C Week

Each week we feature a different letter, make something that begins with that letter.....cook something that starts with that letter....talk about an animal that begins with that letter.....

... well, that is our intention...

Because we have been busy, and have had guests, it has been more like a letter every three weeks. In this case it will take a year and a half to get through the alphabet. We better speed up!

B week (or weeks) were filled with Bumble Bees and Bubbles....this week its cats, caterpillars and cake!

We colored the body circles of the caterpillar....
Annaka like to play with them along the way.....so many things you can pretend random colored circles are......here are some eye glasses

Colored and glued on the legs....

Final product....Today (tuesday) we will eat carrots and Thursday we will make a cake!
(I have no idea why my webcam gives me mirror images.....Oh well, this is what Annaka cut and glued(pasted as my grandmother would say) today.....

Fun day.

Until there was a tantrum because it was time to put the glue away......

Catching an artistic moment....

Catching an artistic moment is not always that easy. Especially for me who is not the photography pro like my hubby. One day we were sitting on the couch talking and saw Annaka at the dining room table 'drawing'. Before we knew it she pulled the note pad to the bench, stood on the paper and began tracing her feet. I grabbed the camera and Clint got some good photos from under the table!

Tracing her toes....

What would any girl do next?

Color her painted toenails of course! She colored them blue....to match her dress. Maybe we will have to get some real blue toenail polish as well:)

Too bad we did not get a photo of her little tongue that sticks out when she is concentrating.

Trouble

Scheming little two year old friends.

What are they scheming?


Maybe the pile of toys I found on the playground below will explain....



Not only were they throwing toys over the edge of porch.....they did it in style! (Note the 'clappy' shoes and tutu)

Annaka enjoyed having her friend Haprer visit. It was fun to see them play together.

Friends for life....

Friends in the womb....(only a month apart)

(7 and 8 months old)


And continues even at 2 1/2....

Sweet Moments

Most days, one of my favorite times is reading Annaka her bedtime story. We get her Bible storybook out and have been reading one or two stories a night. (I say most days because I am human and am some days flat out exhausted....or its Clints turn that evening) I lay beside her and we read and converse. Most days she listens well and talks about the story. One day last week we could not get through the story at all. We were reading about the good Samaritan. All Annaka could focus on was the fact that in the picture the man was laying on the ground and there was a donkey beside him so *obviously* there was a problem...."The donkey ate his clothes!"
She would not even let me read the story. I eventually was laughing so hard I had to stop and call it a night. She was so worried about that man's clothes. We still have not gotten through that story. Maybe in a couple weeks or with a different little Bible story book ... with a different picture... I will try again with the good Samaritan. :)


On another note...

it has been fun to see these times in the Word shape her little heart and actions. She was having a difficult time obeying one day. Many times she got in trouble for not obeying and then refused to say 'thank you' or 'Im sorry'. Even just before bed Papa told her to 'come here' and she said no, stomped her foot and threw a fit. In the last moments of the day the Bible story we read was the Prodigal son. We were talking about how he came back and said he was sorry to his Papa and his Papa forgave him and gave him a big hug. She immediately said "Oh, I need to go say Im sorry to Papa" , hopped off her bed, ran into the living room, jumped on top of her Papa, gave him a hug and said "I sorry for disobeying Papa!" No prompting. Simply putting two and two together. I love watching how the Word shapes her little heart.

Picasso

Memories. Nicknames. Sweet moments.

Sweet moments that we look back on with a smile come quite often. Many of these are times when we were trying to 'punish' Annaka yet end up trying hard to disguise our smile/laugh. For example last week when Annaka was having a hard time falling asleep. I went in and did not see her in bed. After searching, I found her hiding behind my bedroom door, my lipstick all over her face and cotton balls in both hands and a gigantic sleepy....past midnight...smile.

But this next one...no....this was not one of those moments.

This was a moment of my pure disappointment a moment where Mama is purely upset. Annaka has yet again taken a crayon to something other than paper. No, this is not her first offense. I went in her room two months ago to find purple crayon on her wall. When I asked her if she colored on her wall her reply was "Yes, and my floor too" This time I looked in her room to see brown crayon on her floor, dresser drawer,
side of her dresser,

and on the toilet seat in the bathroom(I will spare you a picture of that one). First of all, yuck, why was she even in the bathroom in the first place....and with a brown crayon...coincidence? Hmm?

