1st day of classes...morning session.
New uniform - gray "Adonai" shirts and jeans!
Monday, February 18, 2008
My first days back to school
After a year of “REST”, I got back into the school schedule…just two days out of the week, Tuesdays and Thursdays. Tuesday I came home totally wiped out! I thought Edson was a little demanding, but I forgot how demanding students, schedules, and clocks are.
Tuesday, I got home dragging myself. Our Canadian visitors left that morning. We said our “Good byes” the night before since I was off by 6:30 am. Things went well the first half of the day, then, after lunch I was feeling desperate for a pillow…a bed…or whatever. I ended up having the most difficult class of all, Special Ed. There were four in the class, but it seemed like 20. Every 5 seconds I had to think of another activity. My eyes were glued on the clock and I kept praying that minutes would go by faster. I walked out of that class drained! One teacher said, "Profe, you look so tired." Oh…I tried so hard, but couldn’t hide it any longer. My first day back was very rough! At 4 pm, my last class ended, without even saying Goodbye, I took off for home with more challenges waiting for me there.
Thursday was much better. I played the guitar for chapel and lead the worship for kids…something I LOVE to do. I love to praise God with this huge kids' choir all singing praises to the Father. The kids are excited, the church echoes our voices and it sounds wonderful. Who could get tired of that! We have a morning chapel and an afternoon chapel. It was beautiful.
Tomorrow is Tuesday. Thanks to my sister, Liz, I have a year full of music planned…The Great Adventure. I better rest up enough today…I have a full schedule tomorrow!
Tuesday, I got home dragging myself. Our Canadian visitors left that morning. We said our “Good byes” the night before since I was off by 6:30 am. Things went well the first half of the day, then, after lunch I was feeling desperate for a pillow…a bed…or whatever. I ended up having the most difficult class of all, Special Ed. There were four in the class, but it seemed like 20. Every 5 seconds I had to think of another activity. My eyes were glued on the clock and I kept praying that minutes would go by faster. I walked out of that class drained! One teacher said, "Profe, you look so tired." Oh…I tried so hard, but couldn’t hide it any longer. My first day back was very rough! At 4 pm, my last class ended, without even saying Goodbye, I took off for home with more challenges waiting for me there.
Thursday was much better. I played the guitar for chapel and lead the worship for kids…something I LOVE to do. I love to praise God with this huge kids' choir all singing praises to the Father. The kids are excited, the church echoes our voices and it sounds wonderful. Who could get tired of that! We have a morning chapel and an afternoon chapel. It was beautiful.
Tomorrow is Tuesday. Thanks to my sister, Liz, I have a year full of music planned…The Great Adventure. I better rest up enough today…I have a full schedule tomorrow!
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Work Team
Pictures of the work team....more coming later.(Oscar needs the phone and we are on dial up!)
Friday, February 15, 2008
Canadian Work Team
The first week our schedules were relaxed. It was the last week of summer break. We got to the job site by 8:00 am and stayed until around 5 pm. The subtropical sun was warm enough for some tanning. The mosquitoes were a little bit annoying, but one could deal with the bites. The Paraguay trip was an adventure. Friday’s trip to the Iguazu Falls was also a bit of a treat.
Monday’s back-to-school schedule was rough. For Oscar and me it was the beginning of a 4:45am routine that wouldn’t end till December…something I was dreading! We thought that the Canadians could handle the early hours but after knocking...then banging on bedroom doors, we could only get them stirring at 6 am. So, with Oscar and the kids on the road at 6, the company staggered out of bed for the smell of Starbucks.
After a full day’s work (with temperatures registering 47ยบ C in the sun.) we all trooped home…just to find…NO WATER! Hot, dirty, sweaty guys and no water. They handled it well. No one complained. Some got in the small canvas pool we have set up…at least it was water. After day 1 of no water, the pool still looked amazingly clean. Well, by day 2 the water was not looking good, but at least it was wet and cool…I was so hot even I JUMPED IN! At about 9 pm, Oscar took our guests over to a neighbor’s house on a different water line and they all came back smelling like perfume.
