Here are a few pictures from our Christmas service and supper that we had on Christmas Eve. I have been trying to upload them to facebook but for some reason it does not want to work..so I thought I would put a few on here.
Monday, December 28, 2009
too many days..
without blogging! I have been meaning to sit down and write but every time I think about it I think "oh no, I have let it go too long" and then I just thing I will do it later...and now here I am, after eight days of not blogging so, of course, I have a lot to write about!
This past week has been good but busy for us. We spent Christmas Eve preparing for the church service that evening and the supper that we had prepared afterward. The day was full of cleaning, decorating, planning, but it was fun. We went to the church in the late afternoon and set up the tables and put up some decorations that I had got from my mother in law, she actually gave them to us for our home, but I took them all there are used them to decorate the dining area a little bit. I also made little Christmas candle decorations for the tables, with some help again from my mother in law as she bought me a little glue gun and helped me pick out some cheap ornaments and whatnot..in the end it looked really nice and I think the people appreciated the special touches.
The service started around 8 pm and only went for about 45 minutes. We had the service outside which was really nice, unfortunately as the evening went on the air got a bit cooler out though, and quite a few of the kids got colds the next day from the cool night air, but other than that, it went well. We had quite a few brothers and sisters show up for the service and then had our guests (people that were invited from the community) also show up for the service, they were our special guests for the supper, but it was great to have them come to the service as well! One of the guys was really surprised and shared with one of the brothers in the church that he didn't know how nice evangelicals (Christians) could be! He said normally the Catholics are the ones who do community events and they always thought that the people in this church were more strict and legalistic....so it was really good to get a chance to change the way that some people in the community see us, and to be able to bless them in this way.
The supper was really good, the ladies in the church were originally going to make it, but then a friend of one of the ladies heard what we were planning and she was so excited that we were doing something to bless the community that she volunteered to come and do all the cooking for the meal! She is not a Christian and doesn't attend the church, but it was so great to see her willing to get involved, and of course, the ladies from the church all helped out and we all did our share when it came to serving the food and whatnot.
During the supper the youth had made some movies of skits and funny things for the guests to enjoy so they had that playing on a big screen and that brought a lot of laughter to the tables as we ate together...they did a really good job! Once we had dessert and got everything cleared away and the dishes done it was probably about 11 oclock, so we headed. Josiah had been showing definite signs of being tired, but of course, once we were home he got his second wind and was very wide awake...with that said we allowed him to open his gifts that were under the tree. He had a gift from his grandparents (Jorge's parents) and one little one from us, then also one from a family in the church. The one that he loved the most was the one from Jorge's parents, which was some type of blocks/Lego pieces. We soon regretted letting him open them as it was so late and he, of course, wanted to sit up and play with them, lol. But around midnight he was getting tired again so we convinced him that he could play with them in the morning, and he reluctantly went to bed:)
Christmas day was spent here in the house...we didn't really do much at all. As I said, Josiah woke up with quite a chest cold..coughing quite a bit, and I had a splitting head ache all day. So we just hung out and relaxed together. In the evening our friend Danilo came over and we had a BBQ together, which was nice, Jorge had been long awaiting such a BBQ, haha. We also put some water in Josiah's new pool that he recently got and let him play outside for a bit..not too long though, as he did have a cold. The best part of my day was spent talking to family! I got to have a three-way call with KB and Tanya and the rest of the family...that meant a lot to me, I find myself missing everyone so much lately that is was good to just be able to sit and chat about nothing important, haha. Truth be told, those are the conversations I miss the most.
The last few days have been getting back into some kind of a routine...to be honest I haven't been feeling the greatest, I dont know if it is just hormones or what, but my emotions have been through the roof lately! I find myself having moments where I am so happy to be here and then moments later I just want to sit and cry, and close my eyes and be somewhere else when I open them. The first few weeks that I was here are so blurry for me as it was soo much to take in, that now that we are getting more "settled" I find myself being more and more sensitive and more aware(if that's the right word) of the situation that we are currently living in. I have moments where I feel so weak and feel I have nothing to offer these people. Then I have others where I remind myself that God is the one who brought us here, and although it's true, I have nothing to offer them, He DOES have something to offer them, and I need to allow Him to use me. It has been a constant battle of ups and downs...I have not been the most pleasant person to be around the last few days, and for that I feel awful. I am also having quite a bit of back pain and pelvic pain at times, as Josiah insists on being carried around still, and that is taking it's tole on me. But anyways, these are just details, small things that can get a person down, but I know that my GOD is bigger than these things and I am trying to focus on His Goodness and His Grace.
