Good news – Nathan’s visa paperwork has now left Honolulu and is headed for Manila, Philippines. This is the last stop before it heads back here to Majuro, Marshall Islands (AND WE CAN GET OUTTA HERE). We are optimistically hoping this will only take 2 weeks (although will likely take longer).
We FINIALLY found a decent, safe beach to play on. We traveled by boat to one of the outer islands and finally had sand, sun and fun. We went snorkeling and saw all kinds of colorful fish (and a few sea creatures!). What a great day that was.
Nathan is doing great. He is eating well & gaining weight. Of course, there is no way to weigh him, but his checks are filling out and his little arms and legs are getting some flesh on them. He seems very happy, other than a little congestion, but looking forward to having him checked out by Dr. Joe when we get home.
Joel is ready to go home. Every few hours, we hear “let’s go home.” He doesn’t understand why we can’t just go back home. Erica loves the sunshine & fun. She bravely went snorkeling and is ready to go again. Our suntan lines will look funny. In the Marshall Islands, women dress much more modestly than we do in the West. No swimsuits in public. We are starting to get used to swimming in our clothes, but it is very different.
I made a chicken casserole the other night, using canned chicken & we devoured it. I think Joel had 4 servings. Of course, I had to throw away the 1st box of stuffing due to bugs in it (very common) and the next box was stale, but we used it. We had 2 small cans of corn and some garlic bread with it. The groceries are so expensive here; Dennis and I calculated that one meal to be around $35.
Our plans upon return to the western world are to
1. Eat at O’charleys (including salads) and
2. Eat Oreos with BIG glasses of milk – lots of cold, skim milk!
We will be spending less time on the internet, as we are paying for by the minute and it is starting to add up quick. We hope to be making plans for home soon; we miss everyone so much. We can’t wait for you all to meet Nathan. We are also very anxious to meet our new great-nephew, Noah, born Dec 17th. This is Justin’s baby. He is doing great and we cannot wait to get ahold of him!!!
We love you all!
Kathy
