March Madness

I got it. I finally received my driver’s license! Yay! The attorney has also informed us that both our visas were finally approved but not officially just yet. We have to make an appointment with the Federal Police (which appointments are weeks out) and then wait to pick up our actual IDs. After we register with the Federal Police we can start the paperwork for the boys. It’s a long process but we’re making headway.

The month started out crazy for our Vinde kiddos. One girl’s father had left…again. This is a recurring theme for this family and we can usually tell by her mood when it happens. On top of that, some kids at school where making fun of her for it too. Like any of that craziness has to do with her. Poor thing.

One of our new young kiddos stuck his hand in the bathroom door (hinge side) and broke the tip of his finger. We contacted his parents, cleaned up the blood where it broke the skin, and did our best to comfort him until they arrived. The parents didn’t even take him to the doctor until four hours later when Liandro called to check on him and encouraged them to him to UPA (kind of like an urgent care) where it was confirmed it was broke and he was given some pain meds. Poor little guy.

Then another day some boys thought it would be fun to throw rocks at a bees nest. They were rewarded for their efforts with multiple bee stings to the face and arms.

The kids also found either snake or lizard eggs and decided to throw them. Good grief.

We have another boy that told us he hears voices telling him to do bad things like kill his brother.

Combine all this with the rain and it makes for some challenging times for the kids.

We are very thankful for our car but to go along with March madness theme, it decided that 1- it’s wipers are going to stop working properly, 2- the A/C has decided to give up the ghost, and 3- the fuel gauge sensor no longer functions properly. I’ve ran out of gas twice. Twice! Both times with me, not Trevor, but me. Uuuggh. The mechanic doesn’t want to work on it with a full tank of gas but it’s difficult to estimate when it is getting low enough without running out. The last time it happened, thankfully Carol was with me. I was taking Davi to school and it died in the middle of a busy road. Carol called Richard to bring us some gas and I walked Davi to school while Carol waited with the car. Luckily, we were stopped close to some parking spaces, and while I was walking Davi, a spot opened and a motorist helped Carol roll down the slight hill and push the car into a parking spot to get the car out of the road. Carol broke the heel of her shoe in the process. No good deed goes unpunished. Thanks Richard for saving the day! Roberto saved the day the first time it happened in the neighborhood where we live. Thanks fellas.

Needless to say, after two weeks of stuff like that, we decided we needed a break. So we took Eduardo and headed to the beach for a quick weekend trip. We piled in the car and drove through São Paulo. In order to take Eduardo with us, we had to get a permission slip from his mother notarized to provide to the hotel. The paper tells who he’s traveling with, him and his mother’s personal info, who is responsible for him during this time, and the name and address of the hotel we were staying at. Everyone had to present IDs or passports to check in.

You know you’ve made it to Santos when you see the big fish and Santos Futebol Clube.

Santos isn’t the prettiest beach in Brazil but its fairly close to the house (2 1/2 hours) and the hotel we stay at is clean, cheap, and right on the beach. This is the view from our hotel. You walk across the road and that’s the beach behind those flags. With onsite parking and restaurants nearby, it’s a pretty great setup.

Steak, shrimp, bacon, and veggies, yes please!

It had been a rainy week but the weather turned out great for our beach weekend.

A little nighttime beach walk.

Another day of swimming and four square.

And a little more shrimp, fish, and squid; this time fried.

I love these knuckleheads. Eduardo had a great time and we love him being part of our crew.

Driving through the national park is beautiful and I love how you can see the ocean from high up in the mountains (although it’s hard to get a good picture from the car).

English classes are going well. The boys filled in for me one day when I wasn’t feeling well. They crushed it.

Mason has really stepped up this year. Besides helping me with English and Liandro with Jiujitsu, he has discipleship with a group of boys each week. I came into the biblioteca to pray over his room before his devotional one day and found his handiwork on the board. I love how he’s using his artistic side when presenting the gospel; making my momma heart proud.

I don’t have pictures of Tuck serving, as we serve at different locations, but he has really started taking on more responsibilities at the ministry and translating more. But when he’s at home, he’s usually trying to keep himself busy. Gotta love this kid.

We had a couple new short term interns arrive that needed to go over the handbook and have an orientation meeting.

The interns came over for game night at the house; food, games, fun, and fellowship.

The kids we serve and this ministry are such a big part of who our family is.

Oh, and the capybaras had babies and they’re so cute.

Awe Brazil.