Name Game

I am 4 months pregnant and feeling much better. I am still fighting exhaustion daily but can handle heavy eyes better then projectile vomiting. I go back to the doctor in one week for a general check up and return two weeks later to try to discover the genders. Which brings me to a current debate in the Berkemeier household…names? Many people have the name of their offspring picked out years before their baby’s debut but not us. Not only are we struggling to brainstorm names that are worthwhile in our eyes, which I blame on the baby brain, but Brent and I have feuding opinions on the names the other likes. And girls’ names are our biggest debate. We both really want something shorter, because it will be paired with long name Berkemeier, and unique. Obviously our understanding of short and unique varies. If you have any suggestions that will help complicate the situation, please feel free to comment. If not, we will continue to fight this one out on our own. TO BE CONTINUED…

We Have Baby(ies) on Board!!

About 8 weeks ago, Brent and I got the exciting news that we are having a baby. We were excited and ready to take the next step together. Over those 8 weeks, I noticed some excessive symptoms. The most bothersome was the nausea. I called dinosaurs at least 3 to 4 times daily for 3 to 4 weeks; I felt weak and drained. Around 8 weeks along I noticed a baby bump beginning to appear. I was alarmed at the quick growth of my belly because the doctr had told us at the first appointment that I would not begin showing until about 15-16 weeks. Not only did I start to show, it began to grow quickly.

On April 1, 2009 I had my second appointment with the doctor. I was about 11 weeks along at that time, we thought. The doctor comes into the room and starts with general questions: How have you been feeling? Do you have any concerns/questions? I told him that I was very nauseas in the beginning but that now how subsided, but I am extremely tired. He said that is normal and didn’t act concerned. I proceeded to tell him that I was also already starting to show a good bit and thought that it was probably a little early for me to already have the bump. He kind of laughed as he walked over to examine me. As I laid down and revealed my belly his words were, “Oh my, you are big. You look like you are a month farther along then you really are.” I proceeded to tell him, like I did everyone else even when people doubted me, my hormone levels were high the first time, I measured big the first time, I have been so sick and so tired and not to mention showing early… do you think I could be carrying twins? He asked me if twins ran in my family and I told him yes there are a couple of sets. He began to consider my question as he carried on to the heartbeat. He put the thingy on my belly and right away we could hear the heart. It was exciting but we sat quietly as we listened intently for a second heartbeat. There is was…maybe! We could hear another, but it was not has strong and clear as the first. The doctor could not confirm if it was two babies or the transfer of the other heartbeat. So we moved forward with an ultrasound.

As we walked into the room we were excited, nervous, curious, hopeful, and doubtful all at the same time. I laid down and she placed the scan directly over the first baby. It was awesome! The profile was so clear and perfect. About 10 seconds after beginning the scan, she looked at us with a stone serious face and said, there are two babies in here. We asked her if she was serious or if it was an April Fool’s joke. She said she would not joke about that; there are two babies. Brent and I overwhelmed with emotion started to cry as we realized this great gift from God. She couldn’t tell if they were identical or fraternal but was leaning towards fraternal because she thought she saw two placentas and fraternal are the twins that are genetic.

I go back to the doctor in 4 weeks. Hopefully, then we will have a better idea if they are fraternal or identical and maybe even the gender of the babies. In the mean time, we are rushing about trying to get things in place while mommy still feels good. Please pray for mommy and babies as we are now a high risk pregnancy, mommy’s greatest fear!!

He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you." Matthew 17:20

“THE SEED” IS NOW OPEN AND NOW ENROLLING! Mustard Seeds open its door on January 12th and has 2 full-time employees plus my partner and me and 2 part-time employees. Our enrollment continues to grow and tours continue to be given. I am so blessed to be my own boss, amazed at what I see, and excited about the possibilities. Please, feel free to stop by and check the place out anytime you are in the area and if you know of someone who has children and would be near by, please pass our name on.

Ashley and Candy's Wedding 12-6-2008

On December 6, 2008 Ashley married his fiancé Candace. It was a weekend getaway for everyone. We all stayed in a chalet high up on the mountain top in Gatlinburg. On Saturday, we all witnessed their vows and celebrated with them at their reception. They bought a house in Frankfort and are expecting a baby in June.

