Journal Entry: Friday, October 9, 2009

Yesterday (Thursday) was a good day. Around 10:30 a.m. we loaded up two cars and headed to Wahoo Beach for the day ... It was a scenic drive, through small but crowded towns, along rutted dirt roads, and past paving crews in other parts. The lush green foliage of trees and fields and mountains and the glimpses of lagoons and the ocean were beautiful.

In one town, Barbara paused momentarily and purchased a locally-made type of peanut brittle for which the town is known. It was fabulous; softer than our peanut brittle but equally sweet and delicious.

Finally we reached Wahoo Beach, where sweaty clothes were peeled off and sticky swimsuits were peeled on ... I took first Ian out, then Maggie took Alec out, and we enjoyed swimming in the beautiful blue-green waters of the Caribbean. It truly did look like a tropical paradise, with the exception of small trash/debris that occasionally floated by. The water was barely cool, but not warm like bath water; the boys, especially Alec, seemed to love it. The waves were fun, splashing us with a gentle slap here and again, and always pulling us off to one side with the current. Maggie and I chatted at length about our adoption stories and at one point Barbara joined us as well. Meanwhile at the beach Mom was pestered by vendors wanting her to buy everything from jewelry to paintings, and she eventually gave in and ordered two hand-made bracelets with Eva and Isabel's names on it, thinking she was doing so for 10 Haitian dollars (about $1.25 US) when in reality it was 10 American dollars! But, the girls will love them.

... After lunch, we went to the swimming pool where I changed the boys into dry clothes in hopes they would nap on the poolside chairs. Instead they preferred to eat (and scatter) their snacks and watch the big kids perform their pool antics. For my part, I was overjoyed to stand under the cold outdoor shower and douse myself in running water for the first time in days. Our pool time was cut short by a tropical rainstorm and Lucian quickly arranged some umbrellas to keep Mom and the boys dry. She had to hold both on her lap because I was still wet, and although the boys picked at each other a bit they eventually wound down and sat sleepily with Mom-Mom.

When we headed home ... both boys fell asleep in our arms on the drive. When we reached the village we realized Ian had spiked a high fever of 102.8 and refused to drink anything. It had started to rain hard and cool off a bit, so I headed to our front step with Ian and Mom followed with Alec. No sooner had I said, "Be careful, it's slippery!" then Mom's feet slipped out from under her and she fell hard off the step ... twisting one foot under her. She was in a lot of pain, so once we got her stabilized I took Ian to Lawanna's for his meds and to get ice for Mom (which Maggie graciously took to her.) I splashed Ian down with cool water, gave him Motrin (most of which he spit out) and when the fever still didn't abate gave him some Tylenol as well ... Thankfully Ian stayed cool throughout the night and Mom's foot slowly started to feel less painful as she used it the next day.