Posted by Jeri on July 30, 2010
Well, we ought to be partied out by now. We just celebrated Caleb’s 3rd birthday on July 22, 2010, which followed Elizabeth’s 1st in June and Hannah’s 5th earlier this month.
It seems like just yesterday I was at a wedding on my due date with everyone watching me as if I were a ticking time bomb. Thankfully, he waited to erupt the next day – and even had the courtesy to give me a few hours of sleep after the reception before I went into labor. I don’t think I’ll ever forget Trevor and Sarah’s wedding and the little blessing that arrived less than a full day later.
Caleb has brought an unbelievable amount of energy to our home over the last three years. He has one of those magnetic personalities and seems to draw people to him. We are so thankful for him – orneriness and all! His sisters adore him.
Spaghetti is always a fun meal at our house.
I especially adore Caleb’s loving nature. He’s so cuddly, but loves to wrestle and be tickled. I love when he comes in the kitchen and says, “That sure smells like some good dinner, Mom.” Always nice to have someone appreciate your cooking. 
He was more than happy to lick the bowl for the chocolate icing I made for his birthday cake.
A chocolaty mess!
He is usually running around, jumping off things, and playing with his sisters (and its hard to catch him in a photo!), but he also loves to be read to, do puzzles, and watch Dora.
We invited a few friends over for lunch and cake to celebrate his third birthday with us. I didn’t realize until the party got started that he was the only boy! Apparently we just don’t know too many little boys. (I’m praying that’ll make him an amazing husband someday.)
Happy 3rd Birthday, Caleb!
Posted by Jeri on June 18, 2010
It doesn’t seem possible that it’s been a whole year since our sweet Elizabeth joined the family. On June 18, 2009, I became the mother of our third beautiful child, who was born with a shocking amount of hair. It has been a fun first year with Elizabeth in our family, and it’s hard to imagine life without her.
Though she is too young to know exactly what it means to have a birthday, she is blessed to have Hannah and Caleb to plan the fun. They helped me bake her birthday cake and made hats for the celebration. They were so excited about the day. When I put them to bed the night before her birthday, they said they were having a hard time sleeping because they were just so excited for her birthday.
We had a fun-filled day on Friday for her birthday.
Here is Elizabeth opening gifts that Hannah and Caleb wrapped for her.
A new book for the birthday girl!
The family (minus me) after the gift opening.
After lunch, we celebrated by eating banana cake and strawberry ice cream. Good thing she has a big bro and sis to help with the candle!
The cake was great, but she wasn’t so sure about the freezing cold ice cream. After she warmed up to the idea, she liked the ice cream after all.
Hannah helped me make party hats for the occasion. Here are Hannah and Caleb waiting for Elizabeth to wake up from her nap so we can go for a swim.
Caleb and Hannah loved playing in the sand beach at the International Hotel in town.
I think Elizabeth’s got a ways to go before she walks on her own, but she did enjoy walking in the sand with me.
Our family (minus Craig) at the beach.
Swim time!
The kids are learning to jump in the pool.
Caleb is finally becoming more comfortable in the water and was even able to smile in the pool!
Happy 1st Birthday, Elizabeth! We love you.
Posted by Jeri on June 11, 2010
Getting the suitcases out is always fun. Here we are trying to decide which one we should take on our trip.
Craig was in North America for almost two weeks before he met us in Sydney. We were so excited to see him! Here we are in our hotel in Sydney the afternoon he arrived. Get used to these outfits – we wore them nearly every day. Since we were going to Sydney in the winter, we had to round up a few things besides flip flops and t-shirts so we wouldn’t freeze!
We stayed in Darling Harbour, Sydney. On our first day, we just took the monorail train around and enjoyed the area. Here are Craig and the kids waiting on the train.
Good thing these two know how to stick together when strangers are around. They were holding hands on the train – it was so cute!
We got off the train and walked to a nice park. Here are the 3 kiddos there.
My beautiful Hannah – inside and out.
Caleb was so funny. He insisted on wearing his hood every time he wore his sweatshirt. I bought him another sweater, but he only wanted to wear this one. It wasn’t THAT cold, silly boy!
