Enjoying Grandpa and Grandma!

We are so enjoying having Grandma and Grandpa Reimer here. Grandma has played lots of dolls with Olivia. They have both listened to the boys read and helped with school. Mom has helped with laundry and dishes. But mostly we have enjoyed connecting and visiting in the evening. What a blessing!

Today Grandpa went to get the oil changed in the car and came back with a half breed (as Gerald called it). He now has a Manitoba licence plate on the back and a Chihuahua licence plate on the front. Another for his collection.

We went downtown to do some errands today and to check the mail. We started out at the bookstore. Grandpa was here several years ago on a work team that helped work on the building. It was good for him to see the finished product. Then we did some shopping and went for lunch. It was a very warm sunny day and we enjoyed walking around. While we didn't make many purchases it was a good day.

Tonight Gerald is speaking at a youth event. They (the youth) decided to get together to do something instead of Halloween. They are each inviting a non-Christian and they asked him to bring a "good" devotional. Gerald has really connected well with the youth and they enjoy him working with them.

We are enjoying a lighter week this week as several of our normal commitments are not meeting - which is good since mom and dad are here. We are looking forward to doing some touristy things with them. We haven't had time to do that yet so this is a good excuse to take advantage of that.

Sandy

Grandma & Grandpa Reimer Arrive!

Apparently my folks are not on Mexican time yet - they arrived a day early, much to our delight. They called us right after lunch from the a Mennonite colony where they had dropped off their friend and a little over an hour later we met them just outside of the city and welcomed them here.

They came bearing lots of fun gifts and treats from loved ones for which we are very thankful and feel blessed! The kids have been competing for their attention and telling stories at 100 mph. Let's just say they are pretty pumped, as are Sandy and I. It will be a great week to show them around and introduce them to our life and our friends here - it will surely go by too quickly. It will also be great to have some "English" friends to talk to for a change as well...

We walked up to the grocery store to grab some stuff for supper and on the way back Andrew and Caleb were again walking along a 3 foot high cement wall that runs along the side of a parking lot. And as they often do, they were again racing and this time Andrew fell off and really scratched up his arm, chest among other things. He is in a lot of pain now but we are so thankful that it was not worse - I saw it happen and seeing him bounce off the cement wall with his chest was frightening to see - I assumed immediately that he would have some broken ribs but as it turns out they seem to be fine. Pray for him to get a good night's sleep tonight and a good week of healing.

I just wanted to add that we hosted the youth last night and had a great evening with them - a great Bible study and a wonderful supper prepared by Sandy. They were very grateful and we are so thankful to be able to serve in the ways that we can.

Evelynne, one of the youth who is also the boys' Sunday School teacher, stayed for an hour after all the rest of the youth left and spent a great time with us and the kids. Once again we are so thankful for these wonderful people who are accepting us into their lives, even if it is just for a short time!

God is Good!!!!!

It has been a very full day. We started out this morning rushing to get out the door to get Olivia to a chiropractor. After another sleepless night listening to her cry because her leg hurt we decided it was time to get it looked at. A couple in our small group sent us to their chiropractor. Her whole right side was out of whack from her fall earlier in the week. Her hip was very bad, which is why she has cried so much during the nights. She was moving very slowly when we left the doctor, but by tonight she was running around playing...Praise the Lord!

We got home in time for Gerald to have a quick lunch and then head off to class. While he was gone I did some laundry and baked two desserts for tomorrow. I don't know how many youth are going to be here for supper tomorrow and I don't want to run out of dessert!

We left to go to church at 6:30 for the party. We had a great time. In fact on the way home Andrew said except for Santo Tomas, this was the best time he has had in Mexico. We had a fire in the middle of the parking lot, roasted hot dogs and marshmellows, played games and had a pinata. There were lots of people there and we had a good time visiting.

(We were asked to lead some group games...seems like they went over well...)

Tomorrow morning we are going to two church services at two different churches - the kids don't know that yet. Do you think they will think it is a good surprise? :) The afternoon will be busy cooking and getting ready for the youth. We are looking forward to having them in our home. How blessed we feel be able to connect with and enjoy the people we are meeting. We would love to have you meet each of them and get to know how precious they all are.

(Olivia and her little friend Sara...)

