Today was a great last day. I was a little emotional, but overall it was really good. M-son took his first steps with out holding my hand today. It was so encouraging to see. I am so proud of that kid. He has come such a far way. JJ was so funny today. He ended up falling asleep on me so I did not have to see him cry when I took him back so it made that one a little easier. All my kids did great and I just loved on them as much as I could.

Melissa, a volunteer here who speaks creole, sat down with me and tutu, and explained to her that I had to leave tomorrow. She said she understood what Melissa was telling her and she just got really quiet, but then we danced and had fun so she was okay. (of coarse I was not). ☺ I seriously love this girl more than I thought possible.

I will have a little more time tonight with Tutu, and an hour tomorrow to kiss all my kids goodbye. I don’t know how I am going to do this but I am SOOOO thankful and so full of joy that I got to experience this.

All I can say is thank you. This trip could not have been done with out the prayers and financial support. To be honest, when I tried to put this together I did not think it was going to happen, but the Lord completely provided a way through my family and friends who love me more than I ever knew. This has been the best experience of my life. I have loved more than I ever thought possible, puked more than I thought possible in a night (thank you Haiti), and I have watched the Lord sustain me and use these kids in my life everyday. I can’t even put into words the way I feel about this trip.

I also want to say if there is something you have been wanting to do, DO IT. I was scared out of my mind coming here, and no one was telling me to this was going to be easy. I was scared, my parents were scared, most everyone I talked to thought I was crazy, but again if the Lord is calling you somewhere, GO!! Life is short and there is so much out there and it is so easy for us to get stuck in our little bubble. This experience has been life changing and the Lord provided in everyway possible, and yes some things are scary, but GOOOO. Stop putting it off!! Again life is so short!

Also- props to my mom ☺ We don’t get enough internet here to upload pictures, so I e-mail my mom the pictures, and she uploads them all! (best mom ever)

Again, thank you so so so so much. My plane gets in tomorrow around 8:30 pm, and please pray for safe travel.

Do not stop praying for these kids! Prayer is so powerful and they need it so bad. Just because I am leaving does not mean they get to leave. If you ever want to make a donation to this orphanage, PLEASE contact me and I will tell you what to do.

This is the verse I clung to here. Do not forget how big He is, and that no matter where you are in your life, he is with you.

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” -Joshua 1:9

All credit to God for this trip. I could not have done it without him. God is SOOOO good.

Love yall, so much!

Becca

Me and tutu.. She was not in the baby picture.. because she is not a baby. She is going to be the hardest to leave. Please pray she gets proposed to a family. This girl has had the biggest impact on my life. I love her more than I thought possible.

Here is the crew of all my babies!! In order from left to right its M-son, R-baby, M-man, Ken, E-man, JJ, Leine, and G-baby. Thank yall so much for letting this trip happen and letting me experience this. I love these kids so so much and leaving is going to be so hard but i am SO blessed they got to be a part of my life. THANK YALL AGAIN SO SO SO SO SO MUCH!! ps- getting 8 babies to look at the camera is priceless.. we had a great time taking these pictures...

Being bombarded in the nursery.. I am going to miss this so much.

Tutu. I don't know how I am going to leave this girl..

G-baby.. beautiful

Camping out last night was sooo much fun! considering there is barley electricity in haiti, the stars here are AMAZING. we saw like 20 shooting stars. it was awesome! Definitely a good idea, except i woke up at 4am and my toes were so cold i thought they were going to fall off.. little did we know it cools down about 25 degrees at night.

Today was great, and my kids are doing great. I can't believe tomorrow is my last full day. This trip really has been amazing. Alecia leaves tomorrow and that will be very hard to say bye. I love my kids so much and leaving them will be hard too but I know they will get new volunteers soon and I know that my time with them is done. I tried to tell tutu that I was leaving soon, and that I had to go home, but i could not even finish saying it!

I got peed on today and it did not even phase me.. the first day i got peed on and i cleaned my shirt for like 10 minutes.. It made me laugh so hard. Things have changed since I have been here!

Anyways, Keep praying for these kids. R-baby, Leine, M-son, E-man, Ken, M-man, Tutu, and JJ have touched in more ways than i could have ever touched theirs. The Lord put each one of them in my life for a reason and I am so thankful for that.

I will let yall know how my last day goes tomorrow.

Love yall!

Becca

one of the toddler girls rooms.. they are very fun, and when we go to kiss them goodnight, they jump from their beds and start dancing and getting so excited. I am sure the nannys hate it but its one of my favorite parts of the day!

JJ.. i loveee this kid.

You basically get bombarded in the nursery.. I MISS YOU KIMMM!!!!

Leaving here is going to be harder than i thought. Today was so good, but KIM I MISS YOU!! My kids were all great today. E-man had a really good day, i can not even tell you how good he is at walking now. 3 weeks ago he was taking maybye 4 steps, not he is walking all over the place. It is so encouraging. M-son decided he was not going to work on walking today. He would not even stand up, and usually i would put him in a walker, but i gave in today and just snuggled with him, trying to take in all i could get! I ate dinner fast so I could run up and grab tutu before she ate. I got her dinner and took her to the balcony, and let her eat dinner on the hammock. She loved it and we got some good one on one time together. It was really special. Leaving her is going to be tough. Today we also had a birthday party for all of the kids whose birthday is in july. It was so great and they were so excited. They got brownies and juice and it was such a treat for them. We sang happy birthday and it was great to just see them so excited.

