November 8th, 2008

Here are some family photos from a variety of times throughout the last two months. Click on some of the pictures to see a bigger/edited version.

Each week Crystal goes to Mom's group with the boys for fellowship with other missionary moms in Mbarara. The kids love to play together, eat snacks and learn more about God. The moms love to have adult conversations, encouragement and deeper friendships with one another. No Dad's Allowed! The boys have been blessed by other missionary families with these two wonderful carseats. And now that we actually have our own car, it's perfect. They are expert travellers, experienced on these challenging roads in Uganda. They have learned how to crash on long journeys.
Stephen continues to grow more and more, healthy and heavy as possible. He is now sitting in a high chair, eating soft solids (mango cereal, avocado, banana) and learning how to break dance... even before he can walk. On one such long journery to Kampala, we scheduled out some family time at the Entebbe zoo (Animal rehabilitaion center). Asher enjoyed walking and strolling around the animals. He knows most of them by name and excitedly calls them out. Stephen was a little less enthusiastic, but we had a wonderful family experience. These are just random shots of Asher in action that we felt worthy to post. We can't get enough of this kid.

---

October 8th, 2008

Asher has taken over the stage. He is a ham, super performer (most likely learned from his dad who preaches often). A microphone is made from anything - like a flashlight to electronic maracas. And he stands up on the mattresses to sing and preach at the audience on the floor. He will go on and on babbling words or songs and at the end say "Amen!" Recently Missionary friends visited and their boys ate Asher up. And Asher loved the new attention that he attracted through his performance. It will be amazing to see his natural gifts continue to develop. To bad though, he wasn't born on USA soil and can't become the President. I think he would be convincing and could already rival the current candidates in debates.
Stephen has taken the plunge into the world of eating solids...well at least rice cereal. Now that he is six months we have started feeding him food with the regular bottles. It was a challenging beginning but now he seems to have adapted well and is somewhat enjoying the new things that come with growing up.

---

September 20th, 2008

It is wonderful. We have recently been enjoying lovely times as a family, keeping Asher busy and Stephen happy. One day we visited a nearby "lake" to feed some geese. It seems they were more afraid of Asher than he was of them. Asher has become very fond of coloring, pulling the paper wrapping off of crayons and sometimes eating them. He also tackled his first finger painting (above right). We are continually amazed at how creative he is and can't wait to see the giftings of Stephen come out. Right now he mostly watches Asher play with envy.
The off season of Abide has also allowed us time to continue working on our home. And yes... we are still painting. But it was our last interior room - the master bedroom. We had a great time working together and now enjoy our bedroom even more.
The pool is a favorite thing on hot sunny days. We occasionaly visit a hotel pool. Asher has become very comfortable playing in the cool water and Stephen has just had his introduction. Just another way to nurture relationships and add more pleasant memories.

---

September 7th, 2008

August was Family Month. Abandoning all else, the top priority was to spend time with family after a busy four months leading the ABIDE program. Now we have time to rest, relax and have fun. Here is the latest picture of the Kehn family at home in Uganda (Click the picture for a larger size). And the truth is that the picture was taken on Sunday morning... when we were supposed to go to church, but didn't. We got all ready to go, but Asher was just not feeling it and we were afraid of a disruption and Sunday disaster if we attended the local service. Instead, it became an opportune time to take a family picture in our frontyard in the gazeebo and have quality family time. Oh yeah, and I'm wearing flip flops.

---

July 17th, 2008

We have some great friends. We met in Texas and Christ bound our hearts together, even though we traveled thousands of miles away. They have been supporting us financially for over a year. The Workmans recently came to our home in Mbarara, Uganda. The living room was filled with goodies from the states. They brought four whole suitcases full of things that Crystal had requested for our home and enjoyment. It was fantastic, like Christmas in July. They also participated in many of our day to day activities and ministry outreach. It was a blessing to have time to talk deeply about our marriage, relationship with God and life as missionaries. The time with our good friends was a blessing that continues to encourage us.
Stephen was caught with a box of candy, zonked out! We have no idea how he opened it, but it seems by his drool that they were good. The Workmans also gave us a freedom to out on dates together and care for the boys. That was Great! Now they are looking at the possibility of joining the mission field. Please pray that God will continue to direct their steps.

---

June 30th, 2008

The Kehn family is no longer stranded... unless we get a flat tire (Crystal just did as I am writing this). God has miraculously provided all the financial needs to purchase our own family vehicle. We picked it up from Kampala in the beginning of July and have already been so blessed by it. It is a lot of fun to drive and rides really smooth. We made it from Kampala to Mbarara in under 4 hours, which usually takes more than 5 sometimes. We were also blessed to see it had a CD player...after we already bought it! Now we can jam out as we fly down the potholed roads. Thanks to all of you who have made this possible. Crystal, our boys and the next ones to come are forever grateful!

---

Our house is feeling more like a home, room by room. The living room is finally finished after painting green, laying a laminate wood floor, hanging curtains and pictures of loved ones, and throwing a few pillows on the chairs. We love the colors. Can you find Asher? Of course, it rarely ever looks this neat because its a toddler's house now. The floor is always strewn with toys, favorite books, and the new throw pillows. Just the way we like it.

At first we were thinking about getting a van for our family and also using it for ministry needs. But over the last months we have re-evaluated our plans and are now looking at getting a smaller vehicle. Fuel effecient, cheaper initially and perfect for our small family... until it grows again! We are now planning on purchasing the car above. It is a green Toyota Carib 1995 - 4WD with 90,000 km straight from Japan. Pray for us that God would make it possible and sort out all the needed details. Also pray that it would be a good, durable, long-lasting vehicle for our familly to God's glory. It is almost supernatural to think about the reality of owning our own car! We are so thankful to God through all of our faithful supporters.

---

Asher continues to have fun at home. Dad is usually gone throughout the day, and Asher has some big shoes to fill. But he does pretty well, helping mom out with baby brother Stephen. He continues to form new friendships with neighborhood kids and children at the Amagara Children's Home. He keeps entertained even with the simplest things. We fall deeper in love with him every day. Stephen has grown tremendously well, almost doubling in size. He is getting cute chubby roles and fitting into all his clothes. Stephen now loves to smile and is becoming more mobile and expressive, responding to our voices and even our faces. After sleeping through most of the night, we are adjusting well to the addition of a new member to our crazy family. Our children bring so much joy to our lives.

---

---

---

We have now returned to our BEAUTIFUL home in Mbarara. It was wonderful to see our house, such fond memories and amazing views. Asher developed so many new skills during our time in the states, since arriving back he is now using them at home in Uganda. He is standing alone and taking small steps from one object to the next. He has reunited with Uganda friends and continues to be as happy as ever. I believe he is glad to be back in Uganda. We have also added a kitten to our family and Asher loves playing with her. There are many projects that we are working on in our own home. First we sanded down two beds and painted them white. They we constructed a channel for water overflow to travel down the side of our yard. We started base painting walls inside the house to prepare for the color paint. We found the ceiling in the house cracking and caving in and had it repaired. We purchased a vinear wood floor to assemble in our living room and are looking for good carpet (it's difficult) for the bedrooms. We have also ordered carpenters to build screens for our windows to keep out mosquitos and other insects. We have reorganized the kitchen and now we are envisioning building cabinets in the future. Crystal is designing her Ugandan dream kitchen!
We have been doing all of these things in the last three weeks, as well as preparing and beginning ABIDE - Amagara Bible Institute of Discipleship and Evangelism. Everything has been busy, we just jumped right in head first and are excited about the progress.

---