moved in & grillin!

FYI…i would have posted more pictures of our move into the apartment, but i thought that was too boring, i just posted one. instead, i decided to post pictures of our first time using the blessed PARILLA (grill). we were told very firmly that it is NOT A BBQ!!! very important information. a parilla is much more serious

our dear friends, the Cook’s, came over to help us learn how to use it and enjoy the best meat EVER! i’m not exagerating and like i for-warned my dad, you should have a box of kleenex when looking at the last few pictures

working real hard moving in

jay & dave heating up the charcoal/the before picture

cook kids enjoying the patio while ezie observes the fun

terminater ezie. by the way, this water gun came with the apartment.

and the AFTER PICTURES! sorry dad, wish you were here! really we did.

sampling the goods

and there you go! 7 lbs of meat for the price of $13. sorry, no pictures of us eating, we were too busy scarfing it down.

Baby’s Name

We have officially moved into the Barrio of Belgrano and are in the process of setting up home.  Yesterday we got a second estimate on all the repairs that need to take place within the next few weeks.  One of the first things that we have noticed is the noise level outside our bedroom window.  Since we live on the first floor we hear absolutely everything including the huge public buses that pass by every few seconds.  Guess this comes with being called by God to work in a huge city.  Nevertheless, we love our new apartment.

Noah Andrew Sinclair….This will be the name of our 2nd son.  We named him after Noah in the Bible and Paula’s grandfather Andersen.

barrio belgrano

We will be moving this weekend from the mission apartment to our new home in the barrio of Belgrano.  Although there is still a lot that we have to do with our new place (ie: painting, electrical work etc….) we felt that it was best just to get on over there.  Last week bought our refrigerator and beds as well as other appliances.  They were delivered yesterday.  On a different note….we have finally chosen a name for our 2nd son…we are so excited!

please pray….

My family asks that you pray for a close friend and his family at this time. Here is a recent email message from Robert Reagan that my dad forwarded to me. Robert Reagan and his family have been missionaries for a number of years in Thailand.

“I’m trying to set my house in order. Jan and I have had some serious
talks about the possibility of me going on to be with God in heaven.
The thing that helped me the most to prepare for this possibility was
sitting down in front of the video and making an hour-long video for
Erika (15) and Branson (12). I wanted to speak from my heart about
their future. I cried a lot and spoke passionately about the things
that really matter. After I was finished, I felt a sense of relief
that they would be in good hands with God.

I’m praying that God will have mercy on me and that I will come
through the operation and cancer and that God will extend my life. If
He chooses to extend my life, then this time will serve a  great
reminder the rest of my life that when it looks like we are at the end
of our lives, everything becomes so much more clear for Jesus Christ.

Branson was at the hospital the first night I learned of the tumor(s)
in my pancreas. He saw my fear. He heard all the conversations about
how serious it is. He went home and cried a lot that night and was
kind of numb the next few days. Tonight I talked clearly to Branson
and Erika about the possibility of God taking me home to heaven. Erika
cried real hard. Afterward she came and sat on my lap and just clung
to me and cried. Then she kissed me on the cheek and went upstairs.
After that she went up to take a shower and for 15 minutes she just
wailed and cried, “No, no, no, no….” It was painful for me to hear,
but I know she needs to grieve in this way. Please keep Erika and
Branson in your prayers.

Jan is strong and is not showing much emotion. She’s a fighter and if
God takes me home, she’ll fight through it and hold our family
together.

One of my precious friends in the Lord in Singapore has worked
tirelessly to set up this whole surgery situation. His cousin is a
doctor at this hospital. His sister just had this same surgery last
month and is doing fine. God has bless me with a long-time
relationship with this brother and now he is fighting for my life. He
wouldn’t want me to mention his name, but most of you can figure out
who I’m talking about. Please praise God with me for him and so many
other awesome brethren that God has surrounded us with.

It’s overwhelming to see how God has place so many wonderful people in
our lives to help us at this time. There are prayers going up around
the world on my behalf. I’m praying for peace within. I want to
believe that heaven will be so much greater than life on this earth.
However, of course, my desire is to continue this life that God has
given me. I’m asking God to extend my life for 30 years, if he so
chooses to extend my life.

I will fly from Chiang Mai, Thailand to Singapore on Tuesday, Sept.
23, 2008. On Wednesday, Sept. 24 I will see the doctors there and
start doing lots of additional tests for a few days. Most likely I
will have surgery soon after that. We don’t want to announce a date
for the surgery because it depends on the tests and the doctors. I
will update everyone after the doctors make a decision.

Last night we made a decision that Jan, Erika and Branson would fly
down to join me in Singapore on Saturday, Sept. 26.

In the meantime, please ask others to pray for God to extend my life.
I’m begging him for 30 more years of service to Him here on this
earth. Maybe you can gather a small group of friends together and pray
about this.

My prayer for you is that you live a little closer to Jesus Christ
today. He is our most important relationship.

