Belize 2016 Day 4

Abby at breakfast...
she likes to talk
with her hands.

With torrential downpours all night long, we did not know what we were going to wake up to. When we checked the forecast last night it was a high chance of rain all day. 7:30am…. Sunny Skies… alright, alright, alright :-) 

We enjoyed a great breakfast down the beach and a relaxing morning before heading to the school. We picked up water for the kids on our way to the field and set up for the first wave of Infant 1 and Infant 2 (1st and 2nd graders) who get out an hour before the rest of the school. I posted up at the entrance/exit of the school and ushered them over to the field next to the school as they came out. Once we gathered all of the little guys over at the field we started with some fun small games and skills and then moved onto some teamwork drills and a fun scrimmage. What an amazing transformation from yesterday…. wild… that is what they were yesterday. Today they were fantastic. We had a great time and several of them stayed to continue with the camp as the older kids got out of school. 

We set up into our 4 stations… Dave had the playing/possession station, Scott was on shooting, Abby on dribbling, and Maria and Kevin on team building. We had no trouble dividing the kids into age groups and starting with the stations. The entire session went great today. Turns out that this year, the kids didn’t need 2 days to adjust, just 1 day. The coaches also did a fantastic job with their stations... You could feel so much positive energy in the air! 

There is a lot of excitement around the upcoming league and program expansion. A group of boys were out practicing to prepare for the league and we had to ask them to move from the field to make space for camp. I asked them if they would like to join us and they were very upset that they could not play anymore. They said they had “just finished picking up all of the glass off the field.” I went to the side with them and talked to them all about the league and the upcoming program and the leadership team. I told them all about what we were learning in camp and how much it would help them. I put my “trying to be one of boys” hat on and by the end of the conversation they were running over to join their age group. These boys enjoyed themselves and thrived in the camp for the rest of the afternoon… it was a great thing to see. I also had a group of really little 7 and 8 year old girls that I called “my good girls” because they were so well behaved and sweet they were following me around camp like little ducks :-)

Salif jumping into the action

All of the coaches did such a wonderful job today running their stations, when it came time to play the game I did not think that it could get any better. Then Salif started walking up to the field. Salif is a friend of mine from the LTRC adult soccer league who set out to come on the trip but could only make it from Tuesday-Saturday. He flew in and came straight to the field changing his clothes in the cab. I introduced him to the campers and announced that he would be the coach of one of the teams for the scrimmage. Salif played on the Cameroon National team and when the kids found this out they erupted in a round of applause! Salif brought such a great and positive energy into the camp with his arrival! We scrimmaged for about 40 minutes with 3 teams rotating and then brought all of the campers in to tell them how much improvement we have seen from yesterday and especially in just the day today. I said how proud of them we are and how we can’t wait to see them again tomorrow. “Can you

imagine how much more you will improve with 3 more days of practices!” Little do they know that Coach Abby will be staying to do this with them for the next 3 months :-)

After camp, I walked back with Salif to the hotel and told him all about the program in Nicaragua and Belize and the expansion plans we are beginning to execute now. Salif’s enthusiasm for the difference this program can make and the potential for its growth was so inspiring. I can tell that he will be such an amazing addition for the volunteer staff this week. 

Dinner and relaxing night once we got back. Nothing too exciting to report other than good conversation and an opportunity to really relax (and write the blog). 

EVERYTHING must be done face-to-face in Belize. This is something I realized on past

trips and I am so grateful we have been able to accomplish so much to help move this program move forward.

Looking forward to another great day with the kids tomorrow… it’s amazing how fast you become attached. This time when we leave I will be able to sleep well knowing that Abby is carrying on the good work and the kids can continue to grow and develop! 

Belize 2016 Day 1-3

I forgot to write in the last blog what we did to them in their sleep! Well, Ariel and I stayed up much later than them waiting for a lizard. We basically sat quietly staring at the walls waiting for one to cross our path. We were ready with tools in hand to catch the first lizard we saw… it was just like a stake out. Eventually, we chased a lizard down and trapped him and then we held it up by its tail next to their faces while they slept and took pictures. We put these pictures in the Nicaragua initiation photo book only to be seen by Nicaraguan volunteers. They must look at everyone else’s photo before they get to their own. 

…well, that was the story we told and, shockingly, they believed it. haha. No I did not spend hours of the night staking out a lizard… sleep is a precious commodity in Nicaragua! haha. 

Kara and I flew into Belize city, grabbed a taxi to the ferry, and a ferry to the island. It’s all very easy to get around. Once we arrived to the island, we checked into our hotel, took amazing sandal-less showers for the first time since we left home and then set out to Estel’s, one of the best breakfast spots on the island. Walking down the beach to Estel’s was surreal. Were we really here? We ordered a huge breakfast including OJ and a strawberry-banana smoothie. We took one sip of the orange juice, which was freshly squeezed, and looked at each other like it was the best thing we had ever tasted in our lives. 

After a week of beans and rice for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, we were sipping on freshly squeezed orange juice. After a moment we saw the waiter over our shoulders and when we turned to look we saw the most delicious amazing looking smoothies you have ever seen in your whole life. We cried out in the middle of the restaurant, “Ohhh Myyy Goshhh.” It was delicious… one of the best moments of the trip for sure. 

