Sometimes Roses

Just wanted to say...the grumpy one did get roses for Mother's day; 14 actually, along with a clump of lilies, daisies, and something else I can't identify arranged in a beautiful pitcher that she has been wanting since we got here. Best part for me.... total bill $9.

Not always roses

Most recently, I've heard that our blogs make it sound like EVERYTHING is wonderful. In fact, many people have thought that we are enjoying life so much down here that they doubt we will want to come home. So this is a blog dedicated to complaining. It is a little dose of reality.

The photo is of our dog after she was attacked by some sort of insect. We don't know what got at her, but she became very swollen...to the point where she could barely open her eyes. Insect season is upon us. I thought that I was tougher now than when we first got here, but as the HOT season is rapidly approaching, the insects are choosing to come indoors. their first choice is the kitchen table or counter. The newest addition is the flying worms. They fly in, lose their wings and then crawl all over the ceiling and walls. Very cool... if you were actually into flying worms. Very recently, Ethan killed the cockroach that has been living in the innards of my crockpot. I never saw the critter, but I knew he was there because of the droppings he left me. His exoskeleton was burned, and he was naked and nearly transparent. Didn't slow him down though...he gave Ethan a run for his money!!
We also have bees that have chosen to build their hives all along the side of our house. These bees have got to be the dumbest bees we have every seen. Bob swears we could train them to be pets. They are very docile, they don't mind us hanging around, and don't seem to be in any hurry to relocate.

How am I doing? Sounding miserable yet?

Here's more. We own three vehicles here in the DR. A concho (scooter- most reliable and easiest vehicle to use on the streets here), we have a truck (Isuzu Trooper- old, reliable and has a propane conversion kit that allows us to travel on both propane and gasoline. The propane tank is in the vehicle!! It often provides additional seating should we need to shove the kids in the back) and Bob has an extremely loud old 2 stroke dirtbike for "mountain climbing". Bob's bike needed repair and he brought it into the shop (in November!!!!!) and we wait for the manana's (I need a ~ over the first 'n') to end. So, that means it's been in the shop for SIX months! Maybe tomorrow?!?
The truck is in the shop- needing a new radiator....we'll see when we get it back. The concho was the last standing vehicle....and I got a flat with it yesterday. It was the straw that broke the camels back. Bob fixed it quickly... but I complained nonetheless.

Sounding crabby I bet!

Last complaint. We have had a significant amount of rain over the last while. So much so, that the city had turned the water off in our area of town. We have a cistern that holds a large quantity of water that will last for quite a while, but eventually it gets to the point where we are using the sludge at the bottom. In order to conserve water, we watched the amount of flushing we did, washed clothes as little as possible and had the fastest showers in recorded history. Last Wednesday, they finally turned the water on! It was very exciting. I started the washing machine immediately! In less than an hour after the city turned the water was turned on, the city turned the power off. No power means no water! That's ok... our attitude was still good. We decided, that we didn't have to worry, by the next night, we would have it all! The next day, with full power and full water I started making supper. Within moments I realized that our propane tank was empty, and the stove would not work. By Friday we had it all pulled together!

Brodie wants to add to the post as well. He's sick. We are not sure at this point if he has little critters running around in him (parasites) or if he has the flu. Time will tell. But the fever, headache, upset tummy and fatigue indicate that we may be looking at more than the average flu. Tomorrow his class is going spelunking- this is not something he wants to miss. We will see what he looks like in the morning.

I had a great meeting today with a parent of an 15 year old boy with autism. There were tears, smiles, laughter and wonderful moments of understanding despite the language barrier. However, I cannot tell you about that right now, because that would defeat the purpose of this blog. :)

Did we mention that that heat is crazy hot!! Picture a sweaty family of 5!

I think that's good. If I need to post a complaining blog again in future, I'm willing, just let me know whatcha need!!

Ain't she sweet

This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago in Cabarete. This Haitian woman is always around in Cabarete, selling her fruit that she balances on top of her head. She has skills that astound me. I don't know how she does it, but she does. I've always wanted to take her picture and either didn't have a camera or chickened out. This time I did it. I ended up feeling obligated to buy some fruit off her. (It was the least I could do!! )

A very brief update.....
I was very excited about having an opportunity to tour the local "Special Needs" school. It's called Genesis. I was expecting to see a disaster...it wasn't. Amy, an American occupational therapist invited me to tour the facility. It was so fun to see the kids smiling and enjoying school. There were 33 students ranging from ages 3 years old to ... unsure, I think late teens. At the end of the visit when I asked Amy why she wanted me to see her school, she smiled. I knew! So, I have volunteered to help out at the school as needed. Currently, they have asked me to do an inservice for the teachers. Something encouraging and inspiring. How I wish I had the language!!

