Visit with Abue and Grandpa

Four days after school let out – and two after we moved into our new place – Brandon’s dad (Bert/Grandpa) and aunt (Diana/Abue) came to visit. They had an interesting trip down to Paraguay involving an emergency Chilean visa and a $98 Easter Island statue . . . but I’ll leave those stories for them to share.

While here, they caught a glimpse into our daily (if not, boring) lives. Paraguay is not a tourist destination and there’s a reason it’s not featured on South American “must-see” lists. Don’t get us wrong, we enjoy the laid-back culture, but when it comes to family visiting, there’s just not a whole lot to do or see. Anyone up for a card game?

We did visit a few outlying cities that are known for their craftsmanship: Aregua and Luque. Aregua is a quaint little town known for pottery and strawberries. Luque is known for the silverwork called “filigrana.” Both are hole-in-the-wall places with cobblestone streets, street vendors, and cathedrals in the center of town.

Cathedral in Luque, still decked out from the bicentennial celebration in May.

Abue wandering the hallways looking for a way INTO the cathedral.

A picture of the inside from an open window. None of the doors were open.

With Brandon around, you know that we ate well while Grandpa and Abue were visiting. The most memorable lunch was at El Bolsi. While sitting down, enjoying our meal, we see a girl with a video camera filming on the patio where we were eating. At times it looked like the camera was pointing at us, but I just assumed I was paranoid. But she was always around. Abue and I started whispering: “do you think she’s…?” “I don’t know, but it looks like it…” “why would she be…?”

At El Bolsi with Daddy and Grandpa.

Turns out she was filming us. When we asked for out bill, her counterpart brought us a giant waffle, topped with ice cream, strawberry, chocolate and caramel syrup and whipped cream. Surprise! They had been doing some sort of promotion at the restaurant, surprising people all day with dessert (and I’m sure we were laughed at by Paraguayans watching whatever channel they were filming for).

Oh, and Grandpa broke our shower curtain AND locked himself in the bathroom . . . and that was just the first day. The stories HE could tell . . .

New House

As we’ve done every year since tying the knot, Brandon and I (Bailey, too) moved into a new house a few weeks back. With Brandon going to work at a different school, me only working part-time at ACA, and a big group of new teachers needing on-campus housing, we were not allowed to stay in the apartments that we’ve called home this past year.

God has provided a three-bedroom home a few miles from both schools where we’ll be working, and at a GREAT price. As we/I have come across things that are uncomfortable and challenging with the house, Brandon continues to remind me that we’re paying the equivalent of $125/month for this place. That makes it hard(er) to complain.

I'm not calling it home yet; I don't know that I ever will. Only time will tell.

The view of the front of our house, from inside the gate.

Our living room area (we've now hung drapes and put the computer on the desk).

Bathroom (if you couldn't tell)

Kitchen with a stove made for a lefty and a sink NOT conducive for having someone help rinse while you wash.

Dining room area (all they "junk" in the background has now been removed)

Master bedroom

Guest room (now with matchy-match bedding)

Bailey's room

A Few of My Favorite Things

Not only is this the last week of school for the students at Asuncion Christian Academy, it's Brandon's last week teaching here and our last week living in the apartments on campus.

This is the last blog post I'll write sitting at this desk.

Tomorrow I'll walk to "our" grocery store for the last time.

Thursday I'll take Brandon breakfast one final time before he packs up his office.

It's the "ending of an era" so to speak and I have to admit that I'm a bit anxious about all of the upcoming changes. We're BOTH excited to get off campus and away from the "school drama" (can I get an "amen" from all you fellow educators?). But rather than dwell on what's been wrong, or fret over the unknown of what's to come, this week's blog post is a celebration of the things that we've enjoyed (and will miss) as we move to a new home a few miles away.

#1: Laundromat

Okay, it's not an official laundromat, but the little alcove by our front door that boasts three washers and three dryers has made laundry day a breeze. Rather than having to do four or five loads back to back to back, I can do three at a time and be done with all our laundry in record time.

