Merry, merry Christmas!

Glenn and I hope you had a great Christmas, surrounded by all your family and friends. If not all of them, then at least some of them! This was our first Christmas without our kids or any family member at all...well, we certainly missed our family this Christmas but God gave us 13 Journeymen and ISCers to help us take our mind off of the fact and to help us celebrate the birth of our Savior. We had a really good Christmas...but we missed being with our family.



We started off the week with food preparation for when the Journeymen arrived. We made a HUGE batch of Chex mix, double batches of brownies, peanut butter squares and White Trash for the Journeymen up at the Eden House.



Monday Glenn and I went to the Christmas Market in Vienna, Austria for the day with a couple of our missionary families that live here in Budapest.



We went to 4 different markets during the day, but there were several more that we didn't have time to visit. Most of the booths were selling Christmas items, particularly ORNAMENTS!



In addition to ornaments, there were a lot of booths selling food of all kinds. Our favorite was lunch! We ate a type of sausage in a baguette. It was delicious!



They also sold doughnuts like these, and candies of all kinds, mulled wine and spiced cider, gingerbread cakes and cookies.



One of the booths was selling mistletoe! These two men were standing in front of the booth, and I kept waiting for them to move out of the way so I could take a picture. I finally gave up and just as I snapped the picture, they moved. Even though this picture LOOKS like they are about to kiss, they did NOT. It just looks like it.



This is one of the booths selling cellophane-wrapped gingerbread cookies. They decorate the cookies with scrumptious frosting.



Booth after booth after booth of Christmas balls, ornaments, wreaths, swags, flowers, toys, gloves and hats, clocks, pottery, scarves, books, knick knacks, and lots more.



We found peppermint candy canes for 1 euro each, which is about $1.30! I just returned from the U.S. where I bought peppermint candy canes at Walmart for 88 cents for a dozen! What a mark-up! I'm so glad I bought them in the U.S.!!! (We bought 5 dozen so we could hang some on our tree, make peppermint bark, and for the Journeymen to be able to eat too so they could have a taste of "home".)



We also went to a market at the Schoenbrunn Palace on the outskirts of town that we visited this summer with our kids. The setting was beautiful with the building lit up. Even though it looks like snow on the ground, there wasn't any. It was however, verrrrry cold!



This market was similar to the others, but it had a larger variety of things for sale.



In the afternoon of Christmas Eve while Glenn was cooking half of the turkey, a couple of us made over a hundred sugar cookies and decorated them.



Elizabeth made the frosting for us in 7 different colors so that we could have lots of variety!!



As some of the young people returned from shopping and sightseeing in town, they joined us in decorating the cookies. This is one of my favorite Christmas traditions from when our kids were little, and I was so glad the Journeymen wanted to decorate them too! I love to cover them with lots of confectioners sugar frosting and then pile them high with Red Hots (which I bought in the U.S. too).



Later that afternoon we loaded everyone into the Eden House van and a couple of cars and went to the Intercontinental Hotel to participate in the International Baptist Church of Budapests' Christmas Eve worship service.



This is our group enjoying the Christmas carols...



...and then enjoying some finger foods and fellowship!

AND THEN THE BIG DAY ARRIVES!



Glenn and I slept at our house on Christmas Eve, but woke up early to help fix a big breakfast for all the Journeymen. After breakfast, we gathered in the living room for a time of worship and celebration. Brian read the story of the birth of Jesus to us, just like my Dad always did when I was a child.



The Journeymen opened stockings and then we "swapped" Christmas gifts by playing Dirty Santa. You know, the game where everyone brings a gift and then draws a number out of a bowl, and each person in order chooses either a wrapped gift from under the tree or "steals" one from someone else. I got a huge box of candy from Russia and Glenn got a bag of Christmas Blend coffee from Starbucks. NICE!!



Natalie shows off some of the things in her stocking.



At 2:00 pm we had our Christmas dinner. I'm sorry, but I was so busy eating the delicious meal that I forgot to take a picture!!! We had a ton of food and lots of it left over. By the way, even though Alvin "ordered" am 18-20 pound turkey from the meat market, it actually weighed 33 pounds and was so big that Glenn had to cut it in HALF to get it to fit in our oven!!!! He cooked half of it on Christmas Eve and the other half on Christmas morning while we were opening stockings and playing Dirty Santa. Our compliments to the chef!

