Well, I've been here almost a week. It's been pretty crazy so far, but today I decided to sit down and write. Here at Casa de Amor House 1 where I'm staying, all the kids and tias have been going through a scabies epidemic. It spreads easily and takes a ton of work to get rid of, so they hadn't been able to properly eliminate it...until this last weekend.
On Friday morning the fun started. After breakfast, all the kids were bathed and had a cream put all over their bodies to kill the parasites. 2 of the 4 tias working that day also bathed and put cream on themselves. Everyone dressed in clothes that had been soaked in boiling water, washed, and dried in the dryer (this was to kill any parasites on the clothes), and those 2 tias plus a volunteer took the kids out for the day. Meanwhile, the 2 other tias and another volunteer washed all the clothes and sheets in the house, and took everything else from the house outside to sit in the sun. Friday night all the kids stayed at a school where one of the volunteers lives. Saturday morning the house was fumigated. The kids stayed another night at the school, and came back on Sunday. Now that all the kids, volunteers, tias and their families have been treated, hopefully the scabies will be gone.
On Friday I went with Jennifer for the first time while she took care of business with her group of street kids. While all the scabies stuff was going on, I was out with her all afternoon and that night. That afternoon we visited one kid in a burn unit of a hospital and took a bunch of kids to several parts of the La Cancha (the huge market in town). I saw the place where they live for the first time. They live in a part called the Coronilla, which is a little way up a mountain, among brush, plants, and cactus. They have 2 little tarp shelters with mattresses and old couches inside, and an outside area where they cook. We were there in the afternoon then went back at night. That night was an interesting experience for me. Several fights went on that night among different people. At one time we were in Jen's car, and I was in the backseat with about 6 other people. The 2 guys next to me started fighting and elbowed each other in the face, and I thought I was going to get hit just because I was so close to them. They got in trouble for that by Jen and the other kids, and after that we took everyone back up to where they live.
On Saturday I spent most of the day at House 2 and stayed the night there. I went to church Sunday morning with all the House 2 kids, Kati, and volunteer Kaylee who lives at House 2.
Sunday there was a group here from a Bible college in Pennsylvania, and that afternoon I went with them, Jennifer, and some of the street kids to play soccer. Some of us watched while they played, then the group gave them drinks and snacks and gave a short sermon. After that some people played more soccer, and some just hung out and played on the playground there. Jen had brought one of the babies from CDA because his parents are part of the Coronilla group. It was cool to see the parents with him and their other daughter who is 2 and lives with them in the Coronilla. They seem like good kids who love their children, but it's sad that they are living like they are. After soccer, the Pennsylvania group gave all the kids packets of soap, laundry detergent, toothbrushes, and other hygiene items.
Yesterday was the birthday of Maite, the lady I lived with when I was here last year. I ended up spending pretty much the whole day at her house. In the morning I went and learned how to make the meat Teresa (Maite's mom) was making for the birthday party that night. I helped her with that, then went to town and bought Maite a birthday present (handmade necklace, bracelet, and earrings that all together cost about $4!) and ice cream from Maite's favorite ice cream place. I went back to Maite's house, and Teresa and I waited for Maite to get home from the language school where she works. We had lunch with Connor, the guy living with them right now. After lunch Maite and I made an ice cream cake, then we cleaned and got ready for that night. Around 6 a bunch of friends from the language school came over for dinner. It was by far the best meal I've had so far- I miss Teresa's cooking so much! It was a fun day and I was so happy to spend time with Maite and Teresa again!
Sorry it's so long, but from now on I'll try to update more often so I don't have to write about everything at once!
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Thursday, June 2, 2011
I'm back!
Most of you already know that I'm spending another summer in Cochabamba, Bolivia, but this trip is different than last year's. Last summer I spent 3 months here working as a volunteer at a children's home called Casa de Amor, which was started by Jennifer Thompson, a family friend from my old church. I lived with a host family and worked at Casa de Amor almost every day.
This year, my main purpose for the trip is research. As part of the Honors College program at my university I have to write and defend a thesis before graduation. I have an advisor in the Social Work department at school and a general idea of my thesis. When I came to Cochabamba last year, I spent a little time with Jennifer and some of the street kids she ministers to and works with in addition to directing Casa de Amor. My advisor and I decided to focus my thesis on street children, so I planned this year's trip to follow Jennifer in her work with them and observe them. I also hope to talk to other people who work with street children and maybe go to some homes or rehab centers. I'm not exactly sure where my project will go, but for now I'm calling it a case study by participant observation. I also don't really know what I'll be doing during my trip, but I'm trying to just go with the flow of things here and see what happens! I will be here for about 7 weeks this time, so it's a little shorter but hopefully I can get everything I need by then.
