New Year’s Eve

We went from one party to another today.  I also can’t believe we actually stayed up until midnight.  Joseph stayed awake also but the girls didn’t make it.  Audrey was really close.  One of our friends brought fireworks and the kids really enjoyed setting them off.  Happy 2014!

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The Bills Family brought fireworks to the party and Bro. Bills helped Audrey fire off a Roman Candle…fun times!

Puncak

Some of our friends invited us to go to Puncak with them for the weekend. We stayed at a retreat for US Embassy employees.   We left early Friday morning and came back very early this morning.  The weather was beautiful  and the kids spent so much time playing outside. It was so nice to be up in the mountains and to breathe some nice clean air. Once in awhile, it is just nice to get away from the hustle and bustle of big city life.

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Beautiful views

 

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All the kids enjoyed running around outside.  The grounds at Marisole were beautiful!

 

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We saw a Rhino Beetle.  It is the largest beetle in the world.

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Joseph really needs a haircut!

 

Good Mood

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Katelyn generally hides from me when I try to take her picture.  She must have been in a good mood today because I asked if I could take a picture and she said actually said yes.  She even sort of smiled.

Christmas!

Doss stayed up late to call his brother so I didn’t get a chance to post my picture of the day yesterday.  I made him get off the computer today so I don’t get too far behind again. 

We had a lovely Christmas.  The kids got up early and opened gifts.  Later we had 3 other families join us for Christmas lunch.  Some of them had never had an American holiday meal before.  It was surprising to hear that they had never had turkey or cranberry sauce or some of the the various casseroles.  We had so much food!  It was a ridiculous spread but so yummy!  The kids enjoyed playing all afternoon with their friends and the parents got to hang out and chat.  Doss even fired up the grill and everyone enjoyed roasting marshmallows…fun times. 

I didn’t even try to take a family picture on Christmas this year.  Every year as far as I can remember, someone is always crying/screaming.  I just didn’t even feel like attempting one this year. 

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I couldn’t find my phone to take a wide-angle picture of the holiday spread we had.  There was a dessert table with cookies and cakes. We also had turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce and jelly, pork ribs, sausage, green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, rolls, vegetable platter, fruit, and an assortment of different Chinese food.  I ate so much for lunch that I couldn’t even think about eating again for dinner…lol.

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The kids each wanted to open a gift on Christmas eve so I told them they had to let me take a picture first. 

Laptop Issues

We have been having problems with one of our laptops.  I think I need to wipe it and reload the operating system.  I haven’t posted in a few days since I was either too tired or someone was using the only working computer we have.

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I walked over to Pacific Place mall this afternoon to pick up a few things for Christmas.   I got a good chuckle out of this sign.

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I don’t think I ever posted about Katelyn learning to whistle.  She started whistling a couple of weeks ago.  She loves to whistle since that is something she can do that Joseph and Audrey can’t do.  They tell Katelyn that she is showing off…lol.

 

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I made one of my friends a “darnit” doll since I wasn’t sure she was the swearing type.  Turns out that she is…lol.  She has been having a rough time so I thought the doll would cheer her up. I should make one for myself.  Just the idea of one always gives me a good chuckle.  My kids have each decided that they want a doll too.  I guess I will be busy hand-sewing a few more of these things.

Another Holiday Party

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Another holiday party this evening. The kids were good sports about it.

Holiday Party

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Joseph holding an ornament he made at the 3rd grade holiday party.

Gingerbread House

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Katelyn's class had a gingerbread house build this morning after the holiday concert and the portfolio share.

Full Tuesday

I had another busy day.  I will be so glad when school is out.  Doss and I went to the concert at the school this morning.  The 3rd grade class performed 2 songs and the 1st grade class had a dance number.  After that, Audrey’s class had their class party.  With the exception of lunch, I spent most of the day at school. I taught my English class later in the afternoon.  I even got home after Doss did today.  It was a long day and I am bushed!

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The 1st graders did a scarf dance to the song Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer.

Too Tired

It was late last night when I realized that I had not posted my picture for Sunday.  I decided it could wait since I was too tired.  Now it is Monday night and I am just as tired.  Before I get too far behind again, I decided I should go ahead and post a picture for yesterday and one for today.

