Tuesday, February 26, 2013
the view down our road
This is the view to the right when we turn out of our driveway. This time of year, dust is everywhere because we're five months into the dry season now, and it billows up and blows into our house every time a vehicle goes by.
For me, this view just never grows old. I love looking towards the mountains, and I love the big blue sky. Pretty soon these fields will be brilliant green as the rains come and the rice grows. By then it's so hot that I even enjoy the grey sky meaning that rain is coming.
We love to take our bikes towards the mountains, riding through the villages there. For the kids, it's the best thing ever. There are mountains, caves, bats, and bridges, and there are kids everywhere.
Eva and Elijah like this view down the street too. This is because they have just hiked up the mountain at the end of this road for themselves! It wasn't an easy climb, and I sad to say, I wasn't able to make it up one steep ladder section at the end. But the kids did! Now when they look down this road, they can have memories of conquering, like when I overheard Elijah saying to himself "I think I can!" at one steep place on the path, and he made it. I have thoughts of conquering too, which is one of the great things about climbing mountains and one of the great things about being able to see one every day.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
La Casa
Here's a picture of our new place, home sweet home! This shot was taken while we were considering renting the house. The little building in the front is where our landlord used to sell odds and ends, but now it's locked up as their storage space. The house is raised up high, which we have found to be nice for a variety of reason: 1) harder for snakes to enter 2) harder for mosquitoes to enter 3) better view of the mountains 4) peace of mind for Jan when home alone 5) the breeze!
Shortly before we moved in, our landlord painted our house a brighter yellow on top and this bright lime green down below. It helps with giving directions to our house... the green is hard to miss. The house is small and simple with 3 bedrooms upstairs and a small living room. The down below section of the house is mostly open outdoor space under the house with two sections walled in. We turned one section into our kitchen, which I posted a few months ago. We're using the other one for bikes, motorbike etc.
2 of the things I love about this house--
1) The outside play area is huge and just great for the kids. 2) The inside house area is small and just great for Jan. One day a couple months ago, Eva was standing on the steps in front of the house looking out at me in the front yard and said, "Mom, God gave us a great house for kids!" I am so thankful.
At the river
We were crossing a river nearby on bicycles when we decided to stop and splash around a little with some of the village kids there. These girls had just finished catching fish and were coming down to the river to clean them. Doesn''t this look fun?
They sat down in a canoe along the riverbank and began scrubbing their tiny little fish. They must have been having a ball- their smiles were so big!
Kind of makes me feel like I'm missing out on something great. I've seen those same big smiles when someone else I know plays in the mud...
Now we just need to get the kids bringing home some fish!
