tj&h

Waiting.

2011-08-06T16:13:00.020-04:00

Oh, no. Amanda Mankin, what have you done?! Now we REALLY can't wait to meet these baby twins. Is this really what life looks like as we wait for Ian & Isla to join our family?!

(Thanks to TJ McCloud for the sweet surprise-happy-2nd-trimester-Twins-shirt. And Summer Millican for the super-hot maternity capris. Oh! And Linda Zelnik for the manicure/pedicure gift card! And Kara Graves for hanging out at their pool while I worked on my tan! And Elijah Norman for coining the phrase "baby twins!" And Ian & Isla for being so cute! And most of all, to Amanda Mankin, for making a pregnant-with-twins gal look glamorous.)

Hotel Baptist

2011-08-05T13:45:00.005-04:00

So what have the cutest yet-to-be-born babies on the planet been up to this week? Just hanging out at the hospital, kicking away, passing all their tests with flying colors and showing off their sweet profiles in ultrasounds.

We've been at Baptist for a week, and everything is going better than expected. I'm 31 weeks along, and showing no signs of preterm labor. The doctors continue to monitor the twins' growth, and keep a close eye on Ian's umbilical cord function. They didn't expect it to improve, but it has, and the doctors are very pleased. We'll still be in the hospital until delivery, which will likely be between Aug 11-25. The babies will need some time in the NICU - maybe 2-4 weeks.

The thing is... we can't help feeling thrilled and incredibly grateful. We are so thankful the doctors caught this umbilical cord issue. And we couldn't be in a more comfortable, competent hospital. I keep thinking I'm on a cruise (minus the laying out by the pool, plus fetal heartrate monitors and consults from excellent doctors). I can't believe how very dedicated the doctors and nurses are to caring for us, and monitoring the babies closely so they have time to mature in utero. Access to this level of healthcare is truly humbling.

We're also amassing quite a library of ultrasound pics, and we love looking at them. I'll see if I can post a few from the hospital... (You are not even going to be able to stand it. They are so cute!)

By the way...

2011-07-30T22:25:00.008-04:00

... we're having twins! And they shall be called: Ian & Isla. Ian Thomas, and Isla (eye-lah) Jane. They're due mid-September, but it looks like they'll make their debut a few weeks early, due to an issue with Ian's umbilical cord.

We met with several doctors today, and received lots of good news! I have also ordered lots of delicious food from room service (room service!) and am starting to think I will never want to leave the hospital.

The doctors have noticed an issue with baby Ian's umbilical cord. It's attached in a difficult place - at the edge of the placenta, instead of in the middle. It doesn't seem to be functioning as well as it should. He's still growing, and within a normal size range, so all they can do is keep an eye on his heartrate, blood flow, and growth. So that's why I'm in the hospital - so they can monitor those vitals. I feel great, and the babies are doing great!

Ian is (almost) 3 pounds, and Isla is 3.5. I'm at 30.5 weeks, and the doctors would like to make it 32 weeks, if Ian continues to do well. At 34 weeks (Aug 25), they will definitely deliver the babies. Making it to those milestones would reduce the amount of support they would need from the NICU.

The ultrasound from today looked better than yesterday, which was unexpected, and great news. They may still keep me here for monitoring until delivery. That seems to be the option my doctor is most in favor of, unless he sees dramatic improvement in Ian's umbilical cord function. Dr. Bellardo is consulting with the maternal-fetal group who specializes in cord issues, so we have an excellent team of doctors and nurses taking care of us!

We really are doing well - I feel great, and have tons of books, movies, paint/tile/fabric samples & baby registries to keep me busy. I'm at Baptist, and visitors are totally welcome - just call or text before you come - they take me for ultrasounds often, and I wouldn't want to miss you! TJ might need some help getting the nursery ready, or maybe an easy meal or two. Just call or text him if you're in the mood for manual labor...

We are so excited to meet these sweet babies that we're already in love with. And we're excited to introduce them to all of you! Thank you for you love, thoughts and prayers.

Headed to the DR/Haiti

2010-01-20T19:04:00.004-05:00

Friends and Family,

My former mission team, Manna Global Ministries, has opened a supply chain from Santo Domingo to Port-Au Prince, supplying materials, and food to 200 or so church members now fed and sheltered out of Sonlight Children’s Home. They are also supplying medical triage units that they have set up in the area of PaP under the direction of Brad Gautney.

They have supplies right now, but not enough reliable, trustworthy personnel to drive them over the border into Haiti, since the trucks/cargo are priceless right now. It is a fourteen hour trip from Santo Domingo and back. The borders are open, and are easily crossable right now, which is not always the case, and won’t be for long, so they want to take full advantage of the opportunity to get as many supplies as possible into Haiti.

Because of this time-sensitive situation, they have asked me and my former teammate Cory Lamb to fly in tomorrow and make supply trips, relieving the few people they have right now who can drive the truck, speak Spanish and basic Kreyol, and negotiate the culture/graft/craziness that getting this stuff across the Border could represent.

I plan to leave at 6:30 am tomorrow, Jan. 20th and meet Cory in Puerto Plata, where we will join the Manna team and head to Santo Domingo to begin making three or four trips to Haiti and back. I plan on returning Thursday, Jan. 28th.

Please pray for safety for myself and the rest of the Manna Team as we rush to try and get these crucial supplies to the people who need them most.

For information and updates, check my blog, www.tjandholly.blogspot.com, or follow @tjmccloud on Twitter. I’m not sure how accessible cell coverage will be, but will try to keep everyone in the loop.

If you would like to help financially with my travel expenses, contact hollymccloud@gmail.com.

Thank you all for your support for me and for the people of Hispaniola,

TJ McCloud

cell: (615)479-1772

tjmccloud@gmail.com

"The World can't stand what It can't own, and It can't own you 'cause you did not have a home" - Rich Mullins

Three letter word: J O B S !!!!

2008-10-24T13:48:00.003-04:00

While we obviously haven't been working hard on our blogs lately, we are working hard; as we are now both officialy gainfully employed! (cue cheering and applause)

With just a few weeks of being stateside under our belts, we have both landed jobs that we are really excited about.

Holly is working at Catholic Charities, and is a Care Coordinator for the Bridges to Care program. Basically, she helps uninsured patients get connected with clinics and doctors who will bill on a sliding scale. It's a great program and Catholic Charities has an amazing track record for service to underserved communities. She is working in a mostly hispanic area of town, where she gets to use her Spanish all the time. Perfect, huh?

I (TJ) have been hired as the Young Adult and Spiritual Development Minister at the Otter Creek Church. Basically, I'll be working with our College, Singles, and Young Married's groups.I am really passionate about getting people connected to a church body during these three key transitional times. We are also really excited to be working for OtterCreek, where we were members before we left,and one of the churches that supported us so well while we were in the Dominican.

Life is still pretty topsy-turvy, as we get used to being in the flow of American style worklife, and look for a place to live (rent? buy? pitch a tent?). We miss our friends (the little and the big ones) in the Dominican, and we haven't gotten used to the cold weather, but we love being near our Nashville friends, and are already looking forward to our first Thanksgiving with family in two years!

Nashville

2008-10-05T15:10:00.002-04:00

I guess the first thing we can say in our first Stateside blog is...
Where do you people in America find time to blog?!!

We have been in the States now for almost two weeks, and while it has been wonderful to see everyone, we are feeling a little dizzy from all the newness and hustle. We flew into DFW and met with Missions Rescource Network to do some exit counseling and re-entry training. It was great, and will surely pay off in the coming months to have a better understanding of the things we can expect. Another added bonus to being in DFW was seeing some great friends. We got the chance to catch up with the Cookes (Holly's college roommate),the Pinsons and the soon-to-be Cox's (TJs college roomates), as well as our Guatemala friend Blair (who is not Guatemalan... long story).

Next stop was Tulsa, where we had the chance to see both sets of parents and say thank you to one of our supporting churches, Park Plaza, for their amazing care and encouragement of us over the last two years.

Now, we are in Nashville, and making baby steps at settling back into life here. It already feels like Fall, and we realized the other day that we haven't seen a Fall in two years! We raided our friends' houses to find all of our warmer clothing and are now unpacked (mostly) and staying with the Srygleys (an elder and his wife at Otter Creek) for a month or two.

We are also hitting the job front hard, with both of us interviewing this week for positions. Hopefully we will know more about the outcomes this week!

We are starting to feel a little funny- Saturday we didnt have much to do and it really hit us that we actually are planning to LIVE here... not just visit for a few weeks. We find ourselves missing friends and little brown faces from the DR, but are also so glad to be surrounded by our Otter Creek family and friends. I think we are getting used to driving again in the States, but Kroger was a little intimidating... buying groceries in the States again for the first time in two years.The sheer volume of choice leaves us a little dazzled(How many kinds of salad dressing does one person need?!). Surely this bewilderment will wear off (which is sad to realize, as well) but hopefully we have forever been changed in some deep ways by our Dominican experience- ways that will pay spiritual dividends in the years to come.

Thanks for your continued care and prayer-
TJ and Holly

ciao, italia!!!

2008-09-21T09:33:00.002-04:00

So Rome was amazing in all of the ways that we expected it to be, and also in some smaller ways. There is the monumental ruins of a still impressive Roman civilization, the pomp and granduer of the historic Papacy, and the picturesque peace of the fountains and piazzas where artists still sit and sell paintings ( as they paint them) as they have done for hundreds of years. We loved the streets and buildings of Rome, and were humbled by the tour of the Christian catacombs, just outside of Rome. Its hard not to be awed by Rome, old and new, and we count ourselves lucky to be one of the millions who have experienced it. Also, our whole trp could be considered a tour of Rome, since at no time in our travels from Cairo, to Jerusalem, to Istandul, to Athens, to London (we will stop there for a 12 hour layover and pop over to Big Ben), were we ever outside the reaches of historic Rome. It makes it all the more amazing to think of a group of dedicated men from a small jewish area that took on the power of Rome and eventually won by losing thier lives for a message worth living and dying for.

