Day Twelve: When It Rains, It Pours

Today came too soon. It was emotionally and physically exhausting for all of us. Thankfully, we were able to sleep in, and regain some strength before heading off to the orphanage. The girls and I were able to finish Bible study (thereby finishing our book of James), have lunch, and head to the orphanage. It was a sad morning, as it was our last time driving with Luke to the orphanage. We’ve become a little family; thus, our last trek up the hill to the orphanage was bittersweet.

Upon our arrival, we were greeted by eager faces and hands (all the kids were wondering where we were in the morning). We immediately jumped into our rhythm and began playing with the kids. We had every intention of following our plan today, but as it was our last day, we instead decided to go with the flow and pace of the afternoon. It was such a special day for all of us. There were so many instances where the children came up and gave us hundreds of hugs and kisses, and beautifully drawn pictures and letters. A few even felt comfortable enough with us to divulge their background history about their arrival at the orphanage. It was very emotional for all of us. These children are truly amazing.

We also had our last and final activity- making paper cards and paintings with pictures we had printed of the kids. We came to realize how much the children valued photos of themselves (since they have so little documentation), so we thought it was a great idea to get pictures printed of them. They loved the pictures and they activity. Some even brought out their own albums to share with us. So sweet and special.

Soon after, the monsoon rains came and madness ensued. When it rains, it pours- literally and figuratively. We have never seen the kids so wired and out of control. They were running around like crazy people, jumping off tables and chairs. And conveniently, this is all happening during our two-hour power outage. Yes, that’s right. We lost power for two hours and the generator just happened to also be out of batteries (how that even happens, I don’t know- only in the DR). So we were left in the darkness with about 100 wild children running all around. Crazy.

Finally, the power came back on and we were able to finish the day with some of the things we had planned; namely, the pizza party and movie night. However, we only got through half of “Tangled” because the power starting going in and out again. So we all gave up on the movie and spent the remaining hour playing games and dancing in the common area.

After that, we moseyed over to the church and watched and listened as the kids prepared a dance and song for us. It was so cute and well rehearsed and they were so proud to show it off to us. The dance was followed by some worship music and prayer. Maile and Chanel even got to stand before everyone and sing a worship song for the group (in both Spanish and English)- such a special night.

It was the goodbye that was definitely the hardest for all of us. The kids started crying, and watching them get so upset, made us upset. It was a very long and tearful goodbye and we were so sad to go. It was literally heartbreaking.

But it was our time to go. Yanet was kind enough to drive us all home, but not without stopping at Jumbo (where we were able to buy Chris, Luke, and Eric some thank you gifts). Once we arrived home, we said goodbye to Yanet for the last time and headed inside. We just finished packing, cleaning, and writing thank you notes and now we’re off to bed.

Les is headed to North Carolina for a family reunion tomorrow, so she’s leaving earlier than Maile and I, and will be going out of Santo Domingo. Mai and I have a later flight and we’re headed for LAX. We can’t believe the journey has finally come to an end. This trip that we’ve been talking about for months and months has come and gone. Surreal.

Some memorable moments from today: Running in the rain with the kids; the power going out and the kids literally jumping over and off of everything; singing in the church with the kids; the girls sharing their testimonies and personal stories with us. So incredibly special and shocking. They are some of the bravest and strongest little girls we have ever met. There are so many other memories and moments that would take forever to document and explain, so we’ll have to debrief you all in person…

As this blog message (and blog itself) comes to a close, we wanted to leave you with some thoughts:

We have been so incredibly blessed to have even had the opportunity to come to La Romana. The way that all of the pieces fell into place: the people we met, the place we stayed, the orphanage we worked at- everything was so perfect for the time that we were here, and it can only be attributed to God. He has been so present throughout this journey. God gave us the strength, passion, and perseverance to finish our work here and he has done incredible things with us. Praise God for this trip and all that has been accomplished.

God is good. God is great. And God is love. These facts have been incredibly apparent on this journey. His love has been so evident through His children, who we were blessed to be with for the past two weeks. They were so quick and ready to love- and love unconditionally. What a refreshing and beautiful thing to experience. From day one, they were so willing to hold our hands, hug us, and write us little love letters. What a blessing to experience that child-like love and compassion. Imagine what the world would be like if we all continued to act and share that same love with everyone we encountered.

In the end, we hoped that Love would be the theme we would be able to share with these children- but it turns out that we were the ones to learn the greatest lessons about love from these kids.

Thank you so much for sharing in this experience with us and reading our blog along the way. Your prayers and thoughts were so felt and appreciated and we were so happy to have been able to share this experience with y’all.

We can only hope that we will one day see these children again.

Signing off for the last time…

In His Name,

Las Chicas

Day Eleven: Sorry, Mom. We Got Tatted.

So as our second-to-last morning came to be, the routine has become a welcomed ritual for the three of us. Wake up, sunscreen and DEET application, breakfast, some quiet time and we’re off. We were anticipating a more comfy ride to the orphanage with one less member of our group, but Nicole’s addition to our team made for a natural transition to normalcy again. KATIE WE MISS YOU AND WISH YOU WERE HERE!

Once we arrived, we had about thirty minutes of fun free time, playing volleyball and other games. Then we organized for Bible study time, singing songs and prayers. The kids were especially well behaved today (which we came to find out was due to the absence of distraction from the older kids-who were at church this morning-fasting. True story- they don’t know why, and we don’t know why.) After that, we had our craft for the day, which was puppet making (from brown paper bags). Fun! And Chanel’s brilliant idea of bringing finger paint made for an especially entertaining and colorful morning. Les and Chanel both had hand prints and paint all over their bodies for the majority of the day. We also had the pleasure of acquiring several temporary tattoos.

For some reason, today was an especially exhausting day. Maybe it was the finger painting, or maybe it was the weather- but we were all tired by lunch. After lunch, we took a detour from our usual plans and went to Mr. Movies with Yanet and Felix (the bus driver) so we could get a movie for our party day tomorrow. We decided on “Tangled” because we thought it would be appropriate for all the kids. Upon arriving back at the orphanage, we were met with eager faces and hands and jumped back into the games (this time more awake- maybe we just needed some down time?)

