December and all the festivities that come with it!

As a child December would be spent counting down the days until Christmas and wishing time would time go by faster. In my more recent rears December had been a time of finishing classes, final papers cramming for exams, and just looking forward to dancing through campus with the ”I’m free” grin every student knows!

This December however, was different in nearly every way. I had never experienced a warm Christmas, but different things signify “tis the season” in El Salvador rather then a nip in the air.  Like for example, the sound of firecrackers.  Firecrackers were lite almost every night. The first one ALWAYS startled me but no one else seemed to flinch. I guess they know to expect it.

Our beautiful Christmas set-up! 

Over the holidays I was asked if I missed my family being so far from home. Of course the answer was “yes I do”. But the feelings I was having over the holidays were not those I expected.  

I assumed Christmas would be the most difficult time for me here in El Salvador. I am a bit of a Christmas nut and have a tendency to make it too big of a deal. But December had flown by and I was happy to be in Perquín for Christmas. That being said… there were several things that made the passing of this holiday a little easier for me.

1:FAMILIA! As previously mentioned, my dad and Lizzy came to visit. It was SUCH a joy to have my family here to share a little piece of my life in EL Salvador. We were able to see a lot of the more touristic areas in El Salvador. Lizzy and I were able to try surfing at one of the… in Surfer lingo - “rad beaches” that El Salvador is famous for. Other highlights include zip lining through the mountains in Apanaca, swimming through waterfalls in Juaya and admiring the mural covered towns along the “Ruta De Las Flores”. And naturally I couldn’t let my fam leave El Salvador without visiting my favorite pueblito, Perquín. 

Lizzy and her surfing instructor. At one point was trying to point out a sea turtle to Lizzy but was trying to make it very clear it was not a shark since she expressed a little fear.

My dad walking the La Libertad beach

Towns in El Salvador are covered with art. Usually the mural shares a little bit of the cultures heritage or struggles. 

It was the cherry on top of the sundae when my El Salvadoran family met my Dad and Lizzy. They all took note of how tall my dad is…now they understand where my height comes from. They mentioned how Lizzy looks a lot like a cousin who lives down the hill from us. Something I hadn’t noticed. Margarita made sure to tell my dad how many times I had locked my key into my bedroom. To which after translating my dad shared a few of my more forgetful moments in Canada. I learned that it’s kind of awkward translating stories about yourself.

Michel, Lizzy and my dad, in front of one of Perquíns beautiful Murals

Lizzy and I in-front of the church in Perquiín

Michelle, my 7-year-old host sister, is still talking about how Lizzy distinctly pointed out that Michel was holding her hand and not mine. Michel thought that was pretty funny. Margaritta and Hildo have mentioned several times now how nice it was to hear that my dad thinks I am in good hands. And I was thrilled able to show my family around Perquín! The daycare I work at, the church, the park, and the tortillarilla that my host family runs. The places I have been spending the bulk of my time this year.

I feel so lucky to be in Perquín, and I am glad I could share a little bit of its charm with my family.

My Dad and Lizy were only here from the 3^rd to the 9^th. So, what else kept me busy this holiday season?

2. PARTIDOS!

I didn’t really realize I was signing up for a TOURNAMENT when I put my name on the page. I thought it was just a team that was playing for fun. But to my surprise I found myself participating in a legit “football” tournament. Thankfully my team is more on the having fun side of things then the let’s win this tournament side. Don’t get me wrong… I am a big fan of winning things. Ask anyone. But at this point in my life I don’t need the pressure.

Now these are not the standard football games I was previously participating in. The tournament is actually held at the “ganchito” in town. It’s essentially a basketball court used for 4 on 4 soccer games. It’s almost like hockey since you can use the fence wall to bounce the ball off of.

The great thing about the tournament is a lot of the town comes out to watch. It’s not so great when I am playing and half the town sees me take a rough fall. But it has been a super awesome way to meet more of the locals, and actually have something to talk about. For example, “did you see me take that big fall” “yeah that looked pretty painful”, or “did your team win” “no we lost 14 – 0”. Legit, one time we lost 14 – 0. We didn’t have our awesome “portadora” that game... it was a pretty sad.

What else has made time fly….well…

3. YO SOY UNA ACTRESA!

I was asked to bring Michel to the church where she had a practice for the Christmas pageant. Since I didn’t have a whole lot to do during the days of December I decided to sit in and watch the kids rehearse.

