Journey with God's Precious Lambs

Monday, August 3, 2009

Update.....WOW been awhile....

Dear Family and Friends,
Wow! Time has flown!! It has been awhile since I have written you and thought I would let you know what is going on in my life. I hope this email finds you doing fantastic! After nannying for a family in Montana for 2 months, I came home due to several reasons. I came home and drove out to do a trial period with a family in Louisville, KY. I loved the children and the family I was staying with, but during the 2 weeks I was there God showed them that they weren't spiritually ready to be a leader to a nanny. It was a neat experience and they were so encouraging to me. It was unexpected to go back home, but it was a great time getting to know them and I still stay in contact with them. Before I headed home, I stopped by to see an old time friend in Nashville and my friend Beth from Wisconsin happened to be in the area too! We had a girls night and it was fun despite the unexpected news. I went back home and started searching for another nanny position. Mid April I started nanny for a single mother of 2 children. It was totally different from the other 2 positions being she wasn't a Christian and I didn't live with her. After nannying for her for 7 weeks, I put in a 3 week notice, and it has gone downhill from there. I am still praying for the children and for Abby. She has been hostile vendictive towards me since I left the beginning of June. God had me in their lives for a reason, and I pray that the seeds I planted in the kids' lives and Abby's life will be rooted. "God, so now what?" I asked myself. I searched for different positions and no luck in this days economy. Mom suggested that maybe it was an opportunity to go back to college and finish my degree. Being that I don't have a desire to teach, I knew that I didn't want to go back and finish that. I realized that I still have a passion for Spanish and God could use me in that area. So after lots of praying and searching, I have decided to go back to Missouri Western State University and finish my degree in Spanish. If I have things calculated correctly, I only have 9 classes left!!! That is REALLY exciting! I should complete a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish December 2010 if I can get into a certain class this fall. Right now the class is full and I have to have special permission from the professor to be able to take it. I won't know anymore information until August 18th at Walk-in Registration. Another thing new in my life is taking up running.....or jogging should I say! I set a goal back in June that I wanted to be able to run a mile without stopping. I thought I was crazy after starting that goal, but after 1.5 weeks of walking and running, I achieved that goal. My next goal is to be able to run a 5K....and that is exactly what I am doing! On October 10, 2009, I will be running a 5K called "Run For a Child". All the proceeds will go to a Christian Crisis Pregnancy Center called Rachel House. If you would be interested in donating money towards this please let me know. Donations are tax-deductible. I will need your name, address and phone number. You can also donate online at: http://www.active.com/donate/runforachild

Some of you may want to know what is going on with the orphanage and my future plans. With the orphanage the kids are doing great. Most of the students/children I taught in Kinder are no longer there. A lot of them went back with their families, which were all good situations! Zuleika is in the process of getting adopted within the next couple months along with her 4 siblings. This has been a LONG process for them, but God knows when they will be with their family! Paúl is sill at the orphanage with his 2 siblings. Ericka is back with her mother and her little brother (who wasn't at the orphanage). Saúl and Lady are back with their mother, and are really happy. She put her faith in Christ during this whole process, which is really awesome! Jhonatan and his sister Nayeli are back with his mother, which was long over due. She visited him every Saturday consistantly and loves him VERY much! Edwin is still at the orphanage and is Miss Aly's class! He still talks about me and tells me that "Tia Mommy" is in the US. I LOVE IT! Maybe someday I will be able to adopt that little boy! Sebastian and Yan Pier are still at the orphanage as far as I know. FINALLY a few days after I left, their mother was located and told us their given names. That is the orphanage and if you are wanting to support them monthly or want the US Administrator to speak at your church, please let me know and I can get you that information.

Future plans.....let's see! I am going back to college in the fall. I am still dating Marc Hawkinson and we are doing well. He is great and I love him very much. God has brought him back into my life and it has been a challenging reconciliation with our families, but God is still faithful and is leading us in the direction that He wants us to go. I have an interview tomorrow with Hy-Vee in St. Joseph, MO, and could use your prayers in the job area. I am still planning to go back with YWAM after I finish college. I am hoping to be able to do translation with them at the base in WA along with nannying for the staff's family. Sorry that I can't give you more information on what is next, but God will reveal everything in time....His perfect time!

Thanks again for all of your support throughout the years! I am truely blessed to have family and friends like you! I pray that God blesses you abundantly as you continue to give towards His Kingdom! Here are some prayer requests:

1. Pray that I will be obedient to God's calling on my life concerning my job situation.
2. I have a court date on August 24, 2009. Pray that God's will be done in that situation and that Abby will turn her life over to Christ someday. Also pray for the children as I am sure they are having a hard time also through the whole situation.
3. Pray that Marc and I's relationship will continue to remain pure and that we will be obedient to what God has in store for us as we seek His will for our lives and our relationship.
4. Pray for the finances to come in for the orphanage. They are wanting to be financially independent from Mr. Miller.
5. Pray that I will be able to get into the class, for it is a pre-requisite to all the other classes I will be taking.
6. Pray for continued health for me. As I am preparing and training for the race, I pray that I won't have any injuries.