(do you see she even moved a little box beside the dresser to stand on to 'color higher'. Creative)

This situation has brought two things to mind.

1. I am thankful marble is the local lineoleum. Cheap and covering the floors of every house/apartment/store/etc. It may be tough to stand on all day but crayon wipes right off with a wet rag, Yay.

2. I am also thankful I brought a magic eraser with me from the states. Most of it (from other locations) is gone!

Even though this was an event to boil my blood....Clint seems to help me keep my perspective (remember THIS post?) He, after giving her a stern talking to, began laughing and decided to give her the nickname Picasso. He helped me to enjoy the little moments. (after the punishment time that lasts all of two minutes for a two year old) Thank you honey!

I am working on another post about this. About enjoying the sweet little moments and savoring every blessing. Some things the Lord is working on my heart about etc. Maybe another day or two.

p.s. She calls herself Picasso sometimes now.

What is she eating?

Cold peas. Yuck.

She is my little local lady who loves rice, dhal, veggies, rice, and cold peas!? Well, ok, I dont know where people really eat cold peas but had to throw them in somewhere. Did I mention Rice? She loves rice.

More coming hopefully tomorrow.....thought I would get one photo up now.

And please dont mind the wild hair. She may not like this photo in 12 years.

All in one night....

There are many moments that I wish we had a video camera or at least a voice recorder on Annaka. It seemed like there was a couple hours tonight that I wish we could have captured what she said and talked about.

1. Clint’s Mom, Sister and Grandmother sent Annaka one of those Hallmark books where they can record their voice on each page reading to her. Annaka loves to listen to it over and over again repeating....or rather saying with them....every word. Tonight she had a friend over who was listening to the book. Annaka told her friend “That is my Papa’s Mom, Mudder (Mother), and other Mudder.” It was said quite matter-of-fact.

2. When reading a story at bedtime we were talking about how God provided with a gold coin in the mouth of fish Peter caught. The following was the conversation that directly followed the story.

Me: Annaka, God provided for their needs. Do fish normally eat gold coins?
Annaka: No.
Me:Do you know how the gold coin got there?
Annaka: Mommy, they ate goldfish.

Matter of fact.

On another note.....We visited a stepwell that was beautiful.....

Does it look familiar?.....

3 and a half years ago we stood in the same spot:) Minus one cute little girl......and a few pounds!

Im in the club....

Yes, I am officially 'in the club.' No, not some club that gives you high social status or a free pool to swim in. I now have the accepted 'in' to my little girls special blankie club. When snuggling last week I was enjoying my little moments of holding my little girl close and thinking of how these days of her being this little will not last long. She was (as ALWAYS while snuggling or going to sleep) rubbing the silky ribbon lining of her blankie on her nose when slowly her eyes looked at me, her hand quit rubbing it on her nose and she rubbed it on mine. Sounds like a simple thing but this is her sacred blankie. There is nothing as calming or soothing to her as the feel of this blankie being rubbed on her face. Amazing how she can be having the worst moment and instantly is calmed. For the first time, she allowed me to join in:) I love being a mom!

*Someone* (you know who you are) complains that there are not enough pictures posted of Annaka. Ok, so lets play a little game......

What can we see in a photo.....Lets see.....

1.Annaka LOVES to play with her dolls/stuffed animals. She also loves to steal my dish towels and washcloths. I find her dolls and stuffed animals in many places around the house 'tucked in' for a 'nap' using a dishtowel or washcloth as a blankie....again everyone should have a special blankie to rub their nose with.

2. One would think that a two year old would get their shoes on the correct feet 50% of the time. Hmmm, I would venture to say the more accurate percentage is 5% of the time. How does this happen? Anyone? Anyone?

3. Can we say "Crop the photo mommy!" Yes, that is the potty seat in the back ground. The potty seat she will NOT use. Anyway...I will save this for the next post.

(Does anyone see that she is actually holding Elmo's hand? Sweet.)



I got a kick out of looking at her many facial expressions....Clint caught her in the act of sitting with her stuffed animals, singing to them, then hugging her little puppy.

(I have no idea about this one....singing? talking? One will never know)

Oh, and I posted this following one on fb but had to re-post it. Annaka LIVES in these shoes. She calls them her 'clappy' shoes. I guess because of the sound they make. That day she wore them with my fuzzy socks. Can we say 80's comeback....and she knows nothing of the 80's.

