It's getting warmer!

Well I have good news, it's getting warmer.  Today it got up to -2 F.  And you can tell the difference.  That may seem crazy to those of you who have not experienced such frigid temps, but it does seem better.  For nearly three weeks it did not get above -8 F, but I am thankful for my very warm long under ware, a down jacket, and a warm apartment.
Enough about the weather, I want to share how we have been so blessed.  First off, four Mongolian children had successful surgery the last couple weeks in the US.  They are recovering well and many of the the moms are seeking and asking good spiritual questions.  Pray for their hearts to come to know the Truth.  One mom is very excited about going to a church when she gets back.  Pray for the interpreters as they witness to these families all while having a big responsibility of interpreting.  One child is in route to the US and another three leave Wednesday.  We are very excited to be having a visiting cardiologist here Monday and Tuesday so we can screen many very sick children.  The needs are overwhelming at times, but the Lord is teaching me how to cope with it.  I am also learning to leave things in His hands as that is best and control is an area of my life I need to better surrender.  Would you please pray for our screening as we have many children to get through?
It is important to laugh a lot when living in another culture.  We enjoyed making a funny video a few weeks ago and then Friday decided we needed to call into K Love radio station.  They asked on air if the listeners were tired of winter, so we called in to tell them about our winter.  It was pretty amusing, and we got to share a bit about the work we do here with Samaritan's Purse.  Here are some funny things I am learning while living here: I am capable of taking a part a sink, removing the clog, and putting it back together.  I can tolerate incredibly low temperature (thanks to my Scandinavian roots).  We can take a part the kitchen just to retrieve a spice bottle under the cabinets.  You can go to a restaurant and they have nothing to serve or are just closed.  Crossing the road is like playing a live game of frogger, but currently the hazard of ice makes it rather entertaining.  Our elevator is like pac man and it sometimes wants to "eat" you and it turns off at night at a random time we have yet to figure out, just glad we have not been in it.  Well that's all the funnies I can think of right off hand. 
I am so grateful to have Lora back working with me.  She is a great friend and encourager.  She has been hard at work preparing for heart camps in Mongolia by working on the curriculum and also preparing for camps in Uganda.  I have such a great team both in the US and here.
Here is a sweet story Lora wrote.  I think God has been teaching me a lot about hope.

This morning while Emily and I were working at the office, a beautiful grandmother came in. Her eyes were filled with pain and heartache. Two days ago her three-month-old granddaughter was diagnosed with a heart defect. The hospital gave her the news that there was nothing they could do here in Mongolia. The only hope was for her to be taken out-of-country. They gave her our name and sent her away. After a few days of searching, she found our office. Now, standing before Emily, tears filled her eyes; she was desperate for hope.

Emily’s smile seemed to wash over her and words of encouragement brought hope into her weathered eyes. After explaining the CHP project, Emily invited her to bring her granddaughter to the screening on February 7th to be seen by an American cardiologist. At this news she wiped away more tears and poured out her thankfulness that someone cared. The hope that filled the office was tangible. God used us in the heart of a precious grandmother and her family to introduce Himself anew, and He used this precious grandmother to remind us that what we pour our hearts out for each week is truly eternal.
Well that is all for now dear friends.  Thanks for tuning in.  I think things will slow down the next two months, so I hope to write more. 
Blessings, Em

Check out this video

Hey Friends,
  I made this fun video about the cold weather here.  The last few days have been especially cold with morning temperatures around -40 F.  I have been wanting to make this video for a while, so since Lora arrived last week, I had a buddy to help me in the film making.  There are lots of funny things about living in the coldest capitol city in the world.  Enjoy!  And stay warm!
http://youtu.be/LwznrlL0rgk

Blessings,
Em

January Pictures

Ice sculptures in UB.

My new roomie Lora who arrived to work with us this next year.  It is great to have her back as she worked with our team last summer. 

It sure is cold!

I cannot take off my hat as I will have bad hat hair all winter.  Lora and I with our friend Boloo. 

Our dear sweet Uugna and Boloo. 

Uugna is an older CHP child.

The two special children and their mom's who departed this week. 

Fun December Pictures

My sweet nephew Sam

My nephews Johnny, David, and Noah

I laughed that we all were wearing similar sweaters to church.

The fam!  It was so good to be able to go home for Christmas.

Pam, a special visitor, and I visited an orphanage that has 24 children, including some very young babies.

A sweet baby girl and Sara, a child who I saw 4 years ago when I visited this orphanage.

Togi, the boy I took to Mayo Clinic in October.  He is back in Mongolia and doing great!

The birthday cake a few of my Mongolian friends made me. 

My dear friend Zaya and her sweet children.  They had me over for my favorite Mongolian food.

Ariuna, Tuya, and Buynaa

Enkhe and Gune

Nasa, Anya, and Emma

Tuya, Emma, Me and Tamira

Gany and Buynaa

Our SP staff at our Christmas party!

