Aint that the truth!!

Our weekend

We're back in town, for a few days anyway. Our trip to IN went well. I had a great time with my friends and Chris had a great time with his friends. We saw his family, and I got to know them a little better.
We're planning on seeing Jodie Clark on Thursday. She's in the area visiting her grandmother, and she'll come over on to eat on Th. So, between now and Sat. I need to cook, clean, shop, do laundry, and have people over. : )

Latest

Just wanted to let you all know the latest. I got my grades for the semester, and I got five A's and one B-. My best semester yet in my academic career. It helps that the program is easier then seminary.

Still keeping busy. Last week I was sick for several days (mostly just weak and sleeping 15-17 hours a day, with no appetite), so they let me postpone my statistics test until Wednesday. Which was a blessing. That's my major news for the week, cause I have no life.

Other than that things are going well. Kim was sick last week too, but is better. Work is going well for her. There are a lot of changes at work for her, so I get to hear second hand how things are at my old stomping grounds. We're both looking forward to being at Ben's for Christmas. She's only going to stay for a day, and leave Sunday evening, so she can be with her family for Christmas.

" "

The B Team

Micah's Wisdom

When I arrived home from a staff meeting tonight, Micah came running up to me: "Mom, I want to give you a hug, because I just need to." Who can argue with that?

He was running around today, playing with a sword, destroying bad guys, and he assured me, "Mom, I'm not going to kill you. Because you would give me a big spanking." Glad he realizes that.

Leftovers

How do you tell a venus fly trap that it has to eat everything on its "plate" when you wouldn't eat its leftovers either?

Weekend productivity

Chris and I played hookie from church yesterday, but we got lots done otherwise. We didn't have an evening service, and Chris had several things he had to finish for seminary this week...so we stayed home. I felt really good about myself, though, because I got lots done (including five loads of laundry and washing my car.)
The costarican girl we met at Kim's grandparents' house told me about a grocery store in Philly that had some Argentine food. I wanted to stop in before Christmas and yesterday was the only day that I could drive down to check it out.
I was surprised by what I found, and very happy. : ) I also stopped by the Brazilian section of Philly to get some Guaraná. So we now have Guaraná and Paso de los Toros Pomelo sitting on our floor because we don't have any room for it anywhere else.
I got a stash of Cerealitas crackers, of which I'm very happy (they're the best crackers ever!) They had mate, but of course I have enough, so I didn't get any. Seeing Exquisita cake mixes made me laugh, for some reason. I was very happy to also get La Salteña ravioles and empanada discs (Chris loves empanadas). They also had pascualina discs (for a lack of a better word), but I didn´t get any because I don´t have a pan I could cook them in. I´ll have to work on that. There´s also some Terrabusi products in our apartment now. : ) I´ll have to hit the gym every day for the next month, I think.
Anyway, it was a strange weekend for us, but a good one. Chris only has one more sermon to finish this week and he´s done with projects! He technically won´t be done with his requirements for his MDiv until next year when he does his senior sermon in chapel, though. But after his one sermon this week (just needs to be prepared, not presented), and a Hebrew final, he´ll be done with his immediate requirements for his MDiv!!!
He´ll probably start on his ThM next semester--he does have to hand in the application first. : )

My weekend productivity

I forgot to post this a few weeks ago: I made this dress for Elianna one Sunday afternoon.

Some of the things we learned on this trip

~It's not a good idea to try to return books to the library before a trip, if there's a blizzard dumping snow on your town.
~Plow trucks are helpful when you've tried to return books to the library during a blizzard...especially if you've managed to straddle the curb in the process of being a good library patron.
~In Iowa, bigger silos mean you're about to reenter civilization.
~Nebraska has lots of cows.
~Driving through the Rockies while it's snowing, with warnings of ice on the road, is very stressful.
~Your ears pop when you drive through the Rockies.
~Most states list the city's population on city limit signs. In Colorado, signs announcing city limits show the elevation of the city.
~Steamboat Springs is at an elevation of 7,000 feet. Your ears pop there, too.
~In Steamboat Springs, the McDonald's has free wi-fi. Do you know of any McDonald's like that?
~When you leave after church on Wed., to drive from Colorado to Wyoming, people warn you to beware of elk crossing the road.
~Mount Rushmore is impressive.
~There's no cell phone reception in the Black Hills National Forest.
~Crazy Horse costs more to see than Mount Rushmore, and it's not even finished.
~Twenty-two hours of driving each way means lots of Dora the Explorer...

