Birthdays, Bumper cars, and Bonitas Dias

Hello Everyone!!
Sorry that I haven't posted in awhile- the internet was not working for a few days and even when it is, sometimes it's sketchy! :) Last week was a really fun week- we got to to do a lot of things with the kids and it is always good to see them smiling. Because my family and friends donated money for my trip and I had more than I could ever use, I have been looking for things that are needed or things that are really wanted :). My friends and family have bought shoes for 22 of the kids, supplied lots of materials for craft time, purchased a baby walker for little Jose David (who by the way- took his first steps over the weekend!!!!), made it possible for internet to be installed in the offices downstairs, bought lanterns for the casistas for when there is no electricity, and now, they have made first ever birthday outings possible!!! Emily and I decided that all of the kids deserved at least one evening out with just a few other kids for their birthdays. We want them to experience exciting things and for them to feel special. So on Wednesday we took the 5 kids who had birthdays in September out to see a movie and to dinner. I posted pictures and more information below about that outing, but when I was posting the other pictures, I ran out of time so they I didn't talk a lot about what we did. So I will just have to tell you about the other outing now! On Thursday we took the kids that have birthdays in October out for their birthdays. There are 4 of them and they are all just the cutest! We took Khirsty (13 in 5 days), Estephany (8), Dani (5), and Brayan (5 on monday!) out for the evening. First we went to the beach- one of the other madres was taking her casista to the beach and a place called Playland Park for a treat so we decided to catch a ride with them. It was so funny at the beach because the kids wanted to get their feet wet- so they would walk down to the water line and wait for the wave to come in, but as soon as the wave started crashing, they would run away!. You should have seen them all waiting and waiting and then screeching and running the opposite direction. I could not stop laughing and it looked like so much fun so i of course had to get in on the action! But the first wave I tried to run from (notice I say tried) was a bigger wave and went up past my knees! The kids got soaked to their waists but they were all laughing and giggling so much, I don't think they minded! After we left the beach we all went to Playland Park- it is like an amusement park/fair. It had rides that you see at a fair but it was permanent. There we drove bumper cars (much screaming and more laughing involved), rode the carousel, and a few other rides. Khirsty rode one of the rides that was only for older kids/adults with Julissa, and said afterwards that she didn't know if her heart could do it again!! After Playland park, Julissa and her casista went back to the Albergue and Emily and I with the kids went to Roky's. It is a restaurant that has a big play area and really good french fries, so we were all happy. On our way back to the Albergue, Khirsty kept saying 'bonita dia' which means beautiful day. . . she said that she didn't want the day to end and wanted to stay out until 3 o'clock or 5 o'clock in the morning! I was just so happy to see all of the kids happy and joyful. They laughed and smiled so much and everytime we did something new- they would look at me or Emily as if to say “Really? I get to do this??”. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday evenings we did something fun and different with the kids- each night I would go bed content and happy knowing that I helped to make a child happy. It was the best!
Right now, quite a few of the kids are sick- once one child gets something, it passes around to all the kids in no time. Several of them have a cough, soar throat, and a fever. Please pray for them!!
Thank you again to everyone that reads this blog, prays for me and the Albergue, and especially to those that leave comments! (you know I love them!) :)
I love you all!!!
janie