Coming back…

Happy 4th of July!

Wow, sorry to say it has been quite some time since writing! Since March, two of my best friends have gotten married, I have been to Mexico twice, and have accepted a new position with my employer. It has been a whirlwind of events!! The first wedding was in Playa del Carmen which was the reason for my first visit to Mexico. It was absolutely goregeous and the bride was stunning!!!

Best Man(Nick) & Maid of Honor(Me) with Heather & Joey

They got married Friday, March 30th and the weather was perfect! We were able to capture pictures right as the sun was setting. Heather is one of my oldest and dearest friends, it was so sweet getting to stand up there with her on her special day. We decided to mark parasailing off her leap list the day before her wedding so…

we took a bus to one of the most beautiful beaches in the area and got to sore above the crystal clear water!

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Saturday, June 2nd another one of my  closest friends, Emily, walked down the isle to her other half, Richard. In less than two and a half months they pulled together a beautiful wedding where they had an adorable photo booth area crafted by Emily herself and hand made delectable desserts…

                         

My second voyage to Mexico was quite different. I went through an organization called Amor Ministries based out of San Diego, California. This organization coordinates trips for groups from around the world to come and build homes for families in Mexico year round. According to my resources, they have built over 17,000 homes in Mexico since they began in the 80s. It was humbling and quite remarkable to get to be a part of such a wonderful mission. I got to spend a considerable amount of time with the founders, Scott and Gayla Congdon, who both have a strong desire to see the needs of the poor met and have dedicated their lives to doing so. I can only hope that one day I can look back on my life as they can and say that I did all I could.

The trip I was a part of was called Family Camp. A group of over a hundred of us went out there, divided into four worksites, and completed four homes. Our site was the slowest… but we say that’s because we had the most fun:)

In the mornings we ran a Vacation Bible School at a local church for the kids in the community. The connections I made there were by far some of the most impacting parts of the trip for me. To the left is Rosa, Marisol, and Sandra. Marisol turned two while we were there and after bribing her with a few gifts I finally earned her affection!!! Their housing is in poor condition so Rosa also wanted to apply for a new home through AMOR Ministries.

During VBS we had the opportunity to sing, teach, put on puppet shows, make crafts, and play with the kids…

We held VBS Tuesday through Thursday usually 10am-12pm… of course that varied as we were in “Flexico” as Amy called it …meaning plans could always change and things may not run right on time but that’s ok… got to be FLEXIBLE!:)

There is so much more to write and pictures and thoughts to share but I will have to save those for next time. All I can say is I felt like I was leaving home…