It’s been an eventful, intense ending to an amazing, unforgettable summer. It’s been so eventful, we might add, that we are a bit behind on many things, like blogging. So here is our attempt at a quick recap of the past month.
The first week in August we welcomed a team from Living Word Evangelical Free Church in McAllen, Texas: four girls, one guy and the pastor himself, fired up and ready to bless Roots & Wings in whatever ways possible.
And bless they did, from helping with all of the day-to-day tasks like cleaning, feeding babies and rocking the little ones to sleep to cooking us ladies a steak dinner and taking us out for coffee after a long day. They also shared Bible stories with all of the children, held individual piano lessons for our older boys and spent quality time getting to know each one of our kids.
Quite possibly the highlight of the week, the team helped chaperon Roots & Wings’ first ever field trip to a pool! Despite living in warm, sunny Mazatlan, for many of our children this was the first time they had ever been to a pool. Naturally, there was some initial hesitation, but that quickly gave way to lots of splashing, jumping and endless laughter.
They poured themselves so wholeheartedly into everything they did… we did not want them to leave. We were truly touched by their hearts of service and cherish the new friendships we have formed.
Then, Christmas came early for Roots & Wings! Last week we received visitors from Iglesia Vida Nueva in La Mision, Mexico. Not only were we able to reconnect with old friends, they also came bearing gifts from both the church and our dear friends at Open Arms. Nap cots, toys, diapers, crayons, a printer (!!), and much, much more to bless both our kiddos and staff. {Jesus especially thanks you for that pink sheep. They have become inseparable friends.}
This team of three adults and two children came and helped both inside with the kids and outside with construction. Our littles especially enjoyed hanging out and playing with David, a cool “older” (10-year-old) boy.
Thank you Living Word Evangelical Free Church and Iglesia Vida Nueva for visiting us, blessing us and making this summer so special for us and our kids.
These last few weeks have also included some of the hardest days of this ministry’s existence. Maria, one of our youngest, suddenly became very ill. Last Tuesday night we received a phone call from a frantic Susana asking us to join her at the hospital, all she told us was that Maria was very sick. When we arrived we found out that Maria had been vomiting violently and shortly thereafter lost consciousness. Maria remained unconscious for several hours and after a night at the ER and an IV drip for severe dehydration, Maria was sent home with a diagnosis of a stomach bug.
But this gave us no peace. She was still extremely lethargic and could not manage to stay awake for very long. Unsatisfied with the diagnosis and deeply concerned for her health, we took her to a pediatrician. The doctors in the area have been seeing many cases similar to Maria’s come up recently. They are unfamiliar with the specific illness and could only tell us that it affects multiple body systems and the symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting and loss of consciousness. Maria also had infections in multiple locations of her body including her lungs and stomach and was placed on a treatment plan.
