We're not in Kansas anymore Toto.. and that's a good thing

We have reached the one month mark of being here in Belize.  Technically, Spring and the children will have been here a month on 9/17.

We are starting to "settle in" to our routine..

We are also getting used to the heat. Today I left the house at a fast pace and checked the temperature.  88 degrees with a real feal temp of 92, 54% humidity. I felt comfortable. 

Our children have experienced so much. They get to ride a school bus (the busses here used for transportation are old school busses) and taxi's something the never did in the states.  On our way back from Corazal, the bus was so full.  I started to get into my "oh dear the bus is full" mentality. I pulled my backpack in front of me.  I took note of who was around me and where my children were.  Abigail on the other hand looked at me with delight dancing in her eyes:  she was excited to not only be riding the bus (the very full bus) but be standing in the isle, driving down the highway!!

One thing I just love about this culture is the warmth of the people.  People greet you in the street.  The town is so small, you really have the ability to know people well.  Just today at a store, a man remembered what I had bought from him before and suggested I buy it again. I didn't even remember buying it from him.

Nathanael mentioned the other day at a Taco stand that the cultures here are much more integrated than in the US.  You can hear English, Creole and Spanish in the same sentence.  I can speak in Spanish than say an English word in the middle of a sentence. 

People here don't know how to place us.  Unlike Mexico, there are many light skinned people, mostly Mennonites.  We don't "fit in" with the cape dressing ones.  And then there is my Spanish.  A lot of people know Nancy so sometimes that helps.  They also are unsure of what to do with homeschoolers. I get asked a lot if my kids go to school.. (especially if they see us during the day) When I say they are homeschooled, they don't understand what that means.  I think I've given up trying to explain it :)

Why is it good that so much is different?  I was just realizing that it is simple to see pictures of other places, to look at poverty or disasters.  Experiencing things first hand is irreplaceable.  We as a family are all being changed by what we are doing here.  It is our hope that we are also bringing and spreading light to those around us.

No pictures today but feel free to check Nathanael's post below.  He makes up for my lack of pictures :)