Terri L Tindall

Mornings In The Brumley Cottage

2012-02-01T12:24:00.000-08:00

With three new kids and two of those being babies, things have really changed around here. I had opportunity to be in the Brumley cottage two mornings this week.

The houseparent, Mirian, had two days off and was leaving yesterday morning. These are her first days off since the new ones arrived. I went to her house at 5:45 yesterday. Josue was crying. Mirian had fixed a bottle and he had taken part of it, but wanted no more. I picked him up and cradled him in my arms. He stopped crying, but did not go to sleep. I walked around talking and singing to him. I think he liked that. At 6:15, some of the other kids began to arise. I changed Yair's diaper and got him dressed for the day. Adonis and Guadalupe changed themselves and I help Cris and Any change. I got the girls' hair combed. Josue pooped. I changed him and almost immediatey peed. So, I changed him again. At some point in time all five of the older kids got in Yair's baby bed. Olman woke up and was crying. At 7:00, when Pamela and Maira arrived, I had a crying baby in each arm. I was thankful for reinforcements. Pamela took a baby for a couple of minutes. Pamela left with five of the kids for devo. I never did get socks on Yair. I guess in the whole scheme of things, that is not horrible.

I had Olman and Maira had Josue. I fixed a bottle for Olman and fed him. Then he needed changed. After I changed him, I took all the diapers that were wet and poopy and went to the pila. In the hour and a half I had been there, there were five diapers. I was thinking at this rate, we will be out of diapers before noon. I washed the diapers and got them on the line.

Pamela and the kids returned from devo. I got breakfast ready, which was only peanut butter sandwiches, and got it on the table. The kids ate and began their chores. Reina arrived at 8:00. Was I ever glad to see her. She got a great big hug from me. After two hours and fifteen minutes, I felt as if I had worked for days.

This morning I got there at 6:30. Poor Maira. She had not slept at all because Josue had not slept at all. There were baby bottles every where. The older kids were up getting ready for devo. I took Josue for a while and managed to comb the girls hair and get socks on Yair this morning. Olman slept through it all.

When the kids left for devo, Maira washed all the baby bottles and took the diapers from the night to the pila. I thought I had Josue asleep. Olman woke up and began crying and Josue decided to cry with him. Maira and I each had a baby. Olman had to eat and we finally got Josue to sleep. Maira rushed to the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth.

Breakfast, chores, more wet and dirty diapers. I am getting pretty good on that pila. I think I could use a nap.

Terri

Did You Hear Me Breathe A Huge Sigh Of Relief?

2012-01-30T14:20:00.000-08:00

It has definitely been one of those manic Mondays.

Now that there are seven kids in the Brumley cottage, Mirian needs one of the housekeeping staff in her house. We put Reina in there to help Mirian. Reina had to be off today because her son had surgery. Yesterday, I found a relief person to help Mirian today. Normally, I would do that rather than paying the wages for a relief person. But, I was working in the big house today and Nicole was leaving for Teleton at 6:30. There was not an option but to hire someone.

I was feeding the kids breakfast when Dilica came rushing in saying her daughter was really sick and she might have to leave early. Dilcia comes on Monday morning, cooks and cleans all day, stays in the big house with the kids on Monday night and works all day Tuesday before leaving. My mind went into high speed. Dilcia started the laundry and started lunch, which I greatly appreciated. If I was there by myself with 12 kids, I did not want to have to cook lunch and try to supervise the children at the same time. Dilcia is always efficient, but she worked faster and harder today.

AT 3:00, Dilcia found out her daughter was needing an emergency appendectomy. At least, today's work was done. Again, normally, I would stay in the big house tonight but Mirian is leaving in the morning for her days off. I have to be in her house from the time she leaves until her relief person arrives. There is an hour overlap in the morning and I could not be in both houses. I tried calling the person who does nights for vacations and days off and got no answer. I was quickly formulating plans B, C, and D. I wasn't sure what I was going to do, but I had to have someone to be in Mirian's house at 5:45 in the morning or spend the night in the big house. Foturnately, plan B was able to come to work tonight.

Just as I was resolving that and going on to the next crisis, there was a horn at the gate. One of the kids ran to get the key and opened the gate. In drove, Karen, Dorian and Korbin. Oh yes, I am sure you heard the sigh of relief I breathed.

Karen is the best children's home director any children's home could ever hope for. I am very glad she and Korbin are well. I am glad they got to spend Christmas in the states with Karen's family. And I am even more glad she is home.

Terri

Beach Trip 2012

2012-01-28T18:45:00.000-08:00

I had talked about a beach trip with the kids while school was out. Originally, Marc wanted to do it January 2. I vetoed that. That had been too much excitement with Christmas and New Year's. I thought we left it at we will go the last Saturday in January or the first Saturday in February. The next thing I knew, the kids were telling me we were going to the beach on January 28.

Yesterday was visitation. I was questioning the wisdom of planning a beach trip the same weekend as visitation. Emotions were all over the place yesterday morning. Excitement about going to the beach. Excitement about visitation. Fear that mom wouldn't show up. And it was one of the worst visitations ever. I was hoping that the beach trip would temporarily ease the pain of visitation.

You can't believe how much work it is to do a one day beach trip. Maybe, that is why it has been two years since we went.

I told the kids I would get them up at 5:45. We would have devo at 6:00, breakfast at 6:30, chores and leave at 7:30. I was up there long before 5:45. When I touched the doorknobs of the rooms at 5:45, they began to pop out of bed. I sure don't see that at 6:45 other mornings. At the end of devo, I said we would eat, and do chores. Then I said the homework this morning was really long and really hard and as soon as everyone was finished, we would leave for the beach. I expected everyone to groan and argue with me. Instead, they sat in stunned silence. When I said, "just kidding", there was a roar that could have been heard at the beach. Chores were done in record time and only one person had to redo his chore.

We were delayed leaving because the van had a flat and that had to be fixed. The van and white mitsubishi pulled out of the gate at 7:50 for what should have been a two hour drive to the beach. Matt was driving the car and I was with him. Any puked. We stopped. I unloaded all the little kids out of the car and we cleaned everything up. I don't do puke very well. I was a nervous wreck with the little kids out of the car. When we are finally loaded and on the road again, the car overheats. To the side of the road again. And Any pukes again. And Jackson pukes. We need dramamine for the next trip. We found out there were two pukers in the van as well. Adventures in Honduras. When we finally got enough water in the radiator and got the engine really cool, we had no more problems. We arrived at the beach about an hour later than expected. The kids were amazingly patient.

We went to Amapala, which is an island. We have to take a water taxi, which is my least favorite part of the whole trip. Loading 21 kids and all of our stuff in and out makes me sick. I am so afraid of a kid jumping off the side or tipping the boat.

Loading the water taxi

Most of us have been to this beach before. As we rounded the bend and started to enter the cove, there is a big cheer as the beach comes into sight.

After unloading the boat, I breathe a huge sigh of relief. And the fun begins. I let them have fun and wasn't too anal about everything.

Cris liked the sand much more than the water

Some men had a big catch of stingrays and were cleaning them. The kids loved this, especially the boys.

Someone had given us some money to do something special for the kids as a whole. We decided this was the day to do that. We bought a fried fish dinner at the beach for all the kids and the staff that went with us.

Little Miss Any was an eating machine

I can honestly say everyone enjoyed this treat. I did. The fish was seasoned to perfection.

We went back in the water for another hour. Then the 40 baleadas we brought with us were devoured and the snacks the kids had purchased with their allowance. I was thinking everyone will be puking for the trip home.

The last time we went to the beach was two years ago. We went with the whole town. On Holy week. It was so hard to keep up with all the kids. This was so much fun today. There was hardly anyone else on the beach or in the water. It was a great Casa day. It was a long day. But a fun day. Some didn't make it far after we got back to the cars.

I think we all wished we could have done this.

After we got home, I let my employees start showering and feeding the kids. I knew they would soon be in bed. I went to the pila and rinsed a couple of tons of sand out of the wet clothes and then threw everything in the washer. I decided everything else could wait until tomorrow to be cleaned and put away. And now it is time for me to go to bed, too.

Terri

Finished - The First Pressed Earth Block House

2012-01-26T18:01:00.000-08:00

Last week, I kind of indicated I would be posting pictures of the first pressed earth block house as it was built. That was my intention. With the three new kids at Casa, two of them two months old. I got overwhelmed with kid stuff. Like feeding and bathing. So, here are a few pictures. The first house was finished today. How awesome is that?

The finished house

This house was built for the caretaker at the farm. You, too can be part of building houses like this. Groups are coming all summer. Pick a date.

Terri

A Big Smile

2012-01-24T15:10:00.000-08:00

This one of my two favorite little girls in the whole world. I am so blessed to see this little smiling face every day. Just in case anyone is curious, the other favorite little girl lives in Little Rock.

Terri

A Great Big Thank You.

2012-01-23T18:33:00.000-08:00

Last year, 2011, was a great year. Another great year in Honduras.

Seventy five wood houses were built. Ten of the new three bedroom houses, and six block houses were built. A church building, a Sunday school classroom, a feeding center, and two playgrounds were built. Twenty one food containers were received and distributed, five containers of medical supplies were received and three containers for Honduras Hope teams and Casa de Esperazna were received. More than 1500 were served in medical clinics and over 5000 families were fed. People in the dump were fed at least once a week. There are at least 40 new Christians. Four new children were taken into Casa de Esperanza. And so much more. First and foremost, may God be praised.

And then, a great big thank you to each one of you. You came and you built. You distributed food. You served in the medical clinics. You packed the containers. You sponsored the children at Casa. You generously gave. You gave when Casa had some special needs. You gave for houses and for food. When some matching donation and grant challenges were issued, you rose to meet the need and met those challenges. You lifted us up in prayer. You encouraged us. You kept our cups filled.

Marc often says we have the best jobs in the world. And we do. But you support us in the most generous of ways. We could not do what we do without each and every one of you. We are proud to call you our partners and friends.

Terri

Victories and Defeats

2012-01-21T15:42:00.000-08:00

Every one alive has good day and bad days. Good weeks and bad weeks. Then, there are those weeks that are both good and bad. That definitely was this one. Good and bad.

We learned a little boy at the dump was killed after he was hit by a garbage truck. Oh, how I wish kids did not have to be in the dump. Cars in and out of the shop. Yesterday, Jonathan was driving the green truck, the one Marc calls the burro. The drive shaft broke and the car rolled. Praise God that everyone is and will be ok.

In addition to the passengers in the car being ok, three more kids were rescued and brought home to Casa de Esperanza. What a week it has been adjusting to babies. Little Cris, who was so scared and confused on Tuesday, was jumping on the trampoline. And laughing. It was music to my ears.

The first pressed earth block house was started and will soon be completed. People were fed at the dump on Wednesday. Today, 8640 manna pack meals were delivered to the feeding center in Nueva Oriental.

The defeats and the victories this week have both been large and small. It has been quite a week. We all are tired. And,very soon I am going to bed so I can get up and start all over tomorrow with the daily victories and defeats. I thank God that He leads me through all of this.

Terri

The Ventriloquist

2012-01-20T19:04:00.000-08:00

Every morning except Sunday, we have a morning devotional. I want the kids to learn to worship God, but I also want them to behave and follow rules. I don't normally allow very much nonsense during devo.

In devo, we sing songs, learn one Bible verse a week, and end with a prayer. We have a new verse every Monday and everyone of the kids has to say it everyday. There is some grace when a child is new. Nicole was gently, patiently saying a few words of the verse to Cris and encouraging him to repeat what she said. He turned his head and would not look at us. Nicole kept encouraging, when all of a sudden this high squeaky voice began to repeat every word Nicole said. I jerked my head around to see if Cris had decided to say the verse. Adonis was sitting next to Cris and had a huge grin on his face. Adonis was saying the verse for Cris. And he was not moving his lips at all. Everyone was just about to bust out laughing. Only when I busted out laughing, everyone else did. It was really funny and it was ok for everyone to laugh. Nicole said,"thank you Cris. Adonis, it is your turn." Adonis did not say, I just said it; in his normal voice, he said the entire verse.

And that little bit of silliness in devo set the tone for a really good day.

Terri

Welcome Home Josue, Olman and Cris

2012-01-17T11:41:00.000-08:00

Two weeks ago IHFNA called and asked if we could take more kids? Since they called Nicole, she knew she could not make that decision. But, if she could have, she would have said yes without a second thought. No matter what she thought or the rest of us, if Mirian was not up to month old twin boys and a four year old boy, then the answer was no. Like Nicole wished she could have, Mirian said yes without a second thought or a doubt.

Knowing IHNFA would take its time, we did not know how time we had; but we knew we had a lot of work to do. The fourth bedroom in the Brumley cottage was being used a pantry to store canned goods. That room had to be emptied, which was no small task. Fortunately, most of the kids thought it was big fun. I did not think it was near as much fun as the kids. We did it get moved. Mirian wanted to move her room to the now empty room. She felt she could hear all the kids better there.

With soon to be seven kids in the house, Mirian wanted to start cooking all her meals in her house. That meant an extra trip to the grocery store and extra food deliveries to get her house stocked and ready to go. We also needed formula and diaper pins and really small plastic pants and baby bottles. The entire place was buzzing. The kids were talking about babies coming. Dilcia wanted to help Mirian make her grocery lists. Everyone time we asked Mirian is she needed something, she beamed us a smile causing her whole body to glow.

I never thought IHNFA would have these kids ready in two weeks, but we had to be ready when they called. We found out yesterday afternoon late that we could get the kids at 10:00 today. I told Mirian and again she smiled a great big smile. She said she was so ready and so excited and that she might not ever sleep again, but she was ready.

Nicole and I left here at 9:08 and got IHNFA right at 10:00. Unbelievably, they were ready for us. They told us to sit down. They brought the kids in one by one. Of course, we didn't stay seated long. We jumped up to start holding and hugging babies.

First came Olman,

then Josue,

and last, but not least was Cris

The twins, Olman and Josue, are almost two months old. They were born on November 25, four days after Karen and Dorian's, Korbin. Olman weighs six pounds and Josue weighs 4 and 1/2 pounds. I have never seen a baby that small. He felt like a baby doll. Their mother is unfit, whatever that means. They were removed from her at birth. The mother gave one name. One goes by the middle name and one by the first name. The mother has no visitation rights. Almost everyone has visitation rights.

Cris is four and a half years old. He is big four year old. And has the cutest little dimples. He seems pretty bright. He was a little uncertain about leaving with Nicole and I. Marc told him there was toys at our house and he was ready. He was fascinated by everything as we drove him, the cars, the trees, the mountains. His mother left for Mexico. His grandmother and aunt have visitation rights.

When we arrived home, we had a large welcoming committee. Everyone. They crowded around the car. I got little Josue out of the car. I was beaming, too. I handed him to Mirian. Nicole got Olman. I knew everyone was wanting to see the babies. I helped Cris out of the car. He took my hand and I thought he might never let go. We showed him the toys, but that was not enough to settle him. He was scared to death. I carried him and hugged him for a while. We all walked into Mirian's house. She was eagerly anticipating the arrival of her new children, and a welcome sign greeted them. Mirian and Reina (the employee) had lunch on the stove. It was a warm and inviting place in which to walk. And three lucky little boys get to call that home.

Two little bundles of joy.

Part of the welcoming committee

Cris was so scared and upset. Understandably so. We took him outside to see the trampoline. Even that was not very comforting. He has the biggest adjustment of the three.

Nicole trying to comfort Cris.

Please pray for all of us, the new kids as they adjust, the other kids as they adjust to new ones, the staff as there is now more work for all of us and for Mirian. She now has two one month old babies, a two year old who is like a one year old, a four year old that is a like a two year old, a four year old who is like a four year old, a seven year old who is like a four year old and Adonis who is a handful, or two, by himself. Thanks for all the love and prayers.

Terri
p.s. If you would like to sponsor a child, let me know. We have four with no sponsors and several that are just partially sponsored.

January 15, An Exciting Day

2012-01-15T18:19:00.000-08:00

For some people January 15 is the day quarterly tax payments are due. Not exciting. For some, it means a day in a long weekend, for others it is payday. Those things are exciting. But today in Honduras is an exciting day.

We have talked about the blockmakers since August. There was a lot of miles traveled to see the blockmakers, and a lot of money raised to buy them. Then, there was a lot of waiting for the container to be released. After church and lunch, a group from Dallas began digging the footers for the first block house. Along with starting the footers, they just had to fire up the machine and make a few blocks.

Made with dirt and five per cent concrete, these blocks are much stronger than adobe. The walls on these houses will be thick.

I won't be at the house site this week, but I do hope for pictures to share as the house is constructed.

We have dreamed about and talked about building better houses for years. Today marks the beginning of that dream becoming reality. Yes indeed, an exciting day.

Terri

Food Container

2012-01-13T19:25:00.000-08:00

Marc and Milton have been trying for weeks to get two food containers released from customs. Suffice it to say that Marc and Milton are both frustrated with the system right now. After several days of promises saying the containers will be released today, one of two containers was released yesterday. If you heard a loud roar coming from the south, it was the rejoicing as this container was released and unloaded.

There was 260,000 servings of food on that container. Today Matt and Luis and some of the same people that unloaded that container yesterday, began to unload some of the same cases out of the warehouse today so it could be delivered to hungry people. About six thousand five hundred meals were delivered to Los Pinos and 43,200 were delivered to the IHNFA feeding center. This feeding center feeds about 2500 kids a day. Three and a half weeks of food will certainly help.

Praise God that this container was finally released and that hungry kids could immediately start receiving food.

Terri

College-Bound

2012-01-11T17:08:00.000-08:00

As the work groups have become more numerous and the ministries have grown, there has been need to hire some Hondurans. Some work for Marc year round and some only work when groups are here. The people Marc has hired are hard workers. They also love what we do and they love the people that come here to work. Kelin cries when every group leaves. Sometimes, the people that come to work fall in love with the workers, too. Once you know these people, it is an easy thing to fall in love with them.

Some groups and individuals love three of the workers so much, they are helping send Karol, Kelin and Luis to college. One group is raising the money to send Karol and Kelin and one individual is helping Luis. All three have registered for classes and begin next week. All three went to the dump with Marc today. Marc said it was so fun to listen to them talk about their classes and starting college.

A great big thanks to the people involved for providing opportunities about which these guys dared not even dream.

Terri

Spring Cleaning

2012-01-09T18:52:00.000-08:00

We have had a long streak of cold, windy weather. Today, we awoke to the sun brightly shining. The hot, dry weather is on its way. But, today was just about perfect. Not too cold, not too hot. And no wind.

I have had a task in mind for this afternoon for several days. That container from Fairview Heights came and Marc brought a lot of stuff for Casa out here. It had been piled in the dorm. We opened some of it. But today was the day to clean that dorm. I finished my shift with the kids at 1:00 and headed to the dorm. I hardly knew where to start. I opened the door and the windows, enjoyed the sunshine and got busy.

At some point in time, I walked back to Casa to get a broom. The kids that are 10 and over do not take a nap and they have chores after lunch. Today, Dilcia had them moving furniture and sweeping. Some were washing windows and some were washing walls. It was just that kind of day.

More than once, as I hauled stuff to the garbage bin, Denis was up there dumping things, as he was busy cleaning the outside of the property.

Inside of Casa looks great. Dilcia and the kids did a good job. Denis made good progress. I got further in the dorm than I thought I would. Another two or three days like today, this place will be perfectly clean.

I am so thankful for the sunshine and the perfect weather.

