Greetings to all from the Miller-Hisgens!

As you get ready for the winter months we are starting to see the strength of the Peruvian sun. We are more settled as we have been here for 6 months. I haven't written in awhile so hopefully this update will catch you up on our lives.

At the end of July we needed to leave the country in order to re-enter with different visas. We decided to head north to Ecuador where we had to pick up the new visas at the Peruvian consulate in Guayaquil. Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into a month as we waited for one man's signature. At times we were worried that we would never make it back to Peru, but mostly we enjoyed beautiful and hot Ecuador. In the city of Guayaquil we had lots of fun with the boys. One highlight was a great ice-cream parlor we found!


We also were able to see humpback whales migrating from Antarctica. It was amazing to see these magnificent creatures in their natural habitat.

(Aidan and Cynthia watching the whales)

My brother, Joe, and his wife, Karina, who was raised in Ecuador, were visiting Karina's parents. We surprised our boys with the news of seeing their cousins here in South America. It was great to have the cousins play together.

(Solan, Nuri, Aidan, and Gracie at the Historic Park of Guayaquil, Ecuador)

Of course returning to Trujillo after being gone 5 weeks led to another process of settling in for all of us, but it was easier the second time around.

Since this is our first ever BLOG, (that I am writing a second time due to my own computer incompetence) I am afraid to make this too long. My first attempt had me wanting to launch my computer out the window. I have decided to try again. I will give an update, one family member at at time.

Aidan Joseph!!


Aidan had a rough transition at first but now seems to be thriving here. It took him a month to talk to the children in his class and another month to speak to his teacher. Now he skips home from school chattering away with all his friends. He is much beloved here and is known as the little “muñeco” or doll. Aidan has a special spirit loving everyone he encounters and has taught Bart and I what true generosity is. I typically give away what is a left over or something extra, but Aidan is constantly running in the house to give away his finest treasures like special candy someone has sent him from the US or the biggest mango we have. He calls all his friends "hermano" or "hermana" (brother and sister).

Aidan turned 5 on September 5th!

(Aidan and his friend José)

My mom came to help us celebrate and supply us with goodies from the US. In our court yard we hosted a party with the children in our neighborhood. Birthdays are very important here, with some families starting the festivities at 12:01am on the birthdate. Unfortunately, lots of children in our neighborhood don't get to have a birthday party every year due to lack of money.

With plenty of advice from the neighbors, we decided to host a typical Peruvian birthday party. The first step was to hire two party animators-which is a pretty funny sight, as they are two scantly dressed females who play games and dance with the kids. All a parent has to do is supply the food and some prizes.

All parties here have popcorn, jello, and “masamora” which seems like runny jello to me. Children get a piece of cake on their way out the door. We were humbled by the generosity of our neighbors as they do not have much money and equally proud of Aidan who was very happy to receive gifts like a pair of socks and a coffee mug with roses on it. But his favorite present was his new puppy, Koby.

Today Aidan marched in a parade for his school's anniversary celebration. It was cute to hear him sing songs with his classmates. Aidan will soon be passing us all up with his Spanish skills. Sometimes I don't even hear an accent when he speaks.


Good-bye for now. Be on the look out for news about Solan in our next blog.