tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17695563340233678662024-02-19T08:09:06.603-08:00Mikarts FamilyMikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-60339871948663831212012-10-18T11:24:00.001-07:002012-10-18T11:24:51.490-07:00The holidays have arrived!<br />
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">Blessings to you! The summer zipped by and it’s hard to believe that Thanksgiving is right around the corner.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">Soon I will be dropping off boxes to be decorated by the kids in the preschool, I can’t wait to see all the colorful scenes of turkeys and pilgrims. Just imagine how well received they will be when they arrive in Haiti or the Dominican republic! We are already receiving confirmation letters from the missionaries. “Oh yes count me in!” or “Woo we are so exited to be a recipient of this gift!” It all makes for an electric atmosphere.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Lucida Fax"; font-size: 18.0pt; font-weight: bold; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Lucida Fax"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Lucida Fax"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Lucida Fax"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">“Oh yes, <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Lucida Fax"; font-size: 18.0pt; font-weight: bold; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Lucida Fax"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Lucida Fax"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Lucida Fax"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">count me in!”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">So what does a can of pumpkin pie mix , a box of stuffing and some cranberry sauce stir so much excitement? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">First you have to ask where are these folks serving, and who? Then you start to gain some light into why this is so special. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere. What does that mean?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="direction: ltr; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt; unicode-bidi: embed;">·</span><span style="width: 13.5pt;"> </span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">90% of Haitians don’t have running water.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="direction: ltr; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt; unicode-bidi: embed;">·</span><span style="width: 13.5pt;"> </span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">Most live on less than $2 a day<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="direction: ltr; font-family: Symbol; font-size: 10pt; unicode-bidi: embed;">·</span><span style="width: 13.5pt;"> </span><span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">Most eat once a day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">The missionaries that serve in Haiti give of themselves all the time, whether it’s through church building, clinics, or orphanages these folks are hard at God’s work. So you can imagine when someone offers a thanksgiving meal what a blessing it must be. It also makes these servants of God feel connected and loved.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">It’s hard enough to serve in a mission filed like Haiti, and if this small gesture gives them encouragement, then I’m all for it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">For many , Agape means a connection to loved ones back home and a reliable way to keep in touch with their sending organizations. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; font-size: 14.0pt; language: en-US; line-height: 113%; mso-ansi-language: en-US; mso-ascii-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-cyrillic-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-default-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-greek-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latin-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-latinext-font-family: "Monotype Corsiva"; mso-ligatures: none;">We all have our role to play in God’s plan and I feel so honored to be a part of it. Those of you who have heard the voice of the Holy Spirit and joined in this ministry, I say, “thank you, you too are the hands and feet of Christ Jesus.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">It’s that time of the season! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">When things start to get crazy around here, the holydays have officially started for us at Agape. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">The Missionary Thanksgiving Dinner project is under way.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">Please consider stretching your Thanksgiving guest list to include a missionary family. Your $80.00 gift helps to deliver a turkey and all the trimmings to one missionary family in Haiti, the Bahamas or the Dominican Republic. Thanksgiving dinners are lovingly boxed by Agape volunteers and delivered by our pilots.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">Here are some of the letters that we got from the missionaries last year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">“We wanted to express our thanks for all your work to make our Thanksgiving very special! We have a tradition of sharing our meal together as a missionary community and this year we have 110 people at our home! Everyone brought a variety of traditional Thanksgiving dishes, thanks to the special ingredients our families received from your generous donors. It took 6 turkeys to feed that many people! We had 6 nationalities represented to celebrate our American Thanksgiving feast. The fun part is that giving thanks to God transcends all nationalities. It was truly a special day. Thank you for the huge part that you played to make this special day possible for us.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">Becky Thompson<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">“Please let everyone who had a part in financially contributing, shopping, packing , decorating and loading the boxes know,- - WE THANK GOD FOR YOU! There is Thanksgiving fever in the building in our communities Santo Domingo and beyond. Recipes, plans, swapping sweet potatoes for stuffing or pie mix, make our get togethers a very special time for all of us”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">Cindy & Tom Darnell’<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="en-US" style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 113%;">Dominican Republic.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-47338008393266185132010-08-13T08:35:00.000-07:002010-08-13T08:39:23.934-07:00Still the same in Haiti.“ Grace and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ.”<br />This is how Paul opened his letter to the church in Rome, what an awesome opening!<br />One day I was sitting in my office, when the Holy Spirit moved me to make some calls to local flower nurseries. Edgewood Nursery donated the purple fountain grass, and gave us a good deal on the red mulch. Now, let me say this, I am not a gardener, as a matter of fact I have the black thumb of death when it comes to plants. Since this is for the glory of God; it seems to have turned out very well. All things are possible through Christ Jesus. The beautification project continues. If you have a green thumb, join me<br /><br />Well here we are, six months after the earthquake in Haiti. What has really changed? Well aside from all the death, injuries, and rubble that once used to be homes, not much. The Haitian government is slow to move and no housing permits are yet to be issued. The presidential palace is still in the same condition after the quake.