Happy Solar Eclipse! (which we totally missed because we are in SOUTH America)

We've got a jam packed week full of exciting things to share with y'all so buckle up! (There are lots of pictures too.)

Tuesday, August 15 is where our week begins. Here in Paraguay, August 15 is a National Holiday. It celebrates the Founding of Asuncion in 1537. (Fun factoid: Did you know the full name of Asuncion is Nuestra Señora Santa María de la Asunción? It means Our Lady of the Assumption.) Since it was a National Holiday, the Embassy was closed and Scott had the day off work. We slept in and ate breakfast together as a little family. Around 9am we couldn't ignore the fact that we kept hearing horse whinnies outside our house. We looked out the window and sure enough there was a truck unloading 6 horses into the park across from us. We went out to get a closer look. The little park was FULL of horses! We counted about 25. 

Mackenzie's first encounter with horses! There are at least 9 here.

This one was very calm.

We all stood with Tornado!

So close!

Right in front of our house. At least 8 trucks parked out here that had carried horses. They were here all day.

After seeing these horses and wondering why they were here we did some more investigating. We walked up the street and around the corner following some of the horses and in the bigger park across from our house were even more horses! They were going to have a rodeo! We had wanted to get out of the house and do something fun and this was perfect. Mackenzie took her nap at 10:30 and after she woke up, we went out to the rodeo.

Look at all them! It was quite a sight.

There were over 100 horses at least. The riders showed off their costumes and did some galloping but there was no traditional rodeo tricks at least that we saw. There were even some people performing dances in traditional dress. And it was all complete with a live mariachi band. So loud!

An unfortunate acronym for the mariachi band.

This is the Catholic Church in the Seminary Park where the Rodeo was.
We walk past it everyday to go to the Embassy.

We stayed at the rodeo for about an hour and a half then walked down to the Embassy playground. It was a beautiful day. Mackenzie loves those swings!

A happy family on this beautiful holiday.

It was a very exciting Tuesday to say the least.

The next day (Wednesday) was a normal work day for Scott. Remember we said we interviewed a nanny on Monday? We had her come for just an hour on Wednesday morning so see how Mackenzie took to her and to get a feel for her style. Kiersten watched for a few minutes then snuck out to get some things done in the kitchen. It was nice to know Mackenzie was being watched after while Kiersten accomplished a few mundane tasks but after the nanny left, Kiersten was unexpectedly emotional. She cried basically the rest of the morning.

Reasons and thoughts as to why. The biggest reason is, Kiersten is not ready to give up all her one-on-one time with this beloved little baby of hers. It was very different and challenging to have someone else there we don't know and struggle to communicate with watch our child. She did fine and all but it was definitely different. Logically it was terrific for both K&M because it forced K to speak Spanish and learn some words and phrases. But emotionally, it was tough. 

How can I leave this adorable face?!!

After talking it through with Kiersten's mom and with Scott, we've decided to push forward with this nanny but to start slow, just a few hours a week the first week or two. It takes the Embassy a little while to process her papers anyway so this will also be a good trial period. Kiersten has also decided not to leave the house while the nanny is here for the first little bit too until she feels more comfortable with her. Then she'll go on quick, short and close runs by the house and eventually work up to going to the Temple. This girl is a member of the church and 19. If the Lord can trust 19 year-old girls to do His work as missionaries, I can trust one to play with my baby for a few hours a week.

She's such a silly little thing.

Thursday was pretty much a normal day. K&M walked to the Embassy in the morning and afternoon to play on the playground and help Scott with some packages that arrived. His 30th birthday is just around the corner so a lot of our recent packages have been for his birthday which he's not allowed to look at! It's also nice to have Kiersten come help carry things home since he walks to work each day.

The weather here continues to surprise us!

At the playground but not on the swings!

Half day Friday. Yes even though they had a day off work this week, they still had half a day on Friday. It's so nice! Kiersten took her usual trip to the grocery store with our neighbors and during casual conversation learned that the Marine Ball in November is a formal affair. And guess what?! It's happening on Kiersten's birthday weekend! Scott is taking Kiersten to a Ball for her 30th birthday! What a lucky girl!! So naturally when she got home and after Mackenzie went to bed, the hunt for a ball gown began. It took less time than she expected to narrow down a gown. God bless the internet.

Now for the events of this weekend. Saturday was a tremendously busy day. The morning is was pretty low-key. Scott worked on cleaning the pool a little while the girls played inside. Once the baby was down for her nap, Scott agreed to practice Yoga with Kiersten for the first time. It was very exciting (for Kiersten at least). Scott said he felt good afterwards and it was harder than he originally thought. Hopefully there will be more Yoga in his future.

