From everyone at the Casa Josefina, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year!

There are many fun cement parks in the city of Cusco with giant slides.  Some of the missionaries in the area took the older kids on a “Paseo” (an outing/ field-trip) to Marcavalle Park recently where they got to try out the giant tunnel snake slides, and had ice-cream after.

Some of the toys at the House are sometimes rotated, so bringing out the kitchen toys one day was a big hit for Fabi, Fabricio and Kathy.  Kathy and Fabricio are very creative in imaginary play, and Fabricio especially loves “cooking” in his various “kitchens”.  One of the staff recently commented that maybe he’ll be a chef when he grows up!

Luis is walking alot more now, which is alot of fun to watch!  Check out the video below!

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We have a new staff member with us now who specifically works with Daniel every day.  He is really thriving from the individual attention, though he still has his down days.  But, he loves when they go for walks, feed the animals, and do other activities together.

Each of the three new babies are becoming more expressive as they grow, and each are starting to connect more with their surroundings and starting to smile.  Carlos loves bathtime, and Marleni is all around a very content baby.  Lucas is also bringing out the smiles more and more and is very snuggly.  It’s also great to see Adriano smiling and laughing more and just adoring the love and attention from the Mamas in the house, and enjoying the many new experiences of toys and play.

We are just starting to put up the Christmas tree and decorations… Check back soon!

As is common to Spanish culture, there are many festivals and holidays in Peru every few weeks for some reason or another. During the last week of October the Mama’s of the house all wanted to take one or two of the House children home with them for the holiday day. The kids got to experience the home and family of the House mom that they stayed with for the whole day. They enjoyed the day so much that they didn’t get home until 2 hours past the planned return time!

On Oct 29th, one of the missionary families here hosted a Halloween alternative Fall Festival at their house, with about 50 parents and children in attendance. The Josephine kids and day staff also joined the party, where they got to wear fancy masks, eat potatoe chips and try good ol’ American hamburgers for the first time. There were various games such as potatoe sack races and bobbing for apples.

The Josephine House appreciated a couple of teams that dropped by this week to work on a painting project. A young adult team of 5 from Sweden came on November 7th to start on a couple of the outside walls that needed painting. They painted what they could reach in the time that they had, and the following day a team of 5 guys from Canada finished the project. They got pretty innovative using 4 extensions to get some of the hard to reach parts of the wall! There is still one outer wall that needs to be finished if any teams or individuals are interested!

On Friday, October 14, the House celebrated Hilda’s 6th birthday with a party.  Cake, candies, and good friends always involved!

Adriano Stephano is the newest little one to join the Josephine House, coming to us within the past month! He is  2 1/2 years old, and certainly enjoying the love, play, and good meals received every day.  He’s an energetic boy, and especially likes the bouncy rubber horses in the House.  His hairstyle has changed a bit from when he first arrived- from a bowl-cut to a new buzz-cut.

Zoe got to be part of a parade day in the Plaza de Armas in Cusco recently.  She was represented by her Physiotherapists as one of their patients, as they walked around the Center.

Some good news on Carlos is that at his last Doctor’s visit, no heart murmur was heard.  Rather, they’ve discovered that his nasal passage isn’t completely developed, which is likely contributing to his feeding problems and general discomfort as he is unable to breath clearly at times.  Thankfully, this is something that will naturally develop as he grows, and won’t be a long-term problem.

Marleni and Lucas continue to feed and sleep well, and are generally very content and quiet babies.

Luis took 5 big steps last week from one House Mama to another, and this week up to 10!  He’s enjoying the attention he gets as he continues to be encouraged and gains confidence to walk on his own.

Well, we’ve been praying for more children, and our prayers are certainly being answered!  This week the House welcomed two more little babies!  Marleni came to us on Wednesday, and Carlos the next day!  Marleni is only 10 days old and will require future cleft-palate lip care.  According to his mother who brought him to us, Carlos is 5 months old, though about the same size as the other two newborns.  Today, the Pediatrician at the clinic estimated his age as closer to 3 months, but heard what could be a heart murmur, which could explain his small size.  We definitely have a challenge ahead to ensure these little ones grow and develop normally.