Ok...so like I promised, I'm going to give ya'll the run down of our church situation...
Basically, New Tribes Mission has asked that all the missionaries down here get involved in a Bolivian Church. I'm very excited about this because I know that will greatly improve my language learning! So, they gave us about three different churches to try and this last week was our first one. It is called Templo Cristiano. Its only a block from our place. The service we were going to was supposed to start at 10:30 a.m. Andy said that we wouldn't leave till 10:45 because churches here never start on time! I was pretty distressed because in my mind...thats 15 minutes that church has been going on...and we've missed it! Might as well not even go right?? WELL...we get to church at like 10:48..and the FIRST service was still going on!!! I laughed out loud. Andy had been right...and we felt so out of place being early...and right in the way. :/ Oh well...I learned my lesson... Our service didn't actually get going till 11:09. Yikes! So latin america...
The service was good. I actually understood many of the songs...because they were american tunes. So that helped me learn the Spanish words for things... It was quite a roudy church...much different from our church at home. But I still really enjoyed it and there were many young people that Andy would LOVE to get involved with! So, we'll see...next week is a church farther away. We still don't know the name of it...we might have to take a taxi...
So, I'll keep you posted on what we decide! It'll be like House Hunters on HGTV...but instead of houses...its churches! Haha... The reason that its so important to find a church where you "fit" is because churches down here are like your family. They have TONS of social events and really reach out to you...So, that is why we're on the hunt...I'll keep you posted. Thats all for now I guess!
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Where do I start?
These last few weeks have been a whirlwind...I think we both had a bit of physical and emotional exhaustion at the beginning! We jumped into things so quickly, with moving, saying goodbye and then adjusting to a new life! We have been busy at work for the past I guess three weeks and have LOVED LOVED LOVED every minute of it!!!
The hardest part about being here is that it is SO COLD right now. It was beautiful when we first got here and now it has suddenly (like within the past week) plummeted down to lows of 4 and 5 degrees celsius. (about 40 degrees fahrenheit) It is threatening tonight to break a record for the coldest night Santa Cruz has ever had...making it down to 3 degrees celsius!! The big problem is that the people here and the buildings aren't used to such cold. Our floors are all cement tile and no heaters...and our walls are cement too. All of which are COLD COLD COLD. We went and bought an extra blanket for our bed and even had to let the dog in tonight...poor Dudley! I knew it was a big deal when the little corner store down the street was closed during the day!!! That little old lady is open usually ALL DAY EVERY DAY! There were headlines in the newspaper of homeless people stuffing their clothes with newspaper trying to keep warm! Anyway, what makes that hard on US is the motivation factor. Before the cold we were working in the yard every day and enjoying organizing this place. Now that it is so cold we've found things to do in our house...and tried to go out as little as possible. So I'm READY for warmer weather so I can get to work!
Our jobs have been...alot of different things. =) We are here for the guests that come, so our schedules have to be very flexible. We have had a lot of EARLY mornings taking people to the airports...and many late nights waiting for people to get in. But, the best part is being able to be together! Andy is SUCH A GOOD DRIVER here!!! It is CRAZY driving in the city! I was so impressed by him...he has just adjusted so well. Driving here is not quite as bad as Manilla, Philippines...but CLOSE. Everyone just does what they feel like. Regardless of the rules. Rules are more like suggestions here. haha I love it.
We have like I said, worked in the garden alot. This place has lots of plants...and papaya trees. Andy and I aren't crazy papaya eaters...but they've been a blessing to others as we BEG them to pick them all from the trees... =)
I guess thats all for now. I don't want to write too much...I promise to be more consistent with this...I do have the time for it, just the motivation is the hard part...Tomorrow is our first Sunday at our potential church. I'll let you know what that means and how that goes tomorrow! =)
The hardest part about being here is that it is SO COLD right now. It was beautiful when we first got here and now it has suddenly (like within the past week) plummeted down to lows of 4 and 5 degrees celsius. (about 40 degrees fahrenheit) It is threatening tonight to break a record for the coldest night Santa Cruz has ever had...making it down to 3 degrees celsius!! The big problem is that the people here and the buildings aren't used to such cold. Our floors are all cement tile and no heaters...and our walls are cement too. All of which are COLD COLD COLD. We went and bought an extra blanket for our bed and even had to let the dog in tonight...poor Dudley! I knew it was a big deal when the little corner store down the street was closed during the day!!! That little old lady is open usually ALL DAY EVERY DAY! There were headlines in the newspaper of homeless people stuffing their clothes with newspaper trying to keep warm! Anyway, what makes that hard on US is the motivation factor. Before the cold we were working in the yard every day and enjoying organizing this place. Now that it is so cold we've found things to do in our house...and tried to go out as little as possible. So I'm READY for warmer weather so I can get to work!