If you think about it maybe you could just pray for me...thanks to all and I will write again soon. I am going to go lay down now while Josiah is napping and try and get some rest myself.
This past week has been good but busy for us. We spent Christmas Eve preparing for the church service that evening and the supper that we had prepared afterward. The day was full of cleaning, decorating, planning, but it was fun. We went to the church in the late afternoon and set up the tables and put up some decorations that I had got from my mother in law, she actually gave them to us for our home, but I took them all there are used them to decorate the dining area a little bit. I also made little Christmas candle decorations for the tables, with some help again from my mother in law as she bought me a little glue gun and helped me pick out some cheap ornaments and whatnot..in the end it looked really nice and I think the people appreciated the special touches.
The service started around 8 pm and only went for about 45 minutes. We had the service outside which was really nice, unfortunately as the evening went on the air got a bit cooler out though, and quite a few of the kids got colds the next day from the cool night air, but other than that, it went well. We had quite a few brothers and sisters show up for the service and then had our guests (people that were invited from the community) also show up for the service, they were our special guests for the supper, but it was great to have them come to the service as well! One of the guys was really surprised and shared with one of the brothers in the church that he didn't know how nice evangelicals (Christians) could be! He said normally the Catholics are the ones who do community events and they always thought that the people in this church were more strict and legalistic....so it was really good to get a chance to change the way that some people in the community see us, and to be able to bless them in this way.
The supper was really good, the ladies in the church were originally going to make it, but then a friend of one of the ladies heard what we were planning and she was so excited that we were doing something to bless the community that she volunteered to come and do all the cooking for the meal! She is not a Christian and doesn't attend the church, but it was so great to see her willing to get involved, and of course, the ladies from the church all helped out and we all did our share when it came to serving the food and whatnot.
During the supper the youth had made some movies of skits and funny things for the guests to enjoy so they had that playing on a big screen and that brought a lot of laughter to the tables as we ate together...they did a really good job! Once we had dessert and got everything cleared away and the dishes done it was probably about 11 oclock, so we headed. Josiah had been showing definite signs of being tired, but of course, once we were home he got his second wind and was very wide awake...with that said we allowed him to open his gifts that were under the tree. He had a gift from his grandparents (Jorge's parents) and one little one from us, then also one from a family in the church. The one that he loved the most was the one from Jorge's parents, which was some type of blocks/Lego pieces. We soon regretted letting him open them as it was so late and he, of course, wanted to sit up and play with them, lol. But around midnight he was getting tired again so we convinced him that he could play with them in the morning, and he reluctantly went to bed:)
Christmas day was spent here in the house...we didn't really do much at all. As I said, Josiah woke up with quite a chest cold..coughing quite a bit, and I had a splitting head ache all day. So we just hung out and relaxed together. In the evening our friend Danilo came over and we had a BBQ together, which was nice, Jorge had been long awaiting such a BBQ, haha. We also put some water in Josiah's new pool that he recently got and let him play outside for a bit..not too long though, as he did have a cold. The best part of my day was spent talking to family! I got to have a three-way call with KB and Tanya and the rest of the family...that meant a lot to me, I find myself missing everyone so much lately that is was good to just be able to sit and chat about nothing important, haha. Truth be told, those are the conversations I miss the most.