Even matches her dress. How 'girl'ish of her:)

Confessions of both Mama and Daughter....

Mama first...well, cause I am writing this....

1. When I get on the elevator I not only hit the button for the floor I am going to but I hit the 'close doors' button repeatedly. (When no one is trying to get on of course)

2. I put on Ratattoue rather than Minnie Mouse for my two year old(even though that is what she was asking for) because I was tired of listening to the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse song.

3.The Pioneer Woman is one of my favorite people even though I have never met her. I am reading the pioneer woman’s blog while eating dinner. Saddly, I am eating plain spagetti noodles (leftover) with butter on them for dinner. Is that allowed? Reading the blog of a wonderful cook, yet eating bla...plain...leftover noodles. Oh well, if I dont eat them tonight , the trash can eats them tomorrow.

4.After being stingy with bubble wrap and tissue paper when putting away Christmas decorations, I found three unused pieces of bubble wrap. Part of me wanted to get my decorations back out and utilize these pieces of treasured bubble wrap. Guests are coming tomorrow, more cleaning is waiting me right now....so I will stick them in the cabinet beside the box of Christmas decor to use on a less busy day....who am i kidding they will probably stay there (or shoved in the Christmas decor box), unused, until next year.

Confessions from Annaka....

1. Annaka likes "chocolate in a line". I had no idea what this was until I looked at her handmotions as she asked (begged) for it. Fingers closed, flat and fingertips touching...."I want Chocolate in a line....no the one in a line" Chocolate in a line=Candy Bar

2. After being scared out of her cute little pants in a restaurant that reminds me much of Rainforest Cafe in the states...Annaka is now not fond of Rhinoceros. "That one that moves its head, thats one that moves its head, that rhinoceros is gonna kill me" ....oh my.

3. Art can be found in anything. Even when oatmeal is smeared in our hands and then our hands are clapped leaving a splattering design on the floor. "Oh pretty mommy, look" ...Annaka was very amused....mommy was not.

4. Confession....Annaka is very good at the art of delay. One night we put her to bed at 8:30pm...she was still awake at 12:30am when we went to bed. We decided a slumber party was in order so she came to sleep in our bed.
As soon as we lay down she said..."There are shadows on the ceiling, its from a car outside"
Me: Yes, now it is time to go to sleep.
Annaka: I just wanna talk to you mommy.
Me: Now it is time to be quiet and go to sleep, when we wake up and eat breakfast we can talk more.
Annaka: Ok mommy, I will be quiet now and then when i wake up we will go eat breakfast and then i will talk to you.
Me: ok, good night sweetheart.
Annaka: Good night mommy, i am going to be quiet now but when i wake up in the morning, i am going to eat breakfast and talk to you.

*cue the exact same conversation for about 10 minutes.

5. Oh there could be so much more....

Pics I never posted from Christmas

So we got a little behind....here is a brief photo overview of some Christmas events....


We made gingerbread houses three times with different friends who live around us....


I was very surprised that Annaka was old enough/interested in actually putting it together. She really knew what to do. I put the icing on and she put on all of the candy. I tried getting pictures of Annaka by our house...but her tongue was sticking out for every one....

This is her face after being told not to stick out her tongue anymore because mommy wanted a picture of her pretty smile.....

Ok, maybe this is better....

We also made Christmas cookies to deliver to friends who live near us...after rolling it out we realized we did not have any cookie cutters. I found an elephant and a whale cookie cutter in Annaka's toys. We can make an elephant work:) (Doesnt everyone have Christmat elephants?) :)



I cut out a few trees, candy canes, what was supposed to look like a star...then gave up and used a lid to cut circles. Ah I know on thing I will bring back with me next time....

Im Dreaming of a White Christmas....

Much to our surprize, pleasent surprize I might add, we got to experience a white Christmas just a few days early! In a land where temperatures hover around 75-80 during the day we escaped to a salt desert for a few days. Camels took us from our tents to this great place. Annaka loved riding on the carts and learned that Camels spit. If you ask her what a camel says she squints her eyes and pretends to 'spit'.


The camels are decorated beautifully and are ridden by patrolmen. Each division of law enforcement has a different head dress.


The desert really was amazing. I have never seen anything like it! Salt covered the ground looking much like snow!

Friends were made along the way.....