Terri

Sunday Mornings

2012-01-08T16:06:00.000-08:00

Once upon a time, I thought it was a great accomplishment to get three kids up, dressed, fed and out the door in order to arrive at church on time. If you think that is something, you should try getting 21 ready. Thankfully, most of the time, things go fairly smoothly.

We start getting the children up at 7:00. On Sunday, we have a completely different routine than other days. Everyone has to dress for church and make their beds before coming to breakfast. Some do chores first, others eat first. Some have to be dressed in nonchurch clothes because they are really messy eaters. They then have to be changed after eating. After the kids and the chickens are fed and all the chores are done, they get to put on music cd. This is usually a tranquil time, but not always.

All of the Casa washing machines are broken and we are using the one at my house until the others are repaired. I took a big basket with me last night when I left and washed last night. Marc came up around 8:00 and I took some more down and got it going. At 9:00, the housekeeper still had not arrived. I disrupted the routine by telling everyone we were going to hang the clothes. Most of the time, they groan and complain about having to hang the clothes. Everyone jumped up and excitedly ran outside. We got those clothes hung in no time. Then they rushed off to church.

Getting 21 up, fed, dressed and chores done is nothing compared to sitting in church with them. Before church even started they were trying to get outside and steal the oranges off the trees. And then, there is always some, usually Katy and Jose that have to sit with an adult because of their behavior. If I ever go to another arcade, I should be an expert at that whack-a-mole game. I don't whack anyone, but there is always a head popping up from somewhere. I am reaching and telling them to sit. I am shushhing. There is no worship for me. This morning we stood for communion. After I took mine, I was deep in prayer when the kids began to pull on me and tell me it was time to sit down. I completely lost that prayer thought.

I breathed a big sigh of relief when the children left for Sunday school. Almost immediately, I could hear three of them outside playing. I got up and went to see why. After herding them back to class, I was able to listen to most of the rest of church. While I may not be worshiping much, I sure hope that someday the children absorb what we want to absorb.

Terri

Rosy, The Kind-heart

2012-01-06T15:03:00.000-08:00

Rosy is one of the obstinate ones. And she can throw fits like no one would believe. But, when it comes to babies and animals, she has a very kind and generous heart. She always wants to love and carry a baby. If we see a small animal, she always wants to pick it up.

This morning behind the dorm, an animal had fallen in the stream. Most of the kids thought it was a dog. I wasn't sure. It might have been a little goat. The little thing was covered in the muck from the stream and was shivering. Everyone stood and watched and then began to walk away to start playing again. I knew what Rosy was thinking and began to tell her no. She was not going in that mucky stream and she was not going to touch that animal that was obviously sick with who knows what. She made one of her famous faces at me. I told Mirian I did not trust her and we had to watch her closely. She wanted to save that animal so badly.

Eventually, the animal got out of the stream. I still could not be for sure what it was. Once it was out of the water, Rosy did not really want to get near it. She could tell it was sick. She just wanted to save it.

Sometimes, she frustrates me to no end, but I love that kind little heart.

Terri

December Newsletter

2012-01-03T18:44:00.000-08:00

Casa de Esperanza

Making a difference...one child at a time

P.O. Box 9222

Columbus, MS 39705

Amigos de Casa,

We hope everyone had a merry Christmas and we wish for you a blessed and happy 2012. It has been a busy two months at Casa de Esperanza.

The children finished their exams, thus finishing another school year. Most of the children did well. Maryuri needs to repeat first grade. Cindy has to go back early and retake her exams so, hopefully, she can move on to fifth grade. We are undecided about Doris and Reina's schooling next year. All the other children will move on to the next grade.

We have moved to a summer schedule, which is a bit more relaxed. We are working on reading, writing, and 'rithmetic each week. Friday is English day. Nicole is doing a special art project each week. We hope to do a special outing before school starts in February.

As we were preparing for a our big Thanksgiving feast and Karen was preparing to leave for the States to have her baby, she went into premature labor and gave birth to Korbin Xavier Guido on November 21. Congratulations to Karen and Dorian.

Karen developed a blood clot in her leg. She is in Ohio now. Please pray for Dorian, Karen and Korbin.

We continued our preparations for Thanksgiving and enjoyed a grand feast. The work group that was here that week joined us. We had over 50 people here. The kids all took part in the preparing and the eating. Some learned that the best part of preparing is sampling. Thanksgiving is not a Honduran holiday. We do not teach the American story of pilgrims and Indians, but we do try to teach the kids to be thankful for all things. Before we pray the children have to say at least one thing for which they are thankful. Meals here are prepared and served to the children. They must eat everything that is served to them or see it again for the next meal. Only on Thanksgiving day can they fill their own plates, putting on the plate what they really like, and they can fill their plates as many times as they like. It is always a day that is awaited on with eager anticipation by both the children and the staff. Perhaps, some go a little overboard, but it is only once a year.

Following Thanksgiving, we immediately had the graduations. Sixth grade graduation is a huge deal in Honduras because so few make it that far. This is our first year to have sixth graders graduating. Pamela and Brayan both graduated this year. Each sixth grader could only have 2 people with them. Marc and Byron went with Brayan and Pamela and Dorian went with Pamela. Marc took the honorees to Chili's after graduation. Both Brayan and Pamela agreed that was the best part.

A few days later, Guadalupe graduated from kindergarten. Kindergarten graduation is almost as big as sixth grade graduation. All the girls had to have lilac dresses and white sandals. Of course, we all thought Guadalupe was the prettiest little girl there. Matt was the padrino for Guadalupe. There was a dinner and a dance. Matt had to dance with Guadalupe. Only sixth grade graduates get treated to Chili's.

Congratulations to Brayan, Pamela and Guadalupe.

As we all watched the romance of Byron and Pamela develop and bloom into full blown love, we all got to participate in their wedding. We spent weeks being measured for dresses, trying on the dresses, buying white sandals and black shoes and black pants and learning a song and many other things. The wedding was beautiful, as were the children. They behaved beautifully as well. I was so proud of them.

We all wish Byron and Pamela a long and happy life together.

The kids were able to enjoy two Christmas parties this year. Banpais, a local bank came and gave a huge party, complete with candy, pinatas, and gifts. The kids had a great time. Then our staff gave the children a surprise party. The staff paid for all the food and candy. I think our children realized they can have fun without receiving presents.

We decided to have a no-toy Christmas. Thanks to many generous donations, we were able to buy each child new jeans, one shirt, and one pair of shoes. It was a wonderful Christmas for everyone.

The very best Christmas present of all was when Any and Jair arrived on December 20. We thought at that point, there was no hope of getting them before the end of the year. These two sweet ones have come from extreme poverty and lag behind their age level physically, mentally, and emotionally. There is not only adjustments for the new children, but the other children and staff as well. Please pray for all of us as we adjust.

We continue to be blessed by your continued prayers, financial support and words of encourgement. You are the best ministry partners any organization could ask for.

Sincerely,

Terri Tindall

terriltindall@yahoo.com

Happy New Year

2012-01-02T14:04:00.000-08:00

After Nicole and Katy got home Saturday evening, and everyone loved on Katy for a while, we got down to the business of a party. We burned our old man and shot off our fireworks around 8:00, not midnight. We have some little ones that needed to go to bed.

Happy kids around a campfire

The burning of the old man

The kids were whooping and hollering and having a grand old time. Some of the employees were just as excited as the kids. After the old man burned, the little ones were off to bed and the rest of us were off to watch movies until midnight. We watched movies, drank coke, had popcorn and marshmallows. There was a massive amount of popcorn consumed and only one coke was spilled.

Around 11:00, Nohemy, Katy, Reina and Josue could wait no longer. They went to bed and went to sleep. Some of the other kids were really tired, but would not give it up. At midnight, when the rest of the town began to shoot fireworks, some of the kids ran outside to watch. I allowed that for a few minutes. There was no problem getting kids to sleep that night. Just a problem yesterday morning getting them up. And Kathy did not have a problem at nap time yesterday. There were still some sleepheads this morning.

After church, lunch and nap, I finished working at 4:00. I came down here to my house. Matt, Nicole and Haley were still here. They were staying to eat black-eyed peas with us. Haley and I made the cornbread. I said I have to get the cornmeal. Haley said, "go get Camille, go get Camille" and clapped. She was just as happy when she found out she was helping me make something.

We enjoyed a quiet evening feasting on black-eyed peas and Aunt Jemimah cornbread. I was exhausted. I went to bed at 8:00.

Here's wishing everyone a happy 2012.

Terri

Katy

2011-12-31T15:21:00.000-08:00

Our sweet little Katy is a fun-loving little child. Her laughter often fills the air. Or the house. She is a tiny, spunky thing. And she has no fear. Katy being Katy was climbing somewhere she was not supposed to be and fell. For those of you who know her, you know she is a bit of a drama princess. Our initial thought was, "she is ok." It quickly became apparent she was not ok. She was crying and sobbing in a way I have never seen her cry. It was a lot more than her being a drama princess. Kathy and I felt for bumps and found none. She did not stop crying and was holding her head. She told me the light hurt her eyes. I could not tell if her eyes were dilated or not. Her eyes are so dark. She said she felt nauseous and Nicole scooped her up and raced out of here. Nicole took her to the hospital in Ojojona. They examined her and said she needed a CT scan in Tegucgalpa. Nicole stopped at the front gate for her purse and more money and drove to Tegucigalpa.

Nicole got to the hospital and called in tears saying she did not have enough money because a CT scan was double since it was a holiday weekend. She also said Katy was worse and was vomiting and could not stay awake. We usually can't get Katy to go to sleep when we want her to. Marc and Matt were in Tegucigalpa and I called Marc to take Nicole some more money.

When Nicole called, we were having lunch at Casa. After I got off the phone, I told the kids that Katy was really sick and we needed to pray for her and asked Jackson to pray for her. Jackson said a very kind prayer. I looked up and Fernando, Katy's big brother, had his head on the table, sobbing. I picked him up and hugged him tight, saying God would take care of Katy. He shook his head yes, but I don't think he believed me. I comforted him and he sat down at the table to eat. I had two hysterical employees that were crying and loudly praying. I got Fernando settled and saw the tears streaming down Sisi's face. I picked her up and hugged her tightly. I told her we had to pray. I wish I could say I was in total control. With Fernando crying, Sisi crying and two crying employees, I began to cry as well. When almost everyone was through eating, Cindy starting crying. I loved on her a while. Sometimes, the kids act like they hate each other. Not that I ever want someone hurt, but it was refreshing to see them so concerned.

I herded Haley, Any, Jair, Lupita and Adonis over to Mirian's house for naptime. And waited. I finally heard from Nicole and the CT scan was fine but they wanted a doctor to see her since she could not stay awake and had vomited twice. At 3:00, Nicole called again and said they would dismiss Katy. At 4:30, I heard from Nicole one more time and they were just leaving the hospital. We have to watch Katy closely and wake her every 6 hours. I know the routine well. I have done it with one of my kids before. More than once.

It has been a long day. For everyone.

I am quite sure Katy will be ok and will soon be bouncing around again. Until then, please pray that she recovers quickly.

Terri

Visitation

2011-12-30T14:42:00.000-08:00

Once a month for two hours, on the last Friday of the month from 1:00-3:00, sixteen of the kids get to see their parents. It is a tension-filled day for the kids and the staff. Today was no exception.

The kids shower and put on their best clothes for mom. Many of them make cards or gifts to take to mom. Lunch is served and visitation begins.

When Karen and Nicole were leaving Casitas Kennedy at the end of visitation in September, Karen was told we could no longer have visitation there. Karen and I discussed our options and decided the church building was the best place to have visitation beginning in October. We no longer have to leave at noon in two cars and go two separate directions for visitation. For that I am thankful. We drafted a listed of rules and made the parents sign them.

Today at 10:30, Nohemy and Josue's mom showed up at the back gate asking when visitation was. Nicole told her it was today at 1:00 and that she had to come to the front gate. Her kids have not seen her since visitation in June. Six months, without a word. And really not many words today.

I walked with Nohemy and Josue to the church building. They went running to her. She did not hug them. She sat near them and did not smile and said very little to them. They finally got bored and got up played with each other. The mom had a new baby that is not very well and she gave him all her attention. I was not very happy, but tried to not let that show. She could have at least hugged those kids. They were so glad to see her.

In addition to Nohemy's mom, at 1:00, Doris, Katy, Reina, and Fernando's mom and Jose and Ana's dad were there. At 1:20, Adonis and Guadalupe's mom came. The other kids are waiting at Casa and it was a long wait. Adonis's dad showed up later and wanted to bring every relative he had. Nicole told him visitation was only for parents. In the meantime, there were kids all over the property. Not our kids. They have to stay inside the church building. Some claiming to be Adonis's relatives. We asked them to leave. My stress levels were off the charts.

At 2:45, Jackson's mother and Any and Jair's mother showed up. Cindy and Maryuri's mom and Brayan's mom never did show. Matt was at Casa during the long wait. Of course, there were tears. Kids were all dressed up with presents they made for mom. Waiting and waiting. And mom doesn't show.

Sisi cries every month because there is no one to visit her. I don't like visitation for the ones who have it and the ones who don't. I have already warned the evening staff, there may be more tears and bad behavior tonight. I would cry and act out too, if my mom didn't show.

Please, please pray for these little ones whose hearts are hurting so badly right now.

Terri

The Blockmakers Are Here

2011-12-29T18:19:00.000-08:00

Today the container from Fairview Heights was finally unloaded. It has only been in the country since November 4. The people that release containers can think of all kinds of reasons to keep containers from being released, thus accumulating a lot of demurage and fines. I think the reasons to not release are so demurage and fines will accumulate. We have promised every day for almost two weeks that the container for sure would be released today and when today ends, they say first thing tomorrow. Well, today was finally the day.

The two blockmakers were on that container, meaning we will soon be building block houses. There were lots of backpacks. School will be starting in about six weeks and those loaded backpacks will come in handy. There was lots and lots of things for Casa de Esperanza and for Manos Felices and the daycare in Moaloa.

It was a really good container. Thank you Fairview Heights Church of Christ. There was a lot of hard work that went into packing and loading the container. Your hard work is appreciated and you will make a difference in the lives of lot of people.

Terri

Christmas Service

2011-12-26T19:45:00.000-08:00

Since I had let my whole staff off for Christmas, I was a bit worried about having Christmas, breakfast, chores, and getting 21 kids ready for church by 9:30. It was a huge relief to me to find out church would be at 4:00, followed by a program and dinner.

Nearly all of the kids were in a skit. There has been practice several days. I am always glad the church building is on the property. When our kids participate in something, they are so excited. After lunch, the big kids hurried through their chores and did a very thorough job with them. Then they started showering. They fixed each other's hair and tried to ready themselves. Cindy changed clothes three times.

Nothing ever starts on time in Honduras. Even so, if 21 kids and the adults we need a lot of seats. I like to leave about 15 minutes early. And off we went with everyone in their new Christmas clothes.

It was a packed house.

There were several skits and songs. Some people that I would have never dreamed would get up in front of the whole church and sing, did.

Karol was smart enough not to give any of our little kids a real candle.

Jackson was the good Samaritan

And Adonis was the guy that got beat up. Adonis enjoyed his role way too much.

Pamela and Kelin

Brayan was the devil, a part he played too well.

At 8:00, there had been no supper. Our kids eat at 6:00 and go to bed at 8:00. All of the little kids were falling asleep in our laps. We had to leave. We fed our kids macaroni and cheese and tortillas. Everyone was happy with that.

Even though we did not stay until supper was served, we had a great evening. I love watching the kids perform. I am thankful for those that took the time to work with the children.

Terri

Christmas At Casa De Esperanza

2011-12-25T19:41:00.000-08:00

Weeks ago, I decided to let the whole staff off the afternoon of Christmas Eve and the morning of Christmas, with one exception, the night guard. With nineteen kids, I questioned my judgement, and my sanity, more than once. With the arrival of the two new babies earlier in the week, I was sure I had lost my mind. One employee had not spent Christmas with her family in 15 years because she never had time off. I just could not do that to my employees. We started early Saturday morning being short-staffed. By 2:00, it was just us.

Nicole cooked chili for supper. Not traditional Honduran Christmas food. The big kids liked it. The little kids didn't. We had cokes and cookies and watched Christmas movies. Our plan was to start putting kids to bed around 10:00. They got pretty obnoxious and we sent to bed a bit sooner. Nicole slept in Miran's house with four kids and I slept in the big house with 17. I didn't sleep. I stayed in the big house. After I was fairly sure everyone was asleep, Matt and I carried the presents in and placed under the tree and got the stocking stuffers. Most of the stocking stuff was already bagged and that was easy.

It was really late when we finished. I should have gone to bed. But I was reading a really good book and sat down in the playroom to unwind and read a while. Before long, I heard a door open and saw Jackson in the hall. I got up and he ran. I didn't catch him, but I caught Fernando. When I walked Fernando back to his bed, Jackson was pretending to be asleep. Then I heard them again in an hour. After that, I heard every little noise. With the wind blowing hard, there were lots of little noises.

We decided we would start at 6:00. I barely spoke buenos dias, when kids were hopping out of bed at record speeds. Everyone stampeded from the bedrooms at the same time. They were so excited with the stockings.

Then we got down to serious business. The presents under the tree.

Everyone got a new shirt,

new jeans, and new shoes.

Some of the girls got Converse and some of the boys got soccer shoes.

Brayan had asked for black cowboy boots. And what it took to find those boots would be a blogworthy story all its own. I had Matt put that box aside where no one could see it. All the gifts were open and I said, "oops we forgot one and it has Brayan's name on it. All the kids cheered. He is so proud of those boots.

Church and dinner was at 4:00 this afternoon. All the kids knew, without a doubt, what they were wearing to church. There were some fine-looking kids at church.

It was a wonderful day. The kids had fun. I am really glad I let my employees off. I am exhausted. I kind of feel like I have been torn to shreds.

I will definitely be ready for Tuesday.

Terri

Adjustments

2011-12-22T18:07:00.000-08:00

Having two new little ones is a time of adjustments for everyone. Josue's world has been rocked. He has been the baby for over two years. This morning, Any grabbed me and said, "hola, mommy." Josue came running toward me saying, "my mommy." Josue never runs toward me for a hug. Haley's world has been rocked as well. All the girls were chasing her and in her face wanting to hold her and play like she was a baby doll. No one is in her face now. They are all in Any's face. When Haley asked Daniela to sit by her, she said no and headed Any's way.

Jair fell asleep mid-morning. It has been a long time since we have had a morning napper. Mirian had to go inside with him, leaving us a bit short-staffed for a while. Any and Jair take far more supervision than anyone else right now. Jair is still sad, confused, and scared. A little bit more food has to be prepared. A little bit more laundry has to be done.

I am beginning to wonder why I let the entire staff off for Christmas eve night and a good portion of Christmas day.

Every time there are new kids, there are adjustments for everyone. These things are small compared to knowing these children have a home. This, too, shall pass. In the meantime, prayers appreciated.

Terri

Surprise Christmas Party

2011-12-21T19:09:00.000-08:00

Saturday afternoon, two of my staff called my aside and wanted to talk to me. I never know what to expect. I usually expect the worst possible thing. This time, they told me they wanted to do a surprise Christmas party for the kids and were asking my permission. Of course, I said yes.

They planned everything down to the last detail and provided soda, cake, chips and candy bags. They paid for all of this. None of them make a huge amount of money. I was very touched. And, they managed to keep it a surprise. Kathy came to work at noon, carrying a cake. Everything was orchestrated this morning so that she could hide it without anyone seeing it.

