Pray Believing...

Yesterday I tried to drink from a rainbow. I let my hands drift through its jeweled rays, watching the colors shimmer across my skin. I cupped my fingers to drink its light, but the colors slid through... elusive, beautiful, an untouched promise.

I so badly wanted to drink the music of worship and praise and strength... but then I looked again and the rainbow's light had melted away. All around me was barren, clinging mud. I struggled through the mud, sinking deeper with each step as I tried to remember the beauty I had seen, ignoring the heavens above. The more I struggled, the dirtier I became, the less I called out to Him. The clinging muck at my knees, I tripped and fell. Crawling now, I stopped looking upward, consumed by the dark, damp seeping through my shoes, sliming my clothing, staining my soul... what could I do? Where was my strength? And finally... I couldn't move. There was only darkness, and I was sinking... up, up, over my head. A weight so heavy I knew I could never lift it alone crushed the breath from my body, my heart wilting in despair...

"He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler... For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone... Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name." - Psalm 91: 4, 11-12, 14

The heaviness ceased, and peace fell like rain... puddling reflections of His grace all around as I lifted praise to His purpose, His timing, His love... even when I cannot see the end, the middle, or even the beginning of a rainbow.

"Faith grows as we draw near to Him. Sometimes only tears can cleanse our eyes enough for us to notice." - K.P., East Asia

Please keep us in your prayers this week. Clouds have definitely been obscuring the Son's bright rays, but we are looking for the promise in a rainbow... and we know God is faithful.

The Watermelon Frog Princess-es

It all started with the ravenous consumption of the remaining half of watermelon...

"Quick... it's almost time for dinner... the kids will be here soon."
"Okay... let's divide it and eat the pieces like frogs!"
"WHAT?"
"Like this... scoop it up with your tongue, and then eat the whole thing."
"Ummm..."

And so it began... the watermelon frog-eating contest... where winners have the least melon-dribble, losers get knocked off their stools, and only wimps spit out the seeds.

Life is down and dirty here at CVE...

Jenna & Amy... our erstwhile competitors (even wearing "watermelon-colored" clothing you might notice) on their first race to dribble heaven...

Bill "helping" the proceedings...

Not the best quality photo, but the moment is too priceless... Amy was "helping" Jenna wipe her melon-dribble and managed to almost knock her off the stool...!

Almost... THE LAST MELONS...

So... I don't know what got into these two tonight, but it didn't stop after the watermelon contest... oh no.

It continued right on into "let's-burn-each-other's-hair." Oh wait... that was AMY who is now our resident pyromaniac... but who has issues figuring out how to get the lighter to work. Why issues, you ask? Well... the official diagnosis? It invovles doing two things at once... =P

"Trying" to get the lighter to work...

Succeeding (we won't mention how much time has elapsed between this picture and the last), and managing to burn off a strand of Jenna's hair... lol.

What a night!

A Post for My Friend, Jim...

Saving the CVE staff... one Zicam box at a time...!!!

This is maybe one of the best packages I have ever received... lol. Thank you so much! Hopefully we won't get you sick the next time you come visit... especially if we're all dosed up with these (wink)!! =)

¡Muchas gracias otra vez!

Dancing Fiends

The little guys in their "morning garb" as we head to breakfast in the comedor. We are obviously at the height of fashion at 7:45... =)

Listening to the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack... enthralled... lol

Andres' face after I told him to share his crayons... =)

During and after our chili lunch at church on Sunday... (L-R top): Moises & Timi, (L-R bottom): Gabriel & Andres

Shower time... where there is always, always lots of water on the floor outside... lol

A day of GREEN: Strangely enough, Sunday evening at dinner everyone in the kitchen was wearing green, the food was green, and how could we resist a photo shoot? Yes, you're right... there is one exception... but Denise, we promise to avoid analogies such as "the black sheep" or somesuch ridiculous thing... lol...

