Fun and Fellowship

We began the day (Saturday) at a Mexican kids' club with a fellow OMS couple. For the first time in their lives the kids were separated by their age and not allowed to just stay together. Tayler, who is naturally outgoing, handled this much better than Clayton who is more shy-natured. It took quite a bit of convicing for him to stay in his age group. Because the kids do not speak any Spanish and we weren't sure how many of the helpers spoke English, at least one Spanish-speaking adult stayed with each of the kids. Troy went with Clayton (who did loosen up once the kids started to play tag), Paula went with Tayler and Tori (whom we did allow to stay with her sister), John and Troy alternately took Cody, and I stayed with one of the missionaries who taught an English lesson at her station. After no time at all, the girls in Tayler's group were holding her hand, wanting to play with her and asking the missionary to give them phrases in English to say to Tayler. The other kids were fussed over as well and were a delightful change for the Mexican kids. I enjoyed helping Julie, our fellow missionary, with her English lesson and having some of the kids ask questions of me. They were trying to learn English--something I could definitely relate to as someone trying to learn their language as well.

What really touched this mother's heart was how welcoming the kids were of our children and how much they "took them into" their groups. For a long time Troy and I were not sure how well the kids would adjust to Mexico--if this weekend is any indication of things to come, we are no longer concerned about this. They have boldly eaten everything that has been served to them and have liked it (everything from tacitos to sweet coffee with milk and cinnamon) and they have liked all the places we have gone. This is a tremendous answer to prayer for Troy and I.













After church we visited the Mayan pyramids outside of the city. The 3 oldest kids, Troy, and the other missionary, Jonny, all climbed up to the top of the pyramid and took pictures. John & Paula stayed outside of the park with Diogy (their poodle), as dogs are not allowed in the park. Julie, Cody and I sat at the base of the pyramid and tried to fend off the many vendors selling trinkets and watching everyone else make the long, high climb. I, having an issue with heights, of course opted not to make the climb.













It was a great day of ministry, fun at the pyramids and fellowship as we traveled around to the various places and had an opportunity to visit with Jonny and Julie about life as missionaries on the Mexican field. Stay tuned for tomorrow's post and for pictures!