Your wife is a big kitchen.

Your Wife Is A Big Kitchen…

I’ll keep this one short and sweet. I’ve posted three blogs because we haven’t had internet access much. (That’s probably going to be how it is most of the year, FYI… typing these without the internet and then posting a few at a time.)

So, we’re finally in Iluman, Ecuador!! It only took squeezing seven people and all their luggage (plus a guitar and supplies) into two taxis, catching a bus, hoping it was the right one, and a few hour drive through the Andes to get here. Since we don’t have a translator, we’re figuring this month out on our own. Slowly (VERY slowly) my spanish is coming back to me, and there is one woman here named Gladys that knows some English that can help sometimes. It’s pretty crazy. At first it was frustrating to not be able to communicate, but I think our team is learning that a lot of ministry this month will look more like loving on people than preaching to them. (Biblical, eh?) It does make for some funny moments… especially when we’re mixing cement and accidentally breaking doors and having to break glass to get into our room (pictures to follow). The people here think we’re hilarious. They just laugh at us. Probably one of the funniest moments was when my teammate Alysa tried to say “Your wife is a good cook” to our contact and accidentally said “Your wife is a big kitchen.” Good, good times.

So far we’ve:

Mixed cement.

Bathed in giant pots.

Done laundry in those same pots.

Cooked in those pots.

Rode in the back of a pickup truck.

Cooked cow soup. (Cow makes it sound grosser than beef, and it was pretty nasty.)

Farmed potatoes. Or “Cultivated the papas” as they explained to us…

Washed children’s faces and feet.

Found a birthday cake for our girls.

Managed to set up five two-person tents and one four-person tent in one room.

P.S. The weather? Think glorious autumn. Crisp air, with warm sunshine. Apples, flip flops, and a north face fleece. Happy, happy, Stephanie.

P.S.K. Still miss you chica! Didn’t forget. Love you! We all do!