Love in Christ, Robert, Jan, Erika and Branson Reagan”

the apartment

about to take off into the big city! and ezie’s new car seat, he’s so proud!

here’s the boys in the living room

the kitchen. i should have stood in the middle and stretch out my arms, i could touch from wall to wall (almost). Yeah, we don’t have to buy a stove!!! Hopefully this one works.

behind ezra is the front door. the living room looks like a raquet-ball court

here’s the door to the large patio

our “garden” area, needs a lot of attention

the “garden” view, with a bakery, pharmacy, kitchen supply store, etc. right below us.

this picture doesn’t do it justice, but here’s the patio (part of it)

the parilla (grill area), it’s huge, a little rusty, but has great potential!

I forgot to take pictures of the bedrooms, they need the most work. but we’ll be there again Monday and i’ll take more pictures.

forgot to mention…

that the doctors office also is a plastic surgery office…wow! that’s different.

paula’s thoughts:

about the doctors office yesterday, not only is it an office for women who want to get plastic surgery, CULTURE SHOCK, but the office was so fancy-shmancy!!!  i felt like i was in beverly hills or something. some other amazing things about the doctors here: they are on call 24-7, i will have MY doctor deliver the baby not some random guy, i can call the nurse at any time, even on Sundays, for an emergency question. I didn’t have to fill out one form while waiting in the fancy office, I didn’t have to show a medical card or even a form of ID. i know there’s more that shocked me, but i can’t remember, ha!

doctor’s visit

Had a great team meeting today. The team of missionaries here in Buenos Aires usually get together for prayer every Wednesday at different locations here in the city. We are so thankful for the network of friendships we are developing. They have been extremely encouraging and helpful during our initial time of transition. Also, we have developed specific routes through the city which has made driving a little more bearable. Yesterday Paula was able to make her first doctor’s visit here in BA. He informed us that everything with the pregnancy is going smoothly and it looks like the due date will be around December 10. Both Paula and I really like him a lot and felt very comfortable during the visit. On another note….please pray that we can make a decision on the name for our son very soon. Here in Argentina the name has to come off an approved list…no worries though because the list is very extensive with some awesome names to choose from. Ezra is excited that he is going to have a brother. Right now his vocabulary is going nuts. He is talking like crazy. We can’t keep him quiet. It is so cool to see him learning so many things so fast. Finally, please pray that the FBI will process our background check ASAP and get it sent down to Argentina so that we can make some progress toward obtaining our visa.

24

We needed an outlet in the evenings after some of the stressful days we have been having.  The Emmy and Golden Globe award winning show 24 staring Kiefer Sutherland as Agent Jack Bauer, who heads a field operations unit of the Counter Terrorist Unit has been our answer.  Paula and I really never got into the series when we were living in the States.  A missionary that we work with has let us borrow the first two seasons on DVD.  After we put Ezra to bed it has been great just to chill out and watch something in English.

need patience

Today we were able to go and see the apartment we hope to be moving into within the next several months. We received the keys a few days ago but had not made it over to Belgrano yet to see it. Driving over was again stressful due to all the one way roads. We eventually had to stop for lunch at a cafe and get our barrings. Although there is a lot of work to be done before we can officially move in, Paula and I really have a good feeling about this place. Right now it is just a waiting game for us. We made a list of all the repairs that need to take place as well as all the things we need to buy in order to make this apartment a home. Please pray that we will be patient and trust that everything will get done in God’s timing. Right when we first arrived we were told that everything….I mean everything is accomplished at a much slower pace. Paula and I are just happy that an apartment was found before we arrived for us to live in. Our temporary accomodations at the mission office are very comfortable in the mean time.  One specific concern that we want to mention that you can pray for is that we can make the move before December which is when Paula is scheduled to give birth to our second son. Please pray that God will give us peace about this!

On a different note…..you know the VW car the mission gave us to use when we first arrived. Well, today I officially had an accident. Not with any other vehicle but inside a very tight, underground parking lot. I was not paying attention and backed right into a pillar. Nevertheless, tomorrow I need to locate a place to get one of our back doors fixed. Please pray that I will have more patience with myself when I make mistakes like this one or accidently fill up the car with diesel etc….These little things really can begin to annoy me if I let them.

humbling experience

On our way to my language class yesterday evening we needed to put gas into our vehicle. Paula and Ezra have been my navigators as I try to learn many of the one-way streets here in Buenos Aires. It is absolutely impossible for me to look at the map while driving. Anyways, we pulled into the gas station and I told the young man that I wanted a full tank of gas. Long story short he misunderstood me and put diesel into our car. As I started to pull onto a major road the whole car stopped running and the engine started smoking. It was then that I realized that he had put diesel into our car instead of gas and the fact that I would not make my language class. After about 20 minutes I was able to get some help from a few of the guys who work at the gas station. I could tell they felt sorry for us. They had to drain all the diesel out which took about 2 hours because they did not have the right equipment. For the first time since I arrived I felt so vulnerable because it was extremely difficult to defend my actions in Spanish. Nevertheless, I learned a whole new set of vocabulary words through this experience. What was so frustrating was the fact that they kept saying that it was my fault even though I told they young man that I wanted gas not diesel. Paula and Ezra hung out at a coffee shop while all this was taking place. Eventually, we were able to leave without any major damage to our vehicle. This experience was very humbling for me because it took me totally off guard. Anyways, I hope to return to this gas station very soon to establish more of a friendship with some of the men who helped us out.