Sandy

The Weekend

It is an absolutely gorgeous day - the sun is nice and warm and feels good on the skin. The laundry is hanging on the line. Thank you Jesus for such a beautiful day!

We are thankful that it is Friday - for a variety of reasons. It is the last day of school for the weekend, we are looking forward to a busy, but enjoyable weekend, and Grandpa and Grandma Reimer left today on their trip to drive down to see us. We are very excited to have some visitors!

Tonight we are looking forward to our small group meeting. It is always so good to connect with our group and study God's Word together.

Tomorrow morning is Awana for the kids, Gerald teaches his class in the afternoon at the Bible Institute, and in the evening our church is having a party at the church. We are looking forward to a fun evening. Gerald and I are in charge of the games.

Sunday we are attending church at the Emmanuel Church (where Gerald teaches SEAN on Tuesday nights) in the morning. In the evening we are having the youth from our church (Ebenezer Church)over for the Bible Study and a meal. This afternoon we will do the shopping for the meal. We also need to check the mail and a few other errands.

Caleb and Olivia both had accidents this week. Tuesday afternoon Olivia was running down the sidewalk and fell and twisted her ankle. Although we didn't know about it until she woke up in the morning and couldn't walk on it. Gerald questioned her as to if she remembered something happening. All of the sudden it made sense why she was moaning and groaning a lot during the night. It was a "pretty" color. She was feeling better yesterday and probably did too much. She was up several times last night complaining that it hurt. Yesterday Caleb and Andrew were playing tag outside. Caleb tried to get away from Andrew and ran smack into the outside wall. He has a nice purple goose egg on his forehead. Thankfully it wasn't worse. Especially at times like this we are reminded that we are covered in prayer - thank you very much!!

Enjoy your weekend,

Sandy

Is Fall Here????

It was a cool 4 degrees (Celsius) this morning. We have worn our long pants and long sleeves for the last two days. We haven't turned on the furnace yet but we have closed the windows and, for the first time since we arrived, we kept the doors closed during the day. The sun shines and the afternoons are warmer, but the breeze has been cool all day. Our family is hoping this is just a cool spell and the nice warm days will return, but the reality is that fall has probably arrived.

Gerald is struggling with a cold and sore throat. Please pray for him as he has his class for the Biblical Institute this Saturday. He is out tonight teaching his SEAN course.

We have enjoyed a family walk the last two afternoons. It has been good to get out of the house and see different parts of our neighborhood. Gerald and the kids have been having some amazing talks in their Christian Life Class that has been happening just before lunch. They have been talking about some great topics and I heard Olivia say that we should continue to pray that we can be hospitable to our neighbors. That is a big word for a 5 year old. But the concept isn't lost on her. It has been a joy to see the kids be excited about this part of the day.

Well, it is time to put the kids to bed.

Have a good evening,

Sandy

Breakfast - The Lock - The Tooth...

We had an incredibly powerful worship time this morning at church. What a privilege to worship our Lord and Creator!

Yesterday Gerald and I had decided that after we dropped the kids off at Awana we would go for breakfast, just the two of us. That would have been the first time we had some time to ourselves since we left Canada. As it was, Olivia did not want to stay. She is technically too young to attend Awana here, but has been going anyway. So, instead of forcing the issue she came with us for breakfast. As we were sitting waiting for our food to come she says, "Well, this is fun just one child with the parents." No doubt she enjoyed the special time with mom and dad, as did we. Before we picked the boys up we did a little shopping for some pants for her.

We arrived home and attempted to get into the house. Gerald had been saying for several days that the key to the gate wasn't working properly. Well now it wasn't working at all and we were locked out. After many attempts Gerald finally went over to the neighbors and called a locksmith. He told Gerald that he would be here in ten minutes, and he arrived right on time. The boys had a great time watching him saw the old lock off and install a new one. The new lock works great!
At lunch time yesterday Caleb lost his first tooth. He discovered it was missing and we assume he swallowed it with his pizza! It had been loose for awhile. While we don't believe in the tooth fairy, Andrew told him to draw a picture of the tooth and put it under his pillow. Andrew said that he would sign the paper to say that it was true that Caleb had lost his tooth. His other bottom tooth is also loose.

(Caleb's new hairstyle...)

