The end of my journey.

Tonight my heart is breaking. My journey at UDH has come to an end (for this trip at least). I have posted the last of blogs. I currently find myself in a pool of tears. Reading through my blogs tonight, watching videos, and looking at pictures has definitely got some serious emotions going on. It's been a week since I left those precious kids, and I miss them more and more each day. There isn't a single time that I look at a clock, and I don't add two hours and change the a.m to p.m. or vice versa. I'm always imagining what they might be doing. I feel like I am world away from them, and that makes my heart so sad. It's so difficult to love a group of people like family, and be so far away from them.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Each of you mean so much to me.  Thank you for taking the time to actually read my updates,  most of all thank you for your prayers. I could never tell you how much you mean to me. Without you, this journey would not have been possible.

I am forever grateful.

Tonight as I have been thinking about everything, I randomly thought of a small, funny story I wanted to share that I never blogged about.  My family sent me a package that I was supposed to get about three weeks before I actually recieved it. In the package was many, many packets of fun dip!  The night of the last film showing (movie night), I decided I would pass out the packets. After picking out whether they wanted red or blue, I decided just to watch them for a second and see what they did with it. After getting some very confused looks, I had a little "Fun Dip--How To" class. It was such a funny/cute moment. I wish we would have had the video recorder out!

Oh how I miss them.

AMERICAN DAY 2, 26.2012

I began my day this morning at 3:45 with an ice cold shower! After semi getting ready, I went to wake Bekah up, and we headed over to begin cooking breakfast! It took us about two hours to prepare about one hundred French toast and scrambled eggs! I believe everyone really enjoyed it! It disappeared very quickly!

Soon after breakfast we began preparing for lunch. Bekah and I anticipated lunch being our biggest meal. We had hamburgers! It took a long while to cook 108 hamburgers! I definitely have more respect for people who prepare meals for large amounts of people, and for people with large families! It’s hard work feeding that many Filipinos! They EAT! Haha.We had the majority of great trimmings that come along with hamburgers. Some of the kids said this meal was better than rice! That’s craziness coming from a Filipino! (we have it on video for those of you who don't believe me).  During lunch we also enjoyed some great American music! For dinner we had chicken fajitas. t took us a little while to explain how to eat them, but we managed, and they enjoyed! All in all, today was a successful day! It was crazy exhausting though!

Bekah assigned each of the children a new American name.
We all wore our name tags ;)

lumch is served

the kids, as well as the Americana's, were very anxious

Angela attempting to hide her cheese for later

Melody hid some cheese in her Bible!

Restless Sleep 2.18.2011

It is 2:30 a.m. on Friday, and I can’t sleep! Not sure what is going on. It all started whenever I climbed into my bed only to discover my sheets very damp. I thought if I kept my windows closed this problem would be solved, but I guess even that didn’t help. This humidity here is something else.

 This is one of the only nights since I have been here that it is actually quiet. Gemboy’s snoring is much quieter. The rooster must be sleeping. Karaoke isn’t going. I can hear the lizard only every now and then. Normally, there are several things that play a large factor in no sleep. However, tonight there is just no reason. I lay down, and immediately my mind wonders to a thousand things. Crazy things. I would just like to sleep.

Noon-- I finally went to sleep this morning…about five o’clock a.m. I woke up at 6:32, and realized that the breakfast bell had probably rang about two minutes prior. I hurriedly put contacts in, and threw my hair up. Bekah showed up just as I was about to walk out, and told me that she had banged on my door and window, and I obviously didn’t hear a thing. Needless to say, I was a little late for breakfast. I feel completely exhausted! I wonder if I am ever going to feel rested again! Since breakfast, I have cleaned my room, re-arranged my clothes, showered, and drank coffee. Now, I am catching up on blogging and emailing. Not sure what the rest of the day holds. This afternoon I will probably skip my nap. As much as I want to sleep I am going to stay awake and get some things done. Maybe I will be so tired tonight my body will have no other option but sleep. I want to read sometime today. We have devotion this afternoon at five, then dinner. I think we are having a film showing tonight. Jestoni said last night he was excited because “tomorrow is Friday, and that means film showing. Maybe two film showings. Then, the next tomorrow is Saturday!” Oh if he only knew what Saturday holds! Haha. Bekah and I are very excited for the weekend. I have two weekends left here so I have to make the absolute best of them!



my little pink castle which not only serves as a guard against mosquitos, lizards, rats, etc, but also is a great clothes dryer



this is how we play music around here

looknig forward to home & missing udh

With my time at Uncle Dick's Home nearing the end, I have been thinking a lot about things. I'm so anxious to get back to my friends, family, and normal life in America, but I'm also so torn and sad to leave my family here in the Philippines.

