April Showers...

 April showers bring....well, around here, it's not May flowers, but lots of other things!

 Some good, some we would have been more than happy to do without!
 The good....seniors, sunrise services and surprise visitors.
 The not so good... a nasty stomach bug, strife, and 'skeeters.
 And the mundane stuff that really makes up most of our life down here...sewing, Sunday School teaching and serving hot lunch.
 I'll let the pictures do the explaining....

                 Another kite day...tis the season! It really is! This time of year is actually called 'Kite
                 Season.' On Good Friday our church went to St. David's point to fly kites. This day
                 is not quite as hectic as the school kite day, thanks to a better adult/child ratio.

                                 Some of us are just as happy to sit and watch the others fly kites

                                            And some are just as happy to sit in the truck with
                                            their noses buried in a book instead of flying kites!

                                                             Celina, Ramona and Hannah

             Easter Sunrise Service...what an amazing sunrise! (No filter) 

      Definitely worth getting up at 4:30 for! We were all (or at least I was) a little groggy since the
      Faith Mennonite High School seniors came the previous evening. They got back to our place at
      10:30 and till we had a snack and got them settled, it didn't leave a whole lot of night left.

               What a beautiful morning to be reminded of Christ's sacrifice for us! We had a sunrise
               service at Fort Juedy and then headed back to the church for Sunday School and brunch.

The seniors that stayed with us in LaBorie

L-R : Clark Stoltzfus, Adrian Beiler, Mark Metzler, Matt Esh, Kendall Mast & Anthony King

Front row: Kathryn Stoltzfus, Kelsey Beiler, Karina Yoder,

 Rachelle Groff, Alyssa Beiler & Alice Kauffman

               The cook center was at our place. We really enjoyed it, but it's always good to get
             back to normal life again after having 45 people here for almost every meal for a week.

The daily routine went something like this...breakfast at 7, devotions after breakfast and then those helping with VBS headed out around 8:30. VBS went till around 11, then it was back again for lunch before they headed out on either a service project, swimming or sight seeing. Evenings were always filled with something or another and before we knew it the week was over! It was a full but fun week.

                                     Meeting outside the court in LaBorie for VBS before
                                      heading down to the gym for singing before classes.

                 This was Chris's job...going around and picking up kids that came from a distance.

                                            Singing in the gym before heading to classes

                                    Singing in the gym before heading to classes. The volume
                             isn't real good on here because I was on the other side of the gym

                                            Sara got her little ducks all in a row:) So cute!

            I'm sure Rachelle was a favorite to all the kids with her job as games and snack overseer:)

                                    Thanks to the teaching of Bible stories, many seeds were planted
                                     this week in impressionable young minds such as this one.

Kendall drilled the simple truths of God's Word into young minds through enthusiastic singing and Scripture memorization

                     Kathryn brought the Word to life through the dramatic telling of Bible stories

                            A young girl enjoys a light-hearted moment at Vacation Bible School
 

                                         At this station Anthony taught lesson reinforcement

                        Carter and friends having fun coloring a picture at the arts and crafts station

           Some of the older classes were held at the school. Chris was a guide for the 10 year olds.
           Each group had a guide to deal with any behavior issues and also to help them to get to
           each station in time. There were five different stations and they spend 18 minutes at each one.

             I'm surprised Matt Esh still had his voice left after singing so loudly for almost 2 hours!

      Galen Beiler did a great job keeping the attention of the young men and ladies in the youth class.
  Clark Stoltzfus also helped teach the youth class and did a wonderful job connecting with the youth.

      One of the things I enjoy most on the mission field is meeting new people! They come as
     strangers and leave as friends. These were the cooks for Laborie. L-R: Carl & Judith Kauffman       (Kauffman's Fruit Farm) and Galen & Marcy Beiler. He is a pastor at Life Church in Lancaster.
Both of these ladies are nurses and it was nice to have their expertise with all the sickness going around! Marcy pulled more than one night shift!

The staff made a Grenadian meal for the staff and seniors at both Limes and Laborie. Menu: Cabbage salad, rotis and bars.

