Shawn turns 34 on Saturday! No, he did not get that toy for his birthday.

Mosquito biting me from OUTSIDE the mosquito net… you are a cruel and unusual punishment, aren’t you. Good grief, can I not relax my arms and legs and just sleep? Must I avoid all contact with the net, in fear that you’re there, anticipating the moment that my skin brushes the net, so you can bite? What do you expect me to do? Sleep in a straight jacket?

 5 pm… you’re just too early for dinner, but you’re the hour I want to eat. Something! Anything.

Village women all over the globe …  this gadget is going to rock your world (once it’s done being tested). Cook and charge your cell phone or an LED light?! Genius!

 Person who said, “Oh. Well, I didn’t read about that on your blog.”… Nope. No you didn’t. There are so many things that happen; the good, the bad, the pretty, the hard, the ugly, the joyful, the trials, the pain, the beautiful, the comical, the friendships, the adventures, the lessons – there are so many things that happen, and don’t ever make it to this blog. This is just a small glimpse into our lives. Just a few of the thousands of pictures are posted, and just a few of the “real life” stories are told.

May Burger restaurant… open already!! You’re sitting there, five steps from our front door, the building is built, your sign is up, the equipment has arrived, it’s the month of May, and we’re ready and anxious to have ‘Senegalese fast food’ six five steps from our door. What’s the hold up?

May Burger… behind all that traffic.

Things you learn when you move to Senegal…  yep, definitely, and for sure.

Ice cubes and ice cream… you’re two things that make hot season much more bearable. Thankfully, we’re not there yet. Ice cream, don’t go anywhere. I’ll take you year-round!

Dear ____ , only comes once a week. Enjoy it while you can.

s&j

I am: looking at some freshly picked flowers and a note from Shawn. This weekend I encountered both pain and God’s comforting hand. I’m wearing some new earrings from this weekend’s Bazaar, looking forward to a meal with our Senegalese friends, picking out fabric to recover couches, and working on the guesthouse job description manual, little by little.

Flowers and a note from Shawn.

New African print earrings.

Picking out fabric for new couches. A favorite part of my job!

 I am missing: my friends in Cap Skirring, friends we had to leave in Guinea, and friends we haven’t seen in ages.

Shawn and Babacar, a friend in Cap Skirring.

I am frustrated because: Sometimes I tell the guesthouse maids the same thing 500 times, just to tell them again. “You have to replace the hand soap. You have to replace the toilet paper.” We’re still discovering the most culturally appropriate way to be the boss, and not “the best friend”. In order for this to be a nice guesthouse for those who pass through here, we have to keep things in order.

I am thankful for: Running water and a backup generator {real perks for someone living in Africa [!!], and something we didn’t have last year at this time}. Email, a church community group both in English and French, good music, an understanding friend, and homemade ice cream are also on the list.

We’re thankful for all that we have access to here in Dakar, compared to when we lived in the village!

I am dreaming about: The here and now. Trying to enjoy today, the people around me right now. This post was also an inspiration to me. It also helps knowing we have our return tickets in hand, knowing that soon we’ll be gone for six months. We’ll be missing people from here, but we’ll also be with people we miss now. Of course we’re dreaming of reunions, good food, and other aspects of being in our home country!

 What about you? What are you doing right now? What are you thankful for?

s&j

Here it is, the big reveal, the AFTER pictures that you’ve been waiting for:

Hello, seafoam green walls, black and grey woven outdoor couches with red cushions, and an outdoor table for six!

Remember the before?

The after. A little “oasis” at our mission’s guesthouse in Dakar, Senegal.

I’m especially excited about the table! Now people can sit outside and enjoy their coffee, lunch, meetings.

How great is that tree wall decal? I bought it at IKEA in Germany.

Solar lanterns – perfect!

As missionaries and local pastors come to stay at this guesthouse, as people arrive from dusty and far away villages, we hope that this patio can serve as one of the little things that sends them back refreshed and encouraged to continue the task at hand.

