Like most of our days this week, Thanksgiving day started early. We were up and preparing a meal for 75 people by 8:15 am.
Our Lady of Guadalupe hosts an annual Thanksgiving fellowship meal for the homeless, elderly, and anybody else in the community who is in need of a warm meal. We got to hear stories from people we very well may have overlooked in any other circumstance.
After cleaning up the meal at Our Lady of Guadalupe, we went to buy Adrianna’s two kids, Danica and Daniel, some gifts. We were so touched Tuesday night when Adrianna mentioned they rarely have a Christmas because all their money is spent on necessities. We knew right then we wanted to bless her kiddos.
We got Danica a jewelry making kit and Daniel an indoor basketball hoop. The look on their faces as they tore off the wrapping paper made this entire trip worth while.
We had dinner with the Mares family at their church. It’s safe to say we have enough to food to last us at least one more week in Taos, but unfortunately this is our last night.
We spent it star gazing on the banks of the Rio Grande counting shooting stars, and if that’s not on your bucket list it definitely should.
It’s quiet now. Some of us are getting ready for bed while others prepare their duffle bags for our drive home. We look forward to seeing the Adams family tomorrow night after a half day of service.
It sounds silly when people tell you that MAB is life changing, but I think we can safely this week has been just that.
More MAB Love
The New Mexihomies
Showing posts with label -2014 Thanksgiving Trips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label -2014 Thanksgiving Trips. Show all posts
New Mexico - Thanksgiving
The day started with the sunrise. We sat on the balcony watching the sun creep over the mountains, cups of coffee warming our cold hands.
We were motivated by Adriana's story, if not a little sleepy from our late shenanigans. It was a rough night for Melvin. We thought he was trying to avoid telling us about his first kiss. In reality poor Melvin was completely asleep. He awoke suddenly after falling onto Topher and levitated briefly. We were all impressed, but in true Melvin form he remained cool and casual.
It was an early day on the work site. Susan and Mark were nice enough to let us start an hour early so we could go to the hot springs during the daylight, but before we got started we climbed onto the roof to take pictures with the mountains in the background. With sore shoulders we climbed down and got back to work on the Mares family's future home.
While most of us continued to plaster, Anne Marie and Rachel tried their hand at tiling a shower. They got an entire shower wall tiled, and the rest of us finished plastering the living room wall and applied the third coat on the other walls.
We wrote the Mares family a message on one of their bedroom walls wishing them happiness in their future home, then we set out for the hot springs.
We are all thankful for Tyler's superior driving skills. The roads down to the springs were rough to say the least. Anne Marie had a minor (major) freak out, but that's only because she's an awesome and cautious site leader.
After changing into our swimsuits we hiked down into the gorge--it was... gorgeous, as Taylor exclaimed. We met our two new hippy friends and their dog then proceeded to invade their personal space by cramming 12 people into one hot spring. The situation was made slightly more awkward considering they were completely naked.
The hike back up the gorge was not as enjoyable as the hike down especially because most of us were not wearing pants. Taylor was nice enough to go ahead to warm up the van. He then proceeded to pretend we were locked out of the van. We were not amused.
We were welcomed home to crockpot chili. Amber was nice enough to put it all together the night before so we wouldn't have to wait for dinner after our cold hike out of the gorge.
After dinner we went out for ice cream, despite the cold weather, in what was a fitting ending for a SWEET day!
We're excited to help make Thanksgiving dinner for Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish who has been such a gracious host for the past five days.
MAB Love
The New Mexihomies
We were motivated by Adriana's story, if not a little sleepy from our late shenanigans. It was a rough night for Melvin. We thought he was trying to avoid telling us about his first kiss. In reality poor Melvin was completely asleep. He awoke suddenly after falling onto Topher and levitated briefly. We were all impressed, but in true Melvin form he remained cool and casual.
It was an early day on the work site. Susan and Mark were nice enough to let us start an hour early so we could go to the hot springs during the daylight, but before we got started we climbed onto the roof to take pictures with the mountains in the background. With sore shoulders we climbed down and got back to work on the Mares family's future home.
While most of us continued to plaster, Anne Marie and Rachel tried their hand at tiling a shower. They got an entire shower wall tiled, and the rest of us finished plastering the living room wall and applied the third coat on the other walls.
We wrote the Mares family a message on one of their bedroom walls wishing them happiness in their future home, then we set out for the hot springs.
We are all thankful for Tyler's superior driving skills. The roads down to the springs were rough to say the least. Anne Marie had a minor (major) freak out, but that's only because she's an awesome and cautious site leader.
