Eloise in Ono

Eloise promptly caught a cold upon our arrival in Ono. After 13 months with only one tiny weekend sniffle, this was a big deal for Brian and me. We were searching our baby books for explanations of her sick baby noises. Let me just say that sick baby noises are much more frightening than grown up ones, especially at night. So we laid low and read many many of Eloise's books which she was quite happy to do when snuggled in my lap or right next to me. The snot sucker (I think it's officially called a nose bulb or some other pretty sounding name) has gotten a full work out. Dr. Auntie Kristin and that snot sucker have been the two biggest helps during this past 3 days. Eloise is coming out the other side already. Even though her eyes are a bit red-rimmed and she's still more clingy than usual, she's smiling more and getting back to her independent self.

Here are some of Eloise's milestones in the past week or two. She has created two legible sign language words by herself. (toothbrush and washing). She regularly asks to brush her teeth during the day now. Also Eloise has started pretending! I pulled out a digital thermometer which didn't work. So I let her hold it while I used the functioning thermometer. Almost immediately she put it up to her ear and started babbling loudly. Then she looked at me, smiled, and started talking again into her improvised phone.

Other things going on in Ono are continued preparations for the Bible Course which starts next week. The staff are still unpacking and setting up cooking facilities, praying daily for the students that are coming, and settling into life in a Fijiian village. Brian and Richard have worked on the village generator for the last two days. It's been non-functioning for many months and they got it running and diagnosed an alternator as needing further repair.

One interesting event happening in the village is that, for the first time ever, the village has hired an experienced drum maker to come to the village from the Lau Group of islands to build them a drum. He has his own work area and has been working for three weeks, carving and scraping.one solid piece of orange-colored hard wood into a Polynesian drum. Do not imagine a circle with canvas over it like in the U.S. It looks more like a rounded, full- bellied watering trough. It's about four feet long, two feet wide and about two feet tall. The walls are two or three inches thick. When it is even lightly tapped it is loud and resonate. I'll send a picture when I can.

And last but not least….HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ELOISE'S GRANDAD! Happy Birthday Bob. We love you.

----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com