Christmas Pictures

These are Kaitlyn's age-mates in Lesotho--Thlohonolofatso Qoane & Thabiso Nthabi

Kaitlyn opening her Christmas presents. She was afraid of the wrapping paper!

Kaitlyn got a stroller and doll for Christmas from Aunt Michelle & Aunt Carol

This is Nt. Mokoena and his family including the newest addition (a boy.) He hasn't been named yet as far as we know. He was born the Tuesday before Christmas. Nt. Mokoena is very proud!

Hope You Had a Nice Christmas!

We had a very nice Christmas yesterday at the van der Merwe's farm.  All the missionaries were here except for Uncle Piet and Aunt Hester.  (They are in George {Eastern Cape} visiting their children.)  We got here about 10:30am.  I think everyone else was already here.  The ladies worked on getting food ready, and the guys sat around, talked,  and played with the children.  We had a DELICIOUS lunch of mostly cold foods.  There was ham, turkey, meat balls, tossed salad, a bean casserole, fruit salad, maccaroni salad, peach jello salad, trifle, pecan pie, fudge, rocky road fudge bars, cookies, cheese ball etc. etc.  We're so glad for our "family" here! 

After lunch we rested, visited, and played with the children.  Around 6:00pm we opened presents.  Steph gave everyone strawberry bread, lemon cranberry bread, cookies, etc.  Kaitlyn got a doll and a toy baby stroller.  I can't remember what Micah got, but Issac got a kite.  He and his dad flew it a little even in the dark. 

People snacked for supper, and we visited until about 10:00pm We spent the night here at the farm and are having a relaxing morning.  I'm writing a few e-mails, and getting this ready to send.  Steph has been helping around the kitchen, but I think everything is pretty much done. 

The Christmas Conference in Lesotho went well.  This was the first year that we had the youth conference at Christmas time.  I think by Sunday morning there were around 100 youth.  I think in the past attendance has been a little higher than that, but I suppose some couldn't come because of family obligations, etc.

The new tabernacle was a great blessing because it rained quite a bit Saturday and Sunday.  The place where we normally pitch the tent was very wet and soggy.  It looks like all the hard work digging drainage ditches paid off.  The tabernacle was dry, and there was plenty of room for people to relax and visit between services.

The Great Christmas Cookie Fiasco

Mama got up early this morning to ice her Italian Christmas cookies. She had just finished and was putting them all away when Kaitlyn realized she could reach them. First she had a lick of icing off her fingers, then she decided she'd have the whole thing. By the time Mama intervened things were pretty messy! I grabbed the camera to document her first Italian Christmas cookie.

Monday night we had supper at the Geises'. Michelle's parents sent money to make a nice meal for all of us American missionaries. It was pretty much traditional American Christmas--turkey, ham, mashed potatoes & gravy, stuffing, sweet potato casserole, and broccoli casserole, salads, etc. etc. It was delicious.

Hope you all have a wonderful Christmas!

Love,

The Gaults

Experiment

I'm trying a new editor so that we can prepare entries to our blog at home, then just send them once we get to an internet connections.  Hope it works!

Merry Christmas

Hi everyone,

This is going to be short! I don't know if we're getting back to normal or not. We're going somewhere fast, but we're not quite sure where!

Kaitlyn is doing well. She eating normally (but a bit picky) and she's sleeping well through the nights except for teething. It looks like she's got at least 3 teeth coming in right now. Usually she wakes up around 3:00am for another dose of tylenol or teething gel.
Can't remember what news we've written and what we haven't. I sort of took the weekend off other than preaching Sunday. It was the weekend of the Bible School and also the church had their annual baptism on Saturday. I didn't go to either one. We got to bed at a decent hour, so we're feeling rested up. I guess it's a good thing because this week will be busy!

When we were leaving Bloem, Steph decided to buy apricots since they're in season. Friday and Saturday she made around 15 quarts of apricot jam. It turned out well. I helped out a little with washing jars, pans, etc. but she mostly did the jam and I did baby sitting.

Kaitlyn is talking more and more everyday. It seems like she can mimic about any word we say, but she doesn't always know what they mean. Her very most favorite word is "no!" She using all the time even if she means to say yes. Most of the time, though she means what she says and is just trying to see what she can get away with. Several times in the hospital when she'd see a nurse coming towards her, she'd emphatically say "No no!" It's amusing at first, but it's starting to get old. I'm sure it's only the beginning, too! :-( A few other recent additions to her vocabulary are "meow" "book" and "light." She loves her little chair, and climbed up on it by herself last night.

Today we are in Ladybrand. I think most of our errands are done except for buying groceries. Michelle's mother gave her money to cook a special meal for the American missionaries, so the ladies are all cooking at the Geises. I think we're having turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, broccoli casserole, jello cake, and I don't know what all else.

