Day 1855. This morning Randy left with the kids to take them to kindergarten, while I lay back down. I hadn't been able to fall asleep for the longest time last night, so I was very tired. I then had a vivid dream. In the first part I was in a prayer meeting, where people in Mali were participating on a video screen, and it broke my heart not to be there. Then I was in Mali, in Bamako, trying to make my way to our base, through the streets, with water everywhere, when somebody suddenly put cloth to make me unconscious over my mouth and face and caught me as I was losing consciousness. I'd been kidnapped. Then I woke up.
Besides the dream, my sleep was interrupted a lot, first a phone call, then a package delivery. I stayed up after I'd received the package. I had work to do anyway. Randy left half an hour earlier than usual to pick up Sammy so that Tammy and Emmy then also got home earlier. Sammy and I had fun together, as usual.
Just after 1:30 pm Randy and the other kids came home. I immediately went downstairs with them so they could practice the piano. They did 4-5 minutes each, which is all that is required of them. Then we went back upstairs and started getting ready to leave the house together.
At 2:10 pm we left to walk to the train station to take the train to the main train station. It was a warm and sunny day. Because their tennis school up to this point is so far away, I'd been looking for one that is closer and had found this one, just a few train stops away. Their classes started this week, while the other school ends in three weeks, so they'll have both until then.
It was our first time there, so we had to follow the directions on my phone to find it. It was about a 15 minutes walk from the train station, and we found it easily. We walked to the reception, where we found out where to go, then made our way to their court.
It was an outside court and a sand court, both new to the kids. There were two other kids in their class, but only one was there. He was already playing a little with his Mom, as he had his own racket. Then the kids' teacher already arrived. It was a young lady from Eastern Europe somewhere. Just after 3 pm she started her class. Randy, Sammy and I sat down on/by the bench.
The kids were first running around the court, then she had them bounce and catch balls. I then went to get a ball and play with Sammy who was delighted about it. He kept saying he also wanted to play tennis; thankfully he was fine with catching and throwing. The teacher then gave Tammy and Emmy a racket each, and started with some exercises with the racket.
It was only 3:15 pm, but I already had to leave. I walked to a different train station, got on the train, then got off and took the subway to Sammy's kindergarten. They had a parent-teacher meeting from 4 to 6 pm there, which is a terrible time for me, as that's when I usually teach. Most parents were already there, when I got there, and I already knew a few of them because of the birthday parties we've had.
The lady in charge of the whole kindergarten there then started talking, followed by the leader of Sammy's group. We got a lot of information and were able to ask any question. And we parents also got to exchange a lot, especially in the end, when the meeting was over. After the main part was over, the leader also went from parent to parent to talk a little about their individual child. Sammy is now the oldest in the group and enjoys that role.
With 6 pm approaching, we left the kindergarten, and I made my way home. At about 6 pm I was home. Sammy had already called me, while I was in the subway, and was outside our door, when I arrived. He was so very happy to see me. I got their food ready for them right away, and they sat down to eat. Then they went into the bathtub, and I still had time to read them a story, then put them to bed. I was glad there was sufficient time until I had to start teaching at 8:10 pm. I had to make up for the lost afternoon somehow.
By 9 pm I was done and could finally get something to eat. Then I started working on the pictures, and now it's midnight and time to take care of the kitchen and go to bed.
