Meeting Neighbors with our (daily) Bread

Wow the idea of submitting legal paperwork has a whole new meaning after this past week in Brazil. The bottom line is - things just are more complicated here (meaning more steps to the process) and each process takes a lot longer too. We have spent ENTIRE days waiting in lines, meeting with people, making payments, etc. to get all of the steps in this process complete. However, by the end of this week we successfully submitted everything necessary for me (Stephanie) to get my permanent visa to stay in Brazil! All that's left is the final step which is a surprise drop in from the federal police to check if Jeyson and I are really married. (Since I am applying for the visa based on the fact that I am married to Brazilian) So any day between now and the next six months we will get a visit and we have to prove we are really both living here by showing them we both have clothes here, we have pictures of our wedding, etc. It should be interesting! So we have done everything we need to do in the process, it is now just a matter of waiting for the government to take the next step in the process. We'll keep you up to date when we get our visit :)

So anyway, this week as part of the process we had to take our marriage license to Goiania (where Jeyson's parents live) and have it validated by the Brazilian government. Since Goiania is the only place in the state where this can be done, we were glad it was only and hour away and where we have family! So we drove there and spent time getting this (and some other documentation) done and then spent an afternoon at Jeyson's family's "farm". Here's a picture of them putting Jeyson to work on job they needed done.

It is so nice to be able to have family all the way down here in Brazil! It makes the transition easier for me. Speaking of family, people have asked how I talk to my family back in the States. Here is a picture of me doing just that in our living using our computer and a program called Skype. You can call between any computers and talk as long as you want for free over the internet. It is such a blessing to have - I can't imagine the days when letters were the only way of keeping in touch!

Anyway, once we got back to Anapolis we decided to focus next on our own neighborhood - beginnigng to reach out to our neighbors. Below are a few pictures of what the area looks like. So, to meet our neighbors we made two loaves of bread and went with the first one to our neighbor across the street. There we met a family with a mother and twin daughters about 18 years old (not married), and each of those twins also has a baby who were born only 1 month apart! We were invited in chatted with one a of the daughters for a while and she seemed very interested in spending more time together...maybe sometime this week. Then, we walked down the street with our other loaf of bread looking for which house to stop at. We decided on one and met a older woman who (after we convinced her we were not trying to SELL bread, but only to GIVE her bread) came out and talked with us. She told us her husband had divorced her years ago and he recently found out that he has cancer and she is now taking care of him in her house. She has a Catholic background and he is a Spiritist - (see the bottom where I copied an explanation from Wikipedia). Anyway, she was very excited about our visit and bread. She then brought us next door to visit her daughter and granddaughters. This family then brought us to another neighbor to meet their family. It was quite exciting to see what a few loaves of bread can do :) One of the woman said she would like to take me to the school where her kids attend to see if I can help there with English. I told her I am not looking for a JOB as a teacher but I would go with her to see what opportunities there are...you never know what could come up, plus it is a good way to know her better. We are looking forward to getting to know them all more.

The last major area with new things happening is our church. We are really enjoying our church and getting involved there. Previously I had mentioned we were going to attend a youth Sunday school class this week, which we did. It seemed though that the kids were much younger than we had thought and already had a new teacher. Next week we will be going to another class with older teens (16+) so we're looking forward to see if that will be a better fit for getting involved. I also met a teen girl from that age group who is very interested in getting tutored in English...perhaps this will be a way to build a relationship? Here are some pictures from our church just to give you an idea.

Our pastor

The praise band

There are a lot of different directions for me to go in (a few I didn't even have time to mention) regarding how to set up spending my time and I'm still seeing the options and praying about what steps to take next. Please pray for me as you remember.

*(Spiritism is a spiritualist philosophical doctrine, established in France in the mid-nineteenth century.
Spiritism, or French spiritualism, is based on books written by French educator Hypolite Léon Denizard Rivail under the pseudonym Allan Kardec reporting séances in which he observed a series of phenomena that could be only attributed to incorporeal intelligence (spirits). His assumption of spirit communication was validated by many contemporaries, among them many scientists and philosophers who attended séances and studied the phenomena. His work was later extended by writers like Leon Denis, Arthur Conan Doyle, Camille Flammarion, Ernesto Bozzano, Chico Xavier, Divaldo Pereira Franco, Waldo Vieira, Johannes Greber[1] and others.
Spiritism has adherents in many countries throughout the world, including Spain, United States, Japan, Germany, France, England, Argentina, Portugal and especially Brazil, which has the largest proportion and the greatest number of followers.[2])

Happy Easter From Way Down South

Today, Easter, has been a significant day for us. First of all, of course it is the day that we remember our Living Savior! This has been especially meaningful for us this year because our Risen Savior is the reason we have left everything, drastically changed our lives, and moved here. If it were not for Easter things would be very different for us today.

