Well week 4 is over and gone and week 5 is right around the corner!  It's Saturday morning in Battambang which means it's 9:55pm on Friday evening at home.  I got up early this morning and came to Sunrise Cafe for breakfast.  The base closes the kitchen on Saturday so our team eats all our meals off base on Saturdays.  Saturday is also our teams day off.  This is typically the day that Zach and I go into hibernation where we try and not do any work.  We try and catch up on emails, upload a blog post and just enjoy the culture.

This week has been extremely exhausting.  Our team has been in bed by 9pm almost every evening this week.  It seems like as soon as our head hits the pillow we are out!  It's a good exhaustion!  Our schedule is crazy busy from 7am until 7pm Monday through Friday.  Zach and I both feel like our team is pouring so much into this country.  I really do believe that there is going to be so much fruit from this outreach and I can't wait to see lives radically changed.  

Our team has spent tons of time building relationships with their students in the Youth Center.  So many of the students have been asking questions about God and have been really hungry to hear more about Christianity.  This is extremely exciting for our team.  Pray that the students will take the leap of faith and turn their lives over to Him.  

This is Zach's computer class...aka "Computer Squad." One of the girls, Pach, invited Zach to her home to watch her family bake.  Her family begins baking every morning at 3am and then sells their baked goods in local bakeries.  It's a huge honor in this culture to be invited into anyone's home.  This usually means that they consider you a real friend.  

I had a great time in my cooking class this week!  This week we started simple with No Bake Cookies!  This was a treat for me!  The students loved the cookies...which was somewhat surprising...typically they don't get very excited about our western food!  The cookies turned out great considering we had no measuring cups. 

All of our cooking students working on 1 batch of no bake cookies!

 On Thursday our cooking class went to the local market and we had the students pick out various fruits.  We brought the fruits back to base and sat around and taste tested them all.  The fruit in Cambodia is soooo good and so extremely cheap!  I wish that Kansas had fruit like this!  My favorite fruit is mangosteen!  It is somewhat compareable to the taste of a grape..but even better!

 One of the fruits that we bought at the market is called durian.  This is one of the most expensive fruits in Cambodia.  Most Cambodians only eat it on special occasions.  The students were so excited when we bought the fruit.  We bought it inside the market for $7 and the woman sliced it open and cut it up on the side of the road.  Never have I smelled anything quite like this!  It's a smell that just doesn't go away.  Needless to say my taste buds didn't really agree with this particular fruit.  It's certainly not something I will be buying again!

Pictured on the right is durian!  When Zach and I stayed in the hotel last weekend we saw a sign with a picture of durian on it and an 'X' threw it.  Since then we found out that a lot of hotels will not let you take durian into the rooms because of the potent smell!  It's crazy to think it smells that strong!

This week our village ministry started!  The team absolutely loved it!  Below are a few faces that were captured from the last couple of days.  Four of us have been taking a tuk tuk out to Ghosthead Village and spending our mornings teaching Bible and building relationships with the people.  I had a great time hanging out with the children and playing with them.  Below is a little boy named Heng...who is quite the ham.  He typically wears no clothes and runs around naked all the time.  The last day we went this week he was wearing clothes...which is huge for him!  The last team that came to Cambodia made beaded bracelet and necklaces with the kids.  For three months now Heng has been wearing the same two necklaces and the bracelet.  He absolutely loves them!  

This is the typical Heng!  

This is my precious friend Chickye from Ghosthead village.  She is an absolute doll!  She wears her pearl necklace every day.  I held her for 40 minutes the first day we went to the village.  It's crazy to see the difference between kids in the US and kids in other countries.  I picked her up and she just put her head down on my shoulder and just laid there for the longest time.  I later found out that because of the genocide a lot of parents don't really know how to show their children love.  Her mother rarely holds her or shows any affection.  This was such a treat for me to hold her for so long and just love on her.  I love going to the village just so I can see this adorable face.  I want to pack her in my suitcase and bring her home.  If only things were that simple.  

The drive out to the village is absolutely gorgeous!  Everything is so green!  

This is just a quick overview of week 4 of outreach!  Zach and I are both so excited for week 5 because we have a pastoral visit coming up!  Next Sunday Zach and I will be traveling to Seam Reap to pick up our school leader and her friend!  It's going to be so refreshing to see a familiar face.

Please continue to pray for the team!  Pray for Zach and I that we would have patience as we continue to lead.  The two of us are really learning to rely on God for strength.  We have been so exhausted from the constant go, go, go way of living!  Please pray that we would feel refreshed and full of energy as we head into this week!  Praying that all is well at home!  We have heard lots of stories of how hot this summer is back home.  Praying that God will send a cool week your way!  We miss you all and we miss so many things at home!  Have a great week and know we love you!