It was a cool and foggy morning. Steph and China left for Cusco after breakfast. Percy took them into town, picking up Lucrecia on the way.
They took the bus into Cusco, but partway there the police stopped the bus and demanded paperwork from everyone. China didn’t have her passport, but I was able to send a picture of it to her. The police let the bus go after checking everyone.
They first went to the eye doctor to get an exam for China, but the doctor was out. She’ll need to go another day. Steph had wanted to take a taxi from where the bus dropped them off, but Lucrecia was sure they could walk instead of spending extra money. That became a theme for the day. I was a little unhappy with how much Steph walked, but she doesn’t know how to say no sometimes. Thankfully, she seems to be feeling okay this evening.
They found all the supplies she was looking for, including some clothes for the baby. We don’t have much in the way of girl clothes because the last four have been boys, and we didn’t bring any baby girl clothes down to Peru. Of course, a lot of Walter’s baby clothes will work for the earlier days, but even then, Steph wished for more to layer up for warmth, especially considering that Willow will come near the coldest part of the year.
They stopped at the post office and found a pile of church papers sent from the States! Mail seems to be coming through regularly now though it must be held in Lima for two weeks to be sure it doesn’t catch Covid.
They got lunch at the mall and found the Papa John’s open. Steph got enough for supper–thanks, Mr. Bill, for the gift! She also found a few small space heaters. Our one and only gave up the ghost before summer, but we wanted one for Willow’s room, school, and the office for sure. They were $10 each, which I thought wasn’t too bad.
On the way back, they stopped in Izcuchaca and picked up a box from Huaral. Christine Slabaugh had sewn some dresses for her, which turned out lovely. But there were surprises in the box! A little something for everyone, but I was delighted to find cheddar cheese! Simon had been in the States recently and was thoughtful enough to bring cheese back for us. So kind!
Meanwhile, the children and I were working on cleaning out various pens. We started with the guinea pig pen. I did my best to stay back and let the children do that, but I apparently got caught in the dust because it really hit me. I had to do a lot of sitting after that because I struggled to catch my breath. It’s incredible how something as tiny as dust can wipe a fellow out.
But with us all working together, the children doing the lion’s share, we finished the bodega, the pig pen, the buck pen, and the alley before the goat pen. I thought that was a good amount.
We ended up not doing much this afternoon, but we put in the effort in the morning. When Steph got back, we had fun opening all the packages and putting things away. The children were tickled pink with their surprises from Simon’s family.
Juan David 