End of School 2008

Before it becomes OLD, last year's news, I wanted to post some pictures of Awards Day at school. The elementary kids had their awards on December 5th in the morning and the Jr. High and High School kids had their awards handed out in the evening.

Both programs were beautiful and the church was PACKED!

Stevia - Ka'a He'e

Stevia
An interesting article about Stevia, a natural sweetener, actually grown (discovered by Moises Bertoni) in Paraguay. Check out these sites…it’s pretty interesting.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=a6CFXL5ukz1E&refer=home
http://www.vegparadise.com/news75.html
http://vitamins.ultimatefatburner.com/stevia-sweetener.html
It also VERY cheap, here!!! Do you want some?

More Christmas Traditions...(mine)

1. Gather together with family…a family reunion, listen to music, play games, tell stories.
2. Prepare “Sopa Paraguaya” (Recipe below) in abundance, just in case you get visitors. Sopa Paraguaya is a very Paraguayan cornbread with cheese and onions. It will be served at any special occasion like birthdays, holidays, weddings, and especially, Christmas and New Year’s.
3. Prepare extra food to share with neighbors. I send a plate over to their house; they send a plate of their Christmas meal back to our house. (People don’t really do a gift exchange, but they do share their food.)
4. Eat a late night meal on the 24th.
5. Go house-to-house on the 24th at midnight to greet all your neighbors with a kiss and wish them a “Merry Christmas”.
6. Have a “toast” at midnight wishing everyone in your family a “Merry Christmas”.
7. Watch fireworks all over town until about 1:30 am.
8. Go to bed! Christmas is a holiday…you can sleep in!
SOPA PARAGUAYA (Paraguayan Cornbread)
1 lb. onions
1 tsp salt
¾ c fat (lard, butter or oil)
2 cups of cheese – soft, white (farmer’s cheese)
2 cups curdled milk
5 cups corn flour (polenta)
4 eggs
1. Chop the onions finely, set aside.
2. In a separate bowl, beat the fat until foamy. Add the eggs one by one, the cheese (grated very finely) and the onions. Beat well after each addition.
3. Add the milk then the corn flour.
4. Put in a deep-dish pan, buttered and floured, cook at 350ºC until golden.

A Quick Post...

...although not written by me. It's interesting.

Christmas in Paraguay is celebrated in a deeply religious way. The main focus of the season is the pesebre or nativity scene which is found in both the home and in churches. December is the summer season in South America, and there is a profusion of flowers growing everywhere at this time of year. Churches and homes are decorated in bright colors to match the flowers. On Christmas Eve, church bells beckon the people to church at midnight for La Misa Del Gallo or the Mass of the Rooster. The Christmas feasting begins when family and friends return home from Mass. On January 6, the feast of the Epiphany, it is the Three Kings who bring gifts for the children of Paraguay. On the night before Epiphany, children set out their shoes with letters to the kings.
http://www.ompersonal.com.ar/omchristmas2/christmas.htm

LATIN AMERICA: CHRISTMAS IN PARAGUAY

Mom...this is for your 4th grade class.

LATIN AMERICA: CHRISTMAS IN PARAGUAY Christmas in PARAGUAY is Christmas of the Coco Flower. You can see this lovely flower blooming everywhere and smell its scent carried far in the warm night. Since it is summer, other flowers also bloom and homes and churches are decorated in bright colors to match the flowers.
Once your pesebre (Nativity scene) is set up - often with figurines from all over the house - you will be ready to plan the Noche Buena ("Good Night" - Christmas Eve).
On Christmas Eve, church bells beckon you at midnight for La Misa Del Gallo or the Mass of the Rooster.
After Midnight Mass, you'll come home to a wonderful dinner - surrounded by family and friends. Everyone wishes each other "Feliz Navidad - Jesus nacio!" - Merry Christmas - Jesus is born!
On January 6th, the Feast of the Epiphany, don't forget to put your shoes out (with a letter tucked inside) for the Three Kings. If you’ve been good, they'll bring you gifts!
Posted By: cheriedas@aol.com Date Posted: 03-09-2005

http://www.handsaroundtheworld.com/

The Feel of Christmas

The feel of Christmas in Paraguay is hot! Snowmen would melt instantly! (Once, my sister sent us fake snow. That was fun to play around with. It didn’t melt, but it got real dirty.) People have more time…its summer.
They sit out on their sidewalks with tereré, freshly-squeezed juice and/or “gaseosa” (pop). If you walk by, they may invite you to stay and sit with them a while to talk about family, jobs, the government, or the heat.
In Paraguay (in my opinion) it seems that Christmas is all about quality time and sharing. If you are there long enough (at your neighbor’s) they may bring out Pan Dulce or Panettone…fruitcake-type bread. Check it out in this link if you’re interested in making it. http://www.squidoo.com/how-to-make-panettone Stores are stacked to the ceiling with this type of Pan de Navidad (Christmas Bread).
When you are not out shopping for gifts, food or preparing for the celebration, Christmas is a time to enjoy leisure time and family. We can sit outside on a “cool” night and eat a refreshing watermelon (for $1 to $2 each). We take a walk. We buy ice-cream. The rush of the school routine is over. Yes. It feels like Christmas.
How wonderful it is to feel Christ…not only at Christmas, but daily and in our lives! How great to believe in Christmas…in Christ, his promises, his victory, and his salvation.

The Taste of Christmas

The Taste of Christmas is nothing like a US dinner: Here are a couple of recipes that you could try for a “cool” Paraguayan meal served at 12:00 midnight (on the 24th)!

Milanesas – fried (Chicken Fried Steak)
2 lb. beef (round steak, loin)
Salt, pepper, garlic, nutmeg, oregano, lemon juice or vinegar
2 eggs
½ cup milk
Flour
Bread crumbs
Oil
Cut the meat in thin slices and pound each side. Season. Beat the eggs and add the milk. Dip the meat first in the flour, then the egg mixture, and then in the bread crumbs. Heat enough oil in a frying pan to cover the meat. Fry until brown, turn and brown the other side.

Chipa Guasu (Creamy corn custard)
1 ½ dozen ears of fresh corn cut off the cob but not cooked
3 eggs
¾ cups milk
1 medium onion, chopped
1 ½ cup shredded Farmer’s cheese (mozzarella will be fine)
¼ cup oil
Salt to taste
Cut the corn off the cob and add it together with the eggs and milk. Blend in a blender until creamy. Pour into a bowl and add the onion, cheese, oil and salt. Bake at 350 F until golden brown.

Ensalada de Arroz (Rice Salad)
2 cups of uncooked rice
4 cups of water
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons of oil
Salt to taste
Cook until rice is done. Set aside to cool.
Add the following ingredients and mix well:
1 small onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
1 small red pepper
Parsley chopped fine
½ cup mayonnaise

Clericó (Wine and Fruit Punch)
This fruit salad is served traditionally at Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties.
1 bottle dry red wine or Cider Champagne
Sugar to taste (about 1/3 cup)
Melon
Grapes
Pineapple
Banana
Apples
Peaches
Chop the fruit very small. Mix all the ingredients. Refrigerate.

Budin de Pan (Bread Pudding)
3 small loaves of bread with no crusts
3 cups of milk
3 eggs
½ teaspoon of vanilla
1 cup of sugar
Grated lemon peel
Soak the bread in the milk. Cut bread into pieces. Add the eggs (beaten lightly), sugar, and vanilla. Caramelize ¾ cup of sugar. (Heat sugar in pan until caramel color, stir so it won’t burn) Pour caramel into a mold and then add the bread mixture. Set in a larger pan with water and bake at 350 F (approx. 1 hour) or until knife comes out clean. Cool 30 minutes and remove from mold. Serve cold.

