Christmas with the Families

It's 80 degrees outside, the sun is shining and I'm wearing shorts. BUT....Christmas is here, even in warm Mexico. And although I'd rather have snow for Christmas than an 80 degree day, we have been celebrating with music, decorations and Christmas parties.

Mummy-Me game

Joseph

We invited Oti's family: Ricardo, Jeny, Marisol, Paty, Yasmin, Leti, Adela, and Rodrigo; Gloria's family: Carlos, Ansoni, Paola, Vanessa, and Baby Ruth; Dalila's family: Leydi, Jose Luis, and Zuri.; to our group house for a Christmas party. As I drove down the street toward Oti's house to pick them up, some of her kids were waiting at the end of the street. And when they saw me coming, they ran home to tell the others. They were excited. Oti was dressed in a new skirt and blouse that we bought her. She had taken more time than usual getting ready and looked very pretty. It was nice to see her "glowing." At the party, we served the families dinner, played games with them, decorated gi-normous gingerbread cookies, shared the True story of Christmas, and opened gifts. 

At the end of the night, we took Oti's family upstairs and celebrated Christmas with them. 
They each opened 1-2 gifts that we bought them (thank you sponsors). It was so fun to see the joy on their faces. This will probably be the only Christmas they celebrate, so it was special. I drove them home and got many hugs and kisses, all of which I eagerly accepted.

Thanks for the gifts!

Appreciation Dinner

Two days later, we hosted another party at the group home for our volunteers, four of whom received certificates for completing the volunteer training: Jorge, Dara, Andrea, and Samantha; our tutors: Fabiola and Sandy, and our foster family, the Lopez'. We had dinner for them, played more games, and gave them gifts of appreciation for all the time and energy they patiently devote to those we serve. We are so grateful for, what we call, our "extended staff."

Our "certified volunteers"

On a Mowery family note, this past Saturday we picked our daughter Eliza up at the airport. She will be with us for two weeks, while she's taking break from school. It's so nice to have all of us under one roof. We look forward to some good family time together. 

We hope your family has an incredible Christmas and is reminded often during this busy and over-commercialized season, just how blessed we are to have a Savior who chose to crash into our world as a baby....to save us. An "unspeakable gift," and yet we are to shout it from the mountain-tops. Felilz Navidad!

Story time

The Paper Bag Princess

We had our first Story-time with Oti's kids last month. When we read to the kids, we select books that have a positive message, communicate truth, demonstrate problem solving skills, and make the children think and laugh. So for this Story-time, we read the Paper Bag Princess about a girl who outsmarts a dragon and helps rescue the prince. One message in this story is that it doesn't matter how you dress or if your hair is messy, what matters is who you are on the inside. It also portrays the heroine as brave and smart. Everyone, including Oti, enjoyed the story. 






One of our goals with story time is to help the kids comprehend and think creatively about what they heard. So after Beti finished reading, each child decorated their own paper bag to wear, and then colored pictures of the princess in the story. 

 Second story-time;
Lily and the Purple Plastic Purse

Recently we had our second story-time with Oti when a team was here serving with us. As I was watching Oti's kids and the kids from the team, it occurred to me that, while story-time is nothing new for these kids from the U.S., this was only the second time EVER for Oti's kids to be read aloud to, outside of school. (We assume the teacher reads out loud to the kids in school.) Since Oti is illiterate, she has never read stories to her kids.

 

My hope is that they will learn to love to read! (All of them are just learning.) Along with many Americans, reading and access to books and libraries is something I took for granted in the U.S. But here in Mexico, libraries are very rare and reading isn't encouraged by many parents. For those of us with kids, it's hard to imagine having a 5 year old, let alone 12 year old who has never been read to. So story time for Jeny, Marisol, Paty, Yasmin, Leti, Adela, and Rodrigo is something special. A new form of entertainment, with new and exciting adventures! 

