Our Christmas

This was our first Christmas since 2005 where we were living in our own home for Christmas. We were determined to "do Christmas right!" Though both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day had it's far share of frustrations (things that keep breaking, the electricity going out, etc). Isn't that the way it goes? But looking back and all in all, it was a great Christmas.

Some of the Christmas trimmings, including Pomegranate Swirl Cheesecake with pomegranate sauce

Our Christmas table filled the entire room!

Elli bought Daddy a new calculator to replace the one she broke.


The yummy, hand-carried American ham!

Elli and her local baby doll

Ethan and his Legos


Elli with her new car.
Unfortunately, I didn't get a family picture with our fun festive outfits on before Elli fell into a bucket of water. So here she is in her Christmas dress.

For those who can handle more pictures:

Christmas Celebrations

Our visitors

Before Christmas, we had a wonderful week with dear friends from home! It was an incredibly full week with a perfect mix of down time and getting out and doing things. I feel like they really were able to see and experience what our lives are like here. Elli was sick much of the week with vomiting and diarrhea, so that yielded a tired mommy. But we are so blessed that they came all the way out to our home! Thanks to so many of you that sent treats, sweet notes and pictures with them! Dave and Laurie, thanks for sharing your pictures!

Our Advent

I love Christmas and I love Advent. Yet it never seems like I can keep up with the 5 candle, every Sunday, advent devotional. No matter how badly I want to. And honestly, it's hard for my 4 1/2 year old and almost 2 year old to follow. So when I found this, I was really excited!

We did miss a couple days, and sometimes had to do a devotional at breakfast and supper, but all in all I loved it! I got the idea from "25 reasons for the season," though we called it "Why Jesus was born." There is a heart reminder for everyday; a little figure that helps us remember the reason for the day. It's supposed to be a countdown until Christmas, though that element of the calendar passed my kids by this year. It yielded lots of good spiritual conversations.

Merry Christmas

Sunday, after dressing the kids, I realized they were both in red and semi-cooperative for taking some pictures. So I grabbed a couple while I could. I'll probably try and get a couple more on Christmas day, but wanted to post my 2 little kiddos. They bring such great delight!

There were a lot of pictures, like this one, that I didn't post. Getting both kiddos to sit still is becoming harder and harder!

Our first national party!

I usually love posting and can't wait to get my pictures and current stories online. But the reality that I will NEVER be able to capture the fullness of this day has kept me from getting it posted. So I'll try, but you just have to experience a local party first hand to fully experience it.

Wednesday night one of the gals from our homestay showed up and informed us the women of the family had been talking and thought we should host a party before the electricity started going out and things got really cold. Our possible days for the party were either Thursday (Thanksgiving) or Friday. After a little time for consideration, we convinced them Monday would be a better option for us.

Saturday evening, after I had taken an initial "party shop" at the bazaar, I called Kaleen to check and make sure she was coming on Sunday to help me prepare for the big party Monday. "How many people are coming" I asked. Only 10, I was assured. Not even 10 minutes after our conversation, she called back to tell me that an Aunt was having a Talbak (bride viewing party) on Monday and I should have my party on another day. Sunday (less than a day later) was my only option.

So Sunday, around 1 p.m., over 20 women and 10 kids showed up at our house for an all out party. T, Kaleen and I worked hard all day long with most of the guests leaving around 6 p.m. Austin, with no for warning, was in charge of building the fire pit and keeping the fire roaring. Bobo and Kaleen's husband came for supper; at which point it's appropriate to warm up the Ash from lunch. And while the men ate, the kids played, we had 2 people showering. There were points of the day it truly felt like a circus. But it was also one of those days were His grace was evident and very sufficient. I'm hoping having our "obligatory party" will yield a much more culturally laid back week when our friends from America come to visit.

Ethan's newest Theological query

"Mom, how can God see us if He doesn't have a head?"

"And how can He hear me if He doesn't have ears?"

The spiritual wrestlings of my 4 year old.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope each of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends and family! We sure had a fun time. We were able to talk to both of our families, which is always hard but special. And then we celebrated with our friends (the only other Americans in town). We had all the season's flavors; stuffing, sweet potato casserole (made with pumpkin), awesome green beans with precious bacon, jello, mashed potatoes, etc.

