The Children of the Aldea (Natalie)

Hello! Here are a few bios of the children in Aldea:

Sara Maribell is a 16 year old girl who is incredibly smart. Her birthday is August 14th. She's working hard at school learning English and is surprising good at it. Her favorite subject in school is English as well. However, she wants to be a nurse when she gets older. She is sort of a tom boy and fits in well with the boys because of how athletic she is. While at the same time, her down to earth personality makes it really easy to talk to her. She is a beautiful girl with dimples in her cheeks when she smiles.

Mercelith Sanches Saucedo is another 16 year old girl at the Aldea. Her birthday is June 5th. Her favorite color is purple. When asked what she likes the best about the Aldea she said she loves having lots of friends. She is very social and is always smiling about something. She is a great dancer and enjoys that as well. She is not afraid to perform as proven in a big concert we put on for the kids last week. I was impressed! She also loves any kind of music. She enjoys soccer and volleyball as well. We she is older, she wants to be a hairdresser.

Leticia is a 17 year old girl. Her birthday is the 26th of November. She enjoys tennis and volleyball. Her favorite colors are black and white and she absolutely loves reading books. Currently, she attends the cosmetology school in Trujillo. As much as she enjoys doing that, she says that she'd rather be a teacher for children one day. After she told me that, I've been able to observe how cute and patient she is with the younger children in her casa. I couldn't believe how patient she was even with me as I spoke to her in broken Spanish. She has been really helpful and probably one of the first kids I go to when I need help with my Spanish.

Antonina is a 5 year old girl at the Aldea. She is the most adorable girl I have ever seen. Her dark eyes squint so much when she smiles and she is such a tease. She is ALWAYS smiling. Not once have I seen her throw a fit, or pout, She's got the cutest little haircut and wears little dresses almost everyday. Her favorite color is red and she loves noodles with chicken. She is loves to paint, play with her dolls, and when asked what she wants to do when she gets older: homework. So cute! Her older sister Elisa lives at the orphanage as well.

Sophia and Fanny are 5 year old twins at the Aldea. We volunteers sure get a kick out of them. They are two of the toughest little girls here. Just like all sisters, they pull hair and kid around with each other, but unlike most sisters, they rarely cry about it! They love to tease each other, and are always laughing. They technically are not identical twins, but they sure look a lot a like. It took a few days for me to tell them apart. Both of them share the favorite food of sweet potatoes and bananas. Eating dinner with them is so funny because if one gets up from the table, the other will grab food from her plate and just laugh while she's eating it. They each love the attention of teasing. I love it. It brings lots of laughter to this place. Both are responsible as well. Whenever the Tia asks something of them whether it's to drink their milk or shine their shoes, they do it without complaints. Sophia's favorite color is yellow and Fanny's favorite color is red.

More will be coming!!--Natalie

P.S. Pictures attached are as follows: 1) Alfredo with bowl 2) Miguel sitting 3) 2 year old Lewis and I