Haiti Updates

I know it’s been a while since we’ve update the blog, but so much has been going on… Sorry fellow blog readers!

We wanted to give you all a quick update on the Haiti trip. Since we’re now only a week and a half away from the day we leave, we finally have received some confirmations on what we’ll be doing while down there. The latest information we received is that we’ll be doing masonry work: helping rebuild a security wall and outdoor latrines at a local church/school/orphanage center. It’s an entire center run by the Lewis family. I believe we might also be working with Water Missions International on the outhouses, which is neat because they’re an organization based here in Charleston.

It sounds like we’ll leave our housing around 7am, arrive at the work site around 8:30am, and work until around 4pm. They want us to arrive back home before dusk to remain safe (you’ll appreciate hearing that, Mom Ruggieri and Beahm!). We’ll be outside all day, but they’re encouraging us to take breaks to play with the kids at the school, possibly teach some English, and spend time praying in the church for Haiti. I know Michael’s excited about the building aspect, and while I am too, I’m even more exciting to play with the kids!

In April, Seacoast sent someone down to Haiti to live for a few months and be our “contact on ground.” He’s been extremely helpful in being the liaison between the Haitians and our trips. We were able to Skype with him during out last meeting on Tuesday, and it really got us excited to get down there!! He’ll be picking us up from airport and taking the lead while down there.

Our flight leaves Saturday morning, June 5, at 7am. We connect in Miami and then arrive in Port Au Prince around 10:30 am their time, 11:30 am our time (they are 1 hour behind us). Hopefully that will give us some time to see the site on Saturday.

Probably the most exciting news is that with less than 2 weeks left, we have completed our fundraising goal! We’ve been absolutely blown away by the generosity of our friends and family in the past few weeks; it’s truly humbling. Thank you to each of you who have supporting us financially and with prayer. We hope we can serve our God well on behalf of you during our trip! Thank you for helping us make this happen.


That’s it for now…check back in before, during and after the trip for more updates!


-LB&MB

Back in the Day

I was going through some of our photos on the computer and I came across these that I had scanned for the wedding. They are our parents...do you know who is who?!!





My, how times have changed!!

Family

I love family. It just doesn't get better than spending time with family; it's something we don't get to do as often because we live farther than the rest of our gang (well, not as far as the Swems!). This weekend my sweet cousin Lindsey graduated from Charleston Southern. It's neat because she actually started the first year Kristen and I moved down here, and it was fun to see her end this chapter of her life. She's an amazing soccer player and I'm honored I got to see her play so many times.
My Aunt Betty and Uncle Mark have always been like second parents, and Kristen, Liz and Lindsey like sisters. This whole weekend we laughed, played and competed (cornhole) with each other and I really felt like a Trexler! Michael had a great time too. I'm started to see why Mark and Betty keep telling us we need to give my parents grandchildren...they LOVE being grandparents (and they're great at it!). Here are some pictures from the weekend...including some snaphots of those sweet little cousins of mine.













And lastly, you have to see this video of my cousin Liz's daughter. She is JUST like her Mom and had us rolling for about 30 minutes with her stage performance!

Moms and Pops Visit Charleston

My parents, aka Moms and Pops Ruggieri, were in town this weekend to relax and visit us for the first time settled here in Charleston! They are great house guests, but really, who can be better than your own parents?! We walked, and walked, and walked. Did I mentioned we walked? We walked everywhere we went, but that's how we roll! The weather turned out great and Michael and I enjoyed playing tourists in our own town. Not too many pictures, but I thought I would share the few we did take!





Pops giving a thumbs down to the cold water...

...and Michael finally giving the cold water a try...

...and Pops taking a snooze on the beach (he was relaxed!)



We're ready for you to come back guys!!

~LB