We said goodbye to Linda today, which means we've been in Jamaica for four weeks. My dad will stay for the next week and then a string of other family members and friends will come to visit and help out with Caleb. I remember traveling when I was younger and always saying - I'm going to keep doing this all my life, and when I have kids, I'll just bring them along on my adventures. As I got older and actually had a child I quickly realized that this dream would not be as easy as I had once thought. I know now that without the incredible support of my family and friends I couldn't have made this trip happen, and I truly appreciate it.
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| Seeing Linda off |
Our first month has been full of wonderful experiences, some more challenging than others. Two animal encounters have been particularly tough. As in all developing nations, Negril is full of stray cats and dogs. I knew they were malnourished and I had already begun throwing scraps to the many cats that come running every time we ate a meal on our patio. However, I have now seen two tiny kittens who have starved to death. It broke my heart and we all make sure to throw something to the cats each day. I haven't adopted one yet- but I can't promise that I won't be coming home with a little kitten in my bag (maybe Beaker needs a friend, John and Maureen?!?).
During our first week we noticed some flying ants in our apartment. I wasn't too bothered by them, until one evening I had to admit it was no longer 'a few ants' but an entire swarm. We bought some spray, and hoped for the best. For several nights we didn't see any until one fateful night. My dad was sleeping and my mom and I bravely faced a second swarm. We killed close to 100 ants until I finally saw them emerging from the keyhole in a door. We had a nest inside our home - but at least I now knew where it was. I taped up the keyhole, confident we had the problem solved, but the ants kept coming. I found two more small holes along the top of the door, taped them up and went to bed on high alert. The next morning the maintenance man came to remove the door. I was very, very grateful that my dad stayed behind because once he had the door unhinged he said - 'Ok, now I'll just leave the door in your closet'. Whaaat??? My dad made sure the door was gone - far, far away from our apartment - and thankfully, we haven't seen one flying ant since.
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| Black-necked stilts resting on a fishing boat |
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| A farmer's hut we found on a path leading down to the ocean |
One month down and three to go. Only two more months until I get to see my husband. Time will continue to go quickly and I can't wait to experience every single moment - all the ups and all the downs.
1 comment:
I feel so lucky to have been able to spend an entire month with you and Caleb. I loved Caleb's and my routine of our little "chats" in the lobby and doing our "school" work in his sticker books. Also playing in the shade on the beach each morning waiting for the fruit, bread and DONUT vendors to come along while you and Greg were out working in the hot sun! I had lots of happy surprises-especially how nice the people were and how good the food is both in the restaurants and roadside stands. Wish I could have stayed until you come home!
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