El Acto

So, Andrew and Johnny had their play today about the beginning of Argentina's independence. It's a wonderful history about working together with little resources to get to a common goal: freedom.

I also learned from a neighbor that this week is more important to most Argentines than the actual day of independence. 

 

They tried on their gaucho costumes before to make sure

everything borrowed actually fit. 

Johnny was so proud of that dumb horse on a stick. 

I forgot to tell you that the pole taped to the horse head is from our gazebo that literally blew away last summer.  One night the gazebo was in our back yard and the next morning it was completely gone.  Our neighbor brought it back to us in a box.  (We have a lot of stories like this.)

Johnny's quote after his performance: 

"I don't know why, but I just LOVE things like this!" 

He loved running around on his horse and liked when everyone laughed when his hat fell off.

And then there is Andrew's quote: 

"I was pinching myself the whole time because I was so embarrassed. 

I HATE things like that."

I don't think it helped that he had to hold a girl's hand and do a little dance.

The play was about what happened on May 25, 1810 mixed with things from today.  It was fun to watch. 

Bravo chicos.

Weekend Activities

As is custom, our weekend started off with David's soccer games. 

He had a lot of fun and played well.

After spending most of the afternoon cleaning our very dirty house, we went over to Bethany and Roman's house for dinner.  I didn't know they'd have a party planned.  It was so fun. 

They leave on Wednesday for 3 months to the USA to get further training in linguistics.  (They're really smart.) 

We are going to miss them.

 Today we celebrated my cumpleaños with some friends. 

Aren't they cute? 

 Lucia, me, Pato

I really like these ladies.

Marisol, Alan, Chris, Krista, Lucia, Hugo, Pato, y Susana

I felt very loved by many people today.  I even got wished a "feliz cumpleaños" from the pulpit at church. Thank you, friends.  I do have to admit, however, that I really missed my mom today.

And, last but not least, I spent an hour making this

"cabeza de un caballo en un palo". 

May 25 is Argentina's Primer Gobierno Patrio where we celebrate the beginning of Argentina's winning independence from Spain.  We will celebrate Independence day on July 9.

Anyway, Johnny and Andrew have an "acto" at school tomorrow to commemorate.  Both are "gauchcos" (or Argentine cowboys) and Johnny will be riding this homemade horse on a stick.

David is thrilled not to be participating and I'm thrilled to watch!

Have a great week.

Post Op

This is Johnny before the surgery, and yes, those are angry eyes. 

When we got to the hospital at 7:30 this morning, we found Bethany already there. 

Please remember that 7:30 am is very early for anyone who lives in Argentina. 

By the time I took this photo it was about 10:00 and 

Johnny was very hungry and tired. 

Not a good combination... for anyone.

The nurses had to try multiple times to get the IV into his arm. 

He has a huge bruise, but I would like you to know that he watched them poke and prod him and he laughed. 

He watched and he laughed. 

Here he is, with Doggy, after the surgery. 

His first words to me in the recovery room upon waking up were 

"Hi. Can I eat now?"

Unfortunately, the answer was no.  In terms of health care, Argentines are very cautious and prefer to wait 2 hours after surgery before letting a patient eat or drink anything, due to the potential after-affects of anesthesia. 

I heard Johnny say "I'm hungry" about 100 times before begging the nurse to let me at least give him something to drink. 

This was the low part of the day - the hungry, tired, angry child part. 

It did make me thankful that he usually has a full tummy

and that we don't normally worry about food, like so many others in the world do. 

(That's my profound take-away for the day.)

Watching as the IV was removed after being in the hospital for 7.5 hours. 

We played dots and boxes, tic tac toe, read 115 pages of the Children's Bible, played who-am-i?, and then he got to eat jello and pudding, both of which were big treats.

On the way home, Johnny commented on the sounds of the buses that he had yet to hear, listened to me whisper, and didn't stop talking.  The non-stop talking is normal, as is the high-volume voice.  I'm hoping that in the next few days of supposed "down time" he will discover that he doesn't need to talk quite so loud because when we have ears that hear, we can speak in regular inside voices as I remind him of often.

Thank you for all the emails and prayers and support.  We feel loved.

Two Good Men

 We sure miss the Popps!!! 

(I'm pretty sure Norm got some good photos of Trish and me hanging the laundry.)

And as a side note, no pun intended...

Did you know that Bessie got side-swiped on the freeway when Chris was picking Neil Cantrall up from the airport in March?  I will not even begin to bore you with all the details of insurance claims.  We'll see if she gets fixed after it's all said and done.  (We certainly are not going to be paying for her cosmetic surgery.)

Tubos

After 3 attempts in the USA to enable Johnny to hear (read: ear tube surgeries, adenoid removal, tonsillectomy) we're going to try a fourth time in Argentina.  Poor buddy still has fluid in his ears which make it impossible to pass a hearing test.  Imagine learning a new language if everything in your world sounded like you were at the bottom of a pool.  He's a trooper, that Johnny-boy.  He sings all day long, loves his new school and friends, and continues to make us laugh even while making us cringe with his volume. 

Dr. Escalera is going to put in the type of tubes seen on the far left of the drawing above.  They are supposed to last a year instead of 3 - 6 months like the others have. 

