A-Wad's Birthday

So Aaron turned nine... nine! It's hard to believe that this kid who got here at age four is already nine... but I praise God for the time He has granted us. It is truly a blessing to see these kids grow and change... :)

Aaron with his gifts... including his first Where's Waldo? book! I used to pour over these and look at each little situation... he does the same! Already it's been great to see how he and his brothers and sister enjoy the Waldo crew... :)

This year Aaron asked for a Batman birthday cake... so we did it!

The first year I made his cake it was Spiderman... then a horse [random]... and then back to the super-heroes this year! Personally, Batman is my favorite, too... well-chosen, Aaron!

I made sure to pile frosting onto his face-plant piece of cake...

... and this was the result!

Happy birthday, Aaron... you are precious to me and a gift from God!

Please pray for Aaron this time... pray that God would work in his heart to pull out any anger or hurt from and over his past; pray that God would guide me as I care for him and, Lord-willing, train him in the way of righteousness. Pray that God would capture his heart... thanks. :)

Cafe Sed... a Blessing!

There's a new hangout in town!

Cafe Sed (Thirsty Cafe) is run by Katie Schick, daughter of Bill & Joan. This cafeteria is a mission outreach for Katie and sells not only good coffee, but also Christian literature, Bibles, artwork, etc. We [Candi and I, that is] usually have a weekly stop-in! :)

Above, Katie (right) pictured with her first employee, Itzela.

Walking in the door to the cafe...

And once inside there's a lot more to do!

Like...

... play in the "Kids' Corner" area [Aaron]!

... play with the stuffed animals that Katie has in her kids' section [Ramses].

... browse, buy, read or exchange books!

... experience "confabs" [a word that Jodi assured us existed and to which I vehemently protested and to which she then responded by pulling out her handy-dandy laptop and just looking it up! And... *sigh*... I was finally wrong for the first time in my life... ;)]

... play games with friends [Marcos, Jose, Edi and Diego]!

... and... DRINK COFFEE!

What else?!?

I am truly grateful that Katie has felt led to this outreach, and I pray that God blesses her endeavors and makes it a place for all to come and hear the Truth!

Please pray for staff and kids as many travel home for the holidays... thanks!

Hodge-Podge of Photos...

Isn't that what it's always called? A "hodge-podge" of things? I wonder where that term comes from...

Anyway...

Moving on...

Maybe I'll look it up later...

So! This is just a collection of photos from November. It's hard to believe that so much time has already lapsed since October, but... oh well!

The above photo was taken as the boys were in quiet, docile, non-energetic moods one night... ;)

Aunt Paula bought these Kansas tees for the kidlets and so we had to have a photo shoot; just ask the kids which state in the U.S. is the best and you'll have a sure reply... ;)

We were all sitting outside one Sunday afternoon before supper and Aaron figured out that his seat would fall forward and "smash" him if he rocked it just enough... :)

I think he looks like a crab!

A team from Milford, Indiana came down to CVE and we had the pleasure of meeting Jesus & Norma for the first time! My kids really bonded with this neat couple, and it was such a blessing to be able to spend a little bit of time with them both... and for all our kids here to see not only a committed Christian couple, but a committed Christian Mexican couple! Praise the Lord!

I think Candi would have let Jesus carry her around the entire week... :)

We now have an official "dress-up clothes" basket [which amazingly manages to have lots of "good" clothes in it, too... hmmm... laziness, I think?!?] which resides in our living room. Aaron & Diego decided that they needed to put on a dancing show...

I was uploading these photos and Diego saw the picture and said, "Ha! Aaron, you're the girl!" To which Aaron, lovingly, responded, "Uh-uh, Diego. Don't talk about me like that!" To which Diego then replied, "But you were..."

And it starts.

You get the picture.

Ay, no.

Mom, did we argue this much?

[I have a feeling we did... ;)]

I love, love, love it when kids fall asleep reading... they're seriously so adorable. Diego even had his place "saved" with his fingers... cute little booger.

[Somehow it's probably not as "cute" when I fall asleep in the rocking chair, mouth open, book flapped open across my chest... etc. :) Yep, 27 is right around the corner, and if my reading and inevitable sleeping habits are to be believed, I am 27 going-on 57!]

We generally have an afternoon rest time on Sundays where the kids have the option of reading or sleeping. They always start by reading and then... fall asleep. Sounds familiar. :)

We had the blessing of Ryan taking our family photos again this year for Christmas; he told me he was going to photo-shop the tractor to red, Dad, but it didn't happen... ;)

I just praise God for another year, more experiences, more growth, more lessons, more pain, more joy... and a deeper knowledge of Him. You are good, Lord... so good.

Please pray for CVE as the holiday season is upon us! We have visitors coming and the kids are excited about all the activities... but pray that we can keep a clear focus upon that which is most important: JESUS! And please pray for clarity and His strength as focus, mission, and calling for each of us as workers is examined.. that He will lead and guide!

AND JUST IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING...

“Hodgepodge” in the English language evolved from the French word “hotchpotch” or “hochepot.” A few online references alluded to Germanic and/or Latin origins, but the clearest evidence points to old French. The Online Etymology Dictionary explains the origins of hodgepodge:“1426 (hogpoch), alteration of hotchpotch (late 14c.), from a legal term in Anglo-Fr. (attested from 1292) for collecting of property in a common pot before dividing it, from O.Fr. hochepot "stew, soup," first element from hocher "to shake," from a Gmc. source (cf. M.H.G. hotzen "shake").”

Source: http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=hodgepodge The abbreviations above have the following meanings: O.Fr. = old French, Gmc. = Germanic. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary also traces the origin to hotchpotch:http://www.aolsvc.merriam-webster.aol.com/dictionary/hodgepodge

I think the clearest explanation comes from Word Central: “Hodgepodge and its older form hotchpotch are part of a group of words that rhyme all by themselves. Hobnob and willy-nilly are others. In the case of hodgepodge and hotchpotch, the rhyme is not an accident. These words came to English from early French in the form hochepot. The spelling was changed to make the second half of the word rhyme with the first. In French hochepot was a stew of many foods cooked together in a pot. Perhaps the pot was shaken instead of stirred since hochepot was formed from hochier, meaning "to shake," and pot, which had the same meaning in early French as it does in English now. Before long hotchpotch and hodgepodge were used not just for a mixture of foods cooking in a pot but for any mixture of different things.”

Interesting... :)

Calabaza Goodness

So I know that October is long gone, but it was a busy month so I'm still posting! ;)

With October and fall comes the inevitable... pumpkin decorating! This is not a 10-minute process as you might imagine... oh no. This is a "I'll work on it every five minutes for the next two days and keep adding small details that no one will ever, ever see" kind of a thing... :)

After returning to Magdalena from my visit to Kansas (see below), I was inspired to carve a pumpkin with the kids... which looks amazingly similar to the one I did at home [grimace]. Not much ingenuity I'm afraid...

The kids thought it was funny (but a little sad) that our pumpkin got older, more slumped, more smelly, and finally more disgusting as each day passed...!

The kids and the pumpkin... imitating the pumpkin, actually! ;)

After we turned off all the lights and invited Jenna, Jodi and their three kids (Jazany, Julissa, and Eduardo) to come see the "awesomeness" of our calabaza ("pumpkin")... they tried to sneak back in and scare us! Above, they were caught in the action by the flash of my camera!

I was blessed to be able to travel back to Kansas in mid-October and catch up with family and friends!

Above, my friend Sarah and her boyfriend, Mark.

I flew into KC and was able to see AP's new place and spend some time with her and her friends Doug & Connie.

It was a blessing, too, to be able to surprise my Grandma Eileen for her 80th birthday party that we celebrated with our family, my aunt, and the great-aunts and cousins!

I was grateful that Tif could come for the weekend, too, since I wasn't going to be able to see her the rest of my time at home.

I was able to spend some time with Grandpa and Grandma Frieden, also... we have all been so blessed to have so many grandparents and surrogate grandparents in our lives! Speaking of which... it was great to see Ralph and Barb & Stub, too!

Chel decided that she and I needed to carve pumpkins while I was there... which I hadn't done for... I don't know... YEARS. :)

It was a lot of fun... although a bit sticky, to be honest!

The finished products!

We had some help from the cats, too... ;)

Thanks to everyone I was able to see at home and didn't get pictures of... Mom & Dad, Shane, Linda, Greg, Kristin, Tyler & Molly, Pat, Kathy, Sheryl, and many more! I appreciate and love each of you... :)

Please keep praying for God's direction in the lives of staff and kids here at CVE. He is a mighty God and worthy to be praised... even and especially through the "stretching" times!

The Beach - Part 2

A few more pics from our time at the beach with my mom and grandma... :)

Above, Mom & Aaron... I love this photo!

Either Mom or Grandma took this shot right after we'd all rolled out of bed...! We don't even look like we can form true smiles let alone think of giving one for the camera... :)

Which is, of course, why I am posting it... ;)

Four generations?!?

The grandmothers watching the "grandkids" perform in the sand... this is why all grandparents are rock stars in my book! Even if Candi and Diego would have scribbled something that looked like a half-masticated snake with warts [or something equally charming] they would have been delighted... :)

I like this photo... it looks so neat with Diego semi-disappearing in the background!