The day ended with the kids receiving their grades from their courses and they were congratulated by the staff with a cake. Yummy ☺ This distraction made it easier for us to leave without the long goodbyes that we’re used to. (It’s so cute because the kids are always hanging on us and begging us not to go, so it’s definitely a process as we leave).

Luke (Mr. Reliable, as we fondly refer to him) picked us up and we headed for home. Not without a quick stop at this local bakery, Trigo de Oro. It was great! Tres leches cakes and fruit tarts, a well-deserved end to the day.

Once we got back, we had Bible study and headed to the beach. Dinner was especially fun tonight as we were able to Skype with some of our good friends. (Thanks Luke Freeman and Tyler Miller for joining us for dinner- we miss you guys!) After dinner, we caught up on some necessary emails and work stuff; slowly acclimating ourselves back to the real world ☹

Memorable moments from today: Les and I literally getting painted and attacked with finger paint (hand prints all over our bodies and legs). Another (typical) memorable moment was the grades party. Of course the party was an hour later than it should have been (standard Dominican time); and it wouldn’t be a party without a cake (which happened to be smashed on one side by an unanticipated volleyball haha). And it wouldn’t be a day in the DR without our golf cart ride to the beach, which was extra memorable today with Les’s driving. The wild child threw caution to the wind, by failing to break on several speed bumps (don’t worry the wounds will heal haha).

Tomorrow we get to sleep in, as we have a late start at the orphanage (in order to prepare for our going –away party). Yay for sleeping!!!! So we’re off to bed. Night night!

In His Name,

Las Chicas

Day Ten: And Then There Were Three…

Today was a sad morning as we said goodbye to our dear friend Katie. Goodbyes are never easy or fun. But onward we pushed and left for the orphanage at nine this morning, as we have been every morning. This car ride was noticeably different from the ones prior (as we now had room to move our legs with one less member- we still miss you Katie! ☺) Upon arrival, we were met again by hugs and children everywhere (we love the love). For some reason though, today our typical well planned day took a detour and we had a casual morning. This included hanging out and chatting mostly. Because we finished with our VBS Bible story plays, we read out of the New Testament in Spanish today for our study time. After that we decided to have free time and postpone our activity for the afternoon.

After free time came lunch, which came with the expected chaos and madness. During lunch we organized our Friday (and final day with the kids) with Yanet. She also introduced us to the newest volunteer at Fundacion Ninos de Cristo. Her name is Nicole and she’s from New Jersey (really nice, let’s hope the kids don’t wear her down too much). After lunch, we did an English lesson (group lesson this time); which was fun, but really loud. We went over vegetables and fruits today. After our lesson, we had free time for the rest of the day until Luke came and picked us all up.

After coming back home, we had some downtime and Bible study. After Bible study, we quickly cleaned up and headed to Cris’s house for dinner. She wanted to host a dinner for us all to get to network and thank us for serving. Super nice; it was awesome to talk about all the changes that could and needed to be made within the orphanage (and to see a table of so many passionate individuals hoping to change this orphanage for the better).

Memorable moments from today include: Chanel had fun with the guitar today- she got to teach the girls some basic chords on the guitar and spike their interest in music (Hopefully- only if the guitar lasts. But man, those girls have rhythm!). There were also some visitors from the local hospital who were able to checkout and check-in on the kids (great news!). When Les tried to catch a lizard (as we’re running out the door and already late for dinner). She actually caught it and scared all of us because it started squirming out of her hand (she even screamed and ran away). Another highlight of the day was dinner. It was so nice! Cris and her friends were all from Jersey and they all had different stories and came from all different walks of life. It was energizing to sit at a table with so many passionate women.

Sorry we’ve been a little delayed in updating the blog- we have been getting so tired by the end of the day and frantic to get to bed.

Tomorrow is our last day and we have a little bit of a different schedule, so hopefully we’ll be able to update it more thoroughly.

Until then…

Amor,

Las Chicas

Day Nine: Beiber and Caves

So we’re definitely experts at the wake-up routine. Morning came, it was great. Nothing out of the ordinary: Yanet picked us up and drove us to the orphanage; we started the day with Bible study and a story about Gideon. Now, we’ve gotten to a point where we have truly employed and engaged the kids by having them be active parts of these Bible skits. They wear the costumes and read the dialogues (I didn’t even have a speaking role today- what self-sufficient children we have!) After Bible study, we had our activity for the day- making animal cards with tracings from our hands. It was the cutest activity; we made giraffes, monsters, turkeys, and sea animals- good idea Maile! After the activity, we had lunch in the mess hall with the kids- always an exciting time. A mini food fight broke out (We’re just surprised there haven’t been more of them). After lunch, we organized (or as best you can “organize” those kids) everyone for our field trip to the Maravillas Caves!

I believe we mentioned that last time it was a delightful experience bringing the kids to Altos de Chavon. This time we didn’t have the same success. It could have been the numbers (we had 10 more kids this time than last time), or it could have been the lack of food and water at the end of the tour (last time they all got cake and soda at the end of the tour), but either way, they weren’t the easiest troop today.

Let us paint the picture: the four of us were put in charge of 40 children (which sounds fine, until you realize the language barrier is still a problem and you’re taking them into dark caves). The ride there was exciting- filled with Justin Beiber songs and worship music (in both Spanish and English). However, it was the downward voyage that changed everything. Don’t get us wrong- the caves were awesome! So interesting and fun! We got to see real bats and stalagmites and stalactites and really cool formations. However, it was with the voyage out of the cave that we lost control on.

Upon resurfacing, we came across an iguana exhibit randomly located right outside the caves. The kids, of course, were fascinated and proceeded to exploit that fascination in the form of climbing and running around the exhibit. This includes dangling their feet into the cage and trying to push each other in (it may sound like we have lost control at this point- we have). Thankfully no one got hurt and no one fell into the iguana cage, but it was a serious concern for us haha. After that, the kids realized we didn’t have any food or water prepared for them, and proceeded to go somewhat crazy- running around everywhere and jumping off benches. But after a thirty-minute round up, we successfully got everyone aboard the bus and made it back to La Romana. Not without some serious ear-piercing yelling and singing. Don’t get us wrong, it was a great day and trip, but by the end of today all of us were exhausted and ready for some downtime.

