Cooking in the Dark

Well as usual the electricty went out. It happens about once a week, not too bad. But it happened at sunset as I was cooking. At least I have a gas stove so I did not have to worry. :)

Humitas for Dinner

So as we were filling up our gas tank this evening, we noticed a woman by sitting by herself with a huge pot in front of her. So we figured we would see what she was selling. We found a delicious treat inside that huge pot. Humitas! Also known as tamales, but here in Bolivia they are called humitas. We bought 4 for $1.07 and brought them home. We bought two that were steamed and the other two were made in a pachamanca oven. They are filled with corn and cheese. Very good and sweet. Filling and cheap. I never get sick of the traditional food here. They can make some of the tastiest food with just a few things and spices. We are starting to notice a lot more women selling humitas in the street. Life is good here. :) 

Bella's Surgery

So Justin and I took Bella (our cat) to the vet this morning at 8am. We decided to have her spayed since there are way to many cats here and I do not want to have a litter of kittens on my hands. So we took her in. The vet came in after we were there. She said "I knew you would be on time." LOL So many are not here. Anyways she gave Bella a shot and in less than 30 seconds she was out. Told us to return in 2 hours to get her. We did she was still waking up and as drunk as a sailor from the meds. Paid a total of $50 for everything. Which I would pay again if it meant no kittens. The vet did an amazing job, sutures look great, gave her an I.V of fluids, x-rays, the works. Now we are taking care of her, she is super drunk from the meds still, but doing fine. I have to take her in tomorrow and Wednesday for some antibiotics they put on the wound. All for that one price. I love the prices here in Bolivia.
 

Bella in the sun after her surgery. No she is not dead. Though it does look that way.

Bella waking up from her surgery.

Just Wanted to Post

Justin took this today of me. Had to post it. I think it is one of my better shots. :D

Another Day in the Campo

Another long day is service today. We worked some country territory again this week. Had an amazing time. I worked with two young sisters. So sweet. They held my hand and the younger kept burying her head into my stomach and I would brush her hair. It was so sweet. I thank Jehovah so much for letting the ones here treat us like their family. It makes it easier. She would even hold Justin's hand. For a moment we felt what it was like to have a child. Anyways...had a great day. The girls loved taking photos with my camera, it amazes them. Here are some photos I caught today in service.

 A Mantis we found in service. Br. Roca so kindly modeled for me.

 A house made out of plastic bottles filled with sand. Needless to say it was not complete.

 Grape leaves dying. Grape season is over here. 

 Daria with a horse we found walking in the vineyard.

 

Vineyards in the Fall.

 Jaclyn was my service partner with her little sister, Daria, below today also.

 Daria in the back of the truck as we were driving to the new territory.

 Our group driving to a remote area of territory. I (Steph) found a great call. Wish we did this territory more she was so nice. (Side Note: When you pay a toll to come out here they ask you to put your seat belts on, but don't care if you have 10 people in the back of your truck. LOL

 Justin playing with Daria. All day long they were hitting each other with this sticker plant.

Yolanda and her girls (Jaclyn and Daria)walking home. We drove them as far as possible, but the truck would not go further. They walk sooooo far every meeting and service. A sister with her 3 girls. They are usually the earliest at each meeting and service. What a great example for us.

Robbed at the Market....Almost

Today I had a great day at the American Clothing Market. It happens ever Wednesday during the whole day. They sell all the unsellable stuff from Goodwill, Kohl's and other department stores. I went with Janice and we shopped 'till we dropped. We both brought a backpack and filled it up completely. And yes I found a Genuine Burberrry Cosmetic bag. The cost....$1.25. Seriously awesome. They don't know what that is here so they sold it super cheap because of the size. :D Anyways when we were shopping I had put my phone in my pocket because I had been texting some friends and a guy tried to steal it from me. I felt his hand go into my pocket and everything. I turned around he didn't even have time to put it away. I grabbed his hand and struggled with him for a moment. Then I got it out of his hand. He walked away nonchalantly, like nothing happened. I was more surprised by his lack of fear then his brazen try at stealing something. He was the worst pick pocket ever. I scratched his hands so bad I bent my nails back, now they hurt. What is worse the ladies selling around us saw him watching us and trying to find something to steal and said nothing until after. Some help they were. Well that was my thrilling event for the day. I am happy with my deals I got and the beautiful clothing. :)

Monday at the Market

Today I took a lot of video at our HUGE farmer's market. I took a lot of video, but was not able to post it all due to the huge size. So here is a clip of one of the videos. Sorry it is not clear or stable, the ground is not the flattest. :) This is just a very small part of the market. You can buy absolutely anything here.

Preaching in Calamuchita

So about 30 -45 minutes from Tarija we have a small town called Calamuchita. It is a part of our territory that we rarely get to go to, since no one really has a car to go to it. Today we made a special day of service here and had a great time. We brought our lunch and ate all together ad Br. and Sr. Michel's house. Here are some photos from today.

Yes this kid does have a machete.

Bones from two unfortunate pigs.


Two young sisters in our hall preaching. They are amazing. They were writing down their spiritual goals in service and showing them to us. What initiative.

The before shots are funny. He did not was to smile until I told him he was a good model. LOL Then I could not get him to stop smiling.

Sister Michel's Pig. He was eating and so happy.

Sr. Michel's Goat. Very regal.

A flower at Sr. Michel's house, she did not know the name. But how beautiful.

Two sisters from our congregation. The one on the right "Dominga" is in her late 80's.

This was only part of our group. We had over 50 in service.

Women here carry their kids on their backs until they are 4 or so.

Me, Gabby, Giovanna in service.

Anna and her sister Daria. They preached the whole day and never complained once.

Some views of the area.

Invitation Work

Finally after a week of having a cold, I (Stephanie) was able to go in service today. I was feeling so down not being able to go. Had a good day today. Lots of people said they would come, some even shook our hands and thanked us. What a far cry from what I am use too. We did have a few turn us down, but the others made us feel so good.

Found a lady who sold turkeys. She wanted us to buy one. At least we know where to go get one if we want one. The only problem is that they were still alive. I might have to get some help with that if I get one. :(


So I bought a Jasmine the other day. Well about 2 weeks ago now. And it is actually surviving. I have not killed it yet. Anyone who know me, knows I kill every plant I come in contact with. I can kill Bamboo. So I am so excited that this is a new bloom on my Jasmine. I just hope it can survive Justin taking care of it while I am in Germany. :)

Marathon on the Streets of Tarija

Steph was sick this morning so I was running a little later than usual going to the meeting. I still had plenty of time to spare until I ran into a traffic jam caused by a marathon. Instead of redirecting traffic around it, we had to wait for 3,000 people to run across the main road. Needless to say our meeting started late and our visiting speaker gave his talk after the consideration of the Watchtower Study. You never know what you're going to see here.

Salt Rock from Yacuiba Bolivia

So while we were in service this morning doing the invitation work, we left an invitation with a gentleman who sells Salt Rock Lamps. So we decided to buy one from him. It is from the city of Yacuiba in Bolivia. I like it because it is natural and is suppose to help you feel relaxed. We will see. :)

Our Little Slice of Bolivian Heaven

This month marks our 6 month anniversary of moving here to Bolivia. We finally decided that we'd take a quick video of our humble abode to share with our friends and family. Enjoy!