Tonight me, alecia and laila have decided to camp out. We are sleeping on the balcony under the stars. How can you be in haiti and not take opportunities like this? The other volunteers think we are crazy.. but i am ok with that :)

Keep praying for these kids and continue praying for brittani, her dads funeral was this morning. Her trust is fully in God and she knows He has this under control.

I love yall and again THANK YOU for the prayers. :)

Becca

Me and Kim on our last shopping excursion!

Some street shops

Kissing the older kids good night!

Yesterday was a half work day, so in the afternoon we our job was to get a lot of the babies hand and foot prints for their files for their future families. It was so funny. Me and kim worked together, and we were HORRIBLE at it. Lets just say the first babies hand print we did (his name was Jamison) did great at first, then GRIPPED the paper after we were done.. oops.. but it was great and their hands are tiny. Last night was fun too. We ate hot dogs for dinner and I really tried to eat one, but it did not do too good with my stomach (I ate hot dogs the night I got sick, and I don’t think I can ever look at them the same again ☺) We then went back and just hung out and watched the movie hope floats. Its crazy how much I miss my kids on the weekends.

Today was incredible. Me, Kim, and Alecia decided to go to Haitian church instead of our normal house church. It was so incredible. I can’t even describe it. It was a little less than 3 hours, and I was worried about being able to sit there, and have no idea what they were saying for 3 hours, but it was so powerful. To hear people praising the Lord in a different language and in a land that has totally been corrupted gave me chill bumps. The worship was awesome because we knew the songs, so we sang along in English while they sang in creole. People raised their hands and were on their knees for the Lord. It was so cool. You walk outside of the church doors and things are crazy here. Haiti was the land dedicated to satan, but today reminded me that the Lord still has a hold on it and is moving this country closer to Him everyday. This was one of the best church services I have ever been to. It was just an experience. They made me and Kim stand up because we were visitors and it was pretty funny. We also made some friends with some girls who wanted to sit in our laps and play with our bracelets the whole time. It was so funny.

After church we ate lunch then got to go to the lookout again. It was just as beautiful. We then got to go to the top of a mountain that overlooks all of Port Au Prince and it was so pretty. I also learned some history of Haiti.

Right now i am sitting on a couch with M-son in my arms watching a soccer game... could not get any better than this.

Kim leaves tomorrow, and I am SOOOO happy we got to experience this together. It will be something we can share forever. I am so blessed by her and by our friendship.

God has taught me the power of prayer here. It is so powerful. Keep praying for these kids, and for brittani. I love yall!

Becca

All the kids getting to watch the "basketball game" and us volunteers had the idea of sitting with them. I think there was a point when each of us had about 6 kids on our laps.. those are probably my favorite moments.

me and k-man. He is doing great!!

Me and Leine being girly :) She LOVES her tutus.

I can't believe I just finished with my last full week.. Today was very good. We had bible study this morning, and then spent the day with our babies, and then we ended early because between 4 of the guy staff here they had a 2 on 2 basketball game, so everyone got together to watch it. It was SO funny and people were more into this than they are at any other game I have been to! its was SO funny. The entertainment here is very different, and very very fun. Me and kim got our dance on a little bit :)

Today with the kids was great. I am just trying to make the most of every moment, epsically knowing I am about to leave. M-son is doing so good. I can't even explain it. He took about 3 steps today and has just laughed and laughed. Tutu and I went on a walk today, and i got her some tampico (the really good juice here) so we drank that and sat on a ledge that over looked the mountains. Today i walked into the nursery to grab a baby and when she saw she could not come, she did not cry like the babies do, she just teared up and tried to hold it together so hard. It broke my heart, but she is doing so good and is so strong. Leine had a great day today too. She LOVES bubbles, and will chase them until i stop blowing them. Its so funny.

Funny story: So during the basketball game some of us were in the nursery with the kids (my self included) and there is a ledge they can lean over to look over the balcony, and a baby took her diaper off and peed off the balcony onto one of the volunteers!! it was SOOOO funny. Literally she was in the exact spot. The nannys espicially thought that was funny. I laughed so hard I almost peed my pants my self!

Life is so different here and I love it. Everything slows down here. Babies are so joyful, even though they have nothing and sleep 4 to a crib. It is just eye opening. The Lord is so evident in each of these kids.

The premature baby who arrived sunday that was 2 pounds passed away today. It was very sad but we know the Lord has her in a better place. Her family was planning on keeping the baby once she got healthy, so please pray for them as the news is going to be broken to them.

Tonight we got pizza for dinner, and it is probably the best pizza i have ever eaten.. SO good.

Thank you again for the prayers, and please remember to keep brittani and her family in your prayers.

Love yall!!

Nap time! These babies literally sleep through anything

Tutu! i LOVEEE this girl

Me and R baby. SHe had such a good day!!

As of now we can not find any flights opened to get home, and I think I am staying and leaving on the original date of Thursday. I am crushed not to be with britt during this time but I know that if I am supposed to be there the Lord will provide a way. If not I am blessed to get to spend my last week with my babies.

