Our Trip to Curitiba

We took Lucilene to a scoliosis specialist in Curitiba on Monday and they have scheduled the surgery on April 8th. It is a major back surgery that requires 9 months for a full recovery. Please pray for Luci to have peace as she waits, for her to trust God more than ever before, and for the doctors and nurses who will be attending her.

To make the most of the trip, we invited Janete, Lucilene's sister to come along. We were able to make some very special memories, visiting a petting zoo on the way, swimming at the hotel pool, and introducing them to Outback Steak House!

Decorating the Christmas Tree

I'm not sure if we will ever get used to putting up a Christmas tree when it's 75 degrees out but we'll continue to try! We decorated the family room last week and just finished our last trip to the city to shop for Secret Friend gifts with each of the kids. This year, there will be about 90 people in our gift exchange, as kids who grew up at CLM return with their families to celebrate Christ's birth with us. Please pray for our visitors as they travel and that each of us will again be reminded of the most precious gift that God has given us...His Son, Jesus.

War on Lice!

If you've visited CLM, you have seen our diligence in trying to keep our kids lice-free. However, with 30 kids, it is an ongoing battle that we sometimes lose. After a frustrating week of using lice shampoo, passing fine-toothed combs, blow drying hair, washing linens, pjs, and stuffed animals...Mike finally took matters into his own hands! Who's next???

Update on Mariane

After removing the stitches, the doctor told us that Mariane's finger looks much better than he had hoped. The very tip is still black but we are continuing to pray that she will not even lose that tiny part. She will return each day this week to clean the wound and change the bandage, and will continue taking an antibiotic to treat the infection. She has not complained at all about the pain or even the inconvenience of having her hand wrapped and arm in a sling. We praise God for her and His providence in her life.

Lucilene's Surgery

We have received a second opinion that confirms that Lucilene will need corrective back surgery for the curvature of her spine. Both doctors believe that this is the only option to prevent major health issues in the future with her lungs and heart. After one more appointment in Guarapuava next month, the surgery has been tentatively planned for January in Curitiba. Please pray for God to prepare Lucilene (as well as her brother and sister, Elielton and Janete) emotionally for the operation, as well as the intense therapy that she will need afterwards. May God guide the surgeon's hands and demonstrate His healing power.

Pray for Mariane

Mariane received 11 stitches tonight after her pinky finger was nearly cut off by one of the long benches in the diningroom. The doctor said the circulation is poor and needs to be checked every day to make sure it doesn’t die. He also said he’s not sure it will ever be functional again because of the damage to the nerves and tendons. Please pray for a miracle.

A Dream Come True

Meet Maria's new horse, Sereno! (Although he threw Maria off his back the first time she rode him, his name actually means "calm" in Portuguese! :0) I've never seen Maria so happy. She runs to the barn as soon as she gets home from school and looks for any opportunity to return throughout the afternoon, in between lunch, chores, homework, and dinner. Thank you to those who generously gave to make this dream come true in her life.

Visit from Valdi and Paulo

We had a wonderful surprise this week...a visit from Valdicleia and Paulo, two of our children who were adopted by a Brazilian couple last year. It was the first time we've seen them since last November. Both are doing well and enjoyed sharing about their new family, new home, and new school. They are planning to visit again next week to celebrate Paulo's birthday with us. Please continue to pray for these two precious children and their new parents. (I'll be sure to get a picture of Paulo on their next visit!)

New Pajamas

A huge thank you to the North Phoenix AC Church! Each year, they send new pajamas chosen specifically for each child at CLM Entre Rios and Turvo. You can see from the kids' smiles how happy they are to receive this special gift! May God bless your generosity!

CHILDREN'S DAY...PART THREE?!?

Today, the judge invited the entire CLM family, as well as all the kids currently placed in children's services in Guarapuava, to a movie at the theater in the city. Our kids were already excited about the movie, so you should have seen them when we told them we were going to the Children's Park afterwards...and then to the pizzaria for dinner! The sponsors of our students at Imperatriz blessed us with a donation and asked us to do something special for all the children at Entre Rios. In the past, they have bought things just for our 10 students who go to the private school but this time wanted to do something special for everyone for Children's Day. It was a perfect opportunity to take them out for dinner since we were already in the city. Again, God blessed us with a warm and sunny day and the smiles, hugs, and "thank yous" from our kids blessed each of us. Our desire is for each of them to feel treasured and we are so grateful for everyone who helps to cultivate the true worth and precious value that God has placed on their lives. Please pray that the Holy Spirit continues to delve deep within each one, taking away any seed of doubt that it is their fault they aren't with their families.

Children's Day...Part Two!

