Soccer fun!

Today Greg took the boys and two of our friends to a soccer game in a city about 2 hours away. They had a great time enjoying the game and the culture. There is nothing like going to a soccer game in another country. Even though the Monarcas lost, they all had a great time. Annie and I stayed behind, watched Barbie movies and played with Barbies and Polly Pockets most of the day. We had a lot of fun too! I tried to upload a picture of the boys and our friends tailgating before the game but so far, no luck. :o( I will keep trying!

A game of Jenga

This is a picture of Cesilia and her 2 girls. We invited them over for lunch today. She has had a rough week with a lot of criticism being given to her. I guess the culture here is that when someone dies they always have to blame someone or something. In this case since her husband left her 7 years ago they are blaming her for his death. It is her fault that he was an alcoholic, it is her fault that he left for the States and ultimately it is her fault he died. This always bothers me when they try to find someone or something to blame. So, she came over to our home to try and have some fun. After we ate, we played Jenga. Have you ever played the game Jenga with someone for the first time? The game itself is fun, but the expressions on their faces were priceless! They laughed and played and just had a great time. Her daughter's name is Annie too and the 2 Annies had a great time playing together. Of course they were both COVERED in dirt after they were done playing, but they had a great time!

Cesilia's in-laws are playing dirty with Cesilia and won't tell her when the body is going to arrive and said they would beat her up if she came to see his body. It is a very big mess and I am looking forward to all of it being over! I believe Cesilia is too. If you think about it, please keep her in your prayers. She is so sweet and just wants everyone to see Jesus in her. However, these are the type of people that bring out the worst in someone. After calling the funeral home we now know that the body is supposed to arrive on Wednesday. So please pray until at least Friday. We believe they will actually bury him on Thursday. When they were leaving they seemed much happier and we all knew that God would take care of every little detail. Okay, that is all for now! I am going to try and add more pics since it seems to be working now!

Update :o)

Okay, I am going to try to add my pictures again today. I have tried everyday this week multiple times and still have no pics. Maybe today! I just wanted to give you a quick update, I woke up this morning and sure enough the 2x4 mark is still there! ;o)

Tonight we went to one of the small groups that are meeting in a nearby village. Whenever we go they always treat us like royalty. So it didn't surprise me when they pull out a special chair as soon as I walked in. They had about 5 rows of 2x4s laid across some bricks which made pews. So, I came in and sat down on the 2x4 pew with Annie on my lap and J and A beside me. Greg always sits in a different spot because he is always expected to preach. (of course his seat was comfy!)The women all looked at me and said, " Why don't you sit there in the chair?" I simply said, that seat is special and I am not, so it would be better to save it for someone who needs the chair more than I do." (If I had come in and sat down in the chair all I would have heard in my head would have been my mother saying, "How rude!")They just laughed and gave it to an elderly lady, which made me feel better. After sitting on the 2x4 for over an hour with Annie on my lap, I was ready to pick sweet little grandma up out of the sit and tell her she could have the bench now! Know what, I wouldn't have cared if my mom thought that was rude or not, my bottom was NOT happy! These are the times when I think I hope I am earning some really cool jewels in my crown in heaven! ;o) That is probably a really non-missionary comment!

Anyway, as Greg started to tell a parable the village announcements started. (they announce that there is fresh bread being sold or tacos for sale or whatever is going on that needs to be annouced)That is when I would do anything to have my video camera. He was telling the story in a very loud voice for him, and the announcements got louder. When I say announcements, imagine your preacher with Ty Pennington from Extreme Home Makeover yelling through his megaphone right beside your preacher. That is how the "announcements" sound. So it is all I can do not to fall off of my comfy 2x4 from laughter. The louder the announcements got, the louder he got. Then all of a sudden they would stop and my soft spoken husband is now screaming the story. It really makes for a great scene. It is one of those moments when you think to yourself, if my friends could see me now! So, since you couldn't be there, I had to let you know just how funny it was. However, it is probably one of those, "You had to be there" moments and you are all shaking your heads thinking, hmmm.... I better check the laundry, because this is a waste of my time! So, go check your laundry and I will try and think of something really great to share with you tomorrow! Love to you all!

God really is good!

Hi all, I have just returned from the hospital where I had taken my friend, Rosa. She took her husband and her mom with her and they all spoke with the Dr. about her situation. We were all relieved to find out there were no other signs of cancerous cells in other areas. I fully expected them to leave the Dr.'s office and get another opinion. Instead, her mom left his office and said, "We are ignorant. I am glad my daughter has you to look out for her." They then said they wanted her to have the surgery today and unlike the U.S. she had the surgery and left within the hour. So she is now at home resting and we all feel a lot better about her health! So, thank you for your prayers and please keep praying for Cesilia.

Another day......

Hi everyone! I have been trying to post something for the past few days and our internet just would not allow it. So.... today I will try again! Thank you all for your prayers for our friends. I am still trying to post pictures so you can see who you are praying for. Our friend, Cesilia could have one of the toughest weekends of her life coming up. There is a lot of STRONG dislike between her family and her husband's family. Without prayer there are sure to be lots of problems this weekend. Please pray that there are none!

I am taking our friend, Rosa and ALL of her family to the Dr. today. They are talking about getting a second opinion, (my frustration is high right now!) before she receives the laser surgery. So, who knows what will come of today's visit to the Dr. Please pray it all goes well and I remain patient through this whole process. I am finding out that helping people sometimes is tougher than I thought. :o)

On a good note, one of our friends came over to our home and wanted to talk. Her name is Barbara and I mentioned her a few weeks ago. She is the one I said felt like she didn't want to come to our home anymore. She felt like Satan was attacking her. Anyway, she came over and said she had made a very big decision in her life. She said she knew it would change her life in a big way. I was afraid she was going to say that she was going to stop coming on Monday nights. However, she said, I have been praying and I really feel like God is telling me now is the time for me to be baptized. HUGE answer to prayer! She asked us to pray for her husband, Icho because she wasn't sure if he would be in agreement with this decision. So....please pray for Icho and Barbara! We are very excited about this news!

Okay, I have made up for a few days now. Lots to pray about and we couldn't do this job without all of your prayers! I really appreciate all of you who pray for us and who have interest in this blog! You are all precious to us!! I don't know all of you personally, but I can't tell you how happy it makes me to know there are people in this world who care about what we are doing! So... hugs to you all!

And then there were.....37!

Don't cha just love it when God moves? This past week has been a little rough. Our friend finding out she has pre-cancer, then our other friend's husband dies and there are other little things that Satan loves to throw our way. However, God loves to give us all big hugs during these times. Tonight we got together for our weekly meeting and expected to have our normal 20-25 people show up. But NOOOOOO! God brought to our home 37 people! Can you believe that? We were so excited. Not only because of the number, but because our friends were the ones who did the inviting. So please PRAISE God for us! Cuz He is GOOOOOOOD! :o) Okay, so I am in a good mood! I took a picture and I will try to add it tomorrow. For some reason it just won't upload right now. So.... tomorrow.

Please keep praying for our friend, Cesilia, she is really struggling with many things right now. They plan on bringing her husband's body back here sometime this week. It could get really tough on her! Please pray! Love you all!