Yesterday was really good. The Lord helped me to keep the distractions out of my head and be all there for the babies. I had an especially good day with R baby. She laughed so much, and was not as insecure on the balcony. Sometimes she is really intimidated and stands still unless I move her but today she was doing great. I cannot even tell you how great M-son is doing. It has been a 180 turn around. He is smiling more and more everyday and he has a much better attitude about walking. Leine and k-man also did great today. E-man did not have a great day.. I have never seen him throw a fit till today. It was quiet amusing, but of coarse he was fine. He ended up falling asleep while crying. Sometimes I feel like these kids just have break downs.

I kept tutu out for most of the morning. Because she is older I have learned I can keep her out while I have my babies out, and she likes to help me play with them. My babies love bubbles, and she loves to blow bubbles for them. She also loves to help M-son walk by cheering for him. Tutu is sooo precious. I have never heard a laugh like hers or seen so much joy in a kid. She gets upset when she has to go back to the nursery, but she holds it in and I sit down with her and tell her I love her, (she tried to repeat it and says something like “ilavpoo”) and then gives me a kiss and she is fine. She is a very tough girl. She really is a miracle baby.

It is also so cool how well I have gotten to know the other volunteers here. Alecia has been here since the day I got here and is leaving one day before me. Spending so much time with someone in a place like this brings out different relationships than any I have had. The Lord has blessed me so much from the friendships here. Being here with Kim has also been a blessing. Me and kim really do know how to have a good time together.

Keep praying for these kids. I can’t believe I have less than a week left. I love yall and thank you for the prayers! And please be praying for brittani and her family

Becca

So there are some serious prayers needed right now. A horrible thing happened, and i feel helpless here in Haiti. I have asked permission for britt if i could share this to pass on the prayer request and she said absolutely: Brittani's dad passed away from a heart attack Tuesday night. It was an unexpected death, and we all know that those are horrible. My mom is looking at flights for me to leave early from here so I can try to make it to the funeral. The funeral is monday and in Pennsylvinia and the only option for me to leave would be tomorrow or sunday. This has all happened so fast, and it is super sad and stressful. first, please get on your knees for brittani and her family. PLEASE be praying for them. I cannot imagine. Second, please pray if I am supposed to leave early the Lord will provide a way. This has all happened so fast and I have been a basket case thinking about brittani's dad, and brittani, and thinking about leaving my babies and none of this was expected. Please pray that the Lord gives me a peace about what He is going to have me do. I am supposed to be leaving on Thursday (a week from today) and am not prepared at all. Please be praying the Lord's will is done. I do not doubt His timing is perfect. I know He will have me where it is I need to be, and as you all know brittani has been my best friend for many years and I can not imagine not being there with her. Its hard enough not being there with her now, however i cant imagine leaving here. ITs all a mix of emotions and please just be praying. I will keep yall posted.

"For i know that in ALL things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28

Me and e-man! Please be keeping him in your prayers. He is walking all over the place now!!

M-son belly laughing. Thats what he looks like when we are not working on walking :). i don't know how I am going to leave these kids..


Me and k-man. This kid cracks me up. He has such a personality. EVERY day when I take him out of the nursery he has to snuggle for about 30 minutes, and then he will be ready to play. Its so funny. These babies know how to snuggle here. Its so crazy how they want to be loved here. I feel like at home we have to ask for hugs and kisses. Here you have no other option!! K-man is doing great and has gained weight since i have been here which is great. He is a home body- he is one of the few who sleeps in the same crib every nap, night ect. There are always different babies sleeping in there with him, but you will always find him in there if he is sleeping. Its actually really funny. These babies are full of surprises

All the kids did great yesterday and this morning. It rained most yesterday and looks like it is about to rain again today. Hurrican season is just arriving! I had e-man out yesterday, and I was informed that there suspicion that he has dwarfism. Please pray that he does not. He looks totally normal, but he is really small, and when you compare his hands or feet to someone his age, he is VERY small. They proposed him as a healthy child, and when they had to tell his family who is waiting to adpot him, they took it very well and said they had been praying for this adpotion for a long time and knew it was God's will. PLEASE be praying for e-man. M-son walked some yesterday! very encouraging.

I took tutu on a walk today and got her some bonbon and tampico. Yesterday I showed her how to throw the trash away, and today she remembered exactly where the trash can was and made sure and threw everything away. She is a fast learner. When I took her back to the nursery, she was sure to share her cookies with the babies (remember she is much older than the babies). I hate that she has to be in there. I tear up everytime I see the kids share, it is such a treat for them the get cookies, but they just know how to take care of eachother.

Yesterday morning we were walking to the orphanage, and we turned this corner and almost ran into a huge bore/pig. It was HUGE. He was being walked by a person with a rope. Only in Haiti would we see that. It was so funny and we got a good laugh.

I cannot express the joy I see in these kids here. They have nothing, yet I have never seen happier babies. They learn to survive, and will take any loving they can get. The are tough and not like anything I have ever seen. I feel like they have shown me so much more than I could ever teach them. The Lord has been so faithful here. I can’t even explain it.

