Big Kid Decisions!

Austin and I bought our first car today! We’ve been thinking about it for a while now since we want to move to a larger apartment and most of those are out of walking range from BYU. We had been looking at the Ford Escapes pretty religiously, but we just couldn’t find the features we wanted for inside of our budget and at the end of the day, we kind of felt like we were compromising on what we wanted.

We started looking at other crossovers and stumbled upon the Hyundai Tucson. Neither of us had ever even driven a Hyundai, so we made an appointment and we were just going to test drive today. However, we fell in love with the car and we fell even more in love with the price! We were able to get a lot more features and long story short…we spent 6 hours at the dealership and drove home with a new car! I wasn’t completely sold on the color at first, but it’s starting to grow on me 😉 Our sales lady was amazing…literally the best salesperson we’ve dealt with the past week. She took such good care of us and we ended up with free sushi and 2 gift cards out to nice dinners for waiting so long! I’m writing this while at work. I did not get my nap today so I’m majorly struggling, but I think it was worth it!

This whole past week or so, Austin and I have been crunching numbers and actually making a budget for the first time in our married life, and we kind of just felt like big kids! We sat down at the table a few days ago and Austin just laughed at me because I was all jazzed up crunching numbers and making notes and plans….that’s the true planner in me coming out. Planning truly does make me happy! I am so happy I have Austin by my side to make all these big decisions with. We keep each other grounded and I really feel like we are a great team. Life is awesome and new cars are fun!

Coming Home!

When I came home from Ecuador, Austin surprised me at the airport by looking all fancy and brining me roses! I was so happy to see him and it was just a fun reunion 🙂 Not to mention…I flew all night and look like a scrub and he’s all done up fancy!

As we drove home, we passed all of these strip malls and I actually got emotional. I feel like we just never realize how privileged and blessed we are here. You don’t see things like that in Ecuador…there aren’t these huge strip malls. I just felt so blessed to live here in the US and I hope I never forget just how blessed I am!

Quito!

We partied for a few days in Quito before heading home. We rented these paddle boats and paddled around this cute little area. “The Marrieds” rode together and we had so much fun!

We also went to the Mitad del Mundo, or where the true equator is supposed to be…it’s actually a little off, but still fun to go and see! Ecuador is very well known for their chocolate so we learned all about how chocolate is made.

Here are some pictures of the monument! We had so much fun playing with line pictures!

At this same place they had a playground and we had a fantastic time with this seesaw….we were having way too much fun when a security guard comes by and says it’s only for kids and that we need to stop playing…

We went exploring and found the Basilica (HUGE Hunchback of Notre Dame church). I was literally walking through singing “God help the outcasts…” I have to admit, although it was beautiful, it’s not really my thing! I actually feel super weird inside of that type of church. It just kind of feels cold to me. I do flipping love the nuns though, I think they are amazing women! The second church is one made completely of gold!

I also can’t stop raving about the food!! Haha we found this place that was like a collection of food trucks with all of these warmers…it was awesome! The food there was amazing too!

Here are some other sites in Quito! Oh and my awesome Nativity I bought to add to my collection.

As our time in Quito started winding down I started feeling so excited to come home to Austin, but I also started to feel a little sad! I love Latin culture so much, after a month it really starts to feel like home again. I loved being able to speak so much Spanish! I made some incredible friends on this trip and I’m so grateful for all of the experiences I had. On our last night, we went to a park and had a little testimony meeting. It was incredible to hear everyone’s story of how they ended up on this trip.  We really were all meant to be together and there was something for each of us on this trip. I love the Lord and know that he led me to Ecuador. I’m just feel so blessed to have been able to come on this trip.

Tena!

After Banos, we went to Tena! Tena is a small city kind of on the outskirts of the Amazon. We spent about a week there working to help put on a free health clinic. We helped with screenings, we taught about teeth-brushing and did fluoride treatments, and for the majority of the time, I was involved with Days for Girls teaching. Teenage girls came from the nearby schools and we taught them about their bodies, menstruation, and with some groups even safe sex. It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life. I felt so much love for these girls as we tried to help educate them.

