confessions....of.....winter....or...wait...its summer...

sooooo...Summer Camp(VBS with an academic emphasis) starts next week!! My classroom is transformed into a sheep pen! The Lovable Lambs-complete with a tree, a sun, and a horse !

I have two students......both ESL.....and well...one of them will soon be ESL.....
he speaks only Portuguese as of yet.... Im guessing this is a little insight to how next year is going to work! Im excited to see what will happen and what God is going to do.
The short term missionaries are amazing-Im loving getting to know each of them! Gods truly blessed us with some great people willing to serve Him in whatever that looks like here!

Guess what?! Ill be home in exactly 14 days :) I cant wait to se all of you!!!

confessions of my first brasilian birthday party!

Look how precious?! I know my ramblings were just that-ramblings-in the last e-mail. I really love this sweet picture of them...they are not at all organized or posed just right....but they are themselves. And I love it.

You might wonder what I've been doing for the last several days. In between the sad goodbyes of departing staff, cleaning and organizing the mess in my classroom-God's been doings some amazing things......where to start.....

1. well, I'm coming home early-July 11th-I'll arrive! I also got a refund of 900 dollars in the mix of all that-which is pretty spectacular considering that the website says NO REFUNDS. Cheap O Air---for all your traveling needs! So-what was once a not so good, kind of bad situation....actually worked out in SOOO many ways.

2. Nicolàs passed his exams with FLYING COLORS!! It is to my understanding that he impressed the instructor and exceeded their expectations. Amen and Amen.

3. God really mended some relationships in my life over the last few weeks. He showed me how obedience is soooo important. I've been trying to make up for lost time with several new friends....before they permanently depart for the next venture in life.

4. I'm still computerless....and I'm reading books like crazy! Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers.......Im simply speechless about this one...

5. I'm 27! or 17! or 72! WHatever! I was surprised by a group of my closest Brasilian friends along with several of the teachers from BIS. :) Last night was a huge highlight-almost like a dream. I loved seeing them and getting to talk and hang out with them. They worked so hard to make everything come together....and I was totally and completely surprised. There is a place in my heart that grows every day for these people and their amazing love for me.

6. I found out my job for next year. I will be working with one of my best friends (Raquel) in the preschool program. We will offer a program for Brasilian 3\4 year olds. This program will be unique in that no other international or brasilian school has a portuguese/english speaker and a native english speaker for these classes. We will team teach through most subjects while specials will be completely in portuguese for the first little bit. Ill admit. I was "warned" that I would be doing something different next year....and I had a bit of a complaining heart about it. I really thought I would be teaching 4th grade. Which is fine....Im just more comfortable with younger kids and more creative spins on simple concepts :) When they called us in for the meeting-I was a bit smug and anxious about the new assignment...but confused about why they'd called the preschool teacher and portuguese teacher in as well. As Mr. Bose began his spill...I could feel a smile creep......and the excitement flash inside. I wouldnt have dreamed this in my wildest dreams.....and yet, its almost as if my dreams are coming true. I'll have the chance to work with an amazing teacher whom I love dearly, I'll be speaking more portuguese on a daily basis, and getting to work with Brasilians and International students alike. This vision will probably be tweaked and may not work out exactly the way we are thinking---but its gonna be amazing....I can feel it.....

Dear God, Thank you for listening.....and for helping me to understand that You are in control-that I need not worry about next year...next week....or tomorrow. Thank you for showing me how hopeless I am in my own thoughts sometimes and how weak my faith can be....and then showing me how amazing You are. I praise you for the blessings you've chosen to give me and the people that you've allowed me to know and love. Lord-for the people that have been a challenge to love...and a growing situation for me in this year--thank you for them. Thank you for knowing me, loving me, and giving me above the desires of my heart....in spite of what I am. Thank you for another year to serve you and for Brazil.

confessions of...the last day of school..

It almost does not seem real that this day is over...that this year is over. i could not cry today, but I can cry now. I miss my students and the reality is not yet here. I think in the weeks to come-I'll miss them a great deal. They are no longer mine. I am astounded by the passing of time and that this year is over. I cannot reiterate that enough-even to myself. I feel as if it should be Christmas and that I have so much more to teach them and so much love to give them. There's a special bond that comes about when you have 5 students-it's just very different than having 24. The bonds are so tight with each student and each student with the other. They truly treat each other like brothers and sister(s). They happen to be the most caring, sensitive, loving, and cool kids that I've ever met--all from different continents. One of my parents commented on our graduation picture....No two students even resemble each other in color-their skin is different, eyes are all different, their hair is different, their eyes are different....
I went through their monitoring folders yesterday and their growth made me smile. They've grown academically and most importantly spiritually. They are definitely asking questions about having a sinful heart and when asked about sin-they now answer, "we're sinful from birth" instead of the astounded looks I once received. :) Or-how they beg to review the previous verses.......and then proceed to tell me the meaning of the verse (as we did a small expository on each one when introduced). They are 5! God is so amazing.
Today, I received a handmade pair of earrings (which I LOVE), material from Zambia, my very own "Class of 2021" T-shirt :), and some reallllllly nice "Body Shop" stuff from the states :) But it did not compare to the hugs, smiles, love, and fun we had today. I just enjoyed them today. I wish they could come back to school to just play for the next 35 days---no lesson plans--just playing, crafts, fun, reading "No David" and "David Goes to School". Instead, they will be loving their friends in the States, in England, Zambia, and in Panama. Of course, Thales-will be loving the animals on the farm-his horse, his sheep (he says shep..and his mom tells me that they are actually goats). I think only a few will appreciate these ramblings.....but this is a blog and I'm spilling my heart.

confessions of technology

who knew that our dependency on technology is so heavy? I only realized this last week how much I really use my computer. Phoning home, email, photos, creating things, lesson plans, graduation programs, invitations, etc, etc.... I realized how much my life revolved around a 14 inch machine.
It's been rather nice in some ways-to not be able to surf whenever I want to or to even be able to type in a Word program for whatever need..... In other ways, it's been a nightmare. I've been forced to leave work at work every day and not leave work until I have everything accomplished (or with the hopes that it is accomplished). So-I apologize for the lack fo communicationi :) We think my hard drive has gone out...so, it might be a while! I'll blog when I can!