A Normal Week

When we first moved to Haiti, I wrote a post about a normal day in our lives.  Lots of things have changed since then, and I thought I'd give a little look into what our day-to-day life looks like now.


Monday -
Get up around 6am (actually, Orrin usually wakes us up).  We finally resigned ourselves to the fact that our kids are early risers.  And it's actually not too bad.  We recently started to read Bible with kids in bed in the mornings and it has turned our mornings into the sweetest part of the day.  Instead of constantly being stressed by the "I didn't get to read the Bible this morning" we can now spend some together time in God's Word before the day gets going!

Once we do get up, it's a lot going on quickly!  Orrin gathers trash and dumps them in the kitchen trashcan.  We start a load of laundry and make breakfast.  David leaves for work around 7:15.  Orrin usually plays toys or in an activity book or rides his bike around the house before he has to get dressed for school.  He gets his bookbag packed (snacks and a drink - his books stay at school).  Cass and I take him down around 7:50, wait with him in the school yard until the kids line up, then go back to our yard to watch the morning proceedings until he goes into the school building.

Madam Ino and Emanier come today.  Emanier usually comes after David leaves for work, because he likes to water the plants early.  Madam Ino comes around 8.  Emanier works in the yard, rakes leaves, and does other random outdoor jobs.  He had a stroke several years ago and is somewhat disabled, so it takes him most of the morning to rake the yard.  Madam Ino usually makes rice and beans, fried chicken, cabbage salad, and some fruit.  She helps hang clothes on the line if I don't get to it right away :)

David does a lot of work in his office.  He looks up a lot of parts for equipment and supplies that the Hospital needs.  He purchases medical supplies online, and makes up orders for what he can get here in country.  Amazon.com is our very close friend, and there are lots of things in our order history like: brass pipe fittings, refrigeration pipe, LED light bulbs, rechargeable batteries, car wash, a starter for the Nissan, oil-based applicators, a soldering iron and wire (lead free), all purpose silicone, caulk guns, door closers, purchase order books, a K4121C 120-Volt Stern Mount Photocontrol (whatever that is), digital scales, power supply adapters....need I go on??  This guy knows how to fix stuff.  And spend money!

Trying to find a part to fix an xray machine.

And a part for surgery equipment.

Back at home, I work on picking up the accumulated junk from the weekend :-P.  Cassia empties the bookshelf onto the couch and tells me "Wead!  Bookies!"  So we read bookies.  Then I take her to the potty to see if she can go.  Potty training is very very slow.

There is a girl that comes several times a week to our house.  Today she comes and continues telling me about how she wants to go to school.  I go with her down to the MEBSH school to talk to the director to see if she can go to school there.  She usually always asks for food, and today I have a job for her.  I need empty bottles for the Hospital to put vegetable oil in to give out to the patients along with rice and beans.  I tell her I'll buy bottles if she brings them clean.  She comes with bottles to sell and needs to wash them, so I tell her she can use the hose out back.

Orrin comes back to the house at recess, asks for another snack, and tells me the kids are being mean to him.  I send him back to school.  He runs around and gets sweaty.

Cass goes to her room and gets the little basket of hairbows from her drawer.  She sits on my lap and wants me to put them all in at once, then take them out, then do it again.  Ooooh, pretty Cass! :)

I have a Creole lesson with Falens around 11-12.  While I'm doing that, Cass destroys the stuff in my drawer in my room and tears up some money.  She didn't used to be strong enough to get that drawer open....

At noon, David comes walking home for lunch.  Either he or I go get Orrin from school and hear about his day.  He usually says it's pretty good, but a little bad :)

Cass takes nap after sitting at the lunch table and not eating anything.

David goes back to work.  He looks over a schedule of the hydro guys, and types their hours into a spreadsheet so they can be paid.  He has a meeting at 2pm with some community people about the electricity issues - discouraging and frustrating.

A young woman named Faviola comes and we talk.  She tells me about her childhood, losing her mother, missionaries helping pay for her school, her dreams to build an orphanage, and her upcoming marriage.

Kids come to play in the yard, and keep knocking on the door asking for food.  Orrin goes out to play with the kids with the Tonka trucks.

The young girl from earlier and her friend come to wash more bottles.  I sweep half the house, because that's all I get done before a local teacher comes to talk about school kits that came on the container.  Then Madam Ino's granddaughter, Didline comes for a piano lesson.  While she's playing piano, more kids knock on the door - someone is fighting in the yard.

