Merry Christmas to all! 


I am currently guarding the babies and the house, accompanied by a shotgun (Mom, don't freak out!), while Josh is taking the older kids to town to watch the midnight fireworks. 


We celebrated "fake Christmas", as the kids called it, with presents and such on the 14th of December (about 8 hours after we got home) before Dave and Deborah left the next day to visit their families in the States. So Josh and I are holding down the fort and trying to keep the Christmas spirit alive even though we kinda celebrated already. The kids are seriously enjoying staying up late, movies, popcorn, lots of Wii time, and just a general party atmosphere, mixed in with a few chores of course. Ha. 

Happy 13th Birthday, Jeamy!

And Jhostin wins the Saturday morning lottery pancake with a fabulous [random] guess!

Playing Wii with the Angelito, Vidalia, and Isai. This is not my forte. 

:) 

Lettuce salad snacks! No complaints here. 

Warm and sunny days here! 

Today we slept in as long as the babies/toddlers would allow us! We had a lazy breakfast, a lazy lunch, and a cross cultural Christmas eve supper(s) of tamales (thanks to Jose and his wife and family!) and pizza! 

Tomorrow, which is almost here, will probably consist of more sleeping in and relaxation! And possibly Skype calls with family! Fun! 


I would be lying to pretend we're not homesick at all, but in the same breath I am so privileged to be here and help make Christmas special for these children. To help give them their very own Christmas traditions; to help give them family. Words don't quite describe how special family truly is, and far, far too often we callously forget that. I could probably rant awhile about what family means to me and what I think family should look like and such, but since it's Christmas Eve...I'll spare you. :) 


Do you think Jesus was homesick during His time on Earth? 
That was random, I know. 


My prayer this Christmas is that my heart's focus would be Jesus. That in all my ways, He would be glorified. I get so busy that I forget. I think about the next meal and who needs to go to the potty next and how to refocus the toddlers away from the tree and how to make everyone sit quietly to watch a nice family movie and I just lose it. I get grinch-like. And I don't like grinches. 
I want Jesus to be everything. Every moment, every day. 
Not just at Christmas. 
But I'm thankful that the chaos and commotion of a house with 21 people, two cats, and a Christmas tree helps to nicely strip away my "perfect Christmas" ideals and reveals my desperate need for Jesus. 




We wish you all a blessed, Jesus-in-everything Christmas this year! 
And every day, for that matter. 

Goodnight. 
P.S. While the photos were uploading, the troops have returned from the fireworks! The big house can be spooky when one is all alone. 

Stateside

Today is the day. The last day. 
Before we go home. 
Leave home-home to go home. 


If that doesn't make sense, let me know. 
It makes perfect sense in my brain. 


It's been just lovely being here. Wonderful, fantastic, awesome, and all those other out of control adjectives. But mostly, its been plain good. Like the good-that-hurts-my-heart kind of good. 


It's been good to relax and spend lots of time with our families. We are blessed. 
It's been good to be in church and hear the Gospel in our language, surrounded by people who love us, support us, and challenge us. We are super blessed, really. 


I'm sad to leave here. Goodbyes don't get easier, in my opinion. 
But I'm really, really excited to see the kiddos. I MISS them. 


I'm thankful that we are returning feeling refreshed, recharged, restored. I'm thankful for family, church and friends here who challenge, love, pray us through. We could not make it without you. I told Josh that I feel incredibly sad for people who come home from foreign missions and don't have the support and love that we have. Super, super blessed. 


People have asked us "So are you going to be lifetime missionaries?"
 "Where are you going to missionary next?" 
The answers are "yes" and "wherever we live". 
I am learning this: I am called to be a missionary for the rest of my life, wherever I live. 
If you are a believer, the calling is for you too. 
Maybe God won't call you to Guatemala or any other foreign place, but central Pennsylvania has a whole lot of needs too. A whole lot of people need Jesus here too. 
Look around. Ask God to show you a need. Be willing. And obey. 