At 6:00, when the party was suppose to start, I went to Miran's house. Mirian was busy tying and hanging balloons and Dilma was making candy bags. After everything was just so, the Christmas music was started. I have to laugh when I hear "I'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas" in Honduras. With the music playing loudly, Kathy led the kids into the house.

First, the girls sang a song. The girls get to clapping and dancing. They are fun to watch. Then, the boys sang a song. The boys sang "The Little Drummer Boy." They were far more serious than the girls. It was obvious both groups had rehearsed these songs.

Josue does not know he is not as big as everyone else.

The furniture was cleared and the living room became a dance floor.

One of my kids had to read "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever." That same year, it was being produced in community theater and I bought tickets and we went. It was a story of the six worse kids in the world. They were all brothers and sisters and they ended up in the community Christmas pageant. Tonight, I think I saw the best Christmas pageant ever and it was not performed by the worst kids in the world.

Fernando was the donkey and Daniela rode him. For a pretty long ways. I was laughing so hard. Josue was Baby Jesus. I am not sure which was funnier, the donkey or Baby Jesus. Josue did not want to stay there and kept getting up. Fernando (the donkey) kept pushing him back down and telling him to stay there. The three wise men came bearing gifts of big blocks, little blocks and baseballs.

The kids were so excited that they were allowed to listen to music while they ate. After they ate and had cake, they were settling down to watch a movie. They were given candy bags and told no one could eat the candy until tomorrow. I am glad I am not on duty tonight.

I was proud of the kids when most of them remembered to tell everyone thank you.

This was a really fun evening. I love my employees.

Terri

The Very Best Christmas Presents

2011-12-20T19:15:00.000-08:00

In August we took a sister/brother duo, Any (Annie) and Jair. They were here less than two weeks when their mother showed up at the gate with papers from the judge saying she had custody of them. Everyone was heartbroken, especially Mirian, the housemother in the house which they lived.

Within another week or so, the mother was seen begging on the streets and had taken the kids back to IHFNA saying she could not keep them. The people at IHFNA were angry. They asked us to take them back, but some more paperwork had to be done. IHNFA said they were going to do a home visit and investigate the mother and all sorts of things. We even volunteered to help them get some of it done because we wanted Any and Jair back. Some of those things got done and some did not.

There is a huge financial crisis in this country. Many people at IHFNA lost their jobs and there was not vehicles available to do home visits and all sorts of stuff. Typical red tape stuff. Last week, Marc told the people at IHNFA it was a shame that those kids were not with us since where they were is understaffed. They agreed.

When it gets this close to Christmas, we have learned we don't expect kids to be placed or containers to be released or anything. This morning, Nicole was on duty and ran down here for just a few minutes to start a load of laundry. She had barely walked in the door, when Cindy came down and said Any and Jair were here. We looked at each other and then ran. Sure enough, there was Any and Jair with six people from IHNFA. They had driven here in one of those vehicles that was not available for home visits and such.

When we walked in, the whole house was buzzing. The staff and the kids and the IHNFA people were gathered around the kids. Mirian was beaming. Absolutely beaming. She was as radiant as any mother after childbirth and seeing her child for the first time.

There was a stack of paperwork. I asked if the kids were permanent placements and if there were birth certificates and shot records. After I was satisfied with the answers, I began to sign and stamp where I was told. The IHNFA people wanted to see the main house and the house where Any and Jair would live. Mirian told Nicole and I thank goodness she cleaned yesterday. Her house is never dirty. Never.

The IHNFA people liked the main house, but they loved Mirian's house. They were shown where the kids would sleep and the bathrooms. They were very pleased. Mirian showed little Any her bed and she hugged it. Then we all went into the living room/playroom. Cindy Portell, I wish you could have seen Any when she was that mural. She ran over and touched some of the animals and just laughed. Good hard belly laughs. She touched the couch and her eyes as big as could be and laughed. Then touched the table and chairs and laughed. I had tears in my eyes. To watch a child so thrilled with a sofa or a wall mural.

Any is pretty outgoing. Jair is really scared and confused. Understandably so. Jair had the clothes he had on, one diaper and one change of clothes. Any had the clothes she had on and nothing else. Her dress was way too short. Her little feet were crammed into shoes three sizes too small. Her toes were curled under.

And we only thought we were nearly through with the Christmas shopping. If I had made a list of all the things I wanted to do, going to Tegucigalpa to the mall would not have even been on the list. But for these two little ones, it did not seem so bad. I waited until Nicole finished her shift and we went together. As I approached the mall I was sure both of us had lost our minds, until Nicole reminded me why we were doing it. We bought brand new clothes and brand new shoes, just like the rest of the kids are getting. It was so much fun. Little Any was thrilled with a sofa. I can't even begin to imagine her on Sunday morning when she has presents to open.

Casa de Esperanza has blankets, but Nicole wanted Any and Jair to have new soft blankets. She bought each one a new blanket. I was so excited to be ready to leave the mall at 5:15. We didn't get home until almost 8:00. Nicole wanted to present the new blankets tonight, their first night here. Mirian had her four kids in her house and they were watching a movie there. Nicole gave Any the new soft, pink blanket and she hugged it and wore it and spread it on the floor and laid on it. She loved it. She was so excited to have her own blanket. Jair was in bed, but not asleep. Poor little guy. He is so scared. He was crying and wanted to be held. I hope Mirian gets some sleep tonight. He was not as impressed with his blanket.

Any will be four in February. She is the tiniest little thing I have ever seen. She is wearing a 24 months. Jair will be two later this month. He is not much smaller than Any. These guys need a lot of love and a lot of prayers.

Having a home and love is the best Christmas present these two little ones could receive. And having them here, is the best Christmas present any of us could receive. Welcome home Any and Jair.

Terri

Summer

2011-12-20T05:49:00.000-08:00

In Honduras, the kids are out of school in November, December and January. Our kids, like most kids, were ready for another school year to end. We had some really good grades and some that could have been better. But what to do with them when there is no school is always a challenge.

Every morning, after breakfast and chores, they have to do math, grammar, or reading. Nicole gets frustrated at little they know, especially in the grammar area. Nicole and I are making worksheets. Some of the older kids are really proud when they can work a few math problems that are a bit harder. Some of the younger kids grumble because they even have to try something a little harder.

They are also learning how to cook and Nicole does an art project once a week. Many of our kids are not very creative and want Nicole to do the entire project for them. This week she thinks she will make gingerbread houses. We will see how that goes.

Ana, Rosy, Brayan and Antonio are going to work on a horse farm every Thursday morning. Another missionary is working with them. John's wife, Marilyn is deaf and they both know sign language. This is an excellent opportunity for Rosy as she is excluded from so many things we do. The four kids getting to do this are loving every minute of it. After they work, John ends the morning in Bible study. I like that.

John also asked Brayan and Antonio to play on a soccer team. They practice on Wednesday mornings and play on Saturday. We talked about it and decided team sports are a good thing. And soccer is king in Honduras. The boys are excited about getting to play soccer.

This morning I let three of the boys go out the house site with Matt. We have a family here this week. Today they are building a house. I figured help was needed on the house and it would be good for the boys to go work. I told them they had to help Matt load the tools and they jumped up and changed clothes and could not wait to go to work. I hope that enthusiasm lasts all day.

Nicole and Mirian take the kids to the park on Saturday morning and one day they played in the spring. We hope to take an all day outing one Saturday in January.

We are trying to keep a good balance between work and play. Summer with 19 kids home all day definitely has some challenges. Pray for the staff and the children as we all deal with these challenges.

Terri

From A Lawnmower Shed To A Home

2011-12-17T15:59:00.000-08:00

Each year many people come to help us. And while groups are here many houses are built. We are constantly looking for ways to improve the houses we build. Jesus said, "whatever you do for the least of these, you do for me." Therefore, we want to give the best we possibly can.

The blockmakers (if they ever get released) will enable us to build a better house. But we know we can't build a block house every where and have no intention of completely giving up building wood houses. We did find a way to make the wood houses bigger and better. Instead of building a one-room, square 16' x 16' house, we discovered a way to build a bigger house that is 18' x 18' and not only has 3 bedrooms, but bunk beds, too. Complete with mattresses. Also, a gabled roof replaces the sloped roof that the old houses had. So far, eight of these new houses have been built. The builders and the receivers like them much better. They cost more and they take all day to build (and I do mean all day), but they are so much better. Instead of being not much more than a lawn mower shed, the new houses are a lot more like a home.

If you haven't already made plans to join us in 2012, I hope you will consider a trip. And, you too, can help build one of these bigger, better homes.

Terri

M & M Tubes

2011-12-15T05:29:00.000-08:00

When we lived in Mississippi, we discovered M & M tubes. Not only do they hold wonderful tasting M&M's, they are the exact diameter to hold a quarter. Or a stack of quarters. We bought them and passed them out to everyone who wanted M&M's. There was one condition. After eating the M&M's, they had to fill the tube with quarters and return it to us. We purchased food to distribute in Honduras. One year we raised over $800.00 in quarters. My bank loved me when they saw me coming.

A group in Joplin, Missouri has taken that idea and run with it. Using M&M tubes, they have raised enough money to support a dump family for one year. The money they raised will keep the four children in school in 2012 and buy some groceries once a month. While the children are in school, the mom will continue to work in the dump to earn what little money she can.

I love M&M's and I love the idea of helping others. What a grand idea to combine the two.

Terri

Bunk Baby Beds

2011-12-12T19:17:00.000-08:00

The daycare center run by AFE (Amor Fe Y Esperanza), the daycare center at the dump, is having more and more children. This is a very good thing. That means less children are being taken into the dump or being left alone while Mom works in the dump. Recently there were 11 new babies that started to come to the daycare center. They did not have enough beds for that many babies. And they did not have room for 11 baby beds.

Marc designed a bunk baby bed.

With some of the dump fund money, we purchased five to give to the daycare center. A local carpenter built them for us. The sides let down so it makes it easy to get the babies in and out.

The folks at AFE were thrilled with this gift. And we are thrilled that 11 more babies are no longer in the dump all day.

Terri

A Sweet Love Story

2011-12-10T20:23:00.000-08:00

This whole year we have watched a relationship develop between Byron and Pamela, our former employee. Being friends with both, it has been fun to watch. In January, before we knew of this relationship, Marc said, "Byron is coming to see us." We were both glad. It only took a day or so to realize Byron didn't come to see us, but Pamela. Byron has spent a lot more time in Honduras than Murfreesboro this year. When Byron left in August, if I was a betting person, I would have placed a bet that I would have considered to be a sure thing that he would not stay gone a whole month. I would have lost.

Upon returning to Honduras in September, Byron immediately asked Pamela to marry him. And she said yes. A wedding began being planned. I got involved in the wedding planning. The wedding was today.

There has been a flurry of activities for weeks with all of the Casa kids being in the wedding. All of the girls had to be measured for dresses. New white sandals had to be purchased. Three pair had to be returned. The boys got new black pants and blue shirts. Then the dresses had to be tried on and two had to be altered. But this week everything kicked into high gear, with my house becoming wedding central. A beautiful four layer cake was made (not by me). Mints were made. Bows. Bride's bouquet. On and on. It was fun. And exhausting.

The kids were so excited. Yesterday, when I returned from the market, Reina had a nail file and was working on everyone's nails. There were dozens of bottles of fingernail polish on the table. And it was silent in the house as there was some serious work being done on finger nails and toe nails.

Kathy, whose day off is Friday, came yesterday afternoon to use the straightener on some of the girls' hair. This morning we had devo at 6:00 instead of 7:00. Everyone jumped out of bed. They were chatty during devo and did not want to settle down for breakfast. After breakfast and chores, we were very busy in spite of the fact that shirts and pants had been ironed, shoes had been polished, hair straightened.

All the boys got dressed except for Josue. He had to wait until right before we left. Hair was gelled. Ties tied. They were one handsome group of guys.

In the meantime, Nicole was busy with the girls. She put on a little makeup. Helped get the pretty new white headbands in hair.

The girls were not allowed to change into their dresses until a few minutes before leaving.

My employees brought their finest clothes with them and everyone changed and we were finally out the door at 9:20 about 15 minutes behind my original goal.

Have you ever seen a wedding with 26 children in it? I had visions of it being a nightmare. It was very sweet and endearing.

Byron and Pamela were very insistent that the wedding start on time because they had to catch a plane to Roatan. Rarely does anything start on time in Honduras. This wedding was delayed because the musicians did not show up on time. The reason they did not show up on time was as they were on their way, the cello was stolen from the the cello player. Who would steal a cello and why? Only in Honduras. He did not come, but the other three musicians did.

Our kids were singing a song. But they also had other special parts in the wedding.

There were five flower girls

Sisi carried the Bible

Marc was given the special honor of walking Pamela up the aisle

and then of performing the ceremony, too.

Byron and Pamela are a beautiful couple. It was a beautiful wedding.

In the U.S., we are used to having buffet line at the reception. Buffet is not something with which most Hondurans are familiar. Trust me, it was a feeding frenzy. And when it was over, I was not sure what had happened. There was not one morsel of food left. Not one plate, or cup or any punch. The wedding cake was inhaled. When the cake was gone, they began scraping the cake plates. And one or two might have even licked the cake plate clean. There are no pictures or words to describe it.

Here's wishing Byron and Pamela a beautiful life.

Terri

Third Annual Jesus Banquet

2011-12-07T20:07:00.000-08:00

Today was the third annual Jesus Banquet.

At least we learned something the last two years. We asked Carnitas to precook some of the meal, but they say it won't taste as good. We didn't know they didn't precook any food until they were picked up and carried to the dump. It took two years to realize they were not going to do it our way. This year, Marc picked them up at 6:00 a.m and took them to the dump. After setting up the equipment, the cooking began at 7:21. That is a.m. That meant serving could begin at 10:30.

Today there was about 1200 people served a wonderful meal. It was a totally awesome day.

Matt decided to take Haley with him. All day yesterday she walked around saying, "Haley feed people." Everyone at the banquet loved Haley. And she did get to serve some of the people. Nicole had to work this morning. She and I left here at 12:30. We both got there in time to be able serve and help. I was so glad to be able to help. Also, Brayan, Pamela, and Antonio left here with the group at 6:30 this morning. I was so proud of those three kids. They worked their little hearts out today. I talked to Brayan. He was very touched by the things he witnessed today.

Nicole and Haley taking a plate to someone.

My friend David, always the servant, never the served.

Things were going quite smoothly until a truckload of cereal showed up.

And then we witnessed the great cornflake riot. We were trying to get people to sit down as we handed the cornflakes to people at their table. But they did not want to sit at the table and wait.

Brayan, heading out to pass out cornflakes.

Matt attempting to hand cornflakes to people. It was crazy.

The great cornflake riot. People were scrambling everywhere. My friend, Trey Morgan said, "it is only cornflakes, not even Lucky Charms."

This little girl was suppose to be holding these cornflakes for her mother. But she opened that box and was having quite a feast.

Haley fed the people until she could feed no more.

Some of the girls that work in the dump donned their very best clothes and came to help us. They worked as hard as anyone. It is a very touching site to see those girls working that hard.

Everyone was fed (and had a box of cornflakes or five) and we had cleaned up and were out of there by 3:30, a definite improvement over the last two years.

It is a blessing to those who served to have had this opportunity. Each plate was served with a heaping dose of love.

Terri

Fiesta De Navidad (Christmas Party)

2011-12-04T17:54:00.000-08:00

There is a bank in Tegucigalpa, Ban Pais, that does something for our children every Christmas. Today was the day. We had one big party today. The group from the bank began arriving around 2:45. They hung balloons on the soccer field and the party began.

First they tried to get they boys to keep a balloon in the air. But the boys could only use their heads to hit the balloon. They were not too successful, but had fun trying.

Followed by a good game of musical chairs.

Sisi and Jackson battled it out until the end

and Jackson won.

Of course there were prizes for the winners of every game.

After everyone was given Santa hats, the next game was to determine who the best Santa for 2011 was.

It was too difficult to choose only one best Santa. Brayan and Nohemy tied in this game.

The next game involved passing a balloon from one set of knees to another set of knees. This was hilarious to watch.

Simon says or as they call it here "The King Says"

No party is complete in Honduras without a pinata. Or two.

The mad scramble when the pinata breaks.

Some made a huge haul.

Cake and soda for all

And ending with presents

There were a couple of badmitton sets, some trucks, a lot of babies and strollers for the girls, and Katty got a drum. We probably need to pray for the employees tonight.

It was fun to watch this unfold. The children had a lot of fun. But there was no doubt in my mind the bank employees had just as much fun. They were snapping cameras everywhere. We do appreciate the employees of Ban Pais hosting this party today.

Terri

Oscar

2011-12-03T18:07:00.000-08:00

It is very sad when we children working in the dump. I wish no one had to work in the dump, especially children. Oscar is an eleven year old little boy. In order to eat, Oscar and his mother have to work in the dump everyday. Oscar was hit by one of the tractors in the dump. His leg and foot was broken. He is in Hospital Escuela. Somehow, the pins were found for the leg. But not the foot. Oscar was going to lose his foot. Marc bought the pins for the foot.

Four hundred dollars is a lot of money. But most of us cannot comprehend needing that amount of money to save our child's foot and not being able to come up with it. In Honduras, $400.00 is more money than people make in a month. More money that people who earn minimum wage make. No one who works in the dump makes any where near minimum wage. To Oscar and his mother, it seemed the only choice was to have the foot amputated.

Marc went to see Oscar today. He is scared. Really scared, as any 11-year-old boy would be. With big tears in his eyes, he asked Marc to pray for him. Of course, Marc did that. The surgery is going to hurt. Let's all pray for Oscar as he faces surgery on his foot and praise God that he will not have to have that foot amputated.

Terri

Kindergarten Graduation

2011-12-02T17:32:00.000-08:00

It has been a busy week. We started the week with sixth grade graduation and today was kindergarten graduation. Kindergarten graduation is not quite as big a deal as sixth grade graduation. But almost. Our only kindergarten graduate this year was Miss Lupita.

Lupita, the princess of the day.

Matt was Lupita's padrino. There is always a limited number of seats for graduation. Of course, Matt went. And Nicole and Mirian also attended this big event. Marc got to go, too. He was the padrino for the whole school, which meant he sat at the head table, made a speech, and had to buy a present for everyone in the kindergarten.

Lupita was very excited to have Matt escorting her. Matt did not mind doing this, but he was not so excited about having to dance.

Lupita and her padrino, Matt

A few of the graduates

Lupita and her diploma

After graduation, dancing and dinner, Lupita was one excited, tired little girl. Congratulations Lupita.

Terri

A New Water Tower

2011-11-29T16:00:00.000-08:00

We often have water shortages. We have a well and we have towers with huge tanks sitting on them so we can store water and, hopefully, have water most of the time. A couple of weeks ago, the guard came to the door and told Marc there was a problem with one of the towers. Marc went to look. And he wasn't kidding. There was a huge problem. One of the towers was about to collapse. It had two tanks on it. Since it was Saturday morning, there wasn't a lot that could be done, but waiting until Monday would have been dangerous. Marc kicked it into high gear and did what had to be done to prop up and support the tower until Monday.

On Monday, the first thing that had to be done was drain the tanks. That was sickening Knowing how valuable a resource water is, and how often we do without it, made me ill to think of all that water being drained. We salvaged what we could. Then the old tower came down.

This is what the top of the tower looked like and why it was about to collapse.

