International Day

Yesterday was International Day.  The kids did a really great job of being creative with their country.  Wyatt’s class had Brazil.  Most classes had food from the country they were representing.  Cale wasn’t too sure if he wanted to try flan.  Emma’s class had the United States.  That room had chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter balls, and American board games.  Sophie had Malaysia.  We learned that can find a Kale snake there. Cale loved making the flags of the different countries, and trying most of the foods.

Rachel

Today

Today was one of those days that was just cram-packed with stuff.  I am glad to be at the end of it with everything successfully done.  There was  babysitting, teaching preschool, a little more babysitting, doing Grade 3 library, coaching B Girls basketball, and walking with a friend.  In there somewhere Garth was doing two PE classes.

Tomorrow will be a nice easy day.  It is called International Day.  Each class has a country that they will represent to the whole school and all the parents.  I will send you pictures when it is finished.  Then the kids have a half-day.  I always love it when that happens.

Here are some recent pictures of our Hostel and the little pondok nearby.  That is Mount Cyclops in the background of the Hostel and if you zoom you can see our waterfall.  It is beautiful.

Sophie and Cale out on a ride with Garth.  Also some pictures of the get together we had at the Hostel on Sunday.  It was a Ping-Pong party.  It was a lot of fun, lots of food, and lots of people.  Some took it quite seriously, but we all had fun!

Love

Rachel

Recipes

I have been giving this recipe out so much lately, I thought I would share it with you all.  It is my NEW all time favorite bread recipe.

I call it The Amazing, Can’t go wrong, Always turns out right even in the hot, humid tropics of Indo and it tastes absolutely fantastic every time Bread Dough Recipe.  (Maybe I should shorten the name)

Bread Dough Recipe

Dissolve 3 Tbsp. yeast with 1 cup very warm water and 1 Tbsp, of sugar-Let sit for 5 minutes

In a Large bowl combine:

3 cups very warm water

1 Tbsp. salt

1 cup sugar (I never use a whole cup)

1 cup oil

2 eggs

Stir in the yeast mixture

Then add flour 1 cup at a time to about 12 cups.  Knead for 5 minutes.  Let rise about an hour.  Bake 3 large or 4 medium loaves at 400 until bottom of loaf is nice and brown.  (about 20 minutes.)

This recipe is fantastic for everything.  I usually make a loaf or two and then use some dough for cinnamon rolls, or bread sticks and use the rest for pizza or pepperoni rolls or pigs in the blanket.

Here is the Pepperoni Rolls recipe that the dorm kids can’t get enough of:

Make the dough in the recipe above.

After it has risen for an hour or so, roll some of it flat and cut into squares.  Lay three pieces of pepperoni on each square, sprinkle with Italian Seasoning and roll up into balls.

Let rise a bit, and bake at 400 for about 15 minutes.  If you want you can brush the tops with butter and sprinkle with garlic salt.  They are so amazing!

Enjoy!

Rachel

Making and Baking

This week feels like it was all about making and baking.  Between making meals for the sick families, Valentine’s cookies for the kids classes, filling in for Ibu Poppi when she didn’t come in, and making 250 breadsticks for the Valentine’s banquet-it makes me feel like this was the week of food.  I enjoy it and had a great example growing up –my Mom.  She is fantastic at throwing together dinner parties-whether it is for two or twenty.

Yesterday was the Valentine’s Banquet up at school.  Garth and I have never actually gone before.  It tends to be expensive and then trying to find a sitter…so we never go.  But this year they said I could get in free if I made all the breadsticks!  For me that is a great deal.  So we went.  It was very nice.  There was a yummy meal and then we all watched Letters to Juliet.  It was the first date Garth and I have had since July, (maybe our first ever in Indonesia) so we enjoyed the alone time.  Wyatt was in charge of the kids and he did a great job.

Today is my parent’s 40^th wedding anniversary.  If you see them please tell them Congratulations!!!  I am so proud of them and so fortunate to have parents that really love each other.  What a blessing!

Happy Anniversary!!!  Wish I was there. 

Rachel

Super Bowl Wednesday

YEEEEAAAHHHH Wisconsin!!!!  I just found out that Green Bay won the Super Bowl!!  A friend of ours downloaded the game and offered to show it up in the MPR on the big screen for the community to see.  I deliberately didn’t want to know who won before tonight.  That was so much fun.  There weren’t too many Packer fans in the room.  Mostly Steelers fans.  So we all cheered nice and loud!  The game didn’t have any of the commercials and no half-time show, but it was still really cool.  For some of the dorm kids that was the first time they ever watched a football game.  Everyone enjoyed it. Especially Sophie.

