Wrapping up 2016

The past few weeks have been full!  There was Christmas...and New Years...And in the midst of all this, AUNT AMY's visit!  Now we've gotten back into the "normal routine" of school and work.  But we didn't want to get too much further into 2017 without wrapping up 2016 well.

Highlights of Christmas Day!
Gifts & time together!

Nick opening his "Christmas Shoe" 

Bracelets from MaMa 

Cashino Royale

Unicorn Emma in her science lab

Brunch!  A highlight not only of Christmas but of LIFE. 

The Galley and Dining Room Teams doing a walk of honor around the dining room - they do SUCH a remarkable job with this special meal!

Joy to the World all over the place!

Aunt Amy!

We don't have nearly enough pictures from Christmas Day with her in them...but she was here and that was a highlight!

And Highlights of New Years!

4 shots of espresso in my favorite new mug that kept me up to ring in the new year!

Games! In light of Nick's recent thoughts on triangles and circles, it was interesting to see the many circles that were happening all over mid-ships...

Bananagrams - en Espanol

Ninja...or something like that

Uno with a whole lot of extra rules

 Friends!

 The confetti!  It was rather epic (and cleaning it up wasn't so bad either).

 And, of course, AUNT AMY! (and cute pirates named Ben)

2017 has gotten off to a beautiful start.  We're excited about what this year holds...and we'll be putting our trust in our Ever Faithful God every step of the way.  Thank you for continuing to walk with us on this journey.

Surely there will be more to come.

pie charts and life change

The final surgeries have been completed and one-by-one the patients are being discharged from the wards.  The hospital (and all of the rest of the ship) is being packed up and readied for the sail to Durban.  Crew are finishing out this field service with all the tough good-byes that this season brings...

As those things are happening, it's nice to have visual reminders of some of what has been accomplished through the Africa Mercy in the last 9 months.  

If you have time, take a few minutes to study these charts - to read the fine print...to consider that each number is a person.  Each percentage represents impact. 

What's mind boggling is all of the lives that have been affected that are NOT represented by these pie charts.  Crew. Guests to the ship. Neighbors of patients who return home without the tumor or cleft lip or leaking body that they left with. Caretakers.  Health officials. Doctors. Nurses. Friends and family of crew back home.  The random person in Seattle who happened to click on a link where a story of a patient was shared.  

And then to think of future lives that will be affected (whew...that brings tears to my eyes)...those lives that will be saved because safe surgery practices are being used...the babies who will be able to breathe because a Malagasy nurse took a course...future crew who will come serve on a Mercy Ship because they hear the story of a current crew mate....hundreds and thousands of lives forever changed because of God's work through the Africa Mercy in Madagascar. 

A few songs are coming to mind and filling my heart: 

• To God be the glory great things He has done...
• Tell Papa God Tenki...
• Great things He has done.  Greater things He will do...

He is our good, good Father...what a privilege to be a part of His love here on earth.

Surely there will be more to come.

Cash Crew Christmas 2015 - part 2

Solomon's Creativity

I saw this picture on facebook - and loved it!  Solomon, one of our crew (the guy in the blue!) created these trees for the Hope Center out of pallets.  Creativity is absolutely lovely! 

Santa Lucia

This is one of the most beautiful Christmas traditions on the AFM!  The roots of the Scandinavian tradition are connected to the winter light festival of St. Lucy, a Christian Martry from the 3rd Century.  (one of the rare times candles are able to be lit on the ship...rest assured, there's a fire extinguisher nearby)

pc: KJ

Decking our own halls: Cabin 6318

Gingerbread House Making
Mad love, huge props and major respect to KJ for making a gingerbread house with the Cash and Dunne kids - that's quite the undertaking.  They had quite the creative result...complete with a story about dinosaurs attacking, santa eating and then rebuilding their house.

 a few of the other "results"

Carols by Candlelight

Monday night we gathered in the warehouse on the dock and got to hold REAL candles!  Some of our crew from the Southern Hemisphere shared this Australian Tradition with us.   It's easy to forget that not everyone's Christmas involves wishing for a white Christmas, fire places and bundling up. Fun fact: the acoustics in the warehouse are amazing!!  

The Australian born (AFM/Malagasy version) "Wiggles" also made an appearance...sorry for the blurriness...they lived up to their name and weren't still

Elementary Students Caroling

The day before their break from school, the kids were able to sing down on the wards in the hospital and share some joy through singing. Then they came up and sang for the crew in mid-ships and shared joy through cupcakes!

More memories made...more celebrations shared...more excitement over the coming of Jesus.  One more sleep until Christmas Day! 

Surely there will be more to come!

Cash Crew Christmas 2015 - part 1

'Tis the season...and what a special season it is!  This month has been so full of getting ready for and celebrating Jesus' birthday.  Here are some snapshots of Cash Crew Christmas 2015...part 1 of some...

Christmas Cookie Bake

The dough is provided...the cookies are cut and then whisked away to the galley for baking...and then brought back for the icing part.  Definitely a delightful way to make Christmas cookies -- it's all the best parts of making cookies - primarily using cookie cutters and icing them - without all of the not so best parts (dirtying dishes, washing dishes, making sure the cookies don't burn).  (not to mention you get to go home with dozens and dozens of delicious cookies - for the low, low cost of $2 for a kilo of dough!)

Sinterklaas

A Cash Family favorite....click here to read more about the Dutch tradition of Sinterklaas.  The best parts? Every child gets a gift...and the "pepernoten" (a little Dutch gingerbread like treat) that is tossed out to the crowd (imagine candy in a parade).  The songs the kids sing are special, too!

 

Sinterklaas arrived by Tuk Tuk this year 

The Barr family...Elle's gift (the orange creature!)
was bigger than she is! 

Jingle Bell Dash & Dine

Such a great way to gather and build community (and be healthy!) - running/riding/walking to the port gate with 50+ incredible people...and with jingle bells (and loud singing by one runner)!  And then sharing a meal on the dock....always a delight. 

I'm certainly representing GA well...

I'm not kneeing him...just showing off my socks. 

 Christmas Concert
A delightful evening of music - 4 of the 5 Cashes were a part of the performances! Hopefully the video below will work and you can hear some of the joy that the Elementary Choir shared with us (Miss Katie has talent!).  

Click here to watch!

Christmas Craft Night
This is a delightful evening with plenty of craft options for crew of all ages!  These are samples from the "ornament painting" station -- which was just one out of about 20 crafts available.

We hope this blog post finds you merry and bright...enjoying ALL of the gifts that God wants to give this Christmas season.  

Surely there will be more to come.