Remember how I said a trip with students is different than with adults?  While I slept in 20 minutes after breakfast started, all of the mom’s were up bright and early applying their mascara, lipstick, and eye-shadow – which is not unacceptable… it’s  just not the roll-out-of-bed idea I’m used to.  Breakfast was AMAZING (even though I had to scarf it down in five minutes).  We ate hot pancakes, fresh rice and beans, and fruits like watermelon and pineapple, with coconut juice to top it all off!

We Left for Hogar de Fe around 8:45.  If you are a new-reader, Hogar de Fe is the children’s home in a small community called Los Brasilles.  Today was a big day- pre-school graduation.  I learned from Cecil that pre-school consists of three years, and there is a graduation at the end of each year.  The kids were adorable with their mini caps and gowns to fit their tiny bodies.  One of our own even graduated! Her name is Micah and she is so stinking cute!  She lives in the children’s home with her two sisters Martha (my sponsor child) and Rebecca.  She’s growing so fast!  I don’t think she enjoyed wearing the cap and gown as much as Valerie and I awed at how cute she looked in it… it gets pretty hot under those things!  PS- all graduation ceremonies take place outside in the community’s church.

Anyway, Valerie and I moved from our seats (in the back) to the front so that we could take pictures of Micah and her friends during the ceremony.   We wound up playing peek-a-boo with Micah and a classmate of hers, and became their perfect distraction.  They kept getting out of their seats to come sit by us on the floor while Micah couldn’t keep her graduation hat on.  We eventually had to set a good example for the goofballs (even though we’re just as immature as they are).  Lina (orphanage mom figure) walked Micah down the isle to receive her diploma and pictures.  Lina does so much for all of the girls at Hogar.  She does their hair, helps them with their school work, maintains their cleaning schedules, and so much more!  The girls love and respect Lina just as a I love and respect my mom.  During small breather-breaks in the graduation some of the Hogar girls (Aura, Shelley, Michelle, and Jenny) wore special mariachi dresses and performed traditional dances.  They all looked so beautiful!  They’re hair was gelled back and they were all wearing bright red lipstick with a blue, red, or white dress on.  Both the camera and crowd loved it!

After the graduation, the team hung out at Hogar de Fe.  Mrs. Vaught brought nail polish so the girls painted nails with the older girls at the home.  I was surprised when Rita grabbed the nail polish remover and started working on my dirt-filled toes. She used the nail polish that was given to her and the jewels that she already had (for decoration), and she painted my toes.  I still can’t believe that that happened.  Here I am coming to Nicaragua to serve others and I am the one being served.  Now this being my fourth trip, I’ve seen the act many times.  But never have I ever experienced being served by a girl who is of the same age as me.  I live in a nice house; I have a loving, caring family; I pay ridiculous prices to get my nails done at the salon.  She lives with five other girls in her room, and many more in the room next door; her mother and father are not a part of her life; she’s probably never gone to a nail salon.  But here Rita is cleaning off my dirty toes and polishing them ever so carefully- she’s done this before.  Naturally we painted the girl’s nails in return, although we weren’t very good at it compared to them… it’s the thought that counts right?  One girl Anna, who is in the special needs program there, wanted to get her toe nails done!  So I took off her shoes and started clipping and filing her toe-nails, which hadn’t been groomed in quite a while, and attempted to paint like the Nicaraguans.  The experience ensured me that I am American, but Anna’s smile told me that it didn’t matter- she just wanted some bling on her feet!  Next the younger girls took me to their room where I was lucky enough to get my hair gelled back into a prim-and-proper bun.  I will admit that while they were gluing my hair to my head I had to repeat it’s for the kids, they won’t care if I look like a boy, just smile and say thank you over and over again.  It was fun though and the girls got a kick out of it!

A group of us ACF-ers finished off the day playing basketball with Martha and Mercedes- boy are they tough for twelve year olds!