Throughout the day the Belize volunteers started arriving on the island. Scott (my brother), Maria (sister-in-law), Dave and Kevin (friends), and Abby (Coach Abby you may know her as… who works with Kara and I at Champions Soccer). One more volunteer, Salif (from LTRC adult soccer), will be arriving on Tuesday. 

We work with the kids during the week and the weekend when arrive is free time. All of the volunteers enjoyed the island. We had some good meals (the seafood is awesome), I had some good exercise, visited with some friends on the island, and then Sunday afternoon, Abby and I walked over to Lydia’s house. Lydia will be hosting Abby for her 3 months in Belize. This is the ideal situation for Abby. Lydia and her husband have 2 beautiful children (1 that is 6 and the other an infant) and Abby will have a room in the house with a twin bed, desk, and closet. It’s the perfect set up, very comfortable, and I love that Abby will be with a family. She will have a surrogate family during her trip! 

It was great to catch up with Lydia and for Abby to meet the family but we also got to talk for a bit about our plans for a program in Belize. Lydia and her husband had so much good feedback that really helped us to tweak our plan so that it will function well in Belize. One of the important things they said was to under-promise to the locals. If you under-promise and exceed expectations it goes over very well. If you set expectations high and then come short, the locals will be very disappointed, again, by a foreign group trying to come in and help and not keep their word. 

We all went to Fido’s, a great local restaurant with live music, for dinner and then called it an early night. 

7:30am wake up call and we all took off for the school in our More Than Fútbol gear to see the kids. Once we arrived we pumped up all the soccer balls to get them ready for camp and then we went to each of the classrooms to introduce ourselves and invite the kids out to camp after school. This is one of the most fun parts of the week because we get to see a lot of familiar faces and we get to see the excitement of the kids that we are finally here for fútbol camp. The teachers tell us that they ask about it all the time and they have to say, “They will be here! They are coming in January!”

We gave a walking tour of San Mateo, the impoverished community where the majority of our kids live, to our volunteers. It’s amazing to see how much the community has improved in just 5 years since I have been here. There are a lot more filled in roads (rather than swamp with planks), there is electricity now running throughout San Mateo and a lot of people have even put up make-shift fences around their property. 

Once we finished the tour, we had a couple hours of down time to get some food and then went back to the school to work with the kids. The first day is always always always the hardest day. We have a lot of rowdy kids and we have to set the rules and boundaries. The older kids tend to do better because they have been to camp before. The younger kids can be very wild and disruptive. Camp ended going very well for the first day and I continued to remind the coaches, “Monday and Tuesday are our tough days… they are our ‘setting boundaries’ days” but after that it typically improves. Tuesday is tough because a lot of kids that didn’t come to camp on Monday will have gotten permission from their parents to come on Tuesday so we will end up with a lot of new kids on Tuesday and then we have to reset all of the boundaries. 

During camp, Mr. Coba, the head sports guy at the school came back with another teacher, Ms. Virginia, to meet with me about the plans for the league. I was so happy to hear all of the progress that Mr. Coba had made since our last meeting on my last trip to Belize. With Abby’s help the league will be up and running in no time. We will have 6 boys teams and 4 girls teams from the school ages 11-13 playing in a small league. From that, we will select a leadership team that will undergo coach-training with Coach Abby. Those players will then coach 1 of 4 boys teams and 4 girls teams that are 7-9 years old. The idea is to create a system that teaches the older kids responsibility, how to set an example, how to lead, etc. This system also gets the younger players involved in soccer and teaches teamwork and gives them a mentor close in age. The school has 4 houses (kind of like Harry Potter)… Purple House, Red House, etc. So we will have a boys and girls team from each house for the little league. We have enough uniforms to outfit the older league and the leadership will get to have the nice jerseys and shorts that we brought down on our last trip. The leadership team will get to represent the school in a big tournament that is taking place on the island just after Easter. Mr. Coba and Ms. Virginia are on board and I felt so excited and proud of how much we accomplished on just the first day. I’m so excited that the Belizeans are on board with the plan and willing to work with us to move forward to create something wonderful for these kids. It is our hope that we set an amazing example of what this program can be at Holy Cross and then can introduce the model to the other schools on the island until we have the whole island involved! It is my hope that, over time, the leadership program, mentoring, and the positive values learned in this program will change the culture on the island to be one that is more united, supportive, and functional breaking down racial barriers and creating a cooperation in the community that is not currently present. 

Luckily, the rain held out for us today because shortly after we arrived back it started raining and ended up raining VERY hard ALL night. I’m scared to see what the fields will look like. Hopefully, they dry out a bit before camp starts. 

Nicaragua 2016 Day 7

I cannot believe that it is the last day already. I woke up this morning with a little anticipation, knowing that today we would finalize the leauge (hopefully). Things tend to drag out in Nicaragua so I knew that if this was going to happen, today was the day to finalize everything and make sure it was 100% ready to go before I left. After breakfast we went to a private turf field complex that rents out small turf fields to inquire about the price. We reserved the field for our farewell game at the end of the day but couldn’t book the field for the league until we had the final-final “yes” from Katia. Not only do we need to get that final yes, but we need to set a hard start date so that it doesn’t end up getting put off which could potentially result in the league not even happening. 

Once we returned I went in and sat with Katia and Alex and we had a really really awesome meeting. We accomplished everything that we needed to in order to get the league off the ground. 

