What is it like being here? Being a spouse of a med student? What do you do all day?
That is what I am here to tell you today!
Matthew's schedule looks about like this:
Mon-Fri:
5am: Wake, read scriptures, say prayers, get ready.
6am: Leave for school, study.
8am-4pm: Back to back, and very long classes. Only a 30-minute lunch break.
4pm: Come home, get something to eat, give family hugs, go in office to study
4:30-9pm: Study. Come out and give kids a hug goodnight (when they are in their beds)
9pm: Bedtime
Saturday there are no classes, so he studies all day long. Still getting up at 6 and studying until 9pm. Occasionally, if there are no tests the next week, he will end at 6pm and he and I spend time together.
Sundays are the best days! He does no school work. Period.
We get ready in the morning, church clothes and all, and then at 10am have our family meeting resembling church 1st hour and primary. At 11:30 the kids have lunch and go down for nap. Then he and I have our Sunday school lesson, and family council. In the afternoons when the kids are up, we walk up the hill to look at some outdoor pet turtles and birds. We visit with neighbors and find some service to do (usually picking up a few items of trash). Sunday evening, after the kids are in bed, we have time set aside for scripture study and answering questions about what the Mormons believe. We have invited many people, though he and I are the only ones so far. Then around 8pm he heads to bed, to get an earlier start Monday morning!
So where does that leave me and the kids all week?
Wednesdays are the days the boat comes in. So, it is the day we get groceries. We usually hitch hike in (that is quite the sight with 4 of us!) and shop at 2 stores, then have the stores bring us and our groceries back. The stores are about the size of a Maverick Truck stop. This store to the right is called "My Store" It looks like a house... because pretty much everything you see in this picture are apartments! See the yellow arrow? That is pointing you to the entrance of the store, which is blocked in the picture by the truck. The first two pictures below are from inside this store. 
The below two stores are the stores we usually shop at, in Windwardside.
One day I usually do Laundry. It really is an all-day affair. I tried to bring the kids down with me, but that has proved far too difficult. So, I get them busy on a task, run down the two flights of stairs, fill the tank with a hose from the sink across it. Put clothes in to wash. Run back upstairs. The cycle is only 15 minutes. So, when the time is up, I run back down, and pull them out to start the next load, or drain the water and refill it for the rinse. The washer is separate from the spinner, so when the clothes are done I put them in this compartment and it spins. This is the stage I bring the kids down as I'm down for much longer. They play outside, while I spin and then hang the clothes. I usually fill up the clothes lines downstairs, as well as the small rack upstairs in our house. For a family of 5, doing laundry 1x a week, I usually have 3-4 loads. When the clothes are dry, we take them down, and the kids help me sort and put them away.
Other days we will go to the library. The below picture shows about the size of the English children's books they have. We will sit and read for a while, and then check some out to take home. They ask you put the books away after reading them, so you can only get 1 or 2 out at a time.... I learned that the hard way. Next to the library is a "fit park" the kids like playing at as well.
Below is a picture of the ENTIRE library.
There is a hotel here that lets you swim in their pool if they are not busy, and if you buy something from their snack bar. So, we have done that before and will probably go again this week. Especially because the "cove" a man-made beach here is full of seaweed, and there are no other beaches.
Sometimes we just go into town to wander through stores. The hardware store has fish tanks and the kids love watching them! Another store has pretty pictures we wander through and look at. The bakery here has little kid trikes out in the main common area and the kids love going there to run around and play.
Couple time a week we walk down to the school playground and the kids play there in the afternoons.
I have also ended up taking the kids out to eat about 1x a week, not fast food, they don’t have that here. Usually pizza, or chicken strips. We do it mostly because it is something to do and gets us out of the house.
We are also starting to make friends! Hannah has met 2 girls her age and has really had fun with them. I've enjoyed meeting and visiting with other moms! I love the days we are able to get with friends!
This is at a neighbors house. The friend is a few months younger than Sadie.
Somedays are just cleaning days and catching up on doing the dishes (no dishwasher.... so... sometimes they pile up a bit much)
I also love Sundays because it is the day Matthew changes the diapers, does the dishes, and puts the kids down for bed. It's enough help and enough of a break, that I have the energy to do it all again the next week. Haha. This last Sunday we planted some new plants...
Some Saturday nights, after I get the kids down, I go out with other moms, and have a nice dinner and adult conversation. 🙂 I enjoy those nights a lot.
Fancy place setting! Me and the other mom that went, don't drink so the fancy glasses stayed empty.
But the meal was just as fancy and absolutely delicious!
And that is our week! As long as I get enough sleep, and eat, I am a happy mom, and can handle the kids on my own most of the time. If I am slacking in either area, I tend to get grumpy and short tempered, rather quickly. Then it's just a rough day for us all. Those are usually days that it's important we get out of the house!
It really isn't bad at all. I thought I loved being here when we first got here, but I have come to love being here even more!! It is a very safe friendly island, and the weather has been quite amiable lately! I love that things are simple. I am a more present and engaged mom then I was before. I love that I am not held to schedules, or the expectations of others. When we go out, I'm not herding the kids to rush from place to place. We enjoy it, and we will get back when we get back. I love that I only have cell service when connected to WIFI, so at home, and a few restaurants if I need to call a ride. But I don't have the distraction of my phone whenever there is a dull moment. Instead I take in all that my kids are doing. Their business as they explore the world around them.
Sure, I miss having a Walmart 5 minutes away.... but do I really? I don't miss the crowds. I don't miss the commotion. I don't miss the distractions. I don't miss the anxiety of taking my kids into public. I don't miss the compulsive spending for things I thought we needed but don't really. I don't mind waiting weeks for things we do need and have to order. It gives it more value when it does arrive. Instead of the instant gratification of seeing something and buying it within a matter of seconds.
I'm living the simple, focused life, I desired back home. And I love it! Maybe we will never come back ;)
