Wednesday and Thursday

Wow we have done a lot in the past two days. Wednesday we started the day by going to a canopy tour. It was made up of ten zip lines. Each one was a different from the one before. The one that was most peoples favorite was a half kilometer long super fast zip line. We had a blast. 

The second half of the day we worked really hard trying to finish our new concrete entry way. We got really close but ran out of concrete and had to stop 9 feet from our goal with the anticipation of getting more concrete the next day. 

Thursday

We had the opportunity to have a very unique day today. We started by going to a local Christian school and spending an hour playing games with them. After that we hiked through a river to a beautiful water fall. The kids got to do some rappeling, swimming and relaxing.  After lunch we went to the work site and finished our concrete drive project.  Then our host families put on a special goodbye dinner. It was a very special evening. 

Tuesday

I asked the kids what they wanted me to put in the post tonight and as I was flooded with all of their answers I realized that I had opened up a flood of things that all of them felt passionate about. The majority of what they wanted me to mention was how amazing the food is. They were also proud of their accomplishments with the building project. They have already put up the entire classroom. They have the posts in and the walls in. The picture of the classroom will look a bit unfinished but future projects will put in the floor, windows, roof, porch and mudding and painting. Our second project is also going very well. We are putting in a concrete driveway  and widening a bridge for the church, school and community. We have poured over a third of the driveway and it looks great!  The kids are hoping to finish a day early so we will see if they can do it. Thank you for all your support. 

Sunday and Monday update.

On Sunday we started putting up the pillars of the walls. We still had a few holes to dig but were mostly done with those. Unfortunately our concrete mixer was behind locked gates and we were unable to get it. This meant that the kids got to learn how to make concert by hand. I actually heard some of them say it was neat to learn how and are really excited for it to come the next day ( they were great sports).  In the afternoon we boarded a boat on the river and got to enjoy all the birds, animals, and scenery a Costa Rican jungle river can offer. We saw monkeys and many many species of birds ( can you tell who is writing this?). Our boat ride ended at a beach where we enjoyed trying to boogie board and swim in the ocean. 

Mondays schedule was reversed as we started with an excursion. We made the trek to a waterfall, enjoyed a rope swing and rapeled down a waterfall. After getting back to the ranch and eating lunch we headed over to the school and worked on outting up some walls. It is starting to look great. Thank you for all your prayers. Blessings to you. 

Happy Sabbath

Today has been a great day. We enjoyed attending the church by the school. We spent sabbath school with the children where we sang songs together in English and Spanish.   For church the seniors did a special music and Valeria translated the sermon. After church we enjoyed a potluck and fellowship with the church members. 

Following lunch we all went to pick up Aileen Cutz from the airport. She was very glad to finally land here in Golfito. Her plane had circled many times but the rain was too dense and she had to land in a nearby village and wait the storm out. 

We then went to the drive up a mountain to enjoy a beautiful outlook of the bay.   We were super lucky to see a three toed sloth and numerous tucans.  

We will enjoy supper together and then the seniors will head home for a good nights sleep before a hard days work tomorrow. 

Friday update.

We have had a great and successful day. We started our building project today and were able to get two thirds of the post holes dug. We were stopped this afternoon by a wonderful tropical rain shower or also known as: soaked to the bone. After retreating back to the ranch many students found that sliding down the falls into the pools of water was great fun. We have been eating very well and all are happy and healthy. Thank you for your prayers and continued support. 

Tucked in safe and sound.

All the students have been dropped off at their host families safe and sound. All of them are very tired and very excited to go to sleep. Good night families and friends of LAA. 

Supper in Costa Rica.

We have made it safely. Traveled for many many kilometers, seen crocodiles, monkeys, macaws, and much more. Everyone sends their love to their families. 

Landed Safe

We landed safe in San Jose Costa Rica. 

Loaded up on the plane. Bellies full and spirits high. Next stop San Jose Costa Rica.

Made it to L. A. safely.

All through security. Eric is fine.

On the road. PDX here we come.

Preparation

Amid the business the excitement is growing.  Amid the excitement the finals are being taken.  Amid the chaos God is with us.

We will be narrating our journey on this site, please check back daily as we will post as often as possible.