Ugh with the internet and my laptop! Technology is great…when it works…

This trip to India is completely different than the one we took in 2012.  For the most part, the boys to the office with Ryan, I stay in the apartment with my feet up in the morning, let the maids in to clean the floors and at lunch the boys get Dominos delivered to them and Ryan and I go out to lunch with some friends in the office. We haven’t gotten out into town much for several reasons. 1) It’s hot. Only crazy people go out in this kind of heat. 2) We really saw all of Vizag last time we were here. The only real thing that has changed is the amount of cars on the road and new buildings have gone up. And 3) being pregnant is the best excuse not to have to do anything!

What I have done the past week since arriving in Vizag…gone through 8 ½ dozen eggs, 4 pounds of butter, 3 kilos of sugar and 5 kilos of flour. Other than the food we’ve eaten for meals, I’ve made 2 batches of banana bread, 3 batches of brownies, 3 batches of chocolate chip cookies and a batch of peanut butter cookies. Good thing I enjoy baking and the people at the office enjoy eating! But I definitely need to find something new to make…only problem is that I’m limited to the cooking ingredients I have.

Tuesday, June 17^th

Tuesday morning started off with way too much excitement. I decided it was going to be laundry day. I HATE LAUNDRY DAY! If doing laundry at home isn’t bad enough, doing laundry here, although could be way worse, sucks. The washer is still the same machine from the other apartment, it still doesn’t drain all the way, so each load I do I still have to wring out each item of clothing and hang it over a wrought iron fence with no clips. I’ve already done a load where we lost a couple of shirts to the wind, falling to the ground floor and a load where it decided to rain in the afternoon. Hence, I HATE LAUNDRY DAY!  Anyway, Tuesday morning I woke up and decided I needed to do laundry again. The washing machine is on a little balcony with a drain in the corner, so when the water drains, it drains towards the hole…ideally. So, like everything else around here the water tube in “jimmy-rigged” into the spicket, and right in the middle of washing, it totally disconnects and water is spewing everywhere…how did we know it broke and the washing machine was spewing water everywhere? Oh, it was pouring in underneath the door and filling up the dining area. The water was not draining fast enough in that little drain! Good thing for tile floors and squeegees!

The downside to all of this is that as much as I hate laundry day, dirty clothes (especially underwear) are way worse…I hope the machine gets fixed quickly so I can have some clean undies. (The kids don’t care…gross!) I guess there is always hand washing…sorry, I draw the line somewhere…

Wednesday, June 18

Ryan decided the boys needed to stay at the apartment in the morning because he was having some meetings at the office. Good thing…the power in the building was out all day. No a/c, no internet, nothing! So, instead they stayed here and we walked to the grocery store to pick up some more baking supplies.

We went out to dinner last night to KFC because I thought that’s what the baby wanted. I was wrong. The baby really doesn’t want anything but a cheeseburger still. Spicy chicken (that’s all they have) was just not doing it. We did get a scoop of Baskin Robbins ice cream afterwards, and like every other time we’ve had Baskin Robbins, I’ve gotten the mint chip, and like every other time, I’ve regretted it. I just want to taste something that I’m used to, but I know from previous experiences, I won’t. The local food isn’t bad, there’s plenty that tastes good, but sometimes I just crave the familiar.

Thursday, June 19^th

Good news! My washing machine is fixed! Bad news! My washing machine is fixed, now I have to do laundry.

There’s nothing much that’s new to take pictures of, but I guess I better start taking some of at least the kids. It seems weird to take the same pictures of the same things, but I have to remember everyone is a couple years older this trip. Is it just us that see the same thing over and over? Does anyone else want to see the same pictures of India? People need to let me know!

We’ve been gone 2 full weeks. Only 5 more weeks here, then a week in Paris. The kids are super excited to go spend time in Paris, even Brayden. I think the opportunity has finally settled in and he’s realized it’s a great opportunity for a 15 year old. I’m excited but all I can think about is how pregnant I’ll be. I’m already getting left in everyone’s dust when we walk somewhere, and my “travel swelling” never subsided, so I guess that’s where I’m at. Yay. 

Ryan's favorite restaurant, 'Sea Inn'. Literally a grass hut. They only serve lunch and Ryan only gets the prawn biryani .

                    Scones and smoothies for dinner one night. Chick-Fil-A sounded so much better!

             KFC for dinner. This is the only dipping sauce they have...tangy ketchup! Mmmm

                 Bet you didn't know that every popcorn has its own story...now you know!

                                           So many stories for each popcorn to tell!

                                                         All day long...at the office

I know this is a blurry picture, but there's a story behind it. Conor doesn't eat much...almost nothing unless it has to do with carbs and dairy (his favorite thing here is buttered naan. When you order food at restaurants here, they always give you a plate of sliced red onions and limes. You're supposed to squeeze the lime juice on the onion and eat it. It cuts down on the spice...I guess. Never done it myself. Well, guess what Conor likes? Yep, sliced onions with lime juice. Who would've thought?

         ...and finally, my favorite part of India (well, one of them). When they don't have exact change                   at the grocery store...they give you a piece of candy for each rupee they short you.