I haven't blogged in a while so I thought I should fill everyone in on my week.

Wednesday went great! I drove to Tegucigalpa with no problem, got to the airport with no problem and was so happy to see Carol come through immigration! We drove home with no problem. My only kink in the story is that I was stopped at a checkpoint twice, once on the way into Teguc and once on the way back home. Although not enjoyable, I didn't feel so stressed about it since I had already had my first the weekend before back in Comayagua. I had thought the stop in Comayagua was so strange, not a regular checkpoint, just out of the ordinary and so random, although now I do not believe it strange or random, but rather orchestrated by God. I was much more relaxed and knew what to do and say when I was stopped at these checkpoints in Teguc.

Carol arrived tired and excited and we were all so excited to have her here! She worked in the Learning Center Thursday and Friday and we were all happy to see the weekend arrive as we were all exhausted from the first week of school!

Saturday I needed to go see Glenda to get my hair colored (you know it is bad when one of the kids asks you "Miss what is that on your head?" and it is your gray hair!)

So while we were there getting my hair colored, Carol got a pedicure. We were both so relaxed we both took some little cat naps during our pampering!


We had our first parent meeting at the school, Friday night, and it seemed to go well. Only one parent wanted to complain, that was good. Although it is hard to have much to complain about after only one week of school. :)

Please continue to pray for the school and our students.

I had one of my 4th graders say to me on Friday that he had not completed his homework because "Miss I had trouble at my house last night"..... I have been aware in the past of his dad being involved in some illegal activities, so I believe the story he told me. It is so hard when you hear kids share about the hard lives they live.

Thank you for your prayers as we help these kids with their education and help to mend their hearts that get broken and discouraged. Please continue to pray for Carol as she adjusts to life in Honduras, and pray for me to be a good guide to help her into this new experience.

Well we have all survived the second day of school. This afternoon all the Learning Center teachers were wiped out....after dismissing the kids we were sitting at the tables barely holding our heads up. Henry was tired he was delirious....yep 2 days down 3 to go then the weekend!

I forgot how hard it is to stand on the cement floor all day walking around, helping the kids. Feet? Do we even have feet anymore? I don't know.

I had my first conversation class today with the 6th graders. We are reading a book then discussing the chapter that I read. I was able to introduce some new vocabulary, we talked about "sayings" and what do they really mean, and some allegories (I learned that word from Josh - thanks son!) in the story. They are a great group. Some of the characters introduced today were Pastor Gentle, Miss Content, Susie Selfwill....so today we discussed these words ...gentle, content, and thinking about self and not others.

I am looking forward to a good year with these guys, and many good books to read and discuss and learn from!

Wednesday morning Carol will be boarding a plane to come to Honduras to teach at the school. We are all excited about her arrival!

Please pray for her to have safe travel here, and that there would be no problems with flying standby.

Also please pray for the drive tomorrow, I will be driving to Teguc to pick her up, I would specifically ask that you pray that I have a safe drive there and return back to Comayagua, and also that I would not get lost in the city. I am praying that I will arrive at the airport and be able to get out of the city again and on the road heading home without any problems.

I went today to fill my car up with gas so I know I wouldn't have any problems....like last year when I was flying back to Texas and every gas station in Comayagua was out of gas, and so were all of our vehicles! So I have a full tank and ready to go!

I just got back from the grocery store and had to write about a new first I just experienced.

I was stopped by the police. There are checkpoints with traffic police at various points along the highway. I always pass through them holding my breath and saying a prayer. They are typically just random stops, unless there is something noticable peculiar about your vehicle. But I am always afraid of the communication required, and there are bribes and other things that I hear of happening. So this afternoon I thought I would run to the store (had I known that 3/4th of Comayagua was going to be at the grocery store today I would have skipped it)....

I went on the road behind my house, and for some reason there were some police parked on the road, and had one truck stopped with several Honduan men sitting on the side of the road. And here comes the policeman into the road in front of me waving me over.

He came to my window and said...something I have know idea what! But I do know that your registration to your car is very important and must be with your vehicle at all times, so I reached into my glove box and pulled it out and gave it to him. He then says in his meanest gruffest voice "licensia, licensia"....he wants my license...so I pull it out and tell him and in the best Spanish I can choke out I tell him "I am sorry, I only know a little Spanish".....He looks at my license and asks "Americano?".... "Si"....

He walks around my car, checking my license plates, then comes back and hands me my documents then tells me to put on my seatbelt....

