ultima semana

So apologies for the lack of blogs recently but i don't know where the time goes, we constantly have stuff to do leading up to leaving here.
Yesterday we were here there and everywhere, ordering a cake for our leaving party (tomorrow) buying souvenir presents-because we standardly left them to the last minute, rushing round trying to get to our favourite little restaurant in time to watch an amazing sunset only to be surrounded by massive grey moody storm clouds on our last Sunday tea EVER in Iquitos.

Last week we had our paseo with all the kids to the laguna, the same laguna which we went to in March but it was SO much better this time. I got to take my favouritest baby, Maria Isabelle for a splashy paddle in the water, which she absolutly loved. Maria is 2 and a half and has downs, she's starting to walk at the moment, or has been going to therapy for the last 10 months and we're trying everything we can to get her to practice but from her point of view why would she walk when now  she gets a free ride everywhere! So that's an uphill struggle that leaves her behind all the other kids of her age, but in the water she was loving it. whenever I give her a wash in the sink in the Aldea she's splashing around trying to drink the water straight from the tap so it made me so unbelievabley happy to see her in her absolutle element splashing all the other more terrified kids. One of my best memories for sure! I also half taught one of the older to girls to swim/doggy paddle, wasn't fantastic but she'd lost all her fear by the end of the day and was jumping off all the pontoons which was awesome.

I got to take Maria Isabelle (aka Chao Bella) on a last therapy trip on Thursday, seeing my last jungley centre with it's therapy pool surrounded by coconut trees-something I am definitely going to miss. The fact that here I can just casually buy coconuts for 1 sol!!! from the market down the road, or greet everyone on the way down to school who just know us as those gringitas from the Aldea.

We've had a visit from one of Alex's Nottingham neighbours this past week, who brought out an awesome package of well needed chocolate which we've devoured already! It's been really awesome having another person around, having someone else to speak English to and show off all our babies too, as if we haven't done that enough already. Showing them some Iquitos daily life, yesterday and impressing him with our Spanish skills. I still can't believe we're up to this point already, all those people in the Aldea asking us about that day sometime in the near future when we'll be leaving has actually arrived.
On Tuesday we're having our leaving party at the Aldea, so not only has that been a crazy Peruvian nightmare to arrange but it means we get to give out our leaving presents to each house. We've made some really beautiful little collages for them and I'm really super excited to give them out because we've spent so much time on them. We're going to whip out some traditional party games for the kids as well, and even got permission for the kids in the afternoon school to go, meaning they get a day off school and get to play games and eat cake instead so they're buzzing!

Todo for now, off to actually make a start at all the packing we still have to do!
besitos :)