Soli Deo Gloria

To God alone be the glory. The past few days have been jam packed with God's provision. Many of you know that back in February Abednego Coffee Roasters sponsored the children's home here that I visit, through their coffee sales at C&C Coffee. I received the money this week to give to the home. Perfect timing. Sunday night we had a bad storm with a lot of rain. The storm damaged the roof at the home, and it was described to me that there was a "lake" in the front bedroom with "Iguazu Falls" coming down the walls. (We heard about the roof problem when a group from our school arrived Monday for their week of community service outreach).

To shorten the story, as it worked out, the money from the coffee sales was enough to pay a friend to fix the roof. He fixed it this morning. Praise the Lord.

Today we had arranged to go to the shoe store with one of the women that works at the hogar. After some dealing on the part of Claudio and Samy, we got a discount on 25 pairs of school shoes for the kids. I felt like the ugly american though, sitting in the shop with a Chilean and 2 Argentines as they worked out the prices of the shoes and knowing that I was the one paying for everything, yet not saying much. They didn't make me feel this way, but I was just very aware of myself.
Either way, the kids have new shoes, thanks to those of you that helped and donated money for this project. They were definitely very excited to have shoes that fit them to wear to school and church.

God is so good and he certainly provides for his children. Thanks for being a tool in the Master Potter's hands with me.

Soli Deo Gloria
kait

Coral Shirts Woke Us Up

The air was cool as we stepped on the train. Everyone around us was staring at us. It must have been our fluorescent coral t-shirts that we were wearing. By the time we got off the train, we were joined by others in matching shirts. The spirit of the moment was growing. As we turned the corner, we were met by masses of bright coral.

Today was the Carrera de las Chicas 5K...a women only 5K run. About 5000 women participated in the run through Palermo, a beautiful barrio in Buenos Aires. I've never run a race like this before, it was a great experience.
The best part is that about 2 months ago I told my roommates that I wanted to run a 5K this semester, the catch was that I don't run. When we started "training" I could barely make it 10 minutes without feeling like my insides were going to come out. Now its become a routine part of my week and I'm happy to say, I can now run more than 10 minutes. =) The stretch between the 3 and 4K markers were the hardest, and I thought I would have to walk a little bit. I was so worth it when I crossed the finish line and kept telling myself "I did it! I DID IT!" I finished in 31:55. (Top 2000 out of 5000!) Next goal...7K?

I also want to thank all of you who purchased coffee during February at C&C Coffee. We raised $220 for the children's home here that I have been visiting. (That's almost 900 pesos). Thanks so much!

-kait

Baseball, S'mores and Apple pie

As I am sitting here in my garden on a cool Monday morning, enjoying the second half of our 4 day weekend, a hummingbird is flitting about from one flower to the next. The music in the air is not coming from my computer or ipod, but rather the many insects and birds in the surrounding trees. How often do I take the time to enjoy this chorus? It definitely sounds like summer, and that makes me smile.
We went camping this weekend...and we had to take a boat to get there. Once we arrived, it didn't feel like an island - it was more like a plot of land. There were no fire rings and people set up their tents wherever they wanted to or could find space. It was a fun time, my favorite part was when we made s'mores on the grill. Becky's mom sent stuff with Becky to make s'mores because you can't get graham crackers here, and Hershey's chocolate is non-existent...marshmallows are a maybe, but they certainly aren't the Jet Puffed ones. We were pretty happy campers once the s'mores came out. Donna had never had one before. A boy (about 9 years old) was standing and watching us intently as we made our delicious treats. We invited him over and showed him how to make a S'more. We think he liked it. I've decided that S'mores are the new trademark of the USA...forget baseball and apple pie... definitely S'mores.
I'm trying to teach my students how to write by showing and not just telling. This is a difficult concept, and well, they aren't getting it yet. I've started reading this book about writing by a man who taught 5th grade and was struggling to teach his students how to write and also enjoy it. David Somoza is very engaging and I'm loving his ideas. His book is called "Writing to Explore Discovering Adventure in the Research Paper, 3-8". I can't wait to start trying them out, but I feel like I need to finish the book first to get the big picture.
Along those lines, I am feeling more comfortable with teaching than I have since I started...I guess since I have 1 year under my belt now (which is really hard for me to believe). I'm now getting antsy to try new things, experiment with different ideas, make learning better. It's hard work, and it definitely takes a lot of brain power to think through and plan the new stuff that I want to try, and at the same time, not changing everything all at once, but slowly introducing new things in a more natural progression.
We read a story the other week about baseball. I taught my students how to play (they said I knew more than the coach in the book...haha!) Then we watched the Sandlot. It was a good week. =)

