Better late than never...

So I finally am getting around to posting my Christmas newsletter! (If you support me financially, it's the same as the hard copy you received.) I hope it gives you some more insight into/overview of my life here! As with all (I think) the pictures I post, click on it to view it larger.

No kids yet...

Unfortunately and due to circumstances outside our control, Kids Alive did not receive any Haitian children this weekend. We are currently looking for non-governmental channels through which to find and care for orphans. As always, you can read all about it at www.kidsalive.org/haiti-relief. Please continue praying for Kids Alive's ministries on the island as well as for all those who are caring for children in Haiti and in the Dominican Republic.

An update and an opportunity.

I apologize for my silence about life since I returned to the island... it's just that so much has happened this past week, and it has been an emotionally difficult week for me.

I arrived in the DR on Monday afternoon to a week of rain. All day, every day, inescapable rain that dampens everyone's spirits. Because of the rain, the river on the way into Caraballo flooded. Normally to get to school we drive a truck or van through the river, but when it is flooded we can't have school. So Tuesday we didn't have our teacher work day, and I thought, "Ok, but I'll get to see the kids tomorrow if the river's down."

Tuesday evening the earthquake hit. It was a scary experience, not necessarily because our apartment building swayed for almost two minutes, but because there was a tsunami watch for the next few hours and we live less than 3 miles from the ocean. There was not a tsunami, we are fine, but everyone's nerves were rattled and hearts were broken for the devastation in Haiti. We work with a largely Haitian population, so I personally know people who have yet to hear from their families in Port-au-Prince or have confirmed that their families died. The situation in Haiti is terrible.

I have felt a little trapped here. Because of the earthquake, we didn't have school the rest of the week. (We did finally go in for a teacher work day yesterday.) When it rains here, there isn't much you can do. There aren't coffee shops, libraries, museums, or movie theaters. So I sat at home for 3 days, feeling a little homesick and bored. I have also felt trapped (as have my fellow missionaries here) in that I live only 6 hours or so from Port-au-Prince, but it is too dangerous and too unorganized for us to go and do anything there. For now, what we can do is pray and send supplies with our Haitian friends who go to search for their families. We're letting governments and large relief organizations work right now, and wait for the day when it is safe and we can be of use in Haiti.

Kids Alive, however, has received permission from the government to bring 50 Haitian orphans to our sites in the DR! We think we will receive 10-15 of the kids in Caraballo sometime this week. I am so excited for this opportunity to more physically help some of the most vulnerable survivors of the earthquake by providing for their immediate needs and giving them a lot of love! (The Kids Alive site in Haiti will also be receiving children.)

Please be praying for wisdom for Kids Alive leadership as we bring the children across the border, find them homes, and continue to raise the money needed to care for them. Pray for strength and encouragement for the relief workers in Haiti. Pray for those who are mourning around the world, as this earthquake has affected many nations.

Thank you for your support and prayers. If you would like to donate to Kids Alive's efforts in Haiti and now in the DR, please go to www.kidsalive.org/haiti-relief.

O Christmas Tree

The rest of us getting and decorating the tree. We got the tree the day after Molly and I got home, and we were FREEZING! In our defense, the wind was whipping across the field, and it was really cold...

Clockwise from the top: Mom, Molly, and me picking a tree; sister love; Katy decorating; Dad and Molly after chopping down the tree; Dad, umm, what is he doing? Striking a pose, I guess!; Mom and Dad hanging their "Our First Christmas 1980" ornament (an annual tradition); next year's Christmas card?; Molly and I; and the family picture.

Zeke the gangster?

Every year, we go to Wata Wata Farms, part of Bob White Acres, to tromp through the field and chop down a Christmas tree! Zeke usually goes too, and this year he went gangster style, sporting my Grandma-knit hat:

Relaxing

After Molly graduated from DTS, she spent a week in Montellano with me. We got to go into Caraballo and walk around, do some shopping at the art co-op there, go to the beach, and hang out with Lauren. We also spent a night at a nearby resort (Molly's Christmas present) complete with air conditioning, pina coladas, and water slides! It's good to take a break from life, relax, and pamper yourself a little every once in a while! We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves!

Christmas party!

Each year the Care Center throws a Christmas party for the kids. They get a fancy lunch, enough to take some of it home to their families. This year we killed one of our giant pigs to eat for lunch... it was all going fine until Jessi found the pig's head sitting in a bowl of pig intestines in the freezer... gross. I still ate it, though, and it was delicious! After lunch, the kids brought their parents back for the presentation: acrostic poem recitations, the Christmas choir, special awards for the 50 kids with perfect attendance, pantomimes/interpretive dances, and a Christmas message. Then we got to give the kids their gifts - candy, fruit, and underwear - and give the parents a piece of cake and a soda. The kids were really excited about the party (they call it "Kids Day") and about their gifts! Here are a few pictures from the event. Clockwise from the top left: the choir backstage, eating lunch, perfect attenders, making the balloon arch, and the "Navidad" acrostic.