Along with the fun, were also some challenges...one of them a nasty stomach bug! "Cheers to charcoal-laced grape juice!" It was the first time I tried activated charcoal to try to keep ahead of sickness. Thankfully the one cook, who also wears the nurse hat, had some along. Trust me,
we were desperate to try anything after seeing how the sick ones suffered! No fun! For three
 nights in a row, one or another of our children were throwing up. It hit a lot of the seniors as well.

                             They might be pretending now, but tomorrow it could be for real!:)

                                            Rachelle Groff and Kaylah...we got to know Rachelle when
                                            we were youth leaders so it was good to see her again!

                                                      Karina and Christi.....and a photo bomber:)

                                      This week there were three sets of boy/girl twins in LaBorie.
                               Adrian & Alyssa Beiler, Collin & Christi High and Josh & Becky Fox

            Just a fun evening hanging out with the group. They really were an amazing bunch!
        We really enjoyed getting to know them. The sad thing is, it takes till the end of the week
      till you feel like you're really getting to know them and then so soon you're saying goodbye.

 

                                                  Hanging out on our last evening together

For whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions....
....the first division that caused some strife was the separation of the boys from the girls/boys club. Now that there are more boys in LaBorie, the thought took hold in their young minds that they have enough of their own gender to form their own club. King pin of the girl's club did not relish the idea of losing her self-appointed position of power too well. Breathing mutterings and threats, she tried her utmost best to make them aware of all the disadvantages of forming their own band, along with daily reminders of all they would be forfeiting by choosing to be disloyal to her club. She grudgingly accepted the impending division after I explained all the fun things they could do even if they have separate clubs. Like tin can telephones from one club to the next, exclusive business deals, top secret notes being carried back and forth over dangerous turf by prestigious message bearers.....
All was going well and the dust was slowly settling over the newly formed club...until....one day....one day....
  ....there was strife within the boys' club....
 It was the last evening together before the Faith students left. The boys were playing in their club and the rest of us were all sitting around chatting and singing and having a good old time, when, in the midst of all the gaiety,  I heard a quivery little voice behind me.
 "Mom!" the voice said in hushed urgency. All my maternal instincts kicked into high alert mode and I turned around expecting to see a stream of blood or, at the very least, some serious harm that had befallen my youngest born.
 Seeing all organs, limbs and body fluids were in their rightful places, I breathed a sigh of relief and proceeded with the standard questioning, "What's wrong?"
 "The boys are farting in the club and it's against the rules!"
Noting his distressed face, and the moonlight illuminating big tears clinging to his lashes, I was quite certain my ears were failing me.
 "What did you say, Carter?" I asked, puzzled. 
He glanced furtively around to make sure no one else was listening, leans towards my ear and repeated the offense,
 "The boys! They are farting in the club! They just sit there and fart and it's against the rules!"
  Now convinced I had heard right the first time, but still not grasping the magnitude of his distress, I probed farther.
 "What for boys and what for rules?" I wondered.
 In a quivering voice, wrought with discouragement and defeat, he explained how he had made a list of club rules, posted them on the wall, and now the boys were blatantly disregarding them! Oh the pain! Oh the agony! The nerve of these boys to disobey the one in authority. He was, after all, the 2nd in command, he later informed me, because he thought of the clubhouse first, but Collin actually said something first. That put Collin first and Carter second. I'm still not sure how he came to the conclusion that he thought of it first. 
 Never mind the fact, the whole clubhouse is outside and by definition outside means stepping past two tires that compose a doorway.
 After trying (and failing, I might add) to contain my laughter, I explained how when it comes to an organization, it's a really good idea to get everyone's opinion on what the rules should be instead of usurping his position of authority and posting rules without anyone else's input. 
The last I heard was there is a club meeting planned to see if T, C & C are still eligible for club membership after sitting there and nonchalantly cutting the cheese, completely disregarding Rule #2 and Rule #3 in the Club Constitution and By-laws necessary for Club membership.

