Hey everyone!!

Sorry for such a delay in the blog post but I am going to fill you in on what has been going on with my team and I during the past two weeks.

I flew to Atlanta, GA last Monday.  My flight came in a bit late and then the airport ended up getting shut down because of a storm outside.  I found my leader Tana in the atrium with some other FYMers (first year missionaries).  We had to wait a few hours for my bags but we finally got them and made the drive up to Gainesville to the training camp.  When I got to training camp everyone was already at the camp.  Sarah Morgan and I were the last people on our team to show up.  I was exahusted but my team members were friendly and we had a good time.  We had a worship service that night and as tired as I was God gave me enough energy to glorify him and it was very uplifting. Our living situation was a cabin without electricity, outdoor showers, and port-o-johns.  At training camp we had many daily sessions on spirtual warefare, cultural interactions, testimonies and other topics.  Then we would eat lunch and do team builder challenges that included, having our team stand on a tarp and then flipping it to the other side without any of our body parts off the tarp, a fake plane crash and having to have disablities and carry our team to safety, an obstacle course, a maze, and many other stressful activities.  The team builders taught us how to communicate more effectively, and to learn more about our teammates and the group dynamic. I grew a lot during that week and learned how to work with my team and be adaptable as a leader or follower.

On the 15th we left camp to fly to Huston.  The Hurricane Ike had hit a few days earlier so we were concerned about our flight being cancelled but all turned out well.  In the Huston airport we had about a 4 hour layover and my team and I got closer just relaxing and enjoying our last bit of American civillization!!!

Our flight went well and we met our leader Tana (who had come a few days before), Charles and Sarah Kaye (our host missionary family) at the airport.  We all loaded onto a bus and drove from Managua to Granada which is about a 45 minute drive.  My house in Nicaragua has 4 bedrooms,2 bath and a mini pool ... sort of.  I am in a room with 5 other girls. Our house is very nice in comparrison to some of the living situations I have witnessed here.  The boys live around the corner and about 5 minutes away.  Their house has a few mattresses and little else, so they come over for meals and a debrief at the end of the night.  Our week here so far has been fairly relaxed.  On our first official day here we got to sleep in, do our quiet time, and then settle in, that evening we went to el puente or the bridge which is the AIM base here in Granada and we had a brief orientation. Since then we have had a pretty relaxed time just soaking up our surroundings and relaxing.  Our tentative plan for the next 3 months is working at a few orphanages, ministering in schools, hospitals, and prisons, playing soccer with kids, doing some esl, the girls may tutor some girls after schoo, we may also pick up trash once a week.  The people here have an immense sense of hoplessness and so they do not take care of their community and therefore trash is sort of strewn wherever it falls.  Yesterday we helped out with a kids program and later that night had a church service where 6 local churches got together to do worship.  This morning we went to church at el puente and tonight we have a church service at torre fuerte and a few of my teammates are helping lead worship and doing a drime .. which is a drama without words put to music!  I am really excited for tonight.

We also did a scavenger hunt with our two wonderful interpreters Mario and Natalia while our leaders were in meetings.  The scavenger hunt allowed us to see a lot of neat things in our community. We have been doing a lot of walking and it is HOT HOT HOT here.  I can see that God really meant for my team and I to come into Nicaragua because they are in great need of witness. Charles and Sarah Kaye are the only Evangelical missionaries in Granada and we are the first long term team to come! We have a lot of work ahead of us so be keeping my team and I in your prayers.  Check out my photos to see some of what I have been up to!! 

 I miss everyone and keep your eye out for my next blog.