We had bible study and worship tonight and it was so good. Keep praying for these babies here. They are doing better and better everyday. Love yall

Becca

On rainy days we are a little tight on room on the balcony so its a great snuggle day! See that big head in my left arm, yep thats m-son. We are going to be doing a lot of walking today :)

me and jj! He fell asleep like that, and you should have seen the drool spot he left for me :)

Me and alecia hanging out at the toddler house.. I love getting back early enough to get to play with them for a little bitMe and alecia hanging out at the toddler house.. I love getting back early enough to get to play with them for a little bit

Today was probably the best Monday yet! It rained all day, and believe it or not, i was SO thankful. It cooled down like 20 degrees from the rain. It felt great. My kids were all great today. E-man is walking all around now. Its so crazy how fast he picked up on it. M-son had a GREAT day today. I did not make him work on walking, because of the rain (sorry excuse) so he ws extra happy. His laugh is the cutest ever. No one got pooped or thrown up on today, so it was definitely a success. :)

I can not even tell you how much I love tutu. Its just so crazy how i was actually upset when I got tutu switched from G-baby, but i love her sooo much. I look forward to our hour together all day. Its just such a change of pace because we actually communitcate with words, she LOVES to dance, she is potty trained, and we just connected so fast. I was hesitant to having a girl and not a baby on the balcony for so long with abunch of babies but it has been the greatest blessing. The Lord has used her in my life so much already. When I walk in the nursery she goes "Becca!!" I LOVE time with my babies and love them more than i thought possible but i feel like tutu is different if that makes sense. She has such a sense of humor and you have to hear her laugh to understand it. She is sooo funny. Please keep her in your prayers and that they can find a family soon for her who will take her!

Today, me kim and alecia went on a limb and on our walk we bought haitain energy drinks. It was soo funny and they were actually really good, and i am sure it was mental but we danced most of the afternoon dancing with our babies :) could not have been better.

There is a group here of about 7 for the week (a family group) and they are all really cool and its always good to get some change here.. I think we freaked them out a little bit telling them all about our "haitain sickness" stories.

Yesterday, a woman had a baby and brought her baby in 3 hours after she had him. He is a premie and weighs 2 pounds. I have NEVER seen a baby that small. We see some crazy stuff here but for some reason seeing this baby boy hit me the hardest. He is as small as my hand. PLEASE keep him in your prayers, he is being taken care of the best they can do here.

Sabrina (the baby with hydrocephalis) survied her surgery, praise the Lord. She is in the states now for good, but praise the Lord she survived.

It is crazy how God works here. I love yall and thank you again for the prayers!!

Becca

Part of the open air market. Very fun. there are like 4 other levels like that.

SOOOO pretty! Jamie we miss you

a view from the lookout!! BEAUTIFUL. You are looking at Port Au Prince and the beautiful carribean

another amazing weekend in haiti!

This weekend has been awesome. I LOVEE it here in Haiti. Yesterday, since it was our day off, we went to this place called the Look Out. It was BEAUTIFUL. The view as of Port Au Prince and the ocean. The ocean here is absolutley beautiful. Port Au Prince is so big and its crazy to look at from a distance. It is so poor but seeing it from far away gives you a different look at it. Its beautiful. We shopped at the Look Out and i bought some cool paintings (i got better at bargaining). The paintings are so cool and shopping on the streets is an experience! We then went to a place called the Baptist Mission. We got lunch, and then shopped some more on the streets. Me and kim said we were only going to buy ONE more thing (we were finding something specific for brittani :) ) and then all the sudden we looked at each other, and what was going on and there were 8 people putting stuff in our faces telling us to come to their shop or to buy this and that and it was so chaotic. It was SO funny. we just looked at each other and through the yelling and pulling we just started laughing so hard. Then we would say NO NO NO!! and they would go SO low on the prices, that we ended buying kinda a lot but they were such good deals!! haha it was sooo funny, we have some funny stories. After the Baptist Mission we went to a grocery store, then the coolest part was we got to go to a open air market. It was SOOOO cool. Its just so cool learning about the culture here. I bought some limes, (yes mom i will bleach them before i use them:) ) and it was just so different and cool. We then went back to the house, got some dinner and then i got to hang out with Tutu for a little bit. She had a fever and was not her self so please pray she feels better. It broke my heart and i hated putting her back in the nursery but pray she gets better.

This morning we had church, which was really good. The worship was espicially good :) after lunch we went on an amazing hike again to the waterfall. It literally takes my breath away every time. Its SO beautiful here!!

Anyways, i am ready for tomorrow because being away from my kids makes me miss them so much! how am i going to leave.. ha well I love yall and keep tutu in your prayers!!

God is so good!!

Becca

THis is tutu. You can see some of her scars on her leg. She is the most joyful girl I have ever been around in my life

This is one of Kim's babies (i was PUMPED when she got him) and he has been one of my favorites since I got here!! he is SO cute, and has some issues. he is very nervous, and he rocks hard in his crib when he gets nervous, which i hate to see, but he has the best laugh. He has a hard time interacting with the other kids but is getting better every day. I just had to show yall his smile because he is the cutest.

Me, Kim, and some of our babies watching the sunset

Today was a MUCH better day. M-son walked a few steps multiple times. It was very very encouraging.