After the meal, Glenn and I went home and collapsed! We watched TV for the rest of the day, and most of the next! We snacked on turkey and cookies. I can only imagine how exhausted Brian and Michelle were when all the Journeymen left!



The last evening that most of the Journeymen were at the Eden House, Glenn and I took them into town to see the city at night.



We took them up to the highest point that overlooks the city (the Citadel), and to Hero's Square (shown here), and then past the Parliment building, and down Andrassy Street (Budapest's version of Champ's Elysee in Paris).



Elizabeth and I walked over to the City Park where they have this humongous outdoor skating rink so that I could take a night-time picture. Earlier in the week, the Journeymen went ice skating here.



It was so cold! At the end of the evening we stopped for coffee at Gloria Jeans Coffee House. (Starbucks is supposed to open in Budapest this year, but we're not holding our breath. They were supposed to open last year too.)




And then after everyone got warm, they all came over to our house for an impromptu dinner of tortilla-wrapped veggie and sausage sandwichs (Glenn's famous sandwich that he invented in Ivory Coast) and a fooseball tournament in our basement. It was a lot of fun and was the highlight (for me) of our time with the Journeymen. We said good-bye to most of the Journeymen that night because they were leaving the next morning.

We had a great week, loved having the Journeymen, and loved getting to know all of them better. They were so much fun!

Well, back to real life....

Christmas is here! Well, almost.

Christmas is almost here, and there won't be much under the tree for Glenn and me. (Don't feel sorry for us! Everyone gave us our presents when we were in the States a few weeks ago and we either "already spent it" while in the States on something we wanted or we already opened it and are using it!)



However, one gift I may still be getting is a new washing machine! Just before we left for the U.S., ours stopped working. So, upon our return to Budapest, I headed up to the Eden House to wash all our clothes and decided I wanted a washing machine like the one up there! Not only is the barrel HUGE compared to the one that came with our house (I'm not complaining about the free one in my house, mind you!), but also it washes a load in less than half the time! My old washer holds about 3 pairs of pants at a time and takes 1 hour and 15 minutes, whereas the ones at the Eden House hold about 7 pairs of pants and takes only 30 minutes!!


Fuzzy Logic???

As I was washing, I noticed the name of the machine is Fuzzy Logic. Somebody needs to tell them in their own language what that means!! Glenn and I decorated our house and tree this week, but before we could begin, we wanted to pick up a few things. I am SO THANKFUL for the Christmas tree we bought from Kristie and Mark before they left!


A color for everyone!



And while at Tesco (British version of Walmart), we did a little grocery shopping but jumped right over these pizzas! The pizza on the left has corn and kidney beans on it (among other veggies). On the back right, 8 slices of raw bacon with a tomato in the middle. The front one has 4 pieces of sliced luncheon meat (similar to balogna) with a tomato. And this is why we make our own a lot of time!!!

After our trip to Tesco, we were ready to decorate!!!


Putting on the candy canes

We brought out with us all of our ornaments from when the kids were growing up, but not a lot of other decorations, which I sorely regret! The tree we got from Mark and Kristie came with a lot of Christmas balls so between their balls and our ornaments, we filled the tree. While in the States I bought a couple of dozen candy canes to hang on our tree, and I'm really glad I did since we can't buy them here. Not yet, at least. I did see them in Ukraine, Estonia and Czech Republic so they will probably make it here soon. I "babied" those candy canes by hand carrying them on the plane because I didn't want them to break. Every one made it intact!


...and getting myself out of the way!


Glenn decorates the spiral staircase


Very beautiful!


Peace on earth to everyone!

The ceramic Christmas tree on the right was made by my mom for us. The snow globe card beside it was a recent gift from Pam and Adam, and the PEACE letters were a gift from Donna before we moved (one of the few decorations we brought).


We love our fireplace-

Even though our fireplace here is small, we really enjoy it! Glenn likes to keep a fire going and I like him to keep a fire going.


At the end of a busy day, Glenn strums me a tune


I love to fall asleep to the sound of music (but I had to get up to take the picture)


Glenn bought us more firewood in anticipation of SNOW!