After changing into our swimsuits we hiked down into the gorge--it was... gorgeous, as Taylor exclaimed. We met our two new hippy friends and their dog then proceeded to invade their personal space by cramming 12 people into one hot spring. The situation was made slightly more awkward considering they were completely naked.
The hike back up the gorge was not as enjoyable as the hike down especially because most of us were not wearing pants. Taylor was nice enough to go ahead to warm up the van. He then proceeded to pretend we were locked out of the van. We were not amused.
We were welcomed home to crockpot chili. Amber was nice enough to put it all together the night before so we wouldn't have to wait for dinner after our cold hike out of the gorge.
After dinner we went out for ice cream, despite the cold weather, in what was a fitting ending for a SWEET day!
We're excited to help make Thanksgiving dinner for Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish who has been such a gracious host for the past five days.
MAB Love
The New Mexihomies
New Mexico - Thanksgiving
Let's Get Plastered
Those of us that didn't wake up to a chorus of snoring woke up to a chorus of alarm clocks simultaneously ringing at 7:30 am.
One by one we prepared ourselves for our first full day on the work site. Although we stayed up all night telling one another "our deepest darkest secrets," everyone was in high spirits to begin the work on the Mares' home. As we waited for our site managers to come to the house, we belted out T-Swifts' "Blank Space." April also feed her string cheese to Boots!
Once Mark and Susan arrived on site, along with a few other volunteers, Mark showed us how to plaster the adobe walls. No one in our group had ever done anything like that before, and though Mark made it look easy, all of our arms were shaking after about a half hour of working.
By the end of our work day, we had completely plastered the master bedroom and the children's rooms with the first and second coats. We were extremely grateful for the space heaters Mark brought to site!
At the end of our work day, we spent a half hour scraping off the plaster from the tools so that they would be ready to go for the next day. It proved to be more difficult than we expected, but everyone put their best efforts in.
After we left, we had one hour to get 12 people showered and ready for dinner with Adrianna, Danica, Susan, Gerald, O'Ryan and Winter. Somehow we did it, but the last five people had to take ice showers because the heated water was gone.
Adrianna cooked everyone Frito pie and Gerald brought his famous salsa. Eating dinner with the family and the volunteers was lovely and touching. Adrianna opened up to all of us to tell us about her life story and how she came to apply for a Habitat for Humanity house. She brought the majority of the room to tears with her inspirational talk, and we were practically speechless at the end. Her love for God and her gratefulness to us and all the other volunteers reminded us once again why we are here in the first place.
Afterward, all of us helped stamp envelopes, and Danica showed off her sweet gymnastics moves!
As the night winds down, we are decorating Christmas ornaments for a Habitat for Humanity auction. We're all exhausted from the busy day, but we know it was all worth it! Hopefully tonight no one will snore so all of us can get a good night's rest.
More MAB Love
The New Mexihomies
Those of us that didn't wake up to a chorus of snoring woke up to a chorus of alarm clocks simultaneously ringing at 7:30 am.
One by one we prepared ourselves for our first full day on the work site. Although we stayed up all night telling one another "our deepest darkest secrets," everyone was in high spirits to begin the work on the Mares' home. As we waited for our site managers to come to the house, we belted out T-Swifts' "Blank Space." April also feed her string cheese to Boots!
Once Mark and Susan arrived on site, along with a few other volunteers, Mark showed us how to plaster the adobe walls. No one in our group had ever done anything like that before, and though Mark made it look easy, all of our arms were shaking after about a half hour of working.
By the end of our work day, we had completely plastered the master bedroom and the children's rooms with the first and second coats. We were extremely grateful for the space heaters Mark brought to site!
At the end of our work day, we spent a half hour scraping off the plaster from the tools so that they would be ready to go for the next day. It proved to be more difficult than we expected, but everyone put their best efforts in.
After we left, we had one hour to get 12 people showered and ready for dinner with Adrianna, Danica, Susan, Gerald, O'Ryan and Winter. Somehow we did it, but the last five people had to take ice showers because the heated water was gone.
Adrianna cooked everyone Frito pie and Gerald brought his famous salsa. Eating dinner with the family and the volunteers was lovely and touching. Adrianna opened up to all of us to tell us about her life story and how she came to apply for a Habitat for Humanity house. She brought the majority of the room to tears with her inspirational talk, and we were practically speechless at the end. Her love for God and her gratefulness to us and all the other volunteers reminded us once again why we are here in the first place.
Afterward, all of us helped stamp envelopes, and Danica showed off her sweet gymnastics moves!
As the night winds down, we are decorating Christmas ornaments for a Habitat for Humanity auction. We're all exhausted from the busy day, but we know it was all worth it! Hopefully tonight no one will snore so all of us can get a good night's rest.