The guesthouse patio gets used all the time. Moms sit out there and chat while their kids play on the playground, teens make attaya {Senegalese tea}, meetings take place, guests welcome African friends, or relax and read their Kindles. In general, it’s ‘the hang out spot’ for all who pass through here.

 The space was just in desperate need of some TLC, new tile, a fresh coat of paint, some color, and some functional furniture!

So we took on the challenge.

This was both a really fun project and a headache. The workers we hired didn’t always show up on time, they messed some things up, there were some language barriers, they had to start over, the mason was unavailable, the windows needed repaired {again}, and they wouldn’t send their workers until Shawn first went downtown and paid. The paint store said the paint was ready when it wasn’t, and things moved slower than we would have liked because… well, we’re in Senegal. But the job is done, and we’re really happy with how it turned out.

Here are the ‘before’ pictures:

The building REALLY needed to be repainted after the windows were replaced.

A smorgasbord of tile, benches, chairs, a broken ping-pong table, and chipped paint.

The broken-in-a-few-places-so-be-careful-how-you-sit furniture.

Are you on the edge of your seat? Are you ready for the “big reveal”? Come back this afternoon for post #2: the AFTER pictures.

The excitement has already begun.

+ Soon we get to meet a new nephew {the first baby on my side of the family!}, and a new niece on the DeAtley side.

Baby Owen can’t wait to meet Aunt Jenn! Or so they say…

+ Along with a new niece and nephew, we get to see our brothers and sisters {4 siblings on each side plus spouses} and everyone else, too!

Hooray for seeing family again!

Our nephew Myles was just a little guy last time we were home. Now he’s a big boy!

+ We’re looking forward to worshipping in English with our sending church Revolution, seeing friends, going out for wings after the service, and catching up with those we’ve missed.

+ We’re excited to meet up with our other churches and supporters, scattered around the US, and share our lives face-to-face, rather than over Facebook.

+ Soon we get to eat a big juicy hamburger, steak, and milkshake. Not necessarily all at once…

+ I can’t wait for “summer in the USA” again. I know it’s hot. But guess what? They have air conditioning {almost} everywhere you go! The last two times we’ve been back it’s been in the fall/winter, so it’s been a long time since we’ve had the shorts, limeade, cookouts, and public swimming pools experience. Side note: we haven’t experienced a ‘summer in the US’ since 2009! Wow!

I can’t wait to eat these!

I can’t wait to wear shorts again and show off them white ol’ legs.

I can’t wait to eat black cherries again!

Speaking of fruit, my sister-in-law said that she’s in the process of planting some 500+ strawberry plants in my honor! I can’t wait to taste the goodness.

Yes, there are many things we are looking forward to about our time home. But there are also some challenges that come with this missionary lifestyle.

+ It’s really hard not knowing where you’re going to live each time you go home.

+ We aren’t really “settled” anywhere. Being the decorator that I am, it’s hard not to buy that mirror / those picture frames on sale at Target, just to hang them for a few months and then store them for another 2 years. We know wherever we end up is temporary, and that can be hard.

+ Even though we’re in the US, our families are so spread out {Colorado and Ohio} that we still don’t get to spend every holiday together, or as much time as we’d like. I know, that’s just a part of life / growing up, but it’s still not always easy to be away. And when you live in Africa, the time is even more of a precious commodity.

+ In two years a lot can change within a family or a circle of friends. The dynamics may not be the same as the last time you were home. You don’t always come back to the way you remember it, or the way that it was, and that’s not easy!

+ You have to do a lot of public speaking, which we really don’t mind too much, but it takes a lot of time to prepare, think and pray through how we can best express the needs, the ministry, and what God has been doing since we were last home {fall 2010}.

+ We’ll be away from the guesthouse for six months. Thankfully there’s a family who has volunteered to take over while we’re away {praise!}, but there will still be emails and questions, and issues that will come up that we will have to take care of. We’ve been busy preparing a job description manual for them to use while we’re away.

