About Trina Baron

http://chadandtrinabaron.com

Posts by Trina Baron:

We Won’t Be Home With Bells On

By trina in Personal Reflections, The Road 6 Comments

No Bells

I had it all planned out. Christmas was going to be wonderful. We were planning a trip back to Lynden and we would be there for Christmas Eve, Christmas day, and for the whole week after. Someone even offered to buy our tickets home. I was looking forward to family and friends, peppermint mocha’s and oliebollens, sweaters and boots, cold weather, and maybe even some snow. My facebook status would read: “Trim the tree and wrap the presents, turn the Christmas music on, cause Christmas I’ll be home with bells on.”

The Plan

When we left Lynden this summer, we were almost 100% sure we would be returning for the holidays. This made it a bit easier to say goodbye since I “knew” we would be returning in just a few short months. When Kimberli came to our home almost one month ago now, we put a hault on our plans to return home; because we weren’t sure where she would go if we left. We then had the idea of taking her with us. But that would take months to get her a passport and all the needed paperwork. After talking to Alvin, it was decided that she could stay with his family over the holidays while we returned home. Back to the original plan: home it was!

PEACE

Chad never felt a peace about going back. I just kept pushing him saying, ‘we need to go back,’ ‘we need a break.’ He obliged and we decided we would spend about 8 days in Lynden for Christmas. But in my heart, I honestly did not feel a peace about it either. Something, or rather, SOMEONE, kept telling me, “You are not supposed to go. You need to stay here for Christmas.” I kept ignoring God, trying to justify that going to Lynden for Christmas was the right thing to do. But I couldn’t ignore it anymore. I couldn’t ignore God anymore. I needed to be obedient. So I went and told Chad what I was feeling, and after much prayer and many tears, we made the difficult decision to not return home this Christmas.

Trust and Obey

It’s amazing how hard it is to trust and obey God sometimes, especially when you want something so badly, and He is telling you you can’t have it. But it’s also amazing how His way is always best. I know this because of the overwhelming sense of peace I felt when we made the final decision to stay here for Christmas, with Kimberli. Today was one of the best days we have had since she has been here. Lots of laughing, lots of smiles, and lots of fun. And even though we would love nothing more than to spend Christmas with our families, we know that this is exactly where we are supposed to be this Christmas season.

Putting up our Christmas tree! Asher and Kimberli were all smiles!

All About Kimberli

By trina in Personal Reflections 3 Comments

We just love her...and the little stinker in the background!

Kimberli has been a part of our family for almost three weeks now. Both Chad and I have spent much of that time figuring out who she is and getting to know what she is all about. Here is a little of what we have learned so far.

Upon first spending time with her, she is a bit shy. But once she warms up, she is a talker. She loves her family and misses them terribly.  But she is thankful to be in a home…a real home. She is not crazy about American cooking, but eats it anyway. She loves her Honduran food of tortillas, beans, and rice. She loves chocolate, and I mean LOVES chocolate. Her favorite candy bar is Snickers. She drinks coffee in the morning with a lot of sugar. She hates vegetables, unless they are cooked in a soup. Her favorite fruit is a strawberry. Her favorite animal is a bunny. She wants a pet rat…NO WAY! She likes to do puzzles, play Candy Land, and color. Her hobbies include mopping the floors…not your average tween hobby. She gets incredibly overwhelmed with the question, “Do you need anything? Do you want anything?” She is great at correcting our Spanish, and loves to tease Chad. She loves to exercise and soccer is her favorite sport. If she could go anywhere in the world, she would go to the U.S. Her dream is to be a pediatrician. And her prayers are for the children on the streets. She loves the smell of the clothes when they come out of the dryer. In fact, she didn’t know what a dryer was until she came to our home. She loves Asher’s white and soft little feet, saying, “There are no other feet like yours Asher!” She was born in a taxi cab. She sings worship songs in the shower (we can hear her :) She loves to dance, especially when it’s for the Lord.

Kimberli is on the worship dance team at our church.

This is just some of what we have learned about Kimberli. We look forward to each day as we continue to learn more and more about this precious gift from God. Thank you for your prayers.

Lice, Love, and Jesus

By trina in Personal Reflections 11 Comments

Kimberli decorating some cookies.

One Week

It’s been one week since Kimberli came into our home and became part of our family, and we are in love. As you can imagine, the first week was a bit scary for her, for all of us really. But she is beginning to open up to us more, and the shyness around us is going away. We know this because we stayed up until 10:30 last night just talking, and she did most of the talking! She is a beautiful young girl who loves the Lord. She has a sweet smile and a generous heart.