"DANCE, DANCE, YEAH"

It started with just a little bit of Ben E. King and “Stand by Me” making us tap our toes. Then Gladys Knight and the Pips got us soul-searching with “Midnight Train to Georgia.” Then we really got going with Al Green and “Let’s Stay Together,” started bobbing with Billy Paul’s “Me & Mrs. Jones,” and grooved out to the rest of the Incredible Soul Collection (circa 1960) while trying out incredible dance moves (like the “water sprinkler,” “shopping cart,” “twist,” and “Tifani in Walmart”), incredibly executed by incredibly talented, incredibly agile, incredibly young chicos... oh, and their “Mother” for two weeks... =P

Andrés shook his hips like a madman, Gabriel swayed back and forth, eyes closed in rapture while yipping out barking noises, Timi (with a huge grin) hopped up and down from one foot to another, and Moises got so excited he started running into walls... lol.

This is just another day in the two-week music saga we have been living lately. We began with an education in the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack, which the boys found fascinating. All four climbed up into the blue armchair, squished together, eyes huge, heads tilted to catch the shifts in melody, looking at me with huge, accusing eyes every time a song change came and no music was forthcoming! Andrés kept asking me if there were soldados adentro de la música? [“soldiers inside the music”?] I love it...!

Next, we moved on to Spanish Kids Bible Songs (during which I stood at the kitchen sink, washing dishes after breakfast, singing at the top of my lungs – admittedly in English – and the little boys stood behind the wall partition peeking around at the crazy, wild-haired idiot splashing soap suds everywhere). These songs were an obvious favorite that might have even beat out Marvin Gaye.

Our next educational experience was The Beach Boys, to which I’m pretty sure I perfected Mom’s “twisty dance” from my childhood memories – I suddenly see the appeal in dancing around the living room going totally berserk while little kids watch and laugh, Mom... lol. I held Moises in my arms and we waltzed around the room to “God Only Knows,” while visions of homecomings, airports, and family floated through my mind from Love Actually. It was one of the best slow dances I’ve had in my entire life, and I think Moises liked it too... =)

WISDOM FROM DIAPERS

Sometimes kids are the best philosophers I know. The other day Gabriel was sitting on my lap playing “let’s-poke-Stephanie-in-the-stomach-and-the-eyes-and-the-mouth-and-the-ear-and-see-if-she-responds,” when he suddenly stopped and asked, “Donde está tu cafe?” [“Where is your coffee?”] Smiling at him (because the four boys now constantly ask me where my coffee is, if I’m going to bring my coffee, if the coffee is sleeping in my room, and whether or not it’s still “hot, hot?”), I started to answer when he interrupted me and said, “Es como Cristo.” [“It’s like Jesus.”]

I thought for a moment, and then it suddenly clicked... “Como adentro? El cafe está adentro como Cristo?” I asked. [“Like inside? The coffee is inside like Jesus?”] He shook his head “yes,” eyes bright, and smiled at me... after which he received a big, rib-cracking (not literally) hug, and lots and lots of kisses... what a great reminder of Christ’s presence in us!

It also made me think of Christ being in us temporarily or for the long haul. In Spanish the word “está” is temporary... but the word “es” is used for permanence. Gabriel used “es” to describe the permanence of the coffee inside me... like Jesus. And though the coffee may not be inside permanently, I pray that every day Christ’s permanence will remain and grow even stronger... =)

God bless you today!

It's About Time...

... for me to update! Hence, the following comment on Amy's blog:

Amy,
By the way, has Steph passed away or did someone cut off her typing fingers? Possibly a hostage in a far off place where there is no Internet? Maybe mad at the world and refusing to communicate? Depressed and sulking? Simply too busy? Not feeling creative?
TAKE HER OUT FOR SOME EMPANADAS AND GOOD JAVA!!!
Sincerely,
Dad (a.k.a Mike Fiechter)

Wow... I was so inspired by this comment, Señor Fiechter, that I am posting this in your honor... lol. =)

My apologies to my avid fan club (okay... namely Mom & Dad, Grandma, The DeMints... and Amy's dad... lol) who have been waiting during this time of "update ineptitude." =) So, this post will be a short... (who am I kidding?) probably a LONG catchup of the last couple of weeks with random pictures interspersed.

Tif, Me, and Chel at Momo's Taqueria while they were visiting this past week.

Inside the boys' bamboo hut... a very, very cool endeavor...

STILL SICK & SICK OF BEING SICK

I am going on week #4 of a cold... praise the Lord I have my voice back. I dislike colds intensely. I dislike being sick intensely. I dislike almost everything about how I’ve felt, and I assume everybody else who has gotten sick (pretty much everyone at CVE) dislikes it just as intensely. However, with the servant hearts we have here, we have managed to share these lovely colds with everyone who was down here. My sister Chelsie. My sister Tifani. The entire Purdue Work Team... gosh, aren’t we generous... lol.

