Living in America

It has been a while since I posted. I guess I have been taking some time to adjust to living in the US of A again. It has been good but a little strange at times being back. After almost 4 years living in Poland, one kind of gets used to life there. There have been some elements of life in the states that are extremely different than in Poland.

For example, one of the biggest differences I think has been how friendly most people in the service industry are. When I went to the school to register Mattie for Kindergarten all of the women in the office were so nice and helpful. They were smiling and talking to me like we had known each other for years. In Poland, when you go to a place of business there is not a lot of "chit chat" going on. You go in, tell them what you need, have them tell you you are in the wrong place and you leave. You still don't know where you are supposed to be but you leave anyways because the person you were talking to has already disappeared into his or her office.

Another difference for me is the variety of restaurants available. I had not forgotten about all the good food I had been missing but I think that I forgot just how many places there are to eat. It is no wonder that families do not eat at home much anymore with so much good food just a block away. And no dishes to do! We have enjoyed our fair share of the bounty including White Castle, Arbys, Einstein Bagels, Cheesecake Factory, and, of course, Starbucks. It is fun but I can see how expensive and fattening this could get!

The last thing I will mention is the language. It is so strange hearing English everywhere. In the beginning when we would be in the store and I would hear someone speaking English I would automatically turn thinking that I knew them since they were speaking English. That is the case in Poland most of the time. If someone is speaking English you must know them. Not so here, obviously. Just yesterday, I had a slip up when we were ordering Chinese food in the food court. I was unable to understand the man behind the counter and quickly replied "Slucham?" which means "excuse me?". As soon as it came out of my mouth I realized what I had said. Such a strange feeling!

We are loving being back home. The best part obviously is being with family and friends again. We love the fact that we can go next door and borrow an egg or call Mimi (Michael's mom) and see what she is up to and hang out with her. The kids are really enjoying being with their new family and getting to know who they are in that respect. It is so fun to see. Needless to say, we are thrilled to be back and will enjoy every minute of it!

Me and My friend

Let me tell you about my friend Doreen. We initially met about 3 years ago at church and had chatted every now and then but didn't really get to know each other until about a year and a half ago. It was a Sunday night and Michael was taking Ben and Paulina back to "the place" and Mattie and I were still here at home. I was so overwhelmed with everything and just started crying and crying. I called Michael and told him that I was doing horrible. He comforted me and then hung up the phone.

Not 20 minutes later I get a knock on my door. I opened the door and there stood my sweet friend Doreen. She hugged me and asked how I was doing. I broke down and asked her what she was doing here. She told me a "little bird" might have let her know that I needed to talk to someone. She came in and talked to me for about 2 hours. She let me know that I was normal to be feeling a little overwhelmed becoming a parent to three children all at once.

From that point on, we began meeting every week for coffee. Together we have laughed, cried, prayed, eaten things "off the diet", worked out and just plain have had a good time! About a month and a half ago I had to say goodbye to her and her family as they headed off to the states for 2 months. Michael and I took them to the train station as they first had to journey to Berlin. At the train station, we both began thinking about the fact that we did not have a picture together. Her son, Travis, happened to have his camera and took this picture of us. I will treasure it forever as I do her friendship. She is my true sister in Christ. I will miss her tremendously as our paths diverge.

Doreen, thank you for being a part of this chapter of my life!

Homeward Bound

This week I will begin packing up our things to come home. It is amazing to me still that we are leaving Poland for 10 months. It is still amazing that we are leaving at all! We have been thinking we were going to get to leave for about 6 months now and it hadn't happened. Now it really is happening. The plane tickets are being purchased, the suitcases are being packed, and I am beginning to have those moments of sadness. Yes, sadness.

Hard to believe that I would be getting sad, huh??? We met with our dear friends Lukasz and Asia last night for a goodbye evening. Even though we haven't seen them very often over the last year, they were our ministry partners for several years. We were with them every week. We are still close friends and I will miss them. On Tuesday, our Bible study group will be meeting at our house for the last time. Our friends, the Otrembas, are returning from the states on Wednesday and we will have to say goodbye to them, again.

See what I am getting at? All the friends, familiar places, churches...it isn't easy to turn the next page to a new chapter. Although I am so looking forward to being at home and seeing family and friends it is still going to be hard to say goodbye. As my Aunt Jackie who is a missionary in Chile once told us "The life of a missionary is one of "hellos" and "goodbyes". It is so true.

