we don’t have a drier. there are a lot of factors in that: not enough space, too expensive, electric bill through the roof, our gas tube is clogged so a gas drier is out of the question… and really, it boils down to it not being necessary. we live on la isla bonita. it’s sunny here nine out of ten days.
it’s a benefit of living in the caribbean. it’s sunny and hot most of the time.
except when it’s not.
like the past three weeks that it’s been gloomy and drizzly. And because of that there are mountains of laundry in my bedroom. clean laundry at least, but laundry nonetheless. Ropa, and various other things that need to be put away.
except after two days of non-stop laundry that included (but was not limited to) fighting with that stupid junta de vecinos again to turn on the wáter pump, a 4 hour long brown out and not having nearly enough space or clothespins to hang everything up, i don’t want to put clothes away.
and who can blame me, really?
you know that nasty winter up there in the states? when it’s over and the sun is shining again you all will not be so keen on putting laundry away either.
call it my caribbean spring fever but, we’re going to the park!
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
screaming babies.
when you live in an apartment complex, you should be considerate. it's one thing if you live in one of those fancy torres in the penthouse and nobody.can.hear.you, but let's face it. normal people don't live that way.
and here, in this residencial full of crazy condos, we can hear everything you say. yes, that's right. everything.
the acoustics are actually a little bizarre. what happens in the back of our apartment can be heard by the people who live in front of us. and while i can't hear the crazy vecina who lives directly behind us, one floor up, i can hear her neighbor next door.
when i was pregnant with samil the people upstairs had a colicky baby. but if you said the baby was colicky, they'd freak out. no es colica! of course not. she justs screams for hours on end. and the whole pregnancy i moaned and complained and in general, me queje because that baby would.not.shut.up.
and samil was born. a happy, quiet baby. he didn't even cry when he was teething. and he was so brave that his first MMR shot was hilarious. instead of crying he looked at the nurse and said, paaaaaaaaaapppppiiii. that's it.
good thing the universe didn't pay me back with a crybaby.
then, when i was pregnant with amely the people downstairs had a screamy baby. but it was worse. because instead of just comforting the baby, they would yell instead of talk to her. at three in the morning. there wasn't one madrugada that i didn't want to kill them and the gracia and baby talk the spewed from their mouths.
again, i've been blessed with a non-screamy baby. amely is just a calm as samil was. and sleeps through the night.
what's the point of all this? we have a new screamy baby. and now that my kids both sleep through the night, i'd like to sleep, too. but i can't. because the llorona out back won't stop screaming.
i don't have crying babies - but i can't imagine it's that hard to take your kids to the living room when they're crying all.night.long. is it?
because if i have another sleepless night, two things are going to happen: i'm going to be the personal tuition payer for the children of the dominican coffee plantations (all of them) and i'm going to kill someone.
and ps. i'm not pregnant. i think the universe is cursing me. you know, for all the complaining i did while i was pregannt about those stupid babies. just keep sending more and more!
and here, in this residencial full of crazy condos, we can hear everything you say. yes, that's right. everything.
the acoustics are actually a little bizarre. what happens in the back of our apartment can be heard by the people who live in front of us. and while i can't hear the crazy vecina who lives directly behind us, one floor up, i can hear her neighbor next door.
when i was pregnant with samil the people upstairs had a colicky baby. but if you said the baby was colicky, they'd freak out. no es colica! of course not. she justs screams for hours on end. and the whole pregnancy i moaned and complained and in general, me queje because that baby would.not.shut.up.
and samil was born. a happy, quiet baby. he didn't even cry when he was teething. and he was so brave that his first MMR shot was hilarious. instead of crying he looked at the nurse and said, paaaaaaaaaapppppiiii. that's it.
good thing the universe didn't pay me back with a crybaby.