This downtime thankfully came in the form of Bible study and a quick trip to the beach. During which, our friend Eric, came and met us for some appetizers at Le Cirque (where Luca and Massimo work). Overall, another great day-definitely some chaos in between- but a success nonetheless.

Some memorable moments include: driving on the bus to the caves and singing (at one point Maile and Chanel started singing “Mighty to Save” and the kids joined our English verses with their Spanish verses- a very special moment). Another memorable moment definitely came from the ride back when the kids started singing in Spanish about how they “Never wanted to go back because they didn’t have food or water at the end of the trip”-set to the tune of “I Have Decided to Follow Jesus”- (clever, but so dramatic haha). Dinner tonight was wonderful too because at Le Cirque there was a live band and they came and gave us a personal performance, accordion included. And I don’t know how this last comment hasn’t made it into the blog until now, but let it be known- DEET is a girl’s new best friend. We have all definitely experienced our fair share of mosquito and bug bites on this trip. But today, the realization that DEET has been a huge help came to fruition once we realized how much we missed it after getting eaten alive at the caves (note to self: we need to reapply more often).

Also, it should be duly noted that one of our members is unfortunately leaving us tomorrow. Katie is returning to the U.S. a little early and she will be dearly missed (the trip definitely won’t be the same). It’s crazy, you think that after spending nearly 24-7 with your friends you’d be sick of them, but that is not the case at all. We’re definitely loving every minute.

As Katie departs, we’re already discussing the roommate situation (as it stands now, Katie and I have been sleeping together and Les and Mai have been sleeping together). I made the suggestion that I could just move into Mai and Les’s bed; but that didn’t go over so well, so that’s still to be determined haha…

Anyway, we’re off to bed so we can prepare for another full day. Lots of stories ahead, we’re sure ☺

Paz y amor,

Las Chicas

Day Eight: Best Dump of the Day

Today came wayyy too soon. That’s because none of slept last night due to this MASSIVE thunderstorm. Seriously, none of us have ever been in anything like that before. The lightning (ralampagos) and thunder were so close it was insane (We came to find out that that storm was even big for here). And so LOUD! Katie had an especially hard time sleeping, but she championed through today like a real trooper.

But the show must go on, and onward it went. We started the day with a play again, this time about Joshua. Then we did a Bible bookmark activity and made prayer cards. During that activity, it started to rain- so we had an earlier lunch with the kids. But after lunch, the rain stopped and our activities resumed as normal. Again we headed to English classes for a post-almuerzo leccion (today’s lesson was about foods, kitchen appliances, and drinks- realll practical- at least for us ☺ ). Then after class, we headed back out to the playground. Today there were visitors from SCORE (this Christian missions program that’s centered in Georgia), so there was another group of people available to entertain and play with the kids.

For some reason the kids were extra wild and rowdy today (we think it’s partly because some were upset for not attending the field trip last week, and partly because they were wired from little interaction during the weekend). Thus, this extra rowdiness made today very exciting. Some memorable moments include: Chanel, Katie, and Leslie receiving tiger faces (tigre in espanol) as the kids freely drew all over our faces and bodies (sometimes with permanent markers). Also, leaving the orphanage we nearly needed bodyguards because the kids were relentless in latching on to us (it was really cute, but made it that much more difficult to leave). Chanel (I) also had a great moment because I was able to sign with one of the girls at the orphanage who is deaf and mute (her name is Ceilyn and she’s a sweetheart), but it has been great being able to put those skills to use ☺ Katie also had a great day- she’s been able to spend some quality time with some of the girls and has gotten to know her little core group really well. Today they shared a bunch of different stories about their lives and experiences growing up (Katie even got to share pictures of Bo and our friends! So fun!). Leslie became a human jungle gym, as the kids literally were jumping off the tables and chairs and onto her- expecting her to both catch them and also swing them around (her poor back). We also had some great dance time. The girls were trying to teach Leslie and I how to dance like Shakira (it didn’t go over too well, so we need to try again tomorrow- those kids really know how to move- their hips don’t lie).

After the orphanage, we tried to go to Jumbo (the local supermarket) to get pictures developed of the kids. Alas, to no avail as all five of the photo developing machines were broken. (We’ve been told that the catch phrase in the DR is “Esta roto”- “it’s broken”- because things are always broken down here; well today that phrase definitely came true for us). So photo-less, we left Jumbo and headed back home with Luke. (Luke was, and has been, kind enough to pick us up everyday from the orphanage). But before making it back to our home stay, we decided to take Chris up on his offer to give us rides on the bulldozer. So we met him near hole 2 and we all got to drive the bulldozer! A girl’s dream come true. So fun! Les of course was the first one to jump at the opportunity and it was hysterical watching her try to figure it all out on her own (before Chris finally jumped in and explained everything). Don’t worry, nothing was damaged, and everyone’s okay. After Les, Chanel, Katie, and Maile all took their shot at driving the bulldozer. It was thrilling, let me just tell you that. Mai even had the best dump of the day! (Literally, she picks up dirt like a natural).

After bulldozer lessons, we hit some golf balls and then headed home to get ready for dinner and Bible study; both were great. After that, Katie, Les, and Chanel headed to DeVino’s (this local gringo spot) with Luke and Eric to hang out for an hour (Luca- the chef- also met up with us). It’s been really fun to get to know so many different friends and people, we feel like a miniature family on this island ☺

Overall, another great day. Looking forward to tomorrow as well, since it’s our second field-trip outing (we’re heading to the Maravillas Caves!) Wish us luck!

In His Name,

Las Chicas

Day Seven: Sunday

A day of rest. Slept in late, Bible study on the beach, swimming with the fishies, and dinner with best friends. ‘Nuff said.

Day Six: What’s Your Trade?

