Window Friends, SweeTea, and Dawee.

Just when we start to feel down and lousy, God shows us that there are still a few delights in life that are afforded to us-we just sometimes have to work a little harder to get them...

 Here, in the bottom of a  hidden basket in the Haitian Market, I found a package of Luzianne Tea bags.

And through the bars in the window, across the deep ditch, and over the razor wire fence, the babes made a new friend who speaks English.

Romancing the neighbor boy took all four of them approximately ten minutes before he was begging to come over and play. A small, black seven year old who, for reasons still unknown to me, is being raised in New York City, has come home for a visit to his mother and baby brother who just happen to live next door. The last two days have been filled with running, laughter, games and IMMENSE chattering.
Dawee (Melinda the Maid's seven year old son) has decided that speaking English is the way to go now and has been studiously pointing and asking names of EVERYTHING. He can count to five and is sooo proud of it. Too cute. He and Adam explore new ways to build machines out of legos and scrap metal, Carolanne employs him to play house and climb the walls, (yes, literally) Thaddaeus stays out of his wild play for the most part, and Isaiah chases him around the house constantly. Dawee is becoming a Barlow Babe. ;-)
Tonight it is storming quite heavily. The sun set everything on fire as it set, and the clouds took it upon themselves to cool everything down. I am grateful for the downfall. It makes everything so much cooler. The sweat baths we get prior to rain are rather intense.
So, tonight, after a rousing game of tag in the living area with our new friend, we had cheese and bread sandwiches for dinner... with SweeTea! (for it IS one word, you know.) And Dawee (who has been in the habit of eating our meals with us) approved gulp for gulp.

Sunday Blessings and the Monday Blues

Isaiah comes whimpering into my room where I am still lounging on my bed. After asking him what  is wrong he cries, "Carol hurt my feelings!" After which the most cutely pathetic wail emerges from his little mouth. "How did she hurt them?" I ask as I wrap him in my arms. He still fits so perfectly. "She told me she doesn't love me anymore!" After a lot of kisses and reasoning he smiles again and then commences to rubbing my back with his little hand while singing about IJoe (his monkey) and ICutie (his robot) and ILovey(his baby doll) and ILightning McQueen (his car). I inquired once as to why all of his toys' names started with I and he said, "Because MY name starts with an I and my name is the Best!"

I have spent the morning in activities as random as the beginning of this blog. My mind doesn't seem capable of settling. My heart is far from Haiti as I message friends and family. Pray for those preparing to say goodbye to a loved one, rejoice with others gearing up for a wedding, share tips with other who are expecting new additions to their families...

I drug myself out of bed long enough to get breakfast together, then trudged back up the stairs and have been lolling on my bed in my jammies, enjoying the wind and sporadic rain left over from last night's storm. 

I've mapped out a shopping plan involving flying to Florida that seems just as ridiculous as the inability to get fresh milk here. I miss baby wipes and sunscreen and cheese. Adam's birthday is coming up and Christmas is around the corner. 

A thousand different decorating options enter and leave my brain for our new little house. They fly through so quickly, I have decided, because it is such a small house.

All of that aside, yesterday was a very good day. :-) Those of you who have been following my notes here know that we have had a terrible time successfully getting to church since we have been here. Well, yesterday we made it!

We visited Port Au Prince Fellowship, where, before the service, I was unimpressed. The majority of the 40+ people there were white. Shocking, I know. But they were all quiet, shy, and seemed either ill at ease or like they felt far above everything around them. I soon figured it was the first. All but three white families were missionary groups in Haiti for a couple of days/weeks. AFTER service went much better when we met the double Erics, two men with several children, happy wives, and ministries set up in Port Au Prince. One Eric has lived here for 7 years while the other is in at just over 1. One runs an organization called Three Angels which has a medical clinic, orphanage, and job training for widows and abandoned mothers. BOTH families home-school and I had a wonderful time visiting with other moms.- Noting how much we miss Wal-mart, how lobstery our children become in the sun, and how blessed we feel to be called to service in Haiti. The children kept running back to me shouting, "MOM, this kid speaks ENGLISH!"  I am elated and hoping to meet up with them again soon, see their ministries, and lend a hand where ever I can.