Something very special happened this weekend! Friday night a couple from our church came for dinner. Gabor and Zsuzsi are the first couple we met upon our arrival in Hungary almost 2 years ago. We had invited them to dinner when we first arrived but they were not able to come, and then they invited us to their house for a BBQ our first summer here, 2007, but this was their first time to our house in 2 years! With such a busy schedule and no hopes of slowing down, we had to set the date 7 weeks ago! Gabor often translates the message on Sundays for us and he does a GREAT job! There will be extra stars in his crown when he gets to heaven for the ministry he provides for us. They have been a blessing to Glenn and me.

On another note...Chris and Kate are in New Jersey with Kate's family for the holidays, and Kari and Jonathan have gone to Spain to spend time with Jonathan's brother and sister in law so Glenn and I are "on our own". Not really. The Member Care team has invited all the Journeymen in CEE to spend Christmas at the Eden House, and we have 15 that have accepted our invitation. Needless to say, we will have fun spoiling them with goodies we brought from America, making Christmas cookies, attending the international churches' Christmas eve service, enjoying a Christmas day feast, and just being Mom and Dad to them (if they need it). We are looking forward to the week!

As we move into the final days before Christmas, let us wish each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas. Or, as the Hungarians say, "Boldog Karacsonyt!" We pray that the birth of God's Son, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be the reason you are celebrating!

I hate good-byes!

Well, I left off last week just as we were getting ready to go get a tree and to decorate the house for Christmas. It was fun to do this in America, knowing that I would get to do it again after we returned to Budapest. Doing it twice really gets one in the mood to celebrate the birth of our Messiah!


Chris and Kate find the perfect tree


Kate and I have the same taste. We both feel these are tacky.


Perfectly straight!

They bought a tree that would fit nicely in the corner, and one that wasn't too tall--they have to raise the tree up on something so that Shadow's tail wouldn't swing and knock all the ornaments off the lower branches!!! (Shadow is their dog.)


Kate decorates the tree with childhood ornaments


--while Chris hangs the stockings-notice the one for Shadow?

We had a great time with Chris and Kate. God blesses us daily through our kids! We have a great relationship with Kari and Chris, and we thank God for them and for the spice (which is plural for spouse) that they brought into our family when they married Jonathan and Kate. Indeed, we are richly blessed as a family who gets along so well and enjoys spending so much time together!! Thank you, God!

It was very difficult to say good-bye to Chris and Kate, but our days in America were quickly coming to an end and they needed to get on with their life. It was time to go back to Marietta so that we could pack our bags and return to Budapest. I guess when we left Maryville on Tuesday, it was the beginning of our last good-byes.


My old workplace

As we drove back to Marietta, we stopped by North Cobb Christian School to pick up some books from Beth but unfortunately, I didn't have time to visit with friends there. It was a case of run in and run out!


BFF!

I got into town just in time to meet up with my wonderful friend Kristin (from NCCS days) for dinner. One would think that five hours together would be enough time to get caught up on our news, but no! Next time we will have to plan a full day together! She is one of those people through whom God speaks and blesses, and I sure miss her friendship.


Saying good-bye to my sister and B was tough

Due to falling sick when I first arrived, Glenn and my travel schedule, and then my sister Elizatbeth falling sick herself, we had very little time together, which I really hated! She is the keeper of our records, the reciever of our mail, the one who holds all things together for us in Marietta-and we are so thankful for her and her ministry to us. Thank you, Elizabeth!


Getting the most of our "handicap" parking sticker!

Our last day there, we went out to eat with Glenn's family and a dear friend from MFBC, Anne. It was quite a trip--a slow one, that is! Becky in her wheelchair (broke her ankle before Thanksgiving) and Queenie and Pa with their canes gave us a reason for parking at the front door! Anne gave us some very fresh, plump PECANS from south Georgia and some Peppermint Bark from Trader Joe's that is out-of-this-world delicious! We made sure that they made it in our suitcases!!!


Sam's Club

After lunch, Glenn's brother, Darden drove me to Sam's Club to pick up a few items for our suitcases. I couldn't buy all my heart desired because I wasn't sure everything would fit in the last suitcase to be closed, but I got the most important! Nutter Butter, Oreos, and soft peppermint for Glenn, and chocolate chips, Brownie mixes, and M & M's for me. Can you tell which one of us loves chocolate???


Grandma Whitfield

We had a quick visit with Mary Jean on our last night in town. She "adopted" Kari and Chris when they were 7 and 5, respectively, because they didn't have a "grandma". Glenn's mother has always been "Queenie" and my mother was always "Pooh". When Mary Jean found out that Kari and Chris didn't have a grandma, she became theirs, in every sense of the word! She has always held a special place in our hearts and we wouldn't go to Marietta without stopping to see Mary Jean (just like we wouldn't go without stopping by to see Jo and Ed, our dear neighbors!)


