A Simple Life: March 2014

First off, I apologize for the delay in posting. It has been entirely too long.

You know those Facebook posts from parents bragging about the incredibly intelligent thing their child just did? Reading by age 2? Reciting poetry or discussing a Monet painting? I really wanted to brag last month about something that was so much better than any of that to me, but I wasn't sure how to explain it to the world. For the first time ever, my son told me he loves me without me saying it first. He is four. You see, Logan has always had some developmental delays. Speech is one of his most difficult struggles, and I see the frustration in his eyes when he really wants to tell me something but can't quite grasp the language. He resorts to crying at times, which then leads to us both crying because I simply do not have the tools to help him with his speech. And unfortunately, neither does Ecuador. While I do have a vast array of knowledge in modifying instruction as a special education teacher, I need a specialist in speech right now. I love this country. I love the weather most of all. But one must do for their children what is necessary. And so, the next bit of news comes as a result of us needing to make a change for Logan.

As many of you know, I have spent three years going back to school AGAIN. This time, to get my post-master's (Ed.S.) in Educational Leadership. I wasn't sure exactly what I wanted to do with the degree, but I knew I was being called to lead somewhere. After applying to a few jobs, just to get a feel for what was out there, I was surprised when I was invited to Skype interview with a small school in Iowa for a school principal position. After the Skype interview, I was even more surprised when they invited me and the whole family to Iowa for another interview. So 25 hours and three very long flights later, we made it to the land of snow and cornfields. Here's Logan enjoying the snow:

After four days in a picturesque small town of just over 800 people, interviewing and meeting with teachers, parents, and the school board, we flew back to Ecuador. I was grateful for the experience, not knowing what the outcome would be. I'll skip all of the waiting and praying part and get to the next part. The job is mine. I am going to be a school principal! I've been working towards this for over ten years. We are moving to Iowa in July. I really hope this is a long term move, and I feel so blessed to be given this opportunity.

In between the interview and finding out that the job is mine, we spent one whole week in the Galapagos Islands. This was a once in a lifetime vacation, and I will forever treasure our time there. Instead of writing a lot, I'll just post all of our pictures with some captions. They are very out of order. Sorry... Enjoy!

These first few pictures were taken at the Giant Tortoise Reserve. GIANT. I can see a resemblance to the dinosaurs.

Close to the tortoise reserve are lava tunnels. The lava tunnels are part of the island's volcanic history. We thought it was strange that no one else was in the tunnels, but when we got to the end, we found out you had to crawl on your belly to get out. Needless to say, we turned back around.

Logan had to stop for a pee in the cave. :) Too funny to not take a picture of that.

This was a boat parked outside of the pool at our hotel.

One night in town, there was a beauty contest. Each contestant arrived in their own float. Below is one of those floats.

All of the contestants.

My favorite two pictures from the trip:

Arriving to the island:

To get to the main island, we had to fly, then take a bus to the ferry, then take a 40 minute taxi.

One very famous part of the island is the Darwin research station:

It was SO hot!

This is where the famous turtle, Lonesome George, used to live. He died in 2012.

We enjoyed a local lunch one day. They had no menu. We just had to eat whatever they brought us, and I must say, it was very delicious.

One night on the pier we found a sea lion napping on a bench.

Every night, and sometimes multiple times a day we stopped for ice cream. It was one of the only ways to beat the heat. This was Logan's second favorite part of the trip. His first favorite was swimming.

While the island has beautiful beaches, they are difficult to get to. The most beautiful beach, Tortuga Bay, has a 2.5 km trail you must walk before arriving at the beach. In blazing sun, carrying an 18 pound baby.

But it was worth it once we arrived!

Abby became somewhat of a celebrity while we were there. Many of the locals liked to hold her while we ate, and they passed her around to the other vendors.