2/10/2013

     What will I do when I don't blog at night - maybe watch the news or some other depressing thing!
    Went to pick up the kids this morning and they were at the Comado buying crackers for breakfast.  They ran up the road to tell their Mom they were going and jumped in the car with a new little boy.  Had no idea who he was but didn't want to get arrested for kidnapping so called Oglidia to ask about him - turns out he is-guess what - another cousin.  He is darling. A little five year old with a cute smile.  I don't know exactly how they came up with him to go to church with them but it was kind of fun to have him with us.  Gregory took such good care of him.  I have to wonder why someone would send their little boy for the morning with someone they don't even know.  Maybe they didn't even know he was gone - who knows?! 
    They asked me to play for Relief Society.  Believe it or not it is good to play because at least I can help in some way in the ward we usually attend.  After the opening song I went to set down and minutes later heard music playing.  Sort of - a little 3 year old boy was playing the piano.  I hadn't
turned off the electronic piano.  So went up and turned it off.  He just looked a me and two seconds later he had turned it back on and was pushing all kinds of buttons.  So I went back and unplugged it and in my best Spanish told him not to play.  Soon his mother went up and took him out.  I hope she wasn't upset that I turned it off.  These people are pretty laid back and certainly not bothered by noise.
   In every ward that we go to teach or just attend there are always people being baptized or confirmed.  Guess that is fairly normal for here.  The woman from Ogledia's area asked us if we could give her a ride home - she didn't have her kids and the stroller with her.  I have always wanted to pick her up but we would have to tie her family to the top of the car!  She taught the RS lesson today.   We have never seen her husband and today she told us that he works every Sunday.  There are so many men here that work wherever and whenever they can that many are not very active participants in the gospel.  We really miss William.  I wish he could find a job that didn't require him to work on Sunday.
   We got home with half and hour to eat and. repack for the Canastica lesson. Read  scriptures in Spanish on the way out.  I can't believe how tragically sad the end of the Book of Mormon is - no matter how many times I read it.  The class members were a little late coming, which is unusual for them.  Gave Ceasar my English Hymn book because he wanted one so badly.  I'll get another from the distribution center here.  Playing and replaying the hymns makes me  even more aware of how much we can learn from them and how much peace and comfort they can give us.  D&C 12:12  " For my soul delighted in the song of the heart; yea, the son of the righteous is a prayer  unto me and it shall be answered with a  blessing upon their heads."
 Today in class one of the boys asked me if I could play one of Madonna's songs.  It took me a few minutes to realize who he was talking about!  Madonna and a church music class just are not synonymous.  I wish my Spanish was better so I could have had a conversation with them that was not offensive about their music favorites.  Guess teenagers are the same all over the world!
  Left for the Oriental Stake lesson, not knowing if we had one or two lessons scheduled there tonight. We were both exhausted yesterday after the four lessons and hours of traveling.  We figured Hainamosa is like going to Salt Lake, San Cristobal like driving to Bountiful and Oriental like driving to Salt Lake.  That would seem like alot of traveling to do in a day even at home.  Plus 11/2 to 2 hours classes make for a really tiring day.  So at Oriental half of the kids are Young Adults and had a special meeting they had to go to so we only had three left in class.  This class is going to have a recital in a couple of weeks.  Should be interesting.  Though when I listen to them play and know that they previously knew nothing, I just want to cry.  They have all learned so much.  I was so impressed last night as Anderson played for the baptism in his ward.  It is so great to have them be able to take care of their own music needs.  Found out our new class doesn't begin until the 4th of March so we actually got home by 7:00pm or before.  Such a nice break from our usual Sunday!
   
  

    This is what we work with here.  The back of our Rav 4 is filled to the top with keyboards and cords and bags of different music training books and somehow we still manage to forget things constantly!!!

2/8/2013

     Here it is 10:30 pm and I am just starting to blog!  We just got off the phone with Don and Linda McClellan - what fun that was talking to them. We have really appreciated their friendship through many years.  They are planning on going on a mission and will be a great addition wherever they go.
We had two Spanish classes today.  Elder Marino teaches the first one and he grew up in Mexico so he knows Mexican Spanish which is quite different than Dominican Spanish.  He thinks the Dominicans, if not corrected, will have a language all of their own in another 50 years.  It is always comforting to know that even the men who know Spanish can't understand what people are saying here.  You would have to be immersed in their culture to a greater extent than we are as senior missionaries are. Asi es!  We are learning and having fun in class.  Scott teaches the second class and the senior missionaries all think he was a teacher as his profession.  He can teach anything whether he knows it or not!  I just wish my mind was half as good as his. He is starting over with some new couples so it is nice to review the things I have already learned. 
   Here are some pictures from our vacation:

What a wonderful time it was to have these kids (?) here with us!