We are excited about heading home: First stop: DFW, where we have some exit counseling with Mission Resource Network and some visits with friends, then Tulsa to visit family and say hello to our Park Plaza family, and then Nashville, where we are moving back to.

Thanks for your prayers and love-

TJ and Holly

Roaming around in Roma

2008-09-18T15:32:00.002-04:00

Venice was beautiful, but cold. Somehow, living in the Dominican for two years has left us without warm clothes or any real appreciation for being chilled to the bone. We left Venice (reluctantly) and headed to Chinque Terre, a string of five coastal villages famous for thier severe and beautiful cliffs, terraced vineyards, olive groves, and the 12K hiking trail between them. We took a train all night to get there, and froze to death trying to catch a few winks in the tiny station of Parma, but in the morning we were stretching our legs, ready to do some hiking. It was beautiful and while we were tired, the lure of italian gelato at the next village kept us going on.

From there, we headed to Firenze, known to us as Florence, home of Michelangelo and the birthplace of the Renaissance. The Pontevecchio bridge, il Duomo, and the Uffizi museum were all on our list, as well as a trip to the Academy gallery , where Michelangelo's David looms large and impressive. The town is beautiful and still holds much of its 15th century character, as well as wonderful food. We stopped at Ciro & Sons (thanks for the recommendation, Michael!- Pepe says to kiss your boys for him) for some amazing pasta and the famous Bisstecca Florintina- a T-bone steak about as big as your head and three fingers thick- cooked crispy on the outside and bleeding on the inside. Needless to say, Holly didnt help much with finishing it off, but outside of Abilene TX, it was the best steak I have ever had.

We just made it to Rome, and ate dinner before a walk past the famous Trevi Fountain. Tomorrow starts the full-on greatest hits of Rome tour, as we try to fit it all in before we fly back to the States on Sunday evening.

Were having a eye opening, romantic, and educational time (how rare for those two adjectives to go together...) but we will be just as excited to get back to our home countr (deflated dollar aside) and see friends and family that we have missed and look forward to being closer to. See yall soon!

TJ (and Holly)

2 words...

2008-09-15T03:54:00.002-04:00

We got to Athens, dashed to Corinth, missed our bus, almost missed our next train, ate the last spinach flaky pastry thing of our trip (I love those things), headed to Patra, Greece to board an overnight ferry to Brindisi, Italy. We spent all night sleeping (can we really call it?) on the deck of the ship, got into Italy two hours late, missed our train to Napoli, caught a later one, got into Napoli late at night and realized that Napoli (famous for crime and gangsters) really does look like NewYork, pre-Guiliani- dirty, trashy, seedy, but likeable in that Tony Soprano sort of way. After scarfing a pizza at du Michelle (famous? Id rather have a chicago style any day) we hit our first bed in 48 hours and woke up early to catch a train to Pompeii. We were really running late, since we had hoped to be in Venice by then, but we had a great hour and a half in the astounding, amazing, ghostly ruins of Pompeii. We almost missed our train back to Napoli, got there in time to eat at McDonalds (funny)and board the next train to Venice. So... here we are, and we have to say that it was worth it. Two words:

Venice Magic

Thereàs just nothing like this place- truly a floating city. I didnt expect to love it, but at the first sight of a bridge and a water taxi and those nearly crumbling building façades, I was hooked. We are here for a day and then head to Florence, Chinque Terre, then Rome, then home ( where is that,again?).

love yall,
TJ

Revelation

2008-09-11T02:55:00.003-04:00

When we were last able to update, we were in Rhodes, the ancient base of the Christian crusaders. From there, we headed to the tiny little island of Patmos, where it is believed that John (whether the apostle or another John) wrote the book of Revelation. We climbed the footpath headed to the famous monastery of the apocalypse, where the Orthodox christians have set up a shrine and a little chapel in a hillside cave thought to be the very place of John's inspiration. There are three cracks in the top of the cave, thought to be the representation of the Trinity, made by the voice of God during the revelation. There was a Mass going on, so it was interesting to watch all these people crowded into this little cave. The island is tiny- you can see both sides from nearly any hill, and beautiful- it looks more like parts of Colorado than Greece, with pinetrees covering the hillsides.

From there we headed to Kusadasi, Turkey, right outside of the ancient site of Ephesus. It was absolutely stunning to see these ruins, which are some of the best preserved in antiquity. You can literally see every part of the town, and imagine it filled to the brim with worshippers of the World-wonder Temple of Artemis (which Paul ran in to trouble with...) The ancient theatre where Paul and his buddies were hauled off and made to stand for thier "blasphemies" is completely intact, and still used for concerts (Sting was there a few weeks ago). Being there made the ancient world more tangible than any other spot we visited.

From there we headed to Istanbul, sailing up through the Bosphorus with Asia on our right and Europe on our left. It was a truly modern city, that felt more like NewYork than Cairo- which suprised us. The people there are mostly secular, and even now, during the holy month of Ramadan, we rarely saw anyone with headscarves or taking time out during the call to prayer. Everyone seemed really excited that we were from America, and wanted to know about where we lived. Again, we were really impressed with Turkey and would definitely come back for a longer stay. We saw the Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, and the famous Grand Bazaar (anyone want a fake rolex or a Prada bag?). The Hagia Sophia was awestriking- when it was built, it was the biggest buildings in the world, and is ornately decorated with mosaics and paintings from both the Muslim and Christian eras(It has changed faiths several times- up until the 30s it was still a working mosque, but now a world-heritage museum.

Today we head back to little Mykonos, an island made famous by Aristotle Onassis and his jetset friends, and then we go back to Athens, where we will catch a train to Corinth, hop off for a little biblical sightseeing, and then catch an overnight ferry to Italy.

Wish us luck- no real setback so far, except Holly fell, chasing a bus in Antalya, Turkey, and skinned up her knee, and I got a wallet stolen on the ship. Both were less dramatic than they could have been and we feel grateful that everything has gone as smoothly as it has! Thanks and Love, TJ and Holly

Colossal

2008-09-07T04:27:00.002-04:00

So here we are in Rhodes, a greek island off the coast of Turkey, with an amazing history of Greek, Roman, and Byzantine rule. The Colossos of Rhodes was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, and even though it is no longer standing, the place where it stood, and where ships could pass under it into the harbor, is Rhodes' largest tourist attraction.

We were in Crete and Santorini yesterday, soaking up some sun and history of the Pre-Greek Minoan civilizations that flourished there. Historians believe these people were forced off of thier islands and onto the coast of Palestine... where they became the biblically famous "Phillistines".

The day before that we were in Athens, walking the same marbled steps that Socrates, Plato, and St. Paul's feet helped polish. It was amazing to see the size and power of the Acropolis- its no wonder that people chose that rock to worship the gods they knew. Also amazing is the restoration work that has gone into Athens... its a great city- huge, but friendly, and has tons of interesting sights at every turn.

Tomorrow we head to Ephesus and Patmos, to walk some biblical history and get a sense of St. Paul and St. John's stomping grounds. After that- Istanbul!

Thanks for all your notes and responses- we're having a great time!

TJ and Holly

Egypt, Jerusalem, Cyprus, Turkey

2008-09-03T10:53:00.002-04:00

Sooo... Its tough to even try telling about how amazing the last three days have been. Still no way to upload pics, but we're trying to figure something out.

We arrived in Cairo a few days ago, hopped on a bus and headed to the National Museum, where the majority of the Tutankamen artifacts are on display. We were really suprised by Cairo- it was dirty and poor in ways that we have never seen before. It truly looked like a war zone, while at the same time the tour guide is telling us that it is a relatively new and upscale area...wow. The national museum has amazing items to display, but looks as though it has not been updated in fifty years or so. No airconditioning, no descriptions of the items, no lighting... the artifacts are not being protected very well against the tourists or the elements, and while it was amazing to see all of the items, it was astounding to see that they had not invested more into updating a museum with so much potential.
The Pyramids and the Sphinx are unbelievable in their scope and durability. It's amazing how they were built, and to think of a culture that would put that kind of effort into them is mind-boggling as well. Holly and I topped off the trip with a camel ride around the pyramids area, and were so glad to see this amazing site.

In Jerusalem, we were able to visit the old city, Garden of Gethsemane, Mt of Olives, the wailing wall, the Dome of the Rock, the Via Dolorosa (christ's walk to the Cross), the supposed site of the crucifixion and burial (and resurrection!), and ended the day by going into Palestinian territory to see the church of the Nativity in Bethlehem. We couldnt help but feel closer to who the physical person of Jesus and his early followers were, just being in the City of David and imagining Jesus praying among the olive groves. The wailing wall was also moving- to think of the collective sorrow that these people have known, and what we feel is such misguided devotion to a place. The Christian churches were no different, with ritual and gold covering every inch of the supposed holy sites. While it was wonderful, we couldnt help but feel like it is for the Catholic, Orthodox, and Armenian faithful, an expensive excercize in missing the point.
In contrast to Egypt, Jerusalem is oneof the most beautiful, cleanest, and well laid out cities we have ever seen. Everything is easily accesible in english and we never felt unsafe, until we went to the Palestinian area of Bethlehem, which is walled off and enclosed, not unlike the Berlin wall. No Palestinian can go out, and no Israeli can go in. It was definitely an amazing experience going through checkpoints and seeing the level of security the Israelis take. We are inspired to pray for peace in a new way, seeing how divided these cultures have determined they need to be, just for basic safety.

Next we headed to Cyprus, where Holly and I enjoyed some Greek culture and byzantine ruins, as the island was conquered time and time again by the crusaders and the turks. It was beautiful and picturesque, sitting in a sidewalk taverna, splitting a gyro.

