Well...

Well, this blog once a day for a year isn't working out very well. It is really hard to catch up...Nicaragua got me a little off track, so I have revised my statement. I will blog at least 365 entries before this time next year. I forget the date that I started, but by that date. You know, it is really odd to be home after such a trip. Things in America are so very different than things in Nicaragua. It is more fast-paced and things are just "easier." By easier, I don't mean better.

I just mean more convenient. So, I wonder. Is convenience good or bad? Do I rely so much on things that are convenient that I don't know how to just roll with the punches (so to speak)? I get so inconvenienced by the smallest things. The Internet is slow, my cell phone doesn't call quick enough, the line is too long, etc.etc.etc. Sometimes I am really good about relaxing and taking things as they come, but more often than not, I get worked up over things that do not matter.

BB.

March 23--Day 6

This morning I woke up feeling better than yesterday morning--just more stuffy. I was sad to see that we had to have breakfast in the basement again, but it was tasty. Again, I was very thankful for Dr. Amy's Dayquil. When we got to school, some of the girls immediately started trimming the back of Building 3 and the sides of Buildings 1 and 2. These girls have really worked hard at painting, and I am really proud of them! Even though we probably weren't supposed to, we also began rolling the backside of Building 3. I helped Summer and Kim take some pictures for students for their sponsors. They were SO cute! Oh My! I SO want a Nicaraguan child--they are the most beautiful children I have ever seen. Summer and Kim are taking good pictures of the children because the usual sponsor photos look like mug shots. Recess today was super short--which made me really sad. Gilesa (the same little girl from last year who I held while she cried), ran to me at recess, and I held her for a minute or so, and then we played various games with the kids. It is always a blast! After recess, I really got to painting on the backside of Building 3--Feeling rather accomplished, I was very much looking forward to lunch. Well, that feeling of accomplishment didn't last long because we ran out of paint...completely out of paint! And, we still had one more building to go. We didn't think we did, but we did have one more. So, we took a break for lunch--PB&J! :) And, we decided to start with new paint and new rollers and brushes after lunch. After lunch, Simmer took some of us to the neighborhood right by the school. We walked around and gathered up the children of the neighborhood, and we went to the middle of the neighborhood. The boys all played soccer, and the girls drew and colored. I drew with Rosita for most of the time, and she told us all of the words and numbers she knows in English. She can count to 10, and she can repeat almost any word you tell her. She is very smart. The neighborhood...the kids of this neighborhood--one of the poorest in Leon--are some of the happiest and most content people I have ever met. It is not because they want for nothing; it is because God has blessed them with a spirit of contentedness. It was awesome being in the kids' neighborhood! After we left the neighborhood, we came back to finish painting We only got to go in the neighborhood because we were waiting on new supplies, and I am so glad we had to wait. So...once again, we painted and painted and painted and painted some more. And, we finally FINISHED! :) We didn't paint the red trim at the bottom or the silver bars, but we painted all the green! When we left the school, we were filthy! It was really nice to take a shower. I called mom and checked in, took a shower, and left for this Eskimo restaurant. It was in the middle of Leon--downtown. I was a little wary of it before we got there. When we did arrive, my skepticism was confirmed. The kids were approached by 2 different males from the community. The younger male had been sniffing glue, and he made all of the girls very uncomfortable, and the older man was wanting money or food. It made me really sad that this little boy was high. Yather said that it was a common habit of young kids on the streets--even as young as 7 years old. I think it is good for our kids to see things like that, just like it is good for them to see people living in ways that are different from their own, but it was an incredibly uncomfortable situation. After we ate our dinner, we got ice cream--I got coffee ice cream, and it was wonderful, but I have never been so happy to be back on the bus! I held Yather's little girl all the way back to the hotel, and we danced, and it made me miss Aidyn. I really wish I could communicate better with Yather's wife. She is so sweet. Before bed, we had a devo by the pool. The stars were so incredibly bright. They were so beautiful. I wish the stars could be seen like that in Jackson--in our backyard! Cynthia and Summer played Banagrams for a few minutes. Cynthia played English and Spanish words. After devo, we played some more Banagrams, and then we had to send James back to the house to get the air mattress pump. Summer spent the night with me!!! :)

BB.

March 22--Day 5

I woke up feeling awful today--absolutely terrible! My head hurts, and my throat hurts. I think my lymph nodes are going to explode out of my neck. We got to have breakfast at the hotel, but they stuck us in the basement instead of the hut outside--BOO! The good was still good, but I was so looking forward to eating outside. After breakfast, we came to the school. We got approved to paint a little while the kids are at school, so the girls got straight to work. Hannah is a trim champ! She trimmed the whole bottom part of the back of Building 2, and it was awesome!

