Time Lapse of Our Hangar

Audrey Paperwork Process

Happy New Year to All of You

As we finish this year and look forward to the New Year and all it's possibilities, we thought we would give you an update on how we ended and will begin this new year.

After Audrey was born on November 24, we praised God for such a healthy and easy baby.  We had told the hospital we need her paperwork to be expedited as fast as possible as we are trying to get all our paperwork underway to be back in Indonesia by the end of January.  Well, two weeks later I got a call from the county saying they see no record of Audrey's birth and would not be able to issue her birth certificate.  That same day her Social Security Number arrived with the incorrect name.  We have been frantically going through the process of getting her name corrected which has been a challenge with the holiday season and everything shutting down.  We have gotten her name corrected, and have applied for a passport.  We are now waiting for the passport before we can pursue an Indonesian visa for Audrey.  This has delayed our wanted progress by about 3 weeks and we are praying that our passport will come faster then hoped.  We also pray  that we can have good favor with the Indonesian government and a speedy process of the visa.  Please pray with us that all this paperwork will go miraculously fast and that we can get back to the field as expected!

We are bringing in this new year here in Montana where we are enjoying lots of snow, family and friends.  We will head back to the Seattle area around the 8th and hope our passport will be waiting for us when we return.  Matt will continue his studies to become a Certified Flight Instructor and we hope he will have it all completed before we leave.  We will keep you all posted on the progress of paperwork and studies.

Thanks for joining us on our adventure this year!  We are looking forward to getting back to Papua and joining our team there.  This year is shaping up to be a big year and we hope to have 2 more helicopters operational in Papua.  Matt will finally get checked out as a pilot and will be able to serve in that capacity by the end of the year.  We will begin the process of training locals to fly, and continue to train locals to be mechanics.  We hope to see a growth in Kopi Gunung, the coffee business we started for our local friends.  We hope to see growth in the company, in the guys, and in relationships.  We are excited to be reunited with our local church and to continue investing there, and to see our relationships grow with that tribe.  Matt hopes to get more into making videos so you all can see what we are doing a bit better here in Papua!  Amanda will continue taking amazing photos for you all to enjoy and get a glimpse of what is happening in Papua!

If you have been a part of our support team in the past, we want to thank you so much for making all of this possible.  For those of you who are faithfully giving to keep us serving on the field, again we want to thank you for your faithful and consistent giving.  It is a pleasure to serve in Papua and this would not be possible without you.  If you are excited about what God is doing through us and would like to be a part of it, please join our support team.  We are still about $600 a month under budget and could really use your help.  If this is how you feel God is asking you to invest monthly, just click our support tab and follow the instructions there.  Thank you all for investing in us and letting us further God's kingdom in Papua!

From our family to yours,

We sincerely want to wish you a Happy New Year!  We hope this year is filled with God's love and that you all make a ton of great memories!

Love, The Meeuwse's

End of the Year Cap

Dear Supporters,

I hope you enjoy this Christmas season with Family and Friends!

Matt Performing a 600 hr Inspection on the engine

This year has been a big year for us with a  lot of exciting stories!  During the beginning of the year Matt was sent by Helimission to Texas for maintenance training that was required to obtain his Indonesian mechanics license.  Amanda and Grace got to come back to the states also and enjoyed some time reconnecting with family while Matt did his courses.  Matt passed all three courses and got to sign off his maintenance in Indonesia for the first time!  Maintenance is a very important part of Matt's job.  The terrain our pilots fly in is very unforgiving, so it is vital that our maintenance staff work precisely and safely so our helicopters stay in peak operation performance.  Matt was able to do an entire 600 hr inspection on the helicopter he did the training on this year, which really helped him solidify what he learned and he got to dive into all the systems of the new helicopter.  The helicopter is now flying missions again in Papua!

Matt also went to Jakarta this year to take his pilot written and medical test of which he passed both!  He now has his Indonesian pilot's license and is in a holding pattern to get checked out by our Chief Pilot in Papua.  It is about a 6 month process of learning the area, weather patterns, and high altitude flying.  Our chief pilot has been on home assignment for 6 months and will be out of Papua again around February to adopt a child.  So, Matt should be able to start flying the middle of 2018.  This is a huge answer to prayer and Matt is really excited to start flying again.  After 12 years of preparing it was a bit of a hard pill to swallow for him when he found out he wasn't able to fly for a while.  But, by not flying and still serving where he could it seems to have created a strong trust in our local workers and opened a lot of other opportunities for Matt to serve locally in our town.

