December 2008: Colima, Mexico

We had a 30-hour layover in the Mexico City Airport !

Our trip to Mexico started off late at night with a three hour flight from LA to Mexico City. Arriving around 5 am, we were exhausted; tired and jetlagged. We settled down on the floor for a good nights sleep only to get kicked off by a non-English speaking security guard. Most of the night was spent in a corner of the airport, out of sight of the airport staff. This started off our thirty hour layover in Mexico city. Oddly enough, the airport was freezing cold, which caught most of us off guard, and the one sweater we had brought wasn’t enough. It was fun though, living in the airport for a day, struggling with an unknown language. 

Arriving in Colima Mexico... Finally!

We arrived in Manzanillo, Mexico December 10, 2008 and were met by Keith and Nicole who picked us up at the airport. We were pleasantly surprised to step off the plane into blessed warm weather. Our trip from Manzanillo to Colima was fun, getting to see such a difference in terrain; the ocean, banana, and coconut trees, and Spanish billboards. We finally arrived at our destination, the orphanage, and were blessed to find a beautiful home and adorable children ranging in ages from 18 months to 6 years old.

Shock of Food Prices in Mexico! (Thank-goodness it was pesos and not dollars).

On our way to Colima, we made a pit stop at a little fruit stand on the side of the road and got some delicious bananas, pineapples, watermelon, and an interesting fruit which we can’t remember the name of.

Our accommodations at the orphanage were wonderful, roomy, and very clean; not what we expected.

Various work projects at the orphanage.

We did a ton of laundry (both ours, but mostly theirs), washing windows, mopping floors, raking and blowing away leaves, landscaping, various outside projects (building a compost box, mowing lawns, etc), sorting and washing toys, baking cookies, cooking, cleaning, etc. Along with baking cookies, the girls helped make 20 gingerbread houses (that ended up looking more like Flintstone shacks) for the kids to decorate. 

Around town in Colima. MAP About Colima, Mexico

Working (Having FUN!) with the kids.

Our time at the orphanage was busy as we played with the kids (the kids are each so adorable and special in their own way, you can’t help but want to take em’ all home!). It was saddening to hear some of the stories and backgrounds of the kids who were there, and at the same time encouraging to know that they are so loved and taken care of by the workers and that the love of Christ is shown to them. They are also taken care of very well by people from the community who provide them with good clothes, toys, food, and at Christmas, many fiestas (parties). Other than the fact that they aren’t taken care of by their own parents, it is like they have a family as each kid looks out for one another and it’s almost like a big sleepover party.

Jezreel provides dessert Treat for Staff.

For Christmas we were able to bless the orphanage, kids and staff, with a dessert luncheon, tumbling mats, and some other blessings with money that was generously donated to be able to do that.

Jezreel Gives Tumbling Mats for Christmas

God's blessing of a Christmas Beach house, Mexican style (really, we were very blessed!).

The Jezreel team was blessed again with the kindness of someone lending us a 15 seater van to use for the last week we were there. We had also been praying for accommodations to be able to spend our few last days on the beach, after the kids left on December 23 to spend Christmas in the homes of some of the families from the church, and again the Lord provided. Our accommodations were a house on the beach in Tecoman. Our beach house had nothing but a fridge, a stove, three beds, and lots of creepy crawlers. There were two rooms, one with two beds, and the other with one. Each bed had a bottom sheet and a pillow. The house was bare, and when we say bare, we mean it! There were no towels, no blankets, nothing to cook with, no toilet paper, no windows, just openings, ya get the picture? :)

We quickly learned it would be better to sleep outside than inside with the bugs, mice, and geckos. All the mattresses were moved outside, and the boys all slept squished onto the mattresses and others in the two hammocks, and the remainder of us in the van. We did go out and buy a few essentials to get by, toilet paper, a pot, and some food etc. We also purchased a few blankets and towels which we all shared to keep warm at night.

Christmas on the beach.

Even though it seemed like we didn’t have much, it was the best Christmas, and most Christ-centered by far. We loved it! We had “just add water” pancakes for breakfast, the best spaghetti ever with fried burger patties and a can of tomato sauce for Christmas dinner, with marshmallows for dessert. It was wonderful to sit around the fire and share our hearts with each other and what God is doing in our lives.

Adventures with various critters in Colima, Mexico.

We also got to experience things like exotic bugs, iguanas, geckos and their funny and animated kissing sounds. The guys were always looking for hidden iguanas in the trees, and one day caught one that fell thirty feet out of a tree. Most everyone took a turn holding it and getting their picture taken with him (it did very well for its first photo shoot).

Shandell and Nathan coming to Mexico.

After the first week, Nathan and Shandell flew down from Canada to join alongside and help us with the many tasks around the house. Nathan assisted our landscaping efforts with his hedge trimming skills, while Shandell helped momma bake a million cookies.

Some R&R time for Jezreel.

We were blessed as well to get some much needed rest and downtime, which gave us the opportunity to write a couple new songs, do lots of Biblical studies, and sleep.

We arrived back in LA on December 28 just past midnight, it was so cold! Our bus was freezing, and the battery was out of commission (Welcome Home). Our time in Mexico went so fast that it hardly seemed like we were even there. We definitely look forward to going back as we know the Lord worked mightily in each one of our lives.