Long Overdue Update

The 22^nd of January officially marked four months that Nate and I have been in MCC!!  We have survived 103 full days in Nicaragua (103 days equals 14 weeks and 5 days)!  Pretty exciting, I know…try to contain your enthusiasm.  At any rate, I feel we are LONG overdue for a more “formal” update. 

This past Tuesday the 18^th, we “officially” moved into our house in Teustepe.  We have been living out suitcases, backpacks and plastic bags for nearly four months.  Not to mention that we have spent the night in thirteen different locations since we left our adorable, little apartment in Boulder, Colorado on September 13th, 2010.  I felt an amazing sense of patience through this time of transition.  I knew we wouldn’t be settled into our home until sometime in January or February, and this has definitely been the case.  Amazingly enough, I have had the strength, patience, flexibility and resilience to stay positive and upbeat through this time.  With these sentiments, I feel my prayers were answered in this aspect of my life.  I know many of you were praying for these things for us as well.  We greatly appreciate your thoughts, prayers and support!

By no means do we have a “regular” schedule yet, and we are still all over the place, through all our transitions and our work.  Travel is a requirement, not a luxury.  More and more, we are settling into our home in Teustepe and making it feel like ours.  Our house has had an extreme makeover since November.  The owners have put a new plywood drop ceiling in our kitchen, bedroom and bathroom, plus repaired various panels throughout.  Having a drop ceiling versus just an aluminum roof overhead cuts the heat (and dust) immensely within the house!  We are VERY grateful the owners have spent the money to make these repairs happen.  Additionally, our whole house has been repainted a cheery, pale yellow with a brick-red trim along the floor, which matches our tile floors.  We are constantly cleaning up, unpacking and organizing our house to our liking.  Teustepe will be our headquarters, from where we will travel to Managua for Monday meetings (usually we spend a night or two in the MCC office where we have our “own room” with some things we have left there to minimize hauling things from one place to the other.)  Additionally, we are easing into our visits in the communities surrounding Teustepe where we are working.  We are meeting new people all the time and trying to keep people’s names and families straight in our minds (this will always be a challenge).

To summarize the last four months with a few action words—

Jumping—Through immersion, we have been jumping into the Spanish language with active listening skills and the confidence to make mistakes when speaking.  We have noticed our language skills improving, and daily we are learning new vocab words.

Easing—We have been easing in into our work with AsoFénix.  With about 6 weeks of language study under our belts, we have regularly gone to the AsoFénix office every Monday for staff meetings.  We are getting to know the staff and interns, and becoming familiar with the many projects that AsoFénix undertakes in rural communities.  

Swimming—We have been swimming through a new culture since our arrival—new norms, new customs, new foods, new rules, new etiquette, and so on.  In the literal sense, we have gone swimming five times since we been here, locations include the Pacific Ocean, a swimming pool and a volcanic carter lake.  

Laughing—We always remind ourselves to laugh!  Times of transition are not the times to criticize and critique oneself.  You just gotta laugh at yourself (A LOT) and laugh with others (even when you have no idea why they are laughing)!

Learning—There are ALWAYS new things to learn!

Favorite Motto: “poco a poco” (which means “little by little”)

"Poco a poco" we are learning the language, learning the culture, learning about the people, learning how to get around by public transportation, learning new foods, learning how to be together as a couple (in daily life and work), learning how to ride a motorcycle, learning how to live a life in simplicity and in alignment with those around us.

With that said, you hopefully have a taste of what we have been experiencing.  Our photos are also good windows into our experiences, but by no means can we capture it all in a photo, although I do try to take lots of photos!  We will continue to share the glimpses of our new lives here in Nicaragua through photos, stories and entries like this.  Thank you again for all your thoughts and prayers for us through these transition times!