First I Thought We Were Going To Izzy

But it turns out we're going to Annie.

Process with me.

We decided to move to T.  We visited the three major cities on a two week trip in 2009.  God has led us to arrive in this country in twenty days.  We have not sensed him directing us to a particular city yet.  So we chose my fave, Izzy.  It was Peter's preference too, since he got to visit there in 2011.  Coastal, beautiful, and warm.  When God is not specific, pick the beach, I always say.

Turns out he decided to get specific.  Twenty days before take off.

It's pretty neat because we have not made any set plans in Izzy yet.  God has not revealed himself, so we have not acted.  Our general plan was to arrive and stay in a hotel or housesit for someone and look for an apartment.  Paul and I would study language for two years and deeply seek the Spirit's guidance on where he wants to use us long term.  And with whom.  So Izzy was a temporary landing place until otherwise notified.

When people have asked me for one specific way to pray for our family, I have asked them to pray for our home in T.  That God would set us down right where he wants us in the city and that he would be preparing our neighbors to meet us and that we would hear him and follow him to just the right apartment building to do his work.

We think he answered that prayer yesterday.  Our next home is in another city.

A family in Annie (the capital) is going out of town for three months starting the first of April.  They are looking for a family to stay at their home and pay the rent while they're gone.  This timing is perfect for us.

Our company has a worker in this city.  She has no teammates and she is eager to have us join her.  Our teammates in Izzy don't really need us on their team.  They are willing to help us get settled, but aren't looking to give us one of their jerseys.

Our company director thinks this is a good move for us.

Our local T friends here in Small Town America are returning to T in May.  They live in Annie and are excited to continue our friendship in their country.

My favorite international school is in Annie.  The one that teaches tae kwon do for P.E. class and a third of its students are from my sons' homeland.  And the staff all love God.

It's Paul's favorite city.  So that's nice.  For him.

We've been praying about this and can't find a reason not to go this direction.  We've been seeking God on this particular point and here is a clear opportunity.

A change in direction.  Maybe it's only for three months.  Maybe God is having me sacrifice what I want (warm and coastal) just like he had Abraham sacrifice his son Isaac.  And then, because I obeyed him and gave up what I wanted to follow him, he'll give it back to me and move us to Izzy.  Does it work like that?  Maybe instead he'll help me fall in love with this new city.

This is what I know:
Many are the plans in a man's heart
But it is the Lord's purpose that will prevail.

And that's how we like it.

Pray for us.

Carolına and Me

The drive to South Carolina was so pretty.  I really liked driving through the Appalacia Mountains.  We drove there Thursday, met with folks all day and night on Friday, met with more folks on Saturday and drove home.  I brought my camera and here are the only pictures I took...

I only took them because Paul was so excited about it.  The guy driving the car was munching on a snack and looked quite bored.  We smiled and waved at his cameras.  So look for us on Google maps.

We didn't get to experience much of the S. Carolına culture ın our short tıme there (and my keyboard just swıtched over to typıng ın Turkısh so the dots on the letter ı have dısappeared).  But here ıs what I know - ıt was humıd and we were warned about scurryıng cockroaches and we had breakfast at a place called The Lızard Thatch or somethıng lıke that.  And I learned that USC ıs not a cool college ın So Cal but the Unıversıty of South Carolına and they play good football.  Oh!  And all theır tea ıs sweet tea - the kınd that ıs thıck lıke syrup and makes you say Whoo!  And they stıll talk about how they lost The War.  Whıch made me thankful that I grew up ın Calıfornıa and do not have to claım allegıance to the North or South - the Cıvıl War was somethıng that happened Over There.  But serıously I cannot understand the Southern mındframe of racısm and whıte supremacy and realızed I have always just consıdered myself on the Northern Team.  Thıs opınıon I just kept to myself whılst there.

But the purpose of our trıp...  We met wıth an organızatıon that helps pastors start churches around the world ın places where there are no churches.  We have already joıned an org that does thıs but ıt ıs now mergıng wıth thıs S. Carolına org so we are checkıng out thıs new org to see ıf we want to merge too.  The conclusıon- we are not so sure.  Whıch ıs frustratıng.  So we are prayıng.

Now lets talk about my haır.  I lıke ıt.  I can style ıt on Monday, freshen ıt wıth the flat ıron on Tuesday and agaın on Wednesday.  Who loves a cute low maıntenance haırstyle?  I do.  Here ıs the pıcture you have been waıtıng for.  It was taken whıle I was at the Malıbu Soap Awards thıs afternoon.  I really lıke how my wardrobe attendant matched my dress to my eyeshadow.  She ıs so good.

Cute rıght?

To bed now so that tomorrow we can traverse Turkey Run - do scıence experıments wıth Paul (who has taken over scıence for me thıs year!!!) - shop for grocerıes all by myself - and accomplısh some ıtems on my to-do lıst lıke add Charlıe to our wıll to make sure he gets hıs part of our mıllıons and maybe get passport pıcs for Reuben and Charlıe.  Whoo!

For Charlene and Peter

Hello Charlene.