We put 2 tables together to accomodate everything!


Our skinny little bird. And they don't come pumped up with all the yummy fluid either, but we were grateful to have a Turkey!

Our 2 cream cheese creations that we were proud of. T made 2 cheese balls from her own cream cheese and we had a successful Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake for dessert. Though the top got a little brown, the rest of it was super yummy!

This was the craft activity I had planned for while Elli was napping. But the kids were content to play instead. So it became the day after Thanksgiving activity. After the lid to one of my 2L jars of applesauce blew, I was willing to try it. Equal parts applesauce and cinnamon, cut them out with cookie cutters, dry for 3 days and you have some great smelling Christmas ornaments. One of the girls crafting with us had the idea to decorate them with beads. We'll see how it all drys. I love the 4 year old boy touch Ethan added to his gingerbread man, Santa and angel! Thanks Sarah for sharing your crafting idea!

And of course our fun festivities hair do! Mama's lovin' the curls!

Moving it inside

The weather is starting to get colder and that means more of life and play time is done inside. Sometimes inside doesn't feel that much warmer, so we find ourselves wanting to stay under our covers as long as possible. A couple of days ago Ethan came running to report (characteristic of a 4 year old boy) "Mommy when I pee, it smokes." I guess our bathroom's a little cold!

Anyway, here are some pictures of my kids playing inside.

Lots of forts and reading books. There were several really long days and I can guarantee you this mama will be ready for Spring.


This is the "cape club" that spontaneously happened one afternoon in our long veranda. One benefit of living like we do is that my kids get exposure playing with lots of various age friends. Right now Ethan's best buds are 6 and 10 years old.

They're curls!

Today I had the notion to do something with my little princess's fuzzy bed-head before we went to fellowship. I had to cox here with lots of "oh, so pretty!"

These are the curls that are starting to appear on her little head, with the help of some of mommy's curl activator.

And here's how it dried. There would have been curls on top too, but in the process of getting dressed and styling a very uncooperative little girl, we went with a "straight in the front" kind of look. I'm so excited.

Back online!

That's right. Today, Jacob-jan came, after almost daily (sometimes multiple times/day) phone calls for almost 3 weeks. He not only fixed my computer issue but also installed our wireless modem we bought when in the capitol. We are excited, and it comes at just the right time; when so many other things seem extra needy and unmanageable.

So I'm going to post all the back-posts I've been waiting to post. Go back and read them (don't miss the last 2 from October). I'm not "a-type" about much, but I try and keep things somewhat chronological on my blog. I guess it's because in this chapter of life, this is as close as I'm getting to journaling or scrapbooking. So gotta keep it in order.

Happy reading!

Birthday Fair

At noon today we were invited to a birthday party to be held this evening. The oldest son at our homestay (and Austin's friend) is turning 39.

And what do you get for a 39 year old man in Aobistan.

What better than manly cologne?

Here's my man modeling it for you.

"Cook"

"Cook," "help" these are some of Elli's favorite things to say lately. Of course she's never as much help as she wants to be, because she has a mind of her own on how she'll cook.

I set her up with a pot of dry beans and rice, thinking it would keep her entertained. Of course the rice and beans ended up throughout the house with carrots, garlic and Legos added to them.

Cream Cheese Sucess

Just a quick update:

I've made cream cheese frosting!


Pumpkin spice bars with cream cheese frosting. So yummy! So I've started a large batch of cream cheese for a Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake for Thanksgiving!

Missing my computer!

If you are curious where I've been, our family is currently experiencing technical difficulties. Thus the lapse in blog or email communication. Since returning from the capitol, Austin has again been connecting his computer up to a desktop monitor. Much like he had to this time last year. My computer, however, is no longer functioning properly on the internet and we can't figure out why. Jacob-jan, the computer/internet guy who now plays Settlers of Catan, is not answering our phone calls. So frustrating. I have so many things to tell/show you . . . we've been in our house a week; we have a door and a new bathroom floor; upon our arrival home we were heartily greeted by visitors; our fall festivities; and many more stories and pictures. You can ask that Jacob-jan answers his phone and knows how to fix my computer. While you're asking, you could even ask for Austin's monitor to start working again.

