2 months have come and gone....

Well friends.....how are you doing? I was looking at the calendar today and realized that February is almost over which means that we have been on Saba for 2 months already!!!!! Can you believe that? Time really is flying by.....only 18 to go......We have had a great week, although it was a bit rainy and windy all week (one of the nights I was fairly certain that we had an unannounced hurricaine!!) The good thing about rain is that it fills the cistern! This is good because then I feel like I can have a teeny bit longer in the shower, or I can flush a little more and not worry about water! The cistern really is a great idea and we are amazed at how little water we really need and how wasteful we once were (when you don't have to worry about running out, you don't pay any attention to how much you use!) I think of all the times that I saw lawns being watered back home and that seems like such an incredible waste now....the weather has actually been pretty good...I was a bit chilly in the wind but i was Saba chilly, not PEI chilly (for those of you out there that aren't sure what that means, it means that I was a little cold from the breeze and the air temp dropping to 25 or so.....ha ha ha) I really really love the climate here.....I was looking at my cousin's facebook pics today and when i saw all the snow in the background, I shuddered for a second and then gave thanks that we are so fortunate to be living here and enjoying summer year round! Of course, some day I will have to return to reality (and freezing cold and snow and ice and winter jackets and layers....yuck) but for now I am going to take every opportunity to be outside soaking up this wonderful weather!
The boys had a pretty good week.....Monty is still struggling a little with adjustment issues but he had a few good things happen this week....he had a friend over to play and a sleepover with that friend....so he was very excited about this....Monty has been mostly hanging around with the teenagers across the street....they are a pretty good group of fellows actually and they love to come over to play on the trampoline....they raise pigs so they have been teaching Monty the ins and outs of that...they also trap crabs to use for fish bait so they have been teaching this to Monty as well....he loves the freedom of roaming the community with the teens.....checking everything out, learning a few new things (like how a pig is butchered) Tonight he said that he is a "real Saba boy " now.....thought that was pretty cute.....he does really enjoy the fellows and they are very nice to him.....his friend that he had over though was his age, a very nice boy, and they had a great time together....so I am hoping that this will develop into a good friend for Monty.....the teens are great, but it would be nice for him to have a few good friends his own age at school....I think of my own special friends that I had in my life at that age and how important it is to have those best friends who you can have fun with, share with, laugh with......that is what I really wish for him.....Christian is still doing great....he is inseperable from his new best friend,Jim....they are like 2 peas in a pod, so alike and they have so much fun together! We went swimming today at a private pool (thanks to our great neighbors up the road who take us there from time to time! Jim's parents...) and Christian is coming so far with his swimming,I can't believe it.....a few weeks ago he would not enter the water without a life jacket on, would cry if a teeny bit of water splashed his face and would still try to cling to me.....today he went over with Jim and his family and I joined them about an hour later and Christian was swimming underwater with his goggles on and no lifejacket!!! I was amazed....each time we go over he gets a little better....he was very excited that he is able to swim on his own now.......
Joe continues to be pretty busy with studying, but he is very happy about it....he loves all the new things that he is learning about the human body and attempts to introduce it often in conversation....of course I think my eyes glaze over and I try to look like I think it is fascinating....but I am not quite there with him!! I love what is going on inside the brain.....but I don't need to know about the bowel and how big it is and what it feels like or smells like when you cut into it....I have lived 37 years without this knowledge quite comfortably and will continue to do so!! Monty , on the other hand is quite interested in what Joe is doing/learning so he asks lots of questions.... of course Joe loves to answer them.....smarty pants!
Our other interesting news is that we added some members to our family this week.....2 baby guinea pigs which the kids have named Aero and Chimchar (what ever happened to names like fluffy and sparky?) the kids have been having a ball with the pigs and I must admit they are adorable......we had them in a temporary rigged cage for the week and it was ok, so this weekend Joey built a deluxe house for them....which was quite a feat given the supplies that he had to work with......in Saba, houses are built with cement and concrete (amazing strength to endure hurricanes) so wood isn't something that you find in abundance here (nor are hardware stores for that matter) so Joe bought a few pieces of 1"X 4" as well as some screws and nails, mesh and a handsaw.....and he was pretty dubious about his ability to make much of a cage without "proper power tools" (I can hear Tim the toolman in the background.....arroooo?) Anyway I was very impressed with his creation (esp since he stated that he was not having anything to do with the guinea pigs!) He built them a deluxe model home that looks great! The kids and I were impressed and the pigs seem to love it too....they were hopping around for joy and squeaking like crazy (or maybe they were concerned for their lives because Tigger kept trying to get in the cage with them?) Anyway it turned out great......esp given what he had to work with....I tell ya, that Joey is amazing (well in my eyes anyway.....maybe the kids didn't quite appreciate how good it was...they were just happy to have the cage finished)
I had a few outings this week without children in tow! It was so nice! Since my job now consists of being around kids all day and then I come home with my own, my adult time has decreased significantly! So I was so excited to have a few "out" times.....I went to the SOS meetiing on Saturday at the park (this is the Significant others of Saba group...all spouses of med students and faculty) We had a "business" (social) meeting......nice group of gals and we sat for an extra hour and chatted.....the president of SOS is trying to convince me to run for president for next term....I am not quite sure....I am thinking about it...might be an interesting experience.....then I got out for band practice (Joe and I were on the worship team this week, well pretty much every week now!) so we had practice so it was a great time jamming with our new church friends, an awesome group! Today I hung out with one of Joe's school mates, Julianna,she is a lady from Nigeria originally but now from Maryland, USA and she is here in school, while her family remains in the US....she is a very neat lady, very passionate and outspoken (my kind of person!!) She has a great sense of humor and she is also an ordained minister.....so we had some very interesting conversation! I told her anytime she wants to have some "girl hangout time" to just give me a call! So I am meeting some very nice and interesting people here.....I have a feeling that when we leave there will be many people whom we will miss......
So overall a great week and we are very pleased about how things are going here.....we are settling into a routine and getting used to the way of life and it suits us just fine.....I don't miss the "big city life" or the conveniences or the fast food or the mall at all (which surprises me!) The only things that I really miss are family and friends, our church and my job and great coworkers.....
I better go and get into bed....it is getting late and morning comes way too early here!!! Dont forget to sign your name in the comment section! I do really like to know who is reading and what your thoughts are of our adventure! Some weeks are more adventurous than others but overall Saba has been a great experience.....nighty night friends, God Bless!