Down here in Matanzas life has improved dramatically for us since my last post. These are sunnier times than back in July 2020 when things were a bit rough. Back then our new guest house was flooded with rain and no way we could rent it. The builder had abandoned the house without finishing it. We were with “stay at home” orders. We barely had enough electricity at home because the lack of sun and failing equipment. Rena’s school, Waiwen, was closed and we didn’t know when or if it would reopen. On top that our families’ trips to Chile had been cancelled and our trip to the USA had been cancelled. We hadn’t seen family for about a year which was really weighing on us.
But right at the end of July flights resumed to the USA and we managed to escape the gloom and see our families in the USA for a full month. This was a much needed break and reset. Thankfully it was also before the 2nd Covid wave in the USA. We were so lucky we got to make this trip happen and see our family and enjoy summer in Oregon and Chicago.
Our first stop was Chicago where Rena got to take Ballet classes at my mom’s studio and we celebrated Zac turning 1 on August 1st. It’s a fun experience to live in the big city for a few weeks.
dinners on the deck 
Afternoons in the park 
Rena dancing in the rain 
Zac turns 1! 
Ballet!
Next we went to Oregon and it was perfect summer there. We had water balloon fights, we stayed on the coast for a few nights and had lots of time playing with cousins and grammie and papa.
Oregon Coast
After our great trip back to the USA we returned to Chile at the end of August and things really started to improve. First off in September we were able to open Waiwen and Rena got to see her friends again! The rains stopped, it barely rained when we were in the USA, and I found the best builder to help me finish and repair everything in the house including replacing the roof. With his help, in just 2 weeks in November the house was already looking great and ready to be rented. Chile lifted travel restrictions and we could rent the house on Airbnb. I uploaded my listing and immediately the house filled with bookings. We are actually fully booked until March now! Check it out here https://airbnb.com/h/valledelmar
Pictures: Rena and Zac’s play set, hot tub of the rental house, Rena’s first day back at Waiwen, beach days and helping Martin raise up his new factory for building houses.
After our great trip back to the USA we headed back to Chile at the end of August and things really started to turn around for us in Chile. First off in September we were able to open Waiwen and Rena got to return to see her friends again! The rains stopped, it barely rained when we were in the USA thankfully, and I found the best builder to help me finish and repair everything in the house including the roof. With his help, in just 2 weeks in November the house was already looking great and ready to be rented. Chile lifted travel restrictions and we could now rent the house on Airbnb. I uploaded my listing and immediately the house filled with bookings. We are actually fully booked until March now! Check it out here: https://airbnb.com/h/valledelmar Edit
There is lot of activity now on the Waiwen front that is keeping Jenine busy. Currently Rena is attending the summer program and is so happy. The new school year starts in March and the school is going to triple enrollment to 33 kids 2-6 years old. Right now we are making a ton of upgrades to the space and we are enclosing some of the areas to protect against rain and wind. Jenine and I are both strong believers in learning through nature and the Forest School model. I can’t imagine a better place for Rena and Zac to go to school and it is right next to our house!
NOTE: Yes we are not wearing masks in the following photos. Until now Waiwen has been comprised of a close group of families who see each other both in and out of school, combined with always being outdoors, low case counts and checkpoint controls monitoring who can visit our county from Santiago, we made this conscious decision.
Waiwen End Of Year Party 
Waiwen Field Trip to a Waterfall
We also got to take our first family camping trip in the south of Chile. The kids loved it. They are really playing together so well. We are planning on making camping a big part of our family vacations. I was missing our old Sportsmobile Titus as we huddled inside our tent during the rain, but hey tent camping is actually pretty fun too.
Kids setting up camp 
Guys around the fire 
Off to catch dinner with Rena 
First smores 
Rena had so much fun !
One of the biggest life improvements for us has been electricity!! After working for 1 year to connect to the city power grid we finally achieved the dream at the end of November. I also brought power to 25 of my neighbors as well, and almost all of them paid me for my work… Hahah. Seriously it was kinda a nightmare project, but well well worth it. Solar is amazing, but now that we have two houses, it just wasn’t sufficient. Plus during the winter there are times when there isn’t enough sun. We could have upgraded our solar system, but I was tired of sinking more and more money into batteries, inverters and panels that always seem to have some issue. We still have solar as our primary power source, but if the batteries drop below a certain level the city power takes over and recharges the batteries! I can’t tell you how happy I am to not be dealing with generators anymore. I am evening running our well water with electricity from my house instead of driving down to the well and starting a generator every time I needed to fill our tanks. I truly feel like we’ve entered the modern era.
Right now in Chile we are in a period of relative “normal”. It’s summer and tourists are in town and our guest house is rented. Rena is in summer school and restaurants are open, but we are starting to see the spikes in Covid cases that indicate a 2nd wave is coming to Chile. Vaccines are arriving in Chile now and the Government says they have a plan to vaccinate 80% of the country which is about 15 million people by June. We’ll see how it goes.
Personally, I am without any major projects right now. I’m learning the ropes of renting the house through Airbnb which right now is providing good income. I have it mostly running smooth but there are always little things to do. I’m enjoying this time with Zac while he’s still at home. In 6 months he’ll be two and ready to start school at Waiwen. Jenine is busy with growing Waiwen, the new construction and hiring staff, so it’s nice to be available to watch the kids. And let’s be honest I go surfing or kitesurfing for 2-3 hours most days 🙂
Finally, Santa made it to Chile this year and we had a lovely Christmas. We have so much to be grateful for. Over the last 4 years we’ve worked really hard to set up our lives here and we are seeing the fruits of those labors. We are so grateful for our home and beautiful space, our school, the health and happiness of our kids and how we’ve managed to integrate our lives here and our friends. Here’s hoping for a great 2021.
Pictures: Rena and Zac making christmas cookies, in front of our tree on Christmas, video of kids getting their presents from Santa.
Hi from the bay area, LOL, love how rena kept looking for something else in that video!! as always, appreciate your updates and love to see your progress. big deal getting that house done and building a legit preschool. well done!
Karie Simon and the gang
Awesome! So glad to hear that things are looking up for you all and the situation down there. Sounds a bit better than the US right now ;).
Hi Jenine, George, Rena, and Zac.
Wonderful pictures…Your dad and I love it, nice to see the school is growing.
Hugs Joe and Pam
Awesome George. Love the updates!
You all look so happy! I am so glad to hear everything has turned around. Cannot wait for those vaccines and you to come visit us in Tahoe and for us to come there and have the boys MEET!!! Love you guys!
I’m so happy for you all. What a beautiful life. Congratulations on all of your fruitful endeavors. ♡