+ Some things are hard to explain, hard for people to understand, and people don’t always know what to ask. People want to know what life is like here, what challenges we face, what it’s like living in another country, being away from family, and what amazing things we have been involved in / seen God do in our time here. However, sometimes all that comes out is, “So, how’s the food over there?” People mean well, but it’s hard to know what to ask. This was especially true after our evacuation from Guinea. We experienced hearing gun shots all night long, and saw people being herded like cattle. People just didn’t know what to say…. and that made it hard for us to know how to deal. Life in America just went on as usual, and we were supposed to just “jump in” and pretend that we were up to date on all the cultural and social things we had missed out on.

+ Traveling and speaking in churches gets expensive and exhausting. Sleeping in different beds every night, having to be on the road for hours at a time, and interacting with a lot of people as you spend the evening at a church potluck, Kids’ Awana group, etc.

We love our time home in the US, and we can’t wait to experience many of the reasons we love being there. There’s nothing like being in your home culture and being around your heart language 24/7. And although there will be some rest involved [there HAS to be], home assignment is no vacation. We travel, we speak, we’re busy, we reconnect, we serve in our church, we get involved while we can, and we look for ways to recruit new missionaries as we encounter young people looking for an exciting future with the Lord.

Thanks for investing in our lives, for reading posts like these, for caring, for wanting to know more about us and what we face as missionaries getting ready to go on home assignment. Also, don’t be afraid to ask how the food is. Just make sure that’s not the only question you ask.

s&j

Yikes! Time is flying! Lots to do before then…

Color… I love how you liven our souls. That’s one reason I wanted to add so much color to this guesthouse, because a lot of weary and tired travelers pass through this place.

Germany and France…  it was your small cars, kilos, your pharmacies, your road signs, the sound of your ambulances, the different languages, different currency, and kilometers that reminded us a little bit of Senegal… aka: not America.

Roxy… because you’re just so cute, lounging there, I shall snap a picture of you and post it on the blog.

Roxy relaxing by some tires.

Chips saveur barbecue {bbq chips}… you are so delicious, go great with sandwiches or as a snack, and can be found at one of the many CityDia locations in town. I’ll just have one more… *gets crumbs on the keyboard, licks her fingers and continues typing*

Smoke generator… I have no idea what you are, but Shawn is working on adding you to his smoker. {Read: more delicious food to come!}

Shawn working on building a smoke generator.

People who don’t know what a smoke generator is… it’s a contraption that allows for smoking at temperatures under 100°F, perfect for your favorite cheeses and cured meats. A cold smoke generator also separates the two essential variables in smoking food; smoke and temperature. Dial in your favorite cooking temperature and use the adjustable air pump to control your smoke level. 

 Lavender room spray… another squirt of you in the air would be greatly appreciated, as the smell of burning trash wafts into our home.

 Coming to you on a breezy, dusty Dakar Wednesday,

s&j

Saturday morning muffins. Three cheers for ‘add water’ mixes!

The teens did an amazing job!

We celebrated our loving moms yesterday… from Senegal!

I love when Shawn makes me lunch!

Walking around selling birds.

A mosque in the late afternoon sun.

“If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking!”

Sunday after church at the surf shack with friends. [Wow, try saying that 5 times fast.]

How would you sum up your week / weekend? What were the lowlights & highlights?

 Praying that God will give you extra patience and grace as you face whatever you’re facing this week – - because I know we’ll be needing it!

s&j  

He’s two months old!

I was able to go visit Leticia this week, and hold and kiss little, I mean HUGE baby Emmanuel Fidele Praise NUNEKPEKU. Big, long name with a cool meaning. It means, “God with us, he is faithful, and He is worthy of our praises”.

Getting to hold him.

We met E & L when they were still dating {awwwwwww}, and Edem lived as a single guy in the apartment below us. We got together for meals, got to know about their cultural traditions, what it’s like living in Senegal coming from another African country, we watched Home Alone together, and welcomed them with open arms when they came to visit us in Cap Skirring last year.

Maman et bébé.

It was fun being back in our old neighborhood where we first met E & L.

 Welcome, baby Emmanuel!

