Photos from Trip

Here are some pics from our visit--I wish I would have remembered to use my camera when we were with everyone--but this will probably be enough for you to look at in one sitting:)

Haddon Asleep too early

We are adjusting back to Bangalore time...here are some pics of Haddon falling asleep at the dinner table and on the sofa chair. It's too early to go to bed but he just can't hold out any longer:)

We're Back in Action...Almost

Our whirlwind trip was pretty amazing...we visited Louisiana, The Woodlands, Granbury, Pearland and Houston in 13 days...traveling over 8,000 miles by air and more than 1,200 miles by car! We saw lots of family and friends and missed seeing some too.
Except for arriving into Houston 3 hours late and going without our suitcase for 5 days (lost luggage!) it was a smooth trip. Thank the Lord!
Now we are trying to adjust to Bangalore time again. It'll probably take a week or so to get our body "clocks" back into the old sleep routine. Haddon has had the hardest time and wakes the rest of us up to play in the middle of the night:) The first night back he was up at midnight, the next night 3:30 am, and today 5 am. Maybe tomorrow he'll wake up at 8 am!! I'm including a video of him falling asleep at the dinner table. It was so cute...he was pretending to be asleep and then really fell into a coma!:D
Brian and I have both felt it harder to come back to India this time than when we moved here. He because he was reminded of how much easier things are in the U.S. (and how clean it is there:). I was reminded of just how far we really are from family. I know it will take a few days to get back into the swing and refocus our minds on why we are here.
p.s....if you're unsure of what the loud girl-like noises are in the video...they are Brian and Corban saying "Chopper Frazier" to try to get Haddon to wake up:)

Comin' 2 America

Well, we are packing up to head to the states very, very early friday morning! I wanted to be sure and share the things we've been doing lately so there are 3 posts today:) I probably won't be blogging for the next few days or more--that is if i find time to post while in the states. I have a feeling we'll be a little bit busy on our whirlwind tour! We are so excited to see many of you in the next 2 weeks! Please pray for our 22 hour flight and our sleep schedule being turned upside down!! We really don't want to be zombies for 2 weeks:)
In case I don't blog again before then--Have a very blessed Christmas celebrating the birth of our Savior!!

Doctor Visit #3

Kai had to get his 6 month shots today (he's almost 9 months:) so we went to a pediatrician that was recommended to us by some American friends. I am still amazed after visiting 3 clinics how simple these offices are. There's no reception window to sign in at, no nurse to call your name, no insurance accepted, and the doctor visit averages around $3-$5 (although the immunizations were much more). The exam table has no disposable paper to change after each patient and the waiting area is so small that if the person next to you is sick there's no sitting on the opposite side of the room to avoid them:) the one room office is divided by a wall partition...one side is for waiting, the other side is the small doctor's office and exam table--you could see into the exam room from the waiting room. It's only the doctor there. She examed the children, gave them the shots, took the payment, answered the phone, etc.
Being the germ freak mom that I am I prayed the whole time that the kids wouldn't touch something that a sick child touched then put their hands in their mouths--isn't it funny/sad and prejudice that i rarely had these thoughts at doctor's offices in america where the same germs exist!) This doctor has worked in the west and was very knowledgeable so i think that's why the simple office still amazes me. I'm not writing this to gain sympathy or look sacrificial--really. This is life in India...millions of people attend clinics just like this one. It really makes me appreciate the wonderful facilities we've had in the states and that there are doctors in India who care enough to only make $4!!

Dinner Guests

We had a family from church over for dinner last night. Brian and the husband have gotten to be good friends and we just met his wife last Sunday for the first time. I would like to share some things about them to give a glimpse of life here for so many people. They are by far not the poorest of the poor. I think they might be considered lower middle class. But still, compared to most Americans they struggle financially. They said they would like to invite us over for dinner but their home is so small and they don't have a dining room table. They were laughing as they said this so I just laughed along but afterwards I felt bad that I did. I don't ever want them to think we wouldn't go to their house b/c they don't have a table!!