Tomorrow I'll be working at Ha Matala finishing up the tabernacle for the conference. We have to put the ridge cap on the roof, do a little more dirt work, and hang the tarp sides. Another big project for this week is to put together Christmas gifts for orphans. This is the first year we've done it, and knew things always take time. With Kaitlyn being in the hospital, we're really pushed to get this finished up before Christmas. Fortunately before we went home I asked the pastors to make lists of the orphans that attend their churches, so we have some names to start with. I have a feeling that some will get a New Years present instead of Christmas, but I know they will appreciate it!

The conference starts on Friday evening and runs till Monday afternoon. It's a youth conference, so attendance won't be huge. Everyone (adults and children) are welcome on Sunday, but the other days are to be focused on the youth. I have to preach Sunday morning on "Convictions: what I stand for and what I'm willing to die for." Monday we won't be at the conference since the missionaries are getting together for a Christmas celebration in Ladybrand. I think we're going to the farm. I'm guessing the guys will go swimming!

Well I guess that's what's going on in our lives.

Hope you all have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

We're Home!

Dear Everyone,

Thank you so much for your prayers over the last few days while Kaitlyn was in the hospital. She was discharged yesterday morning. She was a happy little girl when we walked out of the hospital! She enjoyed a quick lunch at McDonalds before we bought a few things and headed for home. By the time we got Munchkin from the farm, it was 5:00 when we got to Matukeng.

She still not eating quite normal, but the doctor thought she’d come around after a few days at home. She’s still throwing up some, too, but all of the lab work showed no problems with her stomach. We’re guessing it’s just mucus and stress. As long as she’s eating and drinking, we’re not too worried about it.

Steph slept with Kaitlyn the first night she was in the hospital. (Actually she slept in a bed in an outpatient day ward and the nurses called her when Kaitlyn cried.) I don’t think she slept well at all, though. The hospital has a rule that only one parent can stay with a child at night, so I got a room at a bed and breakfast across the street from the hospital. The next night Steph was totally exhausted, so I took her to the guest house and I stayed at the hospital. I tried to sleep in a chair beside the bed, but it wasn’t comfortable, and I slept very little between Kaitlyn and other babies crying, nurses in and out, etc. The third night Steph still was very tired so she went back to the guest house. This time I laid a blanket on the floor and slept beside her bed. I rested MUCH better, and Kaitlyn only woke up a couple times during the night. She threw up once all over her bed during the night. I was so glad I didn’t have to change it myself while trying to hold her! I guess the hospital has a few advantages at least. L

The halls of the pediatric ward are murals with all kinds of nursery rhyme and fairy tale characters. They are very cute and VERY well done. Kaitlyn loved walking up and down the halls looking at them. Her favorite was the three little pigs.

Another thing that really caught Kaitlyn’s interest was little plastic chairs. The first time Steph put her on one, she was just spell bound having a chair her size. She sat for a long time doing nothing. Joy gave us money for her birthday to buy a chair, so before we left Bloem, we picked one up for her. She was almost heart broken when I took it away from her to give it to the cashier to pay for it. We’re still looking for a riding toy that her grandmas gave money for.

Our weather is very hot and dry here. The days have been in the mid 90s all week and it hasn’t rained much since the beginning of November. Things are really starting to look brown after a green spring. Today there are some clouds and the wind has blown some from the north which sometimes brings rain. A cool shower would bring welcome relief!

Kaitlyn Update

Hi,

Just a quick note about Kaitlyn. The doctor just saw her, and said her lungs, ears, & throat are excellent. She's still not eating and drinking well, though. He blamed it on teething, but we're not so sure. He did take her off the IV for a while today so she could walk and play. That may help too. I'm sure we'll be here at least until tomorrow. Please pray a lot that she'll get back to normal!

Steph was able to sleep well last night. She's still tired, but she's better than yesterday. I didn't sleep so well between Kaitlyn, other babies crying and a trying to prop myself up in a chair. Kaitlyn had a pretty good night.

I'll try to get a picture of K and post it here still today.

Thanks for praying!

Glenn

Lesotho Prayer Update

The Lesotho Update is an e-mail prayer update that we try to send out about every two weeks. We will also post it here, and gradually point people to our blog instead of e-mailing it.

Dear Praying Friends,

Thank you for your prayers even though it has been some time since we've written and update. Often we need the most prayer when we don't have a chance to write. This has been one of those times. We are writing from the hospital in Bloemfontein, South Africa. Kaitlyn is in with pneumonia. After 24 hours on an IV she's doing much better, and we really hope she'll get out tomorrow.

Praise:

• Praise God that Kaitlyn is responding well to treatment in the hospital.
• We had a really nice month-long visit in America. It was so nice to be with family again! We also enjoyed getting acquainted with a new niece and a second cousin. Of course Kaitlyn enjoyed getting to know people though she was a bit shy at first. We praise God for blessing us with this wonderful time!
• The pole barn tabernacle has been erected at Ha Matala. It still needs a few days work before the Christmas conference, but we are so pleased to have a permanent place to hold conferences. It will save a lot of work hauling and pitching a tent, and will be some much better in bad weather!

