Hello all,
Well in less than 2 weeks from now I will be in freezing cold Michigan!! Not excited about the freezing cold part, but am excited about seeing everyone I miss. Am getting a little anxious about the details.... all my winter clothes, coats, and our car is in storage in Kalamazoo 3 hours from the airport and not sure yet how we´re going to get to any of it yet. I think we will be freezing our butts off when we get off the plane... I think we might take a bus to Grand Rapids and then get a ride from there but Dave doesn´t have as much as a sweater, let alone a jacket or coat, so I think we might freeze to death before we get there. Besides the fact that we are now used to the weather here... I think I freeze now if the temp drops below 75.
Well, not too much to write as most of my interactions in the past week have been with my bed. It all started last Wednesday when I shot up during the night at 3a.m., in a cold sweat with a fever and the most severe body pains I have ever felt- ever.... even worse than when I had dengue fever. It started in my shoulder and shot down my back and into my neck and arm, paralyzing my arm so I literally couldn´t move it all. The pains continued so bad til the point I couldn´t move, Dave literally had to lift me back into the bed because I couldn´t even push my way back in. I had Dave check my back, and he found a large red splotch on my upper shoulder. Spider bite. I was sure of it. I stayed awake in severe pain til 6a.m.... I took ibuprofen and was feeling a bit better and convinced I would make it into work, yet still couldn´t lift my arm or move my shoulder in order to dress myself, and it hurt too much to let Dave help me. Since we have no substitute system here, this meant I had to leave poor Maria by herself again. Good thing she is the kindest and most understanding person I´ve ever met. So I slept til around 11a.m. and went to the clinic, and the nurse said, probably slept on it funny, but come back and check with the doctor at 3:00. I went to the clinic at 3:00 but the doctor was running late, so I went back at 3:30, 4:00, 4:30, and then around 5:00 I decided she probably wasn´t coming and went back to bed for the rest of the night. Friday I went into work and still felt terrible and the doctor came but just handed me over an anti-allergy pill for the bite without checking anything - but by this time the mark had disappeared and there was nothing there. Dave convinced me to go into the private clinic in San Pedro Friday night where they did x-rays and all kinds of tests. Friday night I researched online all the possibilities the doctor had mentioned... dengue, panic attacks, spider bites, malaria, pinched nerves..... and found that the black widow spider bite is one of the only spiders that don´t necessarily leave a mark, Dave has seen them around the orphanage, and it causes the same symptoms as all the ones I had during the night. I went back to the clinic Saturday morning ready to tell the doctor what it was. But instead he told me the test results show I have severe kidney infection, and that is the reason for the severe pain, aches, fever, and exhaustion. Never would´ve guessed this, and not sure what to think, but now I´m on anti-biotics, and pain pills but they give me really bad nausea so I quit those yesterday. So yeah, not too interesting of an update, since most of the weekend I spent with my bed, and finishing my book Life of Pi (which I highly recommend if you can get past the first section), and watching old re-runs of Dawsons Creek on the laptop, because it is the only thing we have to watch... it´s terrible and cheesy but does bring me back to my teen years with Lauren which is enough to make it worth watching. :) Today went back to teach, feeling better but still in pain and exhausted and feverish, but trying to plan for our classroom Christmas party on Wednesday, which will be much simpler than I had hoped, but I still want it to be great for the kids. Trying to find cheap easy recipes for sugar cookies now - any ideas?
Other than that... other news.... Tuesday was our Intro to Christmas school presentation.... Dominican kids dressed up as Joseph and Mary and angels, and classes singing Christmas raps and presenting acrostic poems about Navidad. They also had a "lighting of the park" where we have Christmas lights and manger scene lit up in our park. Looks a little disheveled but the kids are excited.
We got two new kids last week, not sure if I mentioned the special needs boy they found in a batey. He was kept out in the yard on a dog leash (collar around neck) tied to a pole, and not allowed in the house. Hard to imagine anyone doing this to a child.... the life a child with special needs here is quite different. Before I met him, I imagined him to be wild and aggressive and out of control after the life he had and for a family to have him live his life on a leash, but when I met him he was very sweet and quiet and mild. I thought maybe he would be in my class, but he is very severely multiply impaired, with no speech and he is barely able to move on his own. Thankfully, he is getting lots of special positive attention now in the special needs home and from our wonderful therapists. He also had a brother come with him who is not special needs, but will need a lot of support in the school as he is Haitian (they both are) and doesn´t speak Spanish. Keep these little guys in your prayers as they are adjusting.
Not sure if I´ve mentioned all Dave´s new bike tools he ordered, but he is running an "orphanage bike shop" to speak of now... I think the kids drive him a little crazy sometimes with all the requests and how they beat up all the donated bikes... but it is great to see the kids getting their exercise riding around the orphanage grounds all the time. :)
Well, I think that is it for now - lucky for those reading this I am too tired to think of anything else. :) As far as the schedule we are looking at.... tentatively.... flying in on the 26th and then hopefully somehow getting to Kalamazoo for our car and warm clothes. Spending the 27th in Grand Rapids, and possibly the 28th, then heading to Lansing for a couple days.... then thinking Detroit area for New Year´s and a fundraiser party at my dad´s house on January 2nd. Then back to Kalamazoo on the 3rd for mother-in-laws bday party... then to Owosso that night so I can be up early to spend all day at Central with my kiddos on the 4th. Then the night of the 4th and day of the 5th in Lansing with Melissa then to the airport in Detroit that evening to fly out. I think it will be a whirlwind, but please let me know if this works and where/when we can see everyone. We won´t have a cell phone or any way of being reached so that´s why we need to make plans now. Can´t wait to see everyone soon!!! Merry Christmas!!!
Love and prayers,
Kristin
