Upcoming Presentation:
Monday, April 30
at the Jordan HRC
located on 4171 15 Street
Jordan ON, L0R 2C0.
Hope to see you there!
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
Jason turns 27
The sun shines brightly and instinctively I raise my face.
Today is April 19, Jason’s 27th birthday, and we are celebrating with pizza in the park at the shores of Lake Ontario.
A gentle breeze blows through the trees as the seagulls and Canadian geese edge closer, hoping for a few crumbs.
After a busy week of travel, debriefing and presentations we are finally enjoying a day off.
When lunch is over I pick up my camera and wander through the blossoming trees. Photography has always been a hobby and I thoroughly enjoy taking pictures of God’s intricate designs.
Today is April 19, Jason’s 27th birthday, and we are celebrating with pizza in the park at the shores of Lake Ontario.
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A gentle breeze blows through the trees as the seagulls and Canadian geese edge closer, hoping for a few crumbs.
After a busy week of travel, debriefing and presentations we are finally enjoying a day off.
When lunch is over I pick up my camera and wander through the blossoming trees. Photography has always been a hobby and I thoroughly enjoy taking pictures of God’s intricate designs.
Nomads
April 18, 2012
“Mom, I want to go home.”
I turn slightly to look at my son. Now, not only does he have laryngitis and bronchitis, he’s also battling an eye infection. Thankfully, the daily application of Vicks on his chest has eased his cough, but his red bleary eyes paint a sad picture.
“What home do you mean Jayden?” I question.
Since a new family has temporarily moved into our home in Haiti; we recently moved out of the home in Agassiz where we where house sitting, and we’ve been house hopping ever since, we are currently homeless.
“You know, Mom, the one that had the two girls.”
Sharing a smile with Jason, I shake my head. Just last night we stayed at the Byl’s and Jayden enjoyed it so much he was ready to move in. A toy room, girls to play with, and an unlimited supply of cocoa puffs for breakfast, what more could a little boy want?
“We’re going to another house now Jayden. Do you remember Matt who stayed at our house in Haiti? We are going to visit him and his parents and do a presentation for their youth group.”
“Oh, Okay. I like Matt!”
“Mom, I want to go home.”
I turn slightly to look at my son. Now, not only does he have laryngitis and bronchitis, he’s also battling an eye infection. Thankfully, the daily application of Vicks on his chest has eased his cough, but his red bleary eyes paint a sad picture.
“What home do you mean Jayden?” I question.
Since a new family has temporarily moved into our home in Haiti; we recently moved out of the home in Agassiz where we where house sitting, and we’ve been house hopping ever since, we are currently homeless.
“You know, Mom, the one that had the two girls.”
Sharing a smile with Jason, I shake my head. Just last night we stayed at the Byl’s and Jayden enjoyed it so much he was ready to move in. A toy room, girls to play with, and an unlimited supply of cocoa puffs for breakfast, what more could a little boy want?
“We’re going to another house now Jayden. Do you remember Matt who stayed at our house in Haiti? We are going to visit him and his parents and do a presentation for their youth group.”
“Oh, Okay. I like Matt!”
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Presentation - Burgesville
“Good Evening everyone. I’m Jason Krul and this is my wife Wilhelmina.”
Suddenly a small figure pushes his way through the crowd to the podium. Standing on tip toes so all can see, he adds in a small raspy voice; “And I’m Jayden!” A ripple of laughter breaks out as I quickly make my way over to him and grab his hand.
“You need to sit down over there!” I whisper in his ear.
“But Mom, I want to talk too..” he whines, his voice barely audible now. Being diagnosed yesterday with laryngitis-bronchitis his voice is almost gone. I find a spot for him on a chair upfront and then join Jason again. Just in time too, since now it’s my turn to talk.
Today is Tuesday, April 17 and after a busy day debriefing at the MAF office in Guelph, we have just begun our first presentation in our whirl wind tour of Eastern Canada and the US.
