Visitors from Illinois!

We were so blessed and thankful to enjoy a visit from my mom and younger brother, Tim, last week.

Friday evening after work, I drove up to Tucson. Tim and Mom arrived around 9:30 PM. I was excited to stay the night with them in a hotel! Saturday morning we went shopping and headed back across the border. They were patient as I unloaded purchases and packages at CVE and then we enjoyed some steak tacos after Miguel got off work.

Sunday they went with us to church at Denver and Katie's and we celebrated Miguel's and my birthdays in the evening with a tres leches cake and hamburgers! Monday, Tim and Mom went with me to work and helped me work on some sewing machines I'm trying to get up and running. They also helped me water our garden. 

When we arrived at the CVE kitchen in the morning, a couple birds had gotten trapped inside. Before we could get the door open, one of them slammed into the glass and got a little stunned. We opened the door and managed to coax it out. Then it latched onto my shoe. We put it on a window sill outside and a little later another bird showed up. It was cute watching it encourage its friend. Finally, the new bird just pushed his friend off the ledge and they both flew away.

Tuesday, I took the day off and we had a relaxing morning, took a walk, and were home during Miguel's lunch break. In the evening we went to Café Sed during Miguel's Bible study time.

We finally snapped a few pictures!

One thing I'm especially thankful that we got accomplished during our time together was writing some books! Tim and I wrote a short comic together and had a lot of fun. And mom spent a large chunk of time writing her perspective for a book I've been writing.  It's about the two years that my dad was struggling with cancer.

Wednesday and Thursday, Mom and Tim accompanied me to work as well and Thursday evening, Mom and I got to watch the Woman's Outreach Meeting together. Katy Miller talked about spiritual gifts.

Friday morning we were up bright and early and sped back up to Tucson for Mom and Tim's flight that afternoon.

Anyone notice something wrong with this speedometer? 

 Tim and I enjoyed sending this picture to the family chat.

The temp has really gone up around here over the last week and Balto is shedding like crazy. On Saturday I combed out what I could.

We're thankful for spring, for family, for work, for rest. We enjoyed a beautiful Easter weekend. I'm reading through the Psalms and it was special for me that Psalm 22 happened to fall on Good Friday. As I began to read I didn't realize it was a Psalm containing prophecies about Jesus crucifixion. Sometimes it is so special when God touches our lives in little ways like that. As we think about Christ's sacrifice and his victory over sin and death, we have so much to be thankful for!

Also on Friday while in Tucson I decided to take a scenic route back to Nogales which had been promoted to me by Duane Wulf. It was beautiful! It wound up through the hills and there were lots of trees, yellow grass, and cute cowboy towns. I realized that it had been awhile since I had seen something new like that. I enjoyed coming around each bend and seeing more new, beautiful scenery.

Once again, thanks for your support and prayers!

Weddings and Birthdays

 Saturday, March 13th, I was thankful to attend the wedding reception of Francisco and Jaqueline. Francisco is less than a week older than me, grew up at CVE and was my classmate in the fifth grade. He recently gave his life to Christ and is on fire for Jesus! He and his wife have two little boys and made the decision to get married as the Bible teaches. It's been a blessing to reconnect with Francisco and get to know his family. Please pray for him that his first love would stay alive and that he would mature in Christ and as the leader of his family. I'm meeting with Jaqueline every couple weeks for a Bible study. Please pray for her and I as we explore God's plan for redemption.

Miguel enjoys watching videos of a man who purchases and taste tests army rations from different countries and time periods. The other night I had a burst of inspiration and enjoyed coming up with a homemade version of army rations complete with "water purification tablets" (mints!), individually packaged crackers, a can to heat water for coffee, and a heat source (the stainless steel pan thing there. I don't know how it works exactly, but it has a fuel source in a can inside). We then ate the "army rations" for supper!

Since February, one of the CVE girls has been coming to spend every other Tuesday afternoon with me.  We have been having a blast - making suppers, playing games, and goofing around. Here I tried on my wedding dress for her. Miguel wasn't home, so we held his photo for the picture! :|

Miguel found a job working for a local vet. He helps load and unload the feed bags that the vet sells, packages feed, cleans the feed storage shed, runs errands, and is learning to give shots to dogs. He works Monday through Saturday from 8:30-1:30, has a 2 hour lunch break, and then works from 3:30-7:00 PM. This is the old-time Mexican schedule which allows for the afternoon siesta. He is also continuing to study high school which he started pursuing again at the beginning of the year. So he is a very busy man these days!

Some of you may have heard that there has been some more violence between the drug cartels in our area. We're thankful that it appears to have calmed some after a week or so of various shootings, however please continue to pray for our community. Pray for those involved in and/or affected by the gangs and the violence and that we can be a light! Each person is precious to God and he has a plan for each one's life. 