Chipa (Cheese bread)
16 ounces Mandioca starch (tapioca or manioc flour) about 3 ½ cups
Salt and anise – to taste
1/2 cup Sunflower seed oil
3/4 cup low fat milk
3 eggs, large
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1-3/4 cups Mild cheddar, grated
Bring milk and oil to a boil in a small saucepan. Add to the mandioca flour. Mix and allow to cool a little. Incorporate the eggs, one at a time. Add the cheese and blend well. Divide into pieces the size of a walnut or small plum. Place a little oil on the hands and round dough into balls. Arrange on a baking sheet. Bake at 375 F until done, about 10 to 12 minutes. Serve warm.

Have fun! Merry Christmas!!

The Look of Christmas

Because of all the outside influences of icicle lights, Santas and snowmen; people in Paraguay DO use all these as decorations. But one thing that most homes also have is a pesebre, a nativity scene. People still decorate and over-decorate their homes. People set out blown-up Santas and plastic snowmen. It looks kind of silly, but it LOOKS like Christmas that way.
I have snowmen hanging up at home. They are beautiful reminders of my childhood. They are treasures that I DO remember…they are not silly at my house, oh NO…they are my memories. I hung up my stockings, but not by a fireplace. (Plus, I am missing one…mom!) I set out my candles (trying to make things warmer, I guess.) My house is beginning to LOOK like Christmas.
In this country, Christmas is Christ’s birth celebration. Santa Clauses and reindeers are cute decorations, but the TRUE message is still the MAIN message…Christ is born.

The Sound of Christmas

Once again, the pops and bangs remind us of the holiday season in Paraguay. Little firecrackers (and BIG..the dangerous, illegal in US, ones) are popping all day long as soon as children wake up in the morning and until they go to sleep at night. They put them in bottles to make them sound big and deep. They put them onto long poles to make them shoot higher. They light them, they scream, they run, dogs bark, etc. It's the Christmas blast!
No jingle bells in Paraguay, just bangs and noise. People are happy. It's Christmas! Paraguay is a religious country. It is the birth of our Savior! Let's CELEBRATE! How? Making a joyful NOISE!
CHRIST, THE SAVIOR, IS BORN!

The Smell of Christmas

I am not sure why, but Paraguayans love the Coconut flower. It is placed in front of their nativity scenes and sold on the streets all throughout the month of December. Today we went Christmas Shopping with Jason and in almost every street corner there were vendors selling these huge three feet long flowers. While Jason and I were thinking of peppermint, chocolate and cinnamon, Oscar was thinking that this flower reminds him of Christmas.
I started looking some things up online when I got home and found out some interesting information. I stumbled on a discription of it written in a blog by a "half Paraguayan-half American" at http://www.guidetoparaguay.com/2008/11/coconut-flower-for-christmas-flor-de.html

Things that remind me of "you"

Things you gave me that remind me of "YOU"! I’m thankful and think of you when I use these things. I say a prayer for you and feel blessed by your giving.
the Pampered Chef potato peeler
the Little Tikes swing
Edson’s booster chair
Edson’s shoes
Stainless steel bowls
A 38-cup coffee maker
A Canada shirt
Plastic bowls from your wedding
Heart-shaped ice-cubes and a USA flag-tray
Towels and sheets
Red, white and blue glasses
Flavored Coffee and Tea
A hand-made blanket
A really good can-opener
Tupperware...once full of cookies!
Scrapbooking stuff
Clothes
Books
CDs
And…so much more! Thanks, all of you, for sharing part of your lives with us!

Today is December 5

The streets of Paraguay are alive with Christmas preparations.
Some of the visual differences from a Northern Christmas are that here in Paraguay there is vivid color (some times even gaudy!) The streets are full of lights, bells, candy canes, angels, Santa Claus faces, etc. The sidewalks are full of nativity scene sets, different sizes of thatched-roofed houses (to place your figurines in), sparklers, fireworks, watermelons and fruits.
I saw a dead tree today. It was all chopped up, but it was decorated with bows, huge ornaments and Christmas lights. I didn’t like it! It looked bad! But, it probably made its owner soo happy…to see it all colorful like that.
Stores are getting stocked with Christmas decorations, fruitcakes, turrones (a peanut-taffy bar), and pop (or soda…for those of you not from Ohio). Toys will be on sale after Christmas because (in Paraguay) it is really the “KINGS” who bring the presents on January 6th.
There is excitement, a sort of happiness in the air. School is out! It’s summer. Family get-togethers and end-of-the-year parties are being planned. Its vacation time…rest, relax, sleep in, and celebrate! Twenty days till Christmas!

