Roasting a marshmallow using a toothpick and pliers.  

Hello Chai! 

Our makeshift grill 

My man. :) 

We live here? Sometimes it's hard to believe! 

The view from one of our day hikes a few weeks ago. 

Mrs. Peterson and her class 

12 weeks down... almost

At the end of this week, we will have been in school for 12 weeks, a full third of the school year. We'll also have been here for 3 months on Thursday, and then we go back to Chicago in less than a month after that for Christmas. Yes, time flies, but most of you know that firsthand already. Classes continue and Teresa won the "Teacher of the Month" award for October and I am so proud of her (As you can tell, I don't teach language because that is a run-on)!! The rainy season has begun and it has poured almost two days straight, leaving us without water for a while, and very dirty water now... so dirty, in fact, that we didn't want to do laundry in fear of making our clothes dirtier and even worse, that you can't really tell if you flushed the toilet or not by looking.
The rain here is not like Midwest rain. It's like someone flips a switch and it's suddenly a torrential downpour (we've gotten 10-12 inches in the past two days). Then, just as suddenly, it stops. Our plants are loving it, though!
Chai is continuing to grow and play. She's still little and she bites a lot. We're trying to train her. We give her toys, but she likes being around/ on us continually- even if we're in the bathroom. Any tips, Ashley? Well, that's all for now. Next week is Thanksgiving! Yay! We'll send picture of our American feast.
Peace,
Us

The D.R. in the fall. 

Me at the pie eating contest (sorry, we didn't have time to rotate it) 

The Thai girl and the pirate 

Fall is here... or not

I miss fall...not that I don't like the warm weather. But I miss the leaves changing color and the smell of autumn. The past week has been good and busy. On Friday afternoon we had our school fall festival. This year's theme was, "it's a small world." Each classroom dressed up as a country/culture. My class was Thailand and Daniel's class was pirates. There were pony rides, chicken catching, three legged races, bag races, pie eating contest (that I somehow ended up doing as my students chanted my name), dancing, etc. It was a lot of fun to hang out with the students. On Saturday we, along with 7 other JCS/ 1 Escuela Caribe Staff went to Sosua beach. It was wonderful and relaxing. Then we drove back and stopped in Santiago at a huge grocery store (it was exciting) and the mall for dinner and a movie. Daniel and I ate Chinese food and watched Cinderella Man. It was such a wonderful day to get away. On Sunday we went to church, ate with some people from church, and went home to get work done, bake bread for the week, and do laundry. That night one some of the other teachers from JCS were having a costume party so Daniel dressed as a Pirate and I dressed as a skater girl. This week has been good so far. The JCS "character trait" for this month is peace (we are going through the fruits of the Spirit) It's so good to teach about it and be reminded about the truths were telling our students. Today I was teaching my students about peace and how we have peace and what peace is (resting in God). We were looking at some verses in Philippians 4. It talked about rejoicing in God, giving thanks, and giving our problems up to Him. I forget that so often. I try to take on all my worries and anxieties forgetting that I cannot control the situations around me. But God is in control and worrying about things won't make them get any better. God's teaching me so much as I teach my students! Yay God!

Hope things are going well for all of you. Love you all!

Teresa

Our Newest Addition

On Saturday night, we were outside our balcony talking to our next door neighbor. A boy walked by the house and threw a kitten into the neighbor’s yard below us. We ran downstairs and that neighbor helped us get the kitten. We took it upstairs into the house and gave it some milk. We’ve been wanting a cat, and decided that this was God’s answer. Daniel ran out to buy kitty litter and food. That first night, the kitten kept hiding from us under the couch. By the next day, she let us play with her some. She soon got used to the house, and us. We’ve been keeping her in the bathroom when we leave. She meows for a while because she wants out. But then when she’s free to roam the house and we’re in another room, she’ll meow because she wants in. She’s very social and likes to be wherever we are.
We’ve posted pictures of our kitten (Chai té, or Chai for short). She’s beautiful and tiny. We love her already. We’ve also included pictures of our house. Hopefully this will give you a taste our lives here. :)

P.S. Ashley- we need tips on how to raise and kitten! :)

Daniel and Chai 

Teresa and Chai 

She matches the floor! 

Chai te- our new cat! Isn't she adorable! 