While introducing ourselves at church yesterday, Abe and I noted how different people were classified. For THEM it was, "Hi, my name is ______. I am with _______ ministries." For us, as soon as Abe said the words, "I moved here for work." A gasp escapes the missionaries lips and they exclaim, "You are WORKING in Haiti?!" Then they ALL felt the need to clarify with, "You mean you are actually getting PAID?!" Funny. Nice to know we are the minority again. 

Day 31

Yesterday we loaded up and went to Penye. It was so exciting to see our new house PAINTED!! Bright green, deep red and a sunshiny yellow. Despite how the color pallet might sound to the American designer, it actually was very tasteful! The bedrooms are completely finished and the kitchen cupboards are being built. There doesn't appear to be a place for a stove/oven. Abe is going to ask about that today.
After we toured our tiny house we went to the only restaurant that offers "fast food." After ordering and waiting about 20 minutes you can have Cheeseburgers made on freshly baked rolls, an attempt at chicken nuggets, and yummy pizza with french fries. We were too late for ice cream as that section had closed but just going out was enough for the babes!
There are groups of Haitian boys that station themselves at different places around town- restaurants and gas stations... Some have rags that they try to wash off your car with for a few gdes, others just ask for money. On our way out Abe held a plate of leftovers the kids wanted to have for later. The boys flocked over asking for the food. The leftover food... bitten rolls, pizza crusts, half empty bottles of Tampico. They were just hungry. I contemplated squishing all of them into the truck and taking them home with me for warm baths, hot food and the rest of their lives in love. Reaching in to my purse I pulled out all the small bills and coins I had and passed them out. The guard tried to push me into the truck. I held on a split second longer to one boy who could only have been seven. Adam's age. His eyes met mine, but neither of us smiled.
I have read a lot of people's point of view on child hunger, third world countries' needs, why people are where they are. The only thought that stuck in my heart as we drove away was, no one is above another. That could be Adam but for a simple change in God's plan. I held Isaiah closely as we headed home, praying a hedge of protection over my babes, and begging God to show me where best to give.

A few pictures to celebrate our first month in Haiti

 I'm so grateful the class distinction was thrown away while we were in Jacmel. At first, when my babes would walk right into the kitchen and wash area and start rattling on and giving hugs, the ladies would throw concerned glances my way- waiting for me to scold and hustle them away. Then, upon seeing my consent, the cooks, maids and waitresses started grabbing them up every morning to tickle and kiss them and drag them all around like little puppies. We didn't know their names and they couldnt understand when we asked so the babes came up with labels like, "The Gramma Lady. Isaiah's Lady. The Washer Lady. The Cook Lady. And, I'm sorry to say- The Really Old Lady."

Isaiah and "the girl that I loooove" 

He NEVER gets attached like he did to her,

A very fun and rowdy game of Tigers commenced as soon as we were back at the guest house in Port Au Prince. Roosevelt (Dawee) missed us greatly and has been in the thick of play jabbering his Creole just as loudly as my babes chatter in English. (Which, if any of you know us personally, you know that can be VERY loud.) It is soooo adorable to hear him call "Adam" with his accent.

Isaiah being threatening...

Ruthless tigers-best friends

Carolanne had little patience for the tigers.

                                     

Nearly every day, Thaddaeus comes to me with a new bargain
and a suitcase packed with his special things.
"Mom, I will stay in Haiti for three more days, then you take
me back to Utah so I can be with my class."
He is the only one who asks to go home. I am anxious
to get him in some classes here and find good English
speaking friends to settle his heart.

Splatting into the glass door always
produces giggles!

self portrait

Pretty Girlie!!!

Carol has a neighbor friend who comes over nearly every day and plays dollies, house, and beauty parlor with her. I will capture a picture soon.