And, hi Peter.

This is for them.  Because they want to know.

So we're back in the regular life of the Paul and Stacey family.  Such things are happening like...

• I had most of my hair removed yesterday.  It was one of those cleansing haircuts that took off half of a ruler or so.  No picture.  Yet.  It was my stylist's attempt to redeem my look after I cut my own bangs like a sneaky five-year-old with a pair of blunt scissors.  About a month ago I tried to do the thick bangs look.  But mostly I just ended up pinning them back.  Because the first day I styled them down and I came out of the bathroom, Paul said in aghast confusion, "Who are you?"  That really helped my self confidence.  So I just had all the rest cut off too.  So in about six months or so all should be fine and grown out.

• We are in our third week of homeschooling with three boys in the house.  Charlie is doing well as the third child.  I work with Reuben at the coffee table, Peter works independently at the counter in the laundry room, and Charlie plays with the wooden train tracks, lines up the plastic bugs, dumps out all the pattern blocks, and eats Cheerios.  When I'm done with Reuben he gets to play and I go work with The Pete.  We'll call it The Perfect System.  

• Except that this totally fails when I try to teach Peter and Reuben something at the same time.  Like Bible time.  Holy Canoli.  Charlie recognizes this as Party Time Pow-Wow on the Couch and does his best to fully antagonize Reuben, the weaker-willed of his two choices.  So today, to fully disclose my weaknesses, I found myself reading the very Word of God to my children, then yelling at them (Reuben) in frustration that they (Reuben) could not answer my questions because they (Reuben) were not paying attention because Charlie the Younger was in his face hitting him with a vanilla-filled balloon left over from the last science lesson.  You know what I did?  I canceled school.  Right then.  Because I could see that something was not right with this situation.  Later in the day I figured out what was wrong, apologized to poor Reuben, discussed solutions with Peter, and will give it a retry.  Perhaps tomorrow.  But I also realized that I am really tired today.  Which leads me to my next point.

• I am really tired today. That anemic sort of tired that I'm not supposed to be anymore.  Boo.

•  I was going to say "enough about me," but I have more!  I am taking Perspectives.  Which probably means nothing to you.  What it means to me is that every night I am spread out on my bed with four books (two of them equal in size to a So Cal phone book), a pencil, and a highlighter as I read and read and read.  And read.  Then I have to answer questions and email them to my Grader.  Gosh, it is hard for me.  And I'm going to have to go ahead and blame it on my anemic brain.  I'm supposed to be all better.  My doctor said six months.  It's been six months.  But I still cannot read deep topics.  My brain can't focus.  I read and reread the questions and have no idea what they are asking.

• And you know what?  Two weeks ago I emailed my university to see about finishing my graduate degree.  I was three classes away from an MA in Education and was kind of feeling like finishing it.  They must have received an email from my doctor saying not to let me take any coursework because of my shaky mental status.  The university said it's been over ten years since I took my other classes and now none of those classes count.  I'd have to start all over.  Nice cover.  They knew I'd fail and they didn't want that smearing their reputation.

• I now know I would have failed because my Grader for this Perspectives course returned my first two lessons with a C and a D and the words, "Good effort."  What?!  Doesn't she know I graduated top (TOP!) of my class with ropes around my neck and awards in my pocket?  I don't get C's and D's, lady.  Except, apparently, now I do.  Why even try, you know?  My brain has become mush.  I imagine it a lumpy oatmeal with bits of browning banana and swirls of brown sugar.  But, as is my tradition, I will do my best.  I will!  And I will try to be only a little humiliated when I see my Grader in class, and only cry a little that my best is no longer an A. 

• So, enough about me.  Peter wants to go to an overnight lock-in at the church we go to on Saturday nights.  My first reaction is, "Will he be molested?"  Would you think that too?  It's a church, so it should be safe.  But, I know better than that.  But, do I keep him from all such activities until he moves out and I can no longer protect him?  Seems unlikely and unnecessary.  That is my dilemma.

• Next dilemma.  Peter is going to try out for the county swim club next week.  He's looking forward to learning the breaststroke and butterfly, and how to dive off the starting blocks, and how to do a flip turn, and how to win 22 gold medals.  And do you know what my brain thinks?  "Will he be molested in the locker room?"  And then, "What is my problem?"  Why do I keep worrying about protecting my sons?  I know.  It's because it happens.  And it makes me feel so helpless.  Any thoughts there?

• Paul and I are roadtripping to South Carolina later this week.  Ever been there?  Me neither.  Sadly, we are making a super fast trip and we won't get to enjoy the Smoky Mountains that we'll be driving through.  In the dark.  And in the rain.  We're driving eleven hours, staying there one day, and driving back eleven hours.  Why would we do that?  Because we have a meeting.  It's an important meeting that will shape our future work with our future group in our future place.  You know what I'm saying?

• My sister and her uber cute family are visiting my parents this week.  And it made me wish that Paul worked for an airline so that I could fly to California any time I wanted.  Paul?  Honey?  Let me show you a picture of this baby that I'm not spending time with tonight because Someone is in the wrong profession.