The last few days have been getting back into some kind of a routine...to be honest I haven't been feeling the greatest, I dont know if it is just hormones or what, but my emotions have been through the roof lately! I find myself having moments where I am so happy to be here and then moments later I just want to sit and cry, and close my eyes and be somewhere else when I open them. The first few weeks that I was here are so blurry for me as it was soo much to take in, that now that we are getting more "settled" I find myself being more and more sensitive and more aware(if that's the right word) of the situation that we are currently living in. I have moments where I feel so weak and feel I have nothing to offer these people. Then I have others where I remind myself that God is the one who brought us here, and although it's true, I have nothing to offer them, He DOES have something to offer them, and I need to allow Him to use me. It has been a constant battle of ups and downs...I have not been the most pleasant person to be around the last few days, and for that I feel awful. I am also having quite a bit of back pain and pelvic pain at times, as Josiah insists on being carried around still, and that is taking it's tole on me. But anyways, these are just details, small things that can get a person down, but I know that my GOD is bigger than these things and I am trying to focus on His Goodness and His Grace.
If you think about it maybe you could just pray for me...thanks to all and I will write again soon. I am going to go lay down now while Josiah is napping and try and get some rest myself.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Wonder of wonders...
miracle of miracles...yes that's right, my son has finally began exploring new foods!! (applause applause) It is still a process that is taking quite a lot of time, but this past week there were two jaw dropping moments for Jorge and I as we watched our picky little eater eat things that he has never before tried and/or liked. The first was in the beginning of the week, I think it was Monday or Tuesday. We were sitting at the table eating breakfast, Jorge and I had made some fried eggs for ourselves and Josiah sudden;y pointed to my egg and said "Mummy, this?" So I said ok, gave him a little piece, expecting him to spit it out..and he ate it and asked for more! Well to make a long story short he ended up eating almost three fried eggs to himself...I shared and ate a little bit but he ate most of them. Weird. The second was yesterday while we were at a wedding of a girl from the church. They were serving some snacks and came out with small cheese empanadas and chips, and also small pieces of cheese cut into little bite sizes. Well Josiah took to the empanadas right away...surprising, and ate like 4 or 5 of them....then I offered him a piece of cheese and he ate it...and kept asking for more...he ate tons of cheese and empanadas and chips..not the healthiest foods in the world, haha but it was cool to see him trying new things again:)
On a side note: As I was writing the first paragraph, Jorge and I were sitting here on the bed and Josiah had been in the kitchen for a few minutes. Suddenly Jorge said "my son is too quiet", and I said "oh now, you're right.." Jorge peeked out the bedroom door and called me over to look. Lo and behold, we found Josiah standing in the kitchen with his face, hands and arms covered in cream, (kind of like whipping cream, but it is one that you put on deserts), spreading it evenly all over his body...HAHAHA! It was one of those moments that was so funny you couldnt even be bothered with getting upset. I grabbed my camera and we got some good pictures, as we walked into the kitchen towards him asking him what he was doing, he began calmly explaining to us (in his own language) what he was doing and why...it was sooo funny! He had a big smile on his face and was telling us (I think) how we should be proud of him because he was rubbing the cream in so well on his arms..haha. He was very proud of himself, that was quite clear. Anyways, that's my boy for ya!!
Well, today has been a day of some rest but mostly just organizing and doing housework. This morning I went to the church with Jorge and Josiah as we had the children's Sunday School. I taught them the song "Jesus loves me" with the actions and then had to come home as Josiah began to put on a show and freak out, crying...why he does we will never know, but there it is.
When I got back home I did some laundry, then cleaned up a bit and began making lunch. I made Dad's fried potatoes (and they came out really good this time:) and chicken, but then we also recieved some empanadas from a family in our church, so we had a wide variety for lunch.
After cleaning up and putting some spices in my fridge magnet spice holders, Jorge and I went through the items that were brought by the people of the church for their "first harvest" that they do every month. Every month the church has something called the "first harvest" where people bring a portion of their groceries and/or crops to the church and we put them all together and make a couple of bags for the families in the church who do not have much, or are struggling to make ends meet. This is something that is found in the Bible, in the old Testament. The people here are so faithful with this, they say that the first of everything that they receive is always for the LORD. To the point that many people bring us their first crops or a portion of their food from their gardens, eggs, etc. we are very blessed by this effort and it is a real testimony to me of how we, as Christians ought to live.
