Almost Ready...

We finally got our barrel all packet up after packing and repacking it a few times. It takes an art to get everything in those barrels. We ended up putting everything from a coffee maker and a mixer to soap and shampoo. I think the barrel weighs like 300 lbs. We had to put it in Chris's car to take it to the freight company and well it was really heavy. We had a fun time putting it all in there and can't wait until we get down there and get to open it up. We decided it would be like Christmas because it will be a sense of home in a far away land.

Chris and I leave two weeks from today so we are starting to get everything together we think we need to pack. Although we are sad that we have to leave our families, we are really excited to see what the future holds for us. Everything has been so unknown for the last few months so we are really excited to see what we are getting ourselves into.

From what we hear I will not be able to find a job down in Dominica, and if I were to find one the average pay is like $3 an hour. So Chris and I have been trying to come up with any ideas that maybe I could make or sell, like some girls that are down there now are baking bread and selling it to the Ross students. So if you have any ideas please let us know because otherwise I may just have to lay on the beach for the next sixteen months (which may not be so bad, who needs a job with a life like that haha)

What are you doing?

Ok so for many people I have spoken to I have forgotten to explain the reason why Chris and I are going to the beautiful island of Dominica. Chris was accepted to Ross University school of Medicine last September. Ross Univeristy is a Caribbean Medical school on the island of Dominica, so that is why we will be spending the next 16 months in Dominica. After we complete the 16 months we will be back in Miami, Florida for another semester. We are so excited for this upcoming journey and I hope through this blog we will be able to keep in touch with everyone back at home. We are going to greatly miss everyone but we know that this is where the Lord is calling us to go. We are preparing ourselves to take the leap of faith in approaching these exciting times we have before us. We are so thankful for all of your prayers.

Preparing for Take Off

As the time gets closers for us to leave, Chris and I are trying our hardest to be sure to have everything ready we need to take with us. We got our barrel, and for those of you who don't know, the best way to send items to Dominica is to send them in this big 55 gallon barrel. So we have made that purchase and are making lists so that we can get as much as we can into this barrel to ship down there. Here is a pictures of what I am talking about.


So the reason we need to send this barrel is because in Dominica they do not have some of the things available that we have in the states. If they do have some of the items available it tends to be up to three times more expensive there than it would be in the States. So for example we will probably be packing items such as:

Cereal
Nutri Grain Bars
All kinds of Spices such as: cinnamon and basil, etc.
Shampoo
Soap
Sheets
Towels
Any kinds of Kitchen items that are specific to your cooking needs such as a toaster for example

These are just some of the things we will be taking just so you can have an idea of what I am talking about.

Another really exciting event that has occurred for Christopher and I is that we have secured a place to live in Dominica. We are so excited about it and can't wait to get down there to see what it actually looks like as opposed to pictures. It is a new apartment complex that has only been open for 2 semesters and everyone that lives there currently goes to Ross. Although we have a little apprehension about it because we have not seen it in person, the landlord was so nice on the phone and the Ross Housing Department was very positive about it.