I was really happy that Amy had some Dayquil; it helped soooo much, and I took it approximately every 4 hours! Recess was wonderful. I just sat and held a little girl named Lesley almost the entire time. She just hugged on me, and I held her and loved her. It was a wonderful and magnificent feeling. I would like to take her home with me!! :) Maybe I could put her in my suitcase... :) After recess, we just painted some more trim and then started getting ready for lunch. Lunch was hotdogs and PB&J. After lunch, we got to painting some more. We got SO much more done that yesterday. We almost finished the first 2 buildings. Carly and I finished painting the end of Building 2--It was in the sun, and the neon green paint did not help the vision problem--every time I looked up to paint, I was blinded. Tyler lent me me his sunglasses--which helped A LOT, and Chris showed up just when I didn't think I could paint anymore, and he finished the wall for us. And, he game me the last 1/2 of his Fresca. :) :) I tried really hard today to have a better attitude and be more adult-like, and I think I did a better job. After we left the school, we went back to the hotel to shower and get ready for dinner. Emily came to me and told me that my mom wanted me to call her. I thought it was weird, but I went and called her anyway. Turns out, it was bad news, but I would rather leave this out of my blog. After we got cleaned up. we went to the Bracken's house for supper. They made us taco salad, and I have to say that I was not looking forward to taco salad. It is just so hot that I wanted something light, but the taco salad was muy bueno! After we ate, we had devo outside. We brought chairs out, and we circled up, and we turned off the lights. We just sang and talked. I really liked that our bus driver--Carlos--had dinner with us and sat with us during devo. We all did the best we could to communicate with him, but it was very difficult for me. We sang one of the Spanish songs we sort of know during the devo, but as soon as we started singing it, his phone rang, and he got up to get it, so...we sang it again when he got back. :)

I talked to mom when I got back to the hotel, and I tried to call Brittany 3 times. I just ended up leaving her a voicemail. But, I did get to talk to Elizabeth--which made me feel better about being away. I played some Banagrams, and then I went to sleep. The Benadryl helped.

BB.

March 21--Day 4

So...today was a pretty eventful day. First off, we had to get up super early because our bus was going to be here at 6:45 to take us to school. The Monday morning ceremony starts at 7:10, so we wanted to definitely make sure and be there for that. Well, we all got up and were ready at 6:45...no bus. So, me, Amy, and Steve had out coffee in the little cage room and thought that surely the bus would be here soon. 7:00...7:05...7:10--still no bus. So, finally Kennedi looks out the front window of the hotel and says, "I think this is our bus." Well, she was right. Our bus had been sitting (parked) on the street behind the bushes. We don't really know how long the bus had been here, but we were extremely late for school. When we finally arrived at school, we were very pleased to find out hat they had not done their Monday morning ceremony yet! YAY!! So, we did get to see it. The boys almost immediately began working with the concrete, and the girls did various things. We found out when we got to school that Xiomara didn't want us painting the building while the kids are in school...which is understandable, but it also makes it difficult to get anything done. So, a few girls helped me sort the stuff we brought, and then I helped Summer hand it out later. It was so nice to get to see their Monday morning ceremony. I love to watch them and hear them speak in unison. Today, they all sang the National Anthem as well. I found Jorshua (Eddie's Jorshua). He has really grown since last year, and he talked/played with me more this year. I got to help him with his classwork--drawing diagonal lines, and he let me help him. He even played with me at recess. Also, at recess, I brought back the uno, dos, tres game. :) Once again, it was well-received. Recess is always really fun. The kids have so much energy, and it is so much fun to play with them. They are so fun and loving--they want us. and it makes me happy. I like to be wanted. After recess, the kids went back to class, and some of us tried the leftover food the kids had for lunch. It was cheesy noodles and rice--it was muy bueno! :) When the kids left, we all went to the Bracken's for lunch. Amy and I fixed PB&J or ham/turkey and cheese sandwiches. We hung out for a little while, and then we headed back down to school. The girls started getting all set up to paint. And, the boys went back to working with the concrete. We had (were told) to mix like 1/2 a gallon of paint thinner per 1 gallon of paint--that, my friend, was disastrous! Not only did it not make the paint go any further than normal, but it also made the paint so thin and runny that it dripped EVERYWHERE!! We had so may girls painting that we were all over each other and in each other's way. We were dripping paint on each other, and we soon realized that the paint doesn't budge until you put paint thinner on it...which really burns unless you put it on carefully with a rag. Amy opened the bigger bucket of paint, and it was not mixed AT ALL. She had to stir it by hand for a very long time. It was just a disaster. Finally, we made an executive decision to not mix the paint with the thinner anymore, and that made things a little easier! It was pretty relieving when the bus arrived and our day came to a close. :) We all washed off with paint thinner, and we headed back to the hotel for showers. After showers, we loaded the bus and went to eat at...HOLLYWOOD PIZZA!!! :) YAY! We, Chris and I, sat with Summer and Cynthia. It was a lot of fun--except the TV in the pizza place kept playing inappropriate music videos. The pizza and the company were wonderful! I did hit my leg on the table when I got up to get another piece of pizza, and it left a surprising mark. After we ate, we stopped at On the Run and got some ice cream, went back to the hotel, and had devo around the pool. I don't think I have mentioned it yet, but I keep getting sicker every day. What started out as a scratchy throat has now turned into a full blown sinus/cold ridiculousness! My head feels like it is going to explode off of my body, and I might feel better if it did.