I don’t know too much about the job site. (I had my own job site…in the kitchen!) I do know that they worked very hard and our locals were amazed at their physical stamina…even the girls worked hard in the hot sun. The bricks and the iron rods were moved, dirt and gravel was hauled to new areas, bricks were laid and the wall was painted.
The locals were wearing long-sleeved shirts and white shirts tied around their heads so the sun wouldn’t burn their arms and neck making them darker. The Canadians worked a couple of days without sunscreen to take nice tans (or sunburns) home with them. The locals thought that the Canadians were crazy to want so much sun exposure and the Canadians thought that the Paraguayans had too many layers of clothes on. The dark-eyed, dark skinned Paraguayans tried to avoid working in the sun and the Canadians chose to sit in the sun and lay out after work trying to get a little color.
I have many days to keep writing so…more about the work team tomorrow.
Monday’s back-to-school schedule was rough. For Oscar and me it was the beginning of a 4:45am routine that wouldn’t end till December…something I was dreading! We thought that the Canadians could handle the early hours but after knocking...then banging on bedroom doors, we could only get them stirring at 6 am. So, with Oscar and the kids on the road at 6, the company staggered out of bed for the smell of Starbucks.
After a full day’s work (with temperatures registering 47ยบ C in the sun.) we all trooped home…just to find…NO WATER! Hot, dirty, sweaty guys and no water. They handled it well. No one complained. Some got in the small canvas pool we have set up…at least it was water. After day 1 of no water, the pool still looked amazingly clean. Well, by day 2 the water was not looking good, but at least it was wet and cool…I was so hot even I JUMPED IN! At about 9 pm, Oscar took our guests over to a neighbor’s house on a different water line and they all came back smelling like perfume.
I don’t know too much about the job site. (I had my own job site…in the kitchen!) I do know that they worked very hard and our locals were amazed at their physical stamina…even the girls worked hard in the hot sun. The bricks and the iron rods were moved, dirt and gravel was hauled to new areas, bricks were laid and the wall was painted.
The locals were wearing long-sleeved shirts and white shirts tied around their heads so the sun wouldn’t burn their arms and neck making them darker. The Canadians worked a couple of days without sunscreen to take nice tans (or sunburns) home with them. The locals thought that the Canadians were crazy to want so much sun exposure and the Canadians thought that the Paraguayans had too many layers of clothes on. The dark-eyed, dark skinned Paraguayans tried to avoid working in the sun and the Canadians chose to sit in the sun and lay out after work trying to get a little color.
I have many days to keep writing so…more about the work team tomorrow.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Canadians!
Okay, so we had the Canadians over for two weeks. Our house is already full of guys…but this was just 5 more! Yes…there were 9 men…and, I was the ONLY lady! Thankfully, I have a wonderful husband who helps out with EVERYTHING at home…from washing dishes, to cleaning the floor, to cooking, to cleaning up after Edson…diapers, baths, food and all. Also, we thank God that our kids do amazingly with company. They LOVE having people over. It was a great two weeks of fellowship, laughter, sarcasm…(uh hum), mosquitoes, heat, and shoes - everywhere…(These were guys and there was every style and size of shoe available…could you imagine if it were girls?)
Edson was being dragged around back and forth to the job site, church and school, to Sajonia, and downtown Asuncion all with little or no complaints. He was spoiled, held, and cuddled by these happy men. Marci held him as much as a grandpa would. Randy treated him as a little brother. Walter and Martin played with him as uncles would, and Tony sometimes held him in the car…no room for car seats. All the while, Edson LOVED the attention.
The last night (Monday) I was too tired to even think of what to cook and we ordered pizza. Brandon and Gaby couldn’t believe it since we have NEVER ordered pizza in our lives (here in Paraguay)! To them this was the all time neatest treat…ordering pizza.
Okay, so today is a clean up day. We are changing sheets, mopping floors, settling back into the routine of things…all the while remembering “good times”. Canadians are wonderful people after all…eh?
