Weary

We are weary, but PA felt it was important to update those of you who are following this blog.

We finished the slab for the carport in Latacunga yesterday. I'm sure Cesar Augustus will miss his indentured servants.

Guess whose dirty knees these are. :)

We had arranged to have a traditional Ecuadoran dinner with the neighbors, who are long-time missionaries when we got home. We plan, God laughs.

Early Thursday morning, Claudia left our work team because she said she wasn't feeling well. For those of you who don't know Claudia well, she is a WORKER, so we knew it was probably bad. It was. She had the stomach flu, which she probably caught from one of the Quito babies who threw up on her on Tuesday. She spent the rest of the day hiding in Clark's room, trying to keep herself isolated and sleeping it off. We made a bed for her in the back of the bus and headed for Quito around 4:00.

The two-hour bus trip took over four hours because we were caught behind a terrible car accident on the two-lane highway back to Quito. We sat without moving for about an hour and then were diverted to a very scary side road where we scraped past other buses and semis for several miles before merging back onto the highway. We then had to change buses because the brakes were bad on ours. Fortunately, God was with us and we made it back to Quito without anymore incidents.

When we got back, Claudia and Jennifer (who was feeling queasy from fumes-both from the lacquer she used all day and the bus) went to bed, but the rest of us enjoyed a traditional Ecuadoran dinner of pork, llapingachos, mote (hominy), and a tasty flan with candied figs and cheese with the neighbors. They had some wonderful stories to share, and I hope somebody will share them on a future post.

This morning was spent working with the kids in the various houses. Claudia was feeling like a new woman and was able to join us. Kathy and Lorraine got back into the pool and did water therapy with three girls from Casa Fe. Unfortunately, Barbara was feeling under the weather and wasn't able to join them, but they had a great time with the girls. Lorraine has some great pictures to share with you.

We were surprised to find out that today was a holiday (the independence of Guayaquil?), so there was no school for the kids who normally attend. We took advantage of the opportunity to spend some extra time with the kids who are normally gone during school hours. Nancy has some great pictures of the toddlers playing today.

When the kids went down for a nap, we all loaded in the van (Barbara was doing better by then) and headed for Mitad del Mundo, or the equator!

They found guinea pigs there, as well as a poster advertising them. In case you're not aware of this, guinea pig or "cuy" is a typical dish in Ecuador.

When we got back, Melinda came down to show us how El Dia de los Disfuntos (The Day of the Dead) is traditionally celebrated in Quito. She made us Colada Morada (purple drink) and Guaguas de Pan (Baby Bread).


we lost Don and Nancy to the flu. They're both resting now and we're hoping that the rest of the group stays healthy for the flights approaching tomorrow (Barbara and I) and Sunday (the other ten).

Since it's my last night here, I just want to say what an amazing experience this has been. I had the opportunity to sit and talk with Lesly, who has cerebral palsy, today and get to know her better. I also got to take Carlos and Juan Jose for a walk around the property, so that they got to walk through leaves and branches and just be boys. It was wonderful. What a blessing to have had the opportunity to see the work the Vaughns are doing on behalf of these children, and to see the children thrive under the care of their "tias."

So while we are weary, and some of us are feeling downright horrible, we are also grateful. We shared communion with Clark tonight and had the opportunity to share the ways in which God has exceeded our expectations while we have here. I'm hopeful that the other members of the team will get on here and share their experiences. In the meantime, blessings to all of you who have prayed for us during this amazing experience. I look forward to seeing you all soon and ask you to pray for a safe and healthy trip to Peru for those who remain.

-Cindy