We ended up at the Doctors office this week.  Maria came down with a fever on Monday night and was complaining that her ear hurt.  She did not sleep well Monday night and by Tuesday morning I knew she was not well.  She saw the Dr. that afternoon who was very friendly and nice.  I was pleasantly surprised at how kind she was.  I guess I have had enough bad experiences with people being impatient with me when I am trying to speak in broken Portuguese that I was expecting another impatient and annoyed person.  It was obvious that she loves children and enjoys her work.  She was very patient and kind with my broken Portuguese.  It turned out Maria did not have an ear infection but a throat infection with swollen glands in the throat very close to the ears.  Elise and Audrey were also there and she checked them and found they both had the same infection.  Elise’s throat was red and her glands were swollen but Audrey was not so bad.  So Maria and Elise are on antibiotics this week.  They both are feeling better and not coughing as much.  Overall the experience with the Doctor was positive and I am thankful we found a kind Doctor.

We have made a change to our language classes.  The time of class was not working well for our teacher (she is currently working three jobs and has a three month old baby) so we needed to make a change.  The best time for everyone involved to have class is from 3-6 in the afternoon, but that time does not work for me and the kids.  Elise and Audrey get out of school at 3:15 and someone needs to pick them up from school at that time.  So, I am no longer going to class and instead will meet with our teacher once or twice a week and learn that way.  I am a bit sad not to be in class, but also very relieved.  It was a ton of work to be gone from home four hours a day and then to do at least one hour on homework at night and then all my other responsibilities with the kids and family.  This is also better for Bill and his language learning.  He has been a tremendous help these past two months with the kids and chipping in at home.  Now he doesn’t need to help me as much and he can focus his energy on learning Portuguese.  Please pray that this arrangement works for everyone.  I know that in order to learn the language I will need to make a conscious effort to learn since I will no longer be in class.  These past seven weeks of class I did learn alot and I am starting to communicate with people.  I do not want to loose what I have learned or suddenly stop learning.

God’s Blessings,
Cathy