Christmas Preparations!

It's the tropics, but we're still getting ready for Christmas!  Here's a few scenes from our preparations this year.....  Like our Santa Hats?  I bought them locally.  Our host country celebrates all of the major holidays for all of the major religions and cultures .....Idul Fitri, Christmas, Chinese New Year!  The local department stores are happy to provide merchandise and make a profit off of them all, too!

Our first Christmas photo for 2013 ....taken on the night of the school Christmas concert.  What I think is interesting about this photo is ....note how the mother's spine and hips are knocked out of alignment by holding the large toddler on one side!  She has to lean sideways just to stay upright!

Dave helped the boys get the tree ready.  The stand broke, so they filled this bucket with sand and rocks to anchor it upright.  Gotta love sand and rocks!

The last 2 years I have put our tree up on a table, far from little hands.  This year I decided to have a tactile tree and let the boys have full access to it.  It was a good decision.  They enjoyed decorating the tree.  Our  more special ornaments are at the top.  Joshua has really enjoyed deconstructing many of our cheap felt ornaments on the lower branches, picking off the glitter and beads and tinsel and making treasures of them.  

Our new garage sale angel tree topper.  Jonathan asked "Is this Bethany?"  We had a small discussion about our theology of angels and showed him the other ornaments we have in memory of Bethany.

Little boy ornament placement 

The finishing touch!

Josh is crazy about balls.  We started out with about 10 of these glittery balls on the our tree...but all of the bottom ones were gone and lost or broken after the 2nd day of the Christmas tree.  It's okay.  My main rule for the tree is they may not climb up on the table (actually our ottoman without the cushion!) that the tree is sitting on.   They've been keeping that rule so I'm content.

Heading to the school Christmas concert

 Baking Christmas cookies with our traditional family recipe!  Joshua's favorite tool is the egg beater.  He calls it "my Tool" and looks for it every day lately.

 The boys got their first Christmas presents (special crayons and drawing paper) of the season from our friends the Gearys.  Look how creatively she wrapped the packages!

 Now we are trying to make candy-cane ornaments out of beads.  

+I think this is one of those activities that might work better with girls?  The boys fizzled out on this project shortly after these photos were taken.....but we'll give it another go in a day or so!  My goal is to have at least one complete by each boy so in the future I can at least say "Jonathan/Joshua, you made this ornament when you were four/not yet two."  

So that's a bit of our Christmas cheer.  Hmmm, this will be our 4th Christmas away from our homes and families....but it doesn't feel so far away to us.  We have Skype so our families can join us for a few moments on Christmas morning (their Christmas Eve).  We can send Christmas cards home with a few people in our community who are going home for Christmas.  We can even order presents for our loved ones on the internet and have them sent to their homes!  The wrapping paper is not as nice, of course.   I can share a few of our moments with all of you reading our little blog.  I just realized all of these things I just mentioned are "cultural" things and have little to do with the real reason we celebrate....the birth of Christ.  We do celebrate Christ's birth and proclaim the truth of it, but all of these "trimmings" of the holiday do make us feel more at home and happy this time of year.  

Christmas Eve scenes

It's Christmas Eve here!  We are busy doing family stuff, but I wanted to share a bit of our day with loved ones who might be checking the blog!  We love you and miss you!  Merry Christmas!

We finished up our two advent calenders today.  The sticker scene, from Grandma Arlette, is seen in the background.  The ornament one, from Grandma Coral, gave us a second toy rocking horse ornament today.  Here Jonathan is showing us the both of them. 

The ornament advent calender has given us a lot of cute ornaments for our tree -- a train, a candy cane, a couple of snowmen, an angel and even a manger scene.

 We just have a little fake tree, so I'm happy to put it up high on the counter and avoid the junk stress of little hands pulling things off every day.  Joshua would sure love to get his hands on it though!

He LOVES it when someone takes compassion on him and picks him up so he can see the tree and the lights up close!

So Jonathan did a little manger scene art project today.  (Becky, this is from the curriculum you sent us. Thanks!)  After we pasted Mary and Joseph and Baby Jesus on, Jonathan said "But where are the animals?"  He answered his own question...."I know!  We can make some!"  What you see here is "A turtle....a special turtle....a VERY special turtle," and a "special snake," and a "special worm," and a bird and another snake.   Who said only cows and donkeys and sheep could be with Baby Jesus in the stable that night? 

Oh Christmas Tree! ....and the Joy of Rudolph

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree, how lovely are your branches!  This Christmas is lots of fun as Jonathan is starting to understand and enjoy all of the little details that make Christmas....Christmas!

 Making Christmas cards for friends and family....now we have green and white and red confetti all over the house!  Very festive!

 "I'm Rudolph!  I'm Rudolph!"

Let me tell you what you are looking at here ....This is a picture of Santa (Jonathan) driving his sleigh (stool) with the back (basket) loaded with toys (green ball).  Rudolph (daddy) is harnessed up (clothes rack) and is pulling the sleigh wherever Santa leads.