Wouldn't you work for an airline so your wife could hold this baby whenever she needed to?  You would.  I know.  Thank you.

Halifornia

Day 14 - Tuesday

No pics, but we spent the morning sitting in traffic for longer than was necessary. Even when we tried to detour from the traffic, it found us again.  Fortunately it did not keep us from the beach.  We met up with Nicole and kids, played, picnicked, splashed, and walked up the coast, finding treasures in the sand as we went.  And we watched the Jr. Lifeguards and Surf Camps practice.

Then to the local library, because it just feels so good to be in a library.  And this one was so nice.  Up on a hill with big windows and an outside reading area overlooking the ocean.

Then to a Turkish shop we've always wanted to stop in.  And this is the part where I feel stupid and think, "What was I thinking?"  And, still, I don't know what came over me.  We peeked in the windows of the closed Turkish shop until the owner came by and offered to open it for us.  We were mostly in browsing mode, but the owner was in high selling mode.  I left the store with 2 shirts, a skirt, and a necklace/earring set and a sick feeling in my stomach.  I am not one to shop for entertainment, but usually only out of necessity, and I did not need any of these items.  I don't even like all of them.  I think I felt a sense of obligation since she opened the shop for us, and she really wanted to sell some things, and we like building relationships with Turks.  Even now I feel lame and don't want to keep any of the things I bought.  Bleh.

Onward to Golden Spoon because it is on Peter's list of things to do in California.

Then home to swim for hours, watch a movie, and go to bed whereupon we all slept soundly.


Day 15 - yesterday

Seriously.  Who goes to libraries on their vacations?  Apparently we do.  A lot.  And that's how we started our morning yesterday.  Must. be. surrounded. by. books.

Then, to check another item off Peter's list (there's only one more now) we picked up In-n-Out for lunch and went to visit my parents.

 Leaving In-n-Out

 At Granny's

 Peter got a hat too, but he's saving it to bring back to a friend.

Sweet boy.

 At my parents' Charlie found a musical birthday card that his Nana sent to him.

He had a lot of fun opening and closing it to hear the music.

Cute card.

We had a 2:30 appointment at my parents' church to speak with their outreach leader who listened, questioned, and counseled us.  Then he invited us to apply to their outreach team as step #2 of their process of selecting overseas workers with whom to partner.  This would be a wonderful church to partner with.  They love and care for their overseas workers and have a very active interest in what God is doing around the world.  So we shall pray and follow God's lead.

Back to my parents' for my Mom's Taco Salad and the Blasting of the Missiles.

 Charlie too.

He's a keen observer and a quick learner.

Where did it go?

Today?  I don't know yet.

Merhaba, As It Were

Hello!  I miss you.  How are you?  You could tell me.  I would listen.  And respond.

Oh.  As I reread that upper sentence I wondered if my subconscious psyche was revealing the shallow sadness and loneliness I sometimes feel in this space because most of the time this is a one-way conversation.  Wow, that's pretty deep for a rainy Saturday morning.  So let's make this Say Hi To Stacey Day.  Fab ideas you have.

In other nonessential news...

My hemoglobin is up to 13.5, which is cause for a jog around the block or a dusting off of the workout videos because that's back in the normal range.  I should be feeling great!  But I'm not.  But one day I will.  Let's say... Thursday.  Thursday will be the comeback day.

This day, in one point five hours, we will drive north one hour to a university town to meet up with some manti-cooking Turks.  I have a pic of actual manti I saw once...

Peter and Reuben have their Turkish soccer jerseys on, Paul is walking around speaking random Turkish phrases to himself, and I... I am looking forward to making new local Turkish friends and eating their delicious food.

But first I must go dry my hair.

And tell you that, although it is 40ish today, it will be in the 80s by Wednesday.  Aha!

The Interviews Revisited

As Peter, Reuben, Charlie, and I pushed our grocery cart to the check-out this afternoon, the cashier giddily exclaimed,

"I saw you!  You all were in the paper this morning!  You're famous!  You're celebrities!  You're movie stars!"

I'm totally serious.  She was so excited.

I responded with, "Yeah, maybe they'll make a movie out of it.  Ha, ha."

This was the picture on the front page of today's paper.

The reporter who was supposed to come to our house on Monday, but didn't, and then again on Tuesday, but didn't, and then said she'd come the following Wednesday... came on Wednesday.  She was late, but she did come.  And she wrote a nice article about our family and international adoption;  even mentioning Steven Curtis Chapman, Show Hope, and Bethany Christian Services - all key players in our adoptions.

If you'd like to bask in the glory of knowing someone famous read the article, I can email the link to you.  Parents and siblings, it's already in your inbox, because, you know, I'd want to read about you if you were in the paper.

*Remember that one time when I was in the Sports section of the Press Democrat because I won first place at a swim meet in high school?  Except really, I won last place.  I felt sad for the swimmer who actually won and missed her opportunity for glory and fame.*

Okay, so Interview Number One turned out okay.  Let's move on to Interview Number Two.


