We'll Be Home For Christmas...

As we pack our bags and clean our apartment, we are so happy that we will be flying home tomorrow! We will be somewhere in the air between Houston and Nashville this time tomorrow night.

We will be in Mississippi for the first half, and then Tennessee for the second half. I am pretty sure that my whole family, including Samuel and his family, will be there!! This is a rare occurance! The whole Halbert family will be there as well, and we are so happy to see our families.

We want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!

It's Not Just Another Day!

Hello to everyone. Aaron was so very gracious to update the blog this week for me. Some weeks, it seems like my grading pile grows when I look away. I know they are kindergarten papers to grade, but I have been wrapping up before Christmas holidays and my kids have done so many phonics papers this week!!

The Christmas party last night was fantastic. Even though there was not as much food as we had expected, we had plenty and it was good stuff! There was a good turn out on the number of kids as well. The girls were somewhat on time, and the boys showed up at least an hour late. This is to be expected in Honduras, though. The girls were actually going on our "American" time. Honduran time is always "an hour behind." A lot of times, brides are late coming to the wedding, people are late for funerals, and NOONE is EVER on time for a party!! Oh, well, we can't change the culture!!

We are headed downtown for some fun. Tomorrow is our 1 year anniversary (hence the title), and we are celebrating a bit tonight. It is so hard to believe that a year has gone by since our wedding. It was so much fun, and I can't believe it was all a year ago.

Alot has happened in this year. Personally, I never would have thought that May would hold such shocking news for our family. On the other hand, living in Honduras has been a bigger blessing than I had imagined! So, the Lord has surprised me in so many ways through His grace and mercy this year. He is the constant in our lives-the only One who never changes and the One who brought us here- both Honduras and one year together as husband and wife. To God be all the glory, for great things He has done!!

This and That

Sorry it has been so long since the last update. These past few weeks since thanksgiving have been rather hectic. As Christmas draws closer everything seems to have become more stressful as we prepare to finish school and come home for a few weeks. The kids have been extremely difficult to handle because they are all just as antsy as we are to have a nice break.
Over the past few weeks it seems like every night there is something that we have to do. This last weekend Rachel had the Christmas concert for the elementary school and it turned out to be wonderful. She loved seeing all the work the kids had put in come to fruition. I was unable to attend because I got a stomach bug the night before and wasnt feeling better until Saturday morning. Saturday brought more activity as we went to Valle de Angeles to do a little bit of Christmas shopping but, it was the same kind of Christmas shopping you do in the States. It was not crowded, hectic, or loud. It was actually very relaxing for both of us just to spend some time together enjoying the areas where we live. Saturday night brought a Quincineara, which is the equivalent of a Sweet Sixteen birthday party. It was one of the most extravagant things we have seen yet in Honduras. It was like something straight off of TV. It was very enjoyable to see these kids in their element and I was able to take some pictures that I hope to be able to post.
To continue on, Monday brought my Christmas concert, but once they get into High School they just aren't as cute as the younger ones. It was well put together and the kids seemed to have fun.
What we are looking most foward to is this Friday night when we are having a Christmas party at our house for all of the tenth grade. They are bringing desserts and appetizers and we are planning the games and activities. I have been dying to do some youth group type activities since we left and I think this will be a wonderful opportunity. We did do alot of preparation for this party while my friend Mark was in town because we decided to decorate outside. It started like most ideas do with two boys saying lets just do a little decorating and it ended with a hand made Christmas tree, icicle lights, bannisters wrapped in wreath and lights, net lights, and a blow up 8 foot polar bear that Mark bought us, a penguin the girls upstairs bought, and a snowman. So it turned into much more work than expected but the turned out way better than we could have hoped for.
With all that being said I hope to post alot of new pictures today and we look forward to seeing alot of you over the holidays. God Bless and thank you for all your prayers, interest, and support over these last few months.

