Recipe mistake

Oops! Someone informed me that I did not put the vanilla in the ingredient list in the brownie recipe. It should be 1 t. vanilla for the 9" pan or 1-1/2 t. for the 9 x 13 pan. I also made the correction on the recipe post.

Sweating it out

Taken from Accuweather website for Santo Domingo:
3:15PM
Mostly Cloudy
Temp: 97 F
RealFeel®:110 °F

Tarantula!

One night around 1:00 a.m., Doug realized the electric was still off and thought it would be smart to unplug the refrigerator so that our invertor could keep the fans running for several more hours. The thought came to him to turn on the light before he went downstairs just in case something would be on the steps. He was glad he gave in to this thought when he saw this tarantula waiting on the steps! If he hadn't turned on the light, he could have bumped the tarantula and it could have bitten him or given him a good scare.

This thing was huge. It's body was about the size of a mouse. Doug heroically sneaked by the tarantula to get the broom and successfully killed it. I didn't get back to sleep for 2 hours after this episode took place. Can't imagine why.

One step at a time

I have lots to post. God has been working in a wonderful way. It has been a privilege to be here and see His hand working. I will post a little at a time since it would be overwhelming to do it all at once.

For today, here are the VBS pictures. I have some video clips, but can't find them on the computer right now. Till I find them, you can enjoy these glimpses of last week.

VBS pictures!

We're recovering from an incredibly draining week last week, yet one that hopefully will bring results in the future. We had 195 children on Tuesday, 222 on Wednesday and Friday, and 207 on Thursday! The heat index was between 105 and 110 everday and probably at least another 5 degrees hotter in the church with that many bodies, yet they still packed in! They were kind of noisy, but on Friday God helped them to settle as we presented the Gospel message. Our prayer is that the seed has been planted and will yield results in God's timing.

We had a turnover of 370 some children. What an incredible opportunity to minister!

Waiting in line to be signed in.
Taking names, finding their nametags, and making sure everyone is accounted for proved to be quite a job. Our people did tremendous. We had great cooperation and excellent attitudes! Thank you church people for all your hard work!
Algenis listens to verses and collects homework papers. He did an excellent job with that many children to keep straight.
Pastor Euddy and Fluffy. They helped to keep order in the VBS.
Fluffy and Mrs. Fluffy. :-) Dionelly did an excellent job leading the children in singing.

Doug made a bucket of "worms" out of red yarn. For this game, if they got the answer right, they had to pull a worm out of the bucket.
Once they drew their worm, they measured it. The team got 100 points for each inch the worm measured.
The girls cheering.
Ryan cheers for the girls. Oops!
Sara, Pastor Euddy's daughter, "helping" with the music.

222 children are packed in here somewhere
Algenis (left) came from Boston to help us out. VBS is special to him since it was what drew him into our church and later he became a Christian. His brother, Joel, is in the white and orange shirt.
Children had to sit on the floor in the front.

Regina with her visitor, Ashley, who lives in our community.

Brandon was able to bring 2 visitors from our neighborhood. They are Americans and their parents are missionaries here. I asked them if they liked it and they said, "That was cool."
Little boy uses the platform for his "pillow".

Each child got a colored ticket for saying their verse, bringing visitors, etc. Each day Fluffy drew a ticket out of a bag and whichever color it was, the children with that color of ticket won a small prize.
Fluffy draws red!
The reds cheer!
Six grand prizes were given out. The girl and boy with the highest points from their age group won a Bible. Here are the grand winners.

Brandon tied for first place from his age group. He worked hard learning the verses in Spanish. We put the 2 names in a bag and drew one to break the tie. Brandon's name was pulled. However, we felt it best to go ahead and give the other boy the Bible. Brandon was in favor of this and showed a very good attitude about it.

Campmeeting withdrawal

Our conference camp meeting is going on right now and we are having withdrawal. All of you bloggers out there who will be attending, please enjoy it for us. Post a picture or 2 if you can. Tell us all about it. We would love to be there!

Anniversary

This year we got to spend our 12th wedding anniversary on a tropical island - something some people only dream of doing. :-)

Our neighbors agreed to babysit so we could go out for a few hours today. They are an American family who are also missionaries here. Doug and I went to Tony Roma's for lunch. It was delicious. Boy, I sure miss those summer U.S. burgers on the grill. Then we went and sat by the ocean. (Sorry, no pictures. We didn't want to be seen as "tourists" today.) It was so relaxing. I am always astounded at the ocean. It makes me feel so small and realize how big God is. We reflected on the past 12 years. I am a happy woman. I always wanted to have 4 children, stay at home with them, and be a missionary. I am currently doing all of those. I also know that I married the man God had for me. I love him more today than I did 12 years ago and look forward to the next 120 years together. :-)

I look back on my wedding day with great joy. It was the day of my dreams. I remember praying for a beautiful day that wasn't too hot and God granted my prayer. The bright blue sky was filled with puffy white clouds and it just seemed like God was smiling down on us. I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat.

Living on a tropical island as a missionary isn't all glitter and glamor. In fact, most days it's a lot of hard work with cultural frustrations. Even with the frustrations, I wouldn't trade it for anywhere else. We are content to be in the center of the Lord's will and will stay here as long as He bids.

VBS has begun!

