Yesterday we went to ate at a place called brenda's. It's this little hut on the side of the road thats always packed. So we decided to try it, and we lived it. And she brought us some chocolate cake also and that was so good. And by her booth, there is this cage on top of a wall and it's like a 6 foot tAll wall, and the cage is probably 3 feet tall,6 feet wide, and 20 feet long. And inside are about 15 parrots. The kind that talk to you. Its really cool. People will just walk up and sat "hello!" an the parrots will scream "HELLO, HELLO!!" and whistle at you. It's pretty funny. Then after that, we went to a place called the tipsy tuna. The waves there were like 4 feet tall, so I went in the water and body surfed them. Then some 6 copters came and one knocked me over, and I submerged from the water, and an 8 foot wave smashed into me. It was hilarious.and u came out COVERED in seaweed. It was awesome. Except for the fact that it smacked my sunburn. Then we were walking back and my mom wanted some biking spandex shorts and she found some that read "HotLove" across the waistband. She still hasn't taken them off. -Eli

The first leg of our trip is over. Our time in Belmopan ended with a humble dinner atop a hill at Al Rustico's, as we left and were on our way back to basecamp we werre greeted at the bottom of the hill by 4 of 8 kids fathered by Irwin. Irwin helps out at the base camp and is also a eager student at the tutoring center:-) the little girls were so cute and full of every question imaginable we delighted in their curiosity until it was time for bed. The next morning Mona and Diane gave the kids and I a ride through the beautiful Belizian Jungled highway down to the Village, Placencia. Here we are nestled among palm and fruit trees 50 feet from the Sea. Our Cabana is adorable made with varnished wood upon stilts, we sit just high enough to have a view of the sea from our beds. Its small and clean and we have the most excellent screened in porch overlooking the beach. I have found myself there often taking cover from the hot sun while feeling the breeze, cranking the Grateful Dead sipping on something cold:-) Sunday we ventured into the village to check things out...our mission was to attend the community church, after some winding paths and asking for directions FIVE times ( much to my childrens shigrin);we found it already in service with the doors closed, so we took a picture on the steps instead...we ended up at the tip of the penisula where there was a beautiful sandy beach, we stayed and snorkeled around a bit until our skin turned pink. It was MY first real swim in the Caribbean and it was Awesome!! The sun here is intense so we retreated to our cabana for some reading and homework, as the afternoon of quiet moved on, it was apperant, as our skin grew brighter in color, it was a good thing we headed back when we did:-) The evenings come quick in Belize as the sun sets around 5:30...we ventured over to the cozy corner for some shrimp and free wifi, Eli attracted 4 little boys mesmorized by his kindle...they were sweet boys and were excited at the prospect of " hanging " with Eli in the coming days:-) The wind picked up overnight and blew in a cloud system that was most welcomed when we woke. It appears we might have a little storm on the horizion as it appears as the morning is wearing on the wind is getting stronger and more rambunkous. the kids and I decided after our morning exercise (directed by our tiny drill seargent Ava) that today would be a full day of quiet ( except for the raging winds) reading and catching up on homework. The basecamp asked me to paint a sign for the tutoring center so I plan on filling half the day with a long lost passion of mine. ... .and I will paint:-) We are all very happy and healthy. We are seizing every opportunity to share Gods love with the Belizian people and are constantly in awe of the simplicity of their lifestyle. I/We are convinced without a doubt the the simpler our lives are, their in lies more room for PEACE and happiness. Our thoughts have been with our friends back home as this last weekend they honored the lives lost in the avalanche and laid them to rest... Love to you all Caroline

Day #10 posted by Ava

These were the last days of the Wilkersons, they left on Friday :( On wednesday we went to an awesome place called BaCab, which was a really amazing pool with a little shelf in the water with chairs where you can lounge in the water and tan! And there's a nice water fall with a rock slide that takes under the water fall that splashes you face right before you plunge into the water.Also,we went on a horse back ride,while we were on the horses we saw howler monkeys!!!It was feeding time so they weren't howling:(.On Thursday was a working day,we were all busy mixing and pouring cement!Jealous??On Friday we wet sad to say our goodbyes to the Wilkersons as they ventured there way onto the plane an home.Yesterday we made it to our first away from "home" (the base camp( and made our way with Mona and Diane over to Placencia and unpacked our luggage in to our temporary abode.All is well and everything is great!!Except for the Pb and J sandwiches!! P.s The gelato here is amazing!!!! -Ava:p Placencia is a 16 mile long peninsula in southern Belize and is the home to three communities-Maya Beach,Seine Bight,and Placencia Village.The village itself is home to the narrowest main street in the world according to Guinness World Books of Records.

