TWO MORE DAYS 'TIL MY FAMILY ARRIVES!!!

THREE MORE DAYS 'TIL MY FAMILY ARRIVES!!!

I Think I'm a Mean Nanny

Tonight as I was finishing dinner, Sara came in and asked what we were having for dessert. We had eaten a dessert the night before, and I told her that if we ate dessert every night we would be as big as barns. She insisted that it wasn't true and that if others ate the ice cream she could too, even if it was for lunch tomorrow instead of tonight. I reminded her that although they had played with a couple friends that very afternoon, they had sat and played Play Mobile or X box and hadn't done any running around or being active. I told her that I would time her, and if she ran for 20 minutes, I would let her have some ice cream for lunch tomorrow. She accepted the challenge and started running around the kitchen and around the table. Because she hadn't even run for a minute and she was gasping and asking if it had been 5 minutes yet, I really didn't think that she would do it. I still didn't think she would do it when she reached 7 minutes. If she reached 10, I thought she might have a chance but still wasn't certain. As she neared 13 minutes, I wanted her to reach the goal so I could give her the ice cream just to reward her perseverance. As she passed 15 minutes, I would have been surprised to see her quit and her earlier fatigue had mostly gone away. Only a few times did she need to be reminded that walking didn't count, it had to at least be a jog. At 19 minutes, I ran downstairs to get my camera. These were her victory laps.

FOUR MORE DAYS 'TIL MY FAMILY ARRIVES!!!!

Baking With Boys

Cooking can be a challenge (I've especially found it to be so!). Add three young boys to the process and you've reached a whole new dimension!

Nathan asked to make gingerbread cookies so Nathan, Caleb, Josh, and I pulled out the mix and whipped up a batch. The mixing went fine - of course all we had to do was add water so what could go wrong? :) The cookie mats, rolling pins, and cookie cutters came out next, and we set to work. Nathan ate more cookie dough than he made into cookies as you can tell by his face. It took Caleb a little while to discover the fine art of flouring the dough to keep it from sticking. He ended up with dough encrusted hands, a bogged-down rolling pin, and very little dough on his cookie mat. Once we dug him out and floured his dough, he had no problems. Josh jumped into his cookie rolling like a pro. He whipped out a variety of shapes and letters in various sizes. Aren't they so cute all covered with flour and dough! I can hardly stand it!

I've Missed My Calling

The kids recently pulled out the sculpting clay and have been finding endless hours of enjoyment designing animals, people, and scenery. While Caleb and Sara easily roll, twist, and press the clay to bring to life their imaginations, Nathan tries with growing frustration to make the clay conform to the imaginations of his mind. "NANNY JO!"

This is one job that I am definitely not qualified for. Art, of any kind, has never been within my ability scope. Nathan is not an easily pleased client, either. He describes what he wants with the clarity of a four-year-old's words, hand motions, and sound effects. Thankfully, with the castle, we had a picture to go with it(see top right picture). We had to improvise because our building materials were limited, but together, we made it work.

But architecture wasn't our only accomplishment. We also turned our attention to the imaginary animal kingdom - the slugs off Flushed Away and a hephalump(sp?) from Winnie the Pooh. I ran out of brown clay on the hephalump so he's kind of two-toned. They were always strange animals anyway.

My deadline had come. I had to leave the country. The three months of my tourist visa was about to expire and I had to leave in order to reenter and renew it. Where should I go? Over the past year, my trips back home or to Jordan or Italy with the Dukes had always fallen at the perfect time. This time, we had to actually plan something. Through Eti, a friend from church, Darren found a travel deal to Turkey and signed me up. I was going to Istanbul!

"Will it be enough time?" Eti asked.

"Not long enough," answered Darren in Hebrew with a smile and wink my way. "We need a vacation!" :)

Although two full days isn't enough time to see all the highlights in Turkey, it was enough time to see the highlights of Istanbul. The Blue Mosque, the Aya Sophia, Topekapi Palace, and the river way along the Bosporus and the Golden Horn were all breathtaking. The only disappointment was not having a travel buddy to share the experience with. I was excited about the alone time, but I guess I'm not quite the loner that I thought I was. Unfortunately, my being alone seemed to be my open invitation that I wanted company. Thankfully, it was more annoying than threatening. I don't know which was better - Istanbul during the day or illuminated by the night lights.

An English-style, roof-top garden; breakfast on the porch swing overlooking the city; and a spacious, studio flat filled with color and natural light - sounds very picturesque, doesn't it? Those are the descriptions of the apartment where I helped Hayley move last weekend. She has been house sitting a dog(Frodo) and his apartment for the past 6 weeks for a family from her church. As they are coming home and her parents are coming next month, she has found and started renting an apartment for her and her parents to live in.

Having packed the stuff she had yet to move in the car, we drove to the apartment at 9p and were blessed to find a front row parking spot. It only took us three trips to carry all the stuff up the stairs to her third-floor apartment. Each time, we punched the timed light at the bottom of the staircase and hurried up each flight, determined to reach the top before the light turned off. The first time - we failed. The second time - we failed. Third time's a charm. Encumbered by her awkward, weighty suitcase, we poised at the bottom, each holding an end. She hit the button and we scuttled up the stairs, twisting as fast as we could around each corner. We made it - with time to spare. But she had dropped the keys three landings down so we had to go back and get them. After we were done, we collapsed on her new chesterfield and feasted on the no-bake cookies we had made earlier that afternoon!

It was only after we awoke with cricks in our from the understuffed, down pillows that we began to realize some of what we were missing. The two most important items were a toothbrush and a can opener. Toothpaste on your finger only works in a pinch, not as a long-term arrangement, and it is difficult to get into the tuna you have bought for lunch if you don't have a can opener. Despite the urgency of both those items, breakfast comes before lunch, and we were hungry. So we improvised to make a temporary counter in her little kitchen corner and started making breakfast. Then it was off to the store to buy the first two housewarming gifts for Hayley's apartment. A toothbrush and a can opener - don't start a home without them!