ALMOST FREE GAS $1.90 PER GALLON

After all those months of $75.00 fill ups, it sure was nice to spend only $35.00 to fill er up. A conservation mind-set has been a good thing and limits the running around burning gas and we've saved 5% as a nation in consumption so thats all good. Gas is cheaper here now than in Mx. Beto and Lucy are so excited about getting a house. Beto and Carmello started digging the footing yesterday as Raul and Me helped Pastor Victor start the footing on the ten foot addition we are building on his house for his other son, daughter in law, and grand daughter that are moving up here from Vera Cruz next week. I suppose after Eliels death that the family needs to be together to help each other heal. We were going to use a bunch of old wood that Victor has but I told him I would just buy new wood. Probably 600.00 will build the whole addition rather than messing with wood loaded with termites. His wife Erica made us some fantastic stuffed Jalepeno peppers after we finished working and Paula brought cookies she made.

A HOUSE FOR OUR GOOD FRIENDS

Beto and Lucy along with thier three kids, Jieel, Rosita and Becky live down the road a ways and are always helping us with everything we do. They have a very small house that some missionaries built them several years ago and with the floor raised off the ground, the cold air makes it very cold in the winter, so I'm building them a house and we'll take thier house apart and give it to a family down the road. The cold air is here at night and it seems everyone has a cold as do Paula and me.Now I'm sure it's not as cold as some of you are experiencing but when you don't have electricity or heat even 50 or 60 degrees is cold. We gave out some blankets we had to a few families and are appealing to our friends to send blankets, jackets, and wool caps for the kids. We are going thru our closets again to give anything we can. If we use the one year rule our closets will be able to breath. Another house close by got forclosed on this week and it's listed at 114,000.00.4br 2 baths and an indoor pool Wow. So if anyone wants to forget about chasing the wind and join us, we'll be neighbors.

IT'S THE COLD & FLU SEASON

It seems like everyone in the colonia including us has a cold. We are trying to get some things done but we're all kind of tired. We managed to put a few tarps on a single moms house yesterday. She has five kids. I bought metal roofing, but the structure is made of pallets and it is not strong enough for the metal roof so we tarped it until we can build them a house. Her house is one of the worst we've seen lately, all the walls are full of holes between the boards of the pallets and they have cardboard and plastic trying to keep the wind and rain out.If I don't build them a house before Christmas we'll build it when the people from our home church Moraine Valley in Palos Heights, Il come down. We also put up the tent by Pastor Victors church Agua Viva for the 3 year anniversary of the church celebration on Sunday. We have 2 interns at SOS, Mitchell and Julie and they are a big help around here, as they were also in the Bahamas a few weeks ago making sure all the transportation and schools were all ready. We marinated and grilled some mexican steak the other day and fed about 30 people. We built some nice shelves and put the curtains in Amelia and Trinidas house and now thier house is complete. She has it decorated so nice inside with all the gifts the team from Washington gave them. The lot they live on is all nice and clean and it just shows us what a change in thier lives these simple houses make to give them some pride in the life they have here. Thanks be to God for allowing us to serve in the colonia.Please pray for the health of all of us down here, Scott and Lisa said the kids in the orphanage and school have colds also. ADIOS