<br />The last time I was in Port Au Prince, the terminal building and control tower was still in shambles. Yet the Haitian people go about their daily routines and life goes on. Here we get all bent out of sorts if our coffee isn’t prepared to our liking. There is much to learn from these people.<br />We are trying to resolve some problems in Santiago, as customs is giving us some new regulations that we must comply with. One of the regulations states that the manifests must be in Spanish, and that they must arrive at the customs office before the load arrives by two weeks. We don’t know what is arriving at Agape from day to day, it varies greatly. Luke, our new chief pilot, has taken the “bull” by the horns and is asking lawyers what the options are. One option is to wait for the new government to come in the fall and see if things change. <br />Fortunately, we are still getting the cargo to those missionaries, it might take us a little longer, but it still gets there.<br />One of the big joys for us, is to give six-packs of Mountain Dew or Dr. Pepper to the missionaries. That really puts a big smile on their faces. “you just can’t get it here” No problem, glad to help.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-53747014512199771092010-07-22T12:22:00.000-07:002010-07-22T12:28:10.722-07:00Summer @ Agape.Blessings abound! Our trip to Brazil went great, we learned many things about our new to us plane, and got to practice many otherwise dangerous maneuvers in the simulator. Now that we are equipped with our new knowledge we are better able to manage the unforeseen when we fly in the service of the Lord.<br />Please keep the missionaries and the people of Haiti in your prayers, as the situation has not really improved much. I happened to catch a story on TV about how rice vender's in Haiti are having a tough time making a profit because there so much rice that came in after the earthquake. (If its not one thing ,its another).<br />Unfortunately, the world has moved on and Haiti doesn’t make the news anymore. Here at Agape we are very aware of what is happening, and we are still getting supplies. Not like we used to, but its good to still see it coming in.<br />I hope that you had a chance to come to our plane dedication on July 26, a good time was had by all.<br />On June 26 Agape dedicated our new(to us) plane. Agape celebrated with a picnic and hot dogs , hamburgers and frys were served. Local entertainment was also on hand. The last time we lost an aircraft ( our Cessna Caravan) Agape went an entire year to the day without an airplane.<br />God is so good that he brought people and aircraft to Agape, and service to the missionaries was not affected . I don’t think that a month went by this time when we got the “Bandit”, Praise God!<br /> <br />Now more than ever the people, and leaders of Haiti need your prayers. It has been six months since the earthquake and nothing has been done with respect to removing rubble or rebuilding. 98% of the population is still living in tents with no water or electricity.<br />The Haitian government is tying up many of the critical medical supplies because the customs officials in Haiti what to impose a 20% tax on all relief supplies. There are warehouses full of supplies, but very little if any are getting through.<br />On the Dominican side, the Dominican government felt taken advantage of during the earthquake relief effort because little or no oversight was taken as to what was coming through the country. Now they are knuckling down on everything and making the process of Agape getting cargo through tough.<br />But God is bigger than any of these problems, and we continue to get the mail and much of the supplies through with the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.<br />On another note; many projects are abound here at Agape, they seem to grow like the grass during the summer months. Just when you think you have them under control; you find your self drowning in the tide that is the infamous “honey do list”<br />If anyone finds time to come in and give a hand with gardening, painting, or just general up keep, please give me a call, I would love to share my Agape honey do list with you.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-67862517701592515932010-06-04T05:53:00.000-07:002010-06-04T09:23:06.375-07:00June is here! Here is an update.Praise God from which all blessings flow! If you read this log between the 4-12 of June, chances are, I am in in Curitiba Brazil. The weather is a low of 52F and a high of 62F. Four of us from Agape will be there going through the paces of getting checked out in the new plane. Unfortunately there are no simulators in the U.S.<br /><br />The hangar is starting to look “normal” again, but it’s a new normal. Lately we have been flying Tuesday and returning the same day. On Thursday & Friday it has been a two day trip. Now that things have slowed we are going back to a Thursday / Friday only schedule.<br /><br />In a way its sad to see that peoples attention span is so short; we received emergency donations for a solid 14 days, then it dropped off. Please keep the people of Haiti in your prayers; many of the people are still living in tents, and now the rainy season is here. It makes for a miserable combination. Thank you to all for keeping this ministry going!<br /><br />Praise God from whom all blessing flow! The mad rush which has been our lives for the last 6 months is slowing to a more normal pace (what’s normal?). We have had quite a few youth groups visit with us, one from Christ United Methodist Church, and the other from Georgia. The blessings that these young people bring to us here is great! They may be a little timid at first, but by the time its all done they see and learn that servitude isn’t as bad the world makes it out to be, and in the end we all learn something and the Holy sprit is awakened; aglow in our faces which makes others take note.<br /><br />Yes the mission of Agape is to serve Gods missionaries, but there is a ministry created by the ministry. All that come to Agape are welcome, weather you come of your own accord or if you are ordered to come to serve community service, Agape is here to give Agape.<br /><br />There is one gentleman which stands out in my mind. His name is George, and he is handicapped because upon coming out of a bar he wondered out into the street to be hit by several cars. After coming out of a comma for a few months the doctors told him that he would never walk again. George was ordered to serve community service. When he came to us at Agape he could barely walk or talk. We didn’t treat him any different than any one else. Now you wouldn’t recognize George; he now moves boxes speaks clearly and we love having him around. George said, “If it wasn’t for you guys, I don’t know where I would be, my body gets exercise from all the work you let me do and you treat me like a real person! Thank you.”<br /><br />Thank you Lord for letting me serve.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-56744629516830938592010-05-14T11:30:00.000-07:002010-05-14T11:37:17.400-07:00June is almost here...Time to go to BrazilWOW, what a fist half of the year!<br />Earthquakes, Medical emergencies, airplane crashes; if I didn’t know any better I would say Christ is coming back real soon!<br />On a good note, the Lord provided for many people in Haiti, and I was witness to many miracles.<br />It never ceases to amaze me how God always comes through. Always. Just when you think that all is lost , or how in the world is something going to get done without ( insert need here). God has an answer; just ask.<br />One of my recent problems was how am I going to afford the training for our new airplane? God answers… No problem, my child, your airfare to Brazil...Paid. Your training...No charge...Your hotel...Paid.<br />God is good, all the time. Yes I have to go to Brazil because there are no simulators for the Embrair here in the U.S. so please say a prayer for me on June 7-12.