In and Out of the Car Seat 15 Times

I understand the need for car seats but both Isabelle and I find them annoying. After not worrying about them for 3 months, they are tedious. Isabelle isn't used to being strapped into anything on her own (just on me, the him sling) and I'm not used to wrestling her in and out of the seat and the car every time I stop somewhere. Of course, it doesn't help that I have a two-door car.

Today we stopped at the Guatemalan restaurant in Hillsboro, Los Chapinos, for lunch. Now I even know what that means - it's the Guatemalan term for Guatemalans (like Guatemaltecos). I tried to practice my Spanish while I was there, but everyone wants to use only English (especially since my Spanish is so bad). It felt really nice to be around the Guatemalan pictures on the wall and the bread. It almost feels like a dream now that we were in Guatemala so it was nice to see the stuff from there and remember it again. The owner of the restaurant came out to talk to me when I was paying the bill, and played with Isabelle like she's used to. I told him about living in Antigua and how I missed things like the bus "callers" and he said he had been one! He even gave me a quiet example :-)

Then we went to the post office two blocks away and mailed Alba's letter to her friend in New York. Even though it took me five days to mail it, it will still get there weeks faster than if she'd mailed it from Guatemala.

Then we went to the vet (two more blocks away) and got Isbre and Tesla's anti-flea and heart-worm medications. The women at the vet loved Isabelle, and always love Isbre. Our vet, Dr. Hunsaker, showed me the picture of her daughter that she and her husband adopted 4 years ago from the Ukraine. Another woman told me that she's in the process of adopting from Ethiopia. Another was asking about the adoption process because she was thinking of adopting. It's amazing what you find out about people!

By this time, with in-and-out-of-the-car-seat 3 times, I was wishing I'd just walked on my errands. Last, we went to Pets Mart. I got Isbre some extra treats as well as her greenies because she is still feeling a little jealous of Isabelle and the attention she gets.

Isabelle has started getting a little bit shy, which is really new. When she meets someone new, she first hides her face in my chest for a few moments before turning to look at them. It's really kind of special, and so different from the way she was in Antigua where she was instant friends with everyone. I don't know whether she's just heading into a new stage, or if the giant change in place has caught up with her. She still feels more clingy than she was in Guatemala, but still has that love of going places.