We went out to eat at a restaurant called "Jorge's" ["George's"] for some seafood! It was great and the kids enjoyed watching while all the workers got ready for a beach-side wedding that evening!

And... since the two quesadillas didn't seem to fill her up, Candi managed to assuage her hunger with the peanut butter-filled, yummy-in-my-tummy, pretzel-bites. :)

It was hard for everyone to keep their eyes open at night, but the kids watched Homeward Bound one night with Mom and Beauty and the Beast the other night. It's so amusing to me to see how into the films the kids can get [and a good check, too, to make sure the film is appropriate].

Case in point: Marcos started weeping... copiously, I might add... when the Beast died; then Candi started crying because Marcos was crying; then the other two boys kept looking at me and saying with slightly-panicked voices, "He doesn't really die, does he? Does he?"

:)

We got back from the beach on Sunday afternoon/evening and then Monday morning I took Mom and Grandma up to the airport in Tucson. We crossed the border early so I could take them to this little 50's cafe that I'd stumbled across earlier in the month... called The Twist & Shout!

We had enough time to go up to a look-out above Tucson, also... so a photo with Mom in the stone gazebo where I've now been with almost every single member of the family! :)

Thanks again, Mom & Grandma, for a lovely visit; the kids enjoyed it so much and I look forward to you coming down in the future! :)

Please pray for tomorrow night especially since we have the Thanksgiving dinner and the opportunity to converse and mingle with lots of different members of the community. Pray that we are able to shine Jesus' light into a dark world... a world that longs for that light even though it's first reaction might be to reject it and hide. Happy Thanksgiving!

To the Beach [With the Grandmas!] - Part 1

Mom and Grandma Mildred came down for a visit in October, and it was great! The kids always enjoy spending time with "Abuela" and even though they were confused as to which one they should call "Grandma," they still enjoyed having two doting grandmothers around!

Come to think of it... so did I! :)

We had a day at CVE before we headed to Bahia de Kino for a brief family vacation. Mom and Grandma got a dose of what it means to have the kids get home, do homework, do jobs, do reading time... and all by 5:30 so we can get bathtime taken care of! They were great helps in the reading time, though...

"They're all just so expressive as they read!" - stated by Mom and Grandma multiple times... :)

Friday morning we headed to Bahia de Kino where we, praise the Lord, had a nice house on the beachfront... after lunch, the kids literally scrambled into swimsuits, grabbed their gear, and headed for the water! Mom & Grandma appropriated these stools, which became their "must-have" equipment every time we headed to the water!

Grandma & I

It was her first time in Mexico, first time to Magdalena, and first time to meet these kids... thank You, Lord, that she could come! And thanks, Mom, for coordinating the plans! :)

Sitting at our table in the house... it was a little cozy, but that's what family time is for anyway, right?!?

The kids love making sand art and sculptures... this is Aaron's turtle, and he felt like the photo was much better if he was actually laid out exactly like the turtle... :)

Mom out in the water on her stool... and this is deceptively calm in the photo! Every time the waves came, there was a bit of a gamble as to whether or not the chairs [and whichever Grandma was occupying that chair] would tip over!

And a couple of times they did go over... I don't have any pictures of those, though! ;)

The Grandmas watching the "Grandkids"

We truly had some beautiful weather, and I'm so thankful... October is so much better at the beach than scorching during the summer!

Mom was constantly beckoned, cajoled, and outright begged to come build sandcastles, forts, weird sand designs, etc. Thanks for being so willing, Mom! The kids loved it...

Mr. Cheese himself... :)

This picture cracks me up... I asked them to pose, and they were both in really funny moods... so they certainly posed! Goobers...

These two photos (above and below) are in the middle of a succession of four where Candi & Aaron were tickling one another under the chin! Candi was whining about not getting to take her snack into the water and Aaron walked up and started teasing her to help her stop being in such a bad funk... it worked!

Look at that! Pure joy on her face! :)

One of the funniest parts about having Grandma there was that she was -- seriously -- the Ultimate Crab Catcher. I might even give her that acronym... :)

She would sit on the stool with a shell in her hand, just waiting for that poor, unsuspecting crab to stick its little claw out and... bam! She just pulled them right out!

It was really, really funny... because she was so intense! The kids got a kick out of it, too... so thanks for entertaining us all Grandma! Nobody was as good as you... ;)

Well, the Denver work team arrived, the baptisms happened, and we are about to start this next very full week... please pray for continued wisdom, patience, and love as we prepare to share a Thanksgiving dinner with many people from town! This weekend was beautiful with the baptisms and so many loving visitors... thanks for the prayers!