Mom and Marilyn Come for a Visit!

End of May, we were excited to welcome my Mom(Erin) and Marilyn McClure down for a short visit. We knew it would go super fast and we wanted to show them around as much as possible.

I picked them up on a Wednesday morning in sunny Tucson. Then we headed to Whataburger to meet up with Ann Wulf for a quick lunch. It's always good to see Ann's friendly smile!

We stopped off in Green Valley to pick up one of our Summer Volunteers for the summer, who was coming early to give help to one of the group homes.

Of course a Walmart pickup order and a stop at the bodega was also on the list. By the time we arrived at CVE, maybe 4:30-5? my traveling companions were pretty tired! Early flight times makes for a somewhat early arrival to Tucson, yet its still another 3 hours to Magdalena.

It was a pretty uneventful trip if I remember correctly. Other than hitting that one speed bump going like 40-45mph, ouch!

It's always a treat to visit Cafe Sed!

For Sierra's birthday, she wanted to have Sushi at a restaurant called Milton's. Unfortunately, it was closed the entire time they were here, so we tried a new place. It was Grandma's first time having sushi and I don't think she hated it!

Since we've moved into this house in December, I have never got my flower planters filled. I figured it was perfect to have two flower experts down to help me figure out what to plant where. Especially when one of them speaks Spanish and can ask important questions like no sun, how much water, etc. I would have loved to have taken home one of those hydrangeas but with them being so finicky about water and soil, I left them there for someone who could do a better job. All of the flowers seemed so stunning!

Marilyn and Mom prepared supper for all of CVE on Friday night. It was a wonderful, yummy meal of lasagna, garlic bread, salad and scotcheroos. Mom was able to meet the people we talk about and put a face to their name and Marilyn was able to get reacquainted with people she has known for many years.

Saturday night, we ventured out to the neighboring town, Santa Ana. There's a place that we like to go to for carne asada. The place with the "Church Lunch size Tortillas".

Pau. Marce and Marilyn were at the next table over :)

On Sunday, we were able to go to church in town. Other than the heat, its a beautiful place to call the House of God. I forget who took this picture of us, but I'm thankful that we got it done.

After church, we headed home to get their stuff and get changed. Then we headed up to the border. I dropped them off and then they took a shuttle back to Tucson where the spent the night and flew back to Illinois the next day.

It was wonderful to have them here! Such a boost to our everyday life to have these little moments of togetherness that allows us to share where we work, where we go, what we do, how we interact with our community, etc. Lord Willing, Mom and Dad plan to come for a week in October. Soooo looking forward to that!

I neglected to get a picture of Sierra and Mom on Sierra's 12th birthday :( But here is our 12 year old beauty...

It's hard to believe our little Punkie is 12 years old!! She is a great help around the house and with the other kids. She enjoys schooling Aria on preschool things. Is a great friend and loves to read and go to school herself. She super excited to start Joy Camp tomorrow and Expo classes that have begun. We love you Punkie!!!

Prayer Requests:

1. I'm sure most of you know about Haiti's assassinated president. I'm so thankful my cousins were able to get home before this all happened. Please pray for the missionaries that are still there, the unrest that happens, the Haitian people who don't have the liberty of flying out, etc.

2. I've developed a case of gastritis. Was feeling bad off and on since last Wednesday. Friday, Kendra took me in to a local hospital here in Magdalena. After the initial exam, they determined they wanted to see inside with an ultrasound. After what felt like forever, the Doctor said he couldn't get a real clear picture of my gallbladder from all angles. I'm supposed to take one medication 1x a day for a month and another 3x a day for a week. I should be able to feel good within the week if it is gastritis. Things are calming down and I'm feeling less run over and slightly stronger each morning.

3. Summer Volunteers and Interns: Pray for energy, enthusiasm, the ability to learn about children here whom they are serving. I know we've been blessed already by the way our volunteers have helped us our here at home. Especially the day when I went to the hospital, one stayed here with our kids until Andy got home from work. Joy Camp starts tomorrow for the older kids (13-17) and Tuesday for the younger kids (8-12). They will have Expo classes on alternate days. For those who don't know, Expo is similiar to what 4-H is in the States. Woodworking, baking, horse, dog, theatre, photography, etc. The actual Expo will be held in August, the first Friday and Saturday.

4. As always, we would covet your prayers for safety.

5. And likewise for the strengthening of the believers here. It's encouraging to hear when another takes a step to finding more out about God and who He says He is and that they can have Faith in the Bible and not some religious practices, relating to Catholicism, LDS, or others. One of Rancho Agua Viva's employees told Andy he was reading his Bible more. Please pray that "H" could experience an eternal life saving through our Jesus Christ!!

Praises

1. Rain! We have gotten a few hard rains between end of June until now and it makes everyone soooooo happy! Andy was driving down from work one day and he said all the people were standing in the doorways, smiling, looking at the puddles and puddles and downpours. Truly nothing beats a downpour in a desert!!!!

2. I am thankful to be able to report a decrease in my migraines overall. I will still get one here or there but as a whole, I feel more better when I'm limiting sugar, white flour, fried food and just taking my vitamins. Praise God!

3. That school is out and the kids are getting to participate in Expo and Joy Camp.

4. That this month, July 20, we will celebrate one year of being here!

"I will praise God's name in song and glorify Him with Thanksgiving. " Psalms 69:30