Thanks again and God's blessings to you as you continue to serve Him!

Serving Him in Love,
Amy Elizabeth Pitchford
201 E. 14th St.
Kearney, MO 64060
Webpage: http://home.att.net/~greatcommission/Pitchford/
http://hogar-de-esperanza-amy.blogspot.com/

Saturday, February 21, 2009

Finale at Hogar de Esperanza

December was a BUSY month! My last day of working with the Kinder class was December 2nd. I had one day off to finish getting ready to leave the 4th to go and get Mom. I had almost everything packed and gone through so that I had the rest of the time when we got back to the orphanage to spend with the kids. My last day of teaching was really a sad one. Edwin was being a pistol that day and was disobedient. I didn't want him to have to sit in time out, but he had to....even had to send him back to his house for trying to bite me. It was really sad. If you have ever seen E.T., he sounded like E.T. when he screams in that movie! He thought I was leaving that day and was screaming at me saying that he didn't want me to go and get Mom and that he didn't want me to leave. I said I would be back in a bit to talk with him. I went back and then sent the other kids back to their houses.....since it was the end of the day. I went back and he didn't want to let go of me. He is like my child. He has called me "mommy" for a long time, and at times I wondered if he really thought I was his mother. I would LOVE to adopt him someday. He is a needy child, but needs that love that only a parent could give him! It would be awhile and a lot of prayer if God really wants that for us!

After 2 days of relaxation and 2 bus rides (one being overnight) we arrived at Albergue Infantil: Hogar de Esperanza!!! They were excited to meet Mom and I! Abel, who is normally really rough, was quite gentle with Mom! She told him that they had something in common, they both wear glasses! It was really neat to see the kids bond with her! It still makes me teary-eyed! I do have to say that she bonded with Lady the best. Every time that Lady would see Mom she would run full speed and jump into Mom's arms! It was SOOO cute to watch this! We didn't do much on Friday morning, but we took Ericka and Zuleica out for Zuzu's birthday! We had ice cream and cake and they played for a bit inside a store that has a play area! We went back and Mom, Rocio and I made the Christmas cookie dough....well Rocio made it actually! She really enjoyed that one-on-two time with us! It was fun, and she liked the dough too! On Saturday 3 of the casitas helped roll out the dough and made their special cookie that we decorated on Monday night! The other casita had their turn on Monday morning! That afternoon we took Rocio out to get her ears pierced! She wanted Roxana to go with her, so we all left on a micro ( a bus that they cram LOTS of people on!) and headed into town. We then went to Salaverry beach, and then BACK into town for dinner! We ate at Jano's! My favorite place to eat....burger with a fried egg, shoestring fries, bacon, special mayo and aji! YUMMY!!!! Sunday was a special day! We went to church with Miss Aly and then went to her house and had lunch, baked cookies, and a carrot cake! Her family is such a blessing. I have been told many times that when I come back, that is where I will live....with Miss Aly, her parents, and her 2 sisters! I love them so much, and miss them like crazy! The day ended with a picture and her mother giving Mom a special gift...something Mom will treasure forever I am sure! It was a fantastic day, ending with Edwin visiting my room, "helping" me pack! He tried picking me up, which was great, and taking a picture with Mom!!! Monday morning we made the 2nd batch and then in the afternoon made the cookies! Then we iced the cookies late that afternoon into the evening! It was a lot of fun! On Tuesday was my "despedida" which is a going away party! We had cookies and milk, and the kids sang songs and it was a lot of fun! That night we said "bye" to the kids before bedtime. OH YA!!! FORGOT.....on Friday and Saturday nights we handed out the kids' Christmas presents!!!! They LOVED what they got!!! It was so cute on Wednesday morning! Ericka knew I was leaving and ran into my arms and didn't want to let go. She had smiles all over her face! Mom and I's journey back to Lima has got to be the most interesting one! We left on what we thought was going to be an 8 hr bus ride, but that ended up being 10 hours long! Then we got in a taxi, which I thought had a bigger trunk, but boy was I wrong! All that fit in there was our 2 roll-on carry-on suitcases!!! SOOOO we had had 2 large suitcases in the front seat, 2 large ones in the backseat with Mom and I, then Mom and I also.....with our backpacks on our laps!!! So we sat in this taxi with our driver for about an hour. About 10 min before we get to the airport the driver starts talking about needing glasses. Then he proceeded to ask to borrow Mom's glasses while going through the security checkpoint to get into the airport parking lot!!! So Mom is thinking that we have just ridden in a taxi ride for an hour with a guy that can't see! All that to say that he could see, but he now has contacts. His driver's license says that he wears glasses and contacts don't pass as glasses in Perú like they do at home! He left his glasses at home and needed to borrow some! HAHAHA! The rest of the trip home is history!

