We met at Portland International at 4 am, flew to Huston with a 5 hour layover where I engaged in chocolate ice cream dripping (on the front of my white blouse which I got to wear the entire day because all my clothes were packed in the belly of the plane) and a demanding, competitive game of Hacky Sac with the teen guys. I intentionally joined them in the circle, uninvited but welcomed, because I wanted to break the ice. We didn't know each other and since we would be traveling together for 11 days I wanted them to know I LOVE kids of all ages. They were so cute as they gently tossed me the sac and laughed time and time again as I kicked it the exact opposite direction of the team. This time together at the gate gave me an inside look at a group of teenage boys who were going to serve the people of Nicaragua with their youth, strength, enthusiasm and heart. It was a blast for me! Back on another plane we landed in Managua, Nicaragua, Central America, grabed the suitcases, squeezed through customs like a herd of elephants, we got our passports stamped then off to The Land of Judah Orphanage via our well traveled broken-in & broken-down bus. We got off the bus in the dark seeing almost nothing of the area, the facility or the
children. Obviously they were fast asleep... it was past midnight. We are in the tropics of Central America. It's the middle of the night and it's very hot and very sweaty! Our bunks were donned with mosquito nets; we rejoiced to see clean, flushey toilets and spacious showers but NO HOT WATER. You might think that would be great seeing it's so humid but ohhhh what a contrast from the dense, hot, sticky air to the cold water. We thanked the Lord for fresh, plentiful water! Exhausted and thrilled to be at the orphanage we 27 travelers settled in to our dorms for a hot, muggy night of sleep......... Day 1
We met at Portland International at 4 am, flew to Huston with a 5 hour layover where I engaged in chocolate ice cream dripping (on the front of my white blouse which I got to wear the entire day because all my clothes were packed in the belly of the plane) and a demanding, competitive game of Hacky Sac with the teen guys. I intentionally joined them in the circle, uninvited but welcomed, because I wanted to break the ice. We didn't know each other and since we would be traveling together for 11 days I wanted them to know I LOVE kids of all ages. They were so cute as they gently tossed me the sac and laughed time and time again as I kicked it the exact opposite direction of the team. This time together at the gate gave me an inside look at a group of teenage boys who were going to serve the people of Nicaragua with their youth, strength, enthusiasm and heart. It was a blast for me! Back on another plane we landed in Managua, Nicaragua, Central America, grabed the suitcases, squeezed through customs like a herd of elephants, we got our passports stamped then off to The Land of Judah Orphanage via our well traveled broken-in & broken-down bus. We got off the bus in the dark seeing almost nothing of the area, the facility or the 
children. Obviously they were fast asleep... it was past midnight. We are in the tropics of Central America. It's the middle of the night and it's very hot and very sweaty! Our bunks were donned with mosquito nets; we rejoiced to see clean, flushey toilets and spacious showers but NO HOT WATER. You might think that would be great seeing it's so humid but ohhhh what a contrast from the dense, hot, sticky air to the cold water. We thanked the Lord for fresh, plentiful water! Exhausted and thrilled to be at the orphanage we 27 travelers settled in to our dorms for a hot, muggy night of sleep......... Day 1
