Rich Amy and Cole in El Salvador: Sharon, Lou and Skippyjon Jones Visit El Salvador

Sharon, Lou and Skippyjon Jones came to visit us in El Salvador! They arrvied on Tuesday, October 26th, stayed eight glorious days and left without Skippyjon Jones (lucky Cole) on November 4th. This is the first installment of that visit...FINALLY! :)

Rich picked up Lou and Sharon (mom and dad) at the airport on that Tuesday evening and that is where the journey begins...Cole was asleep when they got home... I woke up the next morning to find little Cole up bright and early and in his room with Grandma coffee in hand reading a Skippyjon Jones book (for they had already been into her stuff!)...and that gives you a little picture into Cole's morning routine now that Grandma and Grandpa came onto the scene. And all of the fun that we had with them.

We were all very excited for this day to come and have this visit. We were in need of family and the closeness, love and warmth that brings into one's life. It was a sense of normalcy while also taking us out of our "normal" routine. All in all, I would also say that it helped us refresh and even settle in a bit more to life here in El Salvador. The timing was good for us - we were pretty much physically settled into the house (basic items plus a little more) with a few extra homey touches in preparation for the visit. It also gave us a chance to introduce them to our life and places we thought they would enjoy around San Salvador (new and fresh eyes); and we all got a nice beach-estuary get-a-way as you will hear about in the next installment.

Wednesday through Friday Cole and I went to the school in the mornings and then suspended the normal afternoon routine (Español classe, fútbol and arte) to hang out with grandma and grandpa. Rich worked full days as the job of a principal dictates - so we enjoyed the evenings with us all together. Wednesday afternoon we walked to a nearby park with Cole dressed as a ninja (one of the items found in grandma's stuff), hung out at home and left in the late afternoon to drive to the coast for dinner - nothing like a nice dinner on the beach! At some point, I took my parents to a gourmet deli and restaurant called Kreef (walking-distance) which they really liked and went back to a few more times during their visit. At quiet times in the afternoons you could also find Cole and Grandpa or Grandma coloring together or doing a puzzle or reading a book - such blessed times.

Thursday afternoon we prepared for our halloween party! Every year the Complejo does trick-or-treating with the resident kids, their friends and other invited guests. We joined in the fun and invited a handful of Cole's classmates and their siblings along with a couple of my friends with kids. Grandpa and Cole put up spider webs with spiders ensared in the webing all over the house; and later on carved up a watermelon as a jack-o-lantern (which I think makes an even more creepy one with the red flesh and glow from inside). There are pumpkins (big and small) sold here, but the large carvable kind are quite pricey. Grandma, Grandpa and Cole ventured into the finca (large garden area or farm) of the school to find some beautiful and sometimes strange looking flowers for our table decorations. Mom also brought along halloween tattoos and goody bags filled with bugs, skeletons, bats, etc... which were a hit! Cole remained a ninja for the party and trick-or-treating (the witchey hat was an addition for the picture). Cole loves to have friends over to his house - he has always liked home - so it was really fun for him and a great excuse for a party with killer-decor. I enjoyed seeing Cole with his friends and the opportunity for my parents to meet his friends and folks from the area. It was FUN - thanks Mom and Dad!

On Friday morning - Grandma visited Cole's classroom for a little chat on turtles with the class. It was really nice for Cole to have his Grandma visit, talk in English :) and bring all kinds of props and give-a-ways on turtles to his class. (Later on in the trip we actually got to release baby turtles as part of a conservation effort). Friday afternoon we walked around a nice outdoor mall area to give my folks a taste of all that is here in San Salvador. That evening we all attended (and Rich worked) THE event of the year - a dance production called Baktun put on by the eleventh graders of the Upper School. Cole wasn't too thrilled with it (b/c of a video part at the beginning depicting history and war) so he and I ended up only staying for a short period of time. Haydée made her famous Salvadorian enchiladas which were enjoyed by all! (See August 18th blog for more information on this dish - not your Mexican enchiladas!)