So, it's two in the morning right now, oh joy. Meh..... Another one of those "light bulb" moments I love and hate so much. Esperanza awoke with a start and a loud cry about a half an hour ago. Ugh, do NOT want to get out of bed! But I did. Made a bottle, turned out she needed to be changed (poor kid has diarrhea) so I took her, still crying, and started to changer her. The frustration is amplified by the fact that she is ridiculously bundled up, because we didn't pass 50 degrees yesterday. Anyway, she paused the crying for a moment or two but mostly kept at it. While finishing up I thought, wow, if I were God there would probably be a lot of cursing going on in heaven, lol. Children! Do I not take good care of you?! (For the record I don't swear and don't like it, but at certain times I can see how people can let words slip..) Why is it you cry and fuss as though I'm not going to give you what I know you want and dneed. Haven't I showed you time and time again that I take good care of you? So i headed from the changing area and gave her a bottle, and as I rocked her she ate and cried, and ate and cried. Child! Why do you still cry! My goodness. I just gave you what you both want and need! And then I got my little "light bulb". If you're living for yourself, it's not worth it. If you're living for your job or for going out on Friday night, it's not worth it. If you're living for your family- parents, spouse, or children- it's just not worth it!! But,, if you're doing it for Jesus, it's all totally worth it! As I sat there feeding the little monster, as I sometimes like to call her, I thought God, I can't take this! It's freezing cold and it's late and it doesn't matter what I do, she's not content. Even if it means I get a crown in heaven, I don't care, it's not worth it. And then, interupting my thoughts I hear that little voice I wish I heard more often say- But what if those crowns are to be laid at the feet of Jesus? Boom. That one hit me good. Oh how often we forget that it's all about Him! If we were put here to glorify ourselves and nothing more, a miserable existence it would be indeed!
Well Esperanza had to be changed again, poor thing, and I put her to bed and she went back to sleep pretty quick. A total of about a half an hour of my time doesn't seem like much, pero cuesta! Sometimes it's hard! But what a small sacrifice to be made for the one who gave it all. He must become greater, I must become less. Glory be to You, oh God! Glory be to You, oh Jesus! Glory be to you and you alone. Amen!
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Hello August!
Hey Friends!
Wow, is it really August already?! Of all my months here I think July went by the fastest. I can only imagine that this is due to having had the team here and time with a few other friends that stayed a short while longer. I can't tell you how much my heart was refreshed during this time spent with so many people I love dearly. What a blessing.
Things in the home are going well as well. Kids are all pretty healthy, praise God! The boys have been taking some meds for colds that they have, and Esperanza's currently on medicine to help with diarrhea, but overall nothing to seriously.
As some of you may remember, back in May we sent in blood work for Esperanza to identify what chromosome abnormality she has, mostly just to know, but also to find out if there would be major risks if/when we would be able to get her surgery, and finally, FINALLY! we have received the results! According to the analysis she has a rare disorder called Monosomy 21, which means she was born with only one of the two 21st chromosomes we are each supposed to have. I've been doing some research to try and find out exactly what that means for her then, but haven't found a lot of info. There are very few other cases where this has been diagnosed, but from what I can gather children that are born with this can expect to live a normal length of life, and it's probable that she will develop both physically and mentally somewhat slower than is typical, but what that really means I don't know. But I think it was a comforting diagnosis in a way, knowing that it could have been something much worse. Also, I don't know what this means for her as far as surgery goes, but I would say it's optimistic. The Hoffmans have been gone for these last two months but are expected to be home this week, so in another week or two I feel like I'll know more about whether we're on track to get the heart surgery for her in September or not. I'm praying that yes! But we will see.
Thanks for your prayers as always! I miss you all and am excited that I'm coming into the last third of my time here! It's exciting to see that the end is within reach, but I'm also excited to see how God continues to be faithful these next four months and how my kids continue to grow!
Blessings!
Samantha
Wow, is it really August already?! Of all my months here I think July went by the fastest. I can only imagine that this is due to having had the team here and time with a few other friends that stayed a short while longer. I can't tell you how much my heart was refreshed during this time spent with so many people I love dearly. What a blessing.
Things in the home are going well as well. Kids are all pretty healthy, praise God! The boys have been taking some meds for colds that they have, and Esperanza's currently on medicine to help with diarrhea, but overall nothing to seriously.
