Boogerman

Our cat Horace died last week. He had been sick for awhile with some sort of virus that caused his to sneeze, but otherwise led a healthy, happy indoor/outdoor life. He had been our pet for about 15 years. It was sad not to be with him to say our goodbyes. We all made acrostic poems for our homeschool writing session. Jane also made an acrostic poem, but refused to let it be published on the blog. I also wrote one, but dedicated it to my mother who turned 70 May 23rd.


The Tube
By Bruce Iverson

H issing at Max and Jane when toddlers.
O vercome, eventually, by their love for him
R esting peacefully now.
A lways my great friend
C uddling with us often
Every cat lovers’ dream, my horsey boy

Boogerman
By Max Iverson

H e was the best cat in the world
One of a kind
Restful and relaxed
An awesome dude
Couldn’t stop shooting boogers
Everybody loved Horace

Apartment by the Numbers

Apartment By the Numbers
A Bit of Whining

0 number of racks in our oven

6 number of slats that dislodge on the back of the couch when you sit on it.

2 number of resident dogs.

48 the number of degrees of the “hot” water in our shower.

6 o’clock the time we need to start dinner or we can no longer see well enough to cook(unless wearing a camping headlamp)

2 degrees F is the refrigerator that freezes all our food

5016 meters high is Volcan Tunguaraha we can see from the roof on a clear day (last eruption 2006).

2 the number of other families living in our “complex”. (all are related except for us; Sister Mary says Banos makes DePere look like Chicago)

3 the number of times we heat up water on the stove to do dishes (camping style)

1 number of slats broken on our bed so no more than 2 people can sit on it or it will collapse.

6-8 number of roosters that crow outside our window at all hours except dawn.
Many breezes that blow the fresh mountain air through the apartment.

3 dishes of food the neighbors brought over to share with us.

1000’s of people who live in Ecuador without any running water (hot or cold)

countless number of blessings our family has to experience such a great opportunity in Banos , Quito and all of Ecuador (although this is not the perspective of all members of the family)

On the Move

We are off to Baños tomorrow a.m. until June 9th. We will be working with a foundation (FUVERESI)that helps disabled people (autistic children, rehab after an injury etc...). HOpefully the internet cafes there work better than in El Centro by our house. I still can´t seem to load pics from the Galapagos. We look forward to catching our breathe and starting a new routine of volunteering, homeschooling and Spanish lessons while in Baños and catching up on communications. Thanks for all the emails, snailmail and blog comments. Even if I have not replied recently; I will soon.
Beth

Seduced by the Enchanted Islands

Just returned from 8 (7 nights and 6 days on a boat)days in the Galapagos and kind of have that post big event blues. Bruce will exude later how amazing the trip was, the following is Max s (unedited)top 5 list from the Galapagos.

1. snorkeling with all the fish, turtles, sharks and rays
2. lounging on the beach and playing with the waves
3. swimming and playing with the sea lions
4. the people on the boat. (the Sweeds the most)
5. hiking and seeing all the lizards, iguanas, birds, and crabs. Oh and the food on the boat was AMAZING

Worst things (1 and only 1)the heat
wishes I wanted to see the Northern islands

Feliz Compleaños a Jane

Jane turns 9 in Ecuador with a birthday party at Pim's Restaurant overlooking Quito.
Maru, the head of our school in Quito and 2 of her children Victoria and Christina celebrated with us as well as Maria Elena and 3 of her children Julian, Valentina and Maria del Mar.

Although Jane misses her cats, she said it was a great birthday. How can it not be when you wake up early with a smile on your face and a gleam in your eyes?

ole ole quinto c (say) 5C

Max's 5th grade class 5C (pronounced say, so it rhymes in the chant) played an intra-class soccer match against 5A. Max's class won 7 - 0. Max scored two "goalassos" and was very excited. He still maintains he will NOT play soccer when we go back home. I am happy he is playing a less violent sport than American football even if it is temporary. We have also been following Ecuador futbol and have adopted our favorite Quito team, Liga. They are 2 points behind Barcelona (Guayquil, Ecuador not Esagna) vying for the national title. We are also preparing to watch World Cup Soccer starting in June. Most of the nation will stop to watch games. Even though Ecuador did not qualify this year, several South American teams did.

Girls are not just cheerleaders;they have their own tournament. Jane's class played Monday, but she was so unexcited she didn't tell us. Her team beat another 4th grade class 2-1. The only information I got from her was that she was on the field for the game.

April Showers

¡We are definitely in the rainy season! It rains in Quito at least once a day and not just a light drizzle, but a torrential, soaking, street-to-rivers downpour. Everything is greening up after the dry first part of "the rainy season". They had power outages in Quito before we arrived because it hadn´t rained enough. Not sure if they have some sort of hydro electric power. . . I do know that in Mindo the power went out because they had too much rain. Go figure. There is a reason I never went into engineering.

We are finishing up our teaching/schooling stint at Colegio Letort in Quito. We will teach/attend school trhough the end of Aprili. While neither Max nor Jane are sad bout this, we can tell their espagnol has improved vastly as well as unexpected bonuses like Jane's beautiful cursive which is stressed here much more than her MN school. Max loves playing soccer at recess and is enoying being challenged by some difficult math. Bruce and I also are enjoying our classes and experiencin g a school in another culture/country. It is amazing how similar things are between our schools and the Quito school rather than diffferent. Students are pretty much students everywhere. Teachers too feel overworked and underpaid. A difference in the students here that surprised me was the lack of orderliness at lunchtime (no lines, just pushing to the food) and the sometimes complete dismissal of teacher redirecting. I think much of this is cultural as there is a general lack of lines in Ecuador and an impulsiveness that makes our American students seem fairly disciplined. A difference I do like is teachers and students both wear uniforms. I think it would be nice not to have to think about your clothes for the day.

We hear spring has been gorgeous in the heartland. Enjoy. We miss you all
Beth