Allison Wonderland

Update

2012-02-01T16:09:00.003-06:00

OK, we haven't been very good about contact, but everything is going very well. Everyone is healthy (very little "adjustments"). Everyone is getting into the mix with the kids. The workers are on their trip (they were very excited to go). We have been in charge for over 24 hours now with out difficulty (although a fair amount of chaos).

Thank your for your prayers. The longer we are here, the more that all of us know that this was the trip the Lord had planned for us all. - Blessings

Estamos aqui! (we're here!)

2012-01-30T10:54:00.002-06:00

We are here at the Home of Life in San Andreas safe and sound. The second half of our flight went very well. Just a short wait at the airport for the bus to come and all of our bags to get loaded and off we went to Seteca (our lodging for the night). The bus was again loaded and we were off before 8:00.

The bus ride was uneventful but bumpy as always. After ariving at the home, lunch was served. This was followed by introductions and some time to get oriented. We spent this morning training for our time when the workers will leave for their paseo (trip). LOTS to do with all these kids. Several different school schedules and chores and meals and laundry and more meals and more laundry! It is overwhelming, but we brought lots of help!

Please be praying for continued health for our team. Also, peace in the midst of chaos as we 'take over' the home. Everyone has jumped into getting to know the kids and it is very fun to get to see!

In Houston

2012-01-28T16:54:00.001-06:00

Here are a couple of pictures in Omaha waiting to depart.

Now we are sitting in Houston waiting for our next flight.

Bags, bags, and more bags

2012-01-28T08:26:00.002-06:00

(This is Caleb) So on the morning of departure, my mom decides to make me do the posting. The inexperienced fourteen-year-old is captain of this ship currently. We are 4 hours and 20 minutes away from getting on a plane to Houston at 1 PM. Then we have a layover and get on our flight to Guatemala at about 7 PM. We have a LOT of bags. But I guess with a 20-member team that's to be expected. My grandparents (Mom's parents) are coming down from South Dakota to help us take bags to the airport. My aunt and uncle (Mom's sister and brother-in-law) are also coming to our house to take bags. Here's a couple pictures to give you an idea.

Yeah, I know, I look like a doofus. If you look closely, you can see that the bag I'm putting a tag on already has a tag. Mom took the pic.

4 hours and 10 minutes till departure. Can't wait to see what God is going to do while we're there.

Less than 3 weeks

2012-01-09T13:55:00.003-06:00

We are now down to 20 days before our team gets on a plane. We took a break over Christmas and New Year's but are back to weekly meetings until we go. Last Sunday, we were also prayed over at church. Every team sent out on a global journey is "commissioned" by our church before they depart similar to Paul and Barnabas in the 13th chapter of Acts.

"While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off." Acts 13:2-3

In 2009, when we were living in Guatemala, we took care of Luisito and Venuncio while the rest of the kids went on their “paseo”. (see our posts from 2009) A paseo is an outing or a journey. For the kids at Hogar de Vida, it happens every January just before they head back to school. In 2009, Luisito and Venuncio were too little to go.

The kids all load onto a bus and head to the beach or to a waterpark for a couple days. It is special time for the kids . . . and lots of work for the adults! The kids will go on their paseo again this January. They are going for 3 nights this time. Luisito and Venuncio are now 3 and a half. Here is a picture of them from Christmas.

Part of the Lord’s vision for our time in Guatemala is to give the adults a paseo in February. They have agreed to leave our team in charge while they have some time to rest and have fun . . . without 30+ children! We are very excited to give them a break and pray that they will be blessed by their time away.

However, we have lots of planning still to do in our remaining 20 days. We want to have some activities for the kids. We need to plan a menu so that groceries can be purchased prior to our arrival. Then we need to pack all that we are bringing! The time will go fast! We would really appreciate your prayers. Thanks!

Bethlehem

2011-12-03T19:42:00.004-06:00

One of the local churches in our area holds an event called "Walk through Bethlehem". Our family decided to go take the "walk" last Thursday.

They had live animals. There was a camel outside of the church but all the rest of the animals were inside the church. These guys were at the beginning of the walk.

Hannah, Samuel and Bethany went into a bedouin tent to hear a story and have a snack.

The four kids each received a bag of coins to spend on their walk. The younger three decided to pay a little extra for a colored head covering.

Caleb was saving his money for the "sword" stall (they didn't have one!)

In the temple, they wrote "Messiah" in Hebrew in the sand.

Caleb is helping them write from right to left.

They each got to make some money with their first initial pressed into the coins.

More animals in the stable at the end.

There was so much to do and many things to see. We ran out of time at the end and had to skip the breadmaking and the pottery as well as the basket weaving. It was a great view into Bethlehem at the time of Jesus's birth. Praying that we can stay focused this year on the true reason that we celebrate. May Jesus be at the heart of all that we do this Christmas season.

Going Back . . . With Some Friends!

2011-11-20T17:08:00.006-06:00

We are in the midst of training and preparing a team that will serve in Guatemala in early 2012. We have three families, a young couple and a single lady for a total of 20 people. It has been so fun to get to know everyone!

Yesterday, we all gathered to deliver boxes of food and frozen turkeys to families in Omaha. We split our 20 people into 5 cars and then each car delivered to 3 houses. It was a great way to serve and get to know one another better!

We all met up again for pizza after the deliveries were done. The only requirement was that the Nebraska game was on in the restaurant.
Here are Caleb and Peter "glued" to the TV!

The girls weren't quite as interested in the game as the boys were!

There is another whole table of the adults where the women are talking about really important stuff and the guys are watching the game. Unfortunately we didn't get a picture of that action!!

More updates and info to come!!

Football and Motorcycles

2011-09-11T16:17:00.008-06:00

A "guy" entry - written by Don (that part was by me!)

With the end of summer approaching, the football season has begun. Caleb is in his second year of playing flag-football for Lightning. Practices started in July and they have already had four games. Here are a few pictures. Caleb is number 23. He is right in the middle of the first two pictures.

It is such a great group of players and coaches.

Before the season started, we had the team and families over for a party. Pizza, campfire, volleyball - it was a lot of fun! We had over 60 attend. Here is Sam with a couple of his buddies.

Caleb and I have been working on adding a light to his motorcycle for a year or so. He has slowly been purchasing parts and we have been drawing wiring diagrams and researching on the internet. Over the past few weeks, we started taking things apart....then putting them back together. Here are a couple pictures of Caleb working.

After we were all done, he started it up and guess what? There was light!!! We were very excited.

Here is a side shot cuz it looks cool!

Costa Rica

2011-08-20T10:28:00.010-06:00

We have been home from Costa Rica for almost 3 weeks now. The trip was wonderful but the time went so fast. We had such a fun time with our team and at the children's home.

One of our goals was to be an encouragement to the ladies who take care of the children. Their days are filled with lots of hard work and we felt like the Lord wanted us to "hold up their hands" like Aaron and Hur did for Moses:

As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. Exodus 17:11-13

We didn't exactly lift their "hands" but we did wash and massage their feet and give them pedicures.

We made them dessert and put our hands on each of them to pray for the tough things that they were walking through.

We also took over the care of the kids so they could go to town or have an outing all together. It helped us to appreciate how very hard their job is!

We also had times of doing activities with the kids. They had around 30 kids ranging in age from infant to about 8. Very, very busy!!

They also have Julio who is 14 but mentally challenged. He is the sweetest boy!

There were also a couple construction projects that the men were focused on. Don and Chris made forms and poured cement. They also helped build a "roof" over the lines used to hang all of the kids' laundry. The "roof" will help the clothes dry during the rainy season.

Don and I were on assignment from Samuel to find a "blue jean frog". We never did find one but we took pictures of millipedes, large toads and lots of lizards.

We did make some time for fun as well.
Judi, the oldest member of our team, taught us how to do flips off of the top bunk!

We walked down (and back up) about 330 steps to a beautiful waterfall.

We also had a day at the beach. We went shopping and took a trip on an amazing zip line! It was incredible!

The sunset on the beach was breathtaking!

Costa Rica is a beautiful country. We had an amazing team. We pray that we were a blessing to the children's home there.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ." Ephesians 1:3

Costa Rica and Other Things

2011-06-27T12:21:00.011-06:00

As we mentioned in our previous post (from a long, long time ago!!), Don and I have been preparing to lead a team to Costa Rica. The training and planning and meeting has been so much fun and . . . a ton of work. Our team is required to meet 8 to 10 times before we leave on our trip. We are down to one more meeting and a "packing party". Our flight leaves on Friday, July 22nd.

Our team has also been reading a book together. Yesterday, at our meeting, we discussed The Power of a Whisper by Bill Hybels. Chapter 9 of the book deals with "whispers that change the world." This chapter was the most relevant to us as we prepare to go out into the world to serve. The chapter encouraged us to "spend ourselves on behalf of the hungry" with our time, talents and money.

The very last sentence of the chapter was one that touched me the most. It reads, "To care deeply about the crown of God's creation - humanity in all its color, shapes and sizes - and to make sacrifices on its behalf . . . there is no greater satisfaction in all the earth." Such encouraging words for us as a team! We have been having such a great time getting to know one another and seeking the Lord together for this trip.

Of course, preparing for Costa Rica is not all that we have been doing in the almost 2 months since I last posted!

Hannah found three little baby gophers at my parent's house that had lost their mother. We had to take them home with us, of course, so the kids could care for them. Unfortunately, they all died after a couple days but the experience was a great one for the kids.
Bethany did most of the feeding.

Hannah did help her out since it is a challenge to feed "three little ones"!

The kids have also been doing alot of swimming in between finishing up school and other FUN projects that I had for them around the house!

Don had a birthday and Father's Day in June. We did get him other presents (including a cherry tree) but here is a picture of the dioramas that the younger three made for him. They asked him what his favorites animals were and then surprised him with their creations - polar bears, sharks and penguins

Caleb and Don have been working on a project for the backyard.

Last year, we moved our swingset so we could build a patio. One half of the patio was to hold the pool and the other half was for a pergola. The practical reason for the structure is to hold solar panels that will run our pool filter.

Last weekend, Don and Caleb started with the posts and beams.

This past week, Caleb finished sanding and waterproofing the rest of the cross pieces so they could put them up today.

They did get a break from "building" last Saturday. They attended an "Appleseed Project" event. They spent the day learning about the "shot heard around the world".

And doing alot of shooting! They came home tired but happy!

Life has been very full for us lately, but we are very thankful. We are surrounded by water as the Missouri floods all over our region. Fortunately, our house is far enough from the river that we won't personally have issues; however, the highway that runs past our neighborhood continues to get busier as they close portions of the interstate because of the water. It is such a sad time as many people have had to evacuate their homes. We pray that all those affected by the flooding will find the peace and comfort that can only come from the Lord. These things that we accumulate in this world are only temporary but a relationship with Jesus will last for an eternity! Blessings - thanks for reading!

Mother's Day

2011-05-09T16:11:00.001-06:00

I think I like Mother's Day even more than my birthday! I had a great day yesterday and it is so nice to get presents for doing the thing that I do everyday - 24/7! It is almost like my "salary" without the taxes!! : )

The kids (mostly the girls) made waffles for breakfast on the new waffle makers they gave me.

Here is my pile of presents! I am so spoiled!

We met my mom and dad and my sister and her family for lunch. Then we went to the park so the kids could play. Here is Hannah on the jungle gym.

It was a great day! Hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day as well.

On another note, Don and I are going to be leading a team to Costa Rica this July for a mission trip. We will serve at a children's home that was founded by the same missionaries who founded the home in Guatemala. We are very excited and will try to post about the trip as much as we can. We are still getting organized so we don't have alot of details but if you are interested in knowing more, please email me at lori_l_allison@yahoo.com.

Birthday and Easter

2011-04-27T10:38:00.004-06:00

Only a few days of April left, although it is definitely not feeling like spring! April has flown by for us. We are still plugging away at school and starting to get some work done outside.

Also in April, Caleb turned 14! My mom and dad came down from SD for the big day. We also had my sister and her family out for lunch. Caleb had requested steaks and chocolate-covered cherry cake, his favorite!

Caleb really wants to put a headlight on his dirtbike. He had purchased the kit required for the wiring but not the actual headlight. Don found one for him and then decided it might have a dual purpose!

A mask?

Anyway, they now have a project to complete.

Here is my mom and dad and all the grandchildren.

The very next weekend we went up to SD for Easter. We tend to not do anything with Easter eggs or bunnies, but before we left, Samuel told me that if you have a good grandma, you get presents for Easter.

And apparently they have a good grandma! Here they are waiting their turn to peek into their Easter "bags"!! Any excuse to give them gifts!

Next to the movies, silly string may have been the favorite "surprise!" Samuel didn't know what it was. Apparently we haven't taught him about the really fun things of life!! They have decided that they could use some more.

We had a great Easter that included an awesome church service. We celebrated the best gift of all in the resurrection of our Savior.

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Matthew 28:5-6

Zoo Trip

2011-04-04T19:32:00.002-06:00

We decided to head to the zoo this afternoon after we got all our work done! The IMAX is now included in our zoo membership so we decided to go check it out. We haven't been there since Caleb was very little. The show was on Alaska. What a beautiful place! I am so amazed at the Lord's creativity.

He who forms the mountains,
who creates the wind,
and who reveals his thoughts to mankind,
who turns dawn to darkness,
and treads on the heights of the earth—
the LORD God Almighty is his name. Amos 4:13

We all enjoyed it and then decided to take a quick spin around the dessert dome. I forgot my camera so I took a couple pictures with my phone. I found this cool little mosaic option.

I did take a couple normal pictures as well!

Anyway, it was a fun, little diversion for the afternoon.

Reception

2011-03-28T07:27:00.008-06:00

David and Dana's wedding reception was held at a place called The Ship. They had little stations of appetizer-type food set up all over the place. This station had all sorts of things to dip in melted, dark chocolate.

The party started at 7 pm but the bride and groom were fashionably late at about 8 pm. Here is Uncle David with his mom.

One of their friends came dressed as a gorilla because David really likes them. Samuel was fascinated by this guy. Hannah and Samuel wanted him in a picture with them and Aunt Dana.

Hannah made friends with the cotton candy guy. After he made cotton candy he would give her the little pieces left in the machine. He also sent some home with us when we left!

Samuel tasted cotton candy for the first time at the party. The cotton candy was green apple flavored and the best Don and I had ever tasted. We are thinking we need to warn the kids that most cotton candy does not taste like this kind! Don took a picture of Caleb and I partaking in the sweet stuff!

We also ate popcorn, pretzels, hot dogs, tacos, philly cheese steak sandwiches and on and on and on. The kids had so much fun.

It was a great weekend. We are so happy for David and Dana. We are praying the Lord's blessings over their marriage and future together.

Wedding

2011-03-25T15:42:00.005-06:00

We braved the snowy, slushy roads at about 5:30 this morning to get to the wedding of Don's brother in Kansas City. The ceremony was at the courthouse and we needed to be there at 9 am. We actually made it there before the bride and groom! : ) Here are a couple pictures.

Uncle David and Aunt Dana after the ceremony.

Exchanging vows and rings. The ceremony was very nice.

After a few pictures, we went out to lunch with both sides of the family. The reception will be held Saturday night so after lunch we were on our own.

We decided to head to the museum. Bethany and Samuel admiring the art.

We brought Don's mom with us to KC for the wedding which means she also gets a trip to the museum! It was a great way to pass the time.

We are now all checked into the hotel. The kids are taking a quick break from swimming for a snack and then back off to the pool! It is suppose to snow/rain here tomorrow so we will be looking for indoor activities to entertain us! There is always the pool! : )

We are Home!

2011-03-09T16:24:00.001-06:00

We arrived a half hour late into the Chicago airport at about 11:30 pm. We grabbed our luggage and our rental van and headed for the hotel. Everyone was in bed by 1 am - very long day!

