Little Miss *S* has a Birthday!

Sometimes sweet and sometimes sassy, Little Miss S is growing up...and learning how to grow in the Lord's ways. It's hard to believe she turns 7 today! She seems so much older at times. We celebrated her birthday by going out to dinner last night with her younger siblings. It was a fun time!

And delicious, might I add. :) I had the best hamburger - tasted like a Fudrucker's with a homemade bun. Afterward, we all split a small brownie and chocolate ice cream sundae.

Chocolate mustaches for all!

The Latest Dose of Melissa Cuteness

I just received this video today, compliments of my sister and brother-in-law in Ukraine. It showcases my niece's latest antics and accomplishments. What she lacks in hair, she certainly makes up for in smiles and wrinkly-nose cuteness!

All Good Things Come From Above

"Holding my head in my hands, I ask it honest before God and children and my daily mess: "Can we really expect joy all the time?"

I know it well after a day smattered with rowdiness and worn a bit ragged with bickering, that I may feel disappointment and the despair may flood high, but to give thanks is an action and rejoice is a verb and these are not mere pulsing emotions. While I may not always feel joy, God asks me to give thanks in all things, because He knows that the feeling of joy begins in the action of thanksgiving.

True saints know that the place where all joy comes from is far deeper than that of feelings; joy comes from the place of the very presence of God. Joy is God and God is joy and joy doesn't negate all other emotions - joy transcends all other emotions.

Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again: Rejoice!

...Thankfully, God never gives what is deserved, but instead, God graciously, passionately offers gifts, our bodies, our time, our very lives. God does not give us rights but imparts responsibilities - response-abilities - inviting us to respond to His love-gifts."

- Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts

August 4, 2011

146. A view of the starry night sky that nearly took my breath away

147. A soft and sweet newborn to cuddle

148. Mrs. Baldwin's colloidal silver gel to put on chapped hands and knuckles

149. God's provision of eggs in a baking pinch!

150. Children's artwork made with love

151. The eyes of a child - windows to the soul

152. Brownies that turned out to be a sweet success!

153. The joy of looking forward to making well-loved recipes from home

154. The discovery of whole wheat flour at the grocery store

155. Watching formerly abandoned/street children play "house"

August 9, 2011

156. Catching up with Mom on the phone yesterday after three weeks of no communication

157. Hearing of God's wondrous works in China!

158. Orange sunrise muffins fresh out of the oven

159. The delight of giving tastes of yummies to eager little people

160. Beholding gratefulness

161. New friends at church

162. Cool breezes

163. Mountainside beauty

164. The rich, velvety pink and purple colors of a bougainvillea in full bloom

165. God's patience with me

166. Spiritual discussions with the older children after watching the Train film at a church fellowship

167. Volleyball under the palm trees

168. The coming of travel sized toothpaste from God's provision at Care Net!

169. A taxi driver's extra kindness and care for our crew during night travel

170. Encouraging phone conversations with two very good friends

171. My niece's adorable smiles

172. A Spanish book from which to study

173. Granola bars baked with Sara

174. Getting the stomach bug on my days off!

175. A return to health

176. Chatterboxes whose constant prattle reminds me to be grateful that they can at least speak

177. Fond memories from RGBI as another school year starts

178. Water

August 11, 2011

179. Baby dimples

180. Newborn coos

181. Green salad sprinkled with a confetti of colorful veggies

182. Hymn singing to sick babies

183. The discovery of a favorite cook book at House 1!

184. My Ergo baby carrier

185. Pacifiers

186. Babies sleeping peacefully

187. Toddling steps and outstretched arms

188. Provision of a ride home with Tío David

189. New light bulbs

190. The smell of freshly baked bread

191. Warm sunshine

192. Gifts of snack foods in the grimy fists of children eager to share

193. Flowers worn in the hair

194. Refreshing cool patches in shadows cast by towering trees - a taste of forest!

195. Twittering birds in the trees

196. Childlike fascination with a small broken bird's egg

197. An obedience lesson learned

198. Heaping bowl-fulls of fluff white popcorn

199. Water from a container outside to supplement our lack of water in the house today

200. Sweet sleep

A Busy Day at the Baby Home

Casa de Amor's newest arrival

Only a couple weeks old!

Cute and snuggly!

Praising God today for my Ergo Baby Carrier that got a lot of use as I cared for the four little sickies in the isolation room. They were happy for several hours and then all decided to cry at the same time...for a long time. I found that by putting one in the Ergo and holding the other, two out of four were happy!

Pacifiers...another wonderful invention. This little guy finally quieted down right before I left for the night.

And she slept peacefully after being cradled in the Ergo.

Whew! What a day!

Orange Sunrise Muffins

This morning it was my turn to bring a refreshment to the ladies' Bible study I am a part of. I thought about baking our family's favorite banana muffin recipe, but the hostess had baked banana bread two weeks ago, so I thought something a little different would be preferable. However, I love muffins and was excited to try out the new muffin tins I had purchased at the local supermarket! Orange muffins sounded like a winning idea, especially considering that we always have oranges on hand here at the house, so I went on the hunt for an orange muffin recipe on that trusty website, allrecipes.com.

As you can imagine, there were a multitude of recipe ideas listed. After reading ingredient lists and reviews, I settled on an old Mennonite recipe. It seemed to get the best reviews and it contained ingredients I could easily find here in Bolivia. Before making it for the ladies' Bible study, I whipped up a trial batch this past weekend for the children and tías here. The muffins were DELICIOUS and a big hit with all my eager taste-testers!

Since the recipe is so yummy and can be made quite healthfully, I thought it was worth sharing with you all!

Orange Sunrise Muffins

2 cups flour (I used white, but read a review saying wheat works too...looking forward to trying that!)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar (I used honey with great success)

2 tablespoons grated orange peel

2/3 cup orange juice

1/2 cup melted butter

2 eggs

Optional Topping (definitely delicious!):

1 tablespoon melted butter

1/4 cup packed brown sugar (I used white sugar since we don't have brown sugar here)

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine wet ingredients and orange peel. Dump flour on top and add dry ingredients. Mix everything together thoroughly. Pour into greased muffin tins or baking cups. Blend together topping and sprinkle on top of muffins. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

I actually baked the muffins and then added the topping. The first time it worked beautifully. This morning though, as the pictures show, I couldn't get it quite right and even after three attempts, it turned out lumpy. So I think next time, I'll do as the recipe says and put it on before baking. :)

Hope you all enjoy these as much as we did!

Today's Nugget

"It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in Him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him. It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the Lord."

~ Lamentations 3:22-26

Happy Birthday, Bolivia!

Today is the 186th celebration of Bolivia's independence. In honor of the occasion, a few of our children participated in traditional folk dance presentations at their school this past week. They did a great job, and it was fun to watch them look so Bolivian! :)