Three activities in one weekend

This past weekend we went to Ciudad del Este. It is a city near Foz de Iguazu (Brazil) and Puerto Iguazu (Argentina). The pastor called us a couple of months ago to tell us about his brother-in-law and sister who want to be married and then baptized along with their older daughter. (They have another boy and girl.)

A couple of days later he called to tell us that he and his wife wanted to be married, also! He asked Oscar to do the wedding ceremony. That kind of surprised us! We thought that they WERE married...and they were, but only in a Civil Wedding. Because of Paraguay's religious traditions a couple will marry in the civil court according to the law, but their "real" wedding is the church wedding and blessing. So, yes, the pastor was married 15 years ago, but not in a church wedding. They have two girls, 13 and 10.

They prepared a huge wedding and asked us to decorate the church...something we NEVER did all alone. We always had help. They had two cakes, a fruit table and barbecued chicken and beef along with three salads. One of the brides actually dressed in a long, cream-colored dress and had flowers in her hand. This couple also had their civil wedding a few minutes before the church wedding. (They were never married legally, but just living together. She did not want to marry him if he didn't get his act together.) The pastor and his wife also went up front, but only asked for a blessing on their family and marriage. This was their "real" wedding.

The next day was the baptism. This couple's oldest (14 year old) daughter actually insisted on them coming to church. The bride (the pastor's sister) wanted change in their marriage. The groom (from a Baptist family back round) always remembered his father preaching to him, but didn't want to change his drinking habits. Their daughter prayed, believed and helped her parents understand God's saving grace. The three of them were baptized on Sunday.

It was such a happy, beautiful weekend.

(I have been jumping up and down about 15 times dealing with a toddler. If this sounds choppy, I'm sooo sorry. I will write more when the little one is asleep!)

Holiday Season Already???

The holiday season seems so busy and yet, we didn't really even start yet. Right?
The parties at our house begin in November. Gaby and Edson have birthdays followed by Thanksgiving. We had a youth picnic with our church at Ñu Guazu Park by the airport. We always have an end of the year school program at Colegio Adonai for the students and a different day for the teachers. We were invited to an IBA graduation. The next day we were off to Ciudad del Este for a wedding and a baptism. We are preparing for a teachers get-together this week.
Things are hectic already and it is not even Christmas!
I am already planning meals and activities!
I am stashing my freezer with water-filled pop bottles...for ice and cold water. (I'll write about that in another blog)
I think I am ALREADY ready to just sit down and enjoy Jesus instead of preparing and planning how we are going to celebrate his birth.

Hot, hot, hot!

It's too hot! Too hot to write! Too hot to read! Too hot for everything!

I will post some flowers. These are called Chivatito. There are two kinds of plants,

orange and yellow and plain yellow.

A Relaxing Weather Forcast

Sasha is relaxing in this wonderful heat. I'm not complaining. I love summer. The rest of the week's forcast...

Tue Nov 25
Cloudy with sunny breaks
High 37°C(98°F) Low 30°C(86°F)
Wed Nov 26
Sunny
High 36°C(96°F) Low 29°C(84°F)

Thu Nov 27
Sunny
High 37°C(98°F) Low 30°C(86°F)

Fri Nov 28
Sunny
High 38°C(100°F) Low 30°C(86°F)

Wanna come visit????

Bathtime!

It is going to rain soon. I was busy at school and with our missionaries all day in meetings.

A storm is coming so I have to get off anyway. I don't want to risk burning the computer a second time.

We have a special 15 year old birthday blessing ceremony at church in three hours.

These are cute pictures of BATHTIME.