Most of us made the free breakfast in the hotel on Tuesday morning. Some of us chose to sleep a little bit longer! We found a redbox, rented a couple movies and got on the road by 10:30 am. We had 8 hours to drive from Chicago to Omaha.

The kids thought the van was great and we loved that it had a DVD player!

The weather reports had said snow but we only had to deal with rain. We stopped in Blair for a few groceries and made it home at a little after 7 pm. We rushed to unpack the van so Don and I could return it to the airport by 8 pm.

We all slept great in our own beds! Thanks for going on this journey with us. Our trip went so fast! We really appreciate your prayers and support.

On the Plane

2011-03-07T19:14:00.002-06:00

We left the highlands of Guatemala at around 10:30 am this morning. Duane and Joseph flew us to Guatemala City in 30 minutes (the car ride takes us 5 to 6 hours). It was a great flight. Everything was smooth sailing at the Aurora International Airport in Guatemala City. Unfortunately, Duane and Joseph were not able to join us on the flight. We will continue to pray for the Lord's timing for their trip to the States.

The flight to Atlanta went well. We are now hanging out at the airport until our flight leaves later tonight. Here is a picture of Don and Samuel drawing on the flight to Atlanta.

Just got an update. We are delayed 10 minutes in Atlanta. Hopefully, that will be all. Thanks for your prayers!

Some Last Photos

2011-03-07T07:57:00.008-06:00

We are packing up and getting ready to go, but I wanted to post some last pictures quick. Abi is the Ficker's youngest adopted daughter. Her and Samuel were best buddies during our time here. Watching movies was one of their favorite activities!

Here are a few pictures from the baby shower as promised. Leslie and Hannah are getting balloons ready before the party began.

Rachel and Bethany were in charge of the sign.

Katie Ann made the cake.

This is Rosa's family waiting to surprise her.

We played several games. Katie and Rosa are feeding each other blindfolded to "teach" Rosa how to feed her baby. We played several other games as well. As in the States, it was a time of lots of laughter and fun!

Everyone took turns giving Rosa advice.

Here is Rosa opening her presents. She is so sweet and cute!

It was so fun to be a part of this party. Katie Shaw was the hostess and organizer. She has such a sweet heart and is a mentor to the young girls who help in the clinic in San Andres as translators. There are several more young girls so I am sure that there will be many more showers! I pray that they see the joy of the Lord and how special they are to Him.

Updates

2011-03-06T09:08:00.003-06:00

This week has flown by! We got back from the children's home on Monday night. Tuesday was clinic for Don in Chiminisijuan. The kids and I cleaned up the house and caught up on some things until Don got home. Later we went to the Fickers for worship and the start of our Sabbath.

We had a great day off on Wednesday. It was chilly and rainy all day so we huddled in the kitchen and watched a movie. We all needed a little bit of catch-up rest after our busy days at the Home.

Thursday was moving day! We are spending our last few days living back in the clinic on the Fickers property. We wanted to move back so we could clean up our rental house before we left. Also, by living in the clinic, we get to spend a little bit more time with the Fickers. It felt like being back "home" once we got all organized.

Friday we went to market for the last time and did a couple loads of laundry to get us through the rest of our time. Katie Shaw had also asked us to help her organize a baby shower to be held at her house on Saturday so we worked on that for a while. Friday night we had a bonfire. Don needed to finish up a science experiment and needed fire to do it! Great fun for all!

Saturday was Don's last clinic in Canilla and the baby shower for Rosa. I will post some pictures and more details on the shower later. Today is Don's last clinic in San Andres and packing day.

We will fly to Guatemala City in the morning to catch our flight to the States. Our time here has gone so fast! It has been an awesome trip for all of us. It is going to be hard to leave and makes me sad thinking about it, but we know that the Lord has us in the States right now. We need to get home for the commitments that we have there.

There is your update of the week. We will post some pictures of the shower soon. Thanks for reading and for praying!

TIme at the Home - Part III

2011-03-03T14:52:00.001-06:00

Our last day at the Home was on Monday. We had an activity planned for the kids in the morning and there was a birthday party planned for the evening. They celebrate birthdays in groups. This party was for everyone who had a birthday in January and February.

After lunch, Norm decided to take the kids to the river. We went along to help with the kids and because our kids wanted to swim. They have this neat swimming hole they walk to so we all headed out following Norm's lead.

Here are some pictures at the river.
The water is deep enough (maybe 8 or 9 feet) so the kids jump off the rocks.

This is Beni getting ready to hit the water.

Manuel was also having a great time jumping in.

Gris is jumping with Hannah looking on.

Bethany's turn.

This is Sebastian with Tiana.

One of the highlights was this crab that the boys found.

Once we returned to the Home, Vickie and I started to make chili for the big party. It was a huge pot of chili to feed all of us.
Here is a picture of Don and Tiana waiting for the party to start.

There was lots of food and cake and presents. It was a fun night. We had packed our truck that morning so as soon as the party was done we got on the road back to Canilla We were all exhausted but we all agreed that we had some great days with the kids.

Time at the Home - Part II

2011-03-02T15:12:00.003-06:00

The night with the baby wasn't too bad but we were up early. Don had clinic and I wanted to get some things done before the day started.

Samuel took a picture of Don while he was doing his quiet time. Samuel said he really liked the mountains in the background! Notice Alicia on the table in her basket and the large cup of coffee next to Don!

Norm has been making the kids cinnamon rolls on Sunday mornings. Here he is with his helper, Beni, checking to see if they are done. We were very excited that he had enough for us as well!

Sunday is the day that the Home allows visitors in to see the children. Oralia and Sebastian like to have Norm and Vickie help keep an eye on the children during the visiting time. We helped out with keeping the kids busy. We pulled out puzzles and coloring books etc. We had also brought a couple activities with us.

Soon visiting time was over and we moved onto lunch. After lunch I made 60 rolls for the kids afternoon snack. This is kind of a tradition that started with Dena Stromstad. She and her husband started the Home many years ago. They call the bread "pan de Dena" even if she isn't the one making it! It is really fun to continue on this "tradition".

Finally Don returned from clinic - Sundays are always long clinic days with lots of people. He continued "clinic" when he returned to the Home by removing a splinter from Melisa's hand and then diagnosing and treating a bladder infection for Angelita. He said that Melisa was his favorite patient of the day! Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture.

Sunday night is church. Don drove the Home's pick-up with a load of kids. Church started at 6:30 pm but we were a little late. We weren't the latest; however, many came much later in true Guatemalan style! Church was really good but it is all in Spanish. Our heads hurt before it is all over. Don took a load home at about 8:30 pm and then went back for some more. The kids and I were in the first load so we grabbed a snack and then got ready for bed.

The second night with Alicia was much easier than the first but the next day started just as early!

Time at the Home - Part I

2011-03-01T14:45:00.015-06:00

As I mentioned in a previous post, we went to the children's home last Saturday afternoon and returned to our rental house on Monday night. We went to spend time with the kids, the staff and Norm and Vickie Sutton who are serving there full-time. Our goal is to be a blessing and an encouragement so we offered to take the 3 month old baby for the nights that we were staying.

Here is Alicia. Isn't she a doll? Obviously, this was not that much of a sacrifice on our part! : ) Although Don was a little worried about me getting "baby fever" and asked me about it after the first night. Nope - no desire for number 5! A temporary baby is just about right at this point.

Our kids jumped right in on the first night with a "in the dark" soccer game on the basketball court.

Here are a couple pictures of the kids.
Santiago is a quiet boy with a very sweet disposition. Isn't he cute?

Josefa is new. She has had a rough life but seems to be enjoying the home. Her mom did come to visit her while we were there.

Adriel is the youngest son of Sebastian and Oralia, the directors of the Home. He was just a baby the first time we went to Guatemala. Samuel really enjoys playing with him - once they warm up to each other.

We finally got everyone settled down and in for the night. We had two full days ahead of us and we all needed some sleep.

Chica

2011-03-01T12:47:00.005-06:00

Bethany was given the "job" of exercising Chica which she did gladly. Here are just a few shots of her riding. She did a great job and had lots of fun. Mrs. Caul would not be happy that she didn't have a helmet on but they didn't have any. She was very careful and mostly rode in circles! She is hoping to ride again before we go.

River Trip

2011-02-23T17:38:00.015-06:00

Last Wednesday, we decided to take a trip to the river for our Sabbath. This post is just a few pictures from that trip.
The view on the walk down.

There is a sandy place where we have played volleyball with the Fickers. No volleyball this day but the sand was lots of fun for Hannah and Sam!

Of course, they did get in the water as well. Caleb is working on a damn or opening one up - can't tell from this picture.

Don and Bethany were searching for tadpoles. They did find some and we took them with us but many were dead by the time we got home.

It was a great way to spend our Sabbath. The rest of the week went fast. On Saturday after clinic, we went to the children's home for a few days. We did not have time to post while we were there but we did take lots of pictures. Postings to come! Thanks for reading!

Medical Clinics

2011-02-23T17:38:00.008-06:00

I (Don) always have a hard time posting on the medical clinics. It is hard to stop and ask someone if I can take their picture when there is a long line of people that don't feel well. This last week, I respectfully tried to take a few pictures.

Adonai holds three medical clinics every week. The most physicially isolated of the clinics lies in the mountains between San Andreas and Canilla. Chiminisijuan is a very remote very poor village. This picture is of the 'road' leading to the clinic. During the dry season it is rough, during the wet season, it is often impassable. Here is a picture of a bridge over a drainage ditch.

Here is a picture of Armando preaching before clinic starts. The sermon is given in Quiche, the local Mayan language.

We often find ourselves without the proper equipment, medicine, etc. This little boy has a broken collar bone. Dr Malachi is rigging up a sling for him. Malachi Courtney is a second year Med-Peds resident. He is very smart and a lot of fun to be around. I very much enjoyed getting to work with him. While is Guatemala, he also shared his time with Dr Pope in Chichi.

Here is a picture of Malachi holding a little guy after he examined him. The patient population is mostly women and children, lots of prenatal exams. The patients are very poor and often uneducated. There is a mix of simple intervention to very sick, very complicated patients.

Our time seems to have gone very fast. I only have five more clinic days left. I always enjoy my time working with the Guatemalan people. There is so much need and there are times when I feel so inadequate, yet the people are so thankful for any help that we can give them even if all we can offer is prayer.

Pizza Day

2011-02-21T18:54:00.008-06:00

We spent the day at the children's home today. I try to make pizza for the kids sometime during our time here and today was the day! We usually have lots of activities for the younger children but it is hard to bring something specifically for the older boys. Pizza is something that they really enjoy and seem to look forward to.

It is also a way for me to give the workers a little bit of a break from cooking a meal. However, I had some helpers today. They wanted to be a part of it and it was fun to have them help. These two have been at the home for a very long time and are really special to me. They are Lita on the left and Zoila on the right.

We made eleven pizzas. I always try to pack pepperoni as a treat. They also like to have hamburger and then a very Guatemalan pizza with "sal chichas" which are little hot dogs. Here are some pictures of the kids enjoying their pizza.

This is Tiana

This is Samuel

This is Manuel

This is Melissa

Here are Melissa, Luisito and Venuncio at their own little table. So cute!

We also did a couple activities with the kids but didn't seem to get any pictures. It was a fun day!

Our kids are still struggling with some coughs but it appears that everyone is on the mend! Thanks for praying.

Shalom

2011-02-20T07:44:00.012-06:00

Most of us know that the word "Shalom" means peace and is often used as a greeting. We learned last Friday that the word has a much deeper meaning of "completeness, wholeness and restoration".

Don and I traveled with the Fickers (Duane, Leslie and Katie Shaw) and Dr. Malachi to the Petén last Friday. The Petén is the northernmost part of Guatemala and is known for its Mayan ruins and jungle vegetation. Duane flew us to the international airport in Flores. The view from the airplane was incredible. We only had four headsets for 6 people so I put in my earbuds and worshipped the Lord for the hour long flight. It was amazing!

We went to the Petén to meet with some missionaries who have started a hospital there. Only a small percentage of all the missionaires in Guatemala are located in this region that makes up almost half of the total area of the country. There are people groups in this region that have never seen "gringos" or heard of Jesus.

The name of the hospital is Hospital Shalom. Their mission is "completeness and restoration" of their patients physical, spiritual and emotional well-being. They are completely committed and dependent on the Lord in all that they do.

The hospital is located on a little over 3 acres. The compound includes the hospital, some living quarters, dining/laundry building, the chapel and other miscellaneous buildings.

The hospital is currently one story but they are in the process of constructing the second story. Because elevators require alot of maintenance and don't often work in the high humidity, they have installed a ramp in order to get patients to the second floor.

The facilities were amazing and the missionaries, Tim and Doris, were awesome people. They have such an openness and generosity about them. To learn more about what they do there, go to their website here.

Our trip was so interesting and so much fun, but the life of a missionary can't always be that exciting! Just as in the States, we spend a portion of everyday just doing the things we need to do to "live". Fixing meals, cleaning, etc. etc. On Saturday, we decided that we needed to clean our pila.

If you remember, our pila serves as our kitchen and bathroom sink as well as our "washer". It has a huge reservoir for water that is supposed to stay "clean" even though it is outside and debris is constantly being blown into it. To clean the reservoir, we had to drain the water and then get inside it to scrub it down. I say "we" but I really mean "Caleb"!

Caleb did an awesome job. We added some bleach to the water in the hopes that we won't have to clean it again before we leave! Who knew that owning and maintaining our backyard swimming pool would be useful to us in Guatemala? Seriously, Samuel did keep asking if he could "swim" in the pila!

We have a couple viruses moving through our family and the Fickers. We would really appreciate your prayers for health and total "restoration" of our bodies. Shalom!

Fun at the Home

2011-02-16T12:41:00.006-06:00

Last Monday, we went to the children's home, Hogar de Vida. We have been visiting and serving at the Home since 2003 when Don and I made our first trip to Guatemala. We have watched many of the kids grow up and have enjoyed getting to know the new ones. It takes us about a half hour to drive there from where we are living. It is really only about 5 miles as the crow flies but we have to drive on winding, dirt mountain roads.

Our goal when we go is to try to help out as much as we can. They are currently short handed with their staff so I like to help in the kitchen and with laundry etc. We also try to bring an activity for the kids to do. If we can take over the responsibility of the kids, we can give the workers a little break.

This is Venuncio. If you have been following our trips to Guatemala, you may remember him as a baby. He was very sick when he was little so we had him with us for quite a while. We figured out that he had an issue with formula and had to buy a special kind for him. He is now 2 years old and rather chunky! It is fun to see him all healthy.

These little cuties are Rosa and Sebastiana (or Tiana). Tiana is finishing up her activity - a crocodile form that they weaved different colored strips of foam through. Behind the little girls is Chepa. She has a neurologic disorder and has frequent seizures which is why she is wearing a helmet. Her health has gone down hill dramatically since we have seen her last.

The girls and Don helped the kids with their activity while Samuel and Caleb played soccer with some of the boys. Here is Samuel with Beni.

Angelita has downs syndrome. She has lost weight and aged dramatically since we have seen her last. She is always very excited to see us and would make Don grape kool-aid (his favorite) every time we came. This time she did not even have the energy for this simple task. We are not sure of her age but she has thrived in this home setting. She always had specific tasks to do and she took care of Chepa. Now her and Chepa are both requiring a little more attention as their ability to care for themselves is decreasing.

We had a great day serving at the home. Caleb spoke more Spanish than I have ever heard him speak. It was fun to watch Bethany play with and watch over the little kids. Hannah and Samuel had fun just playing with everyone. Don loves to make up songs and silly jokes with the kids. And for some reason, washing their laundry, doing their dishes and mopping their floor is way more fun than doing my own! We plan to go back next Monday with another activity and to serve them in whatever way we can.

