Visitors!!!

Well hello friends!!! I'm so sorry everyone (and Bob;) that I've been away so long. You know I lead a pretty quiet life here and there's not much to write about!

ha

So, June is coming quick, which is not only the end of the school year, but is also the ending month for many terms that are being served by close friends in our big-little expatriate community. So our 5-person house decided to have a dinner party before everyone started to get too busy with goodbye's, packing, and visiting those last minute places during those last minute weekends. We invited about 22 people to come, so from the moment we all woke up last Saturday we began shopping, cooking, and preparing the house for some fun! Around about 12-noon, power goes out. Normally this doesn't stress us out so much because it's been happening once or twice a week for the past few weeks (we believe the dam is low and no one is telling us). Usually we just open our windows for the cool air to come in, read a book, listen to the radio, use the gas side of the stove for cooking, and be SURE that whenever we go into the fridge we know WHAT we're looking for and EXACTLY where it is to let as little cool air out as possible. Well, when you're planning a dinner that has recently changed from 22 people to 24, power sometimes matters, ESPECIALLY when the dinner party is scheduled for, dum dum dummmmm AFTER DARK. We continued with our business, just being careful to stress the importance of the Quick-in-and-out-of-the-Fridge strategy, and sending a few prayers up to the Dear Lord Jesus Christ that he bless us with some power. Let me just pull you from the edge of your seats and tell you the ending, the power stayed off until 11 something the next morning. But don't you fret or frown, although, we did have plans with a borrowed projector and a good movie, and it also would have been fun to see each others faces as we were jovial in each other's company, the party went on without a hitch. We sat around a dozen tea lights, ate the best dinner most of us had had in months (it was done in what I would call a good Presbyterian Potluck fashion), and even finished the night off with an hour of laptop-battery-powered-SALSA (taking full advantage of our Salsa teacher's presence at our party). Our guests slowly trickled out, as the SWEAT continued to trickle down our backs (good thing the lights were off to hide it!). The evening was a HIT, even with the power off. And you may think our 24 guests were the visitors I was referring to in the title of this story...but you're wrong. Let's see how the story continues...

It's about 10 pm, and when you come out of a good gathering with fun people, you're not really ready to sleep right? Well, because I have SUCH a good friend/floormate named Amanda who is so giving that she allows me to use her laptop whenEVER I need it, I had about an hour of battery power left, so I opted to start a movie entitled Brothers Grimm. You may have heard of it, consequently my opinion is that it's that one really bad movie that actors can allow themselves (Matt Damon and the late Heath Ledger*tear*). Anyway, as I began to watch this movie (which is pretty much based on spooky fairy tales) IN the dark, BY myself, I was just a little creeped out. Not so much that I stopped watching the movie, but I had my cell phone close by in case any of those enchanted horses decided to jump out of the screen and eat me too! Well, being in a mood like this heightens your sense of hearing right? Every noise pricks your ears. Normally, you can go through a scary/creepy movie without hearing a scary/creepy sound to satisfy that FEAR and adrenaline inside you. Well, this time was different. I started hearing this SCRAPING sound coming from the opposite corner of my room. So, obviously I would pause the movie (wasting precious battery time) and listen, only to find that the noise had stopped. It happened a few more times, but I was thinking it must just be a bad copy of this DVD. A short while later the power had run out and I shut the laptop, settling in to go to sleep. Still a little creeped out, making SURE to say a prayer to the Lord before I slept, asking Him to make whatever was causing that noise go to sleep so I could just pretend it had gone away, even to pay the price of finding it in the morning. After about 5 minutes of no noise, I said out loud, "THANK you Lord!" and began to drift off. THEN, ALL OF A SUDDEN, I heard rustling in my bathroom (possibly in the wastebasket). And it was NOT quiet enough to ignore. I ssllowwllyy picked up my glasses and put them on my face. I then noiselessly sat up in bed to directly face my bathroom. I then ever so quietly reached for my mini-maglight and shined it directly at the threshold of the open door, knowing that there is NO WAY OUT of my bathroom, except through that door. After sitting for a long, heart beating-frantically minute, I realized I should some how ACT on this knowledge rather than by-stand. I called Amanda. She COURAGEOUSLY came immediately to sit by my side and stare at the bathroom door. We then decided we had to do the inevitable...call Daniel.

