Valentines Day

 We started by making some festive cookies with food dye and my great-grandmother's sugar cookie recipe.  They would have been super with my mom's homemade strawberry jam, but this will have to do.

 You can see the manger scene I made for our kitchen wall at Christmas. It's covering up the ugly holes in the wall.

 We found some fun decorations at the mall.

And then we went bowling!

 Do these look familiar to you all?  Yes, some things are the same the world over! :)

Like an old friend

We saw this girl on a trip to Antakya and she reminded us of our sweet duck.

How do you buy your live roosters?

Delicious Dessert

 This is kunefe.  It's one of the most delicious desserts in the world.  It's fried cheese and Wheaties soaked in sugar syrup. It's so good when it's fresh and hot with cold hard ice cream on top!

The Best Present Ever!

My niece knitted me this beautiful purse and sent it to me.  It's a perfect passport and camera bag and I love the colors!

Opening Presents

 We got to skype with my parents so they could watch us open some of the stuff they sent.

He loves Skittles!

 And Minecraft.

 And this was just a cool shirt and hat that my mom sent.

 I asked for books, and she sent this great one about women from the Bible.  I'm really enjoying it and the stories stick in you mind and I've be read to read more about these women in the Word.  Like, did you know that Boaz's (who married the foreigner Ruth) mother was the prostitute Rahab who hid the spies Joshua sent?  And then she chose to live with the Israelites after that.  I had never made that connection that probably Boaz's mother being a foreigner grafted into Israel had something to do with his acceptance of Ruth.  And all these people are a part of God's story of grace that brings Jesus to us!

 I love getting presents!

 My mom sent socks of course!

 And my friend bought me delicious Oreo chocolate which is truly a treat here.  I'm still hiding it in my closet for a rainy day.

 To remind her of the squirrels in Oregon.

 We love shiny things!

On the first day of Christmas...

Not a partridge, but pigeons!

 Doesn't he make a nice decoration.

And I love this one with Jesus, Santa, and the pigeon.  Yes, this is Christmas at our house.

3rd Annual Christmas Cookie Decorating Party

 Yes, we've made this an official tradition to be carried on every year!

 It says Merry Christmas and the inside is green and red cake with pudding in the middle.

 Some of our best works!