this is a picture that was taken just a few hours ago, with some of my ecuadorian friends! i am teaching Isabel, second on the right, english lessons twice a week for an hour...it is fun! randomly, i asked them over to dinner, bc randomly they showed up on my doorstep to say hi...so i was like, i dont have much, but lets make some dinner! i made pasta with a veggie tomato sauce, with asparagus...dont think the little girls liked it so much! but thats ok :) it was fun though!

then...joey (a missionary kid here...18..his mom run's a special needs orphanage here) and I went to the Radio HCRI to talk to the guys about the Christian Radio program that we are going to do! the director of the station wants an hour program in English with christian music! so i volunteered myself and asked joey to join me! it is really exciting! its REAL radio and everything..were going in tomorrow to record the trailer/advertisement for the program :) the program is goign to be named Psalm 100..which will be good bc the ecuadorians can even look up the verse and know what the program will be about..basically making a joyful noise unto the lord and prasing Him...i will know more later :) but its really cool :) its neat how the Lord just leads you into neat opportunities! its all about trust :)

things are continuting to go well here...still taking spanish lessons and enjoying school! i just had my first parent teacher conferences..they went really well though :) its still hard to believe that im 1. in ecuador 2. a teacher :) pretty neat :)

well..i am still in ecuador :) ive been here a little over 4 months now..which is quite wierd to think about! i just got back from a women's retreat/conference in quito..with Mimi Wilson as the speaker..she has written a few books, one is called, " Holy Habits" she is one of the best speakers whom I have ever heard! If i were you, I would try to pick up the book! I am really tired right now..and am really sick and tired of termites! they are really annoying..especially when they live in your bed. just another benefit of shell..but i truly love it here! hope life is finding everyone well...

question to consider: how do you want to end...and what can you do now to reach that goal?

above: me and the plane in shell, about to take off
below: view from the plane of Shell, where i live

wow..i have never had so many things going on at once! its kinda ironic...but hey! i have to learn time managment sometime in my life i suppose :) i guess i have never had so many friends :) heheh

well...i went on a jungle flight this past tuesday..it was the smallest plane that i have ever been on..a 6 seater (including the pilot) it was such a beautiful day, which = a beautiful flight! its a great flight...jungle everywhere..beautiful mountains..it was neat to see shell from the plane..it really is in teh middle of the jungle..its just a larger "village"...we went to a jungle where the waronis live..where nate saint and the guys went...there is a christian school there..as well as a high school and elementarty school..the community is of about 60 people...i really liked it there..small..really small...but it would be a place where i would like to teach..they speak waroni...but in school, they speak spanish..it was a good experience!

i also have opportunity to be on the radio here! one of hte missionaries here, has a radio show on sundays..and the radio station is looking for someone to talk in english for a chrisitan segment..i went to talk to the guy today..but he wasnt in..its something to pray about! it would be really neat though!

this weekend, i am going to Quito for a womens retreat at teh english fellowship church there! there are about 7 ladies going from shell, and we are all riding up there on friday...we have a half day of school! i hope it is nice..im sure i will learn tons!

i think thats it :) im really tired...but i am really enjoying life in shell! im starting to feel like i can be myself around people...for example, calling people in funny voices, etc :)

my class is having our first pizza party tomorrow! everyone got an 100% on their spelling tests last week..so pizza party! it will be really fun! the kids are such hard workers :) plus, they have a great teacher :):)

the school board approved that i can come home to the states over christmas break..so its official :)

i just had the experience of my life...remember the ecuadorians, isabel and rodrigo...who i was talking about in my last post? well, they picked me up today...and i went to their finca...a country farm...small...but beautiful! on their farm...they have...pineapples, maracua (local fruit), mora (blackberries), another berry, guinea pigs, ducks, geese, rabbits, chickens, a dog, fish, snails...etc...all for eating! today, the mom was making a delicious beverage called colada morada...its good! then, they asked if i liked chicken..and sure enough..they bring a live one out to kill and eat! they asked me to cut it's neck..but i couldnt do it..it was hard enough to watch! they thought it was weird that me or my mother had never killed and cooked a chicken...i told them that i only bought the chicken in the states...they thought that was a little odd :) it was fun though :) despite the language barrier! i walked away with 3 fresh eggs, 3 pinas, and 5 maracuas...they are very nice! plus a liter of colada morada :)

i am going over again tomorrow...to eat guinea pig..im real scared...and they want me to kill it!! :)

o.k...so the other day, a girl, my age, ecuadorian..came to the school and thought that our school, nate saint, taught english lessons...and we ended up thinking of a time that i can help her learn english...so i agreed..for tonight! she came tongight with her brother, 19...its kinda funny...bc her and her brother are like me and will.... ages/etc :)

it was very frusterating, trying to talk...teach english etc! its like, where do you start? so...i ended up teaching abcs, what is this..what is that...etc... wow...really frusterating..but it will get better! at the end, they were trying to ask me to come with them on saturday to hang out at their house in Mera, a town next to shell. i ended up taking them to one of the missionary houses here, to talk with karol..who could translate :) so, i am meeting with them on saturday to go to mera...to cook something...and maybe swim if its nice :) i dont know if well be able to say anything..but ill try! i am going to get some phrases down that i want to know/ask them :)

its weird how, how little spanish i know...they still invite me over :) i know the lord has things planned...and i feel like i am blind and he is just leading me! i have no idea where he is leading...but i am blindly following :) its good to get to know others here though :)

wow...i feel like i need to learn spanish...and learn it now...but there are so many other things that i also need to focus on...like God and school! wow...my brain is a huge ball of confusion right now :) need to have some helado...or in english...ice cream

well..just got back from a long weekend in quito, we didnt have school on monday, so it was a nice and long weekend! me, elizabeth, and rachel travelled to ambato to stay the night on friday...bc rachel's aunt and uncle live there...the next day, bets and i travelled by bus to quito....it was a good trip...we really got to see some different things in quito..and rode the trolleys...which were nice, and cheaper than taking cabs everywhere!

when i got back to my apartment, i smelled something funny and realized my refrigerator had been turned off all weekend! usually, when the power goes off, it flicks back on...bc it has been happening a lot recently...but not this time! so i had to throw out 99.5% of my food! which is really frusterating bc thats a lot of money! oh well, my fridge needed a good cleaning. luckily, katie came over to help me! that was really great! we are starting to become good pals :) i also went out to puyo with their family to eat...and i ate with them tonight too..its fun bc i can just hang out, help the kids with their homework and just be like an aunt or something...its nice :)

things are going well at school...i love the kids..and we are enjoying learning together! i am looking forward to going back to the states for christmas! it will be here before i know it!

today i also got a magazine that i ordered from the states, which is great, even though its a month behind...its great to get english literature! i never knew how much i appreciated it...till now! its been raining a lot recently...but thats shell for ya!

hope all is well!

oh....this past weekend, shultz hall , the boys dorm at taylor ft. wayne burned down! it was 100years old...and 36 guys lived there...and i think all their things are destroyed! if you think about it...keep that situation in your prayers..i cant imagine what it would be like on campus right now...if anyone at taylor is reading this..can you fill me in??

this picture of the pig is traditional..you can see pigs hanging out everywhere! even at restaurants..if there is a pigs head outside of the door...its time to eat there :) .when the pig is out...you know the meat is fresh!!

here are some pics from puyo..a town about 6 miles away from Shell..where you can do a lot of things...there are some great restaurants there..."goodwill" or ropa americana stores...etc...