Family Life

We’ve had a very eventful past two weeks.

Birthday Girl! : )

Last weekend, Eliana had a sleep over for eight of her friends to celebrate her 10^th birthday! Her birthday isn’t until June 20, but she wanted to celebrate before some of the girls went back to the states for the Summer (Winter here). The girls made their own pizzas and brownies, played hide-n-seek outside in the dark, watched a movie, and generally had a great time.

Emergency Room! : (

This past Tuesday, we unfortunately saw firsthand the Bolivian emergency room. Mirella had been sick on Monday, but seemed to be recovering on Tuesday. Late in the afternoon, she had a seizure/convulsion. We went immediately to the emergency room, where she had a more severe convulsion. Our pediatrician was there to provide quick medical attention. We spent 24 hours in the clinic/hospital. Mirella started acting pretty normal by Wednesday. We went home that evening. She’s still fighting a stomache bug.

She’s also still on some anti-convulsants while the doctors try to determine the cause of the convulsions. So far, all the tests have returned normal. (brain scan, EEG, blood tests, stool tests) So it’s a bit of a mystery. The neurologist said, and some of our own reading on the internet seems to confirm, that small children do have seizures at times, and often the cause remains unknown. So we’re praying that it was a one-time event. Mirella will remain on medication for about three weeks. She’ll retake the EEG. If it’s normal again, the neurologist feels comfortable removing all medication.

We were very impressed with the service and the facilities. Not as new perhaps as Dallas Children’s Medical Center, but more than adequate. We felt very comfortable there with the medical care. And the staff was very friendly.

God also blessed us by showing us that we truly have a great group of friends here in Bolivia. We had many people from our church and IJM who visited, prayed, brought food, took care of the three older kids while we were at the hospital, and otherwise supported us. We felt very loved.

Friday Nights!

Every first and third Friday of the month, Terry has a women's Bible study. The children of the women et together for a night of fun. So this past Friday evening, we went to one of the family's homes. We had about a dozen children/adolescents in all. We enjoyed dinner together, did a little interactive-Bible lesson, and then played board games. Very fun.

Here are some pictures from our church, Iglesia Biblica de Mallasilla. (Mallasilla is a neighborhood in La Paz.)