A Lesson Learned

Leave it to God to throw a paranoia you have right in front of you to teach you a lesson to lean on Him. If there was a ever a lesson learned in my life, this past week was it. Kimberli came to our home infested with lice. Probably something she has lived with her whole life. I instantly began to worry and fret about these little demon bugs. I literally had paranoia and I was consumed with “what ifs?” I just looked at it as a problem, and the thought of tackling this problem seemed to big for me to handle. And to be honest, I didn’t want to. Until Nubia showed me love.

Nubia

Nubia is a dear friend who sometimes works for the ministry, cleaning and cooking for teams, etc. She came over later in the afternoon and began helping me treat Kimberli’s hair for the lice and nits. I thought she was just going to show me how to do it, but for 2 1/2 hours Nubia stood by my side as we handpicked the lice out of Kimberli’s beautiful curly hair. I was so thankful to have Nubia and her giving, humble heart. But it’s the words she said that have left an imprint on my heart.

Poor Kimberli fell asleep while we were combing her hair! And look at that smile on Nubia's face.

True Love

Kimberli quietly sat in the chair while we combed out her lice, without complaining one time. I could tell her neck was getting sore, and I felt so bad for her. I told her I loved her. After I said those words to Kimberli, Nubia replied, “It’s for this reason that we do this Kimberli.” I was humbled by those words and it reminded me of Jesus. Jesus did not come to be served but to serve. Through serving, he loved us. This was my way of showing Kimberli I love her. She may not understand that type of love now, but I pray that in years to come, she will.

Christlike

I also told Nubia of a girl I knew from college. She worked at a girls shelter in the states and her job was to get the lice out of the girls hair. I told Nubia about this girl, and her only response was, “what love.” I hadn’t thought of it this way before. My first response was, “I would never want that job.” Again, I was humbled by her words and her Christlike love.

Lice Update

After much work, and many prayers, I am happy to announce that the lice and nits are dead. Hoorah for the massacre that was of those nasty little buggers! Nubia came over on Saturday and for 6 hours we combed through Kimberli’s hair and picked out all the eggs, with our fingernails! I think we got pretty much all of them. But I will be combing through each day for a while just to make sure. All in all, God taught me so much this past week about true love. God is good.

Ready or Not

By trina in Stories from Honduras 6 Comments

Our Family

Roll With the Punches

Change is something that happens often around here, and sometimes you just have to roll with the punches, whether you’re ready or not. We were planning on having the girls move in sometime around the end of November. This would give us plenty of time to get the extra bedroom ready for the girls, and plenty of time for the three P’s: plan, prepare, and the most important, PRAY.

The Situation

Let me explain the situation. Blanca, who we had planned on taking into our home as well, has developed a bad attitude and tried to “poison” the other girls minds. Because of Blanca’s recent behavior we believe she needs a place better suited to her needs. She will be spending the next couple of weeks at the Eagle’s Nest, until school is finished. She will then spend the holidays with her grandmother. After that, we hope to put her in a home we recently visited that has the staff and facilities where we believe she will thrive. This is sad for us because we love Blanca, and wish that the situation were different. I wanted to have both the girls here, so they at least had each other. This was not an easy decision.

Are You Ready?

So with that change comes another change. Alvin came over to our house today and asked if we would be able to take Kimberli tomorrow, as in the day after today! He wanted to get her out of the Eagle’s Nest as soon as possible, to avoid any more “poisoning.” My heart skipped a beat and I had tears. I hadn’t planned enough, prepared enough, and well, you can never pray enough. I just didn’t feel ready. And to be honest, it all of the sudden became so real to me. Feelings of worry, fear, and failure all came upon me. What had we gotten ourselves into?

For Such a Time as This

As I sat down with Chad, through tears, I began to explain what I was feeling. He knew I was feeling this way, because I have felt this way ever since we chose to take the girls into our home. But now it was all happening so fast, and like I said earlier, I wasn’t ready. With the gift of wisdom that God gave Chad, he comforted me and assured me that “You…Are…Ready. This is your hearts passion. This is why God brought you here. He chose you for this.”

Ready

So there you have it. I guess I am ready. We know this is a huge transition and that we have some challenges ahead of us. But we really wouldn’t have it any other way. Again, we covet your prayers during this time. And we are so thankful for all the love and support that you all have given. To HIM be the glory.