Everything was disassembled and, of course, took far longer than anyone expected, taking more than a week to rebuild. There was welding and running for more parts and more welding. When completed, the new tower was no where near the concrete pad on which the tower was to be. So, what's the problem? There wasn't one in the minds of the workers. The huge heavy tower was carried to where it needed to be.

Then it was uprighted on the pad and set it place. And then, a few days later, the tower was complete, the tubes reattached, the water hooked up, and we had water again.

Terri

Sixth Grade Graduation

2011-11-27T14:34:00.000-08:00

People in Honduras do not receive the same amount of education as we do in the United States. The majority receive no education. For those that do, completing sixth grade is a huge accomplishment. Therefore, sixth grade graduation is a big deal in this country and cause for big celebrations.

This was Casa's first year to have sixth graders. And we had two that graduated today, Brayan and Pamela.
Preparations for this day have been underway for weeks. We do not like to wait until the last minute to get things done, but Friday night no one knew where the ties were. I was going to send Matt to buy two ties on Saturday, but before that was necessary the ties appeared. Pamela started last night getting ready. Ironing her shirt. And her hair.

After graduation, Marc took Brayan and Pamela to town to eat at Chili's. Neither one of them have ever been to Chili's. They were looking very forward to that treat.

Congratulations to Brayan and Pamela.

Terri

Fire, Fire, Fire

2011-11-26T10:06:00.000-08:00

It has been a busy week. It is quite possible that this soon after surgery, I might have done too much this week. I awoke feeling exhausted and knew this was going to have to be a day of rest for me. Matt called at 7:30 and said one of the employees was here for her check. I forced myself out of bed and got dressed. Before I could even get out the door, Matt called and said he made a mistake, Elena wasn't here. I was thinking what wasted effort, but just a few minutes later, I was so thankful I wasn't still in gown.

I told Matt I was going to fix a pan of biscuits, did he want some. He said no. I turned on the oven and put the biscuits inside. I was going to sit in my bed for 10 minutes while the biscuits cooked. Yesterday, we ran out of water with a load in the washer. Since I knew we had water (again, thankfully) I pulled the knob on the washing machine as I headed to the bedroom. I waited 9 minutes and went back to the kitchen. As I sat on the bed, I thought I was hearing the washing machine finishing its cycle. Surprise. It was not the washing machine. Their flames coming out of the back of the stove and licking their way up the wall.

I ran outside and saw Elvia and Reina arriving. I began to yell help me, help me. Fire, fire. The ladies were a ways off and could hear me but not understand me. They waved. I yelled louder and both came running. We all walked into the kitchen and the knobs were popping off the front of the stove. Reina turned and ran for her life. I followed her outside. Elvia is never good in situations. Her eyes as big as dinner plates, she ran to get Dorian. Elvia was running and screaming all through Casa. Nicole came running down here. I turned and walked back in the house to get my camera and computer with Nicole and Reina both yelling at me not to go back inside.

As I get more and more excited, I cannot think fast enough to speak in Spanish. I was saying there are fire extinguishers in all the cars. Reina, not understanding a word I was saying, gave me blank look. Nicole ran for the car. Anita came down from Karen's and no one was really thinking straight. Had we been doing the Keystone Cops or some such thing, the things that transpired would have been hilarious. And now that everyone and everything is ok, it is sort of funny. But at the moment, my house was on fire and we were bumbling around and it was not funny. Everyone was afraid the gas tanks would blow.

Nicole showed Anita where the water was and she began to fill buckets. She carried the first down to the door and there was no water in it. The bucket had a crack in the bottom of it; she lost all of the water as she carried the bucket. Everyone was just running around.

I had gone back in the house for my camera and computer, but I wasn't going back in to get my cheap little phone. I followed Reina to Casa and asked to use someone's phone. I never ask the employees to use their phones because they never have but just few minutes of time on theirs. Nevertheless, I asked. Reina was dialing Marc's number and Elvia had dialed it first and grabbed Reina's phone and shoved hers in my hand. Marc answered and I screamed, :."our house is on fire" into the phone and then hung up. By the time, I walked back to the house, Marc was here. That was fast. The preacher and someone else was here.

Dorian was wetting towels and throwing them onto the flames. That was slowing the fire down. Nicole began to grab the towels off the clothesline and wet them. And Dorian threw more and more towels onto the fire. He got the gas disconnected, the fire out. He and Jorge, the preacher brought the stove outside. The stove is history. The back and the top is burnt. Inside the oven, there was no fire, no flame. Nothing cooking my biscuits. They were still as doughy as when I put them in there.

The stove is toast. The wall above has heavy smoke damage and will have to be repainted. The cabinets beside the stove did not catch on fire. No one was hurt. Praise God. Praise God. Praise God.

After the fact, I had a complete meltdown. I then read my Bible and listened to Michael W. Smith. I am cool, calm, and collected now.

I am thankful that this Keystone Cop wasn't running around through it all in my nightgown. I am thankful we had water today. I am thankful for my little cinder block house. And above all, I am thankful no one was hurt this morning. God is good...all the time.

Terri

Thanksgiving At The Casa

2011-11-25T17:23:00.000-08:00

Another great Thanksgiving in Honduras is now history.

As everyone else did, we started early to get everything ready by 2:00. Nicole and some of the kids were making desserts in the Casa kitchen. Nicole knows part of the fun of Thanksgiving is sampling as you cook. The kitchen staff did not think she should be letting the kids sample desserts. They were sure the kids were ruin their appetites for lunch.

After Nicole finished, the kitchen staff reclaimed their kitchen and made salad, guacamole and potato salad.

At my house, I had kids helping all day. Brayan came down before breakfast and we got busy. I fed him biscuits and milk before he got too busy. Biscuits is not a Honduran food. Brayan kept asking ,"now, what are those called?' And said he would be willing to come help me eat biscuits any time I had some. Matt helped me get the first turkey on before 7:00. Then Brayan and I went to work on dressing.

Brayan working on the dressing One really large pan of dressing

Antonio and Jackson basting the 2nd turkey. They called it painting the turkey.

Everyone wanted to help. Some of the kids were just thrilled to help carry something up to Casa.

When Marc began to carve the turkey, there was no shortage of those wanting to help. And sample.

A true American feast

The kids were so excited it was if they all had ants in their pants.

The kids had to say one thing for which they were thankful. And then we still had to pray. There was a lot of squirming during that prayer. They were just sure they could not wait another second.

Some ate dessert first

Some enjoyed dessert immensely

And some ate entirely too much dessert

With the kids, the employees, the group, there was over 50 people here. I was exhausted, but I was truly thankful for the food, the fellowship and the fact that we could celebrate my favorite American holiday in a third world country.

Terri

Thanksgiving Helpers

2011-11-23T16:36:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is not a holiday in Honduras. But the Casa kids know of at least one place in Honduras where it is celebrated in a big way. They are giddy as visions of filling their plates as many times as they want dance in their heads. They were all eager to help today.

After they did their math worksheets, they rushed to my house. I handed them cheese, onions and celery. They grated six pounds of cheese in about 5 minutes. Chopping onions and celery took quite a bit longer. Some came to the house and made cornbread for the dressing. Everyone is begging to help, in whatever way they can. Nicole has major cleaning plans for them in the morning. I hope they will still be so eager to help.

I am having to do a lot of directing. Sitting and giving instructions. Believe me, that is not in my nature.

At the end of the day Haley got to help Grammy make the pies. She was so happy with that idea. She walked around carrying the coolwhip saying "Haley make pies." I promised she could lick the bowl. She started eating before everything was put together. After we poured the first layer in the pie pans, she took one bite right out of the pie. Not exactly what I had in mind. She definitely liked licking the bowl best.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Terri

Today's House

2011-11-22T16:56:00.000-08:00

Last week when the grim new statistics came out in the paper, there was also an article about being poor in a poor country. It focused on one community in particular. A community so poor, there is no health center, no schools, no water. Where people live in hovels of scrap wood, metal, and cardboard. Whatever they can find. It said poor people have no dreams and no hopes. How sad is that.

The article also focused on one family and showed a picture of the house.

With gaping holes in the walls and dirt floors, I can't imagine how cold they are at night. The nights lately have been quite chilly.

Marc contacted the newspaper immediately. Someone there put in touch with the family. In yesterday's paper there was an article that said a new house would be built for this family of nine.

The top picture is of Luis talking to the family. The bottom left is of Marc looking at the house.

Today, the group built a double wide house since it was such a large family.

The old house, before construction began.

During construction

Nearing completion

And, the finished new house.

There was one happy family and one happy group that they could build this house today.

I am thanking God for the nine people that gave up their Thanksgiving week to come build houses.

Terri

The Sweetest Thing I Ever Saw .... And Heard

2011-11-21T10:33:00.000-08:00

This morning Karen and Dorian left for town early as Karen's contractions had become worse. We were still praying that labor would be stopped.

One of the workmen needed to buy a coke from the store. Nicole was busy with the children and I went to open the store. The man bought what he needed and I asked Brayan to stock the coke machine. He was putting cokes and diet cokes in the machine and I was standing there watching him. One of the other children ran into the store and said Nicole wants everyone in the house to pray for Karen. At that moment, I knew no details, but I walked over to the house with Brayan. The workmen also joined us.

Nicole had all the children and all the staff in a circle, holding hands. A c-section was being started on Karen. Nicole led the sweetest, kindest, most passionate prayer for Karen's health and the baby's health. Then she gave everyone in the room the chance to pray. Karen is mommy to these kids. Most of the kids prayed very passionate prayers for Karen. Some cried. None of the staff wanted to pray but Dilcia. She prayed. And cried. Denis prayed. Some of the workmen prayed. It was the sweetest thing Iever saw. And heard.

And praise God our prayers were answered. Karen and baby Korbin are fine, at last report.

Terri

When Things Get This Crazy....

2011-11-20T16:15:00.000-08:00

When all of my kids were home, we usually had a lot of fun. Sometimes, it was silly fun and we sometimes sang, "Ain't it great to be crazy, ain't it great to be nuts like us..." That song has been playing through my head the last couple of day and I don't think anyone is having fun or being silly.

I still can't drive, can't lift. There are several things I cannot do and very few I can. I am trying to sit in bed with my computer and work on some of the endless paperwork. Even that I can't do for long stretches at a time. I feel good; I just can't do anything. I am bored and frustrated and want to be up doing like I always do.

Friday, Karen started having contractions. She saw a doctor yesterday. She is on bedrest and meds. Karen and I are never out of the country at the same time and we certainly are not to suppose to be on bedrest at the same time. Nicole is being baptized by fire. We are breaking her in good.

A group is here to work for the next week. Marc and Matt are busy with the group and the logistics and running around that involves.

Last night Karen's mom was asking me to please make sure Karen stays in bed. And I know that is absolutely necessary. I was thinking, and said to Anita, Karen is not going to listen to me when I am not setting a very good example of staying in bed when I need to. But, I do think Karen is listening. If you hear stories of people being tied down at Casa de Esperanza, it is a couple of the adults, not the children.

As Karen is suppose to leave for the States on Tuesday, both of us sit in our beds with our computers sending emails to each other, me with dozens of questions and her with all kinds of things that need to be done.

No matter how many vehicles we have, one or more is always broken. And we are always one or more short. That adds to the craziness when trying to work out logistics.

When things get this crazy, we all better be on our knees praying. Praying for Karen's contractions to stop and for her to get to the States before this baby is born. Praying that Nicole and Haley stay well and that Nicole has the wisdom and patience she needs. Praying that I heal quickly and take it easy, not trying to do too much. And praying that the group glorifies God in all they do as they build six more houses this week. Please keep those prayers going up. Thanks.

Terri

A Great Start To Thanksgiving Week

2011-11-19T16:34:00.000-08:00

Today starts our fourth annual Thanksgiving Build Week. A group of nine have arrived from Alaska, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia. Though small in number, this group came prepared to build seven houses. Today was travel day for eight of the nine people. One arrived yesterday. Since most of the group was tired, the afternoon began with a bit of fun, a campfire with the Casa kids.

Our kids love to have campfires. They knew this was going to happen and, according to Nicole, they were excited all afternoon. Every time we have a campfire the kids act as if it is the first time. It was the first time for Adonis and Lupita. Burning hot dogs on an open fire. The mustard and ketchup flowed freely. The kids whooped and hollered.

It was definitely a great start to Thanksgiving build week. More good things to come this week.

Terri

Nap Time

2011-11-17T14:49:00.000-08:00

Matt and Nicole worked with the kids all morning. Haley was right there in the middle of everything, getting her share of playing. Nicole always brings her down here for a nap. She doesn't always like to take a nap when it is just her. She would never go to sleep in a roomful of girls. She cried and tried not to go to sleep. Matt finally went in her room and stayed until she went to sleep.

She normally takes about a two hour nap. Matt and Nicole went back to work at 3:00. About 3:30, it seemed like she had been asleep a really long time. I thought I should check on her. I opened the door to find an empty bed. I looked on the floor and this is what I found.

I found Haley eating a few cookies instead of napping. I sternly said, "Haley Grace." She is not accustomed to Grammy speaking in such a tone and tuned up as if to cry, but kept eating the cookie she had in her hand.

I think I better move those cookies. She might not ever take another nap.

Terri

Shocking New Statistics

2011-11-16T08:32:00.000-08:00

Some new statistics were published in Monday's paper. They are shocking, to say the least.

Honduras now claims a population of over 8 million people, 8,127,696 to be exact. Of those, 5,493,391 are considered to be poor. That is almost 68%. What the Honduran government defines as poor is anyone that cannot buy at least half of the basic food they need every month. I would think anyone that cannot buy all the food they need for a month would be poor, but my opinion was not sought when making this determination.

Currently, it takes $358 a month to buy the basic food for a family of five. What it takes to buy basic food for a family of five each month is more than minimum wage, (minimum wage is about $324.00 a month). I am quite sure I never ever, not even once, fed our family of five on $358.00 a month.

Of the almost 5.5 million living in poverty, 3,810,354 (69%) live in extreme poverty which is defined as living on less than one US dollar each day. That means dying of starvation.

There is 54% unemployment.

These numbers are far worse than I thought. I thought 50% of the population lived in poverty, not 68% and that 70% of those were in extreme poverty. I also thought there was about 30-35% unemployment.

These numbers are staggering. There are thousands of children going to bed hungry each night. And not receiving medical care. And so much more. But, it also means we still have a lot of work to do.

Terri

Haley and Tibbie

2011-11-13T08:39:00.000-08:00

I think Haley has liked dogs since the day she was born. The times she has visited here, she has always been so gentle with Skillet. Nicole knew that after they moved here, she would get Haley a puppy. Nicole even said she might get a puppy before she got furniture. She did decide against that.

And, then one day, Poppy shows up with a golden retriever puppy. Haley could hardly contain herself. She loves that dog. Nicole and Matt asked Haley what she wanted to name it and she said Coca-Cola. They vetoed that and asked her to try again and she said Tibbie. So Tibbie she became.

All the children at Casa love Tibbie. Tibbie gets to play hard with everyone. The dog is usually exhausted at night.

Live with a potty-training toddler and a training puppy is fun. While I was in the hospital and Nicole was with me, Tibbie peed in the floor. So, Haley pulls down her clothes and pees in the floor. Excitedly, Matt asks Haley why she did that and Haley replies Tibbie potty in floor.

Nicole, Haley and Tibbie stayed here while Matt was in the hospital. Since all I could do was stay in my bed, the conversation from this side of the door was quite amusing. at times. "No, Haley." "No,Tibbie" "Don't open that Haley." "Don't chew on that Tibbie." "You need to go outside to potty, Tibbie?" "Do you need to go to the bathroom to potty, Haley?" I fully expected, at some point, for Nicole to ask Haley if she wanted to outside to potty and if Tibbie needed to go the bathroom to potty.

Tibbie doesn't like to be closed up. Like in the bathroom. She sleeps fine until someone puts her in the bathroom and closes the door. Then she howls the rest of the night. Some of the neighbors could even hear her.

Nicole is teaching her to brush Tibbie. They have a leash and collar. I don't think Haley can quite walk the dog yet. But it won't be long.

Oh, life is fun with this baby and her puppy. She loves that dog and it is going to be fun watching them grow up together.

Terri

Frustration

2011-11-10T13:27:00.000-08:00

Remember Annie and Yair. Annie came here to live on August 17. Her brother, Yair, came just a few days later. Their mother showed up at the gated days later with a letter in her hand from the judge that said she had custody of her kids. Everyone was heartbroken and shocked.

Less than one one later, they were back at Casita Kennedy. Back in the system. We have been trying to get those kids back. The judge was outraged that the mother would do this. The social worker as outraged. There was going to be a thorough home investigation. That mother would never regain custody of those kids.

In the meantime, IHNFA has laid off many of its workers because they cannot be paid. Many workers that have not been laid off are striking because they have not been paid. The whole system is in turmoil. We were told a home inspection had to be done before we could take custody of Annie and Yair again. But! With the budget cuts there was no vehicle available to go to the home. Marc said he would go to IHNFA and take the social worker to the home. A time was set up to do this.

Marc arrived at Casita Kennedy at 9:00 Monday just as had been agreed. As Marc and the social worker started to leave, she asked, " you know where we are going, don't you?" Marc says, "no, don't you?" And she says "no." Are you kidding me?

Again, there was outrage. Again, promises to follow-up. Oh, you better believe there will be follow-up. We will keep on keeping on until those two little ones are back in our care.

One would think that with all the turmoil in the system, they would love to place two kids. Welcome to Honduras.

Terri

Shhhhh Quiet Zone

2011-11-09T09:32:00.000-08:00

Saturday afternoon, as I was being dismissed from the hospital in Tegucigalpa, Matt was being admitted to a hospital in Ojojona. Matt and Nicole had worked the morning shift at Casa. Matt had a bad place on his leg, that he thought was a bug bite. Because he thought it was only a bug bite, they stopped at the local hospital. They thought some ointment and pills would be prescribed and they would be on their way. Upon discovering it was not a bug bite, but a staph infection, he was admitted immediately. Had he known was awaiting him, they might have driven to the city and found another hospital.

I don't think there is anything wrong with this hospital. We have taken the kids there for stitches, blood tests, pee tests, general exams, etc. But, they are very, and I mean very, strict. There are signs posted on the street on both sides of the hospital that you are in a quiet zone. We usually have to park across the street. Can't get those noisy cars too close to the quiet zone. Our cell phones are taken from us before we can enter the hospital. One night I took a neighbor who was having pain to that hospital. Two other people were with me. After our phones were taken from us, they said only two people besides the patient could come in. We told them it was not an option for one of us to stand outside alone in the middle of the night. They let us in. We really were being quite. We were just visiting as you do when you wait. We were speaking in whispers and sometimes could not even hear each other. We were told several times we were being too loud.

Well, poor Matt has been admitted to the quiet zone. Of course, there is no tv in the room. No cell phone. He had his ipod in his pocket that no one had seen. He got caught more than once using this contraband.

Visiting hours are from 3:00-5:00 everyday. And then only one person at a time. No exceptions allowed on times of visit or number of people. Nicole went to visit Sunday afternoon. She was there at 3:00. Haley had just gone to sleep and we thought surely she would sleep the whole time Nicole was gone. We, of course, were wrong. Haley got up a little before 4:00 and there really wasn't anything I could do. Just a few minutes later, my phone rang. The number showed Matt Fitzgerald. My daughter, who has pretty much followed the rules her whole life, had to sneak a phone into the hospital and then sneak into the bathroom to use it. It still hurts to laugh, but the vision of this was funny. I could hear that song "smoking in the boys room" being sung as "phoning in the girls room". (Side note: she did leave and come rescue me and Haley).