As we say our goodbyes and pack our suitcases, I can look back at our time in Poznan and say that if God changed no ones life because of me these past years, He has definitely changed mine. I came here three and a half years ago, learned a completely horribly difficult language, made great friends and ministry partners, and grew my family by 3! Not a bad first term, huh???

Trusting

If you keep up with Michael's blog you know what is going on concerning the adoption. When Michael shared the news with me yesterday after he talked to our lawyer, I didn't know what to say. A few tears streamed down my face and then our precious little girl came into the room. I had to pull myself together as to not let on that there was a problem. Kids don't need to be concerned about matters that they can't control. They are too young to handle such news.

I sat for a few minutes feeling kind of numb but also peaceful. I am tempted to explain it by saying that I am just in denial or that I am so used to the ups and downs that I don't respond anymore. Or I can recognize the presence of God in my life. He is the Prince of Peace and dwells inside of me so I can rest in that peace. I have so many lessons to learn and ways to grow in my faith. God is definitely showing me where the deficiencies are. I used to think I was fairly mature in my faith. You know, I am a missionary! Ha! That doesn't always mean that someone has it all together. Through this experience over the last year I can say that I have had more questions for God, doubts about His providence and wondered if He remembers that we are here. Just being honest.

Even though the questions have been numerous, God has never once failed me or left me alone. He is always there to dry my tears, calm my anxieties and cover me with His love. He is faithful even when we are not. He sees and understands everything we face on this earth. How could I doubt that His sovereign plan is the absolute best for my life?

Another day, another phone call. I am praying for the strength to face whatever that call might bring. Whatever decision comes down. Whatever happens...I pray that I will still be able to rest in the Lord's arms.

Thank you all for praying for us.

Strange Americans

As you know, there is a volunteer team here in Poznan for the week. Today, I was teamed up with 2 students, Hilary and Shaphan (Shay-fen). Our purpose was to walk around our selected area of the city and strike up conversations with Poles in hopes of sharing the Gospel. I was a little nervous about this strategy, thinking that Polish people would surely not be interested in talking with us. But, I headed out with a good attitude knowing that God can do anything with us and through us.

We decided that we would start going in small stores and begin conversations with the store owners or employees by asking them to tell us their favorite place in Poznan that tourists must visit. I would explain that my friends were from the states and were here for only a week and wanted a Polish person's opinion on where to go and what to see. We figured that we would allow them to share about something of importance to them and have that sense of pride in their country.

And it worked! Just like we thought. As soon as we asked them to tell us what is their favorite place in Poznan and where we have to go, their eyes lit up as they began to talk about their city.
I won't go into detail about all of our encounters today but I will say that we were able to talk to about 10 or 12 people in various stores and almost all of them were thrilled to answer our questions and were given a tract before we left. I think they really got a kick out of us Americans here in their country wanting their opinion.

I must admit that I am not necessarily a person who will just strike up a conversation with complete strangers, especially in Polish. But I did and I was so surprised to find that I was able to share with ease and felt extremely comfortable. The power and peace of God, I believe, filled my heart today and gave me the ability to plant the seeds of the Gospel.

We will be in that neighborhood all week and are hoping to get to talk to some of those folks again and follow up. I am anticipating how God will use us to touch the lives of those around us.

On Michael's blog there will be an audio file and slide show of one of my encounters today. I won't share here so you will have to go on there and listen for yourselves!

Thank you all for praying for us this week!

Ministry with kiddos

This week our friends and colleagues from Krakow are in Poznan with 3 of their 5 daughters, the Goss's. They are working with a group of volunteers from the states who are here sowing the seeds of the Gospel with tracts and through relationships. We did not plan on being a part of the group as for 6 months we have been hoping to come home. God had other plans.

The Goss's are a wonderful family. They have a sweet spirit and a heart for the people group they work with, the Roma. They originally were planning a Roma camp here in Poznan but, as it turns out, there is not a great population of them here in our city. So, their team is passing out tracts, witnessing through translators and simply plowing the soul for God to move.