Daniel is our day guard. He lives in a small apartment outside of our house, within our gated compound. He is the one who monitors who may come in and out of our gate, friend or foe. He also takes care of our shrubbery and the cleanliness of the outdoors. And he is most importantly...a male. We call him inside quite often to brave the squishing of LARGE insects and the retracting of dead mice from the inside of cabinets (another long story). He is a trusted friend who respectfully chuckles at us during our wimpery, but never the less is ALWAYS there when we need him. Tonight was no different. When he was awoken by my late night apologetic call he rose quickly to the task, Amanda went to let him in and I continued to stare at my enemy's one escape route. Amanda came back to my side while Daniel listened intently to my story, borrowed my flashlight and explored my bathroom. He lifted up everything that could be moved and found NOTHING. It's safe to say he was searching through things for a good 5 minutes. Without any significant discoveries, Daniel went back to his room, Amanda retired to hers, and I finally fell asleep, slightly depressed that I may look like a crazy person and knowing there was SOME kind of critter running around without the license to do so.

When I woke up the next morning, I used what inner strength I had at 7am to pull open my dresser drawers, one at a time. Well, ladies and gentleman, I didn't find a mouse that morning, but I found plenty of evidence (if you know what I mean) that one had been having a little party of it's own that night...in MY DRAWERS!! Also, shown below is a picture of the tie of my favorite LINEN PANTS (you all know how much I love linen!) chewed right off and found in a different drawer from where the pants were located!! This little mouse had GUTS!



Well, needless to say, I spent the entire day cleaning, rearranging, and disinfecting my room. Furthermore, I have NOT seen nor heard any other warm-blooded creatures within my four walls. The positive side is that my room is impeccably clean and God found a way to keep me awake at night if I were ever to be falling asleep, reading His word. :)

I know this was super long, but it has been awhile, so I had to make up for it right?
hehe :)

At school, I feel very comfortable with the progress my special needs student, his family, and I are making together. My student and I have developed a relaxed atmosphere that really seems to suit him. I now recognize when he's about to be stretched too far and also when I can continue to challenge him. His other teachers and I have tried a few of the suggestions I received from 'my readers' (thank you), with both positive and negative outcomes. His mother and I are corresponding daily in a notebook that he brings home every night, which really helps to inform each of us with how he is progressing either in the home or at school. Suggestions are made from both sides and seriously considered by both parties. My other two classes are going very well. Each of my students finds a way to make me laugh at some point throughout the day. I am so grateful that I have been blessed with them to start off my teaching career. They challenge me, but also accept my mistakes when I make them. Thank you guys!
Ever since my last post, we have sent out report cards and also had an entire week of school wide standardized tests (remember we are an American International School). Also, for my program we went on a retreat weekend to a hotel called Afrikiko. It's a beautiful place, right on the Volta River, that has SO many great aspects including a pool, a great restaurant, CABLE IN THE ROOMS, and my personal favorite, a roaming DONKEY. THAT'S right! It just roams around, standing wherever it wants. Don't be alarmed guests! haha. It truly was a wonderful break.

Something that has been on my mind a lot lately is home. I think because maybe I only have two months left, I'm beginning to think of the people I'll be able to see, the places I'll be able to go, and the FOOD I'll be able to eat! And it's just so close! But thinking of these things are making it harder to focus on all the great stuff that will be happening HERE in those last 2 months. So prayers would be helpful to take away my focus on home, because I'll be there shortly. Prayers to help me live it up while I'm here, so that I can be content to live it up while I'm at home! Thank you for your continued prayers and support! I miss and love you all like the Dickens (why do people use 'the Dickens'? what does that mean?)!
Until next time!!
Love,
Meg