Abe looking-way too serious. He has taken his role as a business man to a whole new level. Shaving every morning. (Keeping the Goatee) Emailing all hours of the night. Answering phone calls constantly. Wearing his "I mean serious business face." Its funny to watch him try to be a grown up and I must confess to occasional little pranks and rowdy tickle fights JUST to remind him how much a kid he really is. ;-)

Fresh faced after an aforementioned water fight. He tolerates me so well. ;-)

And finally- this one again.

 Because it is sooooooo cute!!!

Love to you all! 

Cheers to month #2 in Haiti!!!!!

Tearful honesty-Rolling out of the pity party

Tomorrow marks four weeks in Haiti. SonSon asks me nearly everyday if I love Haiti yet. I smile and tell him the same answer- I am learning to love it.
The first thought that jumps to my head to describe my first month in Haiti is- unproductive. Slow. My first inclination is to feel as if I have done no good here and might as well be home. The gap between myself and those around me seems to grow daily into an insurmountable divide.
Then I take a deep breath.
I roll out of my bed of occasional pity and really look around me.
What have I done?
I think of the many times I have run the ambulance to a call and carried a sick, dying old woman to the closest hospital with compassion, speed and medicines... Here, on the way to the market, there was the old, bent over woman on the side of the road patting her stomach and pleading at me with her brown eyes. I only had 50 gourdes to give her and couldn't even ask her name.
In the states I taught music to children of all ages. I laughed and reveled with them in their accomplishments as I became a part of their journey of life... Here I gave a little boy a pair of shoes to protect him from the hot roads and slime on the streets. We were passing and I had an extra pair of Thaddaues'. I couldn't laugh with him or talk to him about his school. Just gave him a used pair of shoes.
I have been up for over 48 hours working endlessly on the ambulance rigs and in Dispatch. Assisting in life saving procedures and daring rescues over and over.  Here I gave one man some antibiotics for his infection. Just one man in four weeks.
I took my kids to parks, museums, on road trips to zoos and nature preserves. Here I keep them safe inside and come up with yet another game to pass the hours.
It IS different here. I have not been able to anything I grew accustomed to in the states. But perhaps that is a good thing. It is hard to be proud when everything is so foreign, even washing your clothes leaves you feeling inept and inadequate.
I remember all the bustling around and constant activities I was engaged in and miss so much back home. And then it's like God whispers to my heart, "Hey, Ellie. Be still. I love you and you are doing My will now. Not yours. You did wonderful with everything back in the States. But that was then and this is now. Grow where you are. Be happy with my blessings. Continue on with My work, one small step at a time and you will see it grow."
Deep breaths.
Smile.
I will be super busy again, no doubt. Running around all of Haiti doing very important things. But for now, my importance is here. In this little house. In what little, sporadic, guard protected interaction I can get with the people of Haiti. I am here. And this is my now.

Jacmel Till Saturday

We have enjoyed staying in Jacmel-during the day. The babes play amongst the trees and in the wading pool while the ocean breeze wafts from the sea and refreshes our bodies. One day it rained...sheets and sheets of rain that left us feeling cold and damp even while we were safe inside. I revelled in how cool it was and was able to snuggle up against Abe without sweating. The next day felt just as wet-only the sun bore fiercely down on us. We were in an enormous green house and I am sad to say, ALL of us received quite the sunburn. Poor Thad somehow got the worst of it. His little upper arms have small patches of blisters. Not to be discouraged, the kids were right back in the sun and the pool the next day. I have nearly run out of sunscreen. It seems the local stuff is NO GOOD (Thad was consistently slathered in it the day he was so badly burned) I shall have to go to the expensive supermarket and purchase Neutaogoina or Aveeno. I am slightly glad that, at the moment, we do not live in a place with a pool or the ocean. Indoor games during the heat of the day suffice for the babes back in Port Au Prince.

Kentye, Davidson and Abe. Tired after lugging the Babes and I to the ocean and back. 

