R's Nicaragua Trip (lots of photos!)

I was in Nicaragua April 4-11.  Our team of 10 was very dynamic and we enjoyed getting to know each other.  We were there to spend time with a group of teenagers who live at La Quinta de Esperanza (The Place of Hope), a Christian children's home (like an orphanage, but a bit different).  It was a great trip, full of memorable experiences and relationship-building.  I was so thankful to be a part of the team and witness God's work in Jinotepe, Nicaragua, but I was also glad to get home to Deric! :)  Thank you for your prayers, and enjoy the photos!

"We need to talk" poster in the airport parking lot.
I took this on Palm Sunday...thought it was appropriate. :)

Looking up at a wind chime.
I forgot this guy's name.
Kari with the green one (also forgot his/her name).

Kari walking to church with her little friend.
Greg talking with Enoch.
These girls loved to pose for me!
Perla and two cuties from the local barrio (neighborhood).
"He loves you" mural painted on the front church wall.
This girl loved to worship!

They danced to Carmen's "Army of the Lord." It was awesome.
They asked us to pray for/over them.

This little guy, Alejandro, stole my heart that morning.
Monday morning: making Gospel bracelets to pass out to the barrio (neighborhood) kids.
gold = heaven/paradise/relationship with God, black = our hearts because of sin, red = Jesus' shed blood on the cross, dying for our sins, white = our hearts after we receive His forgiveness and accept His gift of grace, green = our new life that grows in God.
William.

Later that night...making bags of Gospel jelly beans to pass out to kids.


This is the bumpy dirt road which leads to The Quinta (where the church is and the kids live).
All ready to go out into the barrio and pass out bracelets. 
Tilling the soil in the garden.
This is in the local barrio (neighborhood).



We have a lot to be thankful for!

Jonathan and Dariluz (her name means "to give light") explain the Gospel to the kids.

With her new bracelet.

Some of The Quinta's kids
Patricia, Ruth y yo.
Tuesday morning we drove two hours to the beach of San Juan del Sur.

Sam enjoyed EVERY moment!


 Flor and Ruth

This is the hotel.
Up on the roof of the hotel.
Manuel and Freddy
I thought this was an ironic sight.
Wednesday morning we celebrated Cheryl's birthday by going ziplining!
So fun!

Landing Superwoman.

Coffee beans in their natural habitat.
Chad with a friend. 
Wednesday afternoon we traveled to the quaint town of Grenada.

I loved the architecture. 


We ate here, at Cathy's Waffle House...like an IHOP. :)

okay. this guy had a little squirrel on a harness and shoestring leash. Di and Kari held it, which creeped me out a bit.

Grenada's square.
At the Wednesday evening church service we performed a sticks routine to the song "Arise, my love."

View from our room's balcony.
Hotel lobby.
The room Kari and I shared (very nice!)
Thursday morning: market time!

This grossed us out.


Poinsettia in its natural habitat. :)
Friday afternoon we visited Masaya.  Here's Perla's family's kitchen....
...yard...
...and bedroom.
Walking in a Masaya neighborhood.
Ismael, Kari, and Carlos.
Our whole group out to lunch in Grenada.
Grenada's tourist-oriented market.
With Ismael and Perla.

Siblings. 
At the Catalina lookout, with the Mombacho Volcano behind us.
Studs.
It was a beautiful time of day to be there, just before sunset (what I call "Golden Hour.")
Friday night we had dinner together at the hotel and then we prayed for the kids.
Goofy group picture with our new t-shirts.

Rebecca heading to Nicaragua!

I (Rebecca) am leaving for a week-long trip to Nicaragua this afternoon and would love your prayers for our trip! This opportunity opened up for me about 4 weeks ago at a staff meeting when fellow part-time pastor, Greg, suggested I go because he knows my heart for missions and kids. He goes down to Nicaragua several times a year because his non-profit missions organization supports an orphanage down there in a town about one hour away from Managua. We will be a team of ten (eight adults and two kids) and our primary purpose is to build relationships with the orphanage's children and workers.  We have a list of goals for the week, but we're planning on kind of "going with the flow." :)

Those of you who know me, know that I absolutely LOVE international travel, especially when it's missions-oriented.  

It is probably the most energizing activity for me,  and it always renews my passion for the Lord and ministry. I hope and pray that this trip is no different!   And since I haven't been overseas since 2006, I feel long overdue.  Needless to say, I'm so excited and see this as a huge gift from God, although it will be weird to go without Deric and be separated for a week (he'll be busy preparing for the Good Friday and Easter sunrise services!). 

Please join me in praising Him for this opportunity and praying for the trip and our team.  Thanks, and you can expect LOTS of photos once I'm back! :)

Easter Decorations

Mom, do you recognize those eggs and the Polish pottery bunny? Thanks for those!! :)

Typical Colorado Weekend: shotgun shooting & snowshoeing

We had a crazy-fun weekend, even though we were doing separate things.  Deric joined three other guys for an overnight snowshoeing/cross-country skiing trip in the mountains near the New Mexico border.  The coolest part was they spent the night in a yurt!!  

I participated in Hunter Education classes and, on Saturday, passed the written test and live fire test.  I am now qualified to go hunting! :)  Saturday was really fun, because we were outside most of the day, learning how to start a fire without matches, use a compass, shoot bows and arrows, rifles, and shotguns.  It was a lot of fun, and now I'm ready to rough it out in the Colorado wilderness!! 

 Here are some awesome shots from his adventure (warning: Daniel, you might experience feelings of jealousy).

Weekend trip to Denver

This past weekend I was in Denver. My primary purpose was to attend Group's "HOW2 Conference" on children's ministry, but I also was blessed to spend time with three close girlfriends: Jess, Laura, and Lisa. It was a rejuvenating and refreshing weekend, full of encouragement on many levels. God used the conference to encourage me in my new ministry position as a children's ministry director; I came away from the conference with fresh vision, new friends, and many creative ideas! 

Laura and her boyfriend, Geoff, flew from NC to visit his brother and sister-in-law. I was happy to see Laura again and meet Geoff!
Laura and I went for a little hike close to Red Rocks Amphitheater.


On Sunday afternoon, Lisa and I went for a hike in Roxsborough State Park. It was a gorgeous (and warm!) day.

Rebecca's New Haircut

I had about 4-5 inches chopped off, and it feels great! :)

Monte Vista Annual Crane Festival

Every late February, hundreds of Sandhill Cranes fly into the neighboring town of Monte Vista (about 17 miles west of Alamosa).  They only stick around for about 6-8 weeks to feed on the grain in the fields, before heading north to Idaho.  In recognition of this event, the town puts on a weekend festival, with tours of the wetlands and presentations. Deric and I wanted to attend at least one of the weekend's events, and we chose Friday evening's presentation on various birds.  It was surprisingly entertaining and informative, complete with homemade papier mache masks.

Before the presentation, we wanted to tailgate...just to shake things up and do something different.  Too bad the weather was yucky and COLD.  On the menu: cheesey tortellini, corn, and leftover borwnies.  Quite the memory!

Our reenactment of the Crane Mating Dance.

That's the crane mask.
Puffin impression.