We learning a lot about Baby Jesus too -- who is real. Santa is pretend, and Jonathan knows it .....but Santa is a bit more popular to my airplane/helicopter loving boy since he can fly in the sky!  At least in this brief stage of his life.  :)  I know Jesus understands! 

A chuckle for you: Pizza with mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce!

I thought you might get a kick out of this.  I haven't checked, but I don't think this pizza is being marketed in the US, right?

"Make it a holiday to remember with the Christmas Fun Meal ....featuring our new Jolly Glee Pizza!  Baked on a bed of mashed potato and cranberry sauce and topped with turkey bacon, roasted chicken, red capsicums, pineapples and onions, it's made more irresistible with a cheese-stuffed crust sprinked with parmesan cheese and toppings of crispy cheesy pastry strips and a juicy cherry!"

Alas, too high carb for us, so I guess we'll have to pass.  Gotta love that cherry on top, though!

Merry Christmas 2011

Ahhh....remembering one of our favorite Christmases in 2009!

We had a lovely Christmas Day and were blessed by a special church service and a visit to some American friends!

This is the church we are connected with during our stay in Singapore.  I meant to take pictures of us at church on Christmas, but as usual the camera just wasn't in the right place at the right time, so we'll have to make do with a photo off of their website.

We were due at our friend's house for Christmas dinner at 1 pm and indeed we left church early so we could make it on time.  I spent about 20 minutes on hold with a taxi company only to be told that no taxis were available.  A kind lady from church spent an additional 10 minutes on hold with a different company to be told the same.  Then we slowly figured out which bus to take to the train station for a 40 minute train ride to our friend's neighborhood and a short walk to their 5th floor flat.  We didn't get there until after 2 pm, but there was plenty of food left! 

Christmas with the Whittakers

Danny and Betsy Whittaker were barely acquaintances of mine when they attended First Baptist Church in Lebanon in the early 2000s.  I was mostly in Kalimantan at the time.  They moved to Singapore 7 years ago, where Danny teaches math at the International Community School.  Their 5 year old son, Aaron, is Jonathan's hero.  We've gotten to know Danny and Betsy better during our transits through Singapore over the last year -- they even bravely put us up in their spare bedroom for 2 nights last July when we were stranded due to a connecting flight mess-up  They inspire us.  Betsy's parents, Frank and Susie, were also visiting from Othello, WA for a few weeks.   Thanks for a wonderful Christmas Day, Whittakers!

The Patrow family Christmas Tree 2011

Merry Christmas 2011!!

This is our Christmas tree this year and the only Christmas decoration in our dwelling!   For me, it's quite minimalist (kind of Charlie Brown), but we are thankful for it!  It is a Jesse Tree.

The Jesse Tree is a devotional book that starts on the first Sunday of Advent and has a short devotional for each day until Christmas.  The devotions start with a promise of the Messiah in Isaiah 11:  "There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots."  It then goes from creation to the birth of Jesus, "tracing the spiritual history of Christ."  Each day has a symbolic ornament.  We are using photocopies and double-stick tape this year ....we might get more sophisticated the next day we do the Jesse tree in a few years.  Check out these beautiful ideas on Pinterest for non-Charlie-Brown versions! 

Close-up of the toddler-mommy artwork on our tree! 

So to give you a few examples of the symbolism:

The building represents Solomon's temple and his humble request for wisdom from the Lord.
The heart represents God's word in the hearts of His people, as described in Jeremiah 31:31-34.
The Lion represents the story of Daniel and the Lion's Den.

Back at home, we were also enjoying lighting the candles of our Advent wreath every night at dinner.  Alas candles are not allowed in high rise apartments, and I can't find any battery operated ones .....so our Advent wreath is packed away for now.

Peek-A-Boo!

Ugh, we've had internet issues for about 10 days now. So finally, here is the promised video of Jonathan on Christmas Day. (I know, I know, it's February already!) He got several presents on Christmas Day, but his favorite thing was the box that Grandma Coral sent from America -- minus it's contents! Here he's enjoying a Peek-A-Boo game with his daddy.



It's been almost 3 weeks since the miscarriage. We are still disappointed, but able to move forward now with a new scar. We've received a lot of support and encouragement from all of you and from the expat community here. Thank you -- it helps so much, more than you know.

Christmas Stockings -- Christmas Eve and Jonathan's is done!

Well, it is public now -- we are expecting Our Little Miracle #3!  We are so happy and excited!  We were hoping this would happen, but I really doubted it could since Jonathan is still a very frequent nurser, even at night.  So we feel God has given us a miracle -- Thank you Lord!

Other than some (a lot!) exhaustion, I am feeling well.  No nausea.  I am more sensitive to smells, so Jonathan's dirty diapers are now being stored in the back of the house instead of our bedroom.  I've had a little light-headedness from time to time.  I almost wish I felt more symptomatic for reassurance that the baby is getting the right hormones ....but I just have to trust God to do what is best for us.   The exhaustion reminds me that I am indeed pregnant and so I have prescribed myself to rest when I feel winded and to nap when Jonathan naps since such amazing things are happening inside and apparently the new baby needs that energy.

