Thanking God for Skype

Update from grandma Pruitt's funeral:

Shannon left for the airport yesterday afternoon. He wasn't there 30 minutes when he found out that his flight had been cancelled. There were no more flights out for the day so he was left brokenhearted. Needless to say, yesterday was a sad day at our house. Not only for Shannon but for his family back in Arkansas as well. They were all sad because he wasn't going to be able to make it to the funeral. Well, we got a call last night from his aunt Linda and she said that they would try to skype the funeral. To some people this might be morbid or weird but, for a grandson that is over a thousand miles away, it was a blessing. I went ahead and went to school this morning but I couldn't stand the thought of Shannon having to watch the funeral by himself so, I decided that I would come home at 10:00. When I got home Shannon already had connected to skype at the church in Hector. We got to see and talk to all of his family and watched the whole funeral. It was such a blessing for him. Not only a blessing but it gave him the closer that he needed. A big thank you to all who have left us messages, comments or phone calls. We are so blessed to have such great family and friends.

Grandma Pruitt

Shannon's grandma Pruitt passed away yesterday afternoon. She was such a precious woman and she will be truly missed. Shannon was not able to see her before she passed away and that was really hard on him. They did say their goodbyes before we left and I'm thankful for that. Shannon will be leaving tomorrow to go to the funeral. Please pray for his safety as he travels.

What we've been up to...

Here are a few pictures from the past week. We have been so busy with school that I haven't had time to blog.

We have gotten rid of all of the bananas in the last week. I have made banana bread twice and will make some more tomorrow.

We've had a game night at the school.

We've made Ghirardelli brownies that were so yummy.

We've went to school. This is where we all hang out at break time.

Here we are in one of our classes.

This is our chapel service that we have every Wednesday with our teachers.

I took this picture waking to school one morning. The mountains are so beautiful here.

We had a little get together at Becca's last night. All these kids are from Argentina. Their parents go to Cincel to learn English.

We've went to the Feria.

Here are our purchases from the Feria all for about 10 bucks.

Back to school we go.

This last Tuesday was the first day of our second trimester. This trimester is going to be really challenging for us. From what we hear, you learn the most in this trimester. I don't see how that could be possible because I thought we learned a lot during the first. How much can ones brain take? That is the real question. I was talking to a friend today (actually he is the director of the language school) and I told him that I was going to need encouraging words from him everyday. You know, like a cheerleader. He gave me some good advice that I really like. He said, " You can only do it one day at a time". As in, just know that you can make it through today and don't worry about tomorrow. I like that! I don't know if this was just a coincidence but, this afternoon I was talking to another friend from back home and he told me the very same thing. How crazy is that? Ok God I get it.

Here is my memory verse that I have to know by tomorrow. I know it's short but trust me they get bigger. Last tri we had to memorize Psalms 23. I don't even think I have that memorized in English.

El que tiene al hijo, tiene la vida; El que no tiene al hijo de Dios, no tiene la vida.

Primera de Juan 5:12

1 John 5:12

Since I don't like to post without a picture. Here is a picture of Ethan, Molly, and Max. Max is my mom's dog. This was taken over our Christmas break.

Going Bananas

The day we moved into this apartment our landlord told us that these bananas would be ripe in 15 days. Well, 4 months later, they were cut off the tree. They are now hanging out in our yard so they can ripen. They should be ready to eat in about a week. If you have never had a banana right off the tree, you don't know what you're missing. But, totally understand because it's not often that you have a banana tree in your backyard. They are so good, so much better than buying them at the store. I don't believe that we will be able to eat all these by ourselves. I'm sure we will be giving them away. Did I mention that Shannon doesn't like bananas?

Last two weeks in pictures

Prepare yourself for many pictures. We left for the states two weeks ago yesterday and I am just now blogging about it. First we went to my mom's house in Texas and spent 5 days with her. We had so much fun with her and Molly. We shopped a lot and ate a lot. My mom is a really great cook. There is nothing greater than getting up in the morning and drinking coffee with your mom. To top it off she cooked breakfast for us every morning. We had homemade biscuits, baked chocolate pies (a recipe from my great grandma), and french toast made from homemade bread. Did I mention that she made homemade cheesecake that was to die for? Shannon just informed me that I couldn't forget her homemade cornbread. Oh my goodness, it was good. We ate and ate and ate and loved every minute of it.

Megan eating at Chick-fil-a in Texas for her first meal in the states.

My precious dog Molly. Oh how I miss her already.

