Serving the Shepherd, Loving His Lambs

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

July 2020

Sporting our Red,White and Blue on the 4th of July!!

My mind is stuck in March! I still can't believe we are in the middle of summer!! But here we are! We're still trying to figure out this new normal. This is the first summer since we've moved to Guatemala that at least one of us hasn't made a trip back to Florida. This is usually the visit that I bring back all our homeschooling books for the coming year. Hmmm. We're looking into online options because no one is coming into Guatemala for awhile!

We recently had a doctor appointment in Guatemala City. We had to obtain special permission to drive into the city. I knew there were hungry people here in Guatemala. I heard the stories from our friends that are doing food deliveries in the villages, I saw the pictures. But as we drove into the city, the number of people (of families) that stood waving their white flags took my breath away and brought tears to my eyes. So much hunger, so much fear on their faces. After our appointment, we stopped by a large store (like Costco) and bought rice and beans. And on our way home, we gave out all the rice and beans we had. The needs are so overwhelming and our small amount of rice and beans was gone in a matter of minutes. My first thought was "does this even make a difference?" Later, I read someone's post on Facebook about the starfish. And I reminded myself, that 15 families would be eating dinner that evening. Those few bags of rice and beans may not have made a big difference, but to those families - they made a difference.

We are so blessed to work with such great ministries here in Guatemala. Here are the links of two that are out there making a difference. They are sharing the love of Jesus by feeding His lambs. (Both of these ministries also have orphanages that we serve in.)

https://give.lifesong.org/lifesong/village-of-hope/

https://hopeforhome.org/locations/coronavirus-relief.html

We are thankful to all our supporters that make it possible for us to share the love of Jesus with those around us! Thank you so much!

We've continued to find fun activities to keep everyone occupied during this time. We are trying to keep a somewhat normal schedule most mornings. So , after breakfast we have a time of worship , and read and discuss a Psalm. I have been teaching the girls the SOAK method to meditate on scripture. S=Scripture/verse O=Observation (what does it say) A=Application (how can I apply it to my life.) K=Kneel in prayer.

We have also been doing a literature study all together. A neighbor gave us a few Little House on the Prairie books and we've been enjoying reading it and doing activities.

Here's a few other fun activities we've been doing....

Living room forts.

Building a robot.

The finished product!

We had a little photo shoot with Noah in a cap and gown - because everyone needs a graduation picture in a cap and gown. (Noah didn't actually think it was necessary but I did, haha!!)

A fun sheet slide.

Sensory play with beans.

Playing dress-up!!

The kids got to participate in an online VBS with my sister's church!

Thursday, June 4, 2020

Choosing to Rejoice!

"Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice." Philippians 4:4

Wow! May was a tough month! So much heartbreak, so much division, so much sadness! But for today, I am choosing to not dwell on those things. During my quiet reflection time with God this morning, He placed on my heart to focus on the beauty of my world. So, today I'd like to share with you the beauty of family, the beauty of children, the beauty of adoption. I'm not ignoring the events going on in our world today (and I am praying for the healing of our land) but I am today focusing on rejoicing being grateful to God for what He has done in our life.

Here are a few pictures and videos of what we have been doing lately!!

Lots of baking has been going on in our house!!

Carl and I celebrated 29 years on May 25.

The girls made us all kinds of cards and decorations.

Reading the bible never starts too early!!

Bike riding to get outside and get some fresh air!

Brothers sharing a moment together reading.

Willy thought Noah needed some company!

Fun in the sun!

Lots of games have been being played!

Celebrating Mother's Day! It was great day as I was also able to video chat with Alia, Lacy and Jordan!

Junior working on his school

We also celebrated Noah's high school graduation! We were going to wait until restaurants opened back up but we decided we didn't want to wait any longer! We are so proud of you, Noah!

And here is where the pictures should be of us in Tennessee, celebrating with Alia on her Graduation from Johnson University. But that will have to wait a bit..... hopefully we'll make it to the postponed graduation celebration in October!! We are so proud of you Alia and can't wait to celebrate with you soon!