In this quiet zone Matt has been unbelievably bored. One day, he got up and walked back and forth across the room 500 times.

Thankfully, Matt will be home today. He will be so thankful for some noise.

Terri

Bible Studies and Baptisms

2011-11-07T12:52:00.000-08:00

One of Matt and Nicole's goals when coming here, was to start Bible studies with the older children. When they mentioned it, Ana could not wait. They began studying in Matthew. Ana was full of interest and full of questions. By the time they got to the baptism of Jesus, Ana was ready to know more about baptism. She said she had been wanting to know ever since she was nine. She will be 11 in January.

Matt and Nicole studied with her and she quickly decided she wanted to be baptized on Sunday afternoon. At that point, some of the other kids wanted to study, too. Some wanted to study with Jorge, the preacher. The next afternoon I left the house with my hands full of things to be filed in the office and I encountered the sweetest sight. Jorge was having a Bible study on the concrete pad with Pamela, Antonio, Ana, and Mirian, the houseparent. Nicole was there, too. All were deeply engrossed in this Bible study. After studying with Jorge, Pamela and Antonio decided they, too, wanted to be baptized on Sunday afternoon.

On Saturday morning, the youth group was going to go into the community and invite other kids to a youth group function that afternoon. During the morning, Brayan began to study with Jorge and he decided that he, too needed to make this decision.

At 3:00 on Sunday afternoon, everyone went to the church building and watched as these four precious souls were baptized into Christ. We are rejoicing as we know the angels in heaven are.

Home

2011-11-05T18:20:00.000-07:00

After a huge Honduran thing about payment, I am home.

I am glad to be in my sweet bed, with my pillows and my blankie. I missed the cool night air of the mountains. It was so hot and oppressive in the city, even with air conditioning in my room. The a/c is another story for another day. There is no place like home. And, I am oh so thankful to be here.

I am doing remarkably well, especially when compared to last time. I was so sick for so long last time. I have had no nausea or vomiting since surgery. Praise God. I am already eating, even though in the hospital I was forced to eat a bit more that I was truly ready to eat. Now that I am home, I can choose the amounts.

It is sometimes easy to criticize someone else's decision. I am guilty of that, too. When I do that, I usually do not understand the entire situation or all the factors involved.

Many people think we are crazy for not getting to the States for this. There are many factors involved here. The first one being I was too sick to get to the bathroom, much less on a plane. Most airlines would not have let me on if I was that sick. The three major airlines that leave Tegucigalpa leave once a day and all arrive in the states between 4:00 and 4:30. Then there is the issues of clearing customs and such and still finding a hospital and a doctor, having tests, making decisions all in unfamiliar territory, as Houston, Miami and Atlanta are not very familiar to me.

We arrived at a private hospital at 5:45 a.m. on Sunday morning. I did not have surgery for over 48 hours. All the while I was having blood work, urine work, sonograms, x-rays, catscans, consultations. By trying to leave for the States, that would have delayed the whole process by a minimum of 12 hours. For that time, I was on pain and nausea meds, not that they helped much. But I had a good team looking out for me and caring for me.

We have friends here. Some of which are quite wealthy and could seek treatment anywhere they chose. When we moved here, we asked them where they would take their kids in the middle of the night, or if they were sick. Without exception, they said Hospital Viera.

We live here, we work here. We help the people. As missionaries, to be effective as much as possible, we have to put our trust not only in God, but in people here. Yes, this is a third world country. Yes, the public hospital is horrible, as many of you well know. The private hospitals are different. Even some of those aren't too good.

There are very well-trained, very knowledgeable doctors here. Most have been trained in Honduras and are proud to be here helping their country. We, again, were blessed with a very knowledgeable surgeon. He kept waiting because, as he explained to us, the readings on the catscan and the reading on some of the x-rays were conflicting. He was not wanting to do the major surgery I had, unless it was absolutely necessary. He wanted to be absolutely sure. Since it was my belly on which he was cutting, I could not fault him for that. He called in an exceptional internist to help him decide. Like the surgeon, the internist wanted to be absolutely sure.

I have received excellent care from the doctors and the nursing staff. I could not have asked for better. Anywhere. The nurses were gentle, kind and patient, even one night when there was a communication problem over the iv. The four nurses and I were beyond frustrated with the situation that was no one's fault. Yet they remained in control and professional. Wish I could say the same for myself. I acted like any mature adult would. I cried. They begged me not to cry and assured me all would be well. Ultimately it was. It didn't seem like it ever would be at the time.

Another factor is cost. Since becoming missionaries, we pay a lot for insurance premiums that, we have discovered, don't pay much of anything. Last minute airline tickets are expensive. There would have been two, one for me and one for Marc. Not to mention an ER, tests, doctors, surgery. Hotels and meals have to be included as well. Since we were confident we could receive good care here, we could not justify all these expenses.

We were in ER for six hours. I had multiple x-rays, a catscan, a sonogram, an EKG, blood work more than once, urine work, tons of meds ( a week's worth), a team of three doctors, a two hour surgery, etc., etc., etc. Our total bill, for doctors and everything was $6053.00

You can rest assured when you are here, and you dehydrate, or cut your finger and need stitches or even have an attack of appendicitis, we will take you to Hospital Viera. You would not want to go anywhere that we wouldn't take ourselves.

Again, I thank you for the many, many prayers. I covet those prayers to continue as I heal. And while you are praying, please pray for Matt, our son-in-law. As I was being dismissed from the hospital, he was being admitted for a staphy infection.

Terri

Double Whammy

2011-11-03T14:17:00.000-07:00

I had such a good time at that retreat. And just a few hours after I posted that blog, I was in the ER with extreme pain and vomiting. After two of tests, and more pain and vomiting, I was taken into another emergency surgery. This time for another intestinal blockage (only partial obstruction this time) and for gallbladder issues.

I had surgery on Tuesday. As of this morning, all tubes and such are gone. I will be in the hospital until Saturday or Sunday. Hopefully, Saturday. I feel better everyday, but I have a long ways to go. I haven't felt like reading all the FB messages yet. But, I know there is a whole bunch of people praying for me, thus the reason I am doing so well. You guys are awesome. Keep those prayers going.

Love,
Terri

Escape

2011-10-29T19:56:00.000-07:00

Several weeks ago, Nicole and I signed up to go to a ladies retreat. It is a retreat for American missionaries. It is a well done, well planned, well organized retreat hosted by a group of ladies in Belpre, Ohio/Parkersburg, West Virginia area. It costs nothing for the missionaries. It started Thursday afternoon and end Monday morning. I kind of like sleeping in my own bed with my own blankie and drinking coffee out of my own mug. And I am not a huge fan of sleeping in a bunk bed in a room full of people I don't know. Haley really likes her mommy to put her to bed. Karen went for the whole time, but Nicole I decided to leave Friday afternoon and stay until right before supper on Saturday.

There was more than once this week I wished I had not signed up to go. Nicole said the same thing.

Yesterday I got the kids up, breakfast, chores and off to school. I returned at 8:05. I got the clothes on the line, washed the dished, ate my breakfast, and gave Matt and Nicole a few instructions. Among these instructions were: 1st grade gets out at 10:00, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade gets out at 11:00, and 2nd grade gets out at 12:20. I then left for the market. I had everything timed down to the second.

I was so totally relaxed at the market. I had no worries, no concerns, nothing on my mind. So much so that the clotheslines Matt and Nicole asked my to buy, I forgot. I don't mean I forgot to buy them. For some reason, there were not many cart boys at the market. I still hired a kid to carry the fruits and vegetables. He carried the big bags and I carried the smaller ones. I put the clotheslines down to pay for the Casa stuff. As I begin to gather the small bags, I never ever thought of the clotheslines again until I was very near Casa. Oh well, I guess I owe Matt and Nicole two clotheslines.

Matt and Nicole were running back and forth to the school, running to get gasoline for the weedeater, among other things. Matt got there at 11:00 and no one got out. He waited. And waited. And waited. He ended up waiting until 12:00 when everyone was dismissed. It seemed as if the school was just trying to further complicate an already complicated morning.

I knew Matt was waiting at the school and asked him to wait there on me.

I drove in and asked Dennis to unload the car for me and ran to the house and inhaled a sandwich. I walked into Casa to get the needed things for visitation in Sabana Grande. Dilcia reminded me to get toilet paper, which I did. I gathered the bags and headed out the door. Dilcia very calmly asked me if I wanted to take Doris with me. I was thinking I was getting everyone at the school and had forgotten that Doris was already home.

I got to school and six kids jumped out of the van and ran to the car. Wait, a minute, Cindy wasn't suppose to go with me. I was about 15 minutes behind schedule, but I was really ready for the next few hours to be over. I was more than ready for this retreat.

Meanwhile, the other kids are starting a new visitation routine and Nicole was a bit anxious about that.

Things went well with both visitations. I arrived home at 3:40. I began to throw my stuff together and I Nicole and I finally left at 4:10. I enjoyed the hour and a half drive with my daughter. I knew immediately it would be a good retreat.

And, I was not disappointed. I saw several friends from both Ohio and Honduras. I met a couple of new friends, too. We Texas girls almost always have an instant bond. Even though we were both on top bunks last night, Nicole and I had a good time visiting about things that were not Casa related.

The Women of Purpose team did a great job of hosting this retreat. There was laughing, crying, praying, eating, sharing, singing. The worship stations this afternoon were intense and caused some self-searching and reflection. A huge thank you to the entire Women of Purpose team, but special thank yous to Lisa Gould, Karen Burnfield, and Kathy Guise. You know what for.

I am really glad to be back in my own bed tonight, but I so needed that brief escape.

Terri

Water For Gracie

2011-10-27T18:58:00.000-07:00

In June 2010, our friends from Tupelo built a house for a young mother named Gracie. This young lady has three children. She lives in a village called Nueva Arcadia. She has no water in her house and has to haul it a long way. Our friends from Tupelo wanted to help her get water to her house and were willingly to pay for it.

We had tried to put water to a house in that community before. There has to be permissions and a certain type pipe and many rules and regulations. One committee that has to give its permission only meets every six months. And we only think we have to deal with a lot of red tape when we want something done in the States. Little do we know what Hondurans have to go through. But being persistent is becoming one of our strong points.

Marc has met with people and asked permission and on and on. We thought we would get the approved water pipes in last week while the group from California was here. But non stop rain and knee deep water prevented us from getting into Nueva Arcadia. Even if we could have got there, we would not have been able to trench.

Marc met with the community leaders again today. Everything is done. The equipment is purchased. And on Tuesday, Gracie will have water. Praise God.

Terri

Santa Katarina

2011-10-25T20:33:00.000-07:00

The heavy rains of late have caused damage and devastation all across this country. Many people have lost everything, which in many cases is not much, but it is everything they have.

A few years ago we did some work in Santa Katarina, a poor village south of Choluteca. Sometimes, when the heavy rains fall, this village is cut off from the world as waters rise, covering the road in several places. Three years ago, after the rains fell, we were not able to get to them. They had to swim to us to get to food. We have visited Santa Katarina several times since then. I love that village, but it is always sad. Most people in this village never receive above a fifth or sixth grade education, if that much. They are a farming community that depends on the fall crops. And they are community. They take care of each other.

I am always excited when Marc decides to visit Santa Katarina on Tuesday, my day off. It means I can go. In addition to Marc and I, Pamela and Byron, Dorian and Luis went with us. That meant taking two trucks. I asked Marc if I didn't go, would one truck suffice. He said yes. But convinced me he really wanted me to go.

In times past, when we have taken food to Santa Katarina, we have driven to Choluteca and bought a lot of food at Maxi Bodega. Someone said they knew a cheaper place. Off we went to the El Centro market, always an interesting experience. We soon discovered we could buy food much cheaper, meaning we could buy more food.

Marc and Luis went to work buying food.

We quickly made this little lady's day. I am not sure she had ever sold this much in one day. I would be crazy if I had to work all day in quarters this small. She did not seem to mind.

Carts and carts of food were hauled to the trucks.

It is a good thing I went and we had two trucks because we had two truckloads of food.

We then headed for Santa Katarina. We had learned we would be able to get all the way to Santa Katarina. The rains stopped a week ago and water has receded, but there were several places the water still crossed the road.

And flooded fields.

One place the people of Santa Katarina had filled with sticks. The mud was so thick and deep, it would have been impassable otherwise.

After we arrived, we learned the crops had been flooded out. For the second year in a row.

There are at least 130 families in Santa Katarina and they were coming from all directions. These folks were hungry. And not just a little bit. Everyone helped us unload the trucks and organize the food. There were lots of hands to help bag the beans and rice.

Not sure this guy really knows who is in the World Series or even what the World Series is

Food for every family was a welcome site in this village of hungry people, where many did not have shoes,

some did not have clothes,

where lightened hair and distended bellies (both signs of malnourishment) were common.

Happy people, thanking God and walking home knowing they can feed their kids tonight.

Then after a quick stop at Wendy's in Choluteca, we were blessed with some awesome God art.

I am glad I got to be part of this, another great day in Honduras.

Terri

Another Saturday Night

2011-10-22T20:32:00.000-07:00

The California group left this afternoon. It has been a good week. A really good week.

After we saw our friends off at the airport, Marc and I ran a couple of errands. Then went to Chili's. Just the two of us. We were in no hurry. We visited over our dinner and then headed back for Santa Ana. We were not home before Nicole called and said they had the trooper stuck in the mud at their house. Since we were close, we went to help. I mean Marc went to help. I sat in the truck. Richard, Matt, Dorian, and Marc worked on "unstucking" the car. With the car out of the mud, Marc and I came on home.

I sat down to check my email and stuff and noticed something had pooped on a stack of receipts. I cleaned it up. Being the boring person I am, I decided to get a little work done. As I sit here in my office at 9:30 on Saturday night working on receipts, I am not alone. There is a bird in here with me. Thus, the source of the poop. He is flying around. I am sitting at the desk. I don't know where he came from or how he got in my house or how I am going to get him out.

But, I am thinking these receipts might wait until tomorrow.

Terri

Life With Haley

2011-10-20T19:55:00.000-07:00

It is so wonderful having Matt and Nicole here working with us. And, oh so fun to have Haley here. To hug her every day. To hear her say "I love you, Grammy."

Haley is two. She is in that mocking bird stage where she repeats everything she hears. She laughs and giggles and makes others around her laugh. Of course, Grammy laughs at everything. All the Casa kids love her.

Haley is also potty-training. Most of the time she does a good job of getting to the potty.

We are so enjoying singing songs of praise and worship every night with the group. Last night we were singing away and I looked behind me and there was Haley. She had pulled her clothes down around her ankles. She was walking that funny walk that one walks when their clothes are around their ankles and she was saying, "pee-pee, pee-pee." I jumped up and ran to her. It was a little too late. When I jumped up, everyone turned to see what was happening. Almost everyone got a good laugh from that one. And little Haley is totally oblivious to the fact that everyone is laughing at her.

Terri

Another Home Run For Team California

2011-10-18T20:52:00.000-07:00

A small group of eight people arrived from California on Saturday morning After getting through customs and all the stuff that has to be done, they went to the market and bought fruits and vegetables. They then bagged them and distributed them in Buen Samaritano, a poor community near the dump.

Sunday was pizza with the Casa kids (see previous blog).

Monday construction began. Team California built a house for a lady named Paola. She has two kids and used to live in the dump. She is trying to get away from the dump.

Today, the group started at the feeding center at Nueva Oriental. Everyone got to help cook and serve 225 kids. Kids that probably would not have eaten today if it had not been for the feeding center.

After all children were fed and dishes were done, the group divided into two small groups. One group went to buy food for Paola. After the house was finished, it was discovered she had no food. They bought food and took it back to her house.

The other group hit the mall. We are helping two young ladies. They are sisters. One is single. The other has 3 small boys, ages 5,3, and 1. Her husband was beating her and abusing her. She and the children recently left that horrible situation. They have no family. Only each other. They are both looking for jobs and one of the girls will start a new job at Dunkin Donuts on Monday. They have nothing. Nothing. The girls had one jacket. Not one jacket a piece. One jacket. In this cold rainy weather, they were sharing one jacket. The kids had holes in the shoes. These young ladies and the boys are staying the same place the group is. The group has fallen in love with this little family.

The group that went shopping at the mall were not shopping for themselves, but for Melissa and Lisette and the boys. All five of them got new shoes and new clothes. The boys got trucks and blocks and, of course, a soccer ball. Then there was also groceries and personal items.

Tonight after supper, the clothes and toys were given to this family.

Marla watched the presents come out of the bags and she said,"I can't stand it any longer. These trucks have got to be opened and these kids start playing with them." She opened each one and gave to one of the boys.

There were many tears tonight, by both the recipients and the givers.

We sang songs of praise and worship as three little boys played with brand new trucks. They have never had a truck or toy of any kind. That was sweet music to our ears.

It is only the bottom of the fourth and Team California has hit at least one homerun a day and are currently batting 1000.

Terri

A Break For The Children

2011-10-17T21:27:00.000-07:00

For the seventh straight day it has rained without ceasing. It is so damp and cold. In the 72 hours that were Friday, Saturday and Sunday, it rained 13" There was no school Friday or today. The children are inside day and night. They need to play.

Team California arrived Saturday morning. Marc decided on Saturday afternoon that Team California needed to get to know the children of Casa de Esperanza. After church Sunday we loaded the van and took everyone to Pizza Hut. The Pizza Hut here has a great big indoor playground. The kids ran and played and screamed and had a great time. Marc ordered 10 large pizzas. Antonio ate 9 pieces. He was so proud of himself. Others ate a lot, too. And I am sure there was a lot of wet beds this morning. Reina went around and finished everyone's soda. I didn't know that until after we got home. There was a huge amount of soda consumed by all of the kids.

If that wasn't enough, Marc then ordered 10 of those super large ice cream sundaes. The kind that four or five people can share one. I didn't see any ice cream left either. After we pizzaed and sodaed and ice creamed them up good, we took them back to Casa. The power was out from 4:30 until 11:30. I really feel sorry for the staff on duty, having to deal with the kids after having that much sugar. And in the dark, too.

The kids did burn up a lot of stored energy. And ate too much. And had a great time. The adults had a good time, too. I know I did.

Terri

Soup Weather

2011-10-15T15:57:00.000-07:00

The rain continued to hammer away all night, with another four inches falling. It was so hard to get up out of my warm bed this morning. I was on kid duty and there was no choice. Even the warm shower didn't help much.

Soon after the housekeeping staff arrived, they began to think about lunch and began making chicken soup. All morning I could smell the soup as it simmered on the stove. I was working up a big appetite as I smelled it all morning. When the kids sat down for lunch, I could see the steam circling above the pot. After the kids were served, Elvia brought me a good steaming bowl. Oh, that chicken soup was so good. And so satisfying. It definitely warmed by cold bones. The only thing missing was some good sweet Texas cornbread.

It was so satisfying and filling, curling up with a blanket for a nap would have felt good.

Please pray for this continue as the nonstop rain continues to fall. People are losing everything they have.

Terri

The Rains Came Down

2011-10-14T16:42:00.000-07:00

It has rained without ceasing since Tuesday. (And we still have internet). Right now it is a foggy, windy, rainy, blustery afternoon. The kind that invites one to have a cup of hot coffee in the middle of the afternoon, especially after being in Tegucigalpa for eight hours. In and out of the car makes one slightly damp.

