On Mondays, I ride up to school on the back of moped.
I love it.
Clarification: I don’t love this picture, but I love the ride.
And I actually do this every day, not just Mondays, unless there is monsoon-like rains flooding all the streets, in which case I lug my 50 pounds of stuff to the bottom of the hill and try to nab a taxi in 3 feet of street water. It happens.
Sometimes on Tuesdays, we run errands.
Only the best kind of errands that are followed by more errands to the Coffee Dream. That is a real place, actually.
Every Wednesday I get to do speech therapy with this sweet little buddy.
Can I tell you about him? He didn’t speak AT ALL for the first few years of his life. He has started speaking since arriving at the shelter a few months ago, and now I get to help him practice specific speech skills and sounds like initial /k/ and /tr/. His cleft palate makes articulation very difficult, but oh-my-goodness. This little peanut has a spark in him that cannot be put out. He is really, really special and I soak up every second with him. Praise the Lord for the his thriving growth.
PS. Do you know what’s exhausting? Making the /k/ sound for 45 minutes.
Thursdays are good for ice cream outings.
Friday? Um, yeah.
There’s more where that came from comin’ up later this week.
On Saturdays we watch movies. Sometimes at home on the laptop, sometimes with the kids on the big projector.
For example, Boys’ Ten and Up Movie Night.
And of course, Girls’ Ten and Up Movie Night.
On Sundays we go to church. It’s so interesting and we love meeting the people there.
But our Midwestern bodies reeeeeeally struggle with the heat.
You know you’re not looking to good when an elderly woman takes a fan out of her purse and passes it down the row to you. Note to self: bring a sweat cloth and wear a thicker T-shirt.
Let’s follow that up with something to take your mind off me sweating. Like sweet nap time in the little girls’ room.
Seriously sweet.
So that’s what I do here, mostly. With whatever you’re doing (Labor Day? cabin? eating something with chocolate?) and wherever you are, I hope you’re having fun. Because you’re my favorites. š
(can’t reply??!!!!!!! This has so many damn ads whatever! Blockers huhhhhhjjj
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Thanks for responding! I knew it would be a long shot (and kind of rude) to ask for a contribution but I was feeling very stressed about the financial investment. $2000 may not seem like a lot, but when you’re a university student on a full course load and taking 2 part times, $2000 is not easy to come by. Thanks again for hearing me out. If you could share my link with any friends/family who would be interested in helping a cause against malnutrition, that would be very much appreciated.
Hi Lindsay and Bjork,
In February, I will be travelling to Guatemala to volunteer in an indigenous town to build farms, teach nutrition and english lessons. Currently, there are high rates of illiteracy and malnutrition amongst children and teens in Guatemala, especially in the indigenous countries. Malnutrition is a serious issue that affects overall health with major decreases in cognitive development and physical growth. The goal of this trip is to help the community of Sibilia become more self-sustainable and use the farm as a source of monetary income and food.
As a dietetics student at the University of British Columbia, this issue is very near and dear to my heart. I am extremely happy to get accepted to on this outreach trip as I will finally get the chance to contribute to real and larger issues. I am hoping to raise $2000 to cover some of the expenses of this trip. Being a student with limited financial freedom, I will need some help to get there. I would be so honoured if you could donate to my trip. Any donation, big or small will greatly help lessen the financial burden on me. Should you like to donate, here is the link to my donation page:
http://www.gofundme.com/Feeding-Sibilia
If you’ve read through my entire comment, thank you so so much for your time. I understand that you’re both busy with full-time jobs AND blogging.
Warmest Regards,
Connie Zhou
Thank you so much for sharing, Connie!
Hi Lindsay (and Bjork)
I have been a reader of your blog for a while, mostly from seeing your recipes on pinterest or other places like tastespotting and I finally signed up to get your emails. I had been searching tips on food photography to make my pics on my blog look better ( long story short had a blog before, am totally redoing it now, new name etc and want to improve the look, get more traffic etc) and I have been pouring over everything you guys have posted on your blog about how to make a blog better, how to earn income etc. I LOVE that you guys share so much. Not many bloggers do this. It is very generous and helpful.