So yesterday was our first day “off.” And we decided to take full advantage of it, which meant sleeping in! Needless to say, we were off to a late start and a lazy day and after waking up around 10:30am, we got dressed and went downstairs to have brunch with PB and Jeanie. After brunch Jeanie and the four of us went to the Marina for a girls’ day. We walked around, shopped, and just cruised around the Marina. It was so pretty, the tropical colors of the buildings, the palm trees, everything. It reminded us of a quaint European town- simply adorable. Don’t worry; we took a bunch of pictures, which we will upload for you guys. We even took a picture of us on a remake of Magellan’s ship (apparently Magellan landed in the DR first). We also took plenty of pictures of us with the lighthouse (per request of Chanel).

After our photo shoot we headed back to the casa and prepped to go horseback riding!!! We were sooo excited! None of us had ridden a horse since we were wee young lassies, so we were pumped (and nervous). It was a blast! My horse was named Pantera (Panther in Spanish), Maile’s was Bulldozer (haha), Katie’s was Alena, and Leslie’s was Oliver. We were so uncoordinated, but it was so fun. Our horses trotted, they cantered (it felt like we were flying, so magical), and they even stopped to nibble on some plants. Leslie was great at leading the pack, and Mai and Katie’s horses staggered along, while I was consistently headed up the caboose (I was also simultaneously trying to flip cam- not such a good idea, but got some great footage). Anyway, it was awesome! After horseback riding, we threw on our bathing suits and headed to the beach for some sunset Bible study time, (which was so peaceful and wonderful) and dinner.

Then our friend Eric met us for dinner at Le Cirque (this beautiful restaurant near the beach), and he introduced us to his friend Luca (an Italian who is actually the head chef at Le Cirque). As head chef, he knew how to order off the menu and we had this incredible meal (he even invited us into the kitchen for a tour! So awesome!). Then Maximo (also Italian and the head manager of Le Cirque) joined us for some wine and dessert. Also included in this exquisite meal were Richard (from Manchester, England who is a professional marksman- and the royal marksman- which means yes, he taught Prince Will and Harry) and Jason (the captain for a nearby yacht, which is owned by a Venezuelan king-of-sorts). Too random, you don’t even understand how funny and random last night was. I mean, just the guest list itself makes us laugh. Chris, CJ, and Laura also made an appearance at dinner. Overall it was a great meal, lots of stories, some stand-up comedy (please- would it be a dinner without some standby comedy? Especially when there’s a professional comedian at the table). But the night wouldn’t be complete without a karaoke duet by Chanel and Katie. Don’t even ask what we were thinking. Oh, and did we mention this is a REALLY nice restaurant (which we figured out after casually strolling in with our bathing suits and cover-ups). I’m sure the restaurant appreciated our vocal talent (although I’m not sure LeBron James did, who is staying nearby) did. Like really? Where are we? Too random haha. We’ve been laughing about it all day…

Then after dinner Eric, Jason, Luca (yes the chef joined us too), and Richard took us up to Altos de Chavon to see the nightlife. We went to this bar called Onno, which was exactly what we expected (a European-esque bar, complete with fog machine and techno lights and music). If you couldn’t tell from our missing post from yesterday, it was a late night. So we decided to blog this morning instead. Overall, a great experience and such a fun night of exploring the DR. There are definitely more stories to come ☺ (Today we’re supposed to have a cooking lesson with Luca, and later this week we’re going shooting with Jason- too fun and random haha). Anyway were off! Talk to y’all soon!

Las Chicas

Day Five: There is One Rule in La Romana…

So today was a realll game changer. Instead of going to Orfanato Ninos de Cristo, we planned to go with PB (PB is Maile’s second cousin, at whose house we’ve been staying) and Jeanie to Santo Domingo. They had a graduation ceremony for the orphanage they work with on that part of the island, so we tagged along. The great part about driving to Santo Domingo with PB and Jeanie was that one: we didn’t have to drive, and two: there were enough seats for all of us to fit. Luxurious.

So far, I don’t think we’ve mentioned how treacherous it is to try to drive in the DR. Stop signs are mere suggestions, there’s no such things as DUIs, and driving in the opposing direction of traffic is a common theme. Needless to say, we are usually terrified to get on the road everyday. So considering we were looking at a 2-hour drive to Santo Domingo, we were already anticipating drama along the way. And drama we did find. Amusing parts of our ride: learning that road lanes are suggestions and there is no such thing as “sharing the road.” Also, it is possible to drink and drive and no one would think twice about it (in fact, yesterday on our field trip, the car next to our bus tried to offer the kids hard alcohol and pass it to them through the bus window- yes they were drinking and driving and no we didn’t let the kids have the alcohol). Today, we were even stopped by the police, but got away unharmed and un-fined (Surprising, considering how corrupt the police force is here- 200 pesos gets you a long way). There are also no enforced speed limits and as PB jokingly mentioned, “There is only one driving rule in the DR, pass anyone who is in front of you.” This usually means speeding by and making sketchy maneuvers at any possible opportunity. Hey, it’s a dog-eat-dog world out there, you just gotta survive sometimes…But, thankfully we arrived at the graduation ceremony unscathed and the night went along as planned…or so we thought.

The other thing we have been learning about the Dominicans is that they are a people who live very much in the present. Which is a great thing, unless you are hoping to plan appointments or events. In that case, forget about it- no one adheres to appointments or times, it’s just a casual “when you show up, it starts”-type mentality. Which explains why we arrived at 4:20pm for the 5:00pm graduation, only to find it didn’t actually start until 6:30pm. This was because they wouldn’t start the ceremony without the whole group ready, and conveniently there were two key members who were missing. So we waited. It’s casual.

Once we finally started the ceremony, we were already anticipating a long night. Yet, despite our setback with the timing, it ended up being a really interesting graduation ceremony- small and intimate and we were glad to have been apart of such a special evening. Watching those 21 students graduate was a really incredible experience. It reminded us to truly appreciate all of the opportunities we have been given and the education we have been blessed to receive. There are so many individuals who would fight and beg for an American education, or any education for that matter, and we are grateful to have been afforded the opportunity to pursue these dreams at USC, and beyond in our graduate educations. Listening to the students speak about the obstacles and struggles they went through to finish and graduate high school was really inspiring and wonderful to see. Those kids will be the future of the DR and a positive impact in Dominican society and it was great to be apart of that evening.

