Home Sweet Home...

Delivering Bads in Guatemala

Home Sweet Home...
It has been one week since we boarded the plane and headed back to the United States. That day is always filled with mixed emotions. I look forward to returning home, but I also do not want to leave. For me, the feeling of "home" is becoming more of a blurred line, than a definite location.

They say "Home is where your heart is". If that is true, than I would really have to say I have 2 homes. My heart is here in Texas with my family, friends and comforts we are used to, but my heart is also in Guatemala with the wonderful people we get to meet and be part of their lives. If you asked me where I would rather be, I'm not sure I could give you a true answer. I guess the best answer I could give is that I want to be here to make/raise more money to go back to Guatemala and help more families!

While I am glad to be home, I must admit, I have had troubles sleeping at night. As I lay in my comfy   bed that I absolutely love... I dream and think about the hundreds of families I know of that are at best sharing one worn out dirty bed with the whole family, but in most cases it is families and kids sleeping on the floor or on cardboard. Until a couple years ago, I would not have dreamed that there were so many people who did not have even a simple bed! It is a great honor to me to be able to buy and deliver beds and help make such a basic need a reality for families who could never afford to buy one. I am honored and humbled to have just finished delivering the 32nd set of beds for our family. That means that at least 64 kids now have a place to sleep because of a little effort from us... and from all those who have donated to help out. The reality is that probably most of those beds are used for more than one child. Although we would complain about how crowded and uncomfortable that would be, those families are just grateful to have a place to lay their heads at night.

These beds cost $180 for each set of bunk beds, $40 for the pillows and comforters, $20 for the sheets, and $15 for the mattress encasements. That means for $255 you can provide a set of bunk beds to a family. That is 2 complete beds! It seems like such a little amount to make a change in someones life. And trust me, it does make a change in their lives. The beds, pillows and comforters are bought in Guatemala. We buy the sheets and mattress encasements here to take with us because the sheets we pay $10 for at Walmart here, cost about $30 at Walmart there. In the past two years, over 400 beds have been delivered by teams like us in partnership with Our Guatemala in Guatemala. While that number is amazing, it is just a dent.... I love this project because we get to make contact with each family. We also take backpacks filled with toys and items for the families! For me, it is a way to share God's love with these precious people.

So if you ask me how I sleep at night... I guess my answer would be this. I sleep well dreaming about our next trip and helping more families! I dream that one day we will be able to take more teams down and make an even bigger difference. If you are reading this, and you think "I would like to help", would you consider donating? Better yet, would you begin to pray about joining us? Or maybe sharing with 15-20 friends, and begin forming a team of your own? We would love to partner with you as Karter's Dream and lead your team to Guatemala and introduce you to the place and people we have come to love so much. Just contact me to find out more about how you can help!

Memories made... Lives changed...

Driving back to Antigua felt like driving home. This time was even more exciting because we were getting to share this part of our lives with Kayman as well. It most certanitly mad it feel more complete.

As i started typing this post, I started writing about our travels and adventures in a typical travel blog style. I planned to basically tell you about our every move and expeience. Then I realized... This is not a  travel blog, but the story of our lives. Through the years, this blog has follow our family from Waiting on our son, to bring him home from Guatemala... Waiting on our daughter, to flying to the other side of the world to hold her and bring her home... Now, the content has changed to telling a story about the wonderful people around the world.

The past two years our families hearts have turned to helping children in care and families in need. For us, this was not a new thing, but a new place. See many people may not know that evr since we adopted Karter we have been involved in helping families. Sometimes that was through organizations such as toys for tots, and sometimes it was through our own projects where we would find a family that needed some help, buy christmas presents for the whole family and then leave them on their doorstep... All without them ever knowing who did it.

Now, as you know, our efforts have been focused in helping in Guatemala. I have been asked many times why we went to Guatemala. The first reason is easy... That is where Karter is from. Other than that, my only answer is that for now, Guatemala is where our hearts are drawn. We love the country and love the people. The smiles on the childrens faces when we show up would melt any heart. It is such a great feeling to provide food and supplies to orphanages, and to deliver beds to children who have never had a place to sleep. 

That is what lead us to start Karter's Dream. We are so excited to see what is in store for our lives. This trip was the first trip to represent Karter's Dream. We not only got to deliver beds and supplies, but we got to make more contacts and stregthen relationships with old friends. It was a very good trip, and yet again very difficult to get on the plane to come home.

However, the best part of coming home is looking forward to planning the next trip...

What a day!

Today will be a very hard day to beat. If anyone comes to Guatemala and wants to take time to learn more about the local culture, coming to Panajachel and taking a guided tour of villages around the lake is a must. Our day started with a 30 minute boat ride across the beautiful lake just a short morning commute to an incredible village. First stop, the village of San Juan La Laguna. One of 13 villages around lake Atitlan.

