Familia Marcum

Pictures

2009-07-11T17:57:00.005-04:00

The bus

The cliff

Camilla and Belen - serving at a workday project at Agustina's house

Our youth, taken last year with a group of interns from Harding

A group of our youth at last year's family camp - they won the talent show prize.
Left to right - Bruno Vargas, Bruno Pol, Freddy, Vesna, Rebeca, Alvara and Roberto

Belen, Diana, and Ariana

More news....

2009-07-10T16:13:00.003-04:00

Things have been a little crazy around here of late... I've been trying for 2 days to get this update posted.

-I took Jana to the dr. and she has a combination of rotovirus and parasites.... I thought she was getting better, but she still has bad diareahea and just threw up again all over the computer as I was working on this entry (I'm on Josh's computer now!)... At least we know what it is and how to treat it. Keep praying she will get better - and that mommy will have at least 1 day where I'm not having to clean up bodily fluids/excretion!

-To top the whole week off, Eliana fell down on Thursday and busted her chin open and I had to take her to the emergency room for stitches. She would've had to get 3-4 stiches, but she was so great (you would not have believed how still she lay and she didn't even cry!!!!), they did one long stitch on the inside and one little one on the outside.

-Josh's back is really bothering him... He's going to go back to the doc for another check up to make sure everything is okay... It may just be that he's not resting as much as he should be.

-Other than that, our days have been full of millions of other things. Josh spent almost 7 hours total waiting to get his forensics report... and still has to get the hospital to write up a report too. He went to visit Miguel yesterday, and was sad to see his condition, but glad to be able to sit and pray with him. Josh felt sure he could hear him. They have him restrained to keep him from pulling on the cords and hurting himself, and sedated until such time they feel ready to let him come to.

-Yesterday we attended a mass for Belen and Diana (a common Catholic traditon here a week after the funeral. One side of Diana's family are strong Catholics). It was again a very sad time for the family and all involved. But afterward the Sandoval's and Forbesses were able to go out to lunch with the family and I think it was a good time of fellowship, helping to ease the pain and smooth over the relationship with our church.

-We are continuing to work on ordering Ariel's cochlear device... it might be possible to recieve a free replacement!? But of course that means tons of paperwork and phone calls... sometimes a very difficult thing from another continent. Keep this whole process in your prayers.

-Josh talked to Pedro, Rebeca's father, yesterday. They have been out of touch all week and we were a little worried about them. Turns out they had to move Rebeca to a relative's house so she could get some rest... friends from school and church kept coming by. And she was having panic attacks... made worse by a medication they had prescribed. As soon as they took her off that medication, she's been doing much better. But Pedro said they are doing fine and Rebeca is recovering.

-Looks like Monday may be a big day... Kevin might possibly be released and JD might be able to get up! Pray that both of these things may happen!

-I think that's about it... except for the fact that we were able to talk and use the web-cam on Skype last night to see/hear a lot of Josh's family/extended family. What a great blessing to be prayed over and to hear "Precious Lord, Take my Hand" sung over us from thousands of miles away. We feel and know that thousands are continuing to lift us up in prayer... I know it's one of the biggest ways that we are making it through day by day.

The latest....

2009-07-08T06:59:00.003-04:00

Just wanted to keep everyone updated on the latest news and prayer requests....

-Josh is doing great, getting back into the saddle as they would say in OK... He started driving yesterday... says he's fine (of course the wife worries a little bit). He spent yesterday morning at the doc and visiting Kevin. Doc says he's healing nicely, but it'll be about a month till the ribs stop hurting. He's still pretty sore but walking around much better. Keep praying for Kevin - and for several of the kids - who will have up to 2 months bedrest.

-Josh also spent the better part of the afternoon at the forensics office. Each victim has to go in for a physical exam which will help the d.a's office (for lack of a better term) to prosecute the case. It was a frustrating Bolivia experience. He spent an hour getting the paper that he needed the dr. to write on and waited another 2 and a half and didn't even get seen! Then he found out he didn't have everything he needed - that he needed the original xrays and a report from the first hospital. So he had to go pick that up and has to be back at the office at 9:30am for his exam. Pray for patience as all of this can be a very frustrating cultural experience!

-I spoke to Butch yesterday who went by to see Miguel. He said Miguel seemed to be wanting to wake up - tossing and turning - which is a good sign, but the dr.'s are concerned about a blood clot and so are inducing further coma until they feel better about that. Pray that the blood clot will dissapate or move so it will no longer be a threat.