Samuel's Birthday

2011-02-16T11:48:00.004-06:00

Today is our Sabbath here. We take it on Wednesdays because there is clinic on Sundays. It is so nice to have a day set aside to rest and relax. We had mango oatmeal for breakfast and then did a little family worship and prayer time. It is a good time to check in with the kids to see how they are doing and what they are thinking about being here. So far so good!

As I wrote in the previous post, Samuel had his birthday just after we arrived. Samuel turned 7 on the 13th. My dad's birthday is on the 12th and he is 60 years older than Samuel. We had a birthday party with my family the weekend before we left. Here is my dad and Samuel blowing out their candles on their birthday cherry pies!

There were also a couple 1st birthdays at the Ficker home the week we arrived so they decided to have a little party and bonfire. They were so sweet to include Samuel in the celebration. Here he is with his birthday cupcake.

And, of course, we had to have a little party on his actual birthday day! We packed the "7" candle and a few presents and had our own celebration on Sunday. He asked for beans and rice for his birthday dinner which is VERY doable here!

We haven't been just celebrating since we arrived. Don has helped with the three weekly clinics - Saturday, Sunday and Tuesday. The kids and I did some unpacking and even a little school while Don was busy. We also went to the children's home on Monday. We will post pictures of that day next.

It is funny to us how we can just jump right back in here as if we never left. The temperatures have been very springlike even a little chilly at night. We very quickly adapted to the wonderful weather!

Finally Connected!

2011-02-15T11:23:00.007-06:00

The last time we posted we were in Chicago. We had a quick night there and then headed to the airport at about 4 am. Our flight to Atlanta went quick; however Atlanta was having a snow/mist at about 30 degrees. We had to be de-iced and left about an hour later than scheduled.

We landed in Guatemala, retrieved our 10 bags, sailed through customs and easily found our 4runner in the airport garage. We had planned to get groceries and then head right up the mountain; however, because we were later than expected and very tired we decided to go part way and save the rest of the trip for daylight. We stopped to get groceries in Guatemala City, rearranged our bags and then headed to a hotel in Chichicastenango. As soon as we arrived and checked-in, we crashed for almost 12 hours. Caleb said it was the most comfortable bed that he had ever slept in!

The next morning we drove to San Andres where the children's home is located. We had brought a few bags for some missionaries that serve there full time so we had to unload and adjust our bags as well as say a quick "hi" to the people at the home. We got back on the road to Canilla where we would be living. The travel for this day was all on mountain roads with the last couple hours on dirt. We arrived in Canilla in time for a delicious lunch with the Fickers.

We later took our stuff to the rental house to unload and get ready for bed. The next morning was clinic. Don was looking for his stethoscope and odoscope when we realized that somewhere along our journey we lost a suitcase. We know we had it when we left the airport so Don called all the places that we stopped along the way - the grocery store, the hotel and the Children's Home. We have not been able to locate it.

We are missing Don's medical equipment, 2 math books, some baking products, a couple fiction books that I got for my birthday, my cookbook, the girls' piano books, batteries and a few other small things. All of these things we can replace when we get home. We are also missing most of the gifts that we had for the kids at the Home. This is the hardest part. We have explained to them that we are missing a suitcase and we know that it will be fine, but it is disappointing for all of us. We are still praying that it will turn up and we trust that God is the God of the impossible because it does look rather impossible at this point.

We are settled into our temporary home now. It did take a little bit for us to get use to it but it has now become home and we are enjoying it. We are so thankful to the Fickers for all the work that they did to get it ready for us. We have included a few pictures here so you can get a glimpse of where we are staying.

Here is our pila that functions as a bathroom sink, kitchen sink and washing machine!

Here is a close-up of the girls doing dishes.

Our kitchen.

We set-up the other side of the kitchen as an office.

We haven't taken pictures of our two bedrooms so maybe we can post some later. I need to do about 2 more postings to get us all up-to-date, but that will have to wait for another day as well. We have celebrated Samuel's birthday here (twice) and spent a day at the children's home. Stay tuned! Thanks for your prayers!

Chicago!

2011-02-09T21:05:00.003-06:00

After lunch, we travelled quickly across Iowa. We stopped for pizza in Peru, IL.

"Booking It" at Pizza Hut.

The drive to the hotel was quick and easy as well. We landed in Lombard, IL at about 7 pm. We have the alarms set for 3:15 am so we can get to the airport for our 6 am flight. We may not have internet access until Friday but as soon as we can, we will blog about our flights to Guatemala and drive up the mountain! Thanks for praying.

On our way

2011-02-09T11:58:00.001-06:00

Well, we made it to Avis this morning. However, they didn't have any mini-vans. So, they substituted this family hauler. Lori immediately rushed home and loaded another suitcase!

We are now sitting to enjoy french fries and free Wi-fi at a McDonald's in Des Moines.

Fun on Larimore Street

2011-02-05T20:02:00.005-06:00

Our church, Lifegate Church, is helping another ministry restore a house in a inner-cty neighborhood. The house is on Larimore Street which has been known for violence, drug dealing and prostitution in the past. Since the ministry, Abide Network, has had a presence there, the neighborhood has been changing in awesome ways. There are about a dozen or so abandoned houses just on that street. The goal of the project (and future restoration projects) is to gift the house to someone who is a part of Abide's local church. These new homeowners will then be able to bring the life and hope of Jesus to the neighborhood by reaching out to their neighbors as well as bring some stability to the area.

The last two Saturdays, Don and Caleb have had the opportunity to work at the house. They are in the "mudding" phase, hoping to move onto painting soon.

This Saturday, Bethany, Hannah, Samuel and I were also able to participate. Along with restoring the house, Lifegate and Abide have planned monthly outreaches to the neighborhood. Today, we delivered cookies and invited people to a Valentine's Day dinner/talent show hosted by Abide's church, Bridge Church. We, along with other people from both Lifegate and Bridge Church, walked along Larimore St., knocking on doors, giving away cookies and then asking if we could pray for them. We prayed for health issues, job and financial issues, a grandson with asthma etc. etc.

We had so much fun. The kids enjoyed it as much as I did!

The people living on Larimore St. were so awesome. We are sad that we will be missing the March outreach but so excited to be going to Guatemala! We did get this photo of our rental house today. Notice the baño on the right!

Things are coming together, if only, I could find some time to pack!!

One More Week!

2011-02-02T15:48:00.003-06:00

I am so thankful that we are not driving to Chicago today! The weather here the last several days has us wondering, once again, why it is that we live in Nebraska! Snow, ice, wind, freezing temperatures . . . makes me long for warmer climate!: )

Most of the schools around here have been closed the last several days. . . but not ours!! Samuel is working on his reading workbook!

Notice the hot chocolate and snacks!

Not sure what Caleb is doing. Maybe telling me not to take his picture??

We have been busy trying to get to a good stopping place with school. We will take some school with us but we never seem to get as much done there as I would like. We have also been packing a little, making lists, running errands and trying to tie up lose ends before we leave for a month.

I took my mother-in-law for her 3 month check-up with her oncologist today. She is doing very well. Her "sunburn" from the radiation treatment looks much better and all her blood counts are good. The only concern is that she has lost quite a bit of weight and her potassium has dropped. We are thinking it is just because she isn't eating enough. She eats better when she can go out and with the weather lately, she hasn't been able to go as much. She will be staying at our house while we are in Guatemala so I am trying to make sure that there is quick, easy food here for her to prepare. I think I may try to freeze some individual portions so that she has lots of choices for meals.

The weather looks nice and sunny for next Wednesday! His timing is perfect! Thanks for reading!

A Scripture to Share

2011-01-28T10:49:00.002-06:00

On Wednesday, the day I wrote the last post, we had our weekly family worship. Our church is reading through the Bible in 2011 from the Message Bible. On Wednesday nights, we gather as a family and discuss any scriptures that stood out to us from our reading over the past week.

If you recall, my last post talked about our challenge of packing light and of the house that we will be renting while we were there. Don shared a scripture that speaks to both of those topics.

The scripture he shared comes from Mark 6 where Jesus is sending out the 12 disciples. It doesn't seem near as relevant in the NIV translation but read this from the Message Bible:

"Don't think you need a lot of extra equipment for this. You are the equipment. No special appeals for funds. Keep it simple.
And no luxury inns. Get a modest place and be content there until you leave." Mark 6:8-11

I love it when the Lord speaks so directly to us from His word. I will now be leaving any "extra" equipment behind. I am also excited about our "modest place" and being content there (widowmaker and all)! He makes me smile and I wanted to share it with you! Hope you have a great weekend! Thanks for reading!

Two Weeks from Today!

2011-01-26T09:27:00.004-06:00

Can you hear God "stretching" us from there? We have been going to Guatemala since 2003 so you would think things would get routine and simple, right? We have learned that the Lord stretches us a little bit out of our comfort zone every time we go.

The first new part of our adventure has to do with our flights. The cheaper tickets we found saved us over a thousand dollars but they leave from Chicago. We will be renting a van and driving on Wednesday, February 9th. Our flight then leaves bright and early on Thursday morning. Don and I have alot of peace about doing this and are actually looking forward to a day of driving. We are trusting the Lord for good weather. When we found the tickets, we looked at each other and said, "Well, we have never done it this way before!"

The second new part has to do with where we will sleep! We have stayed at the children's home where we serve and we have stayed in the clinic building where Don helps with weekly clinics, but we have never stayed in a house by ourselves. Guess what we are doing this year? Since this is a "new" part of our trip, I am assuming that you guessed correctly - in a house by ourselves. There are other visitors expected during our trip so the missioniaries that we serve with are looking into a house we can rent. During the phone call from Guatemala, they told us that we would be "living like Guatemalans". This means we will have a pila instead of a kitchen sink. The house is made of cinder block which is better than the adobe alternative. In Guatemalan style, the bathroom is located in its own separate building (like an outhouse but with a toilet and running water). The shower is cold but they are going to install a "widowmaker" for us. I know . . . doesn't sound good, does it? One friend told me to just not think about it too much. Don't worry, I will post pictures as soon as we arrive! : )

My other challenge on this trip is that I have to pack light. We generally take 10 to 11 bags (maybe even 12 once) but we have had help getting everything to the airport. This trip we have to fit everything in our rented van. I am praying about the things that we "need" as opposed to the things that I "really, really want"! I always takes things like chocolate chips, brown sugar, cocoa and other "North American" products that are very expensive in Guatemala City and do not exist where we will be living. I am thinking that the kids will need their clothes more than baked goods so I may have to lighten my "food" list slightly. It will all come together, it always does!

The good thing is that life does not stop just because we are leaving in two weeks so we have plenty to distract us! If the Lord puts us on your hearts, please pray for us as we prepare. Please join with us in trusting the Lord for good weather on the 9th when we drive to Chicago. Please pray that I will pack all the things we "need" in as few bags as possible! Thank you!

Tickets are Purchased!

2011-01-08T13:51:00.009-06:00

We have been praying and searching and praying and waiting and praying and searching since before Thanksgiving. We have been trying to be very flexible and open-handed with a Guatemala trip this year. We knew with cancer and Don's mom, there was a chance that we wouldn't be able to go. Or a chance that the trip would be shorter than in the past. We were really wanting to seek the Lord for His plan (which is always soooo much better than anything we could come up with!).

His mom is almost done with her radiation treatments and she is doing great. We have scheduled her 3-month check-up with the oncologist for Feb. 2nd. Since we wanted to be able to go with her, we knew the trip could not be before that appointment. Don's brother is getting married in March so we knew we couldn't go too far into March.

We played with dates and flight options until this morning. We found a great flight that will get us to Guatemala on February 10th. We will be able to stay for a little over three weeks until early March. It feels so good to finally have something set!

We will be giving you more details on our trip as we get closer. If you want to follow our trip, we will update the blog as well as facebook while we are down there. We would really appreciate your prayers as we prepare to go, while we are gone and for our return.

I have also included some of our Christmas and New Year's pictures. We did have Christmas with our extended family as well but, of course, we forgot the camera! We are counting on Aunt Jen for those pictures! Here is just our family Christmas.

Since Caleb was little, we have had a "Christmas book". It gets packed with the decorations. It comes out as we decorate and then is read before we open our presents from each other. Then it disappears utnil next year. It is one of our favorite traditions! Here is Don reading it this year.

The kids all purchased gifts for each and then gave something to us as well. Samuel bought Don a 1970 Hot Wheels "old school" car. He was so proud of his gift!

Don and I purchased a "family gift" of a Wii this year. As you can tell, it was a huge hit!

So guess what we did on New Year's Eve??

Based on Samuel's face here, I must be winning!

But we did make up later!

Finally, we let the four of them play by themselves! So much fun!!

Longing

2010-12-05T16:05:00.003-06:00

As we were driving through the Ozarks of Missouri and Arkansas at Thanksgiving, we were listening to a CD that we had not listened to since we were in Guatemala. The CD is by Shawn McDonald and one song in particular reminds us of our time there. The words are:

Would you open up my eyes, so I can see.
Would you open up my ears, so I can hear.
Would you open up my mind, so I can know.
Would you open up my heart, so I can love you more.

I want to serve you my God.
I want to give you all of me.
I want to serve you my King.
I want to serve you my Lord
I want to give you everything.

Lyrics taken from Shawn McDonald's album Live from Seattle.
Here is a link to a video of the song.

Listening to this song as we drove up and down curvy roads, stirred a longing in Don and I for Guatemala. We are hoping to return in February once Don's mom has her 3 month check-up appointment, but we are having to wait to finalize any plans.

As I was thinking about this post, I was thinking about what a "longing" is. I found this definition on the internet: "A strong persistent yearning or desire, especially one that cannot be fulfilled".

I am sure that we could all come up with a list of things that we have "longed" for - a better job (or maybe just a job), a house (or a bigger one), a new car or other material things. Maybe our list would include children or a spouse or a purpose for our lives. What do you "long" for???

We watched the movie The Nativity last Saturday night as a family. I was thinking about how the Jewish people were "longing" for their Messiah. They were so oppressed by the Roman Empire and were desiring to be saved and freed. Sometimes our "longings" are not fulfilled in the way that we anticipate. This was especially true for the Jewish people.

I pray that as we prepare for this Christmas season, we long for our Savior. I pray that we not only know Him as our Savior but that we also long for Him to be the Lord of our lives. For me, many of my past longings have been fulfilled in my relationship with Jesus. I pray that is true for you as well. Merry Christmas!

Thankfulness

2010-12-04T18:03:00.007-06:00

We spent our Thankgiving this year in Arkansas with my aunt and uncle and cousins and extended families. The drive down there takes us about 10 or so hours of just driving time so we decided to split both the going and coming into two days.

We left early enough so the kids could swim at the hotel that night.

The next day we stopped at the Buffalo National River in Arkansas. We decided to hike a little and stretch our legs.

We would like to stop again in spring or summer, but it was a beautiful place.

Once in Arkansas, we had so much fun seeing family. Our kids love to play "at the farm" where my aunt and uncle live.
One of their favorite activities is "jumping hay bales"

They also just enjoy spending time, playing and pretending with their cousins.

We played alot of games and cards. My aunt and mom won 4 out of the 6 games that Jen and I played against them this morning!

I have decided that Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. It is a time to gather without the pressure of getting gifts and it is centered around "thankfulness". Being thankful for the little things. The things we take for granted. We had so much fun just hanging out with our family!

I will praise God’s name in song
and glorify him with thanksgiving. Psalm 69:30

Lightning and Cancer

2010-11-16T17:54:00.002-06:00

We missed a month! I was not going to let that happen. What have we been doing?? Well . . . cancer and Lightning.

As I wrote in another post, Don's mom has breast cancer. She had to have 8 rounds of chemo every other Wednesday until the beginning of October. When she finished the last round, we started setting up her surgery. She had to meet with the surgeon a couple times and then a mammogram and an MRI. She had her surgery on November 2nd and then lived with us for a few days while she recuperated. The next thing is setting up her radiation. She had all the follow-up visits with her surgeon and oncologist last week and this week, I took her to radiation oncology for the initial consultation. She goes back next Tuesday for the mapping/planning appointment. She will start with 5-day-a-week treatments on the Monday after Thanksgiving. These treatments go for 6 to 6 and a half weeks.