Christian

Even though one of my brothers live in Marietta, we didn't get to spend much time together due to sickness (his and mine), his work schedule, and our travels. Jay and Tanya were both sick the night we stopped by, but Christian (I call him Ethan) was up and opened the door to us. My, how he had grown! He is in second grade now, and is the most polite, articulate little boy I have met. His mom and dad have done a great job! On our next visit to town, we will make sure we get to spend more time with them.


Can you believe it? $5 for a large pepperoni pizza!

Glenn and I said our final good-byes to restaurants and fast food in the U.S. by eating at each one! In the 3 1/2 weeks we were in America, I ate pizza 5 times. My favorite meal. Didn't get Krispy Kremes, but ate Richy Kremes in Tennessee with Chris and Kate. Besides eating with Emogene (next door to my Dad) a few times, we ate at Steak and Shake, La Bella Pasta, Applebee's (3 times), Ted's Montana Grill, Red Lobster, Ruby Tuesday's, La Parilla, Captain D's, Checker's, the Varsity, the Waffle House, Beef O'Brady's, and in Maryville we ate at a Mexican place, Sonic drive-in and a great BBQ place called Boomer's. Can you believe I only gained one pound?


Sorry Tundra, I didn't mean to wake you!

We enjoyed staying with my dad in his new condo and with his dog, Tundra. Thanks, Pop, for letting us stay with you! It was good to be with you. You have a beautiful place, and we were very comfortable. You are a wonderful host.

But let me tell the world about Tundra. Tundra is the most amazing and most spoiled dog I've ever seen. During the day, my dad leaves the door from his kitchen to the garage open and the door to his truck open so that Tundra can get to the front seat of the truck. Tundra is afraid that my dad will go off and leave her at home while he runs errands during the day so after her morning walk, she goes out to sleep in the front seat of the truck and stays there all day. Even if he doesn't go anywhere, she goes out to sleep in the truck-just in case!!!


My Pop and me


It was so hard to say good-bye!

Friday afternoon, Darden and Becky drove us to the Atlanta airport to catch a 6 pm flight to Copenhagen, Denmark and then on to Budapest, arriving at Ferihegy airport on Saturday at 8 am, Atlanta time. (2 pm Hungary time) By the way, Dad...two of our 4 checked suitcases were one pound overwieght according to their scales, so we had to take something small out of each of those two bags and stuff them in our carry-ons and coat pockets, but hey, we made it! No problems, otherwise.


They're everywhere! They're everywhere!

We were scheduled to have a one hour lay-over in Copenhagen, but due to a strike at Ferihegy airport in Budapest, we had 2 1/2 hours in Copenhagen; plenty of time to wander and browse the duty-free shops. We found this 7-Eleven store in the Copenhagen airport! Cool, eh?


Overlooking Budapest

After arriving on Saturday afternoon at 2 pm and safely reconnected with our suitcases, we made the trek across town via taxi. We were soooo tired but managed to unpack all our suitcases before finally going to bed at 10 pm. We made ourselves stay up until then to fight against jet lag! Would you believe we slept through church the next morning, and woke up at 3 pm???? Seventeen hours of sleep!

Well, we're back at home, the suitcases are down in the basement, and we are ready to get back to work. We had a GREAT visit, seeing family and friends, shopping for new clothes, and eating to our hearts content, but it is also good to be back to the real world, our real life. We are thankful for the time in America that refreshed us, and now we are ready to get to work, serving our missionaries and our Lord.

This Christmas will be our first to celebrate without our kids or family, but we will be okay. (Kari and Jonathan will be celebrating Christmas in Spain with Jonathan's brother and sister in law, and Chris and Kate will spend it in New Jersey with Kate's family.) We will have 14-20 Journeymen from throughout Central and Eastern Europe to spend Christmas at the Eden House as guests of the Member Care team, so we will be busy as "mom and dad" to these young college graduates who will be away from home and parents/family, many for their first time. We will miss being with our own family, but we will be focused on being "family" to these folks so that they will FEEL like they are celebrating Christmas with their loved ones.

Please pray for these young missionaries during the whole Christmas season as they are away from parents, brothers and sisters; it will be difficult for them.