In my head (as well as via email to mom), I've been compiling a list of things I'm looking forward to about home.  Also, I'm constantly reminded of the things I'm greatly going to miss about my home here.

Here are just a few...

Things I look forward to about home:

• family
• hamburgers & pepperspeppers
• steak & baked potatobaked potato
• tab & misty (& obviously chocolate pizza)
• salad
• movie night with Grace
• vacation
• dancy party with "the crew"
• webb & sophie
• ray & candi
• church family
• text messages
• ben
• my cozy bed
• warm shower
• Daisy, Hank, Tigger
• Ice cream
• friends
• pop corn, fruit gushers, & chocolate (not together, obviously)
• movies
• BB (black beauty) (my car)
• Artichoke dip
• onions
• dollywood
• tanning
• getting rid of my rice baby
• girls day out
• pretty fingernails & toenails (only have about two toenails, and my hands look like i've been in a fight)
• my closet
• no bugs
• mtn. dew & sweet tea
• pretty purse, clothes, and shoes
• comfy couch
• running
• a flushing toilet & toilet paper
• phone upgrade
• subway
• cheesecake brownies & chocolate chip cookies
• keith urban concert
• american coffee
• two hour church services (never thought ray would not be considered "long winded")
• pretty hair & makeup

Things I will miss about UDH:

• every child here
• waking up to Jestoni's singing
• chicken & rice
• big brown eyes
• my pink mosquito net
• baby bob as my roomate
• sunrises & sunsets over the mountain
• bekah
• the "view"
• fruit juice
• fruit, especially pineapple
• constant hugs
• being called "ate"
• momma lyn, momma gwapa, ate red, jiji, nanay, tatay
• craft time
• worship
• washing clothes (soap talk)
• trike rides
• bonfires
• jeepney's
• ilonggo
• the river
• rain on the tin roof
• movie nights in the cr
• ....pretty much everything.

we need YOU

Alright. So, we need YOUR help!

A couple of night’s ago, Nanay came to Bekah and I with a concern. She simply told us she had a burden on her heart, and please join her in praying that God would provide. This upcoming school year there will be eleven orphans in college. There are currently four attending, and there are seven seniors in high school who would like to attend next year. Nanay said she has already talked to each of the children and explained to them that there is a possibility they will not all be able to attend college this upcoming year because of there being so many, and it costing so much to send them all. She told us that each child wants so badly to further their education, because it will be very difficult for them to earn a good living for their families without a degree.

 For a student to attend college here it cost about 10,000 pesos per semester. Which is $200 per semester. Please consider helping out. If you or someone you know would like to help a child go to college this upcoming year, please please let me know! You would be such a blessing! I can promise you they would be very grateful!!

feel free to email me at embugwhite_07@hotmail.com

(it's the easiest account for me to access here)

“You look like a manican….with a mountain nose!” 02. 22.2011

Things around UDH have been kind of crazy lately. Literally, crazy. Everything just feels kind of weird. For example, Bekah and I have been going by our watches the entire time we have been here, and they have been exactly right on time. Today, however, we arrived home from the Internet cafe at 12:30, which is when lunch usually is, and they had already eaten and were headed to school. They told us that it was after one already. Um..no it isn’t! haha. It seems like they are all going to bed much earlier than they were in the beginning. Things just feel sort of…weird! Filipinos are never very timely anyway.

On a funny note…..There are only two mirrors in this building. One in the bathroom, which is usually being used by 15 boys, and one in the hallway. So yesterday I was getting ready to go to Marble, and went to the hallway mirror to put make- up on. While I was standing there, Momma Gwapa * came by and said, “Oh my gosh…you look like a manican! …with a mountain nose!” haha. Wow! What a statement! I had no words for that! Momma Gwapa is Baby Bob’s care taker. Her room and my room are connected, so we see each other quite a bit.



Mama Gwapa



*Gwapa means beautiful in Ilonggo. Anytime Mama Gwapa sees me around she will say, "Oh my gosh...Emily Gwapa!" OR she will have Bobby call me "Ate Gwampa," meaning "Beautiful sister." Becuaee this has sort of become her "thing," Bekah and I decided we should begin calling her Mama Gwama. Seemed fitting.