At the park, there was a man making huge bubbles. Hannah and Caleb loved it. Why do we ever pay for entertainment anyway??
There were some nice fountains in the park there. Elizabeth loved getting a ride everywhere. She likes facing out in the Baby Bjorn so she can get a good look at everything.
We all enjoyed Sydney’s Wildlife World. Yes, that is a REAL snake. Any guesses why Craig wanted to be the photographer?? Hannah looks a little nervous, but she did end up touching the snake for at least a fraction of a second. Caleb wasn’t nervous about the ordeal at all.
We sat and watched the kangaroos for a long time. Too bad we couldn’t pet them. At a wildlife sanctuary we went to in Brisbane two years ago, we were able to pet the kangaroos.
Caleb loved these animals!
Our kids get to see a cassowary at church here in Alotau every Sunday, but they were still thrilled with the display there.
It’s not every day you get to sit on a big tree frog, either.
We also visited the Sydney Aquarium. Hannah was excited because she doesn’t get to snorkel like Craig and I do and she wanted to see fish like we get to see when we snorkel. Elizabeth was totally enamored by the fish. If you’re ever in Sydney, I highly recommend the Aquarium. It’s really amazing.
Part of our holiday fun was just being able to sleep in a hotel. Our family is too big for one room at the Four Points by Sheraton there, so we had two rooms – which was a blessing. Here’s Caleb performing for us in the window. He and Hannah loved singing for us then closing the curtains and opening them again for our show.
After our 5 days in Sydney, we drove to Wollongong to be with our friends, Jason, Nicole, Ella, and Noah Whaley, who are doing a church plant there. We had a marvelous time.
Nicole and I taught our 5 children (under 5 years) Bible class on Sunday at their house.
We really enjoyed the parks there The kids could just play for hours!
Elizabeth’s first time swinging – and lovin’ it!
Could her smile get any bigger?
Elizabeth started pulling up on everything while we were on our trip. Look at that almost-one-year-old!
Here are Caleb and Hannah with Ella Whaley. She was so sweet to share her toys and put up with all the extra noise in her house for a few days.
Jason and Nicole took us to a play area for young children called Green Bean. On our way there, Hannah asked why it wasn’t called “Black Bean.” I have no idea why it would have either name, but they sure had lots of fun – especially in the ball pit. Now this is a first world experience!
Elizabeth was a little nervous about the whole thing at first, but she soon became comfortable and had a great time.
Things we loved about our family vacation:
- Lots of time together
- Watching the kids experience new things
- Parks
- McDonald’s (yeah, yeah, I know…)
- Telling stories, laughing, and eating Thai food with the Whaleys
- Not cooking
- Riding the train
- Using disposable diapers
- Feeling a little bit chilly and not sweating
- Eating lots of apples and pears
- Relaxing
We had a wonderful time. Do you think you need a vacation?
Posted by Jeri on April 9, 2010
The Hellos
We are saying hello to lots of new things in our house, especially with 9-month-old Elizabeth.
Hello, scrunch face! If you were around us when Hannah was this age, you’ll remember that she made the exact same face. So funny!
Hello, teeth! She’s got two on the bottom now.
Hello, mobility! Elizabeth is almost a crawler. She can certainly get around – even though she doesn’t quite crawl yet. Let the baby proofing begin!
This girl is just too cute for her own good. I had to include this picture! By the way, we do dress her – sometimes. This is the outfit my children have worn most often as babies. It’s much cooler this way, and it sure saves on laundry!!
Hello, Bookworm! For as active as Caleb is, he sure loves to read. He’s enjoying Your Big Backyard magazine. Thanks to the Chitwoods in Houston for subscribing to it for us. Hannah and Caleb love those magazines! (I like them, too.)
Now for the Good-byes
You know you are a missionary if you are used to saying good-bye. It seems like it’s a part of life. We say good-bye to our friends in PNG when we leave for furlough. We say good-bye to our friends and family when we leave North America from a furlough. And we say good-bye to our teammates when they go on their furloughs.