It was a great year! God really taught me a lot and blessed me. We are blessed to be a blessing to others. I pray that God has made a difference in the lives of the children at Hogar de Esperanza this past year. I pray that God always got the glory for what was said and done by me. I hope that you have been blessed and encouraged through this blog! I know that I don't take credit for anything that has been said and done this past year. I know that it was God working through me to present His character to the staff and children at Hogar de Esperanza and those I came in contact to. May we always glorify God in everything we say in do.....now and forever! I am hoping to start another blog (and keep up better than I have on this one) about what God is doing in my life in Montana while I am nannying for this family of 8! So far I have loved what I am doing here with the 6 kiddos and their parents. Keep in touch!!! I love you and missed all of you. I hope to see all of you in 2009....God willing of course!!

Zuleica eating a mango! What a mess!

Ericka eating a mango!

Lady's so cute!

Sam, Ericka, and Yanpier for snacktime!

Luis Sebastian and Zuleica for snacktime.

Isn't she a doll?

Oh the fun times! Ericka and Zuleica are playing with a bouncy ball and are having a GREAT time as you can see! They are such awesome friends.

Yanpier LOVES blocks. Seeing how high they get before they fall down!

The kids were being sooo cute! Here is Nayeli, Dante, Roxana, Rocio, Lariza, Luis Sebastian and Kevin running together across the field!

My last day with the kiddos. We are learning left and right, forwards and backwards...it was LOTS of fun and they love it.
Clockwise starting with Amy: Zuleica, Luis Sebastian, Yanpier, Lady and Ericka

We are reviewing the parts of our bodies.
Clockwise starting with Amy: Zuleica, Luis Sebastian, Lady, and Ericka

The morning crew! I am Lady, Yanpier, Ericka and Luis Sebastian. Zuleica was upset that she didn't get to sit right in my lap....Ericka stole the spot!

Edwin eating a mango....what a mess though!

I stole his vest! Doesn't it look great on me? HAHA!

Edwin wanted the rest of the Inca Cola (oh how I miss that drink!), so he drank it out of the bottle!

Paúl and I.....I was the horse!

Here Saúl is my little monkey! OH, and this is "Edwin's Car" so he thinks!

I was the horse.....yehaw!
Jhonatan and Amy

I love Hilda! She is a great madre tutora! She was out playing with the girls....volleyball actually!

One of my last nights out with the girls.....and David too! CHURROS (NOT men)!!
Pictured left to right: Laura, Angela and Sam....not sure what the lady's name is or where David is! Probably hiding!

Ericka, Mom (Robin) and Zuleica! This was a great time!

Abel was so gentle with Mom. She said it was because they both wore glasses (and he was told this!).

Jhonatan with Mom! What a great smile!

Luz LOVED her new can opener that Mom brought!!

Luz and Filo LOVED the gifts Mom brought them.....they were so happy (even though their faces may not show it. Peruvians don't like to show a lot of emotion in pictures.)

Ericka with Mom on the way to celebrate Zuleica's birthday. Also, Mom's first ride in a micro! I was so proud of her diving into the culture!

Amy and Zuleica on the way to celebrate her 3rd birthday!

Ericak and Zuzu playing in Wong (a grocery store).

Some of the girls in the Chispas after receiving their Christmas presents from the staff at St. Luke's Hospital in Kansas City, MO! Can you find Mom? Kinda like the "Where's Waldo?"!!

Rocio goes to baking classes and I asked her if she wanted to help make the dough for Christmas cookies! She was SOOO excited and did it all herself! Here she is with Mom getting ready to taste the dough!!

Making Christmas Cookies!!
From left to right: Zuleica, Heydi, Isabel and Yuliana

Alondra and Mom making Christmas Cookies

Mom and Jhonatan rolling out the dough!

Fernando, Jhonatan (rolling the dough) and Piero!

My friend who has a junkfood store! Please pray for her father for he is really sick.

We took Roxana and Rocio to Salaverry beach and to town to get Rocio's ears pierced. It was a fun time for all!

Here are our shadows!
From left to right: Mom, Amy, Rocio, and Roxana drinking her Coke!

Rocio and Roxana eating Jano's! This was Roxana's first time eating a burger! Oh how I miss the food there.....burger with a fried egg, shoestring fries, bacon, aji, and mayonesa! YUMMY!

A herd of sheep crossing the road in front of our taxi.

Amy, Arnold, and Dante after they received their presents!

Lariza really likes her lip gloss! Isn't she a beautiful girl turning into a young lady?

