Mon. Nov. 2nd - Sun. Nov. 8th

This week was "intersession" for the kids at the prep school. The prep school is now doing school year round school so every 45 days or so they have a week break or so...  This was the first one. They can still be at school but thy aren't doing normal class work. Tuesday however was Dominica's 37th Independence Day so no one had school that day anyway.

Wednesday morning I took the kids to school and went with a group of friends to Pagua Bay and spent the morning doing what others seem to think we do here on the island. We soaked up the sun and relaxed! We ate a beautiful brunch and enjoyed good company. It was a wonderful morning! I wish we could've stayed all day!!

I got to go home to this. Not so ritzy and fancy huh? Nor is it much like an extended vacation. The last time I scrubbed poopy diapers on a vacation...oh wait, I've never done that! I can't even open my door all the way because the washing machine has to sit right behind it so gravity can help drain the water out off the balcony. Not to complain but to show that even though we live on a beautiful green paradise island we don't just lounge around. In fact, this island is very poor and many are in need.

November 5th - Emma is now 18 months old!!!! Usually that is cause for celebration because kiddos get to start going to nursery but here she's been going for months! She weighs about 24 pounds. She has gone #2 in the potty a couple times. Never #1. We're not actively potty training her yet but she may force me to. She tends to stick her hand into a poopy diaper to inform me she's poopy. She can SAY poopy but she prefers to SHOW me! YUCK!! Also, she has learned to take her diaper off...  I'm also still nursing her 3-4 times a day and I'm not sure how I'm ever going to ween her!! Milk is so expensive here and not always in stock. I've only bought it twice in the 10 plus months we've lived here and one time it was sour!

Emma is very expressive with her eyebrows. She has perfected the scowl. She looks mad but she's just being silly (usually). Emma makes us laugh everyday. She is learning so much. I love this age! She seems to be enjoying going to the ELC. She enjoys dancing, running and playing with her siblings. I'm amazed at how much joy can come from having this cute happy little lady in our family.

Thursday morning it was raining cats and dogs outside and was reminding me of Tropical Storm Erika that came through in August. I decided we wouldn't leave the house at all. Our roof started leaking a little and I heard the river was starting to flood too.... Better safe then sorry. I was SO glad we had been to Pagua Bay the day before on not on this rainy dreary day. The storm is because of a "trough system" water that means in weather terminology...  Friday's prep school trip to Batibou beach is cancelled and the rain is expected to continue off and on through Tuesday I believe.

Yucky brown water. BOOOOO!!!!! 

When Emma went to sleep we pulled out the paints we got from our early Christmas in October. I joined the kids and we had a great time!!

Isaac's

Kari's

Alexis'

And this one... is MINE!! I was feeling artistic :) It's probably the best painting I have ever and will ever create!

We LOVE pizza and eat it in some form or another probably too often. Tonight I tried making these pizza rolls. I was a fan! Yummy!!

Friday we stayed home and again the kids painted during Emma's nap time. 

I stole this picture from FB of Saturday's lovely sunset!! Gorgeous! I don't often get to enjoy these.

Mon. 10/19 - Sun. 10/25

10/19/2015 Monday
Again, I don't know how we've flown through another week! Sometimes time just goes by so fast!! When I think about it I can't believe we've been in Dominica for over 9 months!! We are now talking about staying after 4th semester to study for the ginormous Step 1 test that we anticipate Mark with take around the end of June/early July. That's assuming things go as we plan. There's so much we just don't know at this point. We "go with the flow". That has become my motto. Sometimes it's all I can do!
This weekend my lovely Dominican washing machine decided to stop draining properly. Mark and I lugged it out onto the balcony to let it drain using gravity. Now doing laundry is even harder! The cord for the electricity isn't very long so the machine is right outside the door so it can reach in to the outlet. We don't have the right kind of extension cord for it. It's just really going to be a pain! Now the door can't open very far and I have to go back and forth to turn the water on and off.
I really just want to complain a lot right now! Last week I broke down and told Mark I don't want to be here anymore. I'll be fine and we'll get through this. It's life and some days are definitely better then others but all the things I miss from the states and things I dislike here are piling high!
When people in the states talk about all the fun I'm having or the paradise I live in.... I just.... I don't know! The nature on this island IS gorgeous and I have been able to go on adventures and there are beaches here BUT this is not a vacation where I kick back with no worries and relax!! It's becoming harder to focus on the awesome experiences we are having here when I so desperately want reliable running water for one!  or a grocery store with a variety of fresh produce that I know how to eat.... I could go on and on. Ugh! I really need to snap out of it!
I went to the gym today for the first time in about 2 weeks. I'm going to be very sore in the morning. I think exercise helps my crankiness at least a little. So if I get nothing else done in the day at least I worked out a bit. That sounds accomplished to me.