-A group from Santa Cruz arrived yesterday to encourage the brethren here... We have felt a great show of support and love from all the churches around the country. They brought a collection of money - such a sacrifice for the people here -and news that one of the brothers is selling his car to be able to contribute funds to the people here. It is so wonderful being part of the family of God at times like this. We are so thankful for all the funds that are pouring in from all over! I am going to order Ariel's cochlear device today on line and have it sent to Josh's sister, Jenny, who will be coming back in a couple weeks. Thank the Lord with us that there is now a specialist here in Coch. that can calibrate it... they used to have to travel to Chile to have it done - and that is out of the question right now with Ariel's medical condition.

-The Bulls arrived safely last night - praise God!

-And finally, if I could request for our family, pray for Jana who started throwing up and having diareahea yesterday - I felt like I was at the end of my rope when I woke up having to clean up everything... She's still not feeling the greatest, but I have a dr.'s appointment today for her.

I am hoping to be able to post some pictures later on of the crash site and some of our jovenes...

Thanks again for all your prayers and support!

And even more updates!

2009-07-06T21:03:00.003-04:00

Thank you so much for your continued prayers, especially concerning our worship yesterday....

-Our worship service was packed - I think we had the most people we've ever had, besides our inauguration. We had a special service of scripture readings, songs of encouragment, communion, and prayer over each individual and family involved in the accident. Josh said a few words, and although he said he didn't feel like he did justice to the occasion (being emotionally distraught about it all), I'm confident the Spirit spoke through Him. Unfortunately, I didn't get to listen to him - there were so many people, there weren't even enough chairs - and so many kids, it was hard to hear in the back. So a few of us took the kids upstairs to distract them with coloring and a movie. There were many tears shed, and words of encouragement spoken. At one point in the service, we called each youth group member still in the hospital and sang to them over the cell phones. The most important thing is that God was glorified through it all.

-After the service, the parents of the victims met upstairs with a family lawyer to discuss the legal actions that are going to take place. It wasn't as smooth a meeting as we had hoped - some venting and fault-finding (which is only natural) and emotional reactions... but all in all, we felt the support of most families. There was another meeting today and a decision was made to pursue insurance settlements through the normal channels as a group, and if certain members wish to file further action against the bus company to cover further expenses, that it will be an individual decision. Please continue to pray for the Vargas family who have suffered so much with the loss of Diana and Belen, in the injuries of Ariel and the loss of his hearing aid, and in the continued hospitalization of Miguel. They are suffering a lot (as are many of our families), and we especially pray for their relationship with God at this time. Please pray for our team too as we navigate the unfamiliar and muddy waters of legal action here in Bolivia.

-Wonderful news! Camilla, Rebeca, Bruno and Freddy Vargas were all released from the hospital today! Praise God with us - on a personal level, it brings much rejoicing as I was there in the hospital when 3 of them were brought in, seeing their injuries first hand. Please pray for their continued recovery at home, which will be long especially for Bruno and Rebeca. We're in the process of locating a wheelchair for Bruno - pray that one will be found quickly.

-Kevin, Ariel, JD, and Miguel continue in the hospital. Pray for their continued care and recovery. We are also seaching for a hospital bed for Kevin so that his mother can continue his care more easilly at home... pray that one will be found. And pray for them to be encouraged - extended hospital stays are frustrating on many levels - and for their care givers to have strength and positive attitudes.

-Roland and Carol Bowen leave tomorrow and the Sucre group drove home yesterday. Praise God for the encouragment and help that they brought at such a critical time!

-Our teammates, the Bulls, fly into Coch. tomorrow. Pray for their travels and readjustment into Bolivia, and for them as they face the emotional rollercoaster of ministering to the many needs that are facing us right now.

More Updates

2009-07-04T15:34:00.003-04:00

Here is the latest news and prayer requests....

-Jonathan Sandoval had his back surgery this morning. I talked to Butch a little bit ago and he said the surgery went well, that the doctor was pleased, and that JD was recovering from the anathesia, but was joking and talking on coming to. He should be in the hospital about another week. Then it will be between 20-30 days recovery/rest time here in Coch. before he can travel. He had a pretty uncomfortable afternoon and is frustrated like all our other injured from being laid up for so long.
-Rachel Sandoval had the stiches removed from her face and is looking much better.
-Alejandra was readmitted to a different clinic yesterday because of a fever - it appears they didn't clean the wound on her arm very well at the first hospital and they had to open it up, clean it out and stitch it back up. She was released this afternoon.
-Now that the initial shock is over, several of the youth involved are struggling emotionally. Please pray for emotional healing...
-Rebecca rallied today and was sitting up, talking, and joking with the visitors that came to see her. She said she's ready to play football! Praise God for her continued recovery.
-Miguel is beginning to move his hands and feet - a good sign!
-There may be some new legal developments involving the responsibility of the bus agency. The families are attempting to file some kind of civil action against the bus company and the police. There is the possibility that the bus company might bribe the police in the little town that has a checkpoint on the way to the camp in order to have a report that says all their paperwork was in order and that it was mechanical failure of the bus that caused the accident. A cousin of the Vargas family, who is a lawyer, is driving out tomorrow to file a claim to hopefully prevent this action. Please pray that justice will be done and that if the bus agency is responsible, that they will be held responsible.
-Please pray too for the recovery of Ariel's coqulear device. He is deaf in one ear and it has not been located with the rest of the stuff. We have heard that there was a box of cell phones and other such items recovered at the site, but it was not delivered with the rest of the baggage yesterday. It is very common here in Bolivia when bus wrecks occur that people loot the luggage in the process of rescuing the victims. Thankfully, this has not seemed to be the case in our situation. Pray that honest people have found this box and will return it and that Ariel's hearing aid (which cannot be purchased here in Bolivia) will be located.
-The Sandoval family suffered another tragedy tonight with the loss of his neice who has been suffering with cancer. Please pray for them as they deal with this loss while in the midst of all the other suffering and while far from family.
-Please pray too for our worship service tomorrow; for the men that are leading; for Josh's physical and emotional well-being as he says a few words.