This is our view from the back porch of the house in Jacmel. While it was horrid to live without water and power while we were there, the views were amazing.

Carolanne had her baby dollies and Abe made three balloons from my stash of gloves before I could stop him. Turns out the gloves have MANY uses. If you pull the ring from the wrist part of them it makes an acceptable Hair tie. :-)

The building surrounding the house showed the destruction and devastation from that earthquake two years ago. the rubble has been mostly cleaned, but the buildings stand as skeletons to what they once were.

Abe and his littlest ones. They have been soooo happy to be with Daddy!

Adam has remained my right hand man and is SUCH a blessing to me!

I found it interesting that not only was there a servants' room and bathroom in the back yard, but there were also seperate entrances. The one on the right  set apart from the house by a long ugly hall. There is not backdoor on this house. In Port Au Prince, the house we stay at has back entrances and the servants and service men NEVER come through the front door.

I love the bright colors that you find in the houses here. I am hoping our little home in Penye will be as deliciously decorated!

Abe and his little man in the backyard.

Isaiah getting a drink of water. Remember-the drinking water that is sold on the streets is packaged in tiny bags. One must bite off the corner and suck the water out.

Carolanne showing you the water. I need to work on getting her to smile for pictures again!

CRAZY KIDS ;-)

Abe always makes his men laugh by saying he has FIVE children while patting me on the head. 

I usually reward him with a good sticking out of my tongue. 

Oh well. Who wants to be grown up anyway?!

I was attempting to capture the mosquito bites, but the array of knobby little knees was soooo endearing I am glad the little red bumps didn't show up. :-D

Breakfast at the hotel. We have finally ordered EVERYTHING on the menu. A rather rough way of learning the language, but we shall never again order the fish with eyeballs!!! (on the flip side, accidentally ordering the lobster was an EXCELLENT mishap!)

During a quest to find sunscreen we stumbled across a very nice man who took a list of what we needed from the pharmacy and said he had business to do up at the hotel so he would get the items and bring them to us. When he arrived with our goodies he brought with him a wide variety of paintings done by the 13 children he supports in his home. They were beautiful and several had intense meanings that he tried to explain to me in broken English. I purchased a few for our new home. 

The pool is really just a wading pool but the kids LOVE it-and the new friends they play with every day.

Abe's work. There is a story FAR to complex and long to get into all the frustrations he is dealing with. In short- half way through the work week his men stopped working all together. Turns out the owner of Kaytech was displease with the crews quality of work and decided to move them from contract pay to daily wages. The men felt this was out of a lack of disrespect and went on strike causing the owner to drive all the way to Jacmel to try to resolve the issue. There was a lot of yelling during the meeting and Matthias (the owner)'s body guard stepped rather close to him several times. After he left the men talked and debated and talked.  With all of the counseling and explaining Abe tried to do they still decided to quit this job. Abe is unsure if they will return and work for Kaytech in Port Au Prince or if this is really it. It saddens him for this is the crew he first trained and works so well with. He is hoping to plead their case and get them back to work soon. 

The bungalows Abe is now finished up while training a whole new crew-who do NOT speak any english...

With that aside our stay here HAS been nice. I am sad to leave here tomorrow. The kids have enchanted the staff here and Thad and Isaiah run each morning before breakfast to kiss the "Gramma Lady" who smiles and holds them gently. Isaiah informed me yesterday that he was in love. Yes. Little Isaiah. "Mommy, I am in loooove wif the girl in the purple shirt." He was referring to the waitress who plays with and tickles and teases him constantly. "I'm in looove with two people. Mommy and the girl." He continued to sing a song all afternoon about the girl in the purple shirt. 

I am hoping our stay in Port Au Prince will be short and soon we will be moving into Penye where we can make permanent friends and Isaiah will be free to fall in looooove with someone he can see longer than a week. :-)

TAP TAPS and MOTO-TAXIS

Yes, my dears...As the title suggests we rode in the tap tap AND the motorcycle taxis.