So on my last blog i talked about g-baby getting switched out as one of my kids. My new girls name is "tutu" I was a little hesitant about it, because i did not like the fact that G-baby was not mine anymore, but i am absolutely falling in love with tutu. I have had her for about a week now, and the reason i have her and not G-baby is because she just arrived to the orphanage and needs some extra attention and love. I don’t know her story completely, but this is what I do know. She was found under a tree by a missionary family, with burns all over her legs and stomach. They were third degree burns, and she should have been dead, however she was FILLED with maggots and that is what kept her alive. The maggots caused the burns to not be infected. The family took her in and then took her to GLA so she could be further treated. Her burns look 100 times better now, and she is doing really good. She got the burns from her grandpa dropping a pot of boiling water on her. She was the one for may birthdays who freaked out when they lit the candles. We do not know her age, but I am guessing she is 4.. much older than my other kids. She can talk, which it is different having a kid who can talk (she speaks creole of coarse) but with the little I have learned we are able to kinda communicate, and I wish I could just explain her personality to yall. She walks into a room and say “BONJOUR!!” so everyone knows she is there. She copies everything I do, from the way I cough, stand, ect. Its so funny, she is so sassy! She is also potty trained, and it took a while for me to figure out what “bathroom” means until we had a little accident, but know we know how to communicate that. ☺ I was a little hesitant when they told me I was going to be working with her, because I did not want to leave g-baby, and she is super hyper, but I have COMPLETELY fallen in love with her. Since she is old enough I sometimes get her out for more than an hour and let her stay up there while I have other babies, so she does not have to be in the ICU room or nursery. Please be praying that the Lord continues to heal her wounds and are relationship continues to grow.

Last night us volunteers had our first annual talent show. It was SO funny. Lets just say we are a bunch of nontalented people, but we all laughed soo hard.

FUNNY STORY: ok so there is a girl here named Holly, and a bunch of us girls were taking our kids on a walk/ Well Holly really wanted to take a small baby so she could use a carrier (the ones that strap to you and the baby is in your front). So she puts the baby in, and we were like holly, turn the baby so he can face the outside, and she was like no no its better for my back if it faces me and the baby is more secure.. so we were like okay… then she finally got the stap on and was like, “This is a life saver!! My hands are free and I am holding a baby!” She was SSOoo excited about this dang carrier. Anyways, we did not even make it outside, and this baby totally starts blowing chunks IT was HILARIOUS! Keep in mind the baby was facing towards here. Haha it was totally strapped to her and he did not spit up, he was projectile vomiting over and over onto her. Holly is gagging the whole time and we are just dying laughing. SHe could not get the baby out of the holder, so she was helplessly being vomitted on. it was GREAT. Some life changer.. I have learned that being at an orphanage you get to tell many funny stories like that ☺

Ok well its Friday, so I am off to bible study then to be with my babies! LOVE YAL SO MUCH AND MISS YALLLL!

becca

today was SUPER hot. but a great day. Jamie left today, which made me sad, but we got 2 new volunteers today. All my kids had a great day, and the Lord has been so faithful with answering prayers. I am feeling a little drained today, so please pray for strength and energy. There are hours where it is so frustrating. M-son did not like me today. We have to work on walking, and he has absolutley no interest. I put him in a walker and tried so hard to get him to walk and he threw a fit and I just had to sit there and watch him cry. He KNOWS how to do it he is just so stubborn. It breaks my heart becuase they only get one hour up there and I dont want to make him upset, but nothing else is working. It was frustrating, so please just pray for him, and for me and that our time is purposful. A lot of my kdis are sick, so please pray for their health.

Anyways this is a short one but I love yall and i am off to watch the sunset!!

Becca

Me and M-son.. he is improving so much!

Swinging Leine around makes her laugh so hard..

M-man gives the best kisses. his pucker face is priceless!

Past 2 days: Yesterday was monday, which always goes by fast because we are away from out kids for the weekend and we miss them.. M-man had a great day yesterday. One of the best yet. He was laughing so much. M-son was also belly laughing. It makes me cry when i see them have that joy. (in a good way). M-son is being really stubborn when it comes to us working on him walking. We have this walker thing that helps the kids learn to walk and even when i put him in that he lifts up his feet so they wont touch the ground and just sits there. He actually thinks he is really funny doing it. But its frustrating sometimes because i feel like we have made no progress on walking. He just wants to be held, which i dont blame him, but somehow we gotta work on it!

Today was picture day for the parents of the kids. Each kids get their picture taken so they can send an update to their soon to be families. It was really fun, except i was trying to help kim out, so i grabbed one of her kids for her, and i already had another kid in one arm so i did not check his diaper.. i swung him onto my hip and i got poop everywhere. haha yep. but other than that it was fun and every single one of these kids are so so cute.

R girl had a hard day today. I went to get her out and she was balling in the nursery (not like her) and the whole time she just laid on me and did that breathing hickup thing u do after you cry. please be praying for her

Every night, and and a few of the girls here sit on our balcony in rocking chairs and drink hot tea. (we are going to be very good old people) Its one of my favorite parts of the day. The Lord has blessed me with the girls here.