"You're killin me Smalls!"
-kait

Wind in Patagonia

Part 3 of 3

El Chaltén. My first impression of this windy town was that I wanted to go back to Buenos Aires. All it took was a night of sleep and a long trek to completely change my mind.

Journal excerpt:
"My body is whipped. Today was a beautiful day. Brittny and I did our longest hike today, we were gone for about 8.5 hours! My legs wanted to fall off...they still kinda do. We hiked to Tres Lagos to see the Fitz Roy mountain peak better. The last bit was never ending...steep, switchbacks, up. The view from the top was worth it. The lake was deep blue and the mountains were spectacular."

We continued to have a great time in Chaltén, made friends with our roommates at the hostel and hung out with them in the evenings. We spent the other 2 days in Chaltén on less strenuous but equally beautiful hikes and views. At times it felt like we were walking through Middle Earth or Narnia. Fantastic.

It was sad to say goodbye to our friends on our last day in Chaltén, but after 12 days of traveling and living out of a backpack, it was nice to know that home was almost in sight.

At the airport in Calafate on the way home Brittny forgot to take her pocket knife out of her carry-on bag and they made her go through her bag at security. They only way to keep the knife was to go back and check the carry-on in at the check-in desk. We shuffled some things into my carry-on and then she ran back to check the bag. Thankfully it all worked out and we got all of our bags in Buenos Aires.

God sightings:
He made a way for me to get my debit card back the night before our trip.
He had a space for me on the plane when my reservation had not been finalized.
He blessed us with good roommates in Ushuaia.
He blew us away with his beautiful creation.
He gave us extra leg room for free on our trip to Calafate and Buenos Aires.
He gave us good weather on the glacier (it rained a little when we had finished our tour)
He provided cheaper rates into the parks because we have residency here (we had budgeted the foreigner price).
He gave us beautiful days to hike in El Chaltén.
He gave us opportunities to be real with our roommates and share a bit about our "religion".
He got Brittny's things through at the Calafate airport without much hassle.
When I think on these things I remember that I am loved by my King. Thanks Vera for planting this idea in my mind. .

Thankful.
kait

Zapatos de Muertos (Shoes of Death)

Post 2 of 3...


El Calafate. Brittny and I got exit row seats for our 1 hour flight between Ushuaia and El Calafate. (Extra leg room!)When we arrived and got settled into our room at the new hostel we went for a walk around town. Turns out they have flamingos in this town. I don't think I've ever seen flamingos in real life before - maybe at the zoo? The sky, water and mountains here are brilliant shades of blue in the sunshine.

Day 2 in Calafate: woke up really early...to WALK ON A GLACIER! It was massive and incredible. It reflects the deepest shades of blue. When we got off the boat we heard a thunderous cracking sound and turned to watch a large chunk of the glacier plummet into the icy water. We saw this happen two more times, talk about exciting! =) We had to put on crampons (shoes of death) to walk on the ice, well actually a glacier is just a lot of really compacted snow. We hiked up the side of the glacier and spent an hour and a half walking around with our guide, inspecting cracks filled with frozen water. We saw peaks, valleys, holes, and streams and lots of blue. This trip too was definitely worth it. The massiveness of the glacier was impressive and beautiful - God is a creative God!