As some of you may remember, back in May we sent in blood work for Esperanza to identify what chromosome abnormality she has, mostly just to know, but also to find out if there would be major risks if/when we would be able to get her surgery, and finally, FINALLY! we have received the results! According to the analysis she has a rare disorder called Monosomy 21, which means she was born with only one of the two 21st chromosomes we are each supposed to have. I've been doing some research to try and find out exactly what that means for her then, but haven't found a lot of info. There are very few other cases where this has been diagnosed, but from what I can gather children that are born with this can expect to live a normal length of life, and it's probable that she will develop both physically and mentally somewhat slower than is typical, but what that really means I don't know. But I think it was a comforting diagnosis in a way, knowing that it could have been something much worse. Also, I don't know what this means for her as far as surgery goes, but I would say it's optimistic. The Hoffmans have been gone for these last two months but are expected to be home this week, so in another week or two I feel like I'll know more about whether we're on track to get the heart surgery for her in September or not. I'm praying that yes! But we will see.
Thanks for your prayers as always! I miss you all and am excited that I'm coming into the last third of my time here! It's exciting to see that the end is within reach, but I'm also excited to see how God continues to be faithful these next four months and how my kids continue to grow!
Blessings!
Samantha
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Quick Update
Hello Everyone!
Sorry for the long time without an update! Between working at the home and hanging out with the teams that have come from the States I've been keeping pretty busy!!
These last few weeks could best be described by comparing them to the opening scene of the book The Cat in the Hat- dreery! There hasn't been a ton of rain, but the weather for the most part has just been miserably cold and cloudy and gloomy. While it doesn't get as chilly as it does up in WI, we also don't have heat, and it's hard to keep the cold outside! So the kids have been staying inside, because it's still a few degrees warmer at least, and we've been bundled up pretty good not doing a whole lot of anything fun. It was hardest for the boys I think- they don't really enjoy being so cooped up all the time. Fortunately, these last two days have been a little bit warmer so we've been able to go out for more than 15 minutes at a time. Hopefully we'll have a few more sunny days before it get's chilly again.
Other than that things have been going pretty well. The boys are getting over bronchitis again and Esperanza has been a little stuffy but nothing too out of the ordinary. With the chilly weather everyone seems to be catching a cold, but it could be worse I suppose. Back in mid May we sent in some blood work for Esperanza to find out what chromosomal abnormality she has and we were told that we would get results in a month. Well it's been a month and a half and still no results but they said maybe early next week they'll come in. We're interested in finding out what she has just to weigh the different risks there would be with surgery. No, still no surgery, but we're hoping maybe in September. We'll see I guess.
It's been great having the teams here- I've been so encouraged spending time with them. I have a few close friends here and several that I've been enjoying getting to know better. What a blessing! It's like having a little piece of home here with me. I'd love your prayers, especially next week when the team leaves. That's going to be really hard for me. But, there are at least three girls staying here for a bit, and two of them are staying and going back with me in December, so it will be helpful to have them here.
Thanks all for your continued prayers and support!! I hope you're enjoying these summer months back home!
In Him,
Samantha
Sorry for the long time without an update! Between working at the home and hanging out with the teams that have come from the States I've been keeping pretty busy!!
These last few weeks could best be described by comparing them to the opening scene of the book The Cat in the Hat- dreery! There hasn't been a ton of rain, but the weather for the most part has just been miserably cold and cloudy and gloomy. While it doesn't get as chilly as it does up in WI, we also don't have heat, and it's hard to keep the cold outside! So the kids have been staying inside, because it's still a few degrees warmer at least, and we've been bundled up pretty good not doing a whole lot of anything fun. It was hardest for the boys I think- they don't really enjoy being so cooped up all the time. Fortunately, these last two days have been a little bit warmer so we've been able to go out for more than 15 minutes at a time. Hopefully we'll have a few more sunny days before it get's chilly again.
Other than that things have been going pretty well. The boys are getting over bronchitis again and Esperanza has been a little stuffy but nothing too out of the ordinary. With the chilly weather everyone seems to be catching a cold, but it could be worse I suppose. Back in mid May we sent in some blood work for Esperanza to find out what chromosomal abnormality she has and we were told that we would get results in a month. Well it's been a month and a half and still no results but they said maybe early next week they'll come in. We're interested in finding out what she has just to weigh the different risks there would be with surgery. No, still no surgery, but we're hoping maybe in September. We'll see I guess.