And on top of everything else - our maid just called to say she will be delayed another 4 days (she's already been gone 2 weeks) - and we just pulled 3 abandoned and half-drowned puppies out of the creek bed behind our house.... Never a dull moment!

Thank you for your continued prayers - we feel the love and support from all of you. And happy 4th of July.... It sure doesn't seem like the 4th here - very surreal.

Updates

2009-07-02T21:34:00.002-04:00

We got home from the funerals about an hour ago after a long day of hospital visits, memorial services and graveside services. I wanted to update everyone on the new conditions of all our members...

Josh was released about midday. He is moving very slowly and in quite a bit of pain still, but was insistent about being released so he could attend the funeral services. It took a toll on him, emotionally and physically, but he is resting now with his medication and has no plans to go anywhere for a couple days. Riding in the car on bumpy roads is just too painful! He was able to speak at the graveside services and the memorial service, and although it was hard, I know the families greatly appreciated his effort and presence there.

Bruno Vargas had surgery this morning on his broken collar bone and it went well. He might also have to have some minor surgery on some ligaments in his foot.

Alejandra Moscoso was released from the hospital today. Praise God for her recovery!

Freddy Vargas was to have surgery on his arm tonight at 7pm to set the bone.

Jonathan Sandoval is scheduled for surgery on the compressed disk in his back tomorrow at 2pm. Thankfully, due to the location of the disc, this will be a low risk surgery. They will insert a couple plates to expand the disk back to its proper size.

Rebeca Chavez is out of intensive care! The surgery on her femur went very well, and was less invasive than they thought initially. Instead of having a plate and screws put in, she only had to have some pins. It seems that the other surgeries are unnessecary at this time. Praise God for answered prayers.

Miguel Vargas continues in intensive care in a coma, but is still showing positive signs.

There was huge show of support at the memorial and graveside service today. It was a difficult time for the familes and friends of these girls and for those who were on the bus with them (Bruno Pol, Joshua, and Rachel were all in attendance). The Vargas family buried 2 grandaughters/cousins/nieces while Miguel continues in critial condition. Please pray for Miguel's other 2 children, Abril and Diego, who lost their mom a few years ago and now have lost their older sister while their father is in the hospital. Your prayers for all involved would be appreciated.

Heavy Hearts, Thankful Hearts

2009-07-02T00:08:00.004-04:00

It is 12:00am... I am trying to sit here to compose my thoughts, knowing that there are so many praying and waiting for information. I just returned from a all night candle vigil for the 3 girls who died and their families. It was heart-breaking. This may be a bit disjointed, bear with me...

12 of our jovenes (youth) and 4 chaperones left yesterday morning for a 3 day trip to a camp about a 7 hour drive from Cochabamba. They are all on winter break and wanted to take advantage of the holiday. They contracted a bus from a local bus company that makes the trip regularly rather than taking the usual night time bus. After driving the road on our vacation last week, Josh felt it was safer to travel in the day. Yesterday about 4pm, we started recieving disjointed calls and information about a serious accident that had occured. Things were pretty sketchy until I recieved a call from Josh. He confirmed that the bus had rolled about 100 meters down a steep mountain. The top came off, it rolled over and over several times, some were thrown from the bus, others rolled down with the bus. Miraculously, one of the jovenes who wasn't badly injured was able to climb up to the road and hailed a taxi that was passing by. The taxi driver had a cell phone and reception (extremely unusual where they were at.) Within minutes people from a nearby village had arrived to help evacuate the injured. Half the group was taken to a nearby local clinic. The rest were loaded into pickups and ambulances and started back to Cochabamba. A Christian couple who was passing by took charge of collecting all the personal items and safe guarding them.