The drive back from Santo Domingo was less eventful, which is a great thing, trust me. We’d rather be alive, than have any stories to tell. We made a quick pit stop at Pizza Del Rio for a late night dinner and then came back to our compound. And now it’s off to bed. Tomorrow we officially have the day off and we’re looking forward to having some down time to catch up on sleep and explore the island a little more. Until then…

Besos,

Las Chicas

Day Four: Our Wife Stock is Depreciating

The morning, again, came early. We dressed and prepped for the coming day’s activities. Keeping to the routine, we started the day with a play of Silas and Paul. Once again, we were happy to see that the kids were actually paying attention and participating. Although, it wouldn’t be a day at the orphanage without a few distractions. After the play, we started our art activity for the day- today’s was FACE PAINTING! Super fun! However, because we only had enough paintbrushes for two of us to work, we had to “split” up the group. One half went to Les and I for face painting, while the other half went to Mai and Katie for drawing and watercolors. (While our intentions of “splitting” the group equally were great in theory, the majority of the kids hovered around Les and I just waiting to be painted.)

Two hours later, we had a beautifully painted set of children. Mariposas and flores everywhere, even the occasional Spiderman (Les and I really need to consider starting a face painting business, forget grad school ☺). After face painting, we had lunch and then it was off to English classes. However, because the keys to the classrooms were misplaced, we had to wait a while before finding another available classroom. By the time we had everyone situated in this new classroom, it was time to leave for the field trip. So needless to say, our day at the orphanage went by really quickly today.

The field trip itself (while we were really worried given their rowdy behavior on the playground) actually went smoothly. The kids were engaged and well-behaved and just little angels once they left the orphanage walls. We all took a bus together to Altos de Chavon. As I mentioned before, Altos de Chavon is this beautiful town situated at the top of this hill, which overlooks the nearby beach and river- it’s stunning. For our field trip we were taking the kids to this archeological museum in the city there so that they could see all the ancient artifacts from the indigenous tribes of the Dominican Republic. The bus ride itself was great, lots of Justin Beiber and Miley Cyrus sing-a-long songs (and with the kids’ face paint, they were all just adorable). After the museum, Yanet was kind enough to drop us off at our casa and we prepared for some down time (FINALLY!).

So during our down time, we basically kept up with emails and lounged around (debriefed about our day) and then this thought came to our minds: why not do some laundry? And why not? Well here’s why…

Katie, Les, and I put our laundry in the machine. The same way we always do (trust me, we’ve done laundry before). And yet, 10 minutes later we hear Maile yell, “The ENTIRE downstairs is flooded!” So Katie and I sprint down stairs, soon followed by Les and yep, what do we find? Lake Michigan- on our downstairs floor. Sweet. Katie in her panic decided to grab every towel we own and throw them into the gigantic pool of water (so now we’re without towels- mind you, this is all happening while Leslie is hysterically laughing, and I’m trying to record this on the Flip Cam). Coincidentally, Yanet and Luke arrived at the same time as our discovery of our new lake, so they graciously decided to help us sweep galloons of water out every available door. It took about 40 minutes, but we kinda got the whole mess sopped up, kinda. Anyway, by the time we came back, the floors had basically dried (thanks to Luke’s ingenious engineering). Attention NASDAQ: Our wife stock has depreciated as of tonight. Doesn’t mean it can’t be fixed, I suppose…hahaha

Dinner was great, we went to this little local pizza shack and it was a relaxing dinner after such a hectic day. Luke, Chris, Yanet, and Chris’s son and his girlfriend all joined us for dinner (I can’t remember their names- but Maile and Katie tell me they were “C.J. and Laura” respectively). It was nice to feel like a family so far away from home. After dinner we went to this local bar for a half hour, just to get out and see the DR at night. It was quaint and humid. The power kept going on and off (generators come in clutch), but overall a good experience.

In the end, this whole day has been so eventful and great- truly such a blast in so many ways. We are so grateful that the four of us get to spend this precious time together before we all go off on our separate ways- and spending this time serving others could not be more rewarding. There is so much more we want to say and update you on, but that will need to be saved until tomorrow, when we all have more energy. The kids take it out of us, so we’re always frantic to try to get to bed by 10pm haha (realllll party animales). Anyway, sending peace and love and now trying to catch some z’s.

Ta-Ta!

Las Chicas

Day Three: The Unmarried Swine

First of all: great news, Katie deduced how to reconfigure my internet from Spanish to English, so hopefully I’ll have more success uploading pictures today. Last night I was only able to upload one picture, which was of the four of us girls and Luke at Altos de Chavon (with a local donkey haha- so standard). My b on failing to upload a description, so in case y’all were wondering- that’s what that was ☺

Again we started the day off with a play- this time our play (again in espanol) was about the book of Job. Katie played the “Voice of God” (naturally), Chanel played Satan (hmmm…), Les played Job and Job’s wife (listening to the dialogue she holds between herself is hilarious), and Mai played the Narrator again (because her Espanol es muy bien). The kids again were all very engaged and participated in our questions at the end. Although, they were semi-distracted today because the local dentist came to give them all a fluoride rinse (GREAT! Right? I was pumped on that).

After the dentist, we had our planned activity for the day, which was making prayer bags. We brought little paper snack bags and stamps and markers and stickers (sea foam creatures! Fun!) and the kids each got to decorate their own prayer bag. We’re hoping to fill them with their prayer requests during the week. After the prayer bags, we had an earlier lunch and sat in the mess hall with the kids while they ate. We then parted ways (or so we thought) and had lunch “alone” at our own table. That whole “alone” time that we had for lunch yesterday, ya that didn’t work out so well today. The kids were hanging on and around us the whole time, so we gave up and ended lunch early to get back to play time.

