not worms, melanie. parasites.

last week, a stomach bug ripped through our house - leaving tons of dirty sheets and towels and underoos in its wake. i moaned and complained about washing and drying and then washing again. once one was healthy, the persistent little bugger would infect another. for. ten. whole. days.

once everyone was more or less poop-free, i rejoiced. you doesn't shout for joy when there are no more 3am "my belly hurts?"

then we noticed that amely's belly was distended. again. and she stopped vomiting, but not the diarrhea (i know, who really likes to talk about diarrhea? but it's life, huh?) we took her to the doctor who then sent for blood, urine and stool analysis. all of which revealed nothing.

medicine on top of medicine. no relief.

so we went to a new doctor. this doctor took one look at amely's belly and knew. she just knew that there were parasites in there. so we tested the poop again.

and nothing.

i've made the mistake of calling these germs worms a few times. apparently that's offensive. i can talk about diarrhea and vomit all day long, but parasites are not worms, thankyouverymuch, and please don't talk about them here.

we're still not sure what's going on with that belly. the poor kid is taking an anti-parasite, (you know a de-wormer) just to make sure and if that doesn't help, we'll take her back next week to see what the next step is.

this is one of the downfalls of raising kids in the tropics. there are illnesses that just are not common in the states that here are so common that a routine workup includes "worm" tests. we de-worm every six months. and we can never drink the water from the spigot.

but the benefits still outweigh it - you know, like the beach in february, low cost of living and slow paced lifestyle in general.

cutting down.

we've always been pretty blessed when it comes to our living expenses - we found an apartment when we were first married that fit perfectly into our budget and when we moved we found a bigger place for just a few bucks more each month. we're actually looking to move again and hope to get the same good deals we've been used to.

despite our low rent, we used to have exorbitant electric bills. we were spending way more on the light than was justifiable - we barely have anything that 'sucks' energy and yet, our bill got bigger and bigger. there are different rates for energy depending on where you live here in santiago, and i don't really know how it works - what i do know is that people swear that you cannot change your bill. it's all a scam, they say, and no matter what, you'll pay through the nose. (and don't even get me started on the ex-pats who swear they pay more just because they are not dominican - which might be true in most areas... but the electric bill? c'mon).

we decided as a family to challenge ourselves to be more conscience of the lights we use. it seems simple, but how often did the ceiling fan stay on all day long because i forgot to turn off the light? how many light bulbs burn away because i don't even notice they're on? do i wash half of a load of clothes instead of waiting for enough to fill the machine? simple things add up.

here's our first bill of the challenge - which we, unfairly i guess, started in december when no one was around. i needed to prove to some skeptics that the bill would go down by using less. the kids and i left first to the states and then amalio and his brother left for the campo after us - they unplugged everything except the refrigerator and we cut the bill almost in half! 

our bill in december was $604 pesos (about $15USD) and the bill in january was $363 (about $9USD). 

by being attentive to what we use, we've continued to maintain the "cut" in our bill for two months now - fans on at night, cell phone chargers unplugged when not in use (and the tv too). 

the beach. in february. be jealous.

look at that joy. these kids l.o.v.e. the beach. which is a miracle, because not so long ago, samil hated the beach so much that he wouldn't even look at it. 

no exaggeration. he didn't want sand touching his little toes or that dirty water lapping against his legs. and once, i carried him into the ocean - and had this been the united states, every nosy-nelly on the beach would have called the cops to report a murder in progres..

but, oh, he loves the beach. we went in december with friends. at first he sat a watched as everyone else enjoyed this very same beach - until he got so jealous that he stripped down to his little underoos and ran in, too. 

the last weekend in february, the dominican republic celebrates independence day. usually a national holiday means sardines-in-a-can effect at beaches all along the north coast, but since carnaval happens at the same time, it's a pretty nice time to hit the beach. besides. it's the beach. in february.

we've got the little extra that amalio's family lives 20 minutes from two beautiful, kid friendly beaches (not to mention the waterfalls and natural, river swimming holes nearby), so we can go to the beach and not have to pay for a hotel. we often drag (ha!) friends along for the ride. it was only two weeks ago, but i'm already feeling the need for another beach vacation.