Tuesday
I went to the gym and worked out with some friends. I was sore from a workout yesterday and they were working those same muscles today! Maybe I should've bailed but it was a good workout. OUCH! My rear end hurts! It's a good hurt though. :)
Afterwards we went to Bible study. It was my second time going. Today we read from John 8 where the women is caught in adultery and want to stone her. I'm finding it a very interesting experience being there with other Christians who are not LDS and reading from a different version of the Bible. I do agree with most of the discussion. I'd rather not go off on my thoughts here. I'm not really good with words anyway. But I do find it interesting and I'll continue going with my friends. Perhaps I should say that I am firm in my own faith in Jesus Christ and His restored gospel. I believe in the Book of Mormon and I know that President Monson is God's current prophet on the earth today.
After lunch I spent time talking with my friend as the two of us are planning the event Kid's Fest that will be held on Halloween next Saturday. We are beginning to feel some stress as it gets closer!
We had chili for dinner tonight. It totally made my day to watch Emma eat her food all gone and even ask for more! I was fully expecting her to throw it on the floor. Maybe squish some beans first.

Here she did the sign for "all done" 

Wednesday

I decided not to go to the gym. For one, I'm super sore! and for two I'm way behind on laundry! I felt so productive this morning! I washed a sink full or dirty dishes, washed, spun, rinsed, spun and hung 2 full loads of laundry (thankfully we had water the whole time!), baked bread, packed lunch, took a shower and made it on time to get the kids for lunch! Boo yeah me! :) 

We went to a birthday party for a little boy who turned one. They had pizza, chips and cake. 

Emma was cheesing it up for me!

Friday

I am working with another lady on the RSO board to plan Kid's Fest this semester. It will be NEXT Saturday on Halloween. Today we got some help to work on some decorations. I'm not very artistic or creative so I was grateful for the help. Also, we got a lot done in a small amount of time!

Sunday

I love sacrament meetings here. I always feel of the Spirit and feel I hear something I need to. It's the remembering what that something was that's difficult. ;)  

We have friends leaving the island in the morning. They will be heading to San Juan so he can take Step 1! Ahhh! That will be us in just over 8 months! That feels like forever away sometimes! But I keep saying each week flies by so quickly. Those fast weeks turn into months and hopefully before I know it we'll be off this rock!

 

Mon. 8/31 - Sun. 9/6 (Break. The week after "the storm".)

Monday August 31^st

We slept in until 8. Mark had to rush out the door to get to campus for Welcoming Committee.  I needed to be on campus with the kids at 10 to check in and be able to make my 1 minute satellite phone call.

I went to see if there was any more flour downstairs. There wasn’t. Good thing I had bought extra the last time I was at the store. Hopefully it will last us however long we need it too. 

This was my first time to campus since the storm. The river is noticeably wider than it used to be. Other then right near the river everything seemed normal.

As we neared the “Subway deck” (on campus where we were to check in) people were saying the phones were back up. I saw some friends. One had just tried using the satellite phones and it didn't work. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to call my mom. Another friend I saw I had been so curious about. The last thing I had seen from her on Facebook before the storm was that she and her husband went to Rosalie Bay which is south. She said they were stuck there for days. They were able to take a bus as far as it could go then they had to get out and climb a huge mud mountain to get to the other side of the road where another bus could take them further towards Roseau. There were trees in their path at another point. It sounded like quite the experience. They were finally able to make it to Roseau and they took a bigger fisherman's boat to Portsmouth. She said it was awful. They saw so much of the destruction. I can't even imagine! I was glad to see them safe. 

Mark popped by and said one of the phone companies had started working and he'd been able to use a friend's phone to call his mom. She was happy to hear from him but not happy that they didn't get word about our safety sooner. Mark ran off to do other Welcoming Committee things. 

I went with the kids to "check in" and try to make a phone call with the satellite phone. I had to wait for one to open up and then I was told to type in the number. The lady told me they were having the best luck if the phone was in this certain angle. I tried to hold it at the angle and listened to a weird beep sound and then nothing happened...  The lady told me I could try again. I did and it rang! Yay! My mom answered quickly. I told her it was me and that I only have 1 minute to talk. I told her that we were all safe and fine and have never even lost power. I really don't know what else I said I just wanted to reassure her that we were good. She was so happy to hear my voice. I felt bad that they had to go so long without knowing for sure that we were safe. But without any form of communication though what can ya do?? 

After that the kids and I went to the lounge to hang out in the AC. It was weird being in there without being able to watch TV or check Facebook.

In the afternoon the internet came back up!!! I'm surprised and thrilled. We survived 4 days without internet! I was able to call my mom through google hangouts and talk much longer than 1 minute. Our poor worried mothers!!!

Now that we have internet I get to see more of what is going on here in Dominica. I am in shock and disbelief that so much destruction came from that unsuspecting storm! I have now watched several videos of the flash floods and damage on the island and I just shake my head. Wow! Our airport is awful. I heard that they will have to rebuild. 