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Katelyn loves this pink Aurora headband she picked up at the Holiday Market on Friday.  Sadly, she wore it to Church and left it on the chair in the foyer.  I told her we would look for it next Sunday.  For her sake, I hope that it will still be there.  She is so hopeful that no one will take it.

 

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The kids got scarves this year after the gymnastics exhibition…not sure that is a useful thing to have here in Indonesia where it never gets cold…lol.

Crystal Christmas

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We walked over to Pacific Place mall this evening to pick up some things for the various holiday parties and celebrations that are going on this next week at school. It was fun to see the holiday decorations. The theme at Pacific Place was Crystal Christmas.

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We had a fun, relaxing evening. That was nice after a crazy week. Doss took the kids to the newly renovated StarMart at the complex to get snacks. Then we played a Lego board game.

Gift Bows

 

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The 1st grade holiday market is tomorrow.  I made a bunch of newspaper gift bags.  I also made a bunch of gift bows from magazines and sales flyers.  This has been a busy week.  I will be up at the school all day tomorrow helping with the holiday market.  I thought maybe I would have time to make a few more bags or bows tonight but we took the kids to see the movie Frozen.  It was a really cute movie.  We got home later than I thought we would so I think I am going to call it a day.

Stray Cat

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There are lots of stray cats in Jakarta.  This one was outside the apartment.  I am very allergic to cats but this one really tugged at my heart strings. I was so tempted to pet her and to pick her up.  She kept coming towards me and mewing.  She had beautiful markings and I think if she were well taken care of would one day be a lovely cat. 

New Tree

When we first moved to Jakarta, I brought a one foot tall tree with us in one of the suitcases.  Then we inherited a 2-foot tall tree when some friends moved from Jakarta.  This year we went all out and got a 6-foot tall tree.

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Hotel Salon

I decided to try out the salon at the Hotel today.  I went last week but they weren’t sure when the stylist was coming in or if she was coming in…lol.  I guess I was in luck today because things were in full swing. It looked like it was fully staffed.  I asked for a trim since I didn’t want to do anything too drastic. I think it turned out pretty well and the cost was reasonable. 

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My hair will never look like this again since I don’t own any rollers or a hair dryer. It was fun to have it styled though.  Too bad I didn’t have anywhere to go besides to school. 

Raingutter Regatta

In addition to Audrey’s swim meet yesterday, we also had a cub scout activity. It was the Raingutter Regatta.  Joseph won first place in his den.  He really enjoyed the activity.  I decided to post a picture of him from yesterday for my picture of the day.

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Swim Carnival

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Audrey had a fun swim meet today.  She swam freestyle, breaststroke, and backstroke.  She did really well in each of the events she participated in.  She was first in freestyle and breaststroke and came in second in the backstroke.  Everyone got a ribbon since it was just for fun.  Audrey said she wasn’t interested in competitive swimming but that she wanted to continue taking classes through the Swimkidz program offered through the school.

Clean Air

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I bought a new air purifier. We went with a Honeywell this time. The Krisbow did not last very long. I have not been feeling well for weeks now. Doss and I decided it wouldn't hurt to clean the air in our apartment. Hopefully, it will help me feel better and help me get rid of this awful cough. We also washed all the air con filters.

Cello Solo

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Joseph did a great job performing his cello solo this morning. We were so proud of him.

Practice Session

Joseph got rather emotional when he saw the soccer team practicing this afternoon. I thought he was over not making the team but I guess it will take a little more time. Apparently Joseph was quite upset still during his cello lesson so his teacher made me promise that I would have him practice when he got home since the concert is tomorrow. Poor Joseph...breaks my heart to see him so sad.

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Joseph practicing for his cello performance tomorrow.

Christmas Mood

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Audrey was in a Christmas mood today. She ran around singing Christmas songs and asked if I wanted to watch her do a Christmas dance. It was so cute!

Gymnastics

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I volunteered to be a parent observer for Audrey's gymnastics class today. It was group picture day! Katelyn also came with me to observe. She was watching the class and trying to do some of the moves. I may sign her up for gymnastics next term. I think she would like it.

Silly Things

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One of the kids put some little stuffed fish on the heads of the wise men. I noticed it when we got home from church. I know what I will miss someday when they are grown are these random silly things they do that make me laugh.