this is the way we milk a cow.

last weekend, the dominican republic celebrated their independence (from haiti, i think), and since independence is a pretty big deal, we got a three day weekend. while most of the country flocked to carnaval celebrations, we piled into a van with some friends and headed to the campo to visit amalio's dad and hit the beach.
samil's been begging to see his "papa" for awhile now, but since he lives so far away and we're not montados in our own car, it's hard unless there are a significant amount of "no school days." luckily, we got a ride this time around.
samil loves his papa, but really what he loves is taking care of the vacas, which he'll classify for you as mommy cows, toros and becerritos - why he doesn't know the word for a heifer in spanish is beyond me - his only association with farm animals is most definitely not in english.
amely likes animals - and she's definitely more daring around them, grabbing chihuahuas and carrying cats - but she also likes to sleep in (mostly because she doesn't sleep at night), so she never really had experienced the milking process before this weekend. she got up early with her brother, and waited patiently (because they were awake before the farmer!) for papa to get back with the cows.
samil has gone from passive observer to gate-keeper for the calves. he opens and closes the door when papa tells him to. he also gets to walk the cows to pasture which he thinks is pretty cool, especially since papa let him take the calves all by himself - he ran them up the hill yelling "go baby cows, run, run, fast!" and was pretty concerned when he couldn't get the fence closed - he doesn't realize how dumb cows are yet... i mean what other animal lets a four-year old herd them?

amely loves the milk donkey - but she didn't get to see him this visit - in fact, it was raining so hard, i didn't even hear him pull up, and caught this picture of him leaving!

oh my sweet addiction.

a few months ago i found pinterest. oh, sweet pinterest. fount of beautiful inspiration and creativity.

i pinned and pinned and pinned some more. when we went to philly in december, i had grand plans to pick up these things that i absolutely needed to make wonderfully inspiring pieces of art and delicious home cooked meals.

and of course, i didn't.

and when i returned to santiago and was thrown for a loop with an insane, new work requirement that left me sitting in the teacher's lounge for 4 hours twice a week, i continued to pin. because what else can i do for four hours twice a week?

while i stewed in resentment over my crazy work schedule and stressed and began to lose hair (yes, it's true), i realized i needed to just relax. and take it easy. and go with the flow.

all characteristics that nobody would ever really apply to me.

i started by disconnecting my my IV drip of coffee and coca-cola and by finding more useful things to do with my four free hours. like, tutoring some of my slower students and reading the newspaper.

slowly, i felt less angry. and then, one day, i realized i needed more creativity. and while pinning pins on pinterest made me feel creative-minded, it didn't make me feel accomplished or happy while actually crafting and cooking do make me accomplished and happy.

so, with absolutely no idea where to start, i decided to start actually trying some of these ingenious ideas i've so laboriously pinned onto my pinterest site. i made a special folder just for things i've done - to keep me in check - less time on the computer, and more time actually doing something worthwhile.

on friday, a coworker came over and we tried our hand at coiled paper bowls. i think that for a first-try they turned out quite cute, thankyouverymuch. i've got a list of things to do this week with the kids that are simple and so darn cute.

my belly hurts.

this weekend we had big plans. a date night to see the newest domincan-made movie "el rey de najayo", a trip to the park on sunday and maybe even visiting with some friends along the way. on friday night, my friend came over and we crafted. it was fun and relaxing and even samil helped.

we went to bed, and as normal, amely snuck in, snuggling between us in the early morning hours. amely is not easy to sleep with, and most of the time i just get up and leave. it's been futile so far to take her back to her bed - she just comes back. and i'm a witch without sleep.

shortly after i left i hear crying. whimpering, really. so i went to find out what happened - only to find amely, amalio and the bed covered in throw up. amalio bathes her down while i strip the bed and do the best i can to make it sleepable again. amely, being the princess she is, decides she can't possibly sleep in that bed with the throw up and relocates.