then, when i was pregnant with amely the people downstairs had a screamy baby. but it was worse. because instead of just comforting the baby, they would yell instead of talk to her. at three in the morning. there wasn't one madrugada that i didn't want to kill them and the gracia and baby talk the spewed from their mouths.
again, i've been blessed with a non-screamy baby. amely is just a calm as samil was. and sleeps through the night.
what's the point of all this? we have a new screamy baby. and now that my kids both sleep through the night, i'd like to sleep, too. but i can't. because the llorona out back won't stop screaming.
i don't have crying babies - but i can't imagine it's that hard to take your kids to the living room when they're crying all.night.long. is it?
because if i have another sleepless night, two things are going to happen: i'm going to be the personal tuition payer for the children of the dominican coffee plantations (all of them) and i'm going to kill someone.
and ps. i'm not pregnant. i think the universe is cursing me. you know, for all the complaining i did while i was pregannt about those stupid babies. just keep sending more and more!
Monday, March 1, 2010
on losing weight.
it's time, people. it's been way too long, with all these extra pounds hanging around. i'm sick of it.
and in january i started eating right and exercising. i made a vow to be more active, to be more than a couch potato. and so far, so good.
it's not about being cute, or fitting into those jeans. it's about being healthy. about being around with my kids. it's about wanting to live a more fulfilling life.
not that i didn't have a good life, and that i don't have a good life. but. how many times did i turn down doing something because i was embarassed? because i didn't want to go out and be the only chunker? no more, people, no more.
it's only been two months - and to be honest, i don't even know how much, if anything, i've lost. no, that's a lie. in january i lost 7 pounds. tomorrow i'll get weighed when i take amely to get immunized. but i feel better. i feel more energetic, more likely to say, 'yes, let's go!'
and since this blog is about my life, you'll be hearing about it here. about the trials of jogging the streets of santiago with my two kids in tow... oh, believe me, are there stories! about my workout videos and improvised aerobic equipment because there is no gym to go to that doesn't cost less than what i make in a month. keep tuned in to find out how this goes for me. i guarantee it'll be worth your reading time !
and in january i started eating right and exercising. i made a vow to be more active, to be more than a couch potato. and so far, so good.
it's not about being cute, or fitting into those jeans. it's about being healthy. about being around with my kids. it's about wanting to live a more fulfilling life.
not that i didn't have a good life, and that i don't have a good life. but. how many times did i turn down doing something because i was embarassed? because i didn't want to go out and be the only chunker? no more, people, no more.
it's only been two months - and to be honest, i don't even know how much, if anything, i've lost. no, that's a lie. in january i lost 7 pounds. tomorrow i'll get weighed when i take amely to get immunized. but i feel better. i feel more energetic, more likely to say, 'yes, let's go!'
and since this blog is about my life, you'll be hearing about it here. about the trials of jogging the streets of santiago with my two kids in tow... oh, believe me, are there stories! about my workout videos and improvised aerobic equipment because there is no gym to go to that doesn't cost less than what i make in a month. keep tuned in to find out how this goes for me. i guarantee it'll be worth your reading time !
Saturday, February 27, 2010
first ever tot school post.
i've been lurking on this blog carnival (is that what they're called? i'm so far behind on my internet lingo!) called tot school. it's mainly tons of really creative stay at home mamas who post what they're doing with their toddlers in their home.
i love it. i get tons of ideas for samil - and even for amely. and since one of my goals this year is to be more intentional with samil's (and amely's) education and stimulation (and to watch less tv) this tot school hits the spot.
and i've been wanting to post our activities for a while. like for the past two months since i found it and started stealing ideas :) but... the camera is broke. and the good part about tot school blogs are the PICTURES!
alas. this fancy new laptop of mine (hi dad! i love it!) has a webcam. and said webcam lets me take snapshots. horrible quality for printing, but will have to suffice until i get off my butt and take the camera to the shop.
we did a ton of things this week. we didn't really have a theme, but it is independence week here. in fact, today is independence day.