"I'm terribly sorry, not the news you wanted to hear I'm sure."

and

"Again, I know this is disappointing."

This interview process with the international school is not going the direction I was hoping.

They would prefer me to be single or for both Paul and I to be applying for positions at the school.  For reasons I don't understand,  they "have had some very trying situations with this type of arrangement and it just has not worked out well."  The director of the school has not requested or reviewed my file due to this.

So, it will truly take the Holy Spirit to move the director to consider me.  Which is great.  We want to be in God's will.  If this school isn't it, then there must be a reason.  But the whole time I was reading the disappointing email from the school, I was thinking, "But I want this so much.  This is what I want.  I want to teach at this school.  This is perfect for our family."  Immediately the Bible verses about God's will, not mine flooded my sad heart.  Isn't it good to be guided by God?  He's so much more emotionally stable and non-hormonal than me.

While in this process to be a full-time teacher again, I have become very excited about it all - moving, getting rid of all our possessions, meeting new people, being a professional again, teaching kids to read, wearing dresses, serving God in a new way...

We shall see.

Interviews

Shall I report on the good interview or the dumb one first?

Dumb one it is.  It's better to end on a high note, right?

Dumb Interview

A reporter from a nearby newspaper called our house asking to interview our family at our home with her camera.  She wanted to do a piece about international adoption.

(She learned about the internationalness of our family from a homeschool field trip we went on to the newspaper office.)

So we set up an appointment for this last Monday at 3:45.

House clean, faces washed, photogenic clothing on.

4:20, no reporter.

I called the newspaper office...

She had it down for Tuesday, not Monday.

No, it was Monday.  I had confirmed it with her.  But, I'm all for advocating adoption so I rescheduled it for the next day.

It's Tuesday now.  House, faces, and clothes still pretty much clean.  4:15, no reporter.

Serious?

I called her office again and she said she had forgotten.  Her and her husband are down to one car, you know.  That was her excuse.  Really?  I just talked to you yesterday when you stood me up the first time and you didn't think to call me?!

She wanted to reschedule but I told her that I was afraid she wasn't going to show up again and we have been putting our life on hold for her to come.  I want to put the word out about adoption, but this is ridiculous.

She ended up interviewing me on the phone right then and said she will for sure come to our house next Wednesday.  She wrote it in pen on her calendar.  As if that means anything.

So I've spent the last several days fretting and wondering and hoping that this irresponsible woman will properly represent our family and adoption.  It seems unlikely and I'm already penning a letter to the editor in my mind.  I finally just gave these worries to God and asked him to take care of it all.

That's better.


The Good Interview

I applied for that teaching job, remember?  Since then I have had an online interview, several emails back and forth, references requested, and a phone call with the school representatives.

And now they are on Winter Holiday.  So we get to wait.

But, it's been fun to be in this process and to think about the realities of moving next summer and professionally teaching again.

Ahh!  Really, so neat.

There are others who have applied ahead of me and the word is that the Director is nearly ready to offer the position to someone who is not me.  He has not seen my file yet due to all of my references not being back in.  But, I know that my name has been made known to him so perhaps my file has been in front of him.  And perhaps he will be newly inspired to offer me the job!

As in the above Interview That Wasn't, I have put my trust in God to fully guide this situation.  What a perfectly wonderful thing... to know that God will do what He knows is best.  If I am not offered the position, then it's not the right path for our family.

I want what he wants.

I'll let you know what that is when I know.

A Possibility

I applied for a job last night.

Teaching first grade.

At an international school.

In the middle east.

In a certain particular country we know of.

And then I felt sick.

And couldn't sleep.

Oh man, to re-enter the professional world

after nine years of domesticality...

How exciting.

We'll see.



Paul and I were praying together last night.

Specifically for our future plans.

"God, we're ready.  Show us, guide us.

What would you have us do?

Where do you want us to go?

When?  How?"



Right after our 'Amens' I was inspired to look up

this International School we had visited in 2009 to see if they

were, by chance, hiring a first grade teacher for next year.

Um, they are.

Not a second or third or fourth or fifth or sixth grade.

First grade.

Maybe you don't know that I was a first grade teacher in

a dear public school in my California days.



Paul and I have been discussing the work and power

of the Holy Spirit lately.

Was this an instance of the Holy Spirit

quickly, specifically answering our prayers?

We asked, he answered?

Isn't there a verse about asking but not believing?

Okay, I found it in Mark 11.

"Whatever you ask for in prayer,

believe that you have received it

and it will be yours."

Perhaps not totally applicable.

But maybe it is.



Sometimes it's hard to know...

Is this me?

Or is this the Holy Spirit in me?

Is God up there hitting his hand on his forehead?

"You asked!  I answered!  Have faith.  Geez."



We would love your prayers about our future.

We just want to do what God desires for us.

We are waiting to know his will.

"We humans keep brainstorming options and plans,

But God's purpose prevails."

Proverbs 19:21

Germany and Beyond

So I was hoping Paul would take on this post of telling you about his trip since he was the one who went on it.  But he is spending his free time with one of the many Steves we know.  Drinking coffee and playing cards.  Sweet, huh?