Some of the impact of reading and the Mobile Education Resource Center (MERC) with Oti's kids include:  and increase in their desire to learn and in how they color a picture, improvement in penmanship and fundamentally, learning how to read and how it can be fun. Please continue to pray for them to learn to love reading, and to progress in school.

Nutrition for Oti's family

They all love apples (Adela)

We've been thinking a lot about nutrition lately and how much the foods we eat effect our health, how we feel, and even how we think.  As literate Americans, nutrition and healthy eating habits are often discussed. And sometimes we make significant diet changes to combat or prevent sickness and other negative effects. Changing our diet a little or a lot, while not easy, is very feasible. 

Last weekend I was holding Rodrigo (Oti's 2 yr. old) during VBS. He's a happy boy, but I couldn't help but notice his rotting teeth.

Separating the fruits from the veggies

 When we offered him a piece of fruit he said no. But as soon as the birthday cake came out, he was all over it. We've spoken to all of the kids and Oti as well, about eating less sugar (Coke, cookies, candy, juice), but eating more fruits and vegetables. But it occurred to us that Oti has lived in survival mode at least since we've known her, and she doesn't think of food as anything more than something to fill the belly. How it effects her long-term health and that of her children is the furthest thing from her mind. But one of the goals of Back2Back is to educate the people we serve about healthy habits.   

Eggplant?

So Julie had this idea of taking about 20 fruits and veggies to Oti's house and having our first nutrition lesson. We asked her and the kids some basic questions about the fruits and veggies. "What is your favorite fruit/veggie?" "What are some red fruits/veggies?" "What are some green fruits/veggies?" Then we asked the kids to separate the fruits from the veggies. It was so fun and eye-opening for us to see how limited their "food vocabulary" was. Oti had no idea what an eggplant was. She asked us how you cook spinach. It was fun and sad at the same time. But we definitely know where we can invest some of our time. Next up...cooking class with Oti. BUT, teaching Oti how to make new recipes with new food is a challenge because she can't read. It's not as easy as giving her a recipe. This may also partly explain why she sticks with the same food choices. So we'll have to be creative with the cooking class. Any ideas are welcome. Picture recipes included.

Back to School.....ALL of us

Coti (Abuelita) our hostess in Merida

Yep. We all went back to school: Jeni, Marisol, Pati, Jasmin, Leti, Adela, Julie, Nick and me. For the Mowery family, it was language school in Merida, which is a 3 hour drive west of Cancun. Thanks for many of you who prayed for us during this intensive training.
For 2 weeks, we had 4 hours of classroom instruction + 2 hrs of conversational instruction while touring the city + 2 or more hours of homework each day. Carmen, our teacher spoke no English. We stayed in a host home with Coti - also strictly Spanish speaking - who was a sweet grandmother we called Abuelita, which means "little grandmother." To try to keep up the momentum with our language study, we will continue weekly Spanish classes with Lizy, one of our Back2Back team members. Please continue to pray as we start this next step in our language study.

Rope made from Henequen

Henequen plants (bonus horse)

Antonio a Mayan field worker

While we were in Merida, we got to do a little sightseeing on the weekend, including visiting one of the few working haciendas (pronounced "acienda") in the state of Yucatan. Hacienda Sotuta de Peon was like taking a walk back in history. For those of you from the U.S. think of the old southern cotton plantations, only in this case the slaves who worked the land were Mayans. This particular hacienda harvested henequen, which is the plant used to make rope. We also got a wagon tour of the huge plantation, got to swim in a cenote (underground freshwater lake), and end with dinner. It was a very fun and interesting day.

Leti with her backpack (mochila)

Pati, Leti, Jasmin, Marisol

Meanwhile, back at the (other) ranch, Ot's kids were getting ready for school. As many of you know, Jeni (12), Marisol (10), Pati (9) and Jasmin (7) all started first grade last year. They all started second grade this year. In addition, Leti (6) started kindergarten, and we're hoping to get Adela (4) started in pre-k. They were all excited to go to school and just this week, Pati proudly told me she got a 10 out of 10 on a math assignment, cause for celebration. We also hired a tutor (Fabiola) to work with the girls five days each week, from 430pm-630pm. After 2+ weeks, so far so good. Please be in prayer for the girls and Fabiola, as they try to make up some ground on the road to catching up with others their age.