Oh no!!! That could be a problem - my seat belt only works sometimes. So I am praying please God let my seat belt work, because not wearing your seatbelt is a fine....I pulled on it and sure enough the belt came out long enough to buckle....oh yea!!! I put it on, rolled up my window and proceeded down the road.

It isn't that big of a deal....just one of those things you never know what will happen, and the whole language thing makes dealing with officials scarey to me.

But thankfully I survived... and I now have my first traffic stop over with ..... I am sure it won't be the last I ever have, but hopefully I won't have another for a long time!

Check out our new Learning Center!

Today at the school Patty and I had brought some boxes of Saxxon Math books to Miss Cessia's room. I was opening the boxes and getting the books out for her. I opened one of the boxes and suddenly something jumped out onto my arm....

A MOUSE AAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I didn't realize what it was at first. The quick movement scared me, then I felt the claws on my arm, but it wasn't until I saw him land on the floor did I realize what had jumped on me.

I ran out of her classroom screaming and shaking my arms, it was so disgusting!!!! But after I could calm down it gave us all a good laugh! It was just one of those things it took a while to get over! I'm sure I scared the crud out of him too....

They immediately shut the doors to the classroom and several teachers were trying to trap him so they could kill him but he went under the wall...we never did find him.

But we saw him again, or his cousin, in the Learning Center this afternoon. UGH! I still can't believe he jumped on my arm!

Please pray that all the rodents will leave the school! Annette prayed critters out of her house once when Lance was out of town, so I know He honors those prayers and has control over all creatures! We hate ot think of this happening with kids at the school.

Well here I am sitting in my little house on my couch in my living room on the internet! That is one of those things that you take for granted living in the United States....most people have the internet at their house on their desktop and their laptop, then they hop in their car and can receive emails on their cell phone or blackberry on their way to work, when they arrive at work they go to their desk and flip on their computer and connect once again to the internet....

Well my life has been very different since living in Honduras. Last year I did not have internet at my house, I used the internet at the school, when it was working, or went to an internet cafe. When Annette got the internet at her house last summer I would take my laptop there a couple times a week so I could email pictures and do banking, those types of things I couldn't do at the cafe....I felt spoiled being able to visit with Annette and check my email at the same time.

Well now, thanks to Stacy and Travis, I can do it from the comfort of my couch!

For Christmas Stacy and Travis wrote me a poem...



ODE TO A MISSIONARY ON CHRISTMAS EVE 2008

We wantd to write you a story,
Or sing you a little song,
To tell you about something,
That you'll love all year long.

What we want to give you can't be bought in a store,
It doesn't fit in a box or come in a jar,
It's simply a tool to help the distance
Not seem so far.

So now when you can't sleep,
And you want to update your blog,
Or check on Joshua
Or see a picture of our dog,

In this season of giving,
Don't go to Lance and Annette's ,
Because one thing we're giving you,
Is a whole year of the INTERNET.


It truly is a luxury that will be enjoyed by me beyond words! Just tonight I have already gotten to talk on Skype with Ashlynn and Shawna and Ashlynn was excited to be able to see me on my Webcam (thanks to Shawna & Austin).

I love the mechanic I take my car to! I needed to get my oil changed, and wanted my brakes checked (driving to Teguc next week to pick up Carol - if you have been here you know that brakes are a good thing to have!), my front wheel looked crooked, and then my wonderful driving abilities ripped my fender half way off the front of my car.....

So yesterday morning Henry met me at the mechanic (he is a friend of Henry's and worked on my car a couple times last year and Annette's truck, after I dumped mechanic Omar)....

So he did all these things for me and the fender looks great (I don't know how he did it because the places where the bolts should be had all rusted through...but he did!)...and he only charged me 560 limperas (about $30!)

Can you imagine going to your mechanic in the United States and spending $30? Maybe if you wanted new windshield wipers..but that's about it!

I was so happy with my bill....he always done the work in one day...has good prices and never tells me I don't know what I am talking about because I am a woman!

The school looks so great! We are finishing all the painting...the rooms, and the outside of the building with touch ups on the trim. It is so beautiful! Yesterday we hung the posters in the Learning Center, put the hooks in their desks for their goal cards (we didn't do that at all last year!) and each desk has a red and blue flag. Tomorrow we will get their desks assigned, get all the supervisor progress cards completed and goal check reports completed...It is like all the little details, some of which never got done last year, are getting done, and we are so prepared! It is amazing and exciting!

And Alexis and his men starting working today on putting the playground back together.