Lunch was different than usual.  We ordered Pizza Hut and held a party for the teachers of Joshua 1:8!  They got their food first – which was funny, because while we Americans put one or two pieces of pizza on our plates, they piled on four or five pieces!  I’ve known that pizza is a gift for Nicaraguans from past trips, but it reminded me how lucky we are to have some of life’s simplest pleasures in the states.  Every 2 or three Americans was paired up with a translator, and we were able to have conversation with the teachers!   I was able to talk to Martha’s teacher, who spoke highly of her, and a petite lady (remembering names are not my strongpoint).  We got to talking, and Martha’s teacher told me that he had never had a conversation with a missionary, and he’s been teaching for 13 years!  We talked about all sorts of stuff, and it was easy to open up with them.  Most of the conversation was compliments going back and forth.  By the end of the conversation they were well aware that the teaching they were doing was worth more than they thought.  Not only are they giving the kids a great education, but they are showing them – through example – that nothing is impossible with God.  They thanked me for missing school to come to their country, and told me that they could tell I was genuinely happy here.   Maybe the smile gave it away, but I appreciated their thanks, and I do LOVE coming here.

After lunch, the crew hopped into the van and drove to the recently finished homes that ACF helped with.  We went to the house that we leveled out in August, and the house is beautiful!  I was reconnected with the family, and asked the kids if they remembered our church… they said no – ha.  Can’t blame them though, tons of groups came in to work on the construction.  With permission we took pictures, and after only ten minutes were on our way home.  It was short and sweet!  Those kids are so stinking cute!

We arrived back at the Quinta to clean up and eat dinner.  Dinner exceeded our expectations as always.  More importantly, today is Sarah’s 30^th birthday (Ginny and Cecil’s daughter)!

I forgot to mention that last night her husband, who was supposed to be in the states, surprised her by being here for her birthday!

Tonight was the surprise party – Ramiro (pastor of Joshua 1:9 church) and his family was invited among many others.  We started off the night right with lots of cake and tres leches (a three milk cake)!  All of us kids were running around, playing tag and a game called Bunny-Bunny-Bunny-Bunny.  Out of nowhere came this loud and beautiful music- it was a mariachi band!  We must have danced for an hour; my feet have never been this sore before!  After the band a piñata was unveiled.  Piñatas are always so fun!  The person up-to-bat has no idea where they are, and everyone doesn’t let them forget it.  We all dove for tons of candy – nobody left empty handed.  Ramiro’s granddaughter Michelle is adorable!  She’s maybe seven years old and is absolutely gorgeous.  Tonight Bradley, Valerie, Katie and I taught her the sassy-walk and some English.  Michelle would do a model walk, stop, bat her eyes up and down, look up at us while tilting her head with her hands framing her face, and say “Oh my gosh, I so cute!”  It was SO cute.  For our last activity we played a balloon game.  Any number of people can play.  It’s where a balloon is tied to your ankle and you have to pop everyone else’s balloon while protecting your own.  The last one with their balloon wins!  Most of us got out within the first five seconds, and it came down to two Nicaraguan soccer players (girls)!  They were beasts (not in a manly way).  One of them won after a solid two minutes and the group went back to playing tag and talking.  Towards the end of the night, a few of us started to hang out with these two girls Addison and Crystal.  Addison is American and Crystal is Nicaraguan; they’re both around 9 years old.  Crystal’s dad started playing the guitar for the girls and the two sung away.  Crystal has a beautiful voice- everyone was impressed.  The small group sang praise to God for maybe 30 minutes.  The night died down around 9 pm, we said our see-you-laters, and now we’re cozy in the rocking chairs, talking, and I’m blogging.

How great is our God who has blessed us with so much?!

-Em

The crew sang worship in rocking chairs on the back porch (traditional) and without time to have a devotion, we headed straight to a sports complex.

