This past Friday, February 4th, our (not-so-little-anymore) girl turned six years old! I know every parent says this, but it’s so hard for me to believe that our Victoria is six now!

When I first held Tori back on February 4th, 2005 I remember just feeling overwhelmed and overjoyed with all the possibilities this little life held! What would be her favorite color? Would she like school? Would she make friends? So many things crossed my mind on my first night of being a mom.

But it never crossed my mind that she would grow up in Central America…that she’d be bilingual by the age of six…or that she’d have hardly any American friends. And I definitely did not expect her to request pupusas (a popular dish in El Salvador) over pizza or hamburgers for her sixth birthday party!  But all of those things are true for her.

And I am happy for her. I’m happy that she is learning how big the world is, how many cultures are included in God’s Kingdom, and how she has a responsibility (even at 6!) to follow God’s path to bring justice and love to a hurting world.

So, Happy Birthday Tori…I am so proud of you!

Thank you to all the YWAM staff who made balloon animals and played games with the kids!

Ian had a great time too…he especially loved jumping in the dragon castle!

Tori goes to the International School of San Salvador. We love the cultural diversity found here in the capital city.  Here are Tori’s friends from all over the world.  The kids here represent the U.S., El Salvador, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Italy, Korea, Panama, Canada, Sweden, and China.

We had Tori’s party at a farm just outside the city. She had her dream come true of riding a real pony at her My Little Pony birthday party.

Ian liked riding the ponies too!

And as any kid in El Salvador knows, no party is complete without beating the heck out of a huge piñata to get some candy.

Happy Birthday to Tori!