Ninos

For some reason they love sitting in this corner! From left: Rosme, Ezequiel,  Dayana, Mauricio, Olman, Abilio. 

It's been busy here at Little Hands of Hope, but we have been enjoying it! The children have settled in so much and this has become almost a second home to them. They know who to look for when they come, where to find everything, and what comes next. They have been a little thrown off these days because we have been spending the last portion of our time with them each day speaking only in English. It is comical the looks that they give us sometimes! They are learning pretty quickly though. They are not yet answering us in English, but they are starting to understand certain phrases pretty well now. 


We have a couple of new children - Douglas and Melvin. I spent 2 months working with Melvin in 2010 and he was very excited to join in and it is a pleasure to have him. He is a very studious little boy. He is in first grade and he comes to the center in the afternoon. Douglas is in kindergarten. He is quiet and shy, but he gets a big smile on his face about pretty much anything. Nathaly didn't come back after her first day. Her mother isn't a fan of the evangelical church. Abilio hasn't missed a day! He is Melvin's little brother and while Abilio started out very shy, he sometimes is the loudest one in the group now! Jonatan is also doing very well. He is very laid back and just enjoys whatever is going on. He is very easily distracted, but he's very smart and is always giggling about something!

Abilio and his friend Matia :)

Douglas

Douglas learning English.

Today we had a small group of children because school was out. It is always strangely quite when we have small group and we don't always know what to do with ourselves. However, it is fun every now and then to have a smaller group because we have even more quality time with the kids. I got lots of hugs today and no one had to fight over sitting in my lap today since there was time for each one. :)  These children are all so precious and some of them need so much love and attention. My hope is that they receive all that they need while they are here and will recognize the value they have as image-bearers of the Creator of the universe. 


Please pray for our health - we have had a lot of colds, but I think we are all on the mend. It's hard to keep everyone healthy with this many children together all at once. Praise God for all of the children that come to the center and the new ones too! Pray that He will touch the heart of each one with His love and that we, the staff, will be able to consistently show them Jesus' love. Thank you all for your love, prayers and support! We couldn't do this without you!

Today was our first day with the children since I've been back in Meanguera. I've missed them so much! A friend told me when I was visiting in the United States that missing the children might be a good thing because then I would appreciate them so much more when I got back - she was right! A group of the children had been showing up to the house all last week since they heard that I was back, practically begging for us to start already. I had 5 of them playing in the house last Thursday - it made me smile. Saturday we had a meeting with the children's relatives. Olman came right in and curled up next to me like he belonged there. I wanted to keep him! 

Our afternoon group plus Rosme listening to the Bible story.

We had a good bunch of children today - 21! We were missing a couple in the afternoon, but we had 3 new children - Jonatan, Nathaly, and Abilio. I've worked with Abilio and Nathaly before so it is fun to have them again. Jonatan is very smart and very attentive to everything. Abilio is painfully shy, but still was attentive and participated in the activities. Nathaly quietly takes everything in and follows her friends' lead. The kids were all very excited to be back. Even Mauricio, who usually has no interest in coming without his big brother, walked in talking excitedly and grinning from ear to ear. They all remembered their Bible verses better than I did and were almost giddy about practicing English - it was very funny to watch them! Everyone fell back into the routine really well which is an answer to prayer because I was a little bit worried about them adjusting back. We only had tears from Abilio! Olman has gone back to some of his old habits of not knowing what to do with his own excitement and not realizing where his body is in relation to everything else, but I think we can help him adjust back quickly. I was encouraged to see that he was still eager to say the Bible verses, give us hugs, and practice English so we haven't lost too much ground. 

Mauricio and Dayana very busy with their play-doh.

I'm so happy to be back with the children again and to see all the familiar faces in Meanguera! Please keep us in your prayers. Pray for wisdom in handling the children and that they will always see Christ's love shining us as we work with them. Thank you all for your encouragement and support when I visited the states and thank you always for your financial support, encouragement, and prayers while I'm here. God is doing so many things in these little hearts through your support!

Olman is not about to let those cars out of his sight. 

Matia playing cars with Olman and Josue.