The good with the bad

Sarah: Well we're definitely back in the swing of things since our summer trip home. Seems like a day or two after we got here, it felt like we'd never left and we were back to working hard, practically non-stop. We've been doing lots of work outside - weeding, yard work, land maintenance including having a backhoe come in and do some leveling, and David's been working on projects in preparation for researchers and professors and students to come down. On top of that, we're preparing to do some recruiting for our semester program, and the semester program alone takes a lot of prep work and time!

One exciting thing since we got back was that our friend Pam, her husband, and a few friends came on vacation to Costa Rica and spent a little bit of time in the valley here with us. We studied with Pam here in Costa Rica 7 1/2 years ago, and have only seen her a handful of times since then, so it was great to spend some time with her again. This picture is most of the group up at Laura's Bakery, visiting with Larue (Laura's cousin's husband). Pam is next to Larue.

Last weekend was also very eventful. August 15th is Mother's Day here in Costa Rica (last Saturday), so on Sunday we were invited over to our friend Nancy's house for a big lunch to celebrate. Nancy is our cook during the semester program and she's become a good friend to us over the last 8 months. We had a good typical Nicaraguan meal, cake, and spent a good part of the afternoon just sitting around chatting. Nancy and her husband Clemente have 3 kids, Belen (8), Angelica (3), and Brittany (1). Pictured here are the adorable Belen and Angelica.

We also have some sad news to share. Our friend Laura, who owns the bakery up the road and has been a good friend for us for 3 years now, has been diagnosed with cancer. It's melanoma (skin cancer), but unfortunately it is internal and has already started attacking her lymphatic system in her body. It's fairly serious at this point already, but Laura has been in the hospital this week getting a pet scan in order to find the original source, and to have surgery to remove as much (or all) of the cancer they can. We don't know the results of the scan yet, but we do know that the surgery went well and that she has responded positively. Please keep her and her husband Mario and daughter Erica in your prayers!

And to end with some great news, my sister Emily and her husband Greg had their first baby this week! Thursday, August 20th, Asher William Ford entered the world weighing in at 8 lbs. 5 oz. and 21 inches long. This is the first baby on my side of the family, and we are all very excited for them!