The last 48 hours have been crazy: little sleep, going from one clinic to another to check on the injured, back and forth from the house to check on the kids. The first group of injured arrived here around 8 pm last night; another group arrived around midnight, and the rest came in several hours later. My teammate, Katie, has been here with the kids, which has been a life-saver. I want to give you all status updates on how everyone stands at this moment, at least from what I know.

Joshua- He's got 3 cracked ribs and some heavy brusing and contusions. Should be released tomorrow. He's pretty heavy-hearted about everything.
Jonathan Sandoval (son of our teammates)- Lots of contusions and brusing. A compressed vertebrae in his spinal column. They were talking about doing surgery tomorrow, but are now thinking it might be unnecessary and are going to run more tests. Please pray that surgery will not be necessary and that if it is, he will be in capable hands.
Rachel Sandoval (wife of Jonathan)- cuts on the face and some bruising. She was a trooper through it all! Sat with 3 of the girls after the accident and sang "Jesu Cristo conmigo va" to help calm them down.
Miguel Vargas (father of one of our jovenes who died) - in a coma in intensive care due to head injuries, but stable. Postive outlook on his condition. Does not yet know about his daughter who passed away.
Belen - Passed away. Daughter of Miguel, one of our church members. She was 14. She was caught under the wheel of the bus. Joshua was able to scoot down the mountain and sit with her until help came. She had such a servant heart and will be greatly missed by her family and all the jovenes.
Diana - Passed away. Belen's cousin. She was 17, a beautiful, talented young lady. Her family has been coming to church for the last few months.
Ariel - Diana's brother. He had surgery today on his hips/legs, but is in stable condition and recovering nicely.
Ariana - Passsed away. Daugther of Wendy and Gonzalo, church members. Lovely young lady, wonderful big sister.
Bruno Vargas - Broken collar bone, and other fractures. Recovering nicely.
Freddy Vargas - Broken arm. Was one of the last group to be brought in and is pretty shook up, but is recovering.
Bruno Pol - Minor bruising/contusions. He's the one who climbed up to the road for help. Joshua said he was so mature and brave - helped so much in all the rescue operations.
Kevin - cousin of Bruno and Freddy. Some broken bones, but recovering nicely.
Rebeca Chavez - was critically injured. A broken femur bone in several places. The leg was operated on today successfully. Broken hand as well and a broken rib that punctured her thorax. She'll have a couple more operations in the following days. She is in intensive care, but stable and with hopes of a full recovery.
Camilla - Daugther of a church member who is working in Virginia. Facial injuries and contusions. She was operated on today and pulled through nicely. Her mom is flying in from the US.
Alejandra Moscoso - injured neck/collar bone, gash in her arm. Recovering nicely.
Rosa - daughter of a family that has been coming to church for the last few weeks. Minor injuries/contusiones. Recovering nicely.

We are heavy hearted over our losses - many of our families are discouraged, worried, and grieving. But it was heart-warming to see the overwhelming support from the rest of our church. Many waited last night in the cold night air outside the hospital until past 4 am. Others manned the contact center and answered the many phone calls. Still others made the long drive out to the crash site with blankets to help bring back injured. Today every hospital waiting room was filled with our church members, there to encourage and pray.

And more than anything, we feel the encouragement of the many prayers from a far. Thank you - please continue to lift up our church, our youth, their families before the throne. The memorial service and burial for the girls is tomorrow at 3pm. And after that there will be weeks and years of trauma and grief to deal with. But God is with us. And we are thankful for the lives of those who survived and give thanks to God for the way He is taking care of them. Those who were involved in the rescue attempt were amazed that there were not more serious injuries. And I for one am so grateful to have my husband safe and well.

As far as the crash goes.... They were on a flat stretch of road with no oncoming traffic. Observers from the little village nearby said the bus was going too fast. Some reporters from our local newspaer discovered today that the driver, contracted by the bus company, did not have the necessary license to drive a commercial vehicle, and due to driving the course the day before, may not have had enough sleep. Both the driver and the assistant survived. We don't have any more information on them at this time. Keep them in your prayers as well.

Again, we are thankful for the many prayers and support. Roland and Carol Bowen, memeber of our sponsoring congregation, are flying in tomorrow to be of help and support. Jeff Forbess, who was in the US for his sister's wedding, is cutting his visit short and coming back tomorrow as well. Erik Reyes, our brother-in-law in Sucre, is bringing a group from the church tonight to help out. The Bulls have set up a website http://cochabambayouthgroup.blogspot.com/ if you should wish to help in a finacial way. Many of our familes don't have the means to pay for medical/funeral expenses. Your help would be greatly appreciated in this way as well.

It is time for this tired body running on a little less than 4 hours of sleep since yesterday and a cup of coffee to retire. We love and appreciate all of you!