Adela ready to walk to school

Reflecting on our visit...and looking ahead

We are so thankful we were able to connect with so many people while we were in the States.  God blessed us in so many ways, filling us up through conversations, laughter, tears, and worship. It was an incredible blessing to go to Flint First Wesleyan Church, Journey Church, Kentwood Community Church, and Stoney Creek Community Church.....to worship with our whole heart & mind!

Finding a church home is one of the things we've struggled with since moving down here. For me (Julie), my appreciation of worship/church has increased over the past year, mainly because we've struggled to find an English speaking church where we can be fed and call our church home. Most of our teaching has come from podcasts or online streaming. Visiting these churches in the States, I realized how much I took going to church for granted. So we were so excited to go and worship and learn. It didn't matter where we went....big sanctuary...small sanctuary...school auditorium....what mattered the most was that we could engage in worship and understand the truth of God's Word being spoken in our own language!  It filled us up! We didn't realize how empty we were until we were full again. But then, that is what we're called to do, empty ourselves in service to God and then allow Him to refill us.

Becoming fully fluent in Spanish continues to be one of our greatest desires. We long for the day when we can communicate in depth and have meaningful conversations with those we serve.  So to help us in that process we are going to an intense language school for 2 weeks in Merida (due west of Cancun). We will have classroom learning for 4 hours each day and then 2 more hours a day with a conversation guide, visiting Merida. We are praying that this training will boost us to the next level in learning Spanish. And we would ask you to partner with us in this prayer. We'll be in language school from Sept 3-14. Thanks in advance!

A New Smile for Adela

 Many of you may have met Adela either through this blog or if you've come down to serve with us. But if you haven't, she is the youngest (4 yrs.) of Oti's six daughters. Most people who have had the chance to meet Adela in person quickly learn that she loves to give hugs and to be held. Bottom line....she's adorable and fun-loving.

If you've seen pictures of her, you've probably seen some black and rotted teeth in front of her smile. There were also a couple more rotted molars. Some of the challenges faced when working with impoverished families where survival is the highest priority, are bad habits like not brushing teeth (what's flossing?) and eating too many sugary foods. This is true with Adela, in addition to the fact that until just recently, she was still going to bed with a bottle. So we began looking into dental options for Adela and the rest of her siblings. God arranged for a divine appointment and we met a dentist who coordinates other dentists and specialists to do this kind of work - helping the poor. Long story short, he introduced us to Dr. Genoveva Quinones who is a pediatric dentist....and what a gift she has with kids. We then scheduled four visits for Adela to get all her work done. First visit fill several cavities. Second visit fill more cavities and do some other work. Third visit get an impression of her mouth to make her dentures. Fourth visit pull six rotten teeth, including the four in the front and put in the dentures for the front teeth. Fifth visit check the dentures.




So, although Adela's toothless smile was adorable, she was sometimes ashamed of it, and her teeth were rotting. Now she has temporary teeth (until her adult ones grow in) and an even more beautiful smile. These dentures, if cared for, will help protect the holes where the previous teeth were, and allow the new ones to grow in properly. 

Please pray with us that Oti and Adela will be responsible to clean the dentures regularly, and will also begin to reduce the amount of sugary foods that all the kids eat. We are regularly trying to educate Oti about healthy eating and hygiene habits, but it's hard. Changing old  habits for anyone, including Oti is an uphill battle.

(Special thanks to a generous donor who is making dental care possible for Oti's kids.)

Building Bridges....relational, spiritual, and physical

The swinging bridge at San Jose

 This week we presented our new VBS called "Sky," to three families, at Casa Hogar San Jose and at the CAT. The theme for the VBS is based on Mark 10:27: todo es posible con Dios -- Everything is possible with God. For many of these kids, this is perhaps a new truth and a very important message. We continue to build bridges with the kids and the staff at the CAT (government shelter for abused and neglected children), as God continues to show favor on this relationship. We will be doing VBS all summer with the teams that come to serve for our ministry partners. 

