Inclement Weather and Goodbyes

Last Sunday we decided to head to Selva with the students. It had been hot for the previous 2 weeks and they were all very ready for a good swim in the pool. But as luck would have it, it clouded over and turned very cool and windy about the time we left home! So instead of cold drinks and a swim we had coffee, wrapped up in capulanas to stay warm, and moved inside. Ah well.

Believe it or not, we (already) said goodbye to Dave and Joanne (the nursing team's practicum placement coordinator from USASK and her husband) this past week. We enjoyed having them as our neighbours, even if just for a short while, and we already miss our evening discussions with them! Having Joanne here was great for me as we got in lots of nurse talk along with other talk...and work too of course. Having Dave around was like having my dad around: give him the right tools and he can do anything :). One of the jobs he tackled while here was wiring the office and getting the ceiling installation started (that is by no means all he did). Here's a picture of him and Gabriel hard at work. The office looks MUCH more official now so we definitely feel like we're keeping up with the Joneses. (Whoever they are :)). Getting the plane ready to fly.


Rice fields near Beira--the city lies below sea level.

The plan was to fly Dave and Joanne to Beira in the Cessna 182 since the highway between here and there is riddled with pot holes which makes it a rather laborious and long drive. On Monday the weather was still overcast and rainy, but thankfully by Tuesday the skies had cleared enough to allow us to fly. Next week we'll be making the same trip with the students as their time with us is nearly over. But we'll have to take the pot-holed ground route since 8 of us won't fit in a 4 seater plane very well. I expect it will be a great time together despite the poor roads. I also expect to hear some singing of songs from favourite Disney animations ;)! They seem to have become the order of the day when we're all in the van together.

House update: Yes, those are actually walls going up on the far side of our house--our bedroom on the right and the guest bedroom to the left. It is exciting to see things taking shape and feeling more like a house than an empty foundation. More of the floor has been poured since this photo so things are progressing. We'd like to be able to move in by August this year so Rick and Heather can move into the place we're in now.

I don't even have a snake or bug story to close with this time, so I'll just sign off with warm wishes for a Happy Easter!