A great day at the Beach

This weekend has been one of the best times we have had in Dominica so far. Normally our weekends just consist of Christopher studying and well of course going to Church, but this weekend was a little different. On Saturday Christopher studied in the morning and then at about noon we went to the beach with Ashley, Andrea, and Kyle. We had so much fun. We cooked hamburgers on the beach and just had a really fun day together. Christopher and I spend a lot of time together here but normally it is while Chris is studying, so when we actually get to go out and do something it is really fun. We went snorkeling, had a delicious lunch, and Christopher broke open a coconut for us to drink (which if you have ever tried to do that it, it is not easy unless you have tools, and well we didn't have anything.). We just had a lot of fun laying out on the beach and enjoying the wonderful weather together. Here are some of the pictures from the day.

Christopher and me at PBH (Portsmouth Beach Hotel) waiting for everyone else to get there.

This is the beginning of Christopher breaking open the coconut.



He made it to the inside, now he has to break open the harder shell in the middle to get to the milk inside.

I think this is the first time in Dominica that we have actually felt like we were on vacation instead of feeling like we are just in a foreign land. I mean take a look at this video of my walk to church on Sunday morning. I don't think that many of you back at home get to walk to church with goats running down the middle of the road. These are the things down here that give us a little laugh and spark the thought "I can't believe I live here". Haha!

God is everywhere!

There may be times down here in Dominica where we feel completely homesick, desiring cold A/C, a hot shower, or even just wanting a propane tank in order to cook dinner but never is there a time down here that we don't feel as though God is constantly with us. I feel like more times down here that God puts his mark everywhere we are whether it is walking into the local store and hearing Christian music being played, walking down the street and hearing a local belt out a classic hymnal. But the best sign we see here is the beautiful rainbows. Nature here is one of the most beautiful things about living here in Dominica and the rainbows found here are no different. They are absolutely incredible. You can see from one end of the rainbow to the other. Here is a picture I took of one of the rainbows that I saw. The picture doesn't really do it justice but they are awesome. God always finds a way to remind us down here the he will never leave us.

This picture was taken right before Christopher's football intramural game. Now keep in mind that rainbows come with rain and well that makes a football field extremely muddy. It was a very big mud fest. It was disgusting. Here is a little clip from the game. They didn't win but they played really well. Christopher is the one in the red shorts.

The next day was the intramural dodgeball game. It is hilarious to me how big intramural games are down here but it makes this place a little more fun because besides the intramurals there is nothing else to do besides study. It gives the students something else to think about besides their school work. So that is good every now and then. Chris's intramural team won the whole tournament. They went undefeated. They were pretty good. His team is in the picture below. They are Jered, Tommy, Chris, Jeff, and Kyle.

Recent Happenings

Christopher just finished up mini 2 and he did so awesome. I am so proud of how great he has been doing. I think it really gives us the reassurance that this is where we are supposed to be and that God will not take us somewhere so far out of our element without helping us to make it through. I got this little excerpt from a friends blog and I just felt like it was so fitting for what is actually going on down here. From the 1989 movie Gross Anatomy:

"Welcome to medical school. Many of you have only been here a day or so. In the next eight months you will be required to memorize 6,000 anatomical structures, read 25,000 pages of text, attend 200 lectures, and pass or fail 40 examinations. If you fail a class, you have to repeat it. If you fail two, you have to repeat the entire term. If you fail three, let's just say, you probably don't belong here anyway. Along with my duties as Associate Dean of Students, I also teach Gross Human Anatomy, the one thing you've dreaded from the moment you made the decision to come here. Nonetheless, it is the centerpiece of your first year of medical school; the systematic dissection of the human cadaver.....Your first year of medical school is a daily, hands-on exploration of it (death). It's not easy. It's uh, certainly not pleasant. And there's absolutely no reason for you to do it unless you want, more than anything, to be a physician"

Now let me tell you, this excerpt is not far from the very truth. Here is a typical day for Christopher

