October 18, 2011

My cooking group of girls came over to give empenadas another try (see Oct 11).  This time we bought the dough premade from a vendor in Barahona and they turned out MUCH better.  We had chicken, pepper, and onion empenadas, salami, ham, and cheese empenadas, egg empenadas, and taco seasoned ground beef empenadas.  We didn’t think to seperate them as we cooked, and the girls remarked it was like opening a Christmas present to find out what types they received!

October 14, 2011

At the Friday assembly in La Hoya, a group of boys and girls did a dance to the song “Mi amor es por Dios” (My love is for God).  It was great to see the boys getting invloved in the dance, as they are usually resistant to dancing at asemblies.  I think they were persuaded once they learned they could wear their sunglasses, and act cool.  At the end of the dance they dipped their dance partner, and I had them reenact the dip for a picture.

October 13, 2011

Can you find the hidden boy?  Two boys from La Hoya came to our house requesting we share the rulo, a type of plantain, that grows in abundance in our yard.  After so many months of having it stolen out from under our noses, we were thrilled that they asked permision instead of waiting for us to leave and sneaking in.  They brought their own machetes, and before Patrick could get his shoes on to help, the boys had already scaled the tree and were busy chopping.  They ended up cutting so much they had to work together to carry their harvest. 

October 11, 2011

One evening Patrick and I had some of the kids from church at our house to make empenadas.  One of the girls always brings her little brother, and he and Patrick had some male bonding time hunting the mosquitos that seemed to be covering the walls that night. The hunt went well, but the empenadas turned out to be a disaster! 

October 9, 2011

On a weekend trip to the capital, Patrick and I explored more in depth the colonial zone.  In this area you can turn down almost any street and find churches built in the 1500’s, the residence of Christopher Columbus, and ruins of palaces and government buildings.  I promised myself I would remember the name of this building and when it was built, but of course I forgot.  It was beautiful though, and we were able to go inside and explore a little, once we got past the flock of guard pigeons!

Ocotber 7, 2011

One house in Barahona proudly displays their support for the movement to contribute 4% of taxes towards education. 

October 5, 2011

We decided a sunset trip to the beach was the perfect activity for one particularly hot evening.  We just missed the sun setting, but when we arrived we were greeted by a pretty pastel sky.  The water was nice and cool, the perfect refuge from the heat.

October 3, 2011

We worked really hard to teach this willing little girl, Liz Missel, number 1097, to smile, but she just couldn’t quite get there!  She just didn’t know how to smile on command, but she watched our mouths as we showed her, and felt her lips as she tried, it was just adorable to see.  I’m sure she will have it own by the time we take pictures next year!

October 1, 2011

Of all the critters I have seen and posted on this blog, this is the first wall frog I have experienced.  It is amazing how he can jump from place to place on a smooth wall and still stick to it. 

September 29, 2011

Patrick and Ruber get some work done in the comedor outside the office in La Hoya. 

September 27, 2011

Jose, number 1049, was not shy in front of the camera.  I just love his gap tooth grin, which he uses on anybody he can to get himself out of trouble.  Admitedly, it works quite often.  Luckily his mischief is innocent, and he does really well in school.

September 25, 2011

Olivia took the PT girls on a trip to the capital this weekend.  The girls were very excited to get out of their villages and have a night on the town; they deserve it after this first month of hard work!  

September 23, 2011

At another Friday assembly, a 1^st grader led the group in prayer.  It is a humbling experience to see such a small girl lead kids, teens, and adults with enthusiasm and confidence.

September 21, 2011

September 21^st was the international day of peace.  Katherine and Emma made a beautiful mural for the day, and all the students and staff wore white.  These third graders were more than happy to pose for a picture, although I did have to teach them to make the peace sign! 

September 19, 2011

These two boys are quite the trouble makers once they get into their regular srteet clothes, but somehow the school uniform works to trnsform them into the sweet smiley boys you see below.  In echange for taking this picture, I requested that they stop dumping over the school trash cans for fun.  The arrangement did not last for long, as I caught them at it again just yesterday.

September 17, 2011

Back in the reception class, we were unable to convince Sherlyn, number 1090, to smile in front of the camera.  She smiled on her way from the desk to the camera, and started smiling as soon as she sat back down at her desk, but absolutely refused to smile for the camera. 

