28.2.12

Mano de Dios

About a week ago we had the first Mano de Dios of the year and it was one of my favorite times spent in Villa Maria. As you can see in the video tagged below, courtesy of John Mark, we had some time of worship and fun as well as passing out school supplies for the upcoming school year. It was also great to see the amount of people from our community of faith that helped out and shared this experience.

http://vimeo.com/37480124

Jungle Update: We all arrived back in Lima safely and will work on getting some pictures up soon!

8.2.12

The Jungle, La Selva, The Next Two Weeks of my Life!

That's right, the title says it all! Next Monday, Heather, Carolina, and myself (+ Mark Van, a friend of Joshua and mine) are boarding a plane to go to Pucallpa, Peru. We will be hanging out with Carolina's family there for a few days, then boarding what is called a "lancha", which is a Peruvian word for a river boat, that will take us to Iquitos, Peru. The thing about lanchas and the Amazon River is that they're super unpredictable and totally dependent on the level of water. That being said, we could be on this boat (or one very similar) anywhere from 3-5 days!

So if you're thinking, "Wow, that is so awesome, who wouldn't want to go on a cruise down the Amazon?!", then you're absolutely right! But maybe for the wrong reasons...



*We will sleep in hammocks, touching the person in the next hammock over
*The boat is full of cargo and people and livestock
*3 meals a day will include a combination of rice, potatoes, and chicken more than likely
*There is no potable, running water...it all just comes from the Amazon
*Mosquitoes
*Sun
*Somewhere between 72-120 hours on board a boat (that's a LOT of time)
*Potentially having the opportunity to swim with piranhas
*Hopefully getting to see river dolphins (the pink kind)
*Maybe not showering?

We are actually really excited about this adventure! Pictures/post-adventure blog to come! In the meantime, here's a picture, and if you want to read about a few people who've done this before, click here to see their blog!


I should also mention, after the river trip, we're headed to a small jungle town (where Lyndsay and Wes will meet up with us) with one of the girls involved in the church here to meet her town and family! After all is said and done, we'll be gone for two weeks, so keep us in your prayers!

26.1.12

Krochet Kids

So this post is mainly to give a shout out to Krochet Kids, who have recently started working here in Lima, Peru! We had the opportunity to go check out their location, help get things ready for a shipment, and got a super cool hat out of the deal!

An American family (the Goodfellows) that lives close to our neighborhood are the ones heading up the Peru location, so we got a behind the scenes look at the work God is doing with KK in Peru...



Blake Goodfellow doing a little quality assurance - he runs the place


The hats we worked on today (tagged and bagged them!)

Who knew all of that experience of tagging merchandise at Loupot's would come in handy!

They have about 6 or so ladies working for them right now, and will be hiring again soon

Lucy at work

This machine....looks intense!

Action shot!

"THIS IS EMPOWERMENT"

Assembly line

The last box we packed!

Krochet Kids is a very exciting ministry:  fun, "hip" (I hesitate to say that because of any negative connotation out there with the word hip...) products made by women trying to overcome poverty and all based on holistic Christian restoration! By providing a job for these women, Krochet Kids is helping them break the cycle of poverty in their families. As well, Krochet Kids wants to provide a mentor figure to these ladies and not only restore them physically from poverty, but also mentally and spiritually. This non-profit is doing great work in Lima, and are truly EMPOWERING the people here. I won't share ALL of the info on KK, but do go check out their website at www.krochetkids.org to see their products and their story! Then buy a hat or two :)

13.1.12

We're back in 2012!

Sorry it's been a while since we have updated. Both Lyndsay and I were incredibly blessed to have family come visit over the holidays! If you have never spent 5 months away from all of your friends and family, I can't even begin to describe how hard it would be to spend the holidays alone in a foreign country, despite having people here to spend it with!

We kicked off the holidays with some visitors from the States that helped us buy Christmas presents for all of our cute little kids in Villa Maria. CLICK HERE to see a video.

We experienced how Peruvians celebrate Christmas! CLICK HERE to see what happens in Peru when the clock strikes midnight on Christmas Day!

We said goodbye to Heather and Carolina, as they would be spending Christmas break in the States for weddings, family time, etc.

Then our visitors arrived! Sorry Lyndsay and family - I don't have any pictures of your visits to update with, so you just get to see my adventures for now!

Joshua came to help out with the team from December 19 to January 10 and I tried to soak up every minute I  had with him!

Joshua and Eduardo at soccer night...Eduardo is actually wearing Joshua's shorts and Joshua is wearing Eddy's pants

Took a little walk by the nasty Lima beach. Believe it or not, my legs have seen sun before

The apartment was all decorated just for Joshua

Hung out with some of the missionary families one day at a nicer beach

Painted some finger nails in Villa Maria

Joshua didn't do any fingernail painting

Sharing the love I have been given
The kids were happy, I promise!


C.H.U.B.B.Y baby

A little Peruvian food...papas de la huacaina

Tying a balloon with a broken collar bone....what talent!

Karaoke

Some of the Peruvians had a "surprise" birthday party for me

And we also celebrated Joshua's and Lyndsay's family's arrival

We spent Christmas with the Yoakum's....I got Joshua a remote control helicopter. Best idea ever!

Aggies in Peru!

Joshua giving Lastenia some guitar lessons
We made our way to Cuzco







And now, WE'RE ENGAGED!!


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