One of our groups really hit us deep. They were 10-12 year olds. We felt prompted to talk about what to do if you’re ever in a situation that makes you feel uncomfortable and the girls started asking all kinds of questions such as “What do you do if someone in your family is touching you and you don’t want them to?” “What do you do if your mom doesn’t believe you?” “How can we be safe from kidnapping?” We answered as best we could and tried more than anything to help the girls feel empowered and to know that any of these things are not their fault. After the group left, Katie, Mara, and I just kind of burst into tears…we could not believe that girls this young were facing these kinds of things regularly. I kind of felt like a missionary again. As we taught other groups we were just praying and praying to know what to say, how to help these girls feel loved and empowered. We handed out fertility bracelets to help the older girls track their cycles and know when they would be less likely to get pregnant. We even ended up buying condoms and bananas and practicing with the girls because we even had 14 and 15 year olds in our class pregnant. We did roll playing and kits and had so much fun with these girls. We even had a couple from time to time stay after to ask us more personal questions. I love those girls with all of my heart and you just hope they’re okay!

We held the clinic at a local Catholic hospital. The hospital is run by the nuns and I seriously believe these nuns are some of the kindest, most selfless women on the planet. On one of our first days in Tena, we toured the hospital. As we walked through the hospital, I was overcome with so many feelings. First, just the amazing blessing it is to live in the United States and the access to the kind of healthcare I have. Second, I need to do more. I realized that someday Austin and I may have the opportunity to visit places like Tena and train healthcare providers or come down and help in free clinics. I realized that the Lord has a plan for my life. He will open the door to so many opportunities if I can just stay close to Him and listen. I also realized that there is a season for all things. So many times on this trip I felt like I needed to do more, give up my life and move to another country to serve, but I think the biggest lesson I learned on this trip is that there are people in need everywhere. Even if I end up working at a hospital in Utah, I will still be able to touch lives if I seek to do so. There is a time for all things, maybe someday in the future, Austin and I will be able to travel and serve on a greater scale. It makes me want to save money now and really develop myself as a nurse so that I can be ready for those opportunities.

Also, this is the cutest baby in the entire world.

We also visited a village! They danced for us and attempted to teach us how to dance…yikes! Haha, they painted our faces and we taught them how to use Days for Girls kits as well. We had so much fun with the little ones. They were just the kindest people. I bought a few things from their store and to thank us for coming, they gave us bracelets and other trinkets they had made. I will never stop being amazed by the generosity of those in Ecuador!

We rode these awesome motor canoe type things to another part of the Amazon to take a tour and learn more about native animals and plants. Of course the animal lover ended up with a bird 😉

One night, the doctor that was hosting us took us out to well known swimming place for the locals. It was gorgeous!! We had so much fun swimming in the river. We even hiked up and jumped off the mini cliff! The jump was fun, but the hike up there was a little treacherous! I ended up with some nice cuts, but it was all worth it for the jump!

I was also amazed by the members in Tena. We attended a teeny tiny branch the Sunday we were there and I was amazed by the strength of the members. They sang the hymns so loud! Haha they were just enthusiastic about everything 🙂 They gave some of the most touching lessons I’ve received in a long time. Just helps you realize that Heavenly Father puts people places for a reason. After church, we went to eat at the home of an AMAZING lady. She was seriously the sweetest, cutest, funniest little thing. I about died over her tilapia too….okay, so I have a big problem with dead fish, but once I got past the creepy part, it was delicious!! Seriously, the best fish of my life. We had so much fun with her 🙂

Banos!

Upon leaving Guayaquil we went to party in Banos for a few days! I have never had so much fun nor been so scared in my life! So first of all…this is the view from where we stayed! We stayed in these little bungalow type things and they were nicer than I was expecting!

Banos is a city built at the base of an active volcano. It is known for its mineral water that comes from the volcano and many people believe it has healing properties. One night, Quinn, Katie and I went to explore some of the hot springs. They made us wear swimming caps and we could not stop cracking up…it was quite the cultural experience!

Our first activity was rappelling down waterfalls…I was pumped! I hadn’t been rappelling since girls’ camp forever ago and there was no water included. The rainforest was absolutely beautiful. The pictures really don’t do it justice. We rappelled down 4 waterfalls and then they had us slide down the last one! So fun! We rode up in the truck of one of our guides and he showed us some new music. I mean pretty much the only song we knew was Despacito 😉 Haha! He helped us learn some new ones.