On a lighter note, Ethan has a memorable week. He has been invited to a birthday party!!! This is very exciting. This is the first one for us, and he was THRILLED! This is the just the beginning. He came home from school today seeking the advice of a professional. His question, "How do you dump a girlfriend??" Our youngest has been hand-picked by a Spanish chica who has given him his first kiss multiple times today alone!! It sounds like our youngest is growing up!!

The boys continue to grow. Drew's feet never stop growing. As soon as a pair of shoes show up on Missionary Flights International, we are already searching Ebay for the next size up. Voices are starting to warble, zits are appearing, and Ethan's been kissed. Sigh!

Missing for a Month

Ok...so it's been a long time since we've written. You know when you first start a project everything is exciting?!? And then, as you become accustomed to your surroundings, you can't think of a thing to write about? Well, my friend Rachel told me today that she just checked out our blog again....that reminded me that it was time to update!

The picture you see is our friend Jeff Jorritsma. He and his wife also work for Escuela Caribe and are also Canadians. One day, while we were at the river he and some fellow paddlers came by. Ethan jumped on. Let's just say that Ethan wasn't the only little boy excited about a tour on the river. A little boy in his 'tighty-whiteys" went for a rip around the river after Ethan did. It was quite the sight.

Ok...a quick update. Work is good. Bob and I feel very comfortable and 'at home' on campus and on the isand in general. We have been asked by many people back home if we are still planning on returning to the homeland. The answer has remained the same, 'yes'! Especially if you ask me, if you ask Bob he often says ,"Why?'. Brodie and Drew would love to do highschool back home so that would mean that we would honor our two year contract and prepare to come back home next summer.

Most of you know already, but for those of you who don't, we are not planning on returning home this summer for a visit. We are planning on taking the time (and money provided by the mission) to tour the island for three weeks. We are all very excited about the adventure and are sad that the cost was our trip home. Each of us got to chose one thing that we wanted to do on our vacation. Ethan's choice was loud and clear...OCEAN WORLD. He wants to swim with dolphins. As for the rest of us, we all wanted the same thing. To tour and explore the island. Typically we only get two days off in a row (once per month) so that does allow for much exploring time. We are all looking forward to this great opportunity.

The boys: The three boys are nearing the end of school. They have about 6 weeks left. Brodie and Drew have learned a lot of Spanish and we are starting to use them as translators. They don't speak it voluntarily, but they are quick to correct our verbs should we conjugate them incorrectly!!
Building friendships has been challenging for all three of my 'Bible-belt' raised children. Out here, survival of the fittest is the best way to describe recess! We have prayed for good relationships for all three boys. Brodie and Drew have missed their friends from back home very much. Countless times they have talked about football in Lion's Part with the guys. We have been very thankful that a boy will be transferring to their school next year. Caleb is a missionary kid who loves gaming (computers) and speaks English. A perfect fit!!
Ethan: Lots of people have asked me how Ethan is doing. Well,..... I guess good! Ethan's strengths and challenges are the same regardless of which country or continent we live on! :) He continues to love facts about animals, starts most sentences with, "Did you know..." and LOVES life! In fact, today at potluck after church, he was helping carry deserts out to the pavillion in the most awkward way possible. When I asked him why he was walking like that, he stated he was trying not to let the lizard out of his pocket! :)
Ethan's teacher has an excellent handle on Ethan's needs. We pray that his next year's teacher will also have the desire to understand Ethan and all that he brings to life!

Finally, a quick note on what is going on outside of the mission and school. This week I will be spending two afternoons visiting a school called Genesis. This is the special education school in Jarabacoa. One day, I will be meeting with two moms with autistic sons. The moms are discouraged with the lack of progress that their sons' are experiencing. I will be using a translator (Ethan's teacher) to help encourage and support them. The second day, I will tour the school, hoping to encourage and give ideas to those who work there. I am excited about this opportunity.

Hopefully we will update sooner this time. Shorter blogs more often. I know it makes sense...it just needs to be done.

Semana Santa

I think today is our first regular day in a while. Between company and assorted national holidays we have been keeping relatively busy. Semana Santa or Holy Week just wrapped up this weekend. This meant that our boys were off of school.... pretty much Dominican spring break. We took the opportunity to do a little vacationing in the capitol as a final trip with Carrie's folks. We took in the colonial district and some of the old forts. Dominican tourism is cool in the way that you usually get to climb in and on everything!...very cool for kids. I'm not sure how many centuries these monuments to civilization will last under this torture, but for now it definately makes sight-seeing in Canada and the U.S. a little lame.