Anyways, I need to get going here, to get ready for church. Tomorrow is our day off and we will most likely be going to Concepcion for the day..so I may write again tomorrow night or in the next few days.. bye for now:)
On a side note: As I was writing the first paragraph, Jorge and I were sitting here on the bed and Josiah had been in the kitchen for a few minutes. Suddenly Jorge said "my son is too quiet", and I said "oh now, you're right.." Jorge peeked out the bedroom door and called me over to look. Lo and behold, we found Josiah standing in the kitchen with his face, hands and arms covered in cream, (kind of like whipping cream, but it is one that you put on deserts), spreading it evenly all over his body...HAHAHA! It was one of those moments that was so funny you couldnt even be bothered with getting upset. I grabbed my camera and we got some good pictures, as we walked into the kitchen towards him asking him what he was doing, he began calmly explaining to us (in his own language) what he was doing and why...it was sooo funny! He had a big smile on his face and was telling us (I think) how we should be proud of him because he was rubbing the cream in so well on his arms..haha. He was very proud of himself, that was quite clear. Anyways, that's my boy for ya!!
Well, today has been a day of some rest but mostly just organizing and doing housework. This morning I went to the church with Jorge and Josiah as we had the children's Sunday School. I taught them the song "Jesus loves me" with the actions and then had to come home as Josiah began to put on a show and freak out, crying...why he does we will never know, but there it is.
When I got back home I did some laundry, then cleaned up a bit and began making lunch. I made Dad's fried potatoes (and they came out really good this time:) and chicken, but then we also recieved some empanadas from a family in our church, so we had a wide variety for lunch.
After cleaning up and putting some spices in my fridge magnet spice holders, Jorge and I went through the items that were brought by the people of the church for their "first harvest" that they do every month. Every month the church has something called the "first harvest" where people bring a portion of their groceries and/or crops to the church and we put them all together and make a couple of bags for the families in the church who do not have much, or are struggling to make ends meet. This is something that is found in the Bible, in the old Testament. The people here are so faithful with this, they say that the first of everything that they receive is always for the LORD. To the point that many people bring us their first crops or a portion of their food from their gardens, eggs, etc. we are very blessed by this effort and it is a real testimony to me of how we, as Christians ought to live.
Anyways, I need to get going here, to get ready for church. Tomorrow is our day off and we will most likely be going to Concepcion for the day..so I may write again tomorrow night or in the next few days.. bye for now:)
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Lots to do!
Well today is thursday and I have a lot of things to do today. I am planning for my woman's tea that I am putting on for the ladies of the church here, I wanted to make it special for them so I am planning and doing the whole thing. The women here work really hard and always get together to plan and decorate for these things, but as it is the last meeting of the year I wanted to do this for them so that they could simply come and enjoy. I am a little nervous as I have never done anything like this before, and I have no idea how many ladies will be there, so I have to plan for around 18, but there are weeks when only 6 or 7 come...so we will see.
I enjoyed talking with Mum last night, even if it wasn't for long. and I think that I have figured out how to have a decent skype conversation, now that I know where the reception in the house is the best, lol, so thats good. I sure do miss the family lately. I had a pretty tough week, a lot of tears and missing home...it was the first time that everything really began to sink in for me. I had a good argument with God..letting Him know how I was truly feeling inside, but also sharing that with Him, knowing that I am where He wants me to be and still surrendering my life to Him. I think with the pregnancy and everything else too...I am a little emotional, haha. Josiah has also been a handful for me lately as I am the one who has to watch him most of the time in the church services and he only wants to be held all the time. With him getting bigger and bigger this is no longer an easy thing for me..lol I have just been feeling exhausted this week and overwhelmed with our new lifestyle...but on the other hand I am enjoying it and getting used to how things are little by little.
Last night I had a prayer meeting with two of the ladies from the church. There are three of them that I work with more than anyone, as they are the elders wives, and they help me plan events and handle finances etc. We decided to get together once a week and have prayer times together. To pray for the ladies in the church, the church as a family, our families and our husbands etc. It was the first that we have had and only two ladies were able to make it, but it went really well! We each had a turn to pray and the ladies really poured out their hearts before the LORD. In the end we were all crying and God really spoke to us about this being a new time for us all, "the beginning" of something for everyone. Afterwards we had a good time of sharing how we were all feeling and it was so good to hear how the two of them have felt in this whole transition of us taking on the pastorate here in the church. They both said that from the day I got here they felt instantly like I was family to them. With Jorge also, we have had the elders and their wives over for supper and they said that for them hey had never done that before and that they never felt so welcomed before in the pastors home..and so these things are really important for us and it was very encouraging for me to know how they are feeling. They both said that they believe that everything that has happened is God's doing and I believe that also...now we just need to continue to seek Him and His leading for us as a church family and I know He will do great things.
