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15 noviembre

Thursday

Alright.  So, today we visited an orphanage.  We came expecting there to be older kids, both boys and girls as we were told by the lady who took us there, Alessandra (who is a local from Barinas and is part of Operation Smile).  As we walked in, girls ranging from the age of three to thirteen, little girls dressed in uniform came out in two lines.  There were about forty of them and they were all so cute and so beautiful!  They were at school when we came, but took time out of their day to listen to our presentation and let us spend time with them.  As soon as we arrived, they all came up to us and gave us hugs and welcomed us with a "hola" from each and every one of them.  We exchanged a few words and were then hustled inside by the nuns who were in charge of the young girls.  They all sat down and were so proper and adorable!  We began our presentation about dental hygiene, and introduced ourselves as a part of Operation Smile.  When the girls heard we came from the United States, they all were so shocked and intrigued.  We then passed out toothbrushes for each girl, and also brought out some colors and stickers for the girls to draw and play with us.  They were so appreciative!!  They seemed to be so interested in Andrea and I; always touching our hair, holding our hands, and wanting to get in photos with us.  They were just too cute!  They then gave us a tour of their school clenching onto our hands and fighting over who gets to stand next to us and hold our hands.  Once we finished our tour they all gathered and sang us two songs.  After all of that, we said our good-byes, and I truly don't think I have ever said so many good-byes and given so many good-bye hugs and kisses at once!  It was an incredible experience to know that we can make these girls happy!  One of the older girls, Brenda (she was thirteen), took me over to Alessandra and told her to tell me that she will miss me greatly and that she loves me.  I was so touched by her!  She was so cute and so sweet!  I gave her a hug and she couldn’t stop hugging and kissing me before I left.  She must of said bye to me at least like four times!  It was really cute and all the girls were adorable!  I am so glad we got the opportunity to go visit this orphanage.  

Check the pictures!!!!

P.S. Tomorrow is our last day of surgeryyy

 

09 noviembre

At the hospital

Hey guys!  It's our second day of screening and people are slowly trickling into the hospital.  There are much less people than yesterday, but it really gives us a chance to get to know the kids that are in line for screening, and a chance for us to play with them more.  When I was buying toys and games for the kids before the mission, I was a bit unsure about these Superman sunglasses I had bought at the 99 cents store.  Well, I WAS SO WRONG!!!! The kids absolutly LOVED them!  I took pictures of them with the sunglasses and they just loved seeing themselves on the digital camera.  One family came in with twin boys...They were the cutest little boys ever!  Only one of the boys had a cleft, but other than that they were identical and were wearing the same exact thing.  I fell inlove with them as soon as I saw them!  They wore their superman sunglasses with style!  One of the twins boys, Alejandro (not the same Alejandro from yesterday), came to me and wanted me to take more pictures of him.  He got so excited and started kissing my camera screen!  I just wanted to take him home with me!! 
I love being here, and being able to make this stessfull process much easier for these kids.  Every single one of them deserves this great opportunity Operation Smile is offering!
 
*Im going to try and upload the pictures as soon as possible.  They are great!! 
 
 
 
02 noviembre

4 more days...!!!

It feels like forever since I found out, during my Summer Mission Training in Ireland, that I am going to Barinas, Venezuela for my Operation Smile mission.  And now, the day is almost here, and I leave in 4 days!!!  It still hasn't hit me that I will be there, at an actual mission with Operation Smile, and with the kids who will soon finally have the opportunity to have their smiles fixed!  I have my suitcase filled with toys and games for the children, and all my stuff put aside and ready to go!  I have my presentations all ready and practiced, and I just can't wait!  Just 4 more days to go!!Smile