Merry Christmas!

We celebrated Christmas on the night of the 24th.  It started with a short message from Avis, then we had a nice dinner at 8:00, followed by hot chocolate and fruit bread.  After we were all done eating we opened gifts.  It was a really great time, and I am very glad I stayed to be here with the kids this time of year.  

Enjoy the video below of Santa's helper passing out the gifts.

First Chocolatada

One thing the Peruvians really do well is their hot chocolate and fruited bread.  Monday night was the first chocolatada of the season and it was excellent.  The kids were a part of a padrino program that matched them with a sponsor who choose to be in the program.  The kids got to meet their padrinos 2 or 3 times before the christmas party.  The padrinos found out what their kid wanted through these chats and tried their best to find a gift for the child.

It turned out really well.  The padrinos came monday night for a party and gift giving session.  We all drank hot chocolate and played games.  All the kids got what they asked for, which  I think is a first.  Lot's of them even got some pretty expensive gifts, like Gerson who got a 125 sole mp3 player.

 Playing who can put the most clothes pins in someone's hair game.

Ballon dance (war)

This guy was especially awesome.  It appeared that him and a group of friends all did this together.  So they all were there hooping and hollering and bringing a lot of energy to the party.

I put baby's new shirt on him and he loved it.  This is him showing it off to Gina.

This is the tractor that he got.  If he could clearly express what he would want for Christmas this would be exactly what he asked for.

Everyone together.

Quienceañera

This past weekend we celebrated Lourdes 15th birthday.  It's a pretty big deal in Peru like most other Latin countries so we had to do it up big.  Check out the pictures below.

The room all decorated.

The cake that Samantha made just for Lourdes.  The rest of the guests each got a cupcake or two. 

Gerson looking cool waiting outside.

Karol all dressed up.  It was her birthday too, but not her 15th.

Mary, Lourdes sister not enjoying a photo.

Lourdes getting ready

She looked very pretty for her 15th.

Me posing with Lourdes before her party.  She wanted a picture of me wearing her after dinner skirt. 

Pastor Auden giving a short 15th message. 

Yhonson being cool

We played lots of games.  Passing  a cup around a circle with straws in our mouths was one of them.  We beat the girls.

Everyone posed to take pictures with Lourdes and her cake.  I was trying to tell the person how to operate my camera at the same time he was taking the picture.

I haven’t posted in a while because the internet has been really scetchy lately.  But I do have some news.  After the kids started begging me and putting on their sad faces I couldn’t help but reschedule my flight for after Christmas.  So I will be getting back home on the 29^th of December now.  That gives me another two weeks to spend with the kids.

This weekend we are throwing a Quincenera for Lourdes.  Sam is planning it, helping her pick out her dress and baking the cake so I’m sure everything is going to be fantastic.  I will post pictures afterwards.

Paolo swimming outside

We had a multiple school chess tournament 

This is our team who got second receiving their 50 sole prize money.  Yhonson, Gerson, Ricardo, Nelson.

Fun with the mirror

More fun with the mirror.

Pictures

Here are some pictures from this past weekend

Went swimming at the mouth of the river

Dressed up as Angles for the anniversary of Pacasmayo (don't let them fool you)

Their spot of honor.

Yhonson listen to some music with Gerson and Nelson while getting ready for the march.

The four girls who went marching

Yhonson carrying the flag.

Our school marching by

Celebration in the church for Children's day.  (my parents always told me that was everyday)

Joel reading to the little kids

The Question

So a lot of people have been asking me lately how I feel about my time winding down here.  Quite frankly the answer is it sucks. The last 4 months have been awesome and I'm going to miss being here a lot.  However I've come to realize that leaving is pretty much inevitable and that sooner or later I am going to have to say goodbye.  I also have to remind myself that as much as I want to believe or as much as the kids want it to be I am not their actual parent and eventually we will have to part ways.  A lot of what keeps me happy these days is the possibility that some of the kids I love are being adopted.  Knowing that they could have a real family is a great feeling.

It's not necessarily knowing that I'll miss them that makes me sad to leave.  It's me knowing that no matter how hard I've tried to work with the other house moms and the director that as soon as I leave all their bad habits will come back.  They won't use the discipline charts with the reward/punishment system that I put in place, they'll start punishing the kids as a group again (2 kids do something bad everyone gets punished), they won't be able to figure out how to let the kids use a computer to keep in contact with me, and they won't give the kids the affection and attention they need.  That's what really makes me sad.  And yes those last couple of days in the orphanage are going to be really hard.