Last evening we were invited to Don and Minna's for a belated Canadian Thanksgiving. We had a great time. Our kids had an even better time. Don and Minna's son and daughter-in-law, Mark and Suzanna, were there with their four children. Andrew, Caleb and Olivia played and played with the other kids. When it was time to come home, nobody wanted to leave. What a blessing for them!!!

(The boys up on the roof of our house...adventures need to happen...)

Enjoy your week!

Sandy

Right Between The Eyes...

Last night at prayer meeting the lady leading the service asked those of us in attendance to share some reasons why we live for the Lord and why we continue to make choices that lead our lives in this direction. I thought of it for a moment and then shared that one of the reasons for me was to pass on a legacy to my children, to show them that my faith is real and that hopefully they will choose to live sold-out lives for Christ.

During one of our prayer times later on the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart quite directly, asking me how in reality I was doing this - passing on this faith to my children...and my answer...not very well!!! But the Lord, in His marvelous grace, gave me some tools in that moment and blessed me to begin while I still have a chance.

I came home and told Sandy about it and then today I took the first step to put it into action (not that I haven't done anything over the years...). Since we have arrived here in Mexico, our children have received very little spiritual food for themselves. While they go to church, Sunday School and Awana, all of it is in Spanish and they certainly can't get a whole lot out of it just yet. It made me realize that I have been relying way to much on others over the years to disciple my children, which ironically, is a pet peeve of mine, that I criticize about the church and Christians these days.

We had a wonderful time today over the lunch hour reading the Bible and talking about why living like Jesus is so important! Pray for us as we continue to disciple our children while seeking to disciple others in this city as well.

Sandy is busy preparing for our Cell Group, which we will be hosting again tonight. We are looking forward to a good evening but there is a part of me that is ready to challenge the others in the group, as I have been challenged, to go deeper in our faith, and not just settle for the "pleasantries" that keep us from feeling awkward and uncomfortable. Pray that we would have wisdom tonight and in the following months to challenge those around us in love!

(Sandy planted these flowers this spring and they only bloomed after we left for Mexico - thank you Audrey for taking care of them and letting us see how beautiful they are...)

Have a great weekend!

A Weekend of Blessings...

Our trip to Juarez and El Paso was very good and interestingly enough, not that relaxing. While we did go up on Friday and had the extra day on Saturday to do some shopping, a lot of this time was spent gathering resources for the Mexican pastors, to hand out to them at the Pastor's Retreat that Sandy and I are planning for December 8 & 9.

On Sunday morning we went across the Rio Grande to go to the Nuevo Pacto church. I taught the adult S. School class, using material from my Bible Institute course that I am teaching, hoping to entice them to participate in the course. Then we enjoyed a great time of worship in singing before I shared the message.

We went back to El Paso for lunch - this time it only took about 55 minutes idling in the line before we got across. After sitting that long in the line-up apparently I wasn't thinking too clearly. When the U.S. Border Patrol asked me some questions, I misunderstood him and gave him some confusing answers - jokingly, I think, he asked me if I had been drinking. We all shared a good laugh with that and then he sent us on our way.

On Monday we had a great day together as a missionary team, which includes two couples working with the German Mennonites in the area (Don & Minna Thiessen - also from Steinbach, and John & Lorna Wall from Southern Ontario), and then us few Spanish workers (Elma Janzen from Northern Alberta and us).

We all shared about our work and spent some important time in prayer for each other. Then we went out for supper as a team also.

On Tuesday morning we spent several hours helping to tidy up the Guest House and property as right now there are no hosts that live there. Sandy did a great job, as always, cleaning up indoors and I tackled some yard work. We left El Paso around 11:30 a.m. and arrived back to our home in Cuauhtemoc around 6:30 that evening.

We have all been a little slow today, feeling the effects of a busy weekend. But we are so blessed to be here and it was such a blessing to finally connect as an entire team!

While we were in El Paso the "Service Engine Soon" light came on and stayed on until we got home last night. This morning I went to take it to the shop and lo-and-behold the light did not stay on. I am not sure what is going on but as of right now, the Lord seems to have taken care of this concern!

(The kids enjoyed "swimming" and cooling off in the little pool at the Guest House...)

(They spent hours and hours playing in the backyard of the Guest House property...)

On the way home we asked the kids what their favourite parts of the weekend were and among other great answers, Olivia said that her new doll's favourite part was being able to finally get out of the store. We appreciate our kids' humour!

