Skanaus tiems kurie valgo, neskanaus tiems kurie nevalgo...

(Emilija writing)

Happy 18th Birthday to me!!

I woke up this morning to find about 20 birthday cards lying all around my bed. There were little notes written from some of my Lithuanian friends wishing me a happy birthday! I even cried a little..

We woke up late so we didn't really have to eat a big breakfast. After eating lunch at the school, we headed to the center to start setting up for our day with the kids. Since there was no school for the kids because of senior exams, not a lot of kids showed up at the center. The first thing they did when they got to the room was make me birthday cards! We then taught them how to make friendship bracelets, and they were amused for the next two hours! They also fell in love with our digital cameras. We have the most random pictures right now (Vygantas took pictures of the tiles on the floor). Since there was not a lot of kids, we really got to know the ones that were there.

Vygantas - The most lovable but crazy first grader we have ever met. He's the same one that only speaks to us in the local dialect. We're starting to understand him a little more today :) He loves being with us, taking a lot of pictures, and is a very quick learner (his friendship bracelet was one of the best today).

Marija - She's Vyganto sister, but they are very different. She's much quieter but still very lovable. She's very artistic and acts like a mother to her wild little brother. She's become pretty attached to us and has started coming out of her shell. She's one of the girls that the supervisor is the most proud of!

Remigijus - He should be a child model! He has the sweetest, most genuine smile, but it shows how big of a trouble maker he is. Today after he finished eating his snack, he said to everybody, "Skanaus tiems kurie valgo, neskanaus tiems kurie nevalgo!" In English, it translates to, "Good eating to those who are eating, bad eating to those who are not eating!" It was really funny, but you probably had to be there..

Jonas - The brother of Remigijus. He has a tough exterior (haircut included), but is really a sensitive kid on the inside. It seems like he really wants to participate in the activities, but is trying to keep a tough guy appearance. He's one of the younger, but more mature kids at the center.

Agota - She is the most attached girl at the center, which may be due to her social and learning disabilities. Even though she's in 8th grade, she acts almost like a 5th grader. She's very lovable and eager to please us. She even bought me a bracelet and made me a little wallet for my birthday!

Ona - She's one of the older girls who really tries to help out with the younger kids. We think she might also have a learning disability, but that doesn't keep her from participating in all the planned activities. She even wrote me a nice and heartfelt birthday card.

Silvija - We were warned beforehand that she is the quietest girl in the entire center. She sometimes refuses to talk, but still fully participates in whatever we are doing. She's starting to get used to our presence and is even nodding or shaking her head in response to our questions. When were playing Twister (the kids' favorite game), she was laughing and having a really good time with the other kids!

Aurimas - He is the best mannered, most helpful, and spends a lot of time at the center. Because he's older, he is always offering to help us and the other kids. Everyone at the center really looks up to him and tries to follow his good examples. The first day, he even helped Andryte deal with some of the unruly younger boys. We are so grateful for his presence!! 

Ausra - She has the cutest curly hair in the world, the most gorgeous doe eyes, and a very beautiful singing voice. Also, she's only about 9 years old.. We've never heard anybody giggle SO much during the game of Twister! She's grown attached to Vija, but finds a way to talk to everyone at the center. We were really disappointed that she wasn't at the center today, but we still had to talk about her.

Julius - He's the gamer of the group even though he's only 8 years old. He made me one of the most creative and artistic birthday cards (it was shaped as a heart). Even though he doesn't socialize with us that much, he's a genuinely sweet kid. 

Zilvinas - He's a fellow volunteer (17 year old) who travels about 11 km. to get to the center everyday. He really helps out by helping the kids with the computer, preparing the snacks, and helping the kids clean up after themselves. He even went out and bought ice cream for my birthday to share with all the kids. Even though he doesn't talk, we can tell that he has a good heart.

We hung out with some of the local kids from the center, and they took us to see their beautiful church. We even got to go the balcony where the choir sings. We also met the priest who showed us around. They showed us their soccer field and little playground.

We went to the grocery and bought our daily carbs (bread and butter). As a birthday special, we even bought some noodles!! The noodles, butter, and two loaves of bread only cost about $4. It was a GREAT deal!

Overall, today was a good day and we had a blast with the kids. We can't wait until tomorrow because we're going on a field trip with our host dad and his geography class. We'll let you know how it goes tomorrow...

PS - It's after 10 right now, and the sun hasn't fully set yet!