I am having trouble uploading photos today and so you just get a bunch of words-smile. I will definetly post some photos as soon as I can. While I'm on the subject of internet challenges in a foreign country, I wanted to say that I am SO SORRY that I am not sending out a newsletter yet. We are swamped with the challenges of full time (4 hours a day + aprox 1 -2 hours of homework), walking, walking,walking(smile), market, cooking, washing, washing, getting to know our people group by being out and about WHEW ! its TONS of transition. My newsletter list of emails has gotten all scrambled up and finding the 3 + hours that I need to work on it is not appearing as of yet but I am HOPEFUL that I will have it soon. We are finishing our two weeks of being here and everyday things seem easier and more "normal". Unfortunetly, there are just so time consuming as well. Anyway, PLEASE be patient with us and we will have a newsletter very soon ! 

Some neat things that have happened :

* I am starting to hear some of the language that I am learning in school being used on the streets. I know that sounds crazy but the Guatemalan people talk so fast that it is hard to catch really even one word ( people say that we talk fast in the south- whew- I don't know about that anymore) 

* I only cried to myself (in the school bathroom) twice this week because I just get exhauseted trying to hear and speak Spanish for 4 hours everyday. I even go to bed hearing my vocabulary list going on and on in my head. David woke up the other day and asked me if I kept hearing Spanish words all night so I must not be crazy. 

*Grayson and I were in a shop yesterday and I recognized the words Hallelujah being sung in a song. I asked the lady in VERY choppy Spanish first What is your name( atleast that was my intention) After she answered me Good I realized that I had asked her How are you (tooo funny ! ) Anyway, somehow by the Lords grace I was able to ask her if it was Christian music on the radio and she said yes. I asked her if she was a Christian and she said yes. Before I knew it there were 3 girls standing there wanting to hear/speak English. One of the girls said that she knew English because she had been adopted by North Americans when she was younger. She has now moved back to Guatemala and misses her family. I left the store so excited ! I feel like these girls are some young ladies that I can reach out to and encourage using my Spanish in a way that can really bring glory to the Lord. 

*some challenges that we have:

1) traveling around: Yesterday, Grayson, myself and the three little guys were walking to meet David after language class. It is about a 2 mile walk one way. We headed out and the weather was fine. Not long into our walk (but to far into it to turn and go home) the bottom fell out of the sky. YEP! All of us were drenched ! We never made it to David. We had gone about a mile and then turned to go home (still pouring down rain) . We reached the house and realized that the only two keys to the house were with David and Cooper. (That was not a being deal before the rain because we were meeting up with both of them ) There is no porch here. Not even on anyone elses house to get under so we turned and headed back towards town. All of my frustration was put into perspective though when we reached the road. There were men in business suits and briefcases, women on their husbands handlebars of bikes, children soaking wet(like mine) but ALL of this put together that this is their life... We will eventually have a car... they more than likely won't. So.... all of the sudden it was just okay to be walking in the pouring down rain soaked to the bone. We weren't alone..not physically or spiritually. God is with the weary, down trodden and soaked to the bone. Even on days that just seem to give us rain and more rain we can be sure of two things.... the sun WILL come out and God IS with us! 

Love to you all from Central American (during rain season-smile), 

Melinda