Toby's World

Our little boy is a creature of habit. He loves his routines! Bedtime goes like this: supper, pick up toys, bath (if he hasn't already had one that day), read stories, pray with Papa and Mama, go to bed. It's pretty important to him that the three of us have prayer time together. If I'm in the kitchen doing dishes, he will often come find me to tell me it's time to pray.

When we pray, I always give him a chance to say what he wants to thank Jesus for. His list starts with Mama, Papa, Baby (that would be Abbie), and Kakak (Toby's name for himself, meaning "older brother" in Indonesian). It used to end there, but he has started to include such things as Pooh, books, cake, pizza, car rides, and the big slide at the school playground.
 

Like father, like son

Toby's "thankful" list makes me think. Right now, for such a short time, his family is almost his whole world. Our extended family is far, far away. He remembers them, likes to look at pictures of them, and sometimes asks to pray for them. But our little family is here, living life together every day. He likes to play with the neighbor kids, but we are the core of his social life. In a few years, his happiness will not revolve so completely around us. He will have friends, schoolmates, teachers, sweethearts. But for now, we shape his days.

For now.

Sad Day

Last night we learned that one of our colleages was killed in an airplane crash. Paul Westlund had been a pilot here for 25 years. Obviously, it is a great shock to his family and the community here.

Here's a great YouTube video about mission aviation that he helped to produce.

Since we're so new here, we don't know the family well. It's clear though that Paul's death has deeply impacted the community. It has reminded me of the dangers our pilots face as they fly in this region. It reminds me that tragedy can touch us too. It has prompted me to hug my husband and kids more tightly, to be thankful for the time I have with them.

Your prayers for the family and community are appreciated.

Tidbits

Last week Toby and I picked our first pineapple from our very own yard. I put it on our table, and all afternoon Toby would point to it and say, "Papa uh mome." Sure enough, we dug into it after Jonathan came home from school. It was yummy!

Abbie's first tooth made its appearance yesterday. Thankfully, she wasn't excessively cranky, so maybe she'll have as easy a time with teething as Toby did. Here's hoping!

Both kids think it's great fun when Toby pushes Abbie around in the high chair.

I've been working on giving Toby an idea about sequence and progression. He likes to know what's coming next, so after lunch I'll tell him, "#1 wash hands; #2 use the bathroom, #3 go to sleep." (I really think naptime might be his favorite time of day based on how excited he gets about it.) He really gets into the numbers, repeating the steps, and moving along toward the final activity. Now this morning before he was even out of bed, he told me, "Na, mall. Doo, pizza!" Interpretation: First we go to the mall, then we get pizza. Sorry, buddy, it doesn't quite work that way. Nice try though. :)