Love Goes

The Rest of the visa story

2012-01-28T01:03:00.001-06:00

Before you read this, watch the following video, unless you come to Serbia and get a visa, this is as close as you will come to experiencing the visa office:

So after the police adventure (click here) of course the rest of the day did not go smooth. As I said in the last post I did not need the bank letter and that was a little dissapointing. In two years here I have applied and recieved 6 visas, so they have plenty of paperwork on our family. The new girl at the visa office was not happy with my copies and demanded original translations. (Even though they have those already). Now this is not a problem except since I have not needed them in ages they were at home - a very long bus ride away. So I left the visa office and began wondering aimlessly around the city center upset I was going to have to return tomorrow with more documents..... when suddenly I realized I was near the translators office. The excitement began to build as I realized I could get original translations and deliver them now - thus avoiding an additional trip downtown. Would she be there, would she have them saved, would she give them to me? YES YES YES!!! So after a crazy morning, I was happy to deliver the documents and wait til next week to see if they give me a visa.

Tales from inside the police car

2012-01-27T09:21:00.001-06:00

If you follow this blog much you know that going to get a visa is always an adventure here in Serbia. Weather it is needing that one more piece of paper, which no one had mentioned before or being poked in the chest at the Office Of Foreigners there is something that always happens. My trip on Monday was no exception, as a matter of fact, this may have been the most adventurous yet.

I now have a policy before I go to get our visas that I collect every piece of paper and document that may be required. Putting this policy in action Monday morning I went to a copy center and had all our documents and translations copied twice just in case they wanted two copies.... Then I headed to the bank. I needed a letter from the bank proving that our company had and account and had some money. Myself and the banker had a 20 minute discussion on the fact that he did not think I needed the letter (this 20 minutes is crucial, remember it). After convincing him needing it was not the issue, having it in case I needed it was what was important because I needed it last time. I got the letter.

Now back to that 20 minutes. Apparently it was just enough time for a policeman to determine I was illegally parked (by the way I was not, there is simply no rhyme or reason for parking here. If your car fits then you can park it. The little alley I was parked in had several other cars parked in it). As I exited the bank I saw him standing at my car and started running and yelling "No No No that is my car" (Yes in English, its part of my dumb American I don't understand what is going on around me act. If I may say so myself one I have perfected). So I get to the car and the guy wants all my info. I give him my passport, the car registration, the letter that says I can drive the car. He keeps asking for more information which I don't understand (remember I have lost all ability to speak Serbian, I can't even say yes or no). So I give him every piece of paper in the glove box and since I am going to get a visa I start giving him those documents also - glad I got two copies of everything. Eventually my mountian of paper frustrates him and he takes me to his car....

So as we are walking back to his car (about 25 feet away) and my main concern is I don't have time or money to head over to the impound lot and get the car, then he opens the back door and tells me to sit (amazing Serbian Language recovery her by the way, I quickly complied). Now my thoughts have shifted to wondering what jail is like here, and the fact that I really do not have time to go to jail and get a visa today. Apparently I was not in the car to get a ride but for a better viewing of the "Where to Park Show". That's right while I sat in the car, the policeman walked around and showed me about 10 "legal" parking spaces (legal is in quotes because not one space he showed me was a legally marked space). I was informed I could park on the sidewalk, I could double park and block others in, I could park on the ramp for the garage - to the side of course so cars could get by-, I could park just about anywhere except where I was. That was clearly and illegal place. After the show he told me to get out of the car gave me my passport and told me to leave. I was very gracious and thankful and got out of there fast. Parked the car "legally" at our place and headed by bus to the visa office.

Best part of this whole story, the banker was right, didn't need that piece of paper at all.

All Good Things Must Come To An End

2012-01-14T05:37:00.003-06:00

This week marked the end of two of my favorite entertainment outlets. The David Crowder Band (DCB) released their last album and Jen and I bit the bullet and watched the final episode of Friday Night Lights. (Knowing it was the last one I has been holding out.)

Since they started out so many years ago in Waco, DCB has been one of my favorite bands (Christian or otherwise). Certain songs or albums form them have coincided in with huge moments in our lives. It was after a DCB concert that Jen and I prayed earnestly to follow God's leading in our life. The songs off the Remedy album have helped me grow deeper in my relationship with God. We have seen them man times in concert own all their albums and are sad that they are wrapping up their final concert tour. If you have not listened to Crowder they are so musically different from anything out there, and the words they choose glorify God in an amazing way. Start with the Remedy album, it's easily their best.

Friday Night Lights was one of the best shows on TV ever. It was not a show about football. It was a show about people and football happened to be a big deal in their lives. Watching the final three seasons after leaving coaching, was the only time I really wanted to return to coaching. I loved the way coach Taylor interacted with his players and I longed for that. But the best part of this show was the way Coach Taylor and his wife (Tammy) worked as a great marriage. It was real, so many of the conversations they had about kids, school, life - were mirrors to many of the conversations Jen and I had. I appreciated that, unlike so many other TV dad's and husbands, Coach Taylor was not a buffon. He lead his family and he led his team. It was great entertainment and I was little sad to watch Coach Taylor and Tammy walk off that field one last time.

So no more new Crowder and FNL only on DVD. All good things do eventually come to an end.

Jen outdoes herself again - Christmas style

2012-01-10T09:19:00.001-06:00

Due to a super team up between my mom and my wife I was blessed with an iPad for Christmas. To be honest this was beyond my wildest dreams. I know this may not seem so amazing to all of you out there because you are probably reading this blog on your iwhatever that you have had for some time now. But I live in eastern Europe, in a non EU country and all devices with that trendy little apple cost a fortune - about 50% to 60% more... so for my wife to conspire to get this for me in the States and then get it here (thanks Mike and Pam Tullos!) was pretty cool. I've had it for about 5 days now and it is an amazing device. I can't get over how thin and fast it is. I have been super impressed by those things. The ereader function is great, magazines look amazing. iOS is just super intuitive and its been fun to use, someday when I have more money I'll update my mac to Lion and unlock the full potential of the iPad (wireless syncing amongst other goodies). The iCloud took some time to figure out but seems pretty smooth (amazon has apple beat here, they are going to have to make this much more intuitive and easy to use). Tons of games, it seems there are to many to choose, but the game play on the iPad is great. Tiger Woods 12 is my favorite, I'm sort of obsessed. I know that there will always be hardcore gamers out there but this thing is amazing for the casual guy who just wants to kill some time. Apparently it has all these ways to help me be more productive but I have not pushed these limits yet.
The best part of my iPad is the inscription that Jen put on the back:

Romans 5:8

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

She just put the reference on the back and I love it, my favorite verse, from my only girl. It constantly reminds me to live in victory, as one who's debt was paid.

Since the iPad was in transit on Christmas day the ubercreative Jen and the girls came up with this as my gift.

This is me reading the story book that K wrote about searching for the perfect gift for me

This is me finishing the book and realizing that an iPad was the perfect gift

This is me laughing because Jen made an iPad to tide me over


Happy Guy, Great kids, Great wife and Great mom

Thanks to all 4 of you for loving me and blessing me with this gift.

As an aside that lamp in the pictures is what I got Jen. It was nice and cool and broke after we had it on for about five minutes. So if your scoring at home that is one gift grandslam for Jen and an epic fail for Kyle.