David comes home at 5:00.  It's been our family's "boundry" since we moved here and D does really about sticking to it.  I know he could stay at work forever, so he sometimes shuts projects down in the middle of things to come home and be with me and the kids - thanks, hon!  Tonight when he comes home, supper isn't even started.  He plays ball with the kids outside while I make food.  We eat supper, then David showers the kids while I do dishes, listen to a book on my Kindle, and make an egg casserole.

Around 6:30 we start putting kids to bed. We read books to the kids, brush teeth, then I read Orrin Bible stories, pray, and get his CD on.  Then hold his hand for a song or two.  David sings to Cass and puts her in her bed, and sits by her, but she doesn't want to sleep tonight.  She had had a late nap, so we finally give up and take her out of bed.  She sits with us while David and I do a small Bible Study.  When we're done with that, we decide she needs to go to bed.  She screams herself to sleep.  She loves her naps but doesn't like to go to bed at night....

Tuesday-
Cass wakes at 5:11, and screams a while.  We wait til 6 to get her, and find out her sound machine had turned off during the night.  At least there's a reason she woke that early.

We read the Bible, Orrin does trash, we eat breakfast, and Cass cries until she can come sit on my lap while we eat.

D goes to work and Orrin gets dressed and goes to school.  David spends the morning in the office going through and responding to emails.  He organizes work orders (written by employees who are letting him know what needs to be fixed) and gives a list to "Boss" who will go out and distribute the work to the garage, woodshop, and yard guys.

Cass plays on the piano while I sweep, and pees on the chair since I'm "potty training" Haitian style :).  I mop the floor, and clean the chair.  Cass and I go out to hang clothes on the line.  She is screaming and holding my legs.  I can't walk to hang the clothes, but if I pick her up, I can't hang the clothes either.

Back inside, I work on banana bread while Cass eats a bowl of peanut butter by the spoonful.  I answer the door, and someone asks me to charge their cellphone.  I put lids on clean/dry bottles for the hospital.

Cass asks for a nap at 10am, lays on the big bed and goes to sleep herself.  Someone got up too early.

We are out of yogurt and sour cream, so I take advantage of the quiet time to make yogurt, and listen to Cold-Case Christianity.  Kindle Fire tablets that read to you - in the top 5 best gifts I've gotten in my lifetime :)

The headmaster of a local school comes to get a box of school kits that was sent on a container.  At recess, Orrin comes home for an "afternoon" snack.

With the last little bit of alone time before Cass gets up and Orrin comes home, I sit down at the computer to work on a blog post.

David works thru lunch to try to get some stuff done, and so we go easy on lunch today - the kids eat banana bread and potatoes cuz that's what we have.

Orrin watches a video on my phone.  "Thanks for the timer, Mom," he says when I set the kitchen timer for a half hour and bring it out to him.  He's funny.  But the timer works.  There's no crying or fighting when the times up.

David works on employee housing...makes some copies of keys, changes a lock in someone's room, talks to someone who hasn't paid their rent in 6 months, and works on housing contracts for hospital employees.

I prepare the month's pay for Madam Ino and Emanier.  Still haven't done dishes all day, so Cassia plays in one sink while I do dishes in the other.  The kitchen is a disaster.

Orrin and I do a Bible activity.  This is something new we started after furlough, and are really enjoying it.  There's a blog we use that provides "lessons" and projects for each day (go here to check it out).  I love it.  I want to do these fun activities, but at this point in life, I don't have the mental bandwidth to be creative.  Coming up with activities seems overwhelming and I shut down completely.  David starts the lesson out on the weekend, reads the Bible story with Orrin, and does the first activity.  Then the rest of the week, Orrin and I do activities in the afternoon.  Sometimes one week stretches to two, but he loves it, and he seems to be understanding the stories a lot better than what he did before we started.  Sometimes we have to degaje (make do) like using toilet paper instead of cotton balls for clouds, but we always manage to get the activity done even without a Hobby Lobby!  Now, pictures cover our walls, and toilet paper figurines litter our home :)

Creation Week Projects

My mom is on call for the ambulance on Tuesdays, so it's a good day to Skype for a little "babysitting".  She even goes and gets books from the library to read to them :)

I heat up yesterday's leftovers for supper, and Orrin asks to drink milk.  I tell him no milk after lunch.  Recently, he was having a lot of coughing when he lay down at night, and when we cut out milk after lunch, the coughing went away.  He's inherited his grandpa g's milk problem, but at least it seems like he still does ok with it during the day.  An added benefit to this is that it cuts down on how much milk we go through - at around $7.50/gallon, it's not something that is fun to buy all the time :(

About once a month, we have a "Missionary Meeting" on a Tuesday night, where we discuss upcoming teams, events, travel plans, and other things that need to be talked about as a group.  Tonight there's no meeting, so D and I talk about books we are reading - NOT about Haiti!  It is so good to have a new subject to talk about :)  A little side note here....if anyone has funny stories that happen in your families and daily lives, things you share together at the supper table at night, would you consider writing it down and sending us an email?  We sometimes get stuck in our own little world and problems, and hearing and sharing these things would be very refreshing for us!!