This sports complex is amazing. It has two basketball courts, a soccer field, a baseball field, sand volleyball, tetherball (sp?), and a large outdoor food area. ALL of the Hogar de Fe (orphanage) kids met us there to have a day of celebration and fun, and to receive the gifts that Austin Christian Fellowship members provided! The bus full of them arrived around 9:30 and people just swarmed out of the bus with smiling faces and LOTS of hugs. It was such a blast! Juan Carlos Blandon Blandon was the first one that I saw. He’s doing great! Juan Carlos is graduating on Sunday from secondary school and is hoping to attend a college in Managua to further continue his education. Micah and Michelle are as cute as ever, and Martha is beautiful and is growing by the second! After reuniting with everyone, we started a game of soccer. When soccer was over, we went to baseball (Will!- I got a run! …and some outs, but those can be disregarded). Baseball lead to hungry stomachs so everybody went to the pavillion for homemade cooked rice, salad, chicken, and potatoes. We had the same thing for dinner, and it was still just as good (if not better) as it was the first round.

Photo by: Lisa Lewis

After lunch, we talked about how awesome it is that a baby was born to save us, and spent about an hour and a half presenting gifts for each child and worker (breif- I know).  When their names were called, they had to tell us one thing they were thankful for and then went hog wild digging through their bags.

Side note: Kevin is still a punk

Little Michelle, Issac, and Gabriel weren’t on the gift list, but we found extra gifts that we gave them.  Our church is given a list of the children at the home, and because they technically live with their family in the home, they weren’t on the list.  After the gift opening it was time for the piñatas. I didn’t get to see the younger kids’ pinata, but the teenagers’ was a trip. They were blindfolded, so not only was it funny that they had NO idea where they were, but they would swing a hundred miles an hour at nothing.

KELLY CARTER- If you’re reading, Ana was cheered on to hit the pinata and she had the best time with it! I mean, every single person was chanting her name and it was the sweetest thing! She’s making quite the turnaround by becoming more outgoing after being enrolled in the new special needs school.

The pinata was hanging by a thread; literally a newspaper box filled with candy was all that remained. Finally, someone hit the box down and all of the kids swarmed towards it like killer bees (shout out to the killer bee’s soccer team!). They all managed to stay in a circular pack running around this basketball court with the box full of candy- it was hilarious. Eventually the candy spilled out and everyone chasing after the box dropped to the floor and gathered as much candy as they could. I’ve never seen anything like it.

We cleaned up the party scraps, and headed back to the Quinta to eat dinner and get ready for church near Oscar’s school. Church was loud, fun, and in Spanish so nobody (except for those who are bilingual in the group) understood what was going on. When they clapped, we clapped. When they stood, we stood. We came back toheadquarters and realized that not many people were at church tonight. We got to talking about the reasons Americans don’t go to church and compared them to the reasons some Nicaraguans might not go to church. In America, sporting events, a good day for the lake, and being too tired keep us from attending church. In Nicaragua, those types of distractions do not occur as much because of the poverty. The things they consider is the safety of the church’s surroundings, if someone needs to watch the house instead of going to church, or if someone need to work in order to put food on the table the next day.  The bible tells us that we’re supposed to have complete faith in Christ.  He tells us that He will provide all of our needs if we fully invest in Him.

But we are human and we are not perfect. There will be distractions that keep us from investing.  We don’t always give our all to Him. I’m not sure how to end this statement, because it’s difficult to set aside those distractions- especially when we don’t feel like He doesn’t see us or hear our cries.

On that note, it’s time for bed!
Mom, Dad, Cilla, and John- I love you infinity!

Thanks for reading!

Em

Understand, with every mission trip and vacation that I’ve ventured on in the past 18 years, there have been many people that I love and care about to soak the experiences in with me. I couldn’t picture what this trip would be like alone. Usually the flight to Nicaragua consists of inside jokes, making fun of (and enjoying) Tanner King’s laugh, and taking pictures until our batteries run out. I suppose I could take pictures wit h random strangers in the airport… or I could take the solo “myspace headshot” but I’m awkward enough as it is so I‘ll pass. Needless to say, the flying portion of this trip has worried me. While I am quite embarrassed of how scared I really have been about this trip, I have realized that I am not alone.

