Weekend Trip

So happy to be at the Beach!

View from our table at dinner.

I can't get over how blue it is!

Grateful Wednesday Week 2

Today has been a good day...
1. I am feeling like myself again and have energy to enjoy the day!
2. I can't believe it is already Wednesday again - the week goes by quickly when you are sick all day Monday and sleep through most of the day and Tuesday.
3. Grateful that I felt well enough to go to class on Tuesday and partcipate in my turn to help lead our class review - we had so much fun popping balloons, playing What Time is it Mr. Wolf?, Charades etc - all in the name of learning some Arabic!
4. Getting this picture of my favorite time of day here.  I love when the sky is clear and blue.  I love when the shadows are scattered on the otherwise mono colored buildings giving it some character.
5. Water Day - Once again woke up early to get that shower I missed yesterday - so glad for Water Wednesday and laundry day!  I choose to picture my neighbors laundry rather than my own - I think it has a bit more character.

6. This afternoon enjoyed some study time at Starbucks, and this week they had Soy milk!  So I enjoyed a new frappachino called Mocha Cookie Crumbs or something like that - very yummy.
7. Came home and watched the sunset while "Walking with Leslie"
8.  Decided I had time for some baking and made some Peanut Butter Bread.
It has definitely been a good day.

Grateful Wednesday

On Wednesday I determined to be grateful
and happy about what the day brought me...
First: I woke up and remembered that I had had a fun Tuesday night with my roomate - out to dinner, Cherry Pepsi and home to study/watch tv while sitting on our new creation of a Ma'glis!  I tried to take a picture but it really did not do justice to the wonderful creation.  We took an extra matress and put it against the wall with the cushions from our uncomfortable chairs and made my new favorite place to sit in the house! 
Second: I woke up to water! - Water + the about pictured water heater = hot shower in the morning to wake me up and get me clean!  So grateful that Wednesday is water day because we were out and those tanks needed some filling up.
Third: Went with classmate to the Waffle House and planned for our part of the class review for next week together.
Fourth: Got some good studying time after class at a coffeeshop.
Fifth: Good time spend in studying the book of Esther
Sixth: Invited to have dinner with a family and spent the evening with them....And so much more!

A Blog about my Feet...

After not seeing my feet for a few months it has been nice to see them again.  I really did not see my feet from January to March for as soon as humanly possible I would put on at least one layer of socks and shoes or slippers.  I was even sleeping in my socks and slippers most of the winter.  So my feet (and the rest of me) are really excited about the warm weather we are now having (dust storms and all!) and being free from layers of clothing.
Something new this Spring: for the first time ever I went for a pedicure and I am hooked. So much fun! My first experience I went for the red color (the nice lady said it looked good with my white skin :), true enough). This week I went for a dark purple.
Purple will always be one of my favorite colors!
Question: Why don't my toe nails grow, my finger nails I seem to have to cut weekly,
 but a pedicure lasts me for months...
So with summer coming to stay for awhile I look forward to more pedicures and fun colors, funny sandal tanlines (I was so excited this last week when I realized I was getting a V tanline from my flipflops and it wasn't just a dirt mark!) and bugbites (you can see I already have a few and am not complaining one bit about them - bring on the sunshine and the bugs that come along with it!

That's all I have to share about my feet today, it has been a relaxing day of catching up and baking.
I tried a couple new things today and think they turned out quite well.

I made a bean salad

And another recipe off of Pinterest - Strawberry Banana Bread
We had been having the best strawberries at our local dukkan, loving having
 strawberries in everything!

 

Celebrating Easter

He is Risen

He is Risen Indeed!
 

I was very excited to be able to host an Easter party with my roomate.  We planned lots of food, punch, dying of eggs and an egg hunt for 5pm.

Thankfully we were set to go by early afternoon because that's when our neighbors arrived!  We had a blast.  And we got to have the party twice because some of my roomates other friends came at the orginal time.  So this year I got to celebrate Easter for two weeks in a row and host two parties - love it!

 

 

 

Enjoying a boat ride on The Nile River!

Just a few really big, really old rocks laying around

Me and the pyramids - would have never imagined it would be so much fun to walk around in the desert just exploring for the day.

No camel rides for me, but I did get a lesson on hieroglyphics, pretty sure I am an expert now...so much easier than Arabic!

And after such a day of history and learning I relaxed with some Nutella Expresso - Wow Yumminess!

I loved so much about Cairo, one of which was this sight - donkeys and horses pulling carts in the middle of crazy modern day traffic.

 

I didn't really think about the advantage of living in Jordan and being so close to
so many historical and biblical sites.
A few weekends ago I got to go on a walking tour at the Jordan River!
It was beautiful and exciting to think about all that has happened here.
Apparently the Jordan is much smaller than it used to be, so the site where the experts believe that Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist is not even in the river anymore, but the believed site is marked and being there helps me picture the scene a bit better.
It also made me think about the songs I have heard sung about crossing the Jordan and entering the promised land - how excited that we look forward not to the physical but the spiritual eternal promised land of heaven when we will cross over that river to join in with those who are worshipping before the throne of the King of Kings.