Edson was being dragged around back and forth to the job site, church and school, to Sajonia, and downtown Asuncion all with little or no complaints. He was spoiled, held, and cuddled by these happy men. Marci held him as much as a grandpa would. Randy treated him as a little brother. Walter and Martin played with him as uncles would, and Tony sometimes held him in the car…no room for car seats. All the while, Edson LOVED the attention.
The last night (Monday) I was too tired to even think of what to cook and we ordered pizza. Brandon and Gaby couldn’t believe it since we have NEVER ordered pizza in our lives (here in Paraguay)! To them this was the all time neatest treat…ordering pizza.
Okay, so today is a clean up day. We are changing sheets, mopping floors, settling back into the routine of things…all the while remembering “good times”. Canadians are wonderful people after all…eh?
I'm back
Yeah! I’m back on the computer, back into Facebook, back into blogging, back to answering emails. This is great! It seems like free time!
We had visitors for the past two weeks and the computer was being used by everyone. I was usually cooking or driving around. I’ll fill you in more as the days go by.
Don’t give up hope on me, I’ll post soon!
We had visitors for the past two weeks and the computer was being used by everyone. I was usually cooking or driving around. I’ll fill you in more as the days go by.
Don’t give up hope on me, I’ll post soon!
Friday, February 1, 2008
Work team at Adonai
I didn't actually ASK Randy if I could do this, but since I found it posted online anyway I thought I would add it to my blog to let you know a little about our visitors...the Canadian work team.
I am staying home today with the boys. Oscar and Ben are driving the two cars to and from the Iguazu Falls in one day and that is too much stress for me in one day. It's a five hour drive there and another five hour drive back. It is 4:45 am and they will probably get back by about 9 pm. I am going to try to write some more today in my free time!
(By the way the pictures are from Renee Koch)
(This is from Randy)
Hello friends and family,
Greetings from Paraguay!
We're thankful to return the news of a safe and smooth
trip here. We received all of our luggage with the
exception initially of Marci's suitcase which was
returned to him yesterday. Everyone is in good health
and good spirits, and we've had a lot of laughter
together.
We put in full days of work yesterday and today on the
school addition - hard labour actually! Yesterday we
moved thousands of bricks - 6-8 per person, per trip -
from the stock pile in the yard to the individual
rooms being added, in preparation for the second floor
being put up. So far most of the walls of the main
floor are complete. We then poured two vertical
concrete columns that act as structural supports for
the brick walls. We also partially demolished a shed
that is being eliminated from the school yard (and
while moving a lumber pile the girls discovered rats
enjoy those shaded areas) and moved a lot of small
stones used for the concrete mix in order to prepare
for school children returning and not having building
supplies in their recreational area.
Today we finished moving the last of the once
monstrous brick pile in the morning (the girls made
another discovery, this time a 4" diameter tarantula),
then moved cement bags and the mortar sand pile out of
the children's rec area. It's funny how the same
materials get moved from place to place half a dozen
times.something I'm trying to encourage efficiency in,
without offending the crew leader! Before lunch we
tore down the roof and beams of the shed we started
demolishing yesterday. It's always an adventure when
the roof rafters are bowing under the weight of your
feet and the structure swaying side to side. We're
quickly adopting the Paraguay way! In the afternoon
they 'let' me lay bricks; at first they were hesitant
in my capabilities, but a few courses were laid and
they left me on my own. The remainder of the team had
the privilege of digging out a stump from a full grown
tree in the volleyball court, and then filled it in
with concrete. It's quite a pleasure working with the
locals here; even with a language barrier we've had
good laughs with them.
The weather has "cooled off" since last week according
to the locals, and was just in the low 90's today! The
humidity is quite high also so it wears out physical
labourers quickly. We're all sporting a nice shade of
pink - maybe beet red in the case of some - in exposed
areas. Lunch break is an hour or more and provides
opportunity for a little siesta to accompany the
recovery time.
Unfortunately there was a car accident we were
involved in yesterday. Oscar was taking Marci, Martin
and Walter back home at the end of the day (us others
were with Karen) and a tanker truck hit the rear
drivers side of the car at an intersection.