Today was the first official day of work with the volunteers. There would be 6 groups, spread out through the city, prayer walking in preparation for the work they would be doing the rest of the week. I decided that Matty and I would join them and see how far we got. With the addition of children to our family, my role looks a lot different, especially with a pre-schooler. Brenda Goss is also here with her youngest, Abbe, who is 8. So, I figured that we would team up and tackle the kids together. And so we did. We joined a small group and headed out. About 10 minutes into the walk, Matty begins to ask where we are going and when we are going to get there. The next thing is that his legs are hurting. I thought "Man, this is going to be a long morning!"

Suprisingly enough, he actually enjoyed our morning walking in the city. He was able to be with his friend Abbe and they had a wonderful time. Let me share my favorite part of the morning. As we began to walk with the kids, with the purpose of prayer walking, I thought that we could all say a prayer as we walked, as to include the kids. So, I began to talk to the two little ones about praying for the neighborhood and immediately, my precious son began to pray. He jumped right in and asked God to help the people know about Him and at the end he said "And thank you for my God". Wow!

Man, we are doing something right! Sometimes, as a new parent and to three kids I wonder how I am really doing at this parenting "thing". When he began praying without hesitation I was so touched realizing that prayer is something that he has already learned is such a natural part of our lives. And at 4! Amazing.

The morning was long but well worth the effort to be out and a part of the work. I may be a little more limited with my pre-schooler but I am still able to be involved. And, what a blessing for our kids to be a part of everything going on also. We are truly ministering as a family. My prayer is that we will find more opportunities to work together as a family and grow closer to each other and God in doing so.

Language learning

You guys probably think that this post is going to be about some funny language blunder that I or Michael have made where we embarrassed ourselves to death and wanted to crawl in a hole. As funny as that might be and as there are lots of those stories floating around, this is about my little Maciek (soon to be Matty in the states).

As I have shared in a previous post, Dr. Pepper has been made available at one of our local grocery chains for the drinking pleasure of all Americans and those unsuspecting Poles who stumble upon it. Yesterday, I needed to go to Carrefour and pick up some groceries (it seems I am always at the store) for the up-coming weekend. I decided to pick up Matty from preschool and treat him to a trip to Carrefour with mom.

As a surprise, I decided to buy Dr. Pepper for the kids. They love the stuff! They must be true Americans! So, we got home and Piotrek (Ben from now on in my blogs), Matty and I were unpacking the goods. With a huge smile on his face, Matty pulls the Dr. Pepper out of the sack and yells to Ben "We bought for you Dr. Pecker!" I laughed out loud, hard. Ben politely corrected him, not having a clue what he said, and I asked Matty to repeat it. He got it right the second time. Even now, I am laughing as I write this. How hilarious!

Another language blunder that will go down in history for me happened several months ago. We were at dinner and I had made sauerkraut and sausage (Michael's favorite!) and Matty looks down at his plate and says, "Mom, I don't like sourcrap!" I again laughed out loud and told him it was sauerkraut and told him he just had to eat a couple of bites. Michael agreed that his description was correct! We all got a kick out of that one!

As I sit here, a moment ago feeling stressed out from our three kiddos and all the newness, I am now laughing and remembering how precious these little people are. God has blessed me!

Day at the Pool

Last Friday, Doreen (whom you know) and I decided to be brave. We decided to haul our kids, 5 in total, to the swimming pool. There is a rather nice one about 30 minutes from Poznan called Wodny Raj (Water Paradise). Before hand, we had to get our boys the dreaded SPEEDO! Yes, a SPEEDO. Here in Poland, as in probably (I've never checked) every other European country, those of the male persuasion must be in a speedo to enter a swimming pool. They even have designated posters showing what is appropriate and what is not.

This has always perplexed me considering that in all the stores, there are swimming trunks of all varieties to be purchased. Just don't try to wear them in a pool, for heaven's sake. They call them "walking shorts" for some reason.

So, Friday morning, Doreen and I packed up the car, speedos and all, and headed out. A car full of overly excited kids and two already exhausted moms. We made it to the pool, took off our outside shoes and gave them to the check-in guy and proceeded to the cashier. After paying, we took our stuff into the locker rooms, got changed and headed to the pool.

