I recognize that it has been a while since I updated all of my avid readers and followers, but then again, I didn't get any perturbed messages asking when I was going to update my blog. So maybe time is flying by for all of you as quickly as it is for me.
At about two and a half weeks after my last blog post, I thought, "I should really update my blog. Hmm... I think I'll wait until I have something more exciting to share, something more than the fact that school is still going, I'm still teaching, and my students are still (hopefully) learning."
Then exciting things happened. Like, a lot of exciting things. But I also got bogged down in wrapping up the first quarter and the craziness that naturally comes with that. Now, I guess it's time to stop pushing things off and let you all in on the craziness that is my life.
On September 23, 2017, I added a new member to my little family. Meet Charlotte.
She is a 2014 Honda CRV. I looked long and hard, and I feel good about this purchase. I came to Nicaragua thinking that I'd have a car in less than a month. 2 months and 1 day after arriving in Nicaragua, I bought a car. I've learned to readjust my expectations and, more specifically, my timeline for when things will happen here. If I was in Indiana trying to buy a car, I could find a car online or on a used car lot, call/talk to the person selling the car, and negotiate everything myself. Here, I had to rely on someone else to drive me to multiply locations to see potential cars, talk to the sellers for me, and contact someone with more mechanical expertise than I could ever hope to have to check out the car and make sure it's okay. If you know me, you know that patience and asking for help wouldn't exactly make my top three skills/personality traits. Or top 10. Or top 50.
**Big shout out to Kim Rumley-Wells for her invaluable help. Seriously. I cannot adequately express my gratitude. You rock.
After 2 months of asking for help, I am so glad to be able to be the one
offering help to others who need a ride. It's quite refreshing, really.
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| Charlotte!!! Isn't she pretty? |
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| After my first drive. We both survived! |
Charlotte's first big outing was to drive Kim, her husband, Mike, and her son, Corin, to San Juan del Sur on Friday September 29. It was about a two and a half hour drive. We drove to a very nice little villa where we met up with another NCA family and one of our SOARR (special ed) volunteers. We stayed the night and got up the next morning for a sailing trip!
Quick interjection: my stay at the villa marked the first shower I've taken with warm water since arriving in Nicaragua, and because there was AC, I got to snuggle under the covers, which is just a little thing that I've missed being here. Okay. Now we're back.
We drove to a hotel called Pelican Eyes where we boarded a mini bus that took us to the dock where we boarded a little boat that took us to the bigger sail boat. Let me just say that this was a huge learning experience for me. For one, I learned that, given my choice in how I want to travel anywhere in the world, boat will not be my first choice. I didn't feel sick to my stomach, but the rocking motion seriously messed with my already precarious sense of balance, so I spent the majority of the time on the boat laying down. Secondly, it apparently is necessary to reapply sunscreen every 15 minutes. Although I did do some reapplications, I clearly did not reapply enough, as you will see in later photos. Check out some of the pictures from our adventure.
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| Preparing to depart on our sail boat! |
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| Having fun in the Pacific Ocean! Can you see my shorts burn lines? |
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| My sweet friend and coworker, Kelly. She pretty much planned the whole trip. Love her! |
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| Love this sweet girl! Emily is a SOARR volunteer for NCA this year. We both got a little toasty. The orange walls downplay the red in our faces. :) |
This past week brought a whole new flurry of excitement at school. It was spirit week! Check out these photos of me and my students.
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| Monday was pajama day. Of course, it also gave me the chance to represent my Colts! |
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| Tuesday was crazy hair day. I don't think I'll let these girls near my hair any time soon. |
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| Out of all my students, this junior won the day for me. |
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| Wednesday was Meme day. You can't see it, but I had some memes taped to my shirt. |
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| Thursday was color scheme day. Dress all in one color! |
Friday was the day we were all supposed to wear our class shirts, but due to heavy rains and Tropical Storm Nate, school was dismissed early at 1 pm on Thursday and then cancelled on Friday. So class shirt day has been postponed to next Friday.
Please be praying for everyone who has been affected by the heavy flooding. There are people who have lost everything because the water levels were over their house. I am okay, and the school is okay, but there are people who are trying to rebuild now.
Last little update: one of the pastors from my home church, New Hope, came to Nicaragua to visit. I had the privilege of spending Thursday afternoon and evening catching up with him. He was also kind enough to bring a suitcase from my parents filled with things I couldn't bring the first time around. My parents included a little early birthday gift for me, since I can't really get packages sent to me.
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| How cute is my mom? |
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| I haven't been able to watch any DVDs here, so this is a wonderful treat. I finally got to watch some Psych with my friend, Kayla. Haven't been able to do that since I got here. |
Thank you to everyone who continues to pray, support, and ask about me. Let me know if you have any questions about what's going on here. I think it's almost time for another live blog. :)