Our first 10 days have passed quickly all the while feeling slow, as that is the Belizian way:-)..Since my last post we have been busy. We worked a day here at base camp preparing a outdoor meeting area and installing drainage for the rainey season. When the rain hits in Belize, quite rareley is it ever just a drizzle. The following day we headed off to caye caulker. We had somefun on this tiny island as it is a tiny island just a few hundred feet from the barrier reef. The day we were on Caye Caulker however, was the day we heard the news of

the passing of our friends back home...It was a quiet, surreal and prayerful day as we were 3000 miles away from where our hearts were....All were quiet as our thoughts were with the families and friends Chris, Johnny and Jim Jack.... ...There will be more about this island as the kids and I will be spending 19 days there in a week or so.. On tuesday we spent the day at cottontree church working alongside a team from california. It was hard work moving dirt and rocks in the hot sun, but what cooled us off throughout the day, was the tiny faces of the preschoolers smashing their faces up against the window... They would gigglecand laugh and we knew soon they would be enjoying the fruits of our labor. We crashed early that night tired and hot and sunburned. On weds after dropping Oliver and Josh off at the airport, we had heard of a public swimming pool, so we decided to check it out...It was truley an oasis..after crossing over a amazing bamboo bridge nestled throughout a palmtree jungle, we came upon a gigantic fresh water pool with rasta music playing and a SLIDE....AND food and bev service pool side. It was a treat we ALL enjoyed emensley. Today we were back to work at basecamp... we added more drainage to the meeting area and have hopes to cement in a few support posts before sundown. The kids and I also visited Marlas house of hope(http://marlashouseofhope.org ) Marla’s House of Hope provides safe, loving, nurturing care for God’s Children who have been removed from an abusive environment. The kids and I will be working on and off at Marlas while in Belmopan tutoring any of the 18 kids who live there with their school work. We have six days schedules to workbthere...Then on the last friday we are there, we get to host/sponsor a " movie" night with the kids......we will for sure fill you all in on that as it happens. For any interest in volenteering, sponsoring or donating to their needs... All that info is on their website posted above. Tommarow the Wilkersons head back to the states ( except Mona shes staying here:-)and the kids and I head on our journey outside of Belmopan....we will head south to Placencia Village and then off to Caye Caulker, winding back up to Belmopan for our time at the orphanage. Hope all is well with each and every one of you:-) Love C

G(Eli), josh, oliver, and austin, aka wilky, went snorkeling. We went to the southern channel first. And that was breathtaking. Literally. I had to come up a few times because i was so amazed that i sucked in water. There were so many tropical fish that ive never even seen in tv or the internet. Then we saw 2 electric eels. That was scary. One of them saw me, and looked, then bolted stright towards me but the tour guide saved my life by slapping his wrist makimg a sharp noise frightening the eel causimg it to retreat. It was scary. Then i saw a four foot barracuda. That was really interesting. Then we went to a pkace called shark and ray alley. It was only about 3 feet deep, but there were sting rays ALL over the place. And there were about 10 nurse sharks that were about 6 feet long. Sting rays feel really jelly like and the sharks feel like rubber. I got it all in the gopro. (a gopro is an underwater, small, and extremely versatile camera meant for snowboarding, skiing, and all other sports. Its also shockproof) that was our day of snorkeling:-)- Eli

