On Our Way!

Our last Sunday (and last full day) here in Peroba.  Here comes the hard part, saying goodbye.  And currently we don't know when we are coming back, so that makes it harder.  Tomorrow we drive up to Recife, stay with friends there overnight, and then head to the airport Tuesday morning for the 29 hour trip home.  So excited to see BOTH our sets of parents when we get home to Canada.  Happy Mother's Day to our dear mothers!  We can't  wait to see you!

Here's a few photos of the last two weeks.  Like I mentioned, we decided to "go on holidays" as there was nothing else we could do.  So we checked out a bunch of different beaches around here, as well as the manatee reserve around an hour away.

What would holidays be without delicious watermelon!  This is at the beach in Barreiras do  Boqueirao.

This is the beach of Peroba, right where we live.

Last weekend was a full moon (the super moon you may have heard of).  This meant the tides were extra low and extra high, so we headed out to try find some cool animals.  This was the first hermit crab we found.

Shaun found a Brazilian and wanted to get a picture with the little kid.

We could walk out to the reef, but most of it was still around a foot under water, and it was actually really windy and not too sunny, so it was difficult to find sea creatures.

Suddenly we realized there were millions of hermit crabs all around.

Seth's last day of school.  He hadn't been as keen to go as the first little bit, but I would have it often in Canada as well, that I had to force him out the door and he was fine once he was there.  Notice how he's sitting in the very back of the class?  He told us a story a few weeks back how some kid was kicking him out of his seat, so I wonder if this is the fallout: he finds a seat that is far away from everyone!

Hazel in her class.  Notice she is right at the teacher's desk.  She definitely likes to play up her tears to get the teacher's attention I think!

To get to the Manatee Reserve we had to cross a river to a town called Porto do Pedras.   The Manatee Reserve is called  in Portuguese the Santuario do Peixe Boi.  Now unfortunately Shaun and I got ripped off by the guide we got a hold of, so I am going to explain how to get there yourself so you don't have to phone a guide.  You find the ferry pictured above on the south side of Japaratinga, through some suburbs of Japaratinga (Bitingui, Barreiros do Boqueirao, then Boqueirao, then Pontal).  When you get to the end you get to this ferry (called a balsa).  The ferry costs 10R each way.  You cross into Porto do Pedras, and take a left, drive through all the city, then past another little suburb, then you have to drive around 3 more km before you reach a sign on your left saying "Passeio do Peixe Boi."  You turn there and then drive and drive and drive down a sandy "road."  You will pass a sign on your right for the actual conservation project, but that is for people who work there.  You just keep driving.  Then you see a sign for the Passeios do Peixe Boi on your right, turn there and voila, a little parking lot.  For ages 6 and up it is 35R.  

This is one of the balsas. 

Porto do Pedras.

Once you go to the area where guides are, they take you on these boats in the river, where currently there are 10 manatee.  The river has a little fence towards the mouth of the river, to keep the manatee in.   My understanding is they will find injured or sick manatee, sometimes up in the Amazon or wherever, and bring them here to nurse them back to health and introduce them back into the wild.  The boats are not allowed to have motors.  Also, note that you should bring lifejackets for your young children as they do not have them.  I may be paranoid, as the river is not so deep, but the river also is murky.                                 

Lyla was not that enjoyable of a companion, particularly as she did not have a lifejacket of course. 

There was some beautiful scenery.

There is more of an enclosure where some are kept and where they are fed from.  They eat lettuce and carrots, and grow up to 500 kilos.

This is around as close as we got to seeing one :(
This one was eating, and they eat underwater.  They can stay under between 5 and 13 minutes and then only come up for a quick breath of air.

It's Breathing!

On the way back across the ferry.

We had lunch on the beach, and I think this was Seth's favorite part of the day: a million little crabs,  two starfish (he thinks), and other little animals.

I'll finish off blogging our trip once we get back to Canada and I unload the rest of my pics.  Ate Mais!  See you all Wednesday!

Love the Raaps  

It is Not Possible...

***I wrote this post last week Thursday, and didn't publish it, thinking that maybe it was just one of those days where I was looking at everything in a negative light.  We currently are getting set to head back to Canada in a week, so I'm feeling a bit glum trying to build up enthusiasm for packing and saying goodbye here.***

It is not possible...to have our bank account before we leave Brazil.  We also are concerned about the length of time it could/will possibly take to buy and renovate the land we have been eyeing, as well as order the machinery we need.   We obviously can't do anything with the land or machinery until we have our bank account.  Having a down day thinking about all the hiccups we've experienced.  It's been a long couple of years waiting to actually do this, and we wonder how much longer we will wait until the business is functioning.  And as much as we enjoy this lifestyle, and the amazing adventure it has been, do we continue living off of love :) as we wait for the business to be paying us.

To be honest, in my mind I always imagined being back in Canada in a "short-ish" time, maybe at most five years.  But seeing how long everything has taken, are we looking at longer than that?  Can I think about the possibility of longer without panicking?

