The Sacred Valley

I was able to spend this weekend with the Gavancho's and it was great! The Gavancho's have kind of been my saving grace since I got here. Here's the story: Before I left, Karen Thornock told me that her nephew married a girl from Cusco and that I should look up her family. They're members, so I figured I'd contact them about where to go to church. I contacted Eunice (the mom) the first week and she came to the Maximo Nivel office and met me and everything! She gave me the address to the chapel and the meeting time and asked if I wanted to come and eat at there house after. At dinner last Sunday they invited me to come with them to their orphanage in the Sacred Valley. Of course I did! So, Friday afternoon I hopped on a bus to their house. I spent Friday evening talking with Eunice and drinking hot chocolate. It was great. 

Then Saturday morning we were off to Huayllubamba! The whole drive was gorgeous! It's the beginning of spring here so I'm excited to see it in a month or so when it's all green, but the mountains were just so amazing! I loved all the little towns along the way as well. 

Huayllubamba is just a little town as well, and it was so nice to get out of the city! The orphanage was so nice! Right now they only have 12 kids, but they said they normally have more. The orphanage is called Girasol (sunflower) and it is run off of the Gavancho's own resources and everything was built by volunteers. The view from the orphanage was amazing as well! Just look at those mountains!!

In the afternoon I was able to attend the baptism of two of the orphans. What a special experience. I didn't know these two even 6 hours before the baptism, but you could tell they were ready. They just had a special spirit about them and it was so neat to see their smiles as they came out of the water. 

After the baptism we headed back to Cusco. Here's one last shot from a quick stop we made in town before we left. Beautiful. 

I stayed the night with the Gavancho's again last night. They're just so hospitable.  They just do everything they can to make me feel at home. Even though my Spanish communication skills are FAR less than par, they struggle through with me.  There is just a special spirit in the Gavancho's home that reminds me of my own. I love it. So, thank you so much Karen for connecting us. I'll forever be indebted to you! 

The First Week

I've only been here in Cusco for a week, but it's been full of amazing and unforgettable experiences.  First of all, my placement is in a preschool called Nuevas Americas. It is a PRONEI which means it is a government sponsored preschool for children ages 3-5 who are very poor. Most of the children's parents both work 15-16 hours a day. These children spend the rest of the day with either a grandmother or siblings. This isn't every child's case, but it is reality for most of them. The Profesorra's name is Flora and I love her. She has good, meaningful lessons for the kids everyday and she only gets paid 300 soles a month which is just a little more than $100 a month. 

This is a pretty bad picture, but all 21 kids, Flora, and I squeeze into a tiny little cement room. 

Before I left my little nieces and nephews all gave me clothes that they had grown out of.  On Wednesday is was able to take the clothes to the preschool. When I told Flora what was in the bag she gave me a big hug and almost started to cry. She knows the children best, so at the end of the day she distributed the clothes to the children. Some clothes were too big or too small and she sent them home for siblings. The kids were all so excited and came and gave me a hug and said, "Gracias Professora." It just melted my heart. Only one week has passed and I already love these little kids. 

L-R Deysi just wanted to jump in, and then Dayana and Brianna are wearing some of the clothes. 

On Saturday I was all touristy. I went with some of the volunteers I live with to some ruins just outside of Cusco. We walked from out house to Saqsayhuaman (about 2 km). I did a little research on this one before we left, so it was neat to be able to know some of the history as we were walking around these ancient Incan dwellings. How they built this without modern equipment, I have no idea!  The stones are massive! 

We walked around the ruin for quite a while and enjoyed some beautiful views of the city from up high. 

Then we walked about 1.5 km to Q'enqo.

This ruin had a cool cave and a very large sacrificial table. After this one we decided we didn't want to walk the 8 km to the next one, so we hopped on a local bus and took a ride up to Tambomachay.

Tambomachay had some really pretty streams running through it and a section of these ruins were very well preserved. Finally, we walked the last .5 km to Pukapukara. It's set on a knoll of a hill and is surrounded by farmland. It was cool to see people working in the fields below as we explored the ruin.

I loved every second of our little excursion. The people, the sights, all of it! It's been an amazing first week here in Cusco, and I'm excited for what the next week brings!

Cuscotopia!