I got to this post last night and seeing the picture of the girls napping hit made me tear up, because I see they have disney princess posters taped up on the wall. I have two young daughters, ages 2 and 4, that LOVE the disney princesses. Which, after seeing the pic, makes me want to send some things to your orphanage girls, disney movies, maybe some princess dress up dresses, or coloring books. Something. I don’t have a ton of money but these kids obviously have very little so I would love to send them some Disney princess things. I know how much my girls love them, and its neat to see how every little girl does no matter where they live.
Let me know what I can do.
Shanna
Wow, thank you Shanna! Here is a link to the “special projects” that we are raising money for right now. Also, if you are specifically interested in the Disney stuff (which the girls would love), I will email you and CC our president who is stateside and can give you more info on donating. Thank you, thank you, thank you for your heart for these precious little ones! š Take care!
https://cebushelter.org/involved/projects.php
Awesome post! I love all the pics! Brightened my day š
Hi. I work for an organization that provides free surgery and care for children with cleft lips and palates. My friends sent me this blog post and I would love to see if we can help with the boy you posted about. Please let me know as we’d love to help in any way that we can.
Hi Margot! Thank you so much for getting in touch! Our therapist has actually recommended that we hold off on another surgery for him for now, but I will keep your email (if that’s ok) and let you know if things change. Thank you again!! That’s so very generous of you.
The work you do is amazing! You are such a generous soul.
I just came across your blog and I love it! xx
adahliavolk.com
Oh, Lindsay, my heart just aches for your sweet pile of “10 and up” girls. Each one of them deserves and will be such a blessing to their adoptive family. Thanks for capturing these faces and moments, these little glimpses into what is magical about your day to day life. You are SO missed!
They are quite the pile, aren’t they!? You would LOVE their spunky, sweet personalities. Lots of loudness and laughter with this crew! š Hope your first day back goes well!
You’re definitely lucky to have the strong conviction and determination that took you all the way to that end of the world to help those children, they’re lucky too!!!
Thank you for sharing a piece of your paradise with us!
Absolutely glorious! Love the girls’ movie night! And even more, learning the real truth about the day-to-day! Ho-hum – your photo: so, pray, why were you not paid for that one? š !
Love this insight into your life, you’re doing such a wonderful job there.
Thank you for sharing your time and your amazing recipes with us, Lindsay. š
Mabuhay! And again, salamat!
Wow, blog friend Lindsay! You are truly the hands and feet of Christ over there … I loved reading your blog before you went to Cebu for the recipes, but now I read it for your Cebu updates! The Lord is using you powerfully over there – not only to show the children His love, but to share His love all over the world by sharing it on this blog! You are inspiring … can’t wait to read more! (P.S. – I’ve told my whole family about you! :))
Thank you so much for what you are doing in the Phillipines! God bless you and your dear husband. I absolutely love to read your blog and keep up with what you all are doing.
Oh I just love these glimpses you share of your life….so inspiring. Who stole that middle desert bar š It is sweaty hot here in the midwest – crazy heat over Labor Day.
Sounds like you are settling alright š It did sound like a bit of a difficult start but I suppose its only normal when you go through such a major change of scenery:-)
It’s amazing you still find time and dedication to blog so frequent – well done:-)
There have definitely been ups and downs. š This week we’re on an up-swing.
Great post š As a speech pathologist in Cairns, Australia I’m so happy to hear that kids with cleft palate are getting some of the help that they need! And yes, the /k/ sound can be exhausting š Just out of curiousity, do they have therapists that come to visit the orphanages?
Yes! We have a therapist who comes every 3-6 months and trains some of the staff (like me) on how to do speech interventions. She also does lots of evaluating and writes speech goals for the kids. It’s awesome!
I absolutely LOVE reading about and seeing the pictures from your life in Cebu!!!
What a fun post! It sounds like you’re having a great time there (despite the heat)!
I absolutely love reading your blog and looking at your amazing photos! you make me smile and cry with it all! you and Bjork continue to be an inspiration to so many! best to you always!!
What an awesome post! I love the scenes from your life – the moped, those bars and glaze, that sweet room with the pink valance…a fun peek into your world.
love love love š
well I’m not doing anything today except do some cleaning Tell me about that earthquake kind of scarry. Had lunch with your family after church ,met Bryce ,Kristen and Stehp were there of course .Mick is going to New O and help with cleaning up the mess there . I may visit next week end at Nancys for a few days hope alls well keep up the good work G’ma R.
I like this post.. You know what I like even more than this post?? The little pug in the bottom right of the page that pops up when I hover over it.. awesome.. just awesome! š