Written by Brian Watson
Being down in Nicaragua with a group of 13 men is a unique, amazing, life changing experience. As I was thinking about what I would put in my blog entry, I thought about the number of things that happen in a day. I thought I would take the approach of a point by point list of things that happen down here. Hope you like details. So ... a day in Nicaragua is about:

· wake up anywhere between 6 and 7
· shower if you didn't shower after you got back yesterday afternoon
· wander to the eating patio for a coffee
· check e-mail or chat
· after grace, eat a great breakfast of options like egg omelettes, eggs and ham, pancakes, French toast
· always gallo pinto (beans and rice)
· sometimes pineapple and watermelon
· 3 of us make 3 loaves of sandwiches for lunch
· brush teeth
· check e-mail
· prepare for the day - work clothes, load up with water, hat, sun screen
· chat with another team member while waiting for the van
· load the van
· pack into the van - sometimes there are as many as 15 in the van that holds 13. 3 of those 13 have seat belts on. When you're packed in like that you don't need seatbelts :)
· stop at On The Run. No Tim's down here but On The Run helps us Canadians get over that. Stock up with Gatorade, specialty coffee, chocolate (yes even on a men's team), snacks for later on in the day
· drive through the streets of Managua. There's a topic for a book, not one line in a blog. Victor and Chepe do a great job of getting us wherever we need to go, and always looking out for our well being.
· conversation in the van, singing such greats off the radio as Rhinestone Cowboy, American pie, etc.
· arrive at the work site; figure out the plan for the day with Rolando, the work site foreman. Samuel, our translator does an awesome job and is an awesome guy to have as a part of the team.
· go to work possibly doing something you have never done before. Placing clad panels so they can be secured, working on the end of an impact drill driving in self tapping bolts, digging a septic hole, no I wasn't really welding 20 feet in the air.
· lunch time - sandwiches, drink, Pringles chips, cookies, fruit, yogurt
· load into the van to travel to the barrio (neighbourhood) where Pastor Elvis's church is located. This is the barrio that some us worked in 2 years ago.
· arrive at the playing field - God used us to transform that field from an overgrown, dangerous garbage area to a useable playing field.
· greet the kids as they start to gather. Those two white vans signal that something exciting is going to happen.
· get out a soccer ball, baseball and glove and offer to play with the kids. What starts with one or two kids soon becomes a gathering of many.
· look for other ways to interact with the kids. Watch Rick's (Pied piper) instant gathering of children begin their first activity for the afternoon.

· As the sports ministry people figure out the plan, join in and help or continue with the kids that aren't involved in the current game.
· show pictures of family
· pass out stickers and get mobbed at the same time
· try to talk in Spanish
· greet any men that come by
· invite those that are standing, watching, wondering what is going on
· visit homes in the barrio to tell of God's love
· see needs and wonder how we can help in some way
· pack into the van for the ride back home
· optional shower time - we usually stink pretty good by that time
· dinner - again great food
· sometimes evening activity such as folklore festival, girl's orphanage, etc.
· always devotions and patio time (my favourite time)
· time to sing
· time to get into God's word
· time to hear one of our team mates story of where they have come from in their journey
· time to be challenged
· time to be blown away
· time to pray
· time to encourage
· time to support
· time to cry
· time to wonder
· head off to bed with earplugs because of the sounds of dogs, roosters, birds, snorers, etc.
· at 3am we get up to pray for our brother Mark and the healing of his right eye
· pour our hearts out before God
· learn how to pray better
· learn how to listen for His leading and guiding
· bring our requests before God
· back to bed
· sometimes wonder if we will get back to sleep
· sleep until wake up time and begin the next day

Whew ... hope you got through all that. Some aspects are the same from day to day but there is no question that each day will be unique in some or many ways. Each day we all experience something we have never experienced before.

Thank you for your prayers, your support, your love. We love you all and desire to do what God wants us to be doing down here.

Special love to hwtebw,glw,mlw,tdw