She is really doing well though. The tumor responded well to the chemo. Her surgery also went great. She has been widowed for over 3 years now so it is very important that we walk through this with her. It is definitely something that we don't want her to go through alone.

There was cancer, homeschooling, gardening, and . . .Lightning!

Caleb joined a homeschool flag football team this year. Practices started in July and went 3 days a week through August. Then the games were added to the schedule in September. We were doing football 3 to 4 days a week for most of the weeks in September and October. It was a huge commitment but it was so fun.

Caleb did a great job and kept improving but the best part of the whole thing was that it was about so much more than football. There were several of us moms who set up our bag chairs at the practices and talked and laughed for the entire two hours. It was such a needed "social" outlet for me while we were walking through breast cancer with Don's mom.

The coaches for the team are wonderful, godly men who are not only focused on football but also the character of the boys. The team ranges from age 12 to 18. It was such a blessing for Caleb to be around young men older than him who were filled with character and spiritual maturity. He not only improved in football as the season progressed but he also gained some awesome friends. We were sad to see it end!

But it ended great! The team went to a tournament in Kansas where they took first place. Then we had a banquet last week and we will wrap it up with a team and coaches party this Friday at our house.

Here are a couple pictures. Caleb mostly played guard or center.

Treasure and Trinkets

2010-09-02T12:04:00.004-06:00

"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." Matthew 13:44

I was thinking about this verse as we went "geocaching" last Monday. Geocaching is when you use your gps to find a cache (a hidden storage case) that was planted by someone else. There is a website to find caches in whatever area you are wanting to search. We were heading down to Nebraska City for the day and decided to search for "treasure" on our way down.

Our first cache was hidden where a monument used to stand. The monument was in remembrance of missionaries who served the Otoe Indians. For whatever reason, the monument was removed so someone hid a cache in the same spot as a way to preserve the memorial spot.
Here is Don leading us to the hiding spot.

A little cooperation was required.

Our second cache led us to a cementary and the gravestone of a civil war hero. Many of the caches contain trinkets that you can take but you have to leave one to replace it. We have a bag of little toys, pens, etc. that we take with us so we can leave things in place of the great "treasures" that we find.
Two dogs came up to us while we were searching. Bethany thought this was better than a trinket.

Hannah went back in to replace the cache after we found it. She loves the searching part of the adventure. She found three of the four caches we searched for that day.

Once we arrived in Nebraska City, we headed for the apple orchard. We picked about 20 pounds of apples. Another "treasure" that we got to take home with us.

We also ate some apples!

A picnic for lunch.

Our last cache of the day was at the site of an old bridge built during the depression. We had to go down these steps to find the bridge.

The kids, especially Samuel, get very excited about the "trinkets" in the caches that we find. Sometimes to the point of fighting over one that appears to be better than the rest (this day it was a little rubber lizard!). I was thinking about how I often spend so much time and money on the "trinkets" of this world. I want to have the perspective of the man in the scripture above. Imagine being so overjoyed over a treasure that you sold EVERYTHING you owned (your house, cars, wedding ring etc. etc.) so that you could have the treasure. The treasure that Jesus is talking about is the kingdom of heaven. Now imagine selling EVERYTHING you own so that you could have the kingdom of heaven.

Later in Mathew Chapter 19, Jesus told the young, rich man to go sell all of his possessions and give to the poor and then he would have "treasures in heaven". My desire is to not spend so much effort and money on the "trinkets" of the world but to focus on the true "treasure"!

Tomato sauce it is!

2010-08-16T11:42:00.004-06:00

Wow, it has been a long time since we have posted. These days and weeks seem to fly by! We have been keeping busy with all sort of things this summer. I will try to get you up-to-date!! :O)

We have been gardening all summer. We had a great crop of grean beans. I canned 14 quarts and we ate at least that many! We have been using our potatoes and onions all summer. What a blessing! The peppers are doing very well. We had a little trouble with the pumpkins, yellow squash and cucumbers. And then there are the tomatoes . . .

I have already canned 10 pints of tomato sauce and am planning on preparing these today for some more. I also like to can some tomatoes whole and I have yet to make salsa with them. We did make some tomatillo salsa about a week ago and it was very yummy. Anyway, the garden has been keeping us busy.

We also had our patio project. The last pictures we showed you were of the kids moving the playground mulch. After we removed all of that, we put down a layer of limestone gravel. Here are a few pictures of that process.

Watching Caleb work - I like to call this "supervising"!

We did do some work as well. We had to move the piles from the front of the patio (where Caleb dumped them) to the back.

Caleb and Don starting to lay the bricks.

A few bricks were laid then we had a break for lunch. Unfortunately, we also took a break from taking pictures!

The bricks are all laid now and the pea gravel swept into the cracks. We also put up a swimming pool on half of the patio for the kids. The project is not yet finished but it is usable now. I am hoping to get some pictures of the kids swimming before we put the pool up for the summer. We shall see . . .

Our summer has also involved taking Don's mom to chemo appointments. She is halfway through that process with 4 more rounds to go. Then she will have to have surgery. She is doing great and is handling the chemo very well. We are just taking one day at a time with all of this. We are confident of the Lord's grace and mercy.

A couple weeks ago, we hosted some missionary friends of ours for a week. It was great to see them and spend time with them. It made our hearts long for Guatemala. We are seeking the Lord and His plan for us as a family. We know that we need to be here for Don's mom right now. We are also working hard to pay off our mortgage so we can be debt-free. We feel like the Lord is maybe giving us the beginnings of a plan but more on that later . . .

The kids are having a great summer. Here is an updated picture of the baby birds that they were watching. They are so much cuter with their feathers.

We took a few weeks off of school this summer but have tried to keep going with a few subjects like science, history, geography etc. The kids have had some free time. One particular day, they decided to "dress up" their pets. They took a few pictures.

Bandit is not really enjoying the whole process!

Ashes was more agreeable.

Shadow is just great as long as she is getting attention!

There, now you are all updated . . . I'm off to make tomato sauce!

Life

2010-06-16T14:24:00.003-06:00

For with you is the fountain of life;
in your light we see light. Psalm 36:9

"Life" can so quickly pass us by if we let it. It often takes a change in our routine for me to slow us down. We had that chance a little over a week ago. Don has to take his boards for his PA license this year so he went to a review course in Chicago for a week. Because he was going to be gone, I schedule some different activities to help us pass the time.

We went to the zoo one afternoon. We saw most of the kids' favorite exhibits but a highlight was feeding the parakeets with a "feeding stick". They were able to get the birds to sit on their sticks and eat.

We also had to stop at the petting zoo. At this point, Samuel looks at the ground and says, "Mom, look at all the goat crap!" Can you tell he lives with his 13-year-old brother? Such a proud parenting moment for me!

Another day we went on a field trip and had a picnic with friends. Everyone went to bed very easily that night!

Bethany had her weekly horse lesson on Prince.

We had a really good week and the time flew, but it was so nice to have Don home again.

A morning last weekend, the Lord blessed us with beautiful pictures of life. We had found a caterpillar in a cocoon when I was cleaning some lettuce. We decided to put it in a jar and see if we could watch it transform into a moth. While Caleb, Don and I were sitting in the back porch talking, the moth emerged from the cocoon. Don called everyone else into the room so we could watch the moth stretch his wings and get used to his new shape. It was amazing!

The kids had been watching three eggs in a robin's nest for several days. The same morning we watched a new moth fly, the kids found that two of the eggs had hatched into baby robins. Bethany took a picture of the new babies.

Our Creator is so amazing. He is truly the Fountain of Life. My prayer is that we continue to stop and notice the blessings of life all around us.

Work and Play

2010-05-28T08:04:00.003-06:00

I am amazed at how fast May has flown by. We have not posted a single entry this month. It has been busy here but we have also had some computer problems. Our laptop is not working again (for those of you who remember - it crashed on us the first time while we were in Guatemala). We have so many things to be thankful for though.

First, we know it is not the hard drive because we were able to buy a hard drive enclosure and connect it to our desktop so we could retrieve all of our information. Praise the Lord! Second, it crashed AFTER I finished all of the 2009 financial statements for the ministry in Guatemala! Praise the Lord! Third, we have a desktop that the kids use for school so we have still been able to connect to the internet. I pay most of our bills online and retrieve Don's paystub as well so this is really a blessing! The Lord is so faithful!

We have been trying to finish our curriculum for the year. We won't really take a huge break over the summer but it is nice to finish up some books so we can start something new. The summer stuff is generally less intense and more "fun" than school. We have also been trying to get some work done outside. Yesterday we worked in the garden and on a patio project.

Caleb and I working in the garden.

Bethany, Hannah and Samuel are working on our patio project. We moved the swingset further back in our yard (you can see it in the background) so that we could put a patio where it used to be. They are shovelling up the wood chips into buckets and then hauling them away in the wagon. They had a system where Hannah and Samuel would shovel. . .

. . . and then Bethany would haul. They worked really hard and were very tired! We are hoping to get the area all level so Don and Caleb can lay brick down soon.

After all the work and school was done, the kids filled up their squirt/squeeze bottles and had fun getting wet.

We have been having great weather here so it has been fun to be outside more. We are going to my parents for Memorial Day weekend to spend some time with them and do some bikeriding. Hope you all have a great weekend as well! Thanks for reading

Piano for Katie

2010-04-28T12:11:00.008-06:00

When we returned from Guatemala a little over a year ago. The girls began a piano curriculum called "Music in Me". They had wanted to play a little for Katie while we were in Guatemala last February because she is a very talented piano player and they know that she really likes music. Unfortunately, we ran out of time for all of the things that we wanted to do. The girls have been working on a duet of "This is My Father's World" and we decided to try to videotape it so we could share it with Katie. Here it is:

Caleb has been learning the guitar but he wouldn't let me videotape him. Maybe I can sneak it sometime!! He is working on "I could sing of your love forever" - we have been singing it in both English and Spanish. It has been so much to see them enjoy learning and playing music.

On another note, we have been studying India and Mother Teresa for history. The poverty, hunger and hopelessness have been convicting us of how much we are blessed in this country. If you have been keeping up with what is happening in Guatemala, you know that the hunger is getting worse there. The rains usually begin again in May; however, the people need corn to get through the planting and harvesting. The price of corn has gone up from Q125 at the end of 2009 (about $15.50) for 100 pounds to Q160 (about $20) recently. In the areas hardest hit by the drought this price is unrealistic. As the supply of corn continues to decrease, the prices will only get higher. Here is a story published by the United Nations on the situation.

As a family, we are praying about what we can do to help the starving people of Guatemala. It is hard to know that we have more than enough when others are suffering. If you want to help, go to this link to Adonai's blog. It is a "chance to do something beautiful for God" - Mother Teresa.

Where has April gone??

2010-04-24T16:32:00.002-06:00

It has been a while since we posted - April seems to have flown by. We are working hard at finishing our curriculum for the year (so we can start some new stuff - but don't tell the kids!!). We have started planting in our garden and working in the flower beds. It just seems like there is always something to do.

Our biggest event this month was the step into "teenagerland" with Caleb. He turned 13 on April 18th. Don and he went to a father/son weekend to mark this transition into a new season of his life. They had a great male bonding weekend. Here are a couple shots from the actual big day!

We met my family at Pizza Hut in a town that is halfway for both of us. Bethany is experimenting with the timer on her camera to get a group shot!

Also, the kids are participating in a homeschool soccer group on Saturdays. It is a great group and they always look forward to it. Here are Bethany and Hannah (with a few of their friends) walking back for snacks after their scrimmage.

Samuel is the goalie for his group of kids.

Caleb has somewhat transitioned into more of an assistant coach role this year. It is so awesome that we can take all four of them and everyone gets to participate.

Someone asked me today about team sports and homeschooling. Everyone always has this notion that kids can learn so much from participating in team sports. I have been thinking about this alot lately. I feel like the Lord has given us all teams in our families. Our kids love to play with other kids yet I think they learn more about being a team when they are home. They have group projects to do for school. They all have to participate in chores. The other day they worked outside pulling weeds and spreading mulch. They all have a job and yet they have to work together. Some speaker once said that if kids can learn to get along at home, they will be able to get along almost anywhere. I feel so blessed with the team that the Lord has given me!

A Day of Rest

2010-03-30T12:39:00.004-06:00

Our family has pretty consistently observed a Sabbath day of rest. It has looked different over the years but now we usually start on Saturday night with a family movie. We go to church on Sunday morning and then have lunch, either out or when we return home. We try not to turn on our computer at all. We usually play board games, video games etc. together as a family.

When we are in Guatemala, the Fickers celebrate their Sabbath on Wednesdays because of the clinics on the weekends. When we were there last time, they would begin the Sabbath on Tuesday night with worship.

I have to confess that I was tempted to not observe the Sabbath while we were there. I kept thinking that I had alot to do and we were only going to be there for a short time. And then I came across this verse:

Six days you shall labor, but on the seventh day you shall rest; even during the plowing season and harvest (i.e. the busiest time) you must rest. Exodus 34:21

Then I read this verse:

There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD.
Leviticus 23:3

There isn't alot of "gray area" in either of those verses. The Lord so clearly commands us to keep the Sabbath that, in the Old Testament, the penalty for not observing a day of rest was death. What is so ironic about the whole idea of the Sabbath is that the Lord created it for us. The Sabbath is a gift.

After finding these verses, I was convinced that we needed to continue to observe the Sabbath even while in Guatemala. Really, I don't think it would have been an option to not keep it. Our kids look forward to the Sabbath every week and I don't think they would have agreed to "skip" it.

Last Sunday, we spent our Sabbath "geocaching". We wanted to do something outside so we loaded up some coordinates on the GPS and went in search of "treasure"!
Here is Hannah leading us on the hunt.

Samuel and Bethany are showing off some "treasure".

Clearly, these two need to ask for directions!

I love this picture!

We are Home

2010-03-17T09:15:00.002-06:00

Our day started at 4:15 am yesterday and about 12 hours later (with an hour lost for daylight savings time), we were in our home in Nebraska. We had a little trouble with embroidery floss and craft scissors in the airport in Guatemala. (No trouble when we left the States with the same items, go figure!) Everything else went well and my family was at the airport in Omaha to pick us up when we landed.

Don is back at work today. He is experiencing a little culture shock (no one in Guatemalan clothing speaking Spanish/Quiche) and is really tired, but getting back into the swing of things. It is really cold here but better than when we left! The kids are playing with all the toys they left behind like it is Christmas. I am trying to figure out where to pick up our life here while unpacking our luggage and going through the mail.

Thanks for all of your support and prayers. It amazes me how the Lord works differently every time we go. He continues to stretch us and challenge us and asks us to let go of our comfort so that He can work. I am so thankful for His provision and protection. This relationship with Him is never boring or mundane. I pray that you all know Him personally and intimately. If not, please ask us, we would love to talk to you about Him.

A Day in the City

2010-03-15T18:14:00.003-06:00

It is very hard to explain what it is like to drive in Guatemala City. Even as the passenger, I have a very active role in the process. If Don wants to get over into a right lane and there isn't much room, my job is to open the window and wave a little so the driver right next to us knows to make some room. There are also many one way streets and things are not marked well, or maybe not marked at all would be a better way to say it. All of this said, we left the hotel to go to the zoo.

It often takes us a while to get our bearings once we get started. We know the general vicinity and route to the zoo but we often have to circle around a couple times to find the right entrance etc. We did our usual couple times around and then arrived at the gate to park. The attendant came out and told us that the zoo was closed on Mondays. What a bummer! We were disappointed but were trying to remain positive (at least those of us who are generally a little more optimistic!).