Now look at clean feet and tan lines from the sandals. It has been around 100º the past couple of days.

Okay...gotta go...I hear thunder!

Beautiful during the day, beautiful at night

Orchids out back!

2008 School Year Program

Last night was our end of the year school program at Colegio Privado Adonai. We had beautiful weather and there were about 500 in the crowd. My favorite part was when the third graders presented a choreography of a beautiful song about Paraguay. "Paraguay, a blessed land, Paraguay, land of God." They wore their Paraguay sports shirts and held up flags. It was so beautiful it brought tears to my eyes. The first graders in the second picture sang "Open the Eyes of My Heart, Lord" in English. Teacher Monica taught them this song. The pre-schoolers had a short play about Christ's birth and then the Kinder- gardeners had a play about the Gift of Grace. We had to set tape borders around the stage so parents wouldn't push the limits taking pictures during the program.

After the program the guys were putting everything away. Oscar and I were visiting with the teachers and parents when out of the corner of my eye, I saw Edson with a microphone singing...lalaaaaaalaala lala la laaaaaaaaaa. I ran to take his picture. He looked so cute! He had no audience, none of the chairs were still set up, everyone was leaving but he was singing his heart out on stage...just like he saw everyone else perform minutes before.

Holiday Preparations

For so many years, I had a friend, IRENE, who loved to cook. She grew up in one of the worst neighborhoods of the city. She didn't have an easy life, but several years ago, she became a child of God. A few years later, her husband also became a Christian. She helped her daughter-in-law, Blanca, with the school's snack bar and was always ready to serve. Her mom was diabetic and because of complications had her leg amputated. Irene waited on her mother like a nurse, changing her, bathing her, feeding her and doing as much as she could for her mom, and for everyone.

Many years she would plan my Christmas dinner. She'd ask me for the ingredients and prepare amazing meat recipes or side dishes and desserts, just because she loved to cook, loved to serve, and loved us. She always had time for our family and always cooked fabulous lunches...and invited us during a rough day at school.

She didn't have nice platters, a microwave, or a fancy workplace for cooking, but she served out of love and from her heart. She loved to cook. She loved new recipes. She loved to fancy meals. Many times she cooked over hot coals. Many times we ate under the lemon trees because it was too hot in the kitchen. Some times we even had to share plates or glasses so everyone could sit around the table.

My heart is breaking as I reminisce. This year she is not with us. This year she won't plan my Christmas dinner. This year we won't sing Christmas Carols in her mom's bedroom. This year...

We will always be grateful for her love and service. She taught me so much! Every Wednesday I bake double and send a plateful of chipas, cookies, cakes or whatever to her husband, Marcos. He said that I shouldn't bother, but how could I NOT do this after Irene so lovingly served us so many years.

This year, my holiday preparations will be recipes of love, service, and time for others.

Chipa

I am off to bake some cheesy chipa!

I'm not going to bake it in the traditional oven you see in the backround of the first picture. That takes too much work (but it does taste better). Paraguayan ladies will fill the brick oven up with wood and sticks and get a huge, hot fire going. After the fire dies down a bit they brush the coals out of the oven (with fresh, green weeds tied on to a broom stick) and put the chipas in usually on banana leaves. I think I will spray my trays and cook them in the oven. I will sweat enough while doing it the american way.

Some of you (relatives) in the north are enjoying the snow and we are enjoying 32ºC.

