My Birthday!

Today was my birthday! I can say this is the first time I've spent my birthday in the Caribbean, ha! In the morning, I walked the kids to school. Then, I started digging a compost hole in the garden. It was a little bit more difficult than it sounds considering the amount of large rocks that are in the ground here. I would like to try and get Se Eva, the cook, to understand why it is good to compost. Dorothy said she tried explaining it to her before, but Eva just did not understand why we wanted to bury the food waste in the yard. Before Chacha went to school, we played Twister. That was a first for him, and he loved it. As to be expected of a five year old, he didn't quite follow the rules, but it was still lots of fun.

Dorothy must have told some of the nannies that today was my birthday because they gave me hugs and kisses and wished me “Bonne Fete”. Se Rose told me (in Creole) that God is going to make me strong. I spent some time playing with the two and three year olds after Chacha went to school. They LOVE to stand on the steps in the living room, jump into my arms, and have me swing them up in the air. It was a little exhausting with four kids, including chubby little Wilson who I like to fondly call “Bruiser”.

I got to test out Dorothy's new vacuum cleaner in my room. Dianne and Staci brought it for her during their visit two weeks ago. It is SO nice to have a vacuum! Before, we just had to broom all the floors. In a big house like this and the amount of dust that is everywhere, we are constantly sweeping floors. Needless to say, Dorothy is really excited about her new vacuum (and so am I).

To celebrate my birthday, Kez, Dorothy, and I went out for a late lunch. There are not too many restaurants here especially after the earthquake. So, we decided to try going to a hotel in Petionville. Unfortunately they told us that they were not serving lunch. So, we decided to move on and try to find something different. We settled on Muncheez, a Haitian chain that serves pizza and burgers. But, when we drove past, we saw that there was some type of political rally right out side of the restaurant and we opted out of dealing with all that. So, we continued on. Luckily, Kez remembered a French restaurant, Quartier Latin, that a friend had recommended. It was so nice! Kez and I split our meals. I ordered a fettuccine pasta with peppers, onions, and tomatoes. She ordered rabbit (yes, rabbit) with prunes and plumb sauce. I have to say it was the first time I've had rabbit! It was pretty good, but I liked my pasta better. We also all had dessert since it was a special occasion. I had chocolate mousse, yummy! When we got home, Se Rose gave me some pictures that Miss Audette helped the little ones make. They were pictures that they colored. She wrote bible verses on all of them, their names, and a little note to me. I had to laugh because they way that they say Katie actually sounds more like Kelly. So, Miss Audette spelled it Kelly on the notes. It was really cute. My mom is coming to visit in two weeks so they will really be confused when they learn that her name really is Kelly, ha!

Right now, I'm snuggled in my bed watching “The Sound of Music” with Rosa. That was always one of my very favorite movies as a child. So, it is a great end to a great birthday! Thank you, God for putting so many special people in my life and for your endless blessings!

***I apologize for not posting any picture for a while.  The internet has been extremely slow and I have not been able to get them to upload.  I hope to try and add some tomorrow so make sure to check back!