BB.

March 20--Day 3

This morning, James and Kim made us pancakes, and they had some of that AHH-MAZZZIIING pineapple! :) Also, I was super blessed to have a cup of coffee. I stood on the porch for a little bit and drank my coffee. I just looked out over the school grounds, and I prayed that God would make me feel something. I feel like I have been super self-absorbed for the first part of the tip, and I know that it is the devil. I have been looking forward to this trip for a while..well, since we left last year. I know that the devil is trying to use this to make me stumble. I have felt so whiney--I'm hot; I'm hungry; I'm tired...see the trend? I'll give you a guess; it all contains the word "I." So, I just prayed this morning that God would overcome that and touch me--touch my heart.

So, right now I am sitting at church. Of course, I can't understand a word this wonderful, Christian man is saying. I am sure he worked really hard on his lesson, and I am sure it is excellent; I just wish I could understand him.

We ended up leaving church after class and communion. And, we went to eat at Charley's. Just like last year, I had chicken with BBQ sauce, rice, beans, potato salad, tomato and cucumber and lettuce and break. And, just like last year, I took a picture of my plate. :) When we left Charleys, we went back to the Bracken's house to pack up our stuff and head to the hotel. After all the kids called their parents to let them know we were safe, we left for...THE BEACH! I was a little apprehensive about going back to the beach this year. I mean, last year's trip to the beach was almost a complete disaster. But, James and Kim talked us into it, so we gave in and decided to give it one more try. The funny thing is that our bus pulled up right where we had last year--right where I said, "NO WAY--we are NOT getting out here." The exact same place! Can you believe that? But, there were no dirty dancers and no drunk people with naked babies. I guess that they only do those awesome things on holidays like Easter. Because Easter is the perfect holiday to celebrate all things pagan and worldly. Despite a few scantly clad women in partial bathing suits and a man in a speedo--an older man-- the beach was nothing like last year. Atlantic, Pacific--doesn't matter--the ocean is always beautiful. Chris and I climbed the rocks (in flipflops) to the top where a cross was. It was so incredibly beautiful up there. The wind was blowing, and every once and a while, the waves sprayed us. Ahhh...it was breathtaking. After we climbed down and then back up, James did a devo for us on top of the rock. Then, we sang. At first we were a little timid--there were several Nicaraguans up there with us--most of them half-naked. As we sang, there were more people who came up to watch the sunset. After we sang a few songs, we circled up and sang some more. It was absolutely wonderful! We stood on top of that huge rock, the ocean spraying and wind blowing, sunsetting--and we sang praises to God. I haven't praised like that in a long while. After the sunset, we went to a restaurant at a hotel on the beach. We ate and looked at the ocean. Chris bought me some really pretty seashell necklaces. I ate fried shrimp, and it was really good!

BB.

March 19--Day 2

As I write, we are on our way up the Cerra Negro volcano. We keep getting stuck in the sand. The driver and the worker with him first try to shovel, but twice the boys have had to get off the bus to push. As of right now, we are going on pretty well, so maybe we will make it all the way up this time.

I am now siting 1/2 way up a volcano--Cerro negro. Me and some of the kids decided to stop and turn around. It is unique and really beautiful.

