6 months of marriage

Ryan and I have been married for 6 months.

When I look back and think about all that has happened in my life and look at where I am today all I can say is "Thank You". To think that God had all of this planned out before I was even born, knowing my faults and my flaws, yet still with His mercy, grace and love, taking time to plan and so carefully choose the perfect person for me is amazing. God has given me the most beautiful life and I am so undeserving. 

In the past 6 months we have finished out our home in Jacks Creek, we've been in Jamaica, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and all over Nicaragua. We have survived an earthquake, a volcano eruption, and a tsunami (Not as bad as it sounds but still interesting facts about our first few months). Ryan has toughed out a food bacteria and loved me even after I gave him a shot. 

 We look forward to spending the rest of our life adventures together.

On Friday morning Ryan bought me a puppy for our 6 month mark(which is September 17). We found him the day before at a veterinarian's near a friends house. He is half Siberian Husky half German Shepherd. He will be a great protector and friend for us as he gets older. He has the most beautiful blue eyes you have ever seen and he makes you want to say "HE'S SO FLUFFY I COULD DIE"(Despicable me, anyone?). Andd I love him so much it is sickening.We tried alllll day to figure out a name that would be easy and fun for the Nicaraguan children but also something that would not be difficult to pronounce in English. We settled with "Pancho" which means "free" and is also a popular nickname here. It suits him. He is already a "free" spirit taking high dives off the bed and such. Pancho and Ody are going to best friends when we finally get Ody down here! PANCHO not to be confused with PONCHO. When Isaac (my brother) met him on skype the other night he said and I quote, "He is SO cute I just want to take him outside and hold him over my head in the rain". Took me a minute to get it. Yeah. 

I try to make Saturdays my day of cleaning but thanks to the new member of our family it seemed a bit harder than usual yesterday. Ryan had to go take care of some things at one of the churches and so it was just me and little Pancho. I am sure you know this, but puppies like to chase brooms, and step in the dirt pile, and pee right after you mop... So I ended up letting Jaden next door take him for a little while. During the time that Ryan and Pancho were gone and it was just me at home, I turned up ZoeGroup, which unexpectedly made my cry(which also prevented me from cleaning). For me, I have discovered that one of the hardest things about living down here is not being able to worship with people in my native language. Don't get me wrong, I love worshiping God with my Nicaraguan hermanos but that is always going to be something I am going to long for and look forward to when we can come to the States for a visit. So, sing a little louder for us this Sunday!

Oh cleanser of the mess I've made. Your boundless love for me portrayed. With patience for my learning curve by holding back what I deserve. 

How Wonderful your mercy is, How awesome are your ways. I come, I come to worship you for all you've done. 

Oh Cleanser of the mess I've made. With everything at your feet laid. I watch as all my cares erode. And from my soul these words Explode. 

How Wonderful your mercy is, How awesome are your ways. I come, I come to worship you for all you've done. 

We are ever so grateful for the amazing people God has placed in our lives in Nicaragua. There are some incredible faith-filled families down here that we are really looking forward to spending the next years working along side. We are also grateful for those who have encouraged us, prayed for us, and supported us in some way. Thank you, thank you, thank you. God is watching over us. He knows what we need and I smile when I think of our future here. 

You, God, are my God, Earnestly I see you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. 

I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. 

Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. 

I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. 

I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you. 

Psalm 63: 1-5

In all all things Lord, we thank you.

El Camino Missions 

One month and a day..

One Month and a day. We have been in Nicaragua for one month and a day and so much has already happened. I cannot believe how much time has already gone by. We have had many fun experiences a long with some not so fun.

We just got home from two weeks of language school in Laguna de Apoyo. Here are some fun facts:

• We had a tarantula in our room about a foot from our bed one night during school. 
• We studied Spanish for 4 hours each day
• We slept under a bug net. We had no air and took cold showers. 
• We had many critters hanging out in our bathroom such as toads, spiders, geckos, centipedes, etc. 
• We had monkeys swinging from tree to tree above and usually were the sound we went to sleep to and the sound we woke up to.
• We had four pet dogs and two birds. 
• We were one with nature.
• We ate beans and rice with all 3 meals for two straight weeks.
• We had internet for what seemed to be 30 minutes every other day.
• We learned how to use a Potter's wheel at a little town called San Juan de Oriente, where they are known for their pottery. 
• We climbed in caves formed by lava from the Masaya volcano and were swarmed by bats. 
• There was at least 10 different countries represented (coming and going) where we stayed by the time we left.
• We are thankful for our church family in Leon!

God works in mysterious ways and we learned a lot about him... in a lot of mysterious ways. haha

 It was a great experience and we would do it again in a heartbeat... but would probably take some extra bug spray...

We have a big challenge ahead of us. Learning a new language is not easy. Yes, we learned a lot the past two weeks. And yes, I learned a lot last year just from living here. And yes, Ryan took 2 years in high-school. But neither of us are anywhere near where we would like to be. We plan to start this week at a language school in Leon for at least 3 days a week 4 hours a day. It is very important to Ryan and myself that we first learn the language. We do not know how long we will be here and we do not want many years to catch up with us and us be unable to speak. Please keep this long road of studying/practicing our spanish in your prayers. We look forward to the day that it just "clicks" like they say. 

Other than working really hard on our spanish, Ryan and I will be working on learning the "ropes" around here. I could tell you just about anything you need to know about the school but when it comes to directions/using the bank/paying the electricity bill or how to turn on a water tower I am helpless. 

Please keep praying for us as we transition in to this new way of life.

If you are interested in receiving a monthly E-newsletter let us know by sending us an email at Bush@nicaraguachristian.org with subject: "Monthly newsletter" Thanks! 

Fernando David Salazar born August 17, 2012 

to Sergio and Daysi (Our on campus preacher and his wife)

A picture taken right outside the kitchen at Language School 

Ryan and Summer at the Masaya Volcano

Dios Te Bendiga.