6:15 a.m. - Wake up
8:00 a.m. -12:00 p.m. - Lectures
12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m - Lunch
1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m - Lab (depending on the day)
4:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. - Study
6:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. - Dinner
7:30 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.- Study
10:00 p.m. -11:00 p.m.- Relax and get ready for the next day
11:00 p.m. - Go to Sleep

Now of course everyday is not exactly like this. Some of the days he won't have lab but will have another lecture in the afternoon or he might just have extra time to go study. Then on the weekends he will have more time to study but rarely do weekends consist of relaxing at the beach or the pool. They normally consist of studying, but for the most part this is the daily life of a medical student. I am just so thankful that he is enjoying what he is doing and learning because otherwise this would be absolutely miserable. But never has Chris complained or wanted to quit. He just keeps going because I truly feel like at this point he knows that this is what God is calling him to do. There is absolutely no other way we would be able to conquer this battle without the help our Lord. He every day gives us the strength to keep going.

Growing up I have always had my own identity and after marrying Christopher and moving down to Dominica to follow Christopher's dream I have recently realized that although I still have my own identity, it has changed in extremely amazing ways. I went from being an independently driven person to a wife that is fully focused on her husband. I feel as my role has gone from thinking and doing for myself to being an encourager and support for everything that Christopher is doing. Although I don't necessarily do a whole lot down here in Dominica because the opportunities for jobs are slim and hard to find, I feel that my new job is to provide for Christopher (obviously not in a financial way). I make him lunch and dinner and continually encourage him to keep going. I think that for now that is the job that the Lord has planned for me. To make sure that he is taken care of and constantly prayed for and encouraged.

Happy 4t h of July

This has been a really interesting 4th of July for Christopher and I here in Dominica. Well obviously since we aren't in the USA, they don't celebrate this holiday. I can honestly say that we have never been more happy to be Americans. Living here has really opened up our eyes to show us how great we have it in the US. But we made the most of the holiday. Friday Chris still had to go to class in the morning and then he had an intramural game in the afternoon. That evening we had a cookout for our Church (RCF). RCF puts on a free cookout every semester for the students and it happened to fall on the fourth of July this time. We had hamburgers! They were really good for a Dominican burger. RCF served over 500 people. It was really awesome. So although we missed our families a whole lot this past weekend while they were at the lake and just enjoying good ol' American food we made the best of it.

We also celebrated our friend Andrea's birthday. We went to a place called Big Papa and it was delicious. It was probably the best Dominican food we have had since we have been here. Christopher and I both had Red Snaper. It was great. We went with Andrea and Kyle and Ashley and Ryan. And then yesterday morning Ashley through a brunch for Andrea's birthday with our bible study. So we have had a fun weekend celebrating Andrea's birthday.

Me,Andrea, and Ashley at Big Papa's

My bible study group. Ashley, Andrea, Ralna, Me, and Katrina

Christopher is studying really hard for his next exam that is coming up on Monday. Please keep him in your prayers as he continues to prepare for it. We will be home in 6 weeks and we can't wait! We miss everyone!

It's been awhile

I realized today that it has been awhile since my last post, so here is a little update on the Shadids. 

It has been raining like crazy here in Dominica. In like the last 2 weeks, I think we have had maybe 2 or 3 sunny days. Now when I say its raining its not just some little sprinkle, its a major down pour. It is kind of like the hardest rain you get in Oklahoma minus the major storm part of it all. It doesn't really thunder and lightening, it just rains and rains and rains. The worst part about it is that since we don't have a car we have to walk in the rain everywhere we go. So Chris has to walk in the rain to class and I get to walk in the rain to the grocery stores. Luckily we kind of knew that it rains here a lot in Dominica so we are prepared with our umbrellas and rain coats. Although it is almost way too hot to wear a rain coat here. Now on the good side the rain has really helped cool this place down. Now instead of sweating everywhere you go it is just hot where ever you go. I don't think that they know what cold weather is like here. 

