A Surprise Party!

This week I celebrated my birthday.  I had a lovely day because I was able to talk to many of my friends and family around the world.  Just as the day was winding down and I was getting my kids ready for bed, I got a call from Junior.  He had gone up to the church in Corcona for the Wednesday night church service.  He told me that he would soon be arriving home with a group from the church.  Although I don't usually go up to Corcona for the Wednesday night service (since it is late and difficult for the kids), they had gotten word that it was my birthday and had prepared me a special meal.  They were disappointed to find that I hadn't come up for church, so they decided to come home with Junior and help me celebrate.  About 9:30 PM they arrived here with food and a birthday cake.  It was a wonderful surprise.  It made me feel so honored that they would be willing to drive one hour down the mountain to help me celebrate my birthday practically in the middle of the night.  After singing, sharing, eating and praying together, they all headed home about 11:30.  It was a long day, but a great chance to spend some time getting to know the members of the church better.  So I thank the Lord for their big hearts, their flexibility and their kindness. 

These kids came along and sang me a special song.

Here I am with some of the members of the church. 

School's Out!

We are now officially on summer break.  We finished school about 3 weeks ago, and the kids are enjoying a little time off from the books.  Although we all enjoy school (some days more than others), it is also nice to have a little change from our regular schedule.  This has given us some time to watch a bit of the olympics, and play a lot of soccer.  We are also planning to go on some field trips during the summer, since we didn't have any official outings during the school year.  So yesterday we went with some friends to a place called MiniMundo (Mini World).  It has small models of different places from around Peru.  It reminded me of the little cities at Legoland, except that the models weren't made out of legos.  The kids especially enjoyed it because there was also a playground and a trampoline to jump on there. 

Here we are in front of the model of Machu Picchu. 
Hopefully we can visit the real one some day as well.

Jonathan is enjoying the rainforest village,
complete with real fish in the river.

The summer is also the time to start thinking about next school year.  After looking into some of the options for schools around here, we have decided that homeschooling is still the best option for us (and the cheapest).  So we are getting ready to order our books for next year.  We wanted to give you all the chance to be involved with us if you feel led to do that.  Our school books this year are going to cost a bit more than usual, but we also will have 4 kids in school this year for the first time.  Josh will be starting Kindergarten.  So the books themselves will be $1,300 for all four kids.  On top of that we have to pay for them to be shipped all the way here to Peru, and that is going to cost $400.  There are three ways you can help.  You can pray with us for God's provision for this need.   Secondly, you could partner with us by helping to pay for some of the books.  Or, if you are planning a trip to Peru anytime soon (and don't need to bring much luggage) you could bring the books for us which would save us the shipping charges.  If anyone does plan to come for a visit, we would be more than happy to be your hosts, guides, or whatever you may need.  So thank you all for your prayers and your support of us.  If you have any questions, you can write us at vegafamily7@hotmail.com.  We are trusting in God and know that he is faithful to supply all our needs.   God bless you.