Expo Esperanza 2020

So Expo was a little different this year, with just CVE participants.

 However, I did heat banana bread and make coffee to serve in the mornings!

Wetting the arena in preparation for the horse performance. This year, there were only two animal categories, horses and dogs.

Riding in style

That kid! Up and at it again! #waytogotadi

These three are watching the dog competition.

Go, go, go!

The winner!

This cool suspension table was on display. 

I helped with some of the sewing projects, so I was excited to see what the kids got!

I also had the opportunity to judge the cookies, and bread and tortilla categories. (Thanks to Carissa for the photos.)

Miguel judged agronomy. Here he is presenting the championship ribbons.

After a successful Expo weekend, the summer staff headed home. We miss them! 

Miguel started working part time at CVE on Monday. 

Miguel's cousin, Gonzalo, came from Colorado for the Expo and stayed the following week. We enjoyed having him over for a "carne asada" on Friday night!

Then on Saturday morning I played soccer and sprained my ankle.

This picture looks a little worse because I had been wearing a sock with a design on it and it imprinted on to my leg which was a little swollen. Anyways...I couldn't walk on it for a couple days and then started walking wearing an ankle brace. Now a week later it's kind of at that dangerous stage where it doesn't hurt all that much and I can easily forget and do something I shouldn't (like start running). So no sports for a few months and we'll see how it's feeling!

Miguel helped with some classes in the shop with the kids last week. They built two corn hole game sets and a Kubb game set. (Look it up.) So on Thursday morning I played a little corn hole. If you look closely at the picture you can see that one red bag got knocked in, but another is hanging, caught by the red one on top. Too bad for the red team! They almost got two more points!

    Do you ever feel like you are learning the same spiritual lessons over and over again? I once thought about how God teaches us and thought, you know, sometimes the lessons are so simple and yet we struggle. I imagined God giving a lesson on the ABC's. And there we are, "A...B...umm...Let's see that was...A...umm, ok...C, no B...C..." you get the point. This is the poem that resulted from that idea.

As I pray my ABC’s

Could I ever tell Thee, Father,

What I really desire to pray?

Such a jumble of thoughts and praises,

My weak lips are trying to say.

But I know that Thou art mighty

As I pray my ABC’s

Thou canst form them into phrases

Of a prayer that pleases Thee. 

CVE 5K Color Run 2020

We had our first ever color run here at CVE!

Marissa was my training-buddy for the three times I practiced before the race! We ran together most of the way. She was also my buddy along with Lucy at Joy Camp.

Coming across the finish line!

Miguel and I 

The girls pyramid

And the aftermath

The summer staff pyramid!

It was a lot of fun. The fastest runners made it in 22 minutes plus seconds. I made it in 32 minutes and afterwards we had fun as you can see above. Then we ate watermelon and energy bites (peanut butter, chocolate, oat bites) and headed home!

Tomorrow is the first day of Expo Esperanza 2020 which is looking a little different this year due to COVID-19 restrictions! Hopefully some pictures coming soon...

As I looked back at some of my previous posts, I saw that a year ago before Expo we were just getting our paperwork finalized to send in the I-130 form (the first step in Miguel's US residency process). So a little update... the beginning of the year the USCIS approved the application and passed it on to the National Visa Center. The National Visa Center asked for more documents which we sent in and they have confirmed that they have all the documents needed. At the moment, we are just waiting for an interview to be scheduled in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico. With COVID-19 preventing travel, we realize that those interviews could be somewhat behind schedule, so we're just waiting to hear. Thanks for your prayers!

From Stars to Snowflakes

I thank Thee for the stars above

And all the universe.

The mountains great, the sunsets gold,

Thy wonders we rehearse.

I thank Thee, Lord, for details, too,

For snowflakes, each unique,

For fingerprints, and fingernails.

To understand, we seek.

How can a God know how to make 

A mountain or a star

And also separate our thoughts

From what our intents are?

Watermelon Contest and Joy Camp

The weekend of July 4th, I organized a watermelon carving competition. Below are the entries.

3rd place

2nd place

1st place

The watermelons I purchased for the contest.

More goodies from our garden.

I have the opportunity to sew with some kids for their expo projects which is always fun. 

The Expo will be CVE only this year because of COVID-19. It will be interesting to see how it goes.

I've been enjoying my second year as a buddy at our annual Joy Camp! There are two groups, older girls and younger kids. 

Joy Camp is a fun, relationship-focused, brain-training camp. We focus on building joy. The definition of joy is, "Someone is glad to be with me!" Which becomes extremely powerful when we feel that someone is still glad to be with us even when we experience the negative emotions of shame, anger, disgust, sadness, hopelessness and fear. Think about it? How many of the issues in this world are caused because we don't know how to recover from those emotions, how to respond to them, or how to act appropriately in the midst of them. And most importantly when we experience joy (someone glad to be with us) in those emotions, it becomes real to us that Jesus is glad to be with us in those emotions!