Another little surprise was the Zoo in Santo Domingo. If first impressions were to mean anything we probably have turned around at the parking lot. The smell of sewage, garbage, and other nasties was part of the welcoming committee as we walked up to the peeling front gates. Once inside we attempted to walk around and quickly realized that there wasn't much for animals around. We saw some flamingos, and a duck, but nothing more. Because of the absence of signs it took us a few minutes to realize that we had to board the zoo train to get up the hill to the zoo. We should have known......Dominicans would never walk around a zoo!!!

The enclosures were actually quite big, and the animals looked healthy. We all decided that for the $1.50 entrance fee it was actually quite a bargain. One huge bonus was that due to Dominican safety standards (or lack there-of) we could actually walk inside some of the enclosures if we so desired to. Just for proof I have a shot of Drew waving at us from the inside of the ostrich and white rhino enclosure. (Don't worry the animals were at least out of sprinting distance!) We sometimes wonder what kind of tourists we will be when we return.

Some other fun we had was throwing our kids off of the side of a mountain (para-gliding). This was still part of their birthday gift that had never quite materialized. They had a blast, but they both agreed it was too short. We wrapped up the week with a mini-marathon around Jarabacoa. Brodie and I had been "training" with some of the kids from school, and so we all loaded up on Saturday and gave it our best on the 11km run. Brodie ran a shorter race with the 15 and under kids. I managed the run not too bad, but I still have a few sore muscles today. Apparently I don't recover as fast as I used to. Part of the marathon excitement included a shooting that occurred at the first corner the marathon ran by. Apparently a few minutes before the start of the race somebody tried to take out a fellow Dominican in front of the local Pizza Pepperoni. Not sure what the issue was yet, but Carrie saw one of the wounded running across the street into the clinic.....but on with the race. We do have violence occasionally, but it doesn't really concern us. Either we are simply too naive, or we have started the process of becoming Dominican. Either way, we don't really have random violence, it is always parties that know one another. If you don't hang out with bad people....then the other bad people don't shoot at you! It was a nice ending to the "holiest" of weeks in the D.R.

Tour Guides

Yes...I am aware that Christmas was a long time ago. I am not quite sure what exactly happened to a lot of the time inbetween then and now! Part of it had to do with visitors, birthdays, and just plain being busy.
Mom and Dad started things off in January with a timely visit that enabled them to spend Brodie and Drew's birthdays with them. This was a great treat that was much appreciated by the twins. Having seen most of the "touristy" things on their previous visit with Terry and Jill, we spent more time just casually strolling the town, and going out to eat. A brief break, and we had the Trinke's from Winkler and Carrie's parents arrive within one day of each other on January 30th?...I think. Things are already blurring. This made for a full house, but a great time was had by all, doing some great site-seeing as well as some more good eating. We all toured a coffee factory together, saw a waterfall, and shopping up town. After seeing how this side lives, we dropped Derek and Shanna off at an all-inclusive in Sosua. Spending a night at the all-inclusive with them, was a real treat for us! (Thanx guys!) This brings us up February 3rd. This is an incredibly boring post, but at least you won't have to look at Christmas news!

Santa needs good hiking boots!

Christmas means we get to do things a little different here in the D.R. Part of the schools tradition is to give out Christmas bags. Not boxes, not hampers, but bags. If you have been to the D.R. you will soon realize that the lowly plastic bag is really what keeps the world going 'round. The "funda", as it is called, can be used for groceries (we were familiar with that one), but also as a hat, a raincoat, a motorbike seat cover, rainboots, or perhaps something to hold your hair rollers in. When it comes to shopping you can also get almost anything you want in a plastic bag; eggs, sugar, candy, flour, 1 tylenol pill, 1 scoop of tomato paste (I'm serious about that one). In any case the "fundas" that we gave out for Christmas were hand sewn and good for many different uses, besides the fact that they were filled to the brim with groceries. For many of the people that we visited this might be a weeks worth of groceries. We had a blast riding around in the back of the Diahatsu (Japanese import work truck) with the students. At various spots around or nearby community we got out, attempted a Christmas carol or two in Spanish, and handed out the bags. Our students delivered approximately 35 bags, with our Dominican staff hand delivering the remaining 35 to the more remote locations. Ethan had a blast handing out suckers and toys to the kids along the way. This was a great opportunity for all of us to see how many of the poorer Dominicans live. Within the city of Jarabacoa itself we become accustomed to cement houses, some of which are actually mansions, but this was the Dominican countryside and things look a little different out here. The people were very gracious, and we received many gifts of fruit in return. One lady, who obviously had nothing, tried to get or entire group to come inside for juice. I'm not sure how she was going to pull that off, but she tried anyway. Even with our terrible singing I think the day was still a great success.