And being a missionary doesn't mean a person has it all together. 
Cause people call me a missionary and you know, I'm not even close to having life together. Moving to Guatemala did not magically move me beyond materialism or move me to a higher plain of prayer and devotional life. 
I get angry. 
I say mean words. 
I think horrid thoughts. 
I am selfish. proud. arrogant. ignorant. 


But I thank God for Jesus Christ! 
I know God is refining me, us in our time in Guatemala. It's hard and it's not all its cracked up to be. [Being a missionary, that is] Or all I imagined it to be. 
I want to live all about Jesus, all about HIS Gospel. And right now, I'm called to Guatemala. 


So I'm excited to fly south tomorrow, to continue the refining process, to learn better how to live everyday for Jesus, for His Gospel, giving His love to those around me. 


Feel free to ask me in about three weeks or so if I'm living what I say. Cause I'll need to hear it. Lots. 


And so ends my random collection of thoughts on my mind. There is plenty floating around in my brain, but this is all for now. 


Thank you to each one who made our trip home so special and relaxing and good. 
We love you! 


p.s. There is entirely too much food in this country. really. 

It's Time

We're still alive.
Growing, stretching, transforming. God is good.

Ever feel on the brink of exciting heart and soul change? It's a swelling, popping, straining to be free feeling. The anticipation is exhilarating.
But I have to jump.
And jumping, well, I'm not the best at that.
And it's a wee bit scary, to be honest.
But I'm learning.
To JUMP and thank God for whatever comes.
So here's to exciting discoveries and living in gratitude and seeing God, knowing joy.

Here is a sure way to entertain the babies. Soon I'm going to have to stop saying "the babies" and start saying "the toddlers." Ack.

Happy 14th Birthday, Lucia! 

Food shopping! We were trying to stock up for Thanksgiving. Three full carts and LOTS of stares.

Happy 11th Birthday, Saul! 

 Trampoline with Josh. Adults have to play too. 

Beach trip October 4-6. That's Gabriel and Rosa. Gabriel was here with us for 3 weeks after an incident with an abusive stepfather. His mom kicked the stepfather out so the courts deemed her stable enough to have him back. Pray that he will remember what he learned about Jesus in his short time here. 

 Beautiful view along the Pacific Coast. 

We've found at least 3 snakes around here lately. Entirely too many. 

Here is Mynor. He's still refusing to be potty trained but gets very upset when his diaper is not clean. 

Go figure. 

 And here is little Karina, who sadly, is no longer at the home with us. We were not expecting her to be taken at her audience, but an aunt wanted to have her. We were all sad that she left and often the kids say "I wonder what Karina is doing!" We pray that her aunt will be good to her and most of all, that she will know Jesus someday.

 The weather here now is perfect campfire weather.

 Josh loves to make fires and the kids love to play outside with Mr. Josh. 

In other news, elections are finally over here. Otto Perez Molina was elected. He is an ex-general that apparently has some ties to the last dictatorship and the civil war that lasted a very long time. His election is a little disturbing because he sounds like a perfect candidate for another dictator. We don't know what his views on children and adoption are, but we are praying that the adoption laws would change and these kids could have their own families! 

Josh and I are anticipating a visit home next week! We fly home Tuesday, November 15 and will be there for a month. We're very excited to see our families and friends and be with our church again! BUT...here's the catch, we don't have our passports. Our paperwork to set up temporary residency has just been chaotic. Our current lawyer is hoping to submit paperwork on Thursday or Friday. She only needs our original passports to submit the papers and then we can have them back! We have to pay a fine before we leave the country because our paperwork has been delayed, but we don't know what the fine is. Go figure that too. So yea, we're praying lots about this. Please feel free to join us. 

The sun is starting to shine through the windows. It's time to get moving and start the day. Have a blessed and happy day, everyone! And to some of you....SEE YOU SOON!  

Un-Inspiration.

