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Thanksgiving plus

Well, I am frustrated as my computer has a trojan and I have some, but not all of my pictures.  I was going to write a blog with pictures of our Thanksgiving celebration.  Now, I will tell you about it.

Our colleague, Renee, and I made Thanksgiving for 40 people on Thanksgiving day.  This was complicated by the fact that we live 45 minutes away and the food, obviously would be cold by the time we got it to Klub.  So, we loaded the car with 2 apple pies, 1 apple crisp, 3 pumpkin pies, 20 kg of potatoes to make mashed potatoes, fixings to stuffing, one cooked, sliced turkey, one cooked turkey, hot when it was put in the car!, cranberry sauce, pickles, serving bowls, spoons, plates, pans to cook the food in, frozen green beans and bacon to cook for in the beans and all the spices required to finish/cook the food.

We drove to Vlasim, dropped off what we could leave in the Klub room and drove to our colleagues' apartment in town.  All of this involved many trips up and down from the 2nd floor of the klub building to the 3rd floor of the apartment building.  We were tired before we even began in Vlasim!

The stove top was smaller than mine here is and didn't heat as quickly/efficiently as mine does, and the oven was just a bit smaller than mine...so the turkey didn't fit in it! :(  The stuffing and other things did fit and heated up fine.

After working 3 hours more, we were ready to transport all the hot food to the Klub building.  Thankfully, the Berankovi and Tom and the kids were there to help carry it up the stairs and set it in the club room across the hall from Klub Rachel.

I must say that I experienced my first Thanksgiving where I served from my knees as we used the benches from the hall to serve off of as the tables and chairs were all in our Klub room!

Rachel had prepared, in Czech, a powerpoint with pictures and words describing the Thanksgiving holiday in the United States.  Then, on to the eating.

Our friends were amazed at all the food and all tried a bit of everything.  The kids found out that they actually liked cranberries!  Some adults found that they like turkey!  Others didn't.  All enjoyed trying the stuffing and beans .  Even though they can be purchased here now, they aren't something "traditionally" Czech so many people had never had them before.

We were happy to send many leftovers (planned) home with them so they would have at least one more good meal!

Friday, we were happy to celebrate Thanksgiving here at home with two of our colleagues.  We even ran the first ever Becker Turkey Trot.  We ran it last year at the YMCA in Indiana.  So, we borrowed the idea and did a 5k run/walk here!  What a great time we had!  Amy even participated in the "real" Turkey Trot in Indiana again.  We did that before eating here.  It made us even more hungry and ready to eat! :)

We are now gearing up for Christmas, as I am sure you all are doing as well.  There are only 12 more days until Amy lands here! We are SO excited and take another paper off of our paper chain every morning to count down the days.

I hope to have a repaired computer soon, although there seem to be other issues than just the trojan.  Who knows, maybe we will be down to one computer again?!  In the meantime, God bless and keep in touch!

Fall happenings - pictures

Reach Global Prague City Team at our Compass Planning meetings October 2011

Hannah dressed as an elf October 31 2011

Matt dressed as...(what else?!)...a welcome mat.

Tom, Ritch and John at RG Prague City Team (PCT) meetings

Caleb, Judy, John at RGPCT meetings

Sherry and Judy playing the beach ball game

playing "picking up trash" game

Sherry and Renee (mutes) signaling to Ritch what to say to their teammate (blindfolded) gathering "trash".

Tom and Curt...alright boys, break it up!

Ritch leading a meeting

Mindy, Renee, Caleb, Vicky adding their notes to the board.

Our team playing the treasure hunt...total of 2 hours or more!  Matt and Renee planned it.

Nate riding on Alex's shoulders.  Matt walking with us.

Nate had the key to the treasure chest!

opening the treasure chest

Alex and Matt making...

slingshots!

bowling and more

We had a fun family outing this past Saturday that Tom organized.  We haven't had much of a chance to all be together in a long time as the older two kids are quite busy and Tom and I are as well.  Rachel and Nathanael don't have as hectic a schedule so are mostly with Tom and I.  Anyway, about 1 kilometer away is a sport hotel where we bowled.  http://www.club-hotel-praha.cz/en/sport-en

Tom putting bowling shoes on Nathanael. The shoes were at least three sizes too big!  Made for fun kicking them off!

