Last weekend I was at a Women's Retreat from Friday through Sunday. This is one of the few retreats I've attended in the last 8 years that I didn't help to plan or do any work at! It was truly a relaxing time. I got to sleep in, eat good food, lay beside the pool and chat with friends, and sleep in AIR CONDITIONING!! :) How nice! I'm thankful that Josh was willing to give me the opportunity to join some of the other ladies from our organization in this time of refreshing. He got to get up early, heat up leftovers and take care of our kids' every need!! Yes, it sure was a treat!
Josh and I had our language evaluations this morning, and we both were passed on to Unit 4! That means we have 2 units left! We're over half done our language study. We now have 2 1/2 weeks of Christmas break, and go back to class on January 8th.
We're planning to take some time during the break to see some of the sights here on Java as our time on this island is almost over. We hope to see a Buddhist temple with some friends and check out a large nearby city and the batik that's made there.
We do plan to stick around home for our first Christmas here, though. We are planning to have sub sandwiches (I have to bake the rolls) with some ham we were able to special order here. We can get cheddar cheese from New Zealand at a local import store, so that will make it extra special. Of course the lettuce and tomatos from the pasar (market) won't be left out either. Throw in some Cheetos and it's a great meal!! There's a new flavor of Cheetos here - "American Cheese Flavor" - and yes, it tastes more like "home" than any of the other chips here. (This must be the snack food capital of the WORLD - there are fried snacks of all shapes and sizes here. Many are sweet - which is not too tasty for us - but some are not too bad. There's a funky macaroni shaped one that tastes a bit like Bugles. Otherwise, another favorite is singkong or yucca chips - great with guacamole.) Coca Cola has a factory here so Coke products are relatively easy to get. Some Sprite or Coke will round out our Christmas Dinner!!
This weekend I plan to wrap the kids' gifts and we filled their stockings last night. Spencer didn't notice - or maybe he suspected a change - because he mentioned it this morning. Basically he said that the stockings wouldn't be filled until Christmas Eve, "right?" and we didn't disagree. So he thinks it's settled!! Many thanks to our sisters and our friend Jeanie who sent stocking stuffers and gifts to make the "Season Bright" for the kids. The candy canes were a special treat! There were so many we were able to share some with our (15) language instructors!!
Julia has her 2nd birthday on the 28th, so we're excited about that! I think she started her Terrible Two's early, though there are a lot of "Terrific Twos" times in between. Sometimes it's a challenge to know how to deal with her. She's got a great helper to watch her when we're gone but the helper (MBak Siti) doesn't stop her from doing what she shouldn't be doing - she just does damage control. So, we have attitudes (she actually huffs and crosses her arms with a pout when she's "not impressed") to deal with when we're home. On the other hand, she's a lot of fun and picking up the trade language very quickly. She asks "Boleh saya minum susu?" (Please may I drink some milk?) and greets everyone she sees with "Selamat Pagi" or "Selamat Siang" (Good Morning and Good...Afternoon - kind of - not a direct translation) no matter if it's the right time of day or not! She loves to play "(S)Uperman" with the boys and especially loves to play with the MagnaDoodle we brought with us!
Anyway, she's asleep now and looking like a little angel with her blond curls around her head! How sweet! I should go to sleep too - Josh is camping on a mountain near us tonight, so I'll be up early with the kids tomorrow morning! Yippee!! First day of vacation!! I know it'll go TOO quickly!Thanks for praying - My ankle is doing much better, though I have to take time to put it up every couple of hours due to swelling. I don't have much pain, though, so I'm thankful for that!
If I don't post before then, Merry Christmas! Thanks for your prayers for us!
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