The Brauns in Brazil: Settling In

I haven’t meant to be on blog-cation, but we still don’t have the internet at our house so blog-cation happened to me. There is only one internet company in town and we’re currently on a waiting list for a line to open up. I’m over at a missionary friend’s house so I thought I’d take the time to catch up a little. So much has happened since I last posted.

We moved into our rental home and have purchased the basics to make it work. Although this sounds like a small task, if you’ve ever moved to another city you know how overwhelming it can be when you don’t even know where to begin looking for a washer, fridge, table, and more. Now multiply that by 3 for the fact that we live where that is definitely no one stop shopping or even parking lots, and that’s how crazy its’ been. But with each thing hunted for and crossed off our list, we feel much more at home, comfortable, less stressed, and settled. I can’t tell you how great it feels to be on the UNPACKING and GETTING SETTLED side of things, instead of working to pack and be less settled! So it’s been fun in a way.

It is SUPER hot here! The funny thing is it’s not that much hotter than a hot, humid day in August, but since people here only use a/c during the night (its too expensive otherwise) it feel much hotter than any Aug day I’ve ever experienced. When I cook, the kitchen is literally 95 degrees and 70% humidity! Good thing we have an ice cream maker for a yummy way to stay cool! I’m also learning to cook well before we eat and then reheat the food. Although it’s not any cooler a few hours before dinner, at least it gives the kitchen (and me!) a chance to cool down before eating so the meal is more enjoyable.

Jeyson has settled right into his job as the shop manager. He has a ton of work to do to get things in order. Since the team here has been understaffed for all that is required in running a base, the job has been neglected and there is a lot to do to get things set up. The head pilot from the base will be going on furlough in July and Aug so when he returns Jeyson will begin training to fly to each of the villages. That’s fine by him though as he wants to get the shop in order before he begins flying. The guys just completed the 200 hour inspection on one of the planes, which is the biggest routine inspection/maintenance done at this base.

Believe it or not, I have already found an expectant mother to minister to using my childbirth education classes. I was really praying about how I would develop relationships with women in the community, and this opportunity fell right into my lap. I hope this will open even more doors in the community and will not only minister to her physical needs during this time of pregnancy/birth but minister to her on a deeper level.

We have met our next-door neighbors and they seem really interested in getting together more. Ever since we lived in our first house as a couple, we have always baked something and brought it over to our neighbors as a way to introduce ourselves. We’re always so pleased to see the relationships that form as a result. We are praying that we can connect more with this family.

We just purchased a truck. We shared with our supporters the need that we have for reliable transportation that can easily handle the rougher conditions of the roads in Brazil, and specifically in this new area. We are blessed to raise the funds we needed and found the perfect used truck for a good price with low mileage and in good condition. Thank you so much for those of you who were part of making that possible!

Well there’s so much more I could share to catch up, but I’ll keep it at that for now. I will post as I can depending on my internet access.

Here's a few pics of the past month