As the familiar pictures of Haiti appear on the pull down screen I abandon my notes and simply talk. This is our life. This is the country and people we’ve come to love. I don’t need notes.
Suddenly a small figure pushes his way through the crowd to the podium. Standing on tip toes so all can see, he adds in a small raspy voice; “And I’m Jayden!” A ripple of laughter breaks out as I quickly make my way over to him and grab his hand.
“You need to sit down over there!” I whisper in his ear.
“But Mom, I want to talk too..” he whines, his voice barely audible now. Being diagnosed yesterday with laryngitis-bronchitis his voice is almost gone. I find a spot for him on a chair upfront and then join Jason again. Just in time too, since now it’s my turn to talk.
Today is Tuesday, April 17 and after a busy day debriefing at the MAF office in Guelph, we have just begun our first presentation in our whirl wind tour of Eastern Canada and the US.
As the familiar pictures of Haiti appear on the pull down screen I abandon my notes and simply talk. This is our life. This is the country and people we’ve come to love. I don’t need notes.
Psychological Evaluations and Physical Exams
“This is NOT Apple Juice! It’s PEE!!!” A gleeful little boy races down the hallway. Red faced I chase after my rambunctious son.
“Come back here Jayden!” I yell after his retreating figure.
Finally, reluctantly, he slows to a stop. Out of breath, I pull up beside him. Reaching for his arm, I pull the sealed container of yellow liquid from his hand. Then as nonchalantly as possible I open the door of the Missionary Health Institute and unobtrusively place the container on the edge of the counter.
“Let me take that!” A nurse smiles kindly at me, and I smile back. Today is Monday, April 16 and we are just completing our medical exams.
This morning following a 2 hour psychological evaluation, we were poked, prodded and tested to check if we were still physically healthy after 3 years in the third world.
Although slightly apprehensive coming in, neither the psychological nor physical tests were that bad, and the Doctors, Nurses, and Psychologists were beyond kind.
Now with Jayden’s urine sample complete, it’s finally time to go home.
Well, not home exactly. First a stop at Lea’s house for dinner and a get together with MAF office staff and then to the Best Western for a good night rest.
Pushing the office door open and feeling the warm sun and cool wind on my face, I sigh. Glad that’s over.
“Come back here Jayden!” I yell after his retreating figure.
Finally, reluctantly, he slows to a stop. Out of breath, I pull up beside him. Reaching for his arm, I pull the sealed container of yellow liquid from his hand. Then as nonchalantly as possible I open the door of the Missionary Health Institute and unobtrusively place the container on the edge of the counter.
“Let me take that!” A nurse smiles kindly at me, and I smile back. Today is Monday, April 16 and we are just completing our medical exams.
This morning following a 2 hour psychological evaluation, we were poked, prodded and tested to check if we were still physically healthy after 3 years in the third world.
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Although slightly apprehensive coming in, neither the psychological nor physical tests were that bad, and the Doctors, Nurses, and Psychologists were beyond kind.
Now with Jayden’s urine sample complete, it’s finally time to go home.
Well, not home exactly. First a stop at Lea’s house for dinner and a get together with MAF office staff and then to the Best Western for a good night rest.
Pushing the office door open and feeling the warm sun and cool wind on my face, I sigh. Glad that’s over.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Reunion
Saturday, April 14, 5:30 a.m.
“Mom. Mommy!”
I open my eyes. Jayden’s little face looms over me and I reach down to give him a hand up onto the bed. Once he’s up I glance at my watch. Only 5:30 a.m.
A few minutes later Justin begins to fuss in his pack and play. I silently slip out of bed and carefully cradle him in my arms. “Might as well join the crowd,” I whisper into his ear as I lay him down on the bed too.
With two wiggling boys in bed it doesn’t take long for Jason to wake up too.
“What time is it?” He whispers sleepily.