A few key aspects...the three rules are 1. Stick together, 2. No Hurts, and 3. Have Fun. There is structure (rules and a posted schedule) and flexibility (kids can use their words to ask for what they need and compromises are allowed). There is a big focus on appreciation and gratitude. There are activities to get kids excited and hyper and then activities to help them calm down. (A much needed exercise for most.) There are activities that train their brains to synchronize with the people around them, to give and receive care, to negotiate their needs, and to identify when there relational circuits are switched off. A lot of time is spent talking about the way our brains work and our emotions. 

Perhaps you can already tell, but these are the things I am passionate about! The concepts I have learned about the brain and relationships have changed my world in wonderful ways and I long to pass that on to other people!

With Selah in the younger group

With Lucy and Marissa in the older group

Thanks as always for your love and support!

A couple poems that relate to joy...

Love of my Life

Love of my life, watch over me.

Hold me and mold me more like Thee.

Teach me forgiveness, mercy, too.

And strengthen me Jesus, yea, all the way through

Joy of my life, sing in my heart,

Praises and blessings for who Thou art.

Lift my voice higher each day I live.

Thou givest me more than I ever can give.

Hope of my life, I come to Thee,

Asking that Thou my anchor be.

Tempest and waves may threaten sore,

Yet expectant and clinging I’ll watch for the shore.

I Rejoice

Oh, I rejoice and praise Thee, Father

Mighty Ruler; King of kings

The burden presses; I feel weary,

Yet my heart thanksgiving sings.

Though I know not what the morrow 

Holds nor know the way ahead,

I know my Father knows each sorrow;

He will lead as He has led.

At every Milestone we grieve and heal again...

Today, 10 years ago, my father passed away. He was 41 years old.

He had battled a Glioblastoma brain tumor for 18 months. I am forever thankful that our whole family was together by his side as He went to be with Jesus. 

I am thankful for a loving father who was present in my life for 15 years, something that so many have never experienced.

I am thankful for my mom who gave us a wonderful example of trusting in and clinging to God even through the hardest times in life.

I am thankful that by God's grace and with our mother's love, all my siblings continue to pursue Jesus and healing.

This year, my dad's first grandson will be born. (Congrats Mitch and Emily!)

At every milestone we ask ourselves what Dad would say if he were here, or what it would be like...at every milestone we grieve a little more and heal a little more...

I share a poem with you today that I wrote just before my mom remarried five years ago.

The Now that Slips Away

A quaint, white house and big red barn,

It seems like yesterday

That climbing up the cherry tree

I watched my sister play.

The sun and rain, our flooded creek,

Waking from dreams at dawn,

The days of carefree, childish play

That now have gone.

Adobe brick and stucco walls

Saguaros towering tall

The mountains rising from the brush

Across the border wall.

The two, sweet years in Mexico

Seemed then a lifetime long

But looking back, a puff of smoke,

An era, gone.

Have five years truly passed me by

Since Father’s face I’ve seen?

It once was “now” that is the past

When I was but a teen.

When folding laundry late one night,

I asked myself how soon

I’d know the reality of death.

Late day of June.

Now driving north to see a friend.

Now coming home again.

Now packing up for a new place.

Now unpacking therein.

In one “now” I am planning it.

The next, the curtain’s drawn.

I find each “now” hardly arrives

Before it’s gone.

A thousand years in Jesus’ sight

Are but a stroke of time

Upon eternity’s great clock

Whose hands e’er upward climb.

A nighttime watch, with sleepy eyes,

Each blink, a year has past

So soon the quiet, waiting ends

With day at last. 

We look forward to that eternal day when the tears will be wiped from our eyes and we will be together with Jesus forever!

Frozen Pizzas and Cucumber Water

Well, it's almost July and quarantine has somewhat morphed into non-quarantine with MANY restrictions. However to back track just a little...

Several weeks ago, Arika and I spent the morning making homemade frozen pizzas. We designed a brand called "Quarantined Chefs!" As you can see, we enjoyed ourselves a lot.

An extra bonus is that the pizzas turned out amazing. So tasty!

Like I said quarantine has morphed. By this I mean that we are able to get out and do more things, mostly as a CVE community. We've started playing volleyball and softball and have a singing every Sunday morning. 

Also, Todd and Zoe Stoller put on an Escape room in Zoe's science classroom. It exceeded my expectations in creativity, challenge, and just the unexpected. José, Scott, Miguel, and I managed to find the "coronavirus vaccine" and the key to escape with fourteen minutes to spare!