We slept in as best as we could. The loud church two buildings down is EXTREMELY proud of their sound system, and blast music and the sermon as loud as they can. The only thing worse than a 7-11 worship song is one sung in a language you can not understand. One song went on for 8 total minutes with the crowd singing/chanting the same three word phrase over and over and over and over. The lack of fans made the sweltering heat enough to move us from our beds.

We waited until noon, then headed out to find lunch. Abe had purchased Haitian cookies and Tampico the night before for our breakfast. Not the most nutritious, but you can bet the kids ate them all! It felt good to be outside. Once we found a place to eat with FANS I was able to be internally happy instead of just faking it. ;-)

Davidson, Kentye, and Jon- three of Abe's crew met us at the restuarant and then proceeded to take us to the beach! First we walked. Oh my goodness, did we walk! As soon as I was sure I could fall asleep and my legs would continue on without me, Davidson stopped us and I looked up to see six motorcycle taxis crowded around us. Before I could protest, each man loaded one of my babes between them and the driver and I was ushered to a motorcycle. I clung for dear life as I heard the giggles and happy shrieks of my babes around me. We looked like a Biker Gang with choeffeurs!! We made it several blocks away to a Tap Tap stop. The babes were breathless and begging to ride again, but the idea of riding in a Tap Tap for the first time delighted them as well. I was grateful we were in the little town of Jacmel. Had we been in Port Au Prince still, such delights would be forbidden for the white family. :)

A small pick up truck with the makeshift bus back stopped and we piled in. Before taking off we had a total of 20 people in the back. Yes, I said 20. Adults sat on laps and hung out the back and two courageous young men sat on the top. The joys of Haitian public transportation.

We arrived at the beach a bit frumpled but happy. The worst part? I left my Camera at the house. Davidson said that was best because it would have been stolen. I am still disappointed in myself. I will make up for it, later!

The ride back was much less enjoyable as everyone was tired and hungry-but the Tap Tap ride was less crowded. There was a lot of yelling going on between some very drunk young men and our friends. We never did find out why, but after we got off the Tap Tap, Davidson was very stern with Abraham and told him to call Matthias immediately. "Demand a truck." he said.  "Every day demand a truck for yous to drive on yous own. Dis is no way for your family and Madame to travel. Also, you tell Matthias you must stay at the hotel where you work. Travel from Jacmel is no good. No good."
I like Davidson.

Days 19- JACMEL

Saturday morning we rose early and ate pancakes. I once again claimed the kitchen and after Friday night's pizza success, Melinda was actually nice about it.
Cliff picked us up at 8. We left Port Au Prince at 1pm. Sigh. Nothing is EVER quick in Haiti. We had to go to the Kaytech plant to pick up supplies and material for the job at Jacmel. And Cliff had a dozen other errands, ALL in heavy bumper top bumper traffic. Abe was very frustrated, but the kids were calm and happy. Once we were on our way, crowded people, piles of trash and loud traffic was replaced by farmers with cows on ropes, open fields and tall green mountains with steep valleys.
The road was long and rough. At one point the entire road had been blocked by huge piles of sand and rock that had fallen from the side of the mountain. Thankfully we didn't have to wait long as the tractors and back hoes were hard at work. And another landslide didn't decide to target out truck.
As we passed through tiny villages we noticed several wedding parties. Cliff did his best to explain that due to the holiday weekend, many people were getting married. I am still unsure what the holiday is for...
We made it to Jacmel by 7pm. Abe's crew (the first one he ever trained) was busy working and were very excited to meet us. The hotel is about 20 miles from Jacmel along the coast. The views are amazing.
We were taken back to Jacmel to the house we were to stay at and... WoW. It was super clean, which probably added to my admiration. The smallish two bedroom house is beautiful. There was furniture but a disparaging lack of kitchen supplies. The view from the back deck is amazing. I will post pics soon.