Water is oozing out of every where since everything is soaked. The main roads are thoroughly pot-holed. The side roads are washing away or as slick as snot. I am really glad for four wheel drive. Water is puddled. I am glad for rain boots, too. The kids have been indoors all day. Right now a few are making bracelets. Most are getting antsy. Showers in the rain aren't as fun as they were last week.

There are many villages where houses are washing away. Where whole mountains are crumbling.

In town, people were still smiling and helpful. At one store, someone ran out with an umbrella and walked us in. As we left with our purchases, he walked us to the car again, all the while he was wearing a great big smile.

Appearance and presentation is so important here. In every store, someone was stationed to mop the messes people were tracking in. Those people too, were smiling and welcoming us to come on in. I am fairly sure I would not have been mopping after each person that entered or left and been smiling.

We can't stop this rain until it decides to stop, so I guess smiling is the very best thing to do.

Terri

Nohemy

2011-10-11T14:44:00.000-07:00

Every one of us at Casa love every single one of the kids, but if we were all perfectly honest, I think we would all admit there is one or two kids to which we are slightly partial. For me that would be Nohemy (pronounced No-Amy, with the accent on the MY).

Nohemy came to live at Casa in November, 2009, almost two years ago. I went with Karen to get her and Josue. I fell in love with her the second I saw her. She was five years old at the time and was scared to death. She had lived at Casitas Kennedy for seven months and before that had lived in the extremest of poverty. Josue was nearly dead from starvation when IHNFA took them. Most of her rotten little teeth had been pulled. She was so scared and confused.

After we got to Casa, everyone was making over the new baby (Josue) and we were beginning sign language classes with Manos Felices. There was a lot going on and Nohemy was overwhelmed. She looked around at all that was going on and began to cry. Karen and I took her to show her her room and bed and new clothes. Casitas always sends any belongings the children may have. Nohemy and Josue came with clothes on their backs. She smiled her toothless grin, but still wasn't too sure. She cried a lot those first few days. My heart broke every time she did.

In late December, she let out a cry from the depths of her soul saying "Mommy." And I knew she wasn't talking to any of us.

I have watched this little girl over the last two years and I love her more every day. She often calls me mommy now. I like that. One time her mother was really late to visitation. I didn't know this as I had taken the other kids to visitation in Sabana Grande and I had not had a chance to talk to Karen after we all returned. She walked up to me and said your my mommy. When I found out about her mother being late, I was deeply touched.

Sometimes she even acts a little jealous if someone else calls me Mommy. She says in a bossy, gruff voice, "no, that is my mommy."

Yesterday I had a very long, very productive office day. I got up to do something in another room and I heard Marc's voice some where on campus. I was glad he was back. I sat down at the computer again and saw I had a new email. The email had horrible, horrible news about some of our good friends. I jumped up and was screaming and crying and ran for the front door to find Marc. By this time, Marc was nearly at the front door. I was sobbing and screaming and trying to tell Marc what had happened. He told me to sit down. I did. He walked outside to make a phone call. To be perfectly honest, I don't remember how I got outside but I must have followed Marc.

Marc was crying. I was sobbing and screaming and shaking all over. I did not know how, when, or why I got outside and I sure did not know how I was going to get back inside. I did notice several of the girls gathering around us, but no one said a word. They all stared big-eyed at us. No one had ever seen me like that before. They didn't know what to do or what to say.

All of a sudden, above my sobs, I heard one little voice saying, "I love you, Mommy." Nohemy jumped in my lap and hugged me. She held tight to me and continued to say, " I love you, Mommy, I love you." She kissed my face and hugged a little tighter, even as the other girls continued to stare and not know what to do.

Nothing could ease the grief and the pain I was feeling, but that little girl touched something deep within me. Deep, deep within me. I held her a few minutes and then I was able to get up and walk back in the house.

Oh yes, that one has a special place in my heart.

Terri

Homework

2011-10-10T17:19:00.000-07:00

We have eighteen kids in school. And five of those are also in Teleton. There is mountains of homework every night. Some of it is ridiculous homework, but that is not for us to decide. It still has to be done. Some of the kids get theirs done and have the rest of the day to play. Some choose to battle us and it takes hours to get the simplest thing done and multiples of hours to get more complicated ones done. Some are not capable of doing what has been assigned them and someone has to diligently stay by their side and help and coax and plead it out of them. Some days there are tears. And some days there are big smiles as something clicks for someone. There is almost big sighs of relief when, and if, it is all finished.

Terri

How To Entertain 19 Kids On A Rainy Saturday Afternoon

2011-10-09T13:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went on shift with the kids at 3:00. They were just getting up from their naps and rushing outdoors to play as I walked up. Most of them wanted to jump on the trampoline. I was letting two boys jump for 10 minutes and then 2 girls for ten minutes. Just as Maryuri and Ana got on the trampoline, the sky opened up and rain began to dump on us. To the kids disliking, we all went inside the house. Dilma got some games out and they began to play.

Normally on Saturday, showers begin somewhere around 5:30. We decided to let them shower and shampoo in the rain. If we had said we were taking them to the circus, they would not have been one bit more excited. They were jumping and screaming. Of course, the boys and girls were not in the same place.

It rained 2 1/4 inches in less than an hour, so the rain was coming down quite hard. But they decided to stand under the roof drip which was even harder. No one around here ever gets to shower with that much pressure. They were really lathering up, possibly using a bit more shampoo than was really necessary. There were laughs and giggles and squeals.

Nearly everyone decided to shower in the rain, but the few that didn't had to go ahead and take their showers in the house. Everyone was showered and in their pajamas by 4:30. Then we played games until supper time.

Kind of unusual entertainment, I know. But it was a get-in-your-pajamas-and-play-games kind of day.

Terri

Teleton

2011-10-07T16:27:00.000-07:00

For over two years, we have had Doris, Reina, and Maryuri in Teleton. I can see the number of people needing help and the number of people working and I know they are severely understaffed. Most months, our girls have one 30 minute appointment per month. When I consider how long it takes to get there and how long it takes it get back, I have often wondered if it was worth it. Once in a while, the teacher will take all three for an hour and a half. I do feel like that is worth it. I can look around and see little children learning to walk and I know others are being helped, but not sure if ours are.

Now Teleton wants to start seeing the girls once a week. This has got to be an improvement in helping them. It is not easy to get a child in Teleton. Reina, the employee, has been to Teleton several times to get two more enrolled. Guadalupe has started Teleton for speech therapy ( and believe me, she needs it), and Fernando has started for dyslexia. Nicole felt sure after today's appointment, Fernando would be helped.

We now have five children in Teleton, with at least some of them going every week. We hope this really helps the children and that it is not just a huge burden to us. Nicole has taken over the Teleton responsibilities, doing both the driving and overseeing all their homework. I can say I am very thankful for that.

Terri

Nursery Rhymes

2011-10-05T20:48:00.000-07:00

I have always liked the Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes. As a young child, I think I knew all of them. After I had kids, I would rock my babies and say nursery rhymes to them. And I continued to repeat them as the kids grew older. Sometimes they, the boys especially, just got sick and tired of them. But I still loved them. And still do. After a long day of running errands, I often say "home again, home again jiggity jog.

Tonight, Nicole was on shift with the Casa kids and had to help put them to bed. After I fed and bathed Haley, I took her up to watch the movie with the other kids. But then I went to get her so Nicole could put kids to bed. Nicole really wanted to tuck Haley in as well. I brought Haley down here and played with her while we waited on her mommy. I began to read a couple of books to Haley. I had bought a book of nursery rhymes that were in both in English and Spanish. Amazingly, enough, they still rhyme in Spanish and, most of them, still have a fairly close meaning.

I will have to teach the nursery rhymes to Haley, but if I can learn them in Spanish, I have a new audience of 19 kids that need to hear and learn the nursery rhymes. I think I could start with "There was an old woman (me) who lived in a shoe. She had so many children, she didn't know what to do....

Terri

Adonis

2011-10-04T16:25:00.000-07:00

Adonis came here to live in April. He is eight years old. A little boy.

Before he came here, he had not been disciplined a day in his life. He did what he wanted, when he wanted. The mother admitted he was completely out of control. Well, duh!

We could not get him enrolled in school this year so he is home all morning with two younger kids. None of our kids go very many places, so Adonis is here almost all of the time. Rules and structure are difficult for him. And because of that, he is in trouble frequently.

I don't know whether he was a little stir crazy, fed up with the rules and being in trouble, or a combination, but he decided to leave this afternoon. Matt left in a car and Nicole left on foot. Both were looking for Adonis. I guess it should have been the other way around.

Denis, the groundskeeper, saw him leave. He followed and watched. When he saw him heading for Ojojona, Denis got to the police post and asked them to stop that kid. Which they did. We knew he was probably headed for Ojojona because his dad lives there. When Matt drove through the police post, there was Denis, Adonis and the preacher. This was a short-lived escape.

Please pray for this little boy as he tries to adjust to a world that is so completely foreign to him.

Terri

Church

2011-10-02T19:33:00.000-07:00

Since returning home, it has been a busy week. I was glad when they said unto me, "let us go into the house of the Lord." I was ready for church today. Ready to worship and release my burdens. Yes, I know I should be releasing my burdens every day.

I love to worship in English when we are in the States, and miss it when we are not there. But I was ready to be in our church this morning. The singing is good in Spanish, too and this morning was no exception. The singing was much louder this morning. There were more people than before we left. There were at least 50 adults and at least 60 children. Several new faces. And a couple of new dogs as well.

After Sunday School, each of the kids' classes sang one song and a few children said a Bible verse they had learned. The younger kids came in first. Sisi, for some reason handed the microphone to Haley. Haley didn't know the song, but she sang and talked and said whatever came to her two year old mind. Finally, Sisi took

the microphone from her. I doubt that Josue knew the words either, but he was sure having a grand time.

The second group came in and sang. The sang nicely, but it wasn't as funny as the first group.

Our kids have to learn a Bible verse every week. Ana said the one we learned last week.

I was proud of shy little Cindy. She doesn't always like to speak in front of others. I was proud of all the kids.

Terri

Pamela

2011-10-01T16:24:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a sad day at Casa de Esperanza. It was Pamela's last day to work here. Pamela started working for us in January 2010. She lives close enough that she has come every morning there was school and helped fix all this hair (12 girls). Then she has been on homework duty also. Pamela has been very diligent with overseeing homework.

Most of the kids and most of the staff have become friends with Pamela and there were tears yesterday. A lot of tears. Saturday was always Pamela's day off, but it is going to be weird tomorrow when she doesn't show up at 1:00.

Pamela is going to finish her degree and, soon, she just might have another thing or two to occupy her time.

Pamela still lives right out the back and still goes to church with us. We still will see her frequently, just not as an employee. Thanks Pamela.

Terri

It's A Crying Shame

2011-09-29T16:04:00.000-07:00

There are labor laws in this country. As an employer, I do not like all of them, but I obey them. One of those laws is a minimum wage. It is not much compared to the minimum wage in the States.

We have a friend, a young female (young as in early twenties). She has been looking for a job and cannot find one. This is not unusual because there is 30% unemployment in this country. She is getting discouraged. She was finally offered a job at the food court in the mall. The potential employer offered her 500 limpira a month, 125 a week to work six days a week. This would break down to almost 21 limpira a day, or when converted to US dollars, slightly more than one dollar. A dollar a day. Anyone trying to live on that is considered to be in extreme poverty. Most people in extreme poverty do not have a job. Most people that are gainfully employed and working six days a week may still live in poverty, but not extreme poverty. Needless to say, after this job offer, she was still discouraged. This is a crying shame. It is more than that. It is outrageous. It is criminal.

I wish I could say this is an isolated incident in Honduras. But it is not. Many employers do this type of thing. I don't know how they get by with it. But they know, with 30% unemployment, someone can usually be found to work for this kind of wages. Of course, many people can't work for those wages if they have to ride the bus. The bus fare alone could cost up to 30% of that dollar.

This angers me. Not there is anything I can do about it. But it angers me.

Terri

Home

2011-09-28T09:03:00.000-07:00

Marc and I got home on Monday afternoon. We were met by Matt, Nicole and Sweet Haley. How good it was to see them and to know they are now part of the ministry here.

It was a good six weeks. We loved on family and friends. Marc golfed with his dad and with Nathan and with a couple of friends. I got in shopping, one movie and lots of girl time. Susan and I didn't even pull an all-nighter. Yay for us. We were encouraged by people everywhere we went. We were spoiled by things like round-the-clock electricity, showers with pressure, Mexican food, being loved on. And, did I mention Mexican food?

We traveled over 6200 miles, going as far east as Johnson City, Tennessee, as far west as Amarillo and Lubbock, as far north as Rockford, Illinois and as far south as San Antonio. That led us into nine different states. We slept 20 different places and some twice and ate more different places than that. One would think I would learn to travel lighter. We visited 15 churches, Rotary clubs, student centers, etc. We made plans, raised the money, and purchased two block machines. We shared events from the ministries that have happened this year. And shared plans for the future. We laughed, we cried, we prayed. We shared cups of coffee. And more Mexican food. We were sad for the people we didn't see and the churches we didn't get to visit. There was not enough time in Fairview Heights.

San Antonio and Rockford were not on our original schedule. But the block machines called our names and we followed. We ate Mexican food in San Antonio. After leaving Rockford, we went to Chicago. We walked along Lake Michigan and Michigan Avenue and ate at Geno's East, pizza not Mexican. As we headed toward Nashville, we were able to stop in Bowling Green, another unplanned stop. If Marc and Steve had not made us quit, Jeanne and I might still be sitting in that restaurant talking.

We appreciated everyone who opened their homes and their hearts to us. As always, we met new friends. Thanks to everyone.

Now we are home. We were not sad to leave 110 degree heat. We have had no internet since we arrived until this morning. We are back to showers with no pressure, drinks with no ice. But, the hugs from those 19 kids, 20 counting Haley, made coming home lovely. I realized I had missed the beautiful mornings and the cool evenings. There was much work to be done in the States, but now there is much work to be done here.

Terri

Hope To Offer (H20)

2011-09-25T16:07:00.000-07:00

Today is our last day in the States. We are in Shawnee, Oklahoma with friends. Marc preached at Lakeview Church of Christ this morning. Our friends, Kim and Pat, work in a ministry feeding the hungry of Shawnee. They feed in the park in downtown Shawnee every Sunday afternoon at 2:00. This ministry is called Hope To Offer or shortened to H2O.

After church, we quickly changed into our jeans and began to make sandwiches. Bologna and cheese. Kim made coleslaw and lemonade. There was also some fruit cocktail, chips and cookies. Starbucks donates their leftover pastries and a donut shop donates their leftover donuts. The amount of the pastries and donuts varies each week, but are a big hit as long as they last.

We arrived right at 2:00 and there was a long line in the park. We quickly unloaded the car and began to serve. The health department requires we wear gloves, something I don't think about in Honduras. Kim and Pat have done this for more than two years, and, just like Marc in the dump, they have made many friends. People trust them and know they can depend on them to bring food each week. Also, like in the dump, there were several children that came through the line. No matter where it is, it is sad to see a hungry child.

I made a point to look each person in the eye as I asked what kind of chips they wanted. Most people smiled and said thank you. Some said thanks to God as well.

Kim was busy bandaging wounds and taking care of needs other than hunger. It was a pleasure to watch her in action. Since I don't go to the dump very often, for me it was a pleasure to be able to serve today.

I am thankful for churches and people all over America that feed the hungry.

Terri

Block Machine #1

2011-09-23T18:21:00.000-07:00

Early Tuesday morning Bobby and Donnie left Fort Worth and drove to Bush, Louisiana (near New Orleans) to get the first block machine. And since boys will be boys, they had to play with their new toy. They made a few blocks. The original plan was to drive back to Fort Worth and get it to Illinois later.

There are many reasons Marc and Bobby are good partners. One of them is they are a whole lot alike. Instead of driving back to Fort Worth, they decided to drive the machine to Fairview Height, Illinois. Yes, Marc would do something like that and I would go along for the ride.

The first block machine is safely in Fairview Heights. The second will arrive from Rockford, Illinois soon. The container leaves October 15. We will soon be in the block-making business and able to make better houses for people.

Terri

Going To The Movie

2011-09-22T15:30:00.000-07:00

I am not a big a movie person. It has been a long time since I have seen a movie. To the best of recollection, it has been five years since I have paid to see a movie. I don't know the movies currently being shown, nor do I know many of the actors and actresses. But I read "The Help" and I decided I wanted to see the movie. Nicole saw it and said it was good. A few other people said it was good, therefore, making my desire to see it even stronger.

My time here in the States is rapidly coming to an end and still many things to accomplish. I managed to carve out the time to go to Amarillo this afternoon to the movie. Janet and I left this morning around 10:30 so we could catch the 12:15 matinee. Suffice it to say, I was shocked when the matinee cost $5.75. A piece. I was more shocked when I realized that was the senior discount for the matinee. (I know, in some places, I now qualify for the senior discount. It was just the first time I had received it and seen it printed on the ticket.) I did not even want to know what the full price of a movie was. That may be one reason it has been so long since I have been to the movie theater. I bought the tickets and Janet bought the snacks.

Sticker shock on the cost of the tickets was nothing compared to the sticker shock on the price of coke and popcorn. I definitely got the better end of the deal buying the tickets. Janet insisted I did not want the small popcorn, that it was about one handful. I think she was right. She bought the large popcorn and we shared. I love movie popcorn, so this was a real treat to have that much popcorn. We ate most of it before the movie even started.

I think I liked the book better. I always do. But the movie was good. And, I so enjoyed the day with my sister-in-law.

Another great day in the USA.

Terri

Marc And The GPS (This is almost as good as Marc and a Honduran road map)

2011-09-19T07:33:00.000-07:00

We have been in the States for five weeks. Our time is rapidly coming to a close. We have been in several churches, some of which we have never visited before. When we left Borger, Marc had in his possession a GPS belonging to his mom.

For the most part, she has guided us to our destination. But not always. There were times we knew where we were going, but Marc plugged an address or city into the GPS just for fun. When we left Lubbock for Oklahoma City, we had decided to go one of the country routes. But she really wanted us to go on the interstate. She just kept saying "recalculating route", "make a legal u-turn when possible." It took her a long time to figure out we were not making a legal u-turn.

In Belleville, where we know our way, she once told us to turn left. We knew that wasn't the way, but Marc turned left anyway. She led us to a dead end. Marc began to turn around and she was saying continue. I was laughing so hard. I guess we could have continued. Through a field, a ditch, and a median. We would have then been on the road on which she wanted us.

She was thoroughly confused in East Tennessee. Bless her heart. She tried. Saturday night, when we were going to eat, Marc turned left instead of right. Instead of telling us to make a legal u-turn, she took us way out of the way. Several blocks out of the way. Ten minutes later, after making several left turns, we were back where we started. I guess she had the upper hand that time. If Marc wasn't going to listen, she would take him on a wild goose chase. Then yesterday morning, Marc correctly entered the address for the church. After she guided us along, she said, "you have arrived." We had not arrived and Marc argued with her. And turned her off.

One time, Marc forgetting he was in the States, made an illegal u-turn. She began to scream, "when possible make a legal u-turn." How did she know we made an illegal one?

Then there has been those times when we didn't know or didn't have an address and we just plugged in a city, or made up an address in the city to which we were going. Like 100 Main Street. Every city has a main street and that gets us to the city and then we can find out where we need to be. Sometimes that works and sometimes that doesn't. Like last night. We were driving from East Tennessee to Nolensville. We never did find 100 Main Street. But we traveled several country roads, in the dark. We had an idea we were getting further from our destination. We turned around.

