Summer break is over

Summer break is over! Activities started already in Adonai. TODAY IS THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. Yesterday was probably one of the busiest days at school for the secretaries. People always wait until the last minute to enrol their kids. They were already closing some grades because they were too full. Last year we had 210 students and this year we might be around 250 or more. Usually by the end of the month things start slowing down.
This year I am a stay at home mom and I already feel like I am missing out on all of the fun. (I mean, all the fun outside of home!) I have always been so active in church and school activities…so active in other places that I haven’t been active at home. I’m even thinking of digging out my cookbooks to do fancy homemade meals again instead of the quick spaghetti dinners, sandwiches and empanadas that we are used to. I do have loads of things to catch up on here at home and am thankful to be spending some extra time with Edson and helping Brandon and Gabriel with homework. Mom brought nuts and mini M & M’s…how ‘bout a batch of cookies?
The other day we spent the whole morning at the U.S. Embassy. Both Brandon and Gabriel had passports that had expired and Edson needed a Certificate of Birth Abroad plus a passport. We had been dragging poor Edson around town getting pictures, his Paraguayan documents, and other paperwork in order. In his Paraguayan identity card he’s sleeping! He finally woke up SCREAMING when they took his finger print. At least now he is a legal Paraguayan AND U.S. citizen.
Brandon and Gabriel started back to second semester at ACA. The came home with exciting news yesterday that the school is going to buy the property next door with plans to build a swimming pool. They are both on academic probation this semester which means that they have to pull their grades up to a 74% GPA or they could be dismissed from the school. Since we changed them a year and a half ago to this ALL ENGLISH program, things have not been easy, but they have improved greatly! Their math teacher just invited them to be in a math club on Wednesdays. Thank God! That’s one area where my tutoring skills aren’t that great! Please keep praying for them. They are struggling, but prayers and lots of effort, I think they’ll make it.
We are battling thunderstorms! Things have been sooooo hot lately. Sometimes the only way it cools down is with a storm. Yesterday was one of those days. Oscar left for his bible study and I was at home with the boys. The thunder and lightning was terrible and then very hard southern winds with rain. Things cooled off almost instantly. I went upstairs to get Edson ready for been and saw huge puddles on the floors. Edson’s bed, blankets and towels were soaked. Oscar had left all the windows wide open for air and I didn’t realize that they were opened. I started mopping up when I got a call from Oscar. He told me that he left the windows open to get some fresh air! I thanked him for the warning, but told him that everything was already wet and I was wiping up the traces of the storm…well, that’s life in Paraguay.