Hopefully bright pictures and comical third world stories will be meeting you the next time you check our blog. Until then, I've started reading "The Shack" in my normal blogging moments. :) Miss you!

A swing upgrade

One of our biggest finds while we were shopping in the capitol was a swing for Elli. So she's successfully upgraded from this

to this

She loves it, even though it's really cold out. Austin's planning to re-hang Ethan's swing from the grapevine trellace. And Ethan can't wait. He's excited to be able to swing even higher.

Back home with visitors!

November 2nd we moved back home! So grateful to be back in a space that we know and have really made our own. Crazy enough, I did the math, and in the month of October we slept in our own beds 7 nights. I think that caught us by surprise; we didn't plan to be out of pocket that much. So it felt really good to be home.

A local friend and I worked hard all day to get the fine layers of dust off of EVERYTHING in our home. We ended up rolling up our longest piece of carpet, to shake out the dust outside just before it started to rain. Austin worked most of the day to get our heaters up and running so that we could heat our house up. By mid-afternoon, I'll be honest, I was dreaming of sweatpants and a quite night settling back in to life at home.

But that would be way too predictable for the life we are coming to know here. At 4:30, 4 women from our homestay family showed up with a big bag of something. We went through the long line of greetings and "why weren't you there?" before they let me know they had come to use our shower. The weather has gotten colder and the community shower is starting to get really crowded.

"Why of course, come in" we replied. First I had to explain that our water has a strong bleach smell, as Austin cleaned out the water tank while we were living somewhere else. The bleach was fully diluted, it just smelled like you'd been swimming after your shower.

"No problem", they said.
"We've also been gone for 2 weeks and I haven't used the shower yet. It should be fine, but I don't know. Our electricity has been off for the last 3 days, so the hot water tank may not be completely full either," I explained.
"No problem" was again their reply.
So we got them set up in our bedroom and bathroom. Austin took apart one of the heaters he had just put together, so that the bathroom would be warmer for them. I taught them how to use a shower and explained how to regulate the temperature of the water.
"Oh, I forgot my conditioner, do you have some?" Kaleen asked.
"No problem," and I showed her where it was. It wasn't what she was used to, so I served her up a small bowl of my homemade yogurt instead.

By 6p.m. the first 2 women were back in the bathroom bathing, while I served tea and the left over oatmeal bread and apple butter from our family fall celebration. By 6:45 they were finishing up and complaining that the water had gotten cold. The entire water heater had been drained.

"Let's eat dinner and maybe it will fill back up in the meantime" I proposed.

Luckily I had made a chicken noodle casserole ahead of time, to make our first night back home a little easier. Little did I know how grateful I would be for it. Served with local presentation, we had chicken noodle casserole and steamed pumpkin. Some liked it and others didn't, but they were very gracious.

On low electricity the hot water heater wasn't even half full yet. So I began boiling water to take back to the final 2 women who were now patiently waiting. After 8 trips (of my 3 largest pots/trip) the ladies had all the water they needed and were finishing up.

By 9 p.m. Austin was delivering them home. Needless to say, we fell into bed that night with a good case of the giggles. What a crazy night. And to be back in our beds with tired bodies after a long day, we slept really well!

Fall Fun

Fridays are typically our family fun night, which most often involves popcorn and a Cosby show. Instead of Friday, we had family fun night on Saturday night. Halloween night. Our only other American friends hadn't returned from the capitol, so it was truly a family night. How do you explain people (adult and children alike) dressing up in crazy outfits and begging for candy from their neighbors. It just doesn't translate cross culturally. Needless to say we didn't dress up or go trick-o-treating. We had a fun "harvest night" at home instead.

We had cream of pumpkin soup, homemade oatmeal bread, apple butter and hot apple cider. After dinner we carved a pumpkin together. The skin of our pumpkins is green.

Rather than a candle, the kids got the biggest kick out of using Daddy's head lamp, on the red setting, to light their jack-o-lantern.

It sure was a fun night together. It was a fun day too. All day, as I prepped for our evening's festivities, I thought of where we were at this time last year. Physically yes, but even more so emotionally. We were looking forward to a trip out of town to go trick-o-treating with a large group of Americans.

