teach a man to farm.

--Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime--

I AM SO HAPPY RIGHT NOW!

you all know how important teaching kids life skills  is to me. well this upcoming trip to haiti we were going to have farming classes with the kids. we would have a beginner class & an advanced class. well the first week we had to cancel the class because the kids will have final exams that week. 

SO. food for the poor delivered some really cool raised garden beds to CAD, with some AMAZING dirt. you might think that is absurd for me to be so happy about dirt but if you go to haiti & you see the dirt i have to work with sometimes you would understand. dirt that has been worked & worked is a precious thing. 

the kids helping unload them. they are always so willing to help.

the agriculture guy who delivered the beds spoke with alix & they organized a trip for him to come & give the kids a class on CAD property with the new raised beds. in a few days they will plant SO MANY VEGGIES. 

this is an answered prayer. you have no idea. a lot of people think i don't do anything because i don't have a full time job, but let me tell you these 53 children keep me busy. they keep me in prayer & keep me figuring out a plan to keep them fed, to keep them in school, to keep them drinking water, to keep them feeling loved, to keep them believing in their dreams. my heart is broken so many days. my mind spends too much time in worry instead of trust. God knows those kids are there. he knows their needs before they even ask. i am a mother to them. i feel responsible. when i raise money for these trips every single penny goes to these kids, translators, transportation. anything extra goes to buying them fruit & spoiling them while we are there. 

they LOVED the class. 

when i get photos of my kids working in the dirt & learning such an amazing skill that so many take for granted it literally brings me to tears. 

dear wilderson, you can stop growing. love your mom. 

mixing compost & dirt. *fun fact* most of the compost has rice in it to hold moisture. SMART. 

even the teachers were helping. 

THIS is what i live for. these kids have NO ONE. i don't think most of you can comprehend that. these kids fend for themselves. they eat rice every single day & you won't hear them complain. you will see them by themselves & you ask them whats wrong & they tell you they are hungry & their stomach hurts. its heart breaking. they don't have anyone buying them clothes. hugging them in the mornings. NO ONE. as i sit here & write this i am in tears bc i know these kids so well. i want the BEST for them & sometimes things seem impossible. i choose to trust in God. even when things seem so out of reach. please be in prayer that the non-profit goes quickly so we can start getting some funds on a regular basis to support these amazing kids. 

today when i had a little moment of worry the song "first", by lauren daigle, came to my mind. 

i put the lyrics below, just take a minute & read them. gosh, help this be my life's song. 

Before I bring my need
I will bring my heart
Before I lift my cares
I will lift my arms
I wanna know You
I wanna find You
In every season
In every moment
Before I bring my need
I will bring my heart
And seek You

First
I want to seek You
I want to seek You
First
I want to keep You
I want to keep You
First
More than anything I want, I want You
First

Before I speak a word
Let me hear Your voice
And in the midst of pain
Let me feel Your joy
I wanna know You
I wanna find You
In every season
In every moment
Before I speak a word
I will bring my heart
And seek You

First
I want to seek You
I want to seek You
First
I want to keep You
I want to keep You
First
More than anything I want, I want You
First

You are my treasure and my reward
Let nothing ever come before
You are my treasure and my reward
Let nothing ever come before
I seek You

First
First
I want to seek You
I want to seek You
First
I want to keep You
I want to keep You
First
More than anything I want, I want You
First
First

what would i do without the lord? i would be a mess. i would be nothing. nothing good that i ever did would ever truly matter in the long run. my pastor growing up used to say "pursuit is the proof of desire" that has stuck with me since i have heard it. i constantly ask myself, God is what i am pursuing something i should desire? i want everything i do to reflect the bigger picture of what God is doing. i want people to know my heart. i want people to know what really matters to me. i don't want to have to defend my character to someone. i want my life lived to show my hearts intentions. don't get me wrong i do NOT have anything together more than my neighbor, but as i have gotten older i have realized more & more what is REALLY important. i have realized how much i NEED the lord every single day.  i have realized the importance on relationships that are genuine & healthy. i feel so incredibly blessed to have found these 53 children who are in need of so many things. i feel blessed that THEY love me. i feel so blessed that they know how much i love them. i feel so blessed to be able to go & see them & spend time getting to know their hearts & dreams. to pray with them & look into their eyes & tell them that they matter. 

if you want to give towards our next trip you can do so HERE but PLEASE pray for these kids. please. 

28 more days. 

- e

bike rides, snow cones & a date with jillian.

big title, i know- you guys there has been so much going on in my life. today has been the first day when i have a "lazy" day, so i can put everything here- for all of you to read. i love my readers!

we have been bike riders lately. russ will get his kids on their bikes & next thing you know i hear lyla saying, "mrs. evanda". heart melts & then i am like cory get your bike. i love having friends as neighbors, makes my heart happy! we rode our bikes to get a snow cone the other day which is like a 3 mile bike ride if you just go their & back, but we rode around the neighborhood & then rode there. lets say 4 miles one day. it was so fun & the snow cone lady even took our picture to put on her Facebook.

saturday night i put a pot of pintos on to cook through the night & they turned out so good. my friend dockery say my instagram post & next thing you know he is over having a bowl.

mmm. i love them. so much.

sunday was like the perfect day, i love those days that you just think about over & over again. we went to church, came back home & ate these pintos, hung out with dockery & then my parents stopped by to say hi. we sat on the porch in our eno & just enjoyed the day. russ came by again & next thing you know we are riding our bikes again all over town- probably about 5 miles, maybe 6. after being in the sun all day, i got a craving for ice cream so we drove everywhere looking for a cone, but its sunday & everything is closed. ingels had what we needed. so we come back home sit on the porch & then i got a video call on imo from guytho- he was at CAD & i got to video chat with all my sweet kids at CAD including these two.

love those kids so much. june is right around the corner. i pray for these kids every single day. please join me in praying for these kids! God is so big & can open really BIG doors.

if you would like to donate to CAD you can do so here

all proceeds go to CAD to get water, & support better nutrition!

yesterday was my last day filling in at my old job, which i am thankful for because i am going to buy my ticket for my june trip tomorrow! i got to have one of my favorite coffees yesterday- twice.

dancing goats is so good- if you find yourself in decatur ga please go here. get the caramel latte hot or iced.

i met up with jillian after work and we went to mac mcgees. 

i had a cheese plate & she got bangers & mash. i am irish & i enjoy irish food & the conversation from a life long friend. we always have the best talks & friends like her are never replaceable. 

love you jillian- jillyvans foreva!

also- she is planning a really awesome fundraiser for CAD in August & i cannot wait to give you guys more details. 

other than all of this i have been searching for grants everyday on the computer, writing sponsor letters, & planning lessons for the girls at CAD for the june trip!

hope your week has been well so far.

love you all

evanda