In addition to my research and following Jennifer around, I will also be working a little at Casa de Amor again. I am actually living at CDA House 1, the “baby home,” and I'll be filling in the gaps for some of the volunteers who are leaving in the next couple months. There are so many new babies and kids here and only 4 kids are left from when I was here last year! In House 2 there are a couple who have left, but the ones who are still there are the same who were there last year. It's great to see those kids again that I knew before, and also fun getting to know the new babies here! I spent the day at House 1, and later this afternoon I might go to House 2. These first few days I don't really have a schedule or plans, but I'm getting used to being here before I jump into my thesis work. I hope to update this blog often and let everyone know what I'm doing, as well as post pictures, so keep an eye out for new posts!
Sunday, August 22, 2010
CDA Sponsorships
UPDATE: I have an amazing boyfriend with some amazing parents, and they've collectively decided to support 4 of these boys below! The only one without a sponsor now is E. If you're interested in supporting him, contact me and I'll get you set up! Also, like I said in the blog, all the kids from House 1 and 2 are up to be sponsored!
This blog is dedicated to something amazing that YOU can do to help the kids at Casa de Amor: sponsoring a child! This is a great way to support CDA and to keep up with everything they're doing, plus communicate with a specific child and get updates on him/her (and sometimes letters or cards made by the child!)! It only costs $25 per month to support a child, and you can pay monthly, quarterly, or yearly. For more information on sponsorships you can go to CDA's webpage HERE. If you click on the bullet point that says "sponsor," it will open a document with some frequently asked questions, plus the form you can fill out and send through email or regular mail if you decide to support a child. You can also ask me any question (either through the comments here, or email me at hjarms@hotmail.com) and I will find out the answer for you!
After being here and getting to know the kids, I chose this sweet girl for my family to support!
A.M. is a little ray of sunshine who currently lives at House 2. She is 3 and a half years old and HIV positive, with plenty of special needs that go along with that. She has never had a sponsor, so I am so excited and happy that my family will be her first!
The way CDA has the sponsorships set up allows for each kid to have up to 4 sponsors. Currently nobody has 4, so any of the kids from either House 1 or House 2 are available to support! But there are several from House 2 who have no sponsors at all right now, so I'll focus on them.
This blog is dedicated to something amazing that YOU can do to help the kids at Casa de Amor: sponsoring a child! This is a great way to support CDA and to keep up with everything they're doing, plus communicate with a specific child and get updates on him/her (and sometimes letters or cards made by the child!)! It only costs $25 per month to support a child, and you can pay monthly, quarterly, or yearly. For more information on sponsorships you can go to CDA's webpage HERE. If you click on the bullet point that says "sponsor," it will open a document with some frequently asked questions, plus the form you can fill out and send through email or regular mail if you decide to support a child. You can also ask me any question (either through the comments here, or email me at hjarms@hotmail.com) and I will find out the answer for you!
After being here and getting to know the kids, I chose this sweet girl for my family to support!
The way CDA has the sponsorships set up allows for each kid to have up to 4 sponsors. Currently nobody has 4, so any of the kids from either House 1 or House 2 are available to support! But there are several from House 2 who have no sponsors at all right now, so I'll focus on them.
A. (almost 7)
E. (almost 5)
J. (almost 7)
J.G. (3 and a half)
M. (almost 6)
Seriously people, how can you resist those adorable smiles?! Think about $25 a month. It really isn't that much to sacrifice, but it could make a big difference in one of these kids' lives. If you want to sponsor one of them, go to the link I put at the beginning of this post, click on "sponsor" where it says "sponsor a child or staff member," read the FAQs and fill out the form (2nd page of the Word document)! Or you can let me know and I'll hook you up!
All these photos were taken by Melissa Dickey- Captured Whispers Photography
All these photos were taken by Melissa Dickey- Captured Whispers Photography
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Saturdays in the Plaza Principal
Every Saturday around 4:30 pm, a group of people goes to the Plaza Principal, the main plaza in the city. They unload tents, huge jugs filled with water, plastic baby baths, buckets, suitcases stuffed with clothing, soap and shampoo from their cars. They set up the supplies (usually with the help of several excited children), and mothers with their babies and small children form a surprisingly very organized line. Most of the mothers are cholitas, women with indigenous blood who dress in the traditional style, and generally speaking, the most economically disadvantaged group of people here. The missionaries who run the operation, along with any volunteers who decided to show up, get into their places. People sitting on benches, going for a walk, or feeding pigeons in the plaza watch and wonder what in the world is going on.
