Category: Czech Republic

Every post I wrote while we lived overseas.

All Packed!

It’s very possible we’ve gone mad over here, but we’ve been packing pretty much all day. I just weighed Bethany’s bag with our trusty bag weighing thing-a-ma-jig and it was 51.3 pounds. That’s 1.3lbs over the limit so we’re moving things around to make it work. Why so heavy you ask? Well, we’re trying to take things back with us that we just don’t need over here or want to leave in the States. For instance, we have a 2.3lb bag full of American coins and we’re taking it back (I think it may have been from the kids’ piggy bank?). We have old VHS movies, a hair dryer that doesn’t work on European power, and a few gifts to take back as well. All that to say, we’ve got big, full suitcases that we’ll be hauling around the globe here in the next couple days.

Basically, our plan is to have 4 large suitcases since we are allowed 1 bag per seat at no extra charge. On our way to the States we’re hoping to only take 3 and pick up another suitcase for our return. With Christmas presents and other things, we’ll probably have a lot more stuff coming back to Czech so we’re trying to plan well on this end. In the photo above the kids thought it was hilarious to put pillows and lay in our in one of our large suitcases. In the photo below, Bethany has laid out all the kids clothes to make sure we have it squared away. Since we’ll be at church 3 times and also attending Bethany’s brothers wedding, it’s actually a lot to think through for all of us. I realize a lot of people take big trips like this, but we’re just trying to be prepared.

All the travel will be a lot on our family, but that doesn’t bother me nearly as much as jet lag. Since we just came over here in June, we’re definitely familiar with the toll jet lag can have on the body. It’s a weird feeling trying to eat a meal at a certain time when your body thinks it should be sleeping. Lord willing, it won’t be too bad, but we are prepared for some interesting days in the coming week. Jet lag or not, we are definitely excited about visiting family and being able to attend Bethany’s brother’s wedding. That’s worth all the packing, jet lag, and travel any day!

Tags jet lag, packing, suitcases, travel

365 Czech Republic

Traditions and an Early Christmas

Post author By Shay
Post date December 20, 2014
No Comments on Traditions and an Early Christmas

Traditions are important. I haven’t done a big study on the topic or read any books, but I think one of the main reasons people like traditions is because they are a constant in the midst of a changing world. No doubt some traditions need to go, but some are ones we look forward to year after year.

Bethany grew up with the tradition of enjoying breakfast, cinnamon rolls, and reading Luke 2 all on the floor around the Christmas tree. This tradition has carried it’s way in to our family and it’s one we now enjoy. Today we celebrated our own Christmas on the floor around the tree. With traveling to the States on Christmas Eve we felt like we should just have an early Christmas of our own here in Czech before we leave. Below is the mini-feast we enjoyed today, complete with cinnamon rolls.

We didn’t tell the kids a single thing about the plans for this morning. Bethany had the big blanket laying out by the tree and Titus, “Hey, what’s this blanket doing here?” We told him to look under the tree and when they saw the all the presents they were giddy with excitement. Once the food was ready, we brought everything out and enjoyed our eggs with cheddar cheese, bacon, coffee, orange juice, and of course the cinnamon rolls. After we finished we cleared the area for present opening. I took the photo below of the kids before we started opening presents.

Below are the photos I got during present opening. Nut much explanation needed, just a lot of happy faces and excited screams.

Here’s Titus playing with his new sword and shield. We bought these at the Christmas market in Poland on Monday. He loved it!

This afternoon we did a ton of work cleaning the car and the house. We want things to be nice and tidy for when we return from the States in mid January. Bethany also worked on making chicken and dumplings which we enjoyed for dinner! While we were outside cleaning the car, our landlord came down and gave our kids a little plate of cookies and gingerbread gifts. This little house (below) she gave to Avery has incredible detail!

Titus and I had to walk to post office this afternoon as well, so I got a few photos of the amazing weather we were enjoying. The sun was shining and even though it was a little windy, it was just a nice walk.

It was a really fun day and I’m excited were able to make it happen. Tonight we reminded the kids just why we celebrate Christmas–the birth of Jesus. I look forward to celebrating it again next week with our family in the States.

Tags Christmas, family, fun, presents, tradition

365 Czech Republic

Prepping for the States and an Early Christmas

Post author By Shay
Post date December 19, 2014
No Comments on Prepping for the States and an Early Christmas

It’s a big deal to fly to the States with two little kids and four large suitcases from Central Europe. Today I took the kids with me to try and secure train tickets for the first leg of our trip which will take us four hours to get to Prague on Tuesday morning. There’s not a ton of room on the train so I was hoping to get seats where we can fit all of our luggage. We’re trying to bring empty suitcases so we can bring stuff back with us. I did end up getting tickets and we’ll see just how the luggage is going to fit. After the train ride we’ll grab a bus to a hotel near the airport. On Christmas Eve our flight leaves early, but Lord willing it will all go smoothly.