So, since I am Soooooooooooo tired, all of the time, my expectations of what will be accomplished for Christmas have fallen drastically........but I did finally finish Jonathan's stocking today.

In the year after Bethany died, I cross-stitched her stocking.  Somehow, filling in this simple picture, pixel-by-pixel, was so calming and so healing to me.  I needed to have her presence recognized in our home each Christmas, to proclaim to all who enter that she is an important member of our family.  As for it's function, it will not be filled with gifts for her.  Instead it will have a small gift FROM her and a few words for each member of the family.  This year, just little notes actually. 

Bethany's stocking

So now the goal is for each member of our family to have their own stitched stocking.  I don't work on this every day, but it does take me about a year to complete one project.  I already have the designs and materials for Dave and I's stockings, but haven't started on those yet.  (I have some felt to quickly throw together something for Dave and I for tomorrow, but if it doesn't happen, I guess we'll use athletic socks!)  Some of you will remember seeing me stitching away from time to time .....here is the finished product!

Jonathan's stocking -- finished in the nick of time!

Merry Christmas everybody!  We miss you and love you so much!

Update on Volcano: Merapi Stars and Human Trafficking

I wanted to do a special post about this ornament on our tree -- the Merapi star.

Actually we have 5 of them!

This star = hope and employment for victims of the Merapi volcano

Many of the refugees from Mount Merapi returned to their villages a few weeks ago and are slowly rebuilding their lives, but this is not the case for all. Some villages are completely destroyed and the land will be uninhabitable for at least 3-5 years. Those villagers are still living in uncomfortable refugee camps. Others have returned to their villages to find their fields covered with ash and volcanic rock, their homes severely compromised, and water systems destroyed.

It's impossible to build houses or grow food on this land.

The people in the camps are vulnerable, without employment and becoming more desperate. Human traffickers are targeting them already, offering employment either locally or abroad. People will sign up, eager for a chance to raise money for themselves or their family, and be transported. Most will end up in forced labor or sexual exploitation. It is also not unusual here for families in desperation to "sell" a child into sexual trafficking. It breaks my heart as a mother to write those words, but it is true. They do not choose because of selfish reasons but for their families to survive. We can not judge because we will never be in this situation to understand the heart of such decision making.

These Merapi stars are one way that God's people here are providing employment and hope for Merapi refugees, enabling funding to rebuild their villages and combat human trafficking. The refugees hand-crafted these intricate star ornaments, made from recycled paper, wire and beads. They were personally paid 2500 rupiah for every star they completed. The stars were then sold for 10,000 rupiah each (about $1.10), with the additional 7500 rupiah returned to the crafter's village for rebuilding projects and continuing the new bead making business.

The first 2000 stars made sold out locally in 3 days -- raising over $2000 for the villages and for the business. Now the crafters have moved on and are learning how to make different kinds of beads from pop cans, banana leaves and other materials. They are exploring designs for jewelry and bags and other things. Hopefully this will just be the beginning of sustainable employment and safety for these people.

If this work of God moves you to want to give to it financially, a special fund is already set up for donations with 100% going toward helping the Merapi victims. Give to OC International, PO Box 36900, Colorado Springs, CO 80936. Merapi Star Account # 440030.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

I just thought it would be nice to share a bit of the Christmas season -- what we've been doing at our house so far!

We started the Sunday after Thanksgiving, which is the first Sunday of Advent. We got out our Advent wreath and our Christmas tree. We are so thankful that artificial trees are available here!

We have a lot of stars in our Christmas decor, to remind us of our sweet Bethany, because she had this very special star in her footprint.....

Bethany's special star footprint inspires our Christmas decor

So this is our Advent Wreath, shaped like...... a star! Every evening (okay almost) after dinner, we light the appropriate candles, and recite John 8:12 "Jesus said 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.'" Then we sing a Christmas carol together, read Scripture and a little devotional. Jonathan enjoys watching the candles, although we sometimes have to cut the hymns and readings short to be kid friendly.

Jesus said "I am the light of the world." John 8:12

When we were putting up the tree, Jonathan of course wanted to be involved. We decided to go for the tabletop tree as we didn't think it would last very long on the floor!

Jonathan is an excellent helper, but has to be instructed not to eat the lights!

And not to try and wobble the table so much that the tree falls off! He's got some muscles!

We added some decorations. We brought some special ornaments from home ......

Remembering our firstborn

And our second blessing from the Lord!

And the greatest blessing of all -- Baby Jesus! (Yes, my friend, I still have this, and it came around the world with us!)

Our last vacation deserves to be on our Christmas tree forever!

Then we added a few batik ornaments that we bought here locally....

And last, we needed a tree topper. Fortunately my neighbor had a good idea for this!

Aluminum foil + cardboard + toilet paper tube = WOWSA tree topper!

You won't see it in Martha Stewart magazine, but our Christmas tree helps us to celebrate the Christmas Spirit!