Too much fun! 

The Christmas Pageant is a pretty big deal here so the kids needed a lot of practice. I ended up getting more involved then I thought I would and actually landed a role as an innkeeper, the bad one who sends Mary and Joseph away.  When opening night came (the 24^th) I said my lines with a clear strong voice so everyone in the very full church could hear. There may have been a slight outbreak of laughter but I nailed it.

Adorable… enough said!

Participating in the pageant filled some of my spare time and allowed me to get to know more kids. I love the kids or Perquín. Must be the water or something…cause they are all super awesome!

 

No sé si earn reyes no sé si earn tres
lo mas importante es que eran de Belen

4. CLASSE DE INGLES

Everyday at three o’oclock I had a small group of students for “classe de ingles”. We started of by learning how to introduce yourself and ask some basic questions. We learned the alphabet and how to count to twenty. With the help of some songs and the game Simon says we now have many of the human body parts down pat.

My highlight of teaching the class was the game I made to help the kids learn to count. Basically it was snakes and ladders but with a twist. I made the game for my English class but have found that I can’t leave the house without it. Especially if I plan on spending any time at the park, the kids love it. I just wish there was some way I could have had it laminated…. it’s been pretty well used.

Since I am back at work “classes de ingles” have been less frequent. But I intend to start them again in the near future when I get back into the swing of the working routine and learn what times and days work best.

So there you have it. The things that kept me from painstakingly missing home this holiday season. Or in other words, the things I was very grateful for.

Celebrating Christmas on the 24^th!

Christmas was beautiful here in EL Salvador. Michel and I spent the morning playing, eating and watching Christmas special cartoons. In the afternoon we went to a soccer game, which not even national holidays can keep from happing here in El Salvador. Later that evening we attended the Christmas service, after which Michel and I had our debut in the Christmas pageant. She made the 

cutest little shepherd ever!

Honestly, have you ever seen a shepherd this cute? 

After church we all returned to the house to enjoy a Christmas feast including rice, chicken, tamales, vegetable salad, nachos and hot chocolate.  I could not help but buy very small gifts for each of my host family members even though it’s not a costume to give presents for Christmas. The present is the presence of family and food. But Michel was all too happy to document this Western tradition. So was also pretty happy to enjoy many of the chocolates from my advent calendar.

Our christmas feast! And we actually sat around a table to enjoy it which only happens for special occasions.! Usually we disperse ourselves among the multiple chairs in the kitchen. 

 

Michel's documentation of the gift giving. :)

What I considered Christmas day was quiet. All the festivities happen on the 24^th. In fact everything is closed on the 25^th…not because it is Christmas but because everyone is recuperating from what was Christmas.

Can't celebrate Christmas without fireworks! Apparently a spark hit Michel's face during while posing for this photo. She complained about that for days.  

I suppose Christmas on the 24^th in the grand scheme of things its just another number. It just doesn’t sound right.

New years eve and in bed by 11.

New Years eve brought more food, and more firecrackers! On New Years Eve Day the whole family…and, well, most of Perquín went to “El Campo” where the very last two games of the football tournament were being played. It was the big tournament for the FOURTEEN teams the small town of Perquín has. There was certainly a different energy at this soccer game. You could tell the players were a lot more intense. The Mayor of Perquín was even there to give awards to the top three teams.

Later that day we left for a family friends house to have a new years feast. Turkey, rice, bread, potato’s, and salad. I enjoyed being amongst laughter, fun and love even if there were no bored games or giant ball being dropped on the television screen.

New years brings more fireworks! Fun for everyone! 

The family had a gift for Michel, a small guitar perfect for her tiny hands. She legitimately thinks she can play it. We’ve had a lot of fun with it. She strums away moving her fingers up and down the neck of the guitar while I sing some of the songs I have learned from church choir.

We got back around 10 and everyone was tired. It seemed odd to me that there was no “happy new year” and throw your hat sort of celebration at 12. I explained the Canadian tradition in which they responded with “oh…well here we sleep”. I think that is mainly just my host family since I could here firecrackers going off though the majority of the night.

So that was my December… missing this and that I am sure but I think this was more then enough to read.  Props to you if you didn’t just start skimming.

And shamless plug for mail… I have an impressive collection of letters and drawings on my bedroom wall. Want to see YOUR impressive penmanship, or art on my wall? Yeahh you do….

