I just wanted to see if anyone is still checking in on this blog. Maybe I could "start it up" again and talk about life, here, in Goshen. Hmm........

Disclaimer.

I know I don't have any fun new pictures to put up right now (althought I have plenty of them on my camera that I have yet to upload onto the computer) so I'm trying to keep it a little bit interesting by writing in color. :) Anyways, I just wanted to add a little disclaimer note. All of these little books that I was reading in Mexico were indeed from the bookshelves of Andrew and Iris but they were not books that were purchased BY Andrew and Iris (except for the 2: "The Whitch of Blackbird Pond" and "Mrs. Mike"). You see, missionaries that are in other countries, tend to get lots and lots of "stuff" given to them. People just think that since they're in another country being missionaries that they need lots and lots of stuff that we don't need. Sometimes it can be a lot of "junk" or kinda useless to the family but anyways. I read 17 short books while I was there and all but those 2 (that I mentioned above) were given to them. Now, not to say that they were junk- because Karisa obviously enjoyed them- but just to say that Andrew and Iris don't go out and buy them. Andrew mentioned, the other day, that I made it sound like all of their "library" is full of these kind of books due to their choosing. So I just wanted to throw him a line and let you know the truth. :) Okay? And now, you know.

Good thing.....

I just wanted to let those of you, who sat around the campfire thinking of how you could put a fake mouse in my bed, know that you should be very very thankful that you did NOT do so!! You might have seen the wrath of Karisa then, instead of the funny little story tellin Karisa!! Okay, thanks! :)

Oh yeah, I made it home just great! A pretty un-eventful traveling day and I loved the end result!! My sister, mama and Jo Jo to pick me up at the airport!! Oh how I've missed home.....so much that I didn't even realize I was missing. Everything seems so new and different and strange to me now but it's all a GOOD strange and different! :) My bed is so comfortable that it took me awhile to go to sleep in it last night! Unreal, I know, but true, none the less! And everything is so BIG and BRIGHT and oh, how I love home! I think I'll be stayin put for quite some time now! But I am very thankful for the time in San Juanito and for all that God showed and started/continued teaching me while I was there. And of course for how awesome of a weight loss plan it was!!! LOVE IT! :) Anyways, I'm gonna try and keep this blog up, at least for a little bit, to kinda process the trip and show you some pics from here so stay tuned for more of the many adventures of Karisa Renee Oswald!! LOL! :) Okay, thanks to everyone who prayed for my time there and my travels home, it truly helped! God is good, all the time!! Thank you Jesus! Talk soon!

Yesterday!

We went out last evening to take family pictures of the Bornman's. I took my digital camera along too and snapped a few with it but the better pictures (I hope) are on my good, film camera
It was a gorgeous night and so I couldn't resist some scenery photos! Clouds here, in San Juanito, like I've never seen before!
Aww, here's the lovely family now! And like I said, I'm hoping that even though I missed Andrew's glasses in the pics, my good camera will be much better! I hope!
Josiah was NOT wanting his picture taken for some reason but we snapped this decent shot of the brothers! cuties!
And here's Hannah, pretty as a princess! :)



In case you were unaware, I only have 2 more days left here until I fly home. I fly home on Monday (October 1) so if you would like to pray that would be great! Pray for safety as we travel from here to Chihuahua City (to the airport)- Andrew is driving me and it's a 4 hour, 1/2 the way mountainous, drive. Then I fly from Chihuahua to Houston, Texas and then from there to Ohare where my mom and sis will be picking me up to drive me the 3 hours back home. So, again, praying for safety and that my planes would all be on time and running smoothly and that I would be able to sail through customs in Houston and not miss my next plane (cause I don't have much of a layover there) and that all my luggage would make it back safely, as well, and at the same time and place as myself! :) Thanks so much guys! I really appreciate everyone's prayers during my time here! It helps so much! Thank you!

Tom and Jerry?

Last night, as I lay cowering in my bed, I realized something. When there is a mouse in the house, it is NOTHING like the cute little cartoon, Tom and Jerry!!! In that cartoon I'm always rooting for the mouse, Jerry, as I'm sure most everyone else is. But in real life I am wishing nothing but DEATH AND DESTRUCTION on the little varmint! Ugghh!! I guess I never realize just how much I hate something until I'm brought face to face with it!

