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| Josue, Marvin, Thomas, Karen, & Manuel at Lake Yojoa |
What an amazing month! We had a great time with our friends Adam and Kelsey Leland here in Honduras and a wonderful two weeks in the states. Now we are back in Honduras and trying to remember that toilet paper has to go in the trash can and the water out of the tap is not safe to ingest. The month of July started with a power outage that lasted one week on the property where we live. Thankfully since then, there have been no major issues with any of the utilities here. Thank you for your prayers!
Manuel and Josué were thrilled to get to participate in
their school’s science fair. Although they did not win the grand prize, we were
especially impressed with the hard work and creativity they put forth to
complete their project. A big thanks to Tom Rybolt (my dad) for the many
experiment books and for helping me to love science as a child.
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| Manuel and Josue presenting to the judges at the science fair |
Adam and Kelsey Leland were a great support to our family
during their time here as well as to Eternal Family Project (EFP) and Home of
Blessing. Their first night was the most adventuresome because we took them to Las Flores where Marvin grew up. The long drive on rough roads and over a few creeks in addition to the heat and insects was a great introduction for them to see what life can be like in Honduras. Once we returned to Peña Blanca, Kelsey spent one day at the EFP learning center and did one on one
reading lessons with some of the girls while Adam and Marvin hung a more
efficient clothes line at the EFP home. The Lelands also helped serve food and
love on children at the Home of Blessing. Thomas quickly fell in love with them
during their time here as he is always looking for people to run around outside
with him. One afternoon while Kelsey and Adam babysat Thomas, I had the
opportunity to teach a health class to a group of moms whose children come to
the Home of Blessing. It was so great to connect with these moms and begin
discussing ways that we can care for our children and live up to the challenging
calling of being a mom.
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| Visiting with Marvin's mom and sisters in Las Flores |
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| Kelsey and Adam kayaking out to Lake Yojoa |
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| Kelsey serving the youngest children their food at the Home of Blessing |
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| Adam playing with the kids at the EFP learning center |
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| Estefani working on her reading skills |
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| Marvin setting up the clothes line at EFP home |
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| Health class with Home of Blessing mothers |
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| Adam and Kelsey enjoying the porch swing at the casita |
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| Marvin and Adam cooking breakfast for dinner |
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| Ramos and Lelands after church- THANK YOU ADAM AND KELSEY for your time and sacrifice!!! |
While we were in the states, Josué and Manuel were blessed
to always have someone at the home with them. They were spoiled with homemade
tortillas (a rare occurrence when I am the one cooking) and less chores. Marvin’s
grandmother Marta stayed for the first half of our time away and good friends
Oscar and Cristelia Vasquez stayed for the second half. Marta had a big scare
when she saw a man on the back porch with a ski mask attempting to steal the
propane gas tank that we use for cooking. Thankfully, he ran off when he
realized someone was home and had no intentions of harming anyone. Please pray
for the Lord’s protection and provision for the property and the home that we
live in. We are so blessed to be here!
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| Late night watercolor "party" before we left for the states |
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| Abuela Marta and the boys |
While in the states, we had a quick trip to Royston, GA
where we were able to visit with some of my mom’s side of the family. I also
got to go to Knoxville to help my sister Megan begin to unpack in her family’s
new house there. We enjoyed two Sundays worshipping at Scenic City Church and
the opportunity to share about our family and outreach in Honduras at Hixson
United Methodist. The rest of our time in Chattanooga was a wonderful whirlwind
of visiting family and friends, packing, organizing, and outings with Thomas.
We didn’t get to visit with everyone we wanted to but hope that we will have enough
time on our next visit to reconnect with more friends.
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| Grandpa took Thomas to the zoo |
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| Thomas loved seeing friends at Coolidge Park from Scenic City Church |
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| Marvin and Thomas playing outside the TN Aquarium after a fun visit with my Aunt Terri, Uncle Wesley, their kids (my cousins) and grandkids |
In the last week of our time in the states, we had the privilege
of joining my family at Lake Junaluska, NC for a vacation. It was so wonderful
to see all of my siblings, nieces, and dad’s side of the family. As a child, I
looked forward to spending a week at Lake Junaluska every summer, but I don’t
think I ever enjoyed it as much as I did this year. Playing tennis, swimming in
the pool, running around the playground, dinners together, evenings on the
porch overlooking the lake are just a few of the highlights from our trip.
Now that we are back in Honduras, we are
beginning to realize that Baby Joanna will be here in just about 3 months (due November 8th). We
know that having a new baby will change our focus so we are trying to make
worthy investments in relationships and ministries in the meantime. Please join
us in praying as we seek God’s will for how our time should be spent here. The days
seem to fly by and there is always more than enough to fill up each 24 hour
day, but we want to be intentional, we want to be used, and we don’t want to
miss out on opportunities that God has for us.
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| Josue, Thomas, and Manuel coloring after our return to Honduras. Brings me so much JOY when they all enjoy time together. |
"Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus." After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly. - Acts 4:29-31