There’s a piece of tape with YOUR name on it!  

My Address is…... 

Bekah DeJong

Km 205, Carretera a Perquïn

Perquín, Morazán, El Salvador 

Centro América

One of those "I am so in awe of my creator" sort of days.

This blog post is not so much a summary of an entire month like normal. It’s based exclusively on one day, a very special day with revolutions and resolutions that have had a great impact on my time here in Perquín and my spiritual journey.

I was incredibly blessed to have seen my dad and little sister at the beginning of December. It was a short but enjoyable week (more updates on that latter).  I was upset to see them go and even shed a few tears as we walked in opposite directions. It could have been a VERY depressing six-hour bus ride back to Perquín with a lot of negative thoughts and self-pity, but God had a different plan for me.

I knew I would end up taking at least five busses on my journey from the airport to Perquin. So I mentally prepared myself for the journey. As I sat at the bus stop I started making some small chat with a girl also waiting for a bus. I was about to leave when she said, “no you want the next bus”.  Thanks to God she was there because I did not have the time or energy to be getting lost that day.

I made it to the city and got of the bus. I was in the center of the San Salvador where the Palace, and Great Cathedral are. I decided to sit for a bit and enjoy the atmosphere. That was until it started to get a little warm out.

I saw a #-31 bus driving doing the street and knew from previous travelling that it was the bus I wanted.  As a side note, there is NO running for busses here. The driver wants you on his bus and will wait or stop for you at any point. If only the Waterloo busses could have a little bit of that leniency.  Ugh hum…. Rachel Dyck, Hannah Johnson.

I sat directly behind the bus driver, which was a really good thing because it is the safest spot to sit and I kept falling asleep. Falling asleep on a bus in the city is a bad idea but I was exhausted and couldn’t help it.  Due to my falling asleep I missed my stop and by the time I woke up I had no idea were I was. The bus that was almost full when I got on was now practically empty. I got off at the first familiar sight I saw. It was a bus terminal… not the destination I wanted but I knew it would be pretty easy to get on another bus from there. I got off, gathered my wits, paid 25 cents to use a bathroom and got on another #31 bus. This time I was NOT going to let myself fall asleep.

Then again…

Sometimes you just can’t fight sleep. Now normally I have a system when I travel which I believe I have mentioned on my blog before. I wear a specific pair of pants with lots of pockets. I spread my valuables in every pocket and then button or tie each pocket up. It’s a smart system. It’s the system I used travelling to the airport to meet my dad and sister. But one I failed to put in motion on the way back.

Instead I was wearing a pair of jeans with no pockets and was carrying my change purse in my hand the entire time. My thought was that if my backpack got stolen I would still have my money. If I were REALLY thinking I would have divided my money between my backpack and wallet. Good thing I have a very caring God on my side who is always making up for my stupidity.

All credit to the Lord, I woke up JUST in time to see a man walking of the bus with my change purse. It had ALL of my money in it. I grabbed his wrist and said “Eso es mio”, “that is mine”. I honestly think that through God’s grace he decided to give it back because if he had of said “no it’s mine”, pulled his arm from mine and got off the bus there wouldn’t be much I could do to stop him. Things could have gone much differently without a very caring God. 

I know what I would have done if he had of gotten away with my money. I have a cellphone with San Salvador contacts for these sorts of situations. It certainly would not have been the ideal finish to the vacation I was already upset to see end. And it definitely would have feed in to the negative thoughts and self-pity I was already experiencing. Thankfully the Lord had different plans for me.

After the incident a guy roughly my age sitting in front of me asked if I was all right to which I responded “yes but it was a close call”. Turns out we were both headed in the same direction so we had lots of time to talk. We talked about the differences between Latin America and Canada, education, school, food, work, ect. Eventually our conversations lead us to talking about God and religion and some differences and similarities between what we believed.

It wasn’t the deepest most profound conversation I have ever had in my life. It couldn’t be since we were working around a language barrier. But it was exactly what I needed. It was encouragement; it was further proof that God is working in people’s lives. It was someone to talk to after a bit of an emotional roller-coaster.

I got off that bus with a new feeling of motivation and determination. I thought about Gods role in my day, how he new what I needed and when I needed it. I thought about how impeccable His timing is.