It's been great having the teams here- I've been so encouraged spending time with them. I have a few close friends here and several that I've been enjoying getting to know better. What a blessing! It's like having a little piece of home here with me. I'd love your prayers, especially next week when the team leaves. That's going to be really hard for me. But, there are at least three girls staying here for a bit, and two of them are staying and going back with me in December, so it will be helpful to have them here.
Thanks all for your continued prayers and support!! I hope you're enjoying these summer months back home!
In Him,
Samantha
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Thanks Mom and Dad!
I was just thinking of all the great things I know/can do because I have such great parents, so I just wanted to take a moment to thank them for all the things people don't usually thank their parents for.
Thank you Mom for giving birth to me! Thank you for all those sleepless nights you underwent as I must have cried out in hunger or need of a new diaper. Thank you Mom and Dad for sacrificing your time and own desires to take care of mine- I can only imagine the countless dirty diapers you changed! Thank you for weening me from the bottle so I could learn to eat real food. Thank you for potty training me!! How horrible would it be to still be in diapers! Thank you for teaching to brush my teeth so they didn't all rot out of my mouth. Thank you for taking care of me when I was sick- thanks Daddy for that one time you put those huge pills I had to take in sugar so they weren't quite as horrible, and putting vick's by my neck even though I didn't like it so I could breathe better and sleep at night. Thank you for taking me shopping with you. Thank you for NOT buying me everything I asked for, even if it sometimes meant me leaving the store screaming and bawling. I learned that I'm not always gonna get everything I want, and that's ok. Thank you Mom and Dad for showing me that you loved me by giving me hugs and kisses, for tickling and cuddling. Thank you for showing me love by spanking me. Not that I ever really needed to be spanked... ok maybe... I learned that there are boundaries in this world, things I can and can't do. Thank you for tucking me in each night. Thank you for teaching me how to read!- The Foot Book by Dr. Seuss. Thank you for letting me come into your room at night when I was scared or couldn't sleep and letting me sleep on the floor by your bed. Thank you loving me unconditionally- when I refused to eat your tuna hotdish and green beans or wouldn't take the koolaid of the table, or when I broke your camera tripod, or when I was disobedient and stubborn just for the sake of being stubborn, or when I wouldn't clean my room or when I slammed my door and had to open and close it a hundred times. Thank you for having patience! Thank you for putting up with me Mom as I invaded your space in the kitchen- I now know how and have a passion for cooking because of you. Thank you for teaching me great card games like Euchre and Cribbage and Canasta. Thank you Dad for the innumerable times you helped me fix my car when I was having problems. Thank you for that one time you had to bring me gas cuz I broke down, even though you told me the week before I needed to write down what my mileage was when filling up so I could know in time to fill up again. Thank you for pushing me to get good grades. Thank you for not letting me starting dating when I was twelve. Thank you for giving me a cell phone when I was 15, but not until then. Thank you for taking me to church and CBC/youth group every week and teaching me what it meant to be a follower of Christ. Thank you for sharing the Gospel with me and praying with me and including me in Bible studies even when I was little. Thank you for instilling in me a sense of right and wrong. Thank you for treating me like a little girl and young lady. Thank you for letting me play dress up with your heels Mom and dolling me up with your make up and curling iron from time to time. Thank you Daddy for all the times you called me beautiful. Thank you Mom for showing me what it means to be a beautiful woman. Thank you for giving me responsibilities around the house so that I learned what it meant to work. Thank you for encouraging me to get a job of my own and for teaching me to be independent. Thank you for standing with me even when I made decisions you weren't a fan of, such as leaving school, and thank you for telling me what you thought, even though it wasn't what I wanted to hear. Thank you thank you thank you for praying for me. Thank you Mom for setting the example of how to be a mom. Dad, thank you for living in such a way that I can have a clear and accurate picture of God as Father- so so so many people can't understand what it means to have a loving Father in Heaven. How sad! Thank you for all the advice you gave when I did or didn't ask. Thanks Dad for randomly buying me flowers. Thank you for teaching me different qualities that I should look for in a husband. Thank you Mom and Dad for laughing both at me and with me and teaching me to lighten up and have a sense of humor. Thank you for being a shoulder to cry on. Thank you for encouraging me to be involved in things but not being dissapointed when I chose not to. Thank you for both for being someone I can talk to about the boys I like, share the problems and hard things I'm facing with, or blab on and on with about the boring details of my day that I just had to share with someone.
Basically thank you for being my parents. Thank you for being my parents instead of my friends, but also treating me as a friend at times as well. There are probably a hundred other things I could put in here but this is a start at least. Thank you for taking your role in my life seriously. I don't know who I would be without you both, but I know it probably wouldn't be pretty. So I just wanted to say thank you...