States we drove through on this trip

Mount Rushmore

Steamboat Springs

These are pictures from the church and the parsonage. I don't have time to post much more right now. (We are enjoying the free wi-fi at McDonald's. Yes, that would be free wi-fi at McDonald's. Tells you how ritzy this area is.) One picture I took as we drove through the bigger mountains, west of Denver; most of the pictures I took from the car were too blurred. The picture of Jared is in the snow fort he and Andrea built next to the parsonage. One picture shows the kids in the foreground, with a house in the background. The house is the parsonage; the picture was taken from the porch of the "guest house," where we stayed.

Tired but happy

Chris and I went to see "Phantom of the Opera" last night in Philadelphia. We had fourth row seats--it was sweet!! We went with Donna and Alyssa (my supervisor and her daughter.)
I think we're all paying for it today, because we're all exhausted!

It was worth it!

Here's a closer picture of Bryan's smile.

It was worth the sore back, headaches, miles, hours, money, and everything else, just to see these little faces in person! :)

Lunch with Andrew

We had such a good time with Andrew today! He's just as funny as he ever was. We had a good time listening to him talk about what he and Sam did when he was in Argentina. He talked to Sam a bit on the phone, which just revived his memory. Anyway, we had a good time. I got to meet Aunt Carol's mom and sister and Andrew confirmed that they all really do look a like. : )

Gotta love Peanuts!

:-)

Need a smile? Click "play" on the page that will open.

I'm being spoiled

Well, not only did I get a bonus at work, but I also got a nice little gift.
And then, yesterday, I was surprised by seeing a new flat-screen monitor at my desk! Ironically, someone told me my regular monitor was dying (of course I couldn't tell because I looked at it every day), and then out of the blue I got a nifty new one. :)
They're spoiling me at work.

Hey! I think I may be rambling again.

The most productive thing I did this weekend

I had fun carving my very first pumpkin. I drew the face, but the hair was free-hand. :)

This is a test. I've been having problems with Eckman Ramblings. Maybe I don't do well at rambling.

Feudal Society?

While reviewing Andrea's history chapter today about the era of shoguns and samurais in Japan, I asked her, "What is a feudal society?," expecting an answer that explained the relationship between classes of people.

Hesitating only a moment, Andrea replied, "A society where people fight with everybody else."

Sam, this is why you need to keep studying vocabulary. :-)

Why Everyone Needs a Micah

(Jason works on computer)

Micah, approaching Jason: "Daddy, can I help you?"

Jason, distracted: "Help with what, bud?"

Micah, confidently climbing onto his lap: "I need to help you cuddle, Daddy."

SAM

Here are the requested photos.

Some fall pictures

I took these yesterday at the park near our place. Click on the picture to see a bigger version.

It's not personal, it's...soccer.

I'm glad to see that the Colo-Colo fans didn't have anything personal against Boca players those many years ago. It's just a soccer thing.

Aint that the truth!

I got my bonus!

I had my performance review last week, and I was told I was getting the full bonus that I was told I was "eligible" for when I signed on to the project.
I got it today (with my paycheck)! I thought it was pretty fast, considering several people didn't think we get any bonuses until next year.
God's been good to us by providing this extra income which has been used already to pay towards credit cards. So, I'm not any richer, just less in debt. :)

Hershey's got a good thing going...

http://www.hersheys.com/kisses/products/detail.asp?name=dulce-de-leche

If only they'd make the dark chocolate ones like this. :)

My Latest

Just wanted to let everyone know I'm still alive. The last couple of weekends I've had a bad migraine, especially this Sunday night. But I'm ok today.

My part time job as grad assistant is going ok. I'm starting to get the hang of who's in charge and who isn't. always a tough thing when you're at the bottom of the food chain :). Actually, it's more like figuring who's going to tell me what to do and who wants me to work on my own, since everyone's in charge :).