Later that afternoon, we went to San Martin Adventure Camp. Now…I was told we were going zip lining…to which I said, “Sure sounds like fun!” We had no idea what we were in for….So first we zip-lined on our stomachs over a body of water. Then, we had to cross a huge bridge over water, with small foot holds. Up to this point, I was doing alright, having fun, still smiling. Then we reach the cliff and they say “Climb!” That was about the point where I said, “WHAT?!” I don’t think I have ever been more scared in my entire life…not even when my bus was hijacked in Mexico. My legs were shaking, my arms were shaking, I was literally talking out loud to myself. The climb wasn’t too bad, but I’d get so in the zone, I’d forget to move my carabiners and then have to lean way out to reach them. But, I did it! As I climbed up and around the side of the cliff, all of my classmates that had already finished where cheering for me! It made me think a lot about this life and how sometimes it can be really hard and we really might consider or entertain the thought, “I can’t do this.” But I know that we can do hard things and that it always makes it easier when we are surrounded by those that love and support us. I want to go after more hard things and also be a great support to those around me! PS..at the end we zip-lined back but this time Katie and I went together!

 

We also went up to the Casa del Arbol. There is a treehouse up overlooking the whole city and there is a swing on each side. I’m usually all about the thrills but it kind of freaked me out that no one was running this thing or supervising us and you weren’t really securely fastened either. However, once I got on the swing and started going, it was incredible! I literally felt on top of the world.

To wrap up all of our fun in Banos, we went white water rafting! Another thing I had never done before. It was a little scarier than I thought! But a lot less scary than the cliff climbing. The waves were huge! There were some that literally came right over the top of us and you’d open your eyes and start cheering because “Ahhhh! We’re all still in the boat! We made it!” I did fall out once, but I was able to get back in pretty quickly! We actually rafted through where the Andes mountains become the Amazon. It was pretty much awesome.

Guayaquil

Well we made it to Ecuador! The whole day before I left, and during all 3 flights to Guayaquil, I felt so nervous! I can’t even really describe why…I think I was nervous about missing Austin for almost a month, plus I didn’t really know the girls I was traveling with, plus the whole Spanish thing again, I just felt super super nervous. Upon arriving to our hotel though, Katie and I decided to be friends and we ordered room service that same night thinking we could just pay for ourselves…well it got charged to the room! Haha, to this day we never heard a word about it from our teachers 😉 Haha, while we were in Guayaquil we stayed in a hotel. They fed us breakfast every morning which was so nice! We did however have to wash our clothes in the sink…something I still struggle with! Haha it was quite the party trying to get things to dry in a humid climate. But all in all, we stayed in a pretty nice place with decent wifi for skipping Austin 🙂

These are our first empanadas in Guayaquil….needless to say they weren’t even close to the last.

Our first couple of days in Guayaquil were spent doing some sightseeing. We visited Parque Historico and learned a little more about the animals found in Ecuador, how chocolate is made, and some of the history of the people and religion. Our tour guide was hilarious and we seriously just loved him so much.

We also hiked up to this gorgeous lighthouse! We climbed up 444 stairs to get there, but the view was absolutely worth it! I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. It is very humid in Guayaquil so I was pretty much soaked by the time we made it to the top!

There is a park downtown commonly referred to as “Iguana Park” because of the gazillions of iguanas that live there! They are everywhere! I was way to chicken to catch one myself, but a friend helped me out and I held my first iguana! Don’t worry…I washed my hands 😉

Also…the night of the party boat! Haha so we were walking by one day and saw a boat with disco lights, playing load music and we pretty much decided we had to do it! We went as a big group one night and one of the girls in our group plugged her phone in and the guys let her DJ. We had so much fun! We danced like crazy and I’m pretty sure everyone on that bus thought we were straight up crazy. It was a party though!

We also explored this little island! So there was a huge bridge leading to it and it was just so green and beautiful! People still live there! They have homes and schools and it was pretty neat.

We also went to the beach one weekend! It was so relaxing and just gorgeous. The beach is my happy place. I love listening to the waves. Also, THE SEVICHE. Enough said.

But really…I could not get over the food! We ate meals like this regularly Katie and I also hit up the smoothie shop regularly….who cares if they probably had dirty ice in them right?