We talked about the details of the league including consistency of practices and professionalism of all of the coaches. We also discussed the logistics and all of the costs of the league. I will explain the break down of the expenses so you can understand exactly how much it costs and why… a total of $484.00 for one session. The team from Caraso will have to travel 1 hour into the city every weekend to play their game. The cost for this will be 80 cordobas per each player for each of the 8 weeks. 80 x 8 x 8  = 5,120c = US$183.00. We will begin the league in Managua first and then start with the league in Somotillo. In order to make sure that the coaches in Somotillo understand how the league should function, we will bus them (4.5hrs) to Managua for 2 weekends after the league starts so they can observe and understand the rules and all of the small details that go along with creating a league. The cost for this will be another $72.00 to cover their travel bringing the total to $255.00. We were able to get a reduced price on the fie

ld for paying up front. To rent for 2 hours would be 800c x 8 weeks = 6,400c = $229.00. Amazing how inexpensive everything is here in comparison to the US.

We would like to have 3 sessions each year at a minimum and this is just for 4 teams to start. We will eventually have 40 teams in the league. A great project that will accumulate to a great expense. To pay for this  kick off was the Thanksgiving Fundraising tournament… so thank you to everyone who participated. The money we raised for that tournament is going to 1) pay for this league 2) pay to cover the cost of getting all of the gear to Nicaragua and Belize and 3) to cover Abby’s first month of accommodation in Belize as she works to get our Belizean league off the ground. 

It’s starting to add up… eeeep…. fundraising ideas anyone? I’m thinking maybe a bull roast? 

Another exciting thing we discussed in the meeting is the next person to travel to the US this summer to train in coaching. It makes most sense to bring a representative from Somotillo and I had the perfect person in mind. Friedi is one of the most sweet, intense, fun girls at camp and it turns out she is also a pastor in the church. She is very involved and after calling to ask her if she would like to represent More Than Fútbol in the US and when she returns to Somotillo she very excitedly said yes! So, it’s official, we will have our first female Nicaraguan to the US to train in coaching. Everything is coming full circle now because Tony (from Somotillo) and Enmanuel (from Managua), who have not been very involved in the soccer program since their trips to the US will now be involved in the league second in command to Alex and Friedi. Emmanuel will assist Alex with the league in Managua and Tony will assist Friedi with the league in Somotillo! It is truly amazing to see it all come together after years of preparation of training.

Okay, if I keep going on like this we will never make it out of the morning haha… 

We all walked a couple blocks down to a little lunch spot and got some awesome Chicken Plancha, went back to change our clothes, and then headed over to the soccer field. Every year, we rent a turf field and host a game just for the Nicaraguan Central church leaders… these are the people we become most close with throughout the week (like Mario and Alex) because we spend so much time with them! 

The game is a great way to have fun and really connect in another way with our Nicaraguans- on the field, we all speak the same language… of soccer. High fives, working together, supporting each other. A great time… on a side, my team (Jordy, Lenny, Mario, Chicho, and Danny) won every game :-) :-) :-) Go team! 

Kara was unable to play in the game due to her knee injury

so instead she decorated Enmanuel’s shoes. Enmanuel had bought a pair of white slip on shoes to play in at camp with little flowers on them. We told him that he can’t walk around in those… way to feminine. Kara actually has a business on the side at home called BMore Free Designs where she does hand painted signs, glassware, and white shoes. So she did the best she could transforming Enmanuel’s shoes into something more masculine with just the use of a black sharpie.

After the game, we had our farewell dinner… this is the saddest part of the week and our last opportunity to spend time with everyone. We went out to dinner with a total of 18 people from the central church and the bill was $90. Pretty good deal to have a nice farewell dinner with excellent food for 18 people! That would feed 2 people at a nice restaurant at home. During dinner, Alex and I ironed out a few more details of the league and I gave him some tips and a little motivational speech for him taking over after I left. We all enjoyed each other’s company very much but you could feel the sadness in the air. Once everyone finished eating we began with the closing speeches. Alex, 

Enmanuel, and Katia all had very beautiful words for us thanking for spending time in Nicaragua and believing in this program. Also, letting us know that they love and care about us very much and the door is always open. Then my turn… I gave a little closing speech… well anyone knows me knows that once I get to talking it’s hard for me to stop. Long-winded might be the right way to put it… :-/. I basically said…  this is my 10th trip down to Nicaragua and its taken a long time to build the relationship, the trust, and to form a plan that will expand the program and function well for our communities… The success of this league depends on us all. We have the opportunity to create something that will benefit many and create a positive change for years to come. On behalf of Kara, the girls and I want to say that we are so

thankful for all of your love, support, and friendship. We feel that this is a family here and we are a part of the family… we love everyone very much. We had a wonderful week and we cannot wait to see everyone next year.

We gave a ton of hugs and everyone was very emotional. Katia teared up, Jordy (who is very masculine) also cried a little. The whole evening, especially the closing speeches and farewells, was very heartfelt. 