<br />Thank you to all who helped put together all the back packs full of goodies, they were a huge hit.<br /><br /><br />I don't think I've ever been to a place that was such a mess. That is not to say that God has forsaken Haiti. I see many Haitians that have taken Jesus into their hearts and are happy despite their hardships, we could learn a lot from them.<br />I would like to think that I've learned to take myself a little less seriously , (I know my wife Kristin would say otherwise) it’s a work in progress. We are so blessed, beyond comprehension, yet I get bent out of shape if my sneakers aren't white enough, or my coffee isn’t the way I like it. It makes me feel spoiled and ungrateful.<br />I suppose that many people would look down on Haiti, and point out all the things that are wrong, (and there is much room for improvement), but I choose to look at the strength of the people there. The average Haitian earns $135.00 a year, yet the price of food and other goods is equal to what we pay here in the U.S. That blows my mind! How resourceful one must have to be to live on $135.00 a year! At the same time it makes me think of what we have here.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-79882164584343312842010-04-13T12:41:00.000-07:002010-04-13T13:43:47.993-07:00Hait is getting better? Not really.I must say that it is indeed a blessing to be in the service of the Lord. We have delivered over 500,000 pounds of relief supplies since the earthquake. In the process we lost our King Air 90. Fortunately no one was hurt, but the plane was not so lucky. We continued to provide relief regardless. The good Lord then mad in-roads for us to have a bigger plane that can haul double the load that the king air could carry.<div><br />The hanger has taken a beating during all this time that supplies have been coming in. The floor of the hanger is in a word, trashed. I’m going to need some big help in getting it to look good, so a word to you volunteers out there, come on in and give me a hand!</div><div><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; ">The situation down in Haiti is getting better. Instead of it being an intolerable mess, its now just a mess.</span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 16px; "></span>Haiti is back to its old tricks, I recently went to Port Au Prince where I would normally go to the “G.A.” ramp to off load. Now I am told to go to the main terminal to pass customs and pay all the fees. For a while we were exempt from fees due to the fact that we were bringing in humanitarian relief. Back to normal I guess.<br /><br />The fees and taxes that were lifted for the relief effort for all that were bringing in tons and tons of food and medical supplies. But now we are being charged landing fees, parking fees, and communication and navigation fees. Unfortunately this is discouraging many people from coming down again after being slapped with all those fees.</div><div><br />Agape sent five 40’ containers only to have them held up so that the Haitian government can assess taxes and fees on the contents. Not to worry God is in control, and be glad to know that most of the containers have now been released.</div><div><br />I hate to think of some one going hungry, or not getting what they desperately need because of bureaucracy and greed. The world is a cruel place.</div><div><br />I’ve seen the cargo change through all this, from medical supplies to food, then to shelter, and now its transitioning into building supplies and construction.</div><div><br />Now for the most important: Your prayers.</div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-33699301634270959642010-01-26T16:02:00.000-08:002010-01-27T03:50:52.085-08:00Giving Issac a ride of a lifetimeOn Friday we were headed on the way back, but first we had to make a stop in Cap Haitian. We were to pickup an orphan boy who had been adopted and take him to Sarasota, simple enough. Well nothing is as simple as it seems, and no good deed goes unpunished.<br /><br />We had arrived at 1pm and were told that they would be waiting for us at the airport,WRONG. The truth is thy were more than an hour way and were trying to get to the airport on the back of a scooter! They were going as fast as they could to meet the plane. When they arrived the customs officer noted that it was 4:45 and purposely delayed us by letting others cut in front of us. It was no shock when he hit us up for a $50 overtime fee. Then Issac's passport came into question. "Where is the child's passport?" the customs guy barked. Erick, the boys new dad explained, "All we have is what you see here; his passport was destroyed in the earthquake." The customs guy didn't seem to understand. "How is he going to leave the country without a passport?" The father again tried to explain that it was under tons of rubble. Issac was now getting upset. He was tired and didn't understand what the big fuss was; he just wanted to go to his new home, where ever it was.<br /><br />The customs guy finally relented, and now we could depart. It was now 4:30 and the sun was getting low. I figured we could make Exuma by night. I was desperate to get everyone on the plane as fast as possible. I was expecting the customs guy to charge us with something again. Issac was still upset, I tried to tell him that everything is fine, and that the fun part was just about to begin. Once we departed and got to altitude I turned to see if Issac was OK. I reached into my backpack and pulled out a big bag of snack mix. He reached into the bag and commented, to his delight, that it was not rice and beans. "Are you cold?" He nodded his head. Again I reached int my backpack and pulled out a hoodie. Then I remembered that I had a whole box of Strawberry pop tarts. "Here try these." When I looked back he was well into his second, and was smiling from ear to ear. He was warm, he was airborne, and peanuts and pop tarts aplenty!<br /><br />I almost wanted to cry. Here was a little boy who thought that the big city was Port Au Prince. And now in one day he had taken his first airplane ride, and had tasted something other than beans and rice.<br /><br />We were almost to Exuma, but the reports that were coming in were telling us that Exuma was fogged in, no landings at Exuma. A quick discussion about whether we should hold over the island and wait for conditions to improve or continue to Nassau. Nassau it was. We landed and quickly passed through customs. Issac had never seen such opulent surroundings. The pilots lounge had leather chairs and a very big flat screen TV. Along with all this, he was quite the celebrity. That night he had his first hamburger and fries, and went to sleep with a full tummy probably for the first time.<br /><br />The two hour flight found us in Sarasota and we passed through customs. We were met by six agents who then treated Issac to Coke and quesadilla. He was smiling from ear to ear. Before we left and said our good byes I gave Issac an Agape pin and thanked him for being such a great passenger. Welcome to America Issac, don't get a tummy ache.<br /><br />I love my job! Thank you God for using me.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-55363530686210703062010-01-24T16:04:00.000-08:002010-01-25T03:42:52.866-08:00Disaster reliefI must say that I have done a bit of flying in the last few days. On, Thursday, January 14th, I flew out to a small grass strip to pick up a Cessna 401 (twin engine,7 passenger airplane) then swung north to pick up my passengers. The group I was picking up were a group of disaster relief experts that were to organize the relief efforts in Haiti.<br /><br />I arrived at 10am and the amount of cargo they had was surprising. Were they expecting a military transport? How was I going to fit all this gear in the plane and become airborne? After much figuring and head scratching by my co-pilot Paul, we were ready to depart. We received our clearance and we took off into the bright blue Florida sky.