In addition to doing the VBS, we built a swinging bridge at San Jose, repaired a swingset, hung fans and deloused some kids' hair at the CAT, and poured another section of the roof over Pastor Victor's church in Tres Reyes.

Crosses the kids made at the CAT, that say:
"Todo es posible con Dios."

Lizy teaching the kids about the Roman Centurion
who went to Jesus to heal his sick servant.

It was a great week in which we built relationships with kids, ministry partners, staff and one another. As our Back2Back staff reflected this morning on the week past and the week ahead, we were amazed at God's blessings and favor on the work we're doing. We look forward to seeing many of you this summer when we return to the U.S. and sharing more stories of how God is working here in Cancun!

A First Visit to the Dentist for Oti's Six Girls

Adela

Last week Julie and I along with Mauricio and Lizy (Back2Back Staff) met with a local dentist, Dr. Roberto Carlos Gonzalez Lopez, to introduce him to Back2Back and discuss partnering with us to help our kids with their teeth. If you haven't noticed some of them, especially Oti's, have pretty bad teeth, so we knew it was going to be a big undertaking. 

Trying to keep them occupied in the waiting room.
Reading and coloring with them.

Paty

Well, God had already gone before us. This dentist is awesome! At first I was a little nervous, not knowing how he would respond to the fact that we're a Christian organization, so I was praying for God's favor while Mauricio an Lizy were talking with him. As the conversation progressed, we found out that not only would he help, but he could help coordinate other dentists and specialists to help. He was on board from the start! In addition to helping Oti's kids, he is also open to possibly do a mobile clinic in Tres Reyes, Rancho Viejo and other places we serve. God is so good!


So Wednesday, about a week after our initial visit, we picked up Oti's six girls and took them to his clinic so he could assess their teeth, determine what work needs done and let us know which girls need to go first based on the severity of their issues. He told us that he already spoke to some of the dentists he works with, and that they will discount their work by 50%!! So we are now simply waiting to receive the details about the costs associated with the work, including time and supplies. 

Yasmin

Marisol

The dentist told us that dental supplies in Mexico are imported and therefore very expensive. He suggested we see if we can get supplies from the U.S.to help keep costs down. We have already had a generous donation from a dentist in West Michigan to help get the work started. If you are interested in being part of this work, please contact the Back2Back home office (513.754.0300)

Our good friend Marilin read "Those Icky Sticky Smelly Cavity-
Causing but....Invisible Germs" to the girls on the way to the
dentist. They liked it so much we read it again on the way home.

Mobile Education Resource Center - MERC has arrived!

Jorge (9) from Casa Hogar San Jose practicing reading aloud.

This month we rolled out MERC...our Mobile Education Resource Center.  We are so excited to see the kids participating in this program and are slowly building our library of books through contributions and gifts. We would also like to add other resources to the program, including educational games, manipulatives and laptops. Laptops would allow us to use educational software as another teaching tool, and to teach the kids computer skills.

Beti (9) was so excited  about the new books that she couldn't
decide which she wanted to check out.

Years and years of taking Eliza and Nick to the library and checking out tons of books is paying off in really neat ways.  Lending libraries are very rare in Mexico, and we do not have any in this area. We've been collecting books for the past few months and I really didn't know how the kids would respond, but they love it!

A team member reading to Beti

In addition to allowing them to check out 2-3 books at a time, we also have read-aloud times, both one-on-one and in a large group. In addition to helping the kids learn to read and learn to enjoy good stories, it's also a great time for teams to interact with the kids on a more personal level.

Sandy (14) is reading Loco Amor (Crazy Love) by Fancis Chan.....
how awesome is that!

We are very excited about adding more resources to the MERC to expand the program. If you are interested in helping build our library, please contact the Back2Back home office.