Silence

You may be wondering about my silence. Many times I have thought of writing in the past two weeks, but we are carrying a very heavy load. I have spent most of my days and nights taking my burdens to the Lord.
We are going through financial struggles at school. We are trying to rearrange contracts, salaries, etc. in order to make pay cuts, but still be legal. I know you all know about the economic crisis hitting hard everywhere. Most of the teachers have accepted the new policies admitting that Adonai is a very peaceful place to work at and that they haven't found this comfortable-teaching atmosphere in other private schools and NEVER in public schools. So, that has been encouraging, even though there is still a lot of stress on our part. We are depending on the Lord's strengths and riches to pass over this big mountain.
We also have financial cuts at home and felt that we needed to take the kids out of the american school they had been going to for 3 years. It has been stressful for them AND us. They seem relieved. We had been pressuring them, maybe too much. There was very little leisure time or time to just take a nap. We appreciate the cultural, and spiritual experiences that the kids had at ACA, but because of our finances and the distance of this school, we have decided to go a different route next year.
All this is complicating their schooling for next year since Paraguay schools have a different schooling schedule. We are finishing up the paperwork for their transfers. They are also taking final exams in the Paraguayan system to see what level they are in...in Spanish.
Sometimes I want to disappear and cry until it's all over and yet, I have to encourage my kids to keep on going. All the while I have to lend an encouraging word to the principal who is going through a family struggle, to a sister (in Christ) carrying the burden of a broken marriage, to a teacher dealing with an emotional load, to a mother whose child is very sick, etc. etc.
When you see I am silent for a while...say a prayer!

11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you," declares the LORD...Jeremiah 29:11-14a (NIV)

More Pictures

Spaghetti Face

Pictures of Gaby's Birthday

1. A new guitar.

2. Hot dogs (with corn, garlic, parsley and mayonaise...Brandon's choice or tomato, onion, peppers and mayonaise)

3. All you can eat - ice cream!

4. The group of 12, 13, and 14 year olds.

Hope

My friend, Mariela, just came back from Cuba. Five years ago she grabbed two bags, a bunch of courage and left, what was left, of her “home”. Her mother died when she was about 4 and she was raised by her dad and three older sisters. (One of her sisters is married to Oscar’s brother.) An older (18 year old) brother was killed by a car…about 15 years ago. Her older sister, who she called “mom”, became sick with cancer. Treatments in Argentina and a healing faith are keeping her alive right now. Then, her second sister came down with the same type of cancer. She had several operations in Argentina and she came back to her family in Paraguay. Here, they changed her medicine and her body or stomach is not receiving it. Trials hit hard on this family!
We went to see Mariela and her sister, yesterday. Mariela wasn’t there. She takes care of Amalia during the night shift. Amalia’s face and black, curly hair are still beautiful, but her body was just bones. She must weigh only about 60 lbs. She is 35 and has two little boys. She’s a nurse and worked 10 years at this same hospital…now she was the patient.
We read scripture together and prayed and tried to understand. We couldn’t make things any better. We couldn’t heal her or kiss her problem away. Day after day on this hospital bed, her only hope is God. She has a wonderful, positive attitude and even has a sense of humor. She ended up teaching ME the meaning of hope…Romans 15:13. Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Saturday News

Today we woke up at 9 am! That is sooooo late! We were out late last night at Bañado. We were invited to show a movie called "scars". It was about abortion. It was very good, but very long. An excellent choice of movie for that area of town where 11 year olds go into prostitution for perfumes and deodorant. There are so many risky abortions done, there, and teenage, single mothers. Thirty-five to forty year old GRANDMOTHERS have daycares at their homes for their own grandkids. We didn't get home until almost 11 pm. Then, we had to eat dinner, yes, that late!
I still don't have Gaby's pictures downloaded...keep waiting, sorry.
Today I woke up with a call from my friend who went to Cuba for 5 years on a scholarship. She just got in to Paraguay yesterday and went straight to the hospital to be with her dying sister all night. I was excited to hear from her, but sad about her sister and what she came home to find.
I spent the rest of the afternoon, today, catching up on reading my favorite blogs, commenting, and playing around on the computer while the house is quiet and no one needs "mamá".
In a little bit we are off to church for youth activities. Tomorrow is a full day, too.

A Quick Post...

Before my computer was zapped, I wanted to post this. While I clean up and download pictures of Gaby's party, I will entertain you with this...