Every Wednesday Matt spends his lunch hour doing pilot ground school with one of our local workers, Abednego, who has a dream to serve his people as a pilot with Helimission.  Matt has been training Abed for the last year and a half and has seen Abed grow in his knowledge of aviation, English and weather.  We hope and pray that Abed's dream will come to fruition!  As we have been in the states this time Matt is working diligently to become a Certified Flight Instructor (CFI).  This would enable Matt to give flight training to Abed or other students in the future.  Matt has passed both his writtens with high 90 scores and has done a flight stage check in which he got a good review from the instructor.  Matt is now diligently making lesson plans and after the Holidays he will continue his training with hopes to be done before we leave for Papua.

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Oten roasting coffee

We have two guys that work for us and we are their only source of income.  One of these guys, Oten, has a dream of becoming a pastor and he is in the process of writing a book.  This year he approached Matt to see if he could start pastor school.  He was nervous because school happens every day and it would interfere with him working for us.  Oten needs the income in order to pay for school, so he was nervous that he would lose his job.  Amanda and I chose to keep him working without hesitation, as our goal is to see local people equipped and reaching out to their own people.  We told him that he should start school and we can figure out what his job would look like after he did.  He is so happy and has passed his first semester.  Early in the year he caught TB and nearly died.  We took him from clinic to clinic, testing blood and all sorts of things.  He never came back positive for TB, but we decided to start the treatment for it because he had all the symptoms.  He is finally putting weight back on and has color in his skin again, so we praise God for Oten's health.

Oten, Otinus, and Abednego with their roasted coffee

The discussion of Oten going to school got us thinking.  We thought it would be good to start a business for our local friends that could supply a livable wage and help them fulfill their dreams.  During that time, Matt was getting into roasting coffee.  He decided to train Oten, Abed and Otinus (our other worker).  We had a supporter donate some money so we could get them set up for makeshift roasting, so right now they are roasting coffee with a popcorn popper on an electric stove.  The three guys picked the name Kopi Gunung which translates to "Mountain Coffee" and they are doing a great job roasting.  We invested into the company to get them set up with supplies and beans and they have almost paid us back in full from their profits.  After that all the profits will go into Kopi Gunung so they can get the necessary tools to roast, and can start taking home some profits.  Matt is currently designing a drum roaster that can be used with local fuels which will enable the guys to roast more consistently and at higher quantities.  It is really cool to watch these guys take control of their business and this will give them an opportunity to maintain an income even if we get sent to another base.  We are really discipling these guys to be generous, so Kopi Gunung hopes to set aside money to help other people fulfill their dreams too.

Ratilis and Amanda after a lesson.

Amanda teaches English to Abed's sister once a week.  This is growing into a good friendship and its a joy to see the progress of Ratilis as she studies English.  Amanda also spends a lot of time with the ladies at the local market where she invests into their relationships.  Amanda will frequently have these ladies over and teach them how to bake or just to enjoy time with them.  We found out that these ladies start out their morning by getting together and praying for all the pilots serving the local people.  They pray for safety and good weather.  This is amazing to us to see that the local people see that what we are doing is making such a difference.

Amanda visiting a young boy

Amanda also spends time visiting and praying for the patients in the hospital that we fly in.  It is up to the families to provide meals and amenities for the patient, so a couple on our team creates care packages for all the patients we fly in.  Then Amanda and her friend go to the hospital to hand out these care packages, to pray for the patient and to just check in to make sure they are getting care.  It can be difficult for the patient to communicate with the doctors because of the vast amount of languages in Papua.  We are connected to groups that help translate information for our patients. 

This is our village church family

Our family has joined a village church fairly close to our house.  It is such an honor to worship with the local believers.  We got connected to this church through our worker Otinus.  The people are so genuine.  The sermon is delivered mostly in Indonesian, but sometimes it switches to local language.  We don't always know what the sermon is about but we are coming together with God's people and worshiping the same God just in different languages.  We are so excited for Heaven, when every nation, tribe and tongue will get together and worship collectively.  This is an amazing for-taste for us every Sunday where we long for that great party in Heaven!

