Trio

What would two birthday posts be without a third? We can't help it that September is a popular month to be born. Today Anna turns 32 as well. One of the youth groups threw us a surprise party on Saturday. It was really sweet of them.

This is a picture that Anna drew, using pointillism, in honor of her art teachers Ms. Foell and Ms. Thompson. Anna finds it relaxing to make thousands of dots on a page with a sharpie.

Another Year Older

Today is David's 32nd birthday. It's also our nephew Brennan's 10th birthday. In addition to sharing their special day, they also share a passion for video games. Happy birthday kids!

Happy Birthday Grandma!

Today is Anna's maternal grandmother's 89th birthday. It seems impossible that a woman so active and independent could actually be that close to 90. Grandma likes to stay busy: she has a booming day lilly farm, she enjoys line dancing and she recently conquered email. When she discovers that there is something out there she doesn't know how to do, her usual response is to go down to the community center and take a class. She never stops learning and she has probably read everything at the public library - twice. Her energy sometimes shames us, her grandkids, since we usually tire out on the dance floor before her.

Grandma grew up in a Lutheran family in Ohio. She married my Italian Catholic grandfather and became an eager convert. She raised 12 kids, has more than 50 grandkids, and is now a great-great grandmother. She is very active in her church and helps run the thrift store that funds the St. Vincent de Paul Society in her community. The woman is unstoppable, so watch out Walter Bruening! Happy birthday Grandma! We love you so much and hope to live our lives half as well as you have. We can't wait to be there with her for 90. Here are a few pictures of her with Joshua when we last went home for a visit:

Our Last Dieciocho

We celebrated Chile's 200th year of Independence this weekend, and also our last Independence Day here on mission. We decided a short time ago that we would be going back home to the States this January. So, the word has been getting out slowly to our friends and neighbors. We spent the festivities visiting with different families in the community. We ate and drank well with chicha, Chilean wine, empanadas, and lots and lots of meat! Vegetarians don't do well in Chile. We're still celebrating actually, and planning another outing tonight, but are giving our stomachs a chance to rest a little before we head to the next party.

We dressed Joshua in a traditional Aymaran outfit, from the north of Chile. The harmonica isn't exactly part of the outfit, but he wouldn't let go of it all weekend.

In front of the flag, he continues his harmonica concert.

Joshua had a great time playing with all of the kids at our neighbor's house on Saturday.

Anna dressed up too, in a "Huasa" outfit, or a traditional country style dress. The dog didn't want to dress up, but did agree to pose pretty for this photo.

Online Chat... the Results

The online chat thing turned out pretty well. We were afraid that no one would be interested in asking us questions, so we planted our family in the audience. The thing is, we forgot how huge our family is. So, even though just a fraction of our siblings and our parents showed up, they really stole the show. You can read the conversation here. It's especially helpful for people thinking about overseas mission:

Online Chat

Visit Our Site | Get Involved | Forward to a Friend Dear Friends, We are pleased to launch a new online communications venue, an online chat. On Tuesday, September 14, 2010, you can join us for our inaugural live chat with David and Anna Draper, Columban lay missionaries working in Chile. The chat starts at 10 a.m. Central time. During the chat, you will be able to type in questions and read their responses, or you can watch as other participants submit their questions to the Drapers. If you are unable to log into the live event, you can submit a question or two ahead of time, then read the chat in the archived format at your convenience. The live and archived version of the chat will be found here. On this page, you can also submit questions prior to the chat or sign up to receive an email reminder shortly before the chat begins. Yours in Christ, Fr. Arturo Augilar Anna, David and son Joshua © 2010 Columban Fathers | Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe | Stay in touch: