Life in Ecuador

Well, I havent been too good about doing my blog......But I am going to try to do better.....We shall see.
Its been almost 4 months since we arrived here in Ecuador.  We are enjoying the preaching work here very much.  We have alot of bible studies and keep getting more.  The people here respect very much the bible.  But because their education is limited, at times you really have to break down the main points.  Their reading comprehension is very low.  But we do have a few that are very inteligent.  There are many things down here that are very different from the states.  And they can be hard to deal with at times.  Cleanliness is one of them.  People throw their garbage everywhere.  We try to instill in our bible studies the need to keep the earth clean.  But its aggravating at times to see so much garbage everywhere.  Another thing that is hard is the treatment of animals.  We see so many animals suffering.  I just want to bring them all home but thats not why we are here.  Again we try to use the bible to teach people the proper treatment of Jehovahs creation.  Other things are somewhat funny.....some of the ideas here.  I heard last week that rice has high cholesterol.  But for the most part we are enjoying our time down here.  It is hard to be away from family and friends but we are doing ok!

Our First Week in Ecuador

Well, After a long day of traveling we arrived in Ecuador.  We were picked up by two brothers from the Ecuador Branch.  One named Luigi.  They were very nice and we arrived at the Branch about 1am  Wednesday .  Chad and Chase woke up early to go to breakfast with the bethel family....it starts at 7am.  They really enjoyed that.  They also met a couple that were going to move to Valdivia but couldnt because of the internet situation.  He is from Iowa and she is from Guayaquil.  They were very helpful. We spent 2 days at bethel. We also met sister Haris, there is an article about her husband in one of the newer Watchtower study magazines.  She was so welcoming to us! We shared 4 meals with the friends there.  One of which was cow stomach in a soup.  I dont know the official name.  Everyone was watching to see what we thought.  Of course Chad liked it and had seconds.  Chase and I ate it.  I didnt know what it was.  I asked the brother and he told me it was beef.  But it was the wrong color......?  Anyways it wasnt too bad.  We were picked up by Jose Sanchez on Thursday and off we went to Valdivia. we arrived just as the meeting was starting.  So we went to the meeting.  The brothers and sisters here are so nice.  They all helped us unload our stuff into the apartment next to the kingdom hall.  We also met Jonah and Leah a young couple from North Dakota.  They brought over plates and pillows and blankets and also dinner for us that first night..  We were all sitting talking around a little round table and poof the lights went out....pitch black!  We brought flashlights and candles but we had no idea where they were.  We finally did find something and about 10 minutes later the lights came back on.  This happens very frequently.  Thank goodness we brought surge protectors with us! On Friday we went to La Libertad to get a few things and met another couple David and Daniella.  They ended up giving us a ride home and also inviting us over for homemade Pizza.  Chase's favorite!  Saturday we went in field service with 2 sisters.  Chase went on 3 bible studies and had to say 6 prayers.  He said they were a little rough but he managed.  Chad conducted the watchtower on suday and did an awesome job with that. Sunday after the meeting we went to the beach and chad and Chase skimboarded. The weather right now is a little cool and rainy.  So we have alot of mud.  FUN!!  Anyways although it isnt really what we were expecting we are enjoying it here so far.  We hope to be in our house soon.  they said Friday.  But that might be Ecuadorian time.  I hope not.

Getting Ready!

Our little house in Valdivia Ecuador

Well chad finishes elder school today.  And I finished out my last week of regular housecleanin.  Except for one job next week. Next week is our last week of carpets and our final garage sale.  Then its moving into Kathy and Rays and getting all the final things done before we leave on the 21st of September.  I spoke with the landlady in Ecuador and we for sure have the house.  She is going to meet us there around the 24th or 25th.  And if she cant make it we have to talk to the neighbor who knows the lady who has the key in the next village.  FUN!!  Anyways working hard to get everything done!!