So I'm going to do my best to interpret the pictures for you.

But alas, as I was editing the photos he has returned with a love/peace offering of a piece of ice cream cake.  It's got that middle layer of cookie crumbles.  Yum.  I shall let him post.

So...Here's Peter doing homework in an airport.  It's always an interesting experience when you help a third grader with his work and end up learning stuff.  Kind of like you could go back and re-do third grade and it might benefit you.  So on this trip I learned about the design process, I'm less convinced that Peter did though.  The important thing is that we got all the homework done, but it was pretty raggedy looking from all the travel.

We had an extra-long layover in Munich...to the tune of 11 hours...after a 9 hour flight...that we didn't sleep on...so we did our best at site-seeing.  This particular picture is just opposite from St.Peter's Cathedral.  Instead of taking a picture of said Cathedral, I got a picture of Peter standing in front of a street sign that if you look very closely says "Peter's Street" (in German).  Sorry about that, like I said, we were tired.  The Cathedral was neat too though.

Just down the street from the Cathedral is the "Neues Rathaus" the new townhall.  It's only 137 years old, the old town hall is 701 years old (thank you wikipedia).  And thank you Europe for reminding us of how short our history is on this side of the pond.  The townhall features a clock with a bell chime and dancing figurines that go to work at 11 am.  Tons of people turned out to watch, and we were two of them.  In hindsight it was kind of like going to Disneyland and riding "It's a small world after all".  You feel like you should do it to get the full experience, but at the same time it's a bit lame.  I'm sure it was mind-blowing in 1874.

 After the clock tower we headed to the art museum.  My newest sister-in-law, Coleen, recently told me that my favorite artist would likely be Peter Paul Rubens...because...you know...Anyway, it turned out that the Munich art museum has a massive collection of works by Mr. Rubens.  I was only vaguely familiar with his work before, but he is probably in my top 5 favorite artists at this point.  His paintings contain some interesting religious themes, the art work is great, but mostly I like him because his paintings are so huge that I don't know anyone who could fit them in their house.  

Several of them wouldn't even fit on your roof.  

Alas, my favorite artist is still Rob Gonsalves.  

...but I digress.  The picture above is not from the art museum.  Rather, it comes from the Technology and Science museum (the Deutches museum).  It was pretty awesome.  

And here's Pete playing a giant xylophone made out of 2x4s.  

After that we were pretty well beat and so we headed back to the airport.  

Interestingly, of all the things we did in Munich, Peter's favorite was riding the subway.

We had lunch one day with some new friends.  I asked for the chicken, and they gave me chicken...gizzards. 

This is called the House of the Seven Sleepers.  Peter immensely enjoyed climbing all over the ancient ruins.  Here he is featured walking in front of some tombs.  

Here is a traditional breakfast.  It's what you get pretty much everywhere.  

An egg, tomato, cucumber, bread and tea.  

Peter ate the bread.

Here I am at the ancient city of Ephesus.  Just behind me is the most magnificent and famous structure in Ephesus, the library of Celsus.   But you can't see it...because I'm standing in front of it.  

Trust me though, it's great.

 This one is especially important to me (Stacey)

because it has palm trees.

Hinting that the weather is warm and the beach is not far off.

Peter ordered the potatoes because he thought they'd be a safe bet.  

It didn't work out so well, they were cold 

and drenched in vinegar.  

So I ate them instead.

Ruins at St. John's church in Selcuk.

If St. John's basilica were standing today it would be the 7th largest Cathedral in the world.

The building was completed in 565 AD.  

And thank you Asia for reminding us of how short our history is on this side of the pond.

Fresh squeezed orange juice For The Win!

I kept trying to get him to climb up there and lay down in the tomb and close his eyes.

I don't think he knows what fun is.

What's in T you ask?  

Only the tomb of the Apostle John.

You mean THE John?

The one who wrote the gospel of John?

The beloved apostle? 

Yep, that's the one.

And that deserves a special sort of pose.

No apostles buried here, but it still got a special sort of pose.  

That column just looked like it needed a statue on it.

Roman Aqueduct.  

Place where I kind of got a little bit lost with Peter.

 

Cute little dolmus rider. (that's Stacey's comment)

This is our room in the luxurious Hotel Paris.  Peter kept asking why it was named Paris...

There's the library of Celsus.  Peter was less than impressed.  

It wasn't that good for climbing on and it was thick with tourists. 

See the "C" he's making with his hand?  That stands for "Corinthian", because that's the kind of column that it is.  Which I didn't know.  But he learned last year.  Thanks home-school education.

You know you're in a great place when the coke comes in a glass bottle.

And...here's this thing.

Okay, so thanks for reading. I apologize, I realize now that I am much more long-winded than Stacey when it comes to blogging. 

Yesterday I was woken up before the sun with an automated phone call from United airlines.  They wanted to tell me that Paul's flight schedule had changed and instead of arriving at 6:35pm he would get in at 10:01pm.  And they said I should confirm this online.