November of Thanks

I cannot believe it is December.  Time seems to go faster every day.  I cannot believe next week marks 6 months of living in Mongolia.  I feel very blessed for my life, work, and friends here.  I have been learning a lot about myself and how to lead people.
As November marked a season of Thanksgiving, I think it is good to reflect on the blessings God has give us.  Most importantly I am thankful for my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.  I am thankful my Lord is a personal God who knows me inside and out and still loves me and sent His Son to die for me.  I am thankful that I have hope.  Hope is a powerful thing that many people in this world do not have.  Jesus gives me hope!  I am thankful for my family and friends who love and support me so well.  I am thankful for my job and that I get to help people spiritually and physically.  I am thankful for the 11 children going to the US and Canada in early 2012 for heart surgery.  I have a warm apartment and have never missed a meal in my life.  I hope you all have taken some time to reflect on the Lord's blessings.
I celebrated a Thanksgiving early in the US with my family and went to two Thanksgivings here.  We had no shortage of good food.  I made broccoli souffle and it turned out pretty good.  I have been baking a lot.  It is very therapeutic for me.  Good thing I brought back many bags of chocolate chips.  And in just 2.5 weeks, I will be heading to Missouri for Christmas.  But until then, I have lots of work to be done.  We have been busy preparing all the groups accepted for surgery next year.  And tomorrow marks when my country director and his family leave.  They have served in Mongolia for 3 years and I will miss them dearly.  I have learned a lot from Tom, but now I will be leading.  This is a big responsibility, so please keep me in your prayers.  Last week, our entire SP staff went out to Terlj National Park and had a day of celebrating the Lord's work through our ministry.   
Today a very special woman arrived with the group I brought to Minnesota in early October.  She will be spending 6 days here.  She and her husband hosted two Mongolian children and they were reunited today.  How special for me to be a part of that!
Enjoy some recent pictures.  Thanks for your prayers.  Please pray specifically for all the children on the waiting lists, many who urgently need surgery. 

Pam with some very special children!

Tom and Emily's goodbye party.  They will be serving with SP in Honduras.

Our end of year celebration!

The Frozen Four as I say (Buynaa, Gany, Tuya-our amazing CHP staff)

Blessings, EM      

Transporting to Michigan

Hey Friends,
  Well the days are getting colder here.  Last weekend it got down to -22 degrees Fahrenheit one night.  Now that is cold!  When walking home from work today it was snowing and did not feel that bad outside.  I checked the temp and it was 16 degrees.  I know I am adjusting to things when I think 16 degrees is not that cold.  The key to frigid cold temps is layers.  There is long underwear, high socks, pants, a full length coat over your sweater and long underwear top.  Then you need a scarf, hat and must put your hood up.  Your eyes feel the cold and just water.  But I would not have it any other way.  I see people who live on the streets and have to sort trash for food and to find bottles to sell to make money.  I count my blessings.  I have a nice warm apartment, food on the table, warm clothes on my back, and a job I love.  Many people in Mongolia have very few of these things.  I was talking with our housekeeper today about the price of heating a ger.  It costs around $5 a day to keep a ger warm, so that is $150 a month.  Many Mongolians make around $100-$150 a month or less, so if you do the math, that does not work out.
  Last week I had the pleasure of transporting two precious three year olds to Michigan for surgery.  The group consisted of the two boys, their mothers, an interpreter, and myself.  It was a very smooth trip.  In Beijing we ran around and wore them out before the long flight to America.  They managed to sleep most of the 13 hour flight thankfully.  And their mothers sure were troopers, never complaining and always ready for the next adventure.  These two children have been given a gift of free surgery to repair holes in their hearts.  But you know what, we have a hole in our heart caused by sin.  And that hole can only be mended by Christ.  Many people try to medicate or fix that hole on their own, but the only way to fix it is to have faith in Jesus and His death and resurrection.  By His blood, the price has been paid in full for our sins and we have been reconciled in our relationship with God.  What a beautiful thing.  I hope you realize this precious gift this Christmas season.  The group will be in the States for around 6 weeks.
  After dropping the group off, I had a night in Michigan before heading to St. Louis for an early Thanksgiving with my family.  My parents knew I was coming, but my brothers and their families had no idea.  It sure was a fun surprise!  The look on Justin's face was priceless.  I have had lots of good surprises this year between this, my mom's 60th birthday party, and flying home for Kelly's birthday.  I enjoyed all the traditional Thanksgiving food, including my dad's fried turkey (those are the best).  But most of all I enjoyed just hanging out with my family.  And then I had two more days before I came back to Mongolia.  I was thankful for how this trip worked out to see my family and celebrate so many things we are thankful for.
  Coming back, I had an entire row to myself on my long flight and was able to sleep about 10 of the 13 hours.  That made for an easier transition back.  Tomorrow at work we celebrate what has been accomplished with Samaritan's Purse in Mongolia this past year.  It will be a special day.  Tom, our country director, and his family are moving to Honduras, so we will miss them.  There are lots of changes occurring in our office, so please pray for this transitional time. 
  Thanks for tuning in.  I will try to do better with updates.  There are some pics below. 
Happy Thanksgiving,
Emily

Recent Transport

A precious grandmother who loved the Lord

One of the two three year old boys I transported back.  He has surgery tomorrow November 21st.

The two boys with their mothers feeding the fish at the Beijing airport.

We wore them out playing in the airport before our long 12+ hour flight.

We made it to Michigan.

The other precious little boy who had surgery last week.