Jana Banana

2009-06-16T17:01:00.002-04:00

Men's Annual Camping Trip

2009-06-16T09:46:00.003-04:00

The men held their annual camping trip a couple weekends ago - a little later than usual - which meant it was much colder! But they drove up in the mountains about an hour from Cochabamba and camped near some hot springs, which helped take the bite off the cold weather. Josh said it was a good time of fellowship and much enjoyed by all. We are very thankful for the brothers in Christ that God has brought to our body here.

Crossing a bridge on the road to Liriuni - scary!

The hot springs

Breakfast around the campfire

And She's Off!

2009-06-15T16:25:00.002-04:00

US Trip - May 2008

2009-06-02T15:31:00.012-04:00

And I'm finally getting my act (and my pictures) to update you all on our trip to the US to see family.

We flew into Dallas on Tuesday, May 5th, where my parents picked us up. Eliana gave my mom the biggest hug when we walked out of baggage claim - it was so sweet! We spent the night with my Uncle Ken and his wife Barbara - how nice to sleep in a real home instead of a hotel - and enjoyed visiting with them in their beautiful home.

The next day we drove to Abilene and spent 5 days staying with the Guilds, old friends and teammates of my parents. I was very thankful for their gracious hospitality in putting up with our whole crew for that long (and for their fenced in back yard!) Thank goodness that they are ex-missionaries, grandparents, and parents of missionaries - so they fully understood the intricacies of international traveling with little kids and the blessing it was for our family to be all together - even for a couple of days.

We spent a lot of time helping my brother get set up in his new apartment, and enjoyed meeting his lovely girlfriend, Janille Woods, who we all liked a lot! She was great with the kids - and made best friends with Michaela when she brought over a craft for them all to do together. I got to have lunch with our good friends the Holways too, which was a highlight of my time, and visit my favorite Christian bookstore - Mardels! On Saturday, my brother graduated from Abilene Christian University with a degree in political science and high honors! We are very proud of you, Matthew!

On Saturday night, the girls and I borrowed my parents' van and made the drive to Brownwood where we stayed with the Bowens and enjoyed worshipping with our sponsoring congregation on Sunday morning.

Since that Sunday was Mother's Day, we made the drive back to Abilene that afternoon, so all 3 siblings could be with my mom that evening. We talked about going someplace nice - but with 5 kids age 4 and under, opted for a picnic at a park. We had a lot of fun playing with the kids.

Monday we began the loooong trek to Michigan. My sister and I and the 3 littlest kids rode in one van, while my mom and dad and the 2 oldest went in the other. Between a month old baby needing to nurse every 2 hours and a 2 year old needing to go potty every 30 minutes (at least that's what it seemed like!) - we made a lot of stops. It took us 3 full days of driving to reach Livonia - and although I was afraid my parents might be ready to put us on a plane back to Bolivia by the time we arrived :) - they were very gracious and patient through it all. We ate a lot of fast food - for the added advantage of indoor playgrounds - and stopped at Cracker Barrel a couple times too. We also managed to stop at hotels with pools - which was fun... and my sister and I had a lot of visiting time in the car - which was GREAT!

Our last day of travel, we stopped to have dinner with my grandmother. It was wonderful to be able to visit with her and eat her yummy homecooked food...

We had one day in Livonia to recuperate from the travels - and then the girls and I borrowed the car again for the day and drove across the border into Canada to meet our good friends the Fords. We had lunch at 'Old McDonald's' (as my girls call it) and had a good visit while the kids played.

The next 10 days were filled with fun and fellowship with my family - and of course, shopping!

We went to Greenfield Village (a live museum in Detroit) and rode the carousel and the train and a horsedrawn carriage...

To the zoo...

Out to eat Ethiopian food for my and Rusty's birthday - yum!!

And of course the highlight of our trip was meeting our new nephew/cousin - baby Stephen.

Not to mention - time with family!

All in all, this trip was a blessing (not to mention the most uneventful one I've had in years!) - I got to be there for another key moment in my brother's life, meet my new nephew, and see my sister and her family one more time before they move off to Africa. And although it seemed to fly by to us, it was time to come back. The girls were ready to see their daddy - and I was ready to come home to the love of my life. I hope my husband knows how much it meant to me for him to sacrifice the time with us and the money for us to go... He missed us a lot - and dealt with our absence by working 70 hour weeks! We have been enjoying our time together since being home - and we brought him lots of goodies for his birthday!

Note: Check back in a couple days for more pictures - I'm in the process of getting them from my parents...

The Unbloggable Trip

2009-05-08T11:30:00.003-04:00

So, we are in Abilene! As we were waiting in the Miami airport for our connecting flight to Dallas, I told Trish who had traveled with us that the trip had gone so smoothly that I should do a blog about it being unbloggable! Thanks for all your prayers.