I had so many Facebook notifications. My aunt, sister and sister-in-law all had posts requesting prayers on our behalf and giving any updates they heard along the way. Somehow Ross was getting some communication out. I'm guessing they used satellite phones to talk with Ross people in Virginia who updated Facebook stuff. It was really quite a mess. Some student's families received phone calls that the student hadn't "checked in" but they had been to every meeting and I heard of one who received a call saying they were fine when they hadn't been on campus at all. (They were fine though.)  This was the biggest national disaster in 40+ years!!! Worse then an actual hurricane that came through in the 70s. 

Today is our 8 month mark on the island. As long as everything goes as planned we are halfway through our time here! Woot woot! I can’t believe how quickly the months have flown by. (Yet at times it feels slow too…)

Mark went to his 4 o’clock daily meeting where they decided to announce early that they are going ahead with the semester starting on Monday!!!

They are in a tough place. They can't start the semester with well over half of the students not even on the island. I doubt they can all make it in one week. But they also can’t very well postpone the semester. Even pushing it back a few days would be terrible and unfair. The students would never be able to catch up on the material! Also, those in their last semester will have their Comp test on December 18^th and that is unchangeable. That is bigger than Ross. The students are to have at least 3 weeks to be able to study for it also. I think the majority of the students are going to have to defer the semester. I don’t know if that will even be very easy to do. It would mess up everyone’s schedules and plans by putting them off a semester… There is no good answer. Some of the staff isn’t even on the island! I guess we'll just take things a day at a time and see how it goes.

Mark decided to head up collecting donations from students for the other side of the island. He had been in a meeting where it was mentioned that someone should and it was left at that... So Mark made it happen. There will be barrels in the new student center for people to put donations in.

Tuesday September 1^st

I started some laundry this morning only to have the water flow slow and quit before I could fill the machine for rinsing. I had a small bucket of water to rinse off the clothes as well as I could and hung them out to dry. At least I was able to finish the dishes before it stopped. The uncertainty of not knowing when it will come back is unsettling. The internet also went out again!! The things that made yesterday so wonderful were ripped away again! Ugh!  We now hear helicopters fly overhead occasionally which makes my heart happy thinking of relief they might be bringing to the south side of the island.

Mark talked with the Major of Portsmouth. Titus Francis (for about 2 minutes) about coordinating efforts from students to get donations to the other side of the island.

We planned to go to Swirls to celebrate Isaac's birthday a couple days early since it looks like Mark will be busy all day Thursday. Right as we were on our way to meet up with him he learned a ferry had just come in with some (I later learned it was only 5) students and he needed to be at Jenner Hall. We caught a ride to Swirls in the back of the elder's truck. Mark went with them a little farther to Jenner. The kids and I enjoyed some frozen yogurt. Then we borrowed the movie Monster’s University from the CAC and watched it in the lounge.

(we are in the back of the pickup truck)

Thursday September 3rd

Mark really was gone ALL day. Aside from Welcoming Committee he is also a lead ambassador, SGA Vice President and just a helpful friendly awesome kind of guy. 

Today is Isaac's 7th birthday!!! How can this be???  I mean seriously. Stop growing up kids! I'm not so sure I ever want to have teenagers. Can't they just stay little forever?? 

No really though. He is such a smart, handsome little dude. I love him so much!

Isaac wanted to go swimming at the pool for his birthday. 

Friday September 4th

Mark got home at 2:30 am last night (or this morning rather)!!! There were some problems getting the newcomers landlords to come take them to their apartments...

In the evening there was a karaoke thing on campus Mark decided not to attend and be home with us. Instead we did our own silly karaoke at home as a family. We had so much fun singing, dancing and laughing. LOVED it!  

Saturday September 5th

Emma is 16 months old today…

Our sweet little lady eating homemade ice cream all by herself in a tiny little cup. Adorable! 

Lots of laundry and dishes...

Later no water! Grr! I was going to take a shower!

The garbage men FINALLY came to take the trash away! Yay! I was worried how long it may take. I was afraid maybe the garbage trucks were on the other side of the island and it would just keep piling up for the rats to enjoy!

Haircuts for the ladies!! 

(I think this is my first sunset/sea picture. I'm usually not out at that time.)

Sunday September 6th

Here we are to a new week. What will be in store? Mark will start his second year of med school (aka 3^rd semester) tomorrow! I know it will be Labor Day in the states but not here. I just took a look at his lecture schedule and it’s going to be crazy. Bye bye Mark! The kids will also begin school tomorrow. Lexi is in 3^rd grade, Isaac is basically in 2^nd (he did half a year of Kindergarten in the states and the 2^nd half of the year here he did 1^st grade…) Kari is basically in Kindergarten. If we were in the states she wouldn’t be starting until next fall. She doesn’t turn 5 until November. But we aren’t in the states are we? Emma will be going to the ELC (Early Learning Center) this semester. I think she will really enjoy it (well maybe not the first couple of days). I’m going to start going to the gym as soon as I drop all the kids off in the morning. Then I’ll head home to get lunch ready and do as much cleaning and such before I have to be back to campus for lunch. I’m determined to get the kids to school on time consistently this semester. It’s hard not being able to jump into a car. Every time we leave our apartment it’s a trip!