Jamie leaves tomorrow, and i am sooo so sad about it. I know that there are amazing girls here, but you all know how i am with change.. i am totally bumbed but am excited for the new volunteers coming.

Anyways, thank yall again for your prayers. They are sooo needed. I can't believe i have been here for 3 weeks.. I wont lie the rice is tasting a little old... but i am absolutley loving it, its a once in a lifetime chance and i could not be more greatful to be here.

"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the FULL armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes." -Eph 6:10-11

Me and kim on the hike! It was BEAUTIFUL!!!

me and JJ!!

handing out "bon bon" to the kids we met on the hike

This is G-baby. Is she not the cutest?

Hope everyone had a great weekend! The weekend here was fun! Yesterday we had a half workday, so we took it easy in the morning and then hung out with some kids in the afternoon! We ate dinner, came back and took it easy again, then woke up at 6 am to go on an adventure! We decided to hike up the huge mountain that we see from out balcony. We left at 7, and hiked for about 6 hours. It was AMAZING. We met so many awesome people and got to give away food and candy we brought along, and i just felt like we got to learn even more about the culture. We did not make it to the top because we ran out of water, so had to head back down, but it was beautiful. Our stopping point was at a church that was SOO high in the mountain and it was so cool because we sat outside it and listened to them sing worship in creole. The hike was pretty intense, and we were all soaked in sweat, and locals were passing us with gallons and gallons of water on their heads. They walk down everyday, get water from the streams and walk back up. We were breathing hard with a little backpack. The locals here are so nice they love for us to take pictures of them so they can see it after. It was a great day!

Ok so i want to give an update on all my kids... i feel like the nickname thing gets a little confusing, so i am going to go one by one!

M-man is doing much better. Everytime he sees me in the nursery he immediatley cries and walks towards me, and makes me feel so guilty when i don't get him!! He is sometimes uneasy and nervous, but as i said i have learned he LOVES baths, and will smile the entire time. He is a great walker and is pretty healthy (a little small) so for the most part I am just loving on him. He also knows what a kiss is and loves to pucker up :)

Ken is my little snuggler. Everytime i bring him up for the first about 20 minutes he wont leave my arms, so we usually chill on the hammock, until he is ready to play. He is also a great walker, just not as independent. He LOVES to put on shoes, so once he is ready to play he usually goes to the shoe drawer, takes 2 out (never matching) brings them back to me, and we put them on. He then goes and finds a toy, comes back to me, and we play until he wants another one. He does not spend much time away from me in our hour, but he is happy and smart and is doing great, he just needs some loving. I can not kiss him enough!

G-baby was doing so good that i no longer her everyday anymore. I got switched to a new girl who is new to the orphanage and needs a volunteer more than g-baby. I still get G-baby as much as possible, but she is doing great.

E-man is my boy. I literally cannot get enough of him. He is walking more everyday, and he has such a personality. He BELLY laughs if you get him in his tickelish spot and basically smiles the entire hour. He is full of energy but always after about 30 minutes of playing he crawls in my arms, lays his head down, sucks his thumb and loves to be rocked. We have a lot of fun together. He turned 2 in may, and he is very behind. He is probably the size of a 16 month year old, but he is growing fast. He has really bad ear infections, but he is being taken care of and please pray they go away!

Leine is my girl who is HIV positive, but she could not be doing any better. She is doing great. She was a little depressed when i first got her, but she has been smiley for almost a week straight and its so cool to see the improvement. She also loves baths, and unlike most the kids here, she LOVES when you dump water all over her. She is such a trooper. She needs to eat penut butter everyday to get some extra protein.

M-son is doing better. He has good and bad days. He is not walking, and has not intrest in even standing, but we have really been working on it. He is also 2, and we really need to be praying for him. Somedays he will be smiley and happy but others its hard to get him to show some emotion. He is sad and it breaks my heart but his nanny loves him and our time together has been really good too. He loves the plane swing and it a master drooler. He knows the words "bye bye" so when i pick him up to take him for our time, he is sure to tell everyone around him "bye bye". its hilarious.

JJ i have completely fallen in love with. He is doing great, and we have a lot fo fun together. He will play with pretty much anything and makes sure to show me everything he is playing with. If i walk away he drops everything he has and follows me, and always wrapps his arms around my legs and puts his head inbetween my legs. Literally its everytime. Its so funny! His personality is great and for the most part he is super happy.

R girl is precious. She has been my toughest to get to know, but thats because she is so independent. She loves going on walks, but about half way into it wants to be carries. Everytime i see her sleeping in the nursery she is smack dab on the floor, same spot. I laugh everytime and put her into a crib. She loves to take baths which seem to wear her out, so she usually falls asleep on me right before its time for her to go back down, which is nice because i can make sure she is sleeping in a crib!

Anyways, all my kids are doing great and it is crazy how well you get to know them spending everyday with them. I am completely attatched, and the Lord has blessed me so much by them. On the weekends I miss them and cant wait to get back to them on Monday. Please continue praying for them. I also have no idea how i am going to leave them, and i know its 2 and a half weeks away, but please be praying that the Lord prepares me for that. Everyone tells you how attatched you are going to get, but i never imagined i would love these kids so much.