-- we dyed rice red and blue to make flags
-- painted a flag
-- read some spanish books about the padres de la patria
-- counted the banderas dominicanas (flags) in the
neighborhood
sara, our little neighbor, came down yesterday and we made bead necklaces. i thought that just taping the end of some string to make it hard would make it easier for samil to thread - but we've done no threading activities before and it was HARD for him. i'm going to buy some pipe cleaners and work on that. sara (who is 8 months older) LOVED IT and kept telling me her necklace was for her mommy because she's so amorosa y bonita (loving and pretty). in the end, though, she loved the necklace so much and decided to keep it for herself. HA! samil laced like 6 beads and lost interest.
i gave samil an eye dropper and some green water (green is his favorite color) and had him drop droplets on these tubtoys (you know, the things to stop slipping?) it took him awhile to figure it out, but he loved it! he played at it for like an hour!
i made this toy a few weeks ago. i just covered an old formula can with construction paper, and then put strips of different colors all around it. then i took seven clothespins (seven colors of paper!) and glued some construction paper strips to them. cut a hole in the lid the size of a clip and VOILA! color matching, small motor skill development, and FUN! i've taken it with us to the doctors and the supermarket and it keeps him pretty entertained.
we're working a lot on matching because mommy really wants to get into patterning soon (i love patterns, i'm a geek, i know!) my aunt (i think? maybe my mom) sent me these AWESOME handy manny flashcards a long time ago. they've got shapes and colors (and the colors are so cute, in the silhouette of the tools from the show!)he is getting way better at matching.
what a marathon post! next week will be shorter, i promise! click on carisa's blog to find out more and find blog's from other families in the tot school!
i love it. i get tons of ideas for samil - and even for amely. and since one of my goals this year is to be more intentional with samil's (and amely's) education and stimulation (and to watch less tv) this tot school hits the spot.
and i've been wanting to post our activities for a while. like for the past two months since i found it and started stealing ideas :) but... the camera is broke. and the good part about tot school blogs are the PICTURES!
alas. this fancy new laptop of mine (hi dad! i love it!) has a webcam. and said webcam lets me take snapshots. horrible quality for printing, but will have to suffice until i get off my butt and take the camera to the shop.
we did a ton of things this week. we didn't really have a theme, but it is independence week here. in fact, today is independence day.
-- we dyed rice red and blue to make flags
-- painted a flag
-- read some spanish books about the padres de la patria
-- counted the banderas dominicanas (flags) in the
neighborhood
sara, our little neighbor, came down yesterday and we made bead necklaces. i thought that just taping the end of some string to make it hard would make it easier for samil to thread - but we've done no threading activities before and it was HARD for him. i'm going to buy some pipe cleaners and work on that. sara (who is 8 months older) LOVED IT and kept telling me her necklace was for her mommy because she's so amorosa y bonita (loving and pretty). in the end, though, she loved the necklace so much and decided to keep it for herself. HA! samil laced like 6 beads and lost interest.
i gave samil an eye dropper and some green water (green is his favorite color) and had him drop droplets on these tubtoys (you know, the things to stop slipping?) it took him awhile to figure it out, but he loved it! he played at it for like an hour!
i made this toy a few weeks ago. i just covered an old formula can with construction paper, and then put strips of different colors all around it. then i took seven clothespins (seven colors of paper!) and glued some construction paper strips to them. cut a hole in the lid the size of a clip and VOILA! color matching, small motor skill development, and FUN! i've taken it with us to the doctors and the supermarket and it keeps him pretty entertained.
we're working a lot on matching because mommy really wants to get into patterning soon (i love patterns, i'm a geek, i know!) my aunt (i think? maybe my mom) sent me these AWESOME handy manny flashcards a long time ago. they've got shapes and colors (and the colors are so cute, in the silhouette of the tools from the show!)he is getting way better at matching.
what a marathon post! next week will be shorter, i promise! click on carisa's blog to find out more and find blog's from other families in the tot school!