Our Whole World is About to Change

By trina in Stories from Honduras 6 Comments

Chad and Mayra.

Heart Break

We received news while in Guatemala that two of the girls from the Eagle’s Nest had run away. Mayra and Claudia left the house and were gone for a day before they came back full of tears and very sorry for leaving. However, two days later they ran away again in the middle of the day. This time they took Blanca with them and they headed to a city just outside of Tegucigalpa. We learned that they were all doing drugs and hanging out with some gang members. After a couple days Blanca returned and was welcomed back home to the Eagle’s Nest.

Why?

You can imagine our sadness and disappointment upon hearing this news. Both of us were in tears, struggling to understand why. We had poured our hearts into these girls, loving them unconditionally, and now they were gone. We were immediately worried about the girls, wondering about their safety. However, we received news that they are safe and living with Claudia’s grandmother. We are hoping and praying that they return.

Me and Claudia.

Major Changes

When we arrived home from Guatemala, we went to the Eagle’s Nest for dinner that night. Sally, the house grandmother, announced that herself and Sarah, the house mother, are moving to Nicaragua. The home the girls live in will be shut down. With 3 of the girls still living there, this means some major changes for them, the ministry, and us.

The Plan

We know that God is good. And we know that He has a plan for the Eagle’s Nest. This is our chance to rebuild this part of the ministry and start anew. But for the time being, we still have the 3 girls who rely on us and who we are responsible for. And this is where our whole world is about to change.

Quendi

Quendi is 17 and will be 18 in about 6 months. She is no where near ready to be on her own but we need to start preparing her to be independent. She is going to go to live at Alvin’s house with Sarah, a young lady from the US who just moved here in September. Sarah will be like a big sister and mentor her in living on her own with things like budgeting and shopping for groceries, etc. Quendi will finish her schooling in the next few weeks. She really likes the beauty classes she has taken and so we may get her in to a trade school where she can learn to be a professional stylist.

Our sweet Blanca.

Blanca

The plan for Blanca was that she was going to go back home to live with her family. Alvin spent some time talking with Blanca about this and found out that her brother received a 2 year sentence (for raping Blanca) and will be getting out of jail soon. She also said that her dad is a drunk who hits and pushes her grandmother. In light of this it is not safe to send her home.

Kimberli

Kimberli is the newest girl who has only been in the house since May. She is so sweet and loves the Lord. She is 11 years old and had never been to school a day in her life. She is the only one in the house who has not been sexually abused but was abused in the sense that she was used as her mom’s slave. She was the primary caregiver of her younger siblings. We also do not want to send her back to that situation. After prayer and many conversations, we have decided to take Blanca and Kimberli in to our home to live with us. This will take place around the end of November.

At church with, from far left, Quendi, Kimberli, myself holding 12 year old Zaira's baby. Zaira is Kimberli's sister.

With God’s Help

Yes, you heard that right. We are going to be parents to an 11 year old and a 15 year old. We know this is a huge responsibility and that it will not be easy. I have every emotion running through my body right now and we never hesitated knowing that this is what we are here for. We love these girls and are excited to play a larger role in their lives. We covet your prayers during this time as we prepare to bring the girls into our home. These are big changes and there are a lot of unknowns; however, we know God is directing our path. God led me to these two verses which I will cling on during this time:

“In all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.” ~ Romans 8:37

“Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and who is my family that you have brought me this far?” 2 Sam. 7:18

It’s Good to be Back

By trina in Personal Reflections, The Road 2 Comments

The famous Arch Street in La Antigua, Guatemala.

We’re Back

We arrived back in Honduras on Saturday, Oct. 15 from our two weeks of Spanish Language School in Guatemala. If you read our facebook statuses, you know that our time away was a bit challenging for us. Whether it was severe back pain, sickness, house issues, or bad news from home, we got hit. Satan attacked us every which way he could. It was obvious that he didn’t want us to learn Spanish. Because he knows that once we do have this language perfected, we WILL use it to glorify God. And that is the last thing Satan wants.

School

Even though our trip was challenging, our Spanish classes went great! We both feel like we gained more knowledge on this language that we so badly desire to speak. We were put with the same teachers we had last year, and for three hours a day we practiced Spanish. The first hour of our lessons was mainly just Spanish conversation, while the other two hours was spent on instruction and questions that we had about the language. We are by no means where we would like to be, seeing that fluency is our goal. But we are well on our way!

Us with our house mother and some new friends, Judith and Amanda, that we lived with for two weeks.

