This morning Josh, Asher and i went house hunting with a Mr. Laurant, a realtor who was recommended to me by a friend here. House hunting in Madagascar, at least in Tana, is an experience that is difficult to describe to anyone who hasnt been here and driven into these "neighbourhoods". Unless you know exactly where you're going it's impossible to find the places that we were looking at even with directions and hand drawn maps because they are located down convoluted streets. We did see a few nice houses where i wouldnt mind living. One even had what i would call "normal" kitchen countertops! The problem, however, is that we've become so accustomed to living in our house, in a compound with other homes [which means we a) dont need to pay the salary of the guard, b)dont need to share our garden/yard with the guard and his family who invariably cook and hang out just outside the house windows] that the idea of living in a house on our own is a bit daunting. Moreover, the fact that i'm looking for other houses makes me start to love my house even more (the devil i know rather than the devil i dont) and become sad with the thought of moving from it. Alas. It's just that the mold is just too prevalent, the shade too shady, the house too big... bah. But on the other hand, the MAF houses that will soon be up for grabs, located in compounds and near the airport (as opposed to these new houses we looked at this morning) are either too small with no yard or else awkwardly set up with no space in the kitchen for a fridge and no bathtub (which readers may remember is very important for our emotional health )... argh! Anyway, so with our house contract expiring in the next few months and the opportunity for one MAF house also on a time schedule we're left with the dilemma of what to do about our living situation in the coming few months.


This is, with the exception of Josh the picture taker, the entire (sans enfants) new 2010 MAF Madagascar family together for the first time at an International Staff Meeting this past Friday. The families include: Matthew and Rhonda, who are our neighbours and are leaving towards the end of this year, Adam and Naomi Clegg (Australia) who are leaving within a few months; Patrick and Olivia Keller (Switzerland) the new pilot family who are staying for a while i presume; Bastiaan and Corina De Waal (Netherlands) our new Program Manager family; and Charity Wanjiru Mol (Kenya) who also is here for a while i suspect.

Asher sleeping on the couch. (notice the non-pink walls and my new hand-made lamp )


The boys in the bath.

well, patience on your end to see more photos is needed for a bit longer yet. Try to think of it as a small cultural exercise The internet has been horrible these past few days. This, combined with a serious lack of sleep thanks to Asher, has made any computer time for me nonexistent. I finally booted Josh out of our bed last night so Asher could sleep with me, which was very helpful, but Josh said the room he chose to sleep in was extra moldy and he woke with extra-itchy eyes and achy sinuses. <sigh>

This morning, however, is nice and sunny for a change. The weather has been temperamental: windy, cool, cloudy and rainy. Due to a tropical storm/depression moving over Madagascar. Note to would-be visitors: January/February are bad months for coming to visit unless you dont mind staying inside most days due to rain.

Josh just wrote his flight test yesterday and will do his base check tomorrow (Friday).

Judah is going to school now everyday. The driving to and from school, if he doesnt go with the carpool, is extremely hectic with Asher along. ...it'll take me a while to get the hang of this two-child system mostly because the parking is a nightmare and i hate to drag Asher in and out of the school in his carseat if he's sleeping. Yesterday i just locked him in the truck and went in to get Judah without him. I plan to try sending him for all day on Monday, Wednesday and Friday next week to see if that alleviates the driving stress. He definitely needs the interaction - that kid can go all day at 110% and, now that Josh is at work every day, he simply doesn't have the energy outlet around to help him stay occupied. Might as well focus that energy on learning French

Now that we're back here i'm also re-living my mother-with-infant pity party since Josh comes home with stories of how he's spent his day "hanging out" with friends and new MAF people who i also would like to get to know better. I know he's working at the hangar, but to me stuck at home with a 2 hour feed/sleep routine, a cranky and bored 4 year old and my own extreme sleep deprivation his stories make me feel as though he's just at work "playing with his friends" while i grit my teeth and try to bear it to the end of the day. Alas. This too shall pass, i know. I'm sure this reentry stress is in part due to the fact that i've been spoiled living at my mom's these past 2 months with an infant, also with Josh home every day.

Today i will attempt to go grocery shopping and also pick up Judah's school supplies, etc. at the 'far' grocery shop. Hopefully i can manage that with Asher and before Judah gets back from school.

One day at a time.

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It's now 5pm. I didnt manage to post the above until now although i wrote it before 8 this morning.

We all seemed to have had a better day today, i think. This was mostly due to the fact that i wasnt exhausted due to a crummy night of sleep. Actually, i havent had time to talk to Josh about his day because he left for tennis right when he got home from work so...

I did manage to get to the grocery store and find most of the stuff i needed to get. Asher was hungry half way through the shopping, so i just took a plastic garden chair from the shelf and 'screened' myself off with my shopping cart by the emergency exit and fed him there. Perfect!

I also managed to get out to a friend's house for tea and to talk about car-pooling for school this afternoon. It was lovely to get out and be with friends again. Unfortunately, post-Canada Judah is not as nice of a guy as pre-Canada Judah, so although he does like to play with friends, he isnt as easy to leave un-supervised as he once was. Shame.

The weather has turned HOT, since i presume the tropical depression has moved on. I was sweating like crazy all day. I know most of you dont want to hear about our hot weather, so i'll spare you the details.