Many of you who follow this blog knew what I did in my previous career back in the US.  I worked at the Institutional division of TD Ameritrade.  There, I managed a group of people and helped financial advisors.  My standard day was spent sitting in a small cubicle, talking on the phone, writing emails, attending meetings or working with my staff.  All of that to say, it was a pretty standard job in my eyes.  It was a career that I originally envisioned myself being in for a good portion of my working life.

Fast forward to today.  My standard day is sitting in a homemade pallet chair or hammock from Kampot, talking with the local kids, eating rice, exploring the local markets for parts, learning how to build a wakeboard park and also learning to wakeboard and as of this week learning to drive heavy machinery.  That’s right, watch out all of you construction folks back home.  I can now operate a Caterpillar Bulldozer and will learn to operate the Caterpillar Excavator later this week. This new phase of my life has been fun, difficult, exhausting and exhilarating all at the same time.  Some days I come home and I am ready for a second shower because I have been outside all day. Continue reading →

We have officially been in Cambodia for six months now.  I missed the December post so I will make a second post this month to make up for that.

We still managed to have a family Christmas here in Phnom Penh.  We did a Skype/Facetime chat with both sets of parents on Christmas morning our time and it was fun “being” with them during that morning.  Christmas was an interesting time in Cambodia.  Around town you see random Christmas trees and lights and in all the big stores you hear Christmas music.  It’s almost surreal and according to people that have been here longer than us, it’s becoming more common to see Christmas stuff around town during December.  We still managed to visit a mall on the days right before Christmas and there was no major parking shortage or last minute shoppers running around.  I don’t know how to describe it beyond it was just a different experience compared to back in the States. Continue reading →

As I reflect on Thanksgiving this year, several things come to mind….

I am thankful for family. I am thankful for a healthy husband who has gotten up at 5:00ish on Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning for the last several months to work out. I don’t know how he does it, he is looking SO good 🙂 A husband who is working hard physically to build a wakeboard park with Alf and reach the community around him. I am thankful for a healthy, growing little boy who is learning to read and is constantly active. I am thankful for my extended family who loves us unconditionally, no matter where we are or what we are doing. I am thankful for our “Cambodia” family who keeps us going on a daily basis. Continue reading →

The past month has rushed by.  We were able to visit Sihanoukville during mid-September and take our first vacation.  We stayed just off the beach in a bungalow.  It was great building sand castles, sampling the local cuisine, snorkeling and enjoying family time.  Rainy season is still in full affect.  We get rain just about every day in some form or fashion.  Sometimes we just get a little drizzle in the afternoon, other days, we get a torrential downpour.  They say rainy season will end sometime near the end of October or early November. Continue reading →

Random stream of consciousness post here…

• They started paving the main road we live on this past week.  That’s a huge improvement over the massive potholes and mud that we encounter on a daily basis to get around town.  Just like the Grapevine Funnel or the 35/820 interchange this has caused a major traffic jam on a daily basis.  We have begun avoiding that area if all possible.
• We have systematically been trying out all the Mexican food places in Phnom Penh.  Each has it advantages and disadvantages.  Sunrise Tacos has a great “salsa” bar.  Alma Cafe has wonderful breakfast and brunch options.  Viva has a great chimichanga. Taqueria Corona has good enchiladas.  Each of these places has homemade chips and salsa as well.
• We found a store called Central Superstore.  The reason they made this post is because they have Dr. Pepper.  The cost of a can normally runs about $0.90.  Here, they had a 36 pack for $14.  We bought 2. Woot!
• Sometimes Ashley and I look at each other and say, “Are we actually in Cambodia?”
• We are taking our first family getaway in mid September.  The holiday is called Pchum Ben. Locals use this chance to honor their deceased relatives. Expats use it as an opportunity to go to the beach!
• Kam-Air has received several generous donations and God’s timing as usual was perfect.  We have placed a deposit on a 20ft shipping container that we will use for our office and restroom while at the lake on a daily basis.  We also have the money to purchase the running cable and anchor cable.
• This week Alf and I dug a huge hole with Tha (one of our employees).  Alf summed it up well when he said 1 Tha = 1 Alf + 1 John.  He is a hard worker and did more in a morning than we were able to accomplish together in the afternoon.
• Luke has had three really good weeks at school in a row.  He has been getting outstanding on his color chart.
• We are working towards getting official recognition at 121 for the Lifegroup that meets at our house on Saturday nights.  The Evans crew, Sain Train, McCullough troop and us get together, eat, fellowship and pray.  Rodney Howell, Vince Rice, Neil Essen, let’s make this happen.
• We would love to setup a Skype call with anyone from back home.  Shoot us a message on here or via any other method you have for us and let’s make it happen.