School is still fun, but hectic. My first set of classes are almost over, crazy though that seems. I'm finishing up assignments, and starting to study for a final. I have 3 classes, one with a big paper, one with an in class final, and one with a take home final. I'm not sure which one is worse. They all have their own finely nuanced levels of pain and suffering.

Kim is doing well, just a little stressed at work. She has to publish a book of lists of study abroad programs for IIE, the partner organization for her website. She went to home coming at her alma mater over the weekend, and apparently it snowed there right before she got there. So snow is being had all over the place. I'm hoping that means we're going to have a bad winter :).

Other than that, things are going well.

Classic Chris

We weren't going to make it for SS today, so when Chris called Jody, to let him know, Jody told Chris to dress warm because the furnace wasn't working.
Yes, he walked into church like that today. I made sure I walked in a couple minutes before he did. :)

Some pictures from today

The fall folliage wasn't very "fally"...so we just took pictures of a lot of other stuff. :)

chatting

I just participated in an on-line chat with an Argentine home school group! That's a first.

Spring

It is spring in Argentina, but the inside of the school room is the same as ever. We have done American history and chemistry. Now we are in geometry, but it is not going as well as the other two subjects. I started crocheting a small afghan so as to keep me calm, cool and collected. I am making a lot of progress on it, which surprises me. I was calmer, cooler and more collected with chemistry and history, though. Not much else going on.

Proof

These were taken at 8:30 this morning (which, by the way, is October 12th--hardly the start of fall, let alone winter!):

Wisconsin Weather

Here's a reason for you to be thankful today: You're not living in Wisconsin where snow falls on October 11! Granted, it was only a flurry or two, and further granted, it melted as soon as it touched the ground. BUT IT WAS SNOW, NONETHELESS--ON OCTOBER ELEVENTH!!! What is up with that?

I finally got a weekend!

I was able to get some much needed rest yesterday! And, Chris took me to Red Lobster for my birthday (just a week late). It was nice to not have to be at work and think about work.
Not sure what else to write about.
Our church has received a bid for the property (and a good bid, too, according to the pastor). So we might be selling the property sooner than later.
Chris is plugging away at seminary--still not decided what he's doing exactly after his MDiv, but he's leaning to staying at Calvary for his ThM if he needs a ThM for his PhD. Maybe I'll have to call him Dr. Sweety after he gets his PhD...

You'll never believe what I made!

I made milanesas for supper last night. Aren't you proud of me, Liz? :-) I've never tried making them from scratch last night, but they turned out great. I made milanesas napolitanas, too. Kids loved them!

Other big news is that Elianna moved into a toddler bed. She didn't stay in her crib, anyway, so it's not going to make much difference. :-) It has Dora sheets, and how much more exciting can life be than to be in a BIG girl bed with DORA sheets?!?! Don't be jealous, now. We're supposed to rejoice with those that do rejoice.

Jason carpooled to the job site yesterday, then left his coat (with the keys in the pocket) at the job site when he carpooled back to where he'd left his car. Problem with that is that he was already cutting it close for church because of waiting for the carpool(I had his clothes in the car with me), so he ended up missing church altogether. It wouldn't have been as much of a problem if he wasn't teaching the Bible study on Wed. nights. :-/ He did not have a very good day yesterday.

No news on the church front. We'll keep everyone updated if anything happens.

We're still alive

Hello! Thought I'd drop a post to let you know we're alive and well, although pretty tired. The weekend was very long, but we got through it. I can't wait to see my paycheck!
The cool news is that the two people that are involved in our project roll-out are involved in the Spain roll-out. They had mentioned before that I could possibly help with it next year, and told me this weekend that they want me to help with that. It's a lot smaller project than the one in the US for Draeger. It'll start in April and end in October of next year. If I do get to do this, then I would probably do a lot of travelling back and forth between those months. I'm pretty excited at the prospect. At this point, the next step is to get it cleared by my boss (who would need to pay for my travel expenses). I'm pretty sure he'll say yes, but you never know.
If I am over there for work, I'm sure Chris and I will try to work it out so we can spend some vacation time over there together. Sounds like fun, huh? :)