Just another day...

Yesterday was one those totally mundane stay-at-home days and yet I was totally exhausted by naptime...and there are a lot of hours left in the day after naptime. My day started at 6:15 thanks to my little alarm clock that wakes me up with a very insistent string of mama's. I made muffins for Eric to take to work to impress his co-workers (apparently they chanted my name over and over, which is guy-speak for they liked them), washed and hung two loads of laundry on the roof, fed and dressed Little E, swept up cracker and cereal crumbs from breakfast, washed a mountain of dishes and started preparing lunch before 10:30 a.m. I'm tired just looking at the list. I did get a chance to sew this for Eric's bed:

And, I learned how to make a matching fitted crib sheet from this awesome website. I love finding free patterns, since it would cost a fortune to buy and ship patterns here. Anyone know of a pajama bottom pattern for a toddler? I would love a free one because I was going nuts with all of the cheap fun fabric at my new favorite store!

After naptime and two power outtages later I declared it was time to take a walk. Little E and I put our shoes on and walked to the neighborhood ice cream store. I am loving the ice cream here, although my hips not so much. The local ice cream franchises are located all throughout the city, so you are never too far away from one. I compare it to how you can find a Starbuck's on just about every block in Boston...oh, how I miss my friend Tall Nonfat Latte. Anyway, our closest Bon is close enough of a walk that Little E can hold my hand and walk on his own. So, while we were there eating our ice cream I kept seeing this little boy of about 7 or 8 looking through the window asking for money and just kind of hanging around Bon to see what he might make from the spare change handed to him. On the way out I bought an ice cream bar, handed it to Eric and told him to give it to the little boy. I also gave him some change and asked him if he went to school. He told me he did in the morning and I told him that was good and he should keep going. He thanked us, sat down on the curb and started eating his ice cream as we walked home. Even though he didn't have any idea what was going on, I wanted Eric to be involved with helping this little boy because it's really never to early to learn how to serve.

When we got home I discovered we had both electricity AND water. What a treat!!! I cut up the fruit I had bought at the store. A canteloupe, papaya and pineapple all for $3.65...can you believe it! Gotta love that caribbean fruit!
And, then just as I was settling in with Little E on the bed before bedtime thinking I had made it and I relaxation was within reach...my mother-in-law came over and Eric called letting me know he was bringing a friend home for sandwiches. Ah, a mother just really never gets to rest, you know.

Here is the view of the ocean from our roof. See, we do have an ocean view!

This is a view from the roof.

Twitter is distracting me.

I've been distracted from blogging and I blame it on Twitter. I decided to try it out and for the last week I've been updating a couple of times a day and checking in to see what my Twitter-friends are up to. I'm not sure what I think about it. I don't have a laptop available to me all day, nor am I able to send text messages from my cell phone here, so I kind of have to make an effort to get to the room log back on and send an update. It's fun to know what people are up to at that moment, but I'm not sure about it because I think to be a twitter-er it has to kind of become a part of your routine. Hmmm. Have to think a little more about that one.

AND, I think it is really slowing down the blog traffic. I have noticed my blog-friends aren't updating as often, and I miss that. I look forward to logging into Google Reader each day to see what new posts have arrived. It feels like getting mail to me, especially since we don't get mail here. I want my blog to remain a priority, since it is the primary way we are keeping people in our lives across the sea updated.

Well anyway, here is an update from our house:

Little E is LOVING school and learning sooooo much. I really can't believe how much! He says all kinds of things in Spanish and some things in English. BUT, the best part and the part that amazes me the most is that he UNDERSTANDS everything in both languages. How that is possible for someone who can't put more than two intelligible words together is beyond me. But, hallelujah, we are raising a bi-lingual kid! He says, "hola", "agua", "eso es..." (this is), "si", "seee" (which is for silla (chair)). And, in English he says, "bye-bye", "nigh-nigh", "who" (juice), "this is", "choo-choo" (which he is enamored with right now!)...and a whole lotta animal names and sounds. And, of course, "Elmo", which he asks for all day.

He is also becoming more "able" in a lot of ways. He likes to draw with pencils, markers, crayons. And, we did a bit of painting and gluing yesterday to make a collage. He likes to play with play-dough and in his sandbox on the balcony (which is actually filled with dry oatmeal...thanks for the brilliant idea Kellie!) He is turning two in a month and he is going to get a tricycle from his Abuelo Orlando, so that will be fun to go to the park with.

AND, I am very proud to report that he drank an entire glass of milk (with only the slightest amount of Nesquik) for lunch today!!!!! I found the perfect "milk" cup for him to drink out of and it has made all the difference. He just needed to not see what he was drinking. Today was the first day he has had some with his meal, so I am hoping it's all down hill from here!!