This is going to be a great year!

Several prayer requests...

Joe ...the father of our student, Christopher Joseph. Today after school Patty and I went to his house to check on his father. We were not able to see Joe, Christopher Joseph said his dad doesn't like visitors. So we didn't push it, but asked that he tell his dad we are praying for him.

I also learned today that not only is he very ill, while being off work he was fired.

I don't know what this do to this man or the home situation for he and his son. Please be praying about this situation. Joe drinks and smokes excessively, we are praying for his spiritual health as well as physical healing.

We have had some other kids who are unable to enroll at the school due to financial reasons. Today Wilmer's mom came to the school, she said that she is unable to pay for Wilmer and is enrolling him somewhere else. I will miss my Wilmer!

Some of the parents may not see the importance, it isn't just a school, we give so much more to the kids than just reading, writing and math!

There are many who are in this situation. It breaks my heart because some of them I know their situations at home and wonder what will happen to them. There are many that I feel like God has put us over them to watch over them, protect them, pray for them....and now they will not be able to attend.

It costs approximately $100 to $135 per month per student to attend the school. If you could sponsor a child for the school year, or even a portion of the monthly fee each month....and it would be tax deductible....please let me know. This is the final week for kids to enroll for class...but if we can help any out at all it would be great!

PRAISE !!!! Our Paces arrived today! If you remember, last year we had the horrible ordeal of our Paces not arriving, because there was some problems between Honduras and the U.S. and they were holding the shipment of Paces to the warehouse in Tegucigalpa.....and it was the middle of the first partial before we received all our Paces last year.

Not this time!!!! I had the pleasure of counting the Paces in 9 boxes today! We are finishing up getting all the rooms painted and teachers are putting their rooms together. Our score keys are organized (if you have ever seen our score keys you understand why this is a big deal!!), we have new folders for them and have put many in plastic protective covers.

Please be in prayer for our school and our students. And please pray specifically for Joe, for his health and his spiritual health. If you are able to help out by sponsoring any of the kids in any amount, please let me know asap! Thank you!

Please pray for Honduras, for the economy and for wisdom in the government....Here is a news article concerning the closing of businesses because they are unable to pay the increased minimum wage ordered by the government:

15,000 Businesses could be closing because of Minimum Wage Increase

January 19th, 2009 ·

According to the president of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Danli and the head of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Federation (Fedecamaras), Miguel Berrios, over 15,000 thousand companies that can’t pay the minimum wage increase could be closing in Honduras.

Berrios informed that as a small business owner, he is closing one of his businesses since there is no way he can afford to pay the minimum wage, he also believes that over 300 small and medium businesses will close on the eastern area of Honduras.

Berrios also informed, “In all of Honduras, we are talking about an estimated 15 thousand businesses that will close. That is a list we have from the Chamber of Commerce sector nationwide.”

I was working on the Beth Moore - Esther Bible study this morning. I finished week one and then this afternoon listened to the cd for week one. (Thanks Elaine!) I just loved one of the things that she said...

God has a destiny for your life. You cannot amputate your history from your destiny! Your destiny is tied to your history.

WOW!!! I wrote that in big letters in my book. I thought how many times have I thought ....I don't want people to know this about me, or know that I have done this thing....but how many of those things that I wish I hadn't done have helped me get to the place I am today, and made me the person I am today. And how many of those experiences can I help other people out of or help them never get into!

I have done other Beth studies and loved them, but this one is just over the top great! Maybe because I haven't been able to be part of a ladies Bible study for so long or because I am away from home, or maybe just because it is so relevant for today....but I absolutely love this study more than I remember any others before! There is hardly a white spot on the page where I was writing down so many things Beth was saying today as I listened to the CD.

It has been a good week! We've been painting and cleaning and organizing...we now have a fully functional Learning Center! The other classrooms are all getting painted and the outside was being painted in our school colors on Friday. It is all looking so good!

We have had many students coming by to check things out at the new school. They are all amazed when they walk into the Learning Center.

We did get a lot more kids enrolled this week...however we are still under our goal. Please continue to pray that more families will come this week to enroll their children.

Also, please pray for some of our families, who have been unable to enroll their kids due to financial difficulties. Many people here have lost jobs...and to make it worse the government raised the minimum wage, but rather than that helping folks it has hurt, because businesses are having to let people go rather than pay them the minimum salary. It has even effected us at the school.

