Dia de Madre

Mother's Day is a big holiday here. My kids made it pretty special for me! The week before Mother's Day, Nate and Kris spent a lot of time in the closet making me cards and presents. Nathan made me this beautiful card and even wrote me a poem.

Just after six o'clock Sunday morning, I heard someone banging the pans in the kitchen. I quickly realized what was going on and gently encouraged Wilf to go out and tell Kris it was too early to begin making breakfast! She managed to wait until seven o'clock, then she brought me a meal that she had made totally on her own. It was wonderful!

Kids on a low budget have to be creative! I was really impressed with the things the kids made for me. I was especially thankful to see them do all these things without any prompting from me or Dad. A friend wrote me to me recently expressing how thankful she was to be a mother and the joy she had in raising her children and supporting her husband. And although most days run very far from smoothly, I would whole heartedly agree! This year in Guat. has given me time to think about my task as a wife and mother. I have not been able to be very involved in the work here because of the language barrier. But I can find a lot of joy and fulfillment by supporting and encouraging Wilf in his work and by being a "joyful mother of children. Praise the Lord!"

On Monday, the village of Pichal had a big celebration for Dia de Madre. Wilf headed out first thing in the morning with Nico, little Nico, Ellen, Nate, Kris and Brad. This was Brad's first big hike and he did great!! The hike only takes about an hour, but some parts of it are pretty steep!


The arrival of the rainy season makes the hiking a lot messier, but it also makes it a lot more beautiful.
A big part of the celebration was a soccer tournament!

The soccer field is a bit challenging. I suppose they are happy that the majority of the field is flat-considering all the mountains surrounding them! After the soccer tournament, a lunch was served up the moutain side at the village school. Our group left shortly after the lunch but the festivies continued for the rest of the day.
The kids crossing the bridge on the way back home. It is interesting because we just started the rainy season so the river is still really low. The fertile river bank is all planted with corn. The river looks totally different from when I saw it last!
It has been good to experience the different holidays and how they are celebrated in another country. I think Father's Day is the only one left....:)