Our pasola 

The front of the house (ours is the upstairs) with our two balconies. Our deck is to the right of the picture. 

Our bedroom and mosquito net. 

Our family room. 

Our kitchen and vaulted ceiling 

Our "deck" 

Our "car port" area with our pasola. 

Our neighbor's house (about 5 feet away)  

View from our house (2) 

View from our house (1) 

Julie and Teresa at the Beach 

The Peterson's adventures of the week

Last weekend was great- except for the minor accident. On Friday night JCS had a movie night and showed Princess Bride. We helped make and sell popcorn, and had fun as the students watched the movie for the first time. On Saturday we had a soccer tournament between 3 teams. We helped sell food, once again, and had fun being with the students but not being disciplinarians. We took some time during when the other two schools were playing to run some errands. I was driving back to the school on the pesola (Daniel was in the back) when I took a turn a little too quickly onto a wet patch. Our front tire was bald and the pesola slipped out from underneath me and I scrapped my leg against the pavement. It caused a large (but suface) cut. We bandaged it up at the school and watched the rest of the tournament. JCS won! Yay! My wound is doing much better, but there's some bruising on the muscle that makes it hurt to walk far or stand on for a long time.
On Sunday after church we went to play in the River (the cold water felt good on my cut). Then we went to a moving sale of some Americans who were moving back to the States. We found a lot of things that we have been waiting to buy (a small computer desk, mirrors, some cooking things, shelves, etc.) It was truly a blessing.
The rest of this week has been good but busy. Right now Daniel is hiking with Steve Chase (another teacher at JCS) while I am at the Chase's house with Erin. I would have gone, but alas, my leg would not have been happy.
We're slowly adjusting to life here and are enjoying it. Next weekend we are going on a day trip to the beach and Santiago. Yay!
We took some pictures of our house and will send them when we have our computer hooked up to someone's internet.
Love you all! Thanks for all your prayers!

a better week

Well, this week has definitely been better than the previous! We've had water for at least part of most days, and the same for power. We did not have classes on Friday for the end of our six-week block and spent the day filling out report cards, and then going to a river with the rest of the staff to swim and hang out. It was a lot of fun but FREEZING cold in the water and not at all tropical and hot outside. We spent Saturday morning and early afternoon cleaning and cementing up some of the holes in our walls. Later in the afternoon, we went to one of Teresa's student's birthday party and it was a lot of fun. Then we went over to the women's staff house and watched "Finding Neverland." It was very depressing that the key to his inspiration in writing "Peter Pan" was ditching his wife and spending every waking moment with another woman and her kids.
Today (Sunday) it's been cool and rainy, and Teresa has been sick. She rested all day and is feeling a lot better tonight. Thankfully, After-school Supervision is over for Teresa which means we don't have to stay at school 'till 5 every night and can have a lot more time together in the evenings (yay!). I'm also going to start coaching 3rd-5th grade basketball on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons. It should be a lot of fun!!

What a week!

We are continuing to adjust to our new life in the D.R. The thing we both are having the hardest time adjusting to is the water problem. This past week the water was constantly going on and off. On Saturday we started a load of laundry at 7:30 in the morning. Then the electricity went off, then came on and the water went off, then vice versa. We finally finished the load in the evening. Then, to top it all off, the water went off Monday night and stayed off until Wed. afternoon. It's frustrating to see the dishes pile up, the bathroom get very gross, etc. And it's pretty hard to keep things clean here as it is. It's hard to feel overwhelmed at work and come home to a dirty, waterless home. To add to it, our phone has stopped working for some reason. We can receive calls but not make them.
On a positive note, though, the books finally arrived! After over 1 month of school the books came on Tuesday. Next week will end our six weeks. It's flown by!
Although it's been more tough than I expected, God has taught Daniel and I a lot- about the importance of prayer, the importance of remaining thankful, and the importance of remembering that teaching is not our life's purpose. When I remember that I am here to serve Him, not make all of my students brilliant, my anxiety decreases. It's been hard learning to teach ESL students. But my first priority is to show them God's love as I teach them other subjects.
Thank you all for your prayers- Daniel and I have certainly needed them! We know that the hard times make us realize how much we need God. They also unite us together, and our relationship is growing stronger through them.
On a lighter note, we had another bat visit our house. :) And we're thinking of getting a cat. The zoo continues...