-Besides a rerouted flight through La Paz, there were no missed, delayed or canceled flights.
-Neither Trish or I had any problems in immigration!
-The kids did great on the flights - thanks to Trish and a portable DVD player - although naturally we were very tired by the time we reached Dallas.
-We ate Pizza Hut in the Miami airport!
-Our bag and stroller made it just fine on all flights.
-We got to stay with my Uncle Ken in Dallas the first night.
-We are now enjoying time with my family at the Guilds - who happen to be grandparents, ex-missionaries, and parents of missionareis and so are very understanding about traveling with little kids.
-I've made one trip to Walmart and one to my favorite Christian bookstore - Mardels! - and spent too much money.
-I'm missing my husband a lot and appreciating all you single parents out there!
-I went to a mall and ate southwestern eggrolls (my favorite!) at Chili's today with our good friends the Holways.

And finally, I thought I'd put down a few missionary kid funnies...
-You know you're an MK when you are amazed by water fountains and mailboxes. Michaela wants to drink from every water fountain, and when she went on a walk today with my mom was excited about all the mailboxes.
-You know you're an MK when you notice that there aren't any taxis and buses on the road.
-The girls call McDonald's "Old McDonald's".
-Michaela said the Miami airport smelled like a mall. I told her it's the smell of America!

And I won't even get started on all my amazements :) It's great to be in the USA!

Sucre!!

2009-05-02T11:08:00.005-04:00

We left on Wednesday for a trip to Sucre to visit Uncle Erik, Aunt Jenny, and cousins Zion and Mia. It's been a year and a half since the girls and I came... high time for another visit. Thursday we celebrated Michaela's 4th birthday with birthday pancakes, a trip to a public park that has some fun kiddy rides, a grill out, and then dinner at the new mall/food court in Sucre - complete with a play area for kids. Thanks, Jenny and Erik, for making it a special day!

Friday was Labor Day in Bolivia - so we took advantage of the day off to go to the dinosaur park with the kids - a cool place they have discovered tons of fossils and footprints of many species of dinosaurs. They had fun - after Zion and Eliana got over their fear that the lifesize statues of dinosaurs (complete with mechanical sounds) were going to eat them!

And finally I thought I'd share some of my favorite pics from our trip so far....

Please be praying for the girls and I... We leave here on Monday with Josh to fly to Santa Cruz and then from there - we're coming Stateside for 3 weeks! I'd appreciate your prayers over all the details of our flights and immigration.

Jana's First Steps

2009-04-25T09:57:00.002-04:00

Michaela's 4th Birthday!

2009-04-24T15:52:00.004-04:00

We celebrated Michaela's birthday a little early this year, since we will be in Sucre with Uncle Erik, Aunt Jenny and cousins Zion and Mia on her actual day. It's hard to believe that the little baby we brought into the world 4 years ago is now writing, reading letters, climbing trees and SO big! Most people mistake her for being at least 6 years old instead of 4! Micheala's little life has brought us so much happiness and challenged us as well... in a good way. I am thankful to be her mommy and daily pray for the wisdom to raise all 3 of these precious children.

We had team time at our house this month complete with an Easter egg hunt and of course - Michaela's party.

The 3 amigos!

Michaela requested a ballet slipper cake.

We also had a small party at her school.

I made flower and caterpillar cupcakes (Michaela calls them 'pupcakes')! I thought they turned out real cute!

And Even More Sister Fun!

2009-04-22T13:40:00.003-04:00

Our New Ride!

2009-04-22T07:34:00.002-04:00

Come and visit us! We'll show you Bolivia! Thank you, God!

God's Providence

2009-04-16T10:35:00.005-04:00

In the past couple weeks, we have been amazed and blessed again by the providence of God. Let me tell you why...

For a few months, we have been prayerfully considered changing vehicles. Joshua has been the proud owner for 2 years now of an old Chevy pickup. Ever since I met him, he has always owned an older model truck. He bought it cheap and dillapidated. Over the last 2 years, he babied it and spruced it up. Until it became obvious that we needed to sell it. It was taking too much money in maintenance and time for the use we got out of it. He put it up for sale - and it sold, for his asking price! He was a little sad to be 'truckless', but it was the best decision. Our thinking being that if we sold both our current cars, we would be able to upgrade to something better for our family. We now had a down payment to make towards a new car.

I have put a lot of prayer into this decision - as has Joshua. We prayed that we would be content with what we have - knowing we are blessed beyond measure. But we also prayed that if there was a way we could find a new car that would serve our needs and the needs our our ministry better, that God would show us clearly His way.