Overall I would say that I've learned a lot.  These past years I've been able to live outside of my suburbian fantasy life and see how life really is.  It's definitely changed me and how I perceive the world and other people.  Sure it's made me more cynical but overall I feel its made me a much better person.  I've learned more these past couple years than I could ever hope to write on this blog.

The other week I had a friend of mine tell me that I inspired him to sign up for the Peace Corp, and that's what its all about.  I came here to Peru hoping to positively change lives and I know I did.  I know there's at least 30 kids out there who now have at least some idea of what a parent/father can be, and I hope that when they grow up and have kids of their own that they won't abandon or abuse them like their own parents did, but they'll love them, they'll teach them right from wrong, they'll fight for them just like I did even if it was just for a short while.  And that, that is what makes me happy.

Halloween! (Or just pumpkin carving)

 They don't really celebrate Halloween here as the would be "worshiping the devil" so the closest we get is carving pumpkins. So this weekend we decided to have a friendly pumpkin carving competition between the boys and girls.  The rules were that Sam could help the girls with one pumpkin and I could help the boys with one pumpkin.  Then the kids had to carve a second pumpkin all by themselves.  The pumpkin that the kids carved by themselves would then be judged by a third party.  Our judge was Bruce.  He is an older gentleman from Canada.

The Girls pumpkins, Sam carved the one on the right.  The Micky Mouse was the one to be judged.

The boys pumpkins,  I carved the one on the right. I know, I'm terrible.

The winning house got Coke to drink for the prize.  Before they were judged I figured the girls won by a landslide however, our judge liked the boys better because it was more of a classic looking pumpkin.  I felt bad though because the girls was obviously better (to me anyway) so I gave them some coke as well.

Karate Time!

Saturday we had a school wide karate tournament.  Nearly all the kids participated in at least one of the two competitions.  There was a Kata competition which is a pre-learned karate routine and also a sparring competition. It whole ordeal lasted for about 3 hours and most of the kids had a great time.  My boys all did really well in the fighting competitions, and I'm guessing its because they get a lot of practice around the house.

Getting ready to fight

Anthony handing out the cutest butt whipping of all time.

Joel won the sparring competition in his age range. 

Ricardo in the blue had 2 big upsets and ended up winning the sparring competition in his age range.

 

College!

Saturday we took the older kids to a college visit in Trujillo. It was a great learning experience and lots of fun as well.  It was Samantha's idea, she saw a billboard advertising it and thought it would be a good idea to bring our older kids.  

It really reminded me of my college visits.  Lots of loud music and cheering.  The kids all got to hop on a computer and fill out their information.  After they got added to the system we waited in front of a stage for about an hour while more room opened up in the career area.  Once it was our groups turn, we got herded into a fenced off area that had stands for each of the career paths the children could choose.  Yhonson headed over to the Business Administration tent, Lourdes, Azucena and Betty went to the Veterinarian medicine, Karol went to the Law tent and Lucero our newest girl went to Elementary education.

 I accompanied Yhonson to the administration tent where they gave a really good talk about why he should choose them (they're pretty good salesmen).  After the quick talk a rep. from the administration tent took us on a quick tour of some business classrooms then we listened to a professor of finance talk about how great the administration program was and then gave us a 20 minute lecture about entrepreneurship.  I was even asked talk to the group of prospective students after the teacher learned that I graduated with an International Business degree.  Before we left we all filled out a rough draft business plan to submit to a contest.  I'm probably going to win.  

After the campus tour Samantha and I took the kids to the Pizza hut down the street and the kids gorged themselves on the rare treat.  

It was a great day. 

Kids entering their info

Karol being called up on stage

waiting for our group's turn to go

Lucero  (mid in pink) won a back pack because of Sam's cheering.

French Toast

This Saturday morning Samantha and I made french toast for all the kids.  It was way better than the watery oatmeal we usually drink for breakfast.  Then after we made breakfast and everyone enjoyed it, I let the boys have their shot at cooking french toast and scrambled eggs.  They did pretty good.  

Yhonson and Nelson having a go at cooking

I call this shot "The Godfather" 

Triple trouble