February 2009 Update

I’m happy to report that we have no more evidence of mice in the house and sleeping with a flea collar has dramatically reduced the number of flea bites I’ve been receiving! Sometimes it’s the little things that can make such a big difference. I’ve also come to appreciate being healthy as I’ve been battling a nasty sinus infection and terrible cough for weeks. I finally broke down and started taking some antibiotics because the cough was so bad I couldn’t sleep. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate a good night’s rest now! We really have much to be thankful for and sometimes it takes losing little pleasures for a period of time to make us realize that.

Orphanage Update
Ildiko and I have continued to work with the older children each week and although it is extremely challenging, it is incredibly rewarding as well. Last Saturday I found myself sitting on the floor with 5 children huddled around me…all wanting attention and affection. One of the largest kids (he’s 16) decided he needed to sit on my lap, another wanted to have his head under my leg, another wanted to hold my hand, another snuggled next to me and the other scooted up close and kept talking about kittens. It was a bit overwhelming, but wonderful at the same time. I was talking to myself and praying quietly at one point asking the Lord for wisdom because I just wasn’t sure what to do with them. Hercules, one of the boys who speaks, blurted out “wisdom”. He had no idea what he was saying, I guess he just liked the way it sounded. He said it over and over and I could only smile and say, yes…that’s what I need! Next month Amanda Towle (an American social worker specializing in children with special needs who is living in Brasov) is coming to do some training with Ildiko and I. We are looking forward to her visit and pray that we will learn how to better help these children reach their full potential.

After-School Program Update








We had a team of High School students from England here for a week this month. The school brings a group of students each year and we were blessed to have 16 kids spending time with us. The teens were divided into groups of 5 and they rotated between our program and the orphanage, hospital, and special needs school in town. We had the teens pair up with our kids and work on math and reading as well as crafts and games. We had a wonderful time and our kids especially enjoyed all the extra attention. It was a long week, but very rewarding for all of us!







New Beginnings Update
The family center in the house attached to our house (like a duplex) is in need of house parents. The previous parents moved to be with extended family and we have been searching for new parents for a few months now. This month it was decided that we would split the kids up among us and integrate them into our families until new house parents can be found. So…we have two new young girls living with us in our house. Lavinia is 11 and Cosmina is 9 and I have to say it’s been a lot of fun having them here. They are full of energy and having them here has really been helping us with our Romanian. Lavinia had been struggling in school and the social worker said that her teachers have reported that she has made a marked improvement in her school work and overall general attitude in the past two weeks. It’s great to know that she is settling in and adjusting well to all the change. The girls have really enjoyed mothering the little kids and having big sisters (Cristina and I) to hang out with as well. It’s also great to be able to play a more active role in their lives and we really have enjoyed loving on them.

Wedding
We had another wedding in our church this month. Alexandra and Dorin had done the civil ceremony last year, but decided they wanted a church wedding as well. The timing was perfect because they were also able to have a dedication service for their newborn. It was a wonderful time of celebration for all of us and of course, we enjoyed a wonderful traditional Romanian wedding feast afterward


God continues to bless and move in the hearts and lives of the people here and I am so blessed to be a part of it!

Prayer Requests:
• One of the boxes I shipped to myself is missing. Please pray that it will arrive soon!
• Health…I’ve had a nasty sinus infection and cough
• Continuing to learn the Romanian language
• Wisdom in working with the older children and new workers in the orphanage
• For God to continue to help me prepare good lessons for my English class
• For new house parents for our family center
• For us to meet the needs of Lavinia and Cosmina and for them to continue to adjust well in their new home

With much love,
Natalie Bridges
natalie926@hotmail.com


I would like to help Natalie Bridges in the following way(s):
Becoming a prayer partner
Monthly Financial Support $________
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* Please return this portion of the newsletter to: Calvary Chapel Boise
Attn: Jana Patton
123 Auto Drive
Boise, ID 83709

* Make all checks payable to Calvary Chapel Boise, all donations are tax deductible.
* To receive a tax receipt at the end of each year, please contact Calvary Chapel Boise.

January 2009 Update

What a joy it was to be home for the holidays! I was able to spend a month with my parents in Texas and had a wonderful time visiting with family and friends! I also got to spend a few weeks in Boise, but time was short and I didn’t get to see everyone I wanted to. Overall, it was a great visit and I was able to enjoy a much needed rest.