Friday, February 26, 2010
the week that was.
it's been a long week. a really looong one. like demasiado long. i can't handle those weeks. especially because there is no break between this and the next.
it's not always nice and sunny here. and sometimes the weather is plain gross. throw nastiness in with two kids, a small-ish apartment and that's recipe for desastre.
it's been cloudy. not rainy. not a nice cloudy. a gloomy, cold(ish), yucky kind of cloudy. the kind where you can't your clothes on the line because you're just not sure. que llueva o no?
and when it wasn't cloudy and cold, it's been cloudy and unbearable humid and sticky. and, if you remember, i've got a baby who abhors the heat. lucky her, she was born in a tropical paradise.
we've been keeping busy. more to prevent hysteria than anything else. and i can't handle another episode of max and ruby. en serio, it's the worst kids programming e.v.e.r.
there were a few meltdowns. normal two year old crankiness and a baby who wouldn't sleep. i suspect indigestion. amalio suspects heat hating, and predicts a long, long, pero muy largo summer ahead of us. but tomorrow is saturday and the week is over.
and i can only hope and dream that next week will be less of us cooped up in this little casita and more playing outside. that it will be less tempers and more love. and above all, that the stupid max and ruby dvd will break, get lost of otherwise be disposed of.
in the meantime, it's time to prepare for independence day tomorrow. it'll be another long one.
it's not always nice and sunny here. and sometimes the weather is plain gross. throw nastiness in with two kids, a small-ish apartment and that's recipe for desastre.
it's been cloudy. not rainy. not a nice cloudy. a gloomy, cold(ish), yucky kind of cloudy. the kind where you can't your clothes on the line because you're just not sure. que llueva o no?
and when it wasn't cloudy and cold, it's been cloudy and unbearable humid and sticky. and, if you remember, i've got a baby who abhors the heat. lucky her, she was born in a tropical paradise.
we've been keeping busy. more to prevent hysteria than anything else. and i can't handle another episode of max and ruby. en serio, it's the worst kids programming e.v.e.r.
there were a few meltdowns. normal two year old crankiness and a baby who wouldn't sleep. i suspect indigestion. amalio suspects heat hating, and predicts a long, long, pero muy largo summer ahead of us. but tomorrow is saturday and the week is over.
and i can only hope and dream that next week will be less of us cooped up in this little casita and more playing outside. that it will be less tempers and more love. and above all, that the stupid max and ruby dvd will break, get lost of otherwise be disposed of.
in the meantime, it's time to prepare for independence day tomorrow. it'll be another long one.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
a visit.
i sat down at the computer, sweaty as a pig after doing my (borrowed) biggest loser cardio max dvd, ready to waste some time while my body cools down. because dominicans believe if your body is hot, you can't take a cold shower. and believe me, i am never in the mood for lectures about ridiculous things.
so i waste time. waiting to dejar mi cuerpo enfriar.
the excess of visitors lately has me tired. nunca. pero never is there anything in the house to brindar and i'm not really a great cheese and crackers hostess anyway. but, as people find out more and more about that accident. that one. the bad one. they want to come visit.
it's like rubbernecking eleven days after they tow away the wreckage.
so, i'm at the computer, wasting time on facebook and reading strangers' blogs when the doorbell rings. me all sweaty and smelly. kids napping. brother-in-law doing laundry. ?y quien sera?
oh. it's people from church. you know, the church we stopped going to like three months ago. not oficially, but you know. we haven't been there in ages.
what gets me is that we've been gone since at least november. and now, now they come knocking on the door. ding dong. like nothing.
i'm not one of those people who thinks a pastor should call me if i sneeze. but three months. en serio? not only has it been three months since they've seen me, it's been eleven days since the accident they were coming to check on. and, i promise you folks, the gossip line in santiago is fast. there was food in my house from friends before i even knew there was an accident.
