Grandpa, Ruthie, Elisha & Ez

It’s the morning before New Year’s and all through the house,

not a creature is stirring except a snoring Grandpa mouse…

Everyone is tired this morning.

We’ve had a wonderful few days since Christmas, even with Hannah’s sore ankle.

We chartered a boat to Santiago to visit the hospitalito there.  They came right into our yard to pick us up, so Hannah didn’t have to hop far and the lake was smooth, so she didn’t suffer much banging; the tuk-tuk ride up the mountain was another matter altogether.

The hospitalito in Santiago de Atitlan is a privately run hospital funded in part by the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, a Methodist church and Starbucks.  It has three inpatient beds and four delivery beds in addition to outpatient services and an Emergency room. The doctors are mostly volunteers from western countries.  Ours, Liz, was from Nashville, TN.  She’d been at the hospital just two days, and was still adjusting to the differences between the first and third worlds.

It’s a great little hospital.  Very clean, well staffed, organized, plenty of supplies.  Better by FAR than going to the public hospital at Solola.  Even so, every single piece of furniture looked like it had been trash picked from behind Chicago’s general hospital, handles missing, rusty, dented and sometimes propped up on one corner.  Furniture doesn’t affect quality of care though, right?

To make a long story short, Hannah’s x-ray was inconclusive.  There’s no obvious break, but there’s a little spot on the growth plate that Liz was unsure of.  So, she’s got a soft cast for two weeks while we wait.  If there is still pain at the end of that time, we’ll have another x-ray to look for a callus forming over a crack.  If not, she’s good to go.

Hannah's foot... David & Grandma too

Naturally, there were no crutches to be had in the hospital.  Not big enough for Hannah, anyway, who towers above most of the men here.  We did find a set downtown, at the fire station.  They just gave them to us.  No deposit, no payment at all.  Just our names written on a slip of loose leaf paper and the town we live in.  Amazing.

We celebrated Grandpa’s 61st birthday in grand style, with a toasted coconut cake and dinner at Blind Lemon’s.  Carlos, the proprietor, played the Blues for us while we ate and Grandpa was wished happy birthday by every local in town as he wandered home in the dark.  They’ve continued to wish him happy birthday for two more days!

Ruthie & David took off hiking on Tuesday, trying to make it completely around the lake in a few days.  We’re hoping they’ll be back this afternoon, as the surprise we’ve had brewing starts tonight.  Last we heard they’d made it farther than expected and were having a great time!

It’s hard to believe that in less than a week the Grandparents will be headed home and I’ll be winging my way to NH for a visit with the new baby there.  Time passes too quickly.  But, in the meantime, we will celebrate the New Year with great joy and in grand style… I need to give some thought to my New Year’s Wish.