September 15, 2011

In our partnership school in Habanero, two boys competed against each other in a spelling game.  Their teacher is a long term substitute, but I would love to see him placed permenantly as he is very dinamic and gets kids out of their seats for learning purposes.  He is also a great male role model which is very hard to find in the schools.

September 13, 2011

One day we had some pretty strange weather in La Hoya.  First there were random gusts of very strong wind that came and went at irregular intervals.  Then it started thundering loudly, although there were no storm clouds at the time.  Finally it started sprinkling rain and Ruber, expecting a big storm, let school out early.  Kids and teacers flooded the streets to get home before the heavy rains came, but despite continued thunder and occaional flashes of lightening, the rain stayed away and the kids enjoyed a rain free half day of school.

September 11, 2011

Speaking of Nairobi, she posed for her database picture for me recently because she is going back to university this fall!  I don’t know how she is going to fit it in with the rest of her activities; she plans and leads all the Friday assemblies, teaches art and English in our partnership schools in Habanero, leads a few girls in individual Bible studies, participates in the weekly youth group, and attends multiple church services every week, not to mention a healthy social life.  She is dedicated to her studies though, and I am sure she will find success.

September 9, 2011

At another Friday assembly, you can see how delighted the kids are to be there.  The stay enthralled in the activities for the entire time, and participate whenever possible.  Nairobi does a great job putting them together.

Sept 8. 2011

Wascar is a little boy in the reception class in La Hoya, number 1094.  We had to teach (unsuccessfully) most of these little ones how to smile on command, but Wascar didn’t even hesitate!  He is a joyful little boy with some learning and development problems, but he come from a great family, and his teachers have really gotten him off to a great start this school year.  He takes a little longer than his classmates on most tasks, but with the support of his teachers, he is learning to write letters and numbers along with the rest of the class.

Sept 6, 2011

In our partnership school in Hato Viejo I teach English to 4^th graders twice a week.  Today we were practicing introducing ourselves.  These two boys really got into the spirit and even shook hands upon learning each others’ names. 

|September 4, 2011

Maritza (1069)was a little uncomfortable in front of the camera.  Normally she is very smiley and happy, but everytime I counted to three before snapping the picture, she geeked out a bit and wouldnt make eye contact with the camera.  Then she wanted to see how the picture turned out, and made me retake about five times.  This was the picture that she chose, although she wasn't thrilled with it.

September 2, 2011

At the Friday assembly this group of fourth graders led every body in a rousing rendition of “Mi Dios es bueno” or in English, “My God is good”.  The crowd really gets into it, and I feel it is a great self esteem builder to be up in front of a large crowd, and get a positive response everytime.

September 1, 2011

In the next few weeks I will be sprinkling in somehighlights from the pictures Rachel and I took for the COPA database.   Below is Ronny, student number 415 in La Hoya.   Ronny has the best smile, and he is happy to share it.  For the most part you have to really struggle to get these kids to smile for a picture, most of them are just accustomed to the stony face look for photos, but Ronny’s smile comes easily, and can brighten anybody’s day.

August 31, 2011

Olivia led a two-part teacher workshop for both schools.  The talk touched on improving one’s self in order to help others, some planning strategies, and some crash course lessons on spelling and math. 

August 29, 2011

One of our night watchmen, Roger, has a couple of dogs that act as his “guard dogs.”  One is an old skinny guy  named Duque (meaning Duke) that barks at almost everybody, but whom no body is afraid of.  This is his new guard dog, Duquesa (meaning Duchess).  She is a loveable little thing who has worked her way in the heart and home of our Project Trust girls.  She doesn’t even try to pretend to be a guard dog, preferring instead to sleep all day.

August 27, 2011

In Bombita the morning assembly for the first few days of school was held in the covered comedor.  They had a more extensive welcome with a number of teachers giving lengthy talks on motivation, behavior, and responsibility.  Even with low numbers the first few days of school, they have since achieved %100 attendance for two days this week!

August 25, 2011

In the Barrio Nuevo (New Neighborhood) of La Hoya, one family uses a thorny tangle of branches as a security gate.  Sort of nature’s answer to barbed wire it would seem.