Once everything and everyone is ready, the absolute chaos begins! Mothers pass their babies (or small children up to about 3 years old) into one of the tents, where the volunteers bathe them and then wrap them in a towel. The babies are then passed into another tent, where more volunteers give them clean diapers (or underwear for the toddlers) and some new clothes. Then the babies are held outside the tent doorway until the mothers take them. While all this is going on, the older kids (too big to be bathed) stand outside, bent forward with their heads over buckets, as volunteers shampoo their hair and pour water over it. Afterward, they can go to the clothing tent and get a new shirt. The final station is the hair brushing area on a small step, where volunteers comb hair and put the girls' hair into ponytails or other hairstyles. And when enough volunteers come, sometimes they bring nail polish or other fun things to do with the kids. The whole event happens in about an hour- a very busy and totally crazy hour!
I've been to "baby washing" 3 times- once my first week here, and the past 2 Saturdays with Christy (Canadian girl who has been living with us for 2 weeks and will be here 1 more) and Maite. I've done hair and clothing, and both are a blast although super hectic! I really wish I had gone every Saturday since being here, but I plan on going for the rest of the time I have in Cochabamba (only 2 weeks!).
This is such a unique and important ministry that I'm so glad to have been a part of. The people who come to get their kids bathed are either homeless or very poor without water in their homes. They go to the plaza each Saturday, counting on the volunteers to be their with their tents and bathing equipment. It's so easy to tell that the mothers appreciate it a lot, and most of the kids seem to have a lot of fun.
Now for some photos (and a few more will be coming in the next couple days, I promise!):
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| The Plaza where it all takes place (baby washing is actually on the other side) |
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| Setting up (Christy is in the yellow, talking to the lady who runs the whole thing with her husband in the blue shirt on the left); you can see the already-formed line of mothers going behind the yellow tent |
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| Getting ready to go! Yellow tent is for washing, blue is for clothing |
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| Getting the baby baths ready with warm water and soap |
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| In the clothing tent- a super tiny baby, already diapered and waiting for some clothes! |
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
I couldn't decide on a good title.
So I've been really lazy in posting here the last couple weeks. I've definitely had the time, just not the willpower I guess. Ha. So here is a quick(?) overview of what's happened:
Went to Oruro (a 4-hour drive in bus) for a Friday - Saturday trip with Maite and 2 of her co-workers/friends. One of the girls has family that lives there, so we stayed with them Friday night and explored the city Saturday. We went to the market, to an old mine (the city was once a huge mining town before the mineral resources were exhausted), and to some other interesting landmarks around the city. We also went swimming in a hot spring- AMAZING! Oh, and I ate llama meat for the first time- not too bad.
That same Saturday night, we got a new guest in my house! She's only here until next Monday (about 2 weeks total that she'll have been here), but so far it's been fun having another extranjera in the house. Her name is Katarina and she's from Switzerland. Her dad is actually originally from Oruro, so she came to Bolivia to learn Spanish and visit her many family members whom she has never met. She's a modern history researcher/expert(?), and she teaches history, English, French, and Latin in addition to her inconsistent researching and article-writing jobs. I am amazed at her language skills. Before coming here, she had only studied Spanish by herself for 2 months, and practiced a few times with a friend from Venezuela. But her Spanish is amazingly good! She can basically get around, although she doesn't always understand everything that's being said. She speaks English pretty much fluently, but I talk to her in a mix of Spanish and English. Kind of interesting/fun. She's been taking classes with Maite's school and just hanging out with us and exploring Cochabamba. After she finishes her time here, she'll go to La Paz for 2 weeks to stay with her family.
The last couple weeks at CDA, in addition to my other housework and hanging with the kids, I have been organizing the depósito, the storage room where we keep extra clothes and supplies. It was a total wreck, but I (with the help of a couple of the tias) have made it a little more organized. We threw out a ton of clothes and shoes that we won't use for our kids because they are worn out, with holes and major stains. We're donating a lot of it to different organizations, mainly ones that work with street kids (as far as I know). We've also separated the clothes that are too big for the kids at House 1 (the baby home- the kids are babies - about 5 years old), and given them to House 2 (the older kids- age 5 - 7ish). The clothes I brought almost 2 months ago weren't even out of the bags I brought them in(!), so I took those and put them away on the shelves. It still needs some more work, but the tias have also been getting rid of some clothes from the house that the kids use now but that are very worn out, and replacing it with the things from the depósito, so that's helped. Also, there is a group of 20 people(!!) coming this Friday(!!!!) from McKinney, TX, and they will be bringing clothes and other donations too. I might have to grab a couple of them to help me separate and organize what they bring, along with finishing the other organizing in the storage room.
