day two, check.

I don’t have any new pics to post, so here’s an oldy-but-a-goody.  Look at those two little munchkins.  You’d never know it by the photo, but Miss Amelie was a holy terror back then.

We have officially made it through Day Two of David Being In Another Country, and here are a few random thoughts . . .

1.  David is doing great!  He has emailed several times from Kigali and loves it there.  It’s green!  It’s clean!  It’s quiet at night!  Wow.  His hotel is very simple but adequate.  Jonathan just joined him and their meetings start tonight.  I’ll let him explain in more detail what they’re doing there later.  But I’m so thankful that the trip has gotten off to a good start.

2.  So . . . it really does get easier as the kids get older, doesn’t it?  I mean, don’t get me wrong, it’s hard to have David travel.  Especially living in a foreign country.  But there is such a difference now.  David had a talk with Judah and Amie before he left and asked them to obey and take good care of Mommy and to help me out, and I can actually tell that they’re doing it.  It is amazing to see.  It makes our time together so much more pleasant and so much less like haggard-mom running to and fro all day.

3.  It helps to Have A Plan.  We get out of the apartment at least once, usually twice a day, so we won’t go stir-crazy.  Judah especially needs to be active, since he has no David here to wrestle with him (and believe me, there’s a big difference when he doesn’t have that!).

This evening before dinner we took a stroll down Church Street to Blossom’s, a four-story used bookstore.  The kids took their time and each chose a book, but I was on a very specific mission to find A Suitable Boy, by Seth Vikram.  Has anyone read this?  It keeps popping up as a classic Indian novel, so I decided I have to go for it.  My copy is 1,474 pages long, so it’s going to be a marathon!  I can’t wait.  There’s nothing better than a really long book.  Hello: Anna Karenina.  Middlemarch.  Bleak House.  Any others I’m missing (I know you’re gonna say War and Peace, Kristy)?

4.  Do you know that I’ve gone gluten-free?  It’s true.  I have made it through three whole days (I cheated yesterday for Alison’s birthday).  My health was getting really bad again.  I was on strong antibiotics for nearly three weeks with a sinus infection/bronchitis and having these weird weak/dizzy spells on top of that.  And I remembered back to what a doctor said in Malaysia about a possible gluten allergy and thought, Now is the time.  Sadly, I don’t think the test is available in our city, so straight to the diet I go.

I don’t know if you know anything about gluten-free diets, but the adjustment is a little shocking.  It doesn’t sound so bad to begin with–no bread, baked goods, etc., that contain gluten (which are all breads and baked goods as we know them), and a diet of fresh, whole foods.  But now I’m realizing just how gluten-intense my diet was.  And I’m in mourning.  You know what’s the worst?  Snack foods.  It’s 9:00 at night and all I want is something to munch on.  And I just don’t think dried apricots are going to cut it.

Please pray that this works though, because if it helps me get healthy, it is one hundred percent worth it.

5.  So yes, our support-system here in South Asia is pretty small.  But this week, I have been so humbled by the amazing people who want to help me and the kids while David is away.  Our friends.  Our neighbors.  Lilly, who cooked me an awesome gluten-free lunch today.  Our British friends in another state who said, “Please come stay with us!  We’ll take care of you!”  God is answering prayer.

6.  And now, I’m off to put on sweats and watch Return To Me in the peace of a quiet flat.  Good night!