Tico Tuesday, July 12th

Friday night my friend Heather and I capped off the week with pizza and ice cream. We had a wonderful time chatting all about life, our stories and what the future might bring. I'd packed the week superfull and it was all great, but Thursday and Friday were especially wonderful. I was at our 15 de Setiembre Child Care Center with a group of 8 high schoolers that were doing games with some of the children. I got to explain to them about Roblealto and how we work. Their Spanish was quite good, so they didn't really need me to translate. It was wonderful to be at the center though and get to see some of the kids I write about and meet a little girl I wrote about today! She didn't want to participate in musical chairs anymore, so she sat and chatted with me for a little bit. I continue to be amazed by God's work in Roblealto and how the children change and become more sure of themselves. More stories about children on the blog!
I pray God also amazes you with His work this week!
Love,
Carrie

So this little girl that came and sat with me is adorable. Her name is E and her cousins used to be at the 15 de Setiembre but now they are at the Bible Home (and one of them is in the Sparky AWANA club I help with). Unfortunately, her dad is an alcoholic and her parents' relationship is not in very good shape. There was another little boy that didn't really want to participate in a game either. He and his 4 siblings come to our child care center because their dad has to work and their mom is in prison for 20 years. Poor kids! He and his siblings all watch out for each other, but when I read and wrote their entrance reports, it was clear that he and his sister (the younger ones of the family) have been more affected by the absence of their mother. So sad!!
Not all the kids are withdrawn though. Many have a ton of energy and just can't get enough attention. I watched the most extreme, intense of duck, duck, goose ever-with the kids running multiple times around the circle, leaving the circle and running around other parts of the room, cutting through the circle, etc. It was hilarious. At first, the volunteers would only play the traditional way, but before long they started playing the intense way too. It was HILARIOUS!!
One of my other favorite moments was when one of the slightly older age groups came into the cafeteria where we were playing and a girl I'd never seen or met before just came up to me and hugged me and talked with me. It was awesome!
I took some pictures with the camera from work but forgot to save them onto my flash drive, so they'll come later. It's bedtime!