at the end of the day, at the end of the week, at the end of the year, there are a lot of things i could be. this time, though, i choose to be thankful.

for her laugh as we sing her favorite song for the thousandth time.

for having the chance to trust adults again.

for a passionate and caring teacher.

for new rooms.

for brand new wheelchairs and a happy boy.

for women with beautiful hearts.

for willing helpers.

for brothers that get along.

for luz and estella, who met us at church after working a 12 hour shift with the kids.

for such good role models for my boys.

for heart stealers, even if it makes it impossible to say bye.










for retirees who still have lots of love to give.










for progress that's been made.

and for the chance i've had and still have to be part of it!

wooo hooo today was crazy busy! i took pily, ruben, and josue for a walk in the morning, where we stopped at the store for some juice and then went to visit the friendly neighborhood horse. everyone has one around here. i had visions of pily's fingers getting bitten off as she fed it some leaves, so that didn't last very long.

later josue and i went to calimax to buy some dessert! the kids love me, i promise, even though i give them bananas for dessert.



alex, jose, and tonio came to the apartment afterschool. they saw the dirty dishes piled up in the sink (oops) and begged, like literally - hands clasped together, pleading with me - to wash them. i was like well, i mean, i'm not really sure....okay! anything that makes them happy! and if it makes me happy too, well, that's just perfect.

i had dinner with dan and ivey tonight - love them! they have great hearts and are so passionate about what they do at the ranch. after that i met up with rocio and briana! this is the happiest baby i have EVER seen. she was all smiles and laughs and is crawling! at 8 months! rocio is such a good mom and is doing really well. she's still in beauty school - her mom takes care of briana in the morning while she's at school. it was soooo good to see them.

a new addition was being put on to the kitchen while i was still here, and one of the two rooms was finished by the time i left. now the second room is finished, which means the old baby room is now empty. this equals a play room, no wheelchairs allowed! i brought pily in with a couple of other kids...she was standing in front of me, so i asked her to smile as i took a picture. she immediately drops to all fours, sticks her leg up in the air, and looks at me expectantly, waiting for the picture to be taken. i was laughing so hard i could barely take the picture!

we spent at least 2 hours on the trampoline today...so good for these kids and their abundant energy.

tonio is has such a beautiful heart and loves, loves, loves to hold babies.

we played outside all afternoon...it was beautiful! we've been having lots of fun. i brought most of the kids from the big house outside this afternoon since i kind of felt like i was neglecting them....the talkers and walkers tend to dominate my attention. eek.
it makes me really sad, though, for some of these kids who need a consistency that just isn't here right now. there are so many good things happening, there really are. school, for one, and a teacher who cares about her students is nothing short of a miracle in this country, where kids with disabilities don't get to go to school. but some of the kids, especially josue, really need someone to be here all the time. people have made significant progress with josue to the point where he's been able to control his behavior and responds well to adults. every time his mom takes him home for the weekend, though, it's like we take 3 steps back. he comes back and is a nightmare. he seeks attention in the worst ways, doesn't listen to anyone, is so up and down with his emotions at the drop of a hat, and is just miserable. it's so hard for him and it comes out in such an ugly way. it breaks my heart to think about what happens when he's home and what a struggle that would be for anyone to jump between lives, let alone an 8 year old with major disabilities who is basically non verbal but doesn't get that no one understands him.
i just want to fix it. i know i can't and i know there are more effective things i can do...but he needs help. pray for him.

always a good sign - empty wheelchairs and a happy marcos. i hosted the social event of the year - floor time with hilary - up at the big house this morning. hehe. my spanish is coming back quickly but not instantly, and humor is hardest for me to translate. you'll have to deal with it coming out in the blog, you english speakers :)

then i brought kiddos down to my apartment to spoil their dinner and make a mess. i had to get a picture of alex with his face COVERED in chocolate. from hot chocolate, mind you. love this kid.

skyping with adele/my parents! they loved that.

who knew how happy someone could be with lemonade in a coffee mug.

saddest part of the day...i went to rocio's to see her and the baby. i turn the corner by her house and it's destroyed. all that's left are four walls. broken windows, piles of wood in the front yard, and absolutely nothing inside. the wrough iron fence was even gone. i was really, really scared for a minute, but then i asked her neighbor if he knew where she was. he said something about an earthquake and them living 'over there.' super helpful, so that was great. i talked to her dad though and she and i are going to try to get together tomorrow. i seriously don't know what i did before a cell phone. neither of us have one and it is a paaaaain.
some good came out of it when i stopped at my favorite tamale stand on the way home...tuinki wasn't there but i did have a strawberry tamale for the first time. very interesting. i'll stick to my green chicken and corn i think.

i don't know how i did this for a year. i'm pooped. can't even keep my eyes open.

well...i'm back! it's kind of surreal. actually a lot. everything has changed, but at the same time nothing has changed, if that makes sense. saw krista last night (yay!) and made it to church in ensenada this morning. it was so awesome walking in and seeing everyone...friends, parents of friends, people that are like family...josue, cande's son, was there for the first time since this summer, and his son is 5 months old! when josue's hair was long, these two were identical.

a bunch of people went to cande's house for lunch. i guess you could call it a fish fry, since he fried fish, as you can see. he also sang a song about lifting his hands as he splashed oil on the fin which made it slowly go up to a 90 degree angle...
so good to see them!

walking up to gabriel house was weird...i was like sick to my stomach! it was probably just the anticipation, although i guess it could have been the fish hahaha. i came around the corner and teddy, marcos, josue, ruben, and pily started yelling my name, which is just about the best homecoming ever. the rest of the night was chaos as usual. new rooms are finished, there's a new boy, lots of new staff, new ideas, new progress that some of the kids have made...you get the idea.

my baby! i spent an entire year trying to get a picture with jamie where he's a - looking and the camera and b - smiling. i never came close, and then this is the first picture i take! i walked up to him and he goes 'ama!' - his way of saying mama. love him.

nene helped feed jamie at dinner. obviously it was a group effort with roles to be played by all :)

i'm exhausted and overwhelmed. off to bed for a full day tomorrow!