Thank you Mom for giving birth to me! Thank you for all those sleepless nights you underwent as I must have cried out in hunger or need of a new diaper. Thank you Mom and Dad for sacrificing your time and own desires to take care of mine- I can only imagine the countless dirty diapers you changed! Thank you for weening me from the bottle so I could learn to eat real food. Thank you for potty training me!! How horrible would it be to still be in diapers! Thank you for teaching to brush my teeth so they didn't all rot out of my mouth. Thank you for taking care of me when I was sick- thanks Daddy for that one time you put those huge pills I had to take in sugar so they weren't quite as horrible, and putting vick's by my neck even though I didn't like it so I could breathe better and sleep at night. Thank you for taking me shopping with you. Thank you for NOT buying me everything I asked for, even if it sometimes meant me leaving the store screaming and bawling. I learned that I'm not always gonna get everything I want, and that's ok. Thank you Mom and Dad for showing me that you loved me by giving me hugs and kisses, for tickling and cuddling. Thank you for showing me love by spanking me. Not that I ever really needed to be spanked... ok maybe... I learned that there are boundaries in this world, things I can and can't do. Thank you for tucking me in each night. Thank you for teaching me how to read!- The Foot Book by Dr. Seuss. Thank you for letting me come into your room at night when I was scared or couldn't sleep and letting me sleep on the floor by your bed. Thank you loving me unconditionally- when I refused to eat your tuna hotdish and green beans or wouldn't take the koolaid of the table, or when I broke your camera tripod, or when I was disobedient and stubborn just for the sake of being stubborn, or when I wouldn't clean my room or when I slammed my door and had to open and close it a hundred times. Thank you for having patience! Thank you for putting up with me Mom as I invaded your space in the kitchen- I now know how and have a passion for cooking because of you. Thank you for teaching me great card games like Euchre and Cribbage and Canasta. Thank you Dad for the innumerable times you helped me fix my car when I was having problems. Thank you for that one time you had to bring me gas cuz I broke down, even though you told me the week before I needed to write down what my mileage was when filling up so I could know in time to fill up again. Thank you for pushing me to get good grades. Thank you for not letting me starting dating when I was twelve. Thank you for giving me a cell phone when I was 15, but not until then. Thank you for taking me to church and CBC/youth group every week and teaching me what it meant to be a follower of Christ. Thank you for sharing the Gospel with me and praying with me and including me in Bible studies even when I was little. Thank you for instilling in me a sense of right and wrong. Thank you for treating me like a little girl and young lady. Thank you for letting me play dress up with your heels Mom and dolling me up with your make up and curling iron from time to time. Thank you Daddy for all the times you called me beautiful. Thank you Mom for showing me what it means to be a beautiful woman. Thank you for giving me responsibilities around the house so that I learned what it meant to work. Thank you for encouraging me to get a job of my own and for teaching me to be independent. Thank you for standing with me even when I made decisions you weren't a fan of, such as leaving school, and thank you for telling me what you thought, even though it wasn't what I wanted to hear. Thank you thank you thank you for praying for me. Thank you Mom for setting the example of how to be a mom. Dad, thank you for living in such a way that I can have a clear and accurate picture of God as Father- so so so many people can't understand what it means to have a loving Father in Heaven. How sad! Thank you for all the advice you gave when I did or didn't ask. Thanks Dad for randomly buying me flowers. Thank you for teaching me different qualities that I should look for in a husband. Thank you Mom and Dad for laughing both at me and with me and teaching me to lighten up and have a sense of humor. Thank you for being a shoulder to cry on. Thank you for encouraging me to be involved in things but not being dissapointed when I chose not to. Thank you for both for being someone I can talk to about the boys I like, share the problems and hard things I'm facing with, or blab on and on with about the boring details of my day that I just had to share with someone.
Basically thank you for being my parents. Thank you for being my parents instead of my friends, but also treating me as a friend at times as well. There are probably a hundred other things I could put in here but this is a start at least. Thank you for taking your role in my life seriously. I don't know who I would be without you both, but I know it probably wouldn't be pretty. So I just wanted to say thank you...