After lunch, we all played some more playground games- volleyball (which soon became “keep-away”) and it was a big hit. Then it was time for our English lessons in the classrooms. Again, Les and I shared a room and Katie and Mai shared a room. For some reason, the kids were extra amped on life today so they were practically bouncing off the classroom walls- LITERALLY, which made the English lessons today slightly more difficult. And I don’t think I’ve taken the time to fully describe how acrobatic and talented these kids are. They scale trees and vertical walls like it’s their job. Jumping from cement platform to cement platform and using metal rods as toys. Our first impression with these “playful” activities was hesitation and fear, but we now know that this playground has become something of a “jungle” for these kids- I like to refer to it as “Darwin’s Daycare.” But seriously, they are tough kids.

Needless to say, after our English lessons, the four of us were exhausted. So “playtime” became lounge-around-and-play-with-our-hair time (also known as make fun of the American’s time). This usually consists of them joking around at our clothes, accents, or lack of general Spanish-language knowledge. Haha these kids are one-of-a-kind. As the day was winding down, another group (like 20 Americans) came by the orphanage to play with the kids. This routine has happened almost every day that we’ve been there. Which really puts into perspective how transient most people are in their lives. While it is easy to be saddened and dwell on this thought, it’s also important to realize that the only things these kids care about is love and attention, so it does serve a purpose in the end…

Some other memorable moments from the day: Yanet’s story about Dominican hospitality. Apparently, Dominican’s are known for being loving and giving individuals and she gave the example of her own mother. I guess Yanet’s mom found this guy wandering the streets one day and took him into her home. She housed and fed him for 6 months, and then one day the guy randomly disappeared. Interesting. But great to know that we are surrounded by such a giving and caring people ☺ Another great moment, watching the kids all receive their fluoride rinses only to have them spit it out all over the floor (and on Maile) 10 seconds later and then proceed to eat candy. (My question is: who thought it was a good idea to give the kids candy 30 minutes after a fluoride rinse? Counter-intuitive, but I’m not one to judge haha). Today I (Chanel) had a hard time with one of the orphans because I didn’t want to put her down. She’s this little girl (Megan) who’s only 3 months old and she is absolutely precious. She is beautiful and Mom if you’re reading this: you are so lucky that it’s nearly impossible to adopt from this orphanage because I would have been a mother after today. But she latched on to me and startled gnawing at my shoulder and arm and I didn’t want to put her down. I think I’m in love….On another note: Maile had a great conversation with some of the girls today, who were SHOCKED to find out that none of us were married. They kept calling us “jamonas, jamonas,” and looked at us like we were crazy haha. Originally we thought they were calling us “fat spinster swines,” but according to freetranslation.com (which is very credible and valid) it means “good-looking women.” So we’ll take that comment and run with it- it’s not that often that we receive those from the kids haha…Which leads me into my next highlight: Katie received several great pictures from the kids today. Two of which were drawings of her and Bo (Katie’s boyfriend). One of them said “Katie” and “Bo” all over it and the other was a descriptive scene of their wedding day (which, according to the girls, is expected within the next year). Heads up Bo, you may be looking at a short engagement hahahahaha.

I’m going to try to update some pictures tonight- hopefully more successfully- if I can’t figure it out, then check out facebook because I need to upload these and make room for more ☺

Last comment: our time with these girls (and boys) has already been so incredible, inspiring, and challenging. But overall, it really gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “love is patient.” Because we have all come to the consensus that after so many times of being pulling in 4 different directions by 6 different pairs of hands, the only thing you can do is breathe and enjoy it. Because these children are so precious and desperate for our attention. We are flattered to be so openly received and loved by them. It’s going to be really difficult to leave them- like seriously REALLY difficult. I’m already getting anxiety just thinking about it. But, again. Just wanted to reiterate how much we are savoring each and every minute we’re here. It has by NO MEANS been easy. Far from it. But it has been an incredible blessing and experience. We can’t thank you enough for all of your prayers. We see God working every time we’re with them. So thank you!

Well, now we’re off to dinner (aka downstairs) and Bible study. So we’ll update you soon!

Sending so much love!!!

(P.S. tomorrow is field-trip day one. You can ONLY IMAGINE what that means. Trust me, we’re scared haha).

Abrazos y besos,

Las Chicas

Day Two: We Have a Plan...

So after yesterday, we were determined to come into today with a plan. And things went swimmingly. We started off with a play that we performed in Spanish for the kids. It was a skit about Esther and surprisingly, the kids were really receptive. They were engaged and answering questions and it was awesome to start the morning off with such a great start. We then proceeded to the second activity- tye dying!!!!! It was a great choice for our first activity (and we later found out that it was the first time any of the kids had ever tye dyed in their lives- exciting!!!). It was a chaotic and colorful experience to put it lightly ☺ We had Maile in charge of designating t-shirt sizes and writing names on the shirts, then Katie was in charge of rubber banding and prepping the shirts, and Les and I were manning the dying station. We all walked away with colored shirts and dyed hands (mine are permanently green and somewhat resemble Shrek’s hands). But the kids loved it! They were running around with the dye and spraying it everywhere (I’m pretty sure the grass and floors may be permanently stained as well haha), but well worth it. (Some faces and hair were also permanently dyed too, but no fault of our own ☺ ).

After the shirts were left to dry, we played some fun card games and chess, and it was soon time for lunch. Lunch was great because we mandated alone time for the four of us (we realized we needed this down time to just regain our energy and steam so we could keep up with the kids for the entirety of the day- coffee helped too ☺ ). After lunch, we had English lessons (which actually went really well! Jesus trivia, and sentence forming- the kids were really engaged and loving everything!). Then after class, we took pictures of each and every child because we’re planning to print the pictures of the kids and distribute them to each one individually (we realized on the first day that they love taking pictures and what a novelty it is for them, so we thought it would be really special as a keepsake). The rest of the day was filled with free play and dancing and other fun activities.

