Christmas Day!

And for my final Christmas post, here's a run down of our day! 

The morning started out with the wonderful Booher family bringing us a tray of fresh out of the oven cinnamon rolls, which was amazing! 

Merry Christmas to me! 

And next, presents! For the morning Christmas activities, the kids opened the gifts that they bought for each other in the Christmas Shop we went slowly one at a time which I felt made it more special. The kids were able to thank each other for the presents and really appreciate them. 

But before presents could be opened, of course, dishes had to be done! 

So much fun! 

(The puppy was not a Christmas gift, though the kids wished it was! In actual fact it's Tia Elena's new little baby)

After cinnamon rolls, presents, flying kites it was time for lunch! And we had Tacos! Delicious! 

After lunch there were Christmas naps, and then Jen, Jake the Boohers and Camilla came over to continue the Christmas festivities which included more presents and delicious treats! 

All in all, it was an awesome Christmas and I think we all had a great time! 

Kaley

Christmas Kites!

One of the items in our little Christmas shop were these fun kites! 

I would say that they were the favorite Christmas present of the year and for only 4bs (appx $0.60) there were a pretty good deal! 

 
             They were so excited that they had to pause opening presents in order to go and fly them!

M. Really had the hang of it! 

Kites, kites everywhere! 

Check out this little video!

What an awesome Christmas morning! 

The Christmas Shop!

So for the three days leading up the Christmas, Elena and I (Elena did almost all the work) put together a little Christmas VBS (for lack of a better description) 

Each afternoon we played Christmas themed games, listened to the Christmas story, memorized Bible verses and did crafts.

During these activities the kids had the opportunity to earn money (fake money!) for memorizing verses, or answering questions about the Bible stories, or winning games or just for good behavior. Then, on Christmas Eve, we put together our Christmas shop! 

The kids were able to come in one at a time and buy toys, clothes and stuffed animals for the other kids. It was so fun to have them pick things out for each other! 

There were also gifts for the Tias! 

Once they were purchased, the kids helped wrap up the presents. Here's the pile! 

All sorted out! 

More to come soon! 

Stockings!

In my mind, Something is missing from the Christmas experience if (besides the joy of the season and Jesus humbling himself and coming to earth) there is not a stocking with your name on it full of candy and small gifts! 

So after a trip to La Cancha with Elena, we got started. 

Actually, I had been under the impression that the sewing machine at House 2 was not working, but after the first half of the stockings I thought I should at least give it a try. After a bit of tinkering it worked like a dream, and me and some special little helpers finished them up in no time! 

A stack of finished stockings.

All lined up and ready to be filled! 

And here we are, Christmas morning, ready to open them up! 

Merry Christmas! 

Advent Calendar

Something I really wanted to do with the kids this Christmas Season was some sort of advent calendar, to mark the days until Christmas as well as learn the story of Christmas a little bit better, so this is what we came up with!

And here it is up until the 22nd, it got pretty colorful but the kids loved being able to make their own versions of the characters in the Christmas story.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Time is Here!

Merry Christmas! The days here in Cochabamba are FLYING by! And we are definitely in the Holiday spirits. 

We had a great time decorating our Christmas trees: 

Please pray for the kids over the Christmas season. It saddens me to think that these kids have never known a Christmas like one from my childhood. A Christmas full of family and tradition.

We're having fun with Christmas cookies, and carols and activities, but please pray that the importance of Christmas, the 'reason for the season' will be pressed onto their hearts in a meaningful way that will stick with them throughout their lives! 

Merry Christmas! 

A Lovely Afternoon Snack

We have been enjoying some lovely weather here lately (Though the rain is on its way!).

A while back, we had a great snack of oranges and honey (it sounds weird, but it's delicious!).

Kaley