I've gotten into a Sunday School study on 1 Peter before the service at my church. I think I mentioned it before, but it's in English! Maite was going with me too, but this past Sunday she didn't go because she says she can't understand very much of it. So now it's me, the teacher (an older American man), and 3 older Bolivian men who are learning English. I feel a little out of place, but it's an interesting study, and it's in English so that's a plus too! And after the study this week the Bolivian guys were talking to me, and they're nice. They want to practice their English so it was kind of fun for me and good for them too.
For the last couple weeks in my house, we haven't had consistent running water. I've taken many showers by pouring a bucket of water over my head. The last week the same thing has happened at the baby home, and all around the city. There are some days that we do have water, and the last few days it's actually been better, but I've heard that water is going to be a problem until the rainy season (another 4-5 months!). I've also seen stories on the news of water shortage problems in La Paz and other cities in Bolivia. Last week I prayed for rain, because I thought maybe it would help a little with the water problem. But even as I prayed, I knew that it wasn't going to happen. We're in the dry season, and it just does not rain during this time. Even as I talked to Maite about it, I said that I wished it would rain but I knew it wouldn't. Well, 2 days after I prayed for rain, I woke up to a gray, cloudy sky and wet ground! It had rained a little the night before, and that morning and night it rained some more! Also on my way to work that morning, while walking in the rain (which I didn't even mind because it was so refreshing!), I saw a beautiful rainbow. I like to think that God was telling me that when we ask for something, even if it seems impossible, he can provide it. That day I definitely repented for doubting His ability to make something happen even when common sense says that it won't. Also, this week there has been snow on the mountaintops! That's also uncommon here, and it's completely gorgeous.
Last night I stayed the night with the now 5-month-old triplets! The last time I did that, they did not sleep AT ALL and neither did I, as I was up basically all night trying to calm the screaming babies. It was a pretty stressful night overall. Then this last week I had heard from their mom and the other tias that had stayed the nights with them that they weren't sleeping much during the night. I wasn't exactly looking forward to last night as you could imagine. My mom and the tias encouraged me to pray that they would sleep, and I did yesterday and last night when I first got there. And surprisingly, it was a really good night! I heard them wake up throughout the night but they never cried, only made little noises and moved around. I only had to get up twice all night, and those were when the babies were crying for milk at their normal feeding times! 2 of them woke up and ate 1 time each (one at 2 and one at 5), and the other woke up both of those same times. So I only had to feed and change 2 at a time! And even the times I woke up to feed them, I felt a calm and peace in the room, and they didn't cry before going back to sleep either. I actually enjoyed my time with them. For some reason I didn't sleep very much anyway (maybe I was anticipating the crying that never came?), but I still feel well-rested today. Thank you God for another answered prayer.
I think that's about all I have for now...Today is my day off, I'm about to eat lunch, and Katarina will be home soon so I might go to the market with her. Thanks for reading- hope it was enjoyable!
Went to Oruro (a 4-hour drive in bus) for a Friday - Saturday trip with Maite and 2 of her co-workers/friends. One of the girls has family that lives there, so we stayed with them Friday night and explored the city Saturday. We went to the market, to an old mine (the city was once a huge mining town before the mineral resources were exhausted), and to some other interesting landmarks around the city. We also went swimming in a hot spring- AMAZING! Oh, and I ate llama meat for the first time- not too bad.
That same Saturday night, we got a new guest in my house! She's only here until next Monday (about 2 weeks total that she'll have been here), but so far it's been fun having another extranjera in the house. Her name is Katarina and she's from Switzerland. Her dad is actually originally from Oruro, so she came to Bolivia to learn Spanish and visit her many family members whom she has never met. She's a modern history researcher/expert(?), and she teaches history, English, French, and Latin in addition to her inconsistent researching and article-writing jobs. I am amazed at her language skills. Before coming here, she had only studied Spanish by herself for 2 months, and practiced a few times with a friend from Venezuela. But her Spanish is amazingly good! She can basically get around, although she doesn't always understand everything that's being said. She speaks English pretty much fluently, but I talk to her in a mix of Spanish and English. Kind of interesting/fun. She's been taking classes with Maite's school and just hanging out with us and exploring Cochabamba. After she finishes her time here, she'll go to La Paz for 2 weeks to stay with her family.