After yesterday's sunshine and the weather report calling for rain all day, we planned activities for the kids today just in case we were stuck indoors all day. But again, God blessed us with another perfect day. After lunch, the kids were doubly blessed to receive a bag full of candy and to discover they had no chores for the day. As soon as all the adults finished the dishes, everyone came together to play hockey for the first time. Viktoria, Jake, Lobinho, and Mike jumped on a team while I strapped on a whistle as the referee/photographer. Everyone loved it and the little ones learned more about time...they must have asked 10 times during the 3 minutes they were in the penalty box if it was time to go back in! The afternoon was filled with more games, soccer, basketball, sand volleyball, and rollerblading. We had brownie and ice cream sundaes with homemade hot fudge sauce and whipped cream for snack. I had fortunately made plenty because 15 of Donei's friends showed up to spend the day with us and teenage boys can eat! Amanda and Jake filled about 200 water balloons and organized a balloon launch and relay which left everyone soaked and ready to swim. We ended the day at the pool with a bonfire and a weenie roast and again thanked God for another special day for our kids.

Children's Day

We praise God for the perfect day He gave us to celebrate Children's Day on Sunday! It is traditionally the first day of swimming but with the cold and rainy weather we've had, we all had doubts if it would be warm enough to swim. God blessed us with a hot and sunny day...and our kids have a healthy glow to prove it! Close to 150 people came from our church and the colony to join us for lunch and a day of fun and fellowship. There was a water slide for the little ones and the soccer field and basketball court were in constant use. Mike added a balance beam to the deep end of the pool and the kids had a blast trying to make it to the other side without falling off. Of course, it turned into more of a challenge when we gave them jousting sticks! Thank you for praying for our kids!

Happy Birthday, Mike and Joanna!

We celebrated Mike and Joanna's birthdays tonight...it's hard to believe that he will be turning 40 next Friday! I met Mike when we were in the fourth grade so I guess that means we've known each other for 30 wonderful years. We were best friends throughout high school and married after our first year of college. Although he graduated with an accounting/business degree, he always shares that God saved him from a boring life of numbers and called him into ministry. After college, he was a youth pastor for 8 years before going to seminary for his master's in Biblical studies. He then felt God leading him into singles' ministry at First Friends. While on the pastoral staff there, he finished a master's degree in pastoral counseling and again felt the Lord's leading into full-time missions here at CLM. Mike loves to bring the Scripture alive through dramas and activities that get the kids involved. He also loves to work with the boys, teaching them what it means to be a Godly man. He recently has started working as our staff coordinator. Please pray for God's continued blessing and direction in his life as he ministers to our children and for his health...he survived swine flu but is now battling a bad ear infection.

Welcome Back, Jake and Amanda!

We praise God for answering our prayer to send more full-time missionaries! Jake and Amanda finished moving into their new CLM home last week and officially start in the schedule on Monday. They are currently spending the weekend with visitors from Ohio and Arizona in Iguassu Falls and will return on Sunday. Please pray for safe travels and a wonderful time of fellowship for the entire group.

Happy Birthday, Maggie!

Our little Maggie turned seven yesterday and had her first birthday party! Annette heard us talking at lunch and mentioned that they had hoped to be a part of a birthday celebration during their visit...could she make a cake for Maggie? Mocha was invited but because of the storm, decided to go upstairs to hide until I coaxed her back down with a piece of cake. Maggie stayed under the table while the kids sang "Happy Birthday" but couldn't resist when I pulled a tennis ball out of a gift bag for her! The cake was delicious and made a fun memory for all of us...thank you, Annette for your thoughtfulness!

Carrie (FINALLY!) Comes to Entre Rios!

We were so excited to finally meet Carrie yesterday! She has been serving at Turvo for the past 6 weeks and will continue there until November. She is the sister of Carl who served with us last year, and of Katie who will soon be arriving with her husband, Andy as full-time missionaries. She has been an incredible help to Luiz, Aninha, and Natalia and a huge blessing to the kids. Just in the short time that she has been with us, it is going to be difficult to say goodbye. Please pray that God continues to minister to her heart as she pours out His love to each of our children. We also ask for you to pray for the final approval of Katie and Andy's visas so they can begin making their travel arrangements.

Hats Off To Our Visitors!

A huge thank you to our visitors from Arizona and Ohio! Besides bringing tons of tools, repainting our family room, buying pizzas for everyone, cooking Sunday lunches, baking cookies, and tuning up our vans (Thanks, Mark for making this a priority before you left!)...they have found time each day to play games with the children or do fun projects like this one. Each child chose a hat and decorated it with puffy paints...I'll post more pictures tomorrow once they dry! Please pray for John, Corinne, Annette, Ivanka, and Melaney during their last few days with us, as well as for Kristen who will be staying to serve with us for the next several months.