Just an update.

Well, we're still waiting for our internet connection. It's been a month that we put the order in after which it took two weeks for the company to come out and hook up both our phone and the internet. The internet connection didn't work and now we are on the second week of waiting for them to come out and figure it out and get us hooked up. I joked with Eric that at this rate we are going to get the 1st months bill for an internet connection we don't have yet!

And, we've been patiently waiting for our car to get here only to find out yesterday that it hasn't been shipped from Boston yet. I guess it's been tied up with trying to verify our title or something. We are not happy about this, but grateful for the flexibility of Eric's mom for sharing her car and toting us around town to run our errands.

Eric has a job! And we are so thankful to finally have that big question answered and to start having an income! He is working with an engineering firm as the new Technical Director. The company is about 4 or 5 years old and builds mostly commercial buildings. Eric will be consulting them on the technical details of their projects (basically that means he will make sure they are strong enough to stand on their own and endure hurricanes and earthquakes) and he will be growing the newly formed Technical Department of the company. He is also going to be teaching at a local university where he is starting an Engineering Foundation. It's a lot to do, but it's exactly what he hoped he would be doing, as he felt really strongly he should use his time here to help guide the infrastructure of the capital.

I've been making curtains for Little Eric's room and the living room. Once we have them up I am going to post pictures of our sunny little apartment. We feel moved in and very comfortable. I just wish the mosquitoes would leave me alone. Yesterday morning I was filled with hope as we packed up to the spend the day at my mother in law's while they fumagated the grounds of our apartment complex only to be completely disappointed after getting bitten 3 times shortly after we got home. My sister in law swears they will stop biting me once my body adjusts, but I am still waiting.

We've had a chance to get out and walk around in one of the parks here in the city. Like Boston, Santo Domingo has some really nice large parks in the middle of the city. They are a great escape from the chaos of the city. As we were walking the other day we remarked on how quiet it was even though we were in the middle of the city. Mostly it felt so good to just get out, move and breath some fresh air. And, we think we saw Pedro Martinez riding his bike through the park...that was pretty fun, even if we couldn't see his face.

There is a beautiful botanical park right across the street from the place Eric works. It's a huge park and I think it's a lot like the Arboreatum in Boston. We tried to go walking there today, but we got there right after the gates closed. I'm hoping to get there next week sometime.

The weather has been more than ideal, especially for January. I know so many of you are buried in snow while we are wearing short sleeves and living with open windows. I have to admit I haven't missed any of the snow just yet. It's pretty nice to be wearing your favorite summer clothes in January!