So I went online later in the day and Paul's flights were all fine, scheduled to arrive here at 6:35pm.  I had no way of contacting Paul but I knew he would call me if his flights had changed.  So what do I do?  Wait until 10pm or go at 6:35pm?

I called United to ask them which flight Paul and Peter had gotten on.  Mr. United said to me, "Even if I knew I wouldn't tell you."  Thank you.  So I asked him his advice... Should I go with Paul's original flight info since I hadn't heard from him, or go with what the automated call person said?  He said to go with the new information.

But I couldn't.  It just didn't seem right.  Surely Paul would have called me if he was coming in on the later flight.  And if they arrived at 6:35pm, I hated the thought of them waiting for hours in the airport wondering why I didn't come for them.

So I packed drinks, snacks, and the baby carrier (and the kids) and we drove the hour to the airport hoping to see the boys at 6:35 but planning to camp out until 10:01.

Guess what?  They arrived at 6:35.  I was so glad I went with my intuition.  It was wonderful to see them.

We came home and gifts were distributed and all boys under age 30 went to bed.  But not for long.

Peter and Reuben were up at 4am wrestling in the dining room.  Paul got up and sent Reuben back to bed for a few hours, but Peter's internal clock was done sleeping.

At 7:00am Reuben re-awoke and the wrestling match continued.  It was fun to listen to them laugh.

And this was their Good-Bye Hug

when it was time for Peter to go to school.

He was wide awake and full of exuberant energy (sorry Mrs. Keck) and ready to go.  Paul went in and talked to his teacher to inform her that by 3pm his internal clock would be registering 10pm, so good luck with that.

Pictures and narrative of their trip to come henceforth.  Tomorrow maybe.

More Pics From Paul

Oct. 18 

Here are a couple pictures from St.John´s church.  One is me in front of the tomb of John and the other is Peter in the shape of an x.

I bargained a little bit today, but not well and didn´t enjoy it.

We got some meat at a restaurant today that wasn´t quite cooked through, and in honor of you I thought, ¨we probably shouldn´t eat this¨, but then we did anyway because we were hungry and we´re tough like that.  I had a good conversation with Peter today about doing things that are hard and who has the better life, the person who avoids hard things or who does hard things.

I think that´s all I´ve got. 

Yo tengo besos para ti!

Pablo

ps. you can´t have the pictures as it turns out because the computer won´t attach them, but you can imagine how awesome they are.


So, really, no pictures.  But we got a postcard from him from Munich today.  And he called me via Skype this afternoon.  Sweet man.  During our call I asked about Peter- Paul said he was watching Beauty and the Beast in Spanish.  They are staying at the home of a Mexican family tonight.  A family with two daughters.  Thus.

We go to retrieve them from the airport tomorrow evening.  They start their travels at 10:30pm tonight, our time.  5:30am their time.  Long day.  Will Peter go to school on Thursday?  Possibly, but we're not pushing it.

Speaking of missing school... The principal sent out an email yesterday imploring parents to not schedule trips and vacations during school.  Oops.  We are homeschoolers at heart and couldn't pass up this highly educational experience.

More Emails

Oct 15
Hi Mom,

We saw many Peter Paul Rubens paintings in a museum in Munich, let's see, what else...we also saw some very big paintings.  Tell Reuben I got him a special shirt for the local soccer team.  It is called G____ (with two dots above the "o").  We bought some T Oreos called "Negro".  We have been having a good time so far.

Your son,

Peter

ps: we also got Reuben candy.

Oct. 15

Peter has been really good, although he started coming out of his shell and getting more comfortable today which included a little more running around.  Everyone has been really nice to him though.  We just got back from dinner.  Peter had lentil soup last night, but he said it wasn't as good as yours.  Tonight I chatted with a lot of people.  There are a lot of nice people here, but not anyone that I would guess to be your bosom friend.  There's one cool guy, Jack, that I've been getting to know.  He has 4 kids, their oldest son is 7 and is into all the same things as Peter.  But Jack is the only one that came.  They live in an area by themselves and would like some partner friends.  I'm not sure that they're the ones for us though.  

We're heading to bed now.  Peter slept through the night last night while I stared at the ceiling until about 3.  But I feel good now.

Good night blossom,

Paul


Oct 16 

Dear Mommadora,

Peter Paul Rubens is not Dutch, he is Flemish.  Negros taste a little bit of Oreos, to find out we ate a Negro and then an Oreo.  The weather is very nice, it's only rained during the night.  I like it here.  I can't think of anything to tell people that have asked how we are.  

Today I went to the Penalosa's house while dad was at the conference.  They are from Mexico.  They have two daughters, Amanda and we can't think of the other girl's name.  They also have a two month old baby.  We have had a good time so far.

Your son,

Peter 


Oct. 16

...Peter was kind of shy the first day.  I think it was being in a new place with so many adults.  When he and I go for a walk he is normal, but around the hotel he mostly talks to me and hasn't interacted with the adults a lot.  Although he and Georgia had a nice conversation tonight at dinner that covered a variety of topics.