I had a long, but uneventful trip back to Bistrita and was welcomed by warm people, but a cold house! We had switched from our expensive gas radiator heating system to a wood burning stove just before I left for the States. So although it will save almost $1,000 per month in heating costs, it isn’t big enough to heat the entire house. We finally have the temperature inside up to 62 degrees now, but it took us a while to get there. Fortunately, the outside temperatures have been warming and that helps. It also helps that all of us are home again from our holiday travels and have someone tending to the fire on an ongoing basis. Along with all of us being home again, we discovered that we had some unexpected visitors staying with us…mice! We practically had mice condos in the pantry there were so many! To date, we have disposed of 17 mice. Hopefully we don’t have others yet to be discovered. One night we set 6 traps and in the morning, had 6 dead mice! I guess it’s a good thing the house is so cold or we might have had a larger rodent problem!
I have started back with the outreach programs again....basically picked up where I left off. It has been great fun loving on the kids again. They were really excited to see me and overall seem to be much calmer these days, which is wonderful. I think our new workers have settled into a better routine with the kids now and it is much less stressful for all of us. We’ve had a lot of sickness (colds and such) hitting the kids pretty hard this month, but overall the kids are doing well.

The New Year has brought some changes at the orphanage. In the past, I’ve focused my attention on the children in the "baby room"...where our smaller and younger children live. Our oldest is 7 years, but mentally still an infant. It has been and continues to be challenging, but the children are making great progress and some have even been placed into foster care. Consequently, the director has asked that Ildiko (the lady from our church who works with me there) and I begin working with the big kids too. They are much more difficult because they are larger, stronger, and can be violent. The number of older children living at the orphanage has increased over the past year because children from nearby villages have been transferred there for better care. There are 21 children aged 9-20 who could use more attention. During the week most of them are able to attend a local school specializing in children with special needs, however, there are 11 who are unable to attend due to the severity of their condition. These are the children we have been asked to focus on. The past two weeks we have spent several hours with these children and it was very difficult as neither of us have any special training or experience in this area. . The difference between the environment in the baby room and in the big kids’ rooms is huge. There is little interaction between the workers and the children and only a few toys even in the rooms (out of reach of the children). It seems they just watch the children to make sure they do not hurt themselves or each other, but do nothing to interact with them in a loving, nurturing, or educational way. I have also been told that there are still workers who do not like our presence in the orphanage because they do not like change and are upset that they have to tend to the children now instead of watching TV or reading magazines as they have done in the past. Please pray for continual change and openness in the hearts of the workers. Change can happen and I’ve already witnessed it to some degree. In just a few short days I have seen amazing changes in the children and the overall environment with the big kids. Yesterday we introduced music by bringing a CD filled with Romanian children songs and the reaction was priceless. The children expressed themselves in ways I had never witnessed before…smiling, laughing, clapping, even screaming with joy when the music started. One girl began rocking back and forth with a huge smile on her face and the more she liked the song, the faster she rocked. Even the workers were laughing and dancing around the room. We all laughed together with the children and had a marvelous time. It is my heart’s desire to see joy in these children’s lives and for them to experience genuine love and affection. Please pray that we will continue to introduce ways and methods of reaching both the children and the workers.


Another exciting thing that happened this month in the orphanage is Christmas!! Several years ago a team from Spain came for a couple of weeks and helped in the orphanage. The children made such a huge impact on them that they have sent
Christmas gifts for each of the children in the baby room for the past two years. I was able to bring those gifts to the children again this year and we so enjoyed sharing in their joy as they opened their gifts. Many of the workers as well as managers and staff joined in the celebration of joy. Each child received a new outfit and shoes as well as a toy specially picked out for them. The outfits were adorable and very fashionable and all of us ladies oohed and awed over them. The children who could, immediately put on their new shoes and proudly showed them off. Nicoleta even tried dressing herself…although we had to laugh when she put her new panties on her head! The toys are still being enjoyed and shared among all of them! It is my hope that long after they’ve outgrown the clothing and the toys are broken that we will all remember the love of our friends from Spain.

Prayer Requests:
• One of the boxes I shipped to myself is missing. Please pray that it will arrive soon!
• Health…I’ve had a nasty sinus infection and cough
• Continuing to learn the Romanian language
• Wisdom in working with the older children and new workers in the orphanage
With much love,
Natalie Bridges
natalie926@hotmail.com


I would like to help Natalie Bridges in the following way(s):
Becoming a prayer partner
Monthly Financial Support $________
One Time Financial Gift $________

Name _________________________

Address __________________________________________________

Phone _________________________

E-mail _________________________

* Please return this portion of the newsletter to: Calvary Chapel Boise
Attn: Jana Patton
123 Auto Drive
Boise, ID 83709

* Make all checks payable to Calvary Chapel Boise, all donations are tax deductible.
* To receive a tax receipt at the end of each year, please contact Calvary Chapel Boise.