Dad and my aunts sometimes talk about the green house days. Dad is amazed at the plants here in Paraguay that grow all year long…and...outdoors! Mom had a plant, once, that she got as a gift. She had to peel the outside and cut it, then, just stick it into a flower pot. It grew and had beautiful leaves. I think I saw it's flower just once. Since then, I learned that here in Paraguay they call it Jazmin Mango. It grows humungous! There are white, peach, red and light yellow ones. Our peach-colored Jazmin Mango was almost destroyed in last week's storm. But, we cut the ends off and stuck the broken branches all around our house.
Another beautiful plant (flower) is the Passion Flower (by the way-Paraguay’s national flower). There are several different kinds of plants, leaves, flowers and fruit, but they are all equally beautiful and edible. People here in Paraguay even use this beautiful flower all chopped up in "terere" water. It is used as a natural sedative in teas. Dad often talked about it's beauty.
We found this one, a wild passion flower, in San Pedro.

Back to Blogging...

Hey all, I am back...I mean, the computer is back! Yea! I'll be back to blogging.
Today is Gaby's birthday. I cooked all morning. We invited lots of people! This will be interesting! We told Gaby that it is his LAST, BIG, birthday party. Anyway, we are grateful that we are able to have a party and share our blessing with others. Gaby is 14 today.
They are announcing bad storms again for today. Hopefully our outdoor activities won't be rained out.
I am still a little bit busy for tonight's activities. Can I send you pictures tomorrow???

Still at a Cyber...

We have word about our computer. It doesn't seem too bad of a fix, but it also won't be ready until next wednesday. Sooooo, we continue with the "computer fast". Which is actually really great, because I am reading three different books and love them all.
In Search of the Source by Neil Anderson
Shepherding Your Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp
The Five Love Languages of Teenagers by Gary Chapman (don't laugh, Ellen)
Plus, I have had a bad lower back for the past few days, so this rest from the computer has been good.
All day long I think of many things to write and wish I had my trusty little friend to take notes, but, I will wait.
We did clean up with the three trees that fell down. Edson is fine. Brandon and Gaby are huge! Oscar and I are running around for school activities, etc.
Oh...I did think of something I wanted to write.
The other day Brandon put on a CD to listen to. As we were listening, I was cooking in the kitchen and started singing some of the songs. He came over and looked at me very funny and said...Mom, do you know these songs? I said, Yes, of course, they are over 20 years old! He was listening to and old album of Petra. He said...Did you LIKE petra, then? I said, Yes and I also got in trouble for listening to it! It was ROCK MUSIC. That was bad!
Okay, I can deal with Petra, again. As long as he likes it, we'll keep listening to it and I will sing along! It's better than other stuff!

Still No Computer

I've been visiting a public "Cyber" place. It's hard to find a moment without Edson to do this. So many computers were taken in on Monday that they didn't even start to look at ours, yet.
Keep praying for our family. Gaby's stitches are healing fine. Everyone else is fine...I have a very bad lower-back pain...not good with a little one around.
We are immersed in end of the year school and church activities.
Pictures of our school olympics.