Some other memorable moments throughout the day included: Katie’s one-on-one time with the girls- where they just talked about the fun and delicious fruits and chocolates that they get to eat on special occasions. Leslie and Chanel got to share some fun experiences with the girls by having them draw and write all over them and their t-shirts- taking tie dying to a whole different level haha. Maile, Les, and Chanel also had a great game of plank ball (baseball played with a wooden plank)- we were knocking those balls all over the playground, literally (and climbing into the trees to retrieve them when they got stuck). Katie also had a relaxing time, after organizing a massage train. Let’s just say she’s good at what she does haha. Also, Les and Mai taught the kids Chinese checkers and chess, another valuable tool for the daily life. Another “funny” moment was when the kids thought it would be hilarious to chase Chanel with a spider that they found (I sprinted into the main office and locked myself in there until they relinquished their pet and promised not to threaten me with it again). Ohh and to end the day, Les and Mai had a yoga session for the kids (great idea, leave it to those two to come up with that ☺), which I’m pretty sure intrigued and calmed them down all at the same time.

Overall, the day was amazing, and we were much more at ease and comfortable with the kids. We’re so excited for more activities tomorrow!

After the orphanage, Luke picked us up and took us on a mini-tour. We drove up to the Altos de Chavon, this beautiful little city that is designed and structured after ancient European cities and is located at the top of a cliff in La Romana. It’s simply stunning. It lies above the river and has breath-taking views of the forests and beaches, with cobblestoned buildings and churches. We’ll have to post you some pictures. ☺ We then came back, showered, ate (had a fly-swatting session- for some reason, there were like 30 flies zipping around the house today and they needed extermination), and had our own mini-Bible study. We’re going through the book of James on this trip and it’s been an incredible read so far.

I know this has been a jam packed message, but I also wanted to leave you all with this thought that we’ve been discussing for the past few days:

These children are incredible and we are so blessed to have even just a brief two weeks with them. But it is also humbling to know that like so many others who have passed through their lives, we will come and go too; hopefully, becoming a happy memory in their lives. This reality is truly an inspiring thought because it really emphasizes the importance of our presence and the time we spend with the children. Yes, they have clothes and food, and some games from wonderful donors. But we realize that what these children value the most, is our time and presence, and most importantly-our physical touch. They are desperate for attention and love and no amount of material wealth or anything else can replace that. We mentioned in earlier posts that “love” is the theme of this trip, but it could not have been more clearly emphasized by this realization. Love is an incredible and powerful force. One that we all take for granted on a daily basis. The four of us are incredibly blessed with the backgrounds, experiences, and support systems that we come from, but many individuals (these orphans included) cannot say the same. This thought may be gibberish and is definitely a stream of consciousness text, but it is one that I thought would be important to share- as a token of truth from this experience already. We are so grateful that God can use us as His hands and feet and to be that presence that these children so desperately need. But there are so many others out there that need and require that same thing. Love is powerful.

So we’ll end with that. Thank you for continuing to follow our experience. We love you guys and thank you again for your emails, thoughts, prayers, and support. This has already been a life-changing experience.

James 1:27 “Religion that our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted from the world.”

In His Name,

Las Chicas

Day One.

Hello Friends and Family!

Update on last night:

So last night was awesome. Yanet was wonderful, so welcoming and just a sweetheart. She picked us up and took us to the orphanage’s church. On the way we made two pit stops. The first was at the boys' orphanage (a 3-bedroom building that houses 40 boys) and they were completely adorable and so happy to see us. They were all fascinated by our watches and Chanel’s silly bands haha, I wish I had more to give them...We then continued on our journey, but were hindered by a road-block: a reggae tone boy band taking their glam shots in the middle of the street haha. So what do we do? Of course join in the photo shoot. Yanet and the four of us climbed out of the car and glamed it up for our moment in the spotlight haha. Then off we went to the church.

We finally made it to the church only to find that the service was all in Spanish, so all of us were completely lost for most of it haha- we later had Yanet translate for us and the message sounded great: from 2 Samuel 9 and Matthew about how prayer is our strongest connection with God and other great words of wisdom. Overall it was a great first day and first impression of everyone. We were excited.

And then today happened....

So today we were off to an early start. Because we decided to leave all of our watches and phones at home, we were without alarm clocks and any sense of time for most of the day. Luckily, Leslie decided to go for a walk earlier in the morning and was kind enough to be our personal alarm clock. I speak for Katie and myself, when I say that we woke up completely disoriented, so rushed out of bed in a panic haha. We quickly got ready in 20 minutes to meet Chris downstairs, who then picked us up so we could get IDs for our home-stay location. Immediately after, we met with Yanet for our drive to the orphanage. Once we arrived we were instantly welcomed and adored by the 60 girl orphans in the orphanage. Needless to say, we had our hands full for the entire day. We had the kids split up into teams of 4 (one for each of us: Katie, Chanel, Les, and Mai). We also were quick to figure out that few of the children spoke English, so we struggled through the day with our broken Spanish and Italian haha (Maile was great at commanding attention with her fluent speaking skills). But, we definitely were handicapped with our linguistic abilities, however the repetition of the same key phrases (“Que occurio?” And “No entiendo”) helped us get through most of the day :)

We started the day with chaos. Maile and her group played baseball (half of the time with a bat, half of the time with a plank- don’t worry rusty nails removed by Jorge and Luis), Leslie played volleyball, and Katie and I headed for the library with our kids to read and color. We then broke into two groups for English lessons; Leslie and I were in one classroom with our kids, and Maile and Katie in the other. Our lessons consisted of numbers, letters, Jesus trivia, Simon says, famous landmarks (we were just thinking on our feet haha) and math games. It was definitely a challenge for us as our Spanish speaking skills were definitely being stretched to the max, so you can only imagine our translations haha. We all then congregated an hour later for lunch and a tour of the orphanage. The orphanage consists of a kitchen, dining room, first aid room, a laundry room, and several bedrooms. A humble home for wonderful kids.

Later, we continued with the fun by “organizing” dance time (I use the word “organize” loosely because let’s be honest, there’s no way we can totally control the kids haha). The kids were GREAT dancers. I need to emphasize “great”. Putting the four of us to shame. Apparently we thought we were good dancers, but may need to reconsider that truth haha. We then had a talent show between our four groups. This included choreographed dancing and break dancing. The kids then insisted that the four of us do our own dance for everyone, so in our spontaneity, what did we pull together? The electric slide/renegade stomp and Miley Cyrus. Classic. They loved it, although recommended that we work on our originality haha. We ended the day at the orphanage in Yanet's office, planning for the next 2 week's activities, which include many arts and crafts and field trips. Fun times ahead.