I had two more busses before I would arrive in Perquìn. I got the last empty seat on my next bus, which is always nice in any country. The man beside me gave me a small smirk and I smiled back which seemed to open a space for some friendly dialogue. In English he asked where I was from. I get this quite often either from people who want to practice their English or people who just want to use the one phrase they know. I said I was from Canada. Most of the time conversations end there but this one didn’t.

He mentioned having lived in the States for six years. He said how he had a great opportunity there and was even able to go to school. Then he told me about how he got involved in gangs and drugs and ended up getting kicked out of the States. He talked about how even though he took advantage of an opportunity sent by God, God was still there for him and helped him turn his life around.  Now he shares his story with as many people as he can in attempt to show Gods love. As he got off the bus he said “you know some people like to say goodbye at the end of a conversation, I don’t like that so much. I prefer God bless, so Good bless you”.

Seeing how God is working in the lives of others is an incredible blessing. From every different story you can take away something different. I kept thinking about this mans lost opportunity. Being here in Perquín is an opportunity for me. It is where God lead me. What am I doing right, what am I doing wrong. How am I making the most of this opportunity for God. It was something I needed to think about, especially after some of the more negative thoughts that had crept into my head that morning.  Again, how impeccable is God’s timing?

Finally I made it back to Perquín. Still a little in awe of the day I had and how God had been SO present every step of the way. And I swear I am not making this up when I say He was not finished with me yet.

 At supper my host family and I were talking about going to church. Who in the family had regular attendance, who didn’t and why. The conversation blossomed into everyone sharing times where God had been with them during a trial. I could have shared my entire day but just went with the wallet story. For the fourth time in one day I felt incredibly blessed and encouraged.

Some days when I am understanding so little of what is going on around me, when I am tired of tying to communicate in Spanish, when the Internet is not working and I can’t Skype family or friends I can feel very alone. But one thing among many I learned on my journey back to Perquín is that God IS here with me. When He wants to He CAN make His presence known. And when he doesn’t who am I to doubt Him?

I was sad to be walking in the opposite direction of my little sister and dad. Besides my two days of sickness in Guatamala I don’t think I have every felt more alone then I did just after saying goodbye to my family. But I am not alone here, and on the day I felt the most alone of all God proved that to me.

I am in a great little town, surrounded by tons of loving people, and I have an amazing support system at home. I shouldn’t have needed a crazy God filled day to prove I have a very loving God with me at all times. I guess that was just an extra He threw in because He knew I needed it.

My hope is this bog post might bring you encouragement or maybe a little warmth this during the cold Canadian winter. Remember you have a God who cared enough about you to send His son. And he didn’t stop caring for you after that.  He cares for your smallest worries and your biggest problems.

Because of some computer difficulties I failed to wish you all a Merry Christmas and happy new year. But better late then never! So, Feliz Navidad y un próspero año nuevo para mi familia y amigos! I hope you all have great and relaxing holidays!

P.S. Sorry for a lack of photos, I know they make things more visually appealing. Please don’t “picks or it didn’t happen” me. Cough David Devries,  cough cough.

But here’s a photo of our Christmas display this year!

All the deets on how the holiday season is spent in El Salvador coming soon to a blog near you! 

When did November grow wings…. because it just FLEW by!

My last post talked about settling in to Perquìn. It was an exciting time of learning and growing and I gave myself a lot of patience when it came to new experiences. Unfortunately that patience has slipped away and I find myself becoming frustrated all to easily. I constantly have to remind myself that it has only been 3 and a half months and that obviously Spanish and a different culture will continue to confuse me. I have a lot more learning to do. They don't call it "Serving and LEARNING Together" for nothing

Spanish is confusing but these kids are awesome. If I wasn't working with these lovable crazes I think I would go insane. 

In between the frustrating moments there have been encouraging moments. I have bonded a lot with my host family and have seen a transition in their comfortableness with me being around. For example they no longer feel the need to give me a plate of food first or clear the dishes for me. It’s little things like these that make me feel a little more at home.

Those are officially my travel pants. I disperse my valuables in every pocket and button them up. 

My family has also accepted me as another helping hand! When sitting at dinner one evening my host mom mentioned working in a farm and started pointing at every person in the room saying they had to help before she had a chance to finish I raised my hand and said “y yo”. Though I wasn’t exactly sure of what I volunteered to help with the family got a good laugh out of my excitement and I was just happy to be allowed to help.

