Record setting.

Josh and I spent the past week in the Kompong Chnang province with a team of international high school students from Singapore who were given the formidable task of painting two of our church orphan homes in a matter of four days. A new team record for sure.

And one that required a sizable amount of U90 paint.

The students worked amazingly hard in what is the absolute hottest month of the year in Cambodia. (And, if I am honest, I will say that I tried to choose the indoor part of the painting as often as possible :)

This scaffolding is far sturdier than it appears.

We think...

Sometimes a paintbrush is an unnecessary tool...

We are enthusiastic team leaders. This cannot be denied. Let our expressions of joy and excitement be your encouragement while painting/scraping/sanding in Cambodia.

If you are in the midst of choosing a color for your sanctuary, we highly recommend the U90 shade of bright green.
While I was seeking natural shade from the inside of a concrete building, others were outside in the direct sun to finish the detail work of this gate.
And in terms of detail, everyone was grateful that the gate at the second home looked like this.

It was a great week that included:

-Good conversations with students

-Some paint fights (which I was okay witnessing as long as I didn't become an active participant)

-At least two meals that included Ginger Beef (yes, please)

-Cute kids living at the homes who are always more than willing to jump in and paint

-One Khmer New Year dance party (I love any chance to utilize my dance skills in cross-cultural settings. In fact I prefer this form of communication over verbal if at all possible)

-Getting to watch CNN (a perk that comes with going to the province)

-The chance to see two homes get a visible make-over that will bless the people living in them.

Our staff member Jock who now accompanies us out on all the teams told us that the kids from the home who were away for Khmer New Year would come home very excited to see all the changes and feel like they got a brand new house! Very neat to see what you can accomplish in four brief days. It may seem like you are simply painting a house, but in reality there are lives that will continue to be touched by this seemingly simple act long after we have all left.

Josh and I enjoyed dinner at our new favorite Indian restaurant yesterday as we debriefed about our week out with the team and what we learned during it. We approach this next season with an almost bittersweet feeling attached to it, knowing that we still have five more teams coming, but that in less than four and a half months from now we will transition back home.

And we want to be mindful of our time here, not simply rushing through it to reach what is next, but to realize what a privilege it is to be living and serving in Cambodia.

I realize that before I know it I will be sitting at home in Washington (or maybe at the Cambodian restaurant in Lynnwood :) thinking back to this time. I want to know that I was intentional with my days, with my conversations, with my understanding of how this experience is impacting my husband and I in profound ways and will continue to do so in the next season if we will allow it.