Lady really was ready for her candy, and look at all those barrettes!!

Miss Aly was ecstatic to receive this Precious Moments magazine! She LOVES to draw them! Here she is with her American Mother!

Amy making no-bake cookies at Miss Aly's house!

Amy's Peruvian family with her mother! Miss Aly and her mother designed and made that pillow she is holding! How creative!
From left to right: Rosi, Mom, Miss Aly, (her sister), "Momma", and Amy in front.

Mom's carrot cake that she made. It wasn't quite like the ones she makes at home, but it was still good, and they enjoyed her creations and recipes!

"Momma" gave Mom this reindeer that Miss Aly designed and made with the help of her mother. This was really special for Mom. She treasures this homemade creation!

Mom with Edwin in Amy's room. He loves spending time with Amy A LOT....even calls her "Mommy" sometimes!

Amy and Mom with all her Kinder class.
From left to right: Front - Lady, Mom, Amy, Zuleica, Ericka and Jhonatan
Back - Paúl, Edwin, Luis Sebastian, Yanpier and Saúl.

Amy getting ready to head back to class after taking class pictures!

"Cristo me ama yo lo se........Jesus loves me this I know.."

Yanpier swinging in the dolphin swing Amy brought....with the help of Mr. Miller!

Luis Sebastian swinging away!

Gardening with Laura and Angela
From left to right: Yen, Piero, and Abraham

Yen with Mom....I love this picture! It just shows a mother's love to one who doesn't have a mother physically in his life. I am sure God will send one soon!

Amy working on her "book" with Yamelit, Karina and Milagros.

More Christmas cookie time!
From left to right: Ericka, Araceli, Alisson, and Marita

Making Christmas Cookies with Mom
From left to right: Roxana, Brigitte, and Milagros

Gardening with Laura and Angela

Decorating Cookies!
Clockwise starting with Amy: Deyvis, Zuleica and Dante

Decorating Cookies!
Clockwise starting with Amy: Milagros, Elisa, Yamelit, and Roxana

The girls thought it would be funny to put "lipstick" on their lips! What sweet pink lipstick!

Amy helping Alisson decorate her cookie. Nanci is using green icing!

4 great guys! Alberto (our gardener) with Italo, Fernando and Yen! They had a great time!

With their Christmas presents, some of the girls decided Tracey (the orphanage dog) needed her nails painted too!

This was funny! If any of you know my family, we make special Christmas cookies for members of our family sometimes! Mom has this joke with Uncle Paul about "yellow snowmen". Paúl, one of my kiddos, made a snowman and decorated it his favorite color....yellow! This was printed and given to Uncle Paul for Christmas! What a memory!

Mom "writing" their names on their cookies.
From left to right: Luis Sebastian, Abraham, Mom and Yanpier

Another funny story! Mom told Angela that if she wanted to have her own cookie she had to decorate 10 cookies! Even though Mom was just kidding, Angela thought she was serious and got her cookies to decorate!

Laura with her half eaten snowman!

Oh, Pablo! I love this guy! He is our armed security guy who protects us at night! He is a great guy always wanting to learn more about the Bible and asks to read one everytime he comes! I wonder if he got one for Christmas!

Elias and Amy with his cookie! He is a special friend of mine! We are always joking and he gave me the name "no toci mi" because of my "Spanglish" not long after I arrived at Hogar de Esperanza!

Here I am with the Amigos house!

The kids said nice things and sang songs for my going away party (despedida). This is the Amigos house!

The Luces

Here I am wit all the Luces....and Yanpier!

Oh the Tesoros.....probably my favorite house because my first classroom was in their house and I spent LOTS of time with them!

Amy and the Tesoros! (and Yanpier)

Amy and the Chispas!

Yes, I was crying. Ericka didn't really know what was going on, and I have been her teacher for so long, and she was really sad. She didn't want to let go of me!

Amy with all the Madre Tutoras....and Ericka
From left to right: Milagros (Tesoros), Hilda (Chispas), Veronica (Amigos), and Silvia (Luces)

Amy with all the kids at Hogar de Esperanza!

Liz wanted a picture with Amy too!

For my despedida we had the Christmas cookies and MILK....not evaporated milk, but "real" milk!!!

Eating Christmas Cookies!

Eating Christmas Cookies

I absolutely LOVE this picture of Mom and Alisson! Once again, shows the true love of a mother to a child (even if it isn't her own).

Maria and Mom

Amy and Anabel....what great smiles!

Heydi was doing dishes, and Amy picked her up for a picture! What a cute girl!

This picture is special to Amy. These are 2 of the 3 children she had from her original Kinder class! José David (Diego Alejandro) was adopted on her birthday (7-7-08)!
From left to right: Ericka, Amy, and Zuleica

Oh Tia Mala! This is what Edwin calls Samantha....well either Tia Mala or Tia Manta!! Laura decorated this for her!

