Cambo, Kiddos, and Cold

There has been so much that has occurred since our last post. Of course that tends to happen when we don’t blog for three months. But there are a few highlights we would like to share.

First of all, we had a spectacular time in Cambodia. Words cannot describe how happy we were to see Ryan, Nikki and the grandkids. We got a much better understanding of their life and their ministry there. The Baillies truly are living their calling in that country.

The timing of our visit was perfect. Ryan and Nikki had a team retreat in Kep (pronounced Kype), a town near the coast, and needed babysitting during their meetings. Turns out Nini and Papa make pretty good sitters, so we piled in the car and took the long trip across the magnificent scenery of Cambodia. The beauty of the countryside can only barely be captured in words like remarkable, stunning, and breathtaking. We hiked the hills with the kids finding incredible views where the jungle met the coast and small islands floated far off in the sea.

The city of Phnom Penh was completely opposite. Lacking any open space, it still had just as much beauty but in a different light. The streets were narrow and lined with buildings, homes, shops and vendor carts selling delicious dried snails. Inter-twinning strings of electrical wire tied the buildings together, some drooping low enough to nearly touch the roofs of vehicles. Random streets would sometimes be closed for a Khmer wedding (they put up huge tents in the middle of the street that completely blocked traffic and would sometimes last a whole week). The city was so crowded that it is easier to travel by moto (a low cc scooter) than by car because we could literally weave through traffic. To put this in perspective, little Zeb had an accident at home that required he get stiches. To get him to the clinic quickly, Nikki decided it would be faster to put the injured but brave Zeb on the moto with Ryan instead of taking him in the car. For many families a single moto would be their only transportation, so it was common to see mom, dad, one or two kids and a baby riding a moto. Zeb and Jaya share Ryan’s seat to get to school everyday.

Definitely a beautiful country with some remarkable accomplishments over the past few decades. We are also so happy to see the Baillies thrive there. Please keep praying for this ministry and subscribe to their updates.

Dad did well with homecare while we were gone, but was certainly happy to have Jeanine back to help him. He is still very strong but has had a few falls out of his wheelchair when transferring from the bed. He suffered only few bumps and bruises. He has had a pacemaker installed and had a quick trip to the hospital for dehydration, but is happy about how things are going lately. He was excited to watch the Puppy Bowl with us on Animal Planet Superbowl Sunday.

On another note, we are happy to say we were able to go see Tim and Lynsi in Virginia this past weekend. Tim was ordained Assistant pastor, which was something we were not going to miss. It was good to see them and the other grandkids. We did have to cut our trip short and come back a little early due to the blizzard that hit New England. An absolutely ridiculous amount of snow (34 + inches) followed by frigid cold temperatures hit last week. Since then, it has snowed two more times adding another foot and reaching a balmy high of 10 degrees.

We have been spoiled from seeing all the kids and grandkids recently. It was a huge blessing that we both truly needed. It has encouraged us to keep going. We are also very uplifted by our church and feel very welcome there. Jeanine has been playing guitar and singing on the worship team. We have also taken on a teaching gig in the children’s ministry.

Now if we can just get the snow to stop falling and get to temperatures above 15 degrees…..

God bless,

Mike and Jeanine (and Riko)

Visiting the family in Cambodia

Phnom Penh

On top of Phnom Penh

Traveling in style

Traveling in style again

Kep jungle

Kep sunset

Ryan taking Zeb and Jaya to school

Violet watching Xander at soccer practice

Xander the musician

Waiting her turn

Day 1 of Blizzard

Fall and Falls

A lot of people dread this time of year. The cooler nights and drying leaves mean only two things: the peaceful, warm summer is gone and the long, cold winter is just ahead. Some things we’ve have learned over the past few years is instead of looking back at what was and peering too far ahead, be sure to notice and embrace what is here now.

The colors that burst from the landscape in New England Fall are breathtaking. There are roads that go under a canopy of trees with streaks of sunlight tickling the pavement. Others are lined with trees so tall it’s like driving in a deep canyon. A few weeks ago only the ferns along the ground had changed into dark red colors. A lone tree would proudly display glowing red leaves standing tall in line with its green neighbors. Then the oaks started changing. Their large leaves turned gradient colors from green to red to yellow, giving it an orange glow. Now all the trees are taking part. There are pink, orange, yellow and red leaves exploding from the scenery. God truly is an artist.

 There are not many updates about dad. He has had a few falls from the wheelchair, giving him a couple bumps and bruises. We are trying to figure out why he is often so tired that he falls over in his chair. Other than that, he is healthy and happy. He has wanted to take a few excursions and visit old friends from his previous neighborhood. His spirits have been high and he is getting along well.

As for us, we are happy to announce that we have been blessed with the upcoming opportunity to go to Cambodia! We will be there for the first two weeks of November and cannot contain our excitement! We will be staying with Ryan and Nikki, seeing their ministry and visiting our grandkids. They have a conference out of town while we are there, so we will get to do some travel within Cambodia and see the countryside. All of us have that familiar feeling we had when we were kids on Christmas Eve: the excitement for the next morning, keeping us awake and restless in our little beds.

We have been blessed with all aspects of the trip. We found visiting nurse care for dad while we are away, which will be covered by Medicare. We were uneasy to tell him we would be gone for a few weeks, anticipating he would be apprehensive, but he received the news with excitement. He is very happy for us. Little Riko will be staying with his aunt and uncle, Pat and Jim. They graciously offered to take him in while we are away. So with just a few more weeks to go, we are finalizing our preparations with grateful hearts for the opportunity.

We will post another update when we return to tell you about our trip. Until then, God bless!

With Love,

Mike and Jeanine Gooch

A Sunday afternoon hiking trip

Mike had a quick trip to Phoenix over Labor Day and met his newest niece

Some of the foliage

Went to dinner with dad. He asked for a side of corn with his chicken. They misunderstood and gave him a side of chicken with his corn.