3:15am wake up call to head to the airport meant showering and right to bed once we returned… which is exactly what I did. I am up especially late at night working on the blog usually averaging about 4-6 hours of sleep a night (to be generous). Last night I was awake until 2am and then up early in the morning for breakfast. When I went to meet with Katia all the girls and Kara took a long 2 hour nap. Soooo I lobbied for the first shower so I could get to sleep earlier… which is exactly what happened… shower, PJs, out like a light at 10:30. I was worried about the early wake up call but I ended up feeling wide awake and like a million bucks… probably because I fell right into my normal 4-6 hour sleeping range. Still running on adrenaline… let’s see what the crash will be like when we get to Belize. 

Enmanuel, Nancy, and Jordy all stayed at the church, without showering, and sleeping on the floor so that they could ride to the airport with us at 3:30am to say goodbye. ***insert emotional expression here***

We said our final goodbyes, checked-in and before we knew it we were on the plane and our Nicaragua trip was over. 

What an amazing week. On a personal note, I can say that this was one of the hardest trips I have ever had in Nicaragua. More Than Fútbol is a huge part of my heart and I felt like all of the success of the program hinged on my ability to execute this plan in this 1 week here in Nicaragua. Typically, I don’t put pressure on myself like that, but this is just so close to my heart that I couldn’t help but feel the pressure. I am overjoyed that everything worked out and leaving this trip I have an overwhelming feeling of happiness, relief and comfort and a renewed perspective of God’s work. I have to remember that my effort is NOT enough to make this plan work but God will see it through. Something that I will remember for my week in Belize where we are trying to establish and accomplish the same thing. 

Nicaragua 2016 Day 6

Kara and Ariel, the messy Sleepers in one bed...
Maya and I, the still quiet sleepers in the other bed

I’m the only one in our group of 4 who sets a morning alarm to get ready for the day ahead. Every morning we have to be ready at a certain time to go to breakfast and start the day… usually leaving at 7am or 8am. This morning, we had an 8am breakfast planned and when my alarm went off to wake me up at 7:30am it didn’t wake anyone else up. I got out of bed and turned around looking at Kara and the girls sleeping peacefully, the open bathroom, the available space to move around and opted not to wake them up just yet haha. When I did eventually get everyone up, we walked down the street to a breakfast spot with Alex and ordered eggs, which naturally came with beans, rice, and a tortilla. The only one who put down the beans and rice was Ariel… but she has an unfair advantage over us since her father is Brazilian! 

We grabbed our things and headed straight to Los Trejos to observe Alex running a practice with the first community team we have established. Enmanuel surprised us on the side of the road as we were driving to Los Trejos this morning. He had taken the bus in from his home town of Caraso and jumped in the back of the pick-up truck! How exciting! Turns out, Enmanuel was planning to spend the whole day with us! 

The kids from Los Trejos arrive in
the back of the truck!

The boys of Los Trejos seemed to enjoy the practice a lot, they worked hard, listened to Alex, and I was able to see Alex put some of the things he learned over the summer into practice with his own team in his own language. He did a great job! 

At the end of the session, I talked to the boys about taking advantage of this amazing opportunity to be the first team established for our new league. This gives them the opportunity to practice more before other communities have even established teams! I talked to them about respecting the coach and paying

attention always and I said that every time they come to practice they have an opportunity to demonstrate what kind of person they
are. Are they a person that can work well with others or someone who just plays by himself? Do they have a strong work ethic? Do they respect others? These are key fundamental building blocks for this program and its important to be very specific with the boys.
I can tell this could be a rowdy group and in order for Alex to keep control over them he needs to nip any mal-behavior in the bud. In the beginning of my talk, with the boys one of the boys started whispering while I was talking. I clapped my hands in his face, and said “When I talk, you listen.” From that point on, I had their full and undivided attention. It was also good for Alex to see that you can be sharp with how you talk to the kids without being negative or scary. Sharp and positive is the way to go.

We dismissed the boys and then loaded up the truck to head out for a much-needed leisure afternoon. 10 minutes into the trip to the lake we pulled into a gas station and realized that the truck was leaking a lot of oil! After I paid for the gas my coins fell out of my wallet all over the ground. Enmanuel immediately jumped under the car to retrieve them and put them into my brand new white wallet not realizing that they were covered in oil. I gasped and Alex turned to me with a worried, questioning look on his face and I said in spanish, “Enmanuel just put black oil into my brand new whatever-this-thing-is-called!” holding my wallet up to show him. Not being able to say the word in spanish just made us all erupt in laughter and my initial disappointment, of my new white wallet turning black, disappeared. 

We happened to be parked right next to a grocery store so while Mario and Alex tried to figure out how to resolve the situation, the rest of us headed over to the grocery store to get some yummy snacks. Yogurt, banana, orange juice, cinnamon bread… we went straight for some of our favorite breakfast items that have been replaced with beans all week. All good snacks to hold us over until we got to the Monkey Hut. When we returned Mario told us to get in the car and hurry! I think he put some oil in and he had to speed back before it all leaked out again haha. Good luck in Nicaraguan traffic. Beep, beep, beep… I felt like I was sitting next to an American… not just because we were in a rush, but also because I could feel the stress radiating out of him… My first thought was, “this feels familiar” and then I thought… “oh it’s because he’s rushing around like an American.” We made it back thanks to Mario’s American hustle and switched to another truck for the day. That’s the fastest I’ve ever seen a Nicaraguan move. 

