This week started as all weeks here do: chore day for me and a lazy Sunday for everyone else in the house. Luckily Varun was home this Sunday, so the girls had plenty of fun with him while I was busy with the weekly to do list.
I’m still loving the fresh food I’m finding here in Accra. It’s always so nice when I can make the girls’ and my own meals so healthy and colorful!
Then, come Monday, our week started as most do, with the girls and I going to school in the morning, and Varun traveling most of the week. But, Abigail, Sara Gail and I do our best to keep each other happy during these long stretches that Varun is away. They always enjoy themselves at the school playground and while playing at home. Both during rowdy play, and calm quiet time in front of some good quality TV.
This week, Abigail and I hosted the weekly play group at our house. Any given week, it’s hard to know what the turnout will be like. But, we had a fair amount of mommies and babies come by, and Abigail and I always enjoy playing and chatting with new friends, and friends that we’ve had here for a little while.
Sara Gail got a treat this Tuesday too, because she got some extra time to play after school on our complex trampoline with our neighbors. Both the girls have fallen in love with the trampoline, and Sara Gail always has a good time playing with her friend.
The rest of the week continued in the new normal routine we have here in Accra: morning drop off and afternoon pick up and play on the playground. I know it’s probably boring to read about week in and week out, but as a parent of very young children, it’s nice to have such a solid routine in place, for both girls. And to watch them grow and learn to play more with each other and other friends is such a joy!
Thursday morning was the Story Box class for Abigail, another activity that is part of our normal, mundane routine. But every week Abigail is getting more and more engaged in the class. She’s starting to understand and follow the rhythm of activities and is eager to participate in the songs and games every week. I’m so glad I have found this class so I can enjoy this time with her. I know she will excel at Sara Gail’s Montessori school when she starts (most likely in September), but I’m still not ready to let her go. I want to enjoy this time with her, and this class is one way I am happy to do that!
And along came Friday and market day for Abigail and I. She’s only slightly tolerating me carrying on her back for these stretches in the hot, open market. But we also have an interesting time just people and food watching. I also have my original lady back carrying my produce again, she had gone up north to help her family with their harvest, or at least that was my understanding from the little we are able to communicate with each other since she doesn’t speak English and I don’t speak her language. I also learned another of these harsh lessons, that I usually encounter down at the market. When I first met her, she was also carrying a small baby on her back, but since she has come back, the baby is nowhere to be found. When I asked her, she told me that her baby is up north with her mother. She didn’t explain further and wasn’t able to understand when I was asking her when she’d see her baby again. But, I gather that her mother is raising her daughter so that she can live here in the “big city” and earn money. It’s another instance of learning the heartbreaking truth of the realities for local families here in Ghana – sometimes families have to live under the most difficult circumstances to get by. I’m so grateful everyday for my life and getting to see my daughters every day and every night. My heart goes out to all the mothers, and parents, that aren’t that lucky.
We ended our market day at the grocery stores in the mall where Abigail was finally given a bit of freedom to roam. It’s great for her to get a chance to stretch her legs, and it’s great for me because she’s starting to get really heavy to be carrying everywhere!
Saturday morning we went to Sara Gail’s dance class together since Daddy would be home later that afternoon. Then we had one errand to run together. I try to give both the girls a little bit of freedom when we go on these outings, but it ends up being a challenge to corral them. As Varun so fittingly puts it: it’s like herding cats! But, they have a good time and everyone in the store gets a kick out of seeing them push their own little carts around and place their items on the checkout counter.
And finally, the week ended like it began: with Varun back at home where he belongs. We decided to give the girls a little treat and explore a new funzone that we hadn’t tried before. It wasn’t the greatest, and it probably wouldn’t rank very high with the other places that we’ve found. But, it was somewhere new and out of the house all the same.
I wanted to end this week’s post with a little reminder of Sara Gail’s ongoing science project: her avocado tree. It’s continued to thrive since we planted it in our back yard and it’s starting to become a little sapling. She couldn’t be prouder to show it to any and all guests that stop by our place for a visit!
I hope you all continue to enjoy reading about our routine and daily life here in Accra, and I hope you all come back next week to continue on this journey with us!
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