"El Paso" Trip

We arrived yesterday late afternoon into El Paso. We had a good trip, although the border crossing seemed very long to the kids. It was hot and the ice in their water was long gone. We made it through in a few minutes over an hour. The new experience of going through the military checkpoints in Mexico were very interesting to the kids - especially the big rifles that they men carried. After we got settled Caleb and Olivia spent time cooling off in the kiddie pool we found behind the shed (thanks Scott & Elisa).

We enjoyed supper at Chili's last night and a stop at Target. The kids had brought their money and spent a long time looking at the toys with Gerald while I worked on the list of items to take back with us, including some ingredients to do some holiday baking.

Today we will concentrate on looking for items for the pastors of the Mexican churches. We are working on organizing a pastor's retreat the beginning of December and we want to be able to have books and resources available as gifts as well as some "fun" gifts.

Tomorrow morning Gerald is preaching and teaching the adult Sunday School at the church in Juarez so we will cross the border in the morning and come back after church. The rest of the Mexican field staff are arriving today and tomorrow and our staff meeting will be on Monday. We are looking forward to this time of relaxing and connecting with the others.

Have a great weekend! We trust we will do the same.

Sandy

Needy People...

On Monday afternoon we made arrangements to go and visit a couple who have just started attending the church the same time we arrived. They have faith in God but have not made a commitment to attend church for quite a few years. At the persistent invitation of one of the ladies from our church they started coming to Thursday evening prayer meetings. They cannot come on Sunday's because they have a restaurant that is only open on Sunday's.
We had a great time with them that afternoon and sense that the Lord is leading us towards developing a friendship with them. Pray for Saul & Oralia that the Lord would continue to build up their faith and strengthen them in their Christian lives.

I have been reminded quite a bit lately about the desperately needy people that are around us here in Mexico. The folks in the church we attend regularly are what we would define as financially and spiritually stable. The other church here in Cuauhtemoc from our conference, where I also go on Tuesday evenings to attend prayer meeting and teach a SEAN course, is definitely more financially and spiritually needy - every prayer meeting is filled with petitions of help from God for money to buy food, health from sickness, salvation of loved ones, protection in dangerous neighbourhoods, and so on.

Seeing these physical and spiritual needs around us has been the impetus to move us to be incredibly thankful for our heritage, to be sad at the "materialistic" outlook of our lives, to have compassion for these people who struggle along in their daily lives, and to give of our time, energy and finances so that we can extend grace to them out of the bounty that God has given us.

Pray that we would be faithful to that which God has called us to here in Mexico, even though it is a very short time. We feel like the time is flying by and there is so much to do. We seek wisdom to do those things that are God's will for the here and now.

The Circus in Cuauhtemoc...

We came home Thursday from Oasis and we have been running ever since. Friday we did school and after lunch (and laundry) we went to visit Don and Minna a bit. We had to go to the Mennonite store to pick up some sausage for Saturday night so we stopped at their house for a visit. Friday night we had our small group Bible Study - getting home around 11.

Saturday morning the kids went to Awana at the church while Gerald went to the Directiva meeting. The kids were all nervous and hesitant at first - I stayed with them to help them out a bit. Andrew got very frustrated trying to learn his verses in Spanish. It is like memorizing sounds - the words don't mean anything to him yet. Gerald drove the kids and I home around 1:00 and he went back to the meeting. I spent the afternoon preparing (both some food and practicing my part of the talk) for the couples meeting in the evening. Gerald come home around 4:45 and we left at 6:30 for church once again. We helped set up and prepare the rest of the food. Gerald did an awesome job leading the study and discussion. The kids played upstairs during the study. Again it was late when we got home.

(Directiva Meeting at our church here in Cuauhtemoc...)

(Sandy & I leading the couples evening...)

This morning was church. As we pulled into the church the kids commented that we have been at church a lot lately. This was the first Sunday that I didn't go to Sunday School with Olivia. The boys have been going by themselves for a few weeks already, but their teacher speaks some English. While Olivia wasn't thrilled about it, she did great. Gerald taught the adult Sunday School class. After church we decided to go for lunch to the restaurant owned by one of the couples that has started coming to Prayer Meeting on Thursday. We are not sure where they are spiritually and we are trying to connect with them.

