Note: Added this June photo of Micah sleeping under one of those mosquito nets I mention in this blog entry.
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I am typing from our office space with a fresh air breeze coming through the windows, which is wonderful! The internet is down right now, so I am hoping I will be abe to post this by Tuesday morning. We have been here in Kisumu just about a week and a half and while I can believe that, in that I still feel so unfamiliar with the area, so much has happened that it is very hard to grasp we have been here less than two weeks! Here are some miscellaneous updates:
· In the category of basics, we discovered upon arrival that we have a water distiller in our kitchen but the taps are not drinkable. At first I found things such as remembering to tote up the distilled water for teeth brushing a bit elusive and often found myself making several trips to get this basic task done. This is becoming much more second nature!
· Also in the category of basics, I initially thought the mosquito nets over our beds were beautiful and fun. I then revised that to find them to be a little claustrophobic. And also quite irksome to emerge from when I was trying to quickly extricate myself from bed so as to attend to Tiras or Micah in the middle of the night. I have gotten more adept at maneuvering the mosquito net and I am back to enjoying it. I remember one mom saying that she would tell her daughter the nets make her bed into a princess bed and I gotta say that my girly girl side resonates with this and enjoys it! J
· In the category of needful basics, our malaria meds are going smoothly. None of us seem to be having any side effects and both boys are taking their doses beautifully. Micah just plain swallows his pills and enjoys medicine time, both because he is proud of his prowess at taking medicine just like the grown-ups and because he enjoys getting the snack we take along with our meds. As for Tiras, after a bumpy start the first day where it seemed he could taste the medicine through his applesauce and did not care for it one bit thank you very much, he has since been taking his medicine with no problem with all sorts of foods, including applesauce. Big relief to have all that going smoothly!
· On the home front, on Friday we had a work crew arrive to start installing mosquito screens on our windows. We thought this would be several weeks away for us and were delighted to have this project underway unexpectedly early. Once we have the screens, we are able to open our windows and take advantage of the refreshing breezes that come in off the lake and cool the house nicely. Our office space and our living room on the ground floor both have the nets. Bliss!
· Also on the home front, over the weekend Deron and I started rearranging furniture and the result is that we are starting to feel much, much, much more like we are settling in and making ourselves a home. There’s a long ways to go yet, but this was a big start and we have a vision!
· On the awesome superstar front, Deron has been driving the streets of Kisumu like a champ. His very first drive here was in a standard shift car, which meant he not only had to adjust to driving on the left side of the road, he also had to remind himself how to drive with a stick shift—and then deal with the fact that the car was set up in reverse form to what he was used to. He has since driven automatics and found them to be a piece of cake after his first drive. I am very impressed indeed!
· Speaking of cars, we do not have ours yet and it will probably be a number of weeks before we do. People are wonderful about lending us their cars and one new friend has offered to take me on errands or have me text her to pick things up for me any time.
· On the fun front, the camaraderie of the expat community is really special. We have been invited over for dinner and enjoyed wonderful company (and yummy meals!) and we have been out to dinner at no less than two restaurants in Kisumu. One was on a rooftop and afforded a very nice view of the lights of Kisumu and the other was in a garden setting and had yummy food and such nice wait staff. We enjoyed everything, but the mango-pineapple-ginger-mineral water drink I shared with both the boys seemed particularly tropical and wonderful. And I was impressed by how the boys guzzled it down so enthusiastically—even Tiras!
· Also on the fun front, we have had some inaugural skype conversations and that has been so wonderful! Looking forward to many more such conversations!
Kid updates:
· People here are really warm toward children and Micah is very responsive to that and enjoys chatting with everybody.
· Micah’s favorite thing to do right now is play outside in our grassy area. He loves to kick the ball and to play catch and he loves to ride our neighbor’s big wheel (which she graciously shares).
· Micah seems to thrive on learning about Kisumu—he was asking Deron what is the food item people eat most here, and the second most, and the third most, and so on to fifth or sixth. He also insisted on riding his big wheel on the left side of the walkway and directed me to do my walking on the left side as well! It has been said that kids adapt well—I guess so! J
· Tiras has been sleeping through the night for several nights now. It seemed like the one-week mark (which would fit the adage of one day for every hour difference in time zones crossed) really was the magic changing point for him!
· Tiras is still not walking yet, but does tons and tons of cruising and will take the occasional step or two. It is interesting to us to watch how diligently he works at climbing all over furniture in odd and perilous ways requiring parental intervention and contrast that tenacity and focus with his very minimal interest in trying out steps.
