Errands

Our morning began with a breakfast of fried eggs, bread, cereal, yogurt, and juice.  Lizet just loves to bounce in her chair at the table and we have found that her eyes seem bigger than her stomach.  We just don’t know where it goes… but she manages, somehow.  The children stayed with Naty while Dave and I ran some errands.  We mailed postcards, attempted to use a pay phone in an alley, bought a chain for my crucifix Angela picked out, purchased a few things at an artisan market, checked our e-mail at an Internet cafe where we again, were surrounded by more Germans skyping, and I managed to get splashed with dirty water from a speeding taxi.  Lucky me.  Today was a big day for beggars in the street, too.  There are so many people who are sitting with their hands out; some of which are missing a limb, have an unfortunate deformity, or in one case, sitting on their own torso.  After hailing a taxi off of Sandy’s list of “reputable taxis,” we headed back home.  After arriving, the children were pleased to see I was wearing the chain for my crucifix.  I was disappointed at first because when I discovered the loop that needed to go through the loop of the crucifix was the same size, Xavier rescued me and fixed it!  He was determined to please his mamá.  That’s what he calls me; Angela calls me Ma, and Lizet calls me Mamá, or Mamí.  We discovered while gone, the girls helped Naty on the roof by scrubbing the laundry and hanging the clothes to dry.  Lunch was prepared by Dave - ham and cheese sandwiches, sliced diagonally with sliced  avocados, and sweet potato chips.  We had Cornelia’s torte de chocolate for dessert.  It had a glaze of some kind that soaked into the cake that made it really moist.  For an afternoon snack, Angela introduced me to the fruit, chirimoya.  It tasted similar to a pear, but is quite mushy and has a few black seeds.  You eat it with a spoon.  Xavier introduced me to one of his electronic games, Dragon Ball Z.  Another one of his toys is a spinning top game called Trompo.  He has spinning tops in several sizes, and wraps a long piece of twine around it and throws it, catching it in his hand, and it just spins and spins.  Another discovery I have found out about Xavier is he is a meticulous cleaner.  When making his bed, everything has to be quite precise.  The blankets have to be equal distance from every angle of the bed.  He wanted me to help him with his bed; this is how I discovered these habits.  He organized his room, placing his possessions neatly in the wardrobe, and he hung his zampoña on an empty nail.  Lastly, he got Dave’s clock and placed it on his nightstand by his lamp.  Xavier also loves the movie, Lady and the Tramp.  He watched it twice; I’m glad his sisters were okay with that.  Once Naty began vacuuming, you’d think it was Christmas.  This vacuum cleaner was a tank you drag, bending over with the hose.  It makes our vacuum cleaners look fun.  Angela and Xavier wanted to vacuum for Naty.  Angela pushed the tank awhile, while Xavier bent over using the hose, then they switched.   

This afternoon, the plumber arrived to switch out the filter, which is no longer white.  Pipes were corroded, water was rusted, and the tank on the roof was dry, unless you count sludge.  He will return tomorrow to adjust the toilets so they don’t run all night, hence the running out of water.  Tonight we invited Naty to go with us to Brunno’s for pizza.  We had two pizzas to share and they were delicious.  They top the pizzas with queso cremoso, a type of Argentinian cream cheese (unlike American cream cheese).  They bring us round wooden disks for plates and when we had our pizzas, but no plates, Lizet waved her arm in the air and shouted, “¡Señor, los platos!”  The waiter grinned, and quickly brought them. By the end of the meal, we were ready for the check, and again, Lizet shouted, “¡Señor, la cuenta!”  At this point, Xavier bent down on the booth seat to hide from embarrassment.  Naty rocked back and forth in the booth, covering her mouth to keep from laughing. After dinner, Naty helped us find a place to recharge Dave’s Peru phone, and we bought them each a movie.  Angela wanted Alice in Wonderland, Xavier wanted How to Train Your Dragon, and Lizet chose Marmaduke.  After arriving back home, Naty took a taxi home, the kids got ready for bed, and then we watched a movie.  I told Xavier the night before that this was the last night he could sleep with Lizet and that he needed to start sleeping in his own bed.  He agreed.  This night, however, he was a little pouty when I reminded him he needed to be in his own bed, but he did leave to go to his room.  Around one o’clock in the morning, Dave heard him crying in his room, but Xavier wouldn’t say why.  Dave woke me up and I went to talk with Xavier.  It seems he is scared to sleep alone, which I then felt terrible, not considering this is the first time he’s ever slept in a room by himself.  All his life, he’s shared a room with several boys.  I asked if he would like me to lay down with him for a while, he nodded, but when I asked if he’d like to go sleep with the girls, he was elated.  So I let him.  I guess I’m learning how to pick my battles early.