Miguel and I have been so thankful to have his family visiting the last two weeks! His mom, two sisters, one brother, and his nephew were all able to come.
Bertha invited us for supper Sunday evening and took this photo for us.
Back (L-R): Fani (and another niece or nephew coming in February!), Miguel and I, Fernanda, Lola, Bryan
In front: Kevin (our nephew)
The last time they were here was for our wedding, so I was especially thankful for this time to get to know them better. They were able to stay at our house thanks to our guest bedroom and pull-out couch! We've been making lots of memories; visiting the park, making food, and just talking. I taught Bryan and Fernanda to play Monopoly Deal and they taught me to play marbles at the park. I have been helping Fernanda with her English homework and I've also been teaching Kevin the Spanish vowels.
Here we are on an evening outing. We stopped to see this fountain with lights and the Magdalena sign.
Our guest bedroom bathroom was sinkless, so Miguel built this contraption for it. We fill the jug with water and the bowl has a pipe connected to the bottom that drains into the shower. Pretty nifty! The little shelf is nice too, to be able to put some things on and his family has been able to use it for these couple weeks.
Visit number one to the park. It has still been very warm, but around 5 PM it cools off as the sun sets and then there is still an hour of daylight before it gets dark. We took advantage of this hour to walk to a park just up the street.
These boys are so much fun.
Their first evening with us, we celebrated Kevin's birthday. He turned five years old a few weeks ago. Miguel grilled carne asada and I made a cake of "Tres Leches." Bryan helped me put the strawberries on top.
Every night we take the cushions off the couch, pull out the bed, and stack the cushions by the piano. Here I made them into a little house for Kevin.
Last night, Lola made enchiladas. So delicious! We've also had some really good refried beans, pozole, creamy spaghetti with fried chicken tenders, carne con Chile, etc... We've been spoiled!
The family plans to leave tonight on the bus from Santa Ana. We are really going to miss them! But so thankful to be with them for two whole weeks!
In other news...
We had our civil protection training for this year.
Miguel and I had our second horse class. Here we are practicing riding bareback.
I've also been teaching this guy to say his name. He can say all the parts, but connecting them is the hard part. When he gets it, it sounds like "Bod...ay...o."
He has also been practicing coloring/writing and continues to impress me with his new skills.
Also, I am so excited for him because he is now adopted!! Adam and Jenna Leman have adopted him and his four siblings. This is a huge relief as I often wondered what his future would look like and now I know that he will be well cared for and have lots of support. I helped make him a photo album with photos of everyone who has taken care of him here at CVE and the different children he has lived with. The photo album has buttons for each picture where you can record a message, so it tells his story from the time he arrived at CVE in 2011 to Adam and Jenna adopting him. Such a journey! Hopefully, it can help him process and move forward in this new stage of life.
The Lemans have plans to move back to Indiana next year, so please pray for Tadiboy and for me. I will still be doing therapy with him until they move. However lately, I've been feeling sad when I think about it. I also feel so much joy for all the new opportunities he will have. So much joy and so much sadness at the same time! And I want to know how I can best be there for him through this transition. He's been my student and almost like a son to me for the past six years and I know that it will be a big loss for me and a big transition for him.
Finally, a quick throwback photo...
My mom sent me this picture recently. It was taken in July of 2005 on our trip to Magdalena when my parents decided that we would be moving there. It was taken in a canyon near Tucson.
Back (L-R): Laura (10), Matthew (6), Philip (8)
Front (L-R): Brian, Megan (3), Marie, Justin (1), Emily (12)
Also, I'll just mention again. I have plans to travel to Illinois from November 24th to December 8th. Hope to see some of you then!
A Song within my Heart
There is a song within my heart,
Throbbing, swelling for release.
If only some I could impart
To you. Oh, joy, and hope, and peace!
It is the gift of God on high,
The burning love for Him, for man.
Grant grace to act, oh, Lord most kind,
To tell the truth. In God we can!