The last couple weeks at CDA, in addition to my other housework and hanging with the kids, I have been organizing the depósito, the storage room where we keep extra clothes and supplies. It was a total wreck, but I (with the help of a couple of the tias) have made it a little more organized. We threw out a ton of clothes and shoes that we won't use for our kids because they are worn out, with holes and major stains. We're donating a lot of it to different organizations, mainly ones that work with street kids (as far as I know). We've also separated the clothes that are too big for the kids at House 1 (the baby home- the kids are babies - about 5 years old), and given them to House 2 (the older kids- age 5 - 7ish). The clothes I brought almost 2 months ago weren't even out of the bags I brought them in(!), so I took those and put them away on the shelves. It still needs some more work, but the tias have also been getting rid of some clothes from the house that the kids use now but that are very worn out, and replacing it with the things from the depósito, so that's helped. Also, there is a group of 20 people(!!) coming this Friday(!!!!) from McKinney, TX, and they will be bringing clothes and other donations too. I might have to grab a couple of them to help me separate and organize what they bring, along with finishing the other organizing in the storage room.
I've gotten into a Sunday School study on 1 Peter before the service at my church. I think I mentioned it before, but it's in English! Maite was going with me too, but this past Sunday she didn't go because she says she can't understand very much of it. So now it's me, the teacher (an older American man), and 3 older Bolivian men who are learning English. I feel a little out of place, but it's an interesting study, and it's in English so that's a plus too! And after the study this week the Bolivian guys were talking to me, and they're nice. They want to practice their English so it was kind of fun for me and good for them too.
For the last couple weeks in my house, we haven't had consistent running water. I've taken many showers by pouring a bucket of water over my head. The last week the same thing has happened at the baby home, and all around the city. There are some days that we do have water, and the last few days it's actually been better, but I've heard that water is going to be a problem until the rainy season (another 4-5 months!). I've also seen stories on the news of water shortage problems in La Paz and other cities in Bolivia. Last week I prayed for rain, because I thought maybe it would help a little with the water problem. But even as I prayed, I knew that it wasn't going to happen. We're in the dry season, and it just does not rain during this time. Even as I talked to Maite about it, I said that I wished it would rain but I knew it wouldn't. Well, 2 days after I prayed for rain, I woke up to a gray, cloudy sky and wet ground! It had rained a little the night before, and that morning and night it rained some more! Also on my way to work that morning, while walking in the rain (which I didn't even mind because it was so refreshing!), I saw a beautiful rainbow. I like to think that God was telling me that when we ask for something, even if it seems impossible, he can provide it. That day I definitely repented for doubting His ability to make something happen even when common sense says that it won't. Also, this week there has been snow on the mountaintops! That's also uncommon here, and it's completely gorgeous.
Last night I stayed the night with the now 5-month-old triplets! The last time I did that, they did not sleep AT ALL and neither did I, as I was up basically all night trying to calm the screaming babies. It was a pretty stressful night overall. Then this last week I had heard from their mom and the other tias that had stayed the nights with them that they weren't sleeping much during the night. I wasn't exactly looking forward to last night as you could imagine. My mom and the tias encouraged me to pray that they would sleep, and I did yesterday and last night when I first got there. And surprisingly, it was a really good night! I heard them wake up throughout the night but they never cried, only made little noises and moved around. I only had to get up twice all night, and those were when the babies were crying for milk at their normal feeding times! 2 of them woke up and ate 1 time each (one at 2 and one at 5), and the other woke up both of those same times. So I only had to feed and change 2 at a time! And even the times I woke up to feed them, I felt a calm and peace in the room, and they didn't cry before going back to sleep either. I actually enjoyed my time with them. For some reason I didn't sleep very much anyway (maybe I was anticipating the crying that never came?), but I still feel well-rested today. Thank you God for another answered prayer.
I think that's about all I have for now...Today is my day off, I'm about to eat lunch, and Katarina will be home soon so I might go to the market with her. Thanks for reading- hope it was enjoyable!
Monday, July 5, 2010
Happy 4th of July!
Yes, I know I'm a day late. But this is my 4th of July post.
