Things to Think About When You Move

Setting Up and Settling In

   
      Well we have been here for a month now, how time flies. A lot has happened.... Not big things but many small things. Victoria and I found an apartment to rent by God's good grace. We were really lucky because places tend to go very quickly here. If a place is listed in the paper in the morning it is usually taken by 12:00 noon the same day. Elena and Marco were hugely helpful in helping us find a place. We searched through papers and online and then went out and visited them. It was encouraging when Elena and Marco was expressing how much they would enjoy us being close to them if possible. And then as if it was preordained (which I believe it was) we found a note in the paper about an apartment building 2 blocks away from their house. We went with them over to check it out. It was a brand new building that has 3 floors and each floor is 1 apartment. All 3 were listed in the paper when we saw it and literally the next day when we got there the first 2 floors were taken. We walked in and the woman (Monica) started to show us around. We found out that Monica actually used to be a student at the University that Elena used to work at! So we are walking through the building and looking around, and we notice people are still painting the walls and putting in light bulbs and things. The place is literally brand new and being finished. We walked through the 3rd floor and asked some questions about how the renting process works, would we have hot water, can we set up internet, etc. While we are being shown the place, 2 other families showed up to look at it as well! Being that Monica knew Elena, she told them that we had first dibs as it were. Which put us in a position where we needed to make a decision promptly. Vic and I weighed our pros and cons about the place and then asked what would it cost per month. Monica told us, which I waited for the translation from Elena. Then with a chuckle we said yes!

Jethro inspecting for safety

 Victoria and myself had already made an agreement not to rent a place higher than $400 a month. Monica quoted us $200. Hence the chuckle. Being 20/20 and looking back, God had planned out every step that we unknowingly walked in. God led us to Elena, God impressed Ambato upon us, God worked out everything for us to depart to live here, God had this apartment built at the exact time we would arrive looking, God had already made a connection between Elena and Monica, God knew what our income would be and provided a brand new place in a good neighborhood for us to call home, and there is no telling how many more graces God has set in motion that we haven't even seen yet. Now we all know that part of God's great love for us can hurt sometimes when He is growing us, maturing us, and conforming us. But man how sweet are the times that He abundantly gives you joy and we get the pleasure of giving Him the glory for it.

Yes that is a massive propane tank
on the ground beside the oven

Breaded chicken with peppers and celery
(the suspicious fruit on the right is a naranjilla, I think)

You Don't Need a Microwave

We have been in this apartment for 2 weeks now and we now have internet set up. Sorry for not having posted sooner! It took a while to get things set up here. The apartment didn't have a thing in it. No refrigerator, no oven/stove, no bed, no table or chairs, no couch, plates, eat utensils, cups, nada (nothing in Spanish). So that was interesting in and of itself. We looked online in various places that we could find, and was able to find a bed, a stove/oven (gas), and a refrigerator for $480 total (yet another grace). Since then we have picked up some of the small things that are needed for everyday life, and we've been going to the markets and the mall to get food. "I have been considering myself a master chef" (said in a proper English accent in a very proud manner). Many-a things mighty tasty have been coming from our cast iron skillet that we brought with us even though it weighs more than my right arm, but thanks to the persistence of my lovely wife, we have it here... The foods here are super fresh! All the fruits and vegetables, eggs, meats, and the best milk I have ever had in my life. When scripture talks about the land flowing with milk and honey, I imagine that milk tastes like this milk. NOT fat free, or skim, or 1%, or 2%, and even thicker than the vitamin D back in the States, it is A.....mazing.

This is the view from our balcony
on the 3rd floor

We have a good size closet but we did
not have any hangers to put up our clothes

Exercise

I believe we have told you about the difference in elevation here. It will take a toll on you with just regular walking. Vic and I finally got acclimated pretty well. Enough to say," Hey why don't we find a gym close by and start working out again." Two gyms were pretty close and so we went to them and worked out for a day in each. And then.... BAM! We found a crossfit gym within a 15 minute walking distance. A real game changer for everyday life. They have everything needed for crossfit workouts and the guy that owns it really cool and can speak a little English. And here is the kicker, they have really hot showers! So, at our apartment and most places around here they use these little electronic heaters for the shower head. It's super cheap to buy one but this is how it works: It WILL heat water but only about a 15 degree, at best, difference from the temperature of the water coming in. And to get it to heat you cannot have a lot of water pressure coming out. It doesn't have enough time to heat. So you have to barley turn the water on to a drizzle and hope that the water coming in to the unit is at least 65 degrees. Time management has now taken over my shower time. Whereas back home I would take a 20 minute shower, I now take a 2 minute shower. And I could not be any more awake by the time said shower ends. Which I guess overall is a good thing cause I study Spanish on Rosetta Stone in the morning.


That's pretty much whats been going on from my point of view, I'm sure Victoria will post a more intelligent and descriptive post that will answer the questions you have after reading mine :)

For those of you that saw Victoria's post on
Facebook, no, she still has not let me buy a
box of mac n cheese...

Love you guys and thank you for keeping up with us and for your prayers!