Life Lately

We have had a wonderful March and April and thought we would share some glimpses as it happened here in Nicaragua!

 

While I (Cassie) was heading to La Dalia to accompany a medical group for a week, my friend Ariane showed me the top place to buy watermelons in Nicaragua.  Just imagine fields full of watermelon for sale.  I ended up buying ten because they were about 30 cents a piece and absolutely delicious. I will forever be thankful for the experience of having been able to buy locally grown watermelon year-round.

Aleesia recently spent the night at our place.  We headed to a new park the following day and she loved it.  Both of us were mesmerized by the new three story high jungle gym!

Here is achiote, a commonly used spice in Nicaragua.  I have been told that the equivalent is paprika, but am not certain of this.  I saw this tree on a work trip up north and was able to pick a few and bring them back home with me.  We are currently drying them out and are hoping to use them in our cooking soon.

Remember David?  He was our first Nicaraguan friend and MCC co-worker.  Last year, he transitioned to a new position at another local NGO.  We miss his presence at work, but continue to enjoy his friendship.

This is a boring picture of our broom and dustpan, but a great representation of our day-to-day life here.  Maintaining a home here, especially on a dirt road, could be a full-time job.  We are constantly wiping off our counters, dusting, sweeping and mopping.  Finally the other day I asked for help.  My neighbor lady and I worked on wiping down the exterior of our house, getting the dust out of the iron gates over the windows and doors.  After a full-day of work, we were done.  I should do this every month.  It is one tough thing about life in Managua.

Brisa is still alive and well.  She is a sweet kitty, but also has a ferocious side.  We recently had to bring brownies to our neighbors to apologize for the loss of their chickens.  She is now locked inside at night.

We have been enjoying time on our patio during the hot season, it has been over 100 degrees every day for the last month.  The shade provided by our avocado tree is lovely.

Here is a recent picture of our street.  The road, a couple of blocks down from us was recently paved and we are hoping that our road will be next.  It will help with the above mentioned issue of dust.

Miss Ceanna absolutely melts my heart!  I have enjoyed our recent skype dates, seeing her walk and smile.  It helps a bit with the distance.  I cannot wait to celebrate her first birthday with her in May!

 

I have been thrilled to “meet” Maya Song and James Hudson via skype.  In May, I look forward to meeting these two babies in person.  Their mommies are very special friends to me and I am so proud of how they are doing in the transition of motherhood.

We recently had MCC team meetings up in Matagalpa.  We enjoyed our time together and look forward to working with these talented individuals in our last year with MCC.

Our meetings included a day visit to AMC’s projects in La Dalia and El Tuma.  I was proud to show my MCC co-workers the wonderful work that AMC is doing in providing access to land ownership along with sustainable agriculture.  Here is a lovely harvest of carrots.  We even got to eat one!

 

Last Friday night, we headed to a baseball game with our newlywed friends, Bethany and Esteban.  The Managua Boers won against the Costa Caribe and we were reminded how great it is to go out to the ballgame.

We have four weeks left in this semester.  Our Culture of Peace class is going well, the students are very engaged and dedicated to the materials.  They are very participative in the classroom and desire to learn how they can do better promote peace in their communities.

That is a snapshot of our life here.  We hope that all is well is your neck of the woods.

To read other Life Lately posts, check out: November 2014, August 2014, June 2014, March 2014, December 2013, July 2013, November 2012, July 2012