Matt, Grace, Audrey and Amanda

Our family is currently in the states.  We came back to have a baby, and Audrey Jean was born on Black Friday (Nov 24) and 12:01 am.  We consider her the best black Friday deal we have ever gotten, and I'm tempted to ask insurance for a discount. Joking of course.  We are so happy that she was born healthy and happy.  She has been such a joy to us and has been a very easy baby.  Gracie is doing a great job being a big sister and Mommy is recovering nicely.  Daddy really enjoys the snuggles and the noises!

As we come into this Christmas season we are overwhelmed by all God is doing.  He is such a generous God in sending us His son to live a life without sin, to die the death that we deserve and most importantly to pay our debt so that we can have a relationship with God!  He is still generous today as He he has helped us adapt to Indonesia, to learn the language, to invest in the people and to keep us healthy.  We are blown away every month to see the generosity of our supporters who give so sacrificially so we can live in Papua and make a difference there.  We thank you so much for investing in us and helping all the things mentioned above to be possible.  You are all investing in our local friends and in the mission God has us on!

Next year will be another year where we expect God to do big things.  We hope to have two more helicopters operational and hope to reach, serve and save more people.  If you are excited about what God is doing in Papua through us, please consider joining our support team as we are still not fully supported.  It is a great way to invest and know that the impact is going to get the gospel out both locally and to the ends of the earth!  If you can't join monthly, consider giving a One Time Gift to help us pay for the birth of Audrey and plane tickets to and from Indonesia.  Just click our support tab at the top of this page and follow the instructions there for a tax deductible receipt.  Or for non-tax deductible giving click the donate button to the right and that will donate via PayPal!

From our family to yours, we want to wish you a Very Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.  We hope that this year is filled with love and a ton of great memories.  We love you all and thank you for all your support, prayer and kindness!

Love the Meeuwse clan,

       Matt, Amanda, Grace and Audrey

Audrey Jean & Other Newsy Stuff...

Hello world!  Our little bundle of sweetness has graced us with her presence for three weeks now!  She is the sweetest little baby...(mom talking here) :)

Real labor started thanksgiving day about 2 hours after we ate our meal!  It was a fun commotion with all the people!  I had a crowd around me helping with my contractions, and then we quickly took off to the hospital!
Labor and delivery went great.  She made it all super easy on me. She was 6lbs 15oz 18.5inches.

Ladies helping me through a contraction after Thanksgiving feast!

Labor was 3.5 hours, and delivery she came out with one push.  (no, I am not joking, she really did!)  She has been such an easy baby.  She wakes up at night every 3 hours, nurses, and then goes right back to sleep.

I have to say I am really enjoying this time with her.  The newborn stage comes and goes so quickly.  And we are making the most of it.

Having a baby in flu and cold season makes you cautious.  I was stressing a few days after she was born about how to keep her healthy with all the sickness that is everywhere this time of year...  That's when it hit me, the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart.  Look at all He has already protected her from while she was in my tummy....just because she is in my arms now, does not mean that His job is done, and it is now all on my shoulders. He is still her protector and maker.  Jean is her middle name, and it means "Gift from God." And it was really put on my heart in that moment that she is such a gift from God.  Her health is a gift from God. 
<3 and="" calms="" god="" heart="" i="" in="" it.="" love="" nbsp="" p="" peace="" puts="" storm="" the="" when="" your="">
Grace is adapting to being a big sister like a champ.  She was a great big sister from the time we told her there was a baby in my tummy, but she has taken to this big sister thing pretty awesome.  Daddy has taken her on some special daddy daughter dates, and I have taken her on one mommy daughter date for ice-cream!

A prayer request.  The hospital made a mistake on Audrey's paperwork.  They gave her my middle name, and sent it to the social security office.  So now we are dealing with trying to get this mistake quickly resolved. (ha!)  Because we still plan to return to Papua the end of January.  So be praying for this mistake to be fixed quickly, and all the paperwork to go through without delay!

We have done 6 speaking engagements, and some of them have been with new churches and people!  We have raised a portion of what we are hoping to, and for that we are thankful! We are still needing to raise some more monthly support while here in order to get our support up to where it should be.  So if you feel called to hop on board with us, and be a part of what God has us doing while we are in Indonesia, then let us know!

