It's January 21, 2012, and I am no longer sitting in sunny Quito to update my blog. Our three man clan is a little West of home, but home nonetheless. The flight went surprisingly perfect, all things considered (all things being 2 stop overs, a 9 month old, and 19 hours of travel time).
And now here we are, 21 days into the month of January, with a Christmas shindig, a family wedding, and a whole season of Survivor under our belts.
It was sad leaving Quito. We had such an incredible time getting to know the people, the culture, ourselves, and our God. Some of my friends came over the night before we left to throw a party in our honour. It was pretty cool to form such close bonds with people that we had only known for a short 2 1/2 months. They are people with generous hearts, and although a lot of them don't have much, I was spoiled with gifts and food and hugs and a pretty sweet little goodbye party. I miss them.
But being in Vancouver has been good. A little hectic with Christmas and wedding plans nearly colliding, but there has been a nice amount of family time, and it is always a treat seeing James in his natural habitat-- namely, in B.C with Brian. They share a very unique, florbily type of humour, and although Ali and I have our moments of questioning WHO we married, exactly, they make us laugh.
Jesse took a good week to adjust to a host of changes in his little life, and was a bit of a grump butt to everyone. I can understand that a new country, new foods, new faces, new bed and new teeth can be unsettling, but it's been difficult letting him cry it out at night with a house full of people. He'll get there.
James and I were reading up on the 9 month stage, and were pleased to see Jesse developing according to the standards set by a total stranger on the interweb. So, he is figuring out the pincer grip to eat his cheerios, pushing his highchair around the kitchen, climbing up and down stairs, standing unaided for 5-7 seconds, waving hello and goodbye, understanding the word 'no' and experiencing mild stranger anxiety with his Oma :)
The article cautioned parents that now certain things can freak out a baby, like hair dryers etc, so be sure to calm him with a cuddle. I learned that interesting tidbit a little late... my cure for vacuum cleaner freakouts was simply vacuum Jesse until he realized it was fun. And it worked. He now has another toy to add to his repetoire of spatula and turkey baster.
Another bit of good news is that James got his first call to supply teach at his old middle school.
Yay! I'm pretty pumped about it, because James wants to work, and this is a great opportunity for him to try his hand at teaching. It might make for a long day holding down the fort, but I'm getting used to this now, and Jesse IS entertaining. 9 months is a good age.
PLUS my mom and dad are coming out on Wednesday, which is awesome! It took some persuading--we definitely dangled Jesse as bait, but it worked, and their flights are booked.
It will be so good to see them and to show them around this beautiful province. Here's hoping the rain holds off and the sun shines brightly.
We are still unsure about how long we will be here, where we will live, and what we will do, but we are sure God knows, and that is enough.
It is good to be home.