Wednesday -
We recently (last week) got a dog, so Lady is now becoming part of our "normal" life.  When Bob and Sue went back to the States after teaching fall semester school, they left Lady with us.  She so far has been a really good addition to our family.  She is medium sized, pretty quiet, great with the kids, calm, doesn't eat us out of house and home, and doesn't have a litter box :D  Orrin loves to go see her in the mornings after reading the Bible, and she has already made it into the house to hang out lots of times.  She wins extra brownie points when I tie her up in the front yard and she keeps things quiet in the mornings.  The local people are afraid of dogs.  Most are guard dogs, and are not treated as pets so they become mean :(  David may forgive her for losing his one croc.  And I would love her forever if she got rid of the roosters.

Madam Ino and Emanier come today too.  When Orrin went to school, Cassia and I went up to the Hospital to talk to Pat, Rick, and David about some random stuff.

Back at home, I read a stack of books to Cass.  Then she does stickers while I work on some emails.

David gives the Hospital driver the shopping list for things they need to purchase in town today.  Refilling oxygen tanks, picking up medical orders, and getting construction supplies is the usual.  Then at 10am, he has a "Leadership Team" meeting on Wednesday mornings, with others like the Hospital Pastors and other administration members.

We eat lunch with Madam Ino and Emanier, sometimes we have to wait for David to get home late from his meeting :)

Orrin does relax time, which is him sitting in my room with some books and the timer for about 45 minutes to an hour.  It's a good way to see if he's tired enough for a nap or not....  While he's doing that, I go swing Cassia outside.

I'm ready to get clothes off the line, but I see that it's 2:00.  I wait til the kids pass by on the way home from school before I go out and get clothes off the line so I don't have 15 kids come and ask for after school snacks.

Wednesday afternoons is our time to Skype with Lindsy!  It's a bright spot in my week that I look forward to very much!  Sometimes when the internet is bad or it doesn't work to skype, we do a phone call or just voice text back and forth :)

Kenny, the neighbor boy and Orrin's friend, comes over to play.  The kids eat afternoon snacks together.  Someone comes with produce to sell and I buy some bananas, peppers, or some fruit to make juice.

David has people come to his office too.  People wanting a job at the hospital, or a little work to help pay for something, asking for help paying for their kids' school or a loan to start a business.  He sometimes calls me to see if I have a little job that someone can come do.  Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

Wednesday nights are English Church, each family takes turns deciding what to do - for instance what sermon to listen to, or if we will do a Bible Study, or having a singing.  The kids do Sunday School on Wed evenings.  Usually D and I take turns going to church, and one of us stays home to put kids to bed.  Orrin just started going to Sunday School, he's been twice, but I'm not sure if he's old enough.  He enjoys the lesson and project, but he's not so keen on singing the songs he doesn't know yet beforehand.  So we'll see how consistent his attendance is.

Thursday -
I want to start off by saying, Orrin going to school was one of the best ideas ever.  It is so so good for him and us!

Cassia spends the morning having fun - drawing outside with chalk, we read more books, she plays a few toys.  When she goes down for her nap, I may go outside and sit in the sun and have some quiet time.

David does a walk-through of a project with Linonce - this time it is about putting in a shower for "patient family housing" (aka Ronald McDonald Homes).  He works on fixing a security light.

At noon when Orrin comes home, I bring the laundry inside in case of rain.  Now there is laundry spread all over our room to finish drying.

The kids and I go to the "Red Door Depot" where we have supplies for missionaries, the hospital, guest house, etc.  It's like shopping for free :)  Today we go up for some napkins, and while we're there, we clean up a little.  The Red Door is my "job" now, but doesn't take too much work, just cleaning, organizing, and ordering for the containers.

David goes and looks at a project with the masons to get them started on a project (prep for a work team coming in a few months).  There are also emails to check and respond to, supply lists to create for the work team to bring, and making sure that things are ordered for the next container that comes so things are here for when the work team comes.

