Nervous...Excited...Jittery...Ack

Crazy title is due to the fact that I am not sure what I am feeling right now.  We are in Conakry, Guinea.  We are finally in West Africa, and right now I am still on the ship.  The boys are ready to get off and explore.  Oh how I wish I had the spirit and lack of fear that comes so easily to my three boys.  I am glad they are here for many reasons, but right now I know that they will push us to get out and be a part of this country.

Mark and I have been many places in this amazing world God created, but most of the time it was just him, just me, or just us.  The only other time I have been somewhere questionable with my boys was a trip to Egypt in 2008.  I can laugh about that trip now because we are no longer there, and we are all still alive.  I have fears.  I fear they will eat bad food and get sick.   I fear that they will play in dirty water and get cholera.  I fear they will get lost.  I know these fears do not come from God.  So I ask that you come along side me and pray that I will be able to cast these fears aside and live abundantly for our Lord.  A few prayers that these things won't happen couldn't hurt either.

So my verse for today is Philippians 4:8, Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things.

Some of the amazing, lovely, excellent and praiseworthy things that have happened in the last week are:

Jacob had two Gold Star days in  row at school...we discovered that he didn't realize getting his name on the board was a bad thing.  He is now setting his goal at not getting his name on the board.  Yea Jacob!

We had an amazing Thursday evening.  The kids were great during Community Meeting and there was ice cream afterwards.  Yea for ice cream!

I was able to get two eggs on Friday, and that let me make brownies with the boys after school.  We read in the crew kitchen while we baked, and learned about robotic insects.  We were able to download Cars II (it took 7 hours) and we had three lovely children join our three awesome children for family movie night.  We even had popcorn!

Saturday morning it was raining so we pushed back our outing and had coffee and homemade banana bread with our great neighbor Lisa.  The boys played with her 2 girls, Zodie and Else, and two more boys joined in the fun.  It was an awesome living in community morning.  The rain took a break, and we were able to make it off the ship.  Six adults and five children ventured out into Conakry. On our short walk we found the dental clinic where Mark will be working.  The security guard, Mome', took us around the dental clinic, and by the time we were finished with our tour we had about 15 Africans who had joined our tour.  We chatted as best we could in our broken french, and their pretty good English.  The people are very excited about us being here.  They are ready for us to get to work.

We also met a lovely man, Abdoula, who spoke excellent English, and wanted to be our personal boat driver.  He wouldn't let us move on until we took down his name and phone number.  There are some islands that we are hoping to visit, and he said he would be able to take us there.  We aren't that adventurous yet. 

All and all it was a wonderful morning, and a good first outing into West Africa. 

A Week of Firsts!

First time in Spain!

Three planes and 38 hours of travel had us arriving on the Africa Mercy Saturday August 11th at about 10:30pm.  The kids were super excited, and they had slept on the flight from Madrid to Tenerife so they had energy to spare.  It was all a bit overwhelming, and we were very thankful for our already made up futon and bunk beds.  The boys wanted to decorate immediatly.  We vetoed that idea and opted for straight to bed.

We enjoyed the beautiful weather in Tenerife, had gelato, and played at a playground.  Jacob learned to say, "Lo siento, no hablo espanol."  He was sad when he realized his new words would not help in Africa.  However, they are learning french in school.  Thursday I was greeted at lunch by three "Bonjour, Mama!"  So cute.

First day of school!

All three boys started school on Tuesday!  I have to say it felt bittersweet to have them all go off at once, but I am confidant that this will be a good experiance for them.  I can already see areas where they have grown.  Caleb took to school right away.  He loves his kindergarten class, and has completed all his homework on his own.  Matthew's week had been a little tougher, but by Friday he decided that he really likes school and that his teacher is in his own words, "really nice because she loves God very much."  It is so wonderful to know that the people that are spending so much time with them have hearts for the Lord!  Jacob really did not like being woken up in the morning.  He has had nine years of waking up when his body tells him to, and this has definatly been an adjustment.  Like Matthew by Friday Jacob had also decided that he likes school and that it actually is really fun. 

Reading Friday after visiting the library.

First time sailing!

We started our sail Thursday morning.  We moved our T.V. to the floor, and secured everything that we didn't want broken.  We stood on deck seven as we pulled away from the dock, and a local Tenerife man played "How Great Thou Art" on his trumpet.  It was an amazing experience!  The ship rocks continually, it feels like being in a giant rocking chair.   Blessedly, we all seem to be good with the movement.  No sick bellies!   This picture is of us standing on the bow of the ship.

Soon to come...first time in West Africa!

Blessings

 The last two weeks in America have flown by...I can't believe we are at the last full day in America.  We have been so encouraged by our time with friends and family and we will forever cherish the memories that have been made. 

Our bags are packed.  All six of them weighing in at 300 pounds plus three rolling carry-on bags, and five personal bags.  It wasn't easy getting down to this amount of baggage, but I think we have what we need and some of what we want. 

 If you would like to bless us further we would love a picture of your family that we can add to our picture wall in the cabin.  You can send pictures and letters to

Mark & Gretchen Bullock Mercy Ships IOC M/V Africa Mercy – Dental PO Box 2020, Lindale, TX 75771-2020, USA

A Note from Mercy Ships website about Mail: Letters, packages, etc will be forwarded regularly to the ship. Please advise your family and friends that it could take several weeks for mail to reach you in West Africa. If we are sent packages (or anything over 1 ounce), we will be charged $8.80/ pound ($0.55 per ounce).

We humbly request that if you send us something over an ounce in weight that you include a check for postage cost. 

God's blessings are abundant...in the last two weeks we have been able to share about Mercy Ships with several churches.  In just 2 short weeks we have raised 10 months of our crew fees(room and board).  Praise God!  Both Mark and I know this is the powerful provision of God through the generosity of His people.  We have been so encouraged by the prayers, encouragement, and financial support.  We are thankful for each and every one of you who has stepped out in faith with us on this journey, and request that you continue to cover us in prayer as we leave for the Africa Mercy tomorrow.

Indonesia Part Two in Pictures

A 2 hour car trip, 30 minutes in a Land Rover, and a 45 minute hike later we arrived in Ciwanguan.

Crossing a bamboo bridge on our hike...I am not a fan of bamboo bridges.

God's amazing and beautiful creation.

Getting ready for a morning clinic.  So thankful my husband brings his coffee pot.

Dinner in Pak Andy's home...one of three believing families in Ciwanguan.

Everyone wanted to pitch in and help.  They are setting up the dental clinic area of the yard, where Chris and Utep will demonstrate what they have learned about dental health.

Eye clinic in another part of the yard.

Blankets made by  Louann (Granny) & Kathleen (Nana) all of the expecting mothers appreciated the beautiful gift.

Doc Cawley ran a medical clinic and was able to use his portable ultrasound to check the health of expectant mothers and their babies.

The finished wind sock.

Rebecca led a group of children in creating some fun crafts.