Brother's 3rd Birthday

On Saturday the little beaner boy turned 3 years old. We celebrated with a party. I'll share some photos and let you in on the fun we had. The day started at about 6am with cleaning and decorating. Putting up the pinata stakes and washing and filling the pool - which took about 3 hours to fill only half way!

Guests started arriving about 11:30. Our invites said 11, but we knew no one would show at the appointed time. A few showed at 11:30 and then most of the people came around noon. Just in time for lunch. Good timing!

Papa ordered Chinese for the adults and pizzas for the kids. I didn't have to do any cooking. Yes! Thanks dear.

The kids all seemed to have a great time. The pool was a hit and even when it started to rain, it didn't stop the kids from swimming. There was no lightening so no reason to stop them from their fun.

He got a big car and a truck. He loves them both.

His truck when he opened it carried around that thing on his head like he was showing it off to everyone.

Papa arranged a balloon game. I don't really understand how it worked, but you basically pick a number and then you get a balloon. There are all kind of balloons on the board and the hope is to win the BIG balloon. Turns out that balloon had a hole in it anyway.

Here is Brother and his new friend Julian. He is also a 1/2 and 1/2 kid. His mom is American and dad is Honduran.

Here is the Cars pinata before

Here is after during the candy raid

My Girl Dances The Punta

In Sister's 4th grade class they have divided into groups to present different cultures. Sister's group is presenting the Garifunas. Sister loves to dance and so her and another girl volunteered to present the style of dance known as Punta.

Here is a video of the girls practicing and of course little Brother had to get in on the fun. The kids looked adorable but I have to admit that Sister didn't do too bad for a little gringa! I told sister I was going to send the camera to school so her teacher could take another video.

A Haircut For Brother

Brother hates getting his haircut. It's like trying to get a cat to go into a bath. It is not easy and torture for everyone. We tried to bring him on Sunday after church to a cute barber shop where they have little cars for seats for the kids. So cute. Tried to bribe him with candy. Nope. He was not having it and was starting in with a melt down in the shop so we decided to leave. We stopped at another store in the mall that sells kids toys. They had this really cute tool sets. Brother was so excited about the tools we decided to try the bribe. We would buy him some tools if he got his haircut. That was it. He agreed. So the next day Papa brought him in. We had talked about how much we like his hair long but the length was getting bad so he at least needed a trim. I suggested buzzing his hair since he hates getting his haircut so much then he could grow it out for a long time. Papa was hesitant so when he left I told him to do what ever he felt was best. I would be okay with anything. Just get it cut.

The buzz seemed like the better option. The picture above is from this last weekend while in the car, the kids stayed occupied with the mobile DVD player (thanks lita and tia!). Below is a slide show of some photos I took this morning with his new tools he earned for being a big boy and getting his haircut. He looks so grown up and he seems to really like having all that hair off his face. You can actually see all his facial expressions and they are so adorable! Papa and I also agreed that now that he has his haircut he actually looks a bit like me now. I love it. And I know we can let it grow for a good long time now.

Here's A Little Catch Up

Life here in Honduras has been moving along at a steady pace. I can't believe it's been about 8 months we've been living here now. Being that I now have a job, I've been feeling less cooped up, you could say. It's also starting to get hot around Honduras so it's nice to get out of this concrete oven we live in for a short escape at work.

My Teaching Job
The job teaching English has been going good. I've been hearing good feed back anyway about my teaching skills. I do like it and find it a good challenge. But there are two major issues with the job. The company I work for doesn't pay well and the time it takes to get ready, spend money on gas to get to work and the cost for childcare makes my "take home" pretty measly. That and I also hate being away from my kids and husband for a big chunk of the day. It really makes the job a lot less appealing. Papa says he misses dinner together at night too.

But who knows. I'm going to see if they would be willing to up my pay and maybe I'll stick around. If not, I'm going to see if I can pick up some students to tutor in English. So if you know someone around here wanting English lessons- send them my way.

The Maid Situation
Lets see...Ah yes. Our maid that I mentioned in my last post. We brought her back. Her name is Melinda, btw. We did attempt to find someone else. We called a girl highly recommended, but after talking with her on the phone, I guess you just need to figure that, "I'll get back to you" = no.

After debating the issue for a few days and weighing all the feedback we got from everyone, Papa and I talked to the maid's parents and sat down with Melinda too and gave her a second chance. I guess Melinda's father gave her a pretty harsh talking to, too. The first few days she was back, she was a little uncomfortable, but now seems to be back to her usual self. Laughing and talking. The one thing that helped us make the decision to bring her back, was that our son seems to like her and she likes him. They play and laugh. It's cute.

It's A Zoo Out There
On another note, I got into a small fender-bender a few weeks ago with the car. Papa was not happy. Maybe you saw me mention it on twitter. I rear-ended someone who I didn't see stop. Yeah...it basically cost me my whole months salary to get it fixed. But it looks better now than it did before because there was still some damage from my 1st accident. I think Americans have it almost too easy in the states because you can drive mindlessly. I remember driving places and arriving to my destination and thinking..."was I even watching the road?", "How did I get here?" The roads are wide, open and clear in the states for the most part. Cars usually stay in their lanes and drive at a fairly consistent speed. People don't make frequent sudden stops and theres not cars jetting out in front of you causing sudden breaking. In Honduras you better drive with both hands on the wheel and keep your eyes on the road and what's in front of you. Stay alert! I think that is where I have trouble. I think I forget I need to stay so alert.