My last picture with my best friend in Perú.....Miss Aly.

Amy was welcomed home with a dog on her lap....oh SWAAAAAAAAAY BELLE GIRL!
Amy and Sleigh Belle

Here is a better picture of them! Isn't she a cutie?!?!?!

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Trip to the Andes Mountains and Perú with MOM!!!!!

December was a little bit of a crazy month. I will tell of my last days in my next blog. I left the 4th to go and get Mom at the airport in Lima and then we headed to Cusco! That was a beautiful time.....along with the scariest taxi ride I had EVER been in! It should have taken us 1.5 hours or so to get to Urdubamba but with a stop for pictures and a bathroom break, it took us about 55 minutes! We were FLYING through the mountainous roads...Mom in the back with NO seatbelts. If you know Mom, you would understand that she was NOT happy about that! We got to the seminary where my friend Rachel Tarvin serves at and got settled into our room! It was a relaxing time and that night we went out to dinner and had AWESOME pizza! It tasted almost as good as Mom's home-made pizza! Thanks, Mr. and Mrs. Tarvin for dinner! That next day we went to Machu Picchu! This is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been! They are Incan ruins that have been preserved after all these years! We took a taxi to Ollataytambo, which wasn't far, and then took a BEAUTIFUL train ride up into the Andes Mountains! Some people trek it, but we didn't want to do that! That would have been vigorous for Mom and I and would have taken several days to do! When we got there it was POURING down rain and then took a bus up to Machu Picchu! It was a long trip but well worth it! We then climbed MANY stairs (which I am glad we did at the beginning instead of coming down them.....if you don't know me, I do NOT do well with heights!)!! It was still raining/drizzling at this point and we could hardly see the mountain Machu Picchu which means "old mountain". It was a challenge for both Mom and I and we got to see God's beautiful creation once again! He really amazes me with His majesty! There was one point in the climb that was REALLY scary for me! It was a drop off and we had to walk down these short stairs right on the side of the mountain, but I conquered it! I do have to say that was one of my favorite parts visiting this amazing place! I believe the best thing was that Mom and I were a few minutes short of seeing a llama born right there in Machu Picchu! We saw it take its first steps and hobble around, which was really neat! I hadn't seen an animal born in real life other than on TV! The saddest part of the story was that they took down part of this ruins just to fly the Queen Elizabeth of England there by helicopter. They needed a place to land her and I guess this was the best place for it to happen. None of the tourists walk on the grassy parts, which I think make the grassy areas just a bright green! Well this trip was a great one, and I got to spend it with the bestest mother in the world! I wouldn't have traded this time with her for the world! We did go to Rachel's church, and then headed back to Cusco to visit a few places. We did some touring and then some shopping. We stayed in a really cool hostel, but we had to walk LOTS of stairs to get there with our luggage, but found out there was a road a lot closer that we could have taken!!! Thanks to a nice guy, we didn't have to carry all of it very far! We then headed to another part of the country, the coast! We went to Paracas, which is where there was an earthquake in August of 2007. There was some damage to some of the buildings, but our hotel didn't seem to be damaged at all. We had 2 relaxing days near the "beach" so we thought! It was the beach part of the time, but we had to walk to the beach where you would swim. We took a tour of the Islas Ballestas, which have a lot of marine life! We saw penguins, sea lions, lots of neat native birds, and would have seen flamingos if they would have migrated a bit more north!

Welcome to Jorge Chavez International Airport in Lima, Perú, Momma!!! This isn't how packed it really gets though!

Her flight arrived from Houston a little late, but that was ok! At least she made it safe and with all her luggage!

Doesn't Mom look tired? It wasn't fair that she got to go through and not hit the "button"!!! The "button" tells whether or not you get your luggage searched after going through customs!

Mom and I seeing the Andes Mountains for the first time....other than the foothills near the orphanage! This was our "break" during our CRAZY taxi ride!!

Mom in Ollataytambo before getting on the train! Isn't it gorgeous here??

Amy in Ollataytambo with the train in the background!

Our train with the vendors, which is where we got Amy's present (Mom's coworker, not me!)

Mom and I on our first train ride together! We are on our way to Machu Picchu!! YEAH!!

Look at that bridge!!! And isn't the terracing gorgeous?

Yes, it was raining, but eventually it stopped and you could see the beauty of God's creation in Machu Picchu ("old mountain")!

Here the clouds are starting to clear out.....how AWESOME our Creator is!!!

Look how high we climbed! It was a fun adventure, and yet a challenge for both of us!

Look at the drop-off! Yes it was scary at times being that I do NOT like heights! But Mom and I survived and it was awesome!

We say this little fellar right after he/she was born! Here it is with its mother! What another experience in Perú!