Thanks for reading. Or starting to read this post.
Tonight, I feel very un-inspired to write. But I will. Its 9:30 and Maria has just finished her last test for this school year. (School runs from January-October here.)

Excuse me. Cheese and crackers are calling my name. Don't judge.

I'm not the only one. Josh is enjoying his Coke and Swiss cheese. (Sent ALLL the way from Pennsylvania.) Thank you, familia.

And he's having great fun sharpening knives.

The bread is rising in the oven. I shall stick it in to bake just soon. I'm not sure what possessed me to bake bread at such a late hour. (Mom, be proud.)

Dave and Deborah are getting steak and other yummies ready for tomorrow. We're having company!

Jen (3 month volunteer from PA) is hanging out in the kitchen too. The kitchen is the place to be tonight. She is an awesome help around the house and she even took one of my cooking days!! (Awesomeness!)

The kids were busy painting tonight. This is Saul's gift to us.  If I tried hard enough, I could probably rotate the picture but I'm just done for the day.

Today, Honda broke her leg. We're all really sad and praying for a good recovery for her.

And today, we ate the last of the Sour Patch gummies. I felt almost sad, but thats quite ridiculous.

My un-inspiring train of thought has come to an end. I'll try to post again soon. We're going on a family vacation to the beach this coming week! Only one of the kids has been to the ocean and most of them have a really hard time with the concept of such huge amounts of water. And one said "What are waves?" So this will be fun and exciting for all of us!

The end.

P.S. Once again, its almost 24 hours later and I'm just now posting this.

Hello once again from Santiago Atitlan! 

Time is flying. Do I say that every time I post? Ha. Its been a busy and stressful and fun month! 

We celebrated lots of birthdays since the last time I posted--Dave, Rosa, Maria, Jacob, and today-our volunteer Jen from Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We love birthdays and the yummy cakes that come along with birthday parties! 

The first day of August, Dave and Deborah's expected baby arrived! Felicity Grace was born here in the local hospital without any complications. She is doing well and growing and Deborah is feeling good also. She's quite tiny after hauling around the bigger baby boys. 

The middle of August we flew to a hospital in the city with Jacob, who was diagnosed with RSV and interstitial pneumonia and whole milk allergies. Thank you for your prayers; we know that God touched Jacob then and healed him and we continue to pray that he will be healed completely. We spent two days in a hospital room trying to keep a very active one year old from ripping out his IV site and falling out of bed, etc. I never imagined I would sleep on a hospital floor or let a small child play on the floor but sometimes..... We just prayed "Lord, kill them all (the germs, that is)." :) 

And as you can see, Jacob is now back to his happy self.

The rest of the babies are surviving and thriving. They are patiently waiting for baths here. I think babies in diapers are the cutest thing. :) 

Davey got into my pudding the other day. If you come visit us, remember to never let anything sitting out. Someone or something will be sure to find it. :) 

We were so blessed to have Josh's parents and brother come to visit us for ten days from August 25-September 4. It was absolutely fabulous to have family here and to reconnect with them and show them our world. 

We had a new boy brought to the home this month. Apparently, he ran away from a neighboring town. The story isn't totally clear so he is staying with us temporarily until a court hearing later this month. We expect he will go back to his family and suspect the whole situation was an argument that turned sour. Pray that while he is here the love of Jesus will be poured out through us to him.

I do have several prayer requests to mention also: 

1) Elections for Guatemala's new president will be this coming Sunday. Please pray that God's will for the children of Guatemala will be accomplished through the new leader. We desire that adoptions will open again, but pray most of all that God will be known in this country. 

