Reality is setting in...

 

"...and rivets us with a pain that is terrific to one thing we never dreamed of, and for one radiant flashing moment we see what He is after, and we say-"Here am I, send me." Oswald Chambers

 

Abbi took this picture the other day. She saw the heart first, then added the flowers and after she took the photo, she saw the trees and sky. When I saw it, I said "Oh, you found my heart! Great! I've been looking for it for several months now!" She said "Ummm..this is a heart in the dirt, Your heart is in Haiti with Mine." Beautiful, both she and the picture.

 

 

Reality is setting in, our lease is up the end of June and I am sorting out winter things. Our goal is to move to Haiti this August. Researching schooling options, shipping info, medical info, how long will a tube of toothpaste last us, all the logistics of this can be overwhelming at times. Please keep us in your prayers and send us any questions you may have!

 

*Braxton's class is having an equipment drive for our soccer program this week!

*Barrett was able to visit with family and friends out east and share about our vision and mission

(it was an incredibly encouraging time!)

*We've had the opportunity to share at several of River Valley's church campuses

 

 

Today's question: "Are you moving to Haiti for good or just for a short time?"

We are Moving with no return date!  We need to finish raising monthly sponsors and get everything shipped. I want you all to be a part of this in anyway you can! It's so important to have a support group back here not only financially, but old and new friends who are interested in what we're doing, who can send words of encouragement!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sponsor Forms

In order to return to Haiti full time we are in need of continuous monthly sponsors. 

Below are the monthly sponsorship and one time gift forms for mailing.

You can also go to www.supportthetodds.com and sponsor us online.
 

Thank you so much for partnering with us! 

If you have any questions please contact us at toddfamilyhaiti@gmail.com.

Returning to Haiti: What's Next?!

We just returned from Missionary Orientation Training with Global Outreach International in Tupelo, Mississippi. We are now commissioned missionaries to Haiti and are so excited to start sharing our call and vision with others! 

The next steps are to
Pray, Pray, Pray some more and
raise our funds to return to Haiti full time!

We just shared with our home church this morning (picture below) and are so humbled by the love they show us. 
(and the only thing Anders broke belonged to us!! :)

We are sending out brochures about what we'll be doing in Haiti and our vision (it's Awesome!), along with information on how individuals can team up with us as sponsors. 
We need all levels of sponsors and would love a huge support base. 
We can't do it alone!

How to partner with us: 
http://www.globaloutreach.org/missionaries.html#ToddB 
 (options for one time gifts or monthly sponsors at the top of the page)

We love talking about our journey and all that God has done in our lives. Let us know if you want to hear more! 
toddfamilyhaiti@gmail.com  

 

While in Mississippi, we had our training at the Global Outreach office where we were able to meet all the amazing staff. They all were such a joy to be around and blessed us with their love for missions and missionaries. 

Missionary Orientation Training - Tupelo, MS

Morning walk from apartments to training

Thank you ladies, for your amazing hospitality!


 

This morning we were so thankful to share with our home church!

(Carrie is actually speaking in front of others?!)...just briefly ;) 


 

January Update

     We've almost been back in Minnesota for a month and time has flown by so quickly! For three weeks we all shared the respiratory super bug that's been going around. Ugh. It's been fun visiting with friends and family, we're grateful for their support and encouragement. The kids are back in school and have really enjoyed catching up with old friends. They definitely see the world with new eyes and I've heard more than once that their days go by slowly.
     Brodie will be sharing pictures of Haiti tomorrow in his class. He's really excited but anxious to speak in front of everyone. He has some fun pictures of himself with all his pet geckos and chickens.
     The first week in February, Barrett and I will be going to Tupelo, MS for training at Global Outreach International. It will be great to see David and Judy Heady, who will be there from Haiti teaching part of the sessions.
     A special thanks to Leah Lundeen and her company (The Bernard Group) for blessing us with donating the first thousand of our brochures and bookmarks that arrived last week. Thank you!!
     Barrett is back to work at Life Time and so far I have done some annual training back at Presbyterian Homes. We are looking forward to sharing our call to Haiti with others and excited to start building our support team! Haiti is heavy on our hearts every day and we are anxious to know God's perfect timing for our return full time. (i've already downsized and packed our Christmas decorations, I told Barrett what a great job I did and he said "do we have to bring any? can't you just give the kids some paper and crayons and they can make some when we're there?" Oh, boy!) Please let us know if you'd like to get together to hear about our three months and the vision we have for our return.
     A Huge thanks to our church River Valley for being a big support to our family! We loved coming home to our beautiful, surprise Christmas tree! Merci beaucoup!
     Please keep the missionaries in Haiti and the Haitian people in your prayers. (maybe include Brodie for tomorrow :-)

Thank you to all of you who have supported us and encouraged us. 

     You can contact us at: 

toddfamilyhaiti@gmail.com  

Facebook Barrett Todd or Carrie Holmquist Todd

"I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus" 

(Phillipians 3:14)

You just might be living in Haiti if...

You just might be living in Haiti if…

Your 9 year old makes a vivarium and has a choice of which gecko he’s going to catch from inside your home

You find gecko poop in your shoes (and it looks just like mouse poo but you’re not as disgusted by it)

While you’re bleaching carrots, you see your three year old out the window completely naked, pee peeing alongside a puppy

You go to a 3 ½ hour long church service…and when you take your restless toddler outside to the nursery he entertains himself by chasing chickens

You see live goats tied together by their horns, hanging from the side view mirrors of trucks

You sift bugs out of the pancake mix at night so the teams don’t know (tip: freeze first to stop them from crawling (j/k..kinda ;)

When you get an owwie, someone sincerely pokes it

No one gets up from the dinner table to remove the tarantula crawling on the wall

You continuously have fire-ant bites between your toes

You wake up at 5am to hang laundry and still sweat

All the fruit you buy at the market is personally marked by the seller

Your children walk around balancing odd items on top of their heads

Children you don’t know, try to braid your hair at church

You’re at the grocery store and you have to divide everything by 40 to figure out how much it costs and then they tell you the price is in another currency so divide by 5 but pay in the first denomination or multiply by 8

Your husband alternates Norwex clothes to wipe the sweat from his head…while he sits in the shade…with a “cool” breeze

You drink the bugs in your water bottle and actually think to yourself “I’m saving money on protein”    

You use a public restroom and come out and say “three walls and a hole…it’s better than I expected”

Your nine year old asks to carry a machete like the seven year olds he sees

Someone tries to wash your car with gasoline rags and then demands you pay them for the unwanted service

You find pig feet and other parts sitting out on your counter

You try to eat a banana and find out it’s actually a potato

Your chicken comes with parts you don’t know how to cook

Your three year old can be a professional locksmith…in his underwear

You just might be living in Haiti…if you find joy and humor in a place you feel blessed every day to share the love of Christ

 

 

Had to share this picture of Anders. 

He and this man from the elderly feeding program (Gran Moun) wore their matching shirts today.

Grandma's Birthday Gift...that she doesn't want!