The kids had a blast. We went down the slide, swam in the lap pool, got run into in the kiddie pool and just had a great time together. Mid-way through our adventure, Doreen and I noticed an older man, about 60, in SWIMMING TRUNKS! Man, I thought, maybe they have changed the rules and Michael can actually go to the pool with us. Not 5 minutes later, a younger guys, around 20, entered the swimming area also in trunks and, as if someone come in with a bomb strapped to themselves, the lifeguards began frantically blowing their whistles! Code red, code red! Swimming trunks sighting! The young man was reprimanded and told he had to change those despicable, unsanitary, shorts or he was not going to be allowed to swim. I guess the older guy was, well, older and therefore had the right to wear swimming trunks. Like the older neighbor that came to our house, this man has obviously earned the right to do what he pleases.

I have asked the rule makers at the pool why trunks are not allowed. They promptly told me that someone could come in and try to swim in regular shorts that look like trunks and that it is completely unsanitary. How much more unsanitary can you get than 100 overweight guys swimming in their underwear????

Disturbing the Peace

As you have read I'm sure, today is Corpus Christi here in Poland. "Holy" for many people. About 10 this morning Michael asked Piotrek to cut our tiny, tiny yard. All three kiddos ran outside to watch the ceremonial cutting of the grass. As kids are, they were being a little loud, having a good time and watching Piotrek.

All of a sudden, we heard the ringing of our door bell. A lady was standing at our gate, waiting to talk to Michael. Michael quickly went downstairs to see what she wanted. This older lady began to explain to him that today was "holy" and "no one works". She told him that all she wanted to do was have a quiet cup of coffee in her yard with her son and the lawnmower and the loud children were bothering her. Why would we be letting our kids do work on this special day, maybe we didn't understand what today really was?

On and on she went, the discussion lasting about 20 minutes. Michael kindly told her that, yes, we understand what today is and that he thought the "holiday" was more about God than about being quiet or not doing anything. He also explained that the 10 minutes (literally) to cut the grass, in his opinion, did not disturb God.

In the end, they both politely chatted and even discussed the possibility for Michael to come down to her stained-glass shop to take some pictures. Strange. If someone would go to someone else's house in the States to share with them the way they should conduct themselves in their own home, I'm afraid they would have the door slammed in their face and possibly the police called for trespassing. But not in Poland! Older people especially believe that they are the "social police" and have the right to tell anyone younger than them what to do. Again, strange. I don't get it.

Living in another country...a new experience everyday!

Thief!

Have to share what happened to me today at the mall. Today is a "holy" day here in Poland. At least, on the calendar. You would never have known it from the masses of people not at mass but in the mall.

My dear friend, Doreen, is about to leave for stateside assignment and will return in August, when we will hopefully be in the States. So, we are getting in all the time we can to sit and chat, for hours, as my husband incomprehensibly states. We decided that we would go for coffee this morning and look around at the mall.

We were in one small shop and there were about 25 women trying to decide on which pants would make them look the skinniest. The aisles were very narrow (for all those skinny people) and crowded and as I was browsing the European selections, I felt someone bump me. I turned, reached for my purse and kept shopping. A few minutes later, I felt another bump and again, I turned, grabbed my purse and began looking around for who bumped me. The next thing I know, I feel a tug on my bag and hear the zipper open! I looked and saw a lady who was trying to steal my wallet out of my bag! So I said loudly, "I know what you are trying to do!" I immediately went to the cashier and tried to point out the woman but she was gone!

I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe someone was so blatantly trying to steal my wallet. What nerve! I was shaken for a while afterwards and told Doreen that I was still freaking out. Of all things, at this point in my life, I do not need to get robbed! I am already a tad embittered at the people in this country and I don't need any more reasons. But God protected me today. He was there with me. He knew what I could handle. Thank you for God's mercy and His angels watching over me.

Am I really 33?

Yes, I turned 33 today. Amazing how time flies. I always thought that "those people" in their 3o's were older, more mature, experienced in life. Yeah, right! I feel like I have no idea what I am doing half the time, still love to act like a kid from time to time and look like I am 25. Ok, that last part may not be true but the other things are.

But, turning 33 is not so bad. We had a great day. In our family, when your day comes around, you get to choose what you eat for all three meals and what kind of cake mom will make. I decided that I would make homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast, chicken strips, fries, honey mustard dipping sauce (cant' buy the stuff so had to make it) and strawberry pretzel salad. We topped everything off with marble cheesecake with caramel and chocolate topping. Just talking about it all makes me sick. It was good though and the fam enjoyed it.

