Day 10, 11, & 12.... Oh how time flies!

I am pretty much in SHOCK when I tell you that I have almost been here for two weeks! The second week has moved much faster than the first and it seems to just get busier and busier or something! So, I'll try to give a quick recap of what has been going on since last time I updated.

To finish day 10.... I got to see the C-section on Friday with a couple of people and it was pretty much the most amazing thing ever! When the nurse was getting the baby all cleaned up, I got to help roll up the sheet he was in so she could lie him down on clean sheets. The parents were so cute! The dad was a little hesitant about picking up his little boy, but we thought it was likely because he wanted to wait until the mom could be a part of it. It was a beautiful thing to see a new life come into the world!! One of the best things I have ever seen in my life, for certain.

As for the rest of Friday, we played Wallyball in the evening, which is Volleyball on a racquetball court. I'm terrible, of course, but it's a lot of fun. When we played, they quickly explained the rules and the one time I led my team to victory (or so I thought) it was shattered by the existence of the ceiling. They failed to mention that if you hit the ceiling as it goes over, you lose the point. Anyway, we had a lot of fun playing and there's a whole new dimension when you have to figure out where it's going as it ricochets off the wall!

We were trying to go to this steakhouse but they had limited room so we ended up walking 7 or 8 blocks to another one. Several of us (who had been in Bolivia more than 4 days) got the salad bar, because you can't really eat raw veggies here. But in nice restaurants, it's ok because they actually prepare it properly. That was fun and then we headed back home with so many people that a couple had to ride on the roof! Yeah, probably not too safe but he drove slowly and it was for a very short amount of time until we could drop some people off. Got home and I think we went to bed. Wow I hardly remember now.

Day 11/Saturday:
Got up and to the market. I did lots of shopping! I got several gifts for family and supporters and I'm nearly done with that. I got a beautiful blanket for about the equivalent of $3 and an oil painting on this black velvet that I was just in love with! We had lunch at "Tuesday"which is like Ruby Tuesday's and I had about the best quesadilla I have ever eaten in my life.

After lunch, which was a pretty late lunch, we went and did Kid Washing in downtown Cochabamba at the Plaza. This was one of the favorite things to do of almost everyone. They had been doing this for 10 years. The have this tent where they would wash the kids. Then, I guess they gave them new clothes. Then they came outside and we combed the girls' hair out and gave them little barrettes and clips to put in their hair. They do this every week and the people there said that God always provides people and the items they need to make it happen. It's crazy to think how big of a deal it is to give kids a bath who normally don't get to have them.

We did that for about 2 hours and then walked to this pizza place to order pizza. We got two huge pizzas that were called the "interminable" size pizza. With all 16 or 18 or however many of us there are now, we still couldn't finish it! I have pictures because I'm pretty sure the diameter of the box was about 1 meter. We had to open both of the front doors just to get them in the house! It was probably the most American meal we have had yet.

Day 11/Sunday:
Got up and went to church. Tomás was preaching and he spoke from Ephesians 1:1. He used just the one verse and really got deep down into it. I enjoyed listening and I am getting more and more out of each conversation/message in Spanish, the more I get practice doing it.

After church we went to lunch and then came back to play soccer & basketball with some of the kids from the youth group. A few of us sat in the shade on my blanket and were cheerleaders for the teams. It was nice and relaxing. Then we went to youth group, where Tomás and Iris are leaders. First we played a bunch of relay games and it was a lot of fun! Then we had some songs and a message by Raul, who had preached last Sunday. He is very passionate about missions and
has a really great heart.

When we got home last night, we had dinner and began discussing the CDI stuff. The CDI has been having some problems, and some of the members of its leadership have quit recently. The lady left in charge didn't feel like she had the ability to decide whether or not we would be able to have us come this week and do the education and physical exams that our group did last week at a CDI in a different location. We prayed about it on Saturday night and when Iris talked to the lady from the CDI on Sunday afternoon, the news was not good. We would not be able to come and we didn't have any place to go for this week, as a result. Iris got some phone numbers for a few other places and managed to arrange somewhere for us to go for today. Then today, she was going to try to make plans for the rest of the week.

All of your prayers for the CDI location and the church that is related to it, as well as all leadership involved would be greatly appreciated. We know that God is having us do other things that may open other doors, but that organization definitely needs prayer to help keep it together. These organizations are providing help with kids' homework, good meals, etc. and so if it falls apart, it will be devastating to the families involved.

Day 12/ Today:

As for today, we went to a home for deaf and mute kids/people. Some of them weren't kids, we realized when we got there. There were about 15-20 and many of them have had colds recently. We told them that we were only students and they just wanted to make sure that there wasn't anything more serious. So we checked them out, each in stations. The girls did vitals and reflexes, then Johan did a history, I did ears, nose, mouth, throat & neck, and James did heart & lungs.

I had one particularly peculiar finding. I looked in this one guy's ear, and I saw something black, like a bug. Turns out he had this little beetle inside of his ear canal. With a little bit of saltwater, a syringe, and a broken tongue depressor, I managed to extract the little guy out of his ear. So that was quite an adventure!

We took longer than expected so we didn't end up going to another place today and will be there tomorrow. It is for girls who are victims of violence, so it will be very sensitive.

Please pray that the rest of this week comes together as we seek other opportunities to minister. Please pray for Iris who has been so wonderfully arranging this. Thanks for your prayers for me as well! Adios!