Day 18- Stupid white woman... :-D

Hello from Jacmel!
I suppose when you have to look at a calendar to see how long it has been, perhaps life HAS been busy enough to distract you from counting the days spent in Haiti...
Today is day 21 but let me fill you in on what you missed. 


DAY 18
Hot as usual, but we had power. Melinda informed me that we needed more money for food. There must have been a misunderstanding when we used an interpreter to arrange the household and food money. I told her my newest, most favorite phrase, "Abraham fix it."
Abraham called and told me to pack up for a week-end in Jacmel. There is a hotel that one of his crews is building five new bungalows at. The owner is getting fidgety to have it all finished and Abe is needed to show the guys how to set the roofs and get things tied up. 
I decided it was time to take control in the kitchen- Pizza Time!!!
I gathered all the ingredients then called Abe to see if he could pick up some yeast on his way home. Sadly he had three more hours of work and it was already 4:30. I asked Melinda to go to the market and buy some, but she looked at me stupidly. I even said what I thought was the Creole word for yeast and bread, leven and pen. Still ineffectual. Finally I called Abe and told him if he didn't hear from me in one hour I was kidnapped and he needed to start gathering ransom.
I grabbed 100 gourdes. (Enough for a treat for the babes, too)
I told Melinda I was going. (She at least understood to watch the petites.)
I opened the gate. (That sucker is heavy!)
I waved to the guard. (Who just stood there and shook his head.
I walked down the street, around the corner, down the block...
I bought the yeast.
I returned.
Did I die?
Sadly, yes.
But I lived. ;-)  (Due homage to Ice Age. Corny, yes but funny.)


The pizza was delicious, by the way.

Tackling the Wash Tub

Yesterday, Day 15
I did it. Amongst much giggling, pointing, scolding, and splashing. I washed laundry. Outside. In a tub. I must say, the Art of Washing Laundry the Haitian way is complex and time consuming. I was envisioning throwing all the clothes into a tub of hot water, adding soap and stirring. Haaahahahhaahaha.
 Melinda had six tubs carefully organized with different types of soaps in each one. She sorted the laundry and threw the appropriate clothes into the tubs. When I finally got the point across that I wanted her to show me how, she pointed me to the tub of underwear. She filled it with water from her huge tub and took a ball of white hard soap. Rubbing the underwear vigerously with the soap ball, she proceeded to do this little squeeze/rub thing with it over and over and over and over and over... She then squeezed the water out and tossed it into another tub with a blue liquid that I was SURE would stain our whitey tighteys an eternal shade of blue, but she kept saying "blanc, Belle!" I grabbed a pair, eager to show I could do the same.
I couldn't.
 My hands ended up slipping all over everything while I attempted to rub and wring in the same fashion. Finally Ed, the groundsman came over laughing and tried to show me that you should rub the soaped up cloth on your wrist, then twist it in the water. I tried. They laughed. I giggled. Lather Rinse Repeat. The gate guard even came over from his post to check out the hoopla. It all ended with Abe calling me (FINALLY!) and I was relieved of the attempt to type up a work email for him.
After Abe came home from work, I grabbed Carolanne and we headed towards the Market. Still unable to haggle in Creole, my main shopping is done at a local indoor market with prices clearly marked in Gourdes, the Haitian form of currency. We buy a few things on the street market, but usually ask Melinda to gather the goods from the muck. Soon I will be haggling with all the other Haitian Mamas. :-) Carolanne, it was decided, came with us. We are going to have the kids take turns coming shopping with us each week, as keeping track of four gorgeous traffic stopping kids is a full time job. No brain space left for checking prices and watching the list...
I managed to get everything we needed for the exact amount Abe gave me. That is until I got home and realized we forgot three items. A short walk out the gate to the nearby market fixed that oversight after we got home.
After shopping we went to Abe's job site- the Catholic school. Carolanne was the Belle of the Ball handing out her newly acquired Sweetarts to the workers. Son Son was there as he is the evening crew leader, and he held her nearly the entire time- pausing his work to throw her into the air a midst fits of giggles. Both his AND hers. It is so neat to see someone Abe trained earlier this year, take the initiative and become a crew leader. The positive repercussions of Abe's work are already showing.

