Last night we didn’t move Cali from the living room couch. I decided to sleep in the Strawberry Shortcake bed that is still in the living room, until someone strong enough arrives on the scene to help me move it. Madi decided that she wasn’t going to sleep in the bedroom by herself, so we both slept in the single. Good thing she is skinny and is not a thrasher like her sisters. Cali didn’t get sick during the night, but still didn’t feel well in the morning.
We got Madi all set to go into the capital with her school to see Avatar. As I rode her up to the school, I met our salsa instructor from last time. I was wondering if she was still in town. She said she heard Kier was coming in a week or so. Word travels around here. Sounds like she may be helping with the choreography with the musical. I asked her if she is teaching any salsa lessons and she said she was considering starting a series in February. Kier was pumped when she heard that! The dance teacher is also running a taxi service, and gave me the “friend” price to go the city. Hers is the best price and I can also send her to pick up Kier by herself, since they know each other. I love it when things fall into place. I was having trouble figuring out how to pick up Kier since both the girls have school. This will work much better.
Cali was on the couch for the day, with the exception of a short ice cream trip into town. She told me the key to her complete recovery hinged on a scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream from Saritas. I certainly don’t want to be the one standing in the way of a full recovery. The fresh air and sunshine also felt therapeutic, at least to me. Unfortunately none of the green ice cream was actually mint chocolate chip. She ended up with pistatio ice cream, which she declared was still worth the walk. We took our time walking home, she was very talkative on the way home, a sure sign that she is on the mend.
The positive result of Cali being sick was that I was stuck in the house, so thought I should actually clean it. The living room floor was operating-room clean, so I worked on the rest. I swept, cleaned the kitchen. I went and got water for the first time. I was waiting until Cali got better to resume her job, but we were down to about 4 inches, so I couldn’t put it off for any longer. I organized the girl’s shelves, found a bunch of buried laundry. Did a load of said laundry, and a small blanket that got a bit soiled yesterday. Handwashing clothes certainly tends to foster a greater appreciation for clean clothes. I have to admit, one pair of Madi’s socks were so dirty I considered throwing them away and buying new ones, but I figured that was not the “when in Guate” way of doing things. When I was done with them they weren’t exactly white, more of a dull gray. But they smell better!
During the day we checked in with Paul and Kier. We usually have skype on for a couple hours in the evening, just hanging out with each other. They were having company over, so we signed off earlier than usual.
Cali and I watched a couple of movies, read a bit. Cali is now doing yoga, she must be doing better. Her friend called, it was so sweet. She was so disappointed that Cali wasn’t feeling well, and was checking up on her if she will feel better to come over tomorrow. All day Cali has been asking if she can go over there to visit her friend and her fish. The mom’s very nice. We are checking back in tonight to make plans for tomorrow. I think it will work.
Cali’s Frog Blog: Today I had lots and lots of fun, except for the part when I was sick. Today I’m going to call my friend. My tummy was feeling a bit better so I had an English muffin with only butter. Then I watched tv for a very, very, very long time. That helped make my tummy feel better. In the afternoon we went for ice cream at Saritas. At night we had grilled cheese sandwiches. I hope that I feel even better tomorrow because I want to go to my friend’s house. Madi was gone all day. P.S. I love you all.
Madi’s Day: Today I went to the city. When people say the city they mean the capital, Guatemala city. We left at 10 a.m. sharp. Only five students came. One guy couldn’t come because his mom was afraid he might get kidnapped. He’d had threats before, so she couldn’t take that chance, although he rides his bike all over town by himself all the time. Still, it’s understandable. On the ride there I listened to music on my ipod. When we got to the city we ate lunch in the food court at the mall. I ate Chinese rice. Then we went to Avatar in 3D. I saw it before we left Canada. It took three hours. Jan had never seen 3D before and everytime something appeared to come into the audience she would say, “whoa!!” but her husband really liked it. The one guy from school brought his girlfriend and they made out in the van until he has asked to quit. They were making out in front of two grade fivers, so really it was in poor taste that they were doing that in front of children. When he was asked to quit he was mad. They sat behind us in the movie, so that we couldn’t see what they were doing, thank goodness. After the movie they asked if they could go off by themselves to “explore the mall”, and they weren’t allowed because no one really knows exactly what they were planning to explore, if you get my drift. Then I went to go get a tolopino (ice cream). When I came back everyone asked what it was and how much it was. I said, “1 Q” and they all rushed off and got one, too. Then I had another one and so did two other kids. Then we got back on the shuttle. Sid didn’t hit any animals on the drive there or back. He did almost hit a bucket of sand, but Jan warned him. On the ride home Jobi sat between the two lovebirds. That kept them from making out. On the way home I listened to music and the 5th grade little girl slept on my shoulder since her brother wouldn’t let her lean on him. Nice, huh. When we got back into town, Jobi walked me home. I showed her the stray I named Puddle, because he was in his usual spot. It was a good day.