During the Week!

We have been here for exactly two months today ... it's unbelievable ... so much has happened in such a short space of time and we're feeling really settled ... in some ways it feels like we only said our goodbyes yesterday and in other ways it feels like we've been here ages! Every so often we catch ourselves looking at each other and saying things like 'we live in America now'!!!

During the week we're into our own little routines, Mark is continuing to enjoy his work in the hangar and having completed his Basic Training in just three and a half weeks is now 'hands-on' the aircraft! The photo above shows the guys in the hangar turning over the Cessna 206 that Mark is working on at the moment ... not quite ready to fly yet!

Each apprentice is assigned a team which includes trained mechanics and apprentices and then the team leader mentors those in training whilst they all work on the aircraft. Mark is in Ian's (pronounced I-an) team for the next 6 months and they are working on an aircraft for a mission called Asas de Socorro in Brazil. Some of the jobs Mark is already doing this week are repairing the fibre glass on the forward cowlings, fabricating a repair on the left wing and checking the fuel selector valve and gasculator. Not bad for a newbie! (The photo's above and below show the forward cowlings that Mark is working on!)

While Mark has been getting on with his work in the hangar, Jenny and Abigail have been continuing to sort out the house and take advantage of the end of the Indian Summer we've had here by going for walks into town. The cloudy weather seems to have finally arrived now ... but we definitely can't complain as it's been so nice for most of the time we've been here! Unfortunately this week Abigail hasn't been too well ... coughing, spluttering and snotting everywhere so getting out and about has been more limited ... but thankfully she's much improved now!

Last Friday, Abigail and Jenny joined the Coshocton MOPS group (MOPS stands for Mothers of Preschoolers ... see www.mops.org for more information). It runs once a month and is a couple of hours where the mum's get together and have a chance to share the highs and lows, while their children are off playing together. There is always some kind of presentation and last week it was a cooking one, talking about the importance of good nutrition etc. It was a great chance to meet other mum's with little ones and the weeks that there is no MOPS meeting there are smaller groups who meet for playdates ... so Jenny & Abigail will be able to build some relationships there.