So, we spent a Saturday working on Hieldo my host dad’s farm. What they consider a farm I would have considered a bush but that is just another cultural difference I suppose. First we stacked a large pile of wood in the back of the truck to bring back to town and use at the house. Then I learned my height is an advantage when it comes to harvesting oranges! Yay for fresh orange juice!

It was a hard days work but it made me feel useful which is always nice as your stumbling though another culture. Also the cold shower afterward was refreshing rather then painstaking like normal.

Since blogging last I have also tapped into some community outlets such as the church choir and a ladies soccer team! My favourite thing about attending a Spanish church service on Sundays has been the fun lively music so I am really excited to play a role in that. My first “juego de football” was a blast. It was refreshing to be participating in something outside of the daycare and not needing a huge Spanish vocabulary to do it. “Atras” - back, “adelante” - forward, and “aqui” - here, were about all the words I needed to know. I am quite looking forward to more Sunday afternoon Footbal games and getting to know the girls on my team.

My host sister Yaneth and I before the game. My shoes were not so white after. 

Getting out of my bubble and participating with the community has been a bit of a focus of mine lately and has meant being open to invitations here or there. Yaneth recently asked if I would be interested in going to an “actividad” with her on a Saturday night. I was completely unsure of what that implied but she mentioned it being a little work and not taking to long. I agreed to go feeling the need to take every opportunity I had to integrate myself into the community. It turned out that the “actividad” was a political event for “FMLN” a left wing party with a candidate running for Presidency. “FMLN” and “ARENA” are the two favorites to win the upcoming elections but without a doubt “FMLN” has Perquìns vote.

I am unsure of the history behind the political candidate but I know they played a large part in the civil war and unifying diverse groups in order to give aid and assistance. FMLN's history is one thing I would be interested to learn more about while I am here in El Salvador.

One thing I do know is that a “FMLN” political event is unlike any in Canada. People came from all over Morazan and the tent was FULL. There was food and beverages to buy and Venders selling El Salvador pride souvenirs. There were people at every age chanting and dancing and yelling “Adelante” (forward) which was the political party’s trademark phrase. I must say I stuck out like a sore thumb at this event being the only white let alone blonde person at the festivity. Yet, it has been one of the higlights of my time here in El Salvador. I feel like I participated in something a backpacker would not have seen and I felt a deeper connection with the people by sharing a rush of El Salvador pride. I also learned how to dance! Well….sort of.

The 15^th of November was a special day for the kids at the daycare. The day there summer vacation started. They pretended to be sad for me but I knew they were pretty excited. I still gave them homework to do even though they wouldn’t be coming back for two months. Was that evil of me?

This is likely the face Jorge will be making when he notices the homework. ;) 

Duck faces have even spread to El Salvador…but this one is so darn cute.

A little girl and her mom at my church in Canada made these small gifts for the kids in El Centro. It was a very fun day spent with some very thankful children.

The last day of class was a fun one. We had special treats for the kids and each class got to create a presentation of one thing they had learned this year and explain it to the other classes. My class was in charge of volcanoes. It’s just a little different learning about volcanoes when you’re a short 2-hour drive away from one.

My classes volcano project. 

Another thing I have been enjoying here in Perquín is traveling further up the mountain and visiting family friends. Although I find myself quiet and feel a little out of place I like to listen to the conversation and hearing the laughter. It’s relaxing to hear people laugh. Plus the view of the mountain while riding in the back of a pickup truck is breathtaking, under a tarp in the rain however…not so much.

I have mentioned before how one of my biggest challenges has been not petting the street dogs. I love dogs and some of the street dogs are so cute and so sad. But as advised from a man with a medical degree I cross the street to avoid getting to close. However, when my host sister brought home the cutest little puppy I could not resist picking the little guy up.

Her name is Licksy Prin. Which in English would translate to Lexy princess. I tried to explain the irony of naming her licksy since she is a dog and licks things a lot but my host family didn’t find the connection as uncanny as I did. She is an adorable “perrita” that I don’t think I will get sick from petting. If I do it will have been worth it. Just look at the little thing.

She cunningly snatched this Papusa. Sneaky perrita.

Over the last week I have been in Guatemala for some MCC team meetings. It has been refreshing to be among some familiar faces and reconnect with the people I hadn’t seen in just over two months. There were many stories and challenges to share. The meetings this week were in a small town not far outside of the city called Antigua, a very popular tourist destination for many Guatemala travelers.