August 23, 2011

As a part of the new Project Trust girls’ orientation, we had a team retreat at Playa Azul.  The opening activity was to get people moving, and comfortable working together in VERY tight circumstances.  Twister brought out the competitive and flexible sides of most everyone, as you can see in this picture.

August 21, 2011

At church, babies get passed around from one person to the next, and I has been very hard to figure out which baby belongs to which woman.  In the DR you see the concept of “it takes a village to raise a child” put into action.  This baby was obviously over joyed to be in church that day, as most are!

August 19, 2011

The second day of school was slightly better attended than the first.  Still, there were only two girls in the Preschool class.  The smallest girl made up for her classmates’ absence though, and out sung all of the older kids and the teachers. She is the smallest in the school but her powerful vocal chords make her presence known.

August 17, 2011

The first day of school was scarcely attended.  These were the only kids to attend the morning session in the La Hoya school.  Many parents don’t start putting money away for uniforms and school supplies until school actually starts, so many kids don’t show up until the next week of school.   Usually this courtyard is chockfull of kids each morning and afternoon.

Aug 16, 2011

Olivia gathered a crowd at the beach.  These kids followed her around for the day, and she seemed to enjoy their company.

Aug 15, 2011

Rudy is the COPA messenger.  He is incredibly trust worthy, as we send hundreds of thousands of pesos back and forth into Barahona with him every month.  He will search the entire city for any object you desire, and will even do cost comparison.  His son is a shy but sweet boy that comes in the mornings to collect the daily tasks.  It is fun to see a dad here be so sweet with his child.

August 14, 2011

At the beach, a Dominican woman watches the waves and the incoming storm clouds.

August 13

In bombita pigs run free.  I think they are just so cute, but some of the bigger ones can be a couple hundred punds!  They leave their not so cute waste everywhere they go though, so you have to be careful where you step!

August 11, 2011

I finally found Bombita on Google earth!  Here you can see the lay out of the town, the COPA compound, and the Metro, their irrigation resevoir.  In the smaller picture you can see that the houses are little more than shacks, built so close together they could lean on each other if one started to fall. 

August 9, 2011

Patrick and I, along with some friends from La Hoya went to a realy nice swimming pool in Cabral, about 20 minutes away.  The compound had four pools, two of which are connected by an underwater tunnel.  The water was so ridiculously cold, but it felt great on that hot, hot day. 

August 7, 2011

The baby papaya tree in our back yard to starting to show some fruit.  I am always so surprised by how fast things grow and produce fruit here, especially coming from Colorado where things take years to mature.  This tree was barely a sprout when we moved here in April.  I am hoping the fruit will be ready soon!

August 5, 2011

Tropical storm Emily gatherned a lot of hype in our area, and Bombita was under an evacuation warning because of the risk of flooding.  As Patrick, Amy and I were heading down to Bomita, we saw some friends that offerd to help get the beds up on blocks, the motor bikes on table, and EVERYTHING off the ground.  This job would have taken us hours, but with their help it took less than an hour,, and we had some fun doing it!  The storm never hit us though, and we had to undo all the hard work a few days later.

August 3, 2011

We met with the Fundacion members in the COPA La Hoya library, after a two year hiatus.  Pastor Pedro and Maribel chatted some during lunch, while Rachel finished her lunch.  It was great to get to meet all the members, and have positive discussion about the state of the schools and clinics.

August 1, 2011

Miguel is the tallest guy in La Hoya, and one of the most talented baseball players in town.  He practices with a competitive team, and plays for the town rec team as well, and trains in hopes of being recognized by a scout that would send him to training camp in the Capital.

July 30, 2011

After it rains in La Hoya the kids come out to play bottle cap races.  They each have a bottle cap and they float it down the gutter.  It is really fun to see them playing such a fun and simple game.

July 28, 2011

Two young men from Bombita , Jose and Diego, come to La Hoya every Saturday night to play the piano, sing, and beat on the drums for the church services.  They are great guys who love to have fun, and have become good friends.  

July 27, 2011

At the hotel we stayed at for the teacher retreat, the housecleaning staff could do amazing things with a towel!  This heart design is just one towel and a few sprinkled flowers.  It was a nice little treat to find at the end of the day.