Woodland Hills May Day Nine (Sunday)

Blog from Saturday, May 22:
     This morning our team woke up and had eggs and toast for breakfast. Then Juana came over and we talked about the overall trip and how we felt it has changed our life. We all agreed that it was going to be extremely hard to leave Esperanza Viva and all the amazing and passionate individuals. Then we headed to the Parián in Puebla. The Parián is a huge outdoor market where there are endless things to buy. We all enjoyed bargaining with the vendors, and all of us found numerous items we loved. After we had finished our shopping, Juana and Alle took us to Vips (a restaurant). On our way to Vips, we ran into two women from Peru that were on The Amazing Race. They tried to sell us these sugar candies, which some of us bought, and the camera man was filming us the entire time. We also saw three more teams and got pictures and videos of them. Juana was talking to one of the producers who was under cover and he said they’re going to Columbia next. Then we went to Vips and had a delicious lunch. After lunch, we went to the orphanage and hung out with the kids for a while. They were all still playing with their prizes from the carnival. It made our team so excited to see the kids enjoying themselves. From there we went to one of the house of one of the staff members for young adult night. There we had praise and worship along with an icebreaker game to get to know each other’s names. Then Kayla and Emily shared their own testimonies which were guided by the Holy Spirit and extremely powerful. Then Josh shared with everyone about loving ones neighbors, and how we need to have compassion for our brothers and sisters, but we also need to help them. After the youth night, we had hamburgers and chicken back at the house. Of course, we also bonded for a while and then went to bed. We all can’t believe how fast this trip is going, and although we are excited to be going home, we are all going to miss Esperanza Viva. Please continue to send your prayers. We can all feel them lifting and guiding us. We love you all and are praying for you.

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Pictures from yesterday (Saturday):

Dinner at Melotes near the guest house.

The Amazing Race

The team in downtown Puebla

Juana talking to the producer.

Time with the kids.

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Blog from Sunday, May 23:

     LAST DAY! Ahhh… This is always the hardest part of the trip for me. I know I can speak for all of us when I say we couldn’t have asked for a better last day here. We started out this morning going to the baptism at the church – how cool! There are 56 people who got baptized. Afterwards we went inside the church for some time to play games such as pool, air hockey, and ping pong. We stayed for a little bit and then headed home to rest for a couple hours before the “despedida” (farewell program) at the orphanage. It was so cute! The younger boys did a dance for us, the older girls did as well, and then Eleazar read us a letter that he had written. I spent a few more minutes with Brian (the boy I sponsor) playing basketball and such before we had to leave. We now have a few hours until we leave the house at 4:30 AM!!! All nighter – here we come!
See you all soon!
Todd

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     I can’t believe the indescribable trip we’ve had. This trip has truly changed my heart, and Christ has given my soul direction.
Becca

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     I never expected this trip to impact me as much as it did. I will never forget this experience as long as I live. Thank you to the missionary families, staff, and kids; I can’t thank you enough! This trip has been beyond amazing and I will cherish this trip forever.
Steph

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     The fact that today is our last day has not sunk in. We all said our good-byes but it still seems like we’ll be going back to the kids tomorrow. I never would have guessed that I would grow to have such friendships with the kids, despite the language barrier we all grew incredibly close. The children and staff at Esperanza Viva have forever impacted my life. I cannot thank them enough for such an amazing experience.
Kayla

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     Thank you all so much for all your prayers and support while we have been in Mexico! This trip has exceeded all my expectations. The kids and staff are so awesome. Seeing everyone from the orphanage again was so much fun! The memories I made this week will stick with me forever. You can really see God working. Thank you so much!
Emily

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     This trip was absolutely amazing. Thank you so much for everything. I can’t believe what an impact this has had on me. This place is a home of God and is such an inspiration. We’ll be praying for you and all of the wonderful things you do.
Thank you for everything and blessings always!
Jen

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Pictures from today (Sunday)

At church there was a baptismal service.