Our jobs have been...alot of different things. =) We are here for the guests that come, so our schedules have to be very flexible. We have had a lot of EARLY mornings taking people to the airports...and many late nights waiting for people to get in. But, the best part is being able to be together! Andy is SUCH A GOOD DRIVER here!!! It is CRAZY driving in the city! I was so impressed by him...he has just adjusted so well. Driving here is not quite as bad as Manilla, Philippines...but CLOSE. Everyone just does what they feel like. Regardless of the rules. Rules are more like suggestions here. haha I love it.
We have like I said, worked in the garden alot. This place has lots of plants...and papaya trees. Andy and I aren't crazy papaya eaters...but they've been a blessing to others as we BEG them to pick them all from the trees... =)
I guess thats all for now. I don't want to write too much...I promise to be more consistent with this...I do have the time for it, just the motivation is the hard part...Tomorrow is our first Sunday at our potential church. I'll let you know what that means and how that goes tomorrow! =)
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Our New Home!
Our gate...lovely yellow walls...
The Santa Cruz guest home!! Nine total rooms/apartments plus our house...
The wonderful yard...with TONS of plants and Papaya trees!
The door in the corner is our house...
Here it is! Our first actual house...
living room/dining room- Even after unpacking our four suitcases the place still looks empty. :) Lots of space for us!
Kitchen!!!
Bed room
Other View
Papaya! Yum!
Dudley the dog
So here it is!!! We made it safe and sound...more pictures on my facebook!!! =) I'll post more later. Today our first guests arrived so Andy and I had to figure things out in a jiffy...It was kinda embarrassing how much we questioned ourselves, still figuring things out! We had two days of orientation and a tour of the area! There is so much in walking distance which makes things alot easier. Already I have learned that you have to buy baking soda at a pharmacy...not in grocery stores. Milk and yogurt come in bags...weird. The cheese here is affordable but interesting...I like it though. Its HARD to find seasonings that I like. (Italian mainly) Um, the food here overall is EXCELLENT, especially the breads!...
Thank you for your prayers! =) More to come later!
Mindy
The Santa Cruz guest home!! Nine total rooms/apartments plus our house...
The wonderful yard...with TONS of plants and Papaya trees!
The door in the corner is our house...
Here it is! Our first actual house...
living room/dining room- Even after unpacking our four suitcases the place still looks empty. :) Lots of space for us!
Kitchen!!!
Bed room
Other View
Papaya! Yum!
Dudley the dog
So here it is!!! We made it safe and sound...more pictures on my facebook!!! =) I'll post more later. Today our first guests arrived so Andy and I had to figure things out in a jiffy...It was kinda embarrassing how much we questioned ourselves, still figuring things out! We had two days of orientation and a tour of the area! There is so much in walking distance which makes things alot easier. Already I have learned that you have to buy baking soda at a pharmacy...not in grocery stores. Milk and yogurt come in bags...weird. The cheese here is affordable but interesting...I like it though. Its HARD to find seasonings that I like. (Italian mainly) Um, the food here overall is EXCELLENT, especially the breads!...
Thank you for your prayers! =) More to come later!
Mindy
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Uh, Miami??
Ok, so we're half way through our big move down to Santa Cruz! The whole thing is a bit funny... We made the flight from Wichita to Dallas, then spent the next 8 hours in the Dallas airport!!! We asked for an earlier flight but apparently, they don't do stand by seats with American Airlines anymore... ? So, after eight hours got bumped to about 9.5 hours, we knew we'd be lucky to make our connection in Miami going to La Paz. And...yes, we did miss our flight in Miami...we ran to our gate just in time to see the walk way being pulled back. :/ BUT I was SO happy to get to spend the night in a cozy bed! I know thats sad...but its true. American Airlines paid for the hotel and meals...so all is well! We had to wait 24 hours for another flight, so we will be leaving Miami this evening on a 10:45 flight to La Paz, Bolivia. I think its about a seven(?) hour flight...then from La Paz to Santa Cruz! We'll arrive at around eight o'clock tomorrow (Sunday) morning...
Flying with a bi-lingual person is SO FUN!!!! The majority of airline workers were Spanish speaking...and so he really really really helped things move along! :) Just a little fun fact... Oh, and we got to meet my mom in Dallas for lunch...she left later from Wichita on her way to California so we got to bring her a Happy Meal from MacDonalds at her gate! That was fun and made saying goodbye a bit easier.
Well, I guess thats it for now, thanks for your prayers guys!
-m
Flying with a bi-lingual person is SO FUN!!!! The majority of airline workers were Spanish speaking...and so he really really really helped things move along! :) Just a little fun fact... Oh, and we got to meet my mom in Dallas for lunch...she left later from Wichita on her way to California so we got to bring her a Happy Meal from MacDonalds at her gate! That was fun and made saying goodbye a bit easier.
