Sunsets, Surprises and Sunshine

 We've had far too many sunsets like the one above. We lost count of how many days in a row we had rain...lots of rain...nearly 22 inches in the past 6 weeks.

 Every now and again, we are treated to a spectacular sunset made all the more special after days of dreariness.

This was taken Thanksgiving evening on the beach in West Bay. Another lovely sunset, but what set this apart was the cruise ship passing just to the right of the palm tree below a full moon. Fabulous!!

We had a lovely Thanksgiving meal at Bananarama right on the beach, surrounded by lots of friends. The food was so good (always good when you don't have to cook it, right?), and the fellowship of old and new friends was wonderful.
Our friend, Nidia, was passing the big empty water jug turned collection jug, getting donations for the Christmas food  and toy drive. Their goal this year is to help 1500 families. We are excited to be able to help out again this year. This was one of the most enjoyable things we've ever done. (If you are interested in helping, let me know. All donations are eagerly accepted.) We brought back a lot of toys donated by our dear friend, Pat. Nidia was so thrilled to hear that!

Friday I was surprised by the appearance of Suyapa and Karla at our gate. Suyapa and I had gotten our days confused (no doubt my fault), and when I wasn't at church to pick her up, she walked to our house. Karla told her "it's good to walk so we don't get fat!" Smart girl.

Suyapa said that Karla loves our house and wants to live here! She also said Karla was a very good helper at home and liked to work, so I put them both to work. Suyapa's job was to scrub the concrete steps again, and Karla swept the floors and deck. Honduran girls love to sweep for some reason. Then she saw a few dirty dishes by the sink and asked if she could wash them. I let her. She dusted a bit and then while her mom mopped the floors, I taught Karla to play dominoes. She asked when she, Julissa and Leidy could come back.

Sunday, at church, Leidy also wanted to know when they could come again. She's been taking care of her little half brother in the afternoons while Concepcion works, so she hasn't been able to come to English lessons or "do anything!" We agreed that Thursday would be a good day and I asked her to tell the other girls. She ran off all excited!

Sunday was a beautiful day, the fourth day in a row without rain, so after church we headed to the beach.

 First, a little lunch with friends. Juan (in the middle) had his first ever Eggs Benedict and liked them, sort of.  Dee had already been out for a snorkel and said the water was still too murky to see anything.

           Susan and I took a little walk on the beach while we waited on our lunch to arrive.

It was so nice to have blue skies, sunshine and the beach! We did get in and swim after lunch. We'll just have to wait for the water to clear before we go out and snorkel along the reef.