Tico Tuesday, January 28th

It's that time of year again when sunsets are phenomenal! It is so nice to have it be dry season! I've spotted a couple great sunrises too on my early morning runs. I loved the rays of light that were so well-defined in this sunset. It was gorgeous!

One thing I often pray for is that God's love would flow freely through me and that other people would be able to see his light in and through me. I'm not sure how often this actually happens, but I think there was definitely something going on this past Friday. 5 new children (4 of them being siblings) had just arrived the day before to the Jardin house (and I get to be like an aunt there again! Yaay!). One of the 4 siblings needs a lot of special attention and he is handing his transition process by being very aggressive. Our director asked me to stay by his side all morning while the kids all participated in an activity led by a youth group from a local church. Sometimes he participated in the activity, sometimes he was wreaking havoc, and sometimes he decided he just wanted to do something else. In the past, I would have tried to force him to join the activity since that's what all the kids were supposed to be doing. But, I've learned I can't force anyone to do anything. And if he wasn't making any trouble, why not just let him be and try to engage with him and get to know him better? It was hard. He tried my patience. He got mad at me. But, I know that God gave me grace and sooooo much patience! Those of you who know me relatively well know that I am NOT a patient person. That is usually one of the last words I would use to describe myself. I'm impulsive. I like to be right. I like to be in control. But, even after kicking me and trying to hit me with a stick, at the end of the day, this boy was hugging me, calling me "mami,"and wanting to go home with me. That didn't keep him from blowing a raspberry in my face on Sunday but...one day at a time. I thank God that I'm not who I was a year ago and that he has helped me learn to work with the children better. I know I still have a very long ways to go, but I think at least a little bit of God's light was able to make it through the other day, and for that I give him thanks and praise!
Please continue to pray for the children as they adjust, and especially for this boy and his siblings. And pray for the house moms and staff as well!
May God's light shine brightly in each of us this week!
Carrie

Tico Tuesday, January 21st

They're Back!!!!
My kiddos are back at the Bible Home!!! :-) Thanks be to God! I was so happy to hug them yesterday, I'll confess I didn't even think to take any pictures. And I'm ok with that. So here's a picture (from Independence Day last year) of two of my loves who are still sticking around the HB.

When I went to their house to say hi, the screen door was locked shut, and the boy was pressing close on the door and telling his new house mom to open the door as quickly as possible as she fumbled for the key. It's so good to know that I am loved and have love expressed so clearly to me. (For those of you familiar with the 5 love languages, physical touch is definitely my top one. I would be happy to be hugged and held in someone's arms forever!)
Last week, I think I was sinking a little emotionally. I don't know if I wasn't getting enough hugs, if I was missing the kids, if I was missing my friend Jessica who still hadn't come back to the country yet, if it was the "man ache" for a husband, something else, or if it was some wild combo of the above. I gotta say, I really do get lonely here sometimes. It's the straight out truth. Building community is just hard. And I'm just starting to come to terms with this. That's a post for another day though. I'm grateful for all that God is doing in and around me and for the things that are finally starting to click now that I've been here almost 5 years! And I really am thrilled to have the kids back, and for reasons beyond my own selfish ones!
Thank you for your continued prayers for new personnel and for the new children coming in. We had several join us today! And please continue to pray for me as I seek to build and develop better friendships/community here, especially with ticos.
May God surround you with his love this week!
Carrie

Tico Tuesday, January 14th

Welcome back to Tico Tuesday!
With Christmas Eve, New Year's Eve (a day I traveled), and last Tuesday as another travel day for me, Tico Tuesday has had almost a full month break! I won't try to make up for lost time here though. After a wonderful visit with my parents for Christmas, I headed to St. Louis to visit my brother and his family. I had a great time with them: playing games, going to the children's museum, enjoying use of a real fireplace, going to their church for glorious "high church" worship (if you don't know what that is, it's ok. Just know I really like the rich way they worship there!), reading in the warmth of the afternoon sun, eating my sister-in-law's wonderful food, talking with her and my brother, and I even enjoyed playing in the snow with the 4 oldest of my brother and sister-in-law's 5 children! (The picture here is of the Gateway Arch, if you were wondering). We got two snowfalls and had a day when the highest temperature was about 3F.

While I was very happy to come back to the wonderful warm, humid tropics (my skin is still recovering from the dryness!), I got quite a knot in my throat on the plane when I thought about how long it might be until I get to see my niece and nephews again. The kids come back to the Bible Home this coming Sunday, and I'm looking forward to seeing them again, but they have their own special place in my heart and definitely can't replace my brother and sister-in-law's children. Another cool part of my trip was getting to see Kiki, a fellow missionary here. Her family lives less than 3 miles away from my brother! We had a hilarious evening together.
Now I'm back in Costa Rica, gearing up for the new semester, and this week, I have training and meetings in preparation for the year ahead of us. Thank you for your continued prayers for the personnel needs we have and for the new children who will be joining us in the next couple weeks!
And just a reminder: the Latin America Mission is now fully united with the United World Mission! I thank God for what he is doing and going to do through this new powerful, more efficient joined organization. If you have any questions about this or are unsure where to direct your gifts, please let me know!
Thank you!
Carrie