Thursday: Feeling HOT, HOT, HOT...But still very happy

Today marks the final working day of our second week here at Rising Star. It is so amazing to me how fast time flies, especially when we so desperately want to cling to it and cherish every moment. Today was a rather rough day with tutoring the kids. Due to the A/C in our hostel being broken, none of the volunteers really got any sleep which made it very difficult to stay awake while listening to the kids read. We also have had quite a few volunteers who have been inhibited due to stomach problems over the past week, and unfortunately Jordan and I are no exceptions. But despite the heat and not feeling quite up to our 100% we still manage to have incredible experiences with these children that make anything uncomfortable 100% worth it. One positive about tutoring is how smart these children are and how fun it is to watch their progress from day to day with their reading and their math. They will come one day and really struggle with reading a particular word, and the next time they come, they read that word to perfection. I love watching their faces when they look up at you and say, "Auntie, is this correct?"and we are able to say yes and see the pride they have on their faces about what they accomplished.

We also had the opportunity of making dirt cups with our family today during playtime for talent class. After our mayhem with the pudding cups last talent class, you could imagine how nervous we were to "let the cat out of the bag" once again, but being prepared for what lay ahead of us and coming up with a   game plan truly made all our efforts a complete success. The boys in our family were so well behaved and so good at taking turns with the cooking. They absolutely loved their treat and felt so proud that they were the ones who made it! They all wore their chocolatey smiles with pride! It was so much fun and a great bonding moment with our entire family. It has been a fantastic day and we look forward to pulling our all-nighter as we prepare to leave at 3 a.m. for our trip to Delhi with all the volunteers. We'll keep you posted, but until then, we love you and thank you for all your support and prayers!