Well folks, the time is almost here!  I fly out for my next big adventure (well, my biggest adventure probably EVER) on Saturday!  

So here's a little Q and A about what I'm about to do!

Q: Where are you going?

A: I'm going to Cusco, Peru.

Q: Is this for school?

A: No. It's not through BYU or any university and I will not be receiving any credits.  I'm going with a group called International Volunteers HQ.  

Q: What will you be doing?

A: I will be doing service with children in a setting like an elementary school, orphanage, day care, etc.   

Q: Where will you be living?

A: I will be living with a host family where I will be immersed in Peruvian culture and the Spanish language :)

Q: How long will you be there?

A: My volunteer time is 12 weeks, but I'm going to stay an extra week to make sure I do all the things I want while I'm living among Incan ruins.

Q: Are you nervous?

A: Yes and no.  I'm nervous of the unknowns (which is just about EVERYTHING!), but I'm not nervous about loving it.

Q: Are your parents nervous about it?

A: I think they are more nervous than they let on.  They are excited that I am excited to go. They're the best!

Q: Do you know Spanish?

A: A little bit.  I've taken Spanish in high school and 5 semesters of it in college, so hopefully I can conversate.

Q: Is it close to Machu Picchu? 

A: Yes!  And I'm definitely going to hike it!

(Isn't it beautiful?!)

Q: What made you decide to do this?

A: My sister Tami and cousin Camille went to Ecuador and worked in an orphanage when they were about this age, and ever since them I've dreamed of doing this!  Now is just the perfect time to do it.

Hopefully this answers some of your questions about my trip!  Most of you probably already know about it cause I'm so excited I have to tell everybody!  I feel so blessed to have the opportunity and ability to go and do this.  I can't wait to see how it all goes!  

"Look at that sky!"

"Look at that sky!" has been one of my most frequent sayings this summer.  Then, I snap a picture.  Cokeville seriously has some of the best skies.  I don't really know how it happens, but it just does!  And I'm lucky enough to be outside all of the time to witness them!  The other day when I told Sierra to look at the sky for the billionth time she replied with, "You're kinda obsessed with the sky, aren't ya?"  She's right, and here's a little proof. 

Now I know I'm no professional photographer and most of them aren't set perfectly, but these photos were just taken with my iPhone.  No filters, no special effects, just real, natural beauty.  After Sierra called me out on my obsession I started to think about why I am so obsessed.  I think this quote by Elder M. Russell Ballard sums up pretty well how I feel about nature.  

"Men and women in all parts of the world have a desperate need to take time from their demanding routines of everyday life and to quietly observe God's miracles taking place all around them.  Think of what would happen if all of us took time to look carefully at the wonders of nature that surround us…this world that God created for us!"

  I've always loved the earth and knowing that God created it.  Each day the earth changes, and to me those changes are made by God.  So, each time the sky is so beautiful and so different, it reminds me of God's hand in everything I do.  He is constantly putting stepping stones in my path.  I can choose to take a second and be thankful for them, or I can just keep going right along with my life.  Stopping to take a look at the constantly changing sky reminds me to take a look at my constantly changing life and love it.  Every different moment.    

So, I have this best friend...

Her name's Sierra Lyn Pope.  She has been an answer to my prayers this summer.  Remember my post about endings?  And how this summer was going to be super hard?  Well, the Lord was looking out for me, and sent Sierra.  We've been working at the cemetery together all summer long.  You may have heard of us as the #graveyardgirls.  Every day we worked together, and since that wasn't enough time side by side, we played together.  Our summer was full of fun!  

We went fishing, we went camping.  

Fires and s'mores with the boys.  

The road trip was worth it--the Daddy of 'em All did not disappoint. 

Lady Antebellum and Tim McGraw.  

Raspberry Days and that Famous Preston Night Rodeo.       

The rope swing at Kelly's pond.

Sleeping on the pro-pit.

Meals at your house, snacks at mine :)

Pizza and movie night.

Cookies, cookies, cookies.

Your zip line.

Rafting the Snake and boating at Bear Lake.  

This list doesn't include work where we spent hours mowing, trimming, weed whacking, raking, moving pipe, painting, hauling dirt, and other random outdoor work.  No matter the job, no matter the weather, we were talking and laughing the whole time!  It always amazed us how we never ran out of things to talk about.  