Our little holiday baby! =) 

In a few days we head to Montana to celebrate Christmas with our friends and family there!  We hope that you are having a wonderful Christmas season.  The most wonderful time of year! We are thankful for you friend!

Merry Christmas from Amanda, Matt, Grace and Audrey!

Blood work Results...

Hi friend!

Well, here you are, wanting the news on all that bloodwork that we had done for the high risk part of the pregnancy.

Ready for it?...........  (drumroll please)

.......

It was all good news!  Thank you Jesus!  I was not infected with any of the viruses in question, not one.  So baby girl wasn't either!  My thyroid is normal, all the tests came back with happy news! We also learned she was a good girl and flipped head down (instead of her previous breech position)  This was happy news since she was running out of room to flip!
I think I know the night she flipped.....girl made me sweat and grimace!  But ohh good job girlie!

My heart was so happy to hear all this good news in one short doctor visit!......So, we do a happy dance, we celebrate, and most importantly we thank Jesus, because we asked, and He answered, and we are thankful.
Other good news.....Matt and I think we have (almost) nailed down a name for this sweet little thing! I'm a bit of a commit-a-phobe about it! Haha!!  It's no small task naming a human! ;)  But we are SO close!
We snuck over to Montana between doctors visits this past week!  It was so good to see my mom, grandma, and some family!  It was such a quick trip, but totally worth it.  Here are some pictures!  Enjoy!......and thanks for celebrating our exciting news with us!



We love you!
Amanda  =)

Grammy and Grace having fun bouncing! 

Grace at the pumpkin patch being "super brave"

High Risk Ultrasound, Gender & Goals!

Hello friends.

If you didn’t already know, we are in America for the purpose of having a BABY! 

As you know we are home a bit earlier than our regularly scheduled home break. (furlough)

This is our plan, take this baby break, and then push back our regularly scheduled furlough and essentially “give back” the time that baby break takes.  We plan to return to Papua the end of January.

That will put us taking a furlough around May 2019.

Things are going well here in the states.  Amanda is 33 weeks pregnant, and feeling pretty good for being in the third trimester. 

Yesterday we had confirmation that our little small fry round two is a GIRL, and we are really excited about it!  How fun for Grace to have a little sister.  The only catch in our giddy-up, we have no girl names picked out! Haha.  Better get on that.

Yesterday we had a high risk ultrasound for baby.  This was ordered due to some exposure to various virus’ and diseases while in Papua, such as TB, Parvo, and others.  The ultrasound looked good! Baby is growing, and there was nothing alarming on the ultrasound.  We got to see little peanut on 3D ultrasound, and man does that girl have some cheeks!  She was pulling out all the stops for us, sticking her tongue out, yawning, and practicing breathing.  So cute! Multiple times the doctor commented that she was a big baby.  HA! Poor mom, but thank you Jesus for everything looking healthy.

The doctor talked over Amanda’s history with her, and decided that he did want additional testing done, to (hopefully) rule out a few things baby could have been exposed to.  He ordered “torch testing”. In a nutshell this is to see if she has had a recent or past infection of any of these diseases, or if any of them sit dormant in her system.  If she has never been infected, baby hasn’t either, if she has been infected recently, then it is possible (not certain) that baby could have been as well.  It will give the doctors a better idea of what to look for and monitor for once baby comes.  But this is a precaution, and we are thankful for a good looking ultrasound, and we trust God with our little girl.

While on baby wait in America we have a few things we are focusing on.  First, Matt is able to help out his brother with aviation mechanic work.  That is nice for him to have some work for his hands to do!
Connecting with our friends and family.  (of course we want to see you!)  We might not be able to travel to see everyone, but we are happy to make plans and either travel to see you, or host you when you come to see us!  We will be staying in our own place sometime around the beginning of November, which will be nice once we have a newborn! 

We are also needing to raise some more monthly support while here in the states. We often have people ask how they can help, this is it!  We have been well taken care of these past two years, and we want to thank you for that!  Every time we see our support list come in we are blown away by how generous and loving you all are.   

As is normal life, some support has dwindled over the last year, ALSO we are adding a new baby to our family, so we are needing to add some additional support on top of that.  So we are believing that God is going to put it on some hearts to support us financially.  This is really His mission, and we trust Him with it, and with the finances that allow us to stay in Papua.   If you are unaware how we are able to keep serving in Papua, we raise our own support, we do not receive a paycheck for being there, we depend entirely off of friends and family’s monthly donations.  These people are a huge part of what God has us doing in Papua.

