I thought I needed an alarm clock, but I have a chicken

Our chicken - Coco

Hello Family and Friends -
Just wanted to send out another update. First of all, Coco, the
poultry love of our lives, is quite the character. We seem to have a
very feisty chicken! Every morning at around 6am, she starts up with
the clucking to wake us up because she's hungry. Sometimes we can
hear it from our bedroom at the front of the house and Andrea goes to
feed her, but sometimes we sleep through it. Well she wouldn't have
any of that this morning! She actually came around to the front of
our house, to our bedroom window, and started clucking. We haven't
seen her outside the backyard, so this was quite the shock. I am
starting to think that my mom (Marianne) would really really love
having a chicken. They eat all your food scraps (like April), they
grow on you (like April), and they produce eggs (unlike April). I
know all people say this about their pets, but Coco definitely has
personality. Instead of boring you all with stories of how she has
personality, you can call us, and we'll bore you over the phone. 011
64 03 473 0046 But apparently the answering machine is not working
quite yet.
Anyway, Andrea has discovered what Dave does when a loved dependant is
hungry at 6am: go back to sleep. Hmmm...
Dave's job is going well. Apparently he's the roading department
manager in addition to the land development manager, which is a huge
step up for him. He has caught several errors so far, so he's earning
his keep :) but is hoping he's not out of his league. Andrea got a
10% raise and extension to 5 weeks of vacation per year on her first
day (yeah union!!). Dave found out he has Dec. 21-Jan 8th off. His
office is closed. Andrea may not be so lucky (in that way). She
really likes her coworkers, though, and is excited to be working in
the field again.

Our garden - phase 1

Our garden looks great (with the exception of the butternut squash and
cucumber). Our main challenge right now is keeping the friendly ducks
out. Have I mentioned that one of the ducks tried to break in the
other day? Just pushed the door open.
We're headed to Mary and Brian's for Thanksgiving tomorrow, which
should be really nice. They have been very warm to us, and had us
over for pancakes on Sunday morning, followed by a walk on the beach
by their house.
Last night we attended an art class with a German teacher at a
neighborhood school. We got to draw with pencil, then paint a flower
on a large piece of paper. Dave took to it a little quicker than Drea
did, but it was fun for both of us nonetheless. We plan to hang them
up on our refrigerator (or send them to our nephews) as soon as we
have magnets large enough. We will go back again next week for the
second part (of three). There were two other students who have been
taking classes with her for years.
We're still trying to get used to the bus schedule that runs every 10
min during the day, and then every hour starting around 6pm.
It's been so so so much warmer than last week. The rain has stopped,
and the sun is warming up the house, making it possible to go around
barefoot(!) and without 7 layers on, even *after* the sun has set.
180 degree difference from last week. We like the 20 degree (Celsius)
days better than the 5 degree days.

That's all I can remember for now!
Love Dave and Drea
ps. here's the update on Fred Brokaw for the Zytkovicz's and Linhart's:

Tomorrow, Tuesday, I get to bring Fred home. They are releasing him a
day sooner than planned. I think his progress has been so dramatic
that they actually could have released him on Friday. It will be four
weeks tomorrow since this ordeal began. He will have some home
therapy at first as they want to see how he manages getting around
here and then he will move to outpatient rehab probably at the
Sotoyome facility near the main hospital. I picked up a temporary
handicapped placard today - good for 6 months. Rich is in the garage
installing the grab rail and fixing the garage door which is hanging
up. He will put the shower bar in as well. Do you feel a bit
overwhelmed with both your new job titles? How is Drea liking her new
job. You both have lots to adjust to. Remember to relax and enjoy it
all. More later. Love, Mom

previous update:
Your dad's progress has been nothing short of amazing. He was walking
today with a cane for added support and can actually walk fairly well
without it. He is able to balance now with arms across his chest and
eyes closed for over a minute. Last Saturday he could only do it for
10 seconds before wobbling. Today they had him putting and chipping
on the carpet working on his balance. He was very good at it. He
also worked out on a recumbent bicycles for 6 minutes. He can go up
and down the stairs easily using the handrail with or without a cane.
We decided to not put a bed in the family room. He really isn't going
to need it. He can stretch out on the sofa to nap if he needs too.
It isn't as if he hasn't slept on it before. For the time being, I
need to be with him when he goes up and down the stairs but I doubt
that will last too long
Just talked to your Dad and he sounds so good. He's much happier now
that he gets to eat real food. Tom and Jean will be up tomorrow for a
visit. They're going to help me plant the bulbs before they sprout in
my refrigerator. Hope all goes well. Love, Mom