Two More Weeks in Review

We had a very nice couple of weeks. On Saturday Sept. 18 Jeff and the girls drove to Finca Esperanza Verde (where Jeff is temporarily working) and did a nice hike. School was closed for a few days so Sunday we all visited Masaya Volcano National Park and peered into an active, sulfur spewing crater. Fortunately, we left minutes before some decided to through themselves into that crater!  We then went to Managua to renew our tourist visas and due to a series of fortunate events we ended up staying in a fancy hotel with hot water, TV, a swimming pool and no mosquitoes; it was an awesome way to celebrate the three month anniversary of our arrival in Nicaragua.

Emma and Hannah hamming it up at a volcano in an effort to win a photo contest sponsored by their dentist in the USA

Tuesday we went back to Finca Esperenza Verde for some more hiking and school finally started again on Wednesday (thank goodness). Upon returning to school we learned that Emma was one of the top students in her class, with a 98.2% average. It is rude to brag, but we cannot help being so proud of Hannah and Emma who have adjusted so beautifully. Friday was a short school day for the girls as we all went to the city of Dario to celebrate the 20th anniversary of El Porvenir a nonprofit in Nicaragua that Aileen and Jeff worked for ten years ago. It was amazing to see how well the organization is doing and that its unique culture still exists despite some very substantial growth.

Musical Performer at the El Porvenir Anniversary

The following week was a bit slower. The weekend of Saturday Sept. 25 had us stuck indoors due to heavy rain. Power and water went on and off and at some point we lost running water for almost 3 days (fortunately we had water saved up in some barrels). Of course school got cancelled due to the rain because many students do not show up during bad storms. It makes sense that some students do not show up when it rains as they have to cross dangerous rivers to get into town for school. However, the constant school vacations can be pretty frustrating and cannot be very good for the students. Anyhow, the girls passed the time doing their extracurricular activities and playing with their friends.  We also managed to brave the storms and take one of our neighbors out for pizza to celebrate her birthday.

Hannah and Friends Keeping Busy



Birthday Celebration at the Italian restaurant in Matagalpa

The rains subsided toward the end of the week but being stuck inside for many days must have clouded our thinking. We (i.e., Jeff) made the spontaneous and not very wise decision to buy a dog. Our new puppy is called Cuate (Buddy in Spanish). Cuate is 50% Boxer and 100% adorable. The kids love him and are now lobbying to expand the Kositsky Farm with a bunny once our neighbor's rabbit delivers her babies.

Emma, Hannah and a sleepy Cuate

Aileen's work at SOL continues to progress well.  She has finished up one school and is planning the grand opening celebration.  She is now focusing on developing a few schools in other rural communities and hopes to start construction when the rain stops.  Jeff is really enjoying his temporary position at the nonprofit hotel/farm Finca Esperanza Verde.  Despite the fact that this is the slow season, he is keeping pretty busy with a leaky roof, electrical problems, cash flow issues, etc.  We could both tell lots of funny stories about work but choose not to given that our bosses might read this so you will have to wait until we get home to hear them.

Student in SOL's newest school.

That pretty much sums up the past few weeks. Like most of our weeks here, they have been full but mellow and always full of surprises. We are deep into the rainy season so the next month will likely be a bit challenging. However, I imagine Cuate will pose more challenges than the rain!