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Half Way
If there's one word to describe my life these days it's "busy"! A week and a half ago some friends of mine from Arrowhead Bible Camp arrived here to do a two-week camp with missionary students so during my free time I have been hanging out and helping them. It's been so exciting for me to have them here. I've been missing my family a lot lately so it's been very encouraging for me to have some of my "extended family" to hang out with! I've been getting a lot of time to just rest with them, but also have had a lot of fun playing old camp games like Boppity-bop-bop-bop, American Eagle, Bolivian Rugby, and many others, as well as watch some movies, spend time in the Word and worship together. It's been a pretty good balance of crazy and relaxing, but busy for sure.
At the home things are going pretty well- we took the three kids to the doctor last week and they were all doing pretty good except the two little boys have bronchitis, but that doesn't seem to slow them down much! I sometimes wonder where all that energy comes from and how I could get some for myself! Esperanza is doing well also, putting on weight little by little and staying in pretty good health.
Something else that's fairly exciting for me is that it looks like my mom is going to be getting my plane ticket home for the seventh of december so that means I'm just about to my half way point of being in Bolivia!! I know that's still a long time to go- five and a half months, but it's crazy to think that I've already been here for that long. I'm excited to see how much the kids continue to grow and change during my second half!
Thanks so much for your prayers and financial donations- I wouldn't be able to be here without your help! Thanks for joining me in the work of Christ! I miss you all and hope this update finds you well.
At the home things are going pretty well- we took the three kids to the doctor last week and they were all doing pretty good except the two little boys have bronchitis, but that doesn't seem to slow them down much! I sometimes wonder where all that energy comes from and how I could get some for myself! Esperanza is doing well also, putting on weight little by little and staying in pretty good health.
Something else that's fairly exciting for me is that it looks like my mom is going to be getting my plane ticket home for the seventh of december so that means I'm just about to my half way point of being in Bolivia!! I know that's still a long time to go- five and a half months, but it's crazy to think that I've already been here for that long. I'm excited to see how much the kids continue to grow and change during my second half!
Thanks so much for your prayers and financial donations- I wouldn't be able to be here without your help! Thanks for joining me in the work of Christ! I miss you all and hope this update finds you well.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
June Update
Just wanted to give a quick update on how things are going down here in Bolivia : ) Last time I sent an update I could not believe that it was already May, and now we're half way through June and I still can't believe it! It was hard for my time with Naomi to come to an end but after about a week I was pretty well adjusted to having my room to myself again.
Last week I had the opportunity to go with four other girls my age out to the San Fernando Valley, which is a two hour flight in a six person plane towards Brazil. It was such an amazing experience! We were going to visit a gal named Katie Wells and hoped to be an encouragement to her, and while we were there we did a lot of just hanging out and seeing the small town- population is estimated to be about five hundred. Katie lives in a little living space that's attached to one of the two churches there and we stayed with her and her "house" mate Dina. There was a little bit of electricity, it came and went really, so there were no refrigerators. Can you imagine living without a refrigerator? I can't! And she also had a limited amount of running water. Once you ran out, you ran out. That's so weird to think about coming from a place like I do! While we were there we did a little skit for the kids and lesson on how to be a "good samaritan" and also led the Tuesday night church meeting, singing songs, giving a Bible lesson, and doing another skit. I definitely felt like I was on a mini missions trip. It was very refreshing for me to spend some time with my friends and get to know them a little better, and just have a small break from being in the city and being at the home.
Then, this last Thursday, the first of the Arrowhead team arrived!! I was so excited to be able to go pick them up from the airport and have been hanging out with them here and there since then. They have been so encouraging to me!
I would love for you to be praying for me over these next 6 weeks or so as my schedule will be fairly crazy. I'm still working my schedule at the home as usual but trying to spend time with the team when I'm able to, but I don't want to over do it! I do need sleep every once in a while! But if you could I would love prayer just that I would be spending my time wisely, enjoying that the team is here but still resting as needed. Also, please pray for me as I consider my plans for when i come home. I know it's nearly six months away, but as I've been thinking and praying through what to do I'm slowly trying to develop a plan, and so far that plan includes going to school for nursing. Unfortunately, that's about all that is in the plan... I'm not sure where I'm going to go or where I'll live or work, and I feel like I should be applying to schools and for scholarships now if i want to go in January. So, prayer for direction and peace about that would be greatly appreciated!!
Saturday, June 4, 2011
A Walk Down Memory Lane
Yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to visit an orphanage that I spent much time at back in 2007, El Ebenezer. This place is home for 10-15 boys between the ages of 6 and 25 with mental and physical handicaps. It was such a blessing to get to go, but it also was sooo incredibly surreal! In my nearly five months of being here I hadn't had/taken the opportunity to go, and I'm very excited that I finally did.
