'Bout Friggin Time

I am so terrible at remembering to blog. Actually, I remember, I'm terrible at the actual doing part. Let's get right into it. I LOVE it here. It's beautiful, it's fun, it's warm, the people are friendly, happy, relaxed. Yes, there are lots of drawbacks. First one is there is no Target, haha just kidding family, of course you are the biggest drawback. I would really love nothing more than to have a classic Barrett barbecue here or go waterskiing out here with the Sudweeks. I miss you all dearly.

There are so many differences with life out here. I'm going to try to name a few:

1. You literally CANNOT get ready. No matter how hard you try. You can't wear pants because it's too hot. When you put make up on, it melts right off. You can't wear heels because of all the pot holes, sand, uneven gravel. You can't blow dry your hair because if you did, right after you'd need to take another shower from sweating so stinking much. This is completely serious! I haven't blow dried my hair since April!
2. Everyone says good morning, good afternoon, good evening. You ALWAYS do this. If it is a bum on a street, you tell him good morning. If you are passing in the grocery store, you say good morning. That's just how it is :). I love it.
3. No one is out here messing on their phones... except the americans really that are jacking up their data bills. Out here you use two different phones and you put minutes on them like pay as you go phones.
4. Speed limits are in kilometers but it's not really enforced because there are pot holes and speed bumps all over. If you want to blow a tire, sure, go ahead and go fast.
5. Tops are optional on the dutch side. Clothing is optional on the french side. I've seen my share of boobies. Ha. It's getting pretty normal now. I'm not as shocked anymore.
6. There is NO WHERE to get a fountain drink. Not a gas station, not a convenience store. No where.
7. Within minutes of putting ice in a glass it is melted. I never has to wait for the eggs or butter to be at room temperature when making cookies. I can get everything out and by the time I'm creaming the butter and sugar, it's already soft. It's insane.
8. The World Cup is HUGE out here. I'm SO pumped it is crazy. This island is a huge melting pot so I have seen brazil flags, france, netherlands, spain, ghana ... ha everything except usa actually :) I'm going to be rooting for my country, in another country. There is this amazing german bar that I'm going to go watch germany play at and eat a bratwurst. Then when France plays I'm going to the French side and I will be eating pastries and watching. I'm so excited just thinking about it. 
9. Church is the same, but a TON different. No nursing room, no comfortable chairs, no huge nursery with tons of toys for the kids. I think the whole building has seven rooms and one air conditioning window unit.
10. My life is simple. I clean, do laundry, drive Halle and Dylan to swim and hang with friends, cook and put the kids to bed. I wait for Taylor a lot, and cheer him on and bring him goodies at school. All in all, I'm very proud of him. He aced his first exams and I couldn't be prouder. I'm actually not really all that proud that he aced the tests, I'm more proud of him at his work ethic and how he is working so so hard and how he is just making such good friends out here and being just the loving, handsome, hard-working man that he is.
    

I haven't been able to convince anyone to come visit me yet, but we are still hoping we get a visitor! Tickets are around $600 round trip. You can do it! Think of all the memories! Come visit me! PLEASE! :)

Not normal...

shelf milk

Everything is different. That's for sure. The billboards of adult entertainment, lots of drinking, drinking "shelf" milk from a box, paying $10 for an itsy, crappy pint of ice cream, carrying my laundry in a backpack onto campus once a week dripping in sweat..

Yeah. All true. Shelf milk is weird. You get it in bulk and it lasts forever on the shelf. The hauling of the laundry is weird too. I'm going to get used to it though :) All I have is time out here :)

All this drives me crazy, but then I go to the beach and swim across Mullet Bay which, I'm telling you is the most exhilarating, beautiful, clear, warm water you've ever seen in your life and everything is right again. I've swam the bay almost every week and I am still in awe at how incredible it is. There are fish and it is always warm and clear and beautifully turqoise and it is stunning. I am a lucky woman !

My laundry backpack :)

White Coat Ceremony

Last night was the white coat ceremony. Gotta run off to a princess party put on by the spouses org (awesome right?!) Here's some pictures though! 

Lovely ladies :)

Out here is absolutely nuts. It's crazy. It really is. But let me break it down for you how stinking amazing the people are out here.

I think I talked about how meeting us at the airport were 3 families! THREE FAMILIES! They took their

I don't have a picture of all the kids but here are only some of Halle's buddies :)

whole day to come to meet us! They didn't even know who we were! They knew we were coming, knew we were LDS and had kids and wanted to help us feel welcome. Six kids were there to greet Halle.

