Between electricity outages, lack of Internet service and doctor visits, we finally are able to post this week's blog.

Chickens around Valle de Angeles are like pigeons in some places. Always around, occasionally invasive. However, here in la Finca, no such abundance exists. With the only hint of semi-comercial day-old chick availability being possible in a future visit to Tegucigalpa, Dwain, Harlan and the boys have been eying occasional hatches of free-ranging chickens in our neighborhood. After sundown on Friday, Dwain, Javier and Cristofer purchased 7 black chicks from a family living up the street from La Finca. Some of the boys helped tape together an old box for the newcomers. Saturday morning Dwain moved the 3-week-old black chicks to the outside pen Harlan created for them. The chicks we watched hatch two weeks ago still reside in our living room and are the focus of many visits from the children. On a sadder note, one of our chicks stopped eating, began sleeping full time and died after we’d segregated it to an “infirmary box” for a night.

Also on Saturday Dwain burned cow bones given to him by a local butcher. There is little bone meal available here, so Dwain makes his own by burning the bones and later grinding them. Mixed with soil, it provides essential nutrients for the plants. Does anyone know if or how burning affects the calcium and phosphorus content of bone meal?

Compost is heating up around here – literally. With the regular added volume from the market and restaurants, the potential for a significant dose to the garden may be possible in several more weeks. Since compost piles rarely make good photos, we won’t bore you. However, we wish we could capture the looks of amazement on the kids’ faces when they experience a steaming pile that gets hot on its own – without fire.

Another Saturday activity was hiking a nearby mountain to share clothing (and some garden tomatoes) with various people who live in the rural areas. The final destination of the trip was the house of Michelle’s grandmother, “Abuela.”

Andrea taking cover during a rainstorm during the hike:

Thank you for your prayers while Dwain’s been recuperating from his painful boil. Today the doctor planned to stitch the incision, but this morning Dwain developed another boil near the site of the first. The doctor at the hospital contacted a colleague in Tegucigalpa who is a dermatologist specialist. The Horsts graciously offered to drive us into Tegucigalpa. Using a hand-drawn map from the doctor and after asking several people, we found the health center. Thankfully the doctor spoke English, so Janelle and Harlan didn’t have to hang around to help interpret. We agreed to take a taxi and meet them at the grocery store after our appointment. The doctor prescribed oral and topical antibiotics and gave us papers to receive the medications at a pharmacy of our choice. Recognizing we were foreigners who didn’t know our way around Tegucigalpa well, she actually drove us to the pharmacy! The first pharmacy did not have all the prescribed medications in stock, so she drove us to another pharmacy. They had one box of the antibiotics, but not enough. So, after some dialogue and negotiations, the pharmacist agreed to have some shipped in to the store. We will have to return later in the week to pick it up. When we were finished at the pharmacy, the Horsts called. The doctor explained to them where we were and they picked us up. The doctor told us she had lived in the U.S. for several years while in college and an American had helped her out in many ways and she wanted to return the favor. She said we were placed in her life today so that she could be blessed by having the opportunity to help us. She thanked us for giving of our time and lives to serve her country. We need to return for a check-up visit in June.

Our first picking of Swiss chard:

Javier looking happy to be out of his cast and with his flock: