OLE!

Yesterday, we attended our first (and probably our last) bullfight. We saw 5 rounds of fights- the first matador fought from his horse, but the rest fought on foot. Some of the horses were blindfolded and protected with mattresses to keep the bulls from injuring them. During the last fight, the matador was knocked down twice by the bull. We thought for sure that he would be either crushed or torn apart, but to our amazement he got up both times and continued to fight the bull. It was definitely a cultural experience but we witnessed more bloodshed than we ever care to see again. We only put the G rated pictures here. The fun part was dressing up in hats and eating good food. Next time maybe we'll check out a less violent sport such as futbol!

Introducing.....Pavo!

We are doggy parents!!! We rescued this dog on Thanksgiving night on our walk home. We've been seeing and feeding this little guy on the street for a couple weeks and decided she needed to come home with us. Most of you know that Amy is not a dog person, but it was her idea. We named her Pavo (which is Spanish for Turkey) because we found her on Turkey Day. We have no idea what kind of dog she is, but we think she is about 2 months old. She is soo cute! Now we just have to figure out how to potty train her and get rid of her fleas! :(

Happy Turkey Day!

We hope y'all had a great Thanksgiving. Even though Thanksgiving is not celebrated in Ecuador, we had a huge feast at Steve and Micki's with 30 other people. Our night was filled with lots of food, laughter, and TWISTER! We are so thankful for all of you- your support means so much to us!

A few of my favorite things......

1. The View

2. Being greeted with kisses and hugs by 170 kids each day

3. A woman at the soup kitchen naming her daughter Amy, after me. The poor girl was 2 months old and didn't have a name yet!

4. The kids, always the kids

5. Picking lemons in the yard for fresh lemonade

6. Our friends Gloria, who cleans our house once a week. She can outclean anyone I know (even you, dad :) ) and makes the best rice around (which is no easy feat because of the high altitude)

7. A dozen roses for $1.00

Girls just wanna have fun!

We had out first girls sleepover at our house this weekend. We hosted (9) 12 year old girls from the soup kitchen and had a blast! Unlike the boys, they were extremely helpful, wanting to help cook and clean up. They had a lot of fun playing bingo (of course), painting toenails, eating lots of hot dogs and pancakes, taking 2 rounds of hot showers in less than 12 hours, and staying up late giggling! Go Girls!

Boys night out....

This Friday, we organized a sleepover for the boys of the soup kitchen. We invited 21 boys (ages 9-11) to spend the night at Steve and Micki's house and all of them came. For many of them, it was their first sleepover. We met them at the soup kitchen in the afternoon and proceeded (in the pouring rain) to catch a bus to the center of town, then squeeze 23 of us into 3 taxis! We wish we had our camera with us because it was possibly one of the craziest things we've ever done. Thankfully, no one was lost or run over! Our original intent was to camp in the back yard, but because of the weather we had to revise our plans and stay indoors. We played many many games of bingo-the kids here are no match for any senior citizen gathering! We watched a few movies, played some soccer, ate lots of candy, and got little sleep. We escorted them home the next day and spent the the day cleaning (do you know how many dishes 21 kids can produce?). Some of the simple pleasures we take for granted they were delighted in (toothpaste and toothbrushes, showering in hot water, having their own bed). Although many of them are so used to sleeping with their siblings, they happily double and triple bunked! They were soo cute (and smelly) and we had so much fun! We hope to do a similar event for girls soon! Enjoy the pics!

The Daily Grind...

Here are some photos that tell about some of our daily tasks. In the mornings before we go to the soup kitchen, Greg and I have been helping with some administrative aspects of the ministry. We've been organizing files, updating databases, translating letters from kids to their U.S. sponsors, and searching the Internet for grants. We put in some pics of dinners because frankly, we spend a lot of time eating and enjoying the company of others. We have spent many evenings in the dark without power playing games or reading with our head lamps on. Rainstorms in the afternoon or evening are frequent here, leaving us without power for hours at a time. Thankfully, our stoves are gas powered, so we are not without food!