Besides the company that facebook brings from layover to layover, the Lord is with me the whole time. He’s with our team for the entire week. Thank you friends and family for showing me that. Psalms 46:5 says “God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at Break of day.” Supportive letters, text messages, and prayers have reminded me that things are going to be ok. That thought didn’t stick for too long.
After arriving to Miami, I began to feel anxious again. Thinking about family and friends back home gave me the unlikely possibility that I might not see them again. Over dramatic- I know. But what can I say… I’m an eighteen year old girl with feelings so I’m bound for a few tears. After instant-messaging Will until the final minute prior to take-off, a really nice couple (Mike and Patty) from Waco assured me that I was not alone, because they were right there with me. That was exactly what I needed to hear. It’s one thing for peers to tell me that every little thing is going to be alright, but being given reassurance smack-dab-in-the-middle of a situation, is extremely encouraging. Turns out they work for an organization called Adventures in Missions. They are in Nicaragua checking on a group that travels to 11 countries in eleven months doing mission work.

Talking to them was a good distraction and calmed me down (no need to worry anymore, Mom). Probably the hardest part of the whole extravaganza was stepping out of my comfort zone and onto the plane. The trip has barely begun and the Lord is already revealing SO much.
Mainly, that He has my back and even when I’m doubting a situation, He is right behind me with everything under control. It kind of reminds me of calculus… stay with me. Half of the time in that class I have NO idea what is going on. Strategy: accept whatever the teacher says to be true, no matter how much it makes your head spin. If I stick to those accepted equations, I’ll pass the class (even if I don’t understand what is going on). Sorry if I’m coloring outside of the lines too much. Trusting in the Lord seems to relate to calculus. There are times, like tonight, where I have no idea what to do. Should I stay, should I go? As Christians and humans, sometimes the best thing we can do is go with the flow hoping that someone bigger than us will use us for His glory, and keep us safe. This pathetic breakdown reassured me that the Lord has a plan for our team this week, and it is going to be amazing!

So the plane landed around 8:30 pm and the Austin Christian Fellowship crew was scheduled to arrive at 9 pm. False. Turns out their flight was delayed at least an hour. I parked it in customs (the gates were closed off) and tried to call my mom to let her know I was safe, and my phone didn’t work, hah! I retrieved the mini laptop, found some free WiFi, and got on facebook where I had to scroll through the Chat list so someone could call the house. Colton- you saved my life and my parents’ from buying a plane ticket to Managua to make sure I was ok. Phone was fixed, facebook kept me occupied, and then after 45 minutes I got kicked out of customs. It wasn’t that bad though, the security guard let me sit right behind the customs booths. Mom and Dad were worried sick, and stayed online to chat until the group arrived. They also frantically called around town to find contact information in Nicaragua so that I wouldn’t be the only blonde in the airport. Thank you to Steve, Ian, Courtney, Mrs. Panos and D-Wash for your help! Everyone arrived around 10:15 pm and from then on I felt safer than ever.

The bus ride to the Quinta Primavera (guest house we stay in) was perfect. Valerie and I stuck our heads out of the windows like dogs, soaking in the smell of Nicaragua. We decided that if you take a scoop of grainy dirt (the kind where it has some larger grains) and smell it, you get the scent of our favorite country! We went to bed around 2 in the morning after unpacking duffels, and organizing Christmas presents for the children at Hogar de Fe (children’s home).

Long story short: I’m so excited to finally be here and I can’t wait to see where God will place us this week! As you can tell, blogs might be delayed.

Goodnight!