#2: Oversized Oven

It's a little thing, but I have really enjoyed having six burners on the stove (not that I've ever used all six at the same time) and extra room in the oven. Most stoves (including the one in our new place) have four burners and are considerably smaller width-wise, too. I'll miss not being able to cook two things in the oven at a time.

#3: Huge Backyard

Not officially our backyard, it has been wonderful having the soccer field just steps away from our front door. Bailey loves to run around in the grass, chasing soccer balls and helping Daddy collect the wiffle-ball golf balls he's hit. It's also been nice being so close to school; you don't have to pack a lunch and if you forget something at home . . . no big deal!

#4: Ropero (a.k.a. Wardrobe/Closet)

Each of the rooms in our current apartment have one of these in them (Bailey's actually is four-doors wide). And since we have a third bedroom, Brandon and I have separated our clothes; mine are in the master bedroom and his are in the spare room. The new house has one ropero in the master bedroom that is shorter (without the top cabinets) and narrower AND we'll have to share.

#5: DVD Max

I had to steal this picture from their website, but this is a place we visit regularly, at least once a week. The movies titles are all in Spanish and aren't usually word for word translations of the English titles so there have been a few times we ended up with the "wrong" movie, but it's been nice having a rental spot just up the street when we need a movie fix.

#6: Parque de Salud

Though we haven't visited the park as often as we should, it was nice knowing that a great park was just up the street should the notion strike for an afternoon outing. In addition to the 1 km trail, there is also a play area that Bailey has warmed up to and would enjoy more and more as she gets older and grows into the "big kid" toys.

And these are a few of my favorite things . . .

Donde Esta Papa?

This past week, Brandon was in California for the RICA (Reading Instruction Competency Assessment) - the final test he must pass for his teaching credential - which left Bailey and I solo for seven days and nights. It was quiet and lonely without Daddy, but we made it through, thanks to our apartment family! I don't think I ate a single dinner alone and there was at least one house guest every evening for a movie, TV show, grading, or combination thereof. Here are some pictures (of Bailey, naturally) from our week without Pops!

Sitting with Kristen, playing with the effects on her web cam.

Taking out her own dirty diapers! She needs help up the one stair along the path to the outside trash and a lift so that she can toss the bag into the barrel, but she makes the journey all on her own!

Daddy usually sits outside and plays with her while I'm tutoring . . . "where are you?"

At the park with Miss Cassie and Mommy. It was her first time there and she was in awe of all the kids and swings and slides . . . it took her a while to warm up to it all.

Last Time

This past year has been filled with a gabazillion first times: first time in South America; first time traveling with an infant on 24 hours of flights/layovers; first time eating empanadas, tartas, and noquis; and, most recently, first time ordering ice cream in Spanish to be delivered to the apartment (a personal highlight of mine).

But as the school year begins to wind down (the students have two more weeks of classes, then a week of finals), there are some things that we are beginning to do for the LAST time, especially with Brandon leaving Asuncion Christian Academy to teach at a neighboring school (American School of Asuncion, P.E.).

This past weekend, it was soccer. The girls and boys' teams played in their last intercolegial (a.k.a. multi-sport tournament sponsored by a local school).

They boys had their final game on Friday night. After a bye in the first round, it was a win-or-go-home situation for the "second" game. Though they played hard and were first to score, they lost 2-1 in part because of some one-sided calls by the ref (and I'm not one to jump on the ref-bashing wagon, but it was pretty bad).

The tournament continued into the weekend and the girls played their game on Sunday morning (after a bye for Saturday's game). Now, as a reminder, the girls team is made up of mostly junior high students with only one junior and a handful of frosh/soph players. And most have never played before.

Despite their youth and inexperience, they won! A few key players came to life in what they thought would be their final game and it made all the difference for the team. They advanced in the tournament and played in another game that evening. Similar to the morning game, the defense was (nearly) impenetrable. The opponents, however, used their size and experience to completely shut down the offense (made up of petite little junior high girls you'd like to fold up and tote around in your pocket, just because you can). They lost.