When we arrived to the Monkey Hut which is a popular spot amongst a few lake front touristy resort spots that have Swimming/Kayaking/etc., a restaurant, tables, hammocks, rocking chairs, WiFi, etc. Everything you need to be comfortable. Except there was one problem with the Monkey Hut… it was SO crowded, I could not believe it. So we decided to walk  up the street a block to the next resort “Laguna Beach Club”… we walked in to find a much more tranquil spot with all the same amenities but just a little nicer and for the same price! Excellent. We went swimming and chilled out enjoying some much-needed relaxation and some DELICIOUS food. 

Kara and I made a new friend… a parrot of some sort that just hung out with us. By our feet, on Kara’s backpack and eventually on Kara’s finger! It could dance, talk, smile, and mimic some of our movements… very cool! We felt like the bird

whisperers. We attracted him over, befriended him, and played with him just like a pet. Steve Irwin style but with a non-dangerous animal. After 15 minutes of amazing bird-whispering a man who worked at Laguna Beach Club came over to us and said… “That is the pet of the beach club! He’s very friendly and likes to talk to everyone!” Wah-wah-wah…. Oh well, we still had fun with the bird and Kara was happy that the bird was domesticated and not caring

After 4 hours of fun and relaxation we packed up and made our way back to Managua. On the way back we went on the hunt for 2 things internet to add to the internet stick (for my computer) and ice cream. After being directed to the grocery store and then to the chicken place in the food court and then the pizza place in the food court as places where you can supposedly get Internet (what?) we finally were able to buy it at a gas station. We don’t have a ton of internet access here but there are 2 things I need to get internet for at least once a day on my computer- one for the blog so everyone at home can follow along (so far 700 hits thanks everyone!) including the girls parents (Bonnie and Linda your girls are safe!). Also, I need to be in communication with our contacts in Belize and the Belize volunteers who fly out tomorrow to make sure that everyone is prepared and takes off without a problem. I’m just giving an explanation because I’m not the type of person who needs to be constantly connected. In fact, I like being away and out of touch, it’s very relaxing. 

Ariel and I played a hilarious joke on Maya and Kara that had them going all night long. We told them that tonight was the initiation night and we were going to do something to them while they were sleeping that could only be done in Nicaragua. The guessing immediately ensued. Are you going to put bug spray in my hair? Are you going to put something in my bed? The guesses Kara and Maya were coming up with were so funny and off the wall that it had us laughing until they passed out. Funny how the two people thinking we are going to do something to them in their sleep are the first 2 people to fall asleep. Ariel and I were up very late. She wrote in her journal and I posted the blog from the day before. I will wait until the next blog to tell you all what we did to them in their sleep… hehehehe. 

Door to our new room

This day was great and so necessary, especially for sanity. The tight dorm situations, communal bathrooms, and beans on beans on beans, wore us down. I believe this is my 10th trip to Nicaragua and on all of my trips, this was definitely the toughest conditions. I was actually really surprised with myself because I haven’t felt uncomfortable in Nicaragua probably since my first trip down when I saw everything for the first time. If anyone would be accustomed to the lifestyle it would be me. This week took me right back to that first trip and I had to re-accustom myself all over again. So if it was hard for me then I’m so so proud of Kara, Maya, and Ariel for sticking it out when we were at camp. Once we got out of the dorms and back to the church room we are staying in with more space and our own shower, all of the discomfort dissipated… room to breathe. So today it was really great to spend our first day in our new accommodations, observe the beginning of the program expansion with Alex’s practice in Los Trejos, recharge the battery, eat some regular food, and relax a little after the tough and busy week so far. 

Today has been MUY MUY MUY exciting so far. I have a quick moment to post the blog from yesterday but I have such exciting news about my final meeting with Katia today about the league and plans for expansion! I can’t wait to share them………. in the next blog post! Stay tuned! Thanks for following along and for your support! 

Nicaragua 2016 Day 5

The amazing thing about this trip in Nicaragua is that it goes both very slow and very fast at the same time. Very slow in the sense that we stretch every single moment of the day in Nicaragua until the time we crawl into bed at night. By that time we are so delirious from exhaustion that there is usually an awkwardly awesome spike in energy that results in a nonstop stream of laughter until a massive, deep sleep crash. We are running on about 5 hours of sleep a day max and

when we wake up in the morning we hit the ground running… early breakfast and then on the go the rest of the day. Today was no exception.

We woke up this morning and could not believe camp was coming to an end in just a few short hours. Not to worry, 3 hours of activities here during camp in Nicaragua is equivalent to 3 days of productivity at home. Okay, I know I said I would not write about beans anymore but… 7am, our 12th consecutive bean meal… Need I say more. 

There was definitely a mixture of sadness and excitement in the room. Sadness because camp was coming to an end and excitement and excitement because we were about to begin with these semifinal matches! Before anything else we had our morning devotional. 

The devotionals are always very beautiful but something really special happened a the end of the devotional today when we “shared the peace” (la Paz). We stood in a circle and then part of the circle started going around hugging each person and sharing the peace. After the last person hugged you then you would become part of the hugging line until you got back to your original spot where you then waitied for everyone to come through and back to their original spot. 

Camp Photo

By the end of La Paz today we had hugged everyone twice! That’s over 150 hugs! Can you imagine sharing the peace to be like that at church in the US. Typically, people just shake hands with those in their immediate area. Before getting ready for the tournament we took a big fun group photo and photo and quick video for More Than Fútbol and then headed out to the soccer field. 