So...our bus in air-conditioned. Can you believe that? I mean, that is awesome because it is so hot, but it seems like something we really don't need. I like that while we are here, we are not so privileged. I really wanted our kids to rough it more than having an air-conditioned bus. You would think that I would really be excited about the air-conditioning, and it does really make things more pleasant. I just don't want to feel spoiled at all while I am here.

We just came back down the mountain, and we are waiting on the bus. The kids are playing mafia, and I desperately with I knew enough Spanish to talk to our bus driver. He seems like a really nice guy.

After we left the volcano, we headed back to the Bracken's house. We hung out and ate lunch. I ate leftover veggie pizza from the night before. We came to the school after that and saw some of the little kids who had just finished watching Veggie Tales...in Spanish. Our kids played with the little kids who were still there. I didn't stay very long. I was really hot and tired from climbing 1/2 a mountain. :) I hung out for a little while at the house--put on some more sunscreen. I am bound and determined to not have hives this year. The other kids came about 3:00 to watch Veggie Tales. They were all so sweet. It's not that I forgot how sweet they are, but it is so amazing how beautiful these children are. After the show, we all played with the kids outside.

I found out today that all the neighborhoods surrounding Nicaragua Christian School are named after Nicaraguan poets. I like that. Do you think that it is ironic/weird that some of the poorest people in Leon live in neighborhoods named after poets?

We played the Wii before bed. I wasn't going to play, but it just looked so fun that I decided to anyway. They were playing Just Dance. After I played 2 or 3 times, Chris and I challenged Steve and Amy to a couple's dance off. They won the first one--it was some mashed potato song. We won the 2nd one--"Cotton-Eyed Joe." Somehow :) they won the 3rd one--"U Can't Touch This." It was hilarious and so much fun! I was completely pooped when we were through. I was very happy I finally beat Matthew--he's really good. We played a game of Banagrams in our room and turned out the lights to sleep. More photos to come...
BB.

March 18--Day 1

We traveled today. We had to leave school at 2:30 am. Katie, Kennedi, Meghan, and Hannah spend the night with us Thursday night because they live so far away. All I have to say about that is that they giggled all night. We had to go to bed around 10:30 or so, but all in all, I think Chris and I got about 45 minutes or so of sleep. Travel went smoothly. Chris has to go through one of those X ray machine things at the Memphis airport...so they all got to see him naked. :) I tried to get some sleep on the plane, and I did somewhat, but it isn't quite the same as in a bed. When we arrived in Managua, Kim and James, Kora and jaden, and Summer were there to meet us. 3 of Summer's family members who were visiting were there too. When they picked us up, we went to eat. Yather took us to eat at Pollo Nancy's. It was really good chicken. Very juicy, and the rice was great! Day one of chicken had begun...

We went to a new market in Masaya. I really liked this market--maybe even better than the one in Managua. It was really beautiful out front. Stone entrance. We had about 45 minutes there. I bought a head band and a new wooden ring to wear as my wedding band. I really like it because it is Nicaraguan, and it will always remind me of here. You know, I was wearing the rainbow plastic one, but this one is so much better and sentimental. After we left the market, we went to the Masaya Volcano. We rode up the mountain our bus, and we got out at the top to look around. Just 3 days ago, they were worried that the volcano was about to erupt, but it didn't, and we got to visit it. :) It was a really beautifully tragic view. We also go to walk up some stairs to get a better view. I'm really glad I had my camera because it was breathtaking and unique. When we were finished and we had walked down the stairs, I HAD to go to the bathroom--SSOOO badly! Yather showed me where the bathroom was, and I proceeded to go there. They say a picture is worth a thousand words--so...see picture.
After the volcano, we rode back to Managua to drop off Summer's family and then headed back to Leon--well not back because we hadn't been there yet, but you know what I mean.

We all stayed at the Bracken's and Summer's house. Katie and I shared Kora's bed, and Amy and Carly slept on air mattresses in the floor. Steve and I blew up all the air mattresses. The ones we bought from Amazon had "built-in" pumps...yea, that was a bunch of bull. You had to step on it and pump it with your foot....but it was extremely ineffective. We had Hollywood pizza for dinner and PB&J. I can't remember when I have been so tired. Oh yea--shower. I have never been in a shower with such low water pressure. I don't even know if you could call it water pressure. I don't know. If you stood in one specific area of the shower, you could get wetter. So, I tried to keep my body contorted into that one area. I had to just stop worrying about getting the water in my mouth. I just wanted to be clean. Bed. Glorious day. More pictures to come...better than toilet pictures.

BB.