Well, I guess thats it for now, thanks for your prayers guys!
-m
Thursday, June 17, 2010
We're In Kansas!
We have made the first leg of our trip!! We managed to pack everything in two cars...(with the help of some friends)...and head to Missouri to a Christian music festival that my mom was speaking at. It was WONDERFUL to finally meet my nephew Tristan who joined us with his Mom and Dad. He is the sweetest little thing and I can't help but love him more and more every day! Andy calls little Tristan "T" which makes all of us laugh really hard. =)
After a weekend of helping my mom with book sales, we said some more goodbyes and made the five hour car ride to Rose Hill Kansas where we will be until next Friday! It has been such a good time of laughter with family! We have missed being all together. My brother Jeff, his wife Sarah and their baby Tristan are headed to Botswana Africa next month so we are all busy packing and giving out prayer cards and talking about mission work...it is so bizarre! We will miss this though, that's for sure.
WE HAVE THREE SUPPORTERS NOW!! The number is growing and we feel so blessed! We are sending out our prayer letter sometime within the next few days so if you want one let us know! =) We have quite a lot of addresses already so we'll be busy with that for the next few days!
I think that's about all I have to say except for some pretty awesome praises to report! I already mentioned that we have three supporters. Praise God for that! Also I have got my passport back, which allowed us to send in for our Visa's, which we received in the mail end of last week!!!! So, we're all ready to go! The only thing left to do is to finish packing, send out our prayer letters, and say our goodbyes. It will be especially hard to say goodbye to little Tristan because I know he'll be so much different next time I see him!
Pray for us!!!! We still need it so much!! Things are falling into place but right now, we're facing the reality of it all...its hard not to think about all the unknowns...But God is GOOD and He'll get us through!
Crossover Festival in Missouri with Tristan!!!
I LOVE this kid...
After a weekend of helping my mom with book sales, we said some more goodbyes and made the five hour car ride to Rose Hill Kansas where we will be until next Friday! It has been such a good time of laughter with family! We have missed being all together. My brother Jeff, his wife Sarah and their baby Tristan are headed to Botswana Africa next month so we are all busy packing and giving out prayer cards and talking about mission work...it is so bizarre! We will miss this though, that's for sure.
WE HAVE THREE SUPPORTERS NOW!! The number is growing and we feel so blessed! We are sending out our prayer letter sometime within the next few days so if you want one let us know! =) We have quite a lot of addresses already so we'll be busy with that for the next few days!
I think that's about all I have to say except for some pretty awesome praises to report! I already mentioned that we have three supporters. Praise God for that! Also I have got my passport back, which allowed us to send in for our Visa's, which we received in the mail end of last week!!!! So, we're all ready to go! The only thing left to do is to finish packing, send out our prayer letters, and say our goodbyes. It will be especially hard to say goodbye to little Tristan because I know he'll be so much different next time I see him!
Pray for us!!!! We still need it so much!! Things are falling into place but right now, we're facing the reality of it all...its hard not to think about all the unknowns...But God is GOOD and He'll get us through!
Crossover Festival in Missouri with Tristan!!!
I LOVE this kid...
Friday, June 4, 2010
Our most productive day yet!
Today started out a little rocky... Andy has two more days of work but this morning it was three...and we both just didn't want to face another day of getting things done!
I got up, headed off to work, then headed to my doctors appointment and proceeded to get four vaccines! Yellow fever, Typhoid, Influenza, and Hepatitus A. I had only planned on getting the Yellow fever because that's what I needed for my visa, but the nurse was very persuasive. I have a tendency to be like my mother and can't say no. :) Needless to say my arm is KILLING me right now!!
The rest of the day is a LONG LONG tale of me trying to get money orders to send to the Visa company, forgetting my debit card pin number, traveling BACK to work because one of my schools had an early release, attending a surprise baby shower, FINALLY getting something to eat, going once again BACK to work to do my regular routes and then going to the post office to mail our Visa package to be reunited with my passport that we are waiting on. WOW, what a day...and meanwhile Andy was at work the whole time. =)
Today was also SO relational!!! Even though the morning was a complete maze, I was SO encouraged to go to a baby shower for one of my dear friends. It finally has hit me that I'm saying goodbye for awhile. Also, this evening after the post office saga ended, I got to go see a sort of mentor of mine who has blessed me beyond belief with her friendship!! I will miss both these women terribly!
Some LONG TIME family friends from my childhood in the Philippines showed up here today! We had supper with them and they finally got to meet Andy! I was so proud to introduce him to my "Uncle" Lance and "Aunt" Laura!