Annaka also got to ride a train here for the first time! Four letters....C.O.L.D...it was an overnight train and we about froze! Was not expecting that. Should have brought warm blankets:) On the way home, it was playtime for Annaka...so she thought.


We were so exhausted we came back a day early. Just enough time to make cookies and deliver them to friends for Christmas!

Shopping...

When entering a new culture there are many joys and many frustrations as you re-learn to do common, everyday things.

Shopping, for instance. I dont think I will every get used to having someone follow, one step behind, beside, and infront of me. Not only do they analize everything I look at or pick up...they stand in front of items I would like to look at and stare at me. Or sometimes when you are looking for something specific they throw many options in front of you without giving you the chance to look for yourself. I say all this and then go to a hobby store to get some paint (I'm painting butterflies on Annaka's bed) and could not find someone who works there to answer my question -or- ring up my purchase.

There are, however, ways I realize how I am growing accustomed to some fo the ways of life here. I remember getting a little uneasy and a bit frustrated when they would tell me I need to leave my bags at the door. Then I learned they did not mean my purse...just excess bags. Bags from the other stores. Recently while shoping I checked bags in stores...then went into a store that did not collect bags from shoppers. Rather than being relieved, I was a bit frustrated. I had stopped at a bookstore early on in the day and my bag was heavy:)

A is for...

A is for Annaka! and apple, and aligator.....

A letter a week. Well that is my ambition as of right now. Her four year old friend can read and write already and I think that has sparked something inside Annaka to want to as well. She picked up her friends paper and asked me what letters were on it then said "Lets write my name". I guess now is a better time than ever to begin with one letter. The letter 'A' seems like the best place to begin as it is not only the beginning of the alphabet but the beginning of her name. I was telling her "Up, down....then across" as I was holding her hand writing it over and over again. Then I told her to try it. She tried it several times then was done for the day. The next day when I gave her a piece of paper to write on she put her pencil down and looked at me with raised eyebrows. I told her "Up" and she did it. I helped her with the rest of the letter and asked her if she could make one herself. To that she confidently replied "No mommy, that 'A' needs hands and feet......(pause).....and a gog(dog) too." Then this is what she did to the 'A'. Pretty good. I give her an "A":) sorry...had to say it.


P.S. Annaka calls elevators 'alligators'. Maybe this is the week to let her know elevator does not start with the letter A:)

(the events of dec 11th)

Stories to catch up.....

What a sweet hearted little stubborn girl.....

Today was one of those days where I had to continue to 'remind' myself to have patience. Annaka 'suffers' from a strong case of the 'only child' syndrome. In simple words, she does NOT know how to play by herself. When forced to stay in her room and play with her toys for one hour today she whined, cried, and fussed with every excuse from pointing out a bird out her window, to hearing clifford bark at her from outside, to come sit by me on my bed and "mommy, where is my *insert toy name here*". It took everything in me to remember that it is kind of like letting them cry when in time out or whine while supposed to be going to sleep. The part of me that needed to get things done wanted to get upset at her and tell her to be quiet or shut the door so I could not hear her as loudly.....on the other hand....the mommy in me wanted to go sit by her and read the book/play with the toy/ etc. Instead I talked to her about the bird she saw out her window as I was in the other room doing dishes. Anyone have any advice about this???? How to I encourage her to play by herself without feeling like I am being a horrible mom?

Anyway, I saw the sweet heart of my little girl this evening. We had been out running errands and I had told her the whole time we could go to McDonalds for dinner. She was so good while we were out I was excited to get her some nuggets and have a fun dinner out with her. We got in line, ordered, they began bringing the food to the little tray beside the register, I gave them my debit card and was told they only take cash! I had only enough cash on me to get us a ride home. I saddly had to carry my two year old (who was in tears) out of the restaurant and tell her we cannot have that for dinner tonight. She settled down enough to run to our last two stops before heading home to peanut butter sandwiches. As we were eating Annaka looked at my plate and said in her sweetest excited voice "Good job Mommy! You ate your sandwich all gone! Im proud of you!" I was humbled at how quickly a two year old can forgive and get over something. I need to learn that lesson myself. When things dont go my way, I need to be more flexible and make the most of the new situation:) Thank you Lord for using my two year old to remind me.


Rocking Horse...
When trying to get a photo of Annaka and one of her new favorite things she would not quit squirming and making faces. In fact her favorite faces are either when she sticks out her tongue or making a fish face.