Lessons from Son to Father

2012-01-10T07:25:00.003-06:00

Click HERE to read Jen's thoughts on Wilson's 1st Birthday.
I've been a dad for almost 11 years now and my two girls have taught me many things. I like to think they have taught me to be sensitive, and concerned when they cry (which is alot). I know they have taught me to love deeper, and to love more but this past year being the father to a son has seen so many new and different lessons.
Wilson has truly shown me God's design for us as men and women. You see amongst the barbies, and little pets, and pink and flowers, that BOY knew that those were for girls, and he was meant to play with cars and trucks and balls. He is so much rougher then the girls, he likes to wrestle and be thrown. He likes to bang on things and like his dad he loves gadgets (remotes, things with screens, phones etc). It has been uncanny how God wired him to be a boy and grow as a man in His design.
I've also learned about a lot about affection from Wilson. K and Mac are not affectionate, especially for girls, but Wilson is just so sweet, he loves to pat you on the back and he loves to give kisses (he is learning now that french is best!) I pray he stays sweet and affectionate, his future wife will probably like that.
As the father of girls you realize that depending on how they feel about you has alot to do with who they will pick for husbands. As he father to a son, you realize he will be who I teach him to be and lets be real, that's sort of scary. But Wilson has alleviated all those fears because he is so sweet and he has helped show me a little of my sweetness also.
The past year has been crazy, it has been a wild ride with a boy in the house. Aside from the big lessons above, Wilson has taught me that sleep is for weak people. He does not need so why should we. He has taught me that playing with a fork and bowl can entertain for hours on end. Barney is still cool and Dorothy the Dinosaur is pretty cool too. All in all the past year has been a blessing and God really does know what he is doing even when we are unsure.
Here are some pictures from his big 1 party.

Wilson's last night before the Big 1

He is one handsome dude

Jen makes an amazing cake as always

Wilson's racing jacket and car

Cake good: attention and singing, not so sure about that

Just in case you forget who I am

Natioanl Championship Preveiw

2012-01-09T00:55:00.003-06:00

I have no rooting interest in tonights game so I thought I would break down some aspects of the game to choose a team to root for.

Location:
Lousiana - My in-laws live there and the entire state worships LSU but they do have the Saints.
Alabama - The only people I know from Alabama go t Mississippi for college, that should tell you something.
ADVANTAGE: LSU

Offense:
Based on their previous meeting that should mean little in this game. Bama does have T. Richardson who was a Heisman finalist so.....
ADVANTAGE: BAMA

Team Colors:
Purple and Yellow are Hideous and Maroon is boring.
ADVANTAGE: PUSH

Mascot:
LSU - Tiger
BAMA - a tide or an elephant
Tigers in Lousiana is just redicoulous you would think a state nicknamed "hunters paradise" could come up with something better, yet Bama has a mascot called the tide and decided to represent that with an elephant.... This one is tricky
ADVANTAGE: LSU

Defense:
Both teams do this well (probably leading to the most boring Game since the 9-6 nailbiter they played earlier in the year) but LSU has the "honey badger" the most awsome nickname in sports and he was a Heisman finalist so....
ADVANTAGE: LSU

Coaches:
LSU - Les Miles "The Mad Hatter" seems like an ok guy, has made vague references to a faith in Jesus and God (he's no Mark Richt), wears a different hat for every game, eats grass on the field to "become one with the game" has a nice looking family.
Bama - Nick Saban - saban rhymes with Satan, that about some it up. This guy is a good football coach but reminds me of a used car salesman or an ambulance chasing lawyer.
ADVANTAGE: LSU

After this in depth analysis I really have no dog in this fight so i just hope for a compettive High scoring Big 12 shootout!

2011... Some thouhgts

2011-12-31T06:39:00.001-06:00

If you're looking for a recap of 2011 and lots of fantastic pictures click here. This post will be a little more serious as I reflect on two big events in 2011.

God really revealed himself to us in this year. With Wilson being one of the worst sleepers of all time, Jen and I really took this verse to heart: Because of the LORD'S great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lam. 3:22-23. I personally was pushed and stretched farther then I thought possible this year, and I expect much of the same in 2012. We live a great life doing what we do, but it's not always a bed of roses. being away form home is hard. Our kids face some unique and different challenges (which they have handled with grace and aplomb far exceeding their age). Despite the challenges and blessings of the past year, 2011 will be the year that I remember beginning with the birth of my son and the death of my Grandfather (whom my son is named after).

January brought us Wilson and all that comes with an infant. Jen and I decided in our late 30's and having done this twice we are much better parents to Wilson then we were to the girls. I know I am much more patient and things just come easier. Raising a boy has been fun, he just does boy things and they are very different from the girl things that have dominated our house for nearly eleven years.

As Wilson was growing, my Grandfather was nearing the end of his long life. He has had a tremendous influence on me, mostly on my spiritual growth and helping me become who I am. I knew two years ago as I hugged his neck it was for the last time this side of Heaven. In October his health worsened and we knew the end was near. I had a chance to have a few phone calls with him. His voice was but a whisper but it still carried the conviction and passion I had grown up listening to. Knowing the end was near my Grandfather asked that I come home and preach his funeral, he also told me what he wanted that funeral to be like (as long as I can remember my Grandpa thought his health was failing, so he had been planning this for a long time). I was so honored to preach his funeral and share his passion for Jesus one more time for him. The last thing my Grandpa said to me was "see you on the other side" and I know that is true.

So back to those two events Life and Death. We all face them, they happen all the time everyday. But this year for me they were in such close position to each other. Every time I look at Wilson, I think about my Grandpa. Mostly I pray. I pray that Wilson grows up to be the kind of man Grandpa was. Christ first and always, and a deep love for family. I hope 2012 brings a lot more life for me and for my family. A fuller life, a life more focused on Christ and each other.

Good Bye 2011......

2011-12-31T06:01:00.001-06:00

Today marks our two year anniversary here in Belgrade. I would love to be able to reflect on those opening days but they are a big blur. All I really remember is laying in bed as Belgrade celebrated the new year with a bang - it was so loud I just remember praying "God please let that be fireworks and not small arms fire" For the most part I thank it was... fireworks and probably a little small arms fire:). But enough of that day, Lets look back at 2011!

Obviously the big deal for 2011 happened on January 9th and gave us this

And nearly a year later that grew into this:

We are so blessed to have the boy in our lives. He has added a whole new level of crazy to our family. He is as sweet as they come, with a great attitude and such a boy. The decision Jen made to birth Wilson in Belgrade turned out to be a great one. He really has opened doors for us and has helped us build relationships with friends and neighbors. Hopefully in 2012 he will learn to sleep.
Along with Wilson, early 2011 brought a visit from Grandmother and Grandfather, Miki turned 5 and we all got to reunite with great friends in Germany from our training and had a great week of fellowship and worship (we all missed Doug and Kat). So if your scoring at home at six weeks old Wilson has two stamps in his passport but has yet to be in his home country.

Turning 5

Visit from Grandmother and Grandfather

Retreat to Germany

The spring was busy as English classes started back up, we continued to learn language, took a trip to Budapest, moved into a new flat and had a visit form Miss Kim!

Family pic in Budapest

Pretty Girls at Easter

Mohawk and a Smile


Fun with Miss Kim

The summer was fast and furious as we had many visitors (Papa, Aunt Shea, Uncle Bobby, Doug and Kat, and Aunt Julia. My dad and I took a trip to Germany for sight seeing and the Women's World Cup. The kids kept growing and we had our annual meeting in Bulgaria. I continued meeting with people and drank a ton of cold coffee. The Israel's moved from Novi Sad to Belgrade to work with us. Amy decided Mississippi wasn't cool enough and is spending two years in Belgrade bouncing between dinner with the Stevens' and the Israel's. Christina and Bethany decide to spend the summer in Serbia and (hopefully come back this year). The Seattle girls were a blessing as the watched the kids for us. We did some Roma (gypsy) outreach and began building relationships with some great people in that community. For a summer break it sure was crazy.

Me dad and Ponochio in Berlin

4th of July Belgrade Style

Family Fun in the Elelvator

Bulgaria

Aunt Julia for a visit

The Seattle Girls

Doug and Kat enjoy "Fancy Coffee"


Amy and ladies from Missippi

Summer came to a close and the fall saw the start of school (home and Serbian). Wilson went from a crawl to a walk. Our fellowship began meeting weekly. Jen and I had the opportunity to Disciple some great young ladies. LPC sent a great team of volunteers to teach English. We moved into a new office space while continuing English classes. Jen and Randi started AWANA with the kids which has been amazing. We celebrated thanksgiving with two dear families. Disney on ice came to Belgrade... and we saw it. Kyleigh's school celebrated their 50th anniversary with the most amazing elementary production ever. We finished the year by joining the Israels for the Gingerbread House Building extravaganza and I made my Serbian Acting debut to rave reviews.