to her uncles (empty) bed. where she promptly begins to vomit again. i know, fun, right?

by the morning i had three sets of sheets and a pile of towels to wash. and while you probably thought this post was about amely's stomach ailments, it's not. it's about how hard it is to wash sheets and towels in a double-drum washing machine.

this isn't our machine (for some reason blogger and/or my internet connection are conspiring to not let me post pictures right now) but it's similar. two tanks - the one of the left gets filled with water and on the right is a spinner.

most of these washers have a hose attachment so you could, theoretically, just attach the hose to the sink and it'll fill up - except i've never seen a sink that is small enough for the hose that comes with the washer. so, mostly, you fill it up with buckets, throw in the clothes and wait for the "wash" cycle to finish. once it's through, you hand wring the clothes and transfer them to either another basin of water to rinse, or throw them on the floor and refill the washer. after they're rinsed, you wring again and put them in the spinner to dry.

i have a regular maytag, but it's been out of service for a month or two and i'm just too plain lazy to find someone to fix it. and really, this isn't so bad most of the time - it's time consuming, but it's relaxing in the mind-numbing way that most household chores can be.

i filled the sucker up five times yesterday to wash - it seemed like every time i thought i was finished, amely would spew forth and send me back to the bathroom to wash.

needless to say, i haven't seen the movie yet and we didn't go to the park.
maybe next week.

new adventure.

last march i took a job teaching an SAT class at a fairly prestigious bilingual school here in santiago. the intention was to teach the class and get my foot in the door to teach there full time this (current) school year. i went through their ridiculous process (seriously, it was like seventeen interviews, an aptitude test, six demo classes - i think they just needed a sub - and a whole lot of bs). after the fourteenth interview, i realized that if it was this hard to get the job, i didn't want to know how hard it would be to work there. so, i put out my resume and wow. the response was incredible. every private school in the city was knocking on my door.

on a whim, i dropped off my resume at the university where i work now. and after one short interview and "bring me these documents" and i was in. that other school called and called once they had decided they wanted me, but i was content with my choice. and i still am. even despite the craziness sometimes, and the hilarity of some of it, i like my job. and i love my students (mostly).

but, when we opened the can of worms that was me going to work on a more "formal" basis, i never imagined how many opportunities would arise.

i first came to the country working in the church - it was a complete disaster and it turned me off the ministry for a long time. money was siphoned into accounts, never getting to where it was intended; kids were denied basic services if they couldn't pay. it just wasn't my thing. so i got out. (it's actually a long story, but there's your reader's digest version).

and for five years, i avoided anything that smacked of "foreign money" in ministry. there were so many things i saw (and see) that drove me crazy.

however.

oh, that however. my heart was still there. yearning for something more than preparing kids for the SATs and getting richy-riches out of trouble at school.

i got a call during the summer from the (missionary) parents of one of my students. we need help with our new project, can you come take a look? it's close to your house and we really think you'll be interested. of course, i'll go and take a look. but don't count on anything.

so, i went. and took a look. and fell in love. i love their idea of ministry - of not creating dependency by giving things away for free- but charging (minimally) for services, and offering options for parents to help out at school if they can't afford it. options.volunteer work. service. amazing. it's a school basically, with the potential for so much more. it's a way to give people responsibility for their lives instead of saying "here, we hve more than you. let's throw money at this problem and it'll get fixed."

it's about making relationships. and teaching people ways to support themselves, provide for their families and strive for something more.

this year, i've been in and out and around. feeling it out - seeing how they do. but numerous times they've offered me something more substantial. something a little more permanent. and i wiggled and squirmed and said let me think about it.

but now it looks like it's going to happen. we're in talks to make sure that this is what is right for everyone. what will the responsibilities be?  what kind of lee-way is there to implement new ideas (because man, has god filled my head with ideas since i opened up to saying yes)? how do they raise their money? once we get everything ironed out, we'll get to work - together.

one of our first projects is a mini-camp in the summer. a sort of day camp in the afternoons.

i'm so excited. beyond excited. and i hope that this door remains open and that it all works out in the end.