This is the face she makes when I aske her to stand by her horse and smile.....

Her new friends like the horse too! Three on at once!
*Note to self (and anyone who stumbles upon this blog post) I (Valerie) am definitely NOT the photographer of the family. I took about 12 pictures and this is the least blurry shot with everyone's head in the picture! If Clint were home at that moment, he would have taken it and it would have looked fabulous.

Bread,Fruit,Spices

The bread turned out great! I cut some too thin and it crumbled a little. Tasted great though. Will definitely make this recipe again!
I love shopping here. The fruit and veggies are so fresh and wonderful! Look at all I got today for under $5! Just over six lbs of potatos, just over four lbs of carrots and bananas, over two lbs of tomatoes. More and more and more. Annaka tried helping to carry it but would only make it a few feet and tell me it is heavy and give it back:) What help she is at the market!


And I thought I would miss the couponing fun from the states. Well, maybe I do a little, but haggling to get a deal in a market can be pretty fun rewarding as well. Clint tends to do better at this than I do, but today I felt was a success:)


Which brings me to my favorite part of our kitchen....our spice rack/shelf. Fruit/Veggies/Rice, Dahl, Nuts, Mmmmmm. Besides their yummy-ness I love the color it adds to our kitchen:)

Its About Time...

Its about time for an update huh? We have been off the radar so to speak for a little while. Partly because we are getting settled and partly because we did not have consistent internet. We have had fun exploring and finding things in our new city. Clint amazes me with how much of the language he remembers and Annaka charms everyone around her. She has her own paparazzi some days as people want her photo and to squeeze her cheeks! We love our new city and our apartment and have been meeting people who live around us.

Here is Annaka eating a sandwich in our new apartment....no furniture...no dining room table still even today so we eat on the floor... for now. She loves the apartment. Running from room to room she acts as if she owns the place.

(Note her crossed feet and the yellow wall in the background....thats my favorite part! )

We did arrive in the big holiday season here. Its like a month long constant celebration! First a local holiday that is celebrated in our state, then a major holiday that is nation wide! Then two days later is the local New Years Day. Every state here has a different 'local' new years. Its when they start their local calendars and businesses dedicate the financial books for the new year. Everyone takes anywhere from 5-15 days off from working. A week solid of 'crackers' as they call them (fireworks) being set off all night. There are no restrictions so it is more like little explosions outside our windows.

Here is the Rangoli (sand art) and lights from in front of a local doorway.

Annaka has done very well. The way she has chosen to deal with all the transition from moving ...KC, VA, PA, here....is that she does not want anything to do with the potty anymore. I figure that if that is the worst thing she does (i.e. rather than behavior tantrums or something worse) then we can deal with this. Once we are more settled and into a routine we will begin again. (for the 3rd time) The biggest thing she is having a hard time 'getting' is how the feet are regarded as something dirty. It is insulting to sit and face the bottom of your foot toward someone. It is very rude to touch someone or something with your foot. Annaka will sit down and rub her hand....or sandwich...across the bottom of her foot. She gets in trouble now for carrying her shoes around and putting them by her (or my) face.

One thing I was concerned about before we left was finding friends quickly for Annaka. Not that I thought there would be a problem finding little ones, I just wanted her to find one fast as we had been in limbo for three months. Since we have been here she has made friends and has so much fun! She gets so excited when they come to visit. Shows her toys and shouts "My Friends!" I love seeing her light up! I was talking to a new friend who has two kiddos the other day and as soon as Annaka heard me, she ran into their home to play with the kids with no regard to good ol mom left behind her. :)

Here is Annaka playing at a local playground. She makes friends wherever she goes!

I have had fun cooking and will post some recipes soon. Cooking some local food and some American food. Tonight I made Eggplant Parm from complete scratch. Made the breadcrumbs from a loaf of bread I made, wiped the feather off that was stuck onto the egg before cracking it:). I feel so domestic as I grind my own sugar etc. After three tries, I did finally succeeded in making bread. Well, at least it looks right. We will know for sure in the morning at breakfast if it tastes as good as it looks! It even has the muffin top like loafs you get at a store there in the states. Now on to tackle those cinnamon rolls I have flopped on twice! :)


Better cut out for now. More updates to come:)


P.S. I love the brooms here. The only problem is that they are very very short...If we could make the handles longer my back would be happy.




P.P.S. I will never complain about traffic again.....wanna come drive here?