<br /><br />As we neared our refueling stop of Exuma, the chatter on the frequency was that no flights were being allowed into Port Au Prince. We informed the passengers and they asked "how close can you get us?" "Can you get us to Las Americas? So off to to the south of the Dominican Republic went. After another refueling stop in Proveceales, we took off into the setting sun which then gave way to night. Flying at night in the Caribbean is especially dark. It was so dark that for all intents and purposes I could have been on board the international space station. The only way we knew we were moving was because the instruments said so.<br /><br />When we arrived in Las Americas it was clear that the staging for a massive influx of aid from all over the world was being staged. I saw aircraft from Russia, China, Italy, and Japan. Here I was in my little Cessna 401. Our passengers got off and they proceeded to rent an SUV and drove the rest of the way to Port Au Prince. I hope they made it.<br /><br />On Monday I hopped in an Aztec (small twin) to act as a shuttle between Santiago and Port Au Prince. On Tuesday we woke and off we went, or so we thought. The Dominican flight plan office had not filed our flight plan, and now we were not going to make our 8am slot time in Port Au Prince; I was furious! I had flown five and a half hours on Monday, and made it to the airport three hours early to make sure all went smoothly and for all of that to be undone by a bureaucrat! I spoke with his supervisor [editor's note: good thing he speaks Spanish!!] and explained that that I had to make my slot time. We got out an hour late start and praying that by some miracle we would make it into Port. We climbed up over the 10,000' mountains and all along the way I was expecting someone to tell us to turn back, but that call never came.<br />When we arrived in Port Au Prince The frequency was a buzz with military traffic. There were all sorts of aircraft flying around,helicopters,big transports,and small aircraft were all coming and going smoothly. Praise God!<br /><br />We off loaded our 800 pounds of medical supplies and saw them whisked away by one of the missionaries that we serve in a caged truck. As thy drove away, I started to see the scope of the quake. There were tents on the airport and pallet and pallets of supplies of stuff that wasn't moving. Why is all this stuff her, I wondered? [Editor's note, again... I think they were the impounded stuff that Mark talked about on Facebook or in an email. The stuff didn't have the right paperwork.] All the missionaries that Agape had in Port were now a perfect distribution network, and our supplies were getting out right away as fast as we could unload them. As we readiedgot ready to deport, I met other pilots that I had flown with in the past. It was as though we had all come together to fight against a common foe. That enemy was death, and it felt glorious; I had never been a part of something so big. Thank you God for using me!<br /><br />We continued with our supply runs, two slots a day, and side runs to surrounding areas as was needed. We carried mostly food and water. We had the opportunity to pick up and drop off doctors and other folks. We carried four guys from Barahona [Dominican Republic] that were there to set up a massive tent as a MASH unit. All in all, it was quite the adventure.<br /><br />Makes you wish you were a missionary, huh? I'm loving it! [Editor's note: Stay tuned for some amazing stories! This was his "logistics" post. Next will be a sights and sounds post!]Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-49893940326890298232010-01-20T08:18:00.000-08:002010-01-20T08:26:35.051-08:00Haiti as of 1/20/2010It's Kristin again...<br /><br />What a crazy weekend! We spent at least 12 hours at the hangar on Saturday and another long day on Sunday. Mark flew a tiny Aztec to the Dominican Republic on Monday. He is supposed to be there for a few days. He says he is coming home on Friday, we shall see...<br /><br />This morning he felt the aftershock, but didn't say much more about it.<br /><br />Anyway, the PAP airport is working on a reservation system. So he had one drop off yesterday and another today. Today he is bringing water - about 700 lbs of it! The King Air is bringing 2500lbs of beans and rice. That will feed a ton of people - but my question is how do they cook if the water is needed for drinking? But I imagine they have that figured out.<br /><br />Mark also mentioned that customs is a huge hassle. If you don't have the exact paperwork, you are out of luck and Haitian customs confiscates your cargo. The Dominican Republic is also becoming an issue because they are probably tired of being a staging area. There has always been hostility between the countries and so seeing all this help go to Haiti when they have poverty too is probably difficult.<br /><br />There are still 17 Agape families unaccounted for. Please pray for them and their families back home. <br /><br />On the home front, the boys miss Mark and ask where he is frequently. But we are having our own fun and our own adventures. This is a busy week, so that helps us from "getting into trouble" and keeping the boys off my nerves. Getting the kids to school was the smoothest it's ever been! How great is that... Thank you for caring, reading, and praying! God is doing mighty huge works right now (well, when doesn't He?) and it is exciting to be on the front lines. Thank you for helping! I'll add some pictures tonight when I'm at home.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-76834264800146058822010-01-15T10:47:00.000-08:002010-01-15T10:50:52.810-08:00Haiti EarthquakeWow, has it really been since November that Mark has updated his blog. I guess nothing exciting has happened in our family or with Agape?? Just kidding, this is Kristin taking time out from writing my blog <a href="http://2corinth1-4mom.blogspot.com/">2corinth1-4mom.blogspot.com</a> to update his.<br /><br />Mark is currently returning from the Dominican Republic. He was flying one of King's Wings airplanes. He flew a group of doctor's. They wanted to get to Haiti, but since the airspace was closed yesterday, they did the next best thing and landed in Santo Domingo. The doctors chose to rent a car and drive to Haiti. They should have waited 12 hours and they would have been delivered directly to Port au Prince. Here's hoping the doctors are safe on their journey - definitely not one that I would take!<br /><br />Anyway, Agape is coming up with their "game plan" and working tirelessly to help with the relief efforts. I am amazed by the help that is pouring in and the servant-like attitude of everyone! From what I can gather they will continue working through the weekend.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.agapeflights.com/">www.agapeflights.com</a> has so much more information - head over and pray for, by name, the people mentioned!Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-75029867840410920132009-11-23T16:21:00.000-08:002009-11-23T17:01:19.474-08:00Too close to callHi,<div>I know that I haven't blogged in a while; but I have something interesting worth blogging. I came across this story that was originally written March 8,1986. Its an interesting story that gives you an idea of what we some times have to deal with.