Green

When you arrive in England you notice right away, even in the dead of winter, that everything is green. How can it be so green here when Georgia turns brown through the winter? It's the rain of course, plenty of it that keeps the hills so lush.

England is also green in another sense, the recycling, reusing department. For instance, you are only allowed a certain amount of trash. Just last year a family was fined because they had too much trash. Are you picturing hordes of rubbish piled along the road? How bout one overflowing wheelie bin and not the jumbo wheelie bins we have back home, think half that size. For some people these are emptied every two weeks, for us it comes weekly. I remember when we first got here Nathan would carry our week's worth of trash bags down to the road; not wanting to appear as a waster, I would always compare our trash amount with other houses. For one week we could get away with four trash bags which has to be an improvement over the curbside trash cans we practically filled twice a week back home and that was just our part - the guys had their own wheelie bin. So what's the deal - is it that we have been transformed and waste less here? I doubt it, for one thing, we recycle lots more - all plastic, carboard, glass and aluminum. And what do we do with that? Well, we keep it in the laundry room until it becomes an unsightly mountain and then I take it down to the grocery store parking lot where they collect all the recycling. Another difference is that they don't package nearly as wastefully as we do back home. Don't get me wrong - they are into appearance too but not to the point of huge amounts of waste being created. I think they are more mindful overall of the environment so they make the inconvenient effort to recycle and reuse.

They use loads less than paper than us like sending home an announcement on a half sheet rather than waste a whole piece. Rarely would the kids have consumable workbooks -instead they copy work into a little blue book type notebook or use white erase boards to do lots of work.

Though I won't be going off the deep end over this issue, it is worth bearing in mind the need to use less and recylce whenever possible.

Sleepover or Wakeover?

Obviously the person who named spend the night parties 'sleepovers' hadn't ever been to one because you really don't get much sleep. Since Dennis had to go to the States for a class I decided this was the perfect time to have a 'sleepover' with the girls in the youth group. The plan was for each of them to bring the assigned ingredients to make a huge batch of beef stroganoff, chocolate cake and salad; enough for us to eat and some to take to a family in the church whose wife is in the hospital with cancer. Dinner was ready around 9:30 - delicious. We then got comfy and watched a favorite movie of my mother in laws, "A Walk to Remember". It was a thought provoking, teenage, tear jerker. Dennis and I had watched it before he left to check it out - he had a good analysis. Imagine if Sandra D from 'Grease' hadn't changed to be like Danny but rather had kept her high standard...and there you start with 'A Walk to Remember'. We did actually get some sleep so that was good and it was another way to get to know each other.

'Nathan, Julieanne and a friend stayed upstairs most of the time watching Kung Fu Panda and eating snacks.

It was very touching when we took the meal to the husband whose wife is in the hospital on the other side of the country, he phoned her and put her on speaker phone saying that each time someone brought them a meal he did that so she could be a part of it. Great idea. He showed me around and then as we said good bye he started cry. He said he's just been amazed how the people in the church have looked after them and loved on them in such tangible, practical ways. How cool for the girls to get to be part of that!

Just enough to know we want to go back

On our way home from the Dominican Republic we stayed over in Paris for three days. It happened to be New Year's Eve day when we arrived jet lagged and ready for a hot shower. This was our first time as a family to be in a country where no one spoke the native language so it took us a while to get from the airport to the train station to get into town. Really it felt arrogant to expect/hope that someone spoke your language in order to communicate. We had a French travel phrase book but it wasn't too helpful in my hands since I thought I ordered a mug of hot water but received hot chocolate. Oh well. Once we got into town we had to scout out a pharmacy for Anna Catherine who had developed an allergic reaction on her face and eyes while in the DR. Communicating in English and gestures we were able to get some eye drops and allergy medicine. We had another stop off at a bakery to buy some chocolate filled croissants.Off to the hotel to shower and sleep before venturing out for the night. Around 8 pm we headed out for a yummy Italian meal and then joined the thousands under the Eiffel Tower to ring in 2009. I was expecting a huge fireworks display in front of the Tower but mostly it changed lighting and there were random fireworks but none rocketing high enough to shower down upon the Eiffel Tower as I had romatically envisioned. Still - it was a once in a lifetime experience and quite cold with temperatures well below freezing. We walked back to our hotel happily crawling in bed at 2 a.m. which was 7 a.m. Dominican Republic time. Would you believe we slept til 1 pm the next day. I don't think I've ever slept that late!

