Saying good-bye AND hello!

This has been an emotional week, one with both sadness and joy.  

Alec, Kari, and Jonathan were with us for 3 wonderful weeks and celebrating Christmas together made it even more special.

We got to experience Alec's first hair cut.  He doesn't have a lot of hair, but what he does have, he sports well in a Mohawk!   (Jonathan occupied him with a fruit Smoothie while Kari cut his hair.  It worked.  He didn't fuss, wiggle or cry.)

Both Glenn and I got some quality time playing with Alec that we will treasure forever.   Alec had lots of fun stacking all the empty ice cream containers that uncle Alvin (former co-worker) gave us when he and aunt Mary were packing to move back to the U.S..

Somewhere along the way, Alec learned that if he wants a snack, he has to sit on the floor to eat it.  (Kari is guessing it was Dorothea, their house helper in Africa.)   It was always so cute to see where he would choose to sit when one of us offered him a snack!  He often went to the little cubby corner between the fridge and microwave.

He enjoyed riding "horsey" on my back, with the help of his dad.  Both Glenn and I had special things that we did with him, and I am curious to see if he will remember them between now and when we see him again in Georgia this summer.

It was sad when we had to pack all his toys, clothes, and baby bottles to send him to his real home.

This picture reflects the way I felt when they all left.  Sad.  Quiet.

And I really, really miss seeing his little boots drying next to Appa's.

So now our life has settled back to our own little routine.   When we hear the rooster crow next door, we look at each other and smile because it brings back such wonderful memories of Alec barking like a dog and crowing like the rooster he so often heard while here.

Most of this past week has been spent putting away baby things and getting caught up on emails, Skype calls and other work-related tasks.  Back to our real world.   We've had snow several times this week so we've spent most of the time working side-by-side in front of our cozy little fireplace!

BUT, in the midst of all this "getting caught up", we were thrilled to welcome Billy and Sheri to Budapest, to our team, and to Arriba's!   Sheri is our new medical coordinator for Europe.  They are not "technically" on our team, but we consider them part of our local team since member care and medical work closely together to take care of our people.  We have been asked to help get them oriented to living in Budapest, show them around, and help them settle in.  It's our pleasure!  We're thrilled they're here!  (This is the joy part of our week!)

Billy and Sheri live in an apartment in downtown Budapest, about 25 minutes away by car (50 minutes by public transportation).  We spent 5 1/2 hours with them one day this week, introducing them to our best Mexican fast-food place and how to get out to Ikea, Decathalon, and other great stores on the outskirts of town, and they will be coming for dinner at our house later this week.

We are looking forward to getting to know and working with them for the next 3 years!