</div><div><br /></div><div>It had not been week for the faint-hearted. First the Duvalier government had laid on a state of siege, with troops everywhere. Tensions were running high as country people as well as city people alike waited for some one to make the first move in the showdown between the people and the government of Haiti. Stores were mostly closed either in protest of the government of Duvalier or in fear of the mob attack by those who were trying to force the downfall of the Duvalier regime. In Cap Haitian there was one grocery store that opened for a couple of hours each morning to serve the needs of desperate shoppers. The store itself was like a mad house as people pushed and shoved to get what groceries they could before they would all be gone. </div><div><br /></div><div>Then on Friday Haitian National Television announced what everyone was waiting to hear... Duvalier had fled the country. People everywhere erupted with wild shouts of joy, and joyful dancing in the streets. Then the downtrodden turned on the oppressors and the search began for those Tonton Macoutes that had caused so much suffering in Haiti during the Duvalier Regime. the common people became angry mobs of vigilanties, seeking out and beating or killing any Tonton Macoutes they could find.</div><div><br /></div><div>The new government of Haiti, the Council of Five, attempted to restore order by closing the country's borders, roads, airports, and seaports, and imposing long curfews. That Saturday morning Agaps flights was hurling down the airways to Haiti when Miami center boomed over the pilots headset and told the pilot to turn back to the States; Haiti was closed up tight-no flights allowed.</div><div><br /></div><div>Tune in next week for the rest of the story!</div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-87482791281436751422009-09-01T11:19:00.000-07:002009-09-01T11:39:41.672-07:00Loose lips...get me mad.Wednesday the 25th I was flying for God. When I landed for the day I thought I would check out my wife's blog . Only to read that Some one At the fountain had made a nasty comment to one of my kids teachers.<br />If it bothered this person soooo much why didn't she confront my wife? or me, I was there.<br />Its so easy to to make assumptions when you don't have all the facts. "Miss perfect parent " probably doesn't know that my kids are special needs, and when they don't listen one must get stern sometimes. Miss "perfect parent" probably would not be able to handle my kids; since she lives in a "Disney" reality where here kids are perfect automatons and doesn't have to go through the emotional ups and downs that we do because of people like her and her comments.<br />By the way; My wife is the best mom to my kids, she is attentive, caring, loving, and she has patience that amazes me,(the ex-corrections deputy).Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-28551030282695248232009-06-17T10:44:00.000-07:002009-06-17T11:10:59.085-07:00Engines,Mail bags and such...<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDlW8RNB1mFR0tgl7RRJUXNmgvxiK3zGqT6WP2dWISShH8QfPBJM_EOMTW971aEt6vWwtuaHAFMUFWJcs42kHVypG7Ac1wNftEhEVpDfO9XLKl9RrNvf_90IAMhKNdCG-k4fdGy4XcPU/s1600-h/Bob+Jones+%26+Mark+in+DR.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5348360307948468290" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDlW8RNB1mFR0tgl7RRJUXNmgvxiK3zGqT6WP2dWISShH8QfPBJM_EOMTW971aEt6vWwtuaHAFMUFWJcs42kHVypG7Ac1wNftEhEVpDfO9XLKl9RrNvf_90IAMhKNdCG-k4fdGy4XcPU/s400/Bob+Jones+%26+Mark+in+DR.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Boy! Has it been a month since I last published? Well let me catch you up!</div><br /><div>The king Air was finally flown out of Eluthra with a rental engine, and tweaked here at Venice. The nice folks at King's Wings were very kind in letting us use their Cessna 401 while all the fixing was going on with the King Air. When bad things happen... You meet some really nice people.</div><br /><div>Agape got some bad news about the engine that blew; it would cost more to fix than to by another used and in better condition. So after spending alot of money we have a new engine, and again King's Wings is letting us use their Cessna 401.</div><br /><div>Here's an interesting story. King's Wings was in a bind and asked if one of Agape's pilots could fly a team over to the D.R. in there Cessna 401, no problem. I fly over to N. Palm Beach airport to meet the team, only to find Ruffin Stepp from Venice Presbyterian! What a small world. Ruffin got to be my co-pilot for the wonder flight to Eluthra. I love how God puts people in our lives.</div><br /><div></div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-45260729377283399842009-04-17T06:16:00.000-07:002009-04-17T10:46:21.027-07:00Here we go again.A lot has been going on here at Agape... But one thing is clear: God is in control. We all have this grand illusion that we are in control, nothing could be further from the truth.<br /><br />Last week when the King Air was out on its weekly run, the right engine blew shortly after taking off. Our boys had to make a 180 turn and go back to Eluthra. With everyone safe, the forces of the Holy Spirit, and of the most high God kicked in!<br /><br />Dave Spagler who is based in Eluthra put his airplane in to help us out. Boxes for the missionaries we transferred to Dave's plane and on they went to Haiti, and the next day on to the D.R. the supply line continued!<br /><br />We could flip-out and say "What are we gonna do now?!" But no, it's in God's hands. The plane will be fixed, and in the process we will all have grown a little bit and experienced blessings that other wise we would have missed. It's all good... God always has our best interest in mind, I know its hard to believe sometimes, but its true.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-89321993928351988312009-03-18T12:07:00.000-07:002009-03-18T12:17:03.422-07:00You gotta eat.Well its Wednesday here at Agape, and the fist thing we do is eat! I can't complain. I must say my physical tummy is full , but lately I've been feeling spiritually hungry, a definite sign that I have not been in the word as often as I should. So if you see me, ask me if I've had my "bread " today. Sometimes I get busy & I forget, so remind me.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-15497210460290869802009-03-08T18:30:00.000-07:002009-03-08T18:53:01.802-07:00Staying in the Dominican RepublicHi, I trust that everyone is doing well. I flew on March 4Th, and I stayed with one of our missionary families. these folks are the nicest you'll ever meet, and when I learn that I will be staying with them I always look forward to it.<br />The family lives in a small house and when we come to stay for the night we end up displacing two people out of their beds which makes me feel bad, but the excitement at the house when we arrive is always at a fever pitch. His daughters all come out to say a shy hello and his young son comes out to greet us to try out his English on us.<br />His wife who used to be a hotel chef always makes the best Dominican meals. Their hospitality is hard to beat.<br />Rodger's son was showing us some of his art work, I must say, he is very talented. I wish I could show you some of the work this 10 year old does! Rodger was telling me that he would like to send him to art school, but that he could not afford it, it broke my heart! However I will be sending him some are supplies, if anything its the least I can do.<br />Rodger is quite the carpenter, and furnture maker. All his living room furniture is made by him, I wish I could show you.<br />This is what its all about, fellowship. If we could all get along this way and do God's will in the process the world would go far. God's kingdon is great! and this is a small look into it. Its awsome!Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-39694756959135530502009-02-11T08:15:00.000-08:002009-02-12T06:36:09.609-08:00Tornados! Where.Yes I'm still here after several tornado's touched down (thanks for asking). Luckily none of them were where we were staying.<br />I think that they are wrapping it up here at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Covington</span>, it should be done some time today.