French Students

Pierre and Clo came to stay with us last week. They are college students from Strausburg studying business and English in the US for 3 months. It has been so enjoyable to get to know them and it promises to make our house and lives very full over the next few months. Mike has been cooking many of his favorite French dishes for them. We spent MLK day at Multnomah Falls and driving along the gorge.

Pierre and Clo are on the left and Camile is their French friend on the right. I was windy up at Crown Point. But still a beautiful winter view.

 

 

We enjoyed the company of good old and new friends at our Asian inspired Dinner Party on Saturday. The food was fabulous, including simple culinary delights by Mike and the delicious and carefully prepared sushi and Kim Pap made by our students Sun and Yoshiko.

Highlights of the night included:
* The prayer and toast with all our special friends celebrating Christ in our home and our student’s cultures.
* Yoshiko wore a beautiful kimono that was admired by all.
* We had 4 new international students who joined us for the festivities and food.
* Jason wore his Karate Uniform and showed us his moves.
* We ate over 150 wontons between the 15 of us.
* Ozzy and Nathan’s red wines were both delightfully drank by Jen and company.
* Mike showed off his new moto with all the guys.
* Our last guests did not leave until midnight so we felt like young kids with no curfew.

New Students

I had to post these fun photos from our Saturday night with out students as it is so unusual that they would be acting so wired and fun. I don't know how I got them to pose like this, let alone be so silly. It is very opposite to how they normally are.
We all made a big Asian feast together and it was fun bonding time. The meal turned out great but the process of making it was at least 99% of the enjoyment.

So for those who didn't know, we have 2 new students living with us until June. 2 weeks ago Andeo our international home stay agency emailed me with the profile of a new spring semester student. Surprised? Mike and I have really loved having our house back to ourselves for the past 4 months which has given us some space to adjust to my new job and Mike’s new schedule with school. But now that we’ve had some time we thought that it was time to extend again.

Yoshiko who came in on 3/24 is from Japan and is a nurse here for a year to study English. She is 32 and I love her positive energy. We were asked to take a second student just last week, Sun, a 20 year of from Korea who came in on 3/22. We decided that it is better to have 2 students vs. just one. With our schedules right now I thought it would be nice for both students to have an automatic friend and a roommate.

I am so blessed that God brought this opportunity into our lives. We love the energy in the house. Sometimes a house with no visitor, pets or kids can feel empty. And the happiness and fun that students bring is a delight to me. We are in the awkward stage now. Learning how to communicate with the language barrier. Figuring out class schedules, meal schedules and how to all get along. But that is melting fast! We will be accommodating this round of students a little different than our last bunch. (remember that drama) Mainly, I plan to set some boundaries early.

To welcome them last night, I made a very tasty ginger chicken stir fry and Mike came home early so he could eat with us. I am really hoping to get my camera back soon so I can post some photos. But here is one of their application photos that I thought I would share.

Fun Weekend Pictures

 

Making Homemade Pizzas
Carving Our Pumpkins 

 

 

 

This past weekend we had some fun with the students at my parents house. We went to the pumpkin patch, played the Wii and took rides on my brothers new moto.

SEATTLE

On Saturday Mike, Saki, my bother Josh and I went to Seattle. On the way we stopped in Tacoma and visited my sister and her husband Jason. We had not seen their place since they moved in so it was nice to stop by. Then we made our way to Seattle to see Pikes Place, the Pier and downtown. Saki and Josh had never been! We had a blast sightseeing but it was busy!! We bought some Rainer cherries, looked at all the flower bouquets, smelled the fish, euh.... and enjoyed the breezy sunny weather.
The whole inspiration of our trip was my friends Pam and Oliver where in Seattle from Budapest enjoying their summer break. In Budapest they teach history, English and share their Christian faith with the students. They have been there for 4 years and love the experience. It is obvious they’re having an impact and it is inspiring to hear their stories. I met Pam while we were RA's at Biola and have traveled to Budapest to visit her, enjoyed her wedding last year and try to see her once a year. It was a totally blessing to see them and hear about what they’ve been up to. As you can see, we enjoyed ourselves.