Visitors from the North

My parents are in India for 2 weeks so Tonya, Jenna, and Elise came to visit us for a week. It is hard to believe it is over already. Here are some snapshots of our VERY fun week together. Mya sobbed for about 10min after we dropped them off at the airport. When we got home all the power was off so Mya and I took full advantage of it and took a 4 1/2 hour nap:)

We started the week off at Anna Maria Island.

It was very hot so we decided ice cream was a must on the way home.

Friday morning we headed off to downtown disney. We had quite a fun time trying on all kinds of hats. Mya wanted nothing to do with having a hat on so a bribe for the picture worked:)

Of course we had to see Cinderella.

After Disney we went to the AVEDA school where Elise got a pedicure

and Tonya and Jenna got manicures.

Saturday we headed out to the Zoo. When we left the thermometer in the truck (which was parked in the shade) was 101.

Jenna got a bird to eat off her stick.

Hanging with the bats:)

Elise feeding the giraff

Sunday after church we ate at Beef O Brady's

Of course nothing beats a game of Liver Pool Rummy and cookies on a Sunday afternoon:)

Monday we headed off to the outlet malls.

Jenna and Elise during a Starbucks break...you'll have to ask Tonya about my hormonal pregnancy takeover:)

Tonya shopped till she dropped

We wore Mya out!

don't you often sunbathe in the mall parking lot?

Elise wanted to bake something so we made Derek's favorite dessert...apple crisp

While at the outlet mall we found some scones and Lemon curd don't be fooled by the name it was delicous! We enjoyed them for breakfast the next 2 mornings:)

Tuesday we picked up Salina and thought we would try a new beach. If you ever think about going to Picnic Island Park DON'T! You litterally drive through an industrial park to get to it and the water I was told was slimy.

We ended up going back to swim in our pool (after a SONIC break) and then over to Uncle Phil and Aunt Pam's for a yummy cookout.

We finished off the week with some sparklers.

Missions Trip to Brazil

Derek here, thought I would share some pictures I recently received that everyone had taken when we were on the missions trip in Brazil. It was awesome! My favorite part was when we prayed with the wanano tribe speaking different languages but praying to the same God! Enjoy!


So it was a 7 hour flight from Atlanta GA to Manaus Brazil, we stayed in the city of Manaus for a night and then the following day took a boat to the mission school (left)



The school had this boat with a 12 cylinder diesel to get around, this is also what we loaded 200 bags of sand in. (the sand was to be used with concrete for a new building.)



When we were there the Amazon river was 17 cm away from the all high record, nevertheless the pier did not take us all the way to land, but it suited us fine for bathing (with swimming suits people!).



So Jesse one of the girls on the trip didn't want to get her pants wet getting on the boat so I thought I would help her.



This is pretty much the largest tree I have ever seen in my life. This was on the school base.



So everywhere you go pretty much on the school base you bring a machete to protect yourself against things like this a snake, this "yellow belly" snake wasn't poisonous but it scared us, it was having a good time eating a frog.



So after a long day of moving sand we decided to swim in the amazon, off the boat. Where we saw a porpoise.



So the people down here had hand made boats that they attached 5 HP motors too with a shaft and a prop. The boats were made out of a tree, not very much free board.





There was also a cliff that we went swimming off it was huge, and most of it was clay kind of cool.


We left the school base and headed farther inland to Sao Gabriel. This is a picture of the amazon from the plane.



I made sure that I didn't steal any birds from Sao Gabriel



Sao Gabriel was on the Rio Negro (black river) which feeds into the amazon, the current was amazing there, if you go down the rapids, yeah you are pretty much done.



Here is the spors and other missionaries home in sao gabriel where we helped install a water tower.



Quite the view from the mission home, again, this river was flowing like crazy.



This is Moseus, he is an indian originally from colombia that married a wanano(it is basically considered incest for wananos to marry wananos). He helped install the water towers. It is amazing he can speak spanish, portuguese, and wanano.



Here is the water tower we hooked up, the ladders aren't exactly osha approved. Putting the covers on the tanks weren't exactly fun either. The tanks ran to the two mission homes behind in the picture.



There was also a well that was dug before we got there, so if rain water wasn't enough, they could hook up a generator to the pump to pump fresh water to the tower. I helped run conduit, drop the pump and feed the piping to the tower.



Here are Moseus' kids, they were fun to play with, at first they thought I was going to eat them, but then they warmed up and I was a human jungle gym.



Here is a picture of everyone on the trip and some wanano's, behind them is a guest house that a previous mission team built that is used for church services.



Here are some of the little guys, the orange streaks in their hair is an indication of malnurishment, they get one meal a day, and one or two meals a week with meat, everything else is starches.



This was a potluck after church service with some of the indians, and most of them were unbelievers. Everyone put there bowl on the table, and then it was all split up.



Most of the indians were playing soccer, well being that it is in my blood I took it upon myself to find a football in one of the mission homes, so we got together and played some tag football.



Being that the indians never saw football before, they definitely thought we were crazy.



Here is a picture of Moseus' house he built



The master suite/kitchen/living room,... it definitely makes you thankful for what you have.



Here is the beginning of Moseus' boat, the indians flip it over put a fire under it and then basically stretch the boat out, I was trying to show him that I could fit in it without him having to burn the boat. The wananos had some interesting beliefs, almost like superstitions but more significant, moseus said that you could not burn your boat if you were hungry or had to go to the bathroom and other things, otherwise bad spirits came upon your boat.



Here was my favorite part on a wednesday night we got together with the wanano's and prayed and had fellowship, it was awesome to hear someone pray in another language, but knowing that we are all praying to the same God and we are all going to see each other in heaven!



We went for a little boat ride up river on the Rio Negro, and stood on some rocks by an amazing whirlpool, so no we couldn't walk on water like Jesus.



Here is another picture of the Rio Negro, I couldn't believe the rapids, would not want to capsize in this thing. Oh and Sao Gabriel had a serious dog problem, they should have Bob Barker tell them to get there dogs and cats spayed or neutered. I guess it isn't a good idea to walk alone at night because of them either, seriously.



After the mission school and Sao Gabriel we spent a day touring the city of Manaus, there was a market place we went to, to barter, all I wanted to know how to say was mais barato (more cheap). Here the river had come up and flooded some of the streets. The amazon flucuates anywhere up to 40' between seasons...crazy!



The military ran a zoo there so we went to go see it, and I Derek Stock selflessly defended the missions team.



We took pictures of animals,.... and of military guys having to clean the pond.



I have many more pictures if anyone is interested, but thought I would end with this one, being that I work in a power plant. I don't know what it says, but I'm pretty sure I didn't want to go in that shed swinging golf clubs or something.



Thank you again for everyone's support, we got a lot done but there is so much more that needs to be done, and I will never forget this experience!! Support your missionaries!!!! and may God Bless you.