Here in Bolivia, July 4th doesn't really mean anything special (except to all the Americans who live here...and I guess the English too :p). But I still celebrated our holiday, in the most unique (and possibly most fun) way ever!
My day started with a Sunday school Bible study at Cochabamba International Church with Maite. It was the 3rd week of this particular study, and Maite and I had been wanting to go, but this was our first time actually getting to. It's about 1 Peter (and I think we'll go into 2 Peter too, and maybe other books if it continues?), and it's in English! However, I was the only native English-speaker there beside the American teacher. The study was great, and I'm planning on going every week from now on. Then we went to the church service, which was also great as always. After church, Maite and I picked up some chicken nuggets (I was pretty excited about that) from IMBA (chicken company) with a side of yucca. We took a trufi home, ate our nuggets, and I changed clothes. I then went to IC Norte (this huge grocery store near my house) to pick up some apples and vanilla ice cream. From there I went to CDA 1 to bring the goods and help Jennifer make apple pies. We took pictures of the triplets (see Jen's blog for some cute ones!) while the pies were baking.
Once everything was ready, we took the pies and ice cream and headed to the bridge where a lot of street kids Jen works with live. We ended up taking several of them to pick up some other kids from the market. After driving around and finally finding the people we were looking for, we were heading back to the bridge to eat our pie and ice cream to celebrate the 4th, but first we made a little stop. While we were driving, we saw all these people with different painted backgrounds and props in the median area (pretty big, kind of like a mini park) of the road. I asked what all of it was and Jen explained that the people who live way out in the country come into town to get there pictures "professionally" taken. I guess it's a really cool thing to do for them. But the backgrounds and props were soooo cheesy and tacky (to me anyway), and I thought it was hilarious. I said jokingly that I wanted to get my picture taken there, and Jen and I laughed. She told the kids in Spanish what I said, and one of the kids was like, "Let's get all of our pictures taken here!" Then everyone in the car got excited and they really wanted to do it, so after gathering up all the people we were looking for, we parked on the side of the street and walked over to the picture area. We got so many weird looks, and I'm sure we did look pretty strange, but we ended up getting our picture taken with 2 different backgrounds and buying 1 of each. Jen has the prints, and she's supposed to scan and email them to me soon! I'll post them as soon as I get them, because they're great! Anyway, after all that, we went to the bridge (we didn't actually go under, just stayed at the intersection on top where the kids wash windows for change), ate our sweets, and hung out for a while. The kids took my camera and Jen's (with permission) and took lots of pictures of us and each other (those will also be posted as soon as I can!). Jen drove me home after, and I hung out with Maite and Teresa the rest of the night.
It was the craziest 4th I've ever had, but so much fun! The kids are hilarious and (mostly) sweet, and I think the ridiculousness of the pictures we got, plus having tons of people squashed into Jen's tiny car made it even more fun. Plus the pie was totally delicious! Tonight Maite and I are going to celebrate July 4th again by going out to eat hamburgers- my first time to have one since being here..yum!
Happy Independence Day! I hope everyone had a fun and safe holiday!
Here in Bolivia, July 4th doesn't really mean anything special (except to all the Americans who live here...and I guess the English too :p). But I still celebrated our holiday, in the most unique (and possibly most fun) way ever!
My day started with a Sunday school Bible study at Cochabamba International Church with Maite. It was the 3rd week of this particular study, and Maite and I had been wanting to go, but this was our first time actually getting to. It's about 1 Peter (and I think we'll go into 2 Peter too, and maybe other books if it continues?), and it's in English! However, I was the only native English-speaker there beside the American teacher. The study was great, and I'm planning on going every week from now on. Then we went to the church service, which was also great as always. After church, Maite and I picked up some chicken nuggets (I was pretty excited about that) from IMBA (chicken company) with a side of yucca. We took a trufi home, ate our nuggets, and I changed clothes. I then went to IC Norte (this huge grocery store near my house) to pick up some apples and vanilla ice cream. From there I went to CDA 1 to bring the goods and help Jennifer make apple pies. We took pictures of the triplets (see Jen's blog for some cute ones!) while the pies were baking.
