Happy Valentine's Day! I hope everyone had a great day celebrating their loved ones. Shawn surprised me a day early with a beautiful bouquet of roses delivered to my work and then on the morning of the 14th I got a bag of Jelly Belly's with only my favorite flavors inside! This way I never have to worry about accidentally putting a coffee or cinnamon one in my mouth! YUCK!! I also surprised Shawn with a juggling kit.
A little known fact is that Shawn is quite the juggler! It came with balls, rings, pins, scarves, and a spinning plate. We have had a great time putting on little circuses around the house! We ended the evening with a great dinner at the local restaurant Avenue 805. They were having what they called "Cheap Valentine's Date Night" and featured a 3 course meal that ended with Smore's nachos...delicious! All in all, this year's Valentine's celebration was a hit.
On the adoption front, we had our home visit this week. I totally went overboard cleaning and getting the house ready for what turned out to be a really easy visit. Our social worker only spent a few minutes checking the house for the things that were required (smoke alarms, fire extinguisher, medicine and cleaning supplies out of the reach of curious little hands) and we spent the rest of the time (about 2 hours) answering questions about ourselves. Everyone likes to talk about themselves, so it went by really fast and was really easy. Shawn also had his individual interview on Friday so he is done with his part of the home study...lucky guy! My individual interview is scheduled for the first Tuesday in March. Our home study should be complete by the end of March and then we will just wait for the agency to tell us we are close enough to the top of the list to starting working on our dossier...hopefully sometime this fall.
Stephanie has relinquished her blogging duties this week so I can share about my recent adventures in South Africa. My work sent me there to write about what God is doing in this part of the world. In many areas of South Africa, it is very westernized with stores and restaurants that look similar to what we have in the U.S. In other areas, the poverty is overwhelming. I met one African man who is unable to walk and lives in a one-room shack in the hills outside Grahamstown and rarely leaves his bed. One morning he sat eating what looked like a very bland mix of corn meal and powered milk. 
His roof was covered in cardboard that was held together with bottle caps and nails and newspaper and magazine pages posted to the walls. No matter how many times I travel, it is always difficult to see people living in these types of conditions. The good news is that I was able to write about an effort designed to help those like this man -- and it had to do with ostriches. Yes, ostriches. I met Martin, originally from Zimbabwe, who started his own ostrich farm in order to help provide jobs for the poor, as well as share the Gospel. Martin is big hulk of a guy who is working with a missionary to train locals how to start their own ostrich farms and start Bible studies and churches throughout the area. During the trip, I was able to get up close with the ugliest birds on the plane
t ... and probably the dumbest. They have to be watched closely -- especially when they are babies -- because they are fragile birds that need near-perfect conditions to survive to adulthood. When they're wet, they look like soggy mops. Anyway, I met some farmers who are turning their lives around -- both economically and spiritually. I look forward to seeing how this story inspires other to find creative ways to share about Jesus -- even if it does involve ostriches.