Tomorrow we're going to head down to S after the conference is over.  It's that little town near E where we stopped.  We're going to spend the night there I think and then come back to I Tuesday night.

Peter spent the day at the Penalosa's apartment and had a nice time.  I'm looking forward to having a good conversation when we get home and unloading all sorts of thoughts that are starting to bounce around about T.

The time is flying by so quick, I wish we could stay another week.  We're trying to get Peter's work done, but we may be a bit behind in math.  Oh yeah, one of his social studies projects is to memorize all the states in the Midwest.  I don't have a list of which states those are.

I love you a bunch.  I mean a BUNCH!  

Paul 

ps - did you work out again?


Oct. 17
The adventure is on!  I'm writing from the P Hotel in S, just north of E.  The conference was more like a business meeting today as we discussed a lot of financial issues, so I sat in the back and helped Peter get through two math lessons.  That was a good thing.  Then we had lunch at a little hole in the wall with Jorge and Raul.  One cool aspect of the conference was the diversity.  I counted one South African, four Mexicans, two Brazillians, four Germans, twelve Americans and four locals .  The meeting got a little exciting at a couple points and one guy said "Damn", so that was something.

We found some neat ruins already in S, the church and tomb of John the apostle are just a few blocks down the street from the bus stop, you and I should have gone there.  There was also a Byzantine castle next to it, but it was closed for renovation.  And there was this old mosque that we went by too.  We happened to be there for call to prayer, it was the first one that we've heard this week, oddly, so that was neat.  Three guys showed up to pray.

We also bought a soccer pencil for all the kids in Peter's class.  So there will now be a three way war between the 3 main soccer teams in the 3rd grade class. 

I've also seen a number of great belly dancing outfits that I'm super tempted to buy you, except I'm way too embarrassed to walk into a shop and buy one.  Maybe you can get a pencil instead.

Oh, and for lunch, we had our choice of several entrees in buffet style pans.  One of them looked like chicken and potatoes in a sauce.  So I asked what it was, and he said, "Chicken and potatoes".  I'll have that then.  So I did, except as it turns out it was chicken gizzards.  But, as one would expect from T, they were the best chicken gizzards I've ever eaten.  

And Peter finally spent a little bit of his money today.  He bought a rubiks cube.  He's mentioned every rubiks cube that we've seen throughout the trip.  It cost two dollars.  And one of the cubes just fell off.  Next time we'll buy the five dollar version.

Yeah, it'd be fun to stay longer, but we won't.  We did what we came to do, it's been a good trip.  And I'm almost out of money.  There will be plenty of time for seeing and doing everything in a few years, and then you and the other boys can join us!  

On the ground floor of Jorge's apartment is a Christian tae-kwon-do studio, pretty wild huh?  I didn't go into the tae kwon do place, but Jorge's son is almost a black belt there.

It's been colder today, but it's supposed to warm up tomorrow.  Sorry I can't send more pictures, I left the cord in I.  The Penalosas are keeping our big bag while we're traveling.  We're spending the night with them tomorrow.

Please tell Reuben, "Yes, I'll be home quite soon.  Are you standing on your head?  I like you so very incredibly much too.  I'm coming back soon, I have something secret for you too."

 

I miss you a bunch, but not in the sort of way that I can't function and get weepy throughout the day.  More in the way that...

My love is for you,

Paul

Yes Pictures

Paul has very kindly supplied us with some photos...

A Lego vending machine in the Munich subway.

Wow, what a great way to start

a big trip for an 8-year-old boy.

Did they make a purchase?

I don't know.

 

 This is mystery pic #1.

I think it's in Munich.

Do you know?

Naturally, this would be mystery pic #2.

Neat maze pattern on the ground.

Do you know where this is?

I don't.

This is the only picture they have taken in T.

The chandelier in their hotel.

Thanks for the pictures, Dear.

Very thoughtful.  Take more.  Thanks.

Email Excerpts

Emails from my traveling boys, with comments inserted by me...

Oct. 13

Dear Mom,

We found a street with a lot of stores on it.  We went to a few museums in Munich.  The Deutches Museum was very interesting, the gift shop had many kinds of dice, even hundred sided.  Tell Reuben I said "hi".

Your son,

Peter

Oct 13

We made it to I. Peter is a little sick today and our suitcase got lost.  But we're in T, so it will be ok.  See you in a few days.  I love you, you, you.  Paul

(*Do you know how many suitcases they brought?  One.  And it didn't make it there.  Ha.)

Oct 14

After a soda and cracker combo Peter started feeling better.  We went walking and found a neat shopping street with a bookstore that we enjoyed and our new favorite soccer team, I think it's the local team.  Peter and Reuben are now fans though, because they have shirts.

I found S, he's sleeping next door.  Peter and I had pide (*like pizza) for late lunch which he seemed to enjoy and our missing suitcase is supposedly going to be delivered around 7:00.

Munich was really neat, St.Peter's Cathedral blew my mind, but the whole city is very picturesque.  I wish you were here, but having a screaming, out-of-control baby on the flight here reminded me that not everyone in the family is necessarily good at traveling yet.

