They’re Heeeeeerrrrre….

Grandparents! Mom, Papaw, and Nana were able to come visit. Ron and Norma Jean will be here a week and Mom will be here for the month of June. Trev and I picked them up at the airport in São Paulo.

The boys were so excited about this visit. They had been counting down the days. Their flight was delayed in Atlanta by an hour and a half so they left early Sunday morning instead of late Saturday night so they arrived tired but in good spirits.

We got them settled in, rested, had lunch, and then took them on a walk around the lake. Our neighborhood capybaras were polite enough to make an appearance for the Grands.

Of course, Tuck felt that they couldn’t have a proper visit without a trip for açaí first thing.

Monday, we decided to play tourist and took the grandparents to the falls that we went to with Ellis to show them some of the small towns and the pretty countryside.

We had a great day. The weather was wonderful.

I love these men. All four love the Lord and their family. I’m so thankful my boys have these Godly men in their lives. The falls were roaring as usual but it wasn’t a full moon, so again, there was no werewolf in sight.

Boys being boys, decided to get in the water. The top picture makes me feel like I’m about to witness a baptism. They all brought swim clothes. Do any of them change before getting in the water? Nope, not a one of them.

I’m sure it’s boring for you to see us doing the same things but with our limited Portuguese, it helps to go places we’ve been with a Brazilian so we know what to expect with the Grands. Less anxiety that way for everyone. Well, at least that was the plan – falls and peixe and mandioca for lunch. We got to the Falls only to find the restaurant was closed. We are in the middle of nowhere around lunch time with a diabetic. We checked to make sure they were open before we came. I don’t know what was going on. Luckily, we were just impatient American’s. Brazilians eat a little later, so by the time we were ready to leave, the restaurant had opened. So it worked out, wonderfully. The boys were excellent company on the ride home.

I love these people. All week long they just jumped right in and served along side us.

Nana jumped in teaching English. Teachers never retire.

Mom and Papaw, served food, made snack, washed A LOT of dishes, and loved on the kiddos.

We have grown so fond of these kids. Although, we told the Grands not to leave their water bottles, backpacks, or anything laying around or they might get gone. Well, Papaw left this hat and sunglasses on the table. Let’s just say some little Brazilian boy is out there wearing an American man’s sunglasses.

I love this picture of Bernardo with his arm around Mason. The kids are so fond of our boys. They love hanging out with Mason and Tucker and run up to hug them when the arrive. So precious.

It wasn’t all work, though. Mamaw brought Trouble with her and Papaw learned the crazy rules her and the boys play by. They also showed Papaw some of their favorite video games. He loved it so much, it put him to sleep. HA!

We also had a parent/teacher conference with Mrs. Sonia.

And just like that the week was almost over. But we couldn’t let them leave without taking them out to the Brazilian Steakhouse.

And, of course, after eating all that meat we had to take a walk around the lake.

I had to get pictures with the city signs. I know it’s cheesy but in a few years when I can’t remember anything, I’ll at least know where I was.

This weekend was full of emotions. We said our goodbyes and dropped Papaw and Nana off at the airport.

Marcella, one of our teens in the program, was baptized. What a special moment! She is such a joyful young lady. Everyone was on cloud nine until they weren’t. Right after these pictures were taken, we found out that the older sister of one of the middle school kids in our program committed suicide. I’m not sure if that young lady was a Christian or not. I do know that the girl in our program is a Christian but her mom and stepdad are not. But the first person the mom contacted was Ellis. She and a pastor were able to go to their house and be the hands and feet of Jesus and help comfort that family during this very difficult time. If you ever wonder if sponsorship is important, effective, and worth the money, the answer is resoundingly, yes. These next few days, weeks, and months will be so hard for this young lady and we have the opportunity to walk with her during this time; to love on her and her family. Ministry matters.

I hate to end on such a serious note but that’s just how the week ended. Never fear, I’m sure I’m due for another What Stupid Thing Did Holly Do moment real soon.