Around 2:30 our neighbors (who take K to the grocery store each week) drove us all out to a used car lot to look at buying a used car. In about 45 minutes we'd looked at cars, settled on one model, test drove one and verbally agreed to come back on Tuesday with the money to buy said car. It was amazing! Very soon, we are finally going to have the freedom we so desperately crave to explore more of this new city of ours. Our actual car (our Mazda) shipped on Friday but we still won't see it for at least three more months. Yes, it really will take that long with customs and all that so this little car will be perfect until the Mazda comes. When we say little, we're talking about the size of a Volkswagon Beetle. Pictures to come next week.

With the car shopping completed, we wanted to thank our neighbors for taking us and letting us borrow their car and so many other things, so we took them out to dinner. At Johnny Rocket's. Never had we eaten at a Johnny Rocket's in the States so why not in a foreign country? They have pretty tasty burgers.

It was a stupid paper hat but we had to have a picture.

After dinner we walked into the mall where the restaurant was located in search of some ice cream. It was fantastic! The ice cream here is unexpectedly good. It truly was a spectacular day. So nice to get out of the house and not be at one of the three places (Embassy, market or Casa Rica) that we usually frequent each week. Can't wait for that car next week!

In the mall!

"Hmm, this looks good."

"Oh yeah! Tasty!"

Sunday was perfectly relaxed. Mackenzie went to Nursery again and this time, the Nursery leader came for her so we let her go. We think they gave her candy which Kiersten was not pleased about but we'll make sure to say something next week if she goes again. The choir also sang in Sacrament Meeting which Kiersten and Scott are both a part of. Just helping to share our musical talents where ever we go.

Sunday dinner was quiet the undertaking for Kiersten. The meal was chicken lasagna roll-ups with alfredo sauce (made from scratch because we couldn't find any at the store), homemade garlic bread and copycat Olive Garden salad. After being in the kitchen for 3 hours the meal was completed and ready to eat. It was very, very yummy and well worth all the work.

Picture perfect. Scott contributed some home brewed lemonade. 

Then it was time for our Sunday night family phone calls. Everyone is doing well back home and we are always so happy to see everyone. We love technology! And! Sunday was August 20 which means we've now been in Paraguay for one whole month! Time has flown by.

Lastly, today (Monday) was back to the grind. Our nanny came again to start her first trial week. She did one hour today and Kiersten handled things much better. No tears! She showed her how she plays with Mackenzie and how she teaches her with the toys (for example, saying the names of the animals in the book or puzzle as Mackenzie hands them to her). Anahy (Ah-naw-hi. The nanny) seemed a little more relaxed too and things went great. Kiersten had written down some key phrases she wanted to say the night before and that was a big help. She's coming again tomorrow for 2 hours. We'll see how it goes.

She loves to read and this is a fun book!

Also, Kiersten wants to note that she has been working out at home this whole time and has a pretty good home gym system. For those doubters of the efficiency of resistance bands, I can make you all believers.

Resistance bands for arms and a 20 liter water
 bottle for heavy lifting.

With the door stop you can make a lat pulldown.
That transformer on the ground is a great weight.

Time for our Quirks of Paraguay section!

- Buses. We have been told by the Security Officer that we shouldn't ride the buses here because they can't attest to their safety. Fair enough. They are old and put out a lot of exhaust and look like they're about to fall apart at any minute but whatever! We talked to the sister missionaries at church on Sunday and they use the buses (of course they do!). Life is very different when you're a missionary. Bless those sweet girls.

Take a look at that bus! Amazing.

- Quincho (kin-ch-oe). It's a place in our house that is kind of like a patio except it's enclosed. This is where our awesome grill is. One of Scott's goals while we live here is to perfect grilling a stake. This is a very good goal.

She looks so comfortable there.

- Chipa. Chipa is a traditional Paraguayan cheese bread that everyone here loves. We haven't eaten it enough to have a real opinion about it but everyone promises that we will love it. Kiersten is going to attempt to make it this week so she needed to buy some to compare tastes.

Paraguayan bagels! Chipa can be found in many forms.

Next up, Misadventures in Cooking! We have only one to share with you this week.
- We purchased an oven thermometer to continue to help us understand our oven. We cranked the temperature as high as it would go (250C/ 482F) and left it on for at least two hours. (We baked a loaf of bread and some cookies during that time so we weren't just wasting energy.) After those two hours, the hottest the temperature ever got was 350F. Well that explains a few things!

We should probably get this fixed...

And the Mackenzie Update to round things out.
- She is SO close to walking more than a few steps and then falling. She is definitely better at walking when she's wearing her sandals than when she's barefoot. Today K&M went for a long, slow walk around the block with M holding K's finger. She loved it and did very well.

She loves to walk!

What cute girls!

- Two nights in a row Mackenzie did not want to go to bed so instead of lying in her crib and falling asleep quietly like she does every night she screamed. For a long time. We came in and got her to try to calm her down and when she'd get calm we'd try to leave and she'd start all over again. It was not fun. Luckily it was only two nights.
- Her use of eating with a fork is coming along very nicely. We just got her baby sized forks this week and she handled it like a champ.

Oh yeah! Mad eating skills.

That's if for us. We'll see you next week!