<br />I can't wait to go home, don't get me wrong; the folks here at <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Covington</span> are great, all are firm servants for Christ, and their hospitality is beyond compare, but I'm home sick and I miss my family (I know, I'm a wimp).<br />Stand by for the local Mexican <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">restaurant</span> report!Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-84461639316744933502009-02-10T11:50:00.000-08:002009-02-10T15:35:59.520-08:00Hanging out in Oklahoma.Patience, the mere mention of the word conjuors up visions of waiting for a very long time. Cobwebs and skeletons come to mind. I'm sitting at Covington engine, and waiting for some things to get done, but the wait is never easy. Good things come to those that wait, or so I am told. Impatience is not good. The Israelites got impatient with Moses to return from Mt. Sinai and things got ugly. <div></div><div>The engine on the plane is split open so they can inspect all the goodies inside (fascinating stuff).<br />I would love to be on my way back home. I'm such a home body, I would have never made it in the airlines, I would be too home sick! </div><div><br />Oklahoma is a big open place, windy & cool, what do people do here? The folks here at Covington are up to thier ears in work because all the crop dusters are in for work. I always thought that they were small. These planes are huge, with massive engines!<br /></div><div> </div><div> </div><div>[I am struggling with layout here... Help, anyone??] Picture 1: As you can see, there isn't much here. That big pickup was given to us for the week. I have never driven an f-250 diesl; it's a nice ride. Picture 2: The big plane is a Grumen Abatross, its huge! Unfortunatly it hasn't flown in 3 years, kinda sad. Picture 3: The tubine disk is what makes all the power (550HP) not bad for a little disk. Stay tuned for more updates.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCYY-kO85uDMS3IMcejQcneb6rIsL2DwdJEXxOyGCRWfqwxPG1TiTnz-sfU998ikat93A3oIk9izldqdmssG-wNTTiWv5OGTAITJiqo41WygiaILaztFt4e6r2DKJsICLxwY1qCWWETMg/s1600-h/003.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301289068899381026" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 176px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 144px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCYY-kO85uDMS3IMcejQcneb6rIsL2DwdJEXxOyGCRWfqwxPG1TiTnz-sfU998ikat93A3oIk9izldqdmssG-wNTTiWv5OGTAITJiqo41WygiaILaztFt4e6r2DKJsICLxwY1qCWWETMg/s320/003.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><div> </div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7F_CaONDpAqfz7NwMv82UjVHwW3KTgOaAgMzv0FcU-lhM9ah-Anv7m4ZAuU_MmphVovwuXgYQhhWhm8vSqOPPfg-u0ctcywSfhK-dpPyOK-i8SLWt5uApA1d4fIdGYMPGU1HuhVGzUSQ/s1600-h/006.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301289069747475042" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 176px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 144px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7F_CaONDpAqfz7NwMv82UjVHwW3KTgOaAgMzv0FcU-lhM9ah-Anv7m4ZAuU_MmphVovwuXgYQhhWhm8vSqOPPfg-u0ctcywSfhK-dpPyOK-i8SLWt5uApA1d4fIdGYMPGU1HuhVGzUSQ/s320/006.jpg" border="0" /></a></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301290363733953458" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 119px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 104px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHj85n1qycFHvAVmfxBjkhBBw1zsU7TtpXvfzBa9BsdsNP47Ll3WBf4aktOcOfbJJFaNwxvLQCqKPHe9S6VER3Ix3DZdhkAIhOlwOUfRspbo5t5y-YYWPj_YYDO2Wol6nzrVlUn5NhCW8/s400/008.jpg" border="0" /></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><div></div><p align="left"></p>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-43847239501138988272009-02-08T15:35:00.000-08:002009-02-09T09:47:49.312-08:00Not Me MondayHowdy folks, I haven’t “not me’d” in a little while.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>This is a blog carnival started by MckMamma at <a href="http://mycharmingkids.net/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">MyCharmingKids</span>.net.</a><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I have no idea why it’s called a blog “carnival” – but it is…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>So when you are done feeling like a better mom than me, go over to her blog and you can see a whole slew of other denials. By the way, it is NOT Sunday. I mean, it's Monday in Australia, is it not? <div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300574573972525490" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 214px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkZ4h0wTJ5dEga0QtKg1nDqL8Lz4ipkNNjQ-cNyVbPTrQtb7NvD13jcgToCHpa9B1-Ne_92XkqmnQmhAyWDMY_3rRKq7DkP5vkw0p3LgflYQfzbpMGKZkcnRGn6QBMKXT6SZ4r5UnXF6Y/s320/IMG_3821.JPG" border="0" /> <div><br /></div><div>Mark is not sitting here contemplating how to make my Sunday afternoon difficult. He did not scheme up the plan to leave me with the van - but take the only set of keys with him to Oklahoma... I did not have to get <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">rescued</span> by Drew and Jeff. They did not leave what they were doing, come to my house, get the extra set of car keys, go to the airport, get the car, bring it back to me, and then go about their day. I did not have to call four of five people before I got these two guys. I did not try to call Mark a 100 times when he was stopped in Mississippi for Chili dogs and ice cream. He will not tell you that he needed fuel and a bathroom break. The real reason is not for the free chili dogs and ice cream. Oh and just in case you were not wondering, I did not/will not rat him out.</div><div><br /></div><div>Speaking of Mark and Oklahoma, I am not jealous that he is spending a week in a hotel – with maid service – while I’m at home with the kids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not thankful that at least I get to go to work and get a bit of a break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not going to keep the babysitter for date night and have a date with myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not planning on using aftercare at school at least twice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not that selfish (well maybe I am…).</div><div><br /></div><div>Do not be fooled by Ryan's apparent cuteness. It is not part of his ploy to take over the world. Here is not snuggled on his dad's legs. He acts all cute and innocent and then wham! He attacks - usually in the form of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">whining</span> - but even better - he gets into your stuff and makes a mess. He does not love to play in the kitchen cupboards, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">refrigerator</span>, and dishwasher. (Oh, we did not take the boys to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Lowe's</span> this week so they could open doors to the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">refrigerators</span> to their heart's content.)<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300574568017386658" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKBwVyx8ANF8aKjC66Eip0LhOk_rjsbMN6ZgT1tUb9emQOajRJ35YMCeMtqQ8n1RnJ_1Bjn6TdZJJOGnfjCrrmKv5ekkrV5NzAPGoyBieJCimBUbDyPR3ZQjAob-zevLnvTB6lraGyvIc/s320/IMG_3814.JPG" border="0" /></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;">I am not seriously considering swapping my pots and pans, cleaning supplies, and pantry ingredients with the toys in the toy room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I mean seriously, Ryan has gobs of toys, but what does he not play with?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>My stuff in the kitchen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>So if I swap, will he then play with his toys?