Hair Cut

We finally broke down and cut Cael's hair...even his cute little curls in the back! Here are a few pictures from the adventure.

We quickly realized the only way Cael would sit still to get his hair cut was if he were on my lap.

Cael also loved the fact that Dad was in the next chair having his hair cut at the same time.

They gave me the camouflage cover and Cael the pretty purple cover...funny

He wasn't too sure about wearing the cover and kept trying to get it off

Our friends Mesha and Kami were there to help and take pictures!

Excited to be done!

The final product

Circuito Magico del Agua in Lima

This past Saturday we were able to spend time with some friends we met over here in Lima a year and a half ago when Cael was born. They have a son named Joshua who is 10 months older than Cael and the two of them play well together. In the evening we all decided to visit the Circuito Magico del Agua in Lima, which won the Guiness World Record for largest water park in the world. The fountains were very impressive and the kids had a great time watching (not playing in) the water.

One of the larger fountains

Joshua and Cael watching the fountains

The kids were tempted to run and play in the water, but the Dad's did a good job containing them while their pregnant wives took a break.

Paul and Cael walking through a water tunnel...very cool!

Boys Will Be Boys

Cael and I went to the FH office today to participate in a devotional and eat lunch with the staff. For the last few months now Cael has been fascinated with large trucks, buses, and motorcycles...basically anything that makes a lot of noise. Cael enjoyed socializing with everyone in the office, but his favorite part was sitting by the window and watching the digger scoop up dirt from the street and fill a large dump truck. He sat still for a record amount of time, and as you can see he had a great front row view.

The Lima Coast

Last night we went down to the coast to see if we could watch the sun set and get Cael out to play a little before bed. Our departure was delayed due to a salad dressing accident...Cael spilling dressing on my last clean pair of pants so we had to do a load of laundry before going. So we arrived down by the coast a little later than we wanted and only caught a glimpse of the sun set, which takes place around 6pm every night of the year. However, we were still able to enjoy the park by the ocean and visiting with our friend Kami, who also works for Food for the Hungry here in Lima. Here are a few pictures from our time. You might be able to see a little bit of a baby bump in the second picture too. Enjoy!

Neighborhood Friends

Here are a few pictures of the neighborhood kids. Cael loves going outside to play with the kids and he especially loves to do what the bigger boys do...good or bad.

Our Swiss neighbor's oldest two: Nathaniel (5) and Mateo (3)

Cael and Caleb (2), our Korean neighbor's oldest. He just became a big brother and isn't too happy about his younger sister getting any of the attention.

I finally got them to look at the camera together.

Here are all the kids playing in the back of our neighbor's truck. Left: Katarina (1 1/2), Caleb, Nathaniel, Cael, and Mateo

New Favorite Activity

Since the telephone/cable company here in Lima has basically been non-responsive/unable to install anything at our apartment for various reasons, Paul and Cael have discovered the joys of Youtube. They have been able to watch videos of big trucks, motorcycles, and various animals which Cael absolutely loves. Here are a few pictures of them hanging out at our place.

Lunch Date

Unlike the jungle, Lima does not have the wide open spaces to run and play for children. Instead there are several different parks and restaurants around the city with playgrounds where kids can be kids. We met up with our friends from Pucallpa, the Brewsters, who are waiting in Lima for their visas to go to Brazil, on Monday. Our kids have explored mud puddles, ditches, sand boxes, and jungle animals together in Pucallpa. So now they are exploring restaurant play areas in the city together. Here are a few pictures of the kids playing. The two boys were mostly interested in playing with their hotwheel cars and not playing in the play area.

Out for a Little Sunshine

This past Saturday, our neighbors invited us out for a little sunshine. We traveled by car approximately 30min. outside the city into the mountains to a recreational area...basically a restaurant with fun family activities for the day. There are several of these restaurants located up the side of this mountain, and the only thing they ask is that you buy lunch there and the rest of the activities are included. So we were able to go for a short horseback ride, swim, and Cael was able to play on the playgrounds there. It was a nice Saturday activity and allowed us to get to know our neighbors a little better.

Just to fill you in a little on the Lima climate...after driving for 15min we came to an area where the sun was able to peak through the Lima haze and the weather is very pleasant. Since arriving in Lima we have had only a couple of days where the sun peaks out for about an hour or two in the afternoon, but other than this it has been grey. The temperature has remained in the high 60's since we arrived, but with 85-90% humidity so it feels super cold when there is no sun and really hot when there is sun. It is a very odd climate.

A Trip to the Park

Since arriving in Lima, I have been trying to find a few different spots to take Cael where he can run around and play. One of these spots is a park not too far from our house that has two different playground areas and live ducks that run around and are fairly tame. One of the park employees wanted to show Cael the baby ducks, so we went over and he let them out for Cael to play with. Cael wasn't shy at all. He just bent down and picked one up...faster than I could even react. Then he just chased them around the park.

We are past our first month back in Lima and are beginning to adjust back to life in Peru. Lima is a very different place to live compared to Pucallpa. There are so many more things to do and the city is much more organized than the jungle was. Paul has a little longer commute to the office, but has noticed that things move a little faster over here and there aren't quite as many "days off" due to the rain, since it doesn't rain at all here.

Enjoy the pics and hopefully I will be able to update the blog a little more frequently now that our internet has been installed.

Arriving and Unpacking in Lima

We arrived in Lima on September 5th and have been unpacking and settling into our apartment and life in the city. We spent the first week and a half setting up our apartment and getting to know our area of the city. Paul returned to work 2 weeks ago and Cael and I are trying to get into a routine here at home.

The people in the communities in Lima have demonstrated excitement about starting savings groups, which look to be started within the next couple of weeks. We have also heard that the groups in Pucallpa continue to function and are thriving!

As you can see from the pictures below the process of moving to Lima and adjusting to a new setting is exhausting. These pictures of Cael were taken within the first couple days of arriving in Lima. He finally had enough unpacking, so he found our pillows and decided it was time to take a nap. This is how we found him. The former renters also left us a nice hammock which fits nicely on the roof. Now we can enjoy the occasional sunshine here in Lima.

Please keep us in your prayers as move through all the new changes and challenges over the next several weeks/months.