Once everything was ready, we took the pies and ice cream and headed to the bridge where a lot of street kids Jen works with live. We ended up taking several of them to pick up some other kids from the market. After driving around and finally finding the people we were looking for, we were heading back to the bridge to eat our pie and ice cream to celebrate the 4th, but first we made a little stop. While we were driving, we saw all these people with different painted backgrounds and props in the median area (pretty big, kind of like a mini park) of the road. I asked what all of it was and Jen explained that the people who live way out in the country come into town to get there pictures "professionally" taken. I guess it's a really cool thing to do for them. But the backgrounds and props were soooo cheesy and tacky (to me anyway), and I thought it was hilarious. I said jokingly that I wanted to get my picture taken there, and Jen and I laughed. She told the kids in Spanish what I said, and one of the kids was like, "Let's get all of our pictures taken here!" Then everyone in the car got excited and they really wanted to do it, so after gathering up all the people we were looking for, we parked on the side of the street and walked over to the picture area. We got so many weird looks, and I'm sure we did look pretty strange, but we ended up getting our picture taken with 2 different backgrounds and buying 1 of each. Jen has the prints, and she's supposed to scan and email them to me soon! I'll post them as soon as I get them, because they're great! Anyway, after all that, we went to the bridge (we didn't actually go under, just stayed at the intersection on top where the kids wash windows for change), ate our sweets, and hung out for a while. The kids took my camera and Jen's (with permission) and took lots of pictures of us and each other (those will also be posted as soon as I can!). Jen drove me home after, and I hung out with Maite and Teresa the rest of the night.
It was the craziest 4th I've ever had, but so much fun! The kids are hilarious and (mostly) sweet, and I think the ridiculousness of the pictures we got, plus having tons of people squashed into Jen's tiny car made it even more fun. Plus the pie was totally delicious! Tonight Maite and I are going to celebrate July 4th again by going out to eat hamburgers- my first time to have one since being here..yum!
Happy Independence Day! I hope everyone had a fun and safe holiday!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Busy Week + Prayer Requests
Wow, this last week has been totally busy! Some of the things I've done:
A team of 4 people from the organization Orphan World Relief (OWR) was here for a little over a week. They support Casa de Amor, and they (the founder/director and 3 others) came to visit the city, see where their money is going, and help in any way they could. They were all completely awesome and very fun to hang out with. They just left yesterday, and I know they'll be missed by all the staff and children! One day last week, with them, Jennifer, Elena, David, and a professional bricklayer (the husband of one of the House 2 tias), I helped with the building of a house for a girl who is getting off the street, and her family. That was quite an experience - we literally threw bricks at each other to move them from one side of the land to the side where the house was going to be. That night I slept (more like didn't sleep at all) with the 4-month-old triplets, feeding them every 3 hours and trying to calm them down when they cried (which was basically all night long). After a long day of manual labor, then a long sleepless night, I went home and slept for about an hour, then went back to House 1 to work for 8 hours!
Don't remember if I already talked about this, but I also went to a soccer game at the big stadium last Sunday! It was between the 2 Cochabamba teams (big rivals, very intense competition), but since it was only part of the winter series there weren't many people there. It was still a fun experience though- barbed wire separating the fans from the field, police with shields to protect players from objects thrown at them, people selling various foods in the stands (including empanadas, ice cream cones, and beans. Oh and one lady had a basket full of candy...and cigarettes. What a combo), and fans cussing at the players. I went with the OWR group, Jen, plus a few street kids who were very into the whole cussing at players thing.
This Sunday after church, I went with Elena, 4 of the House 2 kids, and the OWR group to El Cristo de la Concordia, which is a huge white statue of Jesus on top of a mountain. There are steps going all the way up, but we opted for the teleférico (cable car) that takes you to the top and back down. We took lots of pictures at the top, with the Cristo and the awesome view of the mountains and city. Afterwards we stopped at a "restaurant" (basically a street corner where people set up a long picnic table and area to cook) to drink api, a hot corn drink with cinnamon and other spices (kind of like apple cider...yum), and eat some fried dough and cheese-stuffed pastries. That night I "babysat" for Elena for a couple hours, then got myself a taxi home.
Yesterday, after working at House 1 and saying goodbye to the OWR group, I went with Elena and her church to do an evangelism program for kids in a small country town. We played outside, helped the kids make a craft (they were VERY excited to use glitter glue and stickers!), then they did some songs and dramas with a Bible lesson and verse to memorize. Then Elena found out that 2 of her kids were going to meet their new adoptive parents TODAY, so we rushed to House 2 so she could talk to them about it and try to prepare them a little. After that, some of her friends picked us up to go to a bonfire at a children's home way out in the country with a group from Florida that's been working there, the kids, and people from the church. They had the fire, music (and some people danced), soccer, and volleyball. It was a really full day but very fun, and I met a lot of new people!
So those are some of the things that have happened in the past week. It's been full of long, busy days, but also a lot of fun!
