My new home

This house in NICE! I have my own room, juest big enough for me. It came with a desk, a wardrobe, a nighstand with drawers and even MY OWN BATHROOM! Minus a shower curtian. Bolivians don´t use them, go figure. So the bathroom gets really wet but there is a sqweegy thing that you use on the floor when you are done. Its a good hot shower too. The family consists of Tina (my tutor), Jime is Tina´s brother, Astralla is Tina´s sister in law. Jime and Astralla´s two daughters Natalia is 23 and Patty is 29. Patty is divorced and has 2 daughters Raffia who is 4 and Belén is 7. Both insist on talking to me in spanish, they are sooo cute! Tina, Natalia, and Patty all speak a good deal of Engish and that is helping me out a lot right now. I use as much spanish as I know and they use both when talking to me too. mama and papa of the house don´t speak english at all but we are getting along just fine. They are the nicest, most welcoming family you´ll ever meet. I immediatley became daughter and sister and aunt to them, I nearly cried! They are not born-again Christians but Catholics. But I can see they are not just Catholic by culture. Patty told me, in english, that she knows that God is present in their house everyday. They know that I am a missionary and that I am here to serve Jesus in this country. Pray for them, they would make awesome Christians!

They are intent on fattening me up! Seriously, they feed me until I feel like I´m going to burst. Lunch is the biggest meal of the day (like the US dinner). Lunch starts with soup of some kind, the a main dish (pasta, chicken and rice, ect) and then dessert. And bread too. Breakfast is pretty basic, eggs, bread, tea or coffee, fruit. Pretty much whatever you want. Everyone leaves at different times so its no big deal. Dinner is very small and more like a snack then a meal. Yet I feel full all day long! Sickness comes and goes, nothing major but keep praying!

The house is very large. They have a ´nice´dining rooom and sitting area that they rarely use. Then the sitting area they do use, 4 bedrooms upstairs (awesome winding staircase), balcony, in ground pool (that they say has freezing water since they have no heater for it) and then 2 more bedroom type rooms not connect to the main house and a sewing and ironing room and the very top part is where they do the laundry. They have some beautiful rose bushes too.

I began my ´formal´ spanish lessons this week. But I feel like I´m in a constant spanish lesson!I am learning and that is what is important! Monday Natalia is in a ballet, not like the US though. They say its a cultural dance and the whole family (including me) is going to watch her perform. I can´t wait! I´ve also been invited with the family to have Thanksgiving dinner with some missionaries from another organization. It´s so cool to me that they immediatly include me in everything.

Ok, that was a pretty long description! Pictures will be coming soon, I promise!