Anyways, it is 8:37 and I have Digna, a girl from the church coming over this morning to help us with some cleaning, so I should probably get up and moving here. I know Mum is probably laughing thinking, "you do have an hermana that comes and help you in the house!" well yeah we do. Her name is Digna, and she is such a sweet girl. She has no way of earning money so she takes on any jobs that she can cleaning and whatnot. With Jorge we decided as a way of helping her out we would ask her to come a few times a week and help me do cleaning and things around the house in the mornings. The houses here get so dirty and dusty so fast so she has been a huge help, even with organizing and ironing clothes etc. She is also someone who is really struggling in her relationship with God, so we are praying that God will begin a work in her life, and He already has begun doing so, as we have had some really good conversations with her already, which is exciting for us to see.
But I need to get running now..will write again soon:)
I enjoyed talking with Mum last night, even if it wasn't for long. and I think that I have figured out how to have a decent skype conversation, now that I know where the reception in the house is the best, lol, so thats good. I sure do miss the family lately. I had a pretty tough week, a lot of tears and missing home...it was the first time that everything really began to sink in for me. I had a good argument with God..letting Him know how I was truly feeling inside, but also sharing that with Him, knowing that I am where He wants me to be and still surrendering my life to Him. I think with the pregnancy and everything else too...I am a little emotional, haha. Josiah has also been a handful for me lately as I am the one who has to watch him most of the time in the church services and he only wants to be held all the time. With him getting bigger and bigger this is no longer an easy thing for me..lol I have just been feeling exhausted this week and overwhelmed with our new lifestyle...but on the other hand I am enjoying it and getting used to how things are little by little.
Last night I had a prayer meeting with two of the ladies from the church. There are three of them that I work with more than anyone, as they are the elders wives, and they help me plan events and handle finances etc. We decided to get together once a week and have prayer times together. To pray for the ladies in the church, the church as a family, our families and our husbands etc. It was the first that we have had and only two ladies were able to make it, but it went really well! We each had a turn to pray and the ladies really poured out their hearts before the LORD. In the end we were all crying and God really spoke to us about this being a new time for us all, "the beginning" of something for everyone. Afterwards we had a good time of sharing how we were all feeling and it was so good to hear how the two of them have felt in this whole transition of us taking on the pastorate here in the church. They both said that from the day I got here they felt instantly like I was family to them. With Jorge also, we have had the elders and their wives over for supper and they said that for them hey had never done that before and that they never felt so welcomed before in the pastors home..and so these things are really important for us and it was very encouraging for me to know how they are feeling. They both said that they believe that everything that has happened is God's doing and I believe that also...now we just need to continue to seek Him and His leading for us as a church family and I know He will do great things.
Anyways, it is 8:37 and I have Digna, a girl from the church coming over this morning to help us with some cleaning, so I should probably get up and moving here. I know Mum is probably laughing thinking, "you do have an hermana that comes and help you in the house!" well yeah we do. Her name is Digna, and she is such a sweet girl. She has no way of earning money so she takes on any jobs that she can cleaning and whatnot. With Jorge we decided as a way of helping her out we would ask her to come a few times a week and help me do cleaning and things around the house in the mornings. The houses here get so dirty and dusty so fast so she has been a huge help, even with organizing and ironing clothes etc. She is also someone who is really struggling in her relationship with God, so we are praying that God will begin a work in her life, and He already has begun doing so, as we have had some really good conversations with her already, which is exciting for us to see.
