Last weekend an incredibly generous family, whose child Matthew is in my class, hosted the whole Highlands staff for a traditional Thanksgiving feast in their home a few days early. (Just a reminder: They don't celebrate Thanksgiving in Bolivia.) It was such a blessing to have good food and wonderful quality time with my family here, especially since I miss my family in the States so much. A really touching moment was when we were all sharing things we were thankful for and the mom who hosted broke down in tears when telling us what a blessing the school was to her. It's really amazing to see how we can bless each other and build each other up...I don't think she'll ever really know what a joy it is to all of us to have Thanksgiving at their home each year. After a delicious dinner, we watched "A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" and played games around the fireplace. I'm thankful for such a sweet time. It made missing Thanksgiving with my family back home a little bit easier. 
On another note, this past week at school we celebrated Spirit Week with Crazy Hat Day (her hat says "I love first grade"),
Tacky Day,
Favorite Book Character Day (I was Olivia the Pig. If you haven't read any of her books, I highly recommend them),
Pajama Day (this kid didn't soil his pants, he just sat in the dirt...too funny, especially in his onesie!)
and Team Day, which was like a big field day for the whole school. It was really incredible to watch the high school kids lead the little ones and encourage them in the events (and also a nice break for the teachers!). I was able to observe the students from my station, and it just became so evident to me how much God's hand is over the school.
This was refreshing, especially since that evening my roommates and I were invited to a student's house for dinner and, heartbroken, I observed the parenting skills, or lack thereof, of a single father. It seems many parents at our school try to buy their way to kids' hearts, don't know Jesus and try to depend on their own strength day in and day out to guide their children, and put the responsibility of raising their kids onto their hired help. It can be overwhelming, but by the grace of God, I'm thankful to be at Highlands to try to point my little ones to their Heavenly Daddy that won't ever fail them.
Thank you, God, for the beautiful people in my life, who all teach me so much every day.
In other dress-up news, it didn't work out for my roommates and I to have our costume/masquerade party Halloween weekend, so we scheduled it for the following. We were not characters, but rather an era--an incredible decade in which fashionable clothing was at its peak of classiness and hairstyles were big and beautiful. We were the '80s. Here's the female crew in attendance. L to R: Sarah Palin, 80s chicks, pregnant hick lady, Tim the biker, butterfly, and ant
Since my roomies and I can be overachievers, we didn't settle for just dressing up in 80s attire--oh no. We learned the dance to "Thriller" and performed it for everyone, leggings, hot pink lipstick and all. Who says missionaries can't throw fun parties?
Friday was my first parent-teacher conference day, and I survived! Most of them said their children were very happy and loved school. What an answer to my prayers, both to have survived conferences and to find out that my students do actually enjoy my class. I still have to be mean Ms. Letchworth oftentimes as they learn the rules and routine of a full day at school, but what a blessing to know that my little ones enjoy coming to school and learning! I pray that they can continue to learn and grow, to see the love of Jesus in me and the other teachers, and that I can rely on God's strength to teach and love them well the remainder of the year.
After we finished victoriously, we stayed at a lovely wildlife reservation/lodge. There were animals everywhere...not just dogs and cats, but monkeys, macaws, an ocelot, ducks, bunnies, and more monkeys. It was one of the coolest places I've ever visited. Monkeys would jump up on you and "talk" to you. Now I'm not an advocate of evolution, but it was really fascinating to watch how humanlike these guys' actions were. That hairy thing on my lap is a spider monkey.
One of our other teacher friends met up with us and spent the night in our tiki hut-type cottage after we played in the jungle together. 
It was so peaceful and relaxing, and an incredible reminder of the beauty of God's creation. Fabuloso.
Last weekend I traveled to Copacabana (yes, like the song) with some other teachers and students from my school. We hiked and camped for three days...the longest I've walked in my life! 
Even though the hiking was a bit strenuous (think Bolivian mountains at 14,000 feet), it made everything else that much more rewarding. Arriving at our destination was that much more victorious, meals were that much tastier, and sleep and rest were that much more appreciated. 
It was great to get to know some of the older students better and to bond over hard work and appreciating the wonders of God's creation...
...including some llamas along the way...
...and some pigs. These animals are proof that God has a sense of humor.
The views were absolutely breath-taking (well, both the scenery and the lack of air at such high altitude). 
My favorite part was camping out the second night on the beach of Lake Titicaca.
I'm so grateful for opportunities to travel rather inexpensively and experience life in another culture. I'm beginning to learn the importance of living it to the fullest! I have a much greater appreciation for the Creator and his creation, for rest time away from work, and for shared experiences that allow people to grow closer. Thank you to all of you who've made this bit of traveling possible. What an amazing couple of weekends!