I had a nice birthday last weekend. Welcome 26 years! Thanks to all of you who remembered me and sent messages. I felt very loved. Miguel made me eggs and bacon for breakfast and steak tacos for supper and bought me chocolates! Yum! Yum!

 I also got to eat ice-cream out of a delicious waffle cone at our farewell party for Carlos and Marty Bahler. They arrived in January and we said goodbye to them on Monday. We can't wait until next January when, Lord willing, they come again!

I'm excited that my brother and mom arrive on Friday! Please pray that they have a safe and enjoyable trip. Also, excited to celebrate Miguel's birthday next week. He will be 24 years old!

Thanks for your love and prayers!

Tidbits

 So once again... I have very few photos for a post, but here we are!

Pancakes and salsa making on a Saturday morning while Miguel was hard at work at Denver and Katie Slagel's putting in pavers for outdoor church services.

Decorating T-shirts with my Nurture Group Girls for the past two weeks.

Our first official Sunday night supper in almost a year! Our CVE grandparents, Carlos and Marty Bahler, made the last one in March 2020 and this year they're back again and got permission to do the first one since lockdown! It also happened to be Keith Beyer's birthday!

With Jenna and Adam leaving for their trip to Indiana and then moving in May, they had a "garage sale" of free items and I got this comforter set, just in time to spiff up the guest bedroom for my mom and brother, Tim, who plan to come the end of this month!

We're thankful to be having church services at Denver and Katie's. Please pray for us as we look for options to rent a different building in town. Pray that God would work out what is best for the church!

Today I told Tadeo and the rest of the Leman family goodbye for the next month. Then they'll be back for about six weeks and leave again for good. Please pray for me as I process Tadeo's move. He has been such a big part of my life for the last six years, it's hard for me to imagine life without him. Please pray that I can have my identity firmly rooted in Christ no matter the changes around me.

2016

 

2020

I love you Buddy!

Look for the Rainbow

Enjoyed spotting this rainbow on my drive home from work the other day!

I was just thinking now how there is always a rainbow when there is sunshine and raindrops, but you have to be looking at it from the right direction to see it. It makes me think of our perspectives on things. Sometimes all we see are the dark clouds, sometimes we see the rainbow. But even if we can't see the rainbow, let's remember that it's there. 

We've heard about all the freezing weather just northeast of us, but so far it hasn't hit us. Overall, we've had an unusually mild winter.

I was excited to try my hand at making "Pambazos" last week and soon calculated all the costs for a "Pambazo" stand and how much I could make from 40 or 80 pambazos! It's fun to dream!

"Pambazos"

Cook and shred a pound of pork leg. Take the stems off and clean the seeds out of ten guajillo chili peppers (remember to use gloves!). Boil the chiles. While they boil, dice two tomatoes. Shred some lettuce. After the chiles have boiled about 10-15 minutes, blend them with a clove of garlic, and some water. Heat a few cups of oil in a frying pan. Slice several buns in half. Dip them in the chili mixture and then place them in the oil. Fry on all sides. Transfer to a paper towel and then to a plate. Layer the buns with pork, lettuce, tomato, queso fresco (or other cheese), salsa, and sour cream. Enjoy!

At CVE we finally managed to complete our "unanticipated" fire drill in the kitchen.

The ladies did a great job!

We also butchered pigs and are thankful for a freezer full of sausage, pork leg and loin, and bacon!

On a Friday a couple of weeks ago, Bertha gave me another tortilla lesson. 

I think I'm getting a little better at it! However, I didn't help make the dough and the next week I tried making them at home and they were a flop. I'll have to try again. Tortillas are a work of art!

Bertha made the fresh homemade tortillas into burros.

One Tuesday, we had Marshall Wulf over and he and I played battleship. He won by one shot! See if you can spy the ship that was left standing. 

I gave Miguel a molcajete for Valentine's Day and we enjoyed our first "salsa de molcajete."

Tadeo turned sixteen last week and the USA gave him a wonderful gift, the date for his citizenship appointment! Next month he will be an American citizen and travel with his new family, Adam and Jenna Leman, to Indiana! So proud of my boy!

For the last couple weeks I've been taking Tadeo to see a therapist. I love this saying on her wall!

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day after day."

I look back on the last six years that I have worked with Tadeo and that is what it has been, a long journey, one tiny step at a time. I'll leave you all with the chorus for a song I'm writing...

"And the moments turned to minutes and the minutes turned to hours

And the hours turned to days and years.

And the smiles turn to laughter and the small things turn to big things

that we forever hold dear!"

Also, please pray for our church here. We have been having a service at Denver and Katie Slagel's for the last three weeks and more people have come every Sunday! Praise God! Please pray that we can continue to be a light and that God will speak to each heart what they need to hear.

I am also burdened for several former CVE residents. Please pray that the young adults who grew up at CVE would make good choices and that we would know how to support them!