I have been staying busy...between being at the school during the day, then in the evenings studying Algebra and Biology (have to be prepared to answer those questions so many of us are doing Pace's as teachers - I chose Algebra I and Biology), doing the Esther Bible study, reading the Choose Art Teacher Manual and student manuals to be prepared for my Art/Conversation classes....I don't have time to get bored!

In addition to being in the Learning Center I will teach the Art Class (which doubles as an English Coversation class) to 3rd, 4th and 5th grades and also teach English Conversation class using English Literature Paces to the 6th grade class.

I am excited about the school year! We have one more week before class begins.

I would like to ask you to pray for the father of one of our students. His name is Joe (the father), he is very sick, has been home from work for 3 weeks, and is having difficulty breathing. This man is typically at work from early in the morning until late at night so for him to be home I know it is serious. Angel, works for this family also, and he confirmed what our student had told me and he said he is very very sick. Patty and I are going to go to the house after school on Monday to see if we can help in any way. This man is from the United Statesand works at the Air Force Base. He smokes and drinks a lot. Please pray for him and for Patty and I when we go to the house to check on him Monday.

I forgot to say that my camera was fine! Samson didn't hurt it, it was just my fingers I was seeing in the view screen! Silly dog and sillier me!!!!

I DID IT!!!! I POSTED A VIDEO TO MY BLOG! Now let me explain it!

You see, Samson always wants whatever is in my hand, including my camera! He jumped up and bit my video camera, and I, in my panic, put my fingers in front of the camera lense, thereby making me think that he had really messed up my screen because I was not seeing a clear screen...then in my state of sheer panic, I ran to the refrigerator to protect the camera from any more attacks by Samson.

Watch and Enjoy! tee hee!!!!

The school is really looking great! We have been painting desks, and varnishing desks and moving things to their correct places. The Learning Center is going to be fantastic! It really is coming together! All the teachers have been working hard to get ready for the first day of school! There is still a lot of work to be done, but I am certain we will be ready on the first day!

I had a funny video of Samson, and I thought I would try my hand at uploaded my videos to YouTube and then posting it to my blog. Well I opened my YouTube account, and through my Flip video camera I uploaded it to You Tube...but it just keeps saying that it is "processing, please wait"... but I have been waiting forever! or so it seems! Maybe some day I will get to post some videos here, it could be me or it could just be the speed of Honduran internet.

I will keep you posted this week and will be putting up some pictures of our progress.

Please continue to pray for our enrollment to increase, and for us to have the teachers God has selected for the school!

I wanted to share something with you, something that God spoke to me today, and a way for you to pray for the school.

Last year I spent a lot of time reading in Isaiah. One chapter that I was continually brought back to was Isaiah 35. I didn’t know why, but at times last year God would keep me there for days, reading that chapter over and over.

One day as I was reading from Isaiah 35 God gave me a vision. It is hard to describe, it was just beauty, beyond anything I had ever seen, beauty and colors, bright, brilliant colors. It was just a glimpse of what He could show me. I kept hearing God tell me that Isaiah 35 was for now, for this day, not something in the past, or far off in the future, but in the present, for every day, for now.

(thought jump but it will all come together at the end)

I had a calendar that I used in my 2^nd grade class year. Before I left Honduras in November, I had taken some of the pictures from this calendar and hung them in my house. My walls were bare and I had these beautiful scenery pictures so I thought I would hang some up. There was one that I really liked. It was a picture of a field of bluebonnets. This reminded me of Texas and brought back many sweet memories. At the bottom of the picture it says “The wilderness shall blossom abundantly”.

There was also a scripture reference at the bottom, but I didn’t pay attention to that at the time.

(Now jump to current) On Friday I was hanging up some pictures of family that I had brought back with me. In doing this I had taken down this bluebonnet picture and it was then that I noticed the scripture reference on the picture..Isaiah 35: 1,2

Suddenly I was reminded of this chapter and the vision and how God had kept me there so many weeks last year, and I felt God telling me this is a promise for the school.

We have been praying for kids to come. We have lost some kids who were there last year, and while we have gained some new students, last week our enrollment was still low. There are still 2 more weeks for enrollment, and we are expecting most of the families to come during these weeks, but it has been something that we talked about and prayed about at school last week.

What I felt God saying to me this morning was that, not only will He bring the students, but that there will be life there. Among the children!

We are not to focus on the number of kids, but on life, the life that He brings, on having God’s presence at the school, in all that we do there. Showing God’s love to the children and the families. And in doing these things there will be life in the children. And the children will blossom in the school, in their love for God, for worship, for learning about God and doing well in their studies.