Em

If I could describe a perfect day, it would be just like today. The morning was kicked off with pancakes and usual side dishes. Jenny spoke to us about giving. She recited the Lord’s prayer, and emphasized on “give us our daily bread”. Most Americans can say that we will have 3 meals a day, at least. We are certain that we will receive our daily bread. But, what does that mean for the Nicaraguans? She explained to the group that Nicaraguans are not worried about what they will cook for dinner, but if dinner will be there at all. They do not worry about what will happen a week from now, they are concerned with today. Jenny stressed the importance of giving. We will probably never be able to close the gap from poor to rich, because they need to do things on their own. But if there’s any way we can serve and help, which is what we are called to do, then we need to do it! Serving isn’t about fixing anything, it’s about sacrifice, and loving your neighbor. Example: My family members and close family friends were gracious enough to financially support my trip this week. (That’s a sacrifice… someone‘s $20 could have been spent at Starbucks) It is because of that sacrifice that I have the opportunity to serve. Their support is them saying I want to help; I can’t get to Nicaragua, but I would love to help you get there to make a difference. It’s a very humbling feeling to know that people can serve in different ways, and it inspires me to give all of my energy, love, and friendship to the Nicaraguans. So thank you, family and friends for giving me the chance to serve this week.

We hopped on the bus for an hour long ride to a potter’s house. We played a game similar to spades. Everyone gets a card and you can’t look at it and you put it on your head. You state if you’re in or out and if you have the highest spade you win! Turns out we were all cheating somehow. Tanner was looking at his reflection in the window, Colton saw his reflection from his iPod, and David and I came up with winks for “stay in” and looking away for “go out”. Basically, we rock.

So we get to the potter’s house. It’s in a small village close to the lake. The drive was beautiful- full of green mountains, volcanoes, and views of Lake Managua. The house was made of cinder blocks with a mud floor; put three Escalades together and you’ve got the size of the house! I don’t remember the man’s name, but he was very wise. He introduced us to his wife (or as he called, his “rib”), and three children. He brought us into a good sized backyard where chairs were set up, an oven for clay was set, and a wheel for shaping the clay was. He explained step by step how he and his family made the pots. The first step is breaking the clay. He compared this to the Lord breaking us, so that we might have a chance to be changed by Him. The next step is mixing and mushing up the clay with your feet- I personally think it’s just for enjoyment. But it really does need it… then he takes a block of clay and picks out imperfections or unmixed parts in the clay. The clay is then formed in the image the potter wants it to be- connection: God makes us each different, and he has a purpose for the characteristics He gives us. The clay is shined, painted/ styled, shined some more, and searched for more areas that will cause it to crack under the pressure of the fire. The potter smoothes out the flaws. The man let us not only mush the clay with our toes, but we got to try spinning the clay into something useful. None of us should be potters. While the man was spinning, he had us sing songs of praise because the time was for God and his glory, not what the potter could craft together. When we got to the step of putting the pots into the fire, he told us that the potter has to use his judgment on how hot the oven can get. It’s all powered by what he thinks the pots can handle, for there is no thermometer. Just a bunch of wood and a match. He mentioned that the Lord has his best interest for us, and will not give us more than we can bear- like the fire. He showed us the final products. Some were perfect, and those with flaws were thrown away. It is through Christ that we are saved. If we whole heartedly accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are to go to Heaven and be with Him forever. If we deny the gift of grace, and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we are useless. The potter was filled with analogies throughout the hour and a half, but me being so awe struck with his words, all I can say is that God was there. The man sang every song, and spoke every word without a doubt that Jesus Christ is the beginning, the end, and everything in between. It was a very inspiring way to start off the last day. Two of his hand crafted pots will join the Sutfin fam 0n Monday night.
Best $10 I’ve ever spent.

Next up, an hour drive to Hogar de Fe for lunch with the kids! Kayla, Kelsey, Cece and I sat with the younger girls. They’re so fun! The whole week we’ve been doing fashion model walks- which Kelsey is hilarious at by the way- and doing stupid stuff like calling each other “cracy”…(crazy, but they can’t say it right so it’s better). All of the girls have so much attitude, young and teens, and they are so loving and fun to be around! Lunch- fried banana chips (yummy!), rice, beans, shredded BBQ stuff (?), coke, and mashed potatoes! My favorite was the BBQ because it had carrots in it, which is the first and last vegetable we’ve had here. Veggies cost a lot so they just add a piece of bread. Don’t judge me by my weight when I come home J

