Hay que seguir adelante

Bwahh!!!!

Another week gone by! Got another case of Traveler's Diarrhea but other than that am no worse for wear. I think that I am starting to learn and that God is changing me! On Tuesday Fernando threw all his juice onto my pants because he was angry at me, and I just calmly walked away to tell Marisol instead of reacting to him. On Friday when he started squirming to avoid changing into clean clothes, instead of fighting with him I played with him, making sound effects for his clean pants and socks that were alive and chasing him.

Things are even more chaotic because two kids from the younger class, José Maria (nicknamed "Chema") and Brisa moved into our class so the grand total so far is 10 kids, soon to be 11 when Emilio Miguel returns from vacation. More kids=More chaos. Marisol has been great, though, adjusting without even blinking.

This is the Way We Brush Our Teeth

Top L to Bottom R: Juan Pablo, Jair, Dayron and Yoselin

We (try to) brush teeth every day after breakfast, and it's so adorable to see them looking up at me through the mirror for my approval. ¿Así? "Like this?" asks Dayron before brushing only the front. After a couple of minutes I say, Y ahora yo por cinco segundos. "And now me for five seconds." When I try to brush Jair's teeth he always chomps down on the brush so I can't move it. This Friday was his birthday and the daycare gave him a stuffed animal and a toy truck that he proudly displayed to his brother, Geovani. When it came time to turn on the tele (TV) I asked Jair, ¿Qué quieres ver? (What do you want to watch?) ¿Shrek, Cars, Mulan? "Mulan!" he declared, and when the ending credits rolled and the Spanish version of "True to Your Heart" started playing, he bobbed up and down (his version of "dancing") to the beat with a smirk on his face.

Cooking for Friends

Yesterday I made chicken teriyaki for Pastor Tomás, his wife Cristina and the youth of the church. I made it exactly the same as in the States--they've got mirin at the store Bonanza! But then I had to go to the Mega to get the checken and to Espino's to get ginger. I'm going to appreciate Albertson's so much when I get home (one stop shopping really is a luxury!). Anyway, they all seemed to like it, although Jonathan joked, "Where are the tortillas? Where are the beans?" We talked about Japanese culture and Carlos asked me about how Japanese people can't pronounce l's. Cristina talked to me about how she thought it was so cool how they fight with samurai swords and then Tomás got all embarassed for her and said, "No, no, not anymore Cristina." I just laughed and said, Sí, mi abuelo tiene espada, pero no la usa. "My grandpa has a sword but he doesn't use it!" For me, chicken teriyaki is such a comfort food so it made me really happy and made me think about my family. Btw, my parents are coming to visit me in three weeks!!! Yay!!

Praise from Isaiah 6

I'll leave you with this--I just sat for awhile with the lyrics of this song today and it really ministered to my heart:

Santo, Santo, SantoDios Todopoderoso

Quien fue, quien es y quien vendrá
Con la creación yo canto
Al Rey de Reyes
Tu eres Digno
Y yo te adoro

Holy, Holy, Holy
Lord God Almightly
Who was, who is and is to come

With all creation I sing

Praise to the King of Kings
You are Worthy

And I will adore You