Quickie

Not a whole lot to update on, but i feel bad that i havent been writing more. Things are still going well... i am slowly but surely learning more spanish, still a major struggle to understand the nicaraguan accent. Today was gretchen's last day teaching with me at the school :( Sad of course because her days in nicaragua are numbered, and sad because i wont have her to hang out with. But at the moment i am more scared at the fact that she will no longer be at school. No one really knows, but the guess is that the nicaraguan preschool teacher that has been there the whole time has quit. She was there 1 day by herself last week and told the director she was a bit overwhelmed, then she just stopped showing up. So it looks like i am going to be the only teacher... which is terrifying! i love the kids and i know that this will give me a chance to really test myself and work really hard on lesson plans outside of school . But even with lesson plans, i fear i cant do this alone. Not just because i know that it will be overwhelming having 11 2-4year olds on my own with the language barrier and their craziness, but also for safety reasons. There are a lot of hazardous materials around the school and small children, that if not watched carefully, will try and run away. many other safetyand sanity factors that i wont go into make me a bit fearful. All i can do is arrive on mnday and hope for the best! wish me luck

Goodness me!

Goodness me! It sure has been awhile.... Had a bout of sickness that had me out for about a week and a half, went on 2 weekend getaways, and the last 4 times i have tried to write a blog the power has cut out. So hopefully this time is lucky number 5.

Still absolutely in love with Nicaragua and my Nicaraguan family. My host mom left on June 15th for San Franscisco and returned July 14th. My host sisters and brother got along quite well, but it's definitely good to have her back! I should let you all know that i am becoming quite the nicaraguan cook! Ive prepared gallo pinto, a special kind of chicken, fried tortillas filled with cheese, various natural juices and an iced dessert made from my favorite fruit down here called Momones. I made a couple new friends here and the 3 of us went to the beach for a weekend and tried surfing... didn't do so well, but glad i tried. The next week a new girl from Michigan moved in with gretch. Her name is Erin and she was a wonderful addition to life here. The 3 of us took time another weekend to go to the beach and had an absolute blast. Having her here was very interesting. She actually had a similar experience to what i thought i was going to have. Her mom is actually battling breast cancer that has spread to her liver. It was nice to be able to have someone to talk to who understands life with cancer. Unfortunately, Erin had to cut her trip short due to an emergency back home.

Work has been very challenging, but also very rewarding. I feel like we've been able to find a routine that seems to work and keeps the kids at a good energy level. Still gets overwhelming having 9-25 kids to try and entertain/make sure are safe. Plus, working 7 hours a day in nearly 100 degree weather can be quite wearing. But i still love it and enjoy being able to work with gretch and have someone to bounce ideas off of. That's all i have time to write at the moment. Hopefully i will be able to write soon. I apologize for not writing some of you back sooner/at all. Things are crazy and electricity is sparse. But i love you all and hope all is well!