Please pray this week is purposful and these kids continue to make improvements!!! I miss yall so much!! ill try and post some pictures tonight

Becca

Todays forcast: squirts

So 4 out of us 7 volunteers have been throwin it down all day!! (myself included :)) Its not the bad sickness, we feel fine, its just all the sudden we gotta go... we have turned it into a good time and have just been able to laugh about it.. must have been something yesterday for dinner. pray we get better and it does not turn into something worse! But besides that it has been a great day! I woke up this morning and walked to the main house at 6:15 this morning with jamie and worked out a little then had some quite time, then the rest of the girls met us down here for prayer time. Prayer time is one of my favorite part of the week, and it was really good and real. Time with the babies was great today. M-son is improving, but today was frustrating with him. He was not in the mood to work on walking or anything, so please continue to pray for him. It is just hard to get emotion out of him sometimes, and is just sad sometimes. G-baby ahd a great day today. We ate some penut butter, took a bath, and then she fell asleep on me and i got to put her in a crib while she was still sleeping, which i LOVE becuase then they are not upset when we put them back :) I did not get to get e-man today because we were cut short, but he is doing great and is walking better and better everyday. Being here is still overwhelming sometimes. When u step back and really look, its jsut crazy that there are places like this.

I am absolutley loving it here. The Lord has been so good, and blessed me so much here. There are DEFINITELY hard times, but that makes the good times even better, if that makes sense. I miss yall a lot, and i hope yall have an amazing weekend!

Please pray that we are all feeling better and this sickness does not get any worse, and please pray Kim does not get sick, although people here say its part of the experience.. :)

I am off to grab e-man and watch the sunset!! Love you guys!

Becca

ps- Bill clinton is in haiti right now, and i actually saw him when i went into town!! Kim will tell you she did.. but she didn't. that stinks.

in the waiting room with the most precious baby! Kim and Jamie were on the other chairs and we just got to hang out in there while each kid was taken for their appointment

PLease be praying for this one!! He is improving so much!

i LOVE being here with kim!!!

Me and K hanging out on the hammock watching the most bizarre clouds

Life here has been great the past 2 days. Yesterday i went on the most beautiful walk ever with K-man, and kim and her baby. It was the highlight of my day! It was sunny and hot all day so we gave the kids a lot of bubble baths. My kids were super happy yesterday and we had a great day. Please be praying for Mr. M. He is very up and down and please pray that the Lord will bring him joy. M-man is still loving baths. Its a great thing for him!! Yesterday for dinner we got tacos and it was such a treat!! They were so good!!

Today they needed to take 6 kids to the doctor, and needed some help holding the kids in the car/the waiting room of the doctor. Me, Jamie, and Kim got to go and it was such an experience. We held the kids in the car (it was about an hour drive) and it was BEAUTIFUL. We got to see a lot more of Haiti, and of coarse the ocean :) I literally could drive here for hours and stare out the window. Its just a different life here. (obviously). The doctor appointments were great, and the babies are great! I felt like a mom today. We got back and got to spend the rest of our afternoon with our kids, and they were all doing great today. Somedays its just not enough time with them, but i LOVE the time i get. G-baby is doing great and I am feeding her penut butter everyday so she can get some extra protien. We walked to the hut again today and bought our kids some cookies and juice, and they loved it. Ren, one of my girls, cracks me up. She saves everything I give her in her pocket for some reason. Took a bite of her cookie then put it right back in her pocket. Then she would get it out again, take a bite, and save it again. K-man was not himself today. He is usually up for playing and taking a bath, but today we just laid on the hammock together and had a chill hour... he just needed a little loving today!

The Lord has totally blessed me with the people here. There are definitely life long frienships being formed, and we have the best time together. Last night, me, Kim, Alecia, and Jamie stayed up just laughing and having the best time. Its cool when you are in a place like this how fast you get to know eachother and how fast friendships form in a way not like anyother. It has definitely been a blessing!

We are about to eat dinner, but I will try and post some pictures tonight. Thank yall again so much for the prayers. Somedays are hard, and we would not get through with out them. The Lord is teaching me so much here, it is incredible.

Love yall so much!

Becca

The beautiful sunset and the most beautiful babies!!

Today has been a great day. We went to the orphanage, started with our first kid, then randomly got back in the car to go to the toddler house to get to see the kids hit a pinata. it was sooo funny! they were so excited and had a blast. We then went back to the orphanage for lunch, and spent the afternoon with our kids. The sunset was BEAUTIFUL tonight. Definitely one of my favorites. J is making some major progress.. he is so smiley and literally just loves life. G is getting smarter everyday. Today she put beads on a string and did it in a pattern. That shows great abilities. I learned that M-man LOVES baths. I was shocked because he has a hard time loving much stuff, but he loves this and i love to see him happy! its so funny to see these kids personalities come out after getting to know them after the couple of weeks. These kids are so funny. Anyways, having Kim here is so much fun. I thought i was totally myself before she came, but apparently at dinner i got a little excited and hyper, and the girls said kim brings out a side of me they have not seen, but we decided its a good thing! Me and kim are bunk mates, and we got lucky with the shaky bunks, so pray for safety! ;)

Please continue to pray for these kids, the Lord shines through them so much and being here has been so encouraging.

Love yall!