Shaun is in Forteleza tonight and tomorrow for some meetings.  Hopefully it will provide him with the clarity that I don't have.  I am so excited to see my family and friends in THIRTEEN days, but also so sad that we are leaving here yet again.  There are some amazing people here and I'm so thankful for our neighbours especially, as well as other good friendships we've made and strengthened.

So, can anyone who is completely completely neutral, without any thought in their head about wanting us either here in Brazil or there in Canada, tell us if there is a logical resolution to this problem?  Or is it one of those "what is right for your family" sort of deals, and you can always look at it from both sides?  The point of our venture is to run a successful business that benefits the community, as well as provides for our family, not have a five year adventure where we live off of our savings.

So then my other question is, how do you know God's will in situations like this?  Can I type it in google: should Shaun and Brenda stay in Brazil?  If we keep hitting roadblocks, is that a sign?  If we decide to stick it out, is that God's will?  If some people tell us it's a great idea, or a horrible idea, is that advice we should listen to (think of many of the Proverbs that talk about listening to advice and heeding instruction)?  Or as it does not seem to be out of line with anything Biblical, is it more a matter of how we feel about it?  As I was looking through the Proverbs I also caught this one:

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed (Pr. 16:3).

We definitely have spent many years praying about this.  However:

In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps (Pr. 16:9).

***So Here's An Addendum to this post***
I did end up having a good conversation with some friends of ours here in Brazil the next day while Shaun was gone, and it was somewhat enlightening.  A bit funny because I told them that no one is neutral about where we go... implying that I think we are wanted everywhere :)  If we are doing things for godly reasons, such as benefiting the community, or providing for our family, it is possible that any way we go could be within God's will: that is, his will for a godly walk of life.  Seems like it makes it more difficult, possibly.  And in spite of that, easier.  We want to move here.  We believe that this business venture can be successful in a way that benefits many in the community with work and improved business knowledge.  We hope in some small way to contribute to the small church community here.

So in analyzing whether this business is feasible (if it ever opens ;), Shaun had more good news in Forteleza, where he met with a company that makes the machinery and another government organization that consults with agricultural companies.  There seems to be a continued and even increased interest in the product, which renewed yet again Shaun's excitement.  So we continue on, knowing we have good intentions, we've done our research, and most of all, we've asked for guidance and blessings from the Lord.


Unless the Lord builds the house,
those who build it labour in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city, 
the watchman stays awake in vain.
It is in vain that you rise early
and go late to rest,
eating the bread of anxious toil;
for he gives to his beloved sleep.
~Psalm 127: 1-2

Now all we have to do is continue in our lesson of patience...

Sea Turtle

Walking on the beach... we see vultures circling around something on the beach... I'm thinking it is a small shark.  Almost as cool, a dead sea turtle!  It is half eaten, so if that sounds gross to you, don't look any further :)

A Prince in Disguise

I walked outside the house yesterday morning, and observed Seth throwing what I thought was rocks out of our neighbour's yard.  When I took a look, it was three huge toads....  So we have spent the last 2 months preaching and teaching Seth about the danger of Cane Toads to no avail.  His reasoning is that they are making the water that our neighbour's dog drinks dirty, and the dog is getting sick from this.  Well, at least it gave me a photo op, as they are usually out at night and I haven't gotten a good pic yet.  This was probably the biggest toad I've seen, however, it may be hard to tell from the picture.  Isn't he handsome?

Randomness

Seth found a flopping fish, picked it up, and threw it back in the ocean.  When we said that we could have eaten it for supper, he said, "no, I didn't want to eat him, I wanted it for a pet."  Can you imagine his apartment when he grows up?

When Seth caught the fish, Hazel said "I saw its pedals that make it drive!"

Lyla and Hazel, at the supper table, saying "Me-dâ, me-dâ!" which means "give me, give me!" Why do they have to use the words with the least manners?  I guess it's harder to say "Eu gostaria mais, por favor!"

Seth lost his second tooth yesterday.

Lyla has never really spoken much English yet, and now it seems all she's learning is Portuguese.  So far she says "quero agua" (I want water), blah blah blah "gato," (cat, although she refuses to say the word cat and only says "meow" when we point to a cat and ask her what it is), "sapo" for frog, "mamai" and "papai" for mom and dad.

Hazel throws in Portuguese words all the time in her sentences.  For example, "I need to go xixi" (pee), or different colours.

Today I really focused on trying to speak portuguese instead of english to them, and Seth, Hazel, and Lyla all understand me.  Seth is just a bit more self-conscious about actually trying a new language.

Seth told us he wanted to be an entomologist.  We had told him that a friend of ours had an uncle who studied insects and what it was called probably over a week ago.  He says he specifically wants to study caterpillars :)

Speaking about caterpillars, Hazel got "stung" by a caterpillar we think yesterday.  Not one of the big ones I put on the blog earlier, but a small fuzzy one.  She cried for over an hour (it felt like 4).