Well, I have to go because he is down for a nap and I am itching to get sewing. I am praying this is a long-nap-day, because I have some fun projects I have been waiting to match up with fabric. I finally got down to Almacenes El Canal to immerse myself in fabric heaven. They have every kind of fabric I could imagine and the prices are amazing. So, I am off to start sewing a new sheet/blanket for Eric's crib, a fitted crib sheet and pillowcase to match, and an apron for me. I'll post pictures soon.

Creepy-Crawly Things

I have had a few personal encounters with "the adventures of island living" over the past couple of days that I thought are worth sharing. This morning I found a tarantula the size of my hand in a cupboard clinging the wall. YIKES! Good thing I have made friends with the guard of our building. I yelled down from the balcony, "Alex, por favor, ayudame!!" Which means, "Help me, please!!" He graciously came upstairs and tore through the cupboard, having the pull the fridge out from the wall before killing it and saving little Eric and I from death. Well, at least it felt like we skirted death!

And, this past weekend while we were at Eric's grandparents I found a lizard in my cosmetic bag! One of Eric's cousins, Danny, came to my rescue and chased it out of the house, but not after I shrieked a few times and jumped up on the bed. Another cousin, Grace asked me if I was scared of lizards, kind of half laughing. I very promptly and without any shame told her I was, but not quite as scared as frogs (it's personal thing with me).

I have a serious case of the heebie-jeebies right now and get an adrenaline rush everytime I open a cabinet or closet. What else could be lurking around waiting to be discovered? I don't even want to think about it!

A Boy Will Be a Boy!

For those who know me well, you know that this is a boy after my own heart!! He likes corn on the cob like his mama!! Finding his Easter basket on Easter morning. The same Easter basket his mama used and his Pops, too. Made by his great-great-great grandparents.

Kissing the tiniest puppy I have ever seen. Mama trying not to think about the germs.

Riding a horse for the first time!

Aaah...a breath of fresh salty air in Samana.

We finally got away to the beach for an overnight trip. There are so many beautiful areas to explore on the island that I am learning about and one such area is Samana. It's a small peninsula in the north east part of the island that is rich in history (african slaves who were trying to escape the US shipwrecked there in 1820 and settled much of the area) and loaded with miles of coconut palm lined beaches waiting to be enjoyed. The are isn't overrun by all inclusive mega hotels, which adds to it's charm. In fact, the are we went to on the Samana Peninsula is called Las Terrenas and it's just one small hidden hotel after another along the beach. From the beach you can't even see the hotels, because they are all tucked away behind palm trees. Las Terrenas has a bustling village where a mix of local action and tourism give it a nice balance of activity. There is an area in the village where little wooden beach shack-style restaurants hang over the beach and serve the freshest seafood we've had since we've been here.

To get to Las Terrenas we took a brand spankin' new highway from Santo Domingo up to the Samana area. It was almost completely deserted as it's so new, which was eerily nive. On the way there we passed this forest of palm trees that bordered the highway on both sides for about miles. Stunning. And, when the new highway ended we had to take a very steep two lane road over a mountain to the get to the Las Terrenas village. It took us through a couple of mountain towns and offered us amazing views of the coast below. I took several pictures but this was one of those times when the pictures just can't live up to the real thing.

We stayed in an apartment-style villa, so we had a kitchen to cook meals and a separate bedroom. The apartment was decorated in pastel caribbean colors with wicker and wooden furniture. I didn't get any pictures of the inside of the apartment for some reason, except for this picture of our breakfast, which looks a lot more appetizing than it actually was, since the pancakes stuck to the bottom of the non-stick skillet that had lost it's non-stick. The grounds had an amazing garden and a nice-sized pool. Just across the dirt pathe we drove in on was the beach, where we sat under coconut trees in lounge chairs, walked as far as we wanted in either direction, and swam in the calm caribbean waters. I know it sounds like a dream come true and for this weary soul it was for the one short night we were there.

Little Eric had so much fun playing in the sand and swimming in the water. He was a little more intrigued with the water than he was excited about it. He was very timid about going in the pool and the ocean. It was actually nice to see him a little scared by something, since he doesn't really have any fear in his little boy body.

Eric and I both agreed we need to take advantage of these kinds of getways and do it more often. It's just do nice to get away from the noisy city and explore the island we are living on. I think Eric enjoys seeing things he hasn't seen in a long time. We BOTH can't wait to go back and feel like we found "our place."

Ok...and this is just funny. There is a brand of water they sell in Samana that is called "Agua Boy" and has this smiley face as a logo. We kept seeing the signs all over the colmados (little stores) and it made us laugh. In a country that has trouble with clean water I don't think you will see us rushing to buy a refreshing bottle of Agua Boy anytime soon.