Rain was forecast overnight but much to our relief it was dry as we all got up at around 6:30am this morning – hooray! Off we all went to the base for breakfast and then we piled into the vans for our final build day of House 1.  We were all a little excited, those of us who stayed home yesterday were looking forward to seeing the progress that had been made and those who did go yesterday really knew how much work needed to be done to finish off!  The kids took charge of the outside painting along with some of the mums, they were so amazing, they worked incredibly hard and had it done before any of us expected.  The inside was taking shape with the finishing up of the “mudding” which is an amusing term for gib stopping, the guys worked really hard to get it looking smooth and then added 2 coats of paint.  Furniture arranging was a bit of  fun at the end of the day, with the kids enjoying boxes as well, no matter where you are in the world the fridge box is always a bit of a hit.  It was a big effort to get to the end with the whole team working really hard as we had to pack up vans and gear and clean up the site.

As we sit here at 10 pm, tired muscles and probably should be in bed, we think of all you guys back at home and how you are all involved in changing this families life. As we handed over the keys we shared about how we had raised the money for the houses. We shared about how you all supported us and all the fundraising efforts. Then Diego and Gabby thanked us in a wonderful way. They shared a delicious meal of cerviche (raw fish) with the entire team. What a humbling experience to have someone who has so little share what they have with you. What a great end to the day and the end to the first house build for the Project Purpose team. And of course a new beginning for one family in Mexico who now have concrete floor, a roof that doesn’t leak and the knowledge that a whole lot of people in NZ have been thinking about them and their new home. Now a few days off before Build 2!