San Juan is a small village on the lake that has the tradition of all the Mayan textiles. As we looked around the village we were treated to a demonstration of how they take cotton, spin the string then dye the threads and finally weave the beautiful textiles. I videoed the demonstration and I will edit it and upload it at a later date. 

After the demonstration we were able to look at May of the items the women of this village made by hand. Some items that took more than a month to complete. Karman found her a little bag  to carry her camera in that she just had to have.

From there we got back in our boat and headed to the village of San Pedro La Laguna. A village we would find out is also sometimes referred to as the "Hippie village"  because many foreigners have moved to this village and brought with them the hippie lifestyle. 

However, what we were interested in was what they are traditionally know for... Coffee and chocolate! Both of which are grown locally in the village. Not on large plantations, but in small garden size plots many times right next to the coffee shops. It is one of the 6 places in Guatemala that grows coffee and exports it around the world. It actually had a different flavor than the coffee grown in aAntigua, which is only 2 1/2 hours away. It was very interesting to see the process and taste the products. 

Here is an example of what coffee looks like from the fruit of the tree to the roasted product.

And here is what Chocolate looks like from the tree to turning it into chocolate.

After we enjoyed probably the best frappe I have ever had, we were off again to take the boat to the third village.

After a 15 minute boat ride, we arrived at the village of Santiago Atitlan where we saw beautiful paintings as well as different textiles that are specifically from that village. 

Here we met a wonderful lady who was kind enough to show us her head piece. Then she even dressed Kayman up in local textiles and we learned that even though she is Chinese... She is also the cutest Guatemalan princess in the land!

 

Then it was back in the boat for the 30 ride back to our hotel. It was a great journey and we learned a lot more about different cultures he in Guatemala. It is very interesting that the four villages we have visited here at the lake (including where our hotel is) all speak different Mayan languages... Even when some are only a 5 minute boat ride apart. Not only is the language different, but even the styles of dress are specific to each village. 

If you ever have the chance to visit, take the tours... It is well worth the money! I think it was like $54 for two people.

A Walk Down Memory Lane

Wow, talk about deja vu... Just over 9 years ago we made our first trip to Guatemala to meet a little 3 week old baby boy we were naming Karter. It was an awesome trip, but also very unsure. Not unsure because of adopting Karter, but unsure because we jumped on a plane to a country we had never been to, a place we had no friends, a place we did not speak the language. When we landed, we went to a hotel where they placed a little boy in our arms and said have a good weekend, we will see you in a couple days....

Remember, Karter is our first child. We knew nothing about taking care of a baby, and now we had one with no instructions in a land we did not speak the language. Sure they gave us his formula to feed him... But the instructions were in Spanish. We did what any parent would do, we figured it out and had fun. The only problem with the trip was that a couple days later, we had to hand him back to his foster mom, get on a plane and go back home... Not knowing when we would get to see him again.

Now jump ahead just over 9 years... I am so excited to be back in Guatemala for Karter's third return trip to help families and kids in care, and this time to spend a couple days just enjoying the country. I'm even more excited that our whole family including our daughter Kayman got to come on this trip. 

Last night and this morning have been very special to me. You see, we spent the night in the very hotel we first got to hold our little boy. Not only is it the same hotel, but if you saw my picture on Facebook, we actually sat on the same couch in the lobby and took a family picture just like we did 9 years ago on our first trip here. This time, our whole family is in the picture!

Like that trip 9 years ago, this trip is a first also. This trip is the first trip as Karter's Dream Inc.. It is our first trip to help from our new non profit we started just a couple months ago. This time we get to work with old friends, see some new areas, make more contacts, and continue to dream not about when we can see our little boy again, but how we can help more people in this beautiful country! 

Looking forward to a great week! I am so glad it started in the same location our very first journey in Guatemala started!

What a difference a day makes

What a Difference a Day Makes...

     Or in this case two years! I can hardly believe that two years ago today we were a government office in Taiyuan China getting the  documents to officially make our Chinese Princess part of our forever family.
      Looking back, I remember all of the emotions, concerns, joys, and even fears about how this new transition would effect our family, and our new daughter.

   

The first couple of days, there was no emotion from Kayman. It broke my heart to see this little girl just sitting there... Not understanding what was going on, or even the language we were speaking to her. I was highly concerned about her and her well being... Trying to figure out how to break through to her, and how we could gain her trust and love.  I could not imagine what she was going through, or what she was thinking. It is one thing to be handed a new born baby in the hospital, and completely different to be handed a two year old who had never known what it meant to be part of a family...

Then all of a sudden, that day came! She was running around the hotel room singing, dancing, and talking none stop... Of corse it was all in Mandarin and we could not understand any of it, but it was amazing to watch her begin to share her life with us.

