February is almost over! It has been a really enjoyable month. Much more relaxing than January. Of course we had our real life moments where we tell ourselves “only in Bangladesh.” Like when the air quality remains steadily on the top of “world’s worst air” list.π€’ I think the clean Kansas air will burn our lungs.π the smog has been really bad the past month. Sometimes I wonder if I should even hang my clothes outside to dry with the bad air and dry season dust. But I do anyways because like my brother says “we don’t die that easy.” We’ve been in Dhaka all month and it feels so good to catch up on things and get back into a routine that lasts longer than a few days. Although I will say after being gone so much in December and January it takes some getting used to being home all the time.
Lonnie and Lanette Koehn and their three girls from Lobelville arrived February 15! We are so glad to have them here with us. Plum tickled would probably be a better description.π They have been working through jet lag and started in on language class. Paninna is teaching their class. So far their class hasn’t been on a real schedule because Paninna’s brother Gorge is getting married March 1 and once the wedding is over than they will have class 5 days a week. It’s given them time to sleep, rest and get their senses in order. Which if anyone has ever been to the mission, sometimes it takes awhile to do such after arriving. Madison and Jaira and Annslie come over and spend the morning with us if their parents have language class on Saturdays, otherwise Annslie just comes during the week for all morning. It’s been so so good for my children to have other kids to play with. For sure Shania! She’s been the only pepper in the pot for far too long. Her and Annslie are 3 days apart in age. It’s been fun talking to another mom that has a wide age gap between children. Bless Lonnie’s hearts they are the first couple to spend two months here in Pink City since we moved. So there’s been a few kinks to work out at the guesthouse. Of course things decide to break right when they come. Toilets don’t flush, showers don’t work properly and then the generator switch blew one night during a rain storm then the power blinks and blinks. Guess they are getting a crash course in Bangladesh life. They haven’t asked to fly back home yet so they will be good solid stock to have around. In April we are looking forward to taking them to Khulna and showing them the place where they will be staying! π₯°One evening Doyle’s and Lonnie’s came over for supper and we had a “get to know you” evening. It’s been along time since we had one of those. It is really fun to be three couples again. Feels like a more rounded out group! It’s been such fun taking them shopping and showing them places. It’s my favorite thing about being the Dhaka couple is we get to host the new missionaries and any company that comes through. Doyle’s parents flew in the last week of this month and they are planning to stay for almost a month I think. Doyles brother Victor flew in a few weeks ago so he has been here awhile already.
Clinic is busy as usual! Had a big girl come in for rhinoplasty. One day 7 cleft lip babies came. Jared met Dr Thaddeus May from the states one Friday when we were in UniMart. He is here doing some sort of research at the hospital where we take the children for their vaccines. Very friendly fellow!! Him and Jared message each other every so often, and he’s sent several cleft lip/palate babies to our clinic. He was very enthused about our program. It is indeed a small world, found out he is from Texas but he grew up in Kansas City. he went to Eastern Mennonite University. He wondered where we had went to college at and we told him Hesston College! Both of those colleges are like “sister colleges.” He said his friends went to Hesston! It’s rather humorous when we meet up with fellow Americans at UniMart, it’s so enjoyable visiting. Can hardly talk fast enough.
Shania is her usual boisterous bimbo self. Her and Annslie are learning to play nice together which can be quite a chore for two toddlers. I’ve always wondered what it would be like to have twins and now I’m finding out.π She has definitely started talking more since Annslie came! Now she says “mom” when she needs something.l instead of just whining. She wants to spend every minute of the day outside. She loves to walk along the median and pick flowers. The pink city maintenance men have noticed this and if they are out working along the road when Shania and I come by, they stop and pick a flower and give it to her. Of course she is all grins which is just what they are hoping for! Shania would eat all day if I let her. Anything… pretzels, Cookies, tomatoes, apples. The other day someone had dropped crumbs on the floor and I noticed her going around carefully picking them all up and eating them. Good for the immunity. She is starting to get quite vocal about somethings. If things are in a disarray in the house or outside she says “MESS.”π Hard to believe she is almost two. She has gotten so tall the past weeks. Went to Farmgate and got more fabric for some more dresses. Thought I had had the tailor put a generous hem in her last group of dresses but next time I will need to do it abit more! When Annslie comes over we spend a lot of time outside walking up and down the streets. I get asked if they are twins. They both have blonde hair and are the same height. Annslie has big brown eyes and Shania has big blue eyes. π
Layton is LOVING school with Lonnie’s two older girls. Shana did two days of school with just Madison and Jaira. She wanted to kinda get a feel for how they learned and where they were in their books. Layton could hardly stand it. He said “I bet they are having so much fun with Shana.”π I quickly reminded him that after two days his turn to go back to school with Shana would come too. He is really into audio books lately. Spends hours listening to them. His latest favorite was “Charlie and the Chocolare Factory.” Never mind that Shana had just read it to him for story hour. Now he is working his way through Laura Ingalls Wilder books. One day he said “mom, panthers aren’t alive anymore are they?” I smiled, because I had that exact same fear after reading those books as a child. Layton has been doing so good with reading out aloud. Been doing our best to have him read us a story in the evenings. Just proud as punch over everything he is learning in school. Him and his friends continuing to make a lot of unholy racket and do strange activities in the afternoon. The latest is using their water guns and trying to squirt the neighbors two ankle biter dogs through the fence. Sometimes I tell them to stop and sometimes I don’t. They are very annoying dogs at timesπ One day Ritou brought over light up swords and Layton and him literally spent 3 hours riding up and down the streets on their bikes pretending to be guards. Layton has tried to tell Madison and Jaira all about his future dairy he is going to have with half angus cows. They aren’t quite as enthused as he is. Haha! Layton really likes the games they play at recess. I told him this is a good taste of what Kansas school will be like.
The weather has been so gorgeous lately. I send the children out to play and I take a walk every chance we get. Feels like we shouldn’t waste this nice weather. I tell Layton that in a few weeks playing outside won’t even be an option when it gets hot. I’ve been getting up at 6:30 and going and taking a walk and it’s still chilly that early. The other ladies that are out walking are all bundled up in their shawls and burkas and here I am in my short sleeve dress and my flips.
Shana got her security clearance! Which means she can get her work permit. Jared submitted her application right after the government fell here. He wonders if the reason it went through so fast is because there was probably no foreigners submitting applications since most of them left the country. Not one word has been heard about Jared and Doyle’s visas. So for now at least Shana and Lonnie are legal here. Jared is getting Lonnie’s name added to all the accounts and papers before his visitor visa expires so that way it cuts back on some of the problems we have been having.
Well ok enough blabbing… Thanks for all the messages you all send. They are always very much enjoyed! Sounds like in March they will be looking for our replacements. We aren’t getting our hopes up because there are always so many ASAP needs and not enough names. “God knows” is what I tell myself when the unknown wants to make me feel insecure. Shana plans on teaching Layton some second grade before she leaves in case we need to stay longer.