Today
Abe took the computer to work and I only have a few more minutes before I need to tuck my babes into bed. Night has fallen and the thick sweet smell of the tree blossoms are all around me. Unfortunately the mosquitoes have also decided it is dinner time. Ick. Any ideas on a natural home made repellent? I try so hard not to use DEET, but the past few days I have just to give my little ones relief. Adam counted sixty bites the other day. Some new, some just scabs left from the scratching. We have the eucalyptus spray, the candles for night time, the all natural spray from a health food store I picked up- these pesky insects just bite right through!
I successfully set up a play room downstairs in the cool of the basement. Every now and then Adam and Carol race up the stairs and grab Dawee (Melinda's son) and pull him downstairs to squish a particularly menacing looking spider. They KNOW better than to call for me. Dawee doesn't mind and his little 7 year old chest puffs up with pride after each kill. Anyways, Abe was impressed with the lack of toys in the "adult" space when he came home today. The kids LOVE the new area.
Today we learned that Ed's real name is-Blah. Yip. Blah. Kind of appropriate as after I hear him scolding the kids in Creole I asked Thaddaeus what he was upset about. Thad answered perplexed, "I don't know. All he ever says is Blah blah blah blah blah." :-)

Day 13 and 14-today

The babes are noisily playing downstairs with Roosevelt, our housekeeper's 7 year old son, and the little neighbor girl who comes over every day to play with Carolanne. They have all seemed to have overstepped the barriers of language, race, and working class and have become fast friends. It makes me very happy, proud, and hopeful for their future here in Haiti- as well as in the world.
There seems to be the most views on my post with pictures, and I know I am very fond of picture books, so this entry will again be filled with pictures. :-) (no, I never intend to fully grow up and it is a shame that some of you have.)
Yesterday, Day 13, we dressed and prepared for church. Our driver was outside waiting and Son Son (Abe's "adopted" brother) came over to ride with us. The driver was new and let me tell you- I MISS CLIFF!!! Cliff, it turns out, is a Baptist minister as well as protective guard/driver. He informed Matthias that if he had to drive again on a Sunday, he would quit. So we got a new guy named Dominic. He was the worst driver I have EVER experienced. Abe said Dominic would calm down and realize not EVERYONE is out to kill us after he has gotten more experience. I am willing to bet it will take 50 years- that is how long it will take for my muscles to relax after a day of driving with him. We honestly traveled about a fourth of a mile with another pick up truck two inches- I said TWO inches- from ours. We lost a side mirror needless to say. Shudder.
ANYWAYS! Dominic took us to the wrong church so the times were off and, once again, we were unable to go. Abe was very upset, but as there was no way to yell at the driver and have him understand,  Abe decided to press on.
We picked up Son Son's girlfriend and headed for the beach. The babes first dip in the ocean! While I have some pictures of our first trip through down town Port Au Prince, I did not get any at the beach for two reasons... 1. There was no where to leave the camera if I HAD taken it to the shore. 2. Any pictures taken would have included the locals and therefore would have been close to, if not pornographic. We are going to pay the 800 gourdes required to go to a more secluded beach next time. Lesson learned!

There are so many words I would like to say about what I saw on the way to and from the beach, but I find myself speechless and will allow the pictures to do the talking...

The marketplace in down town Port Au Prince.

Another view. The sellers have umbrellas advertising the various cell phone companies.

Behind the markets are the houses. Or dwellings. They aren't much like houses.

A truck filled with tiny sacks of drinking water. When you buy the water, you bite off the corner and suck the water out. My babes giggle every time and say it's like they are nursing babies.

I know this picture is sideways...
(I loaded it wrong and loading each picture takes about 8 minutes here. Your necks get to pay for my lack of time. )
Its a glimpse of the MANY tent cities we passed that are still in full use. The concrete rubble from the earthquake over two years ago is still present.

