April Fool’s Day is not really celebrated here on the 1st. They have an ‘Innocents Day’ another
time of the year. I didn’t even
pull any pranks on facebook for my US friends. But I was on guard for any pranks pulled on me.
Sofi and Victoria returned from their family visit to
Managua. They are always happy to
be home. And I’m always happy to
have them back.
Our new 8 week old kittens, Rut (Ruth) and Ester (Esther)
arrived! Our landlady &
neighbor, Danelia, had a litter to give away. I originally only wanted 1 female, but at the last minute was
talked into getting 2 so they could play.
I’m glad we got 2. They are
hilarious to watch playing. They
are both black. One has a tiny bit
of white, but I have to have them side by side to know which is which. Sofi can kind of tell them apart on the
run. They are very timid and we
keep them in the kitchen for now.
Hoping they will become good ‘mousers’ in the future. Or at least that their scent will be a
deterrent to rodents. We’ll see. Victoria is very interested in
them. We’ll see who is boss
between the kittens and V.
I sent out over facebook a request for plane ticket
help. Two dear friends responded
right away. God is awesome in how
He prompts people to provide for us.
Sometimes I feel oppressed by the constant need to raise money (and the
awareness of the need). But I know
that God uses this as a way to get other people involved, too.
Sofi’s brother came and cleaned off our tin roof and
gutters, getting ready for the rainy season. He also took care of some honey-dos for us. He is going to build a set of rough
stands to put my bedside tables on.
My bedframe is tall (so I can store stuff underneath), and I would like
to have the tables the same height.
Also, it will be taller than V and that has its advantages. Our friend Denis came and cleaned out
our bodega (shed) and organized everything once again. Not too many critters had taken up
residency this time. Labor here is
cheap, and when I can afford it, I like to give people work. I’m thankful for both Eddy and Denis
for working for us.
Sofi’s maternal grandmother and half-sister came for lunch
one day. They were very honored to
come. I was glad to have them
here.
A missionary friend, Scott, looked at Sofi’s computer. Turns out the keyboard doesn’t work
anymore. So he set it up to use an
on-screen keyboard and we just point and click to type in the passwords to get
to the links we want. We mostly
use it for youtube videos for V and for Netflix for me and Sofi. She uses her tablet for internet
searching. We were very thankful
for Scott doing this for us.
Sofi got some chemistry tutoring from a friend of ours one
day. It’s so nice to have friends
who are smart in different areas.
It takes a village…
After much hassle, frustration, traveling to Managua,
waiting at the embassy, and praying, our friend Tamara received a 5 year visa
for little Tamarita to go to the states.
She had some medical appointments to rule out some problems that she
might have. It was reason for much
celebration when that visa came through.
I can only dream of getting visas for Sofi and V. Someday…
Fridays are usually my admin catch up day. My last chance to get things done for
the week. Tuesdays and Thursdays
are dedicated to skills classes.
Monday and Friday are my admin days. As I look at my planner/journal, I can see those days filled
with the items accomplished. Even
though I don’t really like to do the admin stuff so much anymore, I appreciate
the time I’m allowed to get these things done.
I finally finished my tax stuff for 2015 and emailed docs to
my accountant in AR. We always
file an extension. Starting with
2016, the ministry will have a separate accounting system and I’ll have my
personal one. I fear it will be a
headache, but maybe God will take pity on me and make it easy. I hope so!
I’m still trying to find any avenue to help me with my
residency request. I get so weary
of red tape and bureaucracy in any language! But especially in two at the same time! Haha
Our friend Enia, who had the gallbladder surgery on March 3,
had to have a second surgery on April 14, due to complications of
infection. Their family had to
sell their little truck to pay for it.
She is so sick and weary and depressed. We got the chance to talk to her and pray with her on her
way to the hospital/clinic. We
pray for God’s mighty had of healing for her. We miss her so much.
Veronica had a few days of bedrest due to her chronic spinal
problem. So, Sofi and I taught
skills classes on a couple of days.
A new student (who is becoming another teacher for us) helped out,
too. We were hopping!
I took Sofi out to eat breakfast on her birthday. We planned a joint birthday party for
her and V, since V turned 1 year old while I was in the states with my knee in
January. We tried to keep it as
economical as possible, but it still ran over $200. And there is no one-stop at Walmart to get everything,
either. You go to the plastic
store, the piñata store, the market for candy, the grocery store and market for
food, the ice cream distributor for ice cream, another store for the party
decorations, another store for the party favors, etc… Here, birthday parties are huge events and you feed the
guests a meal, have a piñata, cake, ice cream, balloons, party favors,
etc. Every stays for hours. I made 72 cupcakes in the toaster oven
(6 at a time) in 90 degree evening heat.
But it was worth it for my girls.
We also had her former step-mom and 3 half-siblings spend the
weekend. That was a workout. By Sunday, I was spent, emotionally, as
well as, physically. We’ll
probably never have another big event here, but I was glad to do this for Sofi
and V. Of course, V had no idea
why all these people were here and why there was so much craziness. I think she was glad to have things
back to normal, too.
I traveled to the U.S. on the 27th for a 2 week
visit. By the time I got control
of the emergency money sent for the plane ticket (it has to process through my
church), the costs had went up and I had to adjust my dates. It was interesting that the sooner I
traveled, the cost went down.
That’s how my 1 week visit turned into a 2 week visit. My friend Eyner took me to the airport
and I got a really good nap on the way.
He is so sweet to not be offended that I want to sleep on the way. I think he is thankful that sleeping
keeps me from throwing up in his car.
Lol
It was a whirlwind visit seeing people and getting some
ministry admin stuff taken care of.
I got the chance to talk to each of the board members and we added a new
person to take the place vacated by Traci when she passed away. I stayed with my awesome friend, Nana
Ruth. It was so good to be with
her. And she was so generous with
her van and also taking me places.
She took very good care of me.
I also got the chance to consolidate my 2 storage units into one. And Cathy helped me sort and organize
them into ‘yard sale’, ‘personal-keep’, and staged by priority ‘going to Nica’
piles. Yay! My exhusband, Steve, helped me move the
boxes from Springdale to Rogers. A
task that I dreaded, but was made better getting to spend time together
talking. I’m glad that God has
restored our friendship.
I finished up April in Rogers AR, but more was to come of
the visit! God allowed some fun
stuff to happen! He is Faithful to
give abundant life! Never a dull
moment!
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