Miki on her first day of School

Disney on Ice

Thanksgiving with some super Serbs

Fall family Pic


Team Belgrade Rockin Christmas Eve.

So there you have it. 2011 you were good to us and we look forward to what 2012 has to offer.

Blending the old and new.....

2011-12-29T02:52:00.002-06:00

Growing up my house did not have a lot of Christmas traditions. We always celebrated and my mom made sure Christmas was always good for my brother and I, but we did not have those things that we knew were gonna happen every year because its Christmas. For this reason I wanted my kids to have something that when they grow up they can say "these things always happened at Christmas". Moving to Serbia has made us adjust our tradition and try some different things. We brought four traditions with us from the states: New dough ornaments every year, Lake Pointe Church Christmas eve service, IHOP after the service and opening one present on Christmas Eve (always new Christmas PJ's but my kids have not figured this out) Moving to Serbia, has made us adjust those traditions. There is no IHOP and LPC is a long commute, but we have adjusted. Jen makes pancakes and breakfast for dinner (we call it SIHOP - Stevens International House of Pancakes), we watch the service streaming live on the TV, and we have PJ's shipped around thanksgiving.

New PJ's

Singing with Danny at LPC

Miki couldn't last through the whole service.

Along with these traditions we added something new this year- it's not a tradition yet but we hope it becomes one. This was the first Christmas we had colleauges in town so we wanted to do something together. We decided to have a name draw Christmas eve then all go shop for our person at the fleamarket. The amount was small but the choices numerous at the fleamarket. There was quite a debate over fun gifts or practical gifts, guess which side I cam down on!

Team Belgrade Ready to Shop

Randi sporting her amazing apron given to her by her oldest

Missmatched socks for amy

Kyle and Trey with very practical gifts

Jen got socks, of course

A great time was had by all and we spent Christmas day together eating pizza and hot wings, skyping family back home and relaxing. Christmas Belgrade 2011!

Some Christmas Thoughts

2011-12-29T01:51:00.001-06:00

Celebrating Christmas in Serbia is different in a number of ways. This year two really stuck out for me. First the Orthodox church is on a different calender so Christmas is two weeks later here (after new years). This leads to some strange things like all the cards say Happy New Year and Merry Christmas (in serbian of course). Christmas day is so different, the city is alive, people are out, it's loud. Dec. 25th is just another day. Makes it more of a challenge to feel like Christmas. The other thing that really struck me this year was getting a feel for Christmas in the U.S. is a little hard. The only way to get a feel for the Christmas climate was through the internet. The feel I got this year was pretty negative. Lots of stuff about people taking Christ out of Christmas, retailers saying "happy holidays", the most successful black Friday in years in the midst of an economic crisis. I guess living in a place where the words "Merry Christmas" are only spoken on Christmas Day, not from retailers, or neighbors, gives me a different perspective. You cant take Christ out of Christmas, its impossible. Christmas can be commercialized, pagans can celebrate the "holiday" but as a believer in Christ, you alone determine if Christ is in Christmas. Don't let Wal-Mart or Target dictate that. When that cashier says happy holidays, say Merry Christmas back. Chances are that will make there day. And you can be Christ at Christmas. Serve some one else, use the birth of our savior as a way to talk about the life of our savior.

Gingerbread House Extravaganza

2011-12-18T12:41:00.000-06:00

The holidays are a great time to introduce our new friends to some American traditions. This year we teamed up with the Israel Family to build Gingerbread houses.
Three quick Points:
1. This is an Israel Family Tradition they have been doing for years, we are thankful they let us join in.
2. Gingerbread is in short supply here so we used waffle board.
3. Truth be told Jen and Randy pulled this whole thing off and were amazing.

So now on to the fun. We invited about 50 of or closest Serb friends played Christmas Music, drank hot cider, ate a ton of Christmas cookies and constructed castles, houses, and Belgrade landmarks. I made my Serbian acting debut in the role of Josip (Joseph) in our Nativity play. This was the highlight of the evening as the Israel kids and Stevens' kids did an amazing play about the Birth of Jesus - as a treat to our guests it was performed in Serbian.
Two truths:
1. We recorded the play earlier and played it on the big screen.
2. I read my lines on cue cards, memorization was way too hard.

THIS PLAY WILL BE POSTED SOON. JEN IS WORKING ON SUBTITLES

We had a great time, here are some pics of all the fun

The Supplies

The Food

Jen's Rudolph Cookies

Trey and the Boys

Genex Tower - A Belgrade Landmark

St. Sava Temple

The Boys and a Great House

Brook, Miki, and Daria's House

KJ and the boy's castle

Dragana and her Daughter's house

Chucks, short shorts, and a Black T-shirt

2011-12-14T02:59:00.001-06:00

Jen + Kyle + 14 Years = This

My heart was stolen 17 years ago. I was in the UC at SFA and I saw the most beautiful girl in the world walk by. She was wearing Chuck Taylors, short shorts (on crazy long legs), and a black t-shirt. I was so taken with her it took my breath away. I continued to see her on campus (gotta love a small college) and even ended up in a class with her. She never noticed me, until a couple of years later when some mutual friends convinced her to go on a date with me (persistence is a strong suit of mine). To be honest I never thought I could date someone so beautiful, much less spend my life with her, but God had an amazing plan for our lives and placed us together. Fourteen years ago today I made that beautiful girl my wife. She has been an amazing partner, supporting my decisions and happily following me on these crazy adventures. We have lived in small towns and big cities. We have had three spectacular kids. We have had some amazing highs, and some not so great lows. Most importantly through this crazy life, Jen has walked right next to me and that has made these the best 14 years.

Some Random Thoughts

2011-12-13T00:50:00.000-06:00

One of the things I really miss about living in America, is being in the conversation. As things take place in all areas (sports, politics, pop culture) we just sort of miss it. We don't get to discuss it with people. This boils down to no one hearing my opinion, or me hearing others so I thought I would take some time to share some thoughts. Remember these are all based on the limited and biased news we receive in these parts so take all this with a grain of salt and realize I am always right:)

- 6 months ago all the republicans had to do was put up any candidate that was not a baffoon and they win. Seems to me they missed that memo.
- Lamar Odom to the Mavs. Not sure about the basketball end of this but the reality tv world is going bonkers for his wife being in Dallas. I think that's funny.
-Cowboys December meltdown is killing me, I really want them to be good.
-Alabama has no business playing for the national championship - outrageous.
-Newt, Mitt, or Rick.... almost makes Obama appealing, but not really.
-Folks we better keep an eye on Putin and his boys in Russia, these guys are shady
-Have you read about these whales trapped in the ice, thats crazy stuff
-Facebook Timeline.... that is a great change/update very cool. It may eat up some of my time though cause its kind of fun to play with.
-Surely the American financial sector can come up with a way to capitalize on the Euro zone mess. The dollar should take advantage of this and get strong. I think the Brits were on to something when they decided to keep the queens Pound as currency and stay away from the Euro. That may end up being one of the best decision in history.
-The Chinese have an aircraft carrier. They bought it from the Ukraine and told the world they were going to turn it into a casino. The crazy part is everyone believed them. This really baffles me, a communist country that wants to be THE super power and the whole world bought the "yeah this is gonna be a great floating casino" line.
-Sam Hurd - Former Dallas Cowboy, all around likeable guy, good teammate.... running start up drug cartel in Chicago. That is never a good thing.

Check Back on Sunday, we will be having a big Event Saturday that I'm sure will result in some good blogging.

Fantastic Friday Soul Patch Style

2011-12-08T04:27:00.001-06:00

UPDATE: If you liked last weeks blog about K's show and want to see some video check out Amy's blog (click here) for some great video and witty commentary. Now on to this weeks Fantastic Friday.