So needless to say we have been spending a lot of time at home lately. Chris has began to try and study at home, which I really love because then I don't have to be by myself all of the time. I think he has been enjoying it as well but I am not sure how long it will last. He has his second big exam coming up 2 weeks from tomorrow. So please keep Christopher in your prayers as he prepares for his next exam. He has been doing so well so far so I know he is going to do really great. 

I have not really been baking as much anymore since I came back from the States. I think that I have just felt really lazy and haven't really wanted to. But yesterday since Chris was at home studying, I couldn't watch TV or put on music or talk for that matter because he needed it very quiet. So I baked. I made chocolate chip muffins and chocolate chip cookies, and some pico dip, along with an omelet for breakfast, a sandwich for lunch, and chicken and mash potatoes for dinner. So I spent my day yesterday cooking away. I have decided that I really enjoy cooking well mostly I enjoy baking but I don't think I should do it very much because we are going to come back festively plump if I continue days like yesterday. 

It has really been nice having some American food here since I got back. I brought back a lot of things with me from the States and it has just really made it feel more like home. It is amazing how great animal crackers can taste when you don't have access to them. Even iced tea is amazing. 

Mini 1...Check!

Christopher's first exam was on Monday and we got his results back yesterday. He did so great. We are so proud of his accomplishments. He studied so hard and we are excited to see his great results. First tests are normally pretty tough because you don't know how the professors will ask the questions, but Christopher did really great. For a great job well done I got Christopher a little surprise.

Yes Blue Bell Homemade ice cream. What a perfect way to say, have yourself a blue bell country day! Haha! We have never found any ice cream here except for local ice cream and it doesn't taste like real ice cream. So when I saw this at the store yesterday I just knew that Christopher needed it. Since I came back to Oklahoma recently I had the luxury of being able to eat ice cream, but Christopher hasn't had any since we left in April. So what a perfect time to have ice cream than after his first big test.

From "Home" to "Home"

I think that I have truly been able to understand the famous saying "Home is where the Heart is". I have mixed feelings about it though. I made my trip to Oklahoma City for Emily and Michael Hemphill's Wedding, which was absolutely beautiful and they made the perfect Bride and Groom. It was especially nice to be able to see all of my friends and family. I realized that while being "Home" I didn't feel completely at home. And now that I am back "Home" I still don't feel completely at home. Now it may sound like an incredibly interesting statement but let me explain. I feel like the statement "Home is where the Heart is" is a very true statement because when I was in Oklahoma City I felt at home being with my family but not at home because I was not with the man I love. Now that I am back with the man I love I don't feel completely at home because I am not with the family I love. So I guess I just have to live with the mixed feelings of the statement. I will be at home wherever I am because I have someone I love close to me.

I had such a refreshing time being able to come home to civilization. It is absolutely amazing to me how different life here is on the island. I knew that it was different but I guess I had adapted so much to the island life that I just forgot. After stepping into the airport in San Juan I realized how fast past the United States is. Everyone is in a hurry all of the time. I have learned on the island to accept the slow simple life and I think I really enjoy it. Everyone here does what they want, when they want and in the U.S. everyone feels like they have so much to do and not enough time to do anything. Many times I feel like they forget what is most important in life. Just being with the ones you love and enjoying their company.

Now don't get me wrong I would rather be living in the United States but I have come to realize that the short time we are here is not as bad as it may have seemed. Although I really will miss my long HOT showers, hot water to wash the dishes in, a comfy bed to sleep on (that has lots of pillows), and most of all the luxury of being so close to drive to see all of my family and friends. I am just glad I am back with Christopher, helping him become the Doctor that he wants to be.

Please keep Christopher in your prayers this week as he takes his first big test on Monday. He has been studying so hard. He wakes up at about 6:30 and studies from about 7:30 in the morning until 10:00 at night. I just pray that his hard work will pay off for him.