I have spent a good amount of time laughing at her.

We only have one more week in the States. There will not be many more times we listen to her. Or laugh at her. Or argue with her. She has helped us find our way and, at times, been good entertainment.

Terri

Corbin, Kentucky

2011-09-17T16:13:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we left the craziness of Pigeon Forge. As more and more car show people arrived, it was getting more insane. It was our original intent to leave on Friday morning. We were not driven out of town by the car show. As we left Pigeon Forge and headed to Corbin, Kentucky, we made a couple of detours. On purpose detours. But with us, you never know.

We went to Cumberland Gap, Tennessee, a quaint, beautiful little town. We did not hike up to the Cumberland Gap, but that definitely has been placed on my to do list.

It was a short drive on to Corbin. We entered the tunnel in Tennessee and when we exited, we were in Kentucky. I had never been in that part of the USA. I thought every second of the drive was gorgeous.

Corbin is not a very large town and I knew nothing about it except our friends the Toadvines live there. Steve and Ann and their children welcomed us into their home. We had two great meals and great fellowship. Come to find out, Corbin is quite famous. It is the home of the Cumberland Falls and Kentucky Fried Chicken.

We were not in a hurry today. The Toadvines took us out to the falls. We went to the vista points and hiked part way up one of the trails. How many stairs can be in one tenth of a mile? I did not count, but there was a bunch.

After a good Italian food lunch, we then visited the first Kentucky Fried Chicken. It was not known as KFC then. It was called Sanders Cafe. The Colonel also owned a motel and a gas station, neither of which remain.

Inside is a museum of sorts and a regular KFC. There were menus and such from the original little diner. At the time the diner was opened, recipes from the menu were printed on little cards and given to the customers upon request.

One thing Marc and I found interesting was an old paycheck that was displayed. The year on the check was 1954. The amount was 2.57. The net amount. The gross amount was $2.63. There was a six cent deduction for old age insurance, what is now known as FICA. I feel sure that lady has gotten her investment back.

We enjoyed our time in Corbin with the Toadvine family. Another great day in the USA.

Terri

Laurel Falls And Beyond

2011-09-15T13:44:00.000-07:00

Marc and I are enjoying a few days off in Pigeon Forge. We have done this a couple of times before, but never this exact week. There is a car show here this week. And there are a million people here. Nonetheless, we are enjoying this time. Some of the cars are really cool, evoking memories from days gone by.

Yesterday, we decided to take a hike. We decided on the Laurel Falls trail. It is only 1.3 miles to falls and is a fairly easy paved trail.

With as many people as are in this town right now, it was no surprise to find the trail full of people, too. The falls were beautiful.

There were 50 or so people hanging out at the falls, so we kept going. We were the only people that walked beyond the falls. Once we passed the falls the trail was no longer paved, but groomed and still fairly easy. We walked another 1.8 miles until our trail crossed another one.

The only sounds we heard were noise our feet made on the trail and the click-click of my camera. It was solitude. No one but Marc and I. And God. It was peaceful, serene. Clean and crisp. Strokes from the autumn palette had been brushed across the trees. Fallen trees littered the forest floor. I was energized with each step.

Once we reached the trail crossing, it was another 9/10 of a mile to the end of the trail. I wanted to go on, not that we would have seen anything so different. Marc said my legs might cramp if we went on. So we began our descent. I think I could have made that last leg. But, by last night, I was glad we didn't go on.

Our hike yesterday in the Smokies was a beautiful day.

Terri

The Dream Becomes Real

2011-09-14T16:59:00.000-07:00

Today, Matt and Nicole and Haley joined the Casa de Esperanza team. This has been their dream for five years. Maybe even longer for Nicole. Five years ago Matt and Nicole were not even married. They wanted to get married, quit college and move to Honduras. Marc talked them into not quitting school and we gave our blessings for them to get married.

After marriage, Nicole still had a year of school and Matt had a year and a half. They thought they would move to Honduras as soon as Matt had a diploma in his hand. At that time, they were expecting a baby. So they waited some more. They moved to Baton Rouge, found jobs, and began to prepare to be a family, not a couple. They began worshiping at South Baton Rouge Church of Christ. Through events that only God could orchestrate, that church later agreed to be their sending congregation as they continued to dream of being in Honduras.

The mission committee and elders at South Baton Rouge are a wise group. They have required much of Matt and Nicole as they prepared to move to the mission field. All of these things have been good things. Matt and Nicole now agree all those classes and a year of language school were good, even though at the time they thought it was another detour. They now claim that God's timing is perfect. It always is.

This morning, they left Baton Rouge at 6:30 to embark on the next chapter of their lives. Matt and Nicole managed to move to a foreign country, with a baby, in six suitcases. Quite an accomplishment in itself.

Yes, they are family, but I am still very proud of them and their journey to make their dreams come true.

If interested, you can read of their adventures at http://mandnfitz.blogspot.com

We always welcome more help at Casa and this is no exception. Matt, Nicole, and Haley, we welcome you to the Casa team.

Terri

Any and Yair

2011-09-13T13:37:00.000-07:00

Any and Yair are the newest kids at Casa. At least they were. Last week their mother showed up at Casa de Esperanza. At some time or another all of the parents have found their way to Casa. She had papers from the judge saying she was reclaiming her children. Karen was stunned. Mirian was stunned. Everyone was stunned.

This mother had voluntarily relinquished her children. She grew up in a children's home and she was living in extreme poverty. She felt she could offer her children a better life by giving them up. Both Any and Yair are sickly little things, with asthma and other ailments. We had waited months for these two precious ones to join the Casa family. They had been living at Casitas Kennedy. Yair had been in the hospital at least once. While we waited, the mother was heart-broken at the prospect of living without her children.

We have been told that her church has agreed to help her raise her kids. With that knowledge, the judge decided to give the custody back to her. Everyone at Casa cried when they left.

If the mother's church stands by her and helps her financially so she can raise these kids, all will be well. If they don't, the results could be disastrous. Please pray that this church fulfills its commitment to the mother. Please pray for Any and Yair. And please pray for everyone at Casa that their hurting hearts will soon heal.

Terri

Simply Magnificent Or Simply Insane

2011-09-11T19:52:00.000-07:00

When we arrived in the States, it was not on our agenda to go to San Antonio to look at a blockmaker. When we went to San Antonio, it was not on our agenda to go to Rockford, Illinois. We have learned to be flexible no matter where we are. We have enjoyed the side trips.

After we looked at the machine in Rockford, we spent the night in Chicago. Friday morning, after we had a sweet roll and a cup of coffee, we took a nice walk. We walked along Lake Michigan and Lakeshore Drive. And we walked part of Michigan Avenue, known to some as the Miracle Mile. I am no shopper, so it was not such a huge miracle to me. We just walk and look. I walk around with my mouth open looking like the small town girl I am. I take a lot of pictures of the big city.

As we walked, we saw the most unbelievable sign. You may have to double click on the picture to see what this says.

I cannot imagine spending that much money on a one bedroom condo. Not even one with a lake view. How many block houses could be built for that much money? How many children could be taken off the streets of Tegucigalpa? Or out of the dump? How many Bibles could be purchased so the good news of Jesus can be shared? How many hungry people in Chicago could be fed?

Terri

Block Makers

2011-09-08T19:57:00.000-07:00

We will soon be dirt block makers. Our good friend, Kin Ellis, went to Bush, Louisiana and looked at the used machine there. Today we drove to Rockford, Illinois and looked at one there. Both of these machines are like new. Both have had about 300 blocks make on them. Just like a car, a block maker decreases in value when taken off the lot. We were able to negotiate with both people and get a good deal. So, we are getting two, almost new block makers for the price of one brand new one. Both of these machines are the small machines, which require more manual labor. That is a good thing in Honduras. Together, both machines will be able to output more blocks than the bigger machine we thought we originally wanted. And these two machines are much, much less than that bigger one is brand new.

Marc is like a kid with his new toy at Christmas. He can't wait to get these machines to Honduras and start making blocks. And it will be so much better to build block houses instead of wood ones.

Thanking God that these deals could be worked out.

Terri

The Next Container

2011-09-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

We are in Belleville, Illinois visiting our sponsoring congregation, taking care of personal business and having a great time. We just are not getting to spend enough time here.

The next container is leaving from here. We are doing backpacks loaded with school supplies to help as many children as we can in Honduras. There is also many things to help Casa de Esperanza on this container. Things like shampoo and lotion. With 19 kids, and 12 of those girls, think how much shampoo we use.

We were at the building this morning unloading some of our things for the container. Matt and Nicole had packed a box of Haley's things that they decided would not fit into one of their six suitcases. Nathan and Julia had cleaned out Camille's closets. The little girls at Casa de Esperanza are going to have some nice clothes coming their way.

It was exciting to see what was happening with the container. Peggy Thompson was packing sheets and towels brought down by Maria Phillips. Vicki Fager showed up with some backpacks. There are several boxes packed and several full backpacks sitting around to be packed. After tomorrow, we hope we have a blockmaker to go on that container.

If you are interested in helping fill this container, you have the rest of this month. Shoot me an email and I will tell you what you need to do.

Thank you Fairview Heights for this container. I know it is a lot of work and a lot of headaches.

Terri

Lessons

2011-09-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

Camille took Nathan's 16 feet tape measure and decided to measure from my suitcase, through the house. She pulled out the tape to its full length and then asked me to help her measure. I spend so little time with her that I gladly get up to do anything she asks. I also thought we could turn this little experience into a math lesson. She told me to hold one end of the tape and she took the other one. When it was time to move the tape for another 16 feet, she said this button won't go up. She had pulled the tape out to the very end, way beyond the the end of the markings, and I was sure we would never get back in.

Instead of showing her how to move the tape and figure the length of the house, I was telling her she had to tell her daddy she broke his tape measure. With all sixteen feet plus pulled out, she says, " this won't fit in the trash." I told her she had to tell Daddy, that being honest was the most important thing. She had to tell Daddy and she had to buy another tape. She responds with all my money is in a bank in Mississippi. I finally told her I would give her some money, we would go to Wal-Mart and she would have to spend the money I gave her on a new tape measure. She was still talking about the tape not fitting in the trash and her little eyes were filling with tears. The whole time, we were having this conversation, I was working with the tape and suddenly it released and began to respool. Since it was no longer broken, I never gave it another thought.

When Nathan and Julia got back, she told Julia she had to talk to Daddy. Nathan was on the phone, so she told Julia what happened with the tape. And, when Nathan finished his phone call, she told Nathan. I was proud of her that she told even though the tape was no longer broken.

Nathan and Julia were trying to measure the area of the living room. I hear Nathan saying, "MOM." I went to see what he needed. He says, "what did you do to this tape to fix it for Camille." I had to laugh. Again, I was sure, the tape would never go back in. But I messed it with it and finally got it to release. I told Nathan about Camille wanting to stuff it in the trash and hide the evidence. He was laughing so hard, he was crying. He went into her bedroom where she was trying to go to sleep. He asked her if he pulled out the entire tape, did she think it would fit in the trash. She quickly told him no. And then he told her he, too, had accidentally pulled out the tape too far and Grammy had to fix it again. It was an accident and it was ok. She smiled, hugged his neck, and went to sleep.

I think she learned that she had to admit her mistakes. It was hard for her to tell her parents about the tape. I am sure she also learned something when her daddy humbled himself and admitted he made the same mistake.

This morning Camille started to measure something again and all I said was, "are you sure you really want to do that?" She had second thoughts and decided there wasn't anything that really needed measured.

Love being with this little girl. And her parents.

Terri

Little Rock

2011-09-03T20:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we got to Nathan's house around 5:00. Julia and Camille and Matt, Nicole and Haley were already here. So the fun began immediately. This momma/grammy loves having all of the kids and grandkids together.

In celebration of Nathan's birthday last week, we went downtown to eat pizza. Then the girls played in the park for a short bit.

Then we all walked out on the bridge as the sun set on the Arkansas River.

Today, the fun continued. Marc and Nathan played golf this morning. Matthew, Alison and baby Esther joined us for a couple of hours.

There were dominoes, jigsaw puzzles, food and football. A great way to spend any Saturday afternoon.

Uncle Nathan tried to teach Haley to sing "Rocky Top"

Cousins

More cousins

Even though Matt, Nicole and Haley had to leave for Baton Rouge this afternoon, our fun continues tomorrow. Looks like Grammy and Poppy might get some special time with Camille tomorrow.

Terri

August Newletter

2011-08-31T10:10:00.000-07:00

Casa de Espernza

Making a difference, one child at a time

P.O. Box 9222

Columbus, MS 39705

cdehonduras.org http://casastore.blogspot.com

In July, there were many visitors on campus as groups came to do work projects or just visit the kids. The kids were spoiled by the end of the summer. One group came and made cotton candy. A couple of groups did hot dogs and chips. One took the kids to town for fried chicken, one to the movies, one to the water park, one to the river for a picnic and swimming. One group came to Casa and held a VBS. The kids are always excited when they get to go on an outing and when people come to visit.

Thank you to all the groups that visited Casa and/or took them on an outing. Everything was greatly appreciated by the children.

School continues and it won't be long until third quarter exams start. Seems like we just finished second quarter exams. Most of the kids participated in Indian day at school. Adonis did not get to start school. He is working on his reading, writing and arithmetic at home.

Dalys, our counselor, resigned. She is expecting a baby in September. At present, we do not have plans to look for another counselor.

August brought much excitement at Casa de Esperanza. It is the rainy season. One afternoon it rained about five inches in one hour. The church building flooded and a rock wall broke on the front of the property. Fortunately, there was little damage at Casa. Mirian's house flooded and she spent hours mopping water.

Brayan had to have an emergency circumcision and Fernando had to have a few stitches around his eye. Brayan had to have a few days bed rest. Both boys are recovering.

Along with floods and emergency surgeries and stitches, came two new children. We had been waiting on these two for weeks. Any(Annie) and Yair are another brother-sister team. Any is 3 ½ years old, the same age as Josue. She is smaller than Josue. Yair is eighteen months. He, too, is a tiny little thing. They both have asthma and he was in the hospital a few weeks ago, which is one of the reasons we had to wait. They have come from extreme poverty.

Any

Yair

This month I would like you to meet Guadalupe, also known as Lupe or Lupita. She is our little Dora. Lupita is six years old and is in kindergarten. She and her brother, Adonis came to live at Casa in April.

She had been neglected and physically abused. She is very hard to understand. Karen understands more of what she says than I do. She will be starting speech therapy at Teleton in October. Lupe is one of the slowest people I have ever seen. She eats slowly and is always the last one at the table. She dresses slowly. She make her bed slowly. As slow as she is, she is a little sweetheart and has stolen the hearts of everyone at Casa. Please pray for her continued adjustment and that her speech therapy will be beneficial.

Thank you for your continued prayers, support and encouragement. There would be no Casa de Esperanza without all of you.

Please feel free to share this newsletter. If you have any questions regarding Casa, please email me at terriltindall@yahoo.com

Sincerely,

Terri Tindall

We Should Have Made Reservations

2011-08-30T15:07:00.000-07:00

This morning we left Abilene for Lubbock. We decided to take the business route through Snyder to find a place to eat lunch. Now Snyder, Texas is not a booming metropolis, but there were very few businesses on the business route. Not a gas station/quick stop. Not a restaurant. No cars. No people. Not much. We finally saw a Dairy Queen with no cars at it. What kind of Dairy Queen would have no cars in Small Town, Texas at lunch time. We kept going. At last we saw a restaurant called The Spanish Inn. Everyone in town was at The Spanish Inn for lunch. We put our name on the list and waited. Not too long, but we waited. People were walking in and saying, "I have reservations." Reservations. This is a diner in Snyder. I laughed and said we should have called ahead and made reservations, too.

We got a table and a menu. We thought the prices were high for lunch. And the food was good, but not great. I was still glad we ate there, with or without reservations. We didn't see another place to eat until I saw the Sonic in Slaton. Sonic is always good, but it would have been a long time to wait for lunch. As much as I like Sonic, it loses its appeal to sit in the car and eat when it is 106 outside.

Next time we drive from Abilene to Lubbock, we will know we need reservations at the local diner in Snyder.

Terri

Birthday Pizza

2011-08-29T19:16:00.000-07:00

For this year, Marc and I decided we would take the kids to town for pizza for their birthdays. We did not want to make nineteen trips for pizza, but yet we wanted to make it special for the kids, therefore, we decided groups of four would be great. We did the first four in January. By the time the fourth birthday in the second group rolled around, we were in full swing with groups. And then there are a lot of birthdays in the summer. Before we left for the States, we got caught up. We took four to Pizza Hut one night and two nights later we took five of the kids, since Rosy and Nohemy share the same birthday.

The first group consisted of Josue, Reina, Katty, and Fernando. What a crew. Pamela told Josue he could only go if he held my hand the whole time. And he did. The kids were so excited. Reina had a smile on her face from the time we left until the time we returned.

We got a table, ordered pizza and soda, and then the kids and I went to the play area. Josue could not climb that big play ground. Fernando and Katty would jump and get their arms on each level, wiggle their bodies up, and then each one would grab one of Josue's arms and drag him up. It worked. All of them loved the play area.

When the pizza arrived, I herded them back to the table. The kids always act like they have never eaten before.

Fernando was taking such big bites of the ice cream that I had to help Reina or she might not have had any. Marc was helping Josue. And Katty did not have any trouble fending for herself.

When we left two nights later, Ana was planning her trip to town for Pizza. She seems to have conveniently forgotten that she was in the first group to go in January. I hope she is not too disappointed when she does not get to go again.

That night we took five girls. That is the only group made up of all girls. Pamela, Cindy, Maryuri, Rosy and Nohemy were all dressed up when we left for town.

The girls played some, but not like the other group. They came for one reason and one reason only.
After pizza, the ice cream is always a big deal. It is a super sundae with ice cream in a great big glass, with chocolate and peanuts on the outside. It is always a mad rush for the ice cream, but with this group it was truly dualing spoons.

And Cindy was not going to leave until every single bit of the ice cream was gone.

And some ate until they were ready to pop.

We had five sleeping girls, when we got back to Casa.

We will have another group ready to go when we get back.

Terri

Sticker Shock

2011-08-28T18:17:00.000-07:00

We constantly are trying to find a way to do things better and/or less expensively. If we can find a way to do both, that is great. We have been in this dilemma for a while with houses. Do we continue to build wood houses and help more people, or do we build block houses, which is a better house, for the same price and build fewer houses because the block one takes longer? But if we can build a block house for the same price in the same amount of time, then that would be much better.

We have been talking about a pressed earth machine for a while. A machine that would make blocks out of dirt. A couple of weeks ago, Marc, Trey Morgan, Bobby Moore, Randy Allen, Rickey Husband, Steve Tucker and others got together and decided it was time for the block maker. Some research on this had already been done and the money for the machine was put together.

Friday, Marc, Bobby and I drove to San Antonio. Rickey met us there. We saw a demonstration on the smaller machine. The one we did not think we wanted. Dirt was loaded and in just seconds blocks began coming down the conveyor. This thing can make up to 300 blocks an hour. In an eight hour day that is more than enough for one house.

Then we went on to the big boy, the one we thought we wanted. This one can make up to 480 blocks in one hour and the blocks are slight larger. It is also a more complicated machine. Something that definitely needs to be considered in Honduras.

