Hello friends and family from Banteay Meanchay, Cambodia. Thankyou everyone for your consistent love and support for our family while we serve Jesus on mission here in Cambodia. We've had a great month. God intentionally takes care of our family and we are aware of our blessings He has granted us while we serve here. No day or week or month is without stress or pressure for any of us. Please remember that we show our best pictures here on our blog and on any of our social media forums. Please continue to keep our family in your prayers when God brings us to your mind.
Last month we ended with a few days serving in Battambang. We decided to drive down to Phnom Penh to deliver our passports to be stamped for new visas. On our drive to the city we got the opportunity to stop in and visit some of our dear friends. We don't get to see them as often as we would like. We enjoyed a small bit of time catching up and holding baby Onyx.
Baby Onyx loves his Mommy and Daddy. Us foreigners were so weird and strange for him so he kept his focus on his parents. He is so sweet and cute!
We arrived in Phnom Penh after several hours of driving. We drove past our old apartment to where we lived when we first moved to Cambodia.
And past the market where we spent nearly every day buying groceries. It always makes us happy to visit Phnom Penh.
We enjoyed visiting our favorite restaurant where we would eat nearly every Sunday after church.
We got to visit the mall that recently reopened after being shut down due to the Covid.
Our children always enjoy taking their time in each store looking at all the things. We don't have stores like that here in Cambodia besides in Phnom Penh.
A whole store that has BOOKS! We miss books so much so we dedicate at least an hour in this bookstore.
Of course Dairy Queen ice cream is always a treat. Everyone has learned what it is like to not have familiar food we love. We have learned to truly savor and enjoy every bite. Being without is often times a big blessing in disguise.
Of course we spent a lot of time with our Khmer brother and Uncle, David.
He is the closest thing to family for us here in Cambodia. We are thankful for the blessing of his friendship the last 3 years.
Eating breakfast (beye sack juh roock, in Khmer) along the river.
Riding the ferry just for fun. Being out on the water makes us all happy.
We had a great time in Phnom Penh. Britton dropped off our visas and they will be ready to be picked up soon. We had a safe trip back to Banteay Meanchay. We thank God for his provision in all things.
Britton had a meeting in Battambang so he went for the day. He was able to see some of our favorite little ones in Svey Kong.
Beloved ones that we know and love.
We bought a few supplies for the YWAM team to teach the village children how to wash their hair and brush their teeth. There is a lot of rotten teeth and head lice in the village. Daily heigien is something that hasn't been taught much. We were happy to receive darling photos of little heads being washed and teeth being brushed.
A evening dinner in our home. Everyone sits on the floor to eat here. We tried to have food that wasn't to weird for them. Everyone ate a lot so we think they enjoyed it!
Sunday mornings are usually more quiet these days due to the Covid.
One Sunday afternoon after church we went with some of the church members to a nearby mountain.
The ride home was gorgeous! We had to stop and take pictures.
We love Kim San and his girlfriend. We are thankful we can speak his language and enjoy time with him.
He enjoys teaching our boys music most evenings at the church.
On the way home Gracie and Carter got in a small Moto accident. We took a wrong turn and ended up on extremely muddy roads. The deep mud and small Moto tires do not mix well. Thankfully the Moto just fell over and we weren't going too fast. But they were left with a few scrapes and cuts. Must have been funny by the time we arrived home as it appears in the picture above.
Absolutely covered in mud. We made some good memories anyway.
The Moto broke in a few spots. The boys spent some time putting it back together.
Another afternoon we found a local swimming hole. A dam was recently opened leaving a very fun place to go swimming. We enjoy going with our khmer friends.
One Sunday they asked our family to bring our instruments and sing for them in English. Which then led to the idea that we could teach some English through songs. We have started teaching every Thursday night now.
We helped clear some of the land on the church property. The wall was recently finished. Its already looking so much better. Many hands made light work.
Britton spends nearly every week day morning joining Pastor Buntan at the surrounding house churches in this area. They have a small devotion and spend time praying for them and bringing encouragement.
Some of the neighborhoods are blocked off due to Covid. And some of the villagers are scared of the foreigners here. They are misinformed about the way the virus travels. We are thankful for each house church that willingly opens their home and allows the gospel to continue to be shared.
Pomelo or a Chinese grapefruit are in season here in Cambodia. They are so yummy! We enjoy eating whatever fruit is in season.
Our family days often include a small bike ride to "Tiger baby Mountain" or "Phnum Khla Koun" in Khmer. A short 15 min bike ride and a 10 minute hike gets us high above the city where the soft wind and shade trees bring us a feeling of relaxation.
A little local drink shop is always fun to stop at on the way home.
School is going very well. The children have passed the half way mark in their school year. We found a local coffee shop to replace our favorite Zarra coffee shop in Battambang. Getting out of the house for one day of the week and doing school somewhere different is always a highly anticipated day.
We found ourselves traveling back to Battambang one weekend to help serve in the Svey Kong village. A one hour car ride makes it quite easy to travel back and forth. On Saturday afternoon we met a few friends at a coffee shop.
Time with friends talking about stuff other than ministry work builds stronger relationships. We also tried sushi for the first time. It wasn't too bad.
Market flowers and candles for when the electricity goes out.
Britton spends time drawing plans and sending emails for Cambodia Impact.
English is being taught every week day at the church. Here the children are writing a list of words they learned through the month in preparation for their end of month exam.
One day, the regular teacher had a toothache so Britton stepped in to help.
Our evenings are usually spent at the church. We get to spend time playing with the children who come to learn, practice speaking in Khmer and playing music.
Thankyou everyone for your love and support! We miss you all! Love, The Filbruns
