Guatemala: Babies and Buildings

Today was our first day of work in Guatemala.  The girls went to work with the babies and the kids with disabilities.  They LOVED it and were all smiles at the end of the day.  Below each photo is a comment from the girl in the photo (S: V: H:)

S:  This is me and a little baby boy who is soooo adorable.  When we had to go to the Kelly House, I had to put him down and when I did he started to cry.  It was so sad (but so cute).  But when we came back I got to play with him some more.

V:  Jose David is a little boy with Autism. He is full of smiles, giggles and hair pulls. He loves being tickled and swinging at the park. He cannot speak or walk but is a ball of energy. For his therapy, we (Erica and I) took him to the park. To walk there we had to hold his hands and shoulders up. Erica said that he was walking the best she has seen him today. Apparently he was very uncoordinated before and a team prayed for him and he has miraculously improved. He is a wonderful little boy and I hope adoptions can be opened so that he can grow up in a stable family with the proper care for him so he can improve and develop to the extent of his capability.  

S: This is me and 'Smily Baby'  I had an accomplishment today.  I actually found out what Smily Baby's real name is (Antonio).  He's my buddy.

V: This photo pictures, from left to right, Erica, Ulysses and me. Erica is the OT, Ulysses is the patient, and I am helping out for the day. Ulysses is 17. He is in a wheelchair because of a fever he had when he was 9 years old. It is a special type of fever and since he didn't have therapy or medical attention, he has become very debilitated. He is progressing in his leg and arm extension. He can talk, read and has a great sense of humor. He is always trying to learn, he asks us how to say things in English and he repeats them.  I just hope that his condition continues to improve and that he gains independence.   

V:  This precious boy is Henry. Henry is 3 years old! He is tiny, maybe 10 pounds. He was rescued in September and is still as thin as a stick. His eyes shake, he has little control over them, his legs are crossed and he is very malnourished. He is just like any other baby and responds to love, effection and attention. He is a sweetheart!

H:  Today was a really great day.  This photo is of one of the little girls that I spent time with today.  She is so precious.  I had a lot of fun today hanging out at the rescue center and the Kelly House for children with disabilities.  I really liked learning about how to care for these little ones.

S: This baby came in a few weeks ago and even though she looks tiny, she is doing much better.

H:  This baby is Esparanza.  At four months old, she is one of the youngest babies at the rescue center.  She is my favorite of all the babies!!!!  I held this baby A LOT today ;)

Rachel & Andrew comment on Erica, the OT....this young woman is remarkable and just has a heart for God and a heart for these little ones.  She has been to this place 9 times and is volunteering from now until July.  She told us her story this evening and her family's testimonial is truly amazing as her parents overcame severe drug and alcohol addictions by accepting Jesus as their Lord and Savior.

This is Mimi! Mimi has cerebral palsy and is the sweetest girl! She is being strapped in to a device to help put pressure on her legs and stimulate the muscles. She has a great personality and is a bundle of smiles!  She loves bubbles like any other kid.

I worked with the team from Ohio.  They are building 2 houses and today we dug the foundations and poured concrete.  The soil here is NOT like El Salvador!  It was literally like a rock pit (see below).  Very tough work, but this team worked exceptionally well together without complaint & we got the work done.

Found a scorpion while working today....

AJ and his airplane.  In the background you can see a part of the village that the 2 homes we are building will be a part of.  In fact, the build site is directly the the 'right' of this picture across from the park.  The homes are small but they have a shower and a toilet + a porch (which is apparently important in this community).

Each evening the Ohio church group talks about their day.  AJ was mentioned again as providing one young man by the name of Wes inspiration.  AJ was using the shovel to move some sand and Wes was getting tired, but upon seeing AJ working he got motivated to keep going.

Another man, Brian, who is in his mid 50s has hearing aids.  He and H really hit it off this afternoon and just talked and talked.  So, he mentioned this evening that H inspires him with the way she is totally comfortable with her hearing aids and decorates them etc.

There were other incredibly kind comments about our family this evening.  I am so thankful we are here this week with this wonderful group of Godly people.

Other comments:

The devotion this morning focused on Perseverance....when things get tough, keep going.  A good message given the kind of work the house building team did today.

I spent the first half of the morning with AJ playing at the park.  Then as some people started needing breaks they would come over and play with AJ which allowed me to start working on the project.  He napped this afternoon with Rachel (the girls went solo with Erica and did a great job).

Note:  Rachel is in none of the pictures above because she was the photographer in all of them.

One of the founders of this place, Cheryl, talked about growing up in a large family and while they are all supportive of her, none of them have accepted Jesus in their lives.  I was really surprised when she said this as the work that she and her husband have done here is really incredible, and she gives all the credit to Jesus.  She asked for prayers for her family (as did a teenage girl who has a similar story and said she really likes being around this group because none of her family or friends is a believer).