2) Please pray that Josh and I will be filled with passion and love for God's work here in Santiago Atitlan. Moving here didn't give us some magical Kingdom mindset; in fact, its highlighted our selfishness (mine at least). We do have responsibilities and duties here, but we want to move beyond duty to desire to pour Jesus into the hearts of these children whether it means washing mounds of dishes or cleaning up yet another mess or teaching multiplication tables or correcting school again and again or giving instructions again and again. Its so easy to get frustrated and annoyed; I won't pretend to be perfect and say I never get upset. We want these kids to know that we will always love them regardless of their failures; that they are always safe with us; that we will hear their hearts. We want to be images of Jesus that send them to their Heavenly Father--the One who will never leave his children. Pray that our hearts will be filled with Jesus. 

Thank God with us for: 

1) Jacob's healing and quick recovery! 

2) The safe arrival of Felicity Grace! 

3) His continued provision even when expenses go up (hospital bills, drunk man throwing rock at windshield, van not working, etc)! 

Thank you once again for your prayers and support on our behalf! Thank you for your cards and emails and Facebook messages and Skype calls and gifts sent with Josh's family! Many blessings to you all. 

Love, 

Josh & Donna

Slideshow

News from Santiago/Tzanchaj

Has it really been 3 weeks since we last updated? I think time is flying. Today (Friday) it's flying anyway.


In most recent news...
Josue turned 1 year old on Monday. He enjoyed his cake immensely, as you can see, and we all had a good time playing games in honor of him. He is precious and we love him dearly. He hasn't started walking quite yet; he uses a walker quite well but isn't brave enough to let go.

The town festival is happening this week. Or maybe it happened last week. A fair comes to town during the festival so we took the kids on Friday and ate pizza (it's the only time our town has pizza!) and the kids played games and bought fun fair stuff. It was a long day being out in town with 7 babies in a culture where people just push you if you don't move fast enough, but I'm happy to report we all survived. We are almost as cool an attraction as the Ferris wheel when we all go to town. Crowds of people stood around and stared at us for what felt like forever. Some people even ask the kids if we ever eat any kids that live there. Its almost laughable, and yet its sad to see a culture so steeped in traditional Mayan religion and the fear that surrounds them. This first picture is all of us right after we first sat down--in about 10 minutes we were completely surrounded by people.

The latest project the home has started is growing a garden! Dave is renting the piece of land next to the house for a garden since the price of vegetables is climbing and we eat lots of fruits and veggies! We will have to clear the trees and brush before we start planting. I'm looking forward to having a garden and we hope it does well! I don't have any pictures of the lots and its still looks like trees and brush right now anyway.

Today (Saturday) we had a pool party and hot dog roast with two families from town. The one family is here translating the Bible into Tzutijil, the local dialect. The translation project will take approximately ten years. The second family is here working at the local hospital. The husband and wife are both family practice doctors and do lots of great work at the hospital!

And now it's Sunday! Its hard to believe tomorrow is August 1 already! We've been here over three months now. Some days I think I can't stretch anymore or I will pop; and other days, I only hope and pray that I actually am growing in this part of our lives. Josh and I were discussing the other day how we could totally waste these two years here. And really, we all could waste our lives day by day if we don't make a habit of everyday looking to Jesus and seeking to make Him the reason for everything we do. I can totally bypass teaching moments, moments to point these children to the Father if I'm looking at life as a big to-do list. And honestly, it's pretty easy to see the dishes, the laundry, the dirty diapers, the cooking and cleaning and forget to live with the eyes of our hearts open to see God. We're learning this; not perfectly, but increasingly.
God is also teaching me about servanthood. This is hard for me. But when I fight against this daily dying, I can't help but think of Jesus, who left EVERYTHING and washed the disciples' feet and died on a cross.....for me. And you. I have no lofty answers to the hardness of servanthood, only the heart feeling that I cannot resist serving because of The One who served me and gave me true and abundant life.

Thank you to all of you who faithfully pray for us and send letters and packages and emails. We hope and pray that in some way, our lives will give glory to our Heavenly Father. Many blessings to all of you today. Happy Sunday!

and P.S. Thank God that all the picture uploaded successfully the VERY FIRST TIME! This is HUGE. Okay, that's all!