But I need to get running now..will write again soon:)
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Things that make you go..
hhhhhmmmmmm. First of all, I must say that the first part of this post is probably not one that will be of much interest to any males who may be reading this, but it's one of those things that must be shared. I have noticed every since I arrived in Chile that my leg hairs are growing slower!! I know, I know, totally weird right?? But so totally true! I usually always have to shave my leg every other day, if not everyday in the summer, because the next day they are always all prickly...my husband hates that, haha. And since I have been here I have only had to shave my legs every 4 to 5 days!! I shaved them on a Tuesday before I left Lethbridge, and then didn't have to shave them again until the Saturday! And it has been that way ever since....so weird. I was wondering if it could have to do with the pregnancy, but it seems to have only been since I have been here, because even in Canada I always noticed that I would shave one day and the next day I would have all the stubble. Hmmmmm, so very odd, but yet I am sooo thankful, because with this heat I need to wear either shorts or a skirt everyday, and it is so tiring to always be shaving your legs...so there ya go:)
Today was voting day here in Chile, so everything was pretty much closed all over the country. Due to that we didn't have church service as the people need to often travel to different parts of the city or towns where they live to vote...so we had a whole day of rest and just did things here in the house, which was nice. The three of us were all so tired from last night, when we had another church come and visit ours(...so the service was very long), that we all took long naps in the afternoon. Josiah actually was playing upstairs in his room and I gave him his "te-te" (aka "soother") and after about 20 minutes when I realized I hadn't heard from him, I went up to check on him and there he was, fast asleep on his bed. He is getting so big and is doing really well with sleeping in his own bed now...I am very proud of him, I thought it would be more difficult than it has been. Granted, last night and today were the first times that he went to sleep by himself in the bed, but we have only had it a week, so that is pretty good. Tonight I just sat on the end of the bed until he fell asleep, but it shows that he is getting more comfortable and at least now he hasn't been falling out of the bed anymore. The first night that we had him in the bed I piled up like 5 pillows on the side of him (the other side of the bed was pushed up against the wall) and even laid some out on the floor for if he rolled off. When I went in to check on him I looked in the bed and realized that he wasn't there...I thought maybe he had gotten up so I opened the door more and looked around for him. I couldn't see him anywhere! My heart started to race and I felt a certain panic rise within me...I ran into the room, and suddenly, I saw him...curled in a little ball in the far corner, a few feet away from the bed and the pillows, bum up in the air and fast asleep on the hard floor. Poor little guy. But since then he fell off only a few other times and now he seems to stay put, for the most part.
Anyways, I really need to go to bed, because it is 11:50 and I am really tired. I will write more tomorrow...because I know I have a lot of things that I need to write about...goodnight all!
Today was voting day here in Chile, so everything was pretty much closed all over the country. Due to that we didn't have church service as the people need to often travel to different parts of the city or towns where they live to vote...so we had a whole day of rest and just did things here in the house, which was nice. The three of us were all so tired from last night, when we had another church come and visit ours(...so the service was very long), that we all took long naps in the afternoon. Josiah actually was playing upstairs in his room and I gave him his "te-te" (aka "soother") and after about 20 minutes when I realized I hadn't heard from him, I went up to check on him and there he was, fast asleep on his bed. He is getting so big and is doing really well with sleeping in his own bed now...I am very proud of him, I thought it would be more difficult than it has been. Granted, last night and today were the first times that he went to sleep by himself in the bed, but we have only had it a week, so that is pretty good. Tonight I just sat on the end of the bed until he fell asleep, but it shows that he is getting more comfortable and at least now he hasn't been falling out of the bed anymore. The first night that we had him in the bed I piled up like 5 pillows on the side of him (the other side of the bed was pushed up against the wall) and even laid some out on the floor for if he rolled off. When I went in to check on him I looked in the bed and realized that he wasn't there...I thought maybe he had gotten up so I opened the door more and looked around for him. I couldn't see him anywhere! My heart started to race and I felt a certain panic rise within me...I ran into the room, and suddenly, I saw him...curled in a little ball in the far corner, a few feet away from the bed and the pillows, bum up in the air and fast asleep on the hard floor. Poor little guy. But since then he fell off only a few other times and now he seems to stay put, for the most part.
Anyways, I really need to go to bed, because it is 11:50 and I am really tired. I will write more tomorrow...because I know I have a lot of things that I need to write about...goodnight all!
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