The best part is how my family spoiled me. We went to the store after church to get my birthday present from my mother-in-law, grandma, and Michael...a food processor. In the store, Michael actually wanted to buy me the most expensive one they had. No joke...if I had said yes, it would have been mine. But I kept control of myself and got the lesser expensive one which is still incredible. Strange to say, but I really love it.

My eldest son, Piotrek, soon to be called Ben, bought me flowers and had them for me when I got home from grocery shopping. He actually walked to the flower shop, used his own money and bought me beautiful tulips. Paulina had already given me my birthday/mother's day chocolates a few weeks ago and the other half of my present was an hour massage in her very own "spa". She put about 30 candles around her room, made a nice place to lay down on the floor and massaged my back for an hour! A whole hour! She was so excited to do it and of course, I loved it. I actually fell asleep. And for Maciek. Well, he is 4. When we were at the store today, everything with some kind of flower on it, whether it was chocolates or toilet paper, he was going to buy me for my birthday. I kept telling him that he was helping daddy buy my food processor. After we got home with the machine, he asked me if I liked the food processor he bought me! I told him of course! What an awesome family!

As the day comes to an end, I sit here looking around my living room with my two precious kids, one in bed and my adorable husband and know that I am truly blessed. God is good to me. In the big things and in the little things, He is good.

Does anyone speak English???

I went to the latest remodeled mall yesterday, Stary Browar, with my friend Doreen. After scouring the place and enjoying a cup of coffee, we decided to end our trip with a stop in to the grocery store Alma. Alma is our version of, let's say, Dierbergs or Tom Thumb (depending on where you live). They stock exotic items like brown sugar, cheddar cheese and 10 types of espresso. I first headed to the coffee aisle where I was searching out Boater's flavored coffee. Alma is the only place in Poznan that carries chocolate-cherry coffee along with a few other specialty flavors. To my delight, it was located beautifully on the top shelf and I snatched it up as if someone was going to steal it. I turned to my friend and said, "Don't look at the price, it is expensive!". To which she responded, "Hey, don't worry about me, I am a coffee lover too!"

We headed through the store, to the bread, yogurts and cheeses. I began a search for some hamburger, planning to make spaghetti for dinner when I heard several of the store employees saying something about English. I figured they must have heard Doreen and I talking and were commenting on us speaking English, as so many times people do. As I continued to shop, I realized they were not talking about us but rather trying to find someone who spoke English. I waited to see if anyone who actually worked there did, and when no one stepped up, I approached the lady organizing the meats and told her that I spoke English and Polish and could help if I was needed.

With a big smile on her face, she turns to let everyone know that they have found their native speaker and directs me toward a woman trying to buy cookies. I looked at the woman and, strangely, I recognized her! I had met her at an International Ladies Club meeting a few months ago and she recognized me also. She explained she wanted to buy 20 boxes of cookies and didn't know if she should take them directly from the shelf or get them from storage. I conveyed her message, translated back for her what she was to do, and then her and I exchanged friendly small talk. Mission accomplished!

Now, I want to share a secret with all of you. I was crushed a few days ago when someone, a Pole who we really don't know well, bluntly shared his feelings about my Polish and described me as WORSE than my husband! For Americans, learning this horribly difficult language, it is a real blow when someone makes a statement like that. I, of course, took it to heart and my dear husband had to remind me that he has hardly heard me speak any Polish and has heard Michael translate at baseball practice. (Although, it is hard not to think my husband might be a bit biased, you know?) He reminded me of all the times I have been complimented on my Polish and told me to not let it bother me.

I was honestly trying to rid those words from my mind (YOU ARE WORSE! YOU ARE WORSE!) when God reminded my through this experience in the store that "hey, I can speak Polish and can even help others out if I' m needed". I was reminded that God blessed us with the opportunity to study for two years and the ability to speak one of the hardest languages in the world. No, I do not speak Polish perfectly and probably never will but I must never minimize what God has given me and how He blesses!

What a week

Michael has written and updated everyone about the happenings of the week but I thought I would share my take on the whole thing.

Obviously, it has been extremely stressful for our whole family. On Monday morning, I decided to make it a special day and got up early and made homemade muffins and scrambled eggs with ham. We all sat down to eat together and prayed for the hearing. We also told the kids that after everything was done, we would go out to a nice dinner and just have a fun night. We wanted for the hearing to be the most minimum thought in their minds.