Love you,

Paul



Oct 14
From Me to Paul

How great that your suitcase didn't make it.  You love hard situations. And you're a guy, so it's not even that hard to be without your clothes and whatnot.  Has it arrived yet?

Glad Peter is feeling better.  Glad Munich was interesting.  Were you guys so tired arriving there at 2am our time?

So what have we been doing, you silently wonder?  Um, I took out the compost.  That was a highlight.  We've raked a lot of leaves and watched the leaf truck suck them up.  Charlie slept so good Wed night - until 6am then had a bottle, then slept till 8:30am.  It was bliss.  Last night was paybacks.  Reuben woke up screaming because he was wet, which woke up Charlie who felt he should also scream.  Ooo, I went to the bar Wed night (Emily came over after the boys were asleep) and I won third place in the poker game.  Except really I didn't at all.  But I could have, if I had thought of it. 

I'm glad you're there.  I hope it's fabulous for you both.  I look forward to hearing about what you think of the org. and its workers and if it's a good fit for our family.

Reuben cried and cried after you left at the airport.  Bawled.  He finally consoled himself with the fact that if you didn't go to T then you couldn't bring him back a candy/treat.  He would start to cry again and say, "I miss Daddy" then try to stop when he remembered you were bringing him a treat.  So, please bring him candy.  And pack it in your carry-on so you can give it to him right when you see him.  He talks about you and the treat all day.

And, you should know that I have exercised twice.  Yes.  And if my chili and cornbread dinner will digest, I'll workout again tonight.  I am amazing.  And I got voted off Survivor this week...  If I was a black female mortician named Stacey.  Don't ever secretly sign me up for that show.  I would never be the same.  In a horribly bad bad way.

Charlie can say 'night night' and he's been eating a ton.  He has also mastered riding Peter's scooter.  He stands on it and holds on while I push him down the sidewalk.  Reuben can now do a headstand and hold it.  And I did 4 real pushups.  What have you mastered lately?

And I got the trash to the curb.  Aha.

Love and prayers,

Stacey

Oct 15

Hi Sweetie,

The suitcase got in and I had the bellhop teach me how to say "fantastic", but I forgot it again, but I think it sounds like "Erica".

Peter is coming out of his shell and got to play with a little hispanic girl today.  (*They're with a multi-national group of people.)  I made about half my videos.  (* Paul is making promotional videos for an organization.)

I'm glad that you exercised.  I have candy for Reuben and I almost bought you some awesome chocolate tonight, but then I thought of the child labor thing and didn't buy them. (* He's referring to this article at Rage Against the Minivan.)

I have a couple questions about Peter's homework...

It's time for dinner, so we're going to go eat dinner.  

Love to you!

Pablo

Going on a Trip

Here we are at CVS for the

Taking of the Passport Photo.

 Relax your face.

Don't smile.

Don't look mad.

Just have a plain, unsuspecting face.

Because it's time to renew your passport!

Why?

The Pete and the Paul get to visit

our future homeland this fall.

The organization we are joining is having a conference

in a certain coastal Asian city*

with all their workers gathered together.

I would love to go and meet the other families

and begin to get connected with this group,

but we decided that Peter should go

so he can get a feel for this unknown place

and meet some of the other kids there.

I think it will help him with the big move to come.

Peter is super excited.

They have a twelve hour layover in Germany,

so they'll get to explore there a little too.

They'll be gone a week.

A week of me putting

the Screamer, I mean, Charlie to bed.

Paul has the magic touch for this.

Speaking of the Charlie...

Everything,

except the multiple midnight waking up business of course,

is going so well.

We feel like he is a part of our family

and is also becoming a part of our community.

Everyone has been very welcoming of him

and his shyness is wearing off.

He has a sweet, charming smile that we get to see often.

Today he climbed up in my lap just to snuggle and be held,

by his Momma.

I loved it.

*If you want more details about this trip and our future move and such,

email me and we'll discuss.

Colorado

It's already been two weeks since we were a mile high in the Colorado sky.

 We flew into Denver, then drove into, over, and through the Rockies.

There they are up ahead.

 This was my attempt at photographing the woman running with the Special Olympics' torch.

I didn't quite get her.

She was accompanied by four or five police escorts.

 We paused in Glenwood Springs so I could reminisce of good times had here in the past.

My mom and I took a road trip from California to this small Colorado town to visit Colorado Mountain College, where I was considering majoring in photography.

The college is still here.

 Paul reaching the top of one of the monuments in Colorado National Monument Park.

 I don't know what's going on here.

My inner ninja, perhaps.

We enjoyed having several days of just us.

Just us = no kids

I had some down time,

which was an amazing feeling.

Look at me knit.

Professional style.

I don't have any pics showing why we went to Colorado.

If I did, they would look like this...

 

We met with a lot of people -

trying to determine if the Paul and Stacey piece fits into the grand puzzle of this organization.

The Board approved us to join them.

And we probably will.

Just need to settle in with a Jae-min first.