After lunch we took millions more pictures with the kids, and then taught them the “bunny bunny bunny game”. If you’ve played the “Huh” game it’s similar. You stand in a circle, and the person that’s it is a bunny. They chant “bunny bunny bunny bunny!” and they point to someone who is the new bunny. The people on either side of the bunny have to chant “gucci gucci gucci goo”. If you miss your chant you’re out. Oh! And while chanting, you have to jump up and down. The people on the sides get to do that, and shake their bom-boms and whale their arms up and down- kind of like cheerleaders! The kids caught on quick with the English, and it ended up being a hit for the day! It’s one of those ridiculously fun games where no matter what, you look like an idiot. After that, the girls had another fashion model walk video made. Even three year old Micah was shaking her hips and blowing kisses to the camera. Everyone got a kick out of it. The older girls took us to their room, where they attempted to teach us how to salsa dance. I’ll just say attempted again and leave it at that.

ALI!- Andrea (Nicaraguan) took me to Katerina’s house today! Her and her mom were SO excited and so grateful for your gifts! The letter never got translated, but I told them that you loved them, and that you wanted Katerina to have the gift. The mom said that her heart was beating really fast. I only know that because she said something like “my heart” in Spanish, and then she put her hand on her chest and started patting it really fast. Katerina had a HUGE smile on her face!

To wrap up the trip, the girls of Hogar de Fe planned a prank. We got all of the boys together to take a picture in the middle of the basketball court. We counted to three with our cameras, but instead of taking pictures, we dumped buckets of water on them! This turned into a huge water fight! By the end of the war, every single student, intern, leader, and child was drenched in water. There was not a single person left out, and smiles were everywhere. I think it’s safe to say those kids rarely have water fights, because water is so sacred. SUCH a blast! The goodbyes were not discouraging or difficult, rather on a “see you later!” note. Logan pointed out that we should not dwell on this trip, for the Lord has truly blessed us. But we should be happy, and excited about what was shown to us this week, and we should look forward to what He has in store for us on future trips, wherever they may be.

I want to thank everyone again, for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime. Thank you for your prayers, your financial support, and your love for God. I have been overfilled with joy!

Check facebook for videos and more pictures J

In Him,

Emily

Today was a different day. We started off the morning with the usual breakfast, plus banana bread. I don’t remember what we talked about… it started off with “love your neighbor as yourself” and ended with amen. We all loaded the bus earlier than usual, and ventured to the Hidden Treasure. It’s where families who grow coffee beans live. The bus took us to the top of a hill and we hiked down hill about half of a mile to a church. 34 food bags were handed out, and people came from miles of rolling hills to get them. We were able to pray over the Nicaraguan church, and they prayed over us as well. On the way back up to the bus, a handful of us carried the 25 pound bags back up to where some of the families lived. OK for real, those hills are HUGE. It’s like walking the River Place loop with no flat areas, going straight up the whole time. Our backs were killing! Kelsey and I made a workout of it, surprised? Andrea gets the selfless award for the day. She helped a woman carry her sick baby in a stroller the whole way up the mountain. We got to the top, and this 9 year old girl Kelsey had bonded with immediately, said that she had a cut on her leg. It was the size of a quarter, and it looked like someone has taken a spoon and scooped out her leg- I just got chills thinking about it. Turns out she was sliced by a piece of iron. It was too late for stitches (it happened 15 days ago), but it could’ve definitely used some. Logan got to play doctor with that one, and he did a great job! He cleaned it, bandaged her up, and gave her mom instructions on what to do. We then went deeper into the Hidden Treasure, where out team was able to pray on each family, and remind them that the gift was from God. The “homes” were made out of mostly tin and wood, with dirt floors (well… mud, it’s rainy season). Each home is about 10 ft x 10 ft, or less. One family consisted of the mother and father, and 13 kids! The house was smaller than my room with cracks in the walls and ceiling, no AC, no plumbing, no floor, and they have 13 CHILDREN! It’s like I can see where these people live, and I can experience a weeks worth of poor living, but being able to put myself in their shoes seems impossible. I can’t imagine not having a cell phone, carpet, a mall, a car… The thing about Nicaragua is that we come here to serve the poor, when in the end it is the poor who serve us. They don’t have materialistic things. They worry about the basics- family, health, food, shelter, and a relationship with God. When we asked for prayer requests today, every single family asked for good health, and that their family would be OK. There was no talk of needing money, food, or transportation. They pray that their needs will be met, and God provides for them. Now I’m not going to lie, I love my iPhone, but the Nicaraguans have showed me time and time again that my love for God is what I need to be pursuing. Not that a high score on “The Most Addictive Game” isn’t important, but I can’t let it consume me.  Tanner and David really stepped up to the plate when asked to pray for families.  They were always willing to, and when they did, they did a GREAT job!

