The Rest of the Story

We love staying connected through social media, but so much is happening so quickly - it's hard to capture it all in snapshots. I feel like I've been posting things out of order, or not at all. Last week was our first 'normal' week in Nicaragua - it was awesome to settle into our new rhythm of life here.

It was TJ's first week back in the office, and the twins started school. They're going to a Spanish-speaking preschool a few mornings a week, and they really love it. They haven't noticed that Spanish is different than English, which is a fun surprise! We also got a dining table, placed an order for a couch, hung curtains, and organized closets. 'House-is-feeling-more-like-home' type things. Awesome.

But also: it was a roller coaster of a week.

$4,000 mysteriously disappeared from our bank account, the twins picked up a little back-to-school virus, our car needed a major repair. Our kitchen sink clogged, our bathroom toilet overflowed. Ants ate a small hole in our roof. We got pulled over while on our way to the twins' doctor appointment, and the police wanted to impound the car. Almost all of those things happened within 24 hours, on what was supposed to be TJ's first travel day to one of PMI's medical clinics.

The end of all of those stories is: we are fine, everything is fine, it all worked out. Laura Essner (our friend and banker-extraordinaire) helped us track down the missing money, and got it restored to our account. It was an international banking mishap that we now know how to avoid!

The twins are completely well now, and never had any symptoms other than fever. We were able to go ahead and get established with a great pediatrician here, which is something we'd been meaning to do, anyway. Dr. Mora was great with Ian and Isla (Isla loooooves all things medical). He was so excited to hear we were from Tennessee - he did part of his residency in Knoxville, and fell in love with the Volunteer State.

Getting a little creative to help our feverish little ones cool off in the tropics. Packing totes fit the bill!

We were pulled over by the transit authority on our way to the doctor, but they ended up letting us go. It's a normal thing to get pulled over here - often just to check paperwork. There was a problem with the car's registration, but we were able to find the paper we needed and avoid a detour to the impound lot. On our way home from the doctor, the car had a major problem. (But it ended up being a minor repair.) Our friend, Fabricio, recommended a mechanic to us, and he did SUCH a great job. He repaired the car within a few hours, and delivered the car back to our house.

The sink, toilet, and ant issues are still... ongoing. No big deal.

We are thankful to be here. TJ absolutely loves the work he's doing with PMI. It's funny to think of TJ working in "health care administration", but the truth is... if you care about people and want to make a substantive difference in the life of a community, health care is a pretty great way to go. Being part of a team with the goal of improving access to healthcare is exciting and really challenging, and much-needed in this country (and many others).

Our family is also remembering what it's like to buckle up our seat belts (figuratively, though we try to do so literally, when possible), and be along for the ride. We are thankful for our years of life and ministry in the Dominican Republic - we learned a rhythm of celebrating the good, and trying not to dwell on the bad. That experience helps us step back and look at the big picture, and not get too caught up in the day-to-day dilemmas.

Thankful for your love and prayers. Hopeful for a more 'normal' normal first week here. We are very much enjoying getting to know the people and places of Nicaragua - we are surrounded by great beauty.

Much love,
tj&h