Growing up, I did not have a clear picture of Jesus. I guess I thought he looked like all the pictures you saw at church (you know light brown flowing locks, blue eyes, pretty American looking). He probably looked similar to this guy: (without the freaky eyes I am sure of that)

But that is not really the point of this post. The point is this week Michaela revealed her image of Jesus to us. After our Bible time in the morning she draws in her journal. This week we were in John so that meant chances to draw Jesus. Wednesday I looked at her drawing and saw a guy with a soul patch. I asked who it was, she said Jesus. I asked so why did you give Jesus a soul patch? (secretly i was hoping the answer would be that it was because I have a soul patch and when she thinks of her Dad it makes her think of Jesus, because I show her love like God etc) but alas it was because she thinks Jesus was probably pretty cool so he needed a cool beard. When pressed Miki also told me that at this stage of his life Jesus probably had a short beard. So on the way to school we talked a little more about Jesus and I was just so happy that at 5 Miki is forming a picture of Jesus, it's important to her and that's fantastic.

Two days of Soul Patch Jesus

Not to be outdone K showed off her fantastically innocent self by telling me I was using the S word when I said something was Stupid. Trust me when I was 10 stupid was not the S word.

Winter Phenomena

2011-12-05T00:34:00.001-06:00

Winters in Serbia are tough. It's cold, it's grey, and it's dark super early. But is has it's positives also. The snow is beautiful, chances for a white Christmas are significantly higher then in Texas. Other then the bitter cold (it hasn't arrived yet but you can sense it in the people, every knows its coming) the biggest problem I have with winter is the outdoor cafe seating dissapears. This results in having coffee in a tiny cafe where 93% of the people are smoking. This results in me having to wash my clothes more often (remeber the bitter cold, I have to wash my coat too). But judging from the title of this blog you are probably thinking that is not very phenomenal and you are right. This was a long introduction to let you know about the most interesting winter phenomena in Serbia: The Make Out Phenomena.
I'm not sure if this is a Serbian thing, a European thing, or a big city thing but it is something. See the problem arises because most young people (18 - 30) live at home until they are married. Most homes in Belgrade are pretty small so this leads to a lack of privacy. In the spring and summer the parks are full of make outers, but the parks are big so it's pretty easy to ignore and turn your attention elsewhere. Winter cafe time is a whole different situation. In the cafe your table is about 4 inches from the table next to you so if the make out couple is next to you, well you sort of feel like your part of the action. But cafes are not the only place to make out, the bus is an ok place, the mall seems to be pretty popular - mainly the food court. But the coolest place to make out is Mcdonalds. Every time I go, there are multiple couples making out. I think this is because this is the cool place for kids to hang out. And we all know where you find the kids is where you will find the making out.

The Most Fantasticness You Can Imagine

2011-12-04T05:51:00.001-06:00

What do you get when you combine the following: An Elementary school Choir, 8 Middle school girls singing and dancing to "Rolling in the Deep", 4th graders playing medieval songs on the recorder, Traditional Serbian song and dance, a choir of 1st graders singing about being good Yugoslav communists, a 3rd grade boy singing an amazing rock song while playing air guitar and a surprise appearance from a HUGE SERBIAN POP STAR? Well of course its the 50th Birthday Celebration for Osnovna Škola Duško Radović. This is the school Kyleigh goes to and last monday they had a huge show with all these things and more.
Words can not describe how fantastic the show was. Kyleigh gave us very little information so our expectation was pretty low. I knew something was up when the theatre was packed, but really who expects much from any elementary school show. The show started with the first graders singing an old Yugoslovian song - roughly translated it was about how to be a good socialist, complete with red star hats and red scarves:

We then got an amazing version of "Rolling in the Deep". Kyleigh and some kids came out and told about freindship in many languages (Kyleigh got chosen because she is so good at English). After that her class played a Medieval tune on the recorder (serbs call it a flute).

Friendship is very important at OS Dusko Radovic


The costumes enhance the medievalness of this tune

At this point we were pretty impressed with the show the "Rolling in the Deep" girls were multi talented coming out and singing a traditional song then busting out in some serious Serbian Folk Dance. So now I am considering this a terrific Elementary school show but then things went crazy. A girl stepped out from the choir and began singing a serbian pop song, she was probably in 8th grade and I thought "wow this kid has a great voice".... Then from stage right this lady comes dancing out picks up the song and the crowd went nuts. I MEAN THEY WENT CRAZY!!!!! clapping, screaming, you name it they we jumping up and down. My keen observation skills lead me to the conclusion that this lady was a pretty big deal and was probably the person that made this song famous. We later found out it was Goca Trzan, click above and you can go to her webpage. Anyway she went to K's school back in the day and had come to help them celebrate. It was cool to hear her thank all the teachers that had help her become a success and I would imagine pretty inspiring to all the kids.
You would think that it would be impossible to top that but as Goca exits the stage a young boy with long hair steps from the choir and begins belting out this rock song. He's probably 8 and totally playing the crowd but the show stopper was during, the required guitar solo in all rock songs, the kid busts out his air guitar - show over! (actually all the teachers and students and former students sang one more song but I was still living the air guitar dream)

Thankfulness, the main thing

2011-11-29T03:29:00.001-06:00

So I missed last friday, the post thanksgiving hangover and preparing for Saturday's thanksgiving festivities caused a lapse in blogging. That coupled with the fact that I wanted to give this topic the proper time and treatment resulted in my tardiness.

The Most Importatnt Thing, The Life Changing Thing, for me I call it The Main Thing. It is the thing that I am most thankful for. It is the thing that makes everything else in my life possible. All I have to be thankful for, from the air I breathe to my wonderful wife flow from this. What is it? What could I be this thankful for? It is my relationship with Jesus. Just knowing I have a relationship with Jesus makes the morning worth getting up for (and trust me that's hard when you know how cold it is and it is only going to get colder).

Like all of us I have a sin problem, but I have the grace of Jesus, freely given, and with that foregiveness for my sins. Every time I think about it, that gift that is so available, it amazes and boggles me. You see, I know I am not worthy of heaven. But the creator of the universe so loves me (and you) so much that he paid the debt for our sin with his son, Jesus Christ.

This main thing is more then forgiveness, grace, and redemption. It's that daily relationship. Like all of us I am prone to wonder, but the daily walk with Christ sustains me. It's the thing that I am most thankful for.

Thanksgiving Serbian Style

2011-11-29T02:46:00.001-06:00

This was our second Thanksgiving in Serbia, but last year we celebrated with teammates, and this year we decided to invite two Serbian families to share some American goodness with. This was a huge step, Thanksgiving food is way different then anything a Serb would eat (except turkey, people do eat turkey here). Lets face it, although Jen makes the best stuffing in the world, the whole concept of stuffing is a little strange. It's impossible to explain what it is and make it sound appetizing.

The only reference these families had for Thanksgiving was t.v. and movies they see (luckily FRIENDS is on here and no American T.V. program celebrated Thanksgiving quite like those cooky New York singles). I did explain to them ahead of time that there would be no huge turkey on the table with little white chef hats on his legs. I think they were a little dissapointed, but better to get that out ahead of time.

Jen worked tirelessly for two days to prepare all the food. My contribution consisted of getting the kids out of the house so she could cook. She alternated between talking with her mom and texting teammates to give the impression that she was not cooking alone. She did an amazing job, even making her own cranberry sauce. Her best cooking decision was in the desert department. We knew that all this food would be foreign and espeacially desert. We were going with pumpkin and pecan pie. Instead of making huge pies that may not be liked she made mini pies - that way the wasting of amazing desert goodness would be minimal.

Dinner was phenomanal, I contributed by brewing amazing Starbucks coffee, no instant for my guests. Our Serb friends were very intentional taking small helpings of everything and then going back for seconds of the stuff they liked. Sweet potatoes were a big hit - who would not like something smothered in butter, brown sugar, marshmallows and nuts. There was a big discussion on what a pecan is. The Serbian dictionary described it as a longer, smaller walnut, but it was decided it was much sweeter then a walnut.

Kyleigh took care of the kids, reading a story of the first thanksgiving, and preparing an activity for the kids. They all made thankful turkeys.
Over all it was great night and we were blessed to share our traditions with some great people.