So, a few nights ago, I was putting away the dishes that had dried in the drainboard. And it was late enough that the kids were in bed and it was dark and such. And as I've explained, a bit, before there isn't tons of lighting here so when it gets dark outside, it kinda gets dark inside too. There's the one big propane light in the kitchen and then everywhere else you have to take a flashlight or oil lamp with you when you go (which, as you might realize, causes a lot of shadows to dance). Anyways, as I was putting the dishes away I hear a weird little rustling or scratching sound, that sounds like it's coming from inside or near the stove. *side note* The Coleman Camp stove that I've been using sits on top of the old gas range that is not working. *end side note* So, I decided that it was definitely coming from inside the gas range and asked, calmly and casually, "What's that noise?" And Andrew says, calmly and casually, "Oh, probably a mouse." Okay, so I had a minor heart palpitation but figured maybe he was joking with me (cause he knew it would get my goat). But then, in the next instant, Iris says, "Yeah, I saw a mouse run along side the tub and through the plastic "wall" last night when I was in the bathroom." And she said it like it was nothing! So, then, Karisa starts to hyperventilate a little bit! So I said "Oh, really? Interesting."

So, yeah, there's definitely a mouse in THIS house! Yikes! I know it happens at home, in Goshen, too but when my mom had to deal with mice at least I didn't have to LIVE there, with the little skanky varmints!! Anyways, as there is a little baby in the house now, Iris and Andrew are up, several different times during the night and so since that incident other stuff has happened. Let me fill you in.

So, the night before last, Andrew put together some rat poison stuff to set out. So, that very night, Iris was in the kitchen at the sink and saw a stupid little mouse head, peek out from behind the stove, like it was gonna run out onto the counter. (As we know it does because there's been mice droppings on the counter in the mornings). Eeekk! So, she put some of the rat poison right up there, where he would see it right away if he came from the stove onto the counter. Well, so this morning, we thought maybe we'd gotten him and would need to check for a dead mouse body (my favorite kind!)! But we were gonna wait until this morning to check, in the light.

So, last night, I was sitting on the couch, reading a book (yes another one of those so silly "Christian" romances that seem to think missionary dating is okay) as I was waiting for my bath time. Anyways, sitting on the end of the couch nearest the fireplace (that is at my right), I all of a sudden see a dark, small, furry "object" slide/crawl down the side of the chimney and the wall (like where they come together and meet)! OH MY WORD, I'M SO SURPRISED THAT I DIDN'T PEE MYSELF! So, I let out one of my gasps (that I tend to do a lot when something surprises me.......I get it from my mom who gets it from Grandma) and Andrew, who's at the kitchen table on the computer, says, "What? What's wrong?!" So, I say, "I just saw the mouse crawl down the side of the chimney onto the floor next to that cupboard!! He came right down through a hole that comes from RIGHT UNDER MY BED!!!!!!" So, as I'm sitting there (with my legs up, mind you) shaking with fear and disgust (with thoughts running through my mind of what he was doing in all of MY stuff!), Andrew replies with a lighthearted, "WOW! That mouse is pretty talented!!" What?! He obviously has not the fear of mice that I now realize I do!

So, after that, as I was in the bathroom getting ready for my bath, I made as much movement and noise as possible and used the brightest light we have! I always kept my eyes peeled and then went straight to bed! But on my way up to bed, my mind was running away with tons of stupid ideas and I made a comment to Andrew and Iris about the mouse "sleeping" with me upstairs and so Andrew replies with something like, "Oh, you'll be fine. He might just want to snuggle up with you in bed tonight." NOT FUNNY ANDREW!!! So, I caught my breath and said, as calmly as I could, "Will mice really get up into peoples beds and stuff?" They both assured me that, no, they don't. But I was still not so sure because if it can crawl up other stuff (cupboards, cabinets, WALLS) then why couldn't it crawl right up into my bed (whether I'm in it or not)?! Ugh! So, I went quickly to bed, with a big flashlight shining everywhere to make sure I saw nothing. And I was making as much noise as I could (while also making sure to not wake the kids). I checked and re-checked and then had nothing else to do but to lay down in bed (which, don't worry, I checked in between the sheets too)! So, I lay there thinking and stirring and worrying about all this mouse crap. And I eventually realized that this "fear" of mice is not okay for me to have! I am a child of God and He does not give us a spirit of fear, but of peace!! So, I tried to pray for peace and that God would help me to surrender this fear to Him. It took awhile but I eventually felt okay enough to go to sleep. I still am needing God to help me get over this, but I know one thing for sure, everything is better (and less frightening) in the LIGHT OF DAY!! So, when we woke up this morning, all of the traps (actual traps and not just poison) that Andrew had set up before bed, were still empty! Man! Oh well, maybe little "Jerry" will at least get the idea that he is not wanted here and scram! I doubt it, but hey, a girl can hope, can't she?! :)

The final stretch.