Mohan works for the state as an auditor and was hired b/c he is a good soccer player:) There's a state team that has a quota to fill spots on the team with good athletes therefore giving them day jobs to be able to play on the team. He is looking for a part time night job in addition to his day job and soccer schedule. His job doesn't start til 10:00 am but he has to leave at 7:30 to get his wife and daughter to school on their motorcycle. This is a common thing in India for families to ride on motorcycles when they can't afford a car. We've seen a family of 5 before!Judy is a kindergarten teacher who wakes up at 4:30 am to make homemade lunches for her family (rice, gravy, flat bread, etc) and get she and her daughter dressed. She works 24 kilometers out of town ( i don't know how many miles that is maybe around 18.) Her husband drops her off at a relatives house, she then rides a bike about 2 km to school and rides it back after school for her husband to pick her up. When they get home she cooks and cleans until bed time.

Their sweet daughter is in third grade and has a beautiful smile.

The amazing thing is that they brought this huge fruit basket with candy bars and fresh strawberries. I know to them that was an expensive gift to give. Judy also wants to make us a beef roast since we don't get to eat much beef here...in her spare time?

The hard part about having guests over is we live in a nice apartment--i'm learning that what most americans would consider to be an average apt. is considered luxerious here in India. It's hard when people are embarrassed of their small homes b/c ours is 1200 square feet. And it's hard when they think we are so rich and have left a life of luxery to come and live here. Ofcourse, compared to India standards we are rich, but we don't want anyone to put us on a pedastal in their mind--which it seems like most people here do with westerners. We'd love to just be on even turf--no money involved--but i'm sure that's impossible for us americans to acheive--there is definitely an image and stereotype of america--and it's called wealth.

India vs Pakistan

We attended our first Cricket game on Saturday. Some of Brian's co-workers met us there and we exprienced India's national pastime. It's a little like baseball but a little more boring:D We sat in a section where the official "cheerleader" of Pakistan was sitting. He's gone to every game the last 19 years, following the Pakistani team all over the world. This made for fun rivalry yelling and true Indian spirit. The Pakistani team pays him ($160 a month) to go and mingle among the crowd and get them fired up. He's called the Cricket ChaCha (Uncle) and even has full color business cards he hands out:) The TV camera also came by to film the ChaCha with the indian fans. We made our debut on national indian television:) I think the cameraman stayed on Kai for 5 minutes:) (the white baby is a celebrity everywhere we go:D)

Also in the pictures you'll notice the white plastic chairs as stadium seats. We thought this was great...India is known for these plastic chairs everywhere...restaurants, doctors offices, churches...so it was very fitting that the stadium would use these as well, including color coded sections...red chairs in one section, blue chairs in another section, the white section (where we were sitting). Wearing light blue--India's color

This particular game was lasting for 5 days in Bangalore. We saw day one. At the end of the 5th day whoever has the most scores wins. Brutal:) There are also games that last 2 days, one day and 2 hours. Cricket is "THE" sport in India and sadly enough the only one you can watch on tv besides soccer on Sat/Sun nights.

Christmas Time in Bangalore

It has been really nice to experience the Christmas season in Bangalore. If it weren't December and I didn't know what time of year it was I would have no clue it was Christmas. People here do celebrate Christmas--they call it "Western Christmas"--with gifts, trees, food, etc. But since there are so many religious festivals here it doesn't get much advertisement. That is what has been so nice. There is no hustle and bustle like I feel from Thanksgiving to New Years in the U.S. The calendar hasn't become full of events every weekend, the stores aren't decorated and traffic is always bad, not just for the mad rush of Christmas shopping that happens this time of year in the states:D And apart from our nativity screensaver (shown above) there are no decorations in our house. It has been so wonderfully simple this year. It has allowed us to focus wholly on Christ's birth which is very refreshing.

Ofcourse, I am sad that the real reason for Christmas is not celebrated here--Jesus and His salvation! There are many Christians here that are geniunely worshipping but for most of the people it's just another god and just another festival.