Becca

KIM IS HERE!!!! its been a great day :) It is soooo good having a familiar face here. It was also so good being back with the kids today, each weekend i miss them more and more. It rained SO hard today. It was the first real down pour since i have been here. when it rains, it RAINS here. M-man is making some major progress. It is so cool to watch! E-man is taking like 10 steps at a time now! It is crazy how much the relationships with my kids grow. Everyone here told me they will grow more and more everyday, and they definitely have. I am so attatched.. We got to go to the grocery store again, and it was a different one than we went to alst time, so thats always a fun experience. The stores here are fun to go to, very different. Sorry for the lame blog, ill write more tomorrow!!

"As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts." -Isaiah 55:9

this is part of a street we got to go shopping on.. they have some awesome stuff and the coolest paintings!
on the amazing hike! Me alecia and Jamie
"Just follow the water!"
this waterfall was a big one!

Loving Life :)

Hello everyone!

I hope you all had an amazing fourth of july, and if you can believe it we had an AWESOME one here in Haiti. Yesterday, we got to go shopping on a really cool street, and i bought a lot of paintings (i tried to have an artsy mind) and some cool things for the family and friends. They have some cool stuff here and street shopping is so funny. Jamie had to help me bargain with the guys. It was SO funny. She would whisper, no walk away, they will follow you.. and we did and it was just so funny. I wanted to be nice but seh was like they are cheating you! so she helped me get reasonable prices :) We then went to GLA's new property, and it is BEAUTIFUL. We went there for a 4th of july party and it was so so fun. we literally had a feast and played soccer and bean bag toss for hours. it was awesome. It sat ontop of a hill and overlooked so much of haiti and you could see the ocean and it was just beautiful. We then had a bonfire, and sat around and talked. It was so fun.

Today we did not go to church because our pastor was out of town, so we slept in, and ate lunch at the main house got to give our kids kisses, then 4 of us went on another AMAZING hike. We went to the same waterfall, then we got brave, and climed up that waterfall, and there was another waterfall, so we climbed up that one too, and we just kept going up and up and it got more beautiful and beautiful and the waterfalls were bigger and even more breath taking. i LOVE hiking and it was such an amazing day.

This weekend I found out one of my babies is HIV positive. Its weird how i can spend 2 weeks with a girl, and have no idea she had this to deal with in her life. It hit really hard, and kinda threw me in a slump the rest of the day. its just not fair to me that she has this huge obstacle that is going to effect her for the rest of her life. This baby will not let this challenge overcome her, i can already see her strength is greater than many kids. She is beautiful and is going to a great family, but it just really hit hard to hear this news. This baby is perfect and does not deserve this, but as we know the Lord has this in his hands, and all we can do is pray.

Love yall, thank you again for the prayers. Ill post some pictures tonight!


KIM COMES TOMORROW YAYAYAYAYAYAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I CANT WAIT!!

Becca

i am officially exhausted. Today was a great friday, but i can definitely tell its the end of the week. We woke up this moring and ate breakfast and had prayer time, so we did not start with the kids till 930, so the day flew by! HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!! we get to have a party tomorrow, woop :) The older kids at the orphanage got to go see a ballet and they were soooo excited. it was awesome getting to see them do that. When i go get my kids to take them for one on one time, it is getting harder and harder to put them back. ha we have a great time and i love them so much. I tell my kids i love them all the time, and i dont really think they know what it means, but today i had m-man up and it was his time to go back down and he kinda started getting upset, and then he grabbed onto me and said 'Please, i love you!" ha i dont know if he knew what he was saying but i literally almost fell down the stairs! This kid is not even 2! It made my day.

I hope yall have a great fourth of july and I love you all!!!

Kissing the older kids goodnight!! One of my favorite parts!!

Love the boys!!

Today was such a great day. It was sunny all day, and just a really great. Got pooped on today full out, but it made a good laugh and thank the Lord someone had extra shorts! For some reason my kids have a new obsession with putting on shoes, so i cant even tell you how many shoes we all tried on today. We went on a walk and took a different route and found a BEAUTIFUL view and it was so great. Haiti is so pretty.

My favorite part of the day is grabbing a baby and going to the balcony and watching the sunset. It is so beautful and such a peaceful time.

I was talking to Alecia today (one of the volunteers) and we were talking about how when our kids walk away to get something or play with something, they are always looking back to make sure we are still watching. We talked about how we wished we relyed on God like that. They will take a few steps but always are aware that we are there and are alwyas making sure that they are not too far from us. I dont know if that makes any sense but when we were talking about it it totally made sense. ha but i love yall and thank yall so so much for these prayers, they are working miracles!!

becca

This is me, jamie, and alecia (2 of the other volunteers) watching the sunset with out babies.. thats my favorite part of the day.
they all look so so cute in their jams!!!

Ok so new rule- we have to nickname all our kids on here, so please just pray for the nicknames the Lord know!!!! Off to lunch! :)

I literally could spend all day with this boy..


This is during the babies nap time. They literally sleep on top of each other. There are so many cribs full like this. Its kinda sad but they learn to sleep through anything!























This is in the toddler house (the orphanage for the older kids). We were going to kiss them all goodnight and kinda started a riot. They have so much fun though!