Vacation Bucket List
Saturday, October 12, 2013
We're on vacation over here!!! Every one here in Nepal is celebrating the Vijaya Dashami and Tihar. The kids have off of school for an entire month. We closed out the month with mid-terms, some team development meetings and trainings, and school clean-up and organization. All of our teachers and many of our staff left for their annual vacation.
We have a the coolest family vacation bucket list. Every year we go on some sort of trip but this year I feel a deep sense of wanting to stay home and do house and family projects. We're planning some day trips here and there but for the most part I've been dreaming about reading books on the balcony, fixing leaky pipes, and organizing closets. I want to fly kites, celebrate the holidays, play family games of capture the flag, Cabadi and soccer, and hang out. It's just so nice to be home sweet home. The fellows, kids, and I all made a bucket list of things we want to do but don't usually have time for with the hustle and bustle of the school year. It looks something like this:
- Vegetable Garden Project
- Learn to Make a Kite Workshop with Luke
- Learn to swim at the new pool in town
- Make Halloween Costumes
- Make fermented vegetables (with Nena) and learn to bake (with Becky)
- Read Books + Do Vacation Homework
- Rooftop Yoga Classes with Nena
- Re-paint and reorganize our kitchen
- Nature Journal Art Class with Brendan
- Big Family Game of Capture the Flag
- Skills Challenge Day and Scavenger Hunt
- Train the Dogs
- Girls Night
- Boys Night
- Fix our Internet Once and For ALL
- Hiking Trip (Up to the top of the mountain and to the rice paddies)
- Cleanest Room Contest
- Go Explore the Lava Cave in Dhailek
So far we are moving our way pretty well through the list. We fixed the next door neighbors roof that was leaking directly into our kitchen and then re-painted and organized our kitchen and dining room that was looking a little bit like a dungeon with creatures in it. Uncle Ed and Luke designed and organized a tool room complete with a work bench! All of our saws, tools, light bulbs, garden supplies, and ladders are finally nice and organized in one spot and easy to find. It's beautiful!!!! Uncle Ed designed a pulley system for our clothes line and Luke built to bunk beds because we've been running out of space. Caroline and Tope arranged to have the mattress guys come to fixed up all the mattresses that had fluff falling out of them. Luke took a cool video of the process. We've been shopping for all the miscellaneous things we need around here but haven't had time to get. Kusum had the women's center make new pillow cases. Our side yard grass is FINALLY growing and we planted our brocolli and vegetables in a cool diamond shaped design. Everyone is working so hard!!!
New work bench and storage room behind our house. The kids are learning carpentry and handy-man/woman skills
We went swimming today at Shani Village where there's a brand new swimming pool open to the public. Surkhet is really hopping these days. It was sooo much! All the fellows gave swim lessons. Six of the kids know how to swim. 36 more to go so we have some work to do but so much fun. Thanks to Shani Village for letting us come and take over your pool :)
My adorable girls in their bikinis
We had our girls and boys nights. The girls and volunteers all sat in a circle with face masks on and picked Angel cards and told fortunes. They were really curious about who all the volunteers and I are going to marry. That was cute. Then they watched Freaky Friday, ate chocolate and cookies and drank Fanta. The boys played games with Luke and Brendan and watched Iron Man 3.
Luke is doing the most amazing job with our new school design. It's seriously off the hook. We're doing lots of research and we have this amazing 3-D model of the school and project of our dreams. I can't wait to share it with you. I'm so excited for the next steps.
The dogs are doing okay. Nacho is sooo big and soooo strong. He listens and is pretty obediant. Nikki on the other hand is out of control, hyper, jumps, barks, and runs around the compound like a crazy lady. We have some work to do.
Becky got us a pet turtle. We named him Ninja. He's going to live in the counseling center. Sweet little therapy turtle.
Ninja, The Therapy Turtle
The kids have been collecting frogs, lizards, grasshoppers, and all kinds of critters for Brendan's (Our Art and Outdoor Education Fellow) Nature Journal Art Class. Brendan is a children's book illustrator. His only rule in class is "there are no bad drawings."
I have to post about the women's center in an entirely separate post because so much is happening in there each and every single day. It's just magic, absolute magic. We are all working hard on our projects. We are all happy. We are all busy little bees. Actually I feel like things are the busiest they've ever been but also the best. It really pays to have a good team. I'm so proud of mine and so thankful. Now time to go conquer the bucket list. Go make one. They are really fun.
More soon and lots of weekend love from our little corner of the world!
xo Maggie