This week, our teammates, Marcus & Diane Reese and their 4 lovely girls, left for furlough. Before they left, we had a party to celebrate Hannah and Rochelle’s preschool accomplishments. Diane and I have been taking turns teaching them once a week and have thoroughly enjoyed it.
Rochelle, Hannah (with a sticker on her nose), and Caleb had a great time at the party.
Here are the girls with their graduation hats, made by Rochelle’s big sister. (Caleb was an honorary classmate.)
Diane Reese and Loopie Williams (our teammates) enjoyed watching the kiddos. What a great party it was – popcorn, chocolate cake, and kool-aid (thanks to the Logsdons in OK!) We shared some fun moments before the Reeses had to leave.
Hannah and Rochelle shared one last hug at the airport. We’ll miss you, Rochelle! Looking forward to saying hello again in 3 months.
Posted by Jeri on March 26, 2010
Our dog had 10 puppies about 6 weeks ago. We had 3 die, so we’re left with 7 cute ones still. It’s been a ton of work (for me!), but the kids have LOVED having the puppies. I didn’t realize there were so many life lessons to be learned with puppies around. It’s been a great experience. Hannah has especially gone out of her way to look after the pups. (We’re hoping to give the pups away soon.)
I’m not so sure the puppies like when Caleb carries them, but he has fun doing it!
Hannah likes carrying the puppies like a baby.
Gotta’ love this boy!! We’re guessing he has an “otter” type personality, but maybe we’ll have him take a personality test in a few years to confirm that.
Elizabeth always enjoys baths. Look at those big eyes!!
When I ask Caleb to smile, this is what he does.
Hannah’s Silly Face (I love her dimple!)
Once a week, Hannah has preschool with her friend, Rochelle. Last week we studied the letter Z. We made a zither together and they had lots of fun playing it and singing. Rochelle is going on furlough in about 2 weeks. We will sure miss her!
Elizabeth is starting to enjoy all kinds of foods. She really loves bananas – it’s a good thing since we have a lot of those around here. She also really likes papaya, avocado, and carrots. She almost always manages to get food in her head full of hair.
I wish you could hear all of them laughing when I took this picture of Craig giving them horsey rides! (No, I didn’t get video…) Elizabeth is cracking up!
My precious family!
I never knew that I’d have one of those “stair-step” families. But here they are: Hannah – age 4 1/2, Caleb – 2 1/2, and Elizabeth – 9 months.
Posted by Jeri on March 11, 2010
I feel like I haven’t written a post for a while. I was thinking that there’s really nothing exciting to write about. Then I decided I could at least write about every-day-kinds-of-things that are happening. And there’s always room for pictures, right?
First off, let me mention that I often neglect to tell people about the interesting, beautiful, and fascinating creatures we get to see sometimes living here in PNG. My children are fascinated by all the praying mantises, huge moths and spiders, beautiful butterflies and birds, and so on… Our most recent excitement (besides the 10 pups our dog delivered) was this tree frog that was on the banister of our steps. It looked almost fake to me. It slept there and then escaped during the night, I guess. But I just had to take its picture. We see all kinds of toads, but this was my first time to see one of these!
Most of my days are spent playing with the kids at home. It’s a good thing we like each other so much!
Brother and Sister Kisses
Sister and Sister Kisses
Who really has the upper hand here??
Hannah and Caleb are such great playmates. Here they are playing in their shared bedroom.
I try to keep my children entertained by playing outside, painting, swinging, reading, telling stories, and letting them ‘help’ me clean and cook.
Hannah and Caleb recently helped me make some cookies. This is a recipe for Aggression Cookies. They’re great for toddlers and preschoolers! (Hannah wasn’t so sure about getting her hands all dirty.)
I’m always amazed and thankful for how well my children play together. Many times when I’m cooking supper or am busy with something else, they occupy themselves just fine. Tonight it was really quiet while I was doing supper dishes, so I thought I better check and see what was going on. But this is what I saw when I went and checked on them.
My Little Readers – Even Elizabeth has a book!!
I know I say it all the time, but I just can’t thank God enough for my family. Having these three children teaches me so much. I feel so blessed to have them.