The first game of the tournament for the boys and the girls ended in penalty kicks and then in the second game for the

boys Enmanuel (Defending tournament champ) and his brother, Jordy, played against each other. Emanuel’s team beat Jordy’s team to win the whole tournament last year so this was a sweet revenge for Jordy when his team slaughtered Enmanuel’s team 8-1. His team went on to win the Championship in a very exciting and intense game.

Enmanuel vs. Jordy
Rock, Paper, Scissors

Every game beforehand they prayed together as a team and really seemed to come together over the course of the week. I am so happy to see the transition because we had an issue with this team not giving enough playing time to some of the younger kids and some attitude problems and other drama also. What a turn around. I spoke to Jordy in the beginning of the tournament about the theme “More Than Fútbol” and how it was his responsibility as an older player to bring his team together. What a turn around. A great example of More Than Fútbol- how soccer can teach so many great life lessons. Conflict resolution, teamwork, problem solving, work ethic, etc. I was so excited to see them experience that success. A great example also for the rest of camp.

On the girls side, Ariel’s team ended up playing Maya’s team in the championship game and after a very hard fought battled, the game went into penalty kicks and Ariel’s team prevailed. After the boys game finished, the boys went over to watch the girls penalty kicks. It was really great to see them show interest and support each other. 

We all went into the main hall here one of the youth leaders had already helped us with setting out all of the donated shoes which we used for prizes to the winners. So if you are reading this and you donated a pair of soccer cleats, we probably gave them out to the tournament winners. 

Prior to the ceremony I gave a speech about how thankful we are to be able to be here and share this experience with them and how the future of this program is going to be a wonderful thing. When the league begins, they must continue to enforce, teach, and promote the theme of "More Than Fútbol" and that the success of the program is not just in our hands, but in their's as well. We all have a part to play to see the league be successful. I thanked all of the people at home who help make this program a possibility with their support and gear donations. We had a big round of applause and then brought the winning teams, leading goal scores, and sportsmanship recipients up to receive their awards. It was fun helping all of the winners select their shoes and they were so very grateful to receive them. 

We closed out the ceremony and then showered, packed up all of our things, and said our goodbyes. It was so sad to see

all of the campers go. They loaded up on the big yellow bus to head back to Managua’s main bus station so that they could then all bus back to their respective areas. We said goodbye to all of the main church leaders (who we will see again on Friday) and we even said goodbye the sweet ladies that work in the kitchen… they always gave me cups for tea and took great care of us!

After heading back to Managua, we took up residence in our new room which is much more spacious than our room in the dorms. We dropped our bags off and then spent the rest of the day touring around Managua a little bit. First, we went to the Market to buy some nice little hand-made items and gifts from Nicaragua. Next, we went to the market in Caterina (which oversees all of the lakes of Nicaragua). It is a very nice area to view, shop and explore. Finally, we came back to the main city of Managua and had a delicious dinner and turned in for the night. 

Good Night From Nicaragua! Thank you for following along! 

Nicarauga 2016 Day 4: Now Watch me Nae Nae in Nicaragua

3 mosquito bites today :-/ That scares me. As soon as we walked down to breakfast Katia pulled me aside and said to make sure we use bug spray because the mosquitos were out today. I wondered what the difference was from today to the other days because this Nicaraguan Heat feels equally intense every day to me. Katia said that the weather was a bit more breezy and cool so the mosquitos would be more out in the open because they like it prefer that? Okay… it doesn’t take much of an explanation for me… just say mosquito…

Enmanuel and Jordy Aléman
"The brothers Aléman"

just say it once and before you know it we will both be in a cloud of bug spray. Initially, when we arrived to camp I felt a bit uncomfortable putting my pants on over my bug sprayed legs over and over again (we have to wear pants for the devotionals) but now I love those pants, they are like a coat of armor to me… invincible! We are sprayed down and throughout the day I only got a couple of bites. When I asked Enmanuel if he had gotten bit by any mosquitos he said that he got 25 bites last night! I can’ t believe that the living arrangements could get much more uncomfortable from what we have but apparently the boys are really uncomfortable since they are all in one big room and people make noise and some are in cots and others are on mats on the floor. So Enmanuel just left the dorms and opted to sleep outside on his mat… Loco. Anyways, I asked Enmanuel if he was scared of his bites and he said that he thinks he’ll be fine. I asked him to put a number behind it… we American’s like facts and statistics… “What percentage chance do you think you have contracting Chikungunya?” Enmanuel said 10%. So the girls and I figure if we get bit a few times that still makes it less than a 1% chance we will get it…….. according to our extensive Nicaraguan research.

After breakfast we wrote in our journals and I put up the blog from yesterday. Sitting around talking about the answers to

FaceTime with bestie :-)

the questions and hearing everyone’s different perspectives has been a really interesting and fun part of the trip. Everyone views the world with a different lens and with different experiences and its very enjoyable to hear the perspectives of the girls and Kara each day. After a little Wi-Fi indulgence (catching up on things at home and face-timing with friends) it was already time for lunch! Rice and beans again…. actually, just because I’ve bean going rice and beans crazy doesn’t mean that I have to start making everyone at home go rice and beans crazy. I am not going to write about it anymore… just assume that is all we are eating. In fact, we are probably eating it right now while you are reading this.