This afternoon at Esperanza Viva

During the despedida (farewell program)

Saying Good-bye after the despedida.

Woodland Hills May Day Eight (Saturday)

Blog from Friday May 21, 2010

     Friday? Already? The week has flown by and we are already at our last day of the week. Today, instead of working out at the land, we worked at the La Vina boy’s house. There we painted windows and the door. We all had a lot of fun doing this and felt privileged to do so. We got done working at around 1:00pm and then went to the orphanage. For our activity, we had planned a carnival. This was by far, our favorite day with the kids. We set up different stations for the kids to play games at. Our activities included a fish pond, sucker tree, duck pound, bean bag toss, balloon animals and face painting. What made this all so fun was simply the kids’ reactions. They were so happy and loved all the prizes and candy. All of the kids spent the afternoon with us the whole time and that was awesome. We never got to play with them all at once so we definitely took advantage of it. At the end of the carnival, we did a raffle for the kids and they absolutely loved that. It’s crazy how much you can learn from children. Throughout this week, it’s easy to say they taught us the value of life, the importance of living it and loving it to the fullest, no matter what the circumstances. We’ve all felt such strong connections with the kids and have definitely loved Esperanza Viva more and more each day.
     When we returned to our house, we really had no plans for our evening but to just hang out with each other. After resting and eating hamburgers, we ended up singing Disney songs, acting really goofy and playing games. Our group is definitely one of a kind. We’ve had really heartfelt conversations all the way to goofy, weird ones. Each of us has felt such a growth in our faith and relationships with each other. We all allowed ourselves to open up and grow as much as possible on this trip. We’re so glad we have 2 more days here, but we’re also looking forward to going home. We’re excited to share our experiences and expand what God and Esperanza Viva have done for us. It’s all been such an amazing experience! See everyone soon! :)

God Bless,
Jen

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  Pictures of the team painting yesterday.

Woodland Hills May Day Seven (Friday)

Blog from Thursday, May 20:

     Today has been a very unique day. It’s been a day of so many different activities going on followed by so many different emotions. This morning we worked out at the land. Many of us felt the effects of the heat and the hard work all while having the feeling of accomplishment and making a difference. Today’s task was to mix cement for the stability columns for the guest bathroom as well as pass and stack cement blocks for the workers for easier access.
     After working at the land we headed to the orphanage for some lunch and time with the kids. We had an amazing authentic Mexican meal. We refueled and we were ready to play. Today was a great day for bonding with the girls. Most of the girls came over and they were treated to some quality times with the girl team members. They all got their nails done in bright colors and they got headbands. The girls were all so excited! They enjoyed and appreciate the time with the girls on the team so much. 
     The boys had a day just to relax plus do their own thing. We had a game of basketball going with Todd shortly followed by an intense game of soccer. Kids were running everywhere! Our day at the orphanage went fast, but more fun was yet to come.
     All of us loaded into the van and headed back to our house to prepare for devotions with Josh and Ivonne McNally. Our night with them was a blast! Our time of devotions was mostly a question and answer session that went both ways. They asked us a question and we each would answer and then the other way around. After the devotion session we went with Josh, Ivonne, and Juana, the person who is mainly in charge of us, to an authentic Mexican restaurant near the guest house. Josh and Ivonne made great recommendation of things to order. When we got the food, it was quickly devoured. Between us being hungry and the food being delicious, the food was gone in a matter of minutes.
     Once we got back to the house, the serious discussion started immediately. Our bonding continues to grow and strengthen. Our talks were filled with a few tears and of course a lot of laughter. We all are starting to see the real reasons, beyond our simple desires, to be here. As the night draws to a close, we end it with more laughter brought on by our long nights and we prepare for tomorrow. We all see tomorrow as being one of the most fun filled days with the children who brighten our days with their bright smiles and uplifting laughter.

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