Matt helping Nathanael

Rachel and Matthew bowling

 After bowling we went our separate ways.  Tom and Rachel had an outing to the new Candy Store in Prague where they sell American candy!  http://www.candy-store.cz/
Matt went to get some supplies for the upcoming Compass Planning meetings where he is in charge of the kids program along with another MK.
Hannah, Nathanael and I walked under the highway and through the woods to our house.  What a fun day we had!

beautiful walk home

Hannah and Nathanael horsing around

Tomorrow we will all be going to a conference center called Immanuel for a long weekend of planning time with the other members of the Prague City Team.  While this is mostly a working weekend, we will also enjoy some down time and time to play with the kids as well.

Please pray that we would listen to and hear God's voice as we seek to lay plans for the next year.  As the kids all hang out together, as well as we adults, we can spread germs easily.  Pray that we would stay healthy!

Fresh from God's Word

I woke this morning and had a great reminder from God's Word and Elisabeth Elliot.

This is what E.E. wrote in A Lamp Unto My Feet.  

 One reason we are so harried and hurried is that we make yesterday and tomorrow our business, when all that legitimately concerns us is today.  If we really have too much to do, there are some items on the agenda that God did not put there.  Let us submit the list to Him and ask Him to indicate which items we must delete.  There is always time to do the will of God.  If we are too busy to do that, we are too busy.

    Lord, help me to take Your yoke on my shoulder, not a yoke of my own making.  May I learn from You to be gentle and humble hearted.  May I find that your load is light.

As I continue to read in Isaiah, I read Isaiah 65:17-66:2 and was impressed that as I ask God to help me focus on what I am to do and not only what I can do or what comes up to do, He will answer.

 Isaiah 65:24 says... 

"It will also come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear. and then in 66:2b "But to this one I will look. to him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word."

Good reminder to keep in the Word and listen closely to my Father's voice.  He will continue to lead me as I walk with Him.  He actually works in and through me in spite of myself, I find.  Praise be to God! 

I failed, I failed, I failed...

Lest anyone think that I am a perfect cook...

scrapped pizzas from the oven and floor!

Let the record show that I failed at lunch today!  The first pizzas ended up upside down inside the oven and on the oven door. 










After scraping them off, fishing out the bits that fell into the broiler and wiping out the oven, we started again!  Thanks to my fearless helpers we tackled the job again and ended up with success! 







While we were waiting for the pizzas to bake, Nate and I took time out for a dance or two while Rachel was our d.j.

Now that looks better!

Rachel eating her pizza.

Dinosaur boy made an appearance to eat his pizza while Rachel and I ate ours much more ladylike! 

Dinosaur boy a.k.a. Nathanael

Then, when in the process of updating this blog, Rachel distracted me with this note in front of my face!  See what I have to put up with around here?!

So now, back to finish up our official school day before the day screams ahead and turns into evening.


Dora

Fall Days

Our days have been full and rewarding.  The kids are settled into school nicely.  Nathanael is pre-reading many things around the house and is looking forward to the next level in Sing, Spell, Read and Write.  All the kids are participating in Christian International School of Prague's History Fair.  As we get more done towards it we will pass on some pictures!

Today is Sunday and I am home as I am recovering from a flu/sore throat sickness so am home today.  Nathanael and I are about to have a short church service together.

Enjoy the pictures and video from our life.  Write when you get a chance!

Nathanael warming up after calling birds to eat.

Nathanael playing football next door.

Nate and our neighbor boy playing football

note that Nate doesn't know that you can't stop and pick up the ball and try to head it into the goal at the end! :)

Wow! Where did the time go?!?

It is already September and I can't believe it!  These last weeks have flown by faster than usual around here.

Going to the ReachGlobal Europe conference August 11-17 was a huge highlight as we felt so much like God was working in our lives and through us.  What a great time of encouragement with others.

Matt turned 17 on the 17th making it his Golden birthday.  We celebrated early, however, so that we wouldn't be traveling on his birthday.  What a special young man God has given us!  We are excited to watch him listening to God and growing in his faith, even as there are some tough things going on around him.  Pray that He would continue to have a vibrant relationship with Jesus!   He is a senior this year!  Love you, son!