Some ways that YOU can be a part of what God has us doing in Papua Indonesia:

·       Becoming a monthly supporter, this type of support keeps us on the field,  (can be automatic withdraw or you can manually send it in each month, Helimission makes it easy) 

       If you have any questions about this, please feel free to ask Matt or I.  We check our helibladesoflove@gmail.com each day. Or, if you are like me and like to call or text, we will include our American numbers at the bottom of this letter.  Or click this link to learn more.

            Support Matt and Amanda

· Making a one time donation toward all of our baby expenses. (this includes travel expense, healthcare costs, etc.)

·       Committing to being a prayer warrior for us.  If you want to do this, let us know! It makes us feel so loved and cared for to know that you are continually praying for us and for the people of Indonesia.  Prayer is powerful.

Thanks for loving on us friend, thanks for caring, and being a part of what God is doing in Papua.  This place and the people in it are beautiful.  We are thankful and humbled to be a part of God’s work in this part of the world.  And please know, you are always welcome to come visit us while we are in Papua! How cool would it be to see you there! =)

Matt, Amanda, Grace and SmallFry Meeuwse!


Our New American Numbers:

Matt:  425.553.8320

Amanda:  425.588.6092

Growing a little pumpkin =)

Want to hear something AMAZING, AWESOME, and CRAZY?!...

Hi friends.  Want to hear something completely awesome?!  Something so thoroughly encouraging and life-giving?...















I thought so.

So maybe you remember about a week and a half ago when I re-posted a picture on Facebook of two children walking from their remote village to our town of Wamena to sell their vegetables for school supply money?  Remember that?   Well if you don't remember, here is a reminder.  I posted this picture with this caption:

(My friend Lemeus posted this. So sweet. Pray for these little kids and others like them as they seek to get school supplies and as they study. ❤️

"Two students are gong to Wamena from the Village of Mayunggulik for selling the fruits to buy their books n pens.")

This is the picture posted by my friend Lemeus, and re-posted by myself, that inspired all of this. 

A couple of my Facebook friends contacted me on Facebook that they wanted to help kids like this in some way.  They wanted to donate some money to help these these children.  I talked to Lemeus, and got back to them asap.  These friends donated their money, and I got to work....(this all started August 24th...FAST!)  Lemeus helped to know what school supplies the children needed, and got to work the same day I handed the money over.  The very next day he took off on a long journey to the village.  

He had to take a 3.5 hour taxi ride on rough roads, (and taxis here are.....NOT luxurious)  Then when the taxi could take him no further he took off to hike up the mountain 3-4 hours to this mountain village.  He went alone, and he carried the box of school supplies on his own strength.  Strong. 

Lemeus hiking with the supplies.

Before he set off on this journey, I told him he didn't have to make a special trip into the village for this, that he could take it the next time he went.  But he wouldn't hear of it.   He was so touched that people in America would see this picture and God would put it on their heart to give to the kids, that he wanted to do it RIGHT AWAY.  He said "God put it on their heart to give, and God gave me the mission to get it to them, I have do this"  I was so impressed.  A little back information on Lemeus.  He is an amazing man of God. He loves Jesus with his whole heart.  He is a local from the island of Papua, and he is a firecracker for Jesus.  He has such a passion and heart for his fellow Papuans to fall in love with Jesus, not just religion, but really know and love Jesus.

Lemeus came to my house today with pictures and a report from the village and the children.  Each child in the pictures was given a ruler, a sharpener, pens, pencils, writing paper, a colorbook, math book, a candle to study by light in the night when they don't have electricity, and more! 

Plus the pastor of the local church was given the extra supplies to hand out to the children who could not come at the time Lemeus was there.  

Lemeus and the pastor of the church explained the story that God put it on the hearts of people to give these supplies to show them His love for them.  That He can move hearts across the world to remind the kids and parents in the village that God sees them and loves them.  They prayed over the students and children in their tribal tongue.  It was truly a blessing to be a part of this....even if I was just the middle man moving the money from one hand to another.  