Today, we went to Antalya Turkey and caught a bus to ancient Pergamum. It is some of the most preserved ruins in the roman/greek world, and we had fun envisioning the people in thier stone town with colonnaded streets and mid-size stadium. Turkey is beautiful- the people are really warm and friendly, and we had little problem with travelling or figuring out the turkish money (lira). We cant wait to see more of turkey next week with Istanbul and Ephesus.

So... thats all for now... we head to the famous little volcanic island of Santorini tomorrow and we just can't wait!

TJ

What to write, what to write...???

2008-09-01T15:13:00.003-04:00

First of all, did you know Aussies have NEVER heard of the Outback Steakhouse? Pretty incredible, huh? Our dinner partners are Aussies, and we were telling them all about it. They got a big kick out of the Bloomin' Onion (didn't know what onion rings were) and Alice Springs Chicken. (As there would never be chickens in Alice Springs, apparently.)

In other news:

We've visited the pyramids in Cairo and walked the streets of Jerusalem and Bethelehem since we last wrote. It was awesome and humbling. Cairo was dirty and Israel was clean. We're glad we had just one day in Egypt, and we could spend months in Israel. Mankind has great capacity for wisdom and folly. God is good, and He encourages and sustains us daily, which we are even more aware of as we travel.

at sea and on to egypt

2008-08-30T14:06:00.003-04:00

We made our boat after a few frustrating encounters with Greek taxidrivers, checked in, lost our luggage, found our luggage, and are now headed to Egypt! The water is beautiful, the staff is great, and we're meeting lots of people from different places. We're learning lots of Greek, and eating lots of Greek food, all of which is delicious. Holly loves feta cheese, so she really cant go wrong here- and I cant help but think of my Mom as I eat my weight in the best olives Ive ever had! (she used to eat olives by the jar-and then drink the juice when she was pregnant with me)
We've been at sea all day, and while we dont love the cruise atmosphere ( 3 euro for a bottle of water? carpet darts- who plays that?) we do enjoy being on the water and reading the books we brought for the trip. We've got a book on Biblical sites in Turkey and Greece, Greek travel book, a few fiction titles, and I'm reading the Odyssey- figure you can't help but get the spirit of it while youre on the Mediteranean!
Tomorrow we get up early and head to the pyramids, the national museum of Cairo, and a papyrus museum. Here's hoping we dont bring back any mummy's curse with us...

Grecia

2008-08-28T15:26:00.002-04:00

After some sad goodbyes and several frantic weeks of wrapping up everything in the Dominican... we finally left for our trip!

We drove out from Bobita at 8am on Tuesday, in the middle of Hurricane Gustav. No problem flying out- and we headed to NYC, where we got lost in an airport weve been through ten thousand times. We hang out for a while, get on a flight to London overnight, which arrives at Heathrow a bit late... so late that we missed our flight to Greece!

Sooo... we waited and took another overnight flight, getting us into Greece at 3am on Thursday. This morning, we slept at the airport until the trains started running, took a two hour bus to the plain of Marathon (an extremely important battlesite - ask TJ about it), realized that the battlesite was basically a big field with not much more information, took the bus back to Athens, took a cab to two different bus stations (one wrong, one right), hopped a three hour bus to Delfi (a famous ancient oracle and hillside ruins complex) and checked into a cute little hotel for cheapiecheapie (which in Euros... is not that cheap.)

We hustled over to the ruins site, but were too late to see them before they closed, BUT we were able to look through the museum which was wonderful. We had dinner at a great Greek restaurant (roasted lamb, souvlaki, moussaka...mmm...) and are now typing on the blog before we crash into bed. This will be our first shower, change of clothes & rest in a bed in 3 or 4 days. Or something like that. We've lost track. We'll wake up early enough to see the ruins site, hop a bus back to Athens, where we will (hopefully) board a boat for two weeks in the Great Green (the Mediterreanean- again, ask TJ).

Thanks for all your prayers and well-wishes! TJ says its the best (and longest-and shortest) birthday he's ever had. Figure that out!

Booked it.

2008-08-20T13:25:00.003-04:00

Our 5th anniversary trip to Europe... Which sort of turned into our 5th anniversary trip to Europe/Asia/Africa. We've been saving and dreaming and talking since our first year of marriage.

5 years... haven't they gone by in a blink?!

Here's where we headed - we would love any suggestions, favorite places to eat, etc.

Two weeks around the Mediterranean
(Greece, Turkey, Egypt & Israel):

10 Days eating our way across Italy:

We fly back to the US via Rome - London (12 hour layover, sweet!) - NYC. Our tickets end in NYC - after that, who knows?! Maybe we'll become Manhattanites... Or get lost in Venice...

The Grahams: They're GREAT.

2008-08-14T15:36:00.004-04:00

You might even say... Golden.

Kyle and Vicki Graham will move to Rio San Juan in January to serve as the new directors of the Outreach Center.

That's right, when we leave in September, Kyle and Vicki will already be in language school, preparing for their work here.

We have come to know and love the Grahams dearly. They are highly skilled in working with youth (Kyle was a youth minister at Park Plaza and Vicki teaches at-risk teens), full of fun and a faithful spirit.

They are in the process of raising half of their monthly support and one-time set-up costs. If you or your church would like to continue helping these kids, let us know, and we'll get you the details.

Our Local BLOCKBUSTER

2008-08-12T11:59:00.003-04:00

Would you believe you can't buy or rent an actual DVD in this country?

Only bootleg, all the time.

Movies usually appear in Rio San Juan before they even hit the theaters in the US. Of course, the quality is atrocious and it's highly illegal. At this little podunk stand, I could purchase Batman: The Dark Night, Made of Honor, or any of the summer theater releases.

How do you begin to fight an underground industry that is so widespread and accepted? Most people in Latin America (and I'm assuming, Africa and Asia) have no idea that there's a difference between the "real" and bootleg versions.

We've been...

2008-08-08T21:12:00.004-04:00

At a wedding. In Winfield. (That's in Kansas, folks.)

Holly's baby cousin, Kyle, and his beautiful bride, Lauren.

Impossible to say what we enjoyed most about the weekend... Fabulous company, fantastic food, fun with family.

But we will say, we couldn't get enough of this little guy:

Homage & Bon Voyage

2008-07-22T00:26:00.003-04:00

Mickey's leaving tomorrow. We're too bummed to even tell you how bummed we are. We could NEVER convey how amazing it's been to have her here.

She is friend, confidante, helper, fun-lover, minister, Spanish-speaker/listener & sister extraordinaire. God has worked through Mickey Page in mighty ways, in countless moments. We praise him for sending us a great gift in her; both for this summer in RioSanJuan, and all of our years after.

Surely not.

2008-07-17T18:14:00.001-04:00

Does life get any better than this?!

¿Como se dice "Otter Creek" en español?

2008-07-15T14:01:00.006-04:00

Pics from the camp OCYG is doing for our kiddos:

Naomi about to put the hurt on Will Netterville.

Girls group "Las Explosivas" in the OC/RSJ Photo Scavenger Hunt!

"Los Guerreros de Cristo" looking ready to win...

Making pillows with Club Chiquito. (Tori Brown is the hand model.)

OCYG remembered us saying at Christmas that most of our kids sleep on the floor. They realized these kids probably didn't have pillows, and wanted them to have one to sleep on. We are humbled at their thoughtfulness, and know that it is our God that allows them to provide just what these kids need.

OCYG + RSJ

2008-07-12T22:46:00.006-04:00

OCYG is here!!! 5 hours in, this week is turning out to be one of our best.

We might have a quasi-paparazzi situation on our hands, as our RSJ kids have heard the group has finally arrived. They are flooding our gates, wanting to meet the group and make sure they haven't missed the beginning of camp!

Oops.

2008-07-10T12:41:00.004-04:00

They're just a few weeks old - they can barely open their eyes. Someone dumped them at the end of our street - the boys found them there last night. There are things about this culture that are difficult for us to stomach, and cruelty towards animals is waaaaaaaay up there on the list. It's borderline sadistic.

We CAN'T adopt three little Dominican viralatas right before we leave. So, the boys made a palm tree shelter, and we're all feeding (and sometimes bathing) them until they're old enough to survive on their own.

Anybody got any better ideas?

Tuesday, 8am

2008-07-09T12:57:00.005-04:00

We had staff meeting today. It is a privilege to serve alongside these sons and daughters of God. Some meetings are better than others (that's generally how staff meetings go, we hear) and today was a good one.

Thank you Brian & Tammie Wallace, Cory & Laura Beth Lamb, Tim & Lisa Bynum and Norm Curington, for your wisdom, experience and encouragement. May we truly be better ambassadors of Christ together in this place.

The pics are from a staff meeting a few weeks ago at Brian & Tammie's house. We begin with a time of worship and affirmation, then move into more of a staff meeting format. We end with a training time, where we share useful skills in a developing country. Below, Brian is showing us the basics of setting up a sustainable, terraced garden in any climate.

Bet you wish you could be at our staff meetings! (Did I mention we usually have a delicious breakfast treat?!)

"O say, can you grill...."

2008-07-07T18:22:00.003-04:00

4th of July. In America, it's a day for BBQ, fireworks, taking the boat out and breathing a deep breath of a thing we like to call freedom.

Here in the DR, its just another hot day without power or water. But we didn't let that stop us.

With the help of Mickey and our friends, the Lambs, we celebrated the 4th pretty darn well. A grill made out of an abandoned sink, red, white and blue flowers in place of fireworks, red, white, and blue bedsheets as table cloths, and an iPod with a little Lee Greenwood made us all feel right at home.

We were/are proud to be Americans, where at least we know we're free and can grill meat better than anyone else.