“5:30.”
“Ohh. You know we’ve only slept for 4 hours right?”
“Yeah, I know.”
“It’s probably less than 4 hours since we only arrived in St.Catharines at 1:35 a.m., but oh well.”
Snuggling under the covers my thoughts wander to the hours ahead. After 5 and half years we finally get to see Mike again. The last time we saw him was the day we got married. He was Jason’s best man. Since then, he has gotten married as well and has a little boy a few months younger than Jayden. It will be so fun to see him again and meet his family! Smiling at the thought I close my eyes and try to doze for a few more minutes.
“Mom. Mommy!”
I open my eyes. Jayden’s little face looms over me and I reach down to give him a hand up onto the bed. Once he’s up I glance at my watch. Only 5:30 a.m.
A few minutes later Justin begins to fuss in his pack and play. I silently slip out of bed and carefully cradle him in my arms. “Might as well join the crowd,” I whisper into his ear as I lay him down on the bed too.
With two wiggling boys in bed it doesn’t take long for Jason to wake up too.
“What time is it?” He whispers sleepily.
“5:30.”
“Ohh. You know we’ve only slept for 4 hours right?”
“Yeah, I know.”
“It’s probably less than 4 hours since we only arrived in St.Catharines at 1:35 a.m., but oh well.”
Snuggling under the covers my thoughts wander to the hours ahead. After 5 and half years we finally get to see Mike again. The last time we saw him was the day we got married. He was Jason’s best man. Since then, he has gotten married as well and has a little boy a few months younger than Jayden. It will be so fun to see him again and meet his family! Smiling at the thought I close my eyes and try to doze for a few more minutes.
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Friday, April 13, 2012
24 Hour Travel Day
3:30 a.m. Friday, April 13
Justin stirs in his crib and I slowly open my eyes. Being a light sleeper I easily hear every sound he makes. I glance at the alarm clock on the floor and check the time. 3:30 a.m. Perfect timing. I have exactly half an hour to cuddle and feed him before it’s time to get up.
Hearing him fuss now, I carefully ease out of bed and reach down in his crib for him. Sure enough he’s hungry. I’ve become accustomed to his little grunts and squeaks and these ones leave no doubt in my mind what he wants.
Getting comfortable I cuddle my sweet baby till he’s done feeding. Although it’s not quite 4:00 a.m. yet, there’s not enough time to go back to sleep now, so instead I decide to get a head start on the day.
Opening the diaper bag, I quickly change Justin and then lay him on the bed. In the bathroom I wince as my contact lenses come in contact with my bleary eyes. Adding a few extra drops of solution to ease the discomfort I remind myself that my eyes aren’t used to wearing contacts at this time of night.
In the kitchen I turn on the kettle for a quick cup of tea and then head downstairs to change Jayden. He’s already awake and rambling about Haiti and whether Grandpa can come with us or not. As I help him get dressed I gently remind him that we aren’t going to Haiti, but Ontario and that we hope to see Grandpa when we come back in a month, God willing. Not sure where or what Ontario is, he simply shakes his head. I guess he will find out soon enough.
4:33 a.m.
The streets are quiet as we make our way to the Abbotsford Airport. With 3 suitcases, 5 carry-on, a stroller, and a car seat we are packed to the max. With two kids in tow, packing light is a now an impossible, fond memory. As we drive Jayden’s mouth goes a mile a minute and we do our best to remind him that every other kid is still sound asleep.
Although it’s going to be a long day, I’m more relaxed today then I’ve been in a long time. There’s something about the traveling life I love. Must be my ancestral gypsy blood.
My thoughts wander to the 6 weeks that have flown by since Justin’s birth. While the weeks preceding his birth seemed to drag on, the weeks following flew by so fast I hardly had time to blink, much less write. Visits with family and friends, Doctor appointments, an MAF presentation, Jayden’s first dentist appointment, meetings with supporters, moving out of our temporary home in Agassiz, moving back to Jason’s parents, my parent’s 40th anniversary celebration, and finally preparing and packing for our one month deputation trip to eastern Canada and the US. So many things done in such a short time period.