I was so lucky to work with Sierra this summer.  Just about everyday a topic of the gospel was brought up.  She always had the best insights.  She was never afraid to share what she believed with me and I loved hearing about all of the things she was thinking about as we were trying to figure out how to live this life the best we can and become the best we can.  My testimony was strengthened everyday because of this girl.  

If a summer never beats this one, I won't be surprised.  I won't be bummed either because this one is one for the books!  Thanks for all the good times girly!  See ya soon :)

Sisters

I have THE best sisters.  Thanks to a recent wedding I now have seven of them.  That's quite a few.   Luckily enough, we all get along so great!  I'm second to the youngest of all of us, and I love it.  I learn so much from them every time I'm with them.  I get to watch them be wives, mothers, friends, daughters, and sisters.  They are all involved in a wide variety of things, and they all rock at life.  So, here's the line up of sisters, starting from my first sister, to my most recent.

This here's the lovely Taffy.  

She's the oldest and most likely wisest of us all.  She is an amazing mom of four (soon to be five) kids.  She juggles all of their schedules and still manages to do the things she loves--coaching volleyball and having a beautiful lawn and garden.  She's a very talented piano player and is now going to try her hand at the "wife of a rancher" life.  She's gonna be bomb.  I'm so thankful for her example of looking on the bright side of the situation and trying to take advantage of all the opportunities life offers.  

Next is Tami in all her natural beauty.   

She's probably the most competitive of all of us, but likes playing games the least. (try and figure that one out…)  I envy her ability to look gorgeous with no make-up on and her ability to wrangle four wild boys all day, every day.  She actually tries her pins on Pinterest and is one of the handiest ladies I know when it comes to building things.  She always stays up late chatting it up with us young ones and gives us some of the best laughs.  I'm so thankful for her example of putting her family first and getting along with everyone.

Now for the beautiful Violet Rose.    

Everyone just knows when Vi walks into a room.  She always looks so put together and is always full of life.  She's a people person, and she has the ability to carry a conversation with everyone.  She's always up on the latest fashions and she tries her best to help me out in that department… I'm so proud of her for living the college student life for going on about 10 years now.  She's a champ!  She always makes time to come to Cokeville and visit with us.  I always love going on walks with Vi.  I'm so thankful for her example of patience and her love for the Lord.  

The last blood sista--Tess the mess.

I love this girl.  We have been best friends since we were babies.  She's so fun to be around and can make anybody smile.  She comes up with the best questions to ask people--questions that make them feel a little uncomfortable, but end up making them feel like they're best friends. her personality is infectious.  She is always trying to do what is right and makes me want to be a better person.  She's a hard worker and she's beautiful to boot!  I'm so thankful for her example of always doing what's right, no matter what the circumstances are.  

"Married-in" Michelle comes next.

Because Michelle is from Cokeville, we've known each other for forever.  She's always been so nice to me.  I was the libero on the volleyball team my sophomore year, she was a senior and the setter, and she never gave up on me.  Even if I shanked 3 passes in a row, she still made me feel like she believed in me.  It meant so much to me.  She's an awesome photographer, I covet her skin, my brother is SO in love with her, and she's now the proud mom to a precious little girl.  I'm so thankful for her example of doing what she loves and being flexible.  

Finally, our newest sister, Candace.  

Candace just joined our family on Thursday, and we are pumped about it!  We love her!  She's so spunky and full of life and is game to try anything.  She's an artist and a dental hygienist.  She puts up with Tyson and is one rare person who has the ability to give it right back to him.  Her laugh is contagious.  Everybody loves her--kids to adults.  She's the lone soccer player of the family, but I'm sure she'll get a few converts soon.  I'm so thankful for her example of making the most of your life, even if it doesn't go as planned.  

I think it's pretty easy to see that I am the winner of the best sisters award.  We are all so different, but one thing we all have in common is our love for our family and our love for the Savior.  All of these ladies are trying their best to do what is right.  They all have strong testimonies and are great examples to me of living the gospel of Jesus Christ.  I am so thankful for them in my life and so thankful that we get to be together for ETERNITY.  

Livi's Logic #10

It will make us all happier if we just look for the good in others.  Then help them see the good in themselves.  You never know what a kind word can do.