We headed back to the Quinta for lunch- PB&J… again! Never gets old.

After lunch, we went to the market! Lots of good stuff J

We got home from the market, ate dinner (chicken?), and then went to Los Brasilles for church! Because it rained today, not many people could make it. David Joseph made a good point today- All of these people are coming from near and far, miles and miles far, just to praise the Lord and give thanks. Most Americans get mad or stressed (myself included) if we get a bad parking spot in the church parking lot. We suck. Any who… we sang songs in Spanish for maybe 45 minutes, and then David Booth and the whole gang of us went on stage and sang songs in English. I felt like I was back in the fifth grade Special Choir. David Joseph and I gave our testimonies/ what God has been showing us lately. David thanked everyone for letting us serve them, and how much of a blessing it has been to be here, and how God has shown him so much through the Nicaraguans. I (very) briefly stated some of the things I have been struggling with, and explained that this week has revealed to me that bad things happen, and instead of turning my back on Jesus, I need to trust the Lord. I mean, people struggle, and not everything goes the way we want it to. He has His best interest for you and me, and coming to that realization has completely changed my prospective on things. He never said things would be easy, and we are put nowhere by mistake. If we had control, and everything was fine-and-dandy all the time, we wouldn’t need Him. There would be no reason to pursue a relationship with Christ and all of this would be for nothing. I don’t know why people die, or why people lie and cheat, or why high school girls can be completely over dramatic and rude (no experience). I do know, however, that my God is a loving God. And His love is unconditional and lasts forever.

More videos and pictures were taken with the kids, and we are now at the Quinta! Tomorrow is our last fun filled day here in Nicaragua.
Can’t wait to see what happens!

Peace out girl scouts,

Emily

Today was a great day! Kayla wanted this coffee cake, oatmeal thing that you pour milk over for breakfast, and I wanted French toast… sure enough, both dishes were out! Devotion was about honesty. There’s been some situations where a person can be too honest (aka complaining too much), to the point where others are annoyed out of their minds. We decided that sometimes when asked to do something you don’t want to do, the best thing to do is suck it up and change your attitude. God doesn’t make mistakes in where He puts you, so we have to trust his judgment. We spent the whole morning playing soccer and basketball with the kids in Los Brasilles (remember… the small village that has Hogar de Fe- orphanage- in it). PS- We work from 9 am- noon, then lunch, and then about 12:30 or 1 pm- 4:30 pm. It was sooo hot, but it was a blast! I couldn’t believe that some of them were wearing long sleeved shirts and long jeans, playing soccer in like 100 degrees! The kids LOVED it though… probably because we suck and it’s hilarious to them that we’re fat, can’t kick a soccer ball, and can’t speak Spanish.

Next up: sponsor lunch!