The little boys I am watching while Jenna is gone (a two-week endeavor where I will either sink or swim, in a position of motherhood that I never dreamed I would have to worry about... lol) are sick as well, and so we have 4:00 a.m. medicine times and lots of snotty noses... yum... lol.

Random work team photos: (top) Tif & Chel "working," (middle) Joel & Jesse "working," (bottom) Ryan & Jesse bonding beautifully... lol

The reason we are here (or that Jenna is here?!?)... =) We miss you Jenna!

SISTAS

Tif and Chel came down with the Purdue Work Team last week, and then were able to stay for a couple days longer. After celebrating New Year’s Eve in the airport for 5 hours with our friend Alan, spelling people’s names by lying down on the floor in the shape of the letters (come on, you know you would be excited about this if you were getting off the plane!), cheering on others as they met their loved ones with flowers and kisses, and playing the “pillow-your-head-on-the-stomach-and-laugh-until-you-can’t-breathe” game while waiting for the Rufener bros to show up, I knew it was going to be a good week... =)

Through the whole week we managed to split our time between working with the group and having some sisterly bonding time... which was definitely good to have since it’s been awhile, and even “a phone-call away” is too far. Sisterly bonding time included “convo hour” in the bamboo hut, painting the little boys bathroom (while jamming out to Vanilla Ice, and yes Mom, I do have it on video... lol), Monty Python viewing time, supper at Lupita’s while avoiding the advances of middle-aged men, “Curses” game night (which was pretty much a terrible game, but made so much better by our “groupie” – as Tif called them – with we three, the Rufeners, Alan, and Ryan Schick), and making peppernuts (which are a family recipe, and which I must further insert have become “addictive” to almost everyone at CVE... even though "turns out” they do indeed look like dog food...!)

It was hard to say goodbye, but I am so very thankful that they were able to come down... as I was driving home I realized that sometimes I take our relationship for granted, and I never should – talking like we do, laughing, crying, enjoying one another’s company and trust – it’s such a blessing. Gracias a Dios por mis hermanas... ellas son muy especiales y mi corazon me duele cuando ellas no estan aqui... pero esta bien, porque yo se que un día vamos a ser juntas otra vez.

Oh, and just to let you two know... the little boys are now asking where “Ifni” and “Chesi” are... as well as “tu papa” (your Dad). Ahhhhhhh.... lol...

Our "groupie" - no, the hat isn't mine (Ryan's), it wasn't my idea (Ryan's), and I promise I'm not reverting to "New Kids On The Block days"... lol


Peppernut-making time: (top) Tif & Chel in the CVE kitchen rolling dough, (bottom) some individuals - ahem, Chelsie - had a few "issues" making the rolls stick together... please notice the two on the bottom left, and then the prize-winning effort in the middle... lol Yes, these are shadows. Yes, they are shadows of Chelsie and I. Yes, we probably spent 20 minutes trying to create the perfect shadows and capture them on the camera... lol.

Tif & Chel in my room during Monty Python viewing time... notice your Sparkling White Grape Juice, Mom!

"Ifni" and "Chesi" with the boys during reading time...

THE LITTLE GUYS

So... other than having colds, lots of diaper-changing, fighting over the new tractor toys, touching the heater, eating every piece of food on the floor, “helping” with diapers (which really means pulling them apart completely), spilling water, dumping water, throwing water, splashing water, dribbling water, spitting water, and then constantly asking for more water... I am enjoying my time with the little guys... =)

They haven’t gone crazy yet, Jenna... and neither have I!!!

Last night we all cuddled up on the couch and watched Dennis the Menace (realizing as I type this that I hope it doesn’t give them any ideas) in the new “staff lounge” – living it up by having juice and crackers. Definitely good times... =)

THE END... FINALLY

So that’s the “brief” update. Once our Internet is working again (who knows when), I am not constantly sniffling or changing diapers (not for a while, probably), and life is more exciting (well, not necessarily more exciting, but easier to write about anyway... lol), I promise to get more posts done. For now... adios mis amigos!

But... I would still be up for empanadas and java, Amy... hint, hint, hint... =)