Mom with the Aloe plants she likes....and this one is a small one!!!

Rachel and I! We stayed at the seminary she is serving at! Mom was a blessing to her by filling up one of her luggage pieces full of things for Rachel....packed by her parents! I miss her already!

The cobble road we walked to get to our hotel! It was a long trek! When we first got there we could have taken this road, but instead we hiked LOTS of stairs with our luggage, but a nice gentleman carried our luggage up a lot of the way. What a blessing!!

Why in the world of all this beauty is a McDonald's?? Mom and I were thinking "Why put one in the center square next to all these beautiful, ancient buildings?" Oh well....

What?? A CHRISTMAS tree in Perú?? Yes, they do have that tradition also...even at the albergue this year!

Here is Cusco! It is a colorful city!

A museum we went to that was underground! It was kinda neat!

And this is where you come out of the museum! How bizarre!! It was like walking out of a dug up grave or something!

Oh the traffic in Lima! We are on our way to Paracas.

Our hotel from the pier!

The Nazca Lines we saw on the way to the Islas Ballestas!

A Peruvian penguin! YES.....they do have marine life....YEAH!!!

Some of the architecture that wasn't destroyed by the earthquake in August of 2007.

Mom likes this one, and we wish that it wasn't so blurry!

I loves this picture.....and the shape of the heart! Maybe they are lovebirds! HAHA!

Look at all the birds!

Oh and the sea lions!! They would "pose" for you, which was really cute! You can't "get" on these islands, but rather tour them on a boat!

One of the hotels that is being rebuilt because of the damage of the earthquake. They had a sign that said "No Vacancy", which I thought was hilarious....of course there isn't any!

Damage from the earthquake August 2007

Mom fed the pelican a fish, and then of course they wanted money for it! We gave them some, but they wanted more.....oh brother!

Here I am with our seashells we collected....AFTER I chased the bag, while Mom laughed and laughed, but didn't take a picture because I had the camera!

What a wingspan and beautiful creature! We watched this birds dive for fish! It was fun, and we probably stayed out for an hour or so! What great mother-daughter bonding time!!

What a fantastic sunset!!! How gorgeous our God ends our day!!

November 2008

November got even crazier! I had 2 more kiddos added to my class! Luis Sebastian and Yanpier (FINALLY we know their real names!!) came with nothing. They were found on the streets with nothing, including no clothes, and their stomachs full of parasites. They didn't know what a bathroom was and went outside to the bathroom. Luis Sebastian was really scared of the bathroom at first, but learned that it was ok after a couple days! They are cute and lovable kiddos! I miss them A LOT! They LOVE cars and books! They aren't as into puzzles as the other kids, but they would spend hours looking at books!

Sam's friends came to visit and we had a Thanksgiving Eve celebration with the Americans and some Peruvians! We played Mofia and a few other Peruvian games, which was really fun!!! We had Chinese food! We didn't "celebrate" Thanksgiving as Mom and I would have at home, but it isn't what we do and eat, but rather where our hearts are and what we are thankful for, and remembering that! This is the first Thanksgiving I have EVER "worked"!! We didn't do anything special, but now that I think about it, we should have had a Thanksgiving party!! They would have liked it!

This month was REALLY busy, I was giving the task of the Kinder curriculum! For about 3 weeks I worked 15 hour days. I spent A LOT of time on the curriculum...preparing the pages that go with their days, and then translating it. I finished 20 of 109 days for them! It was a challenge, but it was a great challenge.

I do have a funny, yet scary story with Luis Sebastian and Yanpier. They LOVED to escape (and it didn't help that I was potty training Zuleica and had to leave the room frequently)!! I was chasing Yanpier because he escaped and was headed for the main door....which he couldn't have gotten out but still! So when I caught him and went back to the room, all the kids were there except for Luis Sebastian! I could hear his voice, but didn't know where he was. I realized what he was doing. He was counting the steps going up to the roof. I ran up the stairs and he was running away from me. That was the scary part! He could have fallen 3 stories if he would have decided to climb over the edge! He cried, and I asked what he was doing, a little scared tone in my voice. He said, "Tia Amy, I just wanted to count the steps." Oh the joys of being the Kinder teacher to 9 students! We decided to split the class not long after this, and now they have a gate, which was a GREAT idea!!! I had the younger 5 (Zuleica, Yanpier, Luis, Ericka, and Lady) in the mornings and the older 4 (Jhonatan, Paúl, Saúl, and Edwin) in the afternoons. It was working a lot longer hours, but the stress minimized A LOT!

Oh, Yanpeir......and Tia Amy! I miss that little booger! He is quite the character.....and runner!!!

Here is Lindsay (Sam's friend) with Luis Sebastian! He always wanted to be held and loved on! He got lots of it before I left!