Jiji on the very crowded jeepney





Yesterday, Bekah, Jiji, and I went to Marble to do a little shopping! We are having American Day this upcoming Saturday, the 26^th, so we had to get some groceries! It was such a fun day! Bekah and I had so much fun looking for food that we have now been craving for weeks! We bought so much food! I hope the children are really hungry on Saturday! We went to Greenwich* for pizza and lasagna at lunch! It was incredible! Although I don't have pizza all that much,  I have definitely missed it! We also found the imported chocolate! They had Reese’s and Hershey’s! I think we both died and went to Heaven. You never realize how much you take for granted life's simple pleasures until you are forced to do without.  Did I mention we paid six bucks for each candy bar?! Definitely a luxury over here.  The buy of the day was Mountain Dew! I might slightly be addicted to it, so it's been kind of awful to do without. Needless to say,  It was such a fun, much needed day!

Of course we were stared at all day! Jiji thought it was really funny, especially at lunch! We sat at a table that was right in front of the cash register, and counter where all of the workers were. They just kept staring at us. Jiji had to get up and go ask them for a straw for all of us, and she came back laughing!! She said, “They are staring at you because of your eyes! They tell me they can’t stop looking at them!” haha. At this point, I have been to the Philippines enough times, and stayed in their country long enogh that I feel like I just belong here, and shouldn't stick out at all. I guess these blue eyes will never totally blend in.

Here is a few pictures of the greatness we bought yesterday:

*Greenwich is kind of like Pizza Hut in America.



the bus headed to marble (aka the "big city")



small amount of all the goodness we purchased

a large part of the juice will be boarding the plane back to the usa with me :)

mountain dew..woo hoo!

the meat secion of the grocery=gross
experiencing this a few hundred times has taught me how to totally shut my nose off from smelling.
i think it might be a talent? ha!

hamburgers
definitely not the usa kind..

Today, we went to the Internet Cafe, and I got to Skype with my family! It was really great to see them! Kind of funny to think that today might be the last time they see me through a computer screen before they see me in person! Less than a week now until I am home! That’s such a strange thought to me! I can’t wait to see them though!

This afternoon we have an activity planned! We have white t-shirts and paint! We are all planning to put our hand prints on each other’s shirts and sign them. It will be fun! I just hope they turn out cute J I’ll post pictures later!

T-Shirts & Bonfire

23 February 2011

It’s 10:15 p.m. here on Saturday. Today has been such a crazy day! (I feel like I say that a lot when describing UDH..ha) We walked the elementary to school, washed lots and lots of clothes, had an Ilonggo lesson, organized things for the evening activities, took a nap, had activity, and finished up the night with a bonfire for Sam’s birthday!

Today’s activity was painting t-shirts. The goal was for everyone to go around and put their handprint and name on each person’s t-shirt. Surprisingly, the elementary did pretty well. However, the highschoolers were very interesting. Their shirts look very, very nice! The funny thing about them is they are such perfectionist! They made sure each handprint was perfect, and some wouldn’t even let everyone put their handprint on it because it was becoming too crowded! They looked really great though. Gemboy told us “It was a waste!” Maybe because we were using so much paint, but he seemed to really be enjoying it, and got super excited whenever his handprint was “Perfect!” Jestoni told us they all really enjoyed doing that, because they had never had the opportunity to do anything like that before! I just hope they don’t try and scrub them like they do all of their other clothes, or there might not be any paint left on them! Bekah and I think that maybe we have everyone’s handprint and names on our shirts, but we aren’t quit sure! They are super cute though.

I am certain we will cherish them for a very long time.



Janet




Jestoni making sure his is absolutely perfect




WOW





me, Bob, Bekah




Judy Ann, Sam, Jessa



WOW



Melody, Alvin, Me, Jestoni




UDH



Today was Sam’s birthday. They had a party earlier in the day for him with the younger kids like Angel, KB, JP, Don Don, and Angeline. Then, tonight after dinner we had a little bonfire for him. It was much more organized tonight, and lots of fun! We had s’mores again, of course! Sam loves them, but who doesn’t?! We sang a couple of songs around the fire. Everyone seemed to really enjoy it. I know I did!

most important part of a bonfire

I am trying to forget that I only have a couple of days left here; however, it seems like everything I do I put a number on it. Like every time I walk the kids to school I think, only 3 more times. Just things like that. It’s going to be a very sad day.

Please pray for Nanay. She hasn’t been feeling well for the past couple of days. She has been having stomach issues. She left tonight, and went to the hospital. Pray for her healing!
　
　
P.S.

The flying beatles constantly flying into my walls and net are driving me crazyyy! I’m going to sleep!!