Votes??

New design??  Thoughts please. . 

The Nile and so much more. . .

So, today we went back to the Nile and had a Felucca ride.  It was a small sail boat that doodled around the Nile for about an hour for $10.  The boys had a blast.  They have been asking to go back to the river and actually get on it, since we ate at the fish restaurant (see previous post).

 Isn't he funny????

Then, we wanted Mexican food and cheeseburgers to end the day.  Funny, huh?

An update in picture form. . .I suppose it's better than nothing. :)

So, my apologies for those of you who only check the blog.  I've been having a hard time lately getting around updating, but here's a quick overview. :)

We ate some really good hot dogs at a park.

We "bowled" in a hallway.  :)

 We had a GREAT Girls Day Out!

Starting with pedicures. . . 

Ate some really good food, at a wonderful restaurant!

Ended with a mud mask, cookie dough, and a chick flick!

And finally, a fantastic day at a friends house with swimming and paddle boats!

Benjamin and I even played football!

(Sadly I don't have a pic of us in the boat, because we were in the boat. 
someone else does, but i haven't gotten it yet.)

That's about it for now, but I am working on updating. . . . sorry about that friends.  :)

                                                                                                                                                                              

Had a BLAST again yesterday!

Okay, so we might have been a little over zealous, but we ventured out for another adventure- two days in a row!  This time we planned to just run down-town for a little bit, but once we met up with our friend Carrie, we realized we could stay down there for the day.

So, we made it off the train around lunch time, took a taxi to the closest item on the map we could find-- a middle eastern embassy.  That was an interesting conversation with the taxi driver.  :)  Anyway, we walked to the Fish Market and had an amazing lunch.

Little Man really enjoyed the seafood soup. . . . despite the claw sitting on the plate beside it.  :)

The restaurant was on a boat docked on the Nile and you picked out your fish you wanted, the way you wanted it cooked, and the sides, and they brought it to you.  As is. Ours was fried.

Needless to say, it did taste good.  :)

We left there and went to the "zoo."  We had heard it was cheap to get in, but some people thought it was good inside and others thought it was miserable.  Sadly, had it been cheap, it might not have been so miserably disappointing.  For Non-Egyptiams, the price was 20 pounds a person, Egyptians are 2 per person.  It appeared to be like a park, with a few animals in very small cages here and there.  There were many people there, many with small children, and many of them sitting around on blankets with picnics.  As I type that, it doesn't seem that bad.  But it was one of the cultural experiences where we felt like we needed to leave.  Quickly.  Not because we were in any kind of danger, just because the situation didn't feel right as foreigners.  To top it all off, it was incredibly dirty.  Like "Boys, walk around here for an hour and don't touch ANYTHING" kind of dirty.  When you are 3 and 5, that's kind of like asking you to solve a calculus equation.  Impossible.

 Anyway, we left there and headed back towards downtown, where our evening activities were.  We were meeting our friends and arrived a little bit early (due of course to our early departure from the previous mentioned activity).  Once again, we pulled out the handiest book of all time, Lonely Planet Egypt, and looked up activities in the downtown area.  We didn't have enough time to go to the museum, but there was a little shop that looked interesting so we went to find it.  And let me tell you, as much as the zoo was a disappointment, this little store was a joy!  It was amazing and beautiful, lots of incredible handmade gifts, cotton items, glassware, games, bags, clothes.  What fun!  We will definitely be back to this one before we leave!

The night ended with the "meeting," and "family" from different lands gathered to praise the Risen L-rd.  It was amazing.  We left a little bit early, as we were with some friends who had two little girls, plus our two little boys at a meeting that started at 7pm.  When we walked out and got to the square this is what we saw.  Beautiful.

If only. . . .

Oh how I wish I had my camera today.  We had such an adventure.  I was so proud of my husband and little boys.  We went to a different part of the city, rode in two different taxis (and communicated effectively where we wanted to go!), and rode on the metro.  If you are a little boy who loves trains, the city Metro is nothing short of the most exciting thing you have ever done.  Oh, if only I had my camera. . .

We left the house this morning thinking we would head to the internet store to get ours fixed.  Sometime last night it quit working and we quickly saw how dependent we are.  Once we arrived, fixed our only connection to the western world, and ate lunch-- we felt like we needed an adventure.  Since it was somewhat spontaneous, the camera had not made it into the backpack for the trip to the internet store.  So, imagine with me below. . . .


a fantastic pic of the big boy sitting on his knees, looking out the metro windows. . .  as everything passes by in a blur.


a precious pic of the little one eating a chocolate cupcake/bribe as we walked the streets hunting for fun shops.


another sweet pic of the two of them sitting on the steps of a shop where i found a beautiful bag and daddy got a sweet coffee mug.


the little one asleep in my arms at an amazing restaurant. . .  where the food, the decor, everything about the atmosphere was wonderfully authentic.


now imagine the decor. . . .  of that restaurant.  hmmm.... a little bit of an imagination stretching exercise for those of you who have not been to this part of the world.  :)


Wasn't that an amazing day?

p.s. just for kicks, here's a pic of the beautiful flowers my husband got me two days after we arrived for our anniversary.  we were tired, miserably jetlagged, confused, and disoriented, but really glad to be on the journey together.  i love you,  my husband!  way more than on the day we started this race together!

 

Okay, so here's how it goes.

