Missions Trip

The mission trip from Adam's home church has come and gone. It was a really busy week, but lots of fun! It was great to see people who have been supporting us come and be a part of what we are doing. It was also wonderful to see familiar faces and show them our "home".

During the week they were here they ran a kids camp for a day, taught ESL to adults and did a construction project.

The kid’s camp went great! They had about 50 kids who came from a local school. They were able to swim, break some piñata’s, do some crafts and hear about the love of Christ!

The ESL was a big hit; the adults were so excited to learn English! They said they couldn't even sleep they were so excited to come back the next day and learn more! Adam and I are working on getting weekly classes set up at camp for them to come to and learn more.

The construction project was for a family who lives down the beach. The church built them an enclosed cement room as an addition to their home. I believe the family was in shock that this just "happened" to them. They are expecting their third child in August and are thrilled about having a water/bug proof room to sleep in. The church also gave them a propane tank and stove top to cook on. This is a huge blessing to the family since previously they would collect wood everyday and cook over a fire which filled their home with smoke!

It was a blessing to have the team here and they are excited to come back next year! Adam's mom stayed a few extra days and treated us to two nights at a all-inclusive resort here! It was lots of fun to go swimming and stuff ourselves full of food. Ashlyn really enjoyed spending time with her Grammie. She was quite the cuddle bug with Grammie, which was precious to see!

Now we are getting ready for the next team coming on the 27th! They are "Chop Point" the organization who founded the camp. They will be here for two weeks and will be running a kids camp. We are very excited to have them here since they are the experts at running these camps and once again it will be so fun to see people we know.

The "kids camp" kids and mission team.

New addition to the family's home.

Unwelcome Visitor

We had a mission team from Tennessee run a kid’s camp a few weeks ago. One of the men found a six foot Boa Constrictor outside his cabin at night.
Thought you might enjoy the picture!

Christmas Vacation

We are back from our Christmas vacation to Maine. It was wonderful to go back for the holidays! We had a great time visiting with friends and family, seeing lots of snow and “pigging out” on all the food we’ve been craving. I think we gave the local Chinese buffet a serious financial boost this holiday season!

Ashlyn accomplished some milestones while we were there. Her two, bottom front teeth came in! She was not a happy girl during this process, but now that they are in she looks awful cute! She also learned to walk while in Maine! It’s strange at times to have her just “walk” into a room like such a big girl!
It was really fun to see her interact with everyone around her. Once she figured out that people would say “hi” back to her, she was waving and saying “hi” to everyone. She also got to play with her “friends”. She was shy at first but by the end of the trip she was having lots of fun playing with the other kids.

I think everyone knows, but incase I missed anyone…we are expecting! I am about four months pregnant and due July 5th. We will be having the baby here which will give the baby automatic citizenship in Nicaragua. We are looking forward to our new addition!

Although I was a little sad to leave Maine, we are happy to be back! There has been a lot to do at the camp since we’ve been back. A mission’s team from Tennessee came down and ran a great kids camp. Now some church’s here in Nica. are using it to hold church retreats. And in just two weeks a team from Adam’s home church in Maine is coming down. We are excited to have them come!

Here's a picture of Ashlyn reaching in her stocking on Christmas morning.

Headed Home for the Holidays!

Tomorrow afternoon we are leaving for Managua (the capital) where we will be spending the weekend with friends. Then we fly out early Monday morning for Maine! I am very excited to be going back to the states for a few weeks. I love the Christmas season and have a hard time being overseas during it! I am looking forward to seeing friends & family but also little things that I miss. Like; hot showers, yummy food, electricity 24/7, carpet instead of tile floors, safe water right out of the tap, snow…the list goes on!

If you could please be praying for us as we travel on Monday (the 17th) it would be much appreciated. I naturally do not worry or stress about many things, but flying with a baby stresses me out!
In my foolish youth I had little empathy for mothers with “annoying” kids. My worst nightmare is to be “that mom” with the crying, crazy kid.
We have a two hour flight out of Managua to Houston and then a three hour flight from Houston to Boston. Then a three hour drive from Boston to Maine.
We will be leaving Nicaragua around 7:00 am and won’t arrive in Maine until around 10:00 pm. It will be a long day for Ashlyn!

Please pray that Ashlyn will somehow want to sit on my lap for hours at a time!
Also that she will be able to sleep on the plane. She has a hard time sleeping anywhere other than a crib. And for my sanity, I stress myself out worrying about if she’s going to have a “melt-down”.
Thanks so much! It’s a relief to know I will have people praying for us! I will see some of you soon!

Late Night Visitor

Last night our dogs started barking rather ferociously at our front gate. I went out to see what was causing all the commotion and there was a horse grazing on the grass by our gate.
I put the dogs inside and treated the horse a big carrot. She looked like she could use some extra meat on her bones! The thought crossed my mind that I could just bring her inside my gate and have a pet horse…but I resisted the urge.
Seeing horses everywhere is one of the things I love about Nicaragua!