Mini deserts, the masterpiece from my master chef

Kyleigh explains thanksgiving, notice NFL football in the background

A first for our Serb frineds

thankful turkeys, Serbian style

Princess's On Ice

2011-11-21T02:49:00.001-06:00

If you know Jen and I you know we LOVE Disney. We LOVE Disney World. We LOVE Disney Princess'. When you have girls like ours, you just live a life full of Princess'. That's what made Saturday so special. All the Disney Princess' were in Belgrade for a Disney on Ice show at the arena. Thanks to a tremendous gift from Aunt Glenna and Uncle John we got to go to the show (it was Christmas for the girls). K and Miki dresses in nice dresses, got some fancy hair and topped it off with a tiara, and were ready for the show.

pretty princess' ready for the show

Mom gave miki the triple braid

Buns and curls for K

at the arena

excited to see the show

dad sports a Miki Crown

Happy girls after a great show

It was a great show, and a great time.

Fantastic Friday - a little more thankfulness

2011-11-18T12:09:00.001-06:00

Things we are thankful for - guest entries from the Stevens kids.

Kyleigh:
Jesus - sort of self expanantory - he did save me from my sins after all. A car - it is so much better then the bus or my feet. Friends here in Serbia and at home in Texas. Family - when friends are hard to come by at least I have these bozos. Serbia - hey I like it here. AWANA - gettin to know God's word makes a girl thankful. Clothes - justice is my fave. Food - when you see folks begging everyday, you get very thankful for simple things, like a nice warm bed.

Michaela:
I am thankful for school, my teachers, my friends - they make the days better. Transportation - I'm less picky then my sister. Paper mache - something I have recently discovered. a place to live, Mom and Dad, my life, My brother, the world around me.

Wilson: I had to translate this so it may be a little off
I am thankful for MILK! MILK! MILK! it sustains life. And Mama, she is pretty and holds me and sings to me and she has MILK! and Sissy (both of them sometimes). I am also a big fan of all electronics, I prefer things that have a screen, light up and are expensive. I am also very thankful that Dad put all the books on low shelves so I can take them down and read at my lesiure.

Miki's homework

2011-11-17T06:08:00.001-06:00

November in Miki's school is transportation month. So for homework all the kids had to construct a vehicle of some sort. Miki decided to make a jumbo jet 'like we came to Serbia on". So with the uber creative Jen on the task a 2 liter pepsi bottle, cardboard and paper mache became Avion Miki.
UPDATE: Today when Miki came home from school she told us her teachers had said her plane was:
geniol - genius
fenomenalo- phenominal

just getting started

first coat of paint drying

proud captain

Rants and Revelations

2011-11-16T09:22:00.001-06:00

RANT:
Because Wilson was born in Serbia we have had to do a number of things at the U.S. Embassy in Belgrade. We have had to get his passport, get his American birth certificate, and get his SS card. To do these things we go to a part of the embassy known as U.S. citizen services. Now the name implies that this is a place where U.S. citizens could receive service, but this is not the case. All three times we have dealt with the same clerk and the best way I can put it is she is rude. She has never been to the United States yet she acts like she knows everything about it.... it's infuriating. She has told us our marriage liscence was not a marriage licsence because it did not look right, I got a good scolding this week becasue I did not pick up Wilsons Birth certificate in a timely manner (never mind the fact that the government was changing systems so it took 7 months to get here) and she would not schedule an appointment for me to get Wilson a SS card, I had to go home and call the office. Guess who answered the phone, that's right the rude lady I was just talking to. So that's my rant.

REVELATION:

We have been here for nearly two years so there are many things that happen a daily basis that may be interesting to you but to us they are just the way things are. Amy being here has really opened my eyes (revealed to me) some of the interesting things I should be sharing with you. So in that vane I want to welcome you to:

That's right its Cuban Days at the local shopping center. According to this sign you can get a Cuban meal at the cafeteria, there is a picture display of Havanna on the concourse (without Castro). There are also little displays of "traditional" Cuban things through out the store (musical instruments etc.). I just figured this is not something you would typically see in the U.S. say at Wal-Mart. But this sign was not the only thing welcoming you to Cuban Days. There was this:

Nothing like a giant Cuban flag welcoming you to shop. The great part is the celebration of the little island did not end here. The girls went to birthday party on Sunday. It was at a very cool indoor playground with a big pirate ship. Now pirates and Cuba I have no idea what those in common (maybe Black Beard hung there). But the cafe that the parents hung out at the party was the La Revolucija - dedicated to the Cuban revolution and Mr. Castro. I just thought all that was interesting and you should know about it.
Those of you with kids (like say a 5 year old) have probably never uttered the sentence:
"Sorry I did not here my phone ring, I was picking up Miki from the Discoteka (disco)." But that is what I told Amy on Saturday when I missed her call while getting Miki from a birthday party at the disco. In all fairness it was a disco for kids but it had loud music, and a mirror ball.
I'm going to try to do a better job of keeping you - the loyal reader- aware of these little tidbits.

See you tomorrow for Fantastic Friday!

Fantastic Friday - More thankfulness

2011-11-11T08:30:00.001-06:00

In honor of Thanksgiving, Fantastic Friday will be focused on things I am thankful for, but before we get to that a little story. As all of you know in the states, today is Veterans Day. In Serbia and the rest of the world it is just Friday. So today when I headed out the door early to get some paperwork done at the U.S Embassy, it was just Friday to me (you know cause I live in Serbia and had no idea it was Veterans Day). Well apparently Veterans day is a holiday, and the U.S Embassy is closed on holidays (not a bad gig, they are closed on American and Serbian holidays). The security guard at the embassy did enjoy my confusion though. So now on to some things I am thankful for.
1. Veterans. I have a hard time living overseas and being away from thins I love and no one is shooting at me, so thanks to all you men and women who sacrifice so all of us can do mundane things like blog.

2. I am Thankful for this:

Living in Serbia, one of the things I miss the most is our Church Home. Being taught by pastor Steve, having a great Lifegroup to fellowship with and oh how we miss worship. But for all that we miss, LPC and the people of LPC have been so supportive of us. The Fields, Murphy, Burge, and Moore Lifegroups have done super job of supporting us. They pray for us, they stay in contact. They celebrate birthdays with us and generally keep us connected to the church. Aside from these classes the staff at LPC has gone above and beyond to make sure we have things we need and to get people here to help our business grow and be successful. We are so thankful for our church home and all they have done to support us.

Fantastic Friday

2011-11-04T04:28:00.001-05:00

Happy Friday Everyone! Since it's November and this month is all about being thankful, I am going to use Fantastic Friday this month to share some things I am thankful for. Today I want to share the four most AWESOME people in my life, I used to refer to them as my girls but we added Wilson, now they are my girls and the boy.

My Girls

I am most thankful for my best girl, my wife, my partner, Jen. It takes a special woman to live with me. She has made our adjustment to life in Serbia so much easier. She works hard making great meals, educating our kids, freeing me up to do what I need to do. Without her nothing happens. One of my favorite stories about Jen comes from when I was coaching. I was visiting with the opposing coach when Jen walked up and met him for the first time. When she walked away, he said "you definitely married up" Truer words have never been spoken.

My oldest daughter is a joy. I am so thankful for the lady she is growing into (although apparently growing into a lady means lots of unexplained tears, the manual forgot to warn me). She is a great helper, loves playing with her little brother and tolerates playing with her sister. She's so smart, she has taken to the language here in such a smooth way. But her best quality is how God is shaping her heart, she sees the bigger picture of whats happening in all our lives and I can see that in the things she says and does. I am so thankful for Kyleigh.

Miki... that kid makes us forget how serious we all can be (all being Jen and I). She is smart and funny. Combined this can be good or dangerous, depending on the situation. When we first arrived in Serbia, and she was against speaking Serbian, she would point things out in English. Things like "mom her hair is orange". We had to remind her lots of folks speak English here, numerous times. Miki brings the fun, she's sensitive, she feels for those around her, and her heart breaks at injustice. I am so thankful for Miki.


The Boy

I was pretty satisfied with just my girls, luckily Jen was not and God had a much better plan, or we probably would not have this boy. He has been such a revelation for us. He is such a boy, he's physical, he moves all the time, he likes balls and cars - he just knew he was supposed to like them. He smiles all the time (of course he is well entertained by those sisters). He keeps up at night - alot. But its worth it. I marvel at how God is shaping K and Miki and daydream often about how God will shape this boy's life. I am so thankful for Wilson.

