Today was a tough day because we had to say see you later to Aunt Ash and Momee.  We are so glad that they were able to come down, meet Noah, and spend some time with us over this long Easter weekend.  The weekend was filled with activity as we wanted to show our family the Honduran ropes.  They arrived on Friday and received a friendly welcome from Noah, who took to them both very quickly.  We hung around the hotel Friday, ate dinner, and introduced Aunt Ash and Momee to Noah’s dance moves!  Our hotel has an open air roof with flashing colored lights, so at night we go up top, play some music, and let loose!  Noah has got some moves for sure!  Mama and Daddy…not so much.  HaHa! But we have fun!  On Saturday, we headed out of the city to do some sightseeing and shopping.  We fed the ducks and turtles in Santa Lucia and then fed ourselves some freshly made plantain chips.  Aunt Ash and Momee enjoyed shopping at a store with some local flowers, plants, and outdoor decor.  After that, we were able to shop in Valle De Angeles before enjoying a Honduran meal at El Roble.  On Sunday, we were able to tune in online to our Pinelake’s Easter service and worship our risen Lord from Honduras!  We are so grateful that we can connect with our church family in that way.  Sunday afternoon we made a trip to a nearby mall and let Noah play in the kid’s area.  We all got some chocolate/swirl ice cream while Daddy got some coffee.  Mama went to give Noah a bite of his chocolate/swirl ice cream cone and all the ice cream slid off the cone and onto the ground!  Noah looked at it on the ground like, “I know that wasn’t my ice cream,”  Haha!  Thankfully the staff at Dunkin Donuts was gracious and gave us a new ice cream cone for Noah.  He loves chocolate ice cream!  Monday we had planned to go to the zoo, but it was closed; so we went to a neighboring park to let Noah play on the slides, swings, and see saws.  

Next, we walked a nature trail up to the huge Jesus statue.  It’s a really beautiful place, and the statue is amazing to see.  There was also a replica of a tomb containing Jesus.  So thankful that the real tomb is empty!  What a special experience to have been able to visit this park, especially during this Easter weekend.  We are so grateful to have spent Easter with Noah this year and that Aunt Ash and Momee could join us!  Seeing Noah run down the trail towards the huge statue of Jesus with His arms open wide made us think of the verse in Matthew, “Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 19:14).  That’s how we all should be, like children running into the arms of our Savior!

During the last two weeks and since we last blogged, we have been just waiting for the new birth certificate to be done, but expect it to be done a week from today on the 25th.  Then, we can continue the legal process and work towards coming home.  We have continued our daily/weekly schedules that we established the first two weeks we were here.  We are so impressed with how Noah is picking up on English.  He is so smart!   There are so many Spanish words and phrases he used to say that now he says in English…like Buenos Dias/Good Morning, Adios/Goodbye, Gracias/Thank You, Zapatos/Shoes, Agua/Water, Pelota/Ball, and so many more.  He is getting good at saying animal names and making and their sounds.  He likes to sing Old McDonald Had a Farm.  He has learned how to put 3-dimensional shape blocks in their correct spots.  And now, he has even learned what “time out” is LOL.  We took Noah to the arcade for the first time, which he really enjoyed.  He enjoys Facetiming with family and friends.  We were also able to spend a few days at the beach, introducing Noah to the sand and water for the first time.  He loved the sand (but not so much the taste of it 😝), the ocean water, and the swimming pool.  He became famous around the hotel where we stayed because of his dancing performance in front of everyone there.  Anytime we were not in our room, someone was saying “Hi Noah! Can you dance for us?” So funny!  it was great to get away for a few days and it helped pass the time as well.    

The process has been so long but we’re getting closer to coming back home - shooting for May 10th, so prayers for that would be appreciated.  Ready to see everyone and for Noah to meet you all!