2/7/2013

      Don't know why but it has seemed like Sunday all day - Sunday never seems like Sunday. It should remind me of the days at home that I spent in meetings for most of the day - but  never spent a twelve hour day doing church work every Sunday.  We are grateful to have work to do and have people to teach so it's all good. 
       Have more work to do on the web site.  I think Sister Johnson is going to do a great job - if I get the information and pictures she needs to her.  Have to set up some situations she wants pictures of.
This Institute class today started at 3:10 with around 10 people there.  By the time class ended we had over 20 people there with four new ones again.  Scott keeps telling the Institute Director that we can't teach this many because we do not have tecladas for everyone but they just keep coming.  As I am sitting behind the piano watching what goes on, I wish I could take pictures.  One of the guys came in a levi jacket and cowboy boots - mind you it was well over 80 degrees.  Then there is this couple that obviously has a relationship out of class because he slumps over and puts his head on her shoulder for most of the class time.  She looks a bit disgusted and tries to move him.  It is hilarious!  The "sleepy" guy that never can stay awake made it to the end of class because Scott called on him to demonstrate 3/4 time.  I would like to know if he works nights or has a sleeping sickness! Towards the middle of the class the door opens and in comes this girl with clown red hair, short and fuzzy.  That is a fairly normal color here for the older women but I haven't seen a young girl with hair that color.  She was one of the new students and stayed after to talk to us.  She really is a cute girl.  One of the girls led the first song and never sang one of the notes right.  Of course everyone follows her and I finally stopped playing because I had no idea where they were or if they were singing the song I was playing.  Scott just kept singing with them and finally I recognized the chorus so picked  back up playing.  It's one of those things you would have to hear to believe!  My playing today wasn't great anyway - of course it never is great.....but I am getting better.  If there is one thing we have learned from this mission it is to roll with the punches because you never know what the next hour holds.

These girls were all leading the same song - at least two of them were together - kind of!
    Scott was going to go to a couple of sessions at the temple while I cooked and studied but we didn't get out of the Institute soon enough so he just got one session done.  It is a great thing for him to do while I do computer work and study Spanish. When he got home Yturraldes came down with dessert again.  What fun neighbors and good friends they have become!

2/6/2013

  Started the morning at the Institute trying to find out how many of their tecladas work - 8 out of 12 do work so that adds 8 to our 12 which should be enough for the classes there.  However when class was over today we had four new students - this class was really big to start with so maybe we will have to add another class during the day sometime.  Just makes it hard to help everybody when you have 20+ kids in a class!  It was such a fun class today.  It is interesting to watch how they interact with us as they get more comfortable - when they realize that I am the only sane teacher and my esposo is crazy!!!
    We were late leaving the Institute so got home in time to rest and study for a couple of hours then went to the temple to do a couple of sessions.  The dress I rented was made for a 6'2" woman so I spent the night trying to keep from tripping myself.
   When we got there we found our married couple from Hainamosa waiting to take out their endowments.  We thought they had been married in the temple but they hadn't.  She was so excited as she told us that "next Thursday she was going to marry her husband". It was great to see them there.  They went through the 6:00 session and we did the 5:00 and 7:00 sessions so we missed seeing them again but can't wait to see them Saturday at lessons.
  The Lee's were at the last session and we met them as we came into our parking lot.  They want to get together for dinner so we just have to find an open night..  The Yturraldes came down with chocolate flan, ice cream, chocolate syrup and root beer.  It was fun to visit with them for awhile.  They are working with a couple of men from Haiti that are doing extraction work with the same kind of a camera they use so they are gone early and we are gone until late so haven't had the opportunity to visit yet this week.

