THE REST OF THE TEAM ARRIVES(YEAH!!!)
Saturday and Sunday were exciting for us with the arrival of Larry, Georgia and Mel. Our missionary friend, Tina, from Guatemala city picked them up and had us all back to her house for a dinner fiesta Saturday night complete with friends from Charlotte who run the ministry we visited last year.
Sunday we had a personal day with our friends. We drove to Antigua where we had authentic food in an open air market and we shopped for hours. Larry and Jose toured the ancient Mayan ruins which they absolutely loved. After a relaxing day, we made the ascent to the mountains for our return to the orphanage. Unfortunately,we stopped at Burger King on the way and Georgia became ill right away with stomach problems from a fish sandwich, and was in bed all day Monday. We prayed like crazy and she is doing better.
Monday, we greeted the day with excitement. Thanks to Mel, we had several crafts to set up and do with the children. They come running when they see us, wondering what fun thing they will do next(this is such a blessing). When finished, Mel brought out the huge bag of lollipops and immediately she was surrounded by niños. Needless to say they loved that!
Love you all.
Saturday and Sunday were exciting for us with the arrival of Larry, Georgia and Mel. Our missionary friend, Tina, from Guatemala city picked them up and had us all back to her house for a dinner fiesta Saturday night complete with friends from Charlotte who run the ministry we visited last year.
Sunday we had a personal day with our friends. We drove to Antigua where we had authentic food in an open air market and we shopped for hours. Larry and Jose toured the ancient Mayan ruins which they absolutely loved. After a relaxing day, we made the ascent to the mountains for our return to the orphanage. Unfortunately,we stopped at Burger King on the way and Georgia became ill right away with stomach problems from a fish sandwich, and was in bed all day Monday. We prayed like crazy and she is doing better.
Monday, we greeted the day with excitement. Thanks to Mel, we had several crafts to set up and do with the children. They come running when they see us, wondering what fun thing they will do next(this is such a blessing). When finished, Mel brought out the huge bag of lollipops and immediately she was surrounded by niños. Needless to say they loved that!
Mel spent alot of time working with the babies and was a little (no I mean alot) frustrated with how they were being cared for. This is definitely something they need help with. They don't have baby wipes and only get a certain amount of diapers per week, so the kids are not changed when needed. They are changed on a schedule to conserve on diapers.
When Georgia was strong enough to get up Monday, she came to see the toddlers. A little girl, who looks alot like her daughter, was crying because a volunteer was checking her head for lice. When she found a live one, she yanked the little girl inside to wash her head with the dreaded medicine. Georgia, in her usual "big hearted" way, intervened. She brought the little girl to our room, and gave her candy and a new pink headband to wear when the shampoo treatment was done. The smile on her face over the plastic headband, took all of the pain away!
At the crack of dawn, Larry was up and ready to work. The new baby building was staring him in the face and he was anxious to get started with construction. The construction is being done by Orphan Resources International, from PA. When the project manager arrived, Larry was able to give him the $3,000 he raised for the completion of the house. The gratitude from the man was overwhelming and there are no words to describe how thankful we were to be part of bringing such a huge blessing to this orphanage. (Again, THANK YOU TO CHARLOTTE AREA SUBCONTRACTORS!!!!) Larry's first order of business was to lay about 2,000 sq feet of tile. With no kneepads he was hurting the whole way, but in his usual fashion, he cranked out a ton of it the first day. One of the oldest boys in the orphange asked right away to be his helper. What incredible work ethics these kids have. The US kids definitely lack in this area and we parents are definitely to blame. You never have to ask a child for anything more than once, and they WANT to help. They make a game out of picking up trash!
When Georgia was strong enough to get up Monday, she came to see the toddlers. A little girl, who looks alot like her daughter, was crying because a volunteer was checking her head for lice. When she found a live one, she yanked the little girl inside to wash her head with the dreaded medicine. Georgia, in her usual "big hearted" way, intervened. She brought the little girl to our room, and gave her candy and a new pink headband to wear when the shampoo treatment was done. The smile on her face over the plastic headband, took all of the pain away!
At the crack of dawn, Larry was up and ready to work. The new baby building was staring him in the face and he was anxious to get started with construction. The construction is being done by Orphan Resources International, from PA. When the project manager arrived, Larry was able to give him the $3,000 he raised for the completion of the house. The gratitude from the man was overwhelming and there are no words to describe how thankful we were to be part of bringing such a huge blessing to this orphanage. (Again, THANK YOU TO CHARLOTTE AREA SUBCONTRACTORS!!!!) Larry's first order of business was to lay about 2,000 sq feet of tile. With no kneepads he was hurting the whole way, but in his usual fashion, he cranked out a ton of it the first day. One of the oldest boys in the orphange asked right away to be his helper. What incredible work ethics these kids have. The US kids definitely lack in this area and we parents are definitely to blame. You never have to ask a child for anything more than once, and they WANT to help. They make a game out of picking up trash!
We closed the day Monday with perhaps one of the most emotional moments of our trip so far. We planned a "pajama party" for the kids to present them with the pajamas we raised from all of our sponsors. We gathered the kids together and the director told them that when they have a need, they pray and ask God for it and he hears. We called each child up to the front and presented them with new Disney pajamas. They were so ecstatic. When we were finished, several of them came up to the front and gave a short speech, thanking us for the pajamas. The real clencher was when Larry's helper, Geraldo, age 11 came to the front and asked to p
lease pray. He told God he was "thankful to have a "family" this week, thankful for the people who sent us here, thankful for the fun times and mostly thankful for the provisions of new pajamas" Georgia started with the tears, then Mel, and then my heart was bursting and we were all humbled. We topped off the night with homemade popcorn and the Bee Movie, with all the kids in their new pajamas. Whew, what a full day. Thank you God!
Well, Tuesday, we are off for the day to ZONE 18 of Guatemala City,(the poorest and most dangerous). We are going with Hope for Guatemala, the ministry our chuch supports, to visit the families in the mountains that we helped last year. We have compiled "blessing boxes" filled with food, fresh fruit, supplies and few fun gifts Georgia collected. We will update you on this adventure tomorrow.
lease pray. He told God he was "thankful to have a "family" this week, thankful for the people who sent us here, thankful for the fun times and mostly thankful for the provisions of new pajamas" Georgia started with the tears, then Mel, and then my heart was bursting and we were all humbled. We topped off the night with homemade popcorn and the Bee Movie, with all the kids in their new pajamas. Whew, what a full day. Thank you God!Well, Tuesday, we are off for the day to ZONE 18 of Guatemala City,(the poorest and most dangerous). We are going with Hope for Guatemala, the ministry our chuch supports, to visit the families in the mountains that we helped last year. We have compiled "blessing boxes" filled with food, fresh fruit, supplies and few fun gifts Georgia collected. We will update you on this adventure tomorrow.
Love you all.
The Ziners
Georgia
Melody
Melody