Our day started with a early morning low mist  hanging just above our Base camp and as I listened to the orchestra of roosters, car sirens, dogs barking, kids crying and the rumble of loose mufflers, I was again reminded of how lucky I am not only to be here in Belize but to have lived the life I have..... It didnt take long before the sun beat the fog and we were back with the sunshine on our faces. We headed out to cotton tree church which is Belmopan's  Nazerene church.. It's a simple church along the humingbird hiway and is lead by a sweet man and his wife..  5 years ago the church was roofless and small... It has expanded into a very simple yet beautiful place to worship, pastor joe had always wanted a preschool in the back quarters and got his dream within the last year as a california church made the vision into a reality. Church was sweet and simple and full of Love!,, the entire church sang happy birthday to Josh and clapped  and prayed for him. On tues we will be assisting the california team complete an outside gathering/ worship/ play area..the california team has been her for all of lastmweek and this. .we are looking forward to working along side them to complete and finish this project After church we headed out to belize City to catch the watertaxie to Caye caulker..Caye Caulker is a tiny island about an hour boat ride across the carribian sea. ....at parts this island meets the barrier reef and it is known for is incrediable diving and snorkeling waters.The island is a mile long and 3 streets wide when standing at one end of the street at the waterside and looking to the other side of the street you can see water:-) We arrived shortly after 3 to find that most of the cute little cabanas( where the kids and I will be staying in couple weeks) and sea view rooms were full, we made our way down a block or so and ran into a guy promising a clean afforable room...we paid $30 for our rooms and without complaining we becamem very gtateful and a little homesick for basecamp:-) we finished our day with a stroll along " mainstreet the kids got their feet wet and we filled on fresh caught grouper and shrimp cevechie...tommarow we will hit the " cafe amore" for breakfaxt  and some coffee,  our plan is to hit the beach and explore what lurks under the sea... I am up writing this at midnight as I just went to use the rest room and stepped on a gigantic cockroach!,, unfortunatly Ava woke to the racket of me pummeling this roach to death with my flipper... Now I have a bedmate:-) Our day started with a early morning low mist  hanging just above our Base camp and as I listened to the orchestra of roosters, car sirens, dogs barking, kids crying and the rumble of loose mufflers, I was again reminded of how lucky I am not only to be here in Belize but to have lived the life I have..... It didnt take long before the sun beat the fog and we were back with the sunshine on our faces. We headed out to cotton tree church which is Belmopan's  Nazerene church.. It's a simple church along the humingbird hiway and is lead by a sweet man and his wife..  5 years ago the church was roofless and small... It has expanded into a very simple yet beautiful place to worship, pastor joe had always wanted a preschool in the back quarters and got his dream within the last year as a california church made the vision into a reality. Church was sweet and simple and full of Love!,, the entire church sang happy birthday to Josh and clapped  and prayed for him. On tues we will be assisting the california team complete an outside gathering/ worship/ play area..the california team has been her for all of lastmweek and this. .we are looking forward to working along side them to complete and finish this project After church we headed out to belize City to catch the watertaxie to Caye caulker..Caye Caulker is a tiny island about an hour boat ride across the carribian sea. ....at parts this island meets the barrier reef and it is known for is incrediable diving and snorkeling waters.The island is a mile long and 3 streets wide when standing at one end of the street at the waterside and looking to the other side of the street you can see water:-) We arrived shortly after 3 to find that most of the cute little cabanas( where the kids and I will be staying in couple weeks) and sea view rooms were full, we made our way down a block or so and ran into a guy promising a clean afforable room...we paid $30 for our rooms and without complaining we becamem very gtateful and a little homesick for basecamp:-) we finished our day with a stroll along " mainstreet the kids got their feet wet and we filled on fresh caught grouper and shrimp cevechie...tommarow we will hit the " cafe amore" for breakfaxt  and some coffee,  our plan is to hit the beach and explore what lurks under the sea... I am up writing this at midnight as I just went to use the rest room and stepped on a gigantic cockroach!,, unfortunatly Ava woke to the racket of me pummeling this roach to death with my flipper... Now I have a bedmate:-)

:-)

Day 2 !!!Yestarday we went to the mayan ruin, Xunantunich in the 85 degree weather!The Mayan RUins are where at times the Mayas fought to there deaths. We saw where kings once ruled and slept. . It was cool! On our way hiking up tp the ruins,we heard a scary unpleasent noise and followed it into the woods. We finially spotted the animal, we were seeing 4 howler monkeys!!there were also belizian men walking around the ruins with guns in there hands to keep the guatamalan people from illegaly crossing into belize.once you made it to the top of the largest ruin,it was because of the of the beautiful sunny skies and bright sun that we could see right into Guatemala!After that we crossed a river with a hand cranked fairy to get ice-cream in a Menenite village and then went home and made homemade salsa. -Ava

We made it to BELIZE!! Unscathed, and a bit tired, but it didnt last long , the whoosh of the humid air and the distinct smell of another place, quickly reminded us to be in attention. Many people said "be safe" (in reguards to our trip) but all that dissapeared as we hit the humingbird highway, the concept of defensive driving does not exsist.....its offensive driving or you don't get there.... our destionation in To Belize Basecamp was about 45 min away to the Capitol city of Belize, Belmopan. We settled into Base Camp, grabbed a bite down the road (creole shrimp) and shortly there after turned in for the night.... What I woke to this morning was exactly whatI had hoped for..... An orchestra of sounds it would take a full featured film to describe, but if a person was never into birds before they came to Belize you would be numb not to be enchanted by the noises in the trees at sunrise! Today we plan to explore possibly one of the many Mayan ruins dotted and uncovered throughout The country.. I am excited, at peace And smiling as I slowly wake to my new adventure and sip on some delicious coffee in SHORTS! Double-ly smiling wide becase they have coffee mate creamer here!