 

Hello from the Jordan River!
I took this picture while my feet were in the river, behind me you can see across the river into another country.

 

How did I celebrate leap year? So glad you asked...

 

I walked to school in the morning.  Came home and attempted to stay warm in my house while watching the weather outside continually look colder and wetter.  Then I notice it wasn't just rain, sleet and hail mixed in it was snowing!

Behind all that snow you can see the blooming almond tree.

And it continued to snow for the next two days!  School was cancelled on Thursday and Saturday (my "weekends" are Friday and Sunday - yes, strange, and no I am not used to it yet.) So for leap year this year I enjoyed a long weekend of hibernation staying warm inside.

 

My first package!

 I was so excited in February to have my first package arrive from Mom and Dad!
Inside the box was stuffed with all kinds of little things that I love and am still enjoying.
I knew the day I went to pick it up from the post office would be a learning experience and I was happy with my navigation skills at the post office.  They make you go through quite the scavenger hunt, but it was so very worth it!
Step One: Know to go upstairs, past the office where a bunch of people are blocking the hallway and around the corner where you will find a counter. 
Step Two:  At the counter give them your slip saying you have a package.  They will then pull out a stack of papers and find the one that came from your package (yes that form you have to fill out in the post office is very important here).
Step Three: Go back around the corner to Office Number 1 they will copy your information into a ledger and ask you to wait in the hall.  You can amuse yourself by watching the men bring in bags of packages and put them in a huge mount blocking the door into the next room full of shelves of packages and wonder how your package ever got processed.
Step Four: Go back into office to 2nd desk where you get to hold and open your package!  You get to show the man what you got, and he will be rather uninterested in your heart towels, papers and candy.  He fills out more papers and something on his computer.  Then gives you papers for the manager to sign.
Step Five: Find the manager's office...he signs your papers and tells you to go to the front desk.
Step Six:  Back to the counter where you started, changing over of papers and signatures take place.  Told to go to Office Number 3 to pay the processing fees.
Step Seven:  Go pay the fee and get a reciept
Step Eight: Finally get to go back to Office Number 1 and take your package home!
Step Nine: Ride taxi home and at your door landlady invites you in for tea.
Step Ten:  Share your candy hearts and have a fabulous afternoon with your landlady.

So it goes something like that.

And After Valentine's Came my Bday!

I enjoyed these flowers from friends for weeks after my bday
I had a great birthday here in my new city.  I was encouraged to hear from over 50 people via phone and internet wishing me a happy birthday, and yes I wrote every name down and counted.
I was encouraged by a surprise cake from friends and my favorite, vanilla cupcakes (see picture below) from my lovely roommate.  I was encouraged by gifts from friends.  And a friend who took the time to take me out for tea in the afternoon, and friends who took me out to dinner to celebrate with me.

 

All Decked out for Valentine's Day!

And this mall wasn't really decorated,
another mall had way more heart decor, but I forgot my camera.

While I know Valentine's was a while back I still wanted to post this picture so you all could see one of the many great places to shop here and simply get out and about on a cold rainy day in my new city.
This mall has everthing!  From Chili's to Starbucks to TGIF's
A movie theater, Gap, H&M, Zara, Claires... 

I promise to update soon with pictures! I have tons to share from over the last two months (but internet is too slow right now)
I am so happy to have my computer back after so long without.  I have learned a lot about computers in the last two months.
1. I can live without it (glad I had my ipod touch to keep up with everyone though I didn't try to write much on it)
2. I do not like to deal with computer issues
3. I appreciate people who do and are willing to help those who cannot
4. My computer has a 2nd little battery in it...it's the clock battery, that is how you can take out your computer battery and the time is still correct - go figure.
5. Always Always back up your information, pictures etc.  So thankful that even though I have a new motherboard and new harddrive all my programs and files were backed up, by the afore mentioned computer whiz - who will now be asked every one of my computer related questions.

Learning to notice
the simple beauty of everyday...

Evening view

Colors and Creative Hands

Baking, Friends
and friends to share baking with

 

 

Baking and Laundry

I told my landlady I knew how to make Apple Pie, not really sure how that conversation came to be but anyways...She has been making me tons of food, goodies and tea so I made her an Apple Pie.

I love that you can still see the steam coming off the hot pie :) 

 

A not so excited but part of everyday life - laundry.  I have a great washer that you can see my clothes getting washed in...and some drying racks in the large front room that get the best sunshine.  Most of my neighbors seem to dry their laundry on the roof - I'm not quite there yet, maybe in the summer months.

And just because I like it...A friendly gate in my neighborhood.