We had a great time at their restaurant(the food was amazing - Andrew loved the Animal Planet show that was on the t.v. and Caleb and Olivia loved the playground) and they seemed thrilled that we had come. On our way home we drove down a street and spotted an elephant on the side of the road. Andrew YELLED at us to stop and so we did and got out and looked around at the lions, elephant, monkeys, camels and of all things, cows. It appears that the circus is in town. We were only home an hour before we headed back to take in the show. We got seats in the very front row, literally a few feet from the ring. I don't think the smile has left Andrew's face yet. He was in his glory. I was glad that the lions weren't actually part of the show - it was too close for comfort for me. The cows weren't part of the show either. Once again Gerald quickly dropped us off and then headed back to church for youth.

(Our family out for lunch today after church...)

(The elephant walks like this and like that...)

Now, we are gearing up for school once again tomorrow and then in the afternoon we are heading out for a visit with the couple of the restaurant. Tuesday morning I am going for breakfast with some of the ladies of the church. Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings are also busy. And then Friday morning we are heading up to El Paso for the weekend(the staff meeting is on Monday). We are ready for a rest and are looking forward to it.

We have been busy, but it has been good.

Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian friends and family!

Sandy for all of us!

600 Km...

We made it back from our trip to Oasis - a round trip of 600 km. We had an awesome time! Sandy and I had a WONDERFUL visit with Aldo & Rebeca and the kids had an AWESOME time out there in the campo, playing for hours in the school gym and investigating the landscape to find huge frogs, small geckos and lots of other creepy critters - they were in no rush to leave!

It was very good for me to be able to talk about a lot of ministry issues with Aldo and to find out where he is at as well as be more informed so that the National Council meeting on Saturday will be much more meaningful to me.

(Aldo & Rebeca in front of the school...)

Although we had planned to stay in a local hotel there in Oasis, when we went to book a room we were turned away as they were full. Instead we were warmly welcomed by Aldo & Rebeca to stay in their home - which meant that they gave us their bed while they slept on the floor in their dining room (they only have a one bedroom apartment - and no living room furniture). We humbly accepted their generous offer and were blessed by them in many ways throughout our time there.

(The cotton harvest is only a few weeks away - a pretty cool sight...)

(The kids were excited to see this gecko and other critters...)

(Our kids enjoyed recess time with the school kids...)
(Some of Mexico's beautiful landscape...)

(Stopping at a road-side cowboy hat vendor...no sale was made this time!)

Road Trip

Good Morning!
We are doing school this morning and then hopefully before lunch we can leave for Oasis (about a 4 hour drive) to visit Aldo & Rebeca Gonzalez. They are pastors, school teachers, and he is the president of the National Council. This Saturday there is a National Council meeting - one of four that happens each year.
Please pray for safety as we travel (we just had a new water pump installed as the old one was leaking - we hope it all works well now). Pray also for my "meeting" with Aldo today and tomorrow as it seems, though he is a very gifted leader here in the Conference, he needs lots of encouragement these days (it appears to me that he may be experiencing some burn out). I have a lot of stuff I want to talk to him about (we are great friends from my time living here a dozen years ago) and not all of it will be easy!
We are all very excited to go out on this trip and look forward to the family time and also being a blessing to those whom we come in contact with! We are hoping to be back here in Cuauhtemoc by tomorrow night!

Restored Health - Praise The Lord!

We are so thankful this morning for renewed health in our home - Olivia seems completely back to normal and Sandy is feeling way better, despite still being short on energy. Caleb is fighting off a cold of sorts and I am struggling with a bit of dizziness, but overall we are doing very well, praise the Lord!

I am posting pictures below of our youth event last night - despite a rainy day and evening, we were able to get together and have a great evening.

This morning the van is in the shop...again. We have had problems with a leaky oil pan gasket and now a water pump that is leaking and needs to be replaced. With all the traveling we will be doing in the next couple of weeks we would like everything to be working well - we appreciate your prayers in this regard.

The kids are off and running with school this morning and I have a week of prep ahead of me once again.

(Preparing the food for the "disco")

(Apparently I have more experience cooking discos then the youth themselves...we were cooking without lights - the silver platter is to help reflect the little light there was...)

(Enjoying the fruits of our labour outside on the patio...)