So, I realize I haven't written much lately and I'm so sorry bout that! I guess I'm just more focused on getting done what needs to be done and anxiously awaiting the day that I become homeward bound! :) I'm glad for this time here in Mexico and to help the Bornman's but I admit that I am also ready to go home. Ready to see everyone and get back to my "normal" life that I a lot of times take for granted. It's amazing how 2 months away from "normal" life can really make a person appreciate that "normal" life and long for it so much! I think that sometimes my family thinks that I hate "home" so much and that I am always just waiting for a chance to leave it, again, for a bit. I go so many different places (for leisure and other) and I really do enjoy it. And I guess I've given my family reason to believe that I don't like "home" enough that I just want to keep going. But being gone for 2 months (and when I was gone for 10 months to Winnipeg) makes me realize that I do not hate home. I LOVE HOME! Home is such a good place! It has my family and my friends, who I love so much! I can be myself with them and know that they will still love me and stick around! :) That really is a great feeling! And I just really enjoy being with them. It doesn't even matter what we are doing (or are not doing) but it's good just to "be"! I'm praying that this time, as I come back home and get back into my "normal" everyday life, I remember to be grateful for what I have at HOME! To be grateful that God has given me such a great family and friends and LIFE and to just be grateful for everything! God, help me to not yearn to leave home, for the sake of leaving, but for the fact of adventure and going wherever it may be that you're calling! Help me to show my love for "home", to the persons around me that I love and care about. Help me to be grateful for the great job (and awesome clients) that you have provided for me, faithfully! And help me to use the time I have at home to do more for you! Help me to be more willing to be your hands and your feet in the community where you've placed me! Help me to see each day as the blessing that it is, straight from your heart to mine, and to not waste it in yearning for other places! Use me, Father, right where you have me and help me to not miss out on every blessing you give me, daily! Jesus, help me to fully ENJOY every experience and "adventure" that you bring my way, right there in Goshen! Fill me with your joy, in all things, in the daily things, in the monotonous things, in the "normal" things and let that joy NEVER decrease!! Thank you, Father, that you never leave or forsake me and that you never give up on me, even when I seem to give up on myself! Lord, I just want to trust you, in the day to day and say THANK YOU!! Thank you for who you are! God of God's, Almighty One, Lord of Lord's, my Saviour, my Healer, my Strength, my Joy, my Love, my Freedom, my Guide, my Father, my Everything! And I trust you! Help me to not forget all of these truths! Help me not to forget, just who you are and God, would it go beyond a head knowledge (where I realize and believe it in my mind) and onto a complete HEART knowledge! I want to know you more! I want to know who you are and what your heart wants! Thank you, Jesus, for all that you are doing and will continue to do! And thank you that, when I begin to look "down" again, that you will lift my head and remind me of all the blessings that you are pouring down on me and how much you desire for me to be grateful and faithful in the little. Help me to do just that, Father! I love you so much!! Thanks God!

Pictures!

And now, Josiah! The no longer littlest Bornman!! He's happy, can you tell?! :)

Another "Quote"!

Cute litle baby hand! She has such long fingers! And her legs and arms are so skinny that the skin looks like it does on some old thin thin people where it just sags and wrinkles around the knees and such. So funny. She's so little! :)
I was trying to get a picture to show just how little she is. This diaper that she has on is the smallest newborn diaper you can buy in Mexico, and it's HUGE on her!
Here's her first bath, at home and this is the kitchen sink. She didn't even fill the sink. She wasn't loving the bath so much but her crying is so soft that you can't even tell much. :) Cutie!
Yawn!! Always sleepy!
Trying to get a self-portrait with the new baby Grace......I need to work on it more when I'm holding a tiny baby! :) lol!




So a few nights ago we had beets at supper. I had never made beets before, in my life. I didn't even realize that that's what they were when they brought them home from the store! lol! :) Anyways, Iris had me cut them up and boil them like you would potatoes only they take even longer to boil. And so I did, all the while thinking, "Hmmm, I don't know who's really gonna eat all of these (cause she had me make a whole pot of them) except for Andrew and Iris cause I sure am not and I doubt the kids will." So, I made them (along with the rest of the meal which included cheesy mashed potatoes) and we sat down to dinner to eat. So this is a conversation that followed!

Hannah: "Can I please have some beets mom?"

Iris: "Sure, just hold your plate up here."

Hannah: "Okay, here. Please, I want lots and lots and lots!!!"