Saturday's Storm

P

Well, we had a strange storm on Saturday night that destroyed a lot in about 15 minutes. Weather reports advised thunderstorms and rain for all weekend. Brandon and Gaby went to church earlier on Saturday for some afternoon activities and I told them that I would follow about 6 pm...if it doesn't rain. Oscar was with a group in Concepcion, about 5 hours from here, and I was going to go with Edson on a city bus. Well, It rained off and on that day, but the sun came out about 5:30 pm. I turn on the computer and worked for 15 minutes and decided to get ready for church and go. About 5:45 there was a snap of lightning out of no where followed by a loud thunder. My computer zapped.
I was sad.
I called Oscar and tried plugging it in and out and couldn't revive it. So, by then, it started sprinkling a little bit and I debated going to church or just staying home with Edson.
I stayed home. I got some things done and went to our bedroom. I sat Edson in his pack'n play with a bunch of books and I also layed down to read and rest.
All of a sudden there was this strange wind and it seemed as if twigs or hail were hitting the window. I heard other shutters banging in other rooms of the house and went to check it out. Right about that time, the electricity went out and Edson was screaming. There was thunder and lightning almost together and non-stop...then, just as soon as it started, it stopped. I was relieved, but still we had no lights. I had to grope around for candles and mosquito spray. I was glad I didn't go to church.
Our house is on a slight hill and I could see for miles that other neighborhoods were without electricity and Vivi called me from church saying that they finished singing when the storm started and now they were without electricity, too.
By morning we also had no water. I walked outside and saw our unripe mangos all over the ground. Trees laying on top of each other, twisted and broken and one uprooted. The yard was a mess!
News reports say that the wind was about 150kmp/hour. 4000 homes affected, millions of dollars damage to the electric companies, trees, signs, and debris all over the city. The cities with the most damage were Villa Elisa and San Antonio...our city.
Thank God for His AWESOME protection. He moved those trees like toothpicks and kept me (and Edson) safe.
Sunday afternoon we went to a neighbor's house to play soccer and visit and Gaby fell cutting his knee open. Pastor Pedro took him in to get 4 stitches. Oscar got home later that evening. It was raining. I quickly started washing up dishes and cleaning toilets with rain water. We ended up showering under the rainspout in the dark!
Our lights came back on Monday at 4 pm and water at 6 pm. I went to 5 different gas stations on Monday looking for ice...with NO LUCK. Ice and bottled water were scarce!
We're cleaning up the mess...but we're SAFE!

Ostrich Eggs

We have this amazing ostrich egg at home. It’s hard. It’s old. We are praying that it won’t break open thinking that the dead stuff inside might be kind of rotten-smelling. The man who gave it to Oscar said that he makes one scrambled egg out of ostrich eggs for a couple of people. He said that his wife has used them in tortilla and cake. Should I try it?
This is my stretched out hand...and a regular sized egg beside it.

Books and Balls

I never knew kids could do this….just sit for hours and read.
You see, my older boys were born soccer players and their first gift was a ball and they have had thousands of balls shuffled between their feet since day 1. They seem to be like magnets to balls. We have balls all over our house and especially in the kitchen were we usually gather as a family. Some days I mumble to myself or scream as I kick them out of my way (the balls-not the boys), trying not to fall over them while carrying a hot pan of cooked noodles that needs to be drained. We have had stuffed balls, plastic balls, leather balls, balloon balls, basket balls, foot balls, soccer balls, tennis balls, base balls, soft balls and golf balls. (Did I forget any?)
What amazed me with Edson was that he didn’t have a magnetic pull to balls. He preferred books. He doesn’t like balls! He likes books!
He can sit for an hours just looking through a stack of books. His favorites are animal books. We take books in the car. We take books to church. We take books to the babysitters. We love books. He reads ten books before going to bed. He falls asleep on his books. He eats breakfast with a book beside him. This is amazing! After two sports heroes, we might be going towards some quieter years with Edson.

Mom! Stop taking pictures, I'm reading!

Re: Steps at Las Tres Fronteras...

At the Tres Fronteras there was no warning of the number of steps...but check out these pictures and the distance you have to go down. I just IMAGINED that there were 500 steps because it LOOKED like it. Look at those tiny, tiny people way below! I stayed back with 5 students who also didn't want to make the hike.

Last pictures of the field trip

I tried to blog yesterday, but something was going wrong with my computer so, I went to bed instead. I will show you some of the last pictures of our trip. The Monday Falls, in Ciudad del Este, are like these falls in someone's backyard. It was the first time I was there. It is beautiful! Next time you visit maybe we can go there!

We went shopping in Ciudad del Este, a HUGE market place that borders with Brazil and Argentina, and then headed on to the Iguazu falls.

The Iguazu Falls. The falls are actually in Brazil and Argentina. There is a point (where we also visited) where the three countries actually meet divided by rivers called Las Tres Fronteras. There are cool souveniers with the three countries flags on them. There were about 500 steps to go down on the Paraguayan side to get to the bottom. Most of the kids went down, but I just looked at the beauty from above...thinking...if I DO go down then I will have to climb back UP those 500 steps. We just walked for days and I wasn't ready for more torture!

The whole group at the falls.