I think too it is easy for me to revel in the simplicity and non-commercialism right now when I know we are coming to the states to be with our family and friends for this special season. We know Americans that will be staying here alone and I'm sure it will be really tough. That would be the true test of being satisfied in Christ's birth alone--without all the familiar traditions and loved ones that go along with it. I hope that we can continue to experience the simplicity in the states even among all the nice "extras" of this season.

Mattress

Brian's back has been really bothering him the last 3 weeks so we decided to break down and buy a better mattress than the cheap roll up mattress pad we were using on our bed. The queen size bed came with a mattress (shown in picutre) that is literally as hard as a rock:) So Brian bought this roll up pad that you can get from pillow stores here. We figured our housekeeper would want the old mattresses. When I asked her if she did she was beside herself, she even got tears in her eyes. Previously when we had visited their home I noticed that they only had one twin size bed although there are 4 adults that live there. I assumed the other 3 slept on the floor. When I offered her the mattress she told me that they sleep on a mat on the floor. I'm not really sure where they will put the mattress during the day because their home is not big enough to leave it out. I'm sure they will prop it up against a wall or something.

I share this not to demean her at all--but to give you a glimpse of what life is like for millions of people here. She is actually well off compared to others that live in tarp tents, concrete cyclinder block or sheet metal homes the size of an american bathroom.

Even though we are faced with poverty here everywhere we go, amazingly you can still distance yourself from it, especially when you have a nice home and luxeries to remove yourself from the reality of the world outside. I am so thankful for Vanajakshi and her family. It reminds me each day of the words Jesus says in Luke 6:20-26

"Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kindgom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when men hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. "

"But woe to you are rich, for you have already received your comfort. Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep. Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for that is how their fathers treated the false prophets."

I know that Vanajakshi, and millions others, will always be "poor" until they know the spiritual richness of our Father and I also know that thanks to the saving power of Jesus those who are "materially rich" and have these woes pronounced against them have a way to become "poor" by following Him and receive eternal "riches"! Thank you Lord!

Peas and Yogurt--yummy:)

These videos are of Kai eating peas mixed with plain yogurt. It made him pucker but he just kept eating:) Corban & Haddon got a kick out of watching Kai's funny faces:) so did I

Boys Racing Cars

Boys Racing Cars II

Boys Racing Cars III

Bad News...Good News

Bad News...
We were so excited to finally have a car (bought last Monday) but on Friday night it "broke"...yes, 5 days later:) This seems to be the way of life in India--or atleast ours:) We dropped it off at the shop yesterday. We're hoping it's minor since the car checked out great before we bought it. So we are back to rickshaws and buses--hopefully not for long:)
Good News...
I found out this weekend that our building has an ironing service!! I get really behind on ironing Brian's work clothes so i was so excited to find out they do it for the equivilant of 5 cents a shirt and 10 cents for pants!! I took the clothes down to the parking garage this morning where the ironing "shop" is set up in a corner. They were using these huge metal irons that have burning coals inside of them (well they were burning red--i don't know if it was coal). Noone spoke english so i hope i get them back:D (i did get to sign a book to tell them which flat we live in)

My Apologies to Customs

Well I mentioned earlier in a blog that Indian Customs is known to lose or pocket international mail. This may be true but the reason our mail is arriving late is because we had the wrong zip code:D I noticed on our packages that they were crossing thru the zip code we thought it was and putting a different one. I asked the security guards what the address was and it is in fact different along with some of our address:D Addresses here are more like directions:) The street we face does not have a name so our address directs people using landmarks near us. Here's our correct address:
Frazier
Apt 115-B1 Sobha Aquamarine
Sarjapur Outer Ring Road
Near INDIAN OIL PETROL Bunk
Vill-Bellandur, Bangalore, Karnataka
India PIN-560103

Johnny Jump Up

We brought this Johnny Jump Up with us from the states and for 3 months I've been racking my brain on how we could make it work on our doors. We have door frames but one side of the door in every room has a big thick concrete overhang. Well last week I asked Brian to take a look to see if he could figure something out. Being the engineer that he is, he figured out how to attach it in less than a minute!:) 3 months lost b/c I didn't ask my smart husband sooner!:) But Kai loves it and it helps momma out during dinner cooking time!