New Years Eve 2010

For New Years Eve, we went swimming with the kids from house 2. We went up to the top of a mountain where the water from a natural hot springs is put into 2 swimming pools. The journey up the mountain was quite interesting. Besides the washed out roads and driving about 5 inches from the ledge, it was perfect.

The Newest Member of Our Family

Right before Christmas, we welcomed the newest addition to our family--Domino the cat. (You thought it was going to be a kid, didn't you?) Madison loves her cat!!!

Christmas Eve

I have so much to blog about since we've been without internet for about a month now. I thought a good place to start would be our Christmas Eve celebration with the kids from house 2. Tammy and I have spent at least 2 days a week with these kids and have really grown to love them all. On Christmas Eve we had the 12 children who live at Casa de Amor's house 2 over to our house for dinner and gifts. After opening their gifts the kids enjoyed homemade chicken and dumplings...What a great time!

We Made It!!!

WOW! Have we really been here a week??? What an adventure! We traveled for 30 hours, lost Madison at the airport in Santa Cruz and ended up in Bolivia without half of our luggage. Madison was found pretty quickly and the luggage showed up after vacationing in Buenos Aires ;)!

We are getting more acclimated to the city and the altitude each day. We are learning to navigate the public transportation systems and have enrolled in language classes. Our house isn´t ready yet, but hopefully will be soon. More details to come as soon as I can get on my computer...

12 days 'til Departure

We are now in the scurry and scramble of last minute preparations with only 12 days to go. On November 9th we will board a plane for Bolivia. I continue to be amazed with God. I know I shouldn't be, but He just keeps doing great and awesome things that we never thought possible. As we are only days away from our departure we humbly ask that you pray for us. Here are a few of our prayer requests:

*A home for our 2 chihuahuas
*Safe travel
*Good health now and after we go
*Pray for those family members that we are leaving behind; that they may find peace that only the Lord can provide
*Pray for Madison as she adjusts to life in a new culture
*Financial needs (we are at about 75% of our annual target of gifts/pledges)

Please remember that November 7th is Orphan Awareness Sunday. It also happens to be our send off from the church. I've attached a video for you to view...follow the link below.

http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=12616432&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_por

We have TICKETS!!!!

It's official...We will be leaving Texas on November 9th and heading for Bolivia. One step closer to this awesome adventure the Lord has set before us. Please continue to pray for us as the days ahead will be busy busy busy! More details to come soon...

Counting down!!!

They say time flies when you're having fun. We must be having a blast!!! We are about 2 month away from our move to Bolivia and couldn't be more excited. While the reality of our timeline is starting to sink in, we are reaffirmed of our calling everyday. God has been so good to us and has shown up in ways we never would have imagined. Praise Him!

There are still many practical ways to get involved. Would you consider being a partner? Here's how:

 Pray- Pray daily. Pray often. Prayer is the fuel that keeps us going.

 Give- A monthly financial gift will help sustain us in this ministry.

We are facing some substantial start up costs, so even a one time gift would help greatly. For example, we will be purchasing the following items upon our arrival in Bolivia:

Beds- $150-$200 (x 2)
Bedding- $8 per set
Mattresses- $100-$150 (x2)
Clothes washer- $600
Refrigerator- $600-$700
Kitchen Table/chairs- $200
Kitchen Supplies- $150-$300
Car (within 6 months)- $7000

We are humbled to have such awesome prayer warriors standing behind us as we go! Looking forward to celebrating much with you in the days to come.