We locked the gate in the afternoon so we could avoid having to go to the door so much.  I've found that early morning and late afternoon/suppertime are the busiest. It doesn't stop people from knocking on the gate, which just makes it almost harder because then you have to walk all the way out there :-P  I told the kid who came knocking on the gate that he couldn't play in the yard this afternoon.

The kids play bubbles and chalk and playdough.  We hear Agape fly over.  Mail tonight!!  To make it though the last hour before daddy gets home, and so I can make supper singlehandedly, we play hide and seek.  Greatest game ever.  The kids go hide and will stay in one spot for like 5 minutes before I come "find" them.

After supper, we sing, Orrin recites some Bible verses, then D and the kids go pick up Agape (thanks to Joan who usually goes to town on Thursdays to get it), and we open packages.  Even though most of it is for the Hospital, Orrin still has fun looking at everything and exclaiming how cool everything is.

After the kids shower, I love how they come out all wrapped up in their towels, and want to snuggle :)

In the night, Orrin comes into our room and complains that his sheets aren't soft.  Which makes it kind of hard to believe him when frequently I find him like this in the mornings....

Friday -

It hasn't happened for a few months, but the men here used to have a Bible study each Friday morning, around 6:30 in the morning.  It is something that David has really enjoyed.  Seems like things have just been a little crazy since the hurricane....and there's a dwindling number of men here now to have a Bible study!

Madam Ino comes today, and cooks spaghetti with deep fried bacon :)  We make bread together, since the person who used to make bread hasn't made it since the hurricane - so I have learned.  Some Fridays, I'm going to send Cass up to her house so I have some time alone!)  I work on making a market list for Madam Ino so she knows what to buy on Saturday.

David goes and fixes a door in the OR, or looks at an electricity problem.  He tries to figure out what to do about a medical supply that is completely out of stock in the depot, and of course now is the first he's heard of it.  Can it wait until next Wednesday when the driver goes to Cayes to pick up supplies?  Can it even be found in Cayes?  In country?  At lunch, he is late because of person not showing up on time for meeting.  Time just isn't the same here....

After Madam Ino leaves, Orrin wants to do bread dishes, and Cassia plays in sink.  We work on Orrin's activity - making salt dough figures today!  Then the kids play outside.  I put them in the shower, plug the drain, put some bubbles in, and they play.  I clean the bathroom.

The hospital "closes" at 2pm on Fridays, so a lot of times, D tries to come early.  Today he's home at 3pm.  It's our way of compensating for the loss of his 24/48 Paramedic schedule :)

There's a water problem on campus.  He takes kids on the 4wheeler to try to find the problem.  After supper, I go to VIC (a singing group at church) to practice.  Sometimes there is practice, sometimes not :)

As a side note, I used to go up to the OR on Wed and Friday mornings, but I'm not doing that anymore.  There were several reasons, staff changes, and the thought that since I'm not a nurse, they could get in trouble with the public health dept if they trained me.  While it was a "social" experience, it wasn't enough for me to keep doing if I wasn't training.  There was lots of stress, lots of studying, and lots less that got done at home.  So, while it is hard to not be there, I am relieved to be a lot more "free" and am enjoying being unemployed ;)

Saturday -
At home, we have a leisurely morning.  The kids wreck the house.  We make pancakes for breakfast.  Do a load of laundry.  Madam Ino comes and brings market items.  We lock the gate, listen to music, and watch the kids wreck the house some more.

David sometimes has some little project to do up at the Hospital, and takes Orrin along.  Or there's the fix-it projects around the home, spraying for bugs and little critters, etc.

I take an hour or so locking myself in our room to have some quiet time to read the Bible, or sometimes take a nap :)  Cass takes a nap, and David starts the next week's Bible lesson with Orrin.

Front gate chicken and glass bottle Coke for lunch - perfect.

David cooks supper, I plan menus for the next week or two.

About once a month, we go to the beach and spend the day getting away and relaxing in the sun and sand.  It is generally a needed trip away.

Sunday -
We are always ready for church an hour early here.  Why does that not happen back in the States where it really matters? :-P We go to church from 9-11.  Sometimes David takes Cassia home early to take her nap.  It is David's turn on Sundays to have some quiet time by himself.  In the afternoon, we listen to another sermon.  Sometimes we get together to have an English service if we have a team and a minister.  The rest of the day is usually spent at home.  Sunday afternoons are a good time to skype with grandparents too!

As I read this, it kind of sounds like we have a pretty well organized week.  Well, this is only an example.  There's a lot of craziness that goes on here, that's for sure....but that's our life!