2/5/2013

My name should just be Catch Up Kathy since I am having such a difficult time keeping up these days.
  Sister Eickbush asked me to do the refreshments for FHE since the Bairs were leaving and two other group leaders were not going to be there either. So the Eickbushes were put in charge of the evening.  It was on geneology - the lesson I always hate to hear because Scott and I have done no geneology!Thank Heavens DeDe knew a story or two about our ancestors that I could share.  We need to do so much better....So I studied in the morning and began cooking around noon.  My oven is too little for a cookie sheet so I borrowed the Yturraldes oven and cookie sheet to bake the crust for fruit pizza. Caring a pan of dough to the elevator and the baked goods back down is so impressive to others who think I am crazy... It looked much more cakelike than I remembered but by that time it would just have to do.  Baked some cookies for those who didn't like fruit pizza ( who is that crazy??)   Got the rest of the stuff together for the refreshments.
    The problem was I was to get information to Sister Johnson with attached pictures for the web page and redo the handbook info for the Dominican since it will be years before they follow the handbook (or even read it).  I kept losing the pictures and the pages I had them written on.  I honestly thought I was losing my mind - We were to meet with Sister Johnson and Sister Anderson, the area president's wife, after Family Home Evening and I was to have all of this stuff sent to her before then.
I finally decided that I just coudn't get it done and packed up everything to take to Family Home Evening feeling like a worthless woman.  The evening was fun with the Ewells from California , the Casanovas from Puerto Rico, the Ruckers from Arizona, the Eickbushes from Utah and the Marinos from Colorado, and us - so it was fun to hear all of their stories.But it took much longer than we thought and our scheduled meeting was for 8:00 pm.  Scott was relieved when he had to leave for the meeting because he said for all he knew his ancestors crawled out from  under a rock.  Sounds like something he would say, doesn't it!  And to be honest, I was relieved he was going to the meeting and I was staying to do the refreshments.  Two minutes after he left he came back to get me because they really wanted me to be there - so sad I couldn't leave right then and go to the meeting   They loved the fruit pizza so that was a positive thing.  Then I had no more excuses, I had to go to the Casa lobby for the meeting.  Sister Johnson and Sister Anderson were obviously tired but Sister Johnson explained to me just what she wanted from me - didn't mention that I hadn't sent her the pictures - instead wants me to take many, many more of different things.  That I can do!  Don't know about the short camera videos she wants though.
      So first thing this morning I started on the revision of the information - called Sister Anderson and we collaborated on the information and got it all together.  She told me to do the responsibilities with bullets - which of course I had no idea what were.  But I did learn!  The other thing I learned was what I was trying to put together yesterday must not have been what Heavenly Father wanted because today with a different plan it just all fell in place.  Hopefully I learned when things aren't
going well, maybe there is a reason besides I am just dumb.
       Sister Button had sent back the history report with some questions about some photos she didn't get  etc, etc.  So when I was able to get with her we went through it and finished putting things together and she sent me the finished copy tonight.  YEAH!! It will be fun for us to have a copy for ourselves.  Got info sent to Sister Johnson.  What a relief.  Still have to do much more but at least part of it is done.
      I am feeling guilty about not being more thoughtful as my husband sees the city workers  out by the side of the the road laying bricks for a sidewalk and takes them out drinks of cold water and chocolates because they looked hot and tired.

 This is the side by the guagua and taxi stop and has been a broken up piece of cement ever since we have been here.  It is interesting to see them mix sand and water by hand, add a little cement powder in the wheelbarrow and put in down to lay the bricks on.  They are doing a great job!

      We had a new class tonight in the Santo Domingo Stake.  This stake building is actually about a mile away - which is a nice change when you are driving at night here.  The stake president had announced that the class was just for the YM/YW.  We were there early and waited for the stake pres. with a couple and a woman.  When the woman heard we were teaching how to play she was estatic!  However the president told Scott he wanted to focus on the youth learning.  There were four mothers who brought their teenagers and all wanted to stay and take lessons with the kids.  I can see some fun friendships ahead!  Of course when it was time to start we were the only ones in the room, half an hour later there were four, an hour later there were fifteen.  So typical for these people..... It turned out to be only two wards and presidents says they have people in six other wards that want to participate so we will have to make some other arrangements because we don't have that many keyboards. We look forward to getting to know these new students!  

     We have so many new classes it is difficult to keep the students and where they belong straight.
When we finished the training the young/older men were playing basketball in the church courtyard.  It probably is the only place in town for them to play on a good sized court.  We walked across the street and had supper at the little restaurant there.