We had another errand to run and we needed gas so we decided to get these things out of the way while we thought of plan B. We knew that there were museums somewhere in the City and we had been to a mall that has indoor rollerblading so we had a few options. We ended up calling Rachel Ficker to get suggestions from her. They had heard of a place called "Irtra" which sounded like fun. They were going to get us directions so while we waited we went to the mall (we knew there was a pet store there as well).

As we entered the mall, we immediately noticed that the rollerblade rink had been removed. That's ok (optimistic response), we can see a little dog at the entrance to the pet store. Turns out there is this one dog and another in a cage and a dozen or so acquariums with fish. That's ok, let's ask the salesclerk who works here about "Irtra". She has heard of it, gives us directions (all in Spanish in a City where things are not marked but the optimist thinks we can do it!!) and then she decides that we should call the place. Turns out, they are also closed on Mondays. Hmmmm, that's okay, let's go see if the museums are open! (They are probably closed on Mondays too - comments one pessimist).

Turns out, the museums are also closed on Mondays. But in our journey to find the zoo, the mall and now the museums, we passed Chuck E. Cheese's several times. The optimistic (who generally avoids this place in the States) suggests that we head there. The other optimist says "hopefully they aren't closed on Mondays". The one pessimist is getting crabby as he drives in circles searching for the entrance while the other pessimist insists that he told us to turn yet we missed the entrance because we were not listening plus they are probably closed on Mondays anyway!

We eventually made it to Chuck E. Cheese's and they were open! We actually had some fun (even the pessimists!) and the pizza wasn't too bad!

Unfortunately, we found out later that the Fickers had gone to Chuck E. Cheese's several years ago and had all gotten sick. That's ok, it was a long time ago and I'm sure that won't happen to us! : )

On Our Way Home

2010-03-14T20:53:00.002-06:00

Today was our last day at the home and in clinic. After we said our good-bye's, we headed down the mountain. We had a nice and uneventful drive. A quick dinner at BK along the way and we were checked into the HoJo's by 8:00. Tomorrow we head to the zoo!

Last Few Days

2010-03-13T19:30:00.002-06:00

We had a great day of clinic and packing and our final trip to the river this afternoon. The kids and I plan on going to the Home in San Andres tomorrow while Don does his final clinic. Then we are going to head to Guatemala City. We won't get there until late but we want to spend Monday in the City going to the zoo and having some fun before we get on the airplane early Tuesday morning.

We have had a great trip. No one is really ready to head home yet but the anticipation of a zoo trip seems to be helping a little bit. We would appreciate your prayers as we begin our journey back to the States. We hope to be a blessing as we serve tomorrow morning at the Home and in clinic and we pray for a smooth 5 hour trip to the City tomorrow afternoon/evening. Thanks for your support and prayers.

Clinic Notes and a Vist to the Home

2010-03-11T07:51:00.006-06:00

As always, I have enjoyed my time seeing patients in the clinics. Along with the routine ear infections, rashes, and heartburn; there have been some really interesting and unusual cases. Last week I aspirated the largest ganglion cyst that I have ever seen (it's really hard to make tortillas when you can't bend your wrist all the way back - a big deal if that is essentially all you and your family eats). Another patient that stood out to me was a young man who had an infection of his right foot. Along with antibiotics and a cream, we gave him two pairs of socks (he only had one pair and they didn't look too good). What a blessing it was to be able to give something as simple as socks and know that it would help his foot to heal (thank you Donette).

Yesterday, we spent the morning at the Home. Our friend Erna (visiting from Houston for six months) cooked lunch for the kids. Our girls helped make bracelets for the girls while Caleb helped the boys with wood models. Caleb really tried hard and did a great job explaining and helping the boys in Spanish! Here are a few pictures from the day.

Monster Garage

2010-03-06T15:25:00.004-06:00

This is a picture of David Ficker's current project. The front axle on the ol'Dodge broke. They had a 'new' front axle off of a big Ford that was transformed into a trailer for the last load to come down. The ol'Dodge had coil springs/shocks but will now have Ford one-ton leaf springs with its new axle. My favorite part is the welded frame pieces to hold the front of the leaf springs shown in the above picture. Below is a picture of the cab waiting to be put back on.Watching the Ficker's work on projects like this make me think about how quickly I rush out and buy a new whatever when something breaks. The ingenuity and creativity that they show is fun to watch. I was hoping to see a CJ-7/Bronco combo get started, but we will be leaving in just over a week and there are a lot of other projects that need to get done first.

The weather has been great. Most days a little 'too warm' during the day and just a little 'too cool' in the evenings. We really enjoy going for walks while we are here. We usually stop at the corner store for a sucker at the start of our walk. Here is a picture Bethany took while on a walk with the Fickers this last week. We stopped on top of what they call 'Bunker Hill' to have a look around.
Here are Hazel and I having some quality time together.

Pizza at the Home

2010-03-02T13:28:00.002-06:00

Last Sunday, the kids and I went to the Home while Don went to clinic. We made 11 pizzas (about 150 pieces!), salad and cookies for lunch.

The kids also did an Engraving Art activity. Marta is showing off her dog and cat picture.

Some of the boys working on their activity.

Santiago concentrating hard!

We had a really fun day. We were all very tired and dirty when we arrived back in Canilla later in the afternoon.

Monday was a good day of washing sheets, having lunch with the Fickers and talking about finances. We also packed up nutrition packs and food packs for clinic today in Chiminisijuan. Leslie packed 25 nutrition packs of milk, vitamins and a protein drink. She also packed 15 food packs with beans, rice, sugar etc. It seemed like alot to me but she said that she always runs out there. My prayer is that the people see Jesus in Leslie and Don as they provide medical care and food today in clinic. The food will sustain their bodies for a while but only the Living Water can sustain them forever. The medicine may heal them temporarily but only the Hand of the Living God can heal them eternally. May their hearts be soft and open to "see and taste that the Lord is good."

Busy Days!

2010-02-27T11:56:00.003-06:00

We have not had much time to blog this week. It has been busy.

It was very hot on Monday. Abi and Samuel found that "swimming" in the pila helped to keep them cool! : )

Monday evening the weather started to change. The wind came up and then it started to hail. It was very loud on the tin roof of the clinic. Samuel is holding a few pieces in his hand.

This is looking out of the clinic door.

Tuesday morning there was an earthquake close to the Mexico/Guatemala border. (see map for details. We are kind of between where the earthquake happened and Guatemala City) We were lying in bed and the roof started to make noise. It didn't last long and we didn't have much time to react. There was a smaller one later in the morning. I yelled for everyone to get out of the clinic but it didn't last long. (Just long enough to make me a little motion sick!).

Don went to San Pedro to clinic on Thursday but the camera wasn't working so we have no pictures to post. It was much cooler there than it has been in the past which made the day go much better. Friday, Craig, Don and Caleb went to the Home to help with the computers. Craig is trying to teach the boys more about using them. They had a good morning. We have also been trying to bag some vitamins for clinics and help out however else we can. Caleb seems to get out of doing it somehow!! Here are the other three working hard!

Back into the Swing of Things

2010-02-22T14:27:00.003-06:00

Today is the first day that we have had a chance to even get the computer out of the bag. The last three days have been filled.

Our trip up the mountain was somewhat uneventful (except for Hannah's carsickness and projectile vomitting!) and we arrived in Canillá at around 4:30 pm or so. We unloaded the truck and then Leslie and I headed to market. It felt very familiar and normal once I remembered the words for "dozen" and "green beans".

As we unpacked on Friday night, we piled all of the medicine that we brought with us on the table. We had not seen the whole amount together because we would pack it as we received it. We were curious as to exactly how much we brought. Take a look!

Thank you all for your generous donations. Everything was such a blessing.

Don jumped right back into clinic on Saturday and Sunday. The kids and I travelled to San Andres with him on Sunday. He took us to the Children's Home while he went to clinic. Rachel Ficker went with us and helped us with an activity with the kids. I jumped back into helping in the kitchen and with laundry. I even made a few tortillas! Unfortunately, we forgot to bring the camera but here is a picture of some of the things the kids made during the Fuse Bead activity.

In case you are wondering, it is very hot here. Even the Guatemaltecans think it is hot so it isn't just those of us from the tundra of Nebraska. Below the kids are having a water fight with syringes as a way of trying to keep cool.

Tomorrow is clinic in Chiminisijuan. There is a trip planned to the jungle of the Zona Reina on Thursday. Duane will take Don and Leslie and others in the airplane to San Pedro for a remote clinic. We so appreciate your prayers!

Arrival

2010-02-18T23:56:00.002-06:00

We had a very long day of travel! A few ear problems from our colds (mostly me) but for the most part it was an uneventful day. We did not have to pay for any bags when we checked in with United in Omaha. They allow 2 bags free on international flights. We were hoping that this was still the case. Yay!

We arrived in Guatemala City at 10:20 pm. All of our bags arrived and we made it through customs quickly. We did get flagged to have our bags scanned and a couple were searched. The lady who was going through them with Don asked him a few questions - mostly about the vitamins! She asked when we had been here in the past and when we were returning. She said that we brought too many vitamins and next time we have to have permission to bring this many. But we did not have to pay any taxes on anything! Yay!

We found our truck easily in the parking garage - thanks to Aaron for driving it down! It was so nice to see it waiting for us. We drove out of the parking garage at around 11 pm.

We are now all getting ready for bed - everyone is exhausted . . . except Samuel who had a very nice little nap on the plane. He is chatty and wanting to play a little before bed!

Thank you for praying. We had great peace this entire day of travel. Tomorrow we head to the grocery store and then up the mountain we will go!

Samuel's Birthday

2010-02-16T13:37:00.002-06:00

Samuel turned six last Saturday. My mom and dad came down for the weekend to celebrate and to spend some time with us before we leave on Thursday. My sister and her family came over as well. It was a fun weekend.

Samuel asked for a "clone trooper" cake. This almost made me panic but I decided that this needed to happen for him. I found a picture off of the internet and tried to duplicate it. He loved watching me and was so excited - it made the effort worth it many times over!!

Aunt Jen found him some cool Star Wars Legos. He was very excited.

We also tried to get some packing done. Mom and Dad brought lots of medicines/vitamins from their church in SD and Don brought home a box from the hospital. We have 7 bags packed so far with maybe 3 or 4 more.

Here is Caleb trying to see what the bag weighs. Don put some cans and a piece of board on the scale so we could actually read the numbers.

Caleb and I are watching Don put another bag on the scale. It is this back and forth of packing, weighing, taking stuff out, weighing, taking more stuff out, weighing, putting a little bit back in and then weighing again. You would think that I would be better at this by now!

Our plane leaves Thursday morning at about 11 am. We arrive in Guatemala at 10 pm. It will be a long day of travelling but it is all part of the adventure. Please pray for a smooth, easy day.

Also, we have been told that they have been going through bags as people get off of the plane in Guatemala. They are attempting to charge import tax for things brought into the country. This is a new procedure and we are just praying that we pass through easily. We have lots and lots of vitamins, medicines, etc. dispursed through our bags. We also have food items, gifts, candy, and lots of other miscellaneous items. If you think of us, could you please pray for a quick and painless pass through this? We don't want to pay any unnecessary taxes but more importantly, we don't want any of the medicines etc. to be confiscated. We are praying that the Lord will go before us and prepare our way. Thanks for reading!

Vitamins

2010-02-10T08:37:00.007-06:00

On Sunday, my friend gave us a big bag of medicine and supplies for Guatemala. She had purchased 3 large bottles of vitamins with iron and told me that one of the grocery store chains had them on sale for 50% off. This meant we could buy a bottle of 300 vitamins for less than $5. This was a way better price than anything that we had found so far. The only catch was that the sale was done on Tuesday.

After church we decided to go "hunting" for vitamins. We ended up going to 6 different stores and came home with over 20 bottles of vitamins. Then we got on the internet at home to find more locations. There were a few but many of them were really out of the way for us. We did see two more that were relatively convenient for me to go to after my Bible study on Tuesday morning (the last day of the sale).

On Tuesday, I went to one store on 180th St. and found two bottles of vitamins plus a few other groceries etc. Then I drove to 97 St. to another store. I found 4 bottles but when I took them up to the cashier, they did not scan at the sale price. The checker asked the manager if he would go check the price. He came back and said that they should have scanned at 50% off. The checker started to take off the original price with a line item that said "scan price guarantee". I asked her what that meant and she said that their store policy was to give the item for free if it didn't scan correctly. I only had to pay $3 for the sales tax and I left with another 1200 vitamins!

We ended up with about 30 bottles of Children's vitamins with iron (about 9000 vitamins) for about $130 (including what my friend paid for her 3 bottles). This is less than 2 cents per vitamin. The best deals we had found were more like 4 cents a piece. This doesn't seem like a big difference until you take it times 9000! At 4 cents a piece, 9000 vitamins should have cost us closer to $360.

Many people have been giving us gifts of cash to buy the things we need. As of yesterday, we had received about $100 which almost covers what we paid for the vitamins. Just writing this all out for you overwhelms me with how the Lord answered my prayer for vitamins. Thanks for praying with us! Now we just have to figure out how to pack them. :)

"If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer." Matthew 21:22
"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

2 Weeks!

2010-02-04T17:37:00.003-06:00

Yes, we leave in two weeks! We still have many, many details to take care of but we are getting there. The good news is that Caleb and Bethany will be able to join us because we received their new passports!

Children's vitamins are a big part of the nutrition program in Guatemala. When we were there last year, the kids and I bagged many, many little bags of children's vitamins. It seemed that we could never really get that far ahead. The ministry has a need right now for children's vitamins with iron. I have been praying that the Lord will provide. I have done searches on the internet for "bulk" children's vitamins and found a large container of 1000 but it didn't have iron. Don has talked to a pediatrician about options. He also plans on talking to the dietitian at the hospital. Would you please join us in praying about this? It would be awesome to find some large quantities of vitamins at great prices! I know the Lord could make that happen! Thanks for reading!

Preparación

2010-01-29T10:56:00.002-06:00

Thank goodness there are some Spanish words that look like their English equivalent! We have been diligently studying Spanish in "preparación" of our trip. As I learn new words and phrases, it makes me cringe to think back on things that I have said on prior trips. I have the Spanish of a small child! Seriously!

When a young child starts to speak and tries to convey that they want things, they will be rather abrupt or rude or demanding. They say things like "Give me. . ." or "I want . . ." or "I need . . .", right? This is how my Spanish sounds. We say words like "Quiero" or "Necesito" which mean exactly the sames things a young child says! A couple nights ago when we were studying, we learned new phrases that are more polite and less demanding. Phrases that sound more like "I would like to" or "Could I" etc. This is all very exciting and in my head, I am already thinking of times/ways to use the phrases. But at the same time, it makes me cringe to think of being so abrupt or rude in the past! Yikes! I just pray that people chalk it up to ignorance!

Along with studying Spanish, we have been gathering items to take with us. We plan on spending some time at the Children's Home and they love to do "actividades". (Another one of those great Spanish words that looks like the English equivalent!) Don and I combed the aisles at a craft store for inexpensive things to do with about 30 kids. We also scanned the sale/clearance items online. It is so fun to find some great activities that we know the kids will enjoy.

We are also gathering things that we will need as well as things that will be used in the clinics. I have been looking for some cheap skirts (since I will be wearing dresses the whole time) as well as trying to figure out what the kids will need for clothes. Different climate (yeah!) means different clothes. We are trying to get lots of school done before we leave since we won't take much, if any, with us. Things are coming together! Thank goodness, since we have less than 3 weeks now!

The Lord's Favor

2010-01-20T17:04:00.005-06:00

But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous;
you surround them with your favor as with a shield.
Psalm 5:11-12

These verses were a part of our daily Bible reading over 2 weeks ago. They caught my eye when I first read them and since that time, they have appeared in other readings that have crossed my path. When verses get "stuck" in my head and keep "appearing" in several unrelated places, I eventually realize that the Lord is wanting me to take notice!

