Lots of birthday parties!!

Dear Amigos, 29, agosto 2008
Hard to believe August is already almost over. What a month! I´ll be celebrating my seven month anniversary on Monday.

We’ve celebrated three birthdays so far this week and will celebrate two more on Friday. It’s so great to get to spend time with the kids just to have fun. No tutoring, babysitting, or points. Basically, no responsibilities--just fun!

So we girls of the hacienda have been continuing to take advantage of new and exciting opportunities. On Sunday night we went to the church that meets at the orphanage. It was our first time ever going, but it was really nice. It was a vibrant group of people, and the family of the house was so excited that we were there. It felt great! We’ve also been exploring a lot of neighborhoods around our house. We’ve found some really neat places, and it helps me feel like I have a much better feel of the neighborhood I live in. It’s a very diverse area, three blocks to one side there’s a very poor neighborhood of unfinished houses, dirt roads, and lots of scrawny dogs. Three blocks in the other direction, there are really big, fancy houses, with few dogs--though healthy, and paved roads. What a contrast!
It’s been a very busy two weeks. We’ve been going all the time. We helped Nate move his workshop to another bigger location about twenty minutes farther from here yesterday. I’ve been going out to help do bunkbeds for our orphanages in Chapare plus some desks for a FH (Food for the Hungry) project twice a week.
We’ve also been having birthday parties, there’s a fair at the center this Saturday for all of the kids who come, and Sunday we are having some co-workers + friends over to the Hacienda for a potluck plus volleyball. But I like staying busy. It keeps me from missing home as much.
I’m reading a book called “It Came From Within” (by Andy Stanley.) It addresses the condition of our hearts and underlying issues that cause us to not love God and each other the way we should… It’s a VERY good book. I highly recommend it. I am, in fact, learning so much about myself and finding underlying things that are happening in my heart towards those that I should be loving, that I never paid attention too. But the good thing is that the book also explores ways to CHANGE. And boy do I ever plan on it!!
The Timmers returned on Monday, and the Hedvalls returned last Wednesday. It’s so good to have them back!! It’s weird that I was here when they left, and could tell them that I’d still be here when they got back. It feels kinda nice to wait, anticipating the return of those you care about. I guess, that might be how God feels about the day that we get to join Him. Not wishing our time over any faster, but knowing that the day will come when we get to come be with Him.
The biggest prayer point that I have for you at the moment, is to ask God to keep discouragement away. Things sometimes get monotonous, people sometimes are difficult, situations sometimes tricky and accommodations often inconvenient. It’s easy to lose sight of what really matters, and what we are doing here.
Thanks for reading, praying and encouraging me!!
Love.
Kristen

Return of the boss.

Soo we said a bunch more goodbyes this week… Rach left Wednesday night, Adrian left Thursday night and Tiffany moved out on Thursday. The house is so empty it almost echoes… Why does everything have to happen at the same time?!!
Adrian is off to language school in Peru, then to Quito to work with a youth ministry there with IT, then off to explore a million other countries. He was a fantastic brother, we were all very grateful for his kindness, and super funny sense of humor. He was also a good baker, he enjoyed treating us girls to dinner and dessert often. In fact the day after he left Jen, Katie S. and I decided to go on a sweets fast since we have gotten so used to having sweets around all the time. I feel healthier already!!
I got my plane ticket to come home--December 16th is the lucky day!! (That day also happens to be my Mom’s birthday, I hope I’m a good present!  ) That gives me four more months here. Whew! That doesn’t sound like very much, but there are days when it feels like an eternity!
On Saturday we did a “Hygiene Day” with the kids at Villa Israel. A bunch of the kids have not been there very long, and usually come from poorer neighborhoods or the Campo (countryside), therefore cleanliness is not something they’ve grown up with. Kim did a puppet show and Aldo the psychologist talked about the importance of being clean outside, but also inside—having a clean conscience, asking forgiveness for wrongs, etc. We also brought some liquid soap (Aldo told Roberto that when he got a bit older the girls would like that he had clean, good smelling hands!), stools for the littler ones to reach the sink and toothpaste and toothbrushes. I was shocked by how excited the kids were!! Brandon ran up behind Kim and gave her a really big hug and thanked her, sometimes it’s the littlest things that get kids excited! It’s really sweet to see the older kids there interact with the little ones. They’re so protective and gentle. It makes me really happy, and kinda proud too, not that I taught them that, but that I get to work with such sweethearts!!
The Timmers come back next week. From what I’ve heard they’ve had a good time visiting supporters, hanging out as a family, and reuniting with old friends. They did get to go see a bunch of people from Bedford (you may recall that we had an AMAZING team from Bedford a few months back, they’re also sending another team this fall…can’t wait!).
Well, that’s about it for now…have a fantastic day! I hope to put up some more pictures this week…so keep checking the foto site (go to my complete profile and there will be a link to it.)
God bless!
Kristen

Birthdays!