Today was the first day of VBS. "The Great Beginning" is the theme. We are covering creation and then will include the plan of salvation toward the end of the week. The ladies did a great job bringing their plants and animals and decorating the front. One lady even brought a real plantain tree (left corner). It was neat to see their excitement and involvement. I thought it was neat they put palm branches on the doors.
We had 160 children today! The church was well filled, but not as packed as we've had it in the past. The heat index was 109 today. They were quite restless, but who wouldn't be in that temperature? Thankfully the Lord sent a nice breeze about the time it started. That sure helped!
More pictures coming.....................

Recipe

I spend a lot of time in the kitchen here. There are so many things you either can't get or they're outrageous in price. I used to love brownie mix brownies better than "scratch" ones......until a missionary lady gave me this recipe. You can get brownie mixes here but they are more than I'm willing to pay, especially since this recipe is just as good and so easy. Regina is now able to make these herself and her Daddy and brothers are so glad! :-)

Best Brownies

1/2 c. oil or butter (melted) [I use oil.] (3/4 c.)
1 c. sugar (1-1/2)
1 t. vanilla (1-1/2 t.)
2 eggs (3)
1/2 c. flour (3/4 c.)
1/3 c. cocoa (1/2 c.)
1/4 t. baking powder (I just use 1/4 and then half of 1/4 t. for this one and the salt)
1/4 t. salt

Blend oil, sugar and vanilla in bowl. Add eggs. Beat with spoon. Add rest of ingredients. Spread in a greased 9" square pan. Bake @ 350 for 20-25 minutes.

*I multiply everything by 1-1/2 to fit in a 9x13 pan. I put those measurements to the right of the ingredients.

Yummy!

Pictures!

Hurrah!!!!!! Thank the Lord someone sent money for us to get our AC fixed! They came on Saturday and fixed the compressor! Maybe the Lord wanted to give us another opportunity to share the Gospel. When they came before to hook up our AC, Doug gave them a tract. When they returned to fix our AC, they said they liked the tract. Doug spoke to them a little. Hopefully it will plant the seed in their heart.

We were so looking forward to getting a restful night of sleep in the cool Saturday night. We even had the children "camp out" for the big event in our bedroom. About 20 minutes after we were all in bed and quiet, the electric went off! It was off until 3:00 a.m. Till it came back on, we tossed and turned and sweated. At least we got to enjoy the second half of the night in the cool! This was the guys' truck that fixed the AC. The children thought it was cool.
Enjoying a rainy day. They LOVE to play in the water. We also enjoy rainy days here because it means it cuts the heat!
A shoe race!
Is it bites, chickenpox, or heat rash? Jonathan has had heat rash ever since the AC went out. The chickenpox is also going around here. On Sunday he broke out with these dots, but they are not filled with fluid like chickenpox, and they aren't on his trunk - only his arms and legs. We're not sure what it is. Or is it mosquito bites? He may have these chickenpox-like-dots all summer if its heat rash. We may never know if he gets them or not.

Sister Dionelly is one of Jonathan's best "buddies". He loves to go to her in church and "cuddle" with her. Here she is asking him for a kiss and he smirks. I think he understands.
Blenski lives about 40 minutes from the church at the military base. He had been bringing his family to church on a motorcycle which was very risky, but they did it do be able to come to church. Blenski is a body guard for the General and Lissette, Blenski's wife, began to pray that the General would give them a car since he had so many.
God answered her prayer. God wonderfully provided a car for them through the General. Now they can get around to church and other places much safer with their family. God is good to those who trust and believe Him!

Miscellaneous pictures

Last week we had marriage class at Blenski's house. Blenski is Pastor Euddy's brother. He is in the Army and lives at the military base. The children enjoyed looking around at all the canons and tanks.
Lovebirds - Pastor Euddy and his wife
A gorgeous, tropical, evening sky
This is the sign Doug made and put up in the lawn of the church. It says "Very soon - Summer Bible School (VBS) - July 21 to July 25 - 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.

10 days till VBS!

Wow! VBS is coming fast. We've been working very hard to create as much excitement as possible.

We rely on the help of all the church people to pass out invitations, to cover it with prayer, and to help the week of the VBS. Next Saturday is a workday to get everything ready to go.

Algenis, who got saved several years ago, is even flying back from Boston (where he currently resides) to help with VBS! Algenis has a talent for bringing children and young people to church. We are looking forward to his arrival next Saturday and will be so grateful for his help.

Also, it is looking like Blenski will have his vacation over the week of VBS. So 2 men helpers will be great!

We're relying on God to move through this VBS - not only the VBS itself, but also fanning the flame for calling and outreach into the community. The topic is creation with the plan of salvation explained as well. Will you help us pray?

Here is a copy of the invitation.

What we've been doing the past few weeks

Doug took a trip to San Juan - a town 4 hours away - to check on some properties that the mission owns. Here is one of them. We were told someone had broken in and was living here. Doug took Blenski, Euddy's brother, who is in the military in his military uniform to give some authority, if needed, to evict the intruder. God took care of the situation before we got there, and the individual was already gone! The neighbors' said he left the week prior. We had a youth activity 2 weeks ago in the park beside our community. Here they are playing the "washer" game. I know some of my friends remember that one from Camp Freedom! You put a washer on a string and pass it around. The guy in the middle tries to guess who is hiding the washer. Here Jimmy is making a paper airplane for a competition in whose airplane can fly the furthest.
Take off!
Back to our house for refreshments, charades, devotional and singing.

House service

A few weeks ago, we had a service in the house of Yolanda. She had gotten saved a few months ago, but has struggled in her new walk with the Lord. The church took a service to her house to try to encourage her in her new walk as a Christian. Doug delivered the message. Yolanda (pictured center)

Singing on her porch.