We arrived in Minnesota at about midnight last night and most of us we NOT happy to see snow.  Kristin and I wore flip flops home and were quite cold after walking in the snow.
We did have to run through the airport in Houston, we landed in a terminal on one side of the airport and had to run all the way across the airport, but we made it.  We all joked that we were on the TV show, The Amazing Race.  Unfortunately there wasn't a million dollars at the end, just a glass of water.  But it was still worth the adrenaline rush.
Here is an update of the rest of our trip--
Saturday we travels to La Paz, which is a very remote location.  It is actually a prize on Wheel of Fortune.  La Paz is a tropical zoo type thing with waterfalls bigger than I have ever seen.  It was amazing to see Gods creation and how gorgeous this world is.  We did experience the elevation when we were trudging through the jungle to get to the waterfalls, but it was so worth it.  At La Paz, there was toucan, parrots, Ma Caws, butterflies, humming birds, sloths, jaguars, and reptiles.  Most places allowed you to get up close and personal with the animals, which was amazing.  The drive to and from La Paz was beyond spectacular.  It offered panoramic views of the San Jose valley and of coffee plantations.  It was beyond fantastic.
Sunday the team (minus Lois) took a Canopy and Whitewater-rafting tour.  We woke up super early and traveled 2 hours through the rainforest and jungle to get to the tour location.  We then Zip-lined (The call it Canopy) through the jungle for about an hour.  While waiting at each checkpoint, we heard monkeys, and birds of all kinds.  Once again, getting to experience Gods beautiful creation. The last zip-line was over the rover and that was breath-taking.  After zip-lining, we got in a van and were taken down the river to start our rafting.  We had the BEST paddling skills.  We passed everyone in front of us and never got stuck.  Lunch was included in the deal and was delicious! It was nice to have something besides rice and beans. (:  Overall, the tour was great and I highly recommend it! Our team bonded tremendously.
Monday, we packed in the morning then headed to the airport.  Our flights were great and we are all happy to be home.

Thanks for all of your prayers and support!
More Pictures to come!!

God Bless, Elise.

we are heading home today. Please pray for our short connection in Houston!

prayers--the team (minus Lois) are going zip-lining and whitewater-rafting tomorrow!! (:

Thursday. Day Seven.

Lo siento, it has been a very busy week.  Nina and Elise finally found time to sit down and write a blog for you all.
We have copmleted two days of VBS and have one to go in Christo Rey. We divided the children into 2 groups, younger and older.  Lois teaches one group a lesson while the others play games with the rest of the team, then the groups switch.  There have abeen about 20 kids each day (total). It has been challenging, but fun to come up with games and activites for the kids.  Chuck has helped us translate the directions for the games.  It is still fun to play games and interact with kids that dont speak English. It is exhausting, but yesterday, six children gave their lives to the Lord.
 Due to the traffic issues of Costa Rica, we go straight to the church in San Fransisco.  We then have a couple of hours to prepare for English class and have dinner.
 A little about the English classes--As a team, we evaluated the students' English comprehension and divided them into 4 groups.  Entry, taught by Lois, beginner taught by Elise and Nina, Intermediate taught by Jenny and Kristin, and advanced taught by Chris.  Each class has 2-4 students.  This has been  a challenge to try to teach when there isnt common language.  Elise and Jenny have been able to incorporate some of their Spanish skills in order to explain some of the more difficult concepts. Between the first and second night, the students seemed to really grasp and learn quickly and enjoying themselves.
We have two more nights of English classes and have invited our students to travel home with us and live with all of you.  Ha, we're kidding.
The team has really bonded and enjoyed getting to know everyone.  Chuck and Robbi have been wonderful hosts and we have met Robbi's parents, John and Mary.  They have helped tremendously with the English classes.

For your entertainment--  Yesterday morning at devotions, Elise thought she would be smart and test how big the key was and if it would be able to fit through the slats of the deck at our hotel. Guess what?  It did and fell beneath the building. Oops!  Yankee know how, saved the day.  Nina got on her hands and knees and fished it our with a metal hook type thing that we found in the garden. Crisis averted.  Kristin did take a picture and in it, Nina looks like she is praying with her face to ground, converted to Islam.  Of course, she hasn't but the picture is quite comical.

Prayer Requests--
-Health for the team.
-Strength and patience while we struggle with the language barrier.
-Make and impact on the kids at VBS and the students in the English classes.
-And no more rice and beans.. (:

P.S.  Happyness to Kristin who is celebrating her 21st birthday today!

--Nina and Elise.

Picture Captions.

1. The team our first morning outside of our hotel rooms.
2.View of the hotel rooms. Missionary work can have its advantages.
3. Hill.
4. Elise and Lois (a.k.a.Tia Loida) at the comedor.
5. View outside of the comedor (an eating place).
6. Kritsin multi-tasking. (:
7. Nina and Jenny at the comedor for lunch!
P.s. There was an earthquake the other morning, but most of us found out the next morning. Nothing too severe. All is well.

We survived the earthquake! Everyone is fine. details to come.

Some Pictures. Captions to come! Buenas Noches!