Life in Arequipa...

We are settling into a little routine here in Arequipa.  We are renting an apartment above a very nice missionary couple from Canada.  They have been very good to us and aren’t opposed to our little socialites running in and out of their home and garden.  Of course their little furry socialite Daisy sometimes pays us a visit too!  Outside our bedroom window is a view of the beautiful Chachani volcano which we don’t mind waking up to every morning.

Life in the city is different for us country bumpkins but we are adjusting.  Arequipa es muy tranquila as every native Arequipeño will tell you and that helps.  Our day begins with a long walk to the kids’ daycare.  The teacher there speaks in Spanish but there are several other expat children as well.  The kids do different play and learning activities there while Mike and I go to language school.  We both have un clase de gramatica y un clase de practicar.  I think I did better last week when I was still naïve and didn’t realize just how much Spanish I don’t know!  But our teachers are patient with us, even when we can’t think in English let alone Spanish!

Around noon Mike and I finish and work on homework before picking up the kids.  We then hail a taxi for our uphill climb back.  It’s not horribly bad but I’ve begun calling Liam “little legs” because it takes him longer to make the trek.  After we eat together we begin homeschool for both kids to keep them caught up.  Ella’s nickname is Pokey because this can take several hours and since the sun sets around 5:30, evening is usually upon us before we know it.  After some playtime the kids observe enforced quiet time while mommy and daddy study vocabulary and a mountain of verbs.  The days are busy but good!

We have been extremely blessed to have an awesome community here.  Other missionaries who have been at the school for a while have been extremely good to us.  It helps to have friends here…with our internet being available sporadically I sometimes feel very disconnected from home.  The kids have had a few rough days but have had awesome moments too.  Tonight at dinner I heard them saying “Ok, pretend you don’t know English.  Escuchan! (Listen!)”  They are beginning to learn, although Liam will, I think, continue to play the “I speak English” card as long as it benefits him.  We were at a restaurant with some friends after church Sunday and Liam ran ahead to play in a fountain which was off limits.  Before I could get there the guard said something like “No!  Esperar tu Mama!” To which Liam replied “I don’t speak Spanish.”  I told him “Nice try buddy…No and Mama work the same in both languages.” 

Sometimes I get a little overwhelmed with our new life here.  I miss my nieces and nephews and cheddar cheese and my yard and being able to speak above the level of a two year old…but God gave me this verse from the Message on one of my first days here: “You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are- no more, no less.  That’s the moment you find yourself proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.  You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God.  He’s food and drink in the best meal you’ll ever eat. Matthew 5:5-6”

So I pray that I may be content and “Tengo hambre…solamente para mi Dios.”  

 Liam and Ella at church on Sunday

 We needed hats for the kids to wear while out.  Liam especially gets burnt in the strong sun.  This was the one he chose.  We compromised...this one is for at home only:)

 Our morning walk

 We have arrived...at the daycare.