Coming back to the present I reach through the inky darkness for Jayden’s hand. Still talking, he now directs his conversation to the waning moon.
“I’m going to miss you moon,” He says. “You and Grandpa.”
“Actually, you won’t have to miss the moon Jayden.” I tell him smiling. It will be the same moon in Ontario, the United States and Haiti.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Oh.” He pauses to ponder this for a moment. I really wonder what goes through his little head sometimes.
I turn my attention to the window and watch the scenery fly by. The short drive to Abbotsford airport is over before we know it and we soon pull up to the curb. Unloading our bags we say goodbye to Dad and proceed to check in. Although it’s a little more tricky juggling a baby, car seat and stroller everything goes smoothly.
As we wait at our gate, Jason snaps our picture to document Justin’s first traveling day. So far so good.
6:15 a.m.
Seated and strapped in we are ready for takeoff.
Or not? The pilot’s voice comes over the loudspeakers to say an oil pump pressure light turned on and must be checked. 15 minutes later the pilot’s voice can be heard again, this time he tells us the problem has been fixed but we need to refuel. A half an hour later we pull out for takeoff, only to idle on the edge of the runway. If we leave right now we might still make our connection in Calgary, but it’s not meant to be.
A now very apologetic pilot’s voice can be heard once again, this time to let us know they hadn’t calculated the correct amount of fuel needed, and we would need to refuel again. By the time the extra fuel is added, it’s 2 hours since the original departure time.
Too late to catch our connection now, we are told West Jet will reschedule our flight to Hamilton when we arrive in Calgary.
9:00 a.m.
Leaning over Jayden, I peer out the window. The beautiful snow capped Rockies loom beneath us. In awe of God's creation I snap one picture after another.
Looking beside me I watch Jason cradle Justin in his arms. Studying his relaxed features I'm certain he's going to be a great traveler.
10:05 a.m.
A West Jet employee approaches us with new tickets to Hamilton as we wait in line inside the Calgary airport. Glancing at the tickets I notice departure time is now 6:15 p.m. More than 8 hours from now.
With arrival into Hamilton being midnight, it means we won’t reach our Aunt and Uncle's home till 2:00 a.m.
Nothing like a 24 hour time span for Justin’s inaugural travel day.
With some $10 West Jet vouchers in hand and directions to the nearest lounge we head up the elevator. Thankfully the lounge is spacious, has comfortable chairs and free soup, sandwiches and snacks. Justin quickly falls asleep in his car seat.
Meanwhile Jason and Jayden play games on the ipad.
With 8 hours to burn, I finally have time to write the article due Monday and update our blog. Not remembering the last time I could just sit and work on the computer I savour this time.
Justin stirs in his crib and I slowly open my eyes. Being a light sleeper I easily hear every sound he makes. I glance at the alarm clock on the floor and check the time. 3:30 a.m. Perfect timing. I have exactly half an hour to cuddle and feed him before it’s time to get up.
Hearing him fuss now, I carefully ease out of bed and reach down in his crib for him. Sure enough he’s hungry. I’ve become accustomed to his little grunts and squeaks and these ones leave no doubt in my mind what he wants.
Getting comfortable I cuddle my sweet baby till he’s done feeding. Although it’s not quite 4:00 a.m. yet, there’s not enough time to go back to sleep now, so instead I decide to get a head start on the day.
Opening the diaper bag, I quickly change Justin and then lay him on the bed. In the bathroom I wince as my contact lenses come in contact with my bleary eyes. Adding a few extra drops of solution to ease the discomfort I remind myself that my eyes aren’t used to wearing contacts at this time of night.