Finally, Chris picked us up and happily took us to the grocery store so we could stock up on food. We cannot even tell you how amazing this man is. He is always so happy and willing to help and his presence is such a great comfort in this foreign country. He's awesome. We also have a housemate- Luke (his assistant) and he has been so awesome by helping us with tasks all around La Romana as well.

So much has already happened and we can't wait to see what else is in store :)

We are now about to break for shower time, dinner, and a small Bible study of our own. Tomorrow we'll hopefully have more time to update you with some pictures, video clips, and more details.

Until then...

(P.S. We have all been contributing to this blog’s joint message. But as a side note, I am so grateful to have these girls here with me. This experience is amplified by their presence, wisdom, and grace that they impart on all of these children. Watching them with these kids makes me so incredibly happy- they are wonderful people and if you don’t know them, you have to meet them- they’re awesome. Such an amazing blessing.)

Paz y amor,

Las Chicas

We're Here!!!!

Hi!!!!

We made it! We can't believe we're here! Surreal. It's beautiful!

Let's recap so far.

Yesterday, Maile picked up Chanel from Laguna Niguel and we made our way up to Leslie's house in Huntington Beach. There, the three of us carpooled and traveled to LAX together. I'm not going to lie, it got semi-stressful as we ran about 30 mins behind due to traffic (I suppose it was stressful just for me, Maile and Les seemed fairly at ease). So needless to say, we were pushing the envelope haha. All the while, Katie was already at LAX because here family was already up there dropping off her sister at the airport too. So here we had Katie waiting at the airport for about an hour (biting her nails all the while haha) and the three of us casually strolling into LAX nearly an hour and a half later than we planned. Typical.

So then the Small's dropped us off at LAX (thanks so much for the ride- we so appreciated it!), and we had to proceed through the check-in process (which at this rate is dramatic because we have so many extra bags stuffed with arts and crafts- so we're a mess haha). With a sly little wink, we made up for lost time by checking in through business class (probably saved us an hour- and yes, we were flying economy- sweet deal). Katie meanwhile is searching for us in the masses of the economy class check in. In the end, we all got through and made it through security (not without some serious body scanning) and we were on our way!

First stop: Starbucks, for some double filtered Venti waters. Yes, true statement. Starbucks actually has double-filtered water (for those of you who were wondering where that savory taste came from). So with our waters in hand we made it to our gate, boarded our flight and we were off to MIA.

Leslie, Maile, and Chanel slept fairly well. Katie didn't have the same success...Regardless, we were all tired when we got to MIA at 6am (3am California time). Maile then left the airport to have breakfast with her cousin (yay for reunions!), while the other three girls decided not to chance it and we all stayed at the airport and had breakfast at Clubhouse One (for those of you who were curious)- it was great: omelettes, chocolate chip pancakes, and agua.

The three of us then moseyed over to gate D8 and passout on the floor for a 2 hour nap. And when we woke up, it was time to board and Maile had arrived. However, before boarding, we decided it was a good idea to take some Airborne as a great preventative measure against sickness. On accident, Chanel dropped 3 tablets of Airbone into the water (that's 3 times 1667% Vitamin C- woops). So we decided to split it three ways between Maile, Katie, and Chanel- good idea right? We'll let you know how our overdose goes...

Our next flight went well, and when we arrived we located all of our luggage and met Chris, a family friend of Maile's. Suuuuper nice guy- we're so grateful for his help carting all of our luggage to our home-stay.

And finallllyyy, we made it to our homestay. We're staying at Maile's great uncle's house in La Romana. It's beautiful and we're so grateful for the accomodations. Thank you!

After a long day, we had a small meal, watched the U.S Open, and took a little siesta.

Since then, we got dressed, applied our DEET (Maile already accumuated 4 mosquito bites- Sorry Mai-Mark it.), and now we're getting ready to go to church and meet with Yanet (the orphanage manager, who we will be working with for the next 2 weeks).

So we're off! We're so happy we're here and so excited to see what God does with us for the next 2 weeks.

We'll let you know how tonight goes :)

Con amore,

Las Chicas (Chanel, Leslie, Maile, and Katie)

Arts and Crafts

As our days for preparation are winding down, we have been frantically gathering as many arts and craft supplies that we can find and fill our bags with. That means lots of Michael's, Target, and Walmart trips. I wanted to mention a special shout-out to Kendall Stevens, who helped with the whole process- Ken without you, this trip wouldn't be the same!


The Fruits of Our Labor:
- paper bag puppets
- face painting
- finger painting
- t-shirt tie-dying
- beads and bracelets
- prayer boxes
- Christmas ornament decorating
- coloring
- stamp pads/sticker activities
- foam sea creatures (I don't know what that means, but Katie seemed excited about it, so we all are excited about it haha).
- coloring books
- pinwheel making (Thanks Kendall!)
- water coloring
- and much more

To be honest, I don't know who's going to have more fun with all these crafts!- Us or them :)

So that's the latest! Tomorrow we leave for Miami and then La Romana!!!! We're all driving to the airport together (thanks to the Smalls!)

More to come!!!!!

Abrazos y besos,

Los Chicas

Mas Preparacion

Hey everyone!

Some updates:

1. We have a more updated outline for the layout of the summer program we will be running. It looks like the day will begin at 9am and we will work until we break for lunch. Then we will continue to work until 5pm, at which time we will go home for the day. The girls and I are excited about this plan because we are confident that we will be able to prepare well for the following day's activities.

2. We received a $30 Target giftcard with which we can purchase some art supplies for the trip! Yay! We are hoping to do fun art activities and t-shirt tie dying :) Fun times ahead :)

3. American Airlines allows for one free checked bag! That is great news for us because we needed the extra space to bring supplies and goodies for the kids :)

4. We leave late Saturday night and will be getting there on Sunday afternoon-ish.

5. We are so excited!

That's it for now, just wanted to keep y'all updated. More to come :)