Don't forget to put the seat down (w/ disclaimer)

***Disclaimer: This blog was once shared with a very small group of people most of which were family and a certain someone:-) made repeated requests to share it with others so...sorry to have to go the direction of potty talk but we're just trying to share the full experience!!

As I often do these days, I found myself in a situation this morning in which I just never would have placed myself. I tried to talk to the boys' teacher about an issue they are having, but apparently it was a big enough issue that she felt the need to direct me to the school director.

So after getting the boys settled, I headed to the office where I was invited to be seated and the director and her assistant sat across from me. I then had to explain and request that my children be allowed to stand up to pee!

It is really bothering the boys that the "aunties" make them sit down to pee. Aunties are the women who put on and take off shoes, take backpacks, set up and clean up activities serve lunch and walk around with brooms sweeping up after the kids. At first I thought maybe the sitting was a cultural difference that we were going to have to adapt to, but then I remembered that I see about 13 men a day peeing on the side of the road so I'm pretty sure it's a universal practice. I think it might be that the aunties just don't want to have to clean up after those who miss their "target" and believe me, I get that. But really....

Thankfully the school was very accommodating and Samuel and Everett will be back to their normal routine this morning.....whatever that may be these days...

Hit me with your best shot....

My mother will be thrilled to find out that I finally took the opportunity today to get an immunization that I was due. I didn't have time to finish the series before I left the States, and I have not been real eager to deal with it here.

Thankfully, even though I was off my prescribed schedule, it was no problem getting the prescription. There's no word for schedule in Hindi....just kidding there is...it just isn't often used.

So, I went to "get" my shot and I "got it." In a box. With one tiny little band aid on top.

My web md training did not prepare me for that.

Sigh...another day in paradise...

Every Tribe and Tongue

We finally settled on a church this week, just in time for Palm Sunday. We attended Bangalore International Fellowship and many many nations were represented in the congregation.

What a joy to hear "Hosanna, Hosanna, Hosanna in the highest" shouted in 10 different accents.

And even more of a joy to hear Everett shout it out 3 seconds after everyone else was finished.

(This is our street....no shortage of palms this Sunday or any!)

Coconut Milk

He said he "loved it a little." I think he was a little more interested in the machete that the man used to chop the top off.

Safety First..or if not first then really high up on the list...

We spent the morning at HyperCity. This is Bangalore's version of Super Target. Well it's actually the UK's version of Super Target and it opened in our neighborhood yesterday. It is the talk of the town and I actually ran into several neighbors while we were there. I also ran into the guy who is starting Walmart in Bangalore. He was apparently doing a little market research and since we look like people with keen business senses (or stick out like a white sore thumb around here) he thought we would be the perfect people to talk with.

We were like kids in a candy store finding all sorts of hard to find items like olive oil, canned pears and diet coke sold in cases. It really is a wonderful store.

So all this to say, this was a very modern building, very clean, somewhat efficient in it's operation and it even had a parking garage...it was almost like being home....almost....

We are still in India. We still had to enter through metal detectors. I still had to have my purse searched. Our driver, Channa, was, as always, present. There were still throngs of people. There
were still sales people following me around encouraging me to buy. It still took us close to an hour to check out.

My favorite part was going into the very modern parking garage and seeing this.
















Just makes you feel safe.

Prepositions

Carl and I love to "message" each other on our blackberries during the day. Apparently messaging is better than texting because according to Carl, blah blah blah technical term...I don't know, it just is. (also you don't end up sending inappropriate texts to your cousin in Guam that were intended for your husband....someone I know or am related to did this....I can't remember who... Clare)

We message a lot because moving to a foreign country with your spouse is basically like one big giant marriage retreat. Take away friends, family, social activities, television, and well...hunting and fishing, and you end up with nothing else to do but bond.

Anyhoo. This is the message I got this morning. "It is raining in my office." About 3 months ago I would have called that I typo but I knew better this morning.

Someone left the air conditioner on in Carl's office all night and it rained all night on his desk. He has apparently moved his office to avoid electrocution and is soaking up the water with some old fabric samples. I'm so glad he's from Alaska. I feel it trained him to handle these in-climate conditions.