The part that is really catching my eye is the last line that says "you surround them with your favor as with a shield." First of all, what exactly is "favor"? Webster's dictionary has several definitions for it including:

"something done or granted out of goodwill, rather than from justice or for payment; a kind act." and "preferential treatment; partiality"

The picture I usually have of a shield is more of a flat, metal object that a soldier would hold in front of himself. I think this may be from seeing Peter's shield in "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (and probably other movies). Although this is a pretty nice shield as far as flat, metal objects go, it doesn't really "surround" Peter when he is fighting.

I think the shield in this verse is more like a "ball" of protection. Nothing penetrates it from any side and there are no weak spots. I am picturing the "Incredibles" where Violet puts her force field around her and Dash.

The idea of being surrounded like that with the favor of the Lord sounds so safe and secure and protected. The Psalmist says that if we look to the Lord for refuge and protection, we will have this kind of shield surrounding us. It will cause us to rejoice and sing for joy.

When we returned from Guatemala without any source of income, life seemed rather uncertain and more than a little scary. We had no place to turn for security and provision but from the Lord. He provided as He always does in His perfect timing. Don accepted a job at the same hospital but in a different department. Although I was very relieved that he had a job, I knew this new job would mean less vacation time and less flexibility.

Here is where the Lord's favor comes into the equation. First, we found out that Don was going to continue accruing vacation as if he hadn't left. (He had been at the hospital for 10 years before he quit.) This means that after working only 9 months, he has accrued enough vacation for us to leave for 4 weeks with a little time left over!

Second, he fits very well in this job and his boss has shown him great "favor" since he interviewed him. Don met this doctor for the first time in May when he interviewed with him. This doctor is also new to the hospital and does not know Don or any of the doctors that Don used to work for in his previous position. None of this "preferential treatment" makes sense except that it is all part of Don being surrounded by the Lord's "shield of favor".

Don's boss knows that we have a heart for Guatemala and wants to be flexible enough that we can pursue that without Don quitting. I look at this whole situation and just think it is an incredible picture of the Lord making a way when I thought we had lost all our vacation time and flexibility! I am so thankful for the Lord's favor.

What do you want to be?

2010-01-12T17:49:00.004-06:00

Samuel (age 5) is helping me make chocolate chip bars one afternoon and he asks me, "So Mom, what do you want to be when you grow up?" My response was, "I am all grown up!". He said, "No, I mean when it is time to get a job and stuff." I answered, "I have a job taking care of you and your brother and sisters. My job is also teaching you school." His big brother yells from the other room, "She just doesn't get paid for her job." Samuel got down from his stool and started to go upstairs. I asked him where he was going and he said, "I have to get something."

Pretty soon he comes back down and lays something on the counter next to me. He had brought me 30 cents. I asked him what that was for and he said, "For teaching me school Mom." I, of course, then yelled to Caleb and asked him how much he was going to pay me!

The Lord has called me to be a homeschool mom. It is the most rewarding and difficult job that I have ever had. But this is not what I wanted to be "when I grew up." I knew as early as high school that I wanted to be an accountant.

It was while I was finishing a masters program (Masters of Professional Accounting, no doubt!) and working for an accounting firm that I met Don and shortly afterwards got married. This still did not alter me from my course of being a partner in a CPA firm someday or maybe a CFO for a corporation.

Even when I found out I was pregnant with Caleb, there was no thought of even staying home with my children. I was looking at daycare options for when I went back to work after maternity leave. It took six months of being back to work for me to decide that this was not what "I wanted to be" anymore.

Because the Lord's timing is perfect, I was able to quit my job and be at home just before Caleb's first birthday. Don took over as the main source of income with his first job as a Physician Assistant. I knew that this was the Lord's plan for me but I have to say that there have been moments when I have wondered . . .

why in the world did I need a CPA to stay at home with my children?

why do I have a "Masters of Professional Accounting" when any sort of teaching degree would have been way more helpful?

would I have made it as a partner or a CFO?

In the last 12 years, I have learned that any path, other than the Lord's, is not worth pursuing. I have also learned that everything we do today is preparation for what the Lord has for us tomorrow. Today I am using the education that I received to help a ministry organization in Guatemala do their finances and bookkeeping. Who would have guessed?? Only the Lord knew what He was preparing me for all those years ago. And because He has called me to be a homeschool mom, we have the option of taking our family to Guatemala for an extended period of time. His ways are not our ways nor are His plans our plans, but when it all comes together, it is amazing!

So "what do you want to be?" Are you looking at your plans or His plans? Is He preparing you today for something that He has for you tomorrow? I am believing that He is, are you?

Surviving the Tundra!

2010-01-06T15:11:00.002-06:00

It is snowing. It has been all day. We are expected to get another 4 to 6 inches. I made Caleb go stand near the snow to give you some perspective of how much we have. Here are a couple pictures of him and his dog.

I must admit that it was pretty coming down this morning but it is so cold. Twice this last week we woke up to temperatures of 15 degrees below zero. I think it may be the Lord addressing this whole "global warming" issue! : )

In our last posting, I briefly mentioned our plans to return to Guatemala. It is days like these that make me (and the kids) very excited about returning to a warmer climate! We purchased our tickets last weekend for a four-week trip. We leave on Thursday, February 18th and return on Tuesday, March 16th.

Caleb and Bethany took their first trip to Guatemala in 2005. Since a passport for a minor is only good for 5 years, we knew that we were going to have to get them renewed in 2010. When we drug them out of the safe to take a look at the expiration date, we realized that we were cutting it a little close. Their passports expire at the end of March. We were reading about countries that require a valid passport for 6 months after your travel dates. We don't think Guatemala has this requirement but to play it safe, we decided to do the renewal before we left. The man working at the Post Office said that we should have them in plenty of time but if you think of it, could you pray that they arrive soon?

A friend of mine asked me how we came up with these dates. There are a few reasons for this timeframe. First, they will be short a person in the clinics during this time due to "maternity" leave. Second, I have been trying to help the Fickers with their bookkeeping and we need to get all the year-end stuff done. Third, we are hoping to help with their Corn Project. The need for food will only increase as the dry season continues.

All of these reasons aside, we sought the Lord and His timing. He promises that He has plans for us in Jeremiah 29. "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." In many ways, we feel that this is the path that the Lord has for us. We will share more on that and other details of our trip next time! Thanks for reading!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T09:15:00.002-06:00

I am not really one to spend alot of time looking back, but yesterday, as I was spending some time with the Lord, I was overwhelmed by His faithfulness over the past year. His provision is where I can so often see His hand so clearly. His timing is so perfect and His blessings are amazing. This walk with Him is never boring or mundane but He comforts and He strengthens in those times when I don't think we are getting anywhere. And when He breaks through the tough stuff . . . it takes my breath away.

A girlfriend of mine and her two children came over yesterday afternoon. Talk about going much further back into the past. I think we have known each other at least 14 years. We met as newlyweds and were a part of each others' lives as we started our families. They tried everything to have children and to no avail. Then we walked with them through the tough adoption process. The heartache of a mother changing her mind at the last minute. But yesterday when I looked at her beautiful 8-year-old girl and 5-year-old boy, I was again touched by the Lord's faithfulness. Our kids had so much fun playing together (in our overabundance of snow) and it was fun to listen to them talk and get to know each other. She is once again walking through a tough spot as her husband is serving in Iraq for a year. But the Lord promises in 2nd Corinthians that "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." I pray that this bumpy road will only draw her closer to Him.

New Year's is not just a time to reflect on the past but to also look to the future. It is exciting to think about what the Lord has for us in the coming year yet so many times in the Bible, we are advised to focus on today. If we are stuck in the past or looking so much to the future, we miss what He has for us in the present. All of a sudden our kids are grown or our relationships are lost because we didn't spend time on the important things today. I pray that the Lord opens up our eyes to what He has for us today and we let tomorrow "worry about itself".

In our focusing on today, the Lord has us planning for another trip to Guatemala. It will be a much shorter trip than our last one but we will share those details on another day . . .

Christmas Preparations

2009-12-22T12:11:00.006-06:00

Just like all of you, we have spent the last few weeks preparing for Christmas. We have tried really hard to keep Christmas as simple as possible; however, it still seemed a little overwhelming at times. Why is it that way? What else can we cut out? What are the important things of Christmas and what are the things that are just "extra"? We had very little in Guatemala for Christmas last year (mostly because I forgot about packing for Christmas). It made me think about the things that are important to me at Christmas time.

My mom, my sister and I all have the same Nativity set. This is something that I look forward to getting out every year. I missed it last year.

We put up our tree after Thanksgiving. It is a fake tree that we have had for probably 8 years or so. It is alot of work to put up and decorate but it is a big part of Christmas for the kids.

I didn't realize how important it was until we didn't have a tree last year. In Guatemala, you can't just go to the local store and buy a Christmas tree. We ended up improvising and had a branch that served as our tree (see blog entry "Christmas Eve"). It was a little different than our "normal" tree but I realized that it was more about working together as a family than it was about the actual tree.

We went to a "Christmas Pageant" this year with my sister and her family. They had a whole Bethlehem scene that included camels, sheep and a donkey. Hannah took this picture as we were waiting for it to start.

Samuel, Bethany, Naomi, Hannah and Julia as we waited to go in and find seats.

Caleb was not really interested in anything called a "pageant" until he saw this part of the set. It was set-up to look like a scene from an army base including an "anti-aircraft gun".

We enjoyed the pageant but it was really about doing something with my sister and her family.

Our friends, the Kolars, came over and surprised us with Christmas carolling. We really enjoyed their singing and the treats but the best part was just spending time with them.

We celebrated our family Christmas last night. One of our traditions is to read a Christmas book that we bought when Caleb was very young. We did not have it last year because I forgot to pack it and we really missed it. It doesn't seem right to open any presents until Don reads to us!

The "homemade" gifts were a highlight of the evening especially for the "makers" of the gifts.

Christmas Eve is in two days. As I think about the preparations and things that we have done leading up to Christmas this year, I am finding that the time spent with family and friends along with the things that help us to focus on the true meaning of Christmas are the important things. We are trying to teach our kids that we give gifts at Christmas because God gave us the greatest Gift of all in His Son, Jesus. We want Him to be the focus of our Christmas. We pray that He is the focus of yours as well. Merry Christmas!

The Zoo??

2009-12-11T13:08:00.003-06:00

Yes, it has been a while again since we posted. Time just seems to fly!

Last Tuesday was Bethany's 10th birthday and being the animal lover that she is, she wanted to go to the zoo. We were reflecting on the fact that last year for her birthday we also went to the zoo (see post). Needless to say, the weather was quite different this year!

It was perfect for the polar bear!

There are lots of buildings to go inside to see the animals. The acquarium had pengiuns in conditions similar to outside of the building. Maybe they should let them out to play!

We went into the cat house.

This is actually Samuel inside the gorilla house. However all the gorillas were inside. Only this lone duck was outside of the building!

We actually went to the zoo on Monday. Good thing, because on her actual birthday (Tuesday) we were hit with a huge blizzard. Close to 10 inches and lots of wind. The schools were closed for 3 days. My kids felt sooo blessed that they could continue their school since we don't have to go anywhere! Ok, not really, but they will be happy when we get to play next spring instead of staying inside to finish our school! :)

Fall Work

2009-11-09T18:25:00.007-06:00

We arrived home from St. Louis in the early evening on Thursday. We had such a good time seeing Duane and Leslie, their son Ryan and his family and Craig and meeting other people that have been a part of their ministry for a long time (especially Connie).

It was back to work and school on Friday. Then on Saturday we headed to Don's mom's house to help her rake her yard. Her house sits on about an acre in the middle of Omaha surrounded by lots of mature trees. Although there aren't any pictures of Hannah, she did work as well. She was the photographer and no one took over to take a picture of her!!

This is Hannah's action shot of me lifting leaves to the trash can.

Samuel had the job of packing the leaves down into the cans so we could fit as many leaves as possible!

Caleb and Don working??

We brought our 4-wheeler and attached a sweeper to help us pile up all the leaves. Hannah took this picture during Bethany's turn.

We focused on the front yard. Then we moved to the side and by the time we got to the back, Don and I were working alone and the kids were off doing something else. We were all exhausted. We didn't get all of the back done - maybe another day!

Leavin' on a jet plane . . .

2009-11-03T11:00:00.006-06:00

I keep thinking that it has been way too long since we blogged but I am not sure why we haven't taken the time. It is not like we don't have anything to blog about. Hannah had her 8th birthday. Isn't she cute??

Don had a trip to the ER for his heart. (It went into Afib and had to be shocked to get it into the correct rhythm - He is fine now and will have another check-up at the end of this month.) Don and Caleb rebuilt Caleb's carburetor on his dirtbike (newsworthy? to some maybe!). I am looking at our calendar since we last posted and it is full of stuff. So why haven't we posted? Maybe because the calendar is too full of stuff!

For those of you that are wondering, our snow melted very quickly here. It was gone in just a couple days. The weather has been a little bit more mild but still chilly. We have been getting ready for winter. Don and the kids cut back bushes and plants and cleaned the garage. They took the mower deck off of the tractor and put the snow blade and bucket on it. You would think that we would all be used to this kind of activity around here. Yet we are all a little melancholy.

Caleb told me the other day that I was "homesick" for Guatemala. I think we all may be. Don wanted "Guatemalan" food for lunch on Sunday after church so we drove to a place that has the closest we can find here. Often when we are in the grocery store, we linger in the "hispanic" section and just look at what things they are selling here now. We get excited to see "Jumex"

and "Maseca"

or some Mexican hot chocolate that we bought when we went to Tapachula to renew our visas. We didn't really like it but it is fun to see it in the store!

When we have our family devotions, one of the kids always prays "help us to get back to Guatemala soon". We are waiting on the Lord and seeking His path for our family.

In the meantime, Don and I are flying to St. Louis tomorrow to meet with Duane and Leslie! (were you wondering about the title of this entry??) We are so excited to see them again. It will be a very short trip for us but it will be so fun to see them and have a little time away. We have communicated with them via email and on the phone a couple times since we have been home, but there is nothing like face-to-face! Anyway, we will be "leavin' on a jet plane . . ." Blessings to you!

Early Snow!

2009-10-10T09:21:00.004-06:00

We were suppose to get about half an inch! Now they are saying it was closer to six. The kids were beside themselves this morning. I guess missing a winter will do that to you! As I was getting Samuel ready, he said, "This is the first time I will be outside when I am five!" I knew what he meant!

Throwing snowballs, eating the snow.

I had to dig for winter coats and boots. We were not prepared at all!

Caleb had to "secure the perimeter"!

Even Shadow was having fun!

Oh, I almost forgot - the mini pumpkins were good but a little too "cinnamony". We will have to alter the recipe and try again! Only 3 dozen more to use up. :)

Harvest Time!

2009-10-09T16:11:00.004-06:00

We are predicted to have a big freeze here tonight and possibly snow flurries in the morning. I am so not ready for winter!

We have had to get everything that we could out of the garden. One thing that I didn't mean to plant was mini pumpkins. We had purchased some pumpkin vines that were supposed to be pie pumpkins. We did have one or two vines of those but we mostly had mini pumpkins. They are so cute but it would take quite a few to make a pie!

I found a recipe online for a quick pumpkin treat. We decided that we would turn on the oven and try it out. The kids picked out 6 of the pumpkins and I cut the tops off for lids. Then they had to clean out all of the seeds etc. with spoons.

Bethany did one for me and her. Caleb did an extra for his dad.

Hannah and Samuel worked hard too.

Then we added some butter, brown sugar and cinnamon. Notice Samuel's heaping spoonful of brown sugar - maybe not the best idea to let him do his own!

Six cute little pumpkins ready for the oven. They smelled really yummy while they were baking. We will have them later with our supper (made mostly from garden produce as well!).