Tonight Bethany spent time wrapping up some of the gifts we have for the kids so we can do our own little Christmas morning tomorrow. Since we’ll be traveling, we thought it would be fun to do something at our own place here in Czech. As you can see from the photo above, the kids are doing just fine this Christmas. We’ve been picking up little things here and there and we got a few things in Krakow this past week as well. Bethany made cinnamon rolls tonight, so that will be a little treat in the morning as well. They will definitely be surprised and it’ll be a lot of fun.

Tags Christmas, luggage, travel

365 Czech Republic

Avery’s First Haircut and Another Full Day

Post author By Shay
Post date December 18, 2014
No Comments on Avery’s First Haircut and Another Full Day

Bethany had a “baby check up” early this morning that we took the whole the family to. Even though she wasn’t having an ultrasound today, they always do the little heart monitor on the baby which we had fun listening to. Titus and Avery thought the little “whoosh whoosh whoosh” sound of the little tiny heartbeat was great, and so did I. The next appointment we’ll be able to find out the sex of the baby which will be fun as well. Below is a quick photo of Bethany and Titus at the doctor’s office today while the doctor had stepped out for a minute. Everything happens in one single office from the medical side to the office side of things which is different than in the States.

As we were saying goodbye to our very nice, English speaking doctor, we said “Merry Christmas” in Czech to her. Then she started to say that she thinks people don’t understand why they say that phrase. It was a little confusing what she was trying to tell us but I think she was making the point that culturally people say “Merry Christmas” without really thinking about it. She said she knew it was clearly religious which is why she questioned whether people realize what they’re saying. We told her that we say it because we’re excited about the birth of Jesus and she just nodded her head. It was kind of a strange interaction, but maybe it will lead to more conversations about Jesus in the future?

We have never done a family haircut session until today. That’s because Avery has never had a haircut in her little three year old life, but that all changed today. Avery got a little trim and did really well. Bethany was a good distraction for her, but she was still squirmy (Avery, not Bethany).

This afternoon there was a special thing for families at Titus’ preschool that Bethany, Titus, and Avery went to. Everyone was supposed to bring an apple to decorate, along with toothpicks and “gummies.” When they arrived, they had candlesticks to stick through the top of the apple, juniper branches, ribbons, and cloves. With these they decorated their apples and ate cookies. Bethany texted me during it saying it was really full of people and that they were having fun at the party. Below are a few photos she took.

School is out now until the New Year which is great for us since we’ll be in states until the 13th of January. We’re getting clothes washed and ready for packing as we’ll be leaving on Tuesday to head to Prague. Our flight is early Wednesday morning so we’ll be staying in Prague one night to make sure we can get to our flight on time. Lord willing, all will go smoothly, but I guess you’ll have to wait until that blog comes out to find out!

Tags Avery, doctor, fun, haircut, haircuts, party, preschool

365 Czech Republic

Passports, Patience, and a Party

Post author By Shay
Post date December 17, 2014
1 Comment on Passports, Patience, and a Party

Today was officially our 9th wedding anniversary, and it’s a good thing we did all of our celebrating earlier this week because today was kind of crazy.

I walked with Titus to school this morning in the dark. It was his first day back in over a week because last week he was too sick and this week we were out of town. So this morning we walked in the cold, but Titus was in a really good mood. He was laughing and racing me so I go the photo above of him as we were playing. Since it had been a few days he was a little more clingy to me as I was leaving him this morning, but he didn’t cry.

As soon as I walked back to the house, Bethany and Avery and I jumped in to the car and headed off to the foreign police in Ostrava. Ostrava is about 30 minutes from our house, so it’s a bit of a drive. We were scheduled to meet our friend Katka to get all of the paperwork in for our 2 year visa application. Katka texted me this morning and said, “Make sure you bring all of your passports.” I said, “Will do” and added, “Do we need anything else?” She wrote back, “Just passports and patience.” Any time you’re working with government offices in Czech you need patience! Above is a photo of Avery practicing patience while playing the iPad while we waited.