In the kitchen I turn on the kettle for a quick cup of tea and then head downstairs to change Jayden. He’s already awake and rambling about Haiti and whether Grandpa can come with us or not. As I help him get dressed I gently remind him that we aren’t going to Haiti, but Ontario and that we hope to see Grandpa when we come back in a month, God willing. Not sure where or what Ontario is, he simply shakes his head. I guess he will find out soon enough.
4:33 a.m.
The streets are quiet as we make our way to the Abbotsford Airport. With 3 suitcases, 5 carry-on, a stroller, and a car seat we are packed to the max. With two kids in tow, packing light is a now an impossible, fond memory. As we drive Jayden’s mouth goes a mile a minute and we do our best to remind him that every other kid is still sound asleep.
Although it’s going to be a long day, I’m more relaxed today then I’ve been in a long time. There’s something about the traveling life I love. Must be my ancestral gypsy blood.
My thoughts wander to the 6 weeks that have flown by since Justin’s birth. While the weeks preceding his birth seemed to drag on, the weeks following flew by so fast I hardly had time to blink, much less write. Visits with family and friends, Doctor appointments, an MAF presentation, Jayden’s first dentist appointment, meetings with supporters, moving out of our temporary home in Agassiz, moving back to Jason’s parents, my parent’s 40th anniversary celebration, and finally preparing and packing for our one month deputation trip to eastern Canada and the US. So many things done in such a short time period.
Coming back to the present I reach through the inky darkness for Jayden’s hand. Still talking, he now directs his conversation to the waning moon.
“I’m going to miss you moon,” He says. “You and Grandpa.”
“Actually, you won’t have to miss the moon Jayden.” I tell him smiling. It will be the same moon in Ontario, the United States and Haiti.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Oh.” He pauses to ponder this for a moment. I really wonder what goes through his little head sometimes.
I turn my attention to the window and watch the scenery fly by. The short drive to Abbotsford airport is over before we know it and we soon pull up to the curb. Unloading our bags we say goodbye to Dad and proceed to check in. Although it’s a little more tricky juggling a baby, car seat and stroller everything goes smoothly.
As we wait at our gate, Jason snaps our picture to document Justin’s first traveling day. So far so good.
 |
Seated and strapped in we are ready for takeoff.
Or not? The pilot’s voice comes over the loudspeakers to say an oil pump pressure light turned on and must be checked. 15 minutes later the pilot’s voice can be heard again, this time he tells us the problem has been fixed but we need to refuel. A half an hour later we pull out for takeoff, only to idle on the edge of the runway. If we leave right now we might still make our connection in Calgary, but it’s not meant to be.
A now very apologetic pilot’s voice can be heard once again, this time to let us know they hadn’t calculated the correct amount of fuel needed, and we would need to refuel again. By the time the extra fuel is added, it’s 2 hours since the original departure time.
Too late to catch our connection now, we are told West Jet will reschedule our flight to Hamilton when we arrive in Calgary.
9:00 a.m.
Leaning over Jayden, I peer out the window. The beautiful snow capped Rockies loom beneath us. In awe of God's creation I snap one picture after another.
 |
 |
A West Jet employee approaches us with new tickets to Hamilton as we wait in line inside the Calgary airport. Glancing at the tickets I notice departure time is now 6:15 p.m. More than 8 hours from now.
With arrival into Hamilton being midnight, it means we won’t reach our Aunt and Uncle's home till 2:00 a.m.
Nothing like a 24 hour time span for Justin’s inaugural travel day.
With some $10 West Jet vouchers in hand and directions to the nearest lounge we head up the elevator. Thankfully the lounge is spacious, has comfortable chairs and free soup, sandwiches and snacks. Justin quickly falls asleep in his car seat.
 |
Meanwhile Jason and Jayden play games on the ipad.
 |
With 8 hours to burn, I finally have time to write the article due Monday and update our blog. Not remembering the last time I could just sit and work on the computer I savour this time.
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