Well, I don't know if it really worked, at least my method of easing the situation. But, I will say that because of the prayers of all of you, there was a peacefulness on Monday evening that I couldn't describe. We went to the local mall and sat and ate, laughed, got some ice cream and just were together as a family.

We know that God is sustaining us through this whole ordeal and we know that He will be glorified in the end. There are so many Polish people, believers and those who have yet made that step, who are watching us, evaluating, waiting to see how we are going to respond. So many of them have said they would be furious if they were us and have bad-mouthed their country and the bureaucratic system. Through God's grace, we have been able to maintain our senses and have not fallen into the temptation to join them in speaking ill of Poland.

So, when this is all said and done, we will be able to give great testimony to how God has worked through this process of adoption. He has definitely changed so much in us as we have walked through the fire. But we are confident that we will come out on the other side. The Daniel study by Beth Moore had a great reminder for me...that when Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came out of the fire, the only thing burned away were their bonds. God has used this process to burn away many things in my character that have held me bondage. May He be given the glory for His great work in us!

Too much Photoshop

Is it just me or do most women have constant issues with their appearance? We are always wanting to look our best, dress in the most fasionable clothes, have our hair just right. I would bet that I am not alone in my quest for beauty. Last Thursday, I had an appointment to get my hair cut. For almost two years, I have been letting my hair grow, only to be frustrated on a daily basis with how out of control it was. My hair is really thick and as it got longer, it got that much more unmanagable.

So, I went in to my hairdresser and had several pictures of hair styles and told her that I wanted "this length, these bangs and these layers". She looked at the pictures and then went to work. When she was done, I had the hair that I wanted (although a little shorter than I intended), but I felt like I wanted to cry. Stupid, I know. "It is just hair' someone lovingly told me (can you guess?). But, all of a sudden, I had this notion in my mind that "beautiful women have long hair" and the "cute" girls have short hair. But I want to be beautiful! All the models, actresses, girls in the magazines, they all have long hair and are gorgeous. I want to look like that too. Do you know how deceiving those images are??? Check out this unbelievable video clip...



That is what we are striving for! Photoshop! We want to be "photoshopped" and look perfect! Us women are doing everything we can to look like these models who have been made flawless by the strokes of a computer genius. Amazing, huh? This is the "holy grail" we are trying to obtain and it is just not real.

As women, we have got to stop being so obsessed with appearance and start seeing ourselves how God sees us. We are created in His image, so how can we be anything less than beautiful. No matter our size, our haircut, or our clothes, our worth and value must come from Him and not the models we see plastered all over the billboards and in magazines. Let's celebrate how God made us, imperfections and all, and use this vessel for His glory and not our own.

Welcome to Cyberspace!

As many of you know, I am not necessarily the techno guru of our family. Michael says that I have an aversion to anything technological. So, for me to have a blog is going to be a stretch but he continues to tell me that someone "out there" might want to hear from me! So, I am going to give you a look into my world and, hopefully, you will find it amusing and interesting. Living in Poland is an adventure everyday.

Many of you may wonder what exactly is so different about living in another country. Let me share what happened to me this week at Maciek's preschool. Last week I was informed of a special party his class was hosting for Mom and Dad's Day. On Tuesday, I was informed that he needed to be dressed in his "festive attire" which for Poles consists of dark pants, a white button-up shirt and dress shoes. Because we are not quite accustomed to all the ins and outs of school life here, Maciek does not have the typical "festive attire" and so I put him in dark dress pants and a long-sleeved red button-up shirt. It was warm that day but I thought "They told me he had to wear this so ok".

I arrive at school with my sweet, handsome preschooler (sweating) only to be asked by one of the teachers if I had some shorts and a short-sleeved shirt that he could put on because it was going to be hot that day (as if I am too stupid to realize this) and that he was already sweating (again, too stupid to know that!). I promptly stated that I thought he needed to be dressed in "festive attire" only to be told that they would gladly change him for the party. Why does he need these special clothes in the first place??? So they changed him into a shirt he already had at school for P.E. and he was good to go.

We arrive at the party. Every child but ours and one other is dressed in shorts, capris, t-shirts, and tank tops. Did I misunderstand something? No...the other parents just didn't want to bring an extra change of clothes!

So, living in another country means that half the time you feel like you just don't "get it" and the other half of the time you feel like you don't really care if you ever do! Oh well. It just makes you have to go with the flow a little more and be thankful that at least your kid has something on!