When I say quarantine has morphed into non-quarantine with lots of restrictions it mostly refers to the workplace. In an effort to boost the economy, the government has encouraged businesses to reopen, but put many restrictions in place. Some of our local staff has returned to work and in the kitchen that has brought a flood of new restrictions. Taking temperatures upon arrival and departure, bleach and water saturated cloths at the doorways to wipe feet on, masks at all times, rules relating to food deliveries... It's starting to feel a little more normal now that we are a couple weeks in, but at first it was overwhelming!

Also in relation to COVID-19, there have been a lot more cases in Arizona and as a result our summer volunteers were placed in a 10-day quarantine upon arrival. I am disappointed to not spend a lot of time with them yet, but thankful I can be part of welcoming them by providing them with produce, ingredients and delivering meals while they use the church kitchen/dining room as their quarantine kitchen. We appreciate your prayers for them as they quarantine. There date to enter the general CVE community is set for July 5th as long as no one has symptoms. 

COVID-19 has felt a little closer to home lately as we had a dear woman who attended church pass away who may or may not have had it. She originally went to the hospital for liver issues, but by the time she passed away she was suspected of possibly having the virus. Bertha, our cook, who just recently began working again received word that her nephew who lives in Phoenix had a positive test for coronavirus. Also, two of our other employee's and one of their spouse's has had colds/fevers in the last couple weeks which could have been the virus. 

So as overwhelming and frustrating as the restrictions are, we continue to try to follow them. Thank you for all of your prayers as we maneuver through this time and I especially ask for prayers for the Magdalena community!

Our garden has continued to be a rewarding pastime. Mostly a pastime for Miguel, but rewarding for both of us! Above you can see a watermelon just beginning to grow. Miguel showed me some more pictures the other day and they are now larger than a softball. 

Watering the garden and our first sweet corn harvest!!

Sweet corn harvest on the table along with some home-grown cucumbers.

With an abundance of cucumbers, I've made cucumber water several times. 

Cucumber water is a Mexican thing and below I'll give you an approximate recipe. On a side note, Mexicans also make tamarind water, melon water, strawberry water, watermelon water, etc. The popular ones in a certain region depend on what fruit grows in abundance there.  At restaurants, they offer lemonade, Jamaica and sometimes other fruit waters as "Fresh waters." If you ask for water, they may ask, "Natural water?" to make sure you mean plain water. 

Cucumber Water (Agua de Pepino)

Peel and cut one cucumber into chunks and drop in blender. Cut one key lime in half and squeeze juice into blender. Add 1 1/2 cups of water and 3 TBSP of sugar. Blend on high for 1 min. Strain. Chill. Enjoy!

These measurements are a guess, so you may need to add less or more water (also depending on the size of the cucumber). And you can add sugar to taste. The final product is quite refreshing!

I had my final Nurture Group session with the teenage girls last Wednesday. We had a pool party out by the tree house where a dunk tank has been left. The treehouse serves as kind of a deck. It was just what we needed, lots of laughter and goofiness. Although I don't have photos from our pool party, I'll share a photo of our pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey game from several weeks ago.

Since moving to Matamoros street, I've been shopping frequently at a grocery store just a block away. Last week I was asked to make purchases for the family of the woman who passed away. After making the purchases, I was dividing the cost amongst those who had pitched in and realized the teller had not charged me for the tortillas I bought. I returned to the store to pay for the tortillas and a couple hours later took a closer look at the outrageously expensive $25 dollar coffee creamer, only to realize they had charged me for 6 coffee creamers. (Instead of 6 packages of tortillas!) So back to the store I went (good thing it is only a block away) and thankfully the same teller was there and was able to refund me for the coffee creamer mistake. Several days later, I stopped to purchase bread in the morning on my way to work and promptly forgot two bags of bread at the checkout. Returning about 10 hours later, I was thankful to find the bread still waiting for me! So I guess we all make mistakes and this is just helping me get to know the grocery store employees a little quicker!

After four-five months out of service, the ice machine in the CVE kitchen is up and running. This I believe is worthy of praise! Thankful to maintenance, the refrigeration guys who took it to their shop, and most of all to God for giving us ice again! The photo above is bags of ice I filled and put in the freezer for people to grab (so as not to have so much traffic at the ice machine - sanitation efforts.)

Thanks for following along with me! Just a little poem to close out!

Wind in the Treetops

Wind in the treetops whistling to me,

How many voices God’s given to thee.

Soar up to heaven and bring me back word

Of all the glories of which I have heard.

Sunrays of morning, sunset of night,

Radiance and splendor now dazzle my sight.

Shine up to heaven my dear ones to show

How I am longing their homeland to know.

Love so unending, silent, yet sure,

In all about me God’s charity pure,

Up there in heaven much more I shall feel

Of all thy sweetness, each heartache to heal.