It's Friday, be happy, be thankful, and have a fantastic day.

Celebrating....

2011-11-03T06:59:00.000-05:00

Well October has come to a close creating a dilemma for the Stevens family, how do we celebrate that last day of October. Calling it Halloween, out of the question - does not jive with our jobs. I prefer to celebrate Refromation Day, but that's kind of over the top. So like 99% (no statistical proof for that just a guess) of all conservative, evangelical churches in the deep south we had a fall festival with Team Belgrade.

Side note: by guessing 99% I am implying that the other 1% completely ignore Oct. 31st, as a matter of fact it probably does not even appear on their calenders.

Side note 2: By using these two numbers I have probably implied that I care/am following "occupy wall street" but I do not and am not. Did you know that unemployment in Belgrade tops 30%? I'm just sayin...

My super creative wife, encouraged/coerced everyone to dress up. The stipulation was you had to be a character from a book and you had to use what you had from home. Jen kept suggesting these great litereary characters from the past that we did not have the equipment for so I came up with two suggestions:

1. I could be the modern version of any of those characters (meaning I could just where regular clothes). That was quickly vetoed.

2. I could be John Lock from LOST. I have tshirts, boots and cargo pants. I just needed Jen to shave my head and give me a scar over my right right eye. I thought it was a good idea, no one else did.

So I became Roderick, the big brother from the Wimpy Kid book series. Simple costume - black tshirt and jeans. Done and Done. Michaela was Nancy Drew - she was too cute, K was Ally Finkle - sort of her normal self, Jen was Mrs. Frizzle from the magic shool bus and Wilson was Chistopher Robin. Good costumes by all of us.

Amy and the Israels all came over so we played games (dry apple bobbing was my favorite). We also decorated pumkins (see picture below) and ate, ALOT. It was a great way to start fall.

The whole gang, notice trey was taking the picture since he had the least creative costume

dry apple bobbing (shes cheating you are not supposed to use your hands

Pumpkin carving the stevens way - no mess

nancy drew

Fantastic Friday

2011-10-15T12:15:00.001-05:00

This week has certainly not been fantastic. I am in the U. S. but, for the funeral of my grandfather. You can read about him here. That being said (new favorite phrase by the way) I thought I would reflect on some of my impressions of home. Two years is not a long time away but two years shifts perspective.
1. No one parks on the sidewalk here. They park in parking lots and walk instead of parking on the sidewalk right in front of where they are going.
2. The traffic is light, there are no people out walking down the clear sidewalk (which they could do if they were out because no one is parked on the sidewalk!)
3. BIG, everything is BIG here. Big cars, big trucks, big everything. I had a load of laundry to do and in my eyes it was huge and I dropped it in my moms washing machine and it looked empty. Everything is BIG.
4. Humidity, Humidity, Humidity. I have not missed you old friend.
5. WAL -MART is the most amazing place on earth. I could spend all day there. We had tricked our selves into thinking that we had stores like Wal - mart. Wal - mart is Wal - mart, there is no place like it!
6. CHOICES, CHOICES, CHOICES! There are so many choices everywhere you go. It's sort of overwhelming.
These are just a few of the things I've noticed and as the week progresses I'm sure I'll notice more.

My Grandpa

2011-10-15T07:30:00.001-05:00

Me and Grandpa on the back patio in Athens

I'm back in the U.S. this week for the funeral of my grandpa. In declining health he passed away this week and asked that I would come home to perform his funeral service. What grandson would turn that opportunity down? I just wanted to take a little blog space to let you know who grandpa was....

Lester Wilson (that's Grandpa for clarification) grew up in central Texas in a small community, the son of a cotton farmer. I think his childhood impacted his adulthood in a tremendous way. My grandpa was a plain spoken and simple man with the unending work ethic of small town America. That being said grandpa was one of the smartest men I ever knew (he had three daughters so he had to be smart to survive that). At 17 he lied so he could join the navy and fight in WWII. After the war he returned home and met a wonderful lady, Betty (my grandmother). They married and raised one son and three daughters. Grandpa's adult life was spent working for Ford motor company and he retired and drove a school bus for Athens ISD for as long as I can remember.

The most important day in my grandpa's life came some 60 years ago when after much protesting he decided to follow Jesus and make him the lord of His life. It was a day that not only changed his life but would ultimately have a tremendous impact on my life. My grandpa had a deep and intimate relationship with Christ. Through him I saw what daily Christian living looked like. His bible was always being studied, it was tattered, it was worn and it was well read. Sitting around the table and hearing stories of how grandpa helped folks that were out of work, how he took in family members that had no where to go, how he refused to eat at restraunts that would not serve his black co workers. My grandpa never did what was popular, he did what was right. He lived the scripture he believed, in a simple daily life. He loved people, he helped those that needed help, and he spoke truth. To a young boy growing to a young man, he was the model of Christian living.

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to speak a final time with my grandpa on the phone. I caught him up with my life in Serbia, and my family. He talked some about his funeral what was important to be said - preach Jesus he told me, and the last words he spoke to me were "son I'll see you on the other side". That's the legacy of my grandpa, the other side. The people that will see him again because shared the name of Jesus.

Fantastic Friday 4

2011-10-07T13:12:00.001-05:00

So I have been a little lax in my blogging lately. It is not that there has been nothing to blog about, It's just that it has been very busy and there has not been time. Let me recap that last couple of weeks:
- Awesome 8 team from LPC comes for a week of crazy work. There trip to teach English morphed into teaching English, serving the poor, and teaching at Kyleigh's school. Quite a bit to do in 6 days.
- After the Awesome 8 left, team Belgrade started their English classes which included a ton of prep seeing as we are writing our own texts.
- Then there was the end of the month reporting, always fun. (this month we started a fancy new reporting system, supposed to be better, easier etc. It's not)
On to Fantastic Friday

ALL AFRICA ALL THE TIME ... in serbia

Our great friends Doug and Kathryn in Africa love us very much. So much they went to a tremendous amount of trouble to send us this:

Notice that the package is from America.... This box and its content traveled from Uganda to the U.S(7050 miles). Then from the U.S. to Serbia (4440 miles). That's nearly 11500 miles of love. You ask why they just did not send it straight to us? Uganda won't send to Serbia so Kathryn got creative. We were overjoyed at this little surprise. I was stoked because I got this:

That's real African coffee grown in Doug and Kat's backyard. As soon as I find a grinder it's gonna be all Uganda in the house. (I am a little conflicted there is no snazzy free trade sticker like on Starbucks, so should I drink this?) And to top things off African style, earlier in the summer Doug, thinking of me, gave me this:

What is it you ask? Its African Poop Art. Yes men in the street take the cow poop, spread it out, design it, let it dry then paint it.... all with their hands. Needless to say this is a prized possession. Doug and Katheryn thanks for making this week FANTASTIC!!!!

SOME THOUGHTS ON APPLE

Who would have thought that the release of the most futuristic, intellegent, and powerful communication device of all time would be met with such scorn from the public. If you are dissapointed don't buy it, wait and Apple will release a new unbelievable device and hopefully it won't be such a letdown. Personally I am stoked about the Nano, may try to get my hands on one of those.

Fantastic Friday ... Errr Monday

2011-10-03T00:46:00.003-05:00

Ok so this is a little late, but there is a good explanation. Last week was the busiest week since we got here. We had a SUPER, AMAZING, FANTASTIC volunteer team from LPC (our home church) here for the week. I thought I was busy but we worked these folks to death. They taught three English classes a day. The performed some compassion work with the Roma, they taught in Kyleigh's school. They did get one relaxing day of sight seeing. They were truly a blessing and we hope they come back next year. It was a fantastic week. If you are interested in a more detailed description of the week plus pictures, check this out! This week should be a little less crazy so I'll be a more faithful blogger!

Fantastic Friday 2

2011-09-23T13:22:00.000-05:00

It's Friday so lets have a fantastic time.

