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Your biweekly picture update on baby Horst...
Last week was chaos! And, consequently, I now have a very sore throat and am fighting the typical winter cold that creeps into your system during times of stress and busyness! I'm taking it easy today, though, while Joe goes to the post office, grocery store, and gets our car insurance renewed.
Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of last week we made a daily trek to the immigration office in Plovdiv. We had to get translations of documents, copies of papers, stamps in our passports, and mug shots taken. Thankfully, Lamar went with us, as he has some experience with the system.
Also last week was a costume birthday party for one of our friends in Asenovgrad (yes, I have pictures to post!), choir practices, meetings, another birthday party, and visiting with Nasa, Vania, and Yoanna in Parvomai!
Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of last week we made a daily trek to the immigration office in Plovdiv. We had to get translations of documents, copies of papers, stamps in our passports, and mug shots taken. Thankfully, Lamar went with us, as he has some experience with the system.
Also last week was a costume birthday party for one of our friends in Asenovgrad (yes, I have pictures to post!), choir practices, meetings, another birthday party, and visiting with Nasa, Vania, and Yoanna in Parvomai!
Another stocking stuffer
At first, when we pulled this game out of Joe's stocking, we thought it was going to be kind of silly... it's actually really hard! Each finger has a corresponding color, and you get points for the total number of fingers you get each time you move.
Scoring and cheat sheet for which fingers go with which colors
Joe, of course, took "Technical Rock Climbing" in university, so he had the advantage...
All 5 fingers! (And of course, it was Joe who did it...)
We have been blessed with wonderful sunny weather the past few days! It's still chilly enough that you have to wear a warm coat, but when the sun's shining on you it almost feels like spring!
Looking out toward the valley on the road to Asenovgrad
On Saturday we decided to wander to Asenovgrad to take a stroll through the park there. It was wonderful! I just wish Asenovgrad was a little closer to our house so we could go more frequently!
Enjoying the park bench
Note: One of my readers emailed me and said Joe was being camera shy, so the above picture is to help balance out all the pictures of me I've posted lately.
The sun shining through the trees on the edge of the park.
The main monument in the park
The days seem to be getting longer now, so our house gets touched by the sun's warm rays for just a few minutes more each day. It's amazing how much of a difference it makes on the temperature inside! I'm dreading the day that Ol' Man Winter returns from his little vacation and it gets cold here again...
The Orthodox church in Topolovo's town center
Looking out toward the valley on the road to Asenovgrad
On Saturday we decided to wander to Asenovgrad to take a stroll through the park there. It was wonderful! I just wish Asenovgrad was a little closer to our house so we could go more frequently!
Enjoying the park bench
Note: One of my readers emailed me and said Joe was being camera shy, so the above picture is to help balance out all the pictures of me I've posted lately.
The sun shining through the trees on the edge of the park.
The main monument in the park
The days seem to be getting longer now, so our house gets touched by the sun's warm rays for just a few minutes more each day. It's amazing how much of a difference it makes on the temperature inside! I'm dreading the day that Ol' Man Winter returns from his little vacation and it gets cold here again...
The Orthodox church in Topolovo's town center
A few months ago, while we were still at Nasa's house, we decided to attempt to make a "homemade McDonald's" meal. We bought a big bottle of Coke, and made homemade hamburgers, buns, and french fries. Oh, and don't forget dessert... we also made chocolate chip cookies!
The meal was a big hit at Nasa's house - especially the cookies. (I know, chocolate chip cookies aren't exactly on the dollar menu, but I didn't no how to make homemade soft serve...)
Joe, of course, loved the meal as well, and has been begging for us to have it on our menu again since we moved to our own place. Last night, we did!
Instead of Coke, we had homemade decaffeinated sweet tea, and we skipped the cookies, but the burgers and fries were really yummy!
And did I mention we roasted marshmallows?
The meal was a big hit at Nasa's house - especially the cookies. (I know, chocolate chip cookies aren't exactly on the dollar menu, but I didn't no how to make homemade soft serve...)
Joe, of course, loved the meal as well, and has been begging for us to have it on our menu again since we moved to our own place. Last night, we did!
Instead of Coke, we had homemade decaffeinated sweet tea, and we skipped the cookies, but the burgers and fries were really yummy!
And did I mention we roasted marshmallows?
In Joe's stocking this year was a special gift from Santa... a package of very special cornbread. So, of course, it had to be made for dinner with cornbread's soul mate... chili.
Yum!
I had to censor the packaging a bit, but you can replace the black boxes with the words "rear end," or as Joe would say, "donkey."
Good one, Santa!
It looks so tasty, but beware...
Joe's words after his first bite: "Whew, doggies!"
Yum!
I had to censor the packaging a bit, but you can replace the black boxes with the words "rear end," or as Joe would say, "donkey."
Good one, Santa!
It looks so tasty, but beware...
Joe's words after his first bite: "Whew, doggies!"
This morning, Joe and I went to the hospital in Parvomai to get my pregnancy lab work done. It was quite the cross-cultural experience, to say the least.
I was somewhat of a unique patient because I do not have the typical Bulgarian health insurance. The receptionist at the entrance to the hospital tallied up each lab order and took our payment for the total amount. Then she sent me upstairs to the lab.
I had to go to two different rooms to have blood drawn for the different tests. Neither of the women who drew my blood wore gloves, but Joe made sure to check that at least the needles came in sterilized packages!
I also had to give a urine sample for some tests... and the bathroom was less than desirable. I had to hold the cotton ball on my right arm (where my blood was drawn from for the first set of tests - my left arm was poked later on for the second set) while trying to do everything else one-handed. The icing on the cake was that the toilet was what I call a "squat pot." (But thanks to my study semester in India, I'm quite familiar with how they work!)
I was somewhat of a unique patient because I do not have the typical Bulgarian health insurance. The receptionist at the entrance to the hospital tallied up each lab order and took our payment for the total amount. Then she sent me upstairs to the lab.
I had to go to two different rooms to have blood drawn for the different tests. Neither of the women who drew my blood wore gloves, but Joe made sure to check that at least the needles came in sterilized packages!
I also had to give a urine sample for some tests... and the bathroom was less than desirable. I had to hold the cotton ball on my right arm (where my blood was drawn from for the first set of tests - my left arm was poked later on for the second set) while trying to do everything else one-handed. The icing on the cake was that the toilet was what I call a "squat pot." (But thanks to my study semester in India, I'm quite familiar with how they work!)
Did you miss me?
I think it's safe to say I've gotten a little behind on my blogging... along with every other form of communication. However, I hope that as we regain some sense of routine in the next few weeks I can get back into the normal swing of things.
We got Shannon to the airport this morning at 5:40... bright (or dark) and early for her trans-Atlantic flight. She should arrive in the US around 3pm EST. It was wonderful having her company while Joe was gone, and we enjoyed getting to participate in her cross-cultural experience here.
I think it's safe to say I've gotten a little behind on my blogging... along with every other form of communication. However, I hope that as we regain some sense of routine in the next few weeks I can get back into the normal swing of things.
We got Shannon to the airport this morning at 5:40... bright (or dark) and early for her trans-Atlantic flight. She should arrive in the US around 3pm EST. It was wonderful having her company while Joe was gone, and we enjoyed getting to participate in her cross-cultural experience here.
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