In the frigid temperatures we explored Notre Dame and the side streets surrounding the cathedral. We enjoyed some crepes early in the day and fondue at night. I kept telling my family I had come there just to eat.

The next day was fogging and cold so we decided to take an hour and half bus tour of the highlights but we missed the cut off time due to a long subway trip. We tried the Louvre with huge lines and felt we weren't prepared to do it justice so we chose the Hop On Off Open Top bus Tour. (Dennis did this for me but really it was a bummer) Paris was packed, the buses were crammed, the line at the Eiffel Tower was staggeringly long and with frozen toes we unanimously decided we'd do it later. We were able to see the highlights of the city enough to see how beautifully preserved it is and inviting to return when it is warmer when we can be better prepared in advance and not jet lagged to start with.

It was a teaser, just enough to convince us we'd like to go back.

Christmas in the Dominican Republic

Seeing family only once a year or less made the 10 days in the DR with Dennis' family a treat. Getting to be around cousins and friends while they grow up is one of the things I miss most about living in the States. Dennis' brother, David and wife Gabi flew from NY while Dennis' sister was challenged to fly stand by with a 5 and 2.5 year old from Atlanta, and my mom joined us from Augusta. 5 kids, 8 adults, all opinionated and lively make for a sometimes chaotic, noisy active time. We all looked to Dad and Mom for the constant plan, food, and transportation which undoubtedly had to get tiring. Still it was great to have an opportunity to all be together. We shared the cooking, dishes and clean up which spread the load around.

Mom and Dad had arranged for us to borrow someone's home near the beach to give us a few days there. The view was spectacular but a house built for 6 doesn't stand up too well to 13. One thing we quickly learned while there was that people are looking for any way to make money so as soon as your car comes to a stop at the traffic light, people begin washing your windshield, offering you cell phone accessories, food, gum, etc. One time Dennis didn't have any change and he kept telling the window washer he didn't have any mmoney but the guy kept on thinking that once he was finished Dennis would miraculously come up with money. Really they are just used to people lying to them. He wouldn't take no for an answer and positioned his two sons in front of the car when the light turned green so we couldn't drive on. It seems that there are no traffic laws or at least few that are obeyed. Dad said the rule of the road is "He who gets there first wins." This is the exact oppostie of the polite British drivers we are used to. Another dangerous thing on the road while you are driving with no seatbelts is that there are scads of mopeds loaded down with several passengers, often toddlers sandwiched inbetween their parents or weighed down with deliveries.

The funniest one being a rainy day when a moped had two riders - one to drive, the other to balance the headboard of a bed. Oh and not far behind them was the guy carrying a full grown live pig. These mopeds dart in and out of traffic usually with no lights at night.

When we told people here we were going to the DR for Christmas they were immediately envious imagining us on a lovely resort surrounded by luxury. All I was thinking was sunshine and family. Though Casa Yada and the beach house are a world away from the daily existence of most Dominicans, it is more of a third world country than I had prepared myself for. There is no hot water, electricity can go off at any time, the country is dirty and littered, there are tin house villages along the roads where the orange groves are. Blaring at all hours, their music is happy and energetic but their existence is far from carefree and requires tenacity and hope.

No doubt one of the highlights of our time there was the night about 60 of Mom and Dad's Dominican friends came over. This was especially a treat for Dennis, Shelley and David to hear how loved and appreciated their parents are. They put on a funny skit basically asking why Mom and Dad would want to come and live among them. Several of the people told us Dad did not have three children - he had four - one included them because he has made such a deep and loving impact on them.

There was plenty of time to relax and read while we were away - a most needed break. Dennis even had time to join the throngs of people in the world of Facebook. All in all, it was terrific to see and experience a bit of Mom and Dad's world in the Dominican Republic.