Paúl is really fast at handwriting coordination exercises and writing his name. He's getting better!

Edwin LOVES writing his name!

Jhonatan working on handwriting coordination! He doesn't like it that much, but he does it without fussing about it!

Saúl working on handwriting coordination! He was doing great!

All of my class, Miss Aly's class, and Lindsay running down the sand dunes....together as a team! It was a great sight to see, but we almost lost Luis Sebastian to the grassy area up top. Thanks to Lindsay we got him before he ran up there alone!!!

Miss Aly running down the sand dunes!

Here is Miss Aly's class and my class for a farewell party for Tia Lindsay! It was fun, and we went to the dunes too!

Lady showing off her painting!

Paúl reading to his "students".....the puppets! How cute!!

Jhonatan working on his letters....so we think! He really does like to put them together and learn them!

Edwin is "reading".....haha! He loves the giraffe the best!

Saúl loves books, especially the Cubbies books! The kids things they are just fun to work will and learn the verses!

Paúl reading "Perro Grand, Perro Pequeño"......I think it is called "Big Dog, Small Dog" about 2 dogs who are friends and do everything together! They really enjoyed this book!

Oh, the Spot books! Here Ericka is reading it to Jhonatan!

Amy working on the Kinder card program with Zuleica. Even though she doesn't look like she enjoys it, she really does!!

Angela and I took 5 boys out (mostly from Kinder) for Jhonatan's birthday! We went to church, eat lunch, then to the beach!
From left to right: Angela, Jhonatan, Yen, Paúl, Edwin, and Saúl

My FAVORITE picture of Edwin.....taken by Rocio!!! What a great photographer she is! She is only 14 years old!

Here I am with ALL my kinder class! Yes ALL 9 of them for a few days was enough for me!

Here I am working on the curriculum in the office.....and Miryan INSISTED on taking a picture!!!

Zuleica "helping" me with my curriculum! She spent the whole day with me and didn't want to go back to her casita!

Angela is holding Yanpier. He is one of the newer boys, but looks A LOT like Jesusito (a previous child who was adopted). Oh how I miss those little ones!

Luis Sebastian is one of new ones, and he LOVES to play soccer (futbol!) He would play it all day if you let him!!!

October 2008

Ok, so I am really bad at keeping up a blog! That is official! I have been home and moved to Montana and still haven't posted anything! So let me tell you about my last 3 months while I was in Perú!

October was a busy month. I was getting used to having 2 new kiddos in Kinder! Saúl and Lady were a handful but quickly learned the rules in the class. Saúl is quite a little boy! I miss him like crazy! He is VERY musically inclined! He loves to sing and make any kind of music with things! Whether it be drumming on the table or shaking things to a beat! He has quite the temper, but really learned how to handle it over a period of time. He is HYPER and I found out that having music on in class really helps him be calmer! Lady is VERY strong-willed! She wants it her way, but she eventually learned that I wasn't going to give into her fits. She spent A LOT of time outside of the classroom screaming to have her own way, but after a week or so of that, things changed. She realized that screaming isn't allowed in class, and neither is disobedience. They both know that they are loved at the albergue! I even had a conversation about that with Saúl one day when he was hurting himself after not getting his way. He also knows that he can forgive his mother for what she did to him....abusing him. After I left I found out that they went back with their mother. They do come back to the albergue so she can have some more counseling, and things seem to be going great! People can change when God works in their lives. I had heard that she had changed, but sometimes people put on an act to get their kids back, but I pray that she allows God to work through her and help her with her problems.

The other Kinder kids did well with the change and they like their new friends in class! Zuleica has changed a lot over the past couple months! She is learning how to express herself, which is really neat! She would go around just saying "Tia Amy" for hours! She just loves being around and helping me with anything. One Saturday she spent the afternoon with me, just helping me with whatever I was doing, whether it be laundry or working on the curriculum, or just looking at pictures on my computer! She loves to have one-on-one attention....just like most of the kids there! Ericka and Zuleica are becoming quite the friends! They laugh and play together VERY well! Paúl and Jhonatan are learning the letters of their names and the LOVE to show you them when they make them with play-dough or write them, or find them in a book! Edwin is still his crazy self! He dances and is a pistol, but I love him a lot! He still calls me "Tia Mommy" and it drives me crazy sometimes! He like to write letters also! His favorite thing to do is work with play-dough! He will make animals or letters in his name with it....and sometimes the vowels! We worked with play-dough a lot in October and November! Here are some pictures for you to enjoy!!! (I just realized that I used some of the pictures in the previous blog, but there are some new ones on here.....sorry!)

Here is Paúl praying. We pray every morning before we start class, and then before snacktime! He enjoys praying

Zuleica praying. She is so sweet with her prayers!