Nicaragua 2008

This Thanksgiving was like no other Thanksgiving that I have ever experienced. Instead of gathering around the dining room table, stuffing ourselves miserable with delicious holiday foods, I spent the week of Thanksgiving in a third world country with no hot water, open windows, the Spanish language, bunk beds, hammocks, riding around in the bed of a truck over dirt roads while dodging spider infested vegetation and lets not forget the endless amounts of rice and beans or beans and rice. But through all my physical discomfort, I was able to reflect on the many blessings of my life. The Good Lord has truly blessed me and I try to show praise to him everyday but feel like I am not doing a sufficient job when comparing the godly gifts of my life. But Nicaragua gave me the time to get alone with God and to meditate on his word and his role in my life. I am very thankful that I know God but more thankful for the living relationship that we have.

I wish that everyone would take the time to visit a third world country. It gives you new perspective and is oh so humbling. Words just do not do the experience justice but I will try to give you an overview of what the week entailed.

Saturday November, 22: Travel and Arrival
We flew from Cincinnati to Miami (2 hours) and then from Miami to Managua (2 hours). When we arrived at the airport in Managua it was like a different world. The people, the language, the procedures and not to mention we were the minority amongst hundreds. You immediately feel lack of control and security seems to pass quickly when your surroundings seem as if you are in a dream and can’t wake up. We finally get through Nicaraguan customs and through the crowd see a man holding a little sign that read “Brent Berkemeier.” It was our ride. We went over to him and he quickly took our bags and placed them in a truck, but still no communication. But who needs words? We knew exactly what was about to happen. We looked at each other and giggled as we began to hoist each other up into the bed of this massive old truck. In the bed of the truck we found our seats, plastic lawn chairs. We each claimed one and held on for we knew the dirt roads were going to deliver a rough, long ride.

As we began to travel to the Amigo’s home, we were able to travel through several cities in Nicaragua quickly getting introduced to the culture. We shared the road with vehicles, motos (dirt bikes), horse drawn carts, people on horseback, bicycles loaded down with 2-3 people, and people on foot. As people passed they couldn’t help but stare as 8 “Gringos” or whitey traveling through their streets. We arrived in Chinandega, 3 1/2 hours later after breaking down 3 times and getting passed by a horse drawn cart. We were exhausted from the day’s travels but anxious to see where we would be staying and to hear the schedule for the week. We met the staff, unpacked our bags and got the low down on the house rules like you can only #1 in the toilet inside and #2 is reserved for the toilet on the driveway (there were walls). Also remember not to throw ANYTHING down the toilet! And there was absolutely no communication with the outside world. That means, no phone, tv, computers, nothing. After a brief meeting we all retreated to our beds to rest up for the adventures to come.

Sunday November, 23: Serra Negra
This was the day I got to whoop an active volcano! It took us about 2 hours to reach the peak of the volcano. Once to the top the views were amazing! We could see the ocean, the crater from when the volcano erupted, surrounding volcanoes, villages, and lots of open space. After exploring the views and the volcano itself it was time to return to the bottom. And how did we do that? We leaned back and ran down. Something that took us 2 hours to climb, only took us 7 minutes to race down. It’s amazing how much more you can get accomplished when gravity is on your side! Once everyone made it safely to the base, we loaded back into the ambulance, our ride for the week, and ventured back to the Amigo’s home, taking in the scenery all along the way.
Climbing an active volcano…check√

Monday November 23: Villa Catalina
Today was our first day in the Villa. John Bland, the President of Amigos for Christ, visited Nicaragua in the late 90’s on a mission trip when God pulled on his heart strings. He witnessed the devastation of Hurricane Mitch and knew that he needed to try to help. He returned home to raise money and then returned back to Nicaragua for a proposal to all he families living in the dump, equivalent to our BCI landfills. He told the people of the dumps that if they would move to a field and help him, he would build them a home and a village. He had the money but needed their help to make it happen. Some joined him and others stayed to continue life in the dump, because they knew they could survive here even though that is all is was, survival. John took those families and helped them build a village just like he promised. This week we were helping them to continue to build their village. We were to pour the concrete floor for a new school that the Villa was building. That didn’t sound too difficult until I saw the available resources. This was going to be a killer week!
The Nicas mixed the concrete and we were to carry the mixed concrete about 30 yards in 5 gallon buckets where we then dumped a small amount to then return to refill and repeat. The job was endless and physically draining! Periodically we stopped to take a break and play with the kids of the Villa which reenergized us for s bit more. At dusk, we were tired and ready to head home, shower, eat, fellowship a small bit and then hit the sack. I slept like a rock that night as you can imagine.