We have been doing other things besides harvesting the garden - Last weekend, Bethany had her first horseshow. She had so much fun - she wants to be a cowgirl!

Thanks for reading - we'll let you know how the pumpkins turned out!

Such Irony!

2009-09-29T19:41:00.002-06:00

My niece, Julia, had her 4th birthday last Friday. Isn't she cute?!

We gathered with my sister's family and my parents to celebrate on Sunday. Julia wanted to go to a pumpkin patch and see the animals. . .

Here are Hannah and Naomi (Julia's big sister) with the baby chicks

Bethany wanted to take this bunny home with us.

We also took a hayrack ride out to the pumpkin patch.

There was an old silo with corn where the kids could play. Kind of like a sandbox but with corn instead.

Samuel has just finished burying Caleb in corn up to his neck.

Now it is Samuel's turn.

As I was looking through our pictures and thinking about posting a new entry, I was struck and saddened by the irony. There is a desperate need for corn in Guatemala and my children are "swimming" in it in the US. What a picture of the abundance we have in this country! There is no shame or guilt in going to the pumpkin patch - we are blessed in this country and "every good and perfect gift" is from the Lord (James 1:17). However, He also desires us to be good stewards of the gifts that He has given us. So what are we to do??

I can't pack up the corn that my children were playing in and ship it to Guatemala. As much as I would like to, I cannot go to Guatemala with suitcases filled with corn.

I can pray. I can trust in the Lord's plan and provision for the people of Guatemala. I can spread the word about the Corn Project and how little it would take of our abundance to supply a Guatemalan family with corn for a year. I can give out of the abundance that the Lord has given my family so that another family can "taste and see that the Lord is good" Psalms 34:8.

Moto-mania!

2009-09-21T16:35:00.004-06:00

Since well before we left Guatemala, Caleb had decided he wanted a Honda motorcycle (just like Craig and the Ficker boys). Well, after months of searching and searching, saving and saving; we finally found the perfect bike. Here are a few pictures of Caleb riding - very soon after we brought it home.

I asked him for a ride, but he didn't think it was a very good idea.

Finally, I did talk him into letting me have a ride.

I am not sure he thinks he made a very wise decision. At least not after seeing me make the first jump!

Dinner?

2009-09-20T18:39:00.002-06:00

Yeah, I don't think so! The kids have been finding snakes in our yard lately. On Friday it was a snake like this but much smaller. They captured it and then school turned into researching "Snakes Native to NE" on the internet to find out what kind it was and what it eats. The little snake managed to escape the confines of a 5-gallon bucket. This much larger one, probably the little one's mother, was found on Saturday (the date is wrong on the pictures) by Caleb when he was picking up dog poop. It was quite entertaining to watch them all (from the safety of the back porch!). We have determined that these are bull snakes (or gopher snakes). They are often mistaken for rattlers and even have a little "rattle" when they feel threatened. (Like when Don hit him with the rake!) I have decided that I am no longer interested in going to the garden by myself!

Lamingtons

2009-09-05T13:42:00.002-06:00

We are studying the Eastern Hemisphere for history this year. We just finished up the Pacific Islands and are now starting on Australia. In one of our books, "Lamingtons" were described as a favorite Australian treat. Of couse, we needed to try this treat! Essentially, they are a sponge cake cut into squares. Then you dip them into a runny chocolate icing and coat with coconut. Here is a picture of ours:

The girls loved making these. As you can imagine, we had chocolate and coconut everywhere! Doing these things with them makes me realize how blessed I am. I love homeschooling and getting to spend so much time with my children. I love teaching them little things like how to beat egg whites and sugar until they form stiff peaks. I love watching my children interact and help each other. I love hearing them encourage each other and compliment each other. Everyone loved the Lamingtons and the girls were so proud of what they had made.

But mostly, I love teaching them about the Lord and helping them discover the talents and gifts and passions that He has given each of them. Are my children perfect? Of course not. Do they have disagreements and get frustrated with each other and themselves? Of course. How else could I teach them how to be patient and kind? Or self-controlled and considerate? It is in these moments that they learn the most about who they are and how He wants us to live.

I just read Katie Ficker's latest blog entry and felt even deeper how blessed I am. The Bible says in Acts 17:26 "From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live." He has a purpose and a plan for each of us. He has blessed us with so much. My heart breaks when I hear stories like the one Katie shared. I can pick up a phone and ask my husband to please bring home coconut after work and it happens. My children have never gone hungry and I pray that they never will. It is not a mistake that I live here during this time and in this place with so much. The Lord "determined" this time and place for me. My prayer is that we would be good stewards of all that He has given us - our money, our children, our lives. May we live as He desires and go where He leads. May we thank Him everyday for all that we have. May we find joy in the little things - like making a new treat with our children! Thanks for reading!

Cash for Clunkers

2009-08-24T16:34:00.004-06:00

While most of the rest of the people buying cars in the U.S. right now have been getting cash for their clunkers, we seem to have done it the other way around! As a tie back to our trip (and a desire to avoid debt), we purchased a 1996 Toyota truck well worthy of the backwoods of Guatemala!

The first month or so went smoothly. Sometime after that, the trouble started. Not being much of a mechanic, when the truck first had trouble starting, I rushed out and bought a new battery (the first $100). When that didn't fix the problem, I had to think a little more. My next trip was to O'Reiley's. The guy working there told me that from what I was saying, that the problem was more likely wire connections. I spent about six dollars and thought the problem was solved. Well, it wasn't fixed for long. It turns out that the starter was indeed bad. In fact, it almost caught fire in the testing machine! A new starter was purchased (for the second time) and installed (for the first time). Still, the truck wouldn't start. Lori's favorite part of the story is when I got stranded and had to push-start it on a flat parking lot in front of the Furniture Mart. Finally, I tried out my voltmeter. The battery wasn't holding a charge. Well, at least the new battery wasn't. I re-installed the old battery and finally the problem was solved. Bob at Advance Auto confirmed that the battery was indeed bad and gladly returned it - cutting the final cost of the repair in half! Lets just hope that the clutch holds out in this truck!

Here are a couple of pictures of some father-son bonding somewhere in the middle of the many repair attempts.

Rub-a-Dub-Dub

2009-08-01T12:37:00.002-06:00

Five Guatemalan babies in a tub!

We received this picture from a friend of ours (Barbi) who works at a "Sister" Children's Home in Costa Rica. She was visiting the Guatemala Children's Home for a couple weeks in July. If you remember Venancio, the little baby boy that we took care of while we were in Guatemala, he is the one with the pouty face in the upper right. We are thinking that he is getting close to a year old. This picture makes us so homesick for Guatemala!

Squash Anyone?

2009-07-17T15:47:00.004-06:00

We have been having the goofiest weather here in Nebraska. Not that I am complaining. It has been raining so everything is still green and lush, including the garden. It has also been cooler than normal. There is an expected low of "50 some" tonight and tomorrow night. The garden looks great - except for all of the weeds! When we returned from Guatemala, I was really having a hard time deciding if we should put in a garden. We ended up at Bomgaars and found plants on sale. I didn't start anything from seed which makes things a little easier. The "cold weather" plants were realy cheap - cauliflower and cabbage - and I was a little concerned that we would even see any produce because we were getting them in so late (hence the "cheap" price). However, the Lord has provided the perfect weather for a later crop of cabbage and cauliflower.

Also, in prior years, I had been having problems with some kind of borer bug on my squash so we bought several (maybe 8) plants of summer squash and, as you might guess, all 8 are very healthy and producing more than we can possibly eat. It has been fun to share! This is what I picked on Tuesday.

I discovered that we had "purple cauliflower" which I did not know existed. I thought the cauliflower was flowering so I rushed out and picked it all (only 3 plants) and then found out that it is supposed to be purple. It actually turns light green when cooked and tastes a little like broccoli. Here is what ours looks like.

This is what it was supposed to look like. Oh well, live and learn.

Since we returned from Guatemala, we have found that the price of food has gone up. The budget that we could live on before we left is not really making it for the whole month. We are eating more fresh produce which is expensive but it seems as if everything is higher. We are very thankful that we decided to put in a garden and that it is producing. We have not done a very good job of taking care of it but the Lord has provided exactly what it needed to grow well and produce fruit (and vegetables).

It seems to be that way in life sometimes as well. Our best efforts are not enough but the Lord showers His grace and mercy upon us so that we can bear fruit according to His purposes and plans for us. It is so nice to know that we are not in this alone! Thanks for reading!

Interventional Radiology

2009-07-04T13:42:00.003-06:00

Question: How many interventional radiologists does it take to change a light bulb?

Answer: Why change it? First, entering the lumen of the light bulb with a micropuncture kit, you would use a loop snare wire to remove the old filament. Then, coils would be deposited to bridge the gap between the remaining wires. Finally, gel-foam would be used to maintain the vacuum when exiting the bulb. Good as new!

I just completed my third week in Interventional Radiology at the Med Center and I wanted to post an update about my adventures so far. I have really enjoyed it, but there is a lot for me to learn. I have been able to assist in some procedures, but the focus of my job will be in inpatient and outpatient patient management. In IR, we get to do some really cool stuff. An example of this is the picture I found on the internet. The picture shows the occluded blood flow in the before picture and the re-established normal blood flow in the second picture. Thin wires are inserted into blood vessels and medicines and tools are then used to perform procedures. X-ray and ultrasound machines are used to visualize the procedures as they are being performed. It is exciting to be involved in such remarkable procedures that really do make a difference in people's lives.

While at the same time enjoying my new job, part of me is still in Guatemala. My buddy Craig Pheonix posted this last week about a woman with a leg ulcer. As I read his post, I couldn't help but think of how she could be helped by having the blood vessels opened (by IR) to allow oxygen to get into the wound. How this just isn't possible in such a remote setting with people of such limited resources. -- I am not sure why the Lord has me back in Omaha working again is such a specialized part of medicine, but I do know without a doubt that this is where I am suppose to be right now. Learning all I can and listening for what is next.

God's Goodness

2009-06-30T11:14:00.003-06:00

I know we just posted yesterday but I need to tell you of God's goodness and provision. I went to the bank today to get cash out for groceries. I received the cash and looked at the receipt. Don got his first paycheck today. We have not had a paycheck since August 31, 2008. I looked at the receipt and saw the amount and wanted to shout "We made it! By God's grace and provision, we made it!" I drove to the grocery store and sat in my car and cried. For the last 10 months, we have been living on the generosity of others, our savings and the proceeds from selling things. We have not had a day of need or even want. The Lord provided for us in ways that went beyond our expectations. This morning, I was so overwhelmed with His goodness that I wanted to share it with all of you. Trust in Him for all things!

In Psalm 37:4, it says "Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart". Later in that same Psalm its says in verses 23 and 24, "If the LORD delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand".

I pray that you will discover the Lord's goodness and know that, though we all will stumble and have hard times, the Lord is upholding us with His hand. There is no better place to be than in the hand of the Lord! Blessings on your day!

Quick Trip!

2009-06-29T18:42:00.005-06:00

We have had so many people ask us to continue posting (ok, well, not many but maybe 5!!), so we wanted to do a quick post about our weekend.

Lori's cousin sent us an invitation to his wedding. It was late notice but we decided to go ahead and trek to Spearfish, SD. For those of you who don't know, Spearfish is in the Black Hills on the western border of South Dakota. We live on the eastern side of Nebraska. It takes us about 8 1/2 hours to get to that end of SD. We left Friday as soon as Don got home from work and drove to Chamberlain, SD about 5 hours. Then Saturday we drove the rest of the way with a rest stop at Wall Drug. I (Lori) am not a real big fan of Wall Drug but apparently my vote did not count. We were travelling with my sister and her family and my mom and dad. It turned out to be really fun for the kids and relatively inexpensive (compared to every other tourist trap that you encounter on this journey!). Here are a couple pictures:

Whoaaaaa! Caleb going crazy driving a covered wagon.

A real live (or as "live" as they get!) Jack-a-lope. Only people from South Dakota could think this up! Actually, I found out that a guy from Wyoming came up with this name. In case you are interested, click here. Anyway, Samuel, Caleb, Bethany, Naomi, Julia and Hannah can all fit on the top of a Jack-a-lope!

Bethany could not understand why anyone would want to kill an animal and then stuff it. Samuel wanted to go find real animals.

The kids got to "go mining" at Wall Drug also. Since we are studying rocks etc. in Science this was really a field trip!

The wedding was on Sunday afternoon. It took place in a park, in a gazebo next to a waterfall. Bethany took a picture.

As soon as the reception was over, we drove back to Chamberlain (about 3 1/2 hours) and spent the night. This morning we returned to eastern Nebraska. We are all weary and really tired of being in the car. It was a great trip and so fun to see all of the relatives.

Don goes back to work tomorrow. We are on week three. He is really enjoying the job and learning so much. I think he needs to do a post to give you all of the details. Thanks for reading!

To Post or Not to Post

2009-06-14T09:03:00.004-06:00

We have been having this discussion on whether we should continue to post even though we are not in Guatemala. Are people really that interested in our daily lives?? I guess we could post and let all of you decide!

Don starts his new job on Tuesday. He is excited and nervous. It will be nice going back to the same hospital but the job is totally different than his old one. He will be working in Interventional Radiology or "Specials". I am not really sure what that means and I have a really hard time remembering the name. Calling it "Specials" just doesn't sound right. Whatever the name, I am really looking forward to having a paycheck again!

We are still looking for a second car (since we left our 4-runner in Guatemala). Don would really like to have a Toyota truck and has been diligently looking for one. We seem to be making all of our decisions in light of what it would mean if we returned to Guatemala. If we were to take a second vehicle to Guatemala, it would be better if it were a Toyota with a manual transmission etc.

Right after we returned from Guatemala, we took a trip to Arkansas to visit my aunt and uncle and cousins and their families. We decided at the last minute to go with my mom and dad and my sister and her family. We are feeling like we need to take the opportunities that we have to see friends and families that we haven't seen for a while. It was a great trip. The kids had so much fun "jumping haybales" and fishing. They caught enough fish for our lunch.

Don and I also attended the homeschool conference in Iowa last weekend. The kids went to my mom and dad's house. It was so nice to have a weekend with my husband and the conference was very good. On Friday morning just as we were getting ready to leave, our dog was barking and going crazy in the backyard. Don went out there and this is what he found.

Shadow had "treed" a raccoon on our garage. Don threw some dirt clods at it and then went back into the house. When we came back out it was gone. We were wondering if he knew it was garbage day in our neighborhood!

Video of Guatemala

2009-05-18T17:09:00.004-06:00

We have been home from Guatemala now for about 4 and a half weeks. Everyday we are adjusting a little bit more to being back. This past week we spent alot of time putting together a video that we could use when we talk to people about our trip. (We have downloaded it here at the end of this post - if you are interested!) The kids made a map and wrote a report that we presented with the video to our homeschool group and to Lori's parents' church in South Dakota. Putting the video together made us very homesick for Guatemala. After watching the video, Lori's mom said that it must be hard for us to watch the video. She said, "It is like you have two families and as nice as it is to be home, you must be missing your "other family". She is so right. We know that the Lord has us here in the States for now and we are content to wait on Him, but we pray that someday we will be able to return to Guatemala. Don has now accepted a job at the hospital where he worked for 10 years. He has a start date of June 16th. We knew that this is what the Lord had for us and felt much peace about this position. We are very thankful for His provision and for Don's new job.

Here is a picture of Caleb, Hannah and Bethany presenting for our homeschool group. They did a great job.

Here is the video that we made! Hope you enjoy it!

Double-minded

2009-04-28T11:03:00.003-06:00

We have been home almost 2 weeks now and we are still in this time of transition. I have discovered that life continued on here while we were in Guatemala. I knew that it would but have found that many of the things that I did or was involved in before we left, no longer have room for me. I have this "double-minded" thing going on in that I feel relief that there are no expectations of me yet I feel grief that I am no longer serving. The first chapter of James talks about being double-minded. James describes it as someone who has doubt and is "like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind." (James 1:6) He also calls the double-minded "unstable". I feel like I can't find my place and am being "tossed" about by the instability of my emotions.