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>How much of a pain would it be to walk to the toy room to get a baking dish?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>It’s not that far away…<?xml:namespace prefix = o /><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p>I do not think Zach grew at least half an inch this week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>His pants did not fit last weekend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Today, they are not too short.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Maybe that was why he was not grumpy last week -<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>maybe he did not have growing pains.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>He was not a nightmare for his teacher on Thursday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>He has not had this teacher for 3 years – and she has not been through many ups and downs with this little man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">I am not freaking out about my ankle or Achilles tendon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>It is not sore and I do not have a marathon all paid for and ready to go in April.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not worried about next weekend’s half marathon in </span><?xml:namespace prefix = st1 /><st1:city><st1:place><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Sarasota</span></st1:place></st1:city><span style="font-family:Georgia;">.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not planning on doing some serious cross-training this week and absolutely no running.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not looking for prayer – even though it is silly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not thankful that I worship a God who cares about the ankles as much as he cares about the bigger problems.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Speaking of God, I am not totally enjoying reading through the Old Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I mean where else can you read about battles where people were killed with a jawbone of a donkey?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"></span>Or a battle won because the other people were confused and the Israelites <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">did no</span>t even have to fight?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>It’s not cool stuff!</span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p>I am not reading Twilight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>It is not engaging.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>(Seriously, vampires and werewolves are not a genre I would choose – but I like this book.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not loving the fact that I can talk to kids at my school about this book…<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Although, I do not not-think these kids should be reading this – it’s a bit “mature” for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">tweeners</span>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>And, gasp, I am not actually getting excited about my cushy position being eliminated and going back to a classroom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not actually looking forward to having students again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am excited now, will I be in October??</o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p><span style="font-family:Georgia;">And finally, I am not counting the minutes until Mark returns from </span><st1:state><st1:place><span style="font-family:Georgia;">Oklahoma</span></st1:place></st1:state><span style="font-family:Georgia;"> where he watched an airplane get fixed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>Oh yeah, I am not pestering the people at google about my blog being disabled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </span>I am not frustrated that you can’t actually find the steps to get it corrected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes"> I am not secretly hiding a million other things I did not do this week. They usually involve short-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">temperedness</span> with the family... Oh, and I was not thankful that I listened to my friend Jen's morning-with-two-children stories. I have not had my kids paint their face with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Kool</span>-Aid powder the day of school pictures -with minutes to get out the door and get to school. So I am not thankful that it could be worse...</span></span></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">K</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p></div><div><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p></div></div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-15975475532955235412009-02-07T13:40:00.001-08:002009-02-07T13:59:28.219-08:00Campfires, track, and ramblingsI haven't blogged in a while and I am still pretty bummed that my personal blog is down, so I am still taking over Marks. He was blogging yesterday about the weather and I deleted his post because it wasn't what <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">I</span> wanted. And I've I wanted to put some pictures up... <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">(I don't know what's up with the picture placement and I don't have time to play around. I'm caught up in reading the Twilight Series and I just got the 3rd book. It is horrible literature, but I want to know what the kids at school are reading. I will say that vampires and werewolves are addicting...)</span><div><br /><div>Last Saturday night Zach came up with a great idea. He wanted to roast hot dogs over our fire pit. For those of you who know Zach, he really only talks about 3 things, Cars movie, riding the bus, and where's Daddy. So out of the blue, he told us very clearly, that he wanted hot dogs over the fire. When Zach speaks clearly and uses a new sentence, he pretty much gets what he wants. So of course, we cooked hot dogs over the fire. I was a nervous wreck because the boys kept walking around and getting too close to the fire for my tastes. But all went well and we had fun... Of course, my favorite part were the s'mores...</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8irZyfTBk3HwkPb3fg7XeFH2V2v98AgU5eaWVDAZizqCfYSxvexStO9vn4foKvhWPd3pgXggs3xsfRqCOd_DjhwruElbw8hBZ2-lsAtfMuWBS5V4_h8vhL5UNi1rUWktWRDnlRqM8-sU/s320/IMG_3828.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300176160099163346" /><div><br /></div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw9lwA5E1pu1qpDiSu64gEyJ9q1m-mACAbO536Rqr5vasGYrEfnfpwGqOJ3dz1HXo8SAAmtsfsnA2bT0MVGVNFh_InOdMG26JNhovwLj5aHH41plVj_-HK3KeXAFXlnvkKfZOgUbW4hGA/s320/IMG_3819.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 214px; height: 320px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300176158395672082" /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Zach's next Special Olympics sport, track, started today. All four of us went and had a great time. Zach made a new friend and I think he will like running. Maybe he can do the marathon with me in April? </div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDBDvHG-1extMtoN9u5smhocXLycwwwT6gcyMpqttrDpfmEb8JozS2jdRX_ggpw1z2aHGjNJUSh9qfPHcnzDhfU8NwxfqHEE6xCagfNGSt3-8M2cEFYhHy-Y4auo3x6OyF2NUvF3F-wcM/s320/IMG_3856.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300176161950513426" /><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHvGmvtahNA5ibCFW9VfEOw5ivIdsZiKysFuc2PsnyNT1qUAemwWqUhDQtd_gybguDGj0jET1txgMC76DN2oAVkXtNEoJYrRA04__zNwgLtZx0fhoWQiZREmm3Fz21Zje6jtFoZIF6qO4/s320/IMG_3871.