Day Two

Well, we set the alarm for 7:00AM. We have 13 people here, and we all wanted showers. Gail had taken her shower, and a knock came at the front door. Lissa and Susan C. were sleeping in the front room, and they were not up yet. Lissa couldn't get the door unlocked so Gail came to help her. It was one of the staff members from Esperanza Viva to give us a devotional which was actually scheduled for 7:00 PM. Ha! Ha! So everyone started to get up and get some coffee in them and cold cereal and muffins.

At 11:00 AM (which we are told is sometime before 12:00 in Mexican time) Juana, the missionary coordinator for the home explained the rule of the house we are staying in and the rules of the youth home. When we got to Esperanza Viva Youth Home, Juana gave us a tour showing us the dorms where the kids live, where they do laundry, the computer room, the music room, the dentist/doctor office (They have four dentists coming down in March, donating their services and equipment), and the kitchen. We were introduced to Esperanxza, the cook who was cooking lunch. Lunch smelled really good, yummy! Then we went next door to the older girl's dorms (the older boys' dorms are off site.) The classrooms are next door also that are set up in tents. The kids all where uniforms. Susan C. kept looking for the girls she sponsers and (sh, sh) disruprting all the classrooms by peeking her head into every tent. She got us into trouble, ha, ha. Then we walked back to the main home and the kids started getting out of school (2:00PM), and we ate lunch. Boy were we getting hungry. It was a wonderful meal!

Next it was recess time for the kids and they got to visit with all of us, getting and giving lots of hugs. Our group started our first project for the week with them. We made bracelets with their names on them and it was a HIT! The kids loved it and we liked it too!














Oh, did I say the weather this morning was beautiful? But then in the afternoon it poured and boy did it pour! Apparently this is normal.

At 5:00 the kids all have to go back to their dorms to get things done like homework, chores, showers, etc. and we walked back to the guest house to get dinner and unwind a little. Remember we had a team from EV coming at 7:00 PM to give a devotional. They were right on time. We got to see Bridget (the translator) and her husband. Bridget is a missionary who Jim and Gail met on their first trip in 2004. Bridget and Miguel were married last November and they are now expecting a baby, October 27, but we were all praying she has it this week while we are here. The devotional was given by David, one of the teen boys' dorm supervisors. It was great! Well, now we are off to bed.














This blog was written by: Nici.
Take a look at the group picture on yesterday's blog.

We Have Arrived

At the airport.
Waiting at the Mexico airport for our departure on the bus to Puebla.

Well, after a long day of travel, we are here and we are getting ready to see the kids. We are all very excited!

About our travel day: We all met at the airport at 5:00 AM for our 6:50 flight. Our flight went well and arrive in Mexico City a few minutes early. We then all made it through customs and on to get our bags at the baggage claim. They have changed the way they do things there now. On your way out of customs, they put all of your luggage through the x-ray like they do when you are getting on a flight. Then you press the button to see if you get a red or green light. We got a green but someone still stopped us and wanted to see inside a bag that was on the very bottom of the pile. So, we unloaded all the bags from the cart and gave him the back. It was the bag that had a huge bag of chocolate chips in it. It looked like he was thinking about whether or not to let them through but in the end he put them back inside the bag. One of the missionaries here makes chocolate chip cookies but the chocolate you get in Mexico is very grainy so we always bring her a bag from Costco. Sue M. got one of her bags searched also and the man didn't quite know what to do about the ping pong balls. Hmmm... Well, everyone who had bags searched did just fine. Thank you Lord.

After that, we were able to go through and buy bus tickets for the two hour trip to Puebla. The bus ride was good with nothing major going on. We arrive in Puebla around 8:15 and Juana, the team coordinator, met us with help and we drove to the guest house.

There they had sandwiches ready for us and so we all ate. Once that was done, we went on to empty all of the activity supplies out of the suitcases and so we could be ready for today.

We ended the night in prayer time and everyone was so pleased with how the trip went. We are looking forward, with anticipation, to all that God has planned for our team. Thank you for all your prayers.

Tomorrow someone else from the team will write the blog so you will be able to hear from someone other than just me. I don't have pictures to put on today but I hope to get some up tomorrow.

Salimos en la Mañana

Okay, for those that don't speak Spanish which is most of the people following my blog, that means "We leave in the morning." We will be at the airport at 5:00 AM. The hard thing is that Jim gets in tonight at midnight. So, sleep is not going to be something we get a lot of tonight.

Usually when we are at Esperanza Viva they do a blog on their web site but their blog is down, so I checked and we will be able to blog our trip on this blog. Different members of our team will write the blog and I will just put it on here. I am hoping to be able to put pictures up also. So, check back often over the next week.

Please keep our team in prayer. Besides our family, the other member of our team are: Lissa, Dan & Susan, Steve & Sue, Nici, Adrina, Rose, and Mike. Please pray for that God would use us and we would follow his lead in all we do, for safety, and for health.

Well, I think I'd better get back to packing. I have a lot to do before I can go to bed. It will be Monday before I can post again since tomorrow is totally a travel day. So, hasta luego (see you later).

Memorizing Scripture

I began Spanish tutoring with a woman from church about two months ago. It has been going well and I enjoy it. It is helping me stay more on track with my Spanish. We'll see just how well next week when we are in Mexico. Two weeks ago, she said that God had laid on her heart to have me memorize a portion of Scripture in Spanish. The section of verses is Matthew 6:9-13, The Lord's Prayer. At first I wasn't too sure but when she shared what I was to memorize, it made perfect sense. Several times recently, God has brought me to The Lord's Prayer not only on my own, but some of our pastors have used it as a reference in their teachings. I have been so pleased that I have actually memorized verses 9 and 10.

Mateo 6:9-13

Padre nuestro que estás en el cielo, santificado sea tu nomber, venga tu reino, hágase tu voluntad en la tierra como en el cielo. (That is verses 9-10 that I have memorized so far.) Danos hoy nuestro pan cotidiano. Perdónanos nuestras deudas, como también nosotros hemos perdonado a nuestros deudores. Y no nos dejes caer en tentación, sino líbranos del maligno; porque tuyo es el reino, y el poder, y la gloria, por todos los siglos. Amén.

As I study it, I am beginning to understand more how the words fit together and it helps me to understand their meanings.

Thank you to Elisa for having me memorize this passage of scripture.

Erin's New Color

A few months ago we told Erin that she could dye her hair darker when we go to Mexico. So today my friend, Lynn, helped by dying Erins hair. The reasoning behind allowing Erin to get her hair dyed is that when we are in Mexico, the men look at her a lot since she has long blonde hair and it makes her feel very uncomfortable. So, in order to blend in a little more, her hair is now a little darker.







Here is the original color again. It is not too much darker but she really likes it. In fact people who saw her at church tonight thought the change was that she got her hair cut. No one noticed her color.