Feliz Cumpleaños!

My hands might smell like shaving cream for the next couple days but it was totally worth it! Today Joana asked me to plan things for a birthday party. They were celebrating Noelia's and Sarahi's birthday! Noelia was the first girl I ever met at the center. Upon first meeting her she gave me a big smile, grabbed my hand, and asked me to play with her. I made something called "Puffy paint" with them and they loved it! All you need is equal amounts of shaving cream and white glue with some food coloring and you're good to go. Even the boys adored painting. It dries foamy so it's a fun texture to paint with. 

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Joana even made a cake with cream cheese frosting! The birthday girls even got to pick out some clothes as a gift and even got a couple prizes. It amazes me how grateful these kids are for everything. Whether it's a book, a game, coloring a coloring sheet, or a cup of mush for snack. I planned some rely races too. One was running with cotton balls on a spoon and the other they had to balance a ball on a tray like a waiter. I brought some Jolly Ranchers with me from the US and they were amazed! They have a lot of candies here: M&Ms, snickers, skittles, but not Jolly Ranchers. It made their eyes light up and all of them started jumping up and down! 

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I came 30 minutes early to decorate and printed out a banner. All the kids were asking if I had come the night before to decorate! Noelia was glowing as I gave her my birthday card. 
It was such a special day. Something I can't explain. The amount of gratitute these kids have is beautiful. I don't think I had ever seen true joy until now. But hey that's Jesus for you. Jesus is literally their everything. 
After a ton of hugs by all the 3rd graders and lots of "Chao Profe!" I started cleaning. I thought nothing could make this day better, but that was before I looked at the mountains...

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 "I lift up my eyes to the mountains--where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. He will not let your foot slip--he who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep."-Psalm 121