 Maybe I should add that this band of boys get along splendidly, for the most part. It didn't help that it was late at night and Carter was overtired.
 I found it rather ironic this list of rules was posted in a boy's club! Maybe a girl's, but a boy's clubhouse???

Club Constitution and By-Laws

                                                

 

                Having meals at our house for a week gave them plenty of time to play together!

                                                                     Here's your sign....

              As any organization knows, it takes funds to get it up and going! The business
              entrepreneur came out in the boys and they began fashioning bows by the dozens.
        Unfortunately archery hunting is nonexistent down here and business has been quite bleak.

                                                  Big bows, small bows....we got them all!

                        I'm not sure where the boys got the idea to diffuse oils, but that's exactly what
                        they did by pinning a bottle of peppermint oil to the fan. The scent was truly over-
                        powering. It didn't help that they spilled ' alittle' too. Their room reeked for days!

                                              A peaceful evening scene by the lagoon

                                                                    Morning Beauty

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                                               When what to my wondering eye did appear,

                                               But two friends from afar that I hold dear.

                                               From the bus they jumped, with a gleeful shout,

                                              While I just stared in shock and tried not to pass out!

                                              The shock was so great it put me in daze,

                                              The next few days passed swiftly in a haze,

                                              By the time it sank in and we had some fun,

                                              They were boarding the plane and then they were gone.

                        Elaine Hurst and Rosie Brubaker paid me a surprise visit this month!
                        Rumor has it that I feed unsuspecting visitors chicken feet, so they
                        decided to play it safe and bring their own supply. Gummy ones, that is.

              We helped Yvonne Martin serve hot lunch at school since this is her first month doing it.
             This week was hotdogs, which is about as simple and easy as it gets. Lay a bunch of bread
             on the table, give it a squirt of ketchup and mustard, plop a hotdog on it, and lunch is served!

                           An adorable little girl and her grandmother, or maybe great grandmother.
                We went to the Coconut visiting one morning. Unfortunately there were not many
                 people around that morning, but we did find some ladies that loved to chat. The
                one has such a great sense of humor and is always making a joke about something!

    It's fun to show the 'new' missionaries around. It's hard to believe Scott and Yvonne were only
     here for alittle over two months. They fit in so well that it seems like they've been here forever:)

      
         This is the lady that loves a good joke!...if you can understand her...she talks really fast!

Rosie helping Christi with her Bible Memory. Our children had 

3 moms this week, 1 bossy one and two that spoiled them!

                                            As dusk softly falls over Grenada, twinkling lights
                                        start to appear,creating a rosy glow over the countryside.

Having a professional photographer living with us for almost a week, was a too good of an opportunity to pass up for family pictures. We quickly threw together some clothes for an impromptu photo session. She did a great job! Check out her website and schedule your session today!:) https://studioanddesign.wordpress.com

Kaylah Nicole 13 yrs.

                                                                Collin James 10 yrs.

Christi Brooke 10 yrs.

                                                                   Carter Ryan 8 yrs.
               This boy...today I overheard him telling his sister, after she wanted warm up
               his piece of pizza...(Grenadians don't mind eating their food room temperature)
               "I don't need it warmed up!! Don't you know I'm Grenadian?? Can't you see
                my skin color??" (He might have a tan but he's not quite that dark yet!)

                              Fishing boats take a breather after spending an exhausting night at sea
                                             (Some pics I stole from Elaine's camera card)
                       

          Fishermen prepare to take a net out in hopes of dragging it in laden with lots of colorful fish

                                  Amanda and Natalie's (school teachers) brothers came to visit their
                                  sisters for a week. Chris kept them busy with different work projects.

I always knew Kaylah was a book worm but didn't think she would

 take it as far as stringing up a magazine to read while showering!

                                                          A muddle around a puddle

Prayer requests:

Terre Hill seniors are arriving Wednesday, April 29. We covet your prayers for safety. 

Pray that we can relax, have fun and reach out to those around us.

The search for teachers has not been real successful so far. Pray that need could be filled.

Pray that we could focus on the work here....sometimes it feels like home here, but then there 

are other times where there is such an intense longing to see family and friends from home again.

We miss them so much!