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Mazatlan is a beach city. Things happen in this town that don't happen all over Mexico. For example, once a year they hold a carnaval. Each year has a theme, a parade, a fair, tons of people, and schools get out for 4 days.
I received a call from the director of Floreser and she asked if i would be willing to go the parade with the girls. There is only 1 caregiver with the girls at a time and so they needed more eyes. I figured it would be a good time to get to be with the girls and decided to do a hip hop class before that.
I have found out that the girls don't do anything when there is no school or on the weekends. I had been talking about doing classes with them forever and it finally happened. I was so excited to share the joy i have for dancing with them. They loved it and have asked me repeatedly when the next class is:)
So, we had our class and then we got ready to go to the parade. There were TONS of people there and the floats were amazing. As you can tell from pictures above this years theme was all about the movies. They had floats of Spiderman, Avatar, ET, Mary Poppins, Grease, Toy Story, Jurassic Park, Troy, and much more. It lasted around 3 1/2 hours. Standing that long with people squashed up next to you is the only bummer of it all. Other than that, we had a blast. The girls would yell for the people throwing stuff to the crowd and they got lots of things like glow sticks, t-shirts, and towels. As you can tell from the picture above with the girls in it, we were all exhausted afterwards.
It was a great night of being with them from 2 in the afternoon until around 9 in the evening. The more i am there, i get to learn more of who they are and what they want out of life. I know God has some great plans for that home and I am praying for the steps that need to be taken.
Please pray along with us as a staff team to see where and how God wants us to move forward in this home specifically.
Our Valentines Day was split into 2 parts. We had the opportunity to go and celebrate the 9th anniversary of Rancho De Los Ninos. We celebrated with some guapo (handsome) children and we were blessed to be served by the caretakers. They wanted it to be a special event. They invited the local church, Back2Back, and some other volunteers that have helped throughout the years. They served tamales, beans, and cake. We offered up our help, but the caretakers refused. They kept telling us we were their guests for the day and because we are always serving, they wanted to serve us. What a humbling experience. They also handed out roses to all of the ladies, Kristin Huber and I (Becca) received roses from the little guys and felt pretty special:)
We also had a meeting with the director of Floreser. We were blessed in many ways by this meeting and once again so thankful for the people we partner with here in Mazatlan. The girls all gave us BIG valentines hugs and told us about their day in school! We continue to love every chance we get to be out at that home:)
We love our little valentines!
Part 2:
The second part of our Valentines Day was our date night. A couple on our staff team has the coolest car ever and since they have lived in Mazatlan (since October) I (Becca) have wanted so badly to ride in their cool car. So, Rodo surprised me and we were able to take their car on a ride cruising along the boardwalk. This is our second Valentines Day here in Mazatlan and I will never get used to that sunset.
We then had plans to go to the local fair that is in town. We ate lots of bread, tacos, brochetas and then Rodo insisted on winning me something. So, he starting shooting away. The prize was a little stuffed foot with eyes! We gave it to our dogs to see how long it would last. It is still holding together:)
We hope you all had a wonderful Valentines Day too.
As soon as my plane landed in Michigan, I knew I was in for a treat:)
Snow everywhere and huge beautiful flakes falling. I didn't even know planes could fly in the snow. I did the math and it had been 4 years since I have seen snow! And every morning I woke up, it was snowing.
My whirlwind of a weekend in Holt, Eagle, and Lansing Michigan was incredible. It was fun being shown lots of places that people have talked about while on groups here. And by far my favorite part of the weekend was being able to see sweet friends that I have made just by them being on a group.
I saw some interesting things along the way too.Walking in the store one day, I came across bacon glazed doughnuts. (Picture above) I thought that was by far the most creative doughnut I have ever seen. I didn't try it because I had just come from an incredible breakfast joint called Golden Harvest.
I ate great food, I got to see a Target for the first time in a year, but most of all God was so faithful in showing up for the orphan children of Mazatlan.
My intention of being able to go to Riverview church was to speak to the church about signing up for possible groups and talking about our Child Sponsorship Program. I am proud to announce that 12 children got sponsored and 25 extra people signed up for a trip. Praise God for the plans He has for us and the way He pursues the Orphan Child.
Another big thing that happened when I was in town was an art show fundraiser for Back2Back Mazatlan. They had already picked the date out and I just happened to be there for that weekend. I love when things like that work out. The Theme was The 100 Show! They had different artists pitch in pieces and sold each piece for $100 and 100% of the proceeds went to Back2Back. They also had a coffee bar and some real mexican treats:) It was a successful evening and as you can see from pictures above the artwork was incredible. A big THANK YOU to Kristen and Jeremy Mason for putting this event together. Blessed to call you my sister and brother in Christ.
Another BIG THANK YOU to Ian and Lisa Mattoon! I had the privilege of staying with them during my visit. You both helped out in huge ways. Thanks for everything you did for me while I was there and thank you for the heart you have for Mazatlan. Things that happened this weekend wouldn't have been possible without the 2 of you!
Thanks to everyone from the church who showed up and represented. It is incredible to think about the way your church has caught the vision and is catching the vision to defend the cause of the orphan child. Thank you for showing me your city and being so welcoming and friendly. My time with each of you was wonderful!