Mickey/Miqui

2008-07-05T21:31:00.000-04:00

Meet TJ's sister, Mickey Page. She'll be a junior at ACU, she's interning with our girls and kids minister this summer, and she's much cooler/sweeter/better than we'll ever be. We LOVE having Mickey here, and the RioSanJuan-eros are even more crazy about her than we are.

In her first 48 hours on the island (May 21-23), she traveled from Tulsa to Dallas to Miami to Santiago. Lost all of her luggage. Went to eat at TGI Fridays. Went on a boat tour through a mangrove swamp to the ocean. Skewered 250 shish-kebabs. Partied with the Bobita interns. Retrieved lost luggage from local restaurant. Went on a culture safari. Watched the season finale of Grey's Anatomy. Rode over the mountain to Santiago at 1am and slept on the floor of a Dominican hospital, waiting for baby Harrison to arrive...

Quite an introduction to the country! Since then, she's put together tons of creative Bible studies for Las Princesas & Club Chiquito, climbed 27 waterfalls & El Morrito, killed 100 spiders, broken out in hives, had her laptop stolen (and recovered), and encouraged TJ and I in our work and walk with God in countless ways.

We love Michaele Page McCloud!

Final Farewell Roll

2008-07-01T14:57:00.002-04:00

Our little Gusbuster is headed back to the States with TJ's parents tomorrow.

He must sense that he's leaving, as he did his final day up right with a farewell roll in human feces.

That's right. Our dog likes to find poop in our yard and roll in it. Nasty.

"Why is there human feces in the yard?," you might be asking yourself...

We live in the Dominican Republic. Most people don't have bathrooms. Our yard has a few shaded corners that are apparently just right for taking care of business.

We don't know. We just live here.

Dog Meets Ocean

2008-06-30T10:16:00.003-04:00

TJ's family is here visiting this week - much more on that to come, especially about TJ's fabulous sister, who's been INTERNING with us all summer.

(We still haven't done our big "Welcome, Mickey Page!" post. We'll get there. Before she leaves...)

We went away for the weekend to the windy, rocky outpost on the very tip of the island, Las Galeras. It was spectacular, and spectacularly relaxing. A good time was had by all, but the best time was had by Gus.

Firing Squad

2008-06-22T21:58:00.003-04:00

On a hot mid-morning earlier this week, nearly all of our Pescadores were shot mercilessly, first by each other, and then by me.

They had it coming. I don't regret it at all. In fact, it was refreshing.

Flower Power

2008-06-03T20:52:00.000-04:00

We LOVE these girls.

In case you were wondering...

2008-06-02T22:41:00.002-04:00

it is possible to fog up the bathroom mirror even when you're taking a cold shower.

Yes, that's right, it is SO hot right now that the steam from the water hitting my skin fogs up the mirror.

¡Bienvenido, Harrison!

2008-05-27T22:09:00.003-04:00

Our teammates, Cory and Laura Beth Lamb, welcomed their first child into the world on Saturday morning. Harrison Henry Lamb weighed in at 9lbs, 1oz and 50cm long. (How many inches is that? We were too tired to do the math at the hospital.)

We can't say enough about the delightful, faithful, unflappable, dependable, kind and caring Lamb family. It is an honor - a true joy - to serve with them in this place.

And Harrison is cute enough to keep around, don't you think?!

iBurn

2008-05-25T22:41:00.005-04:00

So... guess who's the gringo who fell asleep on the beach with his iPod on his chest?

Yeah. That's me.

I would say I'm feeling sheepish, but i think lobster-ish might be a better description.

Hot Topic

2008-05-19T14:17:00.003-04:00

Hot Tamales?

Hot topic.

The other day, after we dropped our friends, the Normans, off at the airport, we stopped at a big American-style grocery store in Sosua.

As we were checking out, we were floored (FLOORED, I tell you!) to find bags of Hot Tamales available for purchase.

We immediately start throwing them into our cart, hand over fist. We reflect on our recent conversation with Bart (Norman), where we shared that one of the major drawbacks of living in the Dominican Republic is that you can't get Hot Tamales. We take the miraculous sudden appearance of said Hot Tamales as a sign from God that we should eat all of them.

Actually, we just buy three little bags: two regular, and one "fire." What we don't anticipate, as we're quietly rejoicing, is the stir we're about to cause at the cash register.

Everyone - the checker, the baggers - takes notice of the Hot Tamales. They warn us that they are very hot, then the one guy with previous Hot Tamale experience (a gringo had given him a few several years ago) tells all about the tears that the candy immediately brought forth from his eyes, and they way it "peeled" his throat.

Everyone is very interested. Managers and other cashiers come over to join in the light-hearted fun and apparently, quite interesting conversation.

TJ and I share that we LOVE Hot Tamales, and this is the first time we've EVER found them on the island. Everyone confirms that this is, in fact, a momentous occasion.

We tell them that the "fire" ones must be even hotter than the regular ones. They can not believe this fact, and repeat it to each other over and over again. "Can you believe that - he says the "fire" ones are even hotter!!!!"

We pay for our groceries amidst a hailstorm of earnest warnings and well-meanting admonitions for our health and esophageal safety, walk to our car, rip into our Hot Tamales and marvel at the weirdness that is this country that we live in.

You see, this is an American-style supermarket, very professional and VERY busy. But business absolutely stopped for 2-3 minutes while ALL of the front employees came over to share in the Hot Tamale hullabaloo.

Funnily enough, we came away asking ourselves: Why not?!

All is quiet, all is calm...

2008-05-16T23:40:00.003-04:00

It is election day, and an eerie quiet has settled over the little town of Rio San Juan. You see, during the elections, the sale of alcohol is prohibited throughout the country. Without rum, there's no fun in loud music, and without loud music, you might actually have to talk to the girl you're sitting across the table with. So, for tonight, there is peace in our little apartment.

In honor of the elections- I have a story.

Several weeks ago, Alfredo and his crew of munchkins came to our gate and announced that one of the presidential candidates, Amable Aristy Castro, was coming to town. He bills himself as the "president of the poor", and is known for handing out rice and throwing $50 peso bills from his helicopter or Hummer on the campaign trail.

Alfredo and his buddies are ecstatic. "When Amable comes- anyone can ask him for anything they want- and he gives it to them. He's the president of the poor, you know!"

Jensi replies, nodding "I'm asking for a bike."

Alfredo looks stricken " No- I'M going to ask for a bike. Don't copy me, stupid."

Niño rises above the fray, saying "I don't need a bike. I just want money. Money for toys. Lots of them. Thats really all I need."

Not wishing to burst the thin veneer of their euphoria, I told them I was happy for them. They skipped off arguing about colors for their bicycles; perfectly at ease in the faith that Amable would come through.

As for me, I don't quite need a bicycle, but I wish for that kind of faith.
- TJ

Dear TJ,

2008-05-13T15:24:00.004-04:00

You've only been out of town for 2 days, and you'll be home tomorrow. But the thing is...

I miss you.

I miss you when I'm hauling 5 gallon jugs of water up the stairs.

I miss you when I'm trying to start the generator, when the dishes need to be washed.

I miss you when I need someone to get me a Diet Coke, and when I can't decide what to eat for dinner.

I miss you when the kids stop by to tell me about their day, and when they want help picking mangoes out of our tree.

I miss you when I have to lift the garage gate, and when Gus wants food. Or water. Or to go outside.

I miss you when the palm trees blow in the breeze, and the waves crash on the shore.

I miss you when water needs to be pumped or the power needs to be flipped.

I miss you when I wake up, and when I go to sleep. And while I'm sleeping.

I can do all of those things by myself, I guess.

But I love being your helpmate in life. I love all the ways you help us live our life here.

Love,
Me

Hurry up, Harrison!

2008-05-10T23:03:00.004-04:00

Harrison Henry Lamb is about to make his entrance into the world, and we spent the day celebrating with mommy-to-be, Laura Beth.

Norma-versary

2008-05-06T00:14:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow we will celebrate one week in the Dominican with Bart, Kristen & Elijah Norman.

We are having a GREAT time. We've played with big kids, little kids, walked in the rain, toured the town, celebrated Dominican Labor Day, and (nearly) attended a Haitian wedding.

Most of all, we enjoy watching baby Elijah wrap the entire town of Rio San Juan around his little finger. Elijah (or "Elias/Elian") is the stuff legends are made of - children show up at our gate, chanting his name and calling to play with him.

Sharing secrets with Alfredo and Jensi.

Soaked from the rain: the Normans are troopers.

Always pics of cute babies, but don't forget about their gorgeous mamas!

The Lion's Den

2008-05-02T14:40:00.003-04:00

Today at Club Chiquito: Daniel and the Lion's Den.

With help from our friends and visitors Bart, Kristen, and Elijah Norman, we set our inner beasts loose with some paper bags, plates and markers.

Lions in the jungle.

Lions eating the cameraman.

The only downside to a craft like this is that I think the kids were disappointed when the lions DIDNT eat Daniel... -TJ

B - I - N - G - 0

2008-04-29T22:44:00.003-04:00

There is a phenomenon sweeping through the palm slats of the outreach center:

"And Bingo is it's name-OH"

Seriously. Our kids can't get enough. Big kids, little kids, teens, and adults.

They are addicts.

Caroline got the idea to bring BINGO because the residents at her nursing home LOVE to play. Apparently this game has universal appeal. The kids can hardly stand it when TJ rolls the cage and a numbered ball pops out. They come unglued. It is a sight to behold.

So, behold:

Twin tattoos

2008-04-26T22:12:00.002-04:00

No, TJ did not finally get that tattoo he occasionally threatens to get.

They're Holly's. And they're not so much tattoos. More like battle scars.

Burns on the inside of her left forearm - hazards of baking a gajillion birthday cakes in an actual flame/fire burning oven.

The forearm is starting to look a ridiculous, which is unfortunate, as we're about to head into birthday-heavy season...

