We are here!

Ashley and I flew in yesterday! We had our friends from Casa Bernabe pick us up from the airport and they took us to Pollo Campero. I think it's was really awesome to have dinner with them. With my friend, Sara Drake Salguero, it was as time never passed.

As soon as we got to the orphanage, I don't think I've seen my friends as much because they are so busy! And I suppose Ashley and I have been "busy" too. And we had to get over being overwhelmed by our dorm room. There is a team of girls here. There are about 13 girls in the dorm and we share two showers and two toilets. We are all girls so there's plenty of luggage! Ashley and I got our stuff organized to where it's easily accessible and not taking up so much room. So that helped us get over our OVERWHELMED-ness!

This morning we woke up SUPER early to help at the school house with the special education class. It was sooo FUN! We helped them with the letter L! Luna, Lunes, Limon, Lisa, Luis, etc. The activities were so hands-on and really REALLY fun! I'll admit that I was a bit hesitant, but OMG - I LOVED it! At noon, the kids were free to go home. We told them that we liked it so much we will come back tomorrow - but their vacation starts tomorrow. Classes will resume July 5 and we WILL be there. Until then, we will be doing random things, ie caring for a house full of girls, working in the kitchen, etc.

Casa Bernabe has changed soooooo much! OMG - they have the most amazing garden that is seriously breath-taking! And extremely delicious, I might add. We had a salad straight from the garden today. YUM!

This elevation has me sooooo incredibly thirsty! I've been drinking more water than I have in my entire life!! Not such a bad thing, per se. It's just really hard to breathe and I think the water provides some extra oxygen! I don't think I've ever had any elevation problems before, except the one time I ran to the car at the top of a mountain in Colorado. I nearly passed out then. It's not as bad here, but there is a set of stairs that seems a mile long! My goal is to get to the top of the stairs without losing my breath by next Wednesday.

Anyway, I'm really excited about being here! I can't wait for more!!

THANK YOU!

This trip would not be the same without your support! Thanks to you, I was able to raise sufficient funds to pay for the flight, room & board, and baking supplies that aren't available in Guatemala for the missionaries and the kids they shepherd.

I can hardly believe I'll be there in four short days. I'm really looking forward to my time there and sharing it with you!

Just to let you know, the mission's office at my church requested Ashley and I keep a blog through the church mission's blog. I hope to post the same material on both. If it differs I'll post the link here. And I have NO idea how much internet time we will have. But what I do know is that I WILL POST PICTURES when I return!

T-minus 4 days!

Hi there! I've spent the week tying up lose ends for the trip and I think the ducks are all lined up nicely.

On Thursday, I realized how unprepared I am for this trip. Yes, I have the list of items I'm taking with me. Yes, I have my passport and necessary documentation. Yes, I have every material thing I need to go down there. I've already started packing! But I realized that I'm so unprepared emotionally. I've been so excited about actually going that I haven't stopped to wrap my head around the stories of these kids.

Don't get me wrong...I'm SO incredibly thankful to have all that's listed above. What a blessing!

I got an email from one of my missionary friends and she explained to us a delicate situation they have there. Imagine having to care for a TEN YEAR OLD GIRL who is pregnant and due in one short month? I don't know her story, and I'm honestly frightened to know it.

My dad always said that I'm too much of a softy for this stuff and that he's afraid of my heart being broken. I'm bracing myself because I think I'm well on my way.

While I was in college, I received an anonymous note with this scripture from Luke 12:48 on it: "From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more." I think about this note often and I this is one of the reasons why I want to go. I think that God's given me so MUCH and feel incredibly unworthy. It hit me like a ton of bricks when I read Richard Stearn's The Hole in Our Gospel and even more this week when I got the email from my friend in Guate. What will I do with this time? How will I make a difference? What will I do with what I learned in that time? How will I share it with others?

Please pray for Ashley S. and I while we're down there.

Excitement!

I think it is so neat how the Lord provides exactly what you need when you need it! Thanks to you and the unexpected large tax return, I have enough right now to purchase the airfare. I'm so excited that this is REALLY happening! :o)

Also, I'd really like to recommend a book! It is a "Christian" book, however the message is universal. We are human and we NEED to help others. Even if it's ONE person, we NEED to help.

I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend!!

HOLA AMIGOS!

Hi friends! If you're here it's because

1. You received some mail from me (or you're going to!)
2. A friend told you about this
3. You just happened to be blog surfing.

Well, since you're here I want to tell you that I'm so excited that you stopped by to share my friend Ashley and my journey to Guatemala this summer. We plan on spending three weeks of my summer there volunteering our time to a pretty awesome orphanage.

So, in September 2009, I took a big leap of faith and quit my job to pursue my dream career - Elementary Teacher. The wait of finding a job seemed eternal at times, but it was a GREAT opportunity to think through a lot of things and my life. One of those things would be what I would do with my summers once I landed a full time teaching position. And the answer, without a doubt, is to do short term mission trips to orphanages abroad.

I told my friend Ashley, who one super cool chic I met through church and she jumped on board. She also has summers off and has a heart for orphans. Sooooo - We shall go!

And, as you've guessed, there are TONS of orphanages to choose from but I'm going to start this endeavor by returning to Casa Bernabe, an orphanage that I've visited in the past. I had the opportunity to take several mission trips through my university and I ABSOLUTELY loved it! The people - the kids - that I met have kept a piece of my heart and quite frankly I've been wondering what it would be like to go back.

So the wondering is coming to an end! I'm going! For REAL, not for fake!! Preparations are underway. I'll let you know how we (Ashley and I) progress.

And...If you'd like to be a part of this journey this is how you can be involved.

1. Keep coming back to the blog for updates! :o)
2. Prayer:

• Pray for us as we prepare for this trip.
  
• Pray for the little hearts of the kids that we'll meet.
  
• Pray for our finances. We are both raising $2,000 that will cover travel, room & board, supplies needed for projects .
  
• Pray for our health.
  

3. Financial Support:

I know that ultimately God is the one who provides, but I ask that you would consider giving. It is tax deductible when you give through Houston's First Baptist Church - you give online here. (Make sure to click Guatemala and specify who it's directed to: Mimi Marquez).

Thanks so much for being interested enough to read this WHOLE post! I can't wait to share more!!