Lunch Time!

We're so excited to be eating lunch!

I LOVE meal times here. It's a time when everyone is in one place, all together. There is just such a feeling of family when everyone is sitting in their spot, eating away! 

Just couldn't make it....

I think someone had a long day at school! He just couldn't make it home. But really, how does one fall asleep like that????

Mi Cuarto (My Room)

One of the most challenging things about my time at CDA last year was the house where I lived with up to 14 kids. The house was just too small! We were sharing 3 bedrooms and 1.5 baths! So I was so excited to learn that since I left we have moved, and the new house is AWESOME! I would say it's about double the size inside and maybe 4 times the outside space. There are 4 kids bedrooms and 3 kids  bathrooms. There is also a separate volunteer room, with it's own bathroom! Unbelievable!

Pauline was here for two weeks and stayed in the volunteer room, but now that she has gone home I have it all to myself! I feel guilty having so much space. 

The view from the door

What's this? 

Some ragamuffins? Asleep on my bed?! 

My dresser

A pretty bad picture, but that's the bathroom. 

And my favorite thing about the room, are these beautiful windows that look out into the back yard and are a perfect spot to read a book!

Also some beautiful roses!

I'm so grateful to have my own little sanctuary where I can rest and recharge! 

Washing Dishes!

Tie Dye!

The past two weeks have been a whirlwind of activity here at House 2. One of the reasons was that Tia Savannah has been here and with her she brought some pretty fun activities to do with the kids. One such activity was Tie-Dying! 

It felt so much like a Birthday party from my childhood! 

Our hands were a mess for days! 

Thanks Savannah for the fun activity and the cool new shirts! 

Tia, te puedo ayudar?

Something I love to hear; Tia, te puedo ayudar? (Tia, can I help you?)

Somedays it really seems like our daily work in the house will never end. With the cooking, cleaning, laundry, dishes, homework, bathing etc, etc, etc. That's what makes something like this extra special:

Just chopping some tomatoes! 

Thanks for helping 'B'!

Birthday!

I arrived on Wednesday, and on Friday we had a Birthday! This precious boy turned 5! 

I was happy to help out by making the cake, I think it went over well! 

We were excited to have some Volunteers bring some babies from Casa 1 over for the party!

Everyone was happy to help out!  

The Birthday Boy himself! 5 years old! 

Present Time! I was so impressed with our two oldest boys, when they pulled out a gift they had decided to give him and had wrapped themselves! 

 I'm so happy I could be here to share this day with such a special kid! Due to some special needs that 'B' has, he has very slim chances of being adopted. That makes a day like this even more special, a time when the Tias, the kids, and the volunteers can all show him we love him and he is an amazing Child of God.

He was SOOO excited the days before his birthday, and I would often find him staring off into space only to 'wake-up' and excitedly tell me it was going to be his Birthday! (also the days following, he was very excited to let everyone know that his birthday had passed!

Please pray for 'B' as we don't know what the next few years of his life with look like. Sometimes he can get lost in the crowd of 13 kids we have here and he really needs an extra patient Tia by his side to help him stay on task when trying to change his clothes, eat meals, etc.

On a personal note, things are going really well! I have really been enjoying my time back. So far, the time is FLYING! Being able to jump right in once I arrived has really been a joy, since I already know the language (mas o menos!), I know the kids (almost all of them) I know the Tias, I know the rules and general run of the house, and I know Cochabamba I have really been able to hit the ground running!

Thank you for praying, and I will try to be diligent in my blogging to keep you up to date on the goings on here at Casa de Amor 2!

Kaley
kaleyrachelle@gmail.com

I'm Back!

Well it was a long trip, 6 different planes, 3 countries and one 10 hour layover. But I'm here! My first day was kind of a blur (I was very tired) but was so happy to see Elena with her husband Vico at the airport. They had also brought with them "my baby" (Elias who I fostered the last time I was here!) who is now quite chubby and even more adorable than before!

The new House 2 is almost double the size of the last one with more than enough room for myself, the tias and all 13 kids we currently have.

I was really happy to see the Tias and was surprised and touched with this welcome cake that they made for Pauline and I!

Before arriving I had been trying to prepared myself for the kids reactions to my arrival. I had pretty much resigned myself to the fact that a lot of the younger ones probably wouldn't remember me, seeing as how I've been gone almost a year and quite a number of volunteers have come and gone since then. 

However, I was relieved and overjoyed to be welcomed with hugs and kisses from the kids who were very glad to see me! 

I feel like I've been able to fall right back into place, and it almost feels as though I never left. The days are already flying by as I'm starting to plan projects and outings for the coming months. 

Thank you for praying for me during this transition and for my safe travel, though my trip was long it went off with out a hitch and I Thank God for that! 

Stay tuned!

Kaley