I also want to mention some prayer requests. Thank you to everyone who is praying for me and CDA; here are some specific things you can be praying for:
That's all I can think of for now...thanks for all your prayers and support!
A team of 4 people from the organization Orphan World Relief (OWR) was here for a little over a week. They support Casa de Amor, and they (the founder/director and 3 others) came to visit the city, see where their money is going, and help in any way they could. They were all completely awesome and very fun to hang out with. They just left yesterday, and I know they'll be missed by all the staff and children! One day last week, with them, Jennifer, Elena, David, and a professional bricklayer (the husband of one of the House 2 tias), I helped with the building of a house for a girl who is getting off the street, and her family. That was quite an experience - we literally threw bricks at each other to move them from one side of the land to the side where the house was going to be. That night I slept (more like didn't sleep at all) with the 4-month-old triplets, feeding them every 3 hours and trying to calm them down when they cried (which was basically all night long). After a long day of manual labor, then a long sleepless night, I went home and slept for about an hour, then went back to House 1 to work for 8 hours!
Don't remember if I already talked about this, but I also went to a soccer game at the big stadium last Sunday! It was between the 2 Cochabamba teams (big rivals, very intense competition), but since it was only part of the winter series there weren't many people there. It was still a fun experience though- barbed wire separating the fans from the field, police with shields to protect players from objects thrown at them, people selling various foods in the stands (including empanadas, ice cream cones, and beans. Oh and one lady had a basket full of candy...and cigarettes. What a combo), and fans cussing at the players. I went with the OWR group, Jen, plus a few street kids who were very into the whole cussing at players thing.
This Sunday after church, I went with Elena, 4 of the House 2 kids, and the OWR group to El Cristo de la Concordia, which is a huge white statue of Jesus on top of a mountain. There are steps going all the way up, but we opted for the teleférico (cable car) that takes you to the top and back down. We took lots of pictures at the top, with the Cristo and the awesome view of the mountains and city. Afterwards we stopped at a "restaurant" (basically a street corner where people set up a long picnic table and area to cook) to drink api, a hot corn drink with cinnamon and other spices (kind of like apple cider...yum), and eat some fried dough and cheese-stuffed pastries. That night I "babysat" for Elena for a couple hours, then got myself a taxi home.
Yesterday, after working at House 1 and saying goodbye to the OWR group, I went with Elena and her church to do an evangelism program for kids in a small country town. We played outside, helped the kids make a craft (they were VERY excited to use glitter glue and stickers!), then they did some songs and dramas with a Bible lesson and verse to memorize. Then Elena found out that 2 of her kids were going to meet their new adoptive parents TODAY, so we rushed to House 2 so she could talk to them about it and try to prepare them a little. After that, some of her friends picked us up to go to a bonfire at a children's home way out in the country with a group from Florida that's been working there, the kids, and people from the church. They had the fire, music (and some people danced), soccer, and volleyball. It was a really full day but very fun, and I met a lot of new people!
So those are some of the things that have happened in the past week. It's been full of long, busy days, but also a lot of fun!
I also want to mention some prayer requests. Thank you to everyone who is praying for me and CDA; here are some specific things you can be praying for:
- The 2 kids who met their adoptive parents today (JK and E). We don't know how long it will be until they actually get adopted, but just pray that they would adjust well with their new family. Also for Elena. She lives at House 2 and these kids are basically her children, and I know as excited as she is for them, it will be very hard for her to see them go.
- Other adoptions at House 1: one boy who was at House 1 (but has been living with a foster family- I actually babysat him the first week I was here!) is being adopted this Friday. A pair of twins may be going back to their mother soon. Another pair of twins is also in the middle of an adoption. It's very exciting that so many kids will have families soon, but it will also be hard on Jennifer and everyone that works at the home. Please pray for all of those kids, the adoptive families, the staff of CDA, and that everything goes smoothly with all the adoptions.
- Maite and Teresa (my Bolivian family). Nothing really specific for them, but just in general, and that God would bless them and keep them safe. Also, another girl is supposed to come live with us for a couple week (she comes the 10th), so for her to have a safe trip and a good stay here.
- My health: I haven't been majorly sick here, but I have kind of a cold. Mostly just coughing, but please just pray that I get better because it's very annoying, both to me and to M and T!
- Keep praying for Jennifer (she is super busy all the time and does A LOT!), CDA, all the kids, and all the staff.
That's all I can think of for now...thanks for all your prayers and support!
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