Well...two days before Christmas and I'm finally posting pictures of our decorations. In my defense, it's been a busy week and I didn't have internet for most of it. AND I have like twenty people to buy gifts for. Oh yea...and two Christmas suppers to cook. Ten kilos of pork for the 24th and two turkeys for the 25th...
Darn good excuses if I say so myself. And I did...
Tonight Maribel and I, along with Ruddy and Andres went over to the home where Andres' two sisters live. We took my projector and did a movie big screen (Toy Story 3). We brought pop and a little gift bad for each of the kids. It was really fun! We're going to start making it a monthly thing. Life gets a bit repetitive for kids who live in children's homes, so it's fun to do something special for them.
My Christmas shopping is mostly done. I say mostly 'cause my list keeps growing. Last year there were only a couple of guys here, but this year it seems we're going to have a house full. And I figure we can't have people here with us and not have at least one present for them. Most of the guys who'll be here won't be getting presents from anyone else, so...I keep going back to the market just one more time...and that's happened a bunch of times...
As a side note...I get that the malls are busy at home...but until you've been shopping and had people pressed up against three of your four sides...you don't know what crowded is. It's crazy. And HOT! No air conditioned shopping for us. But entertaining none the less. The market we've been going to is huge and has probably three or four hundred little stores in it, all randomly tossed together. It makes life interesting when you're trying to find something specific. And for a country of little people, why the heck don't they have shirts in small sizes. We've been looking for something for Eduardo for three days and most of the stores have nothing small enough for him.
Okay...the ranting is done. Here's a quick run down on our Christmas plans (a few of you have been asking)...
Tomorrow (the 24th) I'll be running around finishing up my shopping. At some point we'll start cooking that 10 kilos of pork we have in the freezer. I have no idea at this point how long 10 kilos of pork takes to cook. But we'll figure it out. We won't be eating until midnight, so there's time. At midnight we'll shoot off a truck load of fireworks and firecrakcers, along with the rest of the city, and then sit down to eat supper. Most Bolivians then head off to visit family and friends for the rest of the night, after they finish eating. They usually finish the festivities around five or six in the morning. We'll just hang out here at the house likely. I usually buy a lot of fireworks, so that should keep us occupied.
Another side note...when midnight strikes, the craziest fireworks display you can imagine happens. The entire city goes crazy. In every direction there are fireworks shooting off and firecrackers exploding. My favourite, by the way, is the "Mother-in-Law Killer". It's about an inch thick and three inches long. Basically it's a piece of dynamite wrapped up in pretty paper. It's awesome...
Saturday morning the 25th, the guys who went to stay with family for the night, will come back, and I'll cook a big brunch for us. It started out the first year as breakfast, but by the time I cooked 3 kilos of bacon...scrambled 4 dozen eggs...made pancakes, toast and cut up fruit for everyone...it was pushing 12:30 in the afternoon. So I explained the concept of "brunch" (which is "desomuerza" in Spanish) and brunch it's been ever since. I just make sure I get a good movie for everyone to watch to keep them entertained while I cook.
After brunch it's gift opening time, which is great. Our first Christmas here, I realized as we were opening presents, that it was the first time most of the guys had ever received a gift just for themselves. It was kind of a sobering thought actually. This year again, we'll be hosting a few guys that will have never experienced getting a gift at Christmas time.
After the gifts, the guys will help me with a bit of supper prep and then head off to play soccer all afternoon (although this year, the gift from my parents may keep them occupied!). =) Supper will role in at around seven-ish (our pastors and their wives, another family from the church, Andres' two sisters and a bunch of guys who hang out here a lot, will all be joining us). It's going to be turkey (two turkeys actually) and all the trimmings! I'm even making pumkin pies. It's fun cooking here. The whole Canadian turkey dinner thing is new for most people and they think you're the most amazing guy in the world for coming up with things like apple crisp. =) I enjoy reveling in their admiration...
After supper we're hauling out a bunch of games and I'm going to introduce everyone to the joy of Dutch Blitz. Sorry if you don't know what that is...you're missing out...
Sunday we'll probably hang out down by the river and then the church is having a potluck "Thanksgiving" supper. It'll be a time to remember what God's done in the past year and say thank you.
All in all, a busy weekend. Okay...some pictures of the house...
I really like our decorations. I was telling one of the guys that it was a lot funner buying decorations last year. My parents were here, and while my dad hung out in the tool section, my mom and I went shopping. We just tossed whatever caught our eye into the cart and dad met us at the counter with his credit card. Things are cheap enough (by Canadian standards) that it probably didn't cost him more than $40, so I don't think he minded too much... =)
Anyhow...that's our Christmas. I thought I'd just mention that if any of you thought you might like to help us with Christmas, that'd be great. I'm not very good at the asking, but we're actually in a bit of a tough financial spot this year. It's been a bit stressful. If you'd like to give something towards the guys' gifts, you can contact my mission at 1-800-465-7601 or just drop me a note. Thanks! =)
Have a very Merry Christmas everyone! Take some time to be thankful for what God has given you this season. As much as I enjoy all the stuff that goes along with Christmas (and I do!), one of my favourite family traditions is reading the story of Christ's birth Christmas morning. It's something we do here as well, along with taking time to pray and thank God for everything He's given us. It's something that always moves me.
Thanks again for everything you do! We appreciate it greatly! =)
Darn good excuses if I say so myself. And I did...