Get lost, LOST!

2008-04-24T12:45:00.003-04:00

The unimaginable has happened.

After months off-air, our long-standing favorite TV shows (LOST & Grey's Anatomy) return tonight.

Hallelujah! Let's celebrate with pizza & Cokes!

Except... I find myself overwhelmingly... Disappointed.

Disappointed? How can that be?! These are my two favorite shows?! More than that: a way to connect to A - Merr - eee - KAH!

I am disappointed because: for the first time in many months, Eli Stone will not be on.

Have you SEEN this show? It's incredible. Best thing on TV. I was skeptical at first. Probably NEVER would have watched it had I not been desperate-in-the-Dominican.

"Eli Stone is a well-written show, stuffed with great actors, that is based on a quirky but fascinating premise. A modern day lawyer who worshipped the holy trinity of Armani, Accesories & Ambition; turned potential prophet with visions from God. Or George Michael. Is it all because of a brain aneurysm? Or is God really calling this lawyer to change the world? I don't know, but I love the compelling, honest, non-cliche way this show treats faith and God. Here's hoping Eli Stone comes back for a second season - TV needs smart, offbeat shows with heart."

And, of course, there's Victor Garber. Victor Garber. I could watch Victor Garber read from a phone book and find it entertaining.

You can watch all of the episodes here, if you don't mind the small picture.

Say it with me now:

2008-04-22T00:29:00.004-04:00

A - Merrr - eee - KAH.

That's right. America.

TJ and I went to America this weekend.

Or Santiago. Whatever. We had a blast.

We took hot showers. We cranked up (down?) the AC. We ate at TGI Fridays and Dominoes. And McDonald's. And KFC.

We went to the movies - Fool's Gold (or "Foo's Gold," according to our tickets) with Matthew McConauhey and Kate Hudson. Cute as can be, and ironically, set in the Caribbean, where we are lucky enough to live. So in escaping to "America" for the weekend, we actually ended up loving where we live even more...

But I digress.

We went shopping. We sat at a cafe for hours, talking and laughing with our dear friends from SCS. I spent $15 on handfuls of jewelry from Inka.

Ahhhhhh, America. Marvelous.

A special thanks to you-know-who-you-are for treating us to this weekend. It was delightful.

Thank you, Jake!

2008-04-17T11:27:00.002-04:00

A few months ago, a kid at Otter Creek had a birthday. And a party. Happens all the time, I'm sure.

But this party was extraordinary. Instead of presents for himself, Jake asked for presents for other kids. With the money from his party, he bought all sorts of books, DVD's and sports equipment from the outreach center wish list.

Did his parents force him to do this? Nooooooooo... It was all his idea. Who does that?!!!! One of the coolest kids around, that's who.

Jake, you have no idea how you happy you've made these kids. They treasure the treasures you've sent. Thank you for sharing with them.

And thank you for reminding Holly and I to think of others before ourselves. Sometimes we forget that, even though we live here!

(Club Chiquito drawing pictures for Jake.)

Culture Safari

2008-04-15T11:19:00.003-04:00

Where else will you find a white teenager from Dallas in a Haitian barrio talking with a Dominican man (preening his fighting rooster, of course) in broken Spanish about the colors of Dominican politics?

Ahhh... RioSanJuan. And the adventure that is our life!

We send American youth groups on a Culture Safari to help them dive into the depths of Dominican culture. Or, at least, stick a toe in and get a flavor of life in a developing country. (Where you don't speak the language. And don't have any money.)

Of course, the groups do splendidly, charming and involving the residents of RioSanJuan in their quest. Perhaps they're strongly motivated by the incredible prizes that go to the winning team...

Sample questions include:

What do Dominicans mean when they talk about "la bandera Dominicana"?
Put 100 pesos of minutes on TJ's phone.
What city is "la segunda capital"?
What Dominican baseball team is (far and away) the most popular in RSJ?

If you guys can answer those questions, you really should get a prize, too...

Any takers?

Don't forget to be that guy.

2008-04-13T19:22:00.004-04:00

The MannaDR team visited the church-next-door today. They have been a great help in the past few weeks, and we wanted to say "thank you." Tim even had a plaque made for the occasion.

What joy to commune with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

We were both reminded of the small churches we grew up in, of our parents making it a point to greet and honor new faces around them.

You see, today, for the first time in a long time, we were guests. We didn't have the song books, we weren't quite sure where to sit, or where the bathroom was...

But "that guy" was there. You know, the one who welcomes you, shows you to your seat, finds songbooks for you, tries to repeat the song numbers in broken English... He even produced a cough drop when Laura Beth started to cough!

Afterwards, nearly every member came over to welcome, to embrace, to speak words of encouragement and blessing over us. They invited us to lunch and welcomed us into their family.

And that is what we were and are: family. It's strange to say, but today felt like we had stepped back to a time when outsiders were immediately seen, attended to, and were smacked with a red rose on thier lapel. It made us wonder... have we lost that in our big, modern churches in the States?

I don't know. I don't think so...

But today, we left the church-next-door feeling a new commitment to what true family is, and hoping we never get so comfortable in ours that we forget to be "that guy" (or gal).

Julieta + Juanes

2008-04-11T08:00:00.001-04:00

I think TJ has a crush. On Julieta Venegas.

I have no idea if she's pretty or not, but he digs her music. She's putting out phenomenal music out there, Spanish or not. Julieta is DEFINITELY worth an iTunes purchase.

That's okay - if TJ is going to have a crush on Julieta, I shall have a crush on Juanes. He is ALSO putting amazing Spanish music out there. No Creo en el Jamas is an awesome anthem for our Pescadores: "I Don't Believe in Never."

Seriously. Julieta & Juanes. Check them out.

Of course, neither can compare with my personal favorite artist: Thomas Carlton McCloud, Jr. (Also known as TJ McCloud.)

From your closets

2008-04-09T11:16:00.004-04:00

to their arms...

Thank you, Dallas Christian, for bringing these furry pals for our Club Chiquito kiddos to hug on.

Our kiddos are officially in love with their new friends, and want to make sure they can "sleep" at the Outreach Center so they won't get "hurt" at home.

I'm Lovin' It

2008-04-03T12:44:00.003-04:00

I woke up this morning to the smell of bacon. Don't get me wrong, no one was actually cooking bacon, but as I made the slow transition between dreaming and waking, I could just taste the greasy goodness of a Bacon, Egg and Cheese biscuit from McDonald's.

The torture of having American TV channels is the deluge of delicious advertising for Olive Garden, Chili's, Papa John's, etc. In Rio San Juan, we have two restaurants - and they both serve rice, beans, and chicken.

There is a place that makes pizza. They don't use tomato sauce. I tried to teach the cook how to put the sauce on the crust under the cheese... but in the end, she smiled, agreed and then gave me exactly what I didn't want.

C'est la vie, no?

Hannah: Abroad.

2008-04-02T13:40:00.004-04:00

We much enjoyed having our friends Shawn, Rebekah & baby Hannah here a few weeks ago. Of course, when there's a cute baby around, you end up taking TONS of pictures. Here are a few of our favorites.

And, as a special blog bonus, video of Hannah taking her FIRST steps. On foreign soil, no less! Surely she's destined for a life of international adventure & intrigue.

It's official.

2008-03-29T21:26:00.002-04:00

I (Holly) am totally lame.

My dad has a Facebook page before I do.

Races and Rollercoasters

2008-03-27T21:12:00.006-04:00

It is with great pleasure that we present these pictures of the 1st Annual Pescadores' Pinewood Derby.

It was a huge victory for the ministry, and a whole lot of fun! The boys took their time, worked hard, followed directions, crafted creatively, had great fun, took pride in their finished cars, and by the end of the day, were minor RSJ celebrities.

My (Holly's) dad, Gary, taught the boys how to make the cars, worked with them all day to craft fine automobiles AND my Mom, Janey, helped them build a rockin' track. TJ encouraged them to "run the race" of life well with words from Hebrews 12. They donned their Pescadores shirts, shouldered the track and paraded down the block to the park, legions of adoring fans (Club Chiquito) in tow.

As soon as we set up the track in the park, the whole town crowded around, cheering for their favorite car. It was an incredible high for the boys and the way they handled it highlighted the work that God is doing in their lives.

As ministries will, we had a major "crash" after the week of the race, ending with our boys forming a street gang, rioting outside the Center and beating up our precious (yet scrappy) girls. In one evening, our boys absolutely turned and literally started to work against us, saying horrible things and threatening anyone who came to Bible study.

It was an inexplicable change and an incredible low, one that we can truly say felt supernatural in its severity. It was painful for us to look at these pictures of this super fun day, thinking that things might never be the same with those boys again. But...with patience, consistency, advice from youth experts Kyle and Vicki Graham, and a much anticipated visit from Linda Benthall and Brandon Wood... things are not only back to normal, but better than they were.

We realized that we weren't calling them to enough, so we took the last few weeks to reboot the ministry. We asked them to sign a pledge (based on Romans 12's Rules for Christian living) that we say at every meeting, and only allow kids who have turned it in to participate. So far, so good... no more black eyes or bloody noses. The Princesas are, of course, still so sweet and patient, even to the same boys who beat them up a few weeks ago.

These are the kids we know and love. We wish sometimes the ups and downs weren't so severe, but that's what their lives are like. We can't forget that what they need even more than our fun and games and attention is to be molded into the image of Jesus. We will continue to call them to grow in Christ, confident and thankful that God will never give up the fight for their hearts and lives. We are blessed to be a part of that, and so are you!

Would ya believe...

2008-03-24T16:42:00.008-04:00

the Easter bunny visited the Dominican Republic, too?

Well, neither would our Club Chiquito kids, seeing as they'd never heard of the Easter bunny, Easter eggs, or hunting for said eggs. Actually, they'd pretty much never heard of Easter...