I was speaking with one of my friends that donated some money.  I was giving her an update, and thanked her for giving, she told me "oh it wasn't very much money"  But you know what.....God doesn't care about that.  He asks us to be FAITHFUL with the small things, the small amount of money, the small act of kindness, listening to that small voice....and HE turns it into something more. Just like He did with this.... who would have known that posting a picture or donating a small amount of money would lead to all those kids hearing about Jesus' love for them, and blessing them in their school.  Literally the hands and feet of Jesus.  And it took many people....not just one.  It took Lemeus posting the picture, me re-posting it, my friends hearts to be moved enough to seek out donating, Lemeus to climb a mountain with a heavy box to deliver the supplies..... It took a team of people.  I love that.  

And get this.....those two boys in the original picture........ those same boys received supplies!  Isn't that cool!?  The whole thing was all God.  Nobody involved knew that this would happen.  But God did.  He planned it....because He loves those kids, He loves their parents, He loves that village, He loves all of us who helped with it.  It had an impact on all of us.  And hopefully it has an impact on you too.  I hope it makes you think about this God I serve.  He is BIG, powerful, and real! And He also cares about small things, like reminding all these sweet kids that He loves them.  If you already love Jesus, I hope it renews your faith like it did mine.  This isn't about me, it's not about the donors, it's not about the money.  All of those things were tools in God's big plan. He loves you just like this too.  It's all about making Jesus' name famous! <3 about="" all="" famous="" it="" jesus="" making="" name="" nbsp="" p="" s="">

Here are lots of pictures! Enjoy! 

Pastor praying over the students and school supplies before the kids get them

Kids receiving school supplies

Sweet smile!

YAY!!! 

So sweet.

Lemeus asked them to make a picture. =) 

Showing his Honai (grass hut house) drawing 

Yay!!! 

Add caption

Add caption

These are the two kids from the picture that inspired it all.  Jesus is so cool.<3 cool.="" esus="" is="" nbsp="" so="" td="">

Baby Plans And All Sorts of Life.

Hi friend!

Ultrasound at local doctor

As you know, we are expecting!  Baby seems to be doing good! Our doctor friend is out right now in Holland, so we have been going to a local doctor for all checks.  Each check has gone well!  Unfortunately, each time I go the doctor says this...."umm, mungkin perempuan, saya tidak tauh"
which translates "umm, maybe it's a girl, but I don't know"  =)  So we don't know the gender yet.  I've been given two different due dates.  November 24th, and December 1st.  So SOMEwhere in there we expect a baby!!!  =)

We have had a whirlwind of a time here! It has been busy friends!  We moved at the beginning of August.  The house we had been living in was owned by another organisation, and we needed to move.  We moved into a HeliVida house across town.  We are feeling quite at home here, and really love the new place!  Still a few boxes to unpack, but we are pretty much done.  =)
While moving I overdid it.  I started getting sharp pains in my tummy...which signalled to me to SLOW DOWN.   We went to the local doc for an ultrasound when these pains came, the doctor said everything looked okay.  So that is good! The pains left when I started taking it easier.

Other than moving we have had visitors, sickness, our puppy died, helping our friend with his health, saying goodbye to good friends who moved back to America, getting everything ready to leave for a few months, Gracie's FOURTH birthday!  It has been busy! But we are doing good!

Speaking of coming back to America!.... Let me fill you in on our plans!

My big four year old 

Getting ready for baby!

Our good friend mama Agnis came to give Grace some strawberries for her birthday! <3 td="">

The Indonesian government has a rule...no traveling via airplane after 32 weeks.  So, we are leaving soon!  Even a tiny bit sooner than that.  We leave in 3 days!  We will fly to Hawaii, which is where my dad (Amanda) lives!  We will stay with him for a visit!  We are SO very excited to see him and Susan! It's been too long!  From there we will travel to Washington state (end of September) where we will establish care with a doc, make a birth plan, get myself and the baby checked.  All things baby! In November we have been blessed with getting a house of own to stay in!  Which is great for having a new little one!  We also will have a car to drive that is roomy!  God answered those needs! And thank you to our family for helping us out with it all! We plan to return to Papua as a family of 4 at the end of January!

Can I just say I am SO excited to be in America for the fall season!  I am excited to consume everything pumpkin spice, eggnog, pumpkin patches, corn mazes, colourful leaves!  All of it! I am going to really enjoy this time!  Living in an eternal summer has it's perks too!  But this girl is excited for some changing seasons!!! =)  I am also extremely excited for pickles, and mexican food!  Oh yum!