Chau
kait

1 more on the way... =)

Vacation Almost Cancelled

As many of you know, I just got back from a twelve day trip though southern Argentina with my roommate Brittny. We visited Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego and El Calafate and El Chaltén in the Argentine Patagonia. My plan is to blog about each of our 3 destinations separately. So here is the start:

The excitement of our journey began the night before we left. Brittny and I went to get money for our trip from the ATM. My card got stuck and wouldn't come out of the machine, then it got sucked inside. The bank was closed and the woman at the desk inside that I could see wouldn't help me. The solution was to come back the next morning when the bank opened to collect the card. My problem: our flight for Ushuaia was leaving at 5 AM. In the end, another woman came and helped me by pleading my case through the glass door to the woman inside saying that I am a foreigner leaving on a trip and I needed my card so I could get money for the trip. Finally she told me I could come back in an hour and a half and they would give it back to me. I was able to get my card but later found out that this just doesn't happen here. Thank you God!

As it turns out, God was watching out for us because when we got to the airport at 2 AM they did not have my flight reservation. WORST feeling EVER! I had to call my dad to look up some things for me (thanks Dad!). As it turned out, my card had never gone through and I didn't realize it. The ticket sales counter opened at 4 AM and by 4:15 I had my ticket for real and at 5 AM we were on the plane and setting off for Ushuaia. Nothing like last minute flight reservations. Never want to do that again. Thanks Britt for keeping me going through that super stressful hour!

Ushuaia is magnificent. I loved the beautiful mountain peaks with patches of snow. The clouds too had character. Ushuaia is a port city at the most southern tip of Argentina in the area called, Tierra del Fuego. One day Brittny and I went to the National Park and hiked to the boarder between Chile and Argentina, stepped foot in Chile, ate lunch and returned to our hostel.

! The next day we woke up early to go visit the penguins. This tour was AMAZING! We had to take a bus and a boat to get there, but when we arrived on Martillo Island, we were greeted by hundreds of penguins on the beach. We walked through the island with our guide and learned about the penguins there. We saw where they nest, and the baby penguins and penguins swimming close to shore. I would not have traded this experience for anything


The rest of our time in this quaint little town where it is always winter was very enjoyable. If anyone finds themselves there and needs a hostel recommendation, the people at Freestyle were great!

Stay posted for our glacier and hiking adventures!
kait

The TOMS Way...shoes for everyone

In a matter of 24 hours I went from a very hot summer to a very cold winter. The Argentine summer is turning me into a winter wimp! The past month at school flew by, but not without its share of challenges. The proverb to "train up a child in the way he should go so that when he is old he will not depart from it" - well that has been filling my thoughts as of late. It is a difficult task to train up children. I find myself wanting to see immediate results in my students but then realizing that life is a process and just because we learn about something this week doesn't mean that it will take effect tomorrow. I have to remember my own life and how it is a journey and it builds upon itself. What my students are learning now I pray will sink into their hearts as they continue to search for God and follow His ways. My job is only to lay some of the brick - I may never see the end result - until we are all in heaven. However, right now it gets discouraging when there are little steps taken backwards when you had seen progress being made. Mad props to all you parents out there - I have a new appreciation for everything you do!

I'm also very excited to report that through the fund-raising of all the students at my school we were able to purchase brand new flip flops for all the children at La Puerta del Cielo Children's Home! The owner of the shop were we bought the sandals even gave us a special deal on them! It was very exciting for Donna, Claudio and I to go and give each child their own pair of flip flops. They were excited to receive them. And not only that, but we were able to get the materials to put up a net-like shade to provide some respite from the intense sun in the back play area and also to keep their balls in the yard. Every time we go to play within 5 minutes the balls we bring have gone over the wall usually never to be seen again. God is so good in his provision and allowing us to be able to help in this way. I am so excited to be able to be His hands and feet. Friends of ours are putting up the shade while I'm here in the States - I can't wait to go back and see the finished product! Our next project for the kids is to purchase brand new shoes for when they start school in mid-February. The shoes they have right now have holes or don't properly fit their feet. We are hoping to be able to buy shoes for each child that fits their feet. If anyone is interested in helping us with this, send me a message and I can let you know how. Some of you have already given money for the shoes and I am extremely grateful. THANK YOU!

Well, tomorrow is Christmas - I can't believe it! A year ago I was anticipating an email from my current boss with information on coming to Argentina. Now I have an entire year under my belt and I'm loving my current place in life. God is so good! I can't wait to see family tomorrow that I haven't seen in quite some time because of traveling.

Peace to you from the God of all Peace. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Feliz Navidad
kait