Settling in at Dbay

Hi Friends,

Well it is Sunday afternoon here and I (Tessa) am enjoying some long awaited quiet time as Silina is having a nap. The weather here is hot and humid and our window air conditioner (that we were blessed to have loaned to us) is doing all it can to keep up. We are enjoying finally being settled in our little one room cabin. It is the perfect setup for the 3 of us, and a definite answer to prayer. You can check out our pictures on facebook.

Here is a little bit of what we have been up to:

Fiji:

We were very happy to have the opportunity to visit Isi’s family in Fiji for 10 days at the beginning of this month. Isi’s mom was excited to meet her namesake (or “yatha” as she calls Silina – meaning ‘my name’) for the first time, and of course so was everyone else. Silina enjoyed spending time in as little clothes as possible, and sometimes even just a diaper. While we were there, Isi decided to do some small renovations on his mom’s room making it a bit homier. He fixed the walls and painted, put in a better light fixture, fixed some broken windows, and installed a safety handle in the shower. We also got her a new bed since the one she was currently sleeping on was not appropriate for her health concerns. Isi was very pleased that he had the chance to do this for his mom and she is so happy that apparently she is still talking about it. We think that this will help her to have some happier days in the midst of some struggles.

Unfortunately Silina had a few minor health concerns while we were there. God was good to us though and cleared everything up quickly. She also found it difficult to deal with the intense heat and a lot of new people. This made my time there quite stressful some days. It was nice to have one of Isi’s nieces stay with us and baby-sit a bit so that I could rest. Visiting Isi’s family is always emotional. It seems like we are always saying good-bye, but we are happy that everyone there is doing well.

Australia:

As I already mentioned, we are very happy to be settled in to our new home for the next 3 ½ months. We are living at the “new base” for Island Breeze Carbrook and as it turns out, the base that we had been living at last year is going to be sold. The renovations were too extensive and so all of the remaining Island Breeze staff are making their way out to where we are now. The campus is known as Dbay (or Deception Bay). It is 5 minutes away from the stores and is an absolutely beautiful area. There are little paths on the base that Silina and I take stroller rides down and we have already seen several kangaroos here.

This week we will begin staff training for the Discipleship Training School that we are staffing. It begins on March 1st and I think we have 8 students at this point (a few from the US, Australia, and the Islands). Isi and I are both looking forward to being a part of the school. We will participate in lectures, lead small groups and have one-on-one time with some of the students. It’s a great chance to mentor young people and is definitely a passion for both of us. My schedule may be a bit different since it revolves around what Silina is doing at the time, but hopefully I will also be able to assist in an administration role that will allow me to work during her naps.

Prayer Requests:

- Please pray that Silina would continue to adjust well to new surroundings and schedules.
- Pray that Isi and I would be able to connect well with the new students.
- Please pray that we would also be able to find time to spend as a family in the midst of many other things going on.

Thank-you!!

Thank-you so much for reading our updates and keeping us in your prayers! We are truly blessed to have the opportunity to do this training in Australia. We are also so blessed to have the love and support of our friends and family back home. We would love to hear how you are doing! Send us an email if you get the chance.
Have a wonderful week :)

God bless,
Tessa, Isi & Silina-Kae