Days I just LOVE

Praise Jesus for days you wake up with a song in your heart,

You hear great news about a friend and your heart stays in a constant smile:)

(Ionda gets to come to come to the states for Christmas)

The kids are having a great day

The sun is shining and the sky is brilliant blue

What more can a girl ask for

Thank you Jesus for these blessings!

Team Retreat

This weekend we had an evaluation team come down

to spend a few days with the team and I

Ted Witzig Jr., Mike Rassi, and Ted Hirstein

This is such a great group of guys we had so much fun with them.

Friday night they arrived and we all had supper with

Pastor Damian & family, and Mr. and Mrs Jones.

Saturday we spent the day in "meetings". We had all previously completed

multiple online (personality, conflict, and spiritual) assessments. Ted W. had put together a presentation of all our test results. It was a great day of learning how we work together, things that we need to work on as a team, and things I need to work on personally. When we finished around supper all our brains were full of all all that had been taken in. We were then able to enjoy a great night of fellowship. Sunday we all went to church together, to visit our friends at the Manchester infirmary, we made a quick visit to Knockpatrick, back to JDV for a final meal all together, and some more great fellowship before the guys left Monday morning.

Me and My Kids

Everyday I try to make it outside at break time to talk

to the kids during their morning break...

and just about everyday Paris comes up to me

sits on my lap and wants our picture taken...

The other kids see and run over to get in on the picture fun too...
praise Jesus for simple fun times with my kiddos

Way Out West Lived A Coyote Named Frank

Last week the pre-primary classes and I read the story

Way Out West Lived A Coyote Named Frank

The kids making their picture of the story
Tajay and his picture of the story

A very artistic Sankeer working on his picture

The Beach

Two weekends ago was a holiday weekend down here so we

(Plattners, Jenna, Andrea, Vanesse, and I) headed to font hill beach.

The day was PERFECT and not to crowded even though it was a holiday weekend.

Font Hill Beach is VERY rocky
But its still a beach and beautiful!
It was a great day!

Time Flies!

On this day 2 years ago I arrived on the island on a one way ticket, with only 2 suitcases.

Wow! so much has changed in that time. It has felt forever long, but also just like a few days. I am nothing like the person that arrived down here and even though I feel completely changed by all that God has blessed me with in experience, I know there is still so much change for the better that can be made. Praise God for His provisions and all the ways He continues to work!

Love and Blessings

Graduation

This past Friday before the kids went home on a holiday weekend

we had Graduation here at

CCCD Knockpatrick

While the kids were waiting to be picked up they played the role of my assistance

caring around my camera bag for me
Some kids played the role of "statues" to begin the ceremony they would stand in a pose
then every few min. all change positions (into a new pose) at the same time.
It was fun to see but also kinda random:)
The graduating class.
(no matter how I tried to crop this picture kirks head is always in the middle)

Pastor Damion starting the ceremony off with a prayer

Hands in Praise performing a song

The teachers singing for the graduates

The graduates sharing memories

Mrs. deMercado (the principal) sharing with the graduates

The graduates performing a song for their parents and teachers

The guest speaker giving the "inspirational" message

The kids receiving their diplomas

The graduates leaving graduation.

As you can see this was a BIG day for our graduates and

a LONG day for everyone who attended

But it was also WONDERFULLY BLESSED.

Please pray for all the new graduates

as they go out into the real world, and for my kids

as they are on holiday until Wednesday.

Please Pray

I just received this email about one of our missionary families over in Haiti.

Please lift them up in prayer.

I am saddened to inform you that Gabriel Reinhard passed away this morning from injuries suffered from an accident. Her Father Tim and Sister Sarah were also injured, but their injuries do not appear to be life threatening. The process has begun to bring Gabriel's body back to the states.

Please Pray for Tim, Joan, Sarah, Bethany, Hannah, and Faith

Thanks.

Hair Show 09

Yesterday a group of our cosmetology class went down

to Kingston to compete in the hair show

Sancia and her hair model

(Yes she has an elephant made completely of hair woven in her hair)

Yanique and her model Taunya
Charnelle and Sancia with their Model Kerry-Ann

Jerdeen with her model Sashida

Charnelle with her model Sabreke

Sashida on the walk way modeling her hair

(I can't imagine how heavy or how much

fake hair is weaved in with her own)

All our models from the competition

Big News!

I'M GOING TO BE AN AUNTIE AGAIN!!!

Congratulations

Adam and Kristen!

A Lap Full

Last night the kids had fun seeing how many they could pile on my lap

wait... everyone was not ready....

okay there ready now...
CHEESE!

Enjoying the Simple Things

Usually once a day (sometimes 10+ times a day:)

I hear a call from inside my house asking me to "come sit by me"

I go to my door to find my little friend waiting for me to sit down so we

can discuss the important things of life such as...

how many leafs are on the ground, or where all the bugs are.

Its nice to be able to stop and enjoy the simple things:)

Laces of Love

The Laces of Love Team

John, Marcy, Angela, Ro, Donna, and Mark

Last week we had a team come down with the Laces of Love ministry and Bless us with the gift of new shoes for all the students and most of the staff.

Last spring they sent down a shoe sizer and I got all the measurements of the kids feet and Monday a team of 6 arrived with all the shoes.

A very excited class trying their best to wait patiently
for their turn to be fitted with shoes

The team would remove the sock and shoes the students were wearing

Then they would wash the students feet
(This part was hard and humbling for our older students.

A lot of them were embarrassed and ashamed of their

socks and smelly feet and didn't want the team to wash them.)

Allesha and Sanieka were SO EXCITED as they tried on their new shoes

Laverne thanking Angela for her new shoes

Mark and Ro getting shoes for Glen and Raymond

Kyle, Tajay, Paris, and Richard all ready to go back to class wearing their new shoes.

A very happy and proud Laverne leaving in her new white shoes:)

All the kids did get shoes but the older ones were more embarrassed of this process and didn't want their pictures taken but LOVED getting the new shoes as much as the little kids did!