2/3/2013

  And hear I thought weekends were to rest up from the week!  We left at 9:00a.m. on Saturday for lessons out in the Las Americas stake.  Driving was great that time of day.  Every time Scott tells a group of students we have ten kids and they gasp I am reminded of how grateful we are to have each one of our kids, their spouses, and grandchildren in our lives.  Nothing could have been more worthwhile and meaningful in our lives. 
  Our Las Caleta Ward group showed up, mostly close to on time. Two were missing and three new ones came.  It is so interesting how that works here. We finished the directing training and will be taking the keyboards next week.  When they realize that class is much harder some of them drop out.  One of the boys, 6'3" and about 17 isn't Mormon but he handed me this sweet note as he left class about how much he loved us for sharing music with him. 
  We left there at 12:00 for a lesson at Las Molenas.  When we arrived they were feverishly (for them) working on getting the power to work.  We were about mid way through class when the lights came on so we could plug in the keyboard.  This class had grown by four.  One of our new students is a woman that must be 10 months pregnant.  Obviously not getting any sleep with the big black circles under her eyes.  One thing I am really going to miss is the rooster's crowing while we are a church. Most of the churches we have been to have roosters and chickens roaming around and making noise.  I love it!!
  Another thing that is fun here is when you want someone to be quite you say "ssssssssss" kind of like a hissing sound.  Took me by surprise a couple of times!
  We left Las Molenas for Hainamosa about 2:30.  Scott wanted to find a better way there because it is clear across the city and out the other side.  We did find a way there after several tries but I don't know if it was better than the old one or not.  Good thing it was fast Sunday cause we couldn't have stopped to eat anyway!
    Started a new class at Hainamosa before our other class there.  That's always fun because we start with a few and an hour later there are a dozen. In this class we have two siblings of the twins who are in the other class.  They are really going to have a musical family....we really love our students!
Finished our last class there about 7:30 pm and had to stop and shop for Sunday.  Then Elder Eickbush called and wanted us to stop by to pick up a package and a new phone to replace the one we lost on vacation.  It was 9:30 by the time we got back into the city but we stopped.  He was baking banana bread and sent us home with a loaf. It smelled so good!
   Sunday morning began with us leaving around 8:00 for Tres Brasos to take the kids to church.  We only had five kids today.  Three boys sat by Scott and were fairly good but the two girls fought about who was going to set on my lap for most of the meeting.  Finally one sat on each knee and they were happy.  These are such precious kids - Father in Heaven must love them very much!  Just don't know why I get ready for church to go with them though because  I look like a dish rag by the time the meeting is over.  They did ask me to play for Relief Society today since we were actually there on time.  The problem was the girl who led the music stood over in front of a blackboard so I couldn't see her at all.  Oh well!
    Our drive out to San Crystobal was uneventful.  They have a big garbage dump on the side of the road, actually in the road, that they set on fire every once in a while and does it ever smell great as you enter town.  All of the group was back today and well besides.  Cesar, who Scott and I thought was 20, is having a birthday and will be 16.  He and Estarlin gave me pictures to dedicate to them - I haven't done it cause I just can't quite figure out what to write.  Cesar asked my if I had them today.  I did.  Out in the car still unwritten on!  Will do better next week.  He wants to borrow an English hymn book from me because he is learning English - actually I think he wants me to give him one for his birthday!  Birthdays here must be special because everyone we know wants us to know when their birthdays are. 
    We left in a hurry to get to Oriental.  Five of the kids didn't show up but the ones who did practiced hard on their recital pieces.  The stake music director came and she and I tried to plan a recital for three weeks from today.  I'll bet she wanted to shoot me with my limited Spanish!  We called Scott over a couple of times and he was in the middle of a conversation about planning a social event - which he doesn't like anyway.  I loved that part!  So we'll be busy trying to get ahold of all of our old students who just took the directing class.  Now at 8:00 pm we are home for the night.
   The weather here has been beautiful - in the high 70's and cooler at night.
 

2/1/2013

   Playing catchup again.  Yesterday we had our class at the Institute.  It is a class of twenty - two were absent and three new students came.  The new ones came in with about twenty minutes left in class.  They all laugh about not  being on time because it is just a Dominican thing.  There was such a funny article in the paper today about the new president of this country.  Apparently he has thrown everyone off kilter because he actually is prompt and starts things on time.  They say the last president was never on time - like most Dominicans.  The kids always want to talk or want help after class so we are usually there for at least three hours.  Everyone is so friendly and it gives me a chance to practice Spanish
    So this morning Scott came home from his jog and said the Kirby was given a notice that he too is being fired.  This Soyla is just crazy.  We don't know what on earth she is thinking but she must be in some kind of trouble financially. If she fires all of the help she won't have to pay them and doesn't even pay them the money she owes them.  Elder Yturralde has taken it to a judge here and we are trying to get some help getting rid of Soyla but who knows what will happen.  Scott  says he is not going to make friends with any more of the help because they just get fired.  I wonder if she thinks they are telling on her.
    We had two Spanish classes this afternoon.  Elder Merino, of Mexican descent, has taken Elder Hammon's place and knows much about speaking the language but not much about the grammar.  So he teaches the speaking part and Scott teaches the grammar part. Elder Merino's wife is in the class even though she knows much Spanish.  She keeps him in line - which is often hilarious!  She is the mental health doctor here and makes comments that keep you laughing.  We understand more and more why the man who called to tell us that they had our mission call said "you will love this mission".  I don't know specifically what he was talking about but we certainly have found so many things to love about this mission.
     Got the web page information to Sister Johnson to put together for us.  Bless her heart!  That is what she has been doing in the states.  Her husband is a lawyer here so when they found out she could put together media things for the area they called her to do that.  They are from Park City with a family of eight.  Anyway now there is less pressure for me.  However I have to keep all of the music info, signatures, pictures, names, etc so I can turn in a history before we leave.  That requires alot of communication with other areas in the Caribbean and alot of time on the computer.  Just wish I was trained to use different programs on the computer what would do a better job than the ones I have used.
   Scott practices the piano while I blog so he is getting very good!