SPA NIGHT

PEDICURES!!!!!!!!

MANICURES!!!!

all of the girls posing for a picture with their new fun things!!!!!

Back2Back got a huge donation from a friend of my roomate, Jessica. One weekend we had gone to Texas and opened up all the boxes that were shipped for this specific donation. Inside these HUGE boxes were tons of body wash, face wash, toothbrushes, floss, deodorant, lotion, and lots and lots of make up.
Receiving donations is a HUGE blessing. We would normally divide up everything and deliver it to the teen homes here on our property. But Jessica and I had a better plan. We decided to host a spa night at our house. We divided up all the donations and put them in gift bags for each joven girl on campus. We had 11 gift bags FULL of things they will use and LOVE. Each Bag consisted of things in the first picture above.
So, we invited the girls over. We ate chocolate, did pedicures (which Jessica was in charge of), manicures (which i was in charge of), watched a chick flick, and at the end did facials. It was such a fun and relaxing way to use these specific donations. The girls felt blessed and their toes and hands felt better than ever. it was such a wonderful time of fellowship with the girls. Getting them out of their homes, making them feel special and loved, and being able to bless them with essentials. It was a wonderful night.

Casa Hogar Del Norte LIBRARY!!!!!!

After almost a year of starting the library foundation at Casa Hogar Del Norte, We finally finished up things this past week. This past Saturday on April 17th we had the Library Dedication.
The weeks leading up to it was great because we didn't have a lot of groups here so a ton of staff were able to come together to help Gabo get things ready for the big dedication. The very first picture with all the couples was Friday night (the day before) we had worked pretty much a 12 day shift or more. Finishing painting last minute things, scrubbed the floor on our hands and knees with paint scrapers and a rag, putting the tv and computer up, finishing staining the librarians desk, putting the desks and the dividers together, cleaning up after ourselves every 10 minutes, putting books in the shelves, hanging lights, and putting last minute touches on everything to make it look the way it did.
When you put so much work into something you are super excited to show people the creation from nothing to finish. the dedication was just for that and to dedicate it to the Lord as well as thank people who had put so much money and service into making it beautiful. I love a good work day with just staff. It reminds me of how much i love working with the people i live with. what a blessing it is to be here in the midst of what the Lord is doing. Providing a fun place for the kids to learn more and to be excited about it is one more blessing for them.
The dedication went great. We ate, the children sang some songs they had been learning, we prayed over the building, Martha spoke, and we got to look around and see the kids smiling faces as they saw their new library full of books, movies, and learning games. What a blessing to this specific children's home!

LIONS AND TIGERS AND BEARS OH MY!!!!!

not much for this blog! SMCA (our staff kid school on property) had a field trip to the zoo. I was able to tag along because one of the teachers wasn't able to make it that day. We were pretty much the only people in the zoo and the animals were very interactive. we saw tigers, elephants, lots of parrots, ostriches, bears, alligators, and lots of other animals. it was a great day with those little monkeys, and YES i mean the SMCA kids.

BODA DE MARU Y EMMANUEL

Maru looking so happy on her wedding day!!!!
Riding in on her carriage just like a princess.
Padrinos: Hope and Cheque giving them their Bible
Padrinos: Antonio and Priscilla putting the lasso on them.
Mariachi Band. So fun
Emmanuel singing to his bride.
Rodo and i showing off our fun little gifts from the band at the wedding.
Friends at the Rodeo.

Last weekend me and some of our staff took a little trip to San Luis Potosi. This wedding was 8 hours away and we all packed out our suburbans and vans and caravaned to this little town. The wedding was like nothing i have ever seen before. The Bride was led in by carriage that her father was leading. then her bridesmaids were all on horses riding in. Emmanuel was leading all the men on horses as well. They call this a CHARRO wedding. Big Dresses and traditional dressing for the men. SO FUN and different.
The ceremony was beautiful. In Mexican weddings they have Padrinos. Basically the bride and groom ask people who are important to them to be padrinos in the wedding. The padrinos give either a Bible, a lasso (which represents binding the 2 together), coins, or the wedding rings. They go up to the front and present the item to the couple and do a blessing on the bride and groom. My roomate, Hope, was a padrino for the Bible. (Picture above)
The reception was AWESOME. well the wedding started at 1:00pm and we left around 12:30a.m. and the reception was still going strong. There was a really fun band that kept passing all these little things out with every song. Rodo and i had a great time salsa dancing all night. oh how i love the Mexican culture.
On the way home we stopped and got some ice cream with exotic fruits. It was so YUMMY!!!
it was really a fun experience being with people from Back2Back but being out of Monterrey. Lots of bonding with eachother, eating very different food, and supporting our good friend Maru in her marriage. The rodeo the next day was incredible. Got to break in my cowboy boots and watch some really cool tricks with horses and cows. We had to leave early though to get home in time for monday morning work. Overall, the weekend was great and Maru got to have the wedding of her dreams. She was beaming with joy and love on her special day. or should i say her special weekend.

God's Creation

This past weekend i had the chance to experience God in a new way and a new place. 4 of us drove a little ways outside of Monterrey. We wanted a cool place to go hiking so we found this BEAUTIFUL place. Around this whole park, on a mountain, were streams and natural waterfalls. i could have stayed there and listened to the water forever. It was beautiful. i couldn't stop enjoying it. When God reveals Himself to me more through Creation i am always amazed at the beauty that He displays... And He chose us 4 to enjoy it in that moment. The times i am able to explore in His Greatness is always a good time. It could bring me to tears just knowing that i am surrounded by these beautiful mountains here in Monterrey and that Our Maker put them right before me to enjoy. So that is exactly what i intend to do. It made me want to explore even more of Mexico while i am here. Because i don't know when God will call me somewhere else. I want to take part in the Beauty He has surrounded me with in this present moment. It was a great time of fellowship and experiencing God in a real way. I hope to go back again one day!!!!

Quincenera

Yaqueline turned 15 and it was time to celebrate with her quincenera.
She has one sister in the Hope Program here and she is probably going to be here within a couple years. She is so beautiful and bright. I know she has a HUGE future in front of her. i asked her if she felt like a princess and she replied yes. How great it is for these girls to be dolled up and know that they are special on their 15th birthdays. because of help and donations to get everything she wanted is all because of people like you who are reading this blog entry. My good friend Quin and her family came down for the weekend of her quincenera. They have a sweet relationship with her and i know it was incredible for her to see them come all the way from the states to be here for her big day.
We ate, we danced, and we played games till we couldn't play any more. it was a great night. Feliz Cumpleanos Yaqueline.