First snowfall!

I'm not even back in the country 24 hours and it snows for the first time. The kids are loving it and I have to say I had some fun too!

Giving Thanks

This morning my brother and I attempted to find a nintendo wii. The Kmart opened at 7 and when we got there at 6:40 there were already 100 people in line. Folks, it's Thanksgiving day, not the Friday after Thanksgiving. At 6:50 a lady came out to annouce that tickets had already been given out and that there were no more wiis. Not really a surprise considering we've been looking and calling places for 2 weeks and they always sell out in the first 15 minutes of the store being open. We checked out another Kmart and when we pulled into the parking lot at 7:02, we pulled right back out when we saw that the line was even longer as people were filing into the store.

But this is not a story about not being able to find game systems in this country.

As I was riding home I started to think about my Romanian friends and what they lived through during communism. The younger ones remember just being able to get oranges at Christmas. Others tell stories of waiting 4 hours in line for milk or meat and it not being available when it was their turn. One friend told a story of being 7 months pregnant, waiting in line and a riot starting around her...over vegetables.

We have so much to be thankful for here in America. Everything we need to survive, to live a healthy life is available. Most of our Thanksgiving tables are full, not only of food, but also of the ones we love. We are free to live, love, worship, speak, buy, drive, work, etc.

Tomorrow if you're joining the crowds on the biggest shopping day in America, be thankful you don't have to wait in line for milk and remember it's just stuff that will pass away, break, rust, or be stolen.

Kati's 13th birthday

I'm a little late with my posting, but we did have a grand celebration for Kati's birthday. The day before she and Catalina came over to watch a movie after school. On her day we did the typical celebration of singing, eating and opening presents, but we did add the twist of her favorite game, "steal the bacon." Great game, a little violent, lots of laughs.

Kati and Claudia have become pretty good roommates, perhaps even friends.

Cornel, aka Speedy Gonzales, steals the bacon (an empty water bottle) before Zorro has a chance.

Charlie and Margareta were able to join in the fun. Here is team 1 picking numbers. It's all very intense.

Vacation with the Lovelands

Day 1-boating with Rebecca's family; saw a shark then went tubing; ate the best ribs of my life...we're talkin' falling-off-the-bone good


Day 2-went to the hunting lease on the buggy (the monster truck of 4 wheelers/golf carts), had a cook out and camp fire

Day 3-another day at the hunting lease searching for hogs; not a one could we find until we stopped to take a picture and one walked out of the bushes 15 yards away; with our encouragement David hopped on the 4 wheeler to chase it down and shoot it;

Day 4-a little shopping and dinner with the Kuhls...elk steak...mmmmmm

Day 5-down time, a little more shopping and dinner and hang out time with Christ Fellowship

Day 6-departure to Disney

a fabulous week it was!