My Incredible Wife Ruth

Happy Dia de Amor y Amistad! (Day of Love and Friendship, as many people call Valentine's Day in Nicaragua). I'm using this day as an excuse to brag on my wife a little bit, before she gets out of bed. I am so lucky to be married to Ruth, and I can't imagine these last 10 years of our marriage without her! Ruth is caring, demonstrating a loving concern that extends to our often-needy children, family and well beyond. She has her priorities right, valuing relationships and friendships above so much of the silly to-do lists I have in my mind. She loves serving the Lord, and I am so happy we have one another as best friends while we live and serve in Nicaragua. My love for Ruth is unconditional--she certainly doesn't have to earn it by doing anything. That said, I'm pretty proud of all that she does. She is amazing, and I want to give you a glimpse into this amazingness by listing a few of the things she used her time, talents, and energy for this past week:

1) Shopping for our family. No Walmart or Meijer run here. This is NOT a simple task in Nicaragua. She went to 6 stores on Monday to get everything we needed for our week.

2) Cooking for our family and hosting 2.5 dinner gatherings. We used to take turns cooking the States, but here, she does the majority (though I still enjoy helping!). This week, she made 6 pans of chicken enchiladas--some for hosting a dinner with visitng friends Gary and Rosemary Schipper from First CRC, some for a hosting a dinner with our Manuel (our pastor) and Maria Jose and family, and some for a co-worker of mine that is recovering from surgery. I love Ruth's hospitality!

3) Teaching in Spanish. Ruth spent her Wednesday morning teaching a group of 10 expectant moms (and 10 other observers, medical professionals, ect) for 2 hours at AMOS clinic, all in Spanish with no other English speakers around, part of a 8 week course. Last semester, she had only a handful of participants--it has grown so much this year, praise God! It takes so much work and energy to prepare a class in a language we are still learning. Ruth is brave and doesn't let the language barrier affect her work or relationships!

4) Carpooling: She drives groups of kids to and from school all the time!

5) Paying the Bills: Not like the US. You call on the phone, and do it all in Spanish. A horrifying task, and she does it monthly and so well. I would have no clue how to do it!

6) Playing Volleyball: Ruth loves sports (way more than I do!), and I love that Ruth loves sports. For the first time, she played volleyball one night this week with a group of adults (including a former professional player), and she both held her own and had a blast. I'm so glad she can have fun. If you are in a group of people, RUth is someone you want to be around. Funny, sometimes "edgy":), witty, loud (when playing sports!).

7) Valentine's Day Tasks: Of course, it was Ruth who made cute Valentine's with (not for!) all of the kids to share at school. 90,to be exact. I didn't do one. She also baked 50 heart-shaped sugar cookies for my students (of course on the day she made the chicken enchiladas). She is a servant-hearted mom and wife, and I appreciate so much the way she looks to love me through acts of service.

8) Coordinating: Ruth has been busy coordinating with Rehoboth school, CRWM, and a team here in Nicaragua to prepare for a group of 14 coming to learn and serve here over Semana Santa (holy week). She is so good at details and thinking ahead, and keeps our calendar organized.

My list could go on and on, and the moment I publish this, I'll no doubt think of something that should have been on this list. . . thanks for reading about my awesome wife on this day of "love and friendship," and I wish you all a day where you feel blessed by the friends and family God has surrounded you with. Ruth is leaving for the States this Thursday for a week. . .I'm so happy for her to get to be with her family and especially so she can meet new beautiful  baby Isla and help out her sister Muriel. .. but I know that her being gone for 7 days will only make me appreciate Ruth and all she does and all she is even more!

Autumn and Music Class

Autumn


January was a busy month (what month isn't, really?), as we hosted Autumn, a friend from Grand Rapids, for three weeks of service and fun. Autumn is a senior at Calvin College, soon heading to PT school, and before we even moved here asked if she could spend January 2015 here. . .and she did!

Autumn helped sort and pack books to help the transition to the new library at NCA, helped students in Henry's 2nd grade class, shadowed physical therapists at Tesoros de Dios, assisted Ruth with programs and giving shots at House of Hope, and even braved babysitting 19 missionary kids so the parents could go on a fantastic quintuple date!
 

On our "days off," we went to the ocean, a crater lake, a volcano, downtown Managua. . .I think we did a pretty good job wearing Autumn (and ourselves!) out. We're so thankful for her choice to come be a part of our lives for this month and to learn more about Nicaragua. If you are interested in a short term opportunity and want a free place to crash, let us know.


(Thanks, Autumn, for some of these pictures!)