The ladies here in Wamena know I love mexican food,  this last saturday they threw me a SURPRISE baby shower, and each lady brought a mexican dish.  I felt so loved!  Most of the ingredients in mexican food are hard to get, have to be brought from your home country, or expensive to buy here.  It was truly SO sweet of the ladies here.  I felt loved.I am so excited to come to America, but I am also going to miss my home.  It is a strange thing.  Yes, America is my "home" but it is not my home.  I am leaving my home.  It is an anomaly.  =)
I have been saying goodbye to all my local friends, I will miss them.  I am starting to say goodbye to my fellow expat friends.  I will miss them too. We have people to care for our dog, our cats, our chickens and our fish.  I will miss all of them too.  Even my comfy chair, and my bed... that is the strange part of this life... your heart is always in two places no matter where you are.  =)  BUT it isn't a bad thing....it is just learning to navigate life in this way.  How lucky are we to have people to love dearly across the world!

nbsp="" p="">When we are in the States we are hoping to speak at a couple churches, so we will keep you posted on that when the time comes.  We also plan to do a bit more support raising in the states, as we are adding a new little one, and a few monthly donations have had to stop.  But again, we will keep you posted on that!
Matt's flying:  He has been flying with the pilots who are here in Wamena and already checked out.  It has been a season of furlough (home country break) for many HeliVida families.  Our chief pilot has been gone, and he is the one who will need to check Matt out.  But in the meantime Matt has gotten some good experience in jungle flying with our pilot friends who are here, he has gone up on several flights.  When we get back to Papua in January he will begin the process with our chief pilot (and several other pilots who will have returned) to be able to be a solo pilot flying in the jungle.   It seems like a long time, but it is good, because these are some of the most dangerous flying conditions in the world.  So best be trained well! =)  Well, chances are we will be seeing you soon friend!  We will post our contact info once we get set up with phones in America!  We would love to see you!
Amanda, Matt, Grace and baby!

Goofy Grace says "SEE YOU SOON!"  

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I Passed!

Hello All,

Almost two weeks ago, I went to Jakarta with a lot of unknowns ahead of me.  I went to take my medical to see if it would be possible for me to fly in Papua.  I was pretty nervous!  I left Wamena on the first flight out and landed in Sentani 30 minutes later.  I had a few hours there so I went to visit Amanda and Grace who were helping out at a partner mission group conference.  It was great to see them and pray together before I left.  As I was checking in, I saw my good friends the Wiley's checking in to the same flight to Jakarta!  So we got to travel all the way there together which was nice for both of us!  When I arrived in Jakarta I grabbed a taxi to the hotel and got settled in.  I ran out for some food and came back to the hotel.  The next morning I had to be ready to go at 5:45 am for the test the my future hinged on.  I spent some time praying and giving my future over to God! 

I got my medical!

The next morning I got up and ready to go.  Spent some time talking with Carter as we waited for Matt, our pilot in Palu.  We all headed to the place of the test.  It was nice having Matt there with me to keep my mind off of things.  We got signed in and went through all the stations on the lower floor.  The eye exams were upstairs, so as I climbed the stairs as my hear began to race a bit.  I walked right by the eye exams right to the place for blood pressure, which in hindsight probably wasn't the smartest because I was so nervous, but I passed that too!  I went into the vision test and when they pulled out the color vision book I was very nervous.  He opened up the book and at first I didn't see the number, but after what seemed like an eternity the number came into focus and I never hesitated again for the next 12 plates.  I passed all the vision tests without an issue.

I had so many people praying for me it was awesome.  After the test was over, relief flowed over me and I heard so many stories of people praying, I was so overwhelmed.  I almost started crying but I still had a few more stations to get through, so I had to keep it all under control.  By 11 am I had my medical in hand!  Praise God for being my vision once again!

The next day I took my Airlaws test and passed that too.  So now I am waiting for my Indonesian Validated license to show up.  Praise God I get to fly in Papua!

Thank you all for all of your prayers and support during this huge test for me!  I really felt loved from all the notes of encouragement before and the notes of excitement afterwards! 

I can't wait to be able to serve at my full capacity

here in Papua!

Love you all,

                     Matt