The soccer tournament started off great today. We finished all of the regular bracket games and tomorrow we start with the semi-finals and the championship round! We could see a huge change in demeanor in all of the players from yesterday. They seemed to understand the rules better, respect the referees (just a little but more), and have more fun. The mood was intense but a little lighter than yesterday. On the boys field we just lost shoe after shoe after shoe. Somoene would kick a ball as hard as they could and the shoe would go flying off of their foot. I even got hit with a shoe on the side lol. Everyone here seems to like the slip-in style shoe. They actually work well for soccer aside from the “flying of the foot” part.

Once we wrapped up with the tournament, Kara, Ariel, and I went to get a little work out in. Maya was busy getting ready for the King and Queen of camp competition. We had a huge crowd of Nicaraguans surrounding us during the workout. I can’t tell if it was fun for them to watch or they wanted to join. Enmanuel and his brother, Jordy, joined our workout! 

Afterwards, we showered up and

then began the king and queen of camp ceremony, talent show, and FIESTA!

Maya competed in the King and Queen competition representing the

town of Carosa. She did such a great job and looked beautiful! Ariel was able to pass her crown from last year onto the next queen of camp which was super cute. While Maya was occupied with the King and Queen of camp event, we performed for the talent show (everyone participates in some way) and we did “Watch Me” (Nae Nae?). It was fun and so funny. We had some of the Nicaraguans come up and do the dance with us, I messed up the beginning by not turning at the correct time and then somewhere midway through Kara just started making weird and hilarious stuff up to go with the song and the Nicaraguans just followed along. When she started with it it caught me so off guard that I just could not stop laughing mid-song. haha. Check it out… but for the record, we have no idea how to Nae Nae. The closest thing I got was when one of my players, Chris Volley, tried to teach it to me at soccer practice this summer!

Did she hide her face well?

I have to show the Nicaraguans every year that I have a Latina side… and where I show that is in my Latina hips on the dance floor. After the talent show was over, the party began along with A LOT of dancing. Kara was a little surprised at how the Nicaraguans danced which is kind of like Grinding at home but

with no contact- like an inch between dance partners. Ariel and Maya were hot commodities for dance partners. Kara and I were next, dancing around the floor and having fun. After a while we decided to turn in for the night but the girls are having so much fun dancing that I could not pry them away, nor did I want to. In fact, they are probably dancing right now as I type this blog haha.

If you want to eat what you like,
you have to get creative. 

Today was a fantastic day from start to finish. We are continuing to work on league logistics on the side and hope to have everything prepared for the final meeting with Katia on Thursday. It will be sad to wrap up camp tomorrow and have to say goodbye to so many of the youth until we meet them again next year. 

Quote of the day: “The beans really get to you! I thought I had to go but then it turned out to be just a toot…ish.” 

(Okay I know that sounds gross and I’m not going to say WHO said it but it was SO funny in the moment. BTW- We are all doing fine digestively but the change in diet is definitely a challenge). 

Thanks for reading along! Good night from Nicaragua! 

Nicaragua 2016: Day 3

Day 3: Monday, January 4, 2016

Like a rock. That is how we slept last night. I don’t think I moved one single inch from the time I went to sleep until the time I woke up in the morning. We were so excited to get to breakfast and find that they were changing up the food a little bit… For breakfast we had beans “with” rice instead of beans “and” rice. haha… my apologies, I’ve bean going a little bean crazy. We were ahead of the game though… knowing what was in our beans and rice future, we stopped at the grocery store on our first day to pick up snacks and so with breakfast this morning we had apples, bananas, and other small breakfast items to supplement! Breakfast, and everything we do here is very relaxed and at a very calm pace. I find myself even walking around at half speed every where I go. I don’t think we realize how much we rush around until we slow down the pace of life (I highly recommend it… save money on therapy and lower your stress level by just coming down to Central America with us). 

We started the day with a devotional which is like a mini-church service. One of the 13 communities is responsible for presenting the devotional and today it was the community of

La Grecia from Chinendega, Nicaragua. The devotional was beautiful. Everyone knows all of the songs by heart and you can tell that faith is at the center of their being. When we shared “La Paz” (the Peace) at the end of the service everyone hugged at least 30 people.

After the devotional, the youth worked on an exercise while we journaled about the trip and then we split the youth up into

their teams for camp and did a fun team building exercise so that everyone could have a little fun and get to know their new

teammates! The teams were tasked with putting together a skit or a song including the following words… “Super-Hero”, “Monkey”, “Papusa (popular El Salvadorian food), “Toilet Paper”, “Trip”, “Crazy Uncle” and “Que Ondo Loco” (a familiar Nicaraguan expression between friends). The skits were funny and the youth and a great time creating, performing, and watching each other. A great way to help everyone feel comfortable with their new teammates.

Lunch time was finally here and we were hungry… pretty much always feeling hungry… luckily we had a traditional Nicaraguan meal served for lunch of… beans and rice. After, Kara and I did a little circuit

workout which felt fantastic. Really great to get our bodies moving and stretch out a bit after a few long days. IT WAS SO HOT. We sweat just sitting down in the shade so working out in the sun was like a hot yoga detox.

Finally, it was time for the soccer tournament to begin. While we got everything set up, some of the kids started playing soccer with a rolled up piece of paper until we brought out the balls. 