Dear Readers,
Rach arrived two weeks ago, she pretty much just blended right in as an intern! I think that’s the best way to experience what we do here…
Last week we had lunch with the IT Latin-American directors. It was really great to hear their insights; they also are good friends with Darryl, my former boss who was a missionary in Costa Rica with IT for three years.
On our visit out to Villa Israel last week, as we were greeting all the kids and Charlie (house dad) I noticed that Charlie had a bandage on his head as well as scratches all over his face. I, obviously, was curious and asked what had happened. He told me that he was assaulted and robbed on Sunday night at the Terminal, and roughed up a bit… when things like that happen you are obviously glad to be alive still, but feel very shaky and in a way… violated. Knowing that you’re not even safe in your own hometown is really unsettling.
This last week we started a new schedule so it was nice to have things mixed up a bit… here’s a typical schedule of our week:

lunes (Monday) Meeting with the bosses
Communication day (updates, blogs, etc).
Babysit.

martes (Tuesday) Spanish class.
Center.
Girls’ Bible Study (Spanish)

miercoles (Wednesday) Build bunkbeds.
Center.

jueves (Thursday) Villa Israel.
Dinner with Matt + Elsa
Intern Bible Study.

viernes (Friday) Frutillar tutoring.

sabado (Saturday) Frutillar tutoring.
Young Professionals (Spanish).

domingo (Sunday) Church.
Babywashing

Rachel got her wisdom teeth out this weekend-on her BIRTHDAY! But she needed to get them out in enough time that she can travel, but soon enough so she can do things the day or two before she leaves too…Surgery was a bit roughter than they expected, so they gave her some extra sedative so she slept a lot. But she’s doing a lot better now, and I’ve been getting some nursing practice! The Olympics also started this weekend—also on Rachel’s birthday so we’ve been camping out at Matt and Elsa’s (so Rachel could recover, also for a break from our house since this weekend was a big vote all over the country and we were encouraged to just be careful to keep a low profile). I LOVE the summer Olympics!!
Wednesday was my birthday and the whole country celebrated…’though they didn’t exactly know that was what they were celebrating, you see it was also Bolivia’s Independence Day. I got to talk to my parents and my twin!!
Monday was Katie S.'s birthday...what a crazy week for birthdays. Katie S., Me, Bolivia and Rachel!
Well, I guess that’s about it…
Have a GREAT week everybody!
Love.
Kristen

Yay for concerts!

Hey Folks,
Greetings once again from the lovely city of Cochabamba Bolivia.
There are now 7 of us living at the hacienda. My bedroom looks so much homier when it’s fuller, and there’s four of us chicas living in there now. I like it!
Jen is the newest roomate. She arrived on Wednesday from Chicago. Jen was my other roommate at training, so it’s been so exciting as Tiffany and I have been anticipating reuniting with this sweet girl! She’ll be here until May of 2009.
The Colorado kids left on Friday night, as our last big shebang we went to a Christian concert (A band called Rescate, plus a drum corps, and a Reggea Rock band—needless to say it was very entertaining!), and dinner on Thursday night. As we were eating dinner and getting ready to head to the concert we got a phone call that a team of ten people was on the way to stay the night at our house…I of course switched into survival mode trying to figure out where they would stay, what they would need and how I needed to prepare for them. Adrian was a saint, and as he was the only one not planning on going to the concert he got the whole house ready for them. There ended up being 14 of them, and they just spent one night at our house. They came down from the states to do worship for some conferences around Bolivia. Talk about last minute notice!! But that’s the life of an intern, and fortunately I work better under pressure! 
On Friday we went out to lunch with the Colorado kids, they went with us to Frutillar to play with the kids and say goodbye. We then had a big dinner and said goodbye. We’ll miss them sooo much. Dinner time will just not be as exciting! They were so much fun to have around, I loved watching them pour themselves into the ministry here, they were so flexible and excited about being involved with the kids, church, and other missionaries here.
Saturday morning my big sister Rachel arrived!!! It was sooo good to see a family member. It’s been about six months that I haven’t seen them, and that was by far the longest I’ve ever gone without seeing any of them. So it’s been fun showing her around town and introducing her to my friends, the kiddos, and Bolivia.
I decided that I really want to get more involved at my church so I went to the young adults group on Saturday. I had to talk myself into it, because I was kinda nervous, but it was really good. Aaand, I met some really great people!
This week we have a schedule change so it’ll be interesting. Also the IT Latin American director is coming into town so we’ll get to meet him. I’m pretty excited about that! 
Okie doke! Have a great week!
Kristen

When will I know enough?