Practice

Our goal now that we are back home is to continue to practice, practice, practice! Anyone that has ever learned a language will tell you that the best way to learn is to practice speaking it with a native speaker. This is difficult for us both, as we become a bit afraid when put in a situation where we need to speak the language. Basically, we lack the confidence. But through prayer, we hope to overcome our fears and do all we can to become speakers of this beautiful language.

 

Back to School

By trina in The Road 3 Comments

Discouragement

To those of you who have had to learn another language, you know the difficulties that entails. Chad and I are experiencing extreme discouragement right now with our Spanish speaking and comprehension abilities. It’s true that we have come a long way, and we have learned a lot in the past year. But just when we think we have gained a better understanding, we get tongue tied when wanting to speak, and our jaw drops when someone tells us something and we have no idea what they just said!

Heart Breaking

This breaks our hearts because all we really want to do is communicate with the people we are ministering to. It is very difficult to sit with a crying teenager, wanting to give her words of encouragement, but nothing comes out. It’s frustrating to see a dear friend in tears after a church service, wanting to speak into her life, and then again, nothing comes out. It makes us sad, angry, and extremely frustrated.

A picture of some of the classroom building where we will be going to school.

Here We Go

So after much thought and prayer, we have decided to go back to language school in Guatemala for two weeks (October 1-15). We would like to go for longer but this is the most feasible for the three of us. We will each be doing 3 hours a day of Spanish studying, taking turns looking after Asher while the other is in class. We will also be staying with a local family this time. We chose this option for many reasons. For one, it will be much cheaper. Also, all meals will be provided so we won’t have to worry about not having a frying pan or whisk or can opener when cooking dinner in a not so cooking friendly apartment, like what we experienced last time!

Extra Cautious

However, this does mean that the three of us will be sharing a room for 2 whole weeks. It means yet another transition for Asher of not sleeping in his own bed. It means we bring our “loveable, yet rambunctious and picky eater two-year old” into someone else’s home. It means we have to be that much more cautious of his running around and his “not so quiet” voice. Did I mention he is two years old?

Comfort

While studying this language is difficult, we continue to rest in the fact that we have only been here one year, and that it usually takes 2-3 years to become fluent. We also take comfort in knowing that God will give us the desires of our hearts, in His timing. So we appreciate your prayers once again as we go on yet another adventure. Oh, and if anyone wants to come and meet us in Guatemala and babysit Asher for two weeks, let me know! :)

This is Asher when we first got to Guatemala, exactly one year ago.

This is Asher one year later. Look how big my boy has gotten!

Remember Being a Teen?

By trina in Personal Reflections, Stories from Honduras 2 Comments

Three of the girls: Quendi (17), Mayra (17), Kimberli (11)

A House Full of Teenage Girls

You all know by now about our home for teenage girls, The Eagle’s Nest. We currently have 5 girls in the home from ages 11-17. I have shared their stories many times. But each of these girls come from poor stricken backgrounds, along with sexual and/or physical assault from a family member. I know their stories like the back of my hand, and I get sick, angry, and heart broken knowing what each has been through.

Growing Up is Hard to Do

We were all once teenagers, or some that read this may even be a teenager right now. And we all remember how difficult those teen years were. We remember the peer pressure, the trouble with friendships, the clicks, the competition, and let’s not forget puberty and all those hormones!

Me and Blanca, who is 15 years old.

We remember that growing up was, and still is, hard to do. So imagine all those difficulties, along with rape, incest, abuse, hunger, not a parent or teacher or guardian who loves and corrects you, and extreme poor living conditions. Throw those all together with 5 teenage girls in one home and you can about imagine the stress, chaos, and hardships that occur on a daily basis.

Chad and Quendi at her graduation from 3rd grade.

Prayer and Direction

A few of the girls in the home do not get along. This causes a lot of trouble in the household, and is a constant struggle among them. Some days are good. But some are bad. Right now they are bad. There are some girls in the house that are instigators and button pushers, which leads to actual physical fights between some of them. You would never guess it upon seeing them for the first time. But trust me, they all have a feisty side that you do not want to tango with! But this is their way of defending themselves and how they have grown up. Which is why they need a lot of prayer and and a lot of direction.

Special Times

The girls are always asking us, “When can we come over?” Almost every time I see them, I can count on getting asked that question. So they came over today and we had a great day. We made cards for others, we listened to music, decorated cupcakes, and we took them out for pizza. I also shared a verse with them today, knowing their recent struggles at home, and I hope they will take it to heart and live by, Colossians 3:12-14:

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Me and Claudia, who is 15, and one of the newest to come to the Eagle's Nest.