Karisa thinking to herself: "What the heck is going on?! Kids don't like beets! I don't even like beets!!"

Hannah(about 5 minutes later): "Mom, can I PLLLEEAAASSEEE have some more beets?!"

Iris: "You need to eat your other food, first and then you can have some more."

Hannah: "Ohhhh! Alright." (said in a disgusted voice)

Karisa talking out loud now: "What?! I have NEVER seen a kid beg for beets or eat them up so fast as much as Samuel, Hannah and Josiah are!!! I cannot believe it! Let me try some of them, just to try them."

LOL! So, I ate some beets with butter and salt and they really weren't too bad (at least not when I was eating them along with cheesy mashed potatoes and meat. :) I even had some more today! Amazing, Mom and Grandma, I know! I just thought that it was so funny that these kids were begging for more beets! This was no joke either! :) I guess if you teach 'em young....:) Iris would grind up beets when they were babies (as part of their different baby foods) and gave them to the kids. So I guess they learned to like them. :) Maybe Joelle will love eating prunes even when she's older! :) Quien Sabe?? (Who knows?)

Baby Grace in pictures.

I got a few pictures of her with her eyes actually open, which hasn't happened much since she's been home! Imagine that, a newborn who want to do nothing but sleep and eat?! :) I think she looks a bit like Josiah, in this picture.
Little Cutie! Samuel is holding her here. And in this one I think she looks a bit like Samuel.
Something must have really shocked her! :)
A slight smile....I was standing on the opposite side of her as Iris changed her (therefore the bit of her face cut off). And here she looks a bit more like Hannah! She actually has the same color eyes and hair that Hannah did when she was born so it appears that for the kids in this family, the girls might look a like and the boys will look alike.
I was trying to let you see just how tiny she is.....SO tiny! She weighs under 5lbs and is so small! She is eating now, from a bottle or spoon (so that she doesn't get too used to the bottle for future nursing purposes) and doing good! And I only heard her, make some noises, one time last night! Sweet! :) She looks like she has shoulder pads on because of the onsie, underneath the sleeper, is a newborn one but SO big for her that it bunches up! :)

Little baby on the way!

So it's about 7:05pm on Thursday evening and Iris and Andrew should be home any time now, with the baby of course! Grace had to stay an extra day due to the fact that she was not really eating (and therefore needed to be fed by a tube) and that she needed a bit of oxygen to help her breathe! But today the Doctor pronounced her good to go (as far as I know, anyways) and they are on their way home! I still cannot even imagine how small she is going to be because she was born at just under 5lbs and newborns always lose a little bit of weight at the beginning (and I'm assuming that she especially did, due to the lack of eating) so she could be even smaller now! And my niece, Joelle, was born at over 8lbs so she NEVER seemed tiny! lol! This should be interesting, that's for sure! But I'm excited to see her and don't worry, I will get some pictures on here real real soon so that y'all can see her too! So, hang tight and they'll be here soon!

Tonight with the Moje's!

Concha, the neighbor girl. She is such a cutie! And it's sad cause she lives next door with her grandparents and Aunt and Uncle and their kids. Her mom lives and "works" in another town and just leaves her sit, here! That's not an uncommon story in these parts. Really too bad. Anyways, she played with the kids today and then had lunch with us. She cracks me up cause she's so cute and has such a curious look on her face and when I'm around her she just stares at me like I'm a freak show of some sort! Cracks me up! I don't really know what to say to a 5 year old that speaks a different language and so I say a little bit, here and there, and smile lots and she'll eventually put a little smile on but just continues to stare at me like she's trying to figure me out, or something! so funny! :)
We were shooting our very own Milk Add but not all the participants were cooperating (with smiles)! :) They really did get these mustaches without my prompting (at first) but then we needed to keep putting them back on to take more pictures! This is the best one we got! lol!
Concha and Hannah! Concha was sitting there, on her side of the fence, watching us get fire wood and carry it in so I decided she was primed and ready for a photo shoot! LOL!
This is Josiah showing off "his" shoes! He likes to walk around in Hannah's dress up play shoes! lol! He thinks it's cool! :)
Here he wanted me to see the shoe, up close, that he was wearing...so proud, he is! :)



This morning after breakfast I was putting the pot of beans on to boil and realized that I needed more fuel, for the camp stove, cause it was out. So, I went out and filled it from the container that Andrew left for me to do so. It read Camp Fuel and everything so why would I think that Andrew left anything else for me, instead? :) Well, I filled the tank and tried to start the fire on the stove and no luck. I pumped it some more (cause you have to pump this little thing to get the fuel into the area to start the fire- do you like my technical lingo?) and tried to light it and pumped it some more and tried to light it, but all to no avail! It would not work! So, I didn't know what to do! Everything was attached correctly and I knew of no other reason that it wouldn't work. I thought maybe you need to fill it full or else it won't work.....I just didn't have a clue. So, I actually got a fire started in the wood stove (3rd time, by myself!) and put the beans on there (as well as got the kids to bring in tons of wood to fill the wood box, so I could keep the fire going all day (to cook lunch and supper)!

