Sunday school

It's amazing the responsibilites that these kids have! Look at the little girl carrying her sibling on her back during Sunday school. Micah is now able to stay "almost" the whole 2 and half hours...and Elijah, well, let's say he has his moments :) I usually end up having to take him home (upstairs) and put him down for a nap. Just one of the perks of living at the church! Then I come down and finish out the service. There are usually about 30 kids in this tiny room and it's LOUD! We hope to be able to begin training the Sunday school teachers as it is difficult to hold the attention of 30 kids for 2.5 hours! Praise God for their little lives!

Elijah sliding at the guesthome in Senegal

He's so funny! I guess he decided this was the safest and quickest way to go down. He had a blast here at the guesthouse in Senegal. We were blessed with such a wonderful place to stay.

Goree Singer

Here is a young man whom we met on the island of Goree. He sings and sells these gourd instruments called "Booms". HA! He was quite talented! We bought 2 and are trying to learn how to play them. It's quite the challenge! :)

Faces of Guinea

Animals we saw on our trip to Nzerekore

Micah, the photographer, taking pictures of himself at the restaurant, The Riviera. Marcus took us out! Yummy!

Here are the kids with a friend from some Liberia. His name is Dauda and Daniel is trying to start a Bible study with him. He said he's gone back and forth between Islam and Christianity...and isn't sure what is right.

Micah chasing pigeons....lovin' the kid life!

Hello! My name is SPUNKY! I'm the Dias' new doggy. I like to jump on Elijah because he is my size. I like to sleep during the day, but Elijah doesn't let me. I'm much bigger now since this picture was taken last month. Now I bark loudly at night and love to eat 3 bowls of rice and meat a day. I love my new family!

I love my Tio Marcus! He came to visit me Brasil. He brought me lots of yummy food like Pao de Queijo! (Brasilian cheese bread) He brought delicious chocolate too! I miss my family in Brasil. Hopefully we'll see them for Christmas!

Funny Elijah!

Trashcan Djembe player Mommy...the orange is too sour!

Temper tantrum turned silly...

Tired Dirtball

Kids out playing at dusk. Elijah has one shoe on and one off. He's having fun, but sure is tired! That's a blessing for us tired parents!

Pinehurst in Guinea?

I thought you Pinehurst residents and golfers might enjoy this. Guinea receives a lot of donated clothes and the like from Europe and the US. We never thought we'd run into someone wearing a hat from Pinehurst!!!! This is just God's way of helping us not feel so homesick :)

Micah starts school!

Here is Micah in front of his new preschool, Tom Pouce. He loves it and has made lots of friends, both French and English speaking. He attended his first birthday party as well, twin boys. He also performed in a "spectacle" celebrating Carnaval. Don't worry, he didn't understand much of what was explained...he just danced and had fun in his costume! The picture in front of the school answers the question, "Why go to school?" by responding "Because you get in trouble when you don't have ideas (things to do)". And believe me, they keep the kids busy there. It's very well organized and Micah's French is really improving!

Dias Move to Conakry!

Here is Hope Chapel ( a Nigerian mission churchplant), the church that is "adopting" us in Conakry. We will be temporarily staying in their missionary guesthouse (top right of bottom picture) until we find a house. They have a great compound. They have neighborhood kids who come in the afternoons to play basketball, volleyball, and soccer. They also have a library open to the public. The Sunday school classes are behind the court in the pic to the left.

Here is the the church sanctuary on the left. On the right is the Kolie family, our hosts. She is from Ivory Coast and he is from Guinea. They were missionaries for a short time and long to return to the field. Right now they are helping the church, on staff as missionaries. Pray for us as we get to know each other. We are looking forward to "city" life and all that entails. Pray for us as we adjust, yet again, to new surroundings. We're praying we'll have a house within the next 2 weeks!

Ephraim and Micah dancing

Sorry that the video is so dark. We were filming at night. Micah's is dancing at the church Christmas party with his friend Ephraim. They having a blast!

Micah sliding at pool

What a treat! This pool is about an hour away and this was our first time going. Micah had so much fun! He was so excited! He couldn't stop laughing so he kept swallowing water and almost puking. HA! Enjoy!

Elijah bowling

Elijah got a Barnyard Bowling game for Christmas. We tried to teach him how to play...but we failed miserably:)
Thanks Aunt Gerita, Uncle Daniel, Ashley and Danielle for such a fun present!
Love, Elijah

Micah saying Hebrews 4:15

This is the verse that Micah learned in VBS during Guinea's field conference. I was amazed at how quickly he was able to memorize it. Heb. 4:15