And then we have Edwin, the screamer when it comes to praying, but isn't it the heart that matters most when praying?

Jhonatan and Zuzu praying. He is really quite, but when I forget to pray he is the one who reminds me! What a great student!!

Here we are heading back to their houses....in a line of course!!
From left to right: Saúl, Zuleica, Lady, Ericka, Paúl, Edwin, and Jhonatan

Lady made a ball of play-dough! She loves to make shapes with play-dough!

Saúl LOVES to sing and make music. Here he is with his "microphone" singing some song that I didn't know! He is SOOO funny, and quite the cute little guy!

Here is Paúl, with his new creation! I think he wore that one for a few days until it broke....then he cried and made a new one!

Jhonatan LOVES to make jewelry. It is a good fine motor skills activity for them!

Edwin heard Tio Elias outside, and was like "OH"! If you could only see his cuteness on video!!

Even Zuleica makes jewelry! She is really good and does use the small ones sometimes!

I LOVE this picture! Lady loved going to the beach, and there was NO stopping her of getting into the water! Of course, that is me...look how I am "swimming" in my pants!!

Here is my Kinder class when we went to the beach with Miss Aly's class! It was a fun trip!
From left to right: Saúl, Paúl, Ericka, Jhonatan, Edwin, Zuleica, Lady, and Tia Amy in the back!

Ericka LOVED getting in the boat. She didn't want to get out. She actually sat in it for awhile with the fisherman, Oscar. He brought us some fish and then took Rachel, Amber and I out in it later that afternoon!

Rachel Tarvin, my friend who is a missionary near Cusco, Amber who served with Rachel for a short period, and myself out on Oscar's boat! What a fun trip!

Thursday, December 4, 2008

New Volunteers!!!

Before Robyn and Joel left, we had the arrival of several new volunteers! Samantha (Tia Manta as Edwin would say), Page, and Angela. Samantha is our new volunteer coordinator. She is from Virginia and went to Liberty University. She is great. She does her best to fill Robyn's shoes, which are big shoes to fill! (no pun there Robyn!!) Lindsey is from Florida and is here for 2 months. She worked with Miss Aly's class and taught English to the children. She also was in charge of language therapy, which was a great help! She was great to have around! Page and Angela are friends and are from Oregon. Page was a madre assistant. She ended up leaving early and went to work on an organic farm, which is was best for all of us....except the kids. This was in God's plan even though it was a hard time for some of us. Angela was helping me, but after Page left, she became the madre assistant! She LOVES it! Then Laura came not long after Joel and Robyn left. She was part of the team that built our new playground! It was soooo good to see her again and become a part of our team! She is the other madre assistant. She has taken up sewing, which she seems to be doing all the time! The madres are always having her sew and mind the kid's clothes! Roles are starting to change though since I am leaving soon (even though I should have posted this in September ....which is when they came!!). Here are a few pictures of them serving here at the orphanage!

Here Sam is with Danni....Actually we were making pancakes, and he decided to join us!

Lindsey with some of the students in Miss Aly's class.
From left to right: Roxana, Isabel, Marita, Lindsey, Dante, Kevin, and Yuliana.

This is typical of Angela! She is always having fun with the kiddos! Here she is swinging with Jhonatan! Looks like they were both having a fun time!

The other volunteers hosted a girls night and here is Page (Pagina...) giving Yuliana a facial! They had a blast!

Here is Laura with Dante on the field trip to Simbol. I was back at home organizing the presentations I am giving in December and January. They had a great time....and AMAZING Peruvian stories!!!

Volunteer Fun!!!

We ALL (yes Lindsey came too!) went to Salaverry to eat chicken with the honey mustard we just made....from scratch! So we met up with David and his brother José and had a great time, including a game of spoons....which I was the photographer NOT playing!! HAHA!

Here we are headed down the road! Thanks to Pablo (our watchman) we got a picture will all of us in it!!
From left to right: Amy, Angela, Laura, Lindsey, and Sam (Page had left already :(..)

This was before we left. Aren't Angela and Lindsey cool??

My how Kinder has changed!

Kinder has changed in the past 10 months! I started out with 3 littles ones. Then after Erin left to go back to the US, I had 8! Gradually over the next 7 months, I went down to 5 students! Then I got 2 more little ones! It was VERY stressful for awhile, but then we got the bright idea of splitting the class back up like it was with Erin and I. Since there wasn't another person to help out with that, we decided to have some go in the morning and some go in the afternoon, but that would mean less time off in between to work on the curriculum. The curriculum is almost finished though! I have Zuleica (2), Lady (3), Saúl (5), and Edwin (6) in the morning and Ericka (3), Jhonatan (4), and Paúl (4) in the afternoon. This makes teaching SOOOOO much easier. I can actually teach them and work one-on-one with them! Here are a few pictures of how our new classes are going: