February Newsletter From Casa de Esperanza

Casa de Esperanza

P.O. Box 9222

Columbus, MS 39705
cdehonduras.org http://casastore.blogspot.com

Amigos de Casa,

The children's time out of school passed quickly for all of us. School started February 15. The last part of January and the first part of February was spent mending and purchasing uniforms, shining shoes, and getting book bags ready to go. The children are always so excited the first day or two. Then the reality of getting up before 6:00 and homework sets in. Enthusiasm fades quickly. And true to form in Honduras, the kids that go to public school have already missed three or four days due to meetings and strikes. All of the children except Josue are in school this year. It sure is quiet in Casa every morning.

Please pray daily for our children. For some, learning is a huge challenge and, for others, they just have not got off to a good start with their behavior.

This year we have hired an employee to ride the bus to Manos Felices with Rosy. As gasoline prcies have risen and continues to rise, we have found it is cheaper to hire an employee and pay bus fare than it is to buy fuel. Elena, our new employee, is a church member and neighbor. Like others, she lives right outside the back gate. She arrives here at 5:15 and she and Rosy board the 5:30 bus. So far, this is working well.

We have hired another employee as well. Next week, a new houseparent starts. She has 15 years experience and we expect to be able to take children very soon.

Along with this houseparent, we will soon be hiring a relief houseparent to work the days off of the houseparent and the night people in the big house. These are very positive additions to the staff at Casa de Esperanza.

With the beginning of school, means the end of art and cooking classes. The children did very well in art. They had an exposition at the end of the class. The older children were in cooking class, too. They made breads and pastries to sell at the art exposition. The children were proud of both their art and their baked goods. There was a lot of smiling faces as they spent the money they made.

Our Pamela has to have some more surgery on her foot. This should be an easy in and out surgery with no overnight stay required. Of course, she is nervous.

The dry season continues. As long as the city water comes through, we have plenty of water. When it doesn't, sometimes we can be found hauling water for showers and dishes.

All of the children recently had eye exams. Maryuri had to have glasses. Nohemy and Rosy need to be watched carefully. They, too, may need glasses. Maryuri is as cute as she can be in her Barbie glasses.

The year end contributions were very generous. We want to thank each and every one of you. For the first time ever, Casa de Esperanza is starting a new year with a little bit of money in the bank. God is good and always provides, but we are thankful to have some money in the bank.

This month I would like to introduce you to Doris. Doris turned 13 in December.

She is a special needs child. She is extremely behind mentally, educationally, and socially. She came to live at Casa de Esperanza in June, 2008. At that time, she could not speak and ate ravenously with her hands. She now knows her name and can talk some. She loves to sing and can sing whole songs by herself or with others. She loves music and just dances and sings and claps. This is more than we thought she could ever accomplish. She attends classes at Teleton. Doris also attends classes at public school. She is not able to do any work, but the people at Teleton want her exposed to children near her age. She is supposed to sit in class in fifth grade, but prefers the first graders. She always gravitates to those much younger. She plays by herself a lot, too.

We have been able to teach her how to do a few of the chores. Some of those chores she is learning to do well and others, not so well. Doris will probably always live at Casa. She is a sweet child and laughs with reckless abandon. Please remember this child in your prayers.

Feel free to share this newsletter with anyone you think would be interested. As always we thank you for your love, support, and prayers.

If you have any questions or concerns about Casa de Esperanza, please feel free to email me at terriltindall@yahoo.com


Sincerely,

Terri

A Birthday Campfire

We like birthdays and we like campfires.  This weekend little Josue turned three and two of the employees had birthdays, also.  It has been a long time since we had a campfire and Marc decided to combine the birthdays and a campfire. 

The excitement level was off the chart.

Marc was untwisting hangers and he kept saying anyone that picks up a stick before I say will not get to roast marshmallows.  Finally all the hangers were undone.  Let the roasting begin.

Josue got to roast his first.  It was so funny watching him.  He did not want to put that thing in his mouth.  But when he finally did, he says "Oh, Marco."  He liked it.

Next, Nadia and Kathy, the birthday honorees, roasted theirs.  I kept telling Kathy the blacker the better.  I don't think she believed me.  But it's true.

We had flaming marshmallows,

 some great big messes



and making sure every bite of marshmallow was eaten.

Even Juan, the guard joined the fun.  He never joins us for anything.

I could have made myself sick on those marshmallows.  But I didn't.

After we finished the marshmallows, we went in the house for birthday cake.  The kids went crazy.  You would think we had never celebrated a birthday before.  They were yelling and screaming and cheering.  I had to laugh.

Kathy, Nadia and Josue blew out the candles.  As always, the birthday honorees received hugs from everyone else.

Josue really likes chocolate cake.

I think we just served our kids nothing but marshmallows and cake for supper.  Those kids may not ever settle down.  I feel sorry for the night person tonight.  Groan!  That's me tonight.

Terri

Another Flat

When we went to Costa Rica in November, we had a flat on the way to Costa Rica and again on the way home.  Two weeks ago Marc went to Copan and had a flat on the way and again on the way home.  It is kind of a joke.

Today, we took six kids high into the mountains to see their parents.  Marc looked at back right tire and said that doesn't look too good.  He left and drove down to the highway and got it fixed.  But, he also changed tires and was using that tire as the spare and put the old spare on the car.  When he got back, I commented that the tire looked worse than the one he changed.

At 3:00, we started home.  We got to Sabana Grande and had a flat.  So what else is new, it happens all the time.  Only we had six kids in the car.  The kids and I stayed in the car.  Trust me, this was a much better option than getting out of the car.  We were on a highway where trucks come racing through.  Had I lived through the experience of trying to keep the kids off the highway and alive, I would have aged several years.

We did not feel the car being raised in the back.  Fernando immediately had to go to the bathroom.  That is not so huge for a boy.  Then Ana did.  I knew all four girls had gone to the bathroom before we left their parent's house.  I opened the front and back doors and told her to get out of the car and go.  Of course, Fernando is trying to look at her.  Ana was not very happy when I told her to take her paper to the trash.  Then Katty has to go.  Open the front and back doors again.  She pulls her jeans down without unbuttoning and unzipping them.  When she finished, she could not get them back up.  Katty gladly prissed around with her paper looking for the trash.

Inside the car, the kids are touching and doing the she's-in-my-space, he-looked-at-me thing.  And yes, this was still better than being outside the car and keeping them off the highway.

When the tire was back on the car, we were dropped rather suddenly.  The kids were squealing and laughing. They loved that and wanted to do it again.

Fortunately, the rest of the way home was without incident except for just the normal stuff that goes with six kids in one car.

Terri

Happy Valentine's Day

I really do know Valentine's Day was last week.

Yesterday, when I picked up my mail, I was so excited about Milky Ways and cashews that I almost forgot there were bills and tax information and bank statements and more work.  There was also a big envelope for the kids.

This afternoon I took the envelope to Karen.  It was full of valentine's from Pat and Kim Robinson.  Karen started calling the children's names.  The were hooting and hollering and jumping up and down.  Little Josue was saying "soccer, soccer" as he had a picture of a soccer player on his.

The kids were very pleased with the valentines.  Thanks Pat and Kim.

Terri

New Glasses

A couple of weeks ago, there was an eye clinic held in our church building.  All of the children except Doris had their eyes checked.  Doris would have none of that.  She shut her eyes so tight there was no way any kind of exam could be done.

Most of the kids had good vision and some needed drops for various things.  After I bought the drops, I looked like a pharmacy.

Rosy and Nohemy's vision was such we need to watch and monitor it.  They may need glasses in the future.  Miss Maryuri needed them right now.  Her eyesight is pretty bad.

Karen took Maryuri to town and picked out glasses.  Barbie glasses.

The very first morning Maryuri came out of the bedroom carrying her little pink glasses case. Karen helped her put on her glasses. She looked around and smiled.  Remembering when I first got my glasses and could see leaves on trees, I have an idea Maryuri was seeing some things for the first time and smiling when she saw them.

I know she in enjoying seeing the world in her new Barbie glasses.  I think she is as cute as can be.

Terri

Welcome To Honduras, I Mean Houston

Whenever we travel to and from Honduras and have to spend a night because of connections, we use Hotwire to find a hotel. It works and usually for a good price.  I could not get all the way home yesterday and had to spend the night in Houston.  Marc got on Hotwire and found me a hotel  and it worked.  The hotel was clean, secure and had a bed in it.  And not much else.  It had no restaurant inside the hotel and no restaurant or gas station anywhere close that I could see and was located on a freeway.   A mixmaster, as there were freeways criss-crossing every which direction.  Made supper a bit of a challenge.

I don't carry shampoo, etc. when I go to to the States.  I just leave it at my mom's.  It saves a lot of poundage in my suitcase. I expect those little samples in hotels.  Not last night.  No coffee pot.  No radio.  Perhaps, Marc went too much on the low end.  Maybe not.

I was exhausted, sad, and knowing I had made a bad decision about leaving this soon after the funeral.  I had two choices.  I could have a pity party or a pamper party.  I chose the latter.  There were three things I really wanted to do while spending the night in Houston by myself: take a  hot bath, a luxury not to be had in Honduras, read on my book, and get a good night's rest.  In that room, I had everything I needed to accomplish those three things.

The hot bath, and a good talk to God, began to clear my head.  Realizing I encounter unexpected things on a daily basis in Honduras, I roll with the flow and, usually, laugh about it.  Do the same thing in Houston.  I ate chocolate chip cookies in bed.  Famous Amos directly from the vending machine.  Thank goodness for the vending machine.  I then fluffed up the nice flat pillows as much as they could be fluffed up and settled in with the book.   I read about an hour before I turned off the lights at 8:30.  Mission accomplished.

I woke this morning feeling more refreshed and knowing I had been a bit on the silly side about fretting over those things yesterday. 

After having chocolate chips cookies for supper, I was more than ready for the free continental breakfast.  I had never seen a continental breakfast that consisted of nothing more than white bread and a toaster. I was a bit put out at first.  Then, in my mind, I said "welcome to Honduras, I mean Houston."  Then I laughed.  Outloud. 

I then remembered all the people in Honduras and Haiti and India and Africa and all sorts of other places that would rejoice if they only had a piece of bread today.  I toasted my bread and sat down and thanked God for that piece of bread.  I am spoiled and I was ashamed.

I got to the airport, got on my plane, finished the book, and had an uneventful flight to Honduras.  After immigration and customs, I walked into Marc's arms and he said "welcome to Honduras," and at that moment, they were the most wonderful words on earth.

Terri

Tears To Houston

The last couple of days have been stressful, to say the least.  But, I am so glad I could go to Amarillo and be with my mom. 

Everything about the service yesterday was beautiful.  The pastor, who just happened to be my cousin, that did the funeral admitted to us, the family, it was his first funeral and he was nervous.  No one would have ever known it was his first funeral or that he was nervous. He did a marvelous job and said words to comfort all of us, especially my mother. 

I bought my ticket to return today.  I could not get all the way home today and am overnighting in Houston.  Tuesday, when I bought the ticket, I thought I would be ready to leave today.  I wasn't.  I hated to leave my mom this soon.   I cried and I cried and haven't stopped yet.

As I started through security in Amarillo, there was a crowd of people waiting there.  I reached down to pull off my shoes and a soldier exited through the other side.  The crowd began to cheer and clap.  A wife,ran into his arms.  The other passengers going through security stopped and clapped as well.  I was already crying.  That was reason enough to cry some more.

I am a mess.  I feel so alone.  I cannot even imagine how alone my mom feels.    I will be home tomorrow and soon be back in my routine.  My mom has a lot of lonely days and nights ahead.  Please keep her in your prayers.

Terri