There's a lot more little adjustments going on, and although I'm sooooo excited to see everyone in 3 weeks, I am sad that it seems like our kids are just adjusting and learning the language and our routine, and now we are leaving.  Seth and Hazel both are talking about how they love Brazil, although Hazel first says she wants to stay in Brazil, then in Canada.  It will be a lot of adjustments back and forth in the next few months.  We are planning to move in with my parents and Uncle Jay, but the plan was for one month.... not sure if that will be the case!  Hopefully they love us enough to put up with us!

Currently it looks like if we can set up our bank account within the next 3 weeks, it will take 35 days from the time we submit our paperwork to the Ministry of Labour to recieve our visas (30 for them to review it, 5 for the consulate in Vancouver to review it).  If that means business days, we may be there until middle of July!  I am a little bit happy about being there for a little of the summer, especially my dad's big sixtieth birthday!  I missed being there for my mom's birthday yesterday and it feels weird to know they are drinking wine without me!  Well, just so you know, we drank a cup here for her!  Happy Birthday again Mom, we love you!

Goodnight all!  We are off to watch a novella (only to learn Portuguese of course!)

There is a Possibility....

...that we may have a bank account by the time we leave!

Yesterday we left for Maceio at around 10 in the morning.  Seth and Hazel were at school and Thacianne graciously agreed to watch them when they came home from school.  She actually came home from school with them on the bus as she teaches some mornings, so that was perfect.  We brought Lyla along, and she is usually a good traveller.  We thought we'd be back mid afternoon.  It is supposed to be a two hour drive each way, and we were going to sign some papers at HSBC and then, I assumed, go out for lunch, and then return by 3 or maybe 4.

We got to the bank in good time, and were extremely happy with HSBC's helpfulness and apparent knowledge of what needed to be done.  The bank customer service rep pulled out the papers within seconds, we signed them, and they told us by today our paperwork would be in the HSBC in Salvador. That is where our lawyers "know" people and they have had no problems getting bank accounts in the past.  So excited about that potential.

We then also went shopping and then had lunch at a churrascaria, or rodizio, which is a steakhouse where waiters walk around with large skewers of meat and they slice the meat off and you grab it with some prongs you are given.  Yummy! if you're a carnivore like me :)  There's also a salad bar to help you feel healthier.

By the time we got back it was 7 at night.  We had actually a really nice little trip, and the only glitch was Lyla.  She has recently been potty-trained, however, we usually still have to take her to remind her to pee, as she does sometimes wait too long and end up having accidents.  So for the trip I put her in her diaper.  Well, would you know she refused to pee or poop in her diaper.  On the way there she screamed for ten minutes, and I mean Screamed, because she needed to go poop and pee.  We finally found a bathroom and after the bathroom break she was so angry about being forced back into her carseat she screamed for at least another 15 minutes before she calmed down enough to fall asleep.  And the exact same thing happened on the way home, except there was no bathroom and somehow I had to get this just-over-two just-potty-trained girl to understand that she could squat and pee at the side of the road.  I was actually pretty impressed that she did it.

Other than that, it was a good trip, and we are praying that this is the step we need to get things going here.

Have a great night everyone!
Brenda

Business Update

Remember last post?  How it should be simple to open up a bank account if we give our Brazilian administrator our power of attorney to do so?  Apparently the bank that has this list up on their website does not like their own requirements, and have said it won't work.  So this morning we sign over our power of attorney (Shaun, Hermes and I) to our lawyers, and drive down to Maceio to sign some more paperwork, and then it SHOULD happen in about two to three weeks.

So in order to enjoy the last three weeks here, as there is nothing else we really can do....

We are hoping to go to this natural habitat manatee project close by, which should be pretty cool.  And maybe take a couple day trips to some other beaches. And hopefully spend a couple days with the mission families in Recife.

In the interim, while we wait, Shaun has taken on a project to organize the books for all the different ministries and projects that get funneled from Canada through one organization here.  Apparently it is a bit messy, and often trying to sort out where money has gone and where it is supposed to go has been a bit of a time-consuming struggle for the missionaries and mission aid worker.  So Shaun is already putting some of his talents to good use here, even as we wait :)

And (my) favorite thing, I hired someone twice a week to help with cleaning.  You have no idea how exciting this is.  And you may be skeptical of this, but to keep the house and the kids and our clothes clean is a lot more work than Canada.  We have many many conveniences there we take for granted.  Plus I am doing school with Seth for around 2 hours a day.  Honestly, I think I could do it, but I am not exactly the most dedicated housekeeper at the best of times, so everything piles up and stresses me out, and I'd rather hang out with my kids.  So I figure it's a small price to pay for 3 weeks of enjoyment.  Now I'll only have to clean my bathrooms once a week, because she can do it twice.

So, tata for now!  I will update as I know things.  Have a wonderful Tuesday :)