Little did she know what was in store for here when we returned home! She had a brother who had been praying for her for several months before we even told him we were thinking about adopting again. He would request that we buy two happy meals so he could save a toy for his sister, and he would tell his teachers he was getting a sister. While this all caught us off guard, we began to realize that maybe God had been preparing him and his heart to love a sister he did not even know yet.

It was very hard for him to not get to go to China with us, but he had to stay home for school. It was amazing to get to Skype with him and introduce him to his sister live while on separate sides of the world. He could not wait for us to return home so he could hug her and begin a relationship with her and our new family of four!

We got to see some amazing places throughout China as we spent time in both northern and southern China. Two totally different places and both very interesting to see.

While I would love to return to China one day, I could never bring home a better "gift" than what we brought home on this trip!

God's grace is amazing! I could have never imagined my life being where I am today! As a kid, I would have never dreamed that I would have the privilege of visiting multiple countries around the world to bring home my children!

Kayman, you are an amazing young girl that I am honored to call my daughter! I know God has an amazing plan for your life that will change the world around you! Never give up... Never listen to those who say you can't do something... Never let the world around you change who you are, but instead, you change the world... Always follow God and listen to His calling... Always remember who you are and where you came from... Most of all, always always remember that we love you more than you could ever know!

I Love you Kayman!!! Happy Gotcha Day!!!

"...go where My light is dim, where My voice is heard small..."

     "Raise up your students to hear My voice, to go where My light is dim, where My voice is heard small, and My healing power is not known, even to the uttermost bounds of the earth. Their work will exceed yours, and in this I am well pleased." -Oral Roberts.

     I will never forget hearing Oral quote this from the stage in Chapel at ORU my first year there. Many other people had quoted it, but for some reason, when Oral quoted it, it hit me like a truck. As I continue to grow, learn and live life, I still look at this mandate and dream about changing the world. For me, that is what excites me about our efforts in Guatemala... Not that my name will be known, but that we will leave a legacy, and people would find God's love and experience what it is to truly be loved... All because we decided to go!

     Maybe today, you just need to "go". It may not be to Guatemala (although, we would love to have many more people join with us), but is there something God is leading you to that you have not said yes to yet? Believe me, I know all the excuses and the reasons why not to "go", because I have used them. In fact, we would not have gone to Guatemala if it hadn't "by chance" been the same week as spring break. God knew that lining everything up that way would cause us to say yes and take Karter back to him birth country for a trip that would change our family forever.

   My guess is, like me, you would say you are not qualified... I sure am glad the God does not wait on qualified people to change the world! Was Noah qualified to build the Ark and same humanity? Was Moses qualified to lead God's chosen people out of slavery? I would say neither one of these men were "qualified" to do what God called them to do, yet we look at them today as great men of faith and pillars of the Bible. The truth is, both were just common men who loved God and said yes when God said GO.

  My challenge to you is to take some time to listen to what God is telling you. He did not design any of us to sit idle and watch the world go by. Find out where you should be involved and go! Even though you may not think it makes sense, or that you are capable of the task... Just close your eyes... Say yes Lord... and go! If you dare to trust, your life will never be the same!

Support Guatemala

Good Morning, 

I hope you will take a minute to read this message and find out how you can get involved in making a difference.

In 2005 my wife and I began a journey to adopt a little boy from Guatemala. We were blessed to make our first trip to meet our soon to be son in early 2006. Before we even hit the ground, we had read about the living conditions throughout the country and wondered if we could make a difference.

One year. and 2 more trips later, we were blessed to bring our son home and we began dreaming about one day returning to Guatemala to help the wonderful people of his birth country.

This past spring, we were excited as we boarded a plane with our son in route to Guatemala City, Guatemala. It was an amazing week of helping in orphanages, buying food, toys and supplies for them, and delivering bunk beds to families who had no beds. We all enjoyed our time very much and decided that this would be a lasting part of our family.

We are now planning for a return trip in March of 2015 and we are asking you to consider helping out. We have dedicated ourselves to paying all expenses for our travel and food, as well as buying supplies and beds as we can. What I am asking you is to consider donating to help us provide more beds and supplies. If you click on the link below, you will be taken to a fundraising page that I have set up. You can see that I have set our goal at $8000. This is the amount we added up to allow us to provide all of the beds and supplies we are hoping to use for this trip. Every penny we get will go directly to the people of Guatemala. We in no way use any of the donations for our family. I am hopping to raise much more than the goal amount and be able to do even more for the people of Guatemala. 

Go to https://www.crowdrise.com/encounterguatemala/fundraiser/jasonvanosdol

to find out more information and to make a donation.

Thank you in advance for your help, and please continue to keep our family in prayer as we dream about the future and our involvement in Guatemala. Our current plan is to return to Guatemala at least once a year to help, and maybe even more.

Thank You,

Jason Vanosdol