Tuesday November 24: The Amigos Farm
This day started off very slow! We arrived at the Amigo’s farm around 9 and sat around until about 11. At 11, we began to plant crops, prune plantain trees with machetes and later filled in holes from the irrigation system that was just laid. The work was again very physical and the heat was intense. It was about mid-upper 90’s as we filled miles of ditches. We stopped often for breaks and to get out of the scolding heat. At the days end, we managed to carry our broken bodies back to the truck alongside the Amigo workers as they talked about how hard they are working us this week and how impressed they were with how hard we worked. It’s amazing how much more you can get done when you work for the Lord!
That night we watched the boys play the Nicas in basketball. Basketball was obviously not the Nica’s sport. It was amazing to see the difference in their skill levels. Our boys won every time by many points. After the games were over we went into the town to see Nicaraguan life after dark. The rules were to not go off by yourself (anyone) and do not give anyone money or else they will bombard you. In the park we ate taquitos, pompusia and Nica shakes. The food looked good and smelled good but did not like me. My stomach ached every time I ate outside of the house. It was just too greasy and heavy for me to get use to. Everyone else enjoyed the food. I enjoyed the atmosphere. It was a family friendly place similar to a carnival here in the states, minus the rides. It was awesome seeing the culture and being apart of it while we were there.

Wednesday November 25: Villa Catalina
We returned to the Villa to continue our work on the concrete floors. Today I decided to help as much as I felt like I could, but to remember why I traveled hundreds of miles. I am a people person and know that this is a Godly gift that I have been blessed with and I wanted to be sure to utilize my gifts. So, I carried concrete but took a break to color with the children of the Villa. They loved coloring! Kids came from all over to join in the fun. Many children colored pictures for their family members or for themselves and some colored pics for us. They loved being able to give something back to us and for us it was a great physical reminder of our time there. Later in the day I pulled out stickers for the kids and face paint. They had so much fun with the small items that we brought for them.

Through all the fun and activity I met this precious angel, Stavling. When I looked in her eyes I saw such a loving spirit and kind soul. I was immediately drawn to her and her to me. She had a younger sister, Carlita, who joined us. We walked hand in hand all around the Villa for the rest of the day. We ventured over to one of the houses where we bought Cokes which were delicious! They were ice cold and from a glass bottle. After our cokes we played games like duck, duck, goose, and ring around the Rosie. At the day’s end we hugged and left knowing that we had another day. As we drove away we watched each other disappear and then I prayed to thank God for encouragement and purpose and for the hope of seeing them again tomorrow. We returned to the Amigo home for out door showers, dinner, fellowship and Ucher. I slept much better that night hoping to see Stavling and Carlita again tomorrow.

Thursday November 26: Villa Cantilena
Our day started off with a visit to a local all girls orphanage. We made bracelets and necklaces with the girls. Later we played a 25 person game of hide and seek which was followed by a group dance session. They showed us dances from their culture and we shared danced from our culture. We laughed and played until it was time for them to go to mass. After the girls headed off to mass we began to ask many questions about the orphanage. We were surprised to find out that some of the girls were orphans but some where just dropped off by family because they could not provide for them. The Nica law allows people to do this without questions. We then asked about adoption. Was it possible for people of another country to adopt children from Nicaragua? The answer is no. No, because some of the kids were being taken to brothels and used for sex slavery so Nicaragua now does not allow adoption outside of the boarders. We were all saddened by this because we felt like the sex slave population was probably such a small percentage of the adoption stories but they ruined many great opportunities for others to adopt.
After the orphanage, we returned to the Villa to continue our work on the school floors. I was pleased to be greeted by Stavling and Carlita. Today, I really took time to enjoy their company and play with the kids of the Villa. We played games, colored, painted finger nails and just did whatever we felt like getting into. It was very freeing to not worry about the work but to enjoy the company of Christ’s beautiful children.
That evening we had a Thanksgiving meal with the staff which included about 6 Americans and 25 Nicaraguans. We ate traditional American food like turkey, sweet potato casserole, stuffing, mash potatoes and pumpkin pie. It was fun to share a little bit of our culture with the Nicas since they had shared so much of theirs with us. It was a great place and time to reflect upon the blessings in my life. I realized that through the grace of God, I have so much to be thankful for and that I do not give thanks to God enough. I felt humbled and very blessed in that moment.