Music Class

For the last year, my role at Tesoros de Dios has been to shadow their special education teachers and assist kids with homework from 3:15-4:15 on Thursday afternoons. I found that some of the kids were already finished with their school work by 3:30, and would spend the last 45-50 minutes of their time at Tesoros waiting with their moms for the bus to take them home. With the blessing of Michelle, the director, I offered to do some "music stuff" with the kids who were finished with their school work. This has now evolved into a dedicated weekly activity for about 12 of the kids. Our "music" class now involves a mixture of music, art, and movement. . .whatever I can come up with that might work with a diverse group of kids and a leader (me) who is still learning Spanish! Favorite activities have included using a parachute to launch things into the sky, finger painting to various styles of music, and laughing at my horrible Spanish singing:)

Church, PreK2 Style

Happy New Year! After blogging for 30 days straight in November, we were more than ready for a little break from the blog. . .and now that little break (which sort of turned into a long break) is over. We're ready to share our lives again with you all (at least every so often). We were so thankful to have my parents and 6 siblings over Christmas break! We had a fantastic time together--the 10 days literally flew by. Now we're getting back into the routine of life and ministry and school and church again.

He have arrived at the 2nd semester in my preschool classroom. The year is half over--hard to believe. A few weeks ago, our Bible story of the week in PreK2 was about the boy Jesus in the Temple, and how much he loved "church"--being in God's house! We decided to "do" church in our classroom. All students volunteered for different jobs--from telling the Bible story (the "sermon"), reading a Bible verse, leading music, collecting offering, or handing out cookies at the end of the service (by far the most important job, according to 4-year olds.) Here are a few pictures from the PreK2 church service.

This past week, we learned about the first disciples, and how we, too, can be followers of Jesus. They made "disciple masks" which, admittedly, are a little creepy. . .but they LOVED using them as we acted out our Bible story.

I am so thankful to have the opportunity in my job at NCA to shepherd young children in their faith walk. Our "worship time" of singing, prayer, and Bible stories each day is 30 minutes that I truly look forward to.  I have no idea what God is doing in the heads and hearts of these kids at this moment in their lives.  . .but I'm thankful to walk alongside of them as they learn and grow in the Word each day.

30 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 30--Sweatshirts and Selva Negra

We just returned from the "polar regions" of Nicaragua, where the constant gusty winds and temperatures in the low 70s felt to Henry "like we were back in the United States at wintertime!" We're in trouble the next time we are in the US for a real winter! Selva Negra is a historical hotel/restaurant in the mountains of Nicaragua about 2.5 hours away; part of the park is in the "cloud forest" and the elevation truly did make for a chilly visit for our heat-accustomed family. It was my first time wearing my sweatshirt since moving to Nicaragua, and I will say that it was pretty gross by the time we got home today as it was rarely taken off (I even slept in it!). We had a wonderful time hiking in the rainforest, eating "local" farm-fresh cuisine, riding horses, playing board games, and enjoying our break from school with family friends.

Ruth and I decided that if we ever renew our vows, this is the place!

We borrowed "Dutch Shuffleboard" from some friends! 

Felt like I was at grandma and grandpa's house!

We basically had to slide down part of the mountain. Carrying Charlotte the entire way!

We took a tour to see where our food was coming from. Ruth ordered vegetarian that night.

And that's it! 30 days, and 30 things we are thankful for! Thank YOU for reading and showing love and interest in our daily adventures as we live and serve in Nicaragua. We truly do thank God for ALL of these gifts we've mentioned this month. . .HE IS TRULY GOOD, regardless of our circumstances and the length of our "thankful list."

And now, we're kind of excited to take a break from blogging:) So, until 2015!

30 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 28 and 29--A Break and Gymnastics

Thanksgiving Break! (Day 28)

Don’t get me wrong: I LOVE my job as preschool teacher at NCA. . .and Henry and Mae both love going to school, too. But we also love breaks from the daily grind of school life! On Wednesday, NCA celebrated Thanksgiving with a program of music, poems, and songs about gratitude, followed by a simple version of a “traditional” thanksgiving meal (chicken instead of turkey, however!). Nicaraguans at our school actually love celebrating this American holiday; probably similar to how we as Americans find the Nicaraguan Fiestas Patrias celebration so intriguing. 

After the show (which the preschoolers rocked, by the way!), it was time for the break to begin! Yesterday we had a fun Thanksgiving Day celebration with our neighborhood, complete with choppy live-streamed Macy’s parade, real roasted turkey and every side you might imagine, sack races and trivia games, a thanksgiving craft, a time of worship and singing (including a neighborhood video that Henry helped put together) . . .it was a full day shared with wonderful neighbors! 

Today we will head to Selva Negra “Ecolodge” near the city of Matagalpa with some friends for two nights. As we’re not sure if they have internet, we’re posting Day 29 today as well. While our short break is very full, I still love having a change of routine and more time together as a family. We have a lot to be thankful for!

Gymnastics (Day 29)

Over the last few months, Henry and Mae have participated in a gymnastics class. They meet at the “German School,” a private school not to far from home. The teacher is a Nicaraguan man, and runs the class is entirely in Spanish, which is a good thing for language learning. They really enjoy the tumbling and cartwheeling and jumping to the point where I feel like it is rare that Henry walks anywhere (including inside our home) without launching into a cartwheel (see beach pictures below). Mae is often outside with our neighbors practicing “their routines.” We are thankful for the random, fun opportunities for our kids to learn and grow.