What a Mommy and a baby do in Togo

  I think Evelyn and I are finally reaching our "new normal", thankfully. She's really pulled it together the last few days and seems quite adjusted now (she still has her moments, but doesn't she always!). It is such a blessing and so much fun to have her here. Children bring lightheartedness and joy to those around them, and they also serve as an instant connection and conversation starter for me with fellow moms. Of course, sadly... those conversations last for about 15 seconds, because that is how long it takes me to exhaust my French! 

  This is probably only going to be interesting to my fellow mom friends, but this is what a typical day now looks like for us here: Stephen gets up and goes to breakfast at 6:45. A couple days a week all the missionary medical staff meet in the dining room to have devotions around 7:15, and everyone always goes to the hospital for "rounds" (where the docs go around and see each patient, assess their condition and review their vitals etc, and make a plan for their treatment) by 8am. Evie has been waking up around 7:15 for the day, so we get ready and then head to the dining room for a late breakfast - Stephen always saves some food for us!  After that we head back to our room. I clean up while Evelyn plays (hmmm... that seems vaguely familiar - oh yeah, just like at home!). Now that Evelyn is coughing less, I've been taking her down to the hospital in the mornings to visit Daddy and all the "beebees". We don't stay too long (because I'm trying not give Evie a chance to share her germs, and because she's only now returning to her normal happy self!), but we walk around and greet all the moms and babies. I coo at them and Evelyn shrieks at them - "Beebee!" with her pudgy little pointed finger. We then head over to the peds ward and do the same thing there. After that we head back to our room for a short rest for Evelyn. Lunch is at 12:15, and then the Togolese have this beautiful tradition of napping (or resting) until 2 or so. We often just hang around and talk with the other short termers in the dining room, come back to the room to play, or (now that our swimming suits have arrived, woohoo!) go swimming at the pool they have on the compound. We also spend time playing outside, or with some of the other kids that are around. Evelyn takes her "real nap" around 3, dinner is at 6, and we try to put her to bed by 8 (after a shower). I usually have lots of time to rest or read during the day as you can see - Stephen, on the other, continues to be pretty slammed at the hospital! So there you have it - not toooo much different than life at home, huh?

  It is sometimes hilarious to watch Evelyn interact with people here. The adults often kind of get up in her space and reach for her hands - she's not so much a fan of being grabbed and sometimes gets a little scared, but she will usually happily give them a high five or fist bump if I ask her to =-) She takes her revenge on the kids though, haha! When she sees a fellow little person she excitedly walks right up to them. She often does a little dance, blows a few kisses, tries to give fist bumps, and then best of all - knocks them over with a bear hug! If the kid is younger than 3 or 4 she usually scares them ("who is this freaky looking tiny white person and what is she doing to me?"). The mothers love it though when she tries to play with their kids, and the kids who are a bit older love it too. It's so funny, because she notices no differences and doesn't seem to care either that her "love" isn't always reciprocated. 

  Ok, hope this wasn't too boring of a post! Just wanted to give you all a snapshot of what life is like for this mommy and baby here in Togo. It is not dramatic, or full of life and death experiences, or even full of good conversations (after all, I can't really communicate). But I have no regrets that we made the decision to come. This is a ministry we do as a family. For me right now, that is looking like supporting and loving my husband, mothering and watching out for my girl, and trying to show the people here the love of Christ in any way we can. Sometimes it is hard to leave all the life-saving and gospel-telling and soul-saving to others. But after all, isn't that all God's anyway? I can't tell you, exactly, at the end of each day what we "accomplished", but I can tell you this - we are, as a family, doing what we believe God has directed us to do. So it is not my job to "do" and "achieve" - only to love and obey. I am learning to rest in that, and it is good! Praise the Lord for His sovereignty and goodness in using even us broken earthly vessels to accomplish His work in the world, whatever and wherever that may be. And not only in using us to do that work, but also in deciding what exactly that work is going to be! "For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." Eph. 2:10