It was also so nice to have a temple close by! I love doing temple work in Spanish. We met some amazing women inside the temple. 🙂

During our time in Guayaquil we rotated between two hospitals and working with the charity, Hogar de Cristo. At the first hospital we toured their main medical/surgical hospital. The hospital was a lot more advanced than I expected, but still nothing like a hospital we’re used to. It was amazing to get to know the nurses though! One of my favorite days was on the burn unit at this hospital. I saw and learned so much! I am amazed by the nurses that work on that unit day after day. It’s pretty sad and it’s definitely something that would wear on me!

The second hospital was the maternity/pediatric hospital. I did multiple days there. One of my favorite days was on Labor and Delivery. They do things very differently in Ecuador. For example, the women in labor cannot have any family with them, only the medical personnel. They also move them from room to room depending on how dilated they are, so they actually only use a couple of big rooms for their deliveries. Teen pregnancy is huge in Ecuador and so I had the opportunity to be there to hold the hand of a 19 year old having her second child. I just got swept up in the moment and I was holding her hand and talking her through it and telling her she could do this! After she delivered she thanked the doctor and he suggested she thank me as well…it was so surreal! The two doctors helping with the deliveries that day were very different. One of them was a female doctor and she was all business. She seemed very rushed and very “get the job done” but I’m not quite sure it was in the best way. The other doctor was amazing! He talked to us all morning about how to keep women comfortable, his belief in letting women tear naturally and how important it is to teach moms. He had made his own models that he uses for teaching, and he is seriously the coolest guy.

At the pediatric hospital we spent part of our morning in the ER and the other half of our time in the NICU. While we were in the ER, it was kind of hard to find ways to help, but we got involved in helping this little 2 year old boy. I had to basically hold him down while he got an IV put in. Then his grandma was trying to find his mom and she asked me to keep on eye on him. As she was starting to leave, he woke up and began to cry and she asked me to “hug him.” He screamed for a while but we finally figured it out! During that hour the mom was gone, I got to snuggle this little guy and it was just really sweet. A sweet, sweet moment that really led to feel like I wanted to work in pediatrics. Plus it always feels good when other families being helped in the same area pipe up and say “hey you’re really good with kids”!

I think my time with Hogar de Cristo had to be my favorite though! We took about an hour bus ride to go out and meet the director and receive some instruction from him before our first day. We had all of us sit in a circle and he asked us, “Why are you here? I know your school requires credits and some of you come here, but why are you here?” As I thought about this question, he began to tell us a little about the population we’d be working with. The people we would be working with are the poorest in the city, it was not uncommon here for kids to go without food. He talked about how we come from one of the most powerful countries in the world and many of these kids will ask “why are you here?” He talked about how those few minutes we spend with each kid could be monumental if we chose to be present. He invited us to ask them what they want to be when they grow up. He urged us to spend these few minutes to empower, to uplift. He talked about how the poor don’t need our money or our things, they need our hope and our empowerment so that they can believe in themselves enough to lift their families. He just pled with us to be present, to be in the here and now, to devote these kids all our attention, and to share our hope with them.

My experiences with these kids were incredible. Many of them wanted to be veterinarians, doctors, policemen, and some of my little ones just wanted to grow up to be “brave” or “a man” or “a mom.” Snuggling those little kids and helping them feel special really got to me and confirmed to me over and over again that I want to be a pediatric nurse. The kids tried so hard to be brave for their finger stick even if they were terrified. It was just an amazing experience.

One of my favorite parts of Guayaquil was the huge statue of Christ that we went to. As you climb the stairs to the statue, there are big stones with scripture and picture etched into them describing the events leading up the crucifixion. However, the last stone talks about Christ being resurrected. I found this fascinating because you almost never see that in a predominantly Catholic area. The statue of the Savior was so beautiful and being there was a spiritual experience. I love how his face is looking down at those that climb the stairs. It’s like we’re always trying to be a little better and work our way toward him and he is always there, loving and encouraging. I also just think it says so much about the difference in our societies. Latin cultures respect God and love him and it is completely acceptable to have a huge statue of him overlooking the city. That would never fly here! Which is just sad to me….we are too overrun by what is offensive and what is politically correct and in a way, we’ve lost that value. I think there is just so much we can learn and appreciate from other cultures.