration of Independence. Large Malian flags hang all over the capital of Bamako. Viva La Mali!!!

This is my favorite photo in Mali last week. I saw this after picking up my little ones from school. This is a shot of a Malian filing station. The women sitting near the gas pump is breastfeeding her twin boys. I love that women can nurse so freely in public. As I am in the process of becoming an IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant), this is truly my favorite picture I have snapped in Mali. I love countries where breastfeeding is not a big deal, but just a normal part of the day. Viva La Mali!!!!

After posting about how we are adjusting to life in Mali, WHAM, tragedy struck at 5:30 am this morning!

Our oldest daughter, Grace, ran into a sliding glass door that separates our family room from a hallway on our second floor. Grace is doing fine now as I type this, but it was a difficult, exhausting day!

It all started, for Kelly and I, with loud crashing and screaming frantically " I don't want to die!"

We entering the dark family room, to find Grace on the floor with blood pooling. I could feel my adrenaline kick in. Grace says as I comfort her "Mommy, I know God still has work for me to do here on earth, I can't die!" is she not true to her name, she is grace personified. She is certain she has more work to do for God, not that she needs to see one last movie or get an IPod. When she is scared about how badly hurt she is, she is still concerned about what God has for her to do in the future. I love that girl !!!!!

Next thing I know Grace and Kelly are off to the Health Unit at the Embassy and I am on the road to drop off the other kids ti school.

When I finally arrive at the Health Unit, Grace is getting stitched up and is doing very well! I knew that I married the right man :) He is my hero!

After she is all stitched together, Kelly says that the gash on her knee is very deep. He tells me we need to go meet with the local Orthopedic surgeon and get his opinion.

We arrive at the clinic are immediately whisked into the Surgeons office. He says he thinks we should put her under anesthesia and see what was cut. So, Grace had surgery in Bamako! She has been such a trooper. It was very wise of the surgeon to operate, because Grace sliced her Patella tendon. The surgeon was able to reconnect all the right areas while my husband watched the whole thing. It is such a blessing to have a Physician for a husband!

Here are some photos of Grace pre-surgery and post. Lastly is the photo of that nasty glass door. Please pray for Grace as she recovers, she will need the prayers as she heals. Thanks, Crystal

Hello to all! I know I have been a failed blogger these past months, but I am now going to try and make a come back into the blogosphere : )

In late July we arrived at our second post and new home, Bamako. For those of you that don't know that is in the country of Mali. Mali is in west Africa and has the legendary town of Timbuktu in the north of this large country.

We have loved our time in Mali so far! Is it hard here? Yes! TIA or "this is Africa" can be heard frequently coming from my lips. My expectations were low coming here, but I have been quite pleasantly surprised. Malians are some if the nicest people! They are warm and friendly, always greeting us and smiling. That alone is a huge improvement over our last post.

We have a home with beautiful tropical plants and fruits. The pool in our yard has been enjoyed almost daily by our children since we arrived in Mali. Most importantly for a bird lover like me, BIRDS are all over. I am already adding birds to my "life list".

Another development for us here is our new "pets". Kelly worked very hard and built a deluxe chicken coop so we could raise chickens for the eggs. The kids have loved the four hens and one rooster. They each have their own chicken that they care for each day.

All our kids have started school since labor day weekend. I am alone at home in the morning for the first time in 9 1/2 years! I am glad that Timmy and Hope are going to preschool, but I miss my little ones.

I am going back to school to get a Bachelors in Science: Maternal Child Health. When I am done I will be able to take the board certification exam to become an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. This has been a dream of mine for many years. My free time while my littlest are in pre-school is spent getting schoolwork completed.

I hope to post more about our life very soon. Blessings to you all from Bamako, Crystal