Every blink

It's hard to believe it is March already, it feels like every time I blink another day has come and gone! Another rainy morning caused gym class to be in the hallway again. All of the kids, but especially the second and third graders enjoy kicking the little soccer ball up the stairs. They work with the situations they are given! During my break I went down to say goodbye to the team from Concordia. I had a little bit of home in Ecuador with them here!

Blessed by these familiar faces, yeah Cobber track!
Kristin, Isaac, and I at Casa de Fe.

One of the other teachers left school sick so I spent the later morning watching "The Secret of NIHM" with her students. The girls seemed really interested, which kept them entertained for the the time teacher was gone. There was a bunch of food for lunch today and it was all tasty! The teachers always seem to have more food on Friday, it is a nice way to end the week. It was a test day in English and they did well. My new student is starting to recognize some letters, identify single digit numbers, and knows how to tell people her name. I have been making sure she can see the words and hear them, which I have seen work very well for her. I am a proud teacher! When school was done I had library, after school cleaning, and then headed home to rest up and read before Jesse's birthday party. I receive daily Bible verses in my email and today it was the Message version of 1 Thessalonians 2:6-8, "Even though we had some standing as Christ’s apostles, we never threw our weight around or tried to come across as important, with you or anyone else. We weren’t aloof with you. We took you just as you were. We were never patronizing, never condescending, but we cared for you the way a mother cares for her children. We loved you dearly. Not content to just pass on the Message, we wanted to give you our hearts. And we did." I want to love and care for all people the way this passage describes. My mother is a such a great example of what it looks like to selflessly serve and I know she is a big part of why I love to help others who are in need, she is incredible! I get to be like a mother to the children here at Casa de Fe and it is a huge blessing. Although there are sometimes tough moments, I am honored to get to care for and support them. Some days I am exhausted and know there is still more I need do, but at the Lord provides me with enough strength for each day! I have had a bit of a cold, so I needed to make sure and nap for as long as possible before the festivities began. I walked over to the Freeman house around 6 to help get food organized and set things up. There were a ton of people gathered to eat food, talk, and dance. I danced the night away! I ate a bunch of good food such as apples with dip, beef and cheese empanadas, chips with queso, tango cookies, cake with ice cream, and much more. There were families and younger kids that hung around until 10ish, at which point the older kids could stay for a lock-in.

Happy birthday Jesse!

Cheralyn and I were volunteered to chaperon, so we stayed to watch the kiddos. We ended up singing karaoke and dancing some more before playing a game of "mafia". I have to say it was the biggest game of mafia I have ever played and although it was slow at times, it was great! Then it was time for a game of "guesstures", another one of my favorites. It was pretty late at this point...around 1 or 2 in the morning so the back to back movies began. We started with "Journey to the Center of the Earth", followed by a cartoon, then "The Three Stooges". The cartoon was a little fuzzy because I fell asleep for a while, but I just couldn't keep my eyes open. At a quarter to 7 this morning we began cleaning up before getting a ride home to go and sleep. It was a long night, but I was glad to be a part of Jesse's birthday party and was honored to help. I slept for a few hours this morning, then spent the afternoon doing dishes, cleaning my room, and washing clothes. Nothing too exciting, but I wanted to rest up so I could be ready for the girls night at Shari's house! There were a few of us who got together to watch a movie and enjoy treats. It was a relaxing evening of friends and food to end an busy morning.