My Three Little Blessings
Elizabeth will be nine months old in about a week. Unbelievable! Seems like she was just born. She has a crazy amount of hair. I actually have to comb it every day and put it in a ponytail. Otherwise, it gets in her eyes. We officially have two more teeth in this house. She cut her two middle bottom teeth last week. She’s not at all interested in crawling still. Why crawl when everyone comes to you?
Elizabeth likes to play with the comb after I do her hair.
Just when I thought she couldn’t get any cuter …. Look at all that hair!
I am also incredibly blessed to have Craig as my husband and best friend. We get to spend time together most evenings after the kids go to bed. We often take walks around our yard at night, talking and talking – something we’ve done for as long as we’ve known each other.
He amazes me with all of the things he does. He’s recently started up a computer class for 4 young ladies so they can learn basic computer skills, which is something that most don’t have the opportunity to learn here. He’s also been doing leadership training for the men of the church once a month. It seems to be really beneficial for them.
In addition to full-time ministry, he continues to write for his blog, Money Help for Christians. (http://moneyhelpforchristians.com)
Craig and I are pleased to finally be finished with an eBook called Short Term Missions Handbook that we co-authored. If you’re taking a Short Term Mission trip this summer or know someone who is, check it out! It ended up being a much bigger project than we expected, but it was a great experience for us.
Recently, I coordinated a Ladies’ Day for church. We had 18 women there. It was a refreshing day, and everyone seemed to enjoy it. Esther taught a lesson on prayer by telling stories from her life. We played games, ate lots of food, sang, and had so much fun together.
Can you find me?
So that’s what’s been going on in the Ford Family lately. Anything exciting happening in your family that you’d like to share??
Posted by Jeri on December 19, 2009
We took a getaway this weekend to a place in Ulumani Village called Treetops Lodge. It’s about 1 1/2 hours drive from our house in Alotau – mainly due to the bumps in the road. This place is across the bay from where we live. It was such a great weekend for our family. Being in the middle of the jungle with a beach nearby and nobody to bother you is truly an amazing feeling.
Here is the view from our little guesthouse, which has power (from a generator) and even hot, running water – unlike many guesthouses around.
We enjoyed some hiking, though the mountain is very steep by the guesthouse. When you drive up the mountain, it feels like the truck is just going to tip over backwards! We enjoyed some of the many rivers around the area. Here’s Hannah playing near a small waterfall in the river.
We came to Treetops last year, but neither Hannah nor Caleb remember it. Here they are when they first saw the veranda of the house.
Time at Waga Waga Beach was one of the highlights. The beach is shaded by beautiful trees. There is a shipwreck there which makes for a great snorkeling adventure. Hannah really wanted to try snorkeling…
…But I think we’ll have to get some gear that’s just a little bit smaller for her.
Caleb loved getting “crocodile rides” from his Daddy.
Hiking was exciting, even for 6-month-old Elizabeth!
Though it’s hard for us to imagine having a white Christmas, we sure are enjoying our tropical hoildays!
Posted by Jeri on November 10, 2009
Each year in November there is a canoe festival in town. There are lots of people who come to town for the big event. There are canoe races, traditional dances, and people selling homemade stuff (food, wooden carvings, woven bags, etc.) in stalls. Our church had a stall and was promoting a World Bible School campaign that is going on this week. Here are some pictures from the festival.
I just had to get a shot of this little girl dressed in her grass skirt.
This is taken in front of our stall where our church members sold Bibles, song books, banana chips, popcorn, cake, and other yummy treats as a fundraiser for an event we’re hosting next year.
The traditional costumes are amazing! These are just a few pictures of some of the dances that were being performed. It’s really interesting to see the diversity in dances and dress that represent different parts of PNG. With over 800 languages in the country, there are just about as many cultures.
(Our children were a little frightened by the traditional dances, but were intrigued nonetheless.)
Posted by Craig on June 25, 2009
Last weekend my sister-in-law took some pictures when she was here to visit our new arrival. I thought I would add one picture of each of my lovely family members. Pretty cute, eh?
Spaghetti is always a fun meal at our house. 
A chocolaty mess!
