Justin Parke

🚸 Takin' It To The Streets With Monkey-B 🐒 | 🚶‍♂️ #WednesdayWalk 😎 #MakeMeSmile

Monkey-B will be seven years old on November 1st, so we went downtown to run some errands and do some birthday shopping.

The #WednesdayWalk and #MakeMeSmile collaboration is hosted by @tattoodjay and @elizacheng, two very positve and engaging Hivers. Visit either of their profiles to learn a little more about this blogging and photography challenge.

🚸 Takin' It To The Streets 🛍️

Big Tings' A Gwaan

My Hive engagement has been down a bit lately, but there have been some positive developments going on in my life outside of Hive. @Sreypov and I visited Suriname's Bureau of Civil Affairs to where we stand on our immigration status and pursue marriage in Suriname.

We had all the necessary documents, but we needed to translate our birth certificates, status of single paperwork, and freedom to marry document into Dutch to meet the requirements. Because the economy here is in shambles, all translation offices around town have shuttered, and it was recommended we head downtown to seek translation from primary locations.

Nothing Comes Easy

A document translator was found, although not quickly or easily, and we were promised our Dutch documents would be ready by November 1st, a date which happens to be Monkey-B's birthday too. Something we've spent years pursuing and fighting for is about to happen within the next 4 weeks, and we will soon have some basic civil rights that most couples take for granted.

🚧 Pre-Birthday Retail Detour 🎊

Monkey-B Priority A

It has been months and months since we've been downtown, as public transportation is inefficient and local taxis generally rip us off because they see my white skin and assume we are a rich family. Despite life's circumstances we always try to keep the kids smiling and unaware of the lion's share of our struggles.

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](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/justinparke/JBYLaKvo-shopping.JPG)

Being already downtown, we seized the opportunity and decided to do some clothes shopping for Monkey-B. She's grown so much in the last year and many of her clothes are now comically small. We entered the first random shop we passed, and happen to find reasonable prices and some cool threads that Monkey-B liked.

🥻 Suriname Fashion Show 👗

Work It!!

Back at home, and after a rough exchange between the taxi driver and I, Monkey-B wanted to try on her new threads, so we went ahead and turned it into a fashion show. The little blue dress has little pegasuses, or pegasi, all over it. I'm not sure I've ever had to say the plural form of pegasus.

Anyhow, we had a good walk with plenty of smiles, and Monkey-B is quite happy with her equine-themed clothing choices, although the birthday surpises aren't over yet.