We are continuing to work on our Spanish, and finding ways to build relationships and practice speaking. We've been participating in various Spanish-speaking groups. Each thing we do has the dual purpose of ministry and improving our language (which is also ministry at this point). Sarah has been getting to know the other parents at the kids' school, and Stephen has been participating in men's ministry. Stephen recently preached with translation, and is currently working on making the jump to preaching in inteligible Spanish.
Our kids enjoyed a winter break (shorter than an American summer vacation, but longer than the local schools get in July) before starting their new school year. Anna Belle is now in eighth grade, Simmy is in fifth, and Gracie is a first grader. The school has moved to a regular schedule (8am-3pm), alternating weeks virtual and in-person. This has been great for the in-person classes, but harder for the virtual classes. All five of us are eagerly anticipating the day when the kids can all go back to school in-person full-time. We were also very excited to receive Covid vaccines, which became available (with a drive-thru) this month.
One interesting thing about living in Paraguay compared to the United States is the availability of fruit. In the United States, fruit selection tends to be pretty much the same, with some price fluctuation, throughout the year. In Paraguay there is always fruit available, but the type of fruit varies throughout the year. When a fruit is in season, it is everywhere and cheap. When it is out of season, it is hard to find and expensive. It's less convenient, but it increases our awareness of time, and where our food is coming from. We brought the kids to a strawberry field one weekend this month to pick some strawberries and enjoy some delicious local strawberry deserts. We also enjoyed cheering on Paraguay as they fought valiantly in the Copa America.