More MAB Love
The New Mexihomies
New Mexico - Thanksgiving
The Way Here
By some miracle we managed to fit 24 bags, 12 air mattresses, and 12 people, into one van. With our tiger tail trailing behind us, we started our drive to Taos, New Mexico.
After stopping at Chick-Fil-A for dinner, a thick fog drifted onto the highway. Mitch, a super cool Mizzou alum met us on the highway and led us to his house where we stayed for the night. He, his wife Susan, and their two kids Brice and Bridget was more than happy to host all 12 of us. It was a test run for the 36 people they are expecting for Thanksgiving dinner.
Mitch showed us his Tiger themed room, chatted with us about his time at the University and asked the group what brought all of us to Mizzou. We enjoyed some delicious cheese, crackers and salami, played with Auggie the Doggie and Tessa the Tank, and sat around the fireplace. They were such generous and all around fantastic hosts.
We woke to coffee and donuts. Mitch was kind enough to lend us a stuffed tiger tale to replace the sad flat one already on the van. Knowing we had a nine hour drive ahead of us, we were once again on the road to reach our final destination: Taos.
Kansas was, well, Kansas. You know flat and full of cows. But the abundance of cows made for a fun and competitive game of My Cow! We also began a heated game of word assassin (we'll keep you posted on the winner).
At one point we realized we were at the top of the mountain. Anne Marie kept her cool even though some people (cough cough Rachel) were freaking out in the backseat. Although it was pitch black and snowy, it was still a fun drive up and through the mountain. We were warned to stay on guard for elk, deer, snow plows, fire, and wild humans. We laughed about the sign until we drove around a bend and there was a group of humans sitting in the middle of the road. They scattered as soon as they saw our But despite the fog, the windy roads, and the wild humans, we made safe to our destination.
First work day
We woke to find our van's windshield frosted over. Anne Marie took initiative and moved the van so the sun would melt the frost before we had to go to our site. Unfortunately, there was a casualty. Mitch's perfectly stuffed tiger tail froze to the ground. When Anne Marie moved the van, it ripped off. (We'll buy you a new one Mitch. Sorry you had to find out like this)
Tyler made Micky Mouse pancakes and Topher cooked French toast. There was also a lot of coffee brewing all morning.
Once we finished eating, Susan, the habitat for Humanity volunteer coordinator, gave us a brief history of Taos and explained the importance of Habitat. She inspired all of us by reminding us why we are here in the first place.
We piled back in the van to visit the house we will be working for the remainder of the week.
Melvin did not fall on the ice (yes he did), and it was hilarious.
April waited anxiously to meet the site's mascot, Boots. He is a dog that lives in the neighborhood and likes visit the site. The construction manager, Mark, met us at the site and gave us the grand tour.
He explained how you build an adobe home and explained the importance of plastering the walls. The adobe walls are made out of straw, mud, water and sand and can withstand different weather conditions. In the summer, they help cool down the inside of the home and in the winter, the emit heat into the home. This natural means of heat/air keep the utility bill down.
Susan showed us her picture book of all the groups that have also worked on the Mares' home and we saw the wood in the house that the Mizzou '14 Spring Alternative Break wrote on. Knowing how much time and effort has been put into the house so far has encouraged us to work even harder on site. As Clint said, knowing all this information makes our time here that much more meaningful.
Afterward, we drove to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, where we spent the day helping organize different parts of the store.
Rachel, Derek, Amber and Topher were on the book crew. They sorted books into genres, organized the shelves and recycled outdated books.
Caylee, Anne Marie and Anna were on paint crew with Mark. They tested paint to see if it was still good. They reorganized the shelves and they mixed new colors of paint. At one point, Caylee was painting her hands, which may or may not have been an effect of the paint fumes.
Taylor, Tyler, Melvin and Clint organized bathroom appliances and furniture and made a display to promote sales. April folded sheets and built a barnyard of blocks.
Everyone loved spending the day at the store and were sad to leave, but we were also hungry. Starving actually.
It was Topher and April's night to cook dinner. They planned for spaghetti and homemade garlic bread, but because we are vultures, we ate Mac & Cheese as an appetizer. Normal, we know.
Now, here we sit in the room where we pushed all our air mattresses together and we're simply enjoying each others company. Even though Topher keeps getting electrocuted from the static on his air mattress and Anne Marie is too scared to turn off the lights in the room because we discovered that the church we are staying in was built on top of a cemetery, we are loving every minute of our time here. As we reflect on our service today, we are grateful to be here to serve the Mares family and the Habitat for Humanity family.
P.S. April wants to note she is excited to give Boots the mozzarella cheese stick she bought for him. Apparently it's his favorite snack.