On Wednesday December 23rd we flew to Orlando. We got there around 8:30 and by the time we got our rental car and found our resort it was 11:00. So, we slept in the next morning and went to McDonalds for breakfast. Ethan loves the sausage mcgriddles. He loves sausage period. That is the one thing that we can't get here. After a quick run to Starbucks we headed to an outlet mall. We shopped for a couple of hours and then went to Chick-fil-A for lunch. After lunch we went to met Shannon's family at the airport.

Shannon's grandparents with the kids.

The pool at our resort.

Christmas Day - We slept in and Shannon's grandma made us a big breakfast. We then decided to take the kids swimming. We ate a late afternoon Christmas meal which consisted of roast, mashed potatoes, corn, and homemade rolls. That is the meal that we requested and it was delicious.

The kids swimming.

The next day we got up and got ready and took the kids to downtown Disney. Macen, Shonda's youngest daughter, loved Disney. What little girl wouldn't?

Meg and Madison with their new Mickey hats.

The kids with Mickey.

Me with Mickey.

Meg and Madison eating before they left for the airport.

Ethan and his great grandpa Bull.

Shannon's family flew out on Sunday. After they left we went and checked in our motel where the LAC retreat was. The retreat started on Monday December 28 and went through Jan 1.

We had a great time at the retreat.

On Thursday before we left we went back to Downtown Disney.

Me and kids at the Rainforest Cafe.

We got up at 2:40 Jan 1 because we had to be at the airport by 4:30. The airport was crazy. We were lucky that we didn't miss our flight. The kids slept all the way to Houston. We finally arrived back in Costa Rica at 2:00.

I received this great Espresso machine for Christmas. After an early dinner on Saturday Shannon and I decided to make espressos. I had hazelnut and Shannon had vanilla. They were so good. I think this little machine is going to make me so happy.

Perfecto!!

Since we have been home we have been having a little problem with gnats. They were driving me crazy! So, I decided to go online and find out what I could do. I came up with this gnat trap.

All I needed was a coke bottle, sugar, and apple cider vinegar.

Here is the finished product.

Here is the trap after an hour or two. If you look closely you can see the gnats in the bottle.

I guess that about sums up our last two weeks. We still have a week off before we start back to school. We are glad because we need to to rest from all of our travels. We are glad to be back home in Costa Rica. We really like it here. The only thing that could make it better is our dog. I was so proud of the kids. They were both ready to come back to CR too. They were actually excited about it. Well, we will see how excited they are when they start back to school. lol!

Waiting

I am sitting in the airport right now waiting for our flight back to CR. We had so much fun in the States but we are looking forward to being home. I ate way too much and am ready to get back to all that walking. We also did some shopping for things that we can't get in CR and are bringing back some goodies. We are all excited about that. I just hope they make it in our luggage. I will let you know. I will post some pics later.

I finally had time to catch up on some blogs. I seen this on a friends blog and thought I would do it too.

What did you do in 2009 that you had never done before?
I moved to Costa Rica.

Did you keep you new years resolutions and will you make any this year?
I don't make new years resolutions.

Did anyone close to you give birth?
No, I don't think so.

Did anyone close to you die?
No, thank the Lord.

What places have you visited?
I think we visited every town in Arkansas. Disney World and Panama.

What would you like to have in 2010 that you lacked in 2009?
Better health and Spanish speaking abilities.

What date from 2009 will remain etched in your memory?
August 26, 2009 - the day we moved out of the country.

What was your biggest achievement this year?
I think my biggest achievement would have to be homeschooling my kids and raising our budget. It was very challenging.

Did you suffer illness or injury?
Yes, I think I stayed sick almost all year.

What was the best thing you bought?
I don't really remember any one thing but I did get an ipod touch while we were in the states.

Where did most of you money go?
Doctors and taxi's

What song will remind you of 2009?
Not any one song but I do love listening to Hillsong Spanish.

What do you wish you would have done more of?
Relax

What do you wish you would have done less of?
Worrying

What was you favorite tv program?
We love to watch Survivor. We actually call it Survivor night and watched it with some friends. It something that we look forward to.

What was the best book you read this year?
The only book that I read this year was the Bible. My goal was to read the Bible through but I didn't make it. I did make it through the Old Testament and part of the new. Life got a little stressful! I will try it again this year.

What was your favorite film of the year?
I have no idea because I don't watch movies. We did go see 2012 at the VIP theater in CR and that was an awesome experience. But, the movie wasn't that great.

What did you do on your birthday and how old were you?
I went to church in Viola and Alpena Ar. I turned 34!

What political issues stirred you the most?
There were many.

Who was the best new person you met?
I can't name just one because I have met many. The two that I have spent a lot of time with and I am so glad that God brought them my way are Rebecca and Katie. They are really special to me and my family. They took care of my kids while I was in hospital in a foreign country.