Soo this week contained so many learning experiences. Literally every day has brought to light a new perspective or paradigm shift. How does this all happen at once. So as you might imagine my mind is running like a million miles an hour!
The Colorado interns returned from Chapare last Monday (Adam, Sage, Hallie and Lauren). They were out there for four weeks and really enjoyed their time working with Remberto and fam. I also really enjoyed sharing common experiences in Chapare and hearing about all they learned and experienced while there. Remberto actually came back from Chapare with Vick, Mickey and baby Judith Bonnie (Yes! She finally has a name! She’s definitely grown since last time I saw here!) last weekend so we got to see them a few times. It was really nice to be able to sit and visit with them. They’ve begun another orphanage about 20 minutes from the one in Nueva Jerusalen.
Saturday was Lily’s birthday. Nate and Kate had a nice party for her. It was so sweet to see them thanking everyone for being a part of their lives and for being like family to Lily. I guess it would be really hard to raise a family so far from your own. But it’s a sacrifice they have made to follow God, and in that I believe they will never be sorry.
Friday was Adrian’s birthday, and Sage’s birthday was on Saturday too. So there was a lot of celebrating going on!
On Monday night at our intern bible study it was my turn to lead. Well, in fact I volunteered to lead because we were on Philippians 2. So I went on line found some good commentaries and spent hours reading and rereading the passage and then reading this commentary. I LOVE doing that. The bible is amazingly always so incredibly relevant. I’m actually going to do another entry for the things I learned as I studied about becoming more like Christ and what that meant to me and for me. It’s a chapter on community and like it or not, we all live in one. Enough said, I'll try to write up a blog about my new insights...check out Philippians 2 for yourself,though, when you get a chance!
Monday and Wednesday afternoons we spend at the Centro de Amistad. I help Toti prepare the refreshments for the kiddos and sometimes I get to help some kiddos put together a puzzle or play pick up sticks or volleyball, but most of the time I just work in the kitchen and wash area. But I really enjoy talking with Toti. She’s an amazing woman, who encourages me to trust God in everything. Basically I just hope that her, loving, caring, serving heart will rub off on me!
Tiffany and I were talking this weekend, and evaluating the ministry here, and our personal ministries. We decided that a big part of why we feel we are here is to encourage the long-termers. So we decided to help out some young missionary families by babysitting for their little ones so they can enjoy a date night. So tomorrow night is our first night, and I am really looking forward to it! I used to love babysitting!
Oh, by the way Ismael’s (The youngest, newest at Villa Israel) real name is Franz. And Maria’s (the youngest Frutillar kid) is Maribel. Gosh, as if it isn’t hard enough keeping track of 20 kids names without changing them!!
Well, I guess that’s about it for now.
God bless you all!
Kristen

[Halftime.]