MAB love- the Mexihomies
By some miracle we managed to fit 24 bags, 12 air mattresses, and 12 people, into one van. With our tiger tail trailing behind us, we started our drive to Taos, New Mexico.
After stopping at Chick-Fil-A for dinner, a thick fog drifted onto the highway. Mitch, a super cool Mizzou alum met us on the highway and led us to his house where we stayed for the night. He, his wife Susan, and their two kids Brice and Bridget was more than happy to host all 12 of us. It was a test run for the 36 people they are expecting for Thanksgiving dinner.
Mitch showed us his Tiger themed room, chatted with us about his time at the University and asked the group what brought all of us to Mizzou. We enjoyed some delicious cheese, crackers and salami, played with Auggie the Doggie and Tessa the Tank, and sat around the fireplace. They were such generous and all around fantastic hosts.
We woke to coffee and donuts. Mitch was kind enough to lend us a stuffed tiger tale to replace the sad flat one already on the van. Knowing we had a nine hour drive ahead of us, we were once again on the road to reach our final destination: Taos.
Kansas was, well, Kansas. You know flat and full of cows. But the abundance of cows made for a fun and competitive game of My Cow! We also began a heated game of word assassin (we'll keep you posted on the winner).
At one point we realized we were at the top of the mountain. Anne Marie kept her cool even though some people (cough cough Rachel) were freaking out in the backseat. Although it was pitch black and snowy, it was still a fun drive up and through the mountain. We were warned to stay on guard for elk, deer, snow plows, fire, and wild humans. We laughed about the sign until we drove around a bend and there was a group of humans sitting in the middle of the road. They scattered as soon as they saw our But despite the fog, the windy roads, and the wild humans, we made safe to our destination.
First work day
We woke to find our van's windshield frosted over. Anne Marie took initiative and moved the van so the sun would melt the frost before we had to go to our site. Unfortunately, there was a casualty. Mitch's perfectly stuffed tiger tail froze to the ground. When Anne Marie moved the van, it ripped off. (We'll buy you a new one Mitch. Sorry you had to find out like this)
Tyler made Micky Mouse pancakes and Topher cooked French toast. There was also a lot of coffee brewing all morning.
Once we finished eating, Susan, the habitat for Humanity volunteer coordinator, gave us a brief history of Taos and explained the importance of Habitat. She inspired all of us by reminding us why we are here in the first place.
We piled back in the van to visit the house we will be working for the remainder of the week.
Melvin did not fall on the ice (yes he did), and it was hilarious.
April waited anxiously to meet the site's mascot, Boots. He is a dog that lives in the neighborhood and likes visit the site. The construction manager, Mark, met us at the site and gave us the grand tour.
He explained how you build an adobe home and explained the importance of plastering the walls. The adobe walls are made out of straw, mud, water and sand and can withstand different weather conditions. In the summer, they help cool down the inside of the home and in the winter, the emit heat into the home. This natural means of heat/air keep the utility bill down.
Susan showed us her picture book of all the groups that have also worked on the Mares' home and we saw the wood in the house that the Mizzou '14 Spring Alternative Break wrote on. Knowing how much time and effort has been put into the house so far has encouraged us to work even harder on site. As Clint said, knowing all this information makes our time here that much more meaningful.
Afterward, we drove to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore, where we spent the day helping organize different parts of the store.
Rachel, Derek, Amber and Topher were on the book crew. They sorted books into genres, organized the shelves and recycled outdated books.
Caylee, Anne Marie and Anna were on paint crew with Mark. They tested paint to see if it was still good. They reorganized the shelves and they mixed new colors of paint. At one point, Caylee was painting her hands, which may or may not have been an effect of the paint fumes.
Taylor, Tyler, Melvin and Clint organized bathroom appliances and furniture and made a display to promote sales. April folded sheets and built a barnyard of blocks.
Everyone loved spending the day at the store and were sad to leave, but we were also hungry. Starving actually.
It was Topher and April's night to cook dinner. They planned for spaghetti and homemade garlic bread, but because we are vultures, we ate Mac & Cheese as an appetizer. Normal, we know.
Now, here we sit in the room where we pushed all our air mattresses together and we're simply enjoying each others company. Even though Topher keeps getting electrocuted from the static on his air mattress and Anne Marie is too scared to turn off the lights in the room because we discovered that the church we are staying in was built on top of a cemetery, we are loving every minute of our time here. As we reflect on our service today, we are grateful to be here to serve the Mares family and the Habitat for Humanity family.
P.S. April wants to note she is excited to give Boots the mozzarella cheese stick she bought for him. Apparently it's his favorite snack.
MAB love- the Mexihomies
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