The Wedding!

Fanel and Andreea were married on August 6th. Fanel is a graduate from our Boys Transition House. He has been living independently working and living in Bucuresti since then. I'm very proud of him and think that Andreea is a wonderful match for him!In Romania there are usually two ceremonies. The first is a civil ceremony that takes place at the mayor's house. Usually the bride and groom each have a member from their family stand up with them as witnesses. I was honored when Fanel asked me to stand up with him.
At the civil ceremony.
The traditional flower exit after the ceremony.

Jenny, Kirsteen and I with the happy couple!

The Wedding Day! Staff before the wedding.

Making sure he looks perfect!

Ruthie, in her wedding finery!

A Romanian ceremony is usually long. This one was 2 hours. So the bride and groom sit down!

The Heart to Heart Staff with the couple at the reception.

So Much Summer Fun

The end of June and the month of July were super summer fun. We had a tenderfoot team, Day Camps with kids from 6 orphanages, 4 girls camps, 4 boys camps, a music camp, and a boys backpacking trip. It is impossible to show you everything from the summer, but I wanted to show you some of my favorite moments!The July TF brought a parachutte. It was fun, and.....

It doubled as a superman camp. Once one of the kids figured this out, I had to give them a time limit so they all got turns to be a super hero!

I got alot of hug time!

The boys camp did some kayaking on a local river.

Peris got a new playground! The kids were thrilled and so were we because it took the place of the large trash heap. A much prettier use of space!

You never know what kids are going to copy you doing. My "assistant" helping me teach a lesson!

No, I didn't make them cry. We are doing a taste test. Our theme was God's Amazing Creation--You! We talked about the 5 senses. I taught about the sense of taste. I had different things for them to taste and identify. Their faces were priceless!


The 5 sense self-portrait.
Sabrina was our youngest team member this summer at 11. As you can see she did great and made some great friends!

The final summer team. We had a great summer full of teams. We needed each of you to make it work! Thanks!

Pool Time

This summer we had our first baby swim class! Three of the four babies did great and love the water. Emi--well maybe by next year!Jenny and I with David and Ruthie.

Swimming wears them out!

Krista and I with Rebeca and David catching some rays.



The older kids loved the pool as well and was the most sought after activity of the summer!

Boys Graduation

This summer we graduated 5 boys from the Boys Transition House. We had a ceremony at the Team house to hand out diplomas. Cezar, Aurel, Adrian, and Catalin with Ghita making a presentation.

Catalin receiving his diploma from Costel.

Costel, the master of Master of Ceremonies, with me as his translator.

Four of these boys I've known since my 2nd summer in Romania-- 13 years ago. They were 7 and 8 then, now they are young men starting out on their own. Another proud mom moment!

Buhler Meets Romania

Towards the end of June a group from my home church came to lend a hand. Anytime I have people from home come over and experience Romania, it is a special blessing for me.

John, Parker, Layne, Tara, Carley, and Sarah, Thanks so much for stepping out in faith and taking this journey. I loved having you here and see God work in and through you!

The team brought with them a few goodies from home including.......2 of my Mom's homemade cherry pies. Yes, they were made in America, packed in suitcases and arrived all in 1 piece. How? My Mom is amazing and my parents have learned a few tricks over the years!

Part of the group worked at the orphanages and the baby hospital. John made a good human jungle gym!
Sarah getting in cuddle time! See no running involved =)
The girls toting around some of their favorites!
Parker and Layne went off on the boys backpacking trip with some of the older orphan boys up into the Carpathian Mountains.
We picked the boys up from their adventure and visited the Peles Castle. Thanks again for being a great team!

Two Brothers

Those of you who have hung around me for the past few years, know that 3 1/2 years ago when 2 certain brothers arrived at the orphanage, they quickly stole my heart. When Nicu and Vic arrived, neither of them had been in school so they started them both in the first grade. They finished the 3rd grade this year. It is custom for each class to award the top 3 students with awards. The top student receives the wreath of flowers on his or her head. As you can see, Nicu, was first in his class, for the 3rd year in a row!
Vic was 2nd! Also for the 3rd time. After he received his diploma he popped on my lap and said, "Next year, I'm going to be first!" Nicu's response, "No way!" True brothers. The competition is on, but they always have each other's back!

Children's Day with the Biola Team

In Romania, June 1st is Children's Day, and June 15th is the last day of school. These 2 days make the beginning of June very busy with all kinds of celebrations. This year the Biola Team was here to help us. We had 5 different carnivals, in different locations.


I'm taking my turn at the sponge toss! The little ones were no problem. The older fast-pitchers I let Abe, a Biola team member handle!

One of my favorite little guys, Petrica, who is often soo serious. It is always fun to see him smile!

Jim getting in on the action! However, I didn't let him throw the sponge at me!!

Face painting was involved, and we had some creative designs!

John wowed the kids, team, and us staff with his magic tricks. A fun addition to our celebrations.

Down in Rosiori the kids had fun as well. Alin could fit inside of the tuba!

The Biola team also helped with music lessons and band rehersals. Here are all the musicians together.