Rainy January

So for the first 2 weeks or so, January was unusually warm and sunny. I remember stopping to think in unbelief, "It's the middle of winter!" However for the last week it has been raining and raining...nice, long, gentle rains! And it has been chilly...and windy!

The Sonoran desert has two rainy seasons, one in July and August when we get torrential rains in the afternoons a few times a week (hopefully) and then in December and January when we get sprinkles or like this year long gentle rains. I just learned this year from the kitchen ladies that the winter rains are called, "Equipatas."  I looked it up online and it means "little packages." Fun fact: Saguaro cactuses only grow in the Sonoran desert and there is evidence that these winter rains are crucial to their survival!

Alicia turned 18 the beginning of January and I was excited to take her to my house for an afternoon, now that she is allowed to leave campus (DIF COVID restrictions for residents). She is a fellow puzzle lover and helped me make this giant sandwich puzzle.

We've been experiencing some plumbing issues. Water was leaking out of the wall in our bathroom and on the other side of the wall in the kitchen. Thankfully, a nice elderly plumber was able to come and fix the leak and just today he patched up these holes you can see in this picture! We were extra thankful for our 2nd shower, since this one was out of commission for a couple weeks.

I've been enjoying cooking as always. In this video I'm explaining to my grandparents what I'm making: "Quekas," a corn dough empanada with beans inside!

Miguel's mom sent us a cheese wheel with some Christmas travelers and Miguel and I are enjoying it very much! If I understand correctly, this cheese is made with a roll of fresh cheese dipped in chili sauce and dried/aged. It's crumbly and has a stronger taste than the "queso fresco."

Here we enjoyed it with some beans and omelet!

After one of the rains last week, I spied this pretty fog up in the hills.

Saturday, the guys had a bachelor party for Scott Kieser. (Congrats to him and Arika Nuest on their engagement!) And Zoë invited me over for supper and the evening. I got to eat a Thai version of chicken and dumplings soup that included ginger, curry, and turmeric. Yum! And I got to try this homemade Taro ice-cream with boba pearls. Double Yum! 

Then we played several games and concluded with a scrabble rematch. 

Zoë even found our scores from November, so we could compare! (And we used the other side of the sheet!) In November she won, 304 to 216!

Saturday, she one again, but by only 34! I was pleased!

I'll leave you with a few lines of a song I'm attempting to write

"As our fingers form

As our laughter lights

As our pattering feet 

Burst into flight

As the questions come

As the answers fade

As the overwhelm 

of our life invades

He never looks away

He is here to stay

His compassion reigns

Justice will be laid..."

Thanks for your attention, love, and support!

 

Year's End...Year's Beginning

We had a lovely Christmas with the traditional Christmas Eve party at CVE. Lots of games, laughter, delicious pozole, presents, skits, and singing.

Below is a picture of all the ingredients ready for pozole toppings, lettuce, radishes, limes...

The week after Christmas, Marce and I made tamales with the older girls. Neither of us has a lot of experience with making tamales, but they turned out delicious and I gained a bit more confidence that I could do it again! Besides it was a lot of fun!

I've been enjoying the occasionally video chat with Carson, got to see him smile, and just wish I could squeeze those cheeks!

The hobbies I've been dedicating time to recently have been sewing and painting. Sewing because I decided to make some T-shirt quilts, and then decided to use the scraps for napkins, and then decided to use the scraps from that to make dog toys. Balto likes the colorful rope I made for him!

The motivation for pulling my watercolors out was the three clipboards I bought and put on my kitchen wall for decoration. I had three "posters" with Christmas themed words/Bible verses, but after the Christmas season, I decided I wanted to put some fruit up. (Marce's suggestion!)

Here's the result!

Yesterday was January 6th, Día de los Reyes Magos (Day of the Wisemen). The Mexican tradition is to eat a "Rosca de los Reyes." It's this bread (above) that is decorated with dried fruit and has plastic babies hidden in it. The hidden babies are to symbolize baby Jesus being hidden from King Herod.

Whoever gets a baby in their slice has to host a tamale party on February 2nd!

It's a fun tradition. At least now I know how to make tamales!

On a final note, COVID has finally infiltrated CVE after nearly a year of affecting our lives. Although we had a blast at our Christmas Eve party, many soon came down with sore throats and coughs...it's unclear if all of it is COVID or there's a cold and COVID going around, but several people have lost their taste and smell and there's been one positive COVID test, so we know it's here.

Miguel and I both had colds, me right after Christmas (when we thought it was just a cold) and Miguel over New Year's. Thankfully, no one has had severe symptoms and hopefully, we'll all be back to feeling healthy soon!

Please pray for the car washing and detailing business that Miguel is starting! He does a great job and Lord willing, I'm hoping it can flourish and bless us and those he cleans the cars for. After several months of job uncertainty on his part, it's nice to be pursuing something.

Thanks for the prayers and support!