Welcome Veronica!

Veronica will have her first birthday soon.  We are all enjoying having her in our family!

In the hospital

So tiny!

All the grandparents:
Charlie and Linda Montgomery
Richard and Karen Dugan

Loving my swing

Learning to crawl

With pastors Denis and Lirio Rivera

Loving "boat rides" from my sisters

All clean after bathtime!

Homeschooling

This year Carrie is in 6th grade, Elena is in 4th grade, and Andrea is in 2nd grade.  Michael teaches English, Math, Reading, Spelling, Music, and Bible, and Heather teaches Spanish, Exercise, Guitar, Science, and Social Studies (and baby care, relationship skills, cooking and cleaning, relationship skills...).

Carrie's "desk."  She prefers working on the floor. 
Hurray for homeschooling!

Teacher "Daddy" lies down through most of school. 
Thanks for continuing to pray for Michael's back 
and nervous system to be healed.

Andrea's desk.

Elena's desk.

Carrie's favorite Science class location.

We thank the Lord for the ability to homeschool our children!

Enjoying Puerto Rico

Heather with a traditional Puerto Rican "dubi" after a hairstylist in our church straightened her hair.  They wrap the hair around the head to keep it straight in the high humidity here.  The other lady in the photo is our pastor's wife, Lirio.

Straight hair for the first time!

Heather painted this mural on the wall in our dining room.

Having fun at Dorado Beach.

Heather has lunch with our pastor's wife, Lirio, once a week.

We woke the girls up to watch the beautiful and loud fireworks displays in yards all over our neighborhood and beyond.  The Puerto Ricans enjoy setting off fireworks at midnight on December 31.  Happy New Year! 
(There are zero fireworks on July 4th, though!)

Heather's motto while driving in Puerto Rico is, "Expect the unexpected."

Heather's friend, Zaida, and her family.

Singing "Feliz Cumpleaños" to Andrea at church.  Happy 8th Birthday! 
Our pastor, Denis, is also in the picture.

Heather demonstrated how to make two different types of cake at a Ladies' Fellowship Dinner.  The lady at the table with her is Zaida.

Some of the ladies from our church.

Another Ladies' Dinner event at our house.  We put together a craft that we will be delivering to the people who live in the neighborhood where the church is located.  We attached a post-it note pad to a rectangle of cardstock that has the church's schedule, and we put a magnet on the back so it can be put it on the refrigerator.  We will also be handing out a tract that Michael wrote in Spanish.

Actively involved in our Puerto Rican church

Elena and Andrea dancing at VBS

Andrea, Carrie, and Elena with a friend named Amaris at VBS

Carrie in the youth Sunday School class

Heather in a Ladies' Ministry leaders meeting

Carrie helping lead worship with the youth in a Friday night service

Elena, Carrie, and Andrea presenting a dance they choreographed

Carrie in a relay race at the Youth Christmas party

Carrie in a dance with three other Youth girls

Carrie, Elena, and Andrea in the Kid's Christmas party

Three Youth boys dressed up as the "Three Kings" to deliver gifts to children in the hospital in celebration of January 6, The Day of the Kings.

A group from our church sang, prayed, and delivered gifts to children in the hospital.  In Puerto Rico, the celebration of January 6, The Day of the Kings, is just as big as Christmas, including a gift exchange.

Carrie, Heather, and Elena presenting a dance

Heather hosted three Ladies' Fellowship Dinners at our house, which was a new idea for the ladies of our church.  They all enjoyed it and have continued the tradition at three other ladies' houses so far!

Here we are at church before the arrival of Veronica

Our church congregation at Iglesia Cristiana Carismática de Caguas

Some of the Youth presenting a pantomime dance

Celebrating Carrie's 11th birthday with our pastor's family at our house.  Heather painted the mural in our dining room.

Carrie, Andrea, and Elena delivering "English lessons" to our pastor, Denis.  Each week as part of our homeschool they wrote a sentence in English then translated it into Spanish to give to our pastor.

Michael kneeling by Veronica.  She has a "laso," or headband, which almost all Puerto Rican baby girls wear.

Michael lying down to listen to the Sunday School class

Heather has coffee in McDonald's with Zaida, a friend from church, once a week.

Some of our church members playing dominoes, a favorite game in Puerto Rico

Some ladies in our church singing a lively Puerto Rican Christmas song

The Youth singing Puerto Rican Christmas songs

Ramón playing a drum at Christmas