We are SO BLESSED with our friendships and family! These past few days have been AMAZING for us to just spend with the people we love and will miss. Its not like we're saying goodbye forever but it still makes you wonder if our lives will really cross again in a year...We have built SO MANY relationships here and just need to look forward to coming back and reuniting with all these wonderful people!
Here are some pictures of some of the many friends we will miss...The Crisostomo family has been such a blessing to us! These are some of their youngest members...
Paul and Connie got married a day before us and are great friends of ours... =)
Love Chicago trips with the girls!
Andy's friends in front of our school...We'll miss this old building too...
Oh I guess I should just re-cap...right now we are waiting on my passport. Now that all our other visa stuff is ready, (vaccines and money orders) all that can be sent in together as SOON as we get my passport back!!!! So, pray that this all gets done before we leave! We are leaving Wisconsin on Wednesday to meet with my mom! Its getting close!
I got up, headed off to work, then headed to my doctors appointment and proceeded to get four vaccines! Yellow fever, Typhoid, Influenza, and Hepatitus A. I had only planned on getting the Yellow fever because that's what I needed for my visa, but the nurse was very persuasive. I have a tendency to be like my mother and can't say no. :) Needless to say my arm is KILLING me right now!!
The rest of the day is a LONG LONG tale of me trying to get money orders to send to the Visa company, forgetting my debit card pin number, traveling BACK to work because one of my schools had an early release, attending a surprise baby shower, FINALLY getting something to eat, going once again BACK to work to do my regular routes and then going to the post office to mail our Visa package to be reunited with my passport that we are waiting on. WOW, what a day...and meanwhile Andy was at work the whole time. =)
Today was also SO relational!!! Even though the morning was a complete maze, I was SO encouraged to go to a baby shower for one of my dear friends. It finally has hit me that I'm saying goodbye for awhile. Also, this evening after the post office saga ended, I got to go see a sort of mentor of mine who has blessed me beyond belief with her friendship!! I will miss both these women terribly!
Some LONG TIME family friends from my childhood in the Philippines showed up here today! We had supper with them and they finally got to meet Andy! I was so proud to introduce him to my "Uncle" Lance and "Aunt" Laura!
We are SO BLESSED with our friendships and family! These past few days have been AMAZING for us to just spend with the people we love and will miss. Its not like we're saying goodbye forever but it still makes you wonder if our lives will really cross again in a year...We have built SO MANY relationships here and just need to look forward to coming back and reuniting with all these wonderful people!
Here are some pictures of some of the many friends we will miss...The Crisostomo family has been such a blessing to us! These are some of their youngest members...
Paul and Connie got married a day before us and are great friends of ours... =)
Love Chicago trips with the girls!
Andy's friends in front of our school...We'll miss this old building too...
Oh I guess I should just re-cap...right now we are waiting on my passport. Now that all our other visa stuff is ready, (vaccines and money orders) all that can be sent in together as SOON as we get my passport back!!!! So, pray that this all gets done before we leave! We are leaving Wisconsin on Wednesday to meet with my mom! Its getting close!
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Packing Packing
Its very difficult to imagine this little apartment being completely EMPTY by the end of this week! We have only lived here six months but we have built so many memories here. The first time I shed a tear over this whole moving thing was when I packed away all my decorations above the cabinets. My mom helped put all that up there and she put twinkle lights all around it. It was so inviting an beautiful. Now its completely empty up there. Just made me a bit sad...
Andy is still working quite a bit and worked all this weekend which made it a bit difficult to get the things done we had really hoped to do together. So I did as best I could with hoping I packed his stuff in the right places. :) I'm sure we'll have a few discussions later about what got packed where. He is SO GOOD about keeping me motivated and relaxed. It is so easy for me to get overwhelmed with the job at hand and he just reminds me of the goal and then I feel better. Just a little bit at a time. Everyday we get closer and closer!!!!
We have been so blessed to be able to take all our storage down to my Mom's house in Kansas between two cars. One of our friends is taking a load down for us and then our car "Billy" will have the rest of the load. (We like to name our cars). Our mattress, tv and air conditioner will be lent out to some WONDERFUL friends who were kind enough to help us out! We are so blessed to have friends around willing to help! This feat would not be possible without them!
Continue to pray that everything will get done in time! We need to get my passport back (We changed my maiden name) and then send in to get our Visa's. We have our tickets now for the 25th of June! We'll be leaving Wisconsin the 9th of June and then spending the weeks before we leave down in Kansas at my Mom's house! =)
Oh, here are some more packing pictures. Please don't judge our packing style. haha
Oh so dramatic...
This is a bag that Andy bought for me back in 2007 before we were even dating. =) I used it all through Bible School for my computer...Its pretty trashed now and so I had to part with it...another sad moment.
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