Buying and selling cars here is much more difficult than Stateside. There are not dealerships that are ready to trade in and finance your vehicle of choice. You have to look long and hard for the right vehicle for the right price and then usually have cash in hand ready to buy on the spot. Loans are difficult to come by from banks here, and impossible when your visas are still being processed.

We were looking for something a little bigger - that would serve for transporting family, visitors and baggage when they come to see us and that would help us in bringing people and equipment to and from the house for ministry events. We were looking for something that would travel better around Bolivia - knowing the crazy roads! Now that our children are getting older and it's easier to travel with them, we hope to make more trips - both for sightseeing and for encouraging the different works around the country. Ideally we were looking for a cross between a truck and an SUV - as if there is such a thing!? Or maybe a 4 door, covered cab pickup or a larger more heavy duty SUV.

Joshua looked diligently for a couple months in the paper and in different car shops around town. Nothing suited our needs or our budget. On Monday morning, we prayed again for wisdom, for contentment, for God's leading. We basically reached the decision that we should stop looking and continue with the car already in our possesion. However, on the way from Michaela's school that morning (Get this - usually Michaela doesn't go to school on Mondays because it's our family day. However, that day they had a big party for Dia de Nino, so we let her go), we passed a car for sale on the side of the road. It was exactly what we were looking for. Joshua stopped and checked it out. The owner, a director for Peace Corp, had had the 'for sale' sticker on the car for all of 2 days. Joshua asked the owner to take it by our mechanic. The mechanic gave it a clean bill of health. We took it for a test drive. It did great going up the mountain and in crossing a rock river bed.

However, we did have one small problem. Savings are depleted due to my trip in May. We have not sold our previous car. We were planning on trying to sell it during my trip to the US - so the girls and I would not be without a car for very long. We prayed... Joshua called our bank in the States - and over the phone, folks, they gave us a loan for our exact selling price of our car at 0% interest for 4 months! It should be deposited in our account in a week. If we sell our car by September, we will have upgraded to a new vehicle debt free! God is good!

We offered the owner the combination of the loan and the money from selling the truck. It was $1000 less than his asking price (which was a great price from the start!). We told him it was all we could do - we rested in Him once again. Several hours later, he called us to tell us he accepted our offer. God is good! They went to a lawyer to make the down payment and as they were signing the papers, the owner started to get other calls from other people asking about the price and condition of the car. Amazing!

God has revealed His providence to us in one other huge way this last week - this time concerning our house. Generally speaking, we feel very safe here in Cochabamba and in our home. However, we take the necessary precautions as well. We have 2 boxer dogs, a good electric fence, a car alarm... Some Bolivians are so security conscientious (I think this is something we struggle with as Americans as well) that they will not even leave their houses unattended for an hour! This isn't a big problem for some families because they have a live-in maid. While we do have a girl who comes to help us out with the house and the kids, she only works half a day, and she doesn't live with us! However, we do try to have someone here when we are away overnight. This gets tricky during furlough months when we are gone 2 months at a time. Last year a brother in the congregation volunteered to watch our house for us. Naturally we paid him as well, but it is a big sacrifice to ask of someone. We were already praying for God to provide us with someone to take care of our place summer of 2010 when we will be Stateside.

Last week, we recieved an email from an old friend stating that she and her husband and 2 boys are planning to come to S. America to study Spanish before heading to Chicago to do urban ministry with a Hispanic church. She was asking about the possibilites of coming to Cochabamba. I emailed her back and among a variety of other things, told her we could mutually bless one another - if they were willing to live in our house, they could stay here rent free. To make a long story short, they are coming! Praise God! We have a great family to watch our house.

The girls' memory verse for the week is Philippians 4:19, "And my God will meet all your needs." Textually speaking, I don't believe this verse is saying that God will meet every physical desire of our hears. A little bit before this verse, Paul speaks of finding contentment "in any and every situation." This verse is also within the context of the great sacrifice and service the Philippian church provided to Paul. I believe if we approach our requests with the mind of Christ, praying for His leading and realizing that each gift is an opportunity to serve and give back, that God will meet each need. Whether that means diminishing the 'need' in our mind until it's no longer a need, or whether He provides in amazing ways. Why do I ever doubt Him?

Would you mind giving thanks with us right now, for the wonderful ways He has shown His providence to our family? And would you mind keeping all the details of these 2 situations above in your prayers as well? My prayer specifically is that God would use our home, our car, our things, and more importantly our very beings to minister to His people here in a special way.

Recent Ministry Events

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Work Day at Augustina's -
Our church is attempting to provide our sister, Augustina, with better living conditions. Last year, we installed a water spigot outside her home to provide her with running water. This year, we are rennovating her house - providing her with a solid foundation, walls and roof to keep out the rain, wind, and cold. Already, our church members have worked 3 Saturdays with more still to be done. After the first workday, Joshua came home, dirty and tired from digging in hard ground and pouring cement, and said it was kind of neat to be a 'peon' (his words) rather than the leader. Miguel and Gaston, an architect and carpenter respectively, have been in charge of the project.

