Earlier this week I got a new oven!!!!  The apartment we moved into had a few furnishings and included a very old stove and oven.  From the beginning I had trouble using the oven, but I figured it was my inability to convert the Celsius temperature to Fahrenheit.  Well, after nearly three months of burning everything I put in the oven, we decided it was not me and it was the oven.  The oven seemed to have one temperature….HOT!!!  I had gotten to the point where I was cooking with the over door open and that was not safe with the three girls running around.  So the new oven was installed on Monday and I have had great success with baking since then.  It is too bad that two of our girls have had birthdays since we arrived and both of their cakes flopped.  Both cakes cooked in about ten minutes rather than the 30 minutes the recipe recommended.  Oh, well.  Just another story to tell about their birthdays and being overseas.[slideshow=50]

This past Thursday I had an answer to a prayer and for the first time I went to a moms and toddlers group.  I had been looking for some other moms to meet with once in a while and finally found a few through the American Club in Porto (larger city next to Gaia).  There were only two other ladies at the group this past Wednesday and they both are American.  I guess there are a few other moms that join the group often, but none of them are Portuguese.  I realize more and more each day that I have blessed to be able to stay at home with my kids and not have to work. 

Elise had a rough experience at school earlier this week.  She was trying to play football (soccer) with a group of boys at recess and one of the boys told her she couldn’t play because she was a girl.  Her feelings were very hurt but more than that, she was extremely frustrated that she could not communicate with the boy and ask him if she could play.  I guess I have been a bit naive in thinking our kids would not face as many language barriers as Bill and I.  I always thought they would catch on quickly to the language and would be understanding and speaking Portuguese quickly.  I know for certain that both Elise and Audrey are learning alot and even speaking a bit, but I need to remember that they are also in the beginning stages of learning.  It breaks my heart to see her crying and not wanting to go to school because she is unable to communicate with others….and I feel responsible for her tears.  Please pray that we all learn the language quickly and do not face too many communication barriers.

This week we had to decide which school we will send the girls to starting in September.  Right now it takes about half an hour to get to school and then another half an hour to get home.  Each day we spend a total of two hours going to and from school.  There are other schools closer to our house but because we came in the middle of the school year we could not get into those schools.  With the help of Pastor Villares and his wife we were able to get the girls into the school they are in now.  So, we asked the girls if they wanted to switch to a school closer to home or if they wanted to stay at the school they are at now.  Both of them said they wanted to stay at Devesas school instead of switching to a new school.  Bill and I were a bit disappointed but understand how difficult it must be for them to be switching schools.  Both of them were taken out of school a year ago when we left Malawi and they both had a group of friends from there.  Then again in February we took them out of school in Watertown and they had made some great friends there as well.

Our life seems to have finally fallen into a comfortable routine.  Bill and I seem to have found our roles in the family and work. My progress in Portuguese has certainly slowed down, but I am still meeting with a lady five days a week for about an hour each day.  I prefer learning one-on-one and everything sinks in more.  Bill is doing much better at his Portuguese because he spends about six to eight hours on it each day.  He is feeling much better about his learning and gaining confidence as well.  Please continue to pray for us and the language learning.

God’s Blessings,
Cathy