Continue reading →

Well, school is underway. Luke is liking Kindergarten and changing everyday, both physically and his personality. He has moved away from saying everything is BORING (thanks to Mrs. Song, his teacher) to telling us more about his day. He likes going to Music with Mr. Ketchum and playing the different instruments. Luke also enjoys swimming three times a week during this intensive swim time at Logos. He has made several friends at school and in our neighborhood (he asks to play after school with the Moon kids everyday).

Fourth grade is going great. People have told me the kids have matured over the summer and really meshing well together. They are settling down into a routine and the students are obeying the rules. They are really a great bunch of kids. Erica (my Teacher’s Assistant) has been very helpful. The copier and her have become best friends 🙂  The teachers and morning devotions at Logos are very positive and up-lifting.

The wakeboard park is coming along. Alf and John had to wait for the water to go down, it flooded a little bit so it was hard to do work for a while. They’ve been having weekly Monday morning meetings with the wakeboard staff that include devotionals, prayer time and goals for the week. If anyone is interested in supporting the wakeboard park, please contact John to get more info. They have some specific needs that need to be provided for very soon!

Everything is going well with our family and things at the house. We bought a couple of Khmer paintings for the walls so we don’t have to stare at the concrete walls all day, they are really nice!

Let us hear from you, we love you guys!

Ashley

The past two weeks have been filled with site-seeing and getting to know our way around.  We visited the National Museum, Independence Monument, and the Royal Palace.  We also took a river cruise with the new teachers from Logos.

We purchased a moto (specifically a Vespa) which will be the primary mode of transportation for us when we need to run simple errands or get around town.  We are also in the process of looking for a car, most likely a 1997-2001 Honda CRV.

Both Ashley and Luke start school on Tuesday.  Ashley has been in training/orientation the past week and a half so Luke and I have spent lots of time together exploring.

Alf and I will start making inroads with Kam-Air starting next week as well.  We visited the lake this week and starting making our list of items that we still need to purchase.  We need to pick up running cable, anchors, anchor cable, and finish the work on the trailer that will haul the generator and other supplies to the park daily.  (By the way, if anyone is interested in donating specifically to Kam-Air, you can do that through the donate link.  Each of those items are necessary in order to open the park.)

Thank you for your continued prayers and support on this journey we are on.  We are available to Skype anytime, but remember we are 12 hours ahead.

Hey guys! A few people have asked through email or in person if we have met our monthly fundraising goal, so I thought I would write a little blurb about it on here 🙂 We have not yet met our monthly fundraising goal. The agency who is sending the money to us each month, International Outreach Ministries, sends our monthly donation on the 30th of each month. So there is still time for you to give, even if it’s $25 or $100 each month. It all adds up!

If you are on the main page of our webpage, there is a donation button right under our picture and it connects you to the donation page where you can sign-up.

Thank you to all of you who have pledged to send monthly donations or have sent one time gifts. There are a lot of people who are praying for us and giving to our ministry here in Cambodia. We are SO BLESSED! God is good!

Well… it’s been a week since we signed a contract to rent our new house. We signed a 2 year contract and negotiated a lower price than what the landlord was asking for!

The house is fully furnished, has free wi-fi and cable. Each bedroom is equipped with a queen or king bed and gorgeous wooden frames, a wardrobe and some type of desk or vanity piece. Each room also has its own bathroom. The two rooms on the second floor have a bathtub with a shower head. The third floor bathrooms have a glassed-in shower only. The first floor has a living room, kitchen and a 1/2 bath. We bought a few pieces for the first floor to help us make it feel more like home. The Lord has provided the perfect home for us with just what we needed!

John went and looked at the Honda dealership for a new moto. He will look at the used dealerships later this week to see what will be the best thing for our family. It will be helpful to have something to zip up to the store and back with. We haven’t decided to buy a car yet, we are still amazed at the traffic and the style of driving over here in Cambodia. Right now we are still taking tuk tuk’s everywhere. It’s not bad, but it will be nice not to have to call someone to pick us up when we need to go somewhere.

Luke is doing better than last week. We were seeing a lot of hitting and harsh words. This week, he is using his words to tell us how he feels instead of hitting. He enjoys playing with the Sain kids and is excited the Workman’s from Arlington, Texas arrived a couple of days ago. He is looking forward to visiting a couple of play areas and getting to do some fun things this coming up week.

I am doing good. I had a massive headache last night but I think I was just exhausted… everything is going well! Let us hear from you!

~Ashley