Day After...

So after staying out until 10:00 (wow... so late I know!) I started to feel a cold coming on... so as it is the day after my b-day outing I don't feel so well... Today I just helped out in the donation room picking out gifts for some of the kid's birthdays and sorting toys. However, I had a lot of fun eating pizza and drinking pop in town last night with most of the Allan kids and some of their Ecuadorian friends... so the conversation was at times a little hard to follow, but the night was very enjoyable.

BIRHDAY!!!

So for starters you probably already know that it's my birthday today! Well, I never imagined to have quite the birthday... I never imagined washing poop out of diapers on my birthday. I never imagined getting milk spit up all over me on my birthday. And I never imagined that'd I'd be in Ecuador on my birthday! At least yesterday one of the boys that is probably around 5 told me that I looked like Cinderella! Un nino me dijo que parezco a Cinderella! How nice! I went for a walk during my free time and bought myself a Gatorade and some ice cream (kind of like a a dilly bar from DQ) I really felt like I splurged... a whole $1.80! I think we are going out tonight for fun... apparently Glenda only found out it was my birthday because she saw it on facebook!

Yesterday, I played basketball with a few girls. During dinner they asked me practically ever English word they ever wanted to know! One of the girls whose name is Tanya (11 years old) I've become to know more... we decided to teach each other Spanish/English... we'll see how our plan goes!

Pray for energy and strength because every night I am extremely tired and want naps all the time! I especially find it hard working with babies for 6 hours because I am not at all formiliar with them... changing their clothes and diapers, feeding them, burping them, etc. I feel more confident of having a kid now, but am not sure because they are so much work! Anyways, cuidate.

First Day of Work

So today was my first day of work. I startd at 7:00 and worked with the toddlers... they are so cute, but a lot of work! Let's just say that I changed a lot of clothes from kids going pee or poo in their pants. I also bathed them, played a little, helped with breakfast and lunch, helped put them down for a nap and some other stuff. I think I'm working with the babies tomorrow... which by the way is my birthday! I doubt I'll be doing anything special, but I think my amazing time in LA will make up for that! Anyways, I'm thinking of taking some sort of spanish class if I continue to finish work at 1:30... however, I have no idea what I'll be doing to be honest. Dios te bendiga.

Safe Arrival in Ecuador

Hola a todos! Hi everyone! I have made it safely into Riobamba and haven't really felt any major side effects from the altitude. I have my own room, which is really quite big and very nice. However, I wish their was another volunteer here so I wouldn't be alone! Quiero que otra voluntaria venga para ser mi companera de cuarto. The temperature has been pretty nice so far, but you always have to wear pants and a sweater. Tomorrow I start my first day of "work" since today I mostly just played with kids and slept. The kids are so adorable and they are so fun to play with. I made it into town, which reminds me a lot of Guatemala... they have a lot of sweet stores so I hope to be able to go again since the bus is only 20 cents! However, knowing me, I'll probably get lost if I'm not careful! Los quiero mucho a ustedes y los extrano. Later.

Arrived in Los Angeles!

So I just arrived here in Los Angeles and am presently at my friend Emily's place. It has been a long day, but I am excited to be able to finally see something Disney related (downtown Disney) and to be able to go to the beach and just hang out.

It's nice and warm down here and I love the palm trees! Also, I will be leaving Monday for Quito, Ecuador and then I will have a couple hour drive to Riobamba.

Leaving Canada, Entering Ecuador

I just wanted to let you guys know that I’ll be leaving from Kelowna on Friday, September 25th. Me voy para Ecuador el 25 de septiembre. I’ll be visiting a good friend in LA for a couple days and then arriving in Quito, Ecuador on Monday the 28th. I’ll be picked up at the airport by the Allan’s (missionaries from Kelowna that run the orphanage) who will give me a ride to Riobamba where the Ark Children’s Home is located.

Riobamba is about the size of Kelowna (125,000 people) and high up in the mountains (9,000 ft). Therefore, even though Ecuador is on the equator the temperature is usually only between 5°C and 20°C. La cuidad está en las montañas y hace mucho frío allí.

I bought a one-way ticket and have a 2 year missionary visa so I will be staying in Ecuador until God calls me back to Canada (or I run out of money!) Volveré a Canadá cuando Dios me lo diga (¡o no tenga más dinero!) While in Ecuador I hope to improve my Spanish, but more importantly to serve the poor and love the unwanted. I also want to learn from the Allan’s how a ministry like theirs operates.

Thanks to everyone that has been praying for me and has helped me financially. I really appreciate it. Gracias a todos que han orado por mi y me han dado dinero.

The Ark Children's Home - Riobamba and Sucúa, Ecuador

God, is that really you? Did you just speak to me or was it just my own thoughts and desires? If you want me to believe it was you, you have to give me a verse. I flipped open my Bible and it landed on Ezekiel 17. I asked God what verse to read and I heard "the one you wouldn't usually pick." Immediately I realized that I was to read the first verse because for some reason I always think God has to speak to me in the middle of the chapter. So I looked at it and knew God had spoken to me because Ezekiel 17:1 reads "The word of the Lord came to me." Wow. Could God be more obvious?

So what did God say to me? I felt he said to go to Ecuador for a year and help out at the Ark Children's Home there. First of all, I want to improve my Spanish and be able to communicate better. More importantly, however, I want to show people God’s love and tell them about Jesus. I want to go out into the community and talk with the youth about God. I also want to serve the poor. I want to love the hurting, the rejected, the unwanted, the troubled, and the lonely.

It just turns out that the town where the orphanage is located is called Sucúa... just spelled slightly different than the city I want to return to in the Dominican, which is called Sosúa!

I was also listening to this new CD I ordered called "Gente Común, Sueños Extraordinarios" by Tercer Cielo and there was a song named "Latinoamérica". In the song it talks about how he has a dream about what Latin America looks like. It's interesting because for Ecuador he says "y al igual que Ecuador, no habían niños huérfanos" which means there wasn't any orphan children!