We have had so many offers of assistance from friends here and Bethany is going to go with Johnny and me to the clinic to make sure nothing gets lost in translation. If you think about it, you could pray for Dr. Escalera and Johnny on May 17 at 7:30 am Argentina time. 

The Popps

Here is Johnny's Thankfulness Journal drawing for today.

(That would be Trish and Norm Popp.)

We love having Norm and Trish here. They are amazing friends and we have already spent 2 great days with them, talking in Spanish and English, taking photos, making food, drinking coffee, staying up late, hanging laundry, introducing Argentine friends, telling jokes, creating scooter tracks in the back yard, visiting Patio Olmos, playing legos, walking around Parque Sarmiento...

On the floor examining Legos

 

The first leg of the Scooter Track.



The second and final loop of the track
(with names for each element, like "spider trap", "tunnel of doom", and "barrel face")



Some of our favorite Argentine friends: Abi, Roman, Bethany, and Eli.
(This is right before I got bird turded on by a humongous pigeon with a very full bowel.)

Dinnertime jokes, to Chris and Trish's dismay and Norm's and my delight.

Finding a bug in his ice cube (it's a joke on him this time and he played it very well)





 Be sure to ask one of the boys sometime what they think is the funniest thing Norm has said. 

You'll laugh your head off.

Did You Know...?

In keeping with Santa Barbara Community Church's tradition...

Did You Know...

...that if you have a chronic tummy ache for an extended period of time, it could be caused by the quality of water you're drinking? 

These are not salt & pepper shakers. The water filter on the right is clean.
 The other, well, it's dirty with whatever is in the water (after 2 1/2 months of use).

In January, we were at Bethany and Roman's house and David told me his stomach was hurting (for about the 10th time that week - and it was only Tuesday). Johnny and I had been eating Tums like candy and I happened to mention it to Bethany. She asked if we drank the water out of the tap.

"Yes, we do and we have been for the past 5 months." I answered.

Roman interjected, "Oh no. Please, do not drink our water. We don't drink our water. Especially during the summer time, before the rain comes, the water levels get low and the water gets worse." For so many reasons, we are so thankful for these friends. They set up an appointment for us with someone they knew who came over and installed a filter on our tap right away. And our tummies are much better.

Did You Know...

...we have some great new friends named Guillermo and Susy? They have 3 daughters, ages 24, 20, and 16. We enjoyed a delicious asado (with 5 or 6 salads!) with them on Saturday and the boys played soccer with their dog, Camilo.  We were so thankful to be with new friends during a holiday weekend that, until this year, has always been spent with family.  

Chris, Julieta (16), Luchi (20), David (11), Andrew (8), Johnny (6), Meli (24), Guille, Susy



Besides playing with the dog, I think this was a highlight for the boys: Cracking open a homemade, huge chocolate egg. 
It had Rocklets inside (similar to M&Ms) and the boys ate so much I thought they might barf.

Did You Know...

...we visited a pueblo, Despeñaderos, on Easter Sunday with Guillermo, Susy, Meli, and Edu (her fiance)? They have been working in this pueblo for 15 years as a family.  They began with a food program for some hungry kids; then they added kids activities; then they started discipling people, mostly moms who were curious about the people being kind to their kids; and then they began a church. We appreciate the way they are doing integral ministry, serving the people in practical ways (food, activities, nutrition classes, etc.) while sharing the Good News about Jesus. It just makes more sense than starting a church without understanding the people in that particular pueblo. 

David, Andrew, and Johnny-boy have seen a lot of things in their short lives, but when Guille and Susy dropped off a set of siblings who the boys had been playing with for the 2 hours of the adult church service, they sat in stunned silence at the appearance of the "house".  We had a great talk with them on the 30 minute drive home about different kinds of poverty - how someone could have all the things they want, but be poor in their spirit because they don't have Jesus in their heart.  (I loved hearing Johnny say, "Well, He's in my heart because I asked Him there.")   



Snack time - note our 3 boys squatting in the back. 
There were lots of thorns on the ground and their buns couldn't handle the pain. 



Did You Know...

...dogs like to hang out on roofs? We found this guy on our neighbor's roof trying to make friends with Buddy. 

I have to admit that Buddy was less than impressed by this dog's feat and just wanted me to throw the ball.

Did You Know...

...birthday celebrations are very, very important in Argentina? The boys love getting invited and the parties usually include lots of dulces, everything-goes bounce houses, and tons of kids. This party was for one of Johnny's friends and was especially fun because the moms stayed, talked, and shared mate. We all enjoyed ourselves (and Chris got to enjoy some quiet time at home and worked on our taxes - I know he'd have preferred jumping all crazy in the castillo!)

Painting a picture of David & Goliath.

During a little rest from the castillo, basketball was necessary for the bigger boys.

Did You Know...

...that a special comb is needed for the removal of lice?


In case you need one (I hope you don't), here's a site where you can get your own extra suave, irrompible pedi-peine.
http://www.claudegarnie.com/

As a mom, until today, I never had to deal with these foul creatures; luckily Andrew escaped the epidemic of his 2nd grade class in the USA.  Well, Johnny was scratching his head like a street dog with fleas, so I examined his head (literally) and discovered an entire colony of black ickies on his white hair. 

Okay, chau for now.