snapshots of camp :)

c'mon, how cute are our kids??


thomas (resident austrailian cuteness and fried chicken lover) playing chinese checkers :)


clark getting his translator certificate...amazingness!

team meeting...i love these people

my family group from week 1...
wanda...who i'm convinced is one of the cutest kids on the planet

a story about wanda from my journal...

“There’s a little nine year old girl with cerebral palsy here named Wanda. She is probably the cutest kid I have ever seen…ever. She is so precious and her smile is magical. The other night I was helping her balance on a chair during assembly, and she looked like she was going to burst with JOY! She turned to Vincent and said, “Gege (big brother), I have never played this happily before!” It was amazing.

Last night I watched Wanda while the translators had their meeting. As the movie played, she complied as I cradled her mellow body in my arms. I rocked at patted her. I felt her body become heavier, and I knew it wasn’t long before she would be asleep. She slept in my arms for about an hour, and I was so thankful to God that He created this precious treasure, and that I was able to spend time with her. Eventually something woke her up, and she looked up at me confused. Haylee (another girl at camp) got a marker and paper for Wanda to color. She sat up and eagerly took the marker in her left hand and began to draw. I watched her tightened muscles try to cooperate with her mind as she tried to stay within the lines. The fact that this angel was crippled broke my heart. My eyes welled with tears that I convinced myself to not let out.

I see such pain here, yet such beauty too. Wanda is a precious picture of those two things combined. She’s a treasure that I’m so glad is in my life…”