Three different wonderful ladies have taken me grocery shopping already since I've been here. Since I don't have a car they have been absolute lifesavers! They come and pick me up and drive me to the store and bring me home. Holy cow it's amazing.

I have been non-stop showered with necessary items since I've been here. Just a few of the things that I have been GIVEN:

Baby seat for eating
baby clothes
crib
crib mattress
crib sheet
baby toys
canned food
food
toys
tons of books for Halle
coloring pages
swimming suits for Dylan

I could go on... These wonderful women are so selfless and helpful and just amazingly Christlike and I just couldn't do it without them. They are constantly asking me how I'm adjusting and how my kids are doing and when our roof was leaking they were so concerned and helpful. It's really amazing how these women serve. I can only hope to help others like they have helped me. You all know who you are. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. I seriously love them so so much. :)

Leaky roof

Yesterday my fridge, freezer and microwave all turned off twice. The first time I had no idea so everything in my freezer melted including a giant bag of chicken that I had just stocked up on so the chicken juice is all over everything.

After the freezer, microwave fiasco I went grocery shopping, attempted the library but it wasn't open on a thursday, and then I went to Mcdonalds :) I have never been so excited to go to Mcdonalds! It was divine. I thought it would at least have similar things, which it did. A couple major things is the big mac, it's a chicken patty, not a beef patty which is odd, but doesn't affect me much. In the states you can get a 32 oz drink for $1 and you get to refill it as many times as you want. In the carribean, biggest one is 20 oz, costs $1.85 and if you want to refill it you have to pay $1.85. LAME, but how could I be mad at McDonalds? You just can't. So I was happy. Plus Halle and her buddies were happy with their chicken nuggets :)

Around 5 pm the rain started. It started pouring! I was doing the dishes around 6:30 when I hear drip... drip... drip... I went in my room and we have a leak in our ceiling. I go to the front desk and they want me to move to another room for the night. Which sounds fine, but hauling two kids, not to mention hauling a crib in the pouring torrential rain does not work. So we decided to tough it out. Around 9 pm we brought out four more bowls because it went from one leak to five. An hour later the yellow, weird rain water started dripping on our bed. It fell right at my feet so I had to keep my knees close to my head to avoid touching this yellow rain water on my bed. LOVELY :)

It was a long night to say the least but it's over and hopefully they will fix it today. Tonight is the white coat ceremony and I am so excited!

Measuring cups, high chair, milk

One thing that is IMMEDIATELY apparent when you get there is how things aren't all that important. Which is absolutely beautiful. Things like a baby bouncer and a bumbo and a high chair and a walker. Dylan will never use them... until we get back home :). We don't have measuring cups, measuring spoons, or a toaster. They use powdered milk widely out here because regular is so expensive. We don't have storage for any of these things anyways. The complete storage in our place is two very, very small closets. This holds our clothes and toys for the kids. In the kitchen I have four cupboards and three drawers. I have a total of four plates, three bowls and three cups (and wine glasses, shot glasses etc.) The beautiful thing is I don't have room to go buy and store things, but it's not really necessary! You don't just go buy things immediately out here. You just learn to do without. There are places to buy lots of things but they are not handy at all, you have to run to each store. People don't use phones like crazy out here. And because we don't have phones, there is no data except over wifi so in the car to find my way I use... wait for it.. a map. Weird huh. We don't have a car either. So I'm hopping on the bus or renting a car once a week (it's cheaper than buying and maintaining an "island car". Oh and no car seats really. That one is a little weird for me but I'm getting used to it.

Today Halle realized her bike wasn't here. That was rough. I told her we couldn't bring it on the plane and she actually took it extremely well. We have been to the pool or beach every day and she has so many friends out here it is such a blessing.

Another day I will write about the ward out here and the other wives, just let me tell you they are absolutely incredible. Out here, you not only learn to do without but you learn to lean on each other. I have received bags from four different families of clothes, books, toys and food. Even though I am surrounded by drinking and nudity :) I feel God looking down on me and smiling. His hand has truly been in everything.

Chocolate chip alcohol cookies

Rum and alcohol are widely, widely acceptable here as you may know, but I had no idea that it was even acceptable for kids! Whole other world out here. One of the other moms was shocked when a local asked her if she wanted rum in her kids punch. The kids are one and two years old! When she said no, the local said, "Why not?! It's Carnivaal!" or however you spell carnivaal. Craziness!

I went to the store with my friend Jessica the other day and was going to buy vanilla. She stopped me and told me the alcohol content of it was 35 percent! 35 percent! Rum in the vanilla, rum in the punch. No worries out here! :) Dylan and Halle will not be tipping back the bottle haha. Craziness, craziness.

Oh happy day, I'm off to the pool!!