Tile store… we just spent what felt like an eternity looking and looking and looking at something as boring as floor tiles (okay, it was actually kind of fun), ordering them, paying for them, loading them into the truck (okay, you guys did the loading part), and now… all this time later… you tell us that you don’t have enough of the kind we picked in stock? *sigh* Welcome to the frustrations of doing projects in Africa. Okay, we’ll pick that one I guess. *points to the next best thing, hoping that it will at least be in stock.*

 Ongoing Skype or iMessage chats… you’re the best. It’s fun to know what family and friends are having for dinner, doing during the day, and to pick up where we left off in the most recent conversation. Also, I love when I get messages from kids that look something like this: aklshjraklsjdhf kjaslkdgjha dslkufhhjjjjjjjjahdlkkkkkkkkkllksdl;”. So sweet and thoughtful, wouldn’t you say?

 That time (Monday afternoon, 4pm) when we drove past the ice cream shop and I said, “Shawn! Let’s stop and get some ice cream!”… that wasn’t just a pretty sentence with a suggestion in it!

Person coming at me holding their wrist out… I know now that you’re wanting me to shake your hand, a sign of respect, but since your hand is either dirty or wet, I’m supposed to then simply shake your wrist. Yes, shake your wrist. (File that under “things I probably didn’t know my first week in Africa”.)

Black cherries, blueberries, and raspberries… I am dreaming of you. I mean I am literally thinking of you throughout the day… closing my eyes and imagining you on top of a bowl of vanilla ice cream. (Of course ice cream comes into the mix. Why? Are you surprised?) 2 months and counting. Until then, my sweet berries, XOXO.

Random flat of eggs sitting outside the guesthouse entrance… ummmm, who do you belong to???

 Keepin’ you coming back for more,

s&j

Posing with my friend Dior.

+ We’ve watched the days get warmer and warmer.

+ We’ve been eating pot roast for dinner. It’s a comfort food for me: carrots, and onions, and potatoes, oh my! We’re using up the rest of the cow that Shawn and Jonathan butchered a few months back. 

Hello, delicious.

+ We’ve been enjoying some Dunkin’ Donuts coffee that we brought back from the commissary in Germany. My fave: add a little hazelnut creamer.

+ We’ve been praying for those working throughout West Africa.

Headed to a monthly prayer meeting to pray for missionaries scattered around West Africa. Coffee in hand!

+ I’ve been taking pictures of my outfits for the Gazelle Skirt blog. You can see my week of outfits here. Us gazelle girls are planning a clothes swap for June 1st, and we’re going to be raising money for a women’s prison. Free clothes and helping others? Win, win!

+ We enjoyed a lunch date at a Vietnamese restaurant in Dakar. The sweet old lady who works there offered to make Shawn his favorite dish {bánh bao} someday soon. How sweeeeet.

Hong Kong restaurant in Dakar. Good and affordable!

+ Roxy has been loved by co-workers passing through.

Roxy has been in heaven this week.

+ I’ve snapped some pictures of the pretty flowers around me.

Pretty.

+ We’ve recently sent out our needs list for this year. Let us know if you want to receive a copy!

 + Kids have been enjoying the guesthouse playground. Well, there’s nothing new there.

Having fun.

+ We’ve been buying tile, new paint, and some outdoor furniture as we prepare to redo the veranda area at the guesthouse. We’re particularly excited about this project because it’s something that everyone will use and enjoy. Since our mission center is on the same property as the guesthouse, lots of meetings take place here, gatherings, etc. It’s going to look really good guys. Just you wait! Unfortunately, the project is taking longer than expected {this is my surprised face}, because after we ordered, paid for, and loaded the tile, they said they didn’t have enough of that kind. SO. We picked another and loaded it up. It’s being laid today, paint is being ordered today, and our furniture will be delivered on Friday!

Goodbye, old, broken tile.

+ I’ve been listening to this song. “See? I was never gone.” We’ve also been watching American Idol this season. Which girl are you rooting for?

+ We’ve had some friends come to greet us.

Shawn and his friend.

What have YOU been up to lately?

Until next time,

s&j