The MCC team retreat gave us each an opportunity to share what each MCCer has been doing in their placement within the past year. During past MCC meetings conversations had been translated from Spanish to English for the benefit of both language-speaking parties. This time the MCC rep made the executive decision not to translate and conduct the meetings for the most part – solely in Spanish. It was exhausting trying to keep up and missing pieces but good practice in the long run and it was a nice feeling to not be slowing down the process by needing a translation. When my turn came to present I even felt the confidence to at least try and present in Spanish. I made it though with a little assistance and naturally having made mistakes but for the most part I was understandable so I am marking it down as a success.

The MCC reps had rented a house for the meetings as a more affordable alternative to a hotel. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed walking around without shoes on, sitting on a couch in the living room, taking warm showers, unlimited internet and not being woken up by chickens at 5:30 in the morning. I love Perquìn but these few luxurious reminded me of some of the differences I have had to overcome living in the rural town.

I snuggled up on that couch with a blanket while the fire crackled and we all enjoyed a game Charades

While in Antigua we got the chance to wonder the cobblestone streets and visit the monument overlooking the town. A cross-called the “Cerro de la Cruz”. It was nice to see a little more of Guatemala and the hike was some much-needed exercise before a big meal.

The view from "Cerro de la Cruz". I understand why Antigua is such a popular tourist destination. It has a lot of charm.

Antigua has the charm of Europe…but more affordable. Anyone who wants to visit should contact me on this matter!

The classic "point your camera up to try and get the whole building" photo. I'm no photographer folks. 

 

Cerro de la Cruz

Undoubtedly one of my highlights during this past week of meetings has been the variety of food available. I have not eaten eggs or beans for a full week now but rather opted for the pancakes or yogurt option. Two things I love and don’t eat often enough in Perquìn. We also had the opportunity to prepare one of our favourite foods for a Thanksgiving feast. I know, I know, thanksgiving was forever ago… but Americans thanksgiving is actually next week. Those crazy Americans… I considered it more of a Christmas celebration. So many foods I hadn’t had in so long. Turkey, mashed potato’s, gravy, pecan pie, carrots, beans, salad, and the list goes on. It was a very well received meal that after numerous combinations of eggs beans and tortillas, I appreciated immensely.

Familiar tests in an unfamiliar world

Another thing that warmed my heart in the city was the Christmas decorations. I had almost completely forgotten that Christmas was fast approaching. There is hardly any talk of Christmas in Perquìn and I have yet to see a single decoration. Guatamala city on the other hand is a tad more “westernized” and in result has capitalized on the profitable holiday. My heart automatically swelled up at the sight of the giant tree and wintery candy land in the Miraflores mall.

 I am a person who gets very excited about Christmas and have a habit of making a pretty big deal of decorations and gifts. I am nervous about yet looking forward to experiencing a more humble less extravagant Christmas in Perquìn, which I am told, is more about social events at Church and with neighbors. I am still thinking of small gift ideas for my host family.

I am looking forward to heading back to Perquìn in the morning. My host sister Michelle had her graduation this weekend and I am excited to hear how her speech went. My host brother Ronald had a ping-pong tournament and I am curious to find out how he did. I am looking forward to the graduation of the “Prepa” class coming up this Wednesday. My class is doing a dance for the graduation ceremony. It’s going to be adorable. I find it comforting even though I have enjoyed the luxurious Antigua provided I am excited about numerous things that await me in Perquìn. I think that’s a good sign.

Through the month of December I will be teaching English classes to a group of children. One hour a day every week day. I am really looking forward to sharing my first language but am unsure of how to teach it. I will be setting aside some time for prep work and I will let you know how it goes.  I would appreciate prayer for things to come together smoothly and that the kids will have some grace. In my experience they always do. :)

One more thing I am obviously excited for is a visit from my Dad and little sister on December 3rd. I am excited to share a culture with them and give an inside look at my life here in Perquìn. I have a pretty stellar vacation in the works for us! Details on that coming soon to a blog near you

Should have seen how excited I was to get this package in the mail…I don't know how I am going to be able to handle the excitement when my Dad and Lizzy come. 

As always,

Miss you all and prayers are ALWAYS needed and appreciated!