MY OBSESSION WITH PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION: I love public transportation. But Belgrade is a little behind other European Capitols. Even the Force can't sway the transportation system:

But things are looking up for Public Transit in Belgrade. This past week several innovations have been announced for the coming year. The 10 busiest stops in central Belgrade are going to have electronic signs announcing the arrival time of the next bus/tram. In addition to the signs, the automated ticketing system will take effect January 1. This system will increase revenue which may lead to buying more of these:

This is the newest tram in Belgrade and if the city can buy about 40 more we can get rid of these:

Now that would be FANTASTIC!!!!!

MORE JARS OF AWESOMENESS: I found a few more jars this week (about 30) so Jen and I got to jarring. We jarred over 50 pounds of tomatoes. We now have 18 jars of Salsa (can't get it here) and 15 jars of marinara sauce (can get it here but all the jars we jarred cost the price of one). I was a great help but had to bail out when I was overcome by the onions and ran from the kitchen in tears.

MIKI QUOTE OF THE WEEK: I am working hard at losing some weight (down 10 pounds) and Miki has become my encourager. We went to a birthday party where they had PIZZA HUT PIZZA, so I had to have a piece. On our way from the party Miki said:
Miki: 'Dad I saw you eat that pizza"
Me: "Yeah but I ate good today and it was one slice"
Miki: "Well you gotta have some fun in life dad"

Hope you had a Fantastic Friday and check Jen's Blog this week for more about our jarring experience.

Fantastic Friday's 1

2011-09-17T09:23:00.002-05:00

I totally stole this from Amy our Journey Girl, but I thought I would post every Friday about the fantastic things that have happened in our lives this past week. It's basically gonna be random stuff in my head, sometimes amusing, and often pointless. I think sometimes in life we need that, a little humor and some mindless reading. So with that in mind, here we go.

Journey Girls: These are young singles, post college, who work in our company all around the world for two years. We have one now working with us (Amy) in Belgrade. And through our training and orinetation grew to love many mores. Obviously by choosing this time in their lives to pause and do something different, they have a heart to see the world change. I just wanted to let all them know that regardless of what they think is going on in their place of service they are changing the world. Here is proof:
On our way to school Miki likes a particular song on my CD (Six Pence None the Richer "Beautiful Scandalous Night" if you care). I told her for as long as I live that song will remind me of her, so here is the conversation:

ME: When you get married and leave I'll here that song and cry

Miki: I may not get married
Me: Really, why not
Miki: God may just want me to be a single or a Journey girl like....
then she names all she can thank of

So J-Girls out there, as many of you are wrapping up your term, know you have changed the world one girl at a time and we are praying for you all.

Other Random Miki Quotes from the Week:
"When I grow up God's gonna call me to Paris"
"Daria's a lot like me, we are both bodies at home" (that should be homebodies)

The things we see:
This week while I at was at a cafe, I watched a dad and his pretoddler son interact. Now let me preface this by saying the dads here spend a ton of time with their kids and it is not an uncommon site to see dads pushing strollers, wearing babies in packs etc. And this is usually with no moms around. But this guy was different, he seemed preoccupied. He gave his son a plastic bag to play with (the kind that suffocate children), then his mobile phone which the boy promply dropped and shattered. Thinking that was not smart he gave him a water bottle - a glass one. I was getting a little concerned when another gentleman showed up. Both men greeted each other then the father gave the late arrival a stack of money - a huge stack of money - so maybe he was preoccupied.

Hope you enjoyed your first fantastic Friday and we will do it again next week.

Then and Now

2011-09-10T07:21:00.003-05:00

Often times when God closes a door or leads us in another direction we rarely return to the previously closed door. It is as if we forget it even existed (mostly excited God did not open that door for us). I really enjoy it when God takes us back to those previously closed doors, opens them, and gives us a new set of opportunities. Just this past week we have seen that with the school that Miki is now attending.
When we first arrived here, we had to find a school for her and "Naša Radost" was the first place we went. It is close to K's school so we thought that made sense. Upon arrival, I was overwhelmed. It was loud, there were a ton of kids, no one spoke English. Most of all they were really confused as to why we were there. After a lady called her son - who spoke English- we were able to communicate and got the information we needed. As we left I prayed God, please have another place for her, I can not leave my baby girl there. That same day a neighbor gave us information for the pre school that Miki did attend (it was much smaller and they spoke English). I was so thankful and glad the door to "Nasos Radost" had been closed.
Fast forward to now. Miki could no longer go to her school that we loved (Sunašce), for her to go to first grade next year we needed her to go to official kindergarten this year. So guess where we ended up, that's right, "Naša Radost", and this time it was totally different.
First, when I went back they remembered me. I had enough Serbian that communication was possible and there main concern was would Miki understand what was going on. I explained she had been in a Serbian pre school and would be fine. The registration was relatively simple (with my friend Gradimir's help) and Miki had a great first day. Jennifer talked with the Director and they are so happy to have us there and would love our help (really Miki's) when they start English classes for the kids in October. God has now provided us two opportunities to impact the community and join in the community we live. So when those doors close don't forget about them because God may take you back there in his time.
Jen also has a few new posts up this week, click here and check it out.

Things Fall Apart....

2011-09-03T03:52:00.001-05:00

This is the title of a great book by Chinua Achebe, about when the European powers colonized Africa. Other then the title that book and this blog share nothing in common. This blog is about when over a decade of togetherness becomes every man (or woman) for himself. Since before Kyleigh was born Jen and I had developed a great crisis management system. We mostly practiced on our cats (Hayley and Nike). Coughing up a hairball, puking up something that was not edible for cats etc., no problem one of us would clean and the other would get the cat to a better place (bathtub, hardwood floor, just somewhere easy to clean). By the time Kyleigh arrived Jen and were a well oiled machine when it came to vomiting. For our 7th anniversary Kyleigh crawled in our bed and commenced vomiting. I caught the puke Jen grabbed towels and not a word was spoken we just took care of business. For years this is what we did, but last night that came to a screeching halt - the machine just stopped working.

At 11:45 Miki comes into the living room coughing and crying (Jen and I are sleeping in the living room so our coughing will not wake Wilson). I hear Miki and hop up before she heads back to our room. She sees me in the living room and walks over to me. She is crying and coughing and I thought she had a bad dream, so standing on the rug (that'll be important later) I pick her up to hold her. Just as she settles into the safe embrace of her father, she pukes, not projectile, but just right down my back, all of it. I froze, I just stood there with warm vomit running down my back, in my shorts, down m legs. The next thing I know (hours could have passed for the shock I was in) Jen is yelling "Get off the rug, get to the wood floor". I had snapped, the machine was broken. I moved to the wood where Miki let out one more warm rush of vomit (I had no idea her stomach was that big). I am now officially covered in vomit from head to toe. I abandon the mission, forget all protocol and move into self preservation mode. I put Miki down on the wood floor and go to the bathroom and shower. The shower brings me back to reality and I do return to the living room and help Jen. I had left her in a desperate situation: puke on the rug, puke on the floor, puke on the kid. In my head warm vomit running the length of your entire body dictates you shower. I apologize and begin cleaning. I bathe Miki, (covered in vomit from her bed where we will later find out this all began), dress her, strip the bed and start a load of laundry. Despite all of this effort the great machine had ceased to work. Jen and laid on the couches after Miki went back to bed and just laughed at the situation and our lack of preparedness. I have been in deep thought reviewing everything trying to come up with why. Is it the stress of living over seas, sleep deprivation from Wilson, am I just selfish? Have I raised my need to be clean above the needs of others (that's probably it actually)? I don't know. The best I can come up with is sometimes things fall apart.

FIrst Day of School - Serbian Style

2011-09-01T12:56:00.000-05:00

Today was the girls first day of national school (they have been doing home school since Monday). Kyleigh was going back to her old school (she has a pretty sweet schedule and will only go to Serbian school every other week since she will be doing full 5th grade home school with Mrs. Stevens). In fact K was so confident we were in our old neighborhood and she just told us she would walk to school. When school was out she called and said she was going home with a friend... so this is really gonna be the story of Miki's first day. But to understand the first day you have to go back in time with me.