Well, when I talked to Andrew later he was as stumped as I was and decided that he would call his friend, Arturo Moje, to see if he'd be willing to come give it a look (cause he's good at fixing things). That made me a bit nervous cause, for some reason since I've been here, I get all flustered when I try and talk with people (in Spanish, of course). That never used to be a problem but I wonder if it's been a long enough time since I've really used it that I'm not very comfortable in it, anymore. And part of it is probably the fact that I live with a house full of translators so it's easier to sometimes just look at them and say "What'd he say?"! :) Anyways, I was nervous to have people come, who only speak Spanish, to the house and need to do something. But it had to be done because I am basically out of the little, sap filled wood pieces that help start the fire- so there was no telling what we would do tomorrow if we couldn't get a fire going. **Side note, we will be here tomorrow by ourselves as well because the baby has not yet been released from the hospital due to the fact that she is still needing oxygen (not much but enough that it turns her a little blueish when she's not having it) and she is just beginning to eat from a bottle and not just through a tube!**

So, all that to say, Arturo and his wife, Suhey (who I have been calling Suelle because we first thought that's what her name was so I typed it that way. And shortly after we found out it was actually Suhey but I figured it was more hassle than it was worth to explain that to y'all. But now I want to call her the right name, on the blog too, because she's a friend) came over with their two kids, tonight. I done good too! :) I helped him go out to Andrew's workshop and look for the real fuel for the camp stove (because Arturo immediately realized that the fuel Andrew had left for me was not the right stuff....so no wonder it didn't work!) and talked a bit with him and then came inside (while Andrew directed him to where things were while talking to him on the phone) to do the dishes. Well, of course, Suhey insisted on helping me (Mexicans are so friendly and helpful! really! At least the ones that I've ever been around; Mexicans and Guatemalans)! So, it was us two, doing the dishes and "chatting"! Now, I know that you all know at least one person, in your life, who is a talker. A chatter box we might call them? Well, that would be Suhey! She can sure talk, and it doesn't even matter if it's in a language that I'm not fluent in! LOL! She tries to help me understand when I don't but she talks so fast and much that sometimes I just have to nod and smile and let her continue! HA! Funny funny! Anyways, I just thought that tonight was a really positive thing! I enjoyed them both and was able to communicate, for the most part, and yeah. It was good! I realize that I need to get me some Spanish friends, once I get back home, and keep practicing so that I don't lose it all!! But I think I will definitely have friends, right here in San Juanito, for life!

More San Juanito Scenes!

So I decided to take some pictures, the other day, of the Carneceria to show you how different it is then where we would get out meat! But the big slabs of meat weren't hanging up like the first day I went there. Iris said that that only happens on the day they get the meat in but this Carneceria is really good at getting it put away in freezers, right away! Anyways, there wasn't any hanging meat but there was still some stuff sitting out. Mind you, there was no one working in the store at the time (the husband was off on an errand and the wife was a few stores down, helping watch another store) but the door was open welcoming anyone (including any bugs/flies)! lol! Just such a different world down here....but I must say I am more used to it now than I was 2 months ago.
Another picture of the meat shop. The red frame thingy, in back, is where the meat was hanging the first day I visited it.
Here's a full picture of a horse drawn wagon/contraption. I tried to get one the other week but we were too close so it was a blur (but you'll remember that that was the picture of the $ sign on the house, cause it was for sale, of course). :)
Oh, the cat, Princess Buttercup (can you guess who named her?)! She is no longer allowed inside the house due to the fact that she decided to make the floor, under my bed, her litter box! Yeah, we heard scratching one day and kept looking for what it was and finally found her (saw her upstairs, through the big "crack" in the floor/ceiling) and she was doin her business right there under my bed!!! I wonder if she figured out that I'm not too fond of her so she was trying to get back at me?! Hmmmm.......Anyways, this is her, staring me in the face (and doing her annoying meow) while I was doing the dishes one day!
This is how the back porch area is coming along so far. It's getting there but I don't think it'll be done before I leave. I'm not sure though, they could surprise me! :)