Her name is Martha and she is 12 years-old. Her favorite color is blue and she loves to play soccer. She’s the oldest of two sisters- Rebecca and Micah. She’s so sassy and loves to model walk. Her and her sisters live in Hogar de Fe. Martha and I met last summer, on my first trip. We hung out a lot, but we really got close when I went this past spring break. It was then that we decided we were sisters “hermanas” in Spanish. I’ve been sponsoring her since yesterday. I am so excited to support her, because I care about her so much! She really is like my sister. We went to Pizza Hut for lunch. We walk in and there’s a hostess stand, so it’s not like the Pizza Huts in the US. It was a nice restaurant with lots of upper-class looking Nicaraguans. We played tag in the playground and just fooled around. The food was ten times better than it is in America, and with El Eskimo ice cream to top it off, I’d say the lunch was a success! We played the expression game on the way home. It’s where you make a facial expression to different situations and take a picture of it. EX: You just met Hannah Montana! So we both freaked out and laughed at each other and had a blast with it.

After that we went to Hogar de Fe and played more soccer. We left, ate some spaghetti and what not, and now we’re at a NEW café called Esparanza. It has a killer view of a valley- we were lucky enough to catch it right at sunset!

Day 2 Checklist:

-Leveled floor of house

-Monkey’d

-Talked about not having any expectations for the trip

-Worshiped

-Carried heavy buckets

-Ate sweet bread… Colton’s sick now. Cross your fingers I won’t!

-Played soccer, basketball, and spun in circles

-I got married to Logan

-Breakfast, lunch, and dinner

-Vanilla latte

-Danced

-Had a runway show with the younger Hogar de Fe girls!

-Made lots of conversation (well, I tried) with some of the kids my age

-Got in trouble for “slacking off” too much today with Colton… but we were REALLY buying the workers sweet bread!

Long, but fun-filled day! I’m wiped out if you couldn’t tell. More probably happened but I’m half asleep right now so I can’t remember all the details. Hopefully more tomorrow! And hopefully Andrea will find her way to the keyboard! J

Em

Landing in Nicaragua is like landing at home. Cecil, one of the head honchos of NRN, and Aaron, a Nicaraguan friend of ours, picked us up from the airport. The bus ride was hot and sticky, but there was no other place I would have rather been. We were welcomed at the Quinta Primavera with Pizza Hut pizza (a treasure to most Nicaraguans) and the best soda you’ll ever have in your life- it has REAL sugar! Seriously, most of us will average 5 sodas a day. So the Quinta is pretty much a house with a bunch of rooms facing a courtyard. The courtyard has tons of rocking chairs- perfect for circle time J We went to bed around 11pm, but I probably only slept for 4 hours because every animal in Nicaragua decided to be obnoxiously loud. I swear it was like sleeping in the middle of a zoo.

The two remaining groups went to Los Brasilles. Kayla and I are lucky enough to be there for the next three days. In Los Brasilles there is an orphanage (Hogar de Fe), a public school, a private school, and then families who live in the village. Most of us have become very close to the kiddos at the orphanage, so I was psyched to go back! Our groups are working on two homes this week. One of the houses is almost finished, and we built the foundation on the Spring Break trip. Kayla and I didn’t even recognize the house. It took us a week to build the base, and now it has a roof and four walls! Hopefully we’ll get to move in the family, pray on the family, and pray on the house by the end of the week- which is extremely moving for me to even think about. We worked on the back area of the house, shoveling dirt into ditches that could be dangerous for the kids moving in. I am amazed at how much progress was made in what seems such little time. The other house needed a leveled base, so we started there… or the guys did. Within the week we will hopefully make walls with concrete blocks and mezcla. I found my way to the shade with some kids I met today. We made up sweet handshakes, kicked the soccer ball around, played tag and peek-a-boo, and attempted to communicate through my English to Spanish dictionary. I have decided that the book does nothing. The love is spread through embarrassment, and the language barrier doesn’t matter. I don’t think people really notice it.

*Cilla- I will see Enedia this week, so no worries about that!

*Mom and Dad- It’s looking like Martha is a go! Let me know what you think…

Adios for now!

-Emily

I’ll type it up on Word Document tonight and post it tomorrow, because it’s time to head back to the Quinta!

I’m alive!

Emily