Dora, Nate, Hannah, Amy

Sending Tom and Amy to the US was especially hard as we were saying goodbye to Amy until Christmas when we plan on spending her vacation together.  Tom will be gone a total of a month helping Amy get settled in, visiting family, friends, supporters and supporting churches.  He has been really busy racking miles up on a borrowed van.  Pray for Amy as she adjusts to so many new things and settles in to classes.  She is studying Global Studies and Politics with a minor in French.  WHEW!  I have cried my fair share, or more, but have found that I don't cry all day every day...just sometimes.  What a blessing our kids are to have around so I know Amy is blessing others. 

 Hannah is a high school freshman this year.  She is settling into the routine at the Christian International School of Prague and doing well.  She really misses having Amy around to talk to as well as to borrow her clothes!  Hannah has passed me up in height, growing about an inch in the last 6 weeks!  Hannah is joining a high school girls Bible Study and has quite a few friends.  Pray that she would be protected as she travels around Prague and that she would continue to grow in her relationship to Jesus.  

 Rachel is 12 years old and we are starting 6th grade with her.  She is in Becker Academy this year and I love having her hard working self around!  We started today and her dad is bringing the rest of the curriculum we need for the year, so to say we are into the routine isn't true.  Rachel has sacrificed her room and space to our "adopted" daughter, Amy D who is living with us until her parents raise the support they need to return to the Czech Republic.  Amy D is sleeping in Rachel's room and Rachel is sleeping on Amy's bed which has been moved into Hannah and Nate's room.  Just a few changes around here!

Can you believe that this guy is 5 and in Kindergarten this year?  He is SO excited for his dad to come home, not only for the "bad dad"* night he gets to have, but also because he is bringing Sing, Spell, Read and Write for him to fill in the gaps on his learning to read.  We started school today and he is already proving to excel at math as well as art and reading.  What fun to have this guy around!

*"bad dad" is what Amy used to call Tom when he would let her do some usually unthought of fun thing, like just have dessert for supper.  She would say, "You are a BAD dad!"  (shriek, shriek, giggle, giggle)  The tradition continues to this day with Nate being the one who LOVES it the most, although the others don't complain!

Tom flies to the Czech Republic on Friday/Saturday.  Please pray for safe flights, easy connection in London and that all the luggage arrives, too!  Pray for Amy, too, as this will be a hard day for her as her last representative of home leaves. 

Summer Reading

I don't know if you read or like to at all.  I do!  If I had more time, I would read more, I suppose, but I spend time before sleeping, primarily, to read.  Right now I am reading two school books and two others which I chose.

The school books are "Dating with Integrity"  and " The Westminster Shorter Catechism".  Matt was reading the first book and I was reading it also.  The second book is one that we (Hannah, Matt and I) were using as a base for Bible this year.  We have had some good discussions as a result of reading and thinking through this book.

The first "fun" book is, "True Spirit" by Jessica Watson.  I don't know if any of you followed her solo trip around the world in her boat as Rachel and I did, but this book is a fun read and brings back memories of time spent with Rachel talking about her trip and writing on her blog.  We checked her blog daily and marked her trip on our map during school often learning more about the area of the world she was in at the time.


The other book I am reading is called, "Captivating" by John and Stasi Eldredge.  What a great, encouraging and meaningful book.  I have been reading this for a while as I read it in chunks and then digest it for a while.  Here is a quote from Chapter Six, page 93 -
             "You, dear heart, are the crown of creation, his glorious image bearer.  And he will do everything it takes to rescue you and set your heart free."

Page 91.."You are passionately loved by the God of the universe.  You are passionately hated by his Enemy."

Wow!  What love!

Two more to recommend besides the Bible...
"A Lamp Unto My Feet" by Elisabeth Elliot  - a devotional book
 
"The Power of a Praying Parent" and "The Power of a Praying Wife" by Stormie Omartian
 
Those books round out my morning devotional time.  I usually start with "A Lamp Unto My Feet" and then read the Bible.  I am currently in Isaiah 30.  Then I pray through the next chapter in the "Power" books.

Lately I have found that my routine isn't anymore!  I have picked up running 3x a week, which is so healthy for me and I enjoy it. (surprise, surprise) However, I have to eat breakfast before running or I run out of steam too quickly, then I get back and need to shower then have devotions...hmmm...I usually don't get up early enough to do all of those things before others are up and reading to go as well.  So far, because it is summer, it works, but don't know how I will work it in the Fall.  Any advice?  Experience?