Friday November 27: Chinandega
As we arrived to the Villa today I immediately began searching for my Stavling and Carlita but was disappointed to not see her. We began our work for the day which was not concrete because we finished that the day before but was setting up for the promotion or graduation of the elementary students to the next grade. Shortly after beginning work, Stace and I dismissed ourselves from the work to go find our girls. We knocked on their door and after a short what the door opened. It was Carlita and Stavling in their towels. They started to giggle and scream from excitement. We laughed and told them to hurry up and come to the school so that we could play. They agreed and closed the door in a hurry so that they could meet us as soon as possible. We were working when we felt little tugs on our shirts. It was Stavling and Carlita! We hugged and walked away hand in hand with the two to go play. We continued coloring, face painting and games with the other children. From the start of that day they talked about us going to their home. About mid day when the boys finished up the promotion area, I grabbed Brent and asked him to join Stace and me to their house. He agreed. They were so excited to show us where they lived and to meet their mother. We walked to the door and were welcomed with a big smile and those same loving eyes that I saw in Stavling. The two girls lived with their mother in a 3 room house built by Amigos and the people of the Villa. The bare walls and the dirt floor were cold and solemn and the conversation was broken but the love was glorifying! Santos, the mom, showed us her report cards from school, the girls’ report cards, graded papers, anything that they could physically show us that had meaning to them. They had very little material things but were so excited to have us in their home.
It was so amazing to be apart of the real culture of Nicaragua and to meet the people of the Villa and to see first hand their daily struggles and blessings. I hope to return to the Villa soon and while visiting I want my 2 girls beside me. I miss them and the purity of their hearts.
After leaving the Villa, we went to a natural spring where we could relax the way the natives did. As we pulled up to the spring the many Nica eyes were immediately glued to us like they been so many times that week. We didn’t mind. We just smiled and waved as we dove into the crystal clear, natural body of water. I could not believe how clear the water was. I had to be convinced that the water was pure and not consumed but hundreds of chemicals like the pools back home. It was BEAUTIFUL!! This was a great time for everyone to relax and recap the events of the week. I was inspired by the insight and perspective of the group. We laughed, we cried but most important we were changed by the events we had experienced together through Christ. We talked about each others’ strengths and how our weaknesses where overcompensated by someone else’s strength. We had bonded with each other, the Nicas, and Christ.
We returned to the house to shower up and to get ready to go out on the town, Nica-style. We went to a local restaurant/bar to take in more of the culture. It was different but very similar. I was most excited to hear the dj play my request of JT “Bringing Sexy Back.” We all danced and fellowshipped into the early hours not wanting it all to come to an end.

Saturday November 28: The beach
Today we drove 2 ½ hours in the back of a cramped ambulance, on dirt roads to the most beautiful beach I have ever seen. It was remote but well worth the drive and a great finale to an awesome week. We lounged around, played in the water and sand, played ultimate Frisbee, took pictures, and took in the most breath-taking sunset. It all was so bitter-sweet! I was ready to return home to the comforts of my life, see my dog, eat food that was not fried, but I loved who I was here. I didn’t want to loose my new found outlook on life; I didn’t want my friends to loose their new outlook. I understand that when you go on mission trips and you surround yourself with God-loving people, who are doing God-loving things it is so easy to believe and to see God. It is more challenging to see God when there are the distractions of life, an agenda, work, family, society, temptation. But this was my challenge, it is everyone’s challenge. We need to be as God fearing at home as we were this week. We need to all remember how life could be and to be thankful for the blessings of the day. We serve a loving God who calls us to be his voice. We are called to spread the word not to just our church at home, our community, our family, and our friends but to everyone. I have learned to be bold in my faith and not to become bored or weary of serving, but to wake up every morning thinking, how am I going to make a difference today, because a day not serving is a day wasted!

I am amazed at people and the choices they make. All too often, people act impulsively in the moment and think later about their actions. No wonder the world is a crazy mess! I just do not understand how people never use the brain between their ears. Perhaps it is because there is nothing there. I am angry that people's actions seemed to always be dismissed. I believe in forgiveness and understand the reality that mistakes happen, but I don't think it is fair for people to constantly act in the moment never thinking about their actions and the people their poor choices affect. What does it take for them to finally learn?

Bowl-A-Thon was a Success!

Thank you so much for all who came and participated in our bowling fundraiser for our Nicaragua mission trip. We were able to raise $1020 which was only $30 shy of our remaining balance. This was a great blessing for us and we are very appreciative! We will be boarding the plane for our trip in less than a month and will be gone for a total of 8 days. We will be gone over the Thanksgiving holiday break so sorry to our families for missing out on the American tradition of a bountiful spread. Just know that we are being the church and loving on those who have significantly less than you and I. Actually, I can not think of a better place to be over the Thanksgiving holiday. We will truly be forced to reflect on the blessings in our lives and remind us that there is so much that we are thankful for. I will update you on our trip when we return so please continue to frequent the blog.