Join us for a pool party!!!

Of course you know I say this tongue-in-cheek. I snapped some photos this morning of the kids playing in our luxurious pool. This is part of the "patio."



The children work their way into the shallow end. No worries about the water being too cold!


Look! They are all touching bottom in the deep end! (Jason and Isata were in town.)

The kids had a ball during this photo session.


This may be hard to believe, but this pool is actually in better shape than all of the others we looked at. The landlords moved into this house in 1991. The pool was only used the first year. It has been empty ever since.


This is a built-in bench on the upper part of the patio. Off to the right (not pictured) is a tomato garden. This whole space was dormant for years until the landlords decided to grow tomatoes to sell.

Again, I share these photographs to try to give you an idea of how different things are here. When this house was presented to us, it was described as a beautiful 5-bedroom, 3 bath, home with a large pool.

What they failed to mention is that parts of all three bathrooms are unusable, the pool is nothing more than a deep hole, several windows are broken out, and the entire place needs an overhaul.

And one more thing, we have water problems AGAIN! Please pray that we can shower tonight. We are hot, sticky, and in dire need of showers.

Another "little" problem that I need to overcome is the shower. The tiles were not installed correctly so everything behind them is rotting creating a horrible smell. Jason said the drain also has a horrible odor so he dumped bleach down it which didn't even phase it.

It is really hard for me to shower in these conditions. I use to look forward to showering. But now it is something I dread. I really need to get over this and am praying with all my might for God's help to do so. Like I said before, everything we do here requires tremendous thought, planning, and problem solving.

I know this is all part of learning to live in a new culture. I look forward to the day when it isn't so hard to do so. I feel like a real whimp! But then I think about my precious friends at home and smile because I know that everyone of them would understand my weaknesses.

On a positive note, having my computer and internet available at home has made a tremendous difference in my day.

I love you all and miss you tons!

Blessings and joy,
Beckie