Par for the course

For those of you who grieved with me the loss of my first rosemary plant, Herb, I wanted to give you this opportunity to rejoice with us in welcoming "Romero" (Spanish for "rosemary"). He's quite a pretty plant, but I'm afraid I stripped him about bare last night to make a superb rosemary bread...I think it was worth it.

Yesterday was full of plans to hang out with friends and explore the area, attend our first Spanish class, and have dinner with another missionary couple we have not met yet. The not-so-surprising thing was that none of it happened. We were informed in the morning that the first transportation strike, or "paro", since returning was already in motion. It seems that for saftey concerns an overpass is being constructed over a major road in the city, causing that route to be closed for a time while it is under construction. The taxi and bus drivers are not fans of having to change their routes, so they are striking...which means either way they are not making money. Go figure. So, I ended up in the kitchen the majority of the day, baking and cooking and enjoying myself immensely, although wondering if every meal I make will take so long. Meatloaf is definitely not a Bolivian standard, so I thought it would be enjoyable for us to have something that can't be found in a restaurant (unlike the 2 amazing steak dinners Scotty and I enjoyed the other night for a little over $5 total). :) I love sweet potatoes cubed and baked with salt, but that is another root that Bolivia doesn't offer. Thankfully, there are about a million other types of roots that are new to us and available in every market, including a sweet potato-like substitute called camote. Hooray for good market finds!

Sunday was a great day, attending our new church and catching up with old friends. It was an awesome experience to spend much time in worship, appreciating singing praises to our God in Spanish. I was excited to find that I was easily following the message, grateful to hear the gospel preached clearly, and also making little notes about phrases I needed to look up later. During our 45 minute bus trip down to church that morning, Scotty and I realized how beneficial it will be for us to spend that time memorizing scripture- something we are trying to do in Spanish and English. I connected that evening with a good friend, Celeste, who was my roomate for my 3 weeks of training when I first arrived in Cochabamba 3 years ago. She has moved to La Paz and I am grateful to have another person here that already knows me and is so fun to hang out with!

Thank you all for your love and prayers. We very much desire to stay in good communication with all of you, but have already experienced several days without internet- it seems we have a touchy connection. God continues to be so gracious to us, reminding us of His great promises of hope, and giving peace to our hearts.