But the funny thing is, you turn kids loose in a garden full of brightly colored eggs stuffed with candy, and they pretty much get the picture.

It was a delightful morning, and the kids can't stop recounting the stories of just how and where they found each of their eggs. Many thanks to Linda Benthall and Brandon Wood for their help.

Shane Ruiz

2008-03-22T21:33:00.005-04:00

On Wednesday afternoon, Shane Ruiz, a 19 year old Freed-Hardeman student, drowned at a beach near us. He was here on a Spring Break campaign with fellow Sigma Rho club members. Our teammates, Cory and Laura Beth Lamb, are former Sigma Rho members, and were so excited to have their friends experience their ministry at the Children's Home.

Although we spent little time with Shane, and had left the beach before the accident, we grieve for his family, friends; and also for Cory and Laura Beth, Brian and Tammie. This is the first time in over a decade of hosting mission groups that anything like this has happened, and it weighs heavily on all of us. The circumstances of his death are so strange and rare, it is still difficult to believe that it occurred.

The search and recovery is ongoing. The US Embassy, US Coast Guard, Dominican Red Cross, Civil Defense, and local community have been kind and helpful.

Holly and I are mainly trying to help with the search effort and support our teammates at this point, as they deal with shock and grief. The Ruiz family is also here, staying with the Wallaces.

Tomorrow, we will go back out with the local fishermen who are graciously helping search. Hopefully the waters will be calm enough for a dive team.

Please pray continually for the Ruiz family, the Freed Hardeman community, our team, and, possibly most of all, the successful recovery of Shane's body.

For more information on Shane and his life, read this article from today's Jackson Sun.

Jordan

2008-03-16T21:58:00.002-04:00

Jordan is officially back.

For those of you who might have tuned in late, Jordan is the boy from our group who broke in and robbed our house in August. We got almost everything back, and told him that we wanted him to still participate in the group, but let him know there would be consequences. He couldn't handle confronting his guilt in that way, so he hid from us for seven months.

About a month ago, he showed up at our gate. He's taller, leaner, and has a much deeper voice than the Jordan who we knew in August.

He apologized and let us know that he wanted to try and repair our relationship (well, maybe not so eloquently...). We let him know that we always hoped he would come back, and that we would talk about consequences the next day.

Here's what we decided: He has to pay to replace the items we couldn't retrieve from him, and he can't have any involvement with the American groups coming in all summer. Instead of working off a debt, we prepared readings, mostly from the Bible, that he had to read, copy, and write a page of his thoughts. Each was worth 5 dollars. We knew it would stretch him, since he is not a good reader or writer, but that's what we wanted, for this to be formative rather than empty labor.

We didn't really imagine that he would follow through, but lo and behold, he showed up the next day with the papers ready for us. We checked the handwriting, and sure enough it was him. He did well, and we are proud of him and excited that he is taking the initiative and showing us that he cares. So far he has done four readings.

We are thankful to God for the time Jordan spent away. It was a time of changing for him, and us, too. We are thankful that the robbery was not the end of our story with Jordan, and that now, we begin anew.

The Snoozer

2008-03-12T11:36:00.003-04:00

Bill Bryson is one of our absolute favorite authors. We've read almost everything he's written.

Which is why it's surprising that he's become a point of contention in our marriage... We fight over one of his books. Every night. "The Mother Tongue: English and how it got that way"

Or as we have affectionately dubbed it: "The Snoozer."

We honestly love the book - we've read it several times. We're fascinated by linguistics. (Nerds??? Yes.) But well-written and interesting as it is, it puts us to sleep. Better than Ambien or Benadryl.

I think we're going to have to invest in two copies.

sweet rocks

2008-03-10T17:13:00.004-04:00

The other day, Alfredo found half of an ancient, rock-hard, dirty-nasty gumball in our yard. He inspects it, brushes off some dirt, and pops it in his mouth. His eyes immediately light up.

"It's a sweet rock! I found a sweet rock!"

His buddy and cousin, Niño, gets interested.

"Let me taste this sweet rock," Niño says.

Alfredo hands it over.

"Where did you find it?" asks Niño.

"Here, on the ground, with the other rocks."

"Mmmmm!!!" says Niño, "it IS sweet!"

"You can suck on it for one minute, then I want it back."

"I'm going to find some more." Niño declares, and proceeds to lick every rock in my flower bed.

I expect a full excavation/mining team will be here in no time.

2008-03-05T19:20:00.002-05:00

There are days when we want to scream:

"WE ARE HERE FOR YOU!!! To help you!!! Why are you behaving in a way uglier than we could have ever imagined? Forget you. We're going home."

Then we want to physically beat some sense into them.

Tonight was one of those nights.

It will pass, and it will come again.

Thank God we're not God.

My Worst Nightmare

2008-03-04T18:56:00.003-05:00

We were driving along the coastal highway yesterday, bouncing and singing along to Eminem's Lose Yourself. I (Holly) love Eminem - the "clean" versions, of course.

One of our friends had seen footage of Eminem in a live rap battle - apparently (obviously) he is crazy talented, and just destroys everybody.

It was then that I realized my actual worst nightmare:
to be placed in a rap battle and have to win or die. Seriously. I can think of nothing worse.

Love it. Buy it.

2008-03-02T23:34:00.005-05:00

Remember the love songs TJ was writing on the beach a few months ago?

You can buy them now
on iTunes.

How loud is it?

2008-02-28T21:25:00.003-05:00

Sometimes people ask us: "Just how loud is it in your apartment? I mean, how bad can it really be?"

This is how bad it can be.

This cacophony lasts until about 3am, and the roosters in the cock fighting ring across the street start crowing at 4am. (LONG before the sun comes up.)

Shrebekawn

2008-02-25T13:27:00.006-05:00

Shawn, Rebekah and Hannah Brown are here.

So far, Hannah has decided she likes:
1) dogs
2) the ocean
3) papaya smoothies.

She doesn't like fire ants.

Gotta love those whales...

2008-02-20T23:32:00.009-05:00

We went whale watching today with Holly's parents.

Did you know that the entire population of North Atlantic humpback whales migrates to the Dominican every January - March? Did you know they don't eat for SIX MONTHS while they're here?! They live off layers of stored body fat. I wonder how long we'd make it...

This is classic Gary & Janey. Pretty cute, huh?

No rest for the weary...

2008-02-18T13:07:00.004-05:00

My (Holly) parents are here visiting, and we put them right to work!

Dad is restoring an old generator to better-than-ever condition, and Mom has done our laundry, swept our floors, done the dishes, cleaned our stove, handpainted a sign, and baked a race car cake for the boys.

We keep trying to get them to relax and enjoy the island life, but they're having none of it! And truthfully, it's nice to have the extra hands. Living life is actually heavier here - it's more physical, takes more energy.

We're having a wonderful time sharing our life and ministry with my parents. We'll soon post more about the fun we've been having with the Pescadores & Princesas.

But for now, we're kidnapping my parents and taking them for lunch at Playa Grande. (Not entirely against their will...)

¡Feliz Dia de San Valentín!

2008-02-16T06:47:00.002-05:00

Club Chiquito Retreat

2008-02-11T15:39:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday was full of wonder and awe, as we took our littlest ones to the country for the first-ever Club Chiquito retreat! Carmen and Jerry Freed, from Park Plaza, helped a ton and loved on our little guys.

In ten hours or less we:

Gave out backpacks, handmade and sent by the PP children...

Played a never-ending game of soccer...

Discovered next season's recruits while playing HomeRun Derby...

Feasted on lunch at our favorite country cook's house...

Listened to a Bible story during downtime/devotional...

Played on the MannaDR playground - it was the first time the kids had seen swings or slides...

AND splashed/jumped/dove in the river!!!

I. (Holly). Have. Hives.

2008-02-09T09:36:00.000-05:00

All over my face. Gross.

No idea what caused them.

They'd better go away soon - I have this thing about rashes - they creep me out.

Fishes and Crowns

2008-02-08T08:03:00.000-05:00

Wanna grow leaders? Just buy a necklace or two.

The inspiration came from an idea one of our Otter Creek elders, Jerry Franklin, gave us. When he and Paula were visiting, we were talking about leadership and how to grow these kids into true leaders, even if just in their little community of streetkids.

"Why not have the boys elect their own leader each week?", he said.
Great idea. Why didn't I think of that?

After a little trial and error, here's what we came up with;

We bought two necklaces, one with a fish (boys) on it, and one with a crown (girls). During the group Bible studies, we start by giving the necklace to one of the group members and letting them know that it is because of whichever Christ-like attributes we see in their lives. They wear the necklace all week, and each week thereafter, the last recipient gets to choose who to give the necklace to and has to state what Christ-like things they have seen their friend's life.

We have done it for two weeks with the boys and one with the girls, and it seems to be a great way to get them to call each other to Christ-like behavior... now if we could just get them (the boys) to use the toilet instead of peeing on our side-yard wall...

- TJ

(By the way; On the boy's side, the first two recipients have been Joelni (who is seriously considering making a decision for Christ), and Argelis.
Girls' side: Rachel)

Firsts

2008-02-07T12:33:00.000-05:00

Where's Waldo? (or ¿Dondé está Oswaldo?), Pick-Up Sticks, and the story of Jesus washing the disciples' feet were big hits at Club Chiquito yesterday.

Seriously, these kids are too easy to please. Actually, they are more delighted and enthralled than pleased.

In other news, Gus ate half a pound of Gouda cheese yesterday. And he's not even sick. I was sick, though, when I realized I was going to have to make another trip to the dreaded cheese counter at our local grocery store.

Pescadores Induction Ceremony

2008-02-06T10:57:00.000-05:00

We welcomed three new Pescadores on Monday night: Chiro (Nataniel), Algelis and Wilbi.

