One Year and Eight Months Later…

There are two words that could be used to describe my blogging history over the past year and nine months: miserable fail.

I must apologize for that. I recognize that I have failed my friends and family who had counted on following this blog after I did my first entry only two weeks after arriving in Guatemala. I apologize to my future supporters (once I reach the point of raising individual support) who will not have a very detailed account of my first two years here. But I have come to the point of recognizing the value and importance of keeping a blog, and while I cannot promise exact dates for blog updates, I DO commit to providing more regular updates so that my friends and family can stay a little more up to date with my life…both with what is going on around me and what is going on within me. (No worries! The latter will focus on what is God is doing in my heart and mind, and not on my physical insides or bodily functions.) ;)

NOW…...while I cannot provide you with detailed accounts of the past two years, I have pulled together a LARGE number of pictures that I can use to share with you the key happenings of the past year and a half without all the burdensome reading. Let the pictures guide you through!

We arrived in Guatemala January 25, 2011. We began getting to know the neighbor kids within the first month of being here. Key bonding activities included the following:

Soccer, Soccer, Soccer, and…fútbol

  

Duck, Duck, Goose and Piggy-back Rides!                                            

  

Arm Wrestling (Taryn always wins) and Reading

  

WATER FIIIIGHT!

  

And other fun and silliness!

  
  
  
  
  


For the first school year that we were here (February-October), Krishauna and I served as volunteer English teachers one day a week at a wonderful Christian school in Ciudad Vieja named Kairos. We worked with 66 students in 7 different classes (1st through 7th) every Wednesday, and we really enjoyed our time there!

  
  



Beginning January of last year, I was blessed to receive a job teaching a missionary family's 9-year-old daughter one-on-one, four days a week. This has provided me with both experience and some money to go toward my school bills. (I get paid through Canada and not through Guatemala, which is a huge blessing for pay!) I taught her January through May this year and will be teaching her January through June of this coming year. I love my Katie. :)

        


Those of you who keep up with me on Facebook already know this, but Hermano Pedro hospital in Antigua is one of my most favorite places to be. There are about 240 residents total there, almost all of which have cerebral palsy, and my sisters and I love to spend time there in the children's ward (and sometimes the adult ward) whenever we get the chance. Honestly, this was the reason I was most excited to get here to Guatemala. I wish I could introduce you to these little (and big) "brothers" and "sisters" of mine…oh, how I love them!

  
  
     
  
     
  
  

Pure joy. <3 p="p">

As a part of our online classes (it looks like I still have a couple of years to go, due to my part time status and some challenges that have come along with trying to make this work outside of the United States), Krishauna (my sister) and I are required to do a whole lot of observation in schools here in Guatemala. It takes up a lot of our time with the buses to and from and all the time in the schools, but we have loved being in the classroom!

  
     
  


My siblings and I take turns going with our dad to visit families that we are working with (who have special needs children) in our town and in villages as far as a few hours away. I don’t usually have my camera on these trips so the best way to hear more details and see pictures is to continue following my dad’s blog (http://hopeforhome.blogspot.com).

First we have to prepare the food and items that need to be delivered to the families. (And we may as well have fun doing it, right?)

  
  


Then we deliver the items and experience the joy of visiting with the families! (This is where I lack pictures.) Between my dad and Dick (http://blog.dickrutgers.com/) and all of their driving and work, I have seen a lot of fixed/adjusted/delivered wheelchairs and have experienced the “charm” of many rugged roads.

  
  


We have also had opportunities to visit other ministries as a family:

Amor del Niño (Christian run orphanage near Guatemala City)

  

Rehoboth Children’s Home (the group home run and supported by people within our small church)

  

Casa Jackson (malnutrition center)

     
  


There is so much more that I would like to share with you all, including introducing you to some of our wonderful friends, the youth group of which my sisters and I are a part, our church, etc; however, this is already a plethora of pictures and probably a bit more than any of you can handle/enjoy. So I will leave you with two things:

1) A commitment: Now that I have done a two year update, I am prepared to stay up-to-date with shorter, more specific blog posts on a regular basis. (Thank you for taking the time to read all or part of this…if you made it this far. )

2) A few pictures of the beauty that surrounds us on a daily basis. (These are pictures that I took different days from our roof facing the volcanoes! No editing involved!)

  
  
  


IS GOD GREAT, OR WHAT?!