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5300176165489879938" /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">above: Zach is running the 50 m dash - I won't say his time, but he stopped in the middle...</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">below: Mark, the clown, is juggling the 4, 6, and 8 lb shots from the shot put.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">Speaking of marathons in April, my ankle is bothering me. Please pray that I figure out why and that God heals it. After about 2 miles it really starts hurting. Today it wasn't too bad once I got past mile 6, but I don't want to do any long runs while it is bothering me. Ugh...</div></div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-27735566949691149622009-02-01T10:39:00.000-08:002009-02-01T13:16:06.504-08:00Water Egress Training!I must say that last Friday was quite interesting. I attended a water ditching survival class in Lakeland with some of my colleagues in the missionary flying biz. I don't know about you , but where can you go and be repeatedly dunked in pool with all your clothes on, and learn a bunch of cool survival stuff; yup, in God's service.<div><br />The class was taught by a navy rescue diver, and was very informative. We learned how to extricate ourselves from an inverted cockpit that was fully submerged. We were also induced to a bunch of neat survival gear, and got to play with an inflatable raft and practiced climbing in after each dunk. All in all a good time was had by all. God forbid we should ever have to use these skills, but we are now better equipped mentally if we do.</div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-57860213185761774862009-01-26T11:56:00.000-08:002009-01-26T12:08:19.266-08:00Not Me! MondayNot Me! Monday is a game started by<a href="http://mycharmingkids.net"> MckMamma at mycharmingkids.net</a>. Basically it's a chance to deny what you have done over the course of a week. Go to her website and check out oodles of other people's denials.<div><br /></div><div>Let me start this by using the obvious [not] me... I did [not] have my own blog disabled because blogspot thinks it's spam. I am [not] checking it frequently to see if it is back up again. I have [not] taken over my husbands blog. I do [not] really think they should be combined since his is Mikarts FAMILY. It's just that I do[not] like my blog better than his. (How do I word that so I say that mine is better than his??) </div><div><br /></div><div>I did [not] go completely lazy for the last two weekends and not clean my house thoroughly. I did [not] jump for joy when Mark decided he would mop the floor this week! I do [not] have a huge back-log of cleaning items - that I so neatly sorted using Travis's <a href="http://www.springcleanyearround.blogspot.com/">Spring Clean Year Round</a> system. </div><div><br /></div><div>I am [not] in this huge renovation kick. Ok, actually, I'm not - I just want to be... I did [not] drive Mark absolutely nuts with all these plans and ideas. I do [not] want to get rid of the carpet in the bedrooms. I am [not] tired of cleaning poop off carpet. However, I am [not] the greatest poop-carpet cleaner ever! I was [not] completely over said carpet when the dog got in on the carpet-pooping action. I am [not] writing about poop in my husband's blog. Nope, not me!</div><div><br /></div><div>I am [not] disappointed that my Mephisto clog's only went for $15 bucks on Ebay! The last pair of Mephistos did [not] go for $92. I am [not] contemplating taking the boys to the Bargin Barn this afternoon for more bargins. I have [not] struck out the last few times. I am [not] a bad mother because I'm choosing Goodwill over the playground... On that same vein, I'm [not] choosing to blog over getting dinner prepared. </div><div><br /></div><div>This is a pretty mild list, I am [not] sure there is more that I can deny... But how do you top poop and carpet? Can you tell I teach middle school????</div><div><br /></div><div>Kristin </div><div><br /></div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-14203840002434221852009-01-21T17:37:00.000-08:002009-01-21T17:41:42.221-08:00I'm temporarily taking over Mark's blog!!Aaahhhh... I have had my blog disabled!! So now I'm using Marks. I would say "hijacking" but since he is a pilot, that's probably not the terminology I'm supposed to use - even though I just did. Why is that when I don't have my own blog, I have all sorts of stuff I want to talk about?? <div><br /></div><div>Here's what I think happened to my blog. The blog robots that search the blogs to make sure they are "ok" thought mine was spam. I embedded a map of my most recent run and that was the last time I "saw" my blog. It wasn't even that impressive of a run - just 12 miles. I was all set to brag about this weekend's 18 mile run. Oh well. I put in a request to get blogger to look at my blog, and I don't know how long that takes. In the mean time, Mark's blog is going to become my own!</div><div><br /></div><div>I really don't have anything to say - other than - I hope they fix mine soon!</div><div><br /></div><div>K</div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-34360534208279255792009-01-13T12:42:00.000-08:002009-01-13T14:40:59.435-08:00I'm off...Fly'n For Jesus!Well here I am, the day before a flight. I'm getting the last few things ready, maintenance is working feverishly to fix some small last minute things, and the last of the cargo is loaded. I don't think we could fit another Bible on that plane.<div><br />My thoughts race as to what we will encounter in our travels. Will the airports have any issues? Will the weather be cooperative? Fuel availability? (That's a big one.) I remember calling an airport in the Bahamas the day before a flight and having the fuel guy tell me "We have plenty of fuel mon, com down". Only to arrive and have the guy say, "We out". I called you yesterday and you said you had plenty! "That was yesterday mon". And so goes international flying.<br />The trip will include Eluthra, Cap Haitian, Port au Prince, Santo Domingo, Santiago, and back home.</div>Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1769556334023367866.post-37119347920631954212008-12-13T17:34:00.000-08:002008-12-13T18:14:54.453-08:00My job is better than your job.I must say that there are days when I think I have the best job in the world, and the best office view ever. This Thursday Dick Eckels and I flew a two day mission. We meet at the hanger at 6am and made short work of the pre-flight. The sky was looking ominous, the wind was picking up, the sky was punctuated with flashes of lightning, and the winds were at 13 gusting to 20, ah, what a beautiful morning to fly!(not). Dick and I decide to scram before the real nastiness arrives. We took off and climbed out in slightly bumpy weather and made it up to 18000'. We check our ground speed and learn that we have a 70knot (105mph) tailwind! Why do we always have a tailwind when we don't need it and a headwind when we don't want it? So now we have to circle for a half hour to avoid landing before 9am. (We have to pay $90 extra if we land before 9am).<br />Its this kind of flying that makes it so challenging. Flying in the States is so easy, we really don't know how good we have it! When you go out of the country the chips start to stack up against you. The customs paper work better be spot on. Don't be an ugly American, and always say please,t hank you, and have a blessed day. When getting into Haitian airspace the chips get stacked even higher. Bad ATC (air traffic control) poor or non-existent radar, and BIG mountains. Now fly without being able to see out the windshield. Call me crazy but this is the kind of flying I do for Agape, and I love it! Am I complaining? Not at all, I have the best job in the world, and I do it while in the mighty hands of the Father.Mikarts Familyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05942435881375305550noreply@blogger.com1