It was our first official induction ceremony on the beach at Playa Preciosa. The Pescadores welcomed the new members with kind words, scripture, prayer & song. They presented the new boys with their Pescadores T-shirts, a gift from Park Plaza, with special thanks to Morgan Mansur.

To top it all off, Jerry & Carmen Freed brought matching backpacks for all the boys, handmade by the children of Park Plaza.

And THEN we went for a private pizza party at a restaurant in town.

It was a night that will not be forgotten.

Of course, it's never all roses... Two of the boys that have been Pescadores the longest (Hansel & Rudi) ran off and skipped the ceremony to "tumbar" (knock down) coconuts as soon as we got to the beach.

2008-02-03T22:42:00.000-05:00

That's right, we watched the Super Bowl, too.

Chico's First Day of School

2008-02-01T13:01:00.001-05:00

IMG_4193
Originally uploaded by tjmccloud

Well... for $20 a month, and a few hours of our time, Chico is enrolled in the best private school in town.

He was supposed to start on Monday, but he knew we had his books, supplies and uniform last night, and he just couldn't wait. He is desperate to learn to read.

And he's so intelligent.

We're still not sure how we went from having no kiddos to dropping our first grader off at school...

September 2008

2008-01-29T20:23:00.000-05:00

We often write about the day-to-day stuff, but we sometimes forget to tell you about the big life-decision type stuff:

Our two year commitment in the Dominican ends in September.

Which means we're headed home.

Where's home? We're not exactly sure.

What will we do? Don't know that either.

But we do know this is a fabulous place, a transformative ministry, and we are blessed to be a part of it. These RSJ kiddos are the best around, and they deserve the best of us, the whole time we're here. Which means we have all sorts of tricks up our sleeves for the next several months. They aren't going to know what hit them.

We, along with the MannaDR directors, are in the process of searching for/interviewing people interested in continuing the work in RSJ. If you'd like to know more about this crazy roller-coaster ride that is life and love in RSJ, email us: tj@mannadr.org.

Tellin' it like it is

2008-01-25T18:39:00.000-05:00

There's nothing like EVERYBODY telling you how fat you've gotten to motivate one to lose extra holiday pounds.

Dominicans mean it as a compliment, but we're back on the beans & rice bandwagon.

You could really market this in the States. It would be called the "Wow! You're so fat!!!" diet.

Whatever. We enjoyed every minute of every bite of all the delicious food we devoured in our land of plenty.

Gus & Molly Go to the Beauty Shop

2008-01-24T22:37:00.000-05:00

We're back in the Dominican, by the way. Safe and sound, all is well. Our kiddos are darling, and can't get enough hugs & special attention. Our house was gleaming, spic-and-span, spotless, thanks to Osvaldo.

The dogs... The dogs, on the other hand, were not so clean. Osvaldo took care of Gus, and the Lamb's dog, Molly. They now love Osvaldo more than us, and are a few pounds heavier than we left them.

They were also filthy, so we spent this morning cleaning them up. They hated every minute of it, but they know they look (and smell) better now.

Update: 2007

2008-01-21T02:07:00.000-05:00

The good work God is doing in RioSanJuan is a real because of Otter Creek and Park Plaza. We are honored to serve as their love for these kiddos.

Check out this snapshot of our life and ministry. Whatever you do, don't miss Jerry Franklin dancin' the Macarena.

2008-01-16T13:39:00.000-05:00

We miss our little GQ buddies. We're enjoying our time with friends in Nashville, but we'll be ready to scoop these little guys up as soon as we get back.

mini-B

2008-01-09T23:26:00.000-05:00

TJ here.

I'm loving watching BSC raise a child. Especially a child that looks like a mini-me of his daddy.

He and his wonderful wife, "The Manager" came home to visit and we got to spend an evening catching up and eating Mexican food served by the fastest waiter north of the Pecos. Seriously, the guy could have had skates on, he dropped those chips off so fast.

While it makes me feel a little old watching one of my best buddies turn into a full-fledged father, it's also pretty cool. I can't help but be proud of my bro when I see he and N together. How two pimply faced teenage wierdos like us could have gotten so lucky to be where we're at... I don't exactly know.

By the way, N is already showing real musical talent... forget football, BSC, this kid is gonna be a choir nerd like uncle TJ!

Gary's Garage-mahal

2008-01-09T01:07:00.000-05:00

This last week at the Lewis' has been fun, with Bret and Jaimy (Holly's brother and his new wife) in town, all the cousins visiting, and a trip to see Gma and Gpa Lewis in Ark City.
Gary recently had his new garage built and it is ready(ish) for some mechanical, MoPar fun.

He is restoring a 1969 Dodge Superbee, the first car he and Janey bought as a couple, and the whole Lewis clan came down to help move the car and equipment in.

Here is Gary's "put that camera down and help me lift" smile.

Cousin Kirk found an entertaining way to avoid heavy lifting.
At this point, he rolls better than the Superbee...

Mystery Solved

2008-01-07T19:49:00.000-05:00

People ask us all the time: "What kind of dog is Gus?" (Probably because he's so cute and everybody wants one just like him.)

Well, we always answer: "He's a mutt. Probably a Yorkie/Schnauzer mix (Schnorkie? Yowzer?) But we don't really know. We rescued him from the pound." (His name was T.J. and his sweet little face just called out to us.) Don't you think he's the cutest?

Well, apparently our little mutt is a very rare breed, nearing extinction, and worth thousands of dollars. The Gusbuster is actually a broken coat Hunt Terrier. See picture below...

We always knew he was a little soldier, not at all a sissy little dog, but we had no idea he was worth big bucks.

Too bad they took his family jewels at the pound, so we won't be able to stud him out...

Mom's New Puppies and a Day at the Park

2008-01-04T22:05:00.000-05:00

Mom got two squirming, scrambling, birthday presents this year - while we were at the house, we got to play with them.

Meet Lucy and Lilly - the cutest Yorkie pups around. (The girl holding them is pretty cute, too...)

We also took part in a family tradition of feeding the ducks at Hunter Park. They (and we) were cold, cold, cold.

2008-01-02T20:34:00.000-05:00

Well, its been just past two weeks since we last posted, so we are again going to pay penance with a blog-a-day for the next two weeks. Stay posted for the really, really exciting details of our Christmas and New Year back home.

For now, we would like to give a brief outline of our favorite (so far) Christmas foods;

Chili's, Taco Bueno, TJ's dad's ribeye steaks, Raye Lynn's sausage and cheese balls, Abuelo's, Subway, Captain Dan's Famous Toffee, Quizno's, Shogun Japanese Steakhouse, Spaghetti Warehouse, leftover turkey sandwiches, Braum's Ice Cream, Mazzio's pizza, mashed potatoes, Panera soup and sandwiches, Aunt Fannie's squash casserole, turkey stuffing, El Tequila Mexican restaurant, Tom's pancakes, Janey's quiche casserole,
Mac's BBQ, Harry & David's cream cheese and red pepper dip, Chocolate balls filled with crushed Oreos and cream cheese, Gma's Pumpkin pie, Janey's apple pie, Cheesecake topped with cheeries, Cowboy cookies and Mazatlan's Jim Nachos.

It has been a Happy Holidays.

So, if you see us and we seem to be a little more "jolly", or possibly even a little top heavy- just know that we enjoyed every bite.

Rice and beans, we'll see you again soon...

America is dangerous.

2007-12-19T16:37:00.000-05:00

So we aren't used to America yet.

We're having a good morning. We're in Nashville, TJ's on his way to record tracks on a new quick project, and we stop to get donuts at the famous "Donut Den".

TJ walks across the street to get some antihistamines at Walgreen's, and (Don't worry, Mom...HE'S NOT HURT) when he gets back, he tells Holly that he's just been HIT by a car. Hit by a car while crossing (jaywalking) a busy sidestreet in Green Hills. He was hit, thrown up in the air, rolled over the hood, dented the heck out of a Buick LeSabre, and found himself staring at its' tires while lying on the asphalt. The whole sh-bang.

Miraculously, thankfully, he is completely unharmed, except for being really bruised up and sore. The elderly gentleman who hit him refused to accept payment or insurance information for the car repairs - he only wanted to see TJ walk back and forth a few times to make sure he was OK, and then prayed over him. His response was "Oh, son... I'm old and I've got great insurance."

We just wanted donuts and Benadryl... my goodness, America is dangerous!!!

24

2007-12-18T10:19:00.000-05:00

Set up for Sunday Night Worship & Movie/Christmas Party. Jam out with the kids. Back by popular demand, an encore performance of the Christmas Pageant, Dominican Style, this time. (Read: lots of freestyle, part-switching, very chaotic.) Pass out candy canes & juice. Watch Polar Express. Clean up Outreach Center. Fond farewells, hugs and tears with the kids. LOTS of assurances from us that we are just going to VISIT our friends and family, and we WILL be back.

Clean. Pack. Clean some more. Leave 10 notes for Kayla & Osvaldo. TJ sleeps a few hours, Holly keeps packing. Drive to Santiago at 4am. Wake our friend at 6am. Check in at the airport. Eat nasty stale Dominican meat pie corn pastry. Get on the plane. Sit on the runway 1 hour. Take-off. Sleep 1.5 hours. Land. Sit on the runway 30 minutes. Realize we won't make our connecting flight to Nashville, departing in 1 hour. Deplane. Fly through Immigration. Run to baggage claim. Get our 4 bags. Dash to Customs. Speed through, re-check our bags, MOVE it to security. Wait through a line of over 1000 people, shedding our shoes, sweatshirts, laptop, video camera and iMac as we go. Miraculously make it through security in under 20 minutes with no help or special treatment from the MIA/TSA staff. (It's the holidays. What can you expect? That's the thing about living in a developing country. It SERIOUSLY lowers your expectations.) Find our gate. Board. Celebratory/triumphant kiss. Against all odds, we made it. Pull away from the gate.