Don has been diligently searching for a job. He has had two weeks of first interviews, phone interviews, second interviews, shadowing and more interviews. There are three jobs that are calling and seeking more information. It is all good but we feel like we are being tossed from one option to another. Which is the right option?

We are also praying about selling our house. We would like to get out from under our mortgage yet we have an attachment to our house. We have taken the kids to look at a couple different homes that we could buy if we sold our house. The kids are also feeling this "tossed about" feeling so we have decided we need to slow down a little and allow them some time to adjust.

All of us feel like we left pieces of ourselves in Guatemala. We are happy to be home yet we feel sad that we aren't there. It is such an odd feeling of "where do we belong?"

We have no doubt of the Lord's provision and we have no doubt that the Lord has a plan for us. We just can't see it. James says "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him" James 1:5. We are counting on the fact that the Lord will reveal His wisdom to us in His perfect timing and all the pieces will fit together. We are praying for a clear, straight path. We know that He has a purpose for us and that we just need to take the time to listen for His voice.

We know that many of you have your own struggles that you are dealing with right now. We pray that you will find your comfort, your strength and your provision in the Lord. "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God." II Corinthians 1:3-4

We are home!

2009-04-17T10:03:00.002-06:00

We are exhausted, unorganized and overwhelmed but we are home. Our long flying day on Wednesday went really well. All of our 11 bags were 50 lbs. or less. We sailed through customs etc. and all three of our flights were on-time or even early. We were excited to sleep in our own beds but I woke up thinking I was in Canilla and someone was whistling at the gate! Today I woke up thinking Don had clinic this morning and I needed to get up and make breakfast. Then I remembered I was in NE and I fell back asleep! We are trying to get things put away and get laundry done etc. We plan on publishing an April newsletter soon. Thanks for your support and your prayers!

Our Last Days

2009-04-13T09:36:00.002-06:00

We have three days left on this trip. We will spend today packing, cleaning and finishing some things up. Tomorrow Duane will fly us to Guatemala City (in two flights) where we will check into our favorite hotel and order pizza! Wednesday morning we will be at the airport bright and early for our flight to the U.S.

We will be giving this second borrowed computer back to the Fickers later today so this will be our last posting until we are back home. Thanks for reading and joining us in this adventure. We are unsure what the future holds for us but we know that we can trust the One who holds our future. We pray that you are trusting in Him as well. He has a plan and a purpose for you and He holds you in the palm of His hand. Blessings to you!

Easter

2009-04-13T08:21:00.006-06:00

This year, we celebrated Easter with the Ficker family. Our Easter started off normal enough. Bethany and Hannah helped to hide Easter eggs for Sam, Gracie, and Abi. Here are pictures of the eggs being hidden and looked for.

After all the eggs were found, the scavenger hunt began. This being our first "Ficker Family Easter Scavenger Hunt", we weren't sure what to expect. There were three teams. Aaron, Katie, and Joe were on the first team. David, Rachel, and Adrienne on the second team. Our family made up the third team. Our clues took us all over and around the town of Canilla (and at times a little beyond!). From out in among the trees to the airport hanger and even under a bridge, the adventure took up most of the afternoon. Here are several shots of the search for more clues.

Easter baskets were the reward for all who completed the activities (even those who came in last, i.e. us). Turkey dinner followed - we were all stuffed! The day ended with the kids swimming in the pond (and a little more chocolate). It was fun to be able to share in this tradition with the Ficker's. We are really going to miss being down here with them.

Our Last Day at the Home

2009-04-13T07:52:00.005-06:00

This last Thursday was our last trip to the home for this trip. Dena Stromstead was there hosting a team from Grove City College. There was lots going on there and it was a little overwhelming. Most of the guys on the team were tearing down an old piece of playground equipment that was falling down. Other members of the team were coloring with the kids and there were even guitar lessons. That afternoon, the pools were brought out - one of the kid's favorite activities. It was good to see Dena again and get to spend some time with her. Here is a picture of the 'deconstruction' on the playground.

Bethany was in charge of taking pictures on our last day. Most of the pictures taken ended up being her first attempts of artistic photography. Here are a few of the black & white photos she took of her little brother.

Last Clinic

2009-04-07T18:52:00.004-06:00

Since this week is Semana Santa (Holy Week), all the normal clinics were cancelled. They decided to schedule a clinic in San Pedro yesterday. They had several extra people to help out including a dentist from Guatemala City, Dr. Sherwood Pope from Quiche and two medical students who are serving with him. This made for about 8 people total (excluding Duane) which means 3 flights with one extra seat. Leslie asked if I would want to go with to see San Pedro. I didn't want to leave our kids for the whole day so they let me go on the first flight and then fly back when Duane returned to get the third flight. It was so incredible! The view from the plane was amazing. Don warned me that the runway would not be visible for those of us not trained to notice such things and he was right. The runway was a bumpy, obscure strip of grass but it was incredible to land in such a place. As we were landing, the people (mostly kids) were all lined up along the runway. They were so excited to see the plane come in, it made me giggle as I watched them wave and point. Once the plane stopped they ran over to help haul our stuff. Here is the plane taking off to get the next load.

A common treat around here are "helados". For those of you who know any Spanish, this translates as ice cream. However, here it also means popsicles. They make a flavored, sugared liquid (either based in water or milk) and put it into little baggies to be frozen. Since there is no electricity in San Pedro they do not have helados there. Given the fact that it is hot there plus the Fickers have a lot of extra milk, Duane wanted to make helados to take to the kids in San Pedro. Distributing them was going to be my job! It was so much fun! Here are a couple cute boys with their helados.

Once I had helped Leslie set up some of the medicine, distributed my helados and played with some of the little boys, I headed outside to listen for the plane. I wasn't sure I could find my way back to the runway. There was no reason to fear because as soon as the kids could hear the plane, they ran back to the runway to watch Duane land again. I just followed the crowd. The second load included Katie, Don and Craig. -Lori

Stepping off the plane, I was greeted by lots of kids and my smiling wife (empty cooler in hand). It was a good day for a popsicle - it was hot! I was sweating in the jungle heat before I even started my walk to clinic. Here is a picture of a few of the kids surrounding Katie as we made our way to the clinic building.

Here is a picture of Dr. Sherwood Pope and his medical students seeing patients. About 250 patients were seen in the medical clinic by the end of the day.

With all the extra help, I didn't have my normal clinic duties. Dr. Pedro had come to Canilla with his church El Shaddai earlier this year (see our post from Feb. 8). I acted as his assistant for the day. I loaded syringes, washed instruments, handed out meds and all sorts of other cool stuff. With very little health education and an abundance of sugar cane, there was a lot of work to be done by a dentist. With the limitations of a fly-in clinic and the severity of decay, tooth extractions were the work of the day. We saw 68 patients and were still seeing patients when Duane flew back for us - the last flight out. In this first picture notice the young man holding the post behind his head while his dental work was being performed.

The squeamish shouldn't look too closely at the bag that I'm holding.

My favorite picture of the day is of this little boy not too sure about what was going on in the dentist's chair.

It was a fun, hard, exhausting day. It was also a little sad to think this will be my last time serving in Guatemala . . . on this trip anyway. -Don

Back to the Doctor

2009-04-03T15:46:00.013-06:00

This last Wednesday, we drove back down to Guatemala City so that Hannah could see the doctor and have the cast removed. We left early and stopped at Panajachel for lunch and a little shopping. Pana is right on lake Atitlan and is absolutly beautiful. Here is a picture of Lori and the girls at the restaurant.

We stayed at the HOJO's in the city and arrived at the Doctor's office right at 9:00 Thursday morning. After the cast was cut off, we did a little grocery shopping and started our six hour drive back to Canilla. Here are pictures of the cast coming off.

Things are back to normal today and Hannah is right back in the mix. Right now, Hannah and Bethany are swimming in the pond. Something Hannah has been longing to do since our last trip to the city. Here is a picture from this morning. These three were pigs wallowing in the mud.

With less than two weeks to go, things seem to be moving even more quickly. This next Monday, we will hold another clinic in San Pedro and a week from Tuesday we will fly down to the city. My job search has begun. We are even starting to pack some of our bags. It is a mix of emotions - excitment to return to Omaha, but at the same time it is sad to leave.

We may not be able to post again for a while. We are having trouble with the computer that Katie is letting us borrow. Our laptop has been repaired, but is in a box back in the States - bummer.

Thursday at the Home

2009-03-28T20:17:00.003-06:00

Last Thursday we spent the day at the Children's Home. It felt like we hadn't been there forever. They are doing a huge remodeling project right now. For those of you who have been at the Home, we will give you a few details. The kitchen was moved to the area where the kids used to eat. The old kitchen was made into a bedroom for some of the girls. There was a huge pila to wash dishes right by where the kids ate. It had a huge water reservoir because they used to haul water from the river. Now they have a well and the big pila was actually in the way of the new kitchen so they took it out. Bethany took a picture of where the pila used to be.

The kids are now going to eat in the tortilla kitchen. Part of the project was to repaint all of the tables and benches. Caleb and Don were helping with this part of the project. Both of them came home green!

Also new at the Home were some baby chicks. Here is one of the many pictures that Bethany took of the new babies.

We had a good day at the Home. It will be another couple weeks until we return because we will head to the city this week to get Hannah's cast off. We have only one more day at the Home before we return to the United States. It seems hard to believe that our time is almost up.

We had mentioned Rachel's horse in the previous post. Here are pictures of Hannah and Bethany on "Chica". Hannah only received a little ride around the yard since she already has a cast and all! Rachel took Bethany for a little longer ride (not long enought according to Bethany!) and she really enjoyed it.

Dr. Bethy Doolittle

2009-03-25T21:26:00.007-06:00

Bethany just loves animals. Joe and Rachel's horses have been staying at the house for the last week, and Bethany just can't get enough of them. Tadpoles, cats, puppies, you name it. Basically, if its alive, she loves it.

Yesterday, a little birdie fell out of its nest. Well, she was all over that. At first, we were a little concerned that the bird was hurt. That wasn't the case. Bethany found a birdcage in the trash pile, built a nest, and started collecting ants for it to eat. The more time the little birdie spent with her, the more attached it seemed to be to our little girl. Here are several pictures of the afternoon.

As it turns out, the mother bird came looking for her little one. Bethany let the bird go with its mother and the little one soon disappeared. Today, two more little birdies came for a little visit, spending a couple of hours in the little cage. Their mother also came for them and they were seen flying back to their nests.

Unillá Clinic

2009-03-21T11:41:00.010-06:00

Unillá is a small aldea in the Zona Reina. It is near San Pedro, where we have held medical outreaches before. Like San Pedro, Unillá is also very isolated. It is within twenty miles of the Mexican border roughly north on Canillá. It is about a three hour walk to get to the nearest road which is then a several hour ride to get to a large town. Duane had flown in a load of supplies on Wednesday to prepare for our trip. We flew in to Unilla in two plane loads on Thursday, stayed the night, and flew back home on Friday. Here is a picture of Unillá from the airplane followed by the sign on the building where we held our clinics. The clinic building also served as our quarters for the night. (the soccer field is in the center of the village, the clinic building has the shiny roof just up from the soccer field, and the runway cuts off to the right)

When we got there, there were official introductions. Here are pictures of Duane and Leslie being introduced and of the people gathered outside.

Over the two days of clinic, we saw around 400 people. Here are several pictures of clinic. The first two are of Craig and Arlen seeing patients.

Here is a picture of me with a family that I had just treated.

One of my sickest patients was a young girl with a badly infected finger.

Can you guess what I had been doing? If you are really interested, you can click on the picture and look closely at the lower right corner. (here is a clue, I was treating a very old man who couldn't hear very well)

Here is Arlen with a very sick man who was brought to clinic in a wheelbarrow. He appeared to be in liver failure. He felt so much better after a liter of IV fluid on the first day of clinic, he was brought back on the second day for more fluid. (and, no he had not passed, he just kept his face covered with that towel)

On Thursday, we were treated to a lunch of chicken soup and tortillas.

After lunch, we had a time of worship and prayer before restarting clinic.

Adjacent to the clinic is the latrine. Here is a picture of the upscale concrete facilities.

Here are pictures of some of the kids of Unillá who had come out to see the strangers.

Several kids were seeking a little shade under the wing of the airplane. I started taking pictures and the boys lined up for a picture.

As I took more pictures, the boys got a little rowdy. Here is a picture of them all trying to be the center of attention.

Overall, we had a great trip. The people were so inviting and so appreciative of our help. It was a blessing to be able to serve in Unillá

Home again

2009-03-20T15:13:00.002-06:00

The first load back has been home for about an hour. As I write this, I can hear the airplane returning with the second load. We all had a great trip but are all a little tired. We will get pictures loaded and get another post up later. Blessings, Don.

A Good Day

2009-03-19T20:36:00.002-06:00

Duane flew the two men from Uspantán back later in the afternoon today. Since Uspantán is close to Canilla he went ahead and came home for the night. He needed to get some additional medicines for the team as well as spend a little time with Abi and Grace. He told us that it was a good day in clinic. The people were great and helping with the organization of the clinic as well as taking good care of the team. They even made them take an hour lunch break. Everything sounded very positive. We are just praying for a good night's sleep for all there and here. Duane is planning to head back as early as possible tomorrow morning. Please pray for safety and another good day. Thanks for reading!

Unilla Update

2009-03-19T08:58:00.004-06:00

If you were praying for the Lord's favor on the weather this morning, He heard you!! Duane had been told that it never clears before 9 am and to be prepared for that. This morning Leslie came rushing into the clinic at 7 am saying that they just called from Unilla and the sky was clear! The first plane full left at 7:30 am with Leslie, Katie and Arlen. The second plane full left at 8:40 am with Don, Rachel and Craig. Duane will have to go to Uspantán to get the mayor and evangelist once he drops off the second load.

The kids and I have decided to stop and pray every 2 hours (except when we are sleeping!). If you want to join us we started at 8 am (central time without daylight savings time which means 9am in NE and SD). If we hear any more, we will let you know! Thanks for praying.

Prayer Request

2009-03-18T21:05:00.002-06:00

There will be a new clinic in a remote village called Unilla tomorrow and Friday. From what the Fickers are hearing, there has never been a medical clinic outreach in this area. The closest road is a 3 and a half hour walk away. It is in the jungle region of Guatemala so it rains alot more there and it is hot. There are several things that we would like prayers for if the Lord puts us on your hearts.

First, Duane will be flying 3 flights into Unilla tomorrow for the clinic. However, the weather has to be clear for him to land the plane. They have told us that it will probably not be clear until 9 am. Please pray for the Lord's favor over the weather there in the morning. Please pray for safety in the travelling to and fro in the airplane.

Second, Duane is also flying in the mayor of the area as well as an evangelist who speaks their Indian dialect. This is a medical outreach but medicine is just a tool to open the door to talk about Jesus. The team will be bringing a projector with the Jesus film in their language. Please pray for softened hearts and open ears to the gospel.

Third, we have been hearing that there are alot of people in this area. They are expecting to see around 400 people. They will set up clinic as soon as they get there, spend the night and finish up on Friday. Please pray for perserverance, endurance and strength. The team going is Leslie, Katie, Don, Craig, Arlen (a friend of the Fickers from IL) and Rachel who will translate for Arlen. It will be very long days for them and they will be sleeping on the floor of the building where they will have clinic. Please pray for a peaceful night and rest.

Fourth, please also pray for those of us who will be in Canilla during the clinic. Please pray for peace and protection for us as well. Those here will be Aaron, David, Joe, Abi and Grace as well myself and our four kids.

Don and Rachel are both taking their cameras so we will try to post some pictures as well as a report of what the Lord did in Unilla when the team returns. Thank you for your prayers!