Even Burp Cloths Get Ironed

Thank goodness we have Yvonne here at our house to teach us about daily living operations here in Senegal. Yvonne is our housekeeper and cook, and is a wonderful loving woman. The boys adore her and she speaks some English; we are able to communicate just fine.

She taught us the proper way to prepare all fruits and vegetables.... After bringing home fruits and produce from the market, you must soak the food in a tub of water with one tablespoon of bleach for 15 minutes. While you do that, you need to boil water (because you cannot drink the water here) and pour the water over the fruits and veggies after they have finished soaking to get rid of any bugs. I think that this is probably the reason why I got so sick here last October; many times I would buy fruit from the fruit stand and bite right into it. Ugh.

Another labor intensive task is laundry. After washing clothes in the washing machine, they are hung outside on a line. Within an hour, the clothes are dry but not ready to be worn. EVERYTHING must be ironed to get rid of bugs...and when I say everything, I mean EVERYTHING! Even burp cloths. Even undergarments, socks, towels, pajama bottoms, etc. Ironing can take hours.

We are lucky to have Yvonne here. Not just for the dozens of burp cloths she irons daily, but for her patience, her kindness, and her adoration of Laird and Dylan.