The Thanksgiving Feast at the Halberts

I have realized that cooking an entire Thanksgiving meal by yourself can be quite a task. I appreciate Mama and Jan-Jan (my grandmother) more now that I have tried it myself. Things were a bit different because of the Honduran shopping, but it was not that big of a deal.
I began on Wednesday night by making banana pudding. I was worried about this for two reasons. First, they don't have Nilla Wafers here, so I had to use a similar thin cookie. Second, they only had the old fashioned vanilla pudding, not instant, and I did not realize this until I mixed it in. Needless to say, the pudding did not "set" like it should have. Aaron and I were pleasantly surprised the next day when we found out that it tasted perfect!!
I began cooking on Thursday at 9am. I was thinking that I would be finished long before Mark arrived around three. Here is the original menu: Baked chickens, cornbread dressing and gravy, broccoli casserole, sweet potatoe casserole, and bread. My first attempt was cornbread for the dressing. I was skeptical from the beginning because they only had one kind of cornmeal here, and it did not look the same. I found out that it did not cook or taste the same either. So, I shifted gears and made home-made mashed potatoes instead. Aaron loves those, so I knew he wouldn't mind. The chickens were stuffed with onions and garlic and put into the oven around 10:30. I let them cook for several hours. Next was the broccoli casserole. That was a recipe from Aaron's mom, and it is his favorite casserole. I almost forgot the eggs, but I was able to mix them in before it began to cook!! Mark arrived right on time, and handed off the sweet potatoes from his suitcase. (I couldn't find any here, so he brought some for us!!) I mixed that casserole together, put some butter on the bread, and popped both of those in the oven for the final round.
The meal was finished and we sat down to eat at about 4:30. Thankfully, the guys had 7 layer dip to snack on while I finished cooking. (That was also made Thursday morning-I forgot)
So, the verdict was: The chickens were "amazing" and fell right off the bone, the potatoes were "Mmmmmmmmm......", the sweet potatoe casserole was "the best thing I have ever put in my mouth" (according to Mark), the bread was "so good", and the broccoli casserole was "good." Remember that I said broccoli casserole was Aaron's favorite?? Something happened while I was cooking, and it just was not the same. Maybe the altitude? Or it might just be "mother's touch." Whatever it was, I am going to get Mita to show me how she makes that and her enchiladas when I go home. Those are two things that I don't have the touch for, and I need to learn from the expert. I am very excited about it!!

We have been stuffed ever since Thursday! I noticed this year that around Thanksgiving and Christmas, I get uncomfortably full. Then, as soon as I get comfortable again, I eat more. So there is a constant feeling of uncomfort!!! Do you agree?? Why do we do that to ourselves? It is miserable!
Anyway, I hope that everyone had a wonderful holiday. Christmas is around the corner, and we come home in three weeks!!! We are looking forward to seeing our friends and family. It was fun being here for Thanksgiving, but a little sad as well. This was our first year not to be completely surrounded by family the entire weekend. Mark was a wonderful substitute, though. I really enjoyed being a hostess this time!
We are decorating our first Christmas tree tonight, and pictures will be up soon. The weather here has been beautiful, but not at all cold. That is the weird part about putting up a Christmas tree. We have been in shorts all weekend!!

Thanksgiving Week in Honduras

Thanksgiving is not really celebrated here in Honduras. The school recognizes it, and we have Thanksgiving festivities in the elementary, but it is not that big of a deal. Pilgrims and Indians are not exactly relevant to these children as they are in the States. It's understandable, but I LOVE Thanksgiving! I have been talking to my aid this past week about traditions of my family. I am sure each of you have traditions that are unique for your family. It has been fun for Aaron and me to combine our families' traditions, do away with some, and add a few of our own this year. This is our first Thanksgiving together as a married couple. Last year, we both went home to our parents' homes for the last holiday as single people! As sad as it is that we won't see the Huttons and the Halberts (and Flemmings and Smiths) this Thanksgiving, I am thankful to have a wonderful husband to spend it with. It is hard to believe that I have been a Halbert for almost a year now!

