Some new things

Driving in Chihuahua has been a nerve-wracking and stressful experience, especially with a big stick shift truck. So we did some math and decided we should get a small car to use during our time in the city. By my calculations over the next year and a half we'll have saved more money in gas than it cost to buy, run, and insure the car. This will also be a big help so that we don't put so much wear and tear on our truck so that we can use it longer when we move to the mountains.

 We weren't able to put it in our name so a friend from our church offered to put it in his name until we get our residency and can put it in ours. We're very thankful to have a dear church family like we do here even in the midst of the language barrier.

Our time in Spanish study is going well. When we look back at how far we've come since getting here it's encouraging to see the progress we made. Sometimes it feels like learning a language is turning our brains into mush but I'm sure that we'll eventually get it as long as we keep working hard and don't give up. One of the missionaries here on the field told me, "The only way to not learn Spanish is if you give up."

Recently I joined a soccer league here in Chihuahua. One of the guys from our church is involved and he invited me to join his team. It's been really good to get out and use more Spanish in conversation and enjoy playing too. Sometimes it feels like I'm playing with guys from the World Cup but I'm still having a good time and it's good for language. (I scored a goal last week).