Day 5

Dear Family and Friends,

 I am so sorry for not blogging from Ecuador until now. The first couple of days were very stressful. I am not going to lie and say I didn't cry A LOT the first day, plenty the second day, and some the third day. It's just hard to get adjusted to a whole different life away from the people you love - I still am not completely adjusted yet! Well, I will try to sum up these past 5 days (the good and the bad included).
  Leaving my family on Monday at 11 AM was the SCARIEST thing I have ever done in my life. I was so nervous, didn't really want to joke around about anything (even though it doesn't look like it), and I cried a lot a lot a lot. Here are some pictures from the airport:

Everyone thought I looked like Fraulein Maria from The Sound of Music with my guitar and carry on bag. (This was one of the only moments in which I was OK with joking around) 

                                                                                     

 Or maybe I just wanted to be like her. But you carry around a black guitar case and try not to feel like a young Julie Andrews.

This is the "don't take pictures I am so nervous" face.

                                                                         Silly family picture.

Garrett ruining a Sound of Music shot (on purpose).

 Setting my stuff down for a second to try for a second picture.

Garrett messing the second shot up AGAIN. 

Me getting mad at Garrett but still sort of laughing. 

Me REALLY annoyed at Garrett. Garrett, sorry for being mean to you that day. I was so nervous! I love you!

Final family picture before boarding the plane.

  The flights were pretty uneventful, but my bags were SO heavy. So walking around in the airports was a giant pain. I had to stop every 30 seconds because I was carrying a heavy guitar (stuffed with guitar and tons of goodies for the kids here), another carry-on weighing 20 or 25 pounds, and my backpack, which was also SO heavy. Nevertheless, I made it to Ecuador at midnight on Monday. 

  Jerry Snyder, the man who started this whole place, picked me up. He drove me back to the orphanage and let me sleep in he and his wife's house for the night to get some rest. If you know me, however, you will know that if I am nervous I cannot sleep (or eat or laugh or smile). So I pretty much slept from 4 to 6. When they woke up they drove me over to my little apartment with my things, and as soon as he left I started bawling (my roommate was teaching at school at that time so the apartment was empty). I got on skype and talked to my parents and really just felt awful. I wanted to go home and was so nervous and hungry and tired. So, Anderson decided that he would read his "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" book to me on Skype while I unpacked. He read to me for about 30 or 45 minutes, and it was the best thing of that day (THANKS ANDERSON!!)! When it got to be around lunchtime, I didn't know if I was supposed to wait for someone to come get me to have lunch, or eat by myself, or eat at the school... So, after complaining and crying to my parents on skype, my dad pretty much made me get out of the apartment and go look for someone to talk to. So I walked over to the little house in front of mine and ate lunch with Amanda Snyder, Jerry's daughter in law who runs the school along with her husband. She was very nice and has very cute kids and made me an awesome sandwich. After that I went right along with her to the school, and by the end of that day I was already teaching. I will do a whole other blog on the school system with pictures and everything, because it is SO complex and I don't want anyone going asleep reading this blog. 

  So I got through that first day, and the second, and the third, and the fourth. I have now been here for five days and can say that every day has gotten better. I am COMPLETELY in love with the kids that live here (they come over whenever they want, hug me, kiss me, one of them called me his mama, and if you saw pictures of them you would understand how CUTE they are), have made some really great new friends and have almost gotten used to the teaching, food and weather. God is the one that really, truly helps me get through each day, and every morning I write in my journal and read the daily Jesus Calling devotional (that book is AWESOME). There will be many more blogs to come: ones about teaching, new friends (Maritza! Jill! Cathy! Amanda! Miss Estela! Miss Fabi!), the kids, my jobs here, my little apartment and how it is getting decorated (The Ansley and Anderson book is hanging up on my wall, Andy! Twins forever!!!), the food, and so much more. I will leave you today with a small video I made about these 5 days I have been here, and I hope you like it! Please continue to pray for me as it is still very hard to not miss my family. Thank you!! And here is the short video (The song is "Hosanna" by Christy Nockels, God has put it on my heart this whole week long).
 P.S.: SO SORRY about the song cutting off in the middle out of nowhere. my computer did something weird and the timing is sort of off in the beginning also, so this is not the best video ever (but the internet here is so slow it took me 5 hours to upload this video to youtube and i really dont want to do that again)!! hope you still like it :)