As we are getting more and more settled here in a new country, we have a lot to be thankful for. As you spend this Thursday preparing a big meal, visiting with friends and family, and probably watching football, please remember the ones around the world who may not have family to spend Thanksgiving with or who may not have money to make a huge feast. There are many here in Honduras, and this is small compared to the rest of the world. We don't come into close contact with many of the poorest of the poor. Most of our students come from the richest of the rich, so there is a big difference. However, even our students don't have perfect lives. Some of them are raised by their maids, nannies, and chauffeurs. My heart goes out to them, as well as the poor of Honduras.

Last week was Spiritual Emphasis Week, as I mentioned in the last entry. Academia Los Pinares is a Christian school, but all of students are NOT Christians. There is a lot of joy in the high school as a result from last week. Please pray that the Lord will be ever present in the lives of these students. Some accepted the Lord as their Savior, which is worthy of praise to our God. Pray that the school will continue on from last week to encourage those in their new faith. Some are still hard-hearted, and they need your prayers as well. Here is the website of the speakers: www.rickandmick.com If you go to the photo gallery, there are some pictures from their trip here. There is one of the entire high school at one of the assemblies-you can't miss it!

Cold days in Honduras

So, last week was the first time we were out of school for a "cold day." I know what you are thinking- "It gets COLD in Honduras?" That is what I thought at first, until this cold front came in. The temperature is not unbearable on these kinds of days with it only getting into the 40s a little at night and in the mornings, but mostly in the 50s. The difference here is that there is no central heating in the school, apartments, or any building, really. Therefore, it is very hard to get warm. The classrooms hold moisture and the coldness, so teaching becomes difficult. Also, the parents of all the students do not like to send their kids in on these days. So, the school has to cancel school on such days. We missed 3 days last week!

This week is Spiritual Emphasis week for the high school. They have speakers named Rick, Mick, and Brandon. Rick and Mick are twins, and Brandon is the son of one of them- I can't remember which one. They are hilarious!!! Aaron has gotten to know them pretty well because they are VERY outspoken and funny. Kindergarten was left out the the school assembly yesterday morning, so I asked them to come visit us. They not only visited, but they sang and told jokes for the entire kindergarten for 30 minutes!! My kids loved it, and it was so special!!

Thanksgiving is just around the corner, and Mark Fleenor is coming to visit us! I am going to try to cook a Thanksgiving meal, sort of. If you have any great recipes, let me know! I am up for suggestions. I have to go shopping on Saturday morning, so get them to me before then!! :)

Conferences, Conferences, and more Conferences

During the week I was in the Mississippi, all of the other teachers were given two half days out of school to complete their parent conferences. Since I missed that, I had to use every spare moment on Monday, Tuesday, and some of Wednesday to meet with my children's parents and give them their report cards. Talk about exhausting! So this is why it has been about a week since my last entry. I was able to get a lot of sleep at night, but the days would drain me of everything. I also had double the paper work and grading to do because of my absence. All is well now, and the weekend is welcomed with open arms!

Nothing else really took place this week besides school and basketball practices. Aaron was sick on Wednesday. The doctor says it is Tonsillitis, but he disagrees. :) He is feeling much better now, but he felt pretty crummy there for a while. I am trying not to be his mother, but he is terrible about taking medicine. Then again, I am not sure of any man who is! Please pray that the Lord will help him recover.

One last pray request for the day. I have realized that I have (but have not been officially diagnosed with) TMJ, or lockjaw. Over the last 6 months to a year, it has gotten steadily worse. For some reason, Honduras (or maybe just the timing) has made it sometimes unbearable. Please pray that the Lord will take away the pain and give me a way to be able to deal with it. I am wearing something at night, and it helps a little. Weather also affects it, and the weather changes in MS and here have sent me for a whirlwind. Not only does my jaw hurt and lock, but the inflammation in my jaw makes it feel like I have an ear infection sometimes. I know that is probably more than you want to know, but please just remember me in your prayers. God Bless!