Kara refereed the girls and I refereed the boys. It is always a challenge with the boys because they are intense and no one likes the referee :-( Usually after the first day it gets a little better but I have to be on my A-game which can be difficult when sometimes friends are talking to me during the game (if they are not playing) and because I ref for 3 hours straight. During the first game of the tournament, Enmanuel launched a shot over the neighbors wall that was very high and with barbed wire at the top. Somehow, 20 minutes later, Enmanuel and Juan (from Somotillo) emerged with the ball covered in stickers. Juan is the camp joker, he has been here almost every year since I started. A young teenager when I first met him, Juan was married and at camp with his pregnant wife. Now, his wife is at home with their 3 kids and Juan is still making his way to camp! 

Anyways… back to the tournament… long story short, the drama with the guys did not end there. Most of the players, especially those who have participated in camp before (and know how it works), are fine. The new ones are a little too aggressive and too argumentative with the referee. The second day is always better. 

Maya and Ariel participated with the girls in the tournament. Since girls are not as socially encouraged to participate in sports, it’s great for them to play with Maya and Ariel. Kara said that the girls gave her no trouble, they just had fun and enjoyed playing the game. 

Once we finished up with the games we came straight to eat dinner. In a shocking turn of events there was no beans and rice served with dinner. There was a small piece of chicken, a slice of white sandwich bread, and a small salad (which we are not permitted to eat). The chicken was delicious but this was definitely not enough food to survive the night haha. Hmmm… beans and rice were starting to look pretty good at this point… 

Don’t worry… we had a back up plan. In our room we have bananas, cucumbers, apples, peanuts, chex-mix, and cereal bars. So, we were okay. 

The night ended with the movie “Inside Out” in spanish on a screen set up between 2 trees outside. It was a great set up and the campers loved the movie. While the girls watched the movie, Katia asked me to come over and speak with a man that she was talking to. His name was David and he is from Barcelona spain and staying at the same retreat center as us. David married a Nicaraguan woman and moved here 7 years ago. He does a lot of work in the community and especially with soccer programs for the kids. He also said that he has some connections to FC Barcelona and that they help with his operation. He was very interested in our new soccer league we are creating and wanted to find a way to possibly work together. I could tell by talking to him that he really new his stuff when it came to soccer and I was happy to make a good soccer connection here in Nicaragua with someone who has experience with organized soccer programs. 

Before the night ended we planned to get a little journal/blog writing done back in our room but as soon as a laid down I could not keep my eyes open. Maya and Ariel came into the room and tried to have a conversation with me. I can remember trying to answer all of their questions and laughing at myself for half dreaming and talking at the same time but I have NO idea what we talked about. haha. 

Thanks for following along! Apologies for being 1 day behind on the posts but the only free time I seem to find is in the mornings. After soccer today, we have a whole night of activities planned for the youth so I will have time to write the blog for today and catch up so stay tuned for another post tonight! Today is our last day full day of camp and tomorrow we wrap up with the Championship and head back to Managua! 

Here are some questions to follow along with the girls experience at camp! Always fun to hear their answers… 

1) How has the experience of soccer been with the Nicaraguans

Maya: It was awesome, I didn’t expect them to be so enthusiastic and competitive. 

Ariel: My fútbol spanish vocal has increased and I feel more relaxed as a leader on the team this year.

Kara: I was a ref and found it very entertaining. I enjoyed being engaged in the game with the players. 

2) How did you enjoy your first full day of camp? 

Maya: It was awesome, everyone was really nice and sometimes sassy so it’s really fun. 

Ariel: It was awesome, when we were completely willing to make fools of ourselves we could talk to so many new people and learn names. 

Kara: Although tiring, it was rewarding. I can tell its a long day when my feet hurt at the end. 

3) What was the best part of the day? 

Maya: Fried chicken dinner. 

Ariel: I enjoyed sitting down with random people and trying to remember everyone’s name. The names are very unique. 

Kara: Sitting with Guiermo at lunch because we got to speak and joke with each other english and spanish and joke around a lot. 

4) What was the hardest moment of the day? 

Maya: Not falling asleep before washing up. 

Ariel: Showering when I didn’t want to. 

Kara: Eating beans. Again. At 7am. 

5) What was the funniest moment of the day? 

Maya: Every time I tried to say the Nicaraguans names I would mess up, they would laugh, I would try again and mess up again. 

Ariel: During Inside Out I cried out when Bing Bong died and then everyone laughed. 

6) Did anything interesting happen today? 

Maya: The 1 on 1 experience I making a new friend in spanish was really wonderful. 

Ariel: I had a conversation in english with a guy who is trying to learn english like I am trying to learn spanish. 

Kara: It’s interesting that they don’t shower at night and think its weird that they do. Also, seeing people play soccer with a rolled up piece of paper. 

7) What do you think is the impact of the More Than Fútbol program? How do the people respond to it? 

Maya: Before we actually went to camp I saw kids on the street playing with a ball so I think the program allows kids the opportunity to come together and play organized soccer. 

Ariel: Come together as at team. When we first came together for our skits we weren’t talking much but by the end we were all laughing. 

Kara: Brings people together and teaches teamwork. At first people seemed surprised that they get a uniform and shy to receive it but on the first day of soccer everyone put their uniforms on as soon as they could!