Tuesday, August 2

The days in Battenbang were so good. My last trip we were very rushed there. Now there are 6 orphan homes, three of them in once location with a lovely large pavillion area where they all meet together. Church was there on Sunday. After church I was dropped off at Kent and Becky Good's house to see what our GBIM missionaries do in Cambodia. Becky was a lovely hostess. She served an Asian dinner of three different dishes, a fresh salad that I could eat (I've missed my salads), bread and brownie with ice cream. She had another guest from Lyon, France who is visiting Cambodia for a month doing outreach. It was fun to tell Samuel that I had visited his church and that his pastor's wife had been a babysitter for my children years ago. The Kanes and Goods have a ministry center in the middle of Battenbang where there are daily classes, Bible studies, English teaching for children, church on Sunday afternoon and a couple of young men who live there and are being discipled by the caretaker. I enjoyed the worship music with them in their service and watched the children in their worship time for a little bit before Becky took a tuk-tuk with me back to the hotel.
Monday was a wonderful/awful day. We visited three orphan homes in the morning. We kept the kids busy with crafts, playing ball, doing nails, and hair while the nurses saw everyone that had medical problems. The highlights were providing pneumonia vaccinations for all of the latest orphan home kids and staff - now they are free from this common illness for life; providing 200 writing notebooks for BB3 (Crossroads Community home). I got my second moto ride this trip to go to the market and back to buy the books. We took time for lunch and an hour nap and then returned to the large complex. I met my sweet little girl that I sponsor, RakSa on Sunday. When we arrived on Monday she was glued to my side. We did more crafts - 3 different things and played with everyone. Then the awful - the goodbyes, over and over during the day. The last one was at 7 pm. We went to a small restaurant called the Bungalow for dinner - the rice and veggies are all starting to look alike at this point!
This morning we packed up and when it was time to leave the lobby all 6 of the directors - house dads- were at the hotel to say goodbye. We headed for the bus station - very bumpy ride for 5 1/2 hours back to Phnom Penh. We are there now. We've had very nice accomodations the whole trip until now - this hotel makes me clostrophobic. Tonight we are going by the river, having pizza and doing sight seeing.
Everyone has done so well! No illness! We are, however, wearing down and looking a little glassy-eyed. Pray for our endurance and continued good health. Pray the kids we will see and interact with only once or twice more. Thanks for your prayers and notes!