Happy December!

My surprise party at school :)
Gaby, Me, Emily, and Katie at camp!
Ken, Fransisco, Me, Gaby and Keziah trying to put gloves over our heads and blow them up with our noses...
Some of the girls at camp: From left: Abby, Keziah, Merryn, Sophie, Me, Andrea, Emily, Luanna, and Par (and the dog we named Snow Flake!)
I took the kids on a field trip to the moorish castle--here was my chaperone group! Aisha, Colin, Gaby and Abdul!

Hey Everyone--

I apologize, as I know it's been a few weeks since I last wrote. But, it's been a crazy few weeks!

Thanksgiving was lovely. I went to a friends house, with about 20 other people, and we had the whole traditional meal. Then we watched "Elf," played games, and just had a good time! On that Friday, instead of shopping (there's no black Friday in Portual!), I left for our Wyld Life Camp. It rained and was freezing cold the whole time, but it was still tons of fun. The kids had a great time--and we were really able to spend time just talking about God, life, and why things are the way things are. It's pretty amazing to see what goes on in the minds of 11, 12, and 13 year olds--they're totally awesome.

We also had a bit of drama that weekend--and it was quite a scary experience. One of the girls collapsed. We were playing a game where you run outside and scream as loud as you can for as long as you can. Well she came out right after me, and then just kind of fell over. At first, I thought she was just joking around, but it was soon obvious that she wasn't moving--so Ken and I ran over to her. She had stopped breathing and was turning blue. We had to call an ambulance while Laura, a mother who was chaperoning and who just happened to be a nurse (God knows what he's doing!) performed CPR. It was terrifying. She was so young, and to see her there, lying on the ground, blue and not breathing---it was horrible. So Laura breathed for her, and Luana and I prayed. She finally started breathing again on her own, and when we were sure she was a little better, we took her inside and waited for the paramedics to come. It was a long process--it took about an hour, and in that time, she was in immense pain. Her head was pounding and she was vomiting. They finally got her to the hospital, where they ran a bunch of tests, but they're still not sure what's wrong with her. They think she had a seizure. She's okay now--home and doing fine. I saw her on Wednesday, and she's the same old silly and sweet girl! But since it's all still unclear about what's wrong, I'd like ask that you would keep her in your prayers.

I also just celebrated my 24th birthday on Tuesday! 24 was seeming a little scary at first, but I'm thinking it just might be okay. My birthday was fun--and actually I feel like I've been having a week-long birthday celebration! I went to dinner on Monday night with some friends, then the kids at school threw me a surprise party at school on Tuesday! I had dinner with some more friends Tuesday night, and I'm still waiting for my birthday presents from mom and dad to arrive in the mail! So it's been a pretty good birthday week experience!

These next two weeks before Christmas break are going to be insane!! Besides all the usual Christmas bustle (like shopping, tree decorating, enjoying how beautiful Portugal Christmas lights are!), I also am in charge of our school Christmas program for next Friday...and I'm a little nervous about it!! It may be just a little scary! I'm feeling like I'm going to be putting in a lot of long hours this week-and I have a bit of a cold already! So please, I could use your prayers too :)

Love you all! Can't wait to see you for Christmas!

xoxo
Ariel