An unexpected friend... little blessings

So I have mentioned my family situation here in Bolivia. We live with a host mom, Judith, as well as her mother, Nazmi. Though I’m not sure I have mentioned that our host mom’s two nephews live here as well. They are both in their 20’s. The house is shaped like a “U,” so you have to go outside to get to their room, which I’ve never been in. We see them every so often. Anyway, what I’m getting at is that this week has been a little different. We found out that one of the guys has a girlfriend and 4-year-old son that live in La Paz! They have been here visiting this week. The other nephew also has a girlfriend, and a hijito (little son) and is getting married this weekend! It’s strange because I’m used to this house being quite empty, at least the main part of the house. Nazmi is usually the only one that is around most of the day and she spends most of her days cooking. The past couple days I have woken up to a babbling toddler in the room next to ours! It's so strange. But whenever I talk to this little toddler, he never says anything! He's the son of another nephew who visited this weekend with his wife and 2 kids.
Anyway, this little 4-year-old has been a blessing this week. He’s so sweet! Also, I thought my Spanish would maybe be at a 4-year-old level, but he still speaks better than I do. Haha. It’s been fun spending time with Arturo and his mother. Arturo shows me his toys and games. The other day we came home to him learning how to ride a little bike. He’s been a great little friend, especially since the kids weren’t at the Center this week. He left on Thursday, but is coming back tomorrow!

Isn't he cute with his Toy Story pajamas and little pantuflas! (slippers)

Thursday morning we had a meeting with all of the ITeams missionaries in Cochabamba. We had the meeting at this Australian couple's house. They have 4 little kids, ages 2, 3, 4, and the oldest just turned 6 on Friday. These little kids were so adorable. The youngest is a little boy and all the rest are girls. It was so good for my heart to spend time with them! Again, God was providing these little ones as big blessings in my life. 

This week was just a lot different. The kids didn't come to the Center, but the 4 interns still went to do some deep cleaning in the afternoons. We also went Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings for construction. I had Spanish lessons Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings. We had a despedida (going away party) for one of the other interns on Thursday night, which included some Bolivian dancing! It was so fun. The kids will be at the Center this week, which I'm really looking forward to. Since this week was pretty quite, it really hit me that I'm already leaving in 2 weeks.

Pray...
- for unity between our team and that we work well together
- for the children and their families: safety, health, other needs. That God will touch their hearts!
- for my transition back home. Can't believe I'm leaving in 2 weeks!
- for continued health and safety.