Places to Go
We made it to the beach last week. It was a perfect day. I brought the camera and didn't take one photo. Sorry. A friend came along with her two adorable kids and it was a very good day.

I went out a few weekends ago with some girls I met. I also have made kind of a little chum at my job. It's nice to have some girlfriends to hang with. My girls back home can never be replaced, but no matter where you go, I think a girl needs girlfriends. Very important. So we went out and hit the town. Okay we went to one place and stayed there all night. But it was fun and we all danced our tails off. It was a-lotta fun! I felt 25 again.




Brother Updates
Brother graduated from potty training a few weeks ago. It was a bit of a struggle at first. He wouldn't put his "big boy underwear" on but we also would not put a diaper on him. So he ran around naked for a few days. After he wet himself he realized he did not like that and begged and screamed for his diapers. I told him diapers are for babies and had him help me (he watched me) put a diaper on a stuffed animal. He didn't like it at first. He screamed and was very upset at me. He wanted his diapers. But the next day he decided that mama was right; diapers are for babies and started letting us put his underwear on and he would tell us when he had to go. He now refuses to wear anything but his big boy underwear and is bringing himself to the toilet. I''m so proud of him! But the best thing is...no diapers to wash!! Thank heavens for my pila. They are invaluable, in my opinion.

Sister Updates
Sister has really been making leaps and bounds on her language skills. She is understanding a lot more now and I've seen her react to instructions given in Spanish or she will respond in English to what she hears in Spanish. I've been encouraging her tutor to get her to speak more now. Sister also has been picking up a lot of Spanish at school. Her friends seem to be pretty good with trying to help her speak more. They understand that she needs to learn.

I didn't mention this before, but we hired a woman in the neighborhood a few blocks from us that drives her kids and one other kid to school. I was a bit hesitant at first to hire this woman. Mainly because I didn't like that she was charging us so much even though she would be bringing her kids to the school anyway. She's charging us about $50/month which is almost the total cost of gas. We could hire a bus service to pick her up for less, but she would be picked up very early. So paying a little more has worked out well and Sister has fun with the kids she rides with and they too help her with Spanish.

Language
I on the other hand, am still in desperate need of Spanish lessons. I tried to study from the computer with some of the free programs out there on the web. I tried to read my Learn Spanish books. I don't know what I need because everything I do on my own puts me to sleep. Literally. And I don't retain anything. It's like I read it and forget it. At least that's how I feel.

Papa Updates
Papa has been working really hard. What else is new? Ha! I wish there was a magic formula to make his business grow like we want it to. But the systems here are so backwards and literally no one is consistent or is dishonest with their business practices, which makes it very difficult. Papa's joy definitely is in his family. He might have a very stressful day, but he always has room for love and play for the kids and wife.

That's All Folks
I could keep on writing but I'll stop this post here. Just wanted to catch you up on some things.

Mittens

Mittens, originally uploaded by Honduras Sprout.

Poor brother had to have a time out. I was making salsa and one of Brother's favorite things to do is watch mommy cook. I was probably busy cutting tomatoes, I can't remember. I look over and see Brother, knife in hand, cutting open the jalapeño pepper. He has been scolded before with trying to play with knifes. Of course he wants to do what mommy is doing. Well, he got a time out with some little make shift mittens (socks) to wear to make sure he kept his hands away from his eyes after cutting up the hot pepper. He was not happy you can tell. It's hard to be 2.

Swing Batter Batter, Swing!

Brother Sprout is such a boy. Well, of course he's a boy but he loves all things boyish. I wasn't raised with brothers so I haven't seen it first hand. It tickles me to see this little man running around the house. He loves big trucks, motorcycles, sports and all kinds of shooting and gun play, running, finding bugs, digging in dirt, mud, sand, rocks or whatever as long as he can dig it, scoop it, scrape or hit it. Preferably with tools. Papa's tools are his favorite.

Lately he is loving baseball. The kids all play soccer in the neighborhood and Papa is a soccer player too and loves to get out there and play with the kids. But for some reason Brother has found he just loves his bat and ball. I cannot tell you how many pitches I've thrown lately. He is always got his bat in hand and begs with those big brown eyes, "Pay wih me, Mommy. Pitch it, Mommy. Pease."

Here he is playing with Papa and you can tell he is like every other boy. Hates to miss. But he keeps on trying and sometimes he sends one sailing. Pretty good for a 2 1/2 year old, I think.

Naptime for Brother

I know I have been a bit behind on updates from the Sprouts in Honduras. But October is proving to be a busy month with both my parents and Papa's mother visiting! I will try to catch up soon.

But until I get some good posts written, here is a cute video I took of Brother a few weeks ago while he was eating lunch. He thinks I am taking his picture and is trying to keep a smile on his face and his eyes open! You can tell it is somebody's naptime.