Happy February. Well, last night was my worst night for sleep yet. I think it was because I laid down with the boys before their nap and before they went to sleep last night. It took them about 1/2 hour for them to fall asleep before their nap and an hour and a half before bed time! So I laid around way too much, and slept minimally last night. I am tired.
Yesterday was a good day, though, especially for Janine and Shirley, who got to spend ample time together, playing, working on English, practicing math, swimming. They had a good day, for sure. It was good to see the bond building between them and to hear the laughter that they shared. Shirley even went in the deep (5 ft.) end of the pool with Janine for a bit yesterday, although she quickly returned to the kids area for more secure footing;). The boys mostly stayed on the side with either Mami or Papi, although Andres played in the pool until he got knocked over and inhaled some water:(. Poor guy. He definitely is getting more adventerous in the pool, as he finally let go of my hand or Shirley's hand to wander a little bit, chasing balls, splashing with his hands, and dipping a portion of his face into the water...always followed by his boisterous laughter. Juan David is quite content to stay on the side, watching, playing with a ball or a stick or whatever.
We also got to go to the park yesterday, here on the premesis, with a jungle gym of sorts, swings, slides, merry-go-round, etc. The kids had quite a bit of fun, especially on the slides. The boys enjoyed that quite a bit, and even just walking around outside I think was good for them. Shirley showed off for us a bit, always calling us to look, as she swung on the bars, or climbed the rope ladder. She is very independent, not wanting much help from either Janine or me, and is determined to do what she sets her mind to do. Juancho found a disgusting bug sitting on one of the posts for the playset. It was HUGE and very gross. After further investigation we found there were four more in the area. It turns out that they were dead (found out by another boy who came to play in the area), but they were still disgusting and still scared the children, even being dead. The kids did well when we let them know that the time there was limited, and as we counted down (five more minutes, Shirley) she understood that it was soon time to go. When it was time to go there was little fussing, which was good.
Dinner was more difficult last night, as the boys seemed very distracted, and none seemed too interested in eating. We split chicken fried rice between all three (which worked like a charm on Monday), but they were more interested in playing or spitting. Shirley is always interested in what is going on at the pool. She gets up from the table at least four or five times a meal to check who is swimming, diving, splashing, hanging out, etc. She loves the pool. We went to walk around the pool after dinner again, which might become part of our routine. Shirley, especially, seems to enjoy that. The boys are more interested in the moon than the pool at that point.
I gave the boys their baths last night. First time for me. It was an adventure. Andres just wants to splash. Juan David likes to stand up. Both like to pee. They did well, though, with minimal fussing, and seemed to enjoy getting rinsed off, and especially enjoyed the toweling off afterward. They both know that when the towel makes its appearance, it is time to be done. We are continuing to figure out the best way to do all of this here (no bathtub, just a bin), and hopefully will have it down before too long. Also, I almost had Andres ready to pee in the toilet, but was too slow with the diaper (Papi is still learning). Anyhow, we avoided any urinary disaster by slapping that diaper back on immediately when he started to spout. Who knew I wouldn't care if I got peed on a little? Fatherhood.
It is hard to find sandals here. I left without, thinking I might be able to find some cheap ones somewhere along the way, but have been unable to do so. Our daily visits to the pool are done barefoot for me, which is not always easy as the sun warms the deck and I burn my feet on the way back to the room. We met a local woman and her two children (another Andres and Danny, I don't know her name) at the park yesterday, and she said it was much warmer now than it usually is at this time. She spoke very good English, as she is an English teacher here in Bucaramanga. We are also becoming regulars with some of the wait staff here. We were even requested by a waiter last night as he chased away a rival waiter from our table. They know the names of our kids and joke around with Shirley and the boys. We have yet to really meet any of the other families (we did briefly, before we picked up our kids) but hope to do so in our time here.
Today Emmanuelle (the translater) will come to visit. The social worker is supposed to as well, although we don't really know when. We have spoken with Emmanuelle a couple of times since we picked up the kids, and she has been very interested to know what we are learning and how we are doing. I am assuming that some of what she will do today will be observation, of how we are bonding, how we are functioning with the kids. She has been pleased in her limited contact with us, saying that she hears in our voices that things are going well. She spoke briefly with Shirley last night and noticed her funny personality over the phone. Shirley is quite the joker. We'll see what we end up doing today...hopefully not straying too much from the routine we are beginning to establish.
Anyhow, today I will try to write again later...not always the easiest thing, but I will try. It is much easier to remember all the small and wonderful details if I write more frequently.
There is no hockey on television here, but there are plenty of music video channels. Hmmm. Must be a cultural thing.
The song for the day is "Pancho Villa" by Sun Kil Moon.
Hope you all are doing well.
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