Ethan and I were working on our Thomas the Tank engine costume. But also everyday we were getting security reports. Much to my little 3 year old's disappointment, Halloween plans fell through at the last minute due to awful threats on the road we were to travel on.

As I thought and pondered all day, I thanked Father for how He has lead and cared for us. For letting us know the places and people we have. And for today, having a day of peace in our home. Though I know I am not owed it and I never want to take it forgranted.

Our Fall Photos

We found a small patch of leaves with just the right lighting to catch a couple fall pictures!

Love these kiddos!

What's wrong with this picture?

Our milk has come the last couple times in a 2L Pulsar (beer) bottle. There's just something that doesn't sit right. Of course we pasteurize it, to ensure no chances of toddler drunkenness.

What is threading?

This is how Wikipedia described threading:

Threading is an ancient method of hair removal which originated in the Persia, subcontinent, spread to the Middle and Far East, and is now gaining popularity in Western countries. Practitioners use a pure, thin, twisted cotton thread which is rolled over untidy hairlines, moustaches and so on, plucking the hair at the follicle level. Unlike tweezing where a single hair is pulled out each time, threading can remove an entire row of hair, resulting in a straighter line.

And that's pretty much what happens in my little bread lady's chair! It's amazing how she works the thread ever so precisely.

A trip to the bazaar

Brace yourselves, I anticipate this to be a longer blog. But several have asked to see what our bazaar looks like. Rather than a slide show that limits the narration that I can add, it will just be a little longer.

These are my 2 shopping buddies. Some time Ethan rides on the back of the stroller, standing on one of the bars. I love my huge "basket" under the stroller. My biggest shop so far was 70 pounds of produce, including Elli. Needless to say, I paid the 25c to have someone load my stuff onto his cart and push it up the hill to my house.

This is the view of the bazaar coming from our house, the main gate from the front and from the back.

This is how we buy meat. Granted we don't buy the goat heads, but I thought you'd like to see them. I'm still intimidated by buying beef hanging on the hooks. It's not so much the pieces of meat as it is the butchers. Regardless of what I ask for, they won't give it to me. Every time I get a little more confident, taking the pieces of bone and fat off the scale. They just don't understand why I would want to buy meat without those things. We get frozen chicken legs and thighs from the States and our family eats those most often. We've even seen Tyson chicken pieces. Apparently we get all the pieces that remain after Americas demand for frozen, skinless chicken breast is met.

In the center of our bazaar is a "rotunda." This is where I buy my fresh produce, nuts and raisins, and spices by the grams. You can kind of see in the back of the pictures how the rotunda wraps around. The large basins are full of Elli's favorite . . . chaka. She even calls Ranch dressing chaka! :) The third picture is of the only person who sells the carrot salad our family loves. Her and her husband take turns at their stand and if they are sick, there is no carrot salad to be had. They speak no "Aobistani" and I know no Russian, so the vegetable seller to the side usually translates back and forth for us.

This is the gal who does my eyebrows. They don't wax here, they do "threading." I usually buy a snack (nan and some juice) for my kids and park the stroller to the side while she quickly does my eyebrows. It only costs 50 cents and last so much longer than waxing does. The passer-byers get a kick out of the foreigner getting her brows done. She actually sells nan and does brows on the side; thus the picture of us together holding nan. The picture with my kids doesn't even capture the treatment they get every trip to the bazaar. All our regular stops know all 3 of us by name. They love to give my kids pieces of fruit or bread whenever we stop. Ethan has gotten really good at answering questions that are typically asked.

Remember the marshmallow cream? This is the sweet man that sells it all year long. And these are the massive containers he sells it in!

Other random things available at the bazaar: the baby cribs, the re-directing pee-pee sticks and the pee catchers. They even have the baby cribs for baby dolls, the painted one in the center of this picture. This may be part of Elli's Christmas present to go along with her local baby doll we found in Dushanbe.

And if I didn't find it at another spot in the bazaar, there are rows of these little kiosks where I can buy canned corn, canned peas, kielbasa (pork-less) sausage, and mayonnaise; the essentials in every local salad. In one of these little stalls is where I discovered the now team wide favorite; puffed rice balls!

Well, there you have it. You have completed your bazaar tour. Now if only I could capture the smells and sounds you'd really feel like you've been here. I guess for that . . . you'll just have to come and see for yourself.