Second, Easter was a significant day for us because in these past months of support raising and moving between homes we have said over and over, "Hopefully by Easter we will be in our own home"....and we are! While we are still not completely settled, we were still able to invite friends from Asas over and cook a meal to enjoy with them. It really was exciting for us!

So, here is a picture of us today. (From left to right - us, Paulo, Cininha, Camila, Andres) Interestingly, both of these other couples are also married to someone from another country, so for once we fit right in in that way. Paulo is from Brazil, Cininha is from Portugal, Camila is from Brazil and Andres is from Argentina.

Interestingly, it seems that here in Brazil Easter is not the big holiday that it is in the States. Most people were just having normal Sundays with a special message only in church. In fact, this morning there were even workers from the power company working on the cables of our block. Unfortunately this meant that we were without power for 4 hours today!! The funny part too is that is wasn't an emergency - we later found in our mailbox a notice that they had left saying that today there would be some maintenance. It is interesting to see the cultural differences of how holidays are celebrated! (Here is a picture of what we saw this morning from our balcony when we discovered there would be no power :)

Anyway, what else is going on? Right now getting my permanent visa is the first priority. This will allow me to stay in Brazil, otherwise with the tourist visa I have right now I would have to return to the States in 6 months. We began this process at the end of last week, but it still could take a few more days (or more) to get everything done. In Brazil things move much slower and involve many more steps and running around. For example to get my driver's license setup here in Brazil we drove to the DMV equivalent here. However, when we arrived they had just left for lunch and were closed for the next hour or so. We waited only to discover that we have to first take my license to an official translator in a city an hour away to get it translated to Portuguese. Then I have to bring the translation to another place to get it validated. Also, often when you have to make payments for documents like this you have to bring your money to the bank that the place uses, make a deposit in their account, and bring a receipt back to the place. Quite a process! So please be praying for us as we try to run around and get everything necessary done for my permanent visa and also for my driver's license.

Oh also before I forget to mention it, Cininha, the girl who came over from Portugal, will be the one tutoring me in Portuguese as soon as we are finished with all of this documentation and start up a normal "work week". I think this will be Monday and Thursday afternoons for several hours at a time. Also, we have been hoping and praying about becoming involved with the youth at our church. The program is understaffed and needs helpers. The leader invited us our to an event they were having and we felt like this could be a good fit. This coming week will we be sitting in on the Sunday school class. Please pray that God will give us wisdom to know if/how to be involved with this. We hope you are all doing well and Happy Easter from WAY down here!

Home Sweet Home

As you've probably guessed, we've made it to Brazil safe and sound. We had a teary good bye at the airport but away we went. Since we decided not to ship anything to Brazil, we packed to the limit with two 70lb bags and 2 carry ons each...we were quite a sight when we had to literally run through the airport to make our connection in Sao Paulo, Brazil! Anyway, when we finally arrived 24 hours later, Jeyson's family picked us up and we went to their house for a little time of recovery. Then, within a few days we drove to Anapolis and started house hunting for a place to rent. Here is a picture of the process. We LOVED this house pictured above but it needed too much work to move in and we weren't sure if it had enough security. Here in Brazil it is fairly common for people to try to break in to houses so everyone has big walls around their home, security systems, etc. This home really wasn't prepared with all of that and it costs a lot to set up, so we passed on the house. Eventually (after looking at MANY houses) we settled on a place that Jeyson has lived before with some guys from the mission. It is nice because Jeyson already knows the area, it was ready to move into, and it is much safer here since it is on the second floor above some other missionaries from Asas, so someone will always be around between the two families. It is sort of like a condo, though it is considered a house here. Here are some pictures:

Our kitchen - a little tiny but perfect for just two people. We will have to keep the table and fridge in the room next to it....sort of a dining room.

Here is our little laundry room. In Brazil the room is like a covered porch which has a big sink (here there are 3 sinks as you can see in the picture!) since some of the clothes get washed by hand. You hang your clothes here too. It's still a bit messy since we're setting up still but it's just to give you an idea.

Here is our bedroom and Jeyson putting together our new dresser. (Since we didn't have any towels yet or anything to put the parts on we had to keep them on the bed or they would get scratched.)