And that was the end of the season . . .

We thought . . .

Yesterday the girls got news that - even though the lost - they advanced in the tournament and will be playing again this weekend.

So much for last time . . .

Bicentenario Celebrations

My birthday wasn't the only thing put on the back burner with Bailey's birthday party being held on May 14. For us, Paraguay's bicentenario was also overshadowed with the birthday festivities. But we did have the opportunity to attend a student tribute held at the school and visit downtown Asuncion while it was still decked out in red, white, and blue. Here are a few pictures from both events:

Brandon with two of his "favorite" second grade girls, all decked out for their dance number.

The third graders, also ready to dance.

Posing in front of the Panteon Nacional de los Heroes, which was alternately lit up in red, white and blue OR all white lights.

All of the buildings throughout the city were draped in red, white and blue.

A shot of Casa de la Independencia, the site where Paraguay formally declared independence (now a museum).

A view of the back of the Palacio de Gobierno, a.k.a. the government palace.

The Iglesia de la Catedral, also draped in red, white and blue, illuminated with extra lights for the celerbations.

Rash, Fungus, Allergy or Dermatitis?

During Bailey's first months of life, she occasionally got dry patches of skin on her body. They usually cropped up on her sides, collar bone and the backs of her shoulders. I self-diagnosed her with eczema. I never thought much of it since after a few days of Aquaphor Intensive Healing lotion the spots always cleared up. Then, when we moved to humid Paraguay the spots stopped cropping up and I all but forgot about her skin "issues".

That is, I did until April.

The first week of April her dry spot on her collar bone returned - about the size of her pinky - and I treated it as I had before. At most diaper changes, I rubbed on some lotion and waited for it to go away. But, alas, it didn't. The dry, irritated patch began to grow and crept along the entire length of her collarbone, even dipping down onto her chest. It began to look more like a rash and less like eczema. Daddy was worried but I assured him that it would clear up, just like it had always done in the past.

By May first, the "rash" had spread onto her back. It was painfully obvious that it was more than some dry skin:

We scheduled an appointment with our primary physician who diagnosed her with a fungus (nothing specific) and gave us a prescription for an anti-fungal cream to put on her back at night following her baths. I did my research on the cream and the oh-so-trustworthy internet reported that it's a cream used for funguses like athlete's foot, ringworm and jock itch - fungal skin infections known collectively as tinea.

After five days of treatment, the "fungus" had multiplied, spreading to her belly, and taking on a deeper red hue:

After a quick call to the doctor to report that the medication was NOT working, we were referred to a dermatologist. Our friend Mara helped with the translating and from what I could tell, the dermatologist was leaning towards an allergic reaction as being the cause for the irritation. We were instructed to discontinue using all lotions, creams, soaps and detergents. She recommended a laundry soap only available in bar form (which meant hand washing all Bailey's clothes), put chamomile tea in her bath, and gave us the names of two lotions to put on Bailey's skin. One was a mild moisturizer (similar to an Oil of Olay) to be applied morning and night and the other was a cream used by nursing mothers to relieve dryness from, well, nursing, to be applied at night on the affected areas. It seemed an odd combination - and I was skeptical about the fact that there was NO medication in the creams - but we gave it a shot.

The "allergic reaction" stopped spreading, which was promising, but a week later, it wasn't any better and every time Bailey played outside, the "allergic reaction" would get more and more red.

Back to the dermatologist.

She was concerned, too, about the fact that things were not improving and gave us the name of another cream (oh goodie!). This one actually contained medication (used for atopic dermatitis) and the dermatologist said to only apply it every other night because of it's strength. We were to continue with the other creams in the morning and on alternating nights. After five night and only three applications of the newest cream, her skin is clear:

Thank you, LORD, for answering our prayers and giving healing to our baby girl! She had been terribly fussy (for her) and we are overjoyed to have our happy baby back.