Prayer:

• Please keep praying for Kaitlyn (and us.) We're all tired and not feeling the best. Glenn has a cold and sinus infection, and Stephanie has been having some problems with an swollen, inflamed knee.
  
• Please pray especially for the clinic. One of the nurses (a professing Christian) has done some very dishonest and illegal things. Pray for us as we make decisions. We want to be redemptive but we must also look out for the interests of the clinic and it's patients. Please pray especially for the spiritual well-being of this nurse.
• Earnestly pray for Hope Christian Academy in Ladybrand. It is scheduled to open in January, but we still haven't received a necessary zoning change from the town council. This is a very urgent request, and needs serious intercession! Only God can move the hearts of the council members to make a decision before they go for their Christmas vacations.

We are so grateful for your partnership in the spiritual battles we face! May God bless you!

Glenn, Stephanie, and Kaitlyn Gault
Hope International Missions

November December Newsletter

Here's our newest newsletter.

Back to Africa

Hi,

We're back home! I guess we have some mixed emotions about it, but it's good to be back in our house. Kaitlyn came down with a cold on the way. She was pretty miserable. It didn't help that we couldn't get bulkhead seats either, but we all survived.

We haven't slept a whole lot since we got home. With Kaitlyn teething, being sick, in a new place again, etc. she's kept us up several hours every night. Her cold is pretty bad, so please pray for her. Now Steph and I are getting it too.

Another prayer request comes from the clinic. One of the nurses who professes to be a Christian has been treating patients while he's on leave and on his days off using stolen drugs. When we confronted him (last night) he lied repeatedly, and we had evidence to prove he was lying. It was all very sad. We still don't know how big the problem is, but we do know he's stealing more drugs than just from our clinic. This situation needs a lot of prayer and wisdom. We want to be as redeemptive has possible, but some of the things he has done put our clinic in danger.

The top picture is of Kaitlyn and Thabiso. They seem happy to see each other. Here's one of us with Grandma Miller. We really enjoyed seeing her on our way to the airport!

Update to Newsletter Archive

We found a new place to host our newsletter archive and made some improvements to the page. There should be plenty of storage space for newsletters, pictures, maybe even some video clips once in a while. Hope you like it.

We're enjoying being with Jeff and Shari here in PA. Kaitlyn and their girl are having a lot of fun playing. I'll try to post a picture of them together before we leave to go back to Africa. We leave on Saturday around 5:00pm.

Newsletter Archive Online

If you're interested, you can find an archive of our newsletters online now. Just click the link at the top right of this page named Archive of Lesotho Letters. Hopefully it will get you there. Unfortunately, the archive is hosted on free web space that has a daily and monthly transfer limit. If too many people have viewed the newsletters in a day (or month) then you won't be able to access them. I'll either upgrade to a pay site or shop around for something else free with a little more generous transfer limit, but for now at least it's there.

Still Learning

Hi!

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. We did. It was so nice to be with family and take a day to think about all of God's blessings in our lives. Thinking about all the things that have happened to us over the past year or a little more reminds me how blessed I am. God has answered so many prayers. The biggest miracle is Steph's health! God is good!

I'm still trying to learn how to do this blog business. Hopefully this link will take you to our most recent newsletter. I'm sure you've seen it already on paper, so this is more of an experiment than anything else. Maybe in the future you'll be able to read them online a couple weeks before they come in the mail.

Bye.

Still in KS

Hi,

We're in KS having lots of fun with family. Jon got here yesterday. Good to see him again. Steve and Tracy are leaving this evening after work to come from IL. My parents and Joy are coming out from CO on Wednesday so both our families are going to be together for Thanksgiving. Here's a picture of Kaitlyn with her cousin.

Live From Kansas

We arrived in Ottawa, KS Wednesday night. I don't think Kaitlyn enjoyed 10+ hours in her car seat, but we all survived. Sure good to be with Dad and Mom Stratton again. Last night they had their annual church Thanksgiving dinner. Very nice!

Here's a picture of Kaitlyn on her first birthday. I think she had lots of fun, but was really tired by the time she got to the cake. She played in it a little, but didn't seem to like it that much.

Getting Started

Hi Everyone,

For a long time, Steph and I have wanted to start a web page, but we didn't know how to do it. Instead, we're going to start a blog since it sounds like it's easier and maybe more what we wanted in the first place. I'll just throw in a picture here of Kaitlyn and Daddy together.

Right now we're visiting Pap-pap and Nana (My parents) in Divide, CO. We've had lots of fun, and it's been really great to reconnect with family. Probably the highlight of our time here was a helicopter ride with Wesley. He took us from Pueblo to Bishop's Castle, through the Royal Gorge, and then back to Pueblo. It was AWESOME! That's a picture of the castle.

I guess we'll have to see what happens with this blog. We may post our weekly "group e-mails" here instead of e-mailing them. Also we'll probably post updates of the work in Lesotho, prayer requests, answers to prayer, and pictures. Hope you enjoy it!