And here is our little office, where I am writing right now. Now we have a book shelf where the suitcase is and we're a little more moved in. From the picture you can see that windows are also different here. Basically they are shutters that really work, instead of being only decorations like in the States. There is no screen, you just open them when you're home and lock everything up and set a window alarm when you leave. This is a big cultural change for me (Stephanie) growing up in Bridgewater, NJ where you don't have to lock your car in the driveway...but already I'm getting adjusted.

So anyway, after spending the first week searching, we were SO glad to finally get have a place to call home. Then this second week we actually made our move into the home with everything we had and then spent the next days running around trying to get everything else we needed (fridge, microwave, bed, etc). We are still waiting for some of the things to arrive that were supposed to come last week but now are coming tomorrow...welcome to a new culture! Unfortunately one of the things we are missing still is our fridge so cooking has been a bit tough. For the past week I have walked over to the supermarket (maybe 1/4 mile away) and gotten just a few things for each day. It has actually been a good way to get to know the neighborhood. I am also learning about how some things work differently here. For example, when you buy produce you have to bring your items to a special counter where they weigh them for you. Just little things like that are all new things to learn about getting around.

We have spent quite a bit of time reconnecting with people from Asas. The mission has given us time to get ourselves settled with our home (almost there) and my documents to stay in Brazil (a big process still ahead...pray for smoothness with this!). Still though we have been to a little "conference" of sorts and some other events. One of our major focuses before Jeyson goes back full time to the hanger is getting me set up with a routine and the ability to get to those places (I can't yet drive in Brazil so I have to learn to take the bus). One of the pilot's wives, from Portugal, has offered to meet with me for Portuguese tutoring. This is an answer to prayer! She lives close to Asas so it is very convenient. We still have to work out the details but hopefully this would be twice a week for several hours at a time. I have also had two offers of different people who have a vision for beginning a English outreach and want me to be the leader/teacher. I am praying about these opportunities - one, both, or maybe something different. We also have the opportunity to be involved with the youth group at our church. We are going to visit the youth group this coming weekend and evaluate what to do. Anyway, there is a lot going on and a lot more we want to do but we are learning to wait on God's leading and timing.

Well as you can see we are now officially connected to the internet right in our home and are looking forward to being much more in touch. Feel free to email or leave a comment on the blog! Tomorrow I plan to catch up on the emails we were not able to answer before we got the internet...I promise we haven't forgotten you! We are so glad to have the internet to keep in touch!

Going Away Photos

Our bags are packed and we're ready to go. Before we head out we just wanted to post some pictures from our going away lunch today. Thanks so much for those who came, we felt so encouraged and supported! We will have a hard time getting to the internet the next few weeks but we will get in touch as soon as we are set up! We will miss you all!

Unusual Get-Togethers

Well is it finally our last week in the States. We are really leaving for Brazil on Monday! We had so much to do this week to get ready to leave, but that didn't stop us from making time for a few out of the ordinary get-togethers.
First, Stephanie's sister, Christa, invited us to her public high school. Christa is a junior in the same high school where Stephanie went growing up. Over the past years she has been the leader of the Christian club and each week she plans the meetings. This week she decided to invite us to be the speakers and to share our testimonies with the students. Over the past months we have shared in many settings, but sharing in a public school was the most unusual. It was such a great opportunity, especially for Stephanie, to return to our roots and share with students at the same age as us when we really put a stake in the ground and decided to live for Christ.
Later in the week we had another special get together - with some of Jeyson's distant relatives he had never met before. When we were planning our wedding, Jeyson's mother mentioned that she had a relative living in New Jersey. We met this relative when she and her husband came to our wedding. Last week they invited us to their house to meet the whole rest of that side of the family that we had no idea lived in the area! We had a wonderful time getting to know them and sharing a bit about our ministry. Here are some pictures.


This week we also had several other get-togethers which weren't as fun. We made trips to say good bye to friends and family we care so much about. It is so hard to say good bye not knowing when we will see them again. Stephanie's parents came back home yesterday from Arizona and we are spending our last days with them getting ready to say good bye in just days.
Meanwhile Jeyson is very busy packing our bags. People often ask us if we are shipping things. We have decided not to since it is rather expensive. Instead we have have been weeding though and getting rid of everything we don't need and packing the important things. Thinking of going long term makes what is on the "important list" a little bit confusing. If we were going for only a few months it would be easy to leave behind photos and resource books, but since we are making our home there the "important list" gets long!
Over the last week we have also been emailing friends from Brazil who are busy with ministry. We can't wait to get return! At the same time, those good byes are still hard! Please pray for us during this emotional time of transition.
Tomorrow we having a little get together lunch at Stephanie's parents house to say bye. If you can make it and haven't RSVPed yet just let us know - we would love to see you there!