Sit on the runway for 1 hour. (Apparently it's our day for that.) Take-off. Sleep 1.5 hours. Get our bags. Step outside the airport. Feel the frigid blast of Nashville air, wish to run back to our balmy tropical clime. See Kristen Norman, waiting to pick us up with sweet little Elijah, bearing Dr. Pepper and a "Welcome Home" sign. Remember JUST how much we love our sweet friends and family. Drive to Arby's, TJ's heart's desire, revel in free refills and flavorful food, marvel at Elijah's antics. Drive to the Essner's, who are SO kind to store ALL of our stuff in their attic. Load up on winter clothes, enjoy catching up with more of our favorite people in the world.

Drop our stuff off at the Farmers, drive to Chili's. Sink into to chips, salsa & bottomless Dr. Pepper's with Blake, Moriah, Shawn, Rebekah and Hannah, just like we've been dreaming of for months...

Sunday 6pm to Monday 6pm. 24 hours in the life of TJ & Holly McCloud.

We are blessed beyond measure. Blessed to know and love our dear kiddos in RSJ, blessed to come home to delightfully familiar friends & family.

We WISH You a Merry Christmas...

2007-12-16T20:03:00.000-05:00

We've added a few Christmas items to the Outreach Center Wish List.

Check it out...

Two Storms

2007-12-14T20:08:00.000-05:00

Sub-Tropical Storm Olga has passed.

Storm Christmas Pageant & Party has passed.

We are beat. Enjoy the pics.

(Check out our "water-bottle-as-baby-Jesus." That's a DR special, right there. The kids did ALL of the props - constructed the manger scene and EVERYTHING. Totally without our help.)

A Party for You, Mom

2007-12-11T12:03:00.000-05:00

Mmmmm...

2007-12-10T13:19:00.000-05:00

I (Holly) woke up really thirsty this morning. I reached for my glass of water, and started gulping it down.

After about 15 seconds, I felt something on my hand. I looked down at the water I was drinking, only to discover it was swarming with sugar ants.

I probably swallowed hundreds - no joke. Gross.

Oh well. What can you do?

Favorite Christmas Present?

2007-12-08T14:07:00.000-05:00

Okay, this is not my FAVORITE Christmas present ever. But it was unexpected, and has been unexpectedly useful. And I think of Sheryl Thomas when we use it, which is pretty much every day.

She made them for Trina and I when we worked in the office at Otter Creek. Pretty thoughtful gift for your husband's assistant, don't you think?

Somehow it made it's way to the Dominican with us, and we keep it in our car. It dries our sandy car-full of kids on the way home from the beach. I use it as a pillow on our long trips over the mountains to Santiago. The girls wrap up in it after pageant practice, and have me turn on the air full-blast. When a new girl comes, first thing, they pull out the blanket and show this off incredible item. Everybody oohs and ahhs. Seriously.

Soooo... Thanks, Sheryl!

2007-12-03T20:06:00.000-05:00

If it's true what they say, that "you are what you eat," then TJ & I are slowly turning into popcorn & Diet Coke.

We gave up on trying to figure out what to eat. Our work days usually finish around 9. So, popcorn & Diet Coke it is!

En Español

2007-12-01T21:19:00.000-05:00

We live our lives in Spanish.

We don't even think about it anymore. We find ourselves fumbling for English words, wanting to use the Spanish words that are always on the tip of our tongue.

We talk, eat, dream, live, love, laugh, fight, play and cry... in Spanish.

That's a cool side benefit to changing kids lives: becoming nigh fluent in another language.

We didn't do it on purpose. We were just desperate to understand what they were saying to us, to be able to respond in a meaningful way. And desperate to get our (electricity, car, water, internet, etc.) fixed.

Thanks, B&K, for making language school possible. Thanks, Steve & Brian, for supporting us in making it a priority. And thanks, CSA, for 6 weeks of the best Spanish language instruction possible. More than a year later, we're still learning, building on the foundation you laid for us.

Ohhhhh, Kay-lah.....

2007-11-29T15:53:00.000-05:00

Look what Ozzie made today!

He's pretty talented, and cute to boot!

And very much looking forward to seeing you in TWO weeks. (He can't stop talking about it.) We're looking forward to seeing you, too. Gus promises to be on his best behavior.

2007-11-28T18:32:00.001-05:00

TJ's in a songwritin' mood.

Love songs.

I like it!

Pageant Practice

2007-11-27T09:59:00.000-05:00

Practice is in full swing for the first ever Centro Cristiano Christmas Pageant!

We'll have Pescadores, Princesas, Christmas carols, a nativity with live animals, Christmas readings, red & green Crocs galore, apples, grapes & a roasted pig.

The kids are convinced that Alfredo has to be baby Jesus. (He's small and his skin is lighter.)

You don't want to miss this...

December 15, 6pm. Come on down!

A week away from the Creek

2007-11-25T21:14:00.000-05:00

Two months ago, a group from Otter Creek took our little corner of the island by storm. We hiked to the river, danced the Macarena, taught about hygiene, visited the hospital, fed people who live on the dump, played Twister, threw Cocoa Puffs, LOVED on kids, made friendships, went on a scavenger hunt, ate lots of plantains, roofed a house and lounged on the beach.

The week was a true blessing to God's work in the Dominican Republic. Otter Creek planned (and bought all sorts of fun supplies for) activities that the kids LOVED, required little Spanish, and taught great messages.

We are thankful, Otter Creek. Now if you will just get yourselves back down here so the kids will STOP asking us when our friends are coming back!!!

An odd realization

2007-11-20T23:09:00.000-05:00

We were on our way out of town the other day, when I (Holly) had an odd realization.

I like hazelnuts.

I just turned 27, so I mostly have my likes and dislikes down. Like onions, dislike raw tomatoes. Like mango, dislike papaya. Like Spanish, dislike French. Like ACU, dislike Harding. (Sorry, Bison, but it's true!)

So it was very odd for me, when TJ asked me if there was anything I wanted from the store (besides the requisite cold Coke), to realize that I wanted a Ritter Dark Chocolate Hazelnut bar.

Which continues a previously unrecognized pattern of fondness for hazelnuts: Nutella, Ferro Rocher truffles, and now, the Ritter Dark Chocolate Hazelnut bar.

Would I like hazelnuts without chocolate? Probably not. Does anyone besides TJ care about my hazelnut revelation? Probably not.

I also like amaretto and marzipan, now that I think about it. And we're coming home for Christmas in a month. I'm just saying...

All I want for Christmas is my...

2007-11-19T18:59:00.000-05:00

Chico, one of our favorite little rugrats, had an accident.

He fell out of a hammock, and landed (on a rock) on his teeth. He came to us the next day, trying to talk and keep his drool in his mouth, and told us the story. He wasn't worried about it, as several friends have lost their front teeth lately.

But Chico's teeth were permanent. The doctors in Rio San Juan told him that they would grow back. Remind me never to get sick in Rio San Juan.

We decided, immediately, that an eight year old would probably need his teeth as he grows up, and that we should help somehow. We contacted friends and dentists in the States, and got an appointment at a well-respected dentist in the town near us.

(That was a hairy experience... you try to convince Chico to let someone plunge a needle into his gums! Let's just say, the morning included chasing Chico down after he broke out of the exam room, six dental assistants holding him down, and bribes of toys, ice cream, and cartoons.)

After the appointment and some email consults from several gracious stateside friends including Dr. Corbyn Van Brunt, the prognosis is this: Chico will probably need a few root canals and either a partial denture or dental implants.

Please pray for Chico - he's a great little guy. We are going to try to get him two front teeth for Christmas. (Email us if you'd like to help.) But even without his front teeth, he can charm a Beanie Baby right out of your hands.

Mayhem

2007-11-15T11:13:00.000-05:00

Running at break-neck speed though knee high grass in pitch darkness, holding on to the chain of Pescadores for dear life.

Glo-in-the-dark Blob Tag with a bunch of Spanish speaking ragamuffins: we highly recommend it. (Thanks, Otter Creek, for the bracelets!)

We have not laughed so hard, or had fun like that, in YEARS.

We "kidnapped" birthday boy, Hansel, and 12 other Pescadores for a party out at the camp. It was beyond fun, and the boys were SO good.

They didn't even try to jump out of the truck while we were driving. Progress, people. We're making progress!

Its good, but...

2007-11-14T12:50:00.001-05:00

Our friend and co-worker, Osvaldo, was born and raised in Rio San Juan. A few years ago, he and Kayla (a missionary here before us) met, fell in love, and got engaged. They are waiting on a visa so Osvaldo can live in the US. To say that Oswaldo is in for the culture shock of a lifetime is an understatement.

Yesterday, Osvaldo and I went to Puerto Plata for some work, and stopped at a "tourist" restaurant for lunch. I sat down and realized that he may not have ever eaten in a restaurant like this, let alone seen a menu like this. Dominicans eat rice and beans, chicken and fish. Every day, day in and day out, except Christmas, when someone kills a pig or two.

Osvaldo speaks English, but the menu didn't make sense. I commenced to describe all the items. "Thai chicken salad, chicken ceasar wrap, beef medallions in red sauce, coconut chicken curry..." the list goes on. The choices were new to Osvaldo, and I let him know that they did have rice and beans. He declined and decided to be adventurous.

"What is this?" he asked.

"Chicken pot pie... its chicken and vegetables in a bread crust - kind of like a big empanada."

"OK. I'll have that," he says.

The food arrives and we start to eat, and I can tell he is uncomfortable with this new food item.

"Do you like it?" I asked.

"Yes. It is very strange, but I think it will be better in a moment."

He then proceeded to drown his chicken pot pie in ketchup and continued eating happily.

"It's good - but much better with ketchup!"

I can't wait to take him to Chili's one day.