Tonight Maribel and I, along with Ruddy and Andres went over to the home where Andres' two sisters live. We took my projector and did a movie big screen (Toy Story 3). We brought pop and a little gift bad for each of the kids. It was really fun! We're going to start making it a monthly thing. Life gets a bit repetitive for kids who live in children's homes, so it's fun to do something special for them.
My Christmas shopping is mostly done. I say mostly 'cause my list keeps growing. Last year there were only a couple of guys here, but this year it seems we're going to have a house full. And I figure we can't have people here with us and not have at least one present for them. Most of the guys who'll be here won't be getting presents from anyone else, so...I keep going back to the market just one more time...and that's happened a bunch of times...
As a side note...I get that the malls are busy at home...but until you've been shopping and had people pressed up against three of your four sides...you don't know what crowded is. It's crazy. And HOT! No air conditioned shopping for us. But entertaining none the less. The market we've been going to is huge and has probably three or four hundred little stores in it, all randomly tossed together. It makes life interesting when you're trying to find something specific. And for a country of little people, why the heck don't they have shirts in small sizes. We've been looking for something for Eduardo for three days and most of the stores have nothing small enough for him.
Okay...the ranting is done. Here's a quick run down on our Christmas plans (a few of you have been asking)...
Tomorrow (the 24th) I'll be running around finishing up my shopping. At some point we'll start cooking that 10 kilos of pork we have in the freezer. I have no idea at this point how long 10 kilos of pork takes to cook. But we'll figure it out. We won't be eating until midnight, so there's time. At midnight we'll shoot off a truck load of fireworks and firecrakcers, along with the rest of the city, and then sit down to eat supper. Most Bolivians then head off to visit family and friends for the rest of the night, after they finish eating. They usually finish the festivities around five or six in the morning. We'll just hang out here at the house likely. I usually buy a lot of fireworks, so that should keep us occupied.
Another side note...when midnight strikes, the craziest fireworks display you can imagine happens. The entire city goes crazy. In every direction there are fireworks shooting off and firecrackers exploding. My favourite, by the way, is the "Mother-in-Law Killer". It's about an inch thick and three inches long. Basically it's a piece of dynamite wrapped up in pretty paper. It's awesome...
Saturday morning the 25th, the guys who went to stay with family for the night, will come back, and I'll cook a big brunch for us. It started out the first year as breakfast, but by the time I cooked 3 kilos of bacon...scrambled 4 dozen eggs...made pancakes, toast and cut up fruit for everyone...it was pushing 12:30 in the afternoon. So I explained the concept of "brunch" (which is "desomuerza" in Spanish) and brunch it's been ever since. I just make sure I get a good movie for everyone to watch to keep them entertained while I cook.
After brunch it's gift opening time, which is great. Our first Christmas here, I realized as we were opening presents, that it was the first time most of the guys had ever received a gift just for themselves. It was kind of a sobering thought actually. This year again, we'll be hosting a few guys that will have never experienced getting a gift at Christmas time.
After the gifts, the guys will help me with a bit of supper prep and then head off to play soccer all afternoon (although this year, the gift from my parents may keep them occupied!). =) Supper will role in at around seven-ish (our pastors and their wives, another family from the church, Andres' two sisters and a bunch of guys who hang out here a lot, will all be joining us). It's going to be turkey (two turkeys actually) and all the trimmings! I'm even making pumkin pies. It's fun cooking here. The whole Canadian turkey dinner thing is new for most people and they think you're the most amazing guy in the world for coming up with things like apple crisp. =) I enjoy reveling in their admiration...
After supper we're hauling out a bunch of games and I'm going to introduce everyone to the joy of Dutch Blitz. Sorry if you don't know what that is...you're missing out...
Sunday we'll probably hang out down by the river and then the church is having a potluck "Thanksgiving" supper. It'll be a time to remember what God's done in the past year and say thank you.
All in all, a busy weekend. Okay...some pictures of the house...
As you come in the front door...
Another angle...
I think I mentioned how our decorations kept falling down.
You can see how they're taped to the ceiling. It didn't work
that great, but it's all we've got...
Looking down the stairs at night...
I really like our decorations. I was telling one of the guys that it was a lot funner buying decorations last year. My parents were here, and while my dad hung out in the tool section, my mom and I went shopping. We just tossed whatever caught our eye into the cart and dad met us at the counter with his credit card. Things are cheap enough (by Canadian standards) that it probably didn't cost him more than $40, so I don't think he minded too much... =)
Anyhow...that's our Christmas. I thought I'd just mention that if any of you thought you might like to help us with Christmas, that'd be great. I'm not very good at the asking, but we're actually in a bit of a tough financial spot this year. It's been a bit stressful. If you'd like to give something towards the guys' gifts, you can contact my mission at 1-800-465-7601 or just drop me a note. Thanks! =)
Have a very Merry Christmas everyone! Take some time to be thankful for what God has given you this season. As much as I enjoy all the stuff that goes along with Christmas (and I do!), one of my favourite family traditions is reading the story of Christ's birth Christmas morning. It's something we do here as well, along with taking time to pray and thank God for everything He's given us. It's something that always moves me.
Thanks again for everything you do! We appreciate it greatly! =)
3 comments:
This is EXACTLY the post I was waiting for. Your house looks just awesome! I am very impressed...we wish you and your guys the Merriest Christmas :)
Your house looks beautiful! I'm impressed that you pulled that off in Bolivia. Hope you and the guys have a great Christmas!
I always like lots of greenery and lights...so when Mom & Dad were here last year, I stocked up. =)
Our house at home is crazy decorated (thanks Mom!) so it doesn't feel like Christmas unless there's lots to see... =)
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