MAY 15 - 17 2011

With the help of a friend I go to the school we want Miki to attend and gather all the paper work to register her. My self and Gradimir (my friend) fill out the forms and gather the necessary documents to enroll Miki. We also type a letter that asks that his daughter (Daria) and Miki be in the same class (they are best friends). By the end of May I have been assured that everything is completed and told to com by in July and they would post if the kids are enrolled in school.

JULY 23, 2011

So I get a call from Gradimir that the names of all the kids are posted at the school but he did not see Miki's. Jen is close to the school so her and K check it out. First name on the list Микејла Стивенс (Michaela Stevens). I guess because she is a foreigner, they did not put her in the list alphabetical like all the other kids. So we are excited she will be at the school we want her to go to with her friends.

AUGUST 26, 2011

We are out and about and decide to stop by the school and see if we can meet the teacher. Glad we did because like many things that happen to us, we (I) apparently had missed a few details. We needed to pay the tuition, and get a medical check up for Miki before she could start. No problem we can take care of that on Monday. Simple right.... not really, as we were leaving I noticed the bill for tuition had Wilson's name on it (how that go there will always remain a mystery). So on Monday I had to go to a different place get that corrected, get a new bill, go to post office and pay new bill, take receipt to school, sign the contract, get medical form...... whew that was a busy morning but it did get taken care of. Tuesday Miki went to the doctor so we thought we were ready for Thursday.

TODAY THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Miki is dressed, we have our Bible time and she is ready to go. We arrive at the school and stand in a small line (I use the term line loosely, Serbs more or less gather) to turn in the medical form. Upon our turn we gave the lady the form and then waited, waited, waited. Miki's name was not on the list. Seriously what is going on. The lady keeps telling us her name is not on the list and the other parents who have seen their kids name start laying their forms down so they can move on. I have to admit I was getting a little frustrated. Then out of the blue Miki's teacher comes down the hall, sees the commotion and says "she is in my class" and away we go for the first day. All in all crisis avoided.

So if you have read this far you are either bored or really curious about Miki's first day. She loved it. She is sharing a locker with Daria, Her teacher was really nice, she got invited to a birthday party on Saturday. IT WAS A GREAT DAY. Her only complaints... warm milk at breakfast "warm like it just came from the cow" and no doors on the bathroom stalls.

Sleepless Nights...Not so bad

2011-08-27T00:53:00.000-05:00

I woke up with Wilson this morning after another spotty night of sleep, the boy just does not sleep. His sisters were much better sleepers. I decided I was going to write a blog about how terrible this lack of sleep is, then Wilson and I played and I gave him his breakfast and we watched Barney. All of a sudden those sleepless nights did not seem so bad, as a matter of fact they are a blessing. Those sleepless nights are caused by the most precious little man I have ever met. I know the circles under our eyes will eventually fade and the afternoon yawns will be replaced by something else. I know that soon Wilson will sleep through the night. But for now I'll lose a little sleep in return for the blessing of the boy.

I'm ready for some FOOTBALL

Playing at the Park

Lovin my sissies

This is gonna be good

2011-08-23T14:04:00.000-05:00

You all know I have an amazing wife, and if you don't then now you can read her blog and see how amazing she is. She's smart and funny, super witty and lives a crazy life with me over here in Serbia. Check it out, become a follower and hear what jen has to say follow this link, Jen has something to say...

Serbia, sometimes you suprise me

2011-08-23T13:47:00.000-05:00

We love living here. It's a great place, but it's not like home. Sometimes a post communist country just has a lot of ground to cover to catch up with the west. In the almost two years we have lived here we have seen lots of changes for the better. The public transportation stops now all have maps showing you where the vehicle is going and where it stops. A few weeks ago Jen and I saw a new tram rolling down the tracks (we tried to get a picture but much like sasquatch it disappeared behind the trees). Two recent examples of progress were a trip to the zoo and a trip to the water park.

First the zoo:
We visited the zoo early on and lets just say, it aint San Diego. This past week we made a second trip and were awed by the new exhibit - the Tiger Cage. The zoo has acquired two tigers, one white and one regular. They were in new modern enclosures, more habitat based then concrete. The great thing is they walked up to the fence and if you were completely crazy and not fond of your hands, you could pet them. Wilson was super intrigued. This was easily his favorite part of the zoo. Here are the pics to prove it:

that's the tiger right behind us

mom please let me pet the tiger

The water park:
We had heard the legend of an amazing water park a couple of hours south of Belgrade. After contacting friends and confirming the legends were true we decided we must see this ourselves. On monday morning we headed to Jagodina and the Akva (aqua) Park. Upon arrival, the legend was confirmed. This was one of the nicest water parks I had ever been to. They had an olympic pool, expansive shallow kids area, two large wading pools, and 7 large adult water slides. It was clean, the water was refreshing and the shade was plentiful. We met two other families there and the kids had a blast. One of the great things about Serbia is they have not figured out that when you have someone trapped in the park, zoo, fortress etc., you can charge 10 times as much for food. So for less then $20 we got admission and a great lunch as well as an afternoon snack. It was a great day and we will be making the drive back for more fun in the sun. Here are some pics:

Jen and her crew (plus a couple extra)

Put me in the water

coming down the slide... this is fun!

gotta keep me in the shade

Hellos and Goodbyes

2011-08-20T05:20:00.002-05:00

When we were in training for this job someone said its a lot of hellos and goodbyes. That's what the past summer was for the Stevens family, many excited hellos followed by many tearful goodbyes. The summer started with two long term hellos as the Isreal Family joined us along with our journey girl Amy arriving in July. In may our good friend Kim came with two bags stuffed full of the good stuff form America (this was a trend that thankfully continued with all our guest!). At the end of June we said hello to my dad (Goodbye in July) followed by my sister Shea, and brother-in-law Bobby, who sandwiched a honeymoon to Paris between visits to Belgrade. When my Dad left we got a surprise hello from Doug and Katherine Taylor, awesome friends from Africa. These hellos were all followed by a 10 day visit from Jen's sister, Julia. Picking all these great people up at the airport is always a thrill. Skype, email, facebook etc. are all great ways to stay connected, but to get to hug someone you have not seen in forever is unbelievable. But it's also bitter sweet, from the time you say hello, in the back of your mind the clock is ticking until goodbye. I know the girls loved this summer and spending so much time with people but the goodbyes were not fun.
In addition to the visits of these family and friends we met two groups of young ladies that had a huge impact on our summer. Kristina and Bethany were here working with our company in Novi Sad and spent a few days in Belgrade with us. And we saw lots of the "Seattle Girls". These young ladies (Jaimee, Aleks, Annie and Sarah) spent the summer in Belgrade working with college students. These six young ladies were a joy in a pleasure to get to know and spent a ton of time loving on my girls.
All told I made 14 trips to the airport in an 8 week span (including five 4:30AM drop offs for the dreaded first flight to Frankfurt).

Here is the honor roll of all our guests and new coworkers:

the israels

kristina, amy and bethany

kim

aunt shea and uncle bobby

papa

doug and katherine

the seattle girls


aunt julia

thanks to all of you for traveling to see us, or becoming new friends. We love you all dearly and look forward to seeing you again.

JARS OF AWSOMENESS!

2011-08-09T02:54:00.000-05:00

This is awsomeness in a jar. What is it you ask? It is salsa, homemade salsa, made by my super wife. (I mean homemade down to boiled and peeled tomatoes). Not only did she make it she canned it, old school style (you know boil the jars etc, wait for a little pop). On a side note since you use a jar, why is it called canning.... just curious, so I hereby move to call it jarring. I am pretty stoked about this jarring thing. Want chips and salsa, grab a jar. Jen has plans to jar a bunch of other stuff like spaghetti suace etc. Jen has been on a tear this week, she made and jarred salsa. She made homemade apple and pear sauce for the boy. Based on the cakes she makes we knew she could bake but this week she busted out the cinnamon rolls. She has been doing her own baby food for several weeks now. (that stuff costs a fortune here so we just grind up the veggies we are eating). From day one here in Serbia Jen has done a great job figuring out how to feed us and replacing our favorites from home with things available here but jarring salsa, that's taking it to a new level!

Cinnamon Rolls.... YUMMM!!!