Embarrassing moment of the day.

Today I went with Chici to pick up some visitors to the Children's Home. Willie and Don. Willie is one of Victor's best friends and was best man in his wedding. Don has been down on several trips with Willie as Willie comes every year to visit.

We got to the airport and I made a little girls day. We went to a coffee shop and there was a mom, her 2 girls, and another woman with them. They ordered and moved to the side and I ordered. I got a frapucino without the coffee. Chocolate and milk is where it is at! And it was Ghirardelli chocolate sauce at that! So we also moved to the side to wait for our order.

I hear one of the girls say to her mom, "look at all that chocolate sauce she put in that cup with milk!" She was really excited. So I told them that was mine. Turns out they have been here almost a month and this particular girl has been missing her Starbucks (she was about 13. 13!!! Should she really even KNOW what Starbucks is???) chocolate drink. (well, at least it is just chocolate and not coffee, but still)

So the pleas began. Both of these girls really wanted my chocolatey drink. And I am happy to report, the mom caved!

Anyway, back to the story. So we picked them up and I started driving home. Traffic is busy (as it always is in the Capital) and I am darting in and out of traffic like a pro. I had been a little nervous because I didn't know them and didn't know what they would think of a young'un (yes, I am still young!) like me driving. We are almost home and Willie says out of the blue that I make a good chauffeur and I did a good job driving home. Insert smile and a big pat on my back from myself. :)

We get almost home and we are going up the last hill. There was a very slow tractor in front of us on a curve. And I couldn't see. It was at this point I decided to show them all how very Guatemalan I had become and I pulled out to pass him. Halfway past him I see a big truck coming towards us. Here comes the mortifying part. Out of my very own little mouth comes the words, "oh s$%*". Just like that. I haven't said those words in a VERY long time. But I got scared. And that is what I used to do when I was scared.

The tractor was going so slow that I easily passed him and we are all alive and well. Well, I am not so well. I didn't even know what to say or do. I am representing a good Christian organization, my pastor and his wife, and I just blurt that out. I think I had better go back to Missionary language 101.

Cute story. And yet, a little sad at the same time.

The other day I had to take one of our kids down to his school to pick up his present. This is a Christian school that has sponsors in Canada and the U.S. so they get extra gifts sometimes.

So on the drive down to the school I remembered I has some chocolate in my purse. I had splurged on a Ritter milk chocolate with almonds chocolate bar and still had about a 1/4 of it left. I broke them into the little squares and gave a piece to 10 year old Denis. I popped a square in my mouth and promptly chewed it up. I popped another one in my mouth and looked over at Denis to see if he wanted another one. I could see him taking small bites of the chocolate and sucking around the almond really slowly and just savoring it. So I offered him another piece and as soon as it was in his sight he popped the rest of the first one in his mouth and took the other piece and started to savor that one.

Even though I had taken a second one, he wasn't going to assume that I was going to give him more. And here he was, alone with me and eating some amazing chocolate. Something so simple for me and yet, so big for him.

Now that I think about it, I gave him the package so he could eat the shavings of chocolate from the bottom and I didn't see that package again. I had better go look in my car for it!

The same thing happened when I was at the orphanage in Haiti. I was asked to help my friend LaDawn take two kids to Amsterdam to their "forever families". I was thrilled, I tell ya!

In Miami we had a bit of a layover. We had a 6 year old with us and a 2 1/2 year old. We each bought ourselves and ice cream and we were sharing with the girls. I was sharing with the 2 1/2 year old, Rose Mitha. I would take a spoonful and then she would get a spoonful. When we were done I wiped her face and we set off. We put her in one of those luggage carts and put the 6 year old, Sabine, on the luggage part and we were pushing them around. Later I noticed there was a bit of white stuff around Rose Mitha's mouth. I wiped it off and thought nothing of it. Except that it happened again. And then again! A long while later we were in a big line up waiting for something, I don't remember what. I took Rose Mitha out and we were playing and I grabbed her and started tickling her. She started laughing and all of a sudden there was white stuff on her face and my hand and the floor! I finally realized it was the ice cream. She had been holding it in her mouth and savoring it for as long as she could. She didn't know when she was going to get such amazingness again. Likely it was her first time eating ice cream.

I am so happy she is now with that forever family and she won't have to worry about stuff like that anymore. When I looked at the pictures we took later, I could see her little puffed out cheeks and laughed thinking about the ice cream pocketed inside! There is even a picture with the white stuff coming out and me still clueless as to what it was!

Puffed out cheeks! (If you click on this picture you can see it bigger)

Unidentified white stuff!

Denis and I.

Now think about your children or children you are close to. What would their response be if they saw you eating more chocolate than them? Or they were done their ice cream and had had to share with you? I feel fairly confident saying that the majority of those kids would have pointed out that you got more chocolate, or why couldn't they have their own ice cream. Like I said, this is not every child. (CYA: Cover your..... bum. Something you learn early on in nursing school. I realize not ALL children would act like that.)

Now on one hand, I am glad that they are thankful for what they have and that they get such enjoyment out of something so simple. On the other hand, I want to give them so much more!

And that is all I have to say about that.