as soon as i saw them i knew what was up. que lo que? what's up? are you guys visiting another church? oops. because we just realized you haven't been here. just realized it's been three months since we last saw you. oh! and we heard about the accident and it's bad dominican form to not visit the injured.
no. we're not visiting another church. we're attending one. but not visiting it. thanks. don't worry we're not going to hell. estamos salvos todavia. well, we'll leave you alone then. hope you figure your car thing out.
gloria a dios amen
so i waste time. waiting to dejar mi cuerpo enfriar.
the excess of visitors lately has me tired. nunca. pero never is there anything in the house to brindar and i'm not really a great cheese and crackers hostess anyway. but, as people find out more and more about that accident. that one. the bad one. they want to come visit.
it's like rubbernecking eleven days after they tow away the wreckage.
so, i'm at the computer, wasting time on facebook and reading strangers' blogs when the doorbell rings. me all sweaty and smelly. kids napping. brother-in-law doing laundry. ?y quien sera?
oh. it's people from church. you know, the church we stopped going to like three months ago. not oficially, but you know. we haven't been there in ages.
what gets me is that we've been gone since at least november. and now, now they come knocking on the door. ding dong. like nothing.
i'm not one of those people who thinks a pastor should call me if i sneeze. but three months. en serio? not only has it been three months since they've seen me, it's been eleven days since the accident they were coming to check on. and, i promise you folks, the gossip line in santiago is fast. there was food in my house from friends before i even knew there was an accident.
as soon as i saw them i knew what was up. que lo que? what's up? are you guys visiting another church? oops. because we just realized you haven't been here. just realized it's been three months since we last saw you. oh! and we heard about the accident and it's bad dominican form to not visit the injured.
no. we're not visiting another church. we're attending one. but not visiting it. thanks. don't worry we're not going to hell. estamos salvos todavia. well, we'll leave you alone then. hope you figure your car thing out.
gloria a dios amen
Saturday, February 20, 2010
nothing really of interest.
santiago, apparently, is replacing some old water mains this weekend. which would be fine and dandy if it didn't mean they had to turn off the water in the.entire.city.
and, because we live in the cloistered community of what is a latin american apartment complex where nobody talks to anybody else, it was only by casuality that i knew there would be no water.
except i forgot to tell amalio. and he used every last drop of water in the bucket i filled up for his shower. and good old hugo spent the night, so between his shower and isaias' shower, they used up that whole bucket.
let me tell you. a day with kids who like to play in, and eat, dirt and no water is a little stressful.
right now my mom is saying "you never have water, what's the difference?" the difference is, that yes, we usually do have water. little. infrequent. but water nonetheless. today there was not even one drop.
and at 9:00 last night, they turned on the water pump, and like the idiots they have proven themselves to be ohsomany times, empted the cistern by running the pump for two hours! instead of using only half of the water and so, this morning the city graciously turned the water back on long enough for us to shower and fill up buckets and hopefully refill that cistern.
it's going to be a long one. at least it's not hot out!
and, because we live in the cloistered community of what is a latin american apartment complex where nobody talks to anybody else, it was only by casuality that i knew there would be no water.
except i forgot to tell amalio. and he used every last drop of water in the bucket i filled up for his shower. and good old hugo spent the night, so between his shower and isaias' shower, they used up that whole bucket.
let me tell you. a day with kids who like to play in, and eat, dirt and no water is a little stressful.
right now my mom is saying "you never have water, what's the difference?" the difference is, that yes, we usually do have water. little. infrequent. but water nonetheless. today there was not even one drop.
and at 9:00 last night, they turned on the water pump, and like the idiots they have proven themselves to be ohsomany times, empted the cistern by running the pump for two hours! instead of using only half of the water and so, this morning the city graciously turned the water back on long enough for us to shower and fill up buckets and hopefully refill that cistern.
it's going to be a long one. at least it's not hot out!
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