I had this post all written up the other night, but sadly, it won't come over.  It was clever and witty and somewhat incomprehensible, since I wrote it the first night we were here when my boys were up from 12-3am.  :)  Nonetheless, for whatever reason, I can't get it to upload, so we will jump ahead to tonight.  We have now been away from home for almost a week.  Tomorrow morning, a week ago we left.  Since then here are the highlights:

1.  Flights all went well.  Everything was on time, everyone was mostly happy, and no one puked.  (at least no one in our family)

2.  We got to our flat, stayed here the first night, and have been here since.  It is fantastic and we are eternally grateful to some dear friends who made it possible. 

3.  We spent a couple of days going back and forth, between our house and the area where the team is.  It's a quick taxi ride, and we have now learned enough arabic to get there and back.

4.  Have no fear, we haven't learned any more.  ;)  We are still completely incapable and mostly dependent upon those who will help us.

5.  The day after we left, our home was broken into and several accounts/credit cards were stolen.  S.U.C.K.S.

6.  However, if ever in need, the Bank of America will 2-day courier a new set of cards to you all the way across the world.  Who knew?

7.  Yesterday we spent the day looking at some amazing sights here in this land.  You'll have to go to my facebook to see them, but they are amazing.  And we were tired, but everyone loved it.  Especially the camel rides!

8.  One of my best friends in the states had her baby yesterday.  And though I was so sad to not be able to talk to her, I am so happy that they are all doing amazingly well.  Well done Mama Chaney!

9.  We have eaten lots of peanut butter, pizza, even McDonalds, and some amazing native food.  The fruit is amazing, and we have been WELL fed. 

10.  There is nothing better than being exactly where the Lord has called you to be.  We are so blessed, in ways we can't even begin to describe, but knowing that you are where you should be is worth it all. 

Good Times with the twins. . .

This is my Great Aunt Bobbye.  Isn't she beautiful?  I just wanted to brag for a moment.  We have spent most of my lifetime in two very different parts of the state.  And she has come upon some hard times recently in her life.  Fortunately for us, it landed her in NW Arkansas near my family.  All of the sudden, I have gotten such a wonderful opportunity to begin to know better this twin of my grandmother.  Her soft-spoken words, the truth that rings from a place deep in her heart, and a spirited mind that won't let itself be missed.  I have been blessed already.  "The twins" as we often call them, have come up to our parts for a visit this week.  I'll let you know, but I think it's going to be a week of "spoiling" all around.

"Children's children are a crown to the aged." 
(and I would add children's, children's, children) 
Proverbs 17:6

Quote of the day . . .

I have a precious life.  Sometimes I remember that, and other days I forget.  This afternoon I had a sweet reminder.  My men, all three of them, were working in the yard picking up sticks so Daddy could begin the mowing season.  In the process they found some flowers, and my eldest came in the front door with something behind his back.  I was asked to close my eyes and hold out my hands.  I was quite obedient and opened my eyes to these sweet yellow flowers.  And a precious boy to go with them.  To top it all off, do you know what he said??  Completely UNprompted, by the way. . . .

"Mommy, do you know why I picked these flowers?"
"No, why?"  (thinking- of course, because they were pretty)
"Because I love you."

And with that he walked out the door to go get more sticks. 

How I love my life, and how I love my creator who was kind enough to put it all in front of me some days, so I don't forget how precious it is. 

Easter Fun. . .

 I don't know if you remember from last year, but we LOVE Easter around here.  This year was no different.  Our day started with the reading of the Resurrection- the women running, the empty grave, the doubting Thomas, and Jesus telling the disciples to "Go therefore. . . "  Then we rummaged through the mass sugar of the baskets, we went to church, and came home for the Easter egg hunting.

The boys had a blast, and when we opened the sugar-filled eggs, we also found small strips of paper.  We assembled the strips and had another rendition of the "hope to which we have been called."

Then we had some of the students come over who have no families locally, and we ate turkey to our hearts content.  Of course, following that we had to have some Resurrection Cake.  Seriously, I think this is my favorite of all the traditions.  Watching Jesus come up from the cake/grave is really cool!  :)

(I can't get the video to upload, so you'll just have to enjoy last years rendition!  So sorry!)


Anyway, after cake everyone had a seat in the living room and we watched the Gospel of John movie.  I helped clean up the kitchen (props and HUGE thanks to Chad) and then sat outside in the sun for a few minutes.  I was sitting and thinking on the day.  Not the silly parts, not the sugar, but the reality that for  2 millenia the believing church has been celebrating such a reality.  I wanted so desperately to sing an old school hymn, but at church's like ours we don't often sing hymns.  One of our favorite leaders was there and unbeknownst to the rest of his team, he belted out. . . . "Christ the Lord has risen today, al-le-lu-ia!"  Seriously, I started to cry.  I know, John looked at me like I was crazy.  But really, I was thinking about it this afternoon, and though none of us know all of the answers, as believers we have set our hope on the promises of the everlasting Father.  We have joined into a story that is so much bigger than our own lives, something that has been and will always be.  Something that does not change with the momentary whims of my heart. 

"One thing God has spoken, two things have I heard: that you, O God, are strong,  12 and that you, O Lord, are loving."   Psalm 62:11-12

New Camera. . . . old friends.

Okay, so I know I love to take pics and never really understood what I was missing.  My dear friend Candace got this really cool camera for Christmas, and the pictures I have seen from it are amazing.  So, I decided I would be a total copycat and get the exact same one.  Yes friends, exactly the same thing.  And yes, IT IS AMAZING!  I love it.  I never realized all the pics I had been seeing in my brain that were never being taken since my camera was finicky in all kinds of lights, really slow, and generally miserable if the subject was moving.  (let me remind you of the ages of my children . . . 3 and 5)  SO, here is a sampling.  We have been playing with our friends the Millers this week, and I'll do a post on that in the days to come, but that will probably be some of the kiddos below.  Talk to you later!