 Tent city-children's clothes hung out to dry.

 Thought this was humorous. You really DO have to specify if you drive an  Ambulance or are a Medic. (it is a hearse made out of a pick up truck parked in front of a funeral parlour.)





  Yes, it is ALWAYS that dirty. Even on our street. Depending on the day it can get much, much worse.

 If you look closely into the dark doorway you will see the tiny home. An entire family lives inside the tiny, dingy box. I pointed it out to Adam and he humbly replied, "Mom, I don't think our new house in Penye will be so very small after all."  Indeed.

                                              Burning piles of trash along the side of the road.

 Abe and Son Son rode in the back so we ladies and the Babes could be comfortable. And somewhat safe.

Too much fun in the Ocean <3

Always ready for more!!!!!!

                                                                          My little Princess
 Thaddaeus can also been seen in this picture, but my arms were too full of a sleeping Isaiah to get a good shot of him.

Saturday-our 12th day living in Petionville, Port Au Prince, Haiti

It is 1:30 now and my babes are playing quietly around the house. This morning we ate a hasty breakfast and dressed in a rush as Cliff, our diver, was outside waiting for us. We all got to go see Daddy's work! Abe is in charge of building a new Catholic School where the old building crumbled to pieces during the earthquake. Abe said that during the first week it was a struggle to get the men motivated and really working quickly, but he had them organized now for peak productivity. :-) Most of the workers are the students that he taught while he was here in March-June. It is so awesome that Abe was able to employ men from the school. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for life!!!

After we stopped at the job site Cliff took us through PetionVille, PetroVille and CanaraVille (spelling?) to Penye... where our new house was getting the walls mudded and painted and the toilet installed! The Babes gave a general consensus of approval, although I think the several tall climbing trees and two friendly Haitian boys may have swayed their votes.

On the way to Penye The streets are always filled with men and women balancing heavy loads on their heads. The Babes always stare and exclaim in wonder at how strong they are. Today we saw one tiny woman with a full culligan bottle on her little head. Isaiah is sure I am just as strong, but I know the truth! Oh, and the metal fencing is quite common where

 the concrete and razor wire are too expensive.

Happy travelers! It's hard to stay in one house all week! They are always SO excited for the weekends! Carol has decided smiling isn't chic.

I took these from inside the truck, as it is unsafe to stop. The businesses are all painted bright colors and there is a great amount of graffiti on nearly every wall.

As we got further from PetionVille and Petro Ville, the traffic lessened and the hills were visible. You can't see it in the above picture, but the hill is completely covered in houses stacked on top of eachother. Very unsafe for earthquakes or Hurricanes.

Here is a close up of the buildings on the hills. So many people and not enough space.

There are several road blocks of fallen rocks and crumbled buildings. Cliff is very skilled at twisting down roads and allies and finding our way.

Inside each concrete square is another fmaily dwelling. I tried to get pictures of the tents as well, but they are too far in the distance. There are still several tent cities, although the country has been working hard to clean them out.

Again, hard to see, but the pile of what looks like dirt is actually a huge pile of trash. Very common along the streets. There is a pig in the right lower corner of this picture.

OUR STREET, although I have no idea what it is called.

The inside of our new house! They are standing in the living room and behind them is the bathroom. I am taking the picture from the front door. To the right is the kitchen and back door.

The back yard. :-) Very small, but the communal front yard is very spacious

The front of the house. All of the windows are the small slats that open

and close with a twisty thingy. :-)

Headed to the restaurant for lunch and ice cream. Quite a treat!

Cliff walked in with us and helped me corral the babes. They were esctatic to have pizza and french fries instead of rice and beans!!!

yummy! Carolanne always gets the funniest looks and exclamation when they see

 her long pretty hair and blue eyes. :-)

The place became so busy we ate the ice cream on the way home.

An excellent ending to a wonderful day!