We are heading off to Nairobi for the next few days to do our official registering at the embassy. I am off to pack and will probably not have internet access again until we return.
· In the category of basics, we discovered upon arrival that we have a water distiller in our kitchen but the taps are not drinkable. At first I found things such as remembering to tote up the distilled water for teeth brushing a bit elusive and often found myself making several trips to get this basic task done. This is becoming much more second nature!
· Also in the category of basics, I initially thought the mosquito nets over our beds were beautiful and fun. I then revised that to find them to be a little claustrophobic. And also quite irksome to emerge from when I was trying to quickly extricate myself from bed so as to attend to Tiras or Micah in the middle of the night. I have gotten more adept at maneuvering the mosquito net and I am back to enjoying it. I remember one mom saying that she would tell her daughter the nets make her bed into a princess bed and I gotta say that my girly girl side resonates with this and enjoys it! J
· In the category of needful basics, our malaria meds are going smoothly. None of us seem to be having any side effects and both boys are taking their doses beautifully. Micah just plain swallows his pills and enjoys medicine time, both because he is proud of his prowess at taking medicine just like the grown-ups and because he enjoys getting the snack we take along with our meds. As for Tiras, after a bumpy start the first day where it seemed he could taste the medicine through his applesauce and did not care for it one bit thank you very much, he has since been taking his medicine with no problem with all sorts of foods, including applesauce. Big relief to have all that going smoothly!
· On the home front, on Friday we had a work crew arrive to start installing mosquito screens on our windows. We thought this would be several weeks away for us and were delighted to have this project underway unexpectedly early. Once we have the screens, we are able to open our windows and take advantage of the refreshing breezes that come in off the lake and cool the house nicely. Our office space and our living room on the ground floor both have the nets. Bliss!
· Also on the home front, over the weekend Deron and I started rearranging furniture and the result is that we are starting to feel much, much, much more like we are settling in and making ourselves a home. There’s a long ways to go yet, but this was a big start and we have a vision!
· On the awesome superstar front, Deron has been driving the streets of Kisumu like a champ. His very first drive here was in a standard shift car, which meant he not only had to adjust to driving on the left side of the road, he also had to remind himself how to drive with a stick shift—and then deal with the fact that the car was set up in reverse form to what he was used to. He has since driven automatics and found them to be a piece of cake after his first drive. I am very impressed indeed!
· Speaking of cars, we do not have ours yet and it will probably be a number of weeks before we do. People are wonderful about lending us their cars and one new friend has offered to take me on errands or have me text her to pick things up for me any time.
· On the fun front, the camaraderie of the expat community is really special. We have been invited over for dinner and enjoyed wonderful company (and yummy meals!) and we have been out to dinner at no less than two restaurants in Kisumu. One was on a rooftop and afforded a very nice view of the lights of Kisumu and the other was in a garden setting and had yummy food and such nice wait staff. We enjoyed everything, but the mango-pineapple-ginger-mineral water drink I shared with both the boys seemed particularly tropical and wonderful. And I was impressed by how the boys guzzled it down so enthusiastically—even Tiras!
· Also on the fun front, we have had some inaugural skype conversations and that has been so wonderful! Looking forward to many more such conversations!
Kid updates:
· People here are really warm toward children and Micah is very responsive to that and enjoys chatting with everybody.
· Micah’s favorite thing to do right now is play outside in our grassy area. He loves to kick the ball and to play catch and he loves to ride our neighbor’s big wheel (which she graciously shares).
· Micah seems to thrive on learning about Kisumu—he was asking Deron what is the food item people eat most here, and the second most, and the third most, and so on to fifth or sixth. He also insisted on riding his big wheel on the left side of the walkway and directed me to do my walking on the left side as well! It has been said that kids adapt well—I guess so! J
· Tiras has been sleeping through the night for several nights now. It seemed like the one-week mark (which would fit the adage of one day for every hour difference in time zones crossed) really was the magic changing point for him!
· Tiras is still not walking yet, but does tons and tons of cruising and will take the occasional step or two. It is interesting to us to watch how diligently he works at climbing all over furniture in odd and perilous ways requiring parental intervention and contrast that tenacity and focus with his very minimal interest in trying out steps.
We are heading off to Nairobi for the next few days to do our official registering at the embassy. I am off to pack and will probably not have internet access again until we return.
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