Getting to know the neighbors

We have been very busy getting out and meeting people. My girlfriend Heather introduced me to her friend Christiane, who lives in Tatui. She has a seven year old son Enrique who likes to play with Garrett. They get along very well, and don't seem to mind the language barrier. Aren't kids great!? They both like to play video games and kick the soccer ball around. The language barrier hasn't slowed them down at all. Christiane only speak a tiny bit of English but chooses to speak only Portuguese with me. She is very patient and speak slowly to help me understand her. She doesn't mind my mistakes and is just glad that I am trying to speak her language! Wonderful lady!
I have met other ladies here in the neighborhood as well. Two doors down is a lady named Egle. She is trying to learn English and loves to walk. We have started walking and talking together a couple of times a week. During one of these walks, she introduced me to her friend Paula, who is also trying to learn English. Fabulous woman! They both are still in the beginning stages of learning English, and they are genuinely interested in getting better! What fun! It has been a pleasure getting to know them because they are very sweet and friendly. Typical Brasilians!
We are getting ready to head home for a 2 week trip back to Michigan. We leave August 11th to arrive home on the 12th. We plan on coming back home to Brasil on the 29th. Hopefully the paperwork will go smoothly. We plan on bringing the cat back down with us this time. He escaped last time and has been living outside around the house for the past 7 weeks! Fortunately, our neighbors have been keeping an eye out for him and making sure he has fresh food and water! Great friends!
Thanks for keeping in touch with us. It has been a wonderful feeling of love and support to read your comments and know that we are in your thoughts! Tchau for now, Pam, Blake and Garrett.