L-O-V-E

Chad and I love these girls and look at them as our own daughters. So we love it when they call us Mami and Papi! I have never known anyone who has craved love so badly like these girls do. And they will do everything they can to try and receive attention and affection. And we are not about to deny them of what they crave, because each of them deserves love. Please pray for the girls as they go through this difficult time in their lives. And please pray that we are able to guide and direct them through it, with love.

We’re Back

By trina in Personal Reflections, The Road No Comments

We went to the girls home a day and did their nails. They did ours in return. We had so much fun!

Back Home

Okay, so we’ve been back for almost 2 weeks now. But this is the first chance I have had to sit down and write. We’ve been busy since we’ve returned to Honduras, as we’ve had visitors for the past 8 days. We had some friends from our hometown come down and see the ministry. We had a lot of fun with Caleb, Hannah, and Aurora and enjoyed showing them Manos Extendidas.

We’re Hondurans

We also are proud to say that we are official Honduran residents. We are very excited about this as it was a very long, and not to mention, a very expensive process. This will make our lives a lot easier living here now so we are thankful to have that out of the way. However, now that we have our residency here, we are required to have a Honduran license. Chad spent many hours obtaining his driver’s license and he now has it in hand. As for me, I still have 90 days to get mine. And I might just wait till the last minute as Honduran law requires you take your driving test with a stick shift, and I do not know how to drive a stick! So an extra prayer or two would be much appreciated.

It's hard to believe that this little guy is almost 2! We got him this wooden xylophone as an early birthday present.

Let’s Celebrate

This is a celebratory month as well for us. We have many birthdays, including Asher’s 2nd birthday on the 19th, which I have already begun planning. They also celebrate the Day of the Child here on September 10, which is a very big deal. And we have the Honduran Independence Day on September 15.  And since we are now “Hondurans,” we will join right in on all the festivities.

That’s it for now. We continue to be amazed at how God continues to provide for us. Thank you for all your love, support, and prayers. Until next time…Dios les bendiga!

Goodbye Lynden

By trina in Events, Personal Reflections 3 Comments

Goodbye

Goodbye Woods Coffee. Goodbye outside runs and walks to the park. Goodbye grocery stores that have everything. Goodbye non-crazy driving conditions. Goodbye flushing toilet paper down the toilet. Goodbye delicious sushi. Goodbye purified tap water. Goodbye carpeted floors…I think I will miss you the most!

Bittersweet

So as you can tell, we have to say our goodbyes once again, and very soon. We leave this Sunday, after being home in the states for almost 5 weeks now.  Our goodbyes are bittersweet, as they usually are. We have loved being home in Lynden, seeing family and friends and enjoying all the wonderful conveniences that there is a lack of in Honduras! And I get a gulp in my throat about leaving both our families again, and taking Asher away from all the people that he is just starting to get used to and love again. But having a life in Honduras means we have loved ones there that we must get back to.  We have a job to do and God has called Chad, Trina, and Asher to do it. So alas, off we go once again!

In the pool at Sun Lakes Resort...Asher loved pool time!

Time Spent

We spent a week camping with my family in Sun Lakes for my parents 40th anniversary. We had a great time relaxing and watching Asher play with his cousins. From there, we spent the weekend in Seattle for Chad’s 20th high school reunion. We enjoyed taking Asher to Gas Works park where he could just run around and be free! And Chad had a great time seeing some old friends. After that it was just time spent with family and friends and some much needed dates with my hubby!

Asher and his cousin Tye playing together.

At Gas Works Park in Seattle. We had so much fun there!

Tacos, Tacos, and more Tacos!

The Taco Feed was a huge success and we couldn’t be more happy with how the night went. It was amazing to have almost 200 people come out and show their love and support to us. We are so thankful to my brother, Travis and his wife, Allison for coordinating the whole event, and to ALL who helped make that night possible. I wish I could personally write down all their names, but I will just say that our hearts are humbled and we are very grateful.

Getting food for the Taco Feed!

Out with Style

And to wrap up our time in Lynden, we are going out with style by attending the Northwest Washington Fair all week. Day one was a success with corn on the cob, corn dogs, kettle korn (do you see the theme?) and the Demolition Derby, which Asher loved. We hope to see some of you there, who we haven’t got to see yet. So if you see us, stop and say hi!

Asher enjoying some yummy corn on the cob!

At the Demo Derby!

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