Strength

Everett had his first day of school EVER.

Carl and I had fully intended on Everett's first day of school starting out with packing all his favorite things in his spiderman lunchbox and depositing him into the loving and capable arms of Mrs McGinnis at Coram Deo.

Plans change....

He hit the ground running, or limping as it were, in new country, with a broken foot, all Indian teachers, a vegetarian Indian menu in the cafeteria and no Americans in his class.

How did he do?

Fine. Just fine.

We love you E-ticket. Since birth you have reminded us from where our help comes.

"But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why for Christ's sake, I delight in weakness, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.". II Corinthians 12:9,10

Radio Silent

We're moving this morning so communication might be spotty for the next few days. We'll post some picture when we're settled.

Sometimes it is inappropriate to whip out a camera...

Apparently one of these times is in an Indian emergency room. It's a shame because I wish I could share, but apparently setting down your screaming child to snap a few shots from your phone is frowned upon.

For all the grandmothers that are reading this, I'll just get the end of the story out of the way. Everett fell off the jungle gym and sprained his foot...or ankle...or something I don't know...which goes back to the whole ER experience. At any rate, other than the fact that he has to crawl around the house, he's fine.

So, in the first 5 minutes at the boys new school, Everett fell off the jungle gym and hurt his foot. Again, for the grandmothers, this was just a happy coincidence which I can only attribute to the fact that Carl was out of town and that seems to be when we make all our ER trips, it had nothing to do with the safety of the school play equipment or the attentiveness of the teachers.

Thank goodness I was there, and I called our one friend here who promptly directed me to the hospital and offered to meet me there. It is very hard to get anything done around here without yelling at people, and you have to live here a while to get used to that so she came along to do all the yelling for me.

Now when I say "promptly," our driver got lost 3 times and then got a ticket which I had no idea was even possible here. But apparently it is. So, promptly, an hour later we arrived at the hospital.

The doctors and nurses were very kind to Everett and to me so I don't want to spend too much time talking about the hospital but let's just say it was no medical city....okay it was no parkland....

So I'll just say...yada yada yada...the power came back on so that they were able to do Everett's xray which looked okay to the lady at the front desk. After some good yelling by my friend, we got a doctor to look at the xray, and she said to just come back in the morning for a cast if he wasn't better.

Hmmm.

I guess I've been here long enough to just go with that, and he does seem a little better this morning. And if you know Samuel and Everett, you know they love to pretend to be dogs so the crawling isn't really bothering anyone....except for strangers....who let's be honest, probably want to whip out their cameras as well.

Truth for Today

E: "Mom, why can only you drink diet coke?"

G: "Because it makes me a better mommy."

This Might be Fun

Many of those who read this blog were present at the infamous dinner party during which we almost lost all our friends.

One fateful night a couple of years ago, Carl and I had a bunch of friends over for dinner and served a vegan meal. You all must feel like you are pretty good friends because almost every husband complained, to my face, about the lack of meat. It's such a blessing having honest (mean) friends.

Well, ironically, we now find ourselves in a situation where meat of any kind is difficult to come by.

So I thought I would appeal to all these wonderful friends (and anyone else) for some ideas for some meatless meals. You can write a recipe or just a quick meal suggestion.

And if you send me some crazy recipe with shitake mushrooms or arugula...well...you're dead to me.

PMI Update

Carl has had so many challenges business wise since being here.

One of those challenges has been hiring staff for the office.

He thinks he has found the right guy though.

He's smart and tough and loyal and won't take no for an answer.....ever....

What would you do?

Or rather, what would your children do if you were driving down the road, you stopped at a stop light and a camel walked right past your car?

We were stopped at a "stop" light near our hotel on Sunday, and man led a camel on rope right by the car.

Samuel and Everett just looked up, took notice, and went right back to playing rock, paper, scissors. They hardly even reacted.

It is so normal to see cows, goats, donkeys, chickens, pigs, dogs, horses, camels right in the middle of the city. It's great....it sort of reminds me of driving around the park cities.

Child Labor

Laundry Day...