So many things were fun and very nostalgic for me. First of all, I went with Heather and Kayleen, so it felt "just like old times". I easily recognized where we were as we were getting a little closer, and then driving down the very familiar road that Kayleen and I would walk to and from the bus on those two days a week we visited. Then waiting outside their door and going in I was just overwhelmed by the familiarity of it all and how strange it was to finally be back! I went in and was greeted by a few kids but almost instantly the drooly Richard grabbed my hand (with his drool covered) and led me around for the next 20 minutes, mostly just walking back and forth from one end of the property to the other (not big at all). It was so incredible to just see how the home had changed! I remember just the very rustic set up of it, now it's all tile and pretty nice looking! I couldn't help but just marvel though at how the kids had grown!! It's been over three and a half years since I've seen them and boy have they gotten big! I remember little Jorge, who I feel like would have been around 10, maybe 12. Each time I went I was his "teacher" helping him and a handful of others trace letters. Such a cute little squirt. He's now taller than I am! And my dear little Julio! He was probably the same age as Jorge, and in my class as well. I remember him loving dancing- just bouncing up and down mostly- and now he's talking much better but his voice has gotten deep/scraggly, you can tell it's changing. And he's grown so much! Some of the boys are like they always have seemed to be- Jaime, Roberto :) And I got to meet some new faces as well. There were three boys that were at school when we were there so I missed them, which made me sad, but I'll have to go back sometime soon when they're around then I guess. After being there for a little while we gathered the boys into one of the rooms to do a little Bible story and color a picture and eat little chocolate covered cookies, and as they were sitting there and I was taking it all in I couldn't help but think of the two little boys I'm taking care of now, and how much they're going to change when I leave! It's going to be so hard to leave them here. I know, I know, it's six months away, but then that's just gonna make it all the harder! I'm not usually one for waterworks, but I'm guessing I'll be doing some crying when my time to leave approaches!
But, as far as Ebenezer goes, I was really glad I finally made it over there and look forward to hopefully going back again before too long. It's exciting to leave and come back and just see God's faithfulness in taking care of the kids, providing for the home there, seeing how dedicated the staff still are- all of these were very encouraging to me. It was a very good way to spend a chunk of my day off :)
So many things were fun and very nostalgic for me. First of all, I went with Heather and Kayleen, so it felt "just like old times". I easily recognized where we were as we were getting a little closer, and then driving down the very familiar road that Kayleen and I would walk to and from the bus on those two days a week we visited. Then waiting outside their door and going in I was just overwhelmed by the familiarity of it all and how strange it was to finally be back! I went in and was greeted by a few kids but almost instantly the drooly Richard grabbed my hand (with his drool covered) and led me around for the next 20 minutes, mostly just walking back and forth from one end of the property to the other (not big at all). It was so incredible to just see how the home had changed! I remember just the very rustic set up of it, now it's all tile and pretty nice looking! I couldn't help but just marvel though at how the kids had grown!! It's been over three and a half years since I've seen them and boy have they gotten big! I remember little Jorge, who I feel like would have been around 10, maybe 12. Each time I went I was his "teacher" helping him and a handful of others trace letters. Such a cute little squirt. He's now taller than I am! And my dear little Julio! He was probably the same age as Jorge, and in my class as well. I remember him loving dancing- just bouncing up and down mostly- and now he's talking much better but his voice has gotten deep/scraggly, you can tell it's changing. And he's grown so much! Some of the boys are like they always have seemed to be- Jaime, Roberto :) And I got to meet some new faces as well. There were three boys that were at school when we were there so I missed them, which made me sad, but I'll have to go back sometime soon when they're around then I guess. After being there for a little while we gathered the boys into one of the rooms to do a little Bible story and color a picture and eat little chocolate covered cookies, and as they were sitting there and I was taking it all in I couldn't help but think of the two little boys I'm taking care of now, and how much they're going to change when I leave! It's going to be so hard to leave them here. I know, I know, it's six months away, but then that's just gonna make it all the harder! I'm not usually one for waterworks, but I'm guessing I'll be doing some crying when my time to leave approaches!
But, as far as Ebenezer goes, I was really glad I finally made it over there and look forward to hopefully going back again before too long. It's exciting to leave and come back and just see God's faithfulness in taking care of the kids, providing for the home there, seeing how dedicated the staff still are- all of these were very encouraging to me. It was a very good way to spend a chunk of my day off :)
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