Fortunately nobody was hurt in the incident, but
perhaps a little shaken. Oscar's mechanic shop will
attempt to repair the body damage today without
replacing body panels (I've yet to see how that is
accomplished), but normally in North America that
accident would cost a couple thousand dollars in parts
and repairs. We have a trip scheduled to Iguacu Falls
Friday for sightseeing as long as the car is finished.
Saturday is a part day of work then some laundry and
housekeeping and hopefully some relaxation. In the
evening the guys will go with Oscar to the prison
ministry.
All in all we're so thankful for the health, safety
and great fellowship we've already experienced.
Thanks to all of you who pray for us; may God bless
you for it and may you continue to do so for the next
two weeks.
In Him,
Randy on behalf of the Paraguay team 2008
I am staying home today with the boys. Oscar and Ben are driving the two cars to and from the Iguazu Falls in one day and that is too much stress for me in one day. It's a five hour drive there and another five hour drive back. It is 4:45 am and they will probably get back by about 9 pm. I am going to try to write some more today in my free time!
(By the way the pictures are from Renee Koch)(This is from Randy)
Hello friends and family,
Greetings from Paraguay!
We're thankful to return the news of a safe and smooth
trip here. We received all of our luggage with the
exception initially of Marci's suitcase which was
returned to him yesterday. Everyone is in good health
and good spirits, and we've had a lot of laughter
together.
We put in full days of work yesterday and today on the
school addition - hard labour actually! Yesterday we
moved thousands of bricks - 6-8 per person, per trip -
from the stock pile in the yard to the individual
rooms being added, in preparation for the second floor
being put up. So far most of the walls of the main
floor are complete. We then poured two vertical
concrete columns that act as structural supports for
the brick walls. We also partially demolished a shed
that is being eliminated from the school yard (and
while moving a lumber pile the girls discovered rats
enjoy those shaded areas) and moved a lot of small
stones used for the concrete mix in order to prepare
for school children returning and not having building
supplies in their recreational area.
Today we finished moving the last of the once
monstrous brick pile in the morning (the girls made
another discovery, this time a 4" diameter tarantula),
then moved cement bags and the mortar sand pile out of
the children's rec area. It's funny how the same
materials get moved from place to place half a dozen
times.something I'm trying to encourage efficiency in,
without offending the crew leader! Before lunch we
tore down the roof and beams of the shed we started
demolishing yesterday. It's always an adventure when
the roof rafters are bowing under the weight of your
feet and the structure swaying side to side. We're
quickly adopting the Paraguay way! In the afternoon
they 'let' me lay bricks; at first they were hesitant
in my capabilities, but a few courses were laid and
they left me on my own. The remainder of the team had
the privilege of digging out a stump from a full grown
tree in the volleyball court, and then filled it in
with concrete. It's quite a pleasure working with the
locals here; even with a language barrier we've had
good laughs with them.
The weather has "cooled off" since last week according
to the locals, and was just in the low 90's today! The
humidity is quite high also so it wears out physical
labourers quickly. We're all sporting a nice shade of
pink - maybe beet red in the case of some - in exposed
areas. Lunch break is an hour or more and provides
opportunity for a little siesta to accompany the
recovery time.
Unfortunately there was a car accident we were
involved in yesterday. Oscar was taking Marci, Martin
and Walter back home at the end of the day (us others
were with Karen) and a tanker truck hit the rear
drivers side of the car at an intersection.
Fortunately nobody was hurt in the incident, but
perhaps a little shaken. Oscar's mechanic shop will
attempt to repair the body damage today without
replacing body panels (I've yet to see how that is
accomplished), but normally in North America that
accident would cost a couple thousand dollars in parts
and repairs. We have a trip scheduled to Iguacu Falls
Friday for sightseeing as long as the car is finished.
Saturday is a part day of work then some laundry and
housekeeping and hopefully some relaxation. In the
evening the guys will go with Oscar to the prison
ministry.
All in all we're so thankful for the health, safety
and great fellowship we've already experienced.
Thanks to all of you who pray for us; may God bless
you for it and may you continue to do so for the next
two weeks.
In Him,
Randy on behalf of the Paraguay team 2008
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