So five months has past, since I first arrived in Cochabamba. Unbelievable!! Even though they say that time flies, I still can’t believe it’s gone already!
Some really cool things happened this week…
We had VBS at Villa Israel Wednesday-Friday. The theme was obedience. We did games, a bible story, a puppet show, crafts, etc. It was a good time with the kids.
On Wednesday night we got two new boys for the villa Israel home. They’re brothers, Ismael (2 ½) and Elian (4). They’re both small for their ages. Ismael has a rash up his arm and side. Their mother just passed away and their father is an alcoholic and not interested in them. They understand Spanish (I think) and Elian speaks a little bit, but their heart language is Quechua. I speak about 5 words in Quechua, so I guess we’ll all be learning together…though I can bet you that they’ll learn Spanish way faster than we’ll learn Quechua. Katie S. speaks a little bit of Quechua, so that helps a lot.
Tiffany unfortunately caught Jirardia (don’t know how to spell that…) at the camp she was at last week…so she spent a few days in bed. But fortunately after a three day cycle of medication she was as good as new!
On Thursday the Harlem Globetrotters were here in Cochabamba!! So of course, we went and saw them! It was super fun!!!
On Friday, Independence Day, a family from the International Church here threw a 4th of July party! It was fantastic! There were nearly a hundred people, and a few orphanages (Jennifer’s Casas de Amor-see one of the March Blogs for more info) also came with their little ones to enjoy the enormous inflatable slide. It was a great night!
The Frutillar home also welcomed two more sheep into their family! Gosh, we have enough problems with the Negrita eating crayons, homework, people’s hair, etc! Hopefully these two will keep her occupied!
I’ve been in and out of immigration all week. We had some “problems” with the last lawyer so now I have to start the process all over again, plus some fines that I have unknowingly incurred… But I should hopefully be able to get my visa in a month or so…
Saturdays we go to babywashing. It’s always really neat to meet other volunteers, and my faves-the little girls that come. Last week one of the girls named Brenda gave me a bracelet that she had made. There’s another little girl named Claudia that always seeks me out and gives me the best hugs. I personally prefer to comb and braid hair of the older girls, as opposed to bathing the littler ones that always scream! I haven’t gotten lice yet so that’s a HUGE praise!!
Well, until next week…chao!!
Love.
Kristen

How we roll at the Hacienda… [Update.]

I realize that I haven’t done an update in awhile…so here ya go!
I had surgery last Monday to get the rest of my wisdom teeth out. It was so much better than last time. I slept through almost the whole thing. I was SO swollen for a few days. I pretty much laid in bed for the first three days. Read. Slept. Watched movies. Listened to podcasts. I was really excited when I finally got out of the house on Thursday night! Recovery is going a bit slower than expected…so I’m enjoying oatmeal, yogurt and applesauce for the time being. But I really can’t complain, life’s good!! I expect a full recovery by next week!
Monday was the holiday San Juan, so we celebrated by setting off fireworks. We later found out that that’s illegal in the city! Oops! San Juan is a cultural celebration when the locals set fires to warm up the earth. This week contained the shortest day, and the “coldest” day of the year, and my grandma, my cousins, and two of my brothers’ birthdays + my grandparents 53rd anniversary!
This week we have been having Vacation Bible School at the Center. There have been a LOT of kiddos! Yesterday there were nearly 50!!! On Monday a little girl named Sarah came with her brother Elias. They walked in holding hands and as they were walking by I said “Hola!”, Sarah turned around smiled really big and ran over to me and gave me a hug! It was so cute! I had never even seen her before, but apparently that simple greeting was all she needed to warm up to me! It made my day!! (hopefully hers too!)
Yesterday we went out to Villa Israel to tutor. All the kids were there because they are on “vacation” from school. We had a really good day tutoring and playing with them. They are just SO CUTE I can hardly handle it!!
On the intern end of things here, Andrea left on Friday, we all went to take her to the airport, and what do you know, there was a blockade! So we parked on the street and walked. I met some girls from Florida. They were here with their youth group on a missions trip and were on their way home when we saw them at the airport. It was really encouraging talking to them and hearing their hearts for helping others.  I know my own sisters (who are in Jr. and Sr. high) just got back from a local mission trip and were also super excited about how God blessed, provided, and empowered specifically during that week. I think missions is something every kid should have an opportunity to do before graduating from High School…but that’s just my personal opinion…!
Stephanie left on Saturday morning…she will go see a doctor once she gets home just to make sure everything is okay, but she’s doing so much better!! God is so amazing! I actually got to see her without sunglasses a few times before she left!
Katie #2 arrived late Saturday night. Two weeks after scheduled arrival time. They are not messing around when they say that you need a yellow fever shot before coming… and apparently there’s a shortage of the vaccine in the US. We’re very glad to finally have her here! She was here two years back helping with the kids at Frutillar and building the Villa Israel home. So it’s really cool for her to see it now with kids, and I think it’s really cool to hear how her internship was then, and to hear how she learned from it and what she wants to do differently this time around…
Katie #1 has been here for two weeks, though I’m not sure if I’ve officially written about her yet. She’s interning at the Center, but hangs out with us in her spare time. (Incident-ally Katie’s middle name is Joy…the same as my twin, Katie Joy!!)
Tiffany is gone for the week helping with a Youth Camp for the teens from the Inter-national Church. She’s been really involved helping to lead the camp.
So, it’s just Adrian, Katie, Katie and me here in the hacienda this week…and Pop Tart!