Oh my, we are nearly
into November.
Guatemala time is definitely faster then I remember. The
days start at around 6, and as the night falls, we are pushed indoors at 5:30. I
don’t know why, but we can hardly stay awake past 9 for anything less than an
emergency! Oh my, our lives are changing. It was only 8 years ago that I
married into this amazing and crazy family.
We traveled to the city last week for groceries and supplies. It was a long ride, 5-6 hours each way. The kids did great, and it was good to get out for a little, and see the countryside once again.
My baby, Audrey, just turned two a week ago, and she is showing her age
through temper tantrums and independence. We are enjoying watching her personality show
through as she learns to talk to us more and more. She now calls out, “Buenos
Dias!” to anyone she thinks may speak Spanish, regardless of the time of day or
if they are even close enough to hear her. She had Dunkin Donuts for her birthday breakfast, pink icing with sprinkles, and her momma was grateful for the doughnuts, too.
The boys are doing great at school. We have
moved their school time from the mornings, following breakfast, to midafternoon,
after we finish lunch. The new time
gives us more patience, and the boys feel like they have had enough time
outside, and can afford a delay in their explorations. Jacob has continued to
hone is motorcycle driving skills. He is now standing up, and looking for bumps
and mud to challenge himself. He had a little topple a few days ago, and blames
(we are working on this) his audience for encouraging him to go faster. He drew
a picture of the incident, and I think it will be one that I save for years to
come.
Joshua is keeping tabs on us all,
and seems to be learning new habits and trying new ways to drive his siblings
crazy. He definitely keeps us on our toes, but we can almost always find him in
the cab of a tractor, backhoe, or truck pretending to drive, haul or load. He
enjoys riding along with Ryan in the dump truck, as does Jacob.
The
rains have kept up longer than normal, and we are glad to have the moisture.
But, oh man does it make laundry more complicated for those of us who are not
morning people. I am working on it also, but Ryan is hands down the laundry
king of our house. Ryan has been keeping tabs on our new house, but we have
shifted focus to preparing a small apartment for a family coming in January.
They guys continue to haul sand and rock up from the river, and this keeps them
all buys with repairs on our dump truck that is showing its age and experience.
The concrete truck arrived here to Canillá after a long journey from Iowa. The
planning and preparation for the beginning of making concrete will take weeks,
but as we begin to make progress with living quarters, I am hopeful we can
change focus soon, and start to make headway with concrete and the beginning of
footings.
The
past few weeks have been challenging as the momentum from the move is starting
to fade, and the reality of our new lives become more real each day. The days
move quickly, and it seems as though we are always working on a dozen projects
at once. I think this makes it easy to get caught in a cycle of feeling ineffective,
but we are pressing forward. We are working with what we have, and are faithful
that we will have what we need when we need it.
Oh how I would love to hug, talk, eat, and just catch up with so many
people from back home. Letters are great,
but how do I send a hug? A nudge?
For now, these letters on a page will have to do.
Hope you are enjoying autumn in the US (aka Pumpkin Spice Latte
season).
Hope the leaves and cooler temps are delightful.
