We are so thankful for the many friends we have here to celebrate the holidays with. From foreigners to students coming over we have had a busy season. The kids had a great time Christmas morning opening gifts and playing with their new toys. We are also so thankful for the boxes that have come to give us the comforts of home. We even had Christmas cards to hang up on our fridge. We found a fake Christmas tree and decorated it with treasured ornaments we brought from the States. We also had our small, travel sized Nativity Scene set out to enjoy.
We started a new tradition of ice sledding in the downtown park. It is a pond frozen over and rentals to use by the hour. We all enjoyed it so much and can’t wait till next Christmas to do it again.
After Christmas day it was relaxing and the idea of being so far from home settled in a bit. We only hold on to the fact that we are making an impact during this time and that we have eternity with our loved ones. Skype has helped us stay connected with family. We were able to talk with both sides of the family for Christmas and even opened gifts sent in the mail. It was very nice!
It is so cold! Snow is falling and so is the temperature. We actually know what 0 degrees F. feels like. Keeping our home warm is sometimes a challenge with our limit of gas per month, but we have been cozy nonetheless.
With the cold weather, we look forward to our travel to Thailand the end of January for three weeks. Our company meets every year and it is always amazing. We also have an opportunity to get health check-ups, dental visits, and immunization booster shots. Alleyah had a bad fall about two and half months ago. Since then she has a tooth that is turning black. We hope she can get an x-ray and see what to do for her. It is so nice to have Thailand as an option. Here the dental office does not use Novocain. It has been a pretty scary experience for those who have had emergency situations. We hope we find out that we are all very healthy for a continued year here in Asia.
Missing all of you~ The Joneses!
