My Nana

God's plans are so much bigger than anything we could ever imagine. When I went to my appointment at the Costa Rican consulate, the lady literally checked off all my paperwork and then put it in a fedex envelope to send to Costa Rica. There was no logical reason for me to have turned it in here in the US instead of in Costa Rica. But God wanted me home, and I am so glad he brought me home at this time.

My grandparents had been visiting my family from Arizona, and they decided to stay a few extra days so they could see me. On Friday night, we all had a wonderful dinner together, and I was able to share with them everything going on in Costa Rica. Later that night, my grandma suffered a very severe stroke. The ambulance came and rushed her to the neurotrama unit in Roseville, where they operated and drained the blood from inside her head. There was severe brain damage and she had fallen into a coma. During the next few days we visited her everyday at the hospital, but there was no response and the doctors were not very hopeful. On Monday, a miracle happened and my grandma was able to respond to question by wiggling her thumb to answer yes. We got to spend several hours with her, sharing good memories and telling her how much we loved her and how much she impacted us. When we'd ask her if she was ready to go see Jesus, she would wiggle her thumb like crazy. Then when we asked her if she wanted to stay with us, she wouldn't move at all. My grandma had always made it very clear she did not want live in a nursing home, but this was the confirmation we needed in order to be able to take her of the respirator. On Monday night we sang all my grandma's favorite hymns to her and gave her a special charge to watch over us from up there. We took her off the respirator and after everyone had said their goodbyes, she went to be with Jesus.

My heart cannot yet grasp the fact that my Nana is gone for good, but I know that God has had his hand over all of this. In the last 6 months my grandparents traveled all over the country visiting all of their friends and family. They spent a month at my parents' house and got to see all of the kids' different Christmas programs. Then they would have been by themselves in Arizona when my grandma had the stroke, except, I had to come home to the States at the last minute for my residency. God definitely has a plan and I know that we can trust Him, especially in the midst of such hard circumstances.

I covet you prayers for me and my family, especially for my grandpa. He and my grandma were married for over 50 years. Papa knows that God will be his strength in these hards times, but it still is so trying.

I am so thankful to be home with my family right now, and I really appreciate all of your prayers and support.

Festival de la luz

This past weekend we had an amazing cultural experience of going to the annual light parade held in downtown San Jose. It's said that over a quarter of the country's population attendeds the parade each year! So while many people encouraged us to arrive before noon in order to ensure a spot among the million people, our group decided we did not want to wait in the rain with children for that long and figured 5 o'clock was plenty early, which it was.

One great advantage of being taller than the majority of the country's population, both male and female, is that you don't need the best spot at the parade. The were many strange pre-parade activities that included lots of mimes, clowns, and other odd mystical beings.

The actual parade did not reach us until after 8pm. It was pretty cool, but next year I think I will be content to watch it on tv.

I'll be home for Christmas!

As many of you know, dealing with government applications and processes can often be rather frustrating, but this one has turned out to be a blessing in disguises. Before I left the US, I was told (multiple times) by the Costa Rica consulate that I needed to turn in my application for residency in Costa Rica. Now it appears that some laws and procedures have changed and I can no longer turn in my application here. I must return to my home country and turn in the application at the Costa Rican consulate there. And it needs to be done as soon as possible before the laws change and my paperwork expires. Of course!

While initially this was extremely frustrating- I wasn't planning on going home till next summer, I didn't budget for it... what if the laws change again??? But despite all of these unknowns, I now see the forced trip home as a huge blessing! I get to be home with family for Christmas; which is the best possible present ever.

Without residency I would be forced to leave the country every 90 days which would get expensive and take up a lot of time. Also, I would be unable to get a cell phone, and other aspects of daily life here would be complicated. There are several laws currently in the Senate here in Costa Rica, that could severely affect my application for residency. Please pray that they won't be passed in time to hinder my applications and that everything will go smoothly during my appointment on the 19th.

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas

Call me old fashion, but there is no substitute for a living Christmas. Sure they make a lot of nice plastic ones these days and you can burn candles that smell like Christmas trees, but it's not the same. I was so excited to find out Costa Rica has their own beautiful pine that they grow especially for Christmas time. While we didn't make it to a cut your own tree farm, we did find a very obliging taxi driver to help us get it home from Hypermas (read: Walmart) It is now beautifully decorated with all of our Pequeno Mundo (read: Dollar Store) lights and ornaments. I love sitting on our couch with my cup of coffee and good book, with our special Christmas tree in front me. Now if only we had a Advent calendar.

Food for the Hungry

Yesterday we had a meeting with Jaun Carlos and Christina from an organization called Food for the Hunger. www.fhicr.com They have been working in Los Guidos, an area of 200,000 people within the city of Desamparados. During our meeting they shared with us their heart to see the churches united in Los Guidos, as well as, see people's lives transformed in body, mind, and soul. They shared with us many of the projects they already have established--feeding kitchens, sports clinics, parenting classes-- as well as those things they recognize a need for but don't currently have the staff to support. They are very open to working with Students International. We share a similar heart and vision for the people, and many of the projects they would like to start in Los Guidos are the same ideas we had from the needs we had observed through conversations with other peoples. While we are not certain that we will partner with FHI, the meeting was confirmation for our team that this is where God wants us, and the things He has been laying on our hearts coincide with the needs of this community. We really do not want to just barge into a neighborhood with all of our American ideas and try to "fix" the people. We want to come alongside what God is already doing in the area.

Please be praying for us as we try to discern exactly where God wants us to invest our time, talent, and treasures. Most of FHI's projects are winding down for the Christmas season, but after the first of the year, we all plan on spending sometime working as volunteers at different sites to see how we might fit into their ministry.