What a fun night!!!  Now off to bed.

Love

Rachel

My Sink

One of the benefits to living here in Indonesia is that I have house helpers.  This Hostel when it is full houses about 18.  So for me to do all the laundry, cooking and cleaning each day would be insane.  When the helpers, or pembantus, are doing their job it is a blessing to me. 

We have a young lady, that does the cleaning.  Her name is Agu.  She cleans our apartment on Tuesdays.  I usually teach Preschool on Tuesdays, so it is nice for me to leave the apartment with it dirty and return home with it all clean.  Last week, I walked in to see clean bedrooms, a clean living room, clean bathrooms, and a clogged up sink in our room full of black, icky water.  The way our apartment was designed, they put a toilet, shower and sink in our bedroom.  I mean IN our bedroom-right there.  That was the sink that was clogged.  It made the whole room feel gross.  We asked the maintenance workers to fix the sink, (again), but it took them almost a week to come over.  With the heat here, it didn’t take long until it began to smell.  I scooped out all the water, cleaned it and told the kids not to use it, but someone always forgot.  Then the water would sit again and stink.

I know I have areas like that in my life.  I might look nice and “clean” in lots of places, but if there is one spot that is full of bitterness, or anger, selfishness, being judgmental, proud etc. then it will soon make other areas stink.  I can act like I am holy, perfect or good - like emptying out the sink, but if I don’t deal with the problem, give it to God, and ask for forgiveness it will come back and start to stink all over again.  One spot can ruin a great life, and prevent you from living the abundant life that God has designed for you.

A Majestic Creation

Okay.  So I am still mourning the loss of hair here.  My husband, oldest and youngest sons have shaved their heads.

This is what Cale looked like when we first came to Indonesia in 2007 when he was 1 ½.  And a picture of what he looks like now.

Wyatt when we came (he was 9).  And what he looks like now.  Garth in 2007-(I picked a crazy picture-haha)

I know they are the same people but they look soooooooo different.  When I look at them now, I am missing how they used to look.  But I need to see past that to who they are.  This reminds me of something.

The other day Garth and I were playing Pictionary with 5 year old Cale.  It was hilarious.  See if you can guess a few of his drawings.

The first three are dress, pig and bench.  Look at the last one.  What do you think that is?

It is the Planet Earth.  He was so proud of that drawing.  When he was finished drawing it, and after I had guessed it, he looked at his work and he said, “Mom, it looks exactly like the real Earth!  Wow!”

That is how it is with God.  He looks at His creation, (you and me), and sees us just like He created us-beautiful.  We see all of our flaws, and imperfections.  He sees a majestic, amazing work of His hands.  There is nothing wrong with the way we look.  If God could, He wouldn’t change one thing on you.  Next time you look at yourself in the mirror, look past all of the things you don’t like and reflect on the fact that the Creator of the universe also shaped and molded you.  And when He looks at you, He says, “Wow!”.

Pretty cool.

Love you

Rachel

Saturday

My day-Saturday February 5^th

6:30-Wake up

6:35-7:30 Make sure everything is packed, food is made, and all of the kids are up and ready to go

7:30-9:30-Two hour drive to Kali Biru (Blue River)

8:10 Cale is car sick and puking out the right window of the van

8:30 Emma is carsick and puking out the left window of the van

8:31 Friends that are following us in their car are majorly grossed out

9:30 Get to Kali Biru

9:34 Get water from the river to wash puke off both sides of the van

9:35-2:30 Had a fantastic time swimming, jumping off rocks, climbing cliffs, playing water polo…except for Sophie and me because we both have bad ear infections and couldn’t get our heads wet-major bummer!

2:30-4:30 Drive back-no one puked

4:40 Unpack and work on dinner

5:30 Invite friends over to eat with us

5:35 Dinner

6:00 Boys get this great idea to shave Cale’s head

6:01 Garth does it

6:02 Mom is crying-(that is me) as Cale’s curls fall to the floor

6:20 They decide to do Wyatt’s too

6:21 Mom still crying (Inside)

Now all of the boys have shaved heads, so I take a picture

7:00 We all go up to the MPR and watch Despicable Me again.

I laugh through the whole movie and enjoy how good that feels

8:30 Bedtime for the kids

8:31 Cale tells me that it is just hair and that it will grow back and that he is still my little baby boy

8:32 I smile, and hug him tight.