We went to San Antonio to buy this machine. When we sat down to discus details like price, we had a big sticker shock. The machine was $20,000.00 more than we thought. Other companies make a similar machine for the price we wanted, but we also know this manufacturer makes the best machine.

We left without purchasing any thing. We went to the river and had Mexican food and talked about other options. A "plan B" was formed. We will have to wait and see if that works or if we go to "Plan C."

Terri

Casa Happenings

2011-08-27T09:22:00.000-07:00

Marc and I have been in the States for almost two weeks. We are enjoying the time here. We are very busy. Back in Honduras, Karen is also very busy at Casa de Esperanza.

On August 17, we got a new little girl. Her name is Any(Annie). She is three years old and she is smaller than Josue. She is part of a brother-sister team. We had been waiting on them for weeks. Karen and Dorian went to get them and only Annie was ready. Welcome to Honduras.

Wednesday night, after Marc spoke in Childress, we received a phone call from Karen. She and Dorian were in the emergency room with Brayan. Brayan had had trouble going to the bathroom all day and the pain had become worse through the day. Brayan had to have an emergency circumcision. Poor thing. Poor Karen and Dorian. They were at the hospital all night and got home at 9:00 the next morning. Baby boys are not routinely circumcised in Honduras. For Brayan, this caused a big problem. He is resting as comfortably as possible.

Then Thursday night, Karen had to go back to the emergency room. Fernando had to have a few stitches in his eye. Karen doesn't know the whole story, but she walked outside and sweet, calm little Daniela was beating Fernando to a pulp. We think Fernando provoked her. Not that what she did was ok because she was provoked. What a humbling experience for Fernando, to be beat up by a girl.

Yesterday was the regularly scheduled visitation with parents. When Karen and the children came home, they had Any's little brother, Jair, with them. He is eighteen months old. Both of the children have asthma and need treatments. I think Josue's world has been rocked. He has been the only baby for so long. And now there are three.

Karen handles all situations gracefully. I thank God for her everyday. But, I am also praying she does not have to handle any more emergencies any time soon. She has dealt with enough for one week.

Terri

Hitting The Road

2011-08-25T06:22:00.000-07:00

We have enjoyed our time in Borger with our families. Now it is time for our travels to begin as we share our stories from Casa de Esperanza, the dump and others.

Last night we were at the Childress Church of Christ. And it is hot, hot, hot, like 109 yesterday. We leave for Fort Worth today. San Antonio tomorrow. Back to the Dallas-Fort Worth area for Saturday and Sunday. Abilene on Monday. Lubbock on Tuesday. Shawnee on Thursday. And then on to Little Rock for Labor Day weekend, where we get to love on both of the grandgirls and the kids some more. And get to meet our new great niece. From Little Rock, we head to Bellville for a couple of days. After that we go to Tennessee to so many places that I don't know everywhere we are going or when. I will trust in Marc to let me know where I need to be and when. Hopefully, we will get to sneak away to Gatlinburg for a couple of days. I have no delusions of finding a cool place to sneak away.

Marc and I have fun riding along in the car. I bought three books for the journey and one is nearly finished.

Please pray for us as we travel.

Terri

The Death Of A Village

2011-08-23T16:13:00.000-07:00

For the most part, I do not understand the ways of politics. Or politicians. This goes for any and all countries, Honduras included.

In 1998, Hurricane Mitch hit Honduras leaving destruction and devastation everywhere. Over 5000 died and a good portion of the highway system was destroyed, leaving villages and towns isolated. I did not see Honduras before Hurricane Mitch, but I think it is safe to say that some 13 years later all damage has not been repaired.

There were several groups, humanitarian, governmental, and faith-based, that rushed in to do several projects, most with the blessing of the administration that was in power at the time.

This picture is of a village near Tegucigalpa. This village was one of those projects. There is a thousand houses built to house 5000 people. One thousand nice block houses. There is no water, no sewer, no electricity, no infra-structure of any kind. It is far enough from town that having a job in the city would be almost impossible. Not one family was ever lived in this village. Ever. One thousand houses have sat empty for more than a decade.

Now another administration is in power. One that cares not what any other administration built or accomplished. This entire village will be bulldozed. I don't know what the plans are for this land, but I hope this beautiful property can be used to house people or to plant food with which hungry people can be fed.

Politics are, indeed, a funny game.

Terri

Weather, Here And There

2011-08-21T13:57:00.000-07:00

As I have said before, we live in the mountains. We sleep with our windows open and the temperature gets down to 60 degrees at night and most days the high is around 80. We arrived in the States last week to record high temperatures. Most of you know that already because you have lived with this heat all summer. It is a drastic difference from that to which we have become accustomed. It is hot and dry. And brown, much like summer in California. We pass cattle grazing in the field and we ask what are those cattle grazing on?
I know crops are long dead. Yards are dead. Air conditioner sales have been great for those people that sell air conditioners. Everyone everywhere is praying for rain.

In Honduras, not only is it the rainy season but moving into the heavy part of rainy season. Friday afternoon the rain started to fall. Around 4:00, the really heavy rain fell for about an hour. Several inches fell in that hour. The church had five inches of water in it. Water pipes were broken. And a rock wall that separates the front of the property and a park was broken. It took several hours to clean up the church building. A tropical depression was moving in over the bay islands, meaning Santa Ana will probably receive more rain. Last fall crops were ruined because of too much rain. Hopefully, the same thing won't happen this year.

I am enjoying seeing sunshine every day. But this part of the world does need rain. Desperately. And in Honduras, there is a little less rain needed.

Terri

Three Days With Haley

2011-08-20T08:31:00.000-07:00

This morning Matt, Haley and Nicole left for Baton Rouge. They are ready to be with their church family and with Matt's family. But that means they have to leave us. We have been blessed to spend the last three days with them.

Besides boosting the economy of Amarillo on Wednesday, and hitting Sonic everyday, we have been to McDonald's, been bowling, played in Aunt Janet's playhouse and had a birthday party in the park, among other things. I have had Haley hugs every day. And Nicole hugs. We have laughed and laughed. At Haley. At each other. At past memories. We even had a good time doing our laundry yesterday morning.

I know that feeling of longing to be with the church family. I know how much they need to be with Matt's family, but, how I am going to miss them. And, I do need to get some work done and I cannot seem to focus on that work when they are here.

Safe travels to Matt, Nicole and Haley.

Terri

Rosy Visits The Nursing Home

2011-08-17T21:24:00.000-07:00

Last week Rosy had a series of projects. One day she had to make mayonnaise. One day she had to visit a nursing home or special needs center. Marc is familiar with both of those so we assigned him to the task of taking her. He picked her up at school one afternoon and they went to the nursing home. She had to have pictures and then do a project on this. I reluctantly turned my camera over to Marc for the day.

Marc got pictures of the residents but Rosy is not in any of them. She would not go near anyone. Marc said she had a look of terror on her face. Rosy is deaf and Marc could not easily find out what was wrong, but we guess she was scared he had taken her there to leave her.

Marc called me and told me what was happening and I let Karen know. When they got home, Karen asked Rosy where she had been. She said no where. I haven't been any where. Karen asked if she went to the nursing home and she said no. Karen said I know you did. Rosy said there was a kitten and she liked it and it peed on her.

Karen asked the teachers at school to explain to her why she went there. I don't know if the teachers got it explained or not. Rosy had a complete meltdown at school. The worse meltdown she had ever had at school. Karen and I and the staff have seen those once in a while, but never at school. She was throwing herself in the floor. The teacher would try to get her stand and couldn't. The day after that, the teacher said her whole body was sore from dealing with that.

I got the pictures printed and Rosy refused to even look at them. Dilma was the person that was having to help Rosy with the project. I have no idea how that went, but I have an idea Dilma was ready to pull out someone's hair before she was finished.

I have no idea what was going on in Rosy's mind, but she was absolutely terrified of this situation. I hope some day we can find out the reason for this fear and help her work through it. I also hope she doesn't have another assignment like that for a while.

Terri

Meeting Haley

2011-08-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

Nicole and Matt finished language school last week. They flew out of Amarillo a year ago and today they flew back into Amarillo. Marc and I were there to meet them. We only got to the airport 40 minutes early.

In Amarillo you can get a lot closer to the deplaning passengers than most airports. We saw the Continental plane come in. After what seemed like hours, but was only just a few minutes, we could see the first passenger come off the plane. And then a few more. And then Matt. And then Nicole and Haley. They got a little closer and Haley let go of Nicole's hand and started running toward us. That did this Grammy's and Poppy's hearts good.

Marc scooped her up and hugged away. I hugged Nicole and Matt and then snatched Haley out of Poppy's arms. It was my turn for Haley hugs.

We have already had so much fun with her. The next three days there will be lots of hugs. Lots of family time with aunts, uncles, cousins. Lots of craziness with Nicole and I together. Lots of pictures. Thank goodness I have a new 8G sd card. Trips to McDonald's. And not much sleep. I will sleep after they leave.

I am praising God that we made a safe trip from Honduras, that Matt, Nicole and Haley had a safe trip from Costa Rica and that we get to spend the next few days together.

Terri

Shopping With Cindy

2011-08-15T18:38:00.000-07:00

Cindy recently had a birthday. She is ten years old. Ten at Casa is special. No more naps, not that Cindy has actually taken a nap in a long time. A special someone sent Cindy some birthday money. I thought how fun it would be to take her to town and let her spend her birthday money.

I thought through this long and hard because she is not always the most well-behaved child, but she usually does well one on one. I had so much to do that week in between the groups leaving and Marc and I leaving. The days were flying by and I thought I might not have time to take Cindy to town. But through a series of unplanned events, I was doing all the errands on Saturday and decided I would take Cindy. I watched her at devo and she was doing pretty good. One time she did something and I thought we would go into her bad day mode. I told her to behave and she would get a big surprise. Cindy is usually one to test me and see, but she decided to be good. After she fed the chickens, I told her what her surprise was. She hurriedly ate breakfast and changed into town clothes and did her hair.

I explained we had to do all the errands first and then we would shop. As we left, Cindy is hanging out of the car, waving at everyone. Taking kids to run errands with me is not something I do very often.

We got gas. Then we went to cash a check. Fortunately, that line was not too long. When the man went into the vault and brought out stacks of 500 lempira bills, Cindy's eyes were huge. I wasn't writing a check for that much money, though.

Saturday traffic and lines in Tegucigalpa was horrible. Cindy waited patiently each place. When we got to Price Smart, we had several things to do. Another long line to pay the electricity and phone bills and then pick up a few things Dilcia left off of the first-of-the-month list. Cindy pushed the cart. She liked that. One more thing, Office Depot, before we hit the mall. As I paying at Office Depot, I asked if she wanted to eat first or shop first. She said eat. Then she said shop. As we left Office Depot and started across the street to the mall, she said eat first.

I had to get some cash before I could treat her to lunch. I stuck my card in the machine and out came two 500 lempira bills. She liked that magic trick. I told her she could choose anything in the food court. She chose Popeye's. So, we had fried chicken and french fries.

Then, it was time to let the shopping begin. I told her how much money she had. We looked at shoes. The pair she really liked was on sale and that she could buy those and then still buy clothes. She wanted to try on the shoes and the clerk never came. No shoes for Cindy. She wasn't going to wait on the clerk. We rode the escalator up one floor to the clothes. She looked at shirts and jeans. And dresses. And skirts. She tried on one outfit. The shirt fit, the skirt didn't. We looked some more. At jeans and shirts. At dresses. At skirts. And then the most beautiful jacket she had ever seen caught her eye. A beautiful pink hooded jacket with Barbie on it. She tried it on and her eyes lit up. It didn't matter that if she bought the jacket, that is all she could buy. That is what she really wanted. And it was her money. We purchased the beautiful pink hooded jacket with Barbie on it. She walked out of the store, proudly carrying her bag.

Then she asked me for ice cream. I bought her some. I let her eat in the car.
When Marc got home she came running out saying she got to go to town with Terri. When I left for the airport yesterday morning, there was Cindy wearing her brand new jacket.

I had a delightful day with Cindy. And she was beyond thrilled to pick out her own gift.

Terri

Four Years

2011-08-11T19:04:00.000-07:00

Marc and I have lived in Honduras four years now. Four years. Can you believe it? I can't. How time flies when you are having fun. And what an incredible journey it has been. I have been blessed beyond measure.

All of a sudden, we are having a rash of people ask when we are going home? We plan to leave for the States on Sunday. But only for six weeks. Yes, I need time with my friends and family. We need to do some development work and will be visiting many churches. And we will continue to do that once or twice a year. But, for right now, this is home. There are no plans to leave any time soon. As Marc always says, "we have the best jobs in the world." And to make that job better, Matt, Nicole, and Haley will be here in one more month.

Thank you all for loving us, supporting us, praying for us, and allowing us to be here.

Terri

From A Cornfield In Indiana To A Cornfield In Honduras

2011-08-09T19:23:00.000-07:00

Last week one of our groups was from Mitchell, Indiana. Corn country. I have never been to Mitchell, but they say they live in a cornfield. Their goal in Honduras is work with a small village here. To go back every year. Make friends. Work with the church in that community. Marc found a perfect fit for them. A little village called Guajire. Last week was the second time they had worked in the community.

There was already a church in existence, but it was meeting in a house. Last week the team from Mitchell built a new church building. It was a double wide wooden house. Last week Marc promised a little girl he would buy her some school shoes. After purchasing the shoes, Marc and I headed out of Tegucigalpa for Guajire. As we snaked our way through the winding roads high above Tegucigalpa, we could feel the temperature dropping. It was 82 degrees when we left Tegucigalpa and 72 when we arrived in Guajire. And by the way, it was 90 when we got back to Tegucigalpa.

We were definitely in farm country. There were cabbage patches on the left and I said I wanted to get a picture on the way down. Marc said don't worry, we are going to go right through a cabbage patch in a minute. He wasn't teasing.

We stopped at a house in which a man named Coronado and his family lived. Guajire is a poor, poor community. And Coronado's family is no exception.

We walked through a cornfield to get to the house where Lidia lives, the little girl for whom we bought the shoes. After visiting for a few minutes, we walked through another cornfield, with a clearly well-worn path.

And at the end of the path, stood a brand new wooden church building and two Sunday school classrooms.

We looked inside the building. Not glamorous by U.S. standards, but the community of Guajire are very proud of their new building. Friday afternoon, as the group worked there, there was one baptism. And two more on Sunday morning. Praise God.

Last week it was rainy when the church building was built. More than just a little rainy. The lumber truck got stuck in the mud and had to be pulled out by an oxcart. Then Marc had to hire the oxcart to haul the lumber. Oh, never a dull moment.

As we were leaving, Coronado tried to give us some of his beans.

There was not enough food to feed his family, but Hondurans are very generous people. We told him we were leaving for the States and would not be able to eat them. I was in tears at his sincere generosity.

How thankful I am for people that live in a cornfield in Indiana want to come work with a poor church in a cornfield in Guajire.

Terri

Another Summer Mission Season

2011-08-07T19:11:00.000-07:00

This morning we put our last of the summer teams on the plane. By the looks and sounds of the airport, we were not the only ones ending the summer mission season. There is just always a little bit of sadness when the summer ends.

And what a summer it was. And spring. From spring break until now we have had 367 people here. Sixty five wood houses and three block ones have been built. Also a church building and Sunday school classrooms have been built. Children have been fed in the feeding centers. Thousands of meals have been served in the dump. Several hundred families have had food delivered to them. Clothing has been given away. Hundreds served in clinics. We have seen baptisms in Los Pinos, the prison, and Guijare.

Spaghetti and chicken and rice have been served in the prison. For the prisoners, who never receive anything but beans and rice, this was a treat. Vicki Cubillos did her magic show at the prison and then Wesley did some of his magic. Preaching.

Of course, the hospital was visited several times. An awesome playground was built in the courtyard at Hospital Escuela. Veinte Uno de Octubre, a boy's home was visited several times. Boys living in worse conditions than the prisoners were treated to pizza, carnitas, and birthday cake.

The Casa kids were thoroughly spoiled. Having groups come make cotton candy, cook hot dogs, (more than once) and just play. They also have been taken to town for fried chicken, been to the water park, the river and the movie. Candy and gifts have been handed out. The grandparents have all left and we start the task of unspoiling. We are grateful for our guests and the love they have showered upon the children.

The groups have eaten at Carnitas and had ice cream. New friends have been made. And old relationships strengthened.

So much more happens when a group is here than I could ever describe. It is awesome. I would be lying if I said I wasn't tired. I am absolutely exhausted. A tired hit me Thursday that I have never known before. It has been another great summer in Honduras.

Give us a couple of days to rest and we will be ready to start planning the fall and winter teams. And even next summer.

Thanks to each one that shared part of their spring and summer with us.

Terri

Looking For Incubators

2011-08-05T08:39:00.000-07:00

Our friends at Bread For A Hungry World give chickens to poor families. The chickens lay eggs and the families have eggs to eat. I don't know all the logistics, but chickens are purchased and shipped to Honduras. Bread For A Hungry World thinks it will cheaper to buy some incubators, hatch eggs, raise chickens and then give the chickens to the poor families. It will also employee a few Hondurans, always a good thing. It sounds simple.

Welcome to Honduras. Finding incubators in this country is not as simple as that.

I was making the airport run yesterday. Marc said there was a farm store in Mateo. I told Darrell he could go to the airport with me and then we would go to Mateo and get the incubators. I had never been to Mateo, but I knew where the signs were pointing to Mateo.

After leaving the airport, we started toward Mateo. And we drove and drove and drove. Occasionally, I would see a sign that said Mateo. That was refreshing. At least I was driving in the right direction. I stopped and asked a couple of people where Mateo was. And the answer was always "mas arriba." Higher. So up the mountain we continued. We got to Mateo and it was not much more than a wide spot in the road. I thought the farm store would be easy to find in such a small place. Before I knew it, we were out of Mateo and on a dirt road continuing to climb high into the mountains. At least the drive was beautiful.

I had to turn around, which proved to be a challenge in itself. With that task accomplished, we headed back to Mateo. I began to ask where the farm store was and got several different answers. We had seen a chicken farm before we got to Mateo and thought surely they would know where to buy incubators. Silly us.

We drove back to the chicken farm and drove right through the gate as if we knew what we were doing. I asked someone cutting the grass where to buy incubators. I had the right word, but was accenting the wrong syllable. He said he knew nothing. We drove further and asked a truck driver. He said maybe the farm store and we asked where it was. He didn't know. The truck driver asked another person and he said Comayguela. I told Darrell I could not go to Comayguela and that I did not know my way around there at all. Like I knew my way to and around Mateo.

I stopped at the feed store where we buy chicken food and bought chicken food. I asked them where to buy incubators. Again, clueless. We tried the farm store in Ojojona. Accenting the wrong syllable, no one knew what I was talking about. But I described it. A box with warmth and light to hatch eggs. The lady in the farm store said no they didn't have those and she did not know where we could buy them. Once I finally was saying it right, I asked several people in Santa Ana. Everyone thought I was talking about an incubator for babies. And when I said for chickens or eggs, no one knew where to buy one. One person said maybe Tegucigalpa, but didn't know where in Tegucigalpa. I really wanted to help find these incubators, but I wasn't going back to town. At least yesterday.

Perhaps, chicken farmers here don't use incubators. Perhaps, they hatch eggs the old-fashioned way. I don't know. It was an interesting hunt.

While I didn't expect anything in return for my efforts, I got treated to lunch at Caso Y Campo, one of my favorite restaurants.

Today, Darrell is considering building incubators. I think we can find the supplies to build an incubator much easier than we can find one to buy.

Terri