First Men's Night Out -
Last month the men started their first monthly get-to-gether (I like to think inspired by our women's ministry that has always made it a priority to get the ladies of our congregation together at least once a month!). They grilled out and played games.

Easter Sunday-
Joshua and Gary put together a wonderful worship service on Easter Sunday. They prepared an interactive sermon/ drama using the story of the 2 men on the road to Emmaus as a basis. I think it made everyone reflect a little differently on the death and ressurrection of our Lord! Afterwards we shared a fellowship meal together - I made fish chowder for the church and everyone brought sides and desserts. I think it turned out all right - although Joshua said he would never, ever buy the fish 'sabado' again! He spent 6 hours cleaning and filleting it because it had so many bones!

We put together a very short children's program for Easter Sunday as well, using the triunfal entry to Jersusalem. The kids sure looked cute!

April 12th is Children's Day here in Bolivia. This year it just happened to fall on Easter as well. We had a special prayer of blessing for our children and gave away colorful balls to all the children attending the service. Afterwards Josh took a group to a local park. He dressed up in a lion costume and they gave away helium balloons and Bible study tracts/ brochures for the church. Unfortunately, we didn't get any pictures of the balloon give away - the girls and I went home for naps and Josh was inside a lion suit!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-13T16:39:00.002-04:00

So we dyed Easter eggs for the first time this year... It was fun, but they didn't turn out as pretty as I'd hoped - I think because you can't find white eggs here - just brown. Oh, well, it's the experience that counts!

Musings on Turning 30

2009-04-03T15:45:00.002-04:00

As I was journaling on my birthday this year, I was struck how this is the year of 'multiplies of 3' for me.

-I'm 3 decades old.
-I've lived on 3 continents/ 3 countries.
-I've been exposed to 3 languages
-I have 3 children - and had them in 3 years.
-This year, we celebrate 9 years of marriage.
-We've been in Bolivia 3 years.
-This is our 6th home since being married.

Reflection is good for the soul. There is a line from a song that I like a lot... "Roll back the curtain of memory now and then. Show me where You've brought me from, and where I might have been. Remember, I'm human, and humans forget. So remind me, remind me, dear Lord."

God has done so much in my life - brought me through so many joys and struggles to this point. And as I look forward to the next 30 years of my life... it's a little exciting and more than a little scary to wonder where God will take me from this point. But I remember the verse in Proverbs 31 that talks about the virtous wife being able to 'laugh at the days to come.' What a comfort it is to rest in my relationship with my Father, secure and confident with Him, knowing that He will walk by my side through all that will come my way in the future.

Sidewalk Chalk Art

2009-03-21T07:03:00.002-04:00

And More Sister Fun!

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Blowing bubbles

Fun on the playground

Sidewalk chalk art

Sister love!

Sister Fun

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Oh the things that can be done with a huge old sheet!

Playing house

Reading books

Love and snuggles

'Helping' in the kitchen

The Beauty of God's Creation...

2009-03-13T15:06:00.003-04:00

Growing up in Africa, I was exposed to a first-hand view of some of God's most creative masterpieces... both in landscape, in people, and in wildlife. We visited various game reserves countless times, and always enjoyed the variety of wildlife in its natural habitat. As a teenager however, I remember feeling... how shall I say?? Hmmm... perhaps 'slightly condescending' would be best - towards my parents as they took up the hobby of bird-watching. After 20 years in Kenya, my parents had seen it all - wildlife wise. But there were countless species of birds that they hadn't even begun to discover. My siblings and I were bored, on the other hand, when we would go 'on safari' and sit for 20 minutes in the car attempting to identify an illusive new bird. We wanted to see the 'big game'. I never thought I would get to the point where I enjoyed bird watching. But I'm there! You grow more and more like your parents with age :) Living here in Bolivia, we may not have the extreme variety of wildlife that Africa flaunts - but floral and fauna there are in abundance - as well as birds. I have enjoyed getting to know the birds that live around our house - they have become friends - I have learned their calls. I don't have a bird book - so I have no idea what their scientific names are, but I sure enjoy watching and listening to them. Here are some very amature pictures of some of them - it's very hard to get good pictures of birds!

This pretty yellow bird is one of my favorites.

This pair of hawks made their home near our house a couple months ago.

These rather nondescript rusty orange birds spent 2 weeks constructing this mud nest. They also have a very loud obnoxious call (sounds something like a kookabura - did I spell that right? ).

And I tried to no avail to get a picture of the loud green parrots that live in the olive trees behind our house. Oh, well.