We have been working on all of the paperwork for weeks, but it’s funny how you can still forget things. There were still forms we forgot to sign and things that needed to be filled in. Above you can see Katka writing in something that I honestly can’t remember. Thankfully the man helping us was very helpful and Katka said he was very thorough. Here’s the guy who helped us, along with our passports sitting on his desk. We’re not sure if he was be sarcastic or was just unhappy, but he said it was going to take him a few hours to finish up the paperwork and said, “I guess you can go and not wait for me.” Thanks, pal!

Bethany drove me straight to the JV office where I had meetings this afternoon and she headed home to pick up Titus from school and get things ready for tonight. On her checklist: 1) find a babysitter for tonight 2) clean the house 3) make dinner for the kids and the sitter 4) find and wrap a white elephant gift 5) make an appetizer and dessert for a party tonight. Incredibly, she got it all done! I don’t know how she did it, but she drove back to the JV office around 6pm to pick me up and head over to the international team Christmas party tonight.

We had turkey and a lot of fun food that everyone brought. There was also a white elephant gift exchange that, to be honest, was a lot nicer than most I have been to. Bethany and I had a joint gift so we were working together on the choosing of the bags. We got a bag with a big pole sticking out of it which contained a curtain rod, a new curtain, a can of paint, and some ends to a curtain rod. It was actually hilarious and you can see me with the rod in the photo above and the curtain in the photo below.

Besides the silliness of curtain rods and paint, we had a good time sharing about Christmas memories and asking each other questions related to Christmas. Everyone has such unique traditions and favorite things from playing Monopoly on Christmas morning before presents to watching a Finnish Christmas movie about an orphan. It really is so fascinating to listen to people from different cultures and even missionaries who have made this place their new home and how they do traditions and Christmas. For me, it was a learning time and a way to experience other cultures.

Here’s a few photos we took at the very end of the night. Thanks to Connie Patty for emailing me these tonight, along with the photos of me opening the white elephant gift. Be sure to check out her blog for lots more photos of all the fun.

365 Czech Republic

Driving Home

Today was mostly spent in a car. Bethany and I left Krakow early this morning around after checking out of our little rented apartment, we headed back to Katowice where our kids were staying. We had a great time together but it was a lot of fun to see the kids after two nights away.

When we got to the Millers house, I saw Avery come around the corner of one of the room and I would’ve sworn she had grown. Both Bethany and I genuinely think they have grown a little since Sunday. Maybe this happens to a lot of parents, but it’s kind of bizarre to experience. Maybe we should change the phrase, “Absence makes the heart grow fonder” to “Absence makes the kids grow taller?” Or maybe there’s something in the water in Poland? I don’t know, but they look bigger.

With a few days out of town, the rest of the week is shaping up to be a little busy. We have a visa application thing tomorrow for our 2-year visas, a Christmas party, haircuts tomorrow, Bethany has another doctor appointment to check on the growing baby, and Titus apparently has something going on at his school. I don’t know what’s got to give at this point, but as we get ready to depart for the States next week I fear something will have to. Well, I guess I’ll see you on the flip side.

Tags growth, kids, Poland

365 Czech Republic

Day Two in Krakow

Our second and final day in Krakow has been a lot of fun. We had our first uninterrupted night of sleep in…well, since Titus was born? I can’t really remember, but it was amazing. The apartment where we’re staying has an incredible shower where it has the shower head on the ceiling and the water falls on top of you. It’s amazing what a nice shower (or shower head) will do to kick off your day!

We skipped breakfast (aka: slept in) and grabbed lunch in the town square. Afterwards we went around for another stroll through the Christmas market. We saw a lot of it last night, but felt a little rushed, so it was nice to take more time today and find some things for our kids and just take it all in at a slower pace. I had my camera this time and the the daylight, so here’s a few photos of our time today (as always, captions are below each).

Don’t tell Titus but we ended up buying him a knight’s shield and a sword for Christmas. They are all made of wood by the neato blacksmith guys that we saw last night. I may just have to buy one for me so we can battle!

We bought these amazing cinnamon and sugar things to snack on while we were walking around. The little shop had Italian flags out front and the people that worked there were really friendly. The little roll things were yummy!

Here’s Bethany going for a bite of some cinnamon and sugar goodness!

The square wasn’t as busy during the day, but even on Monday there was a good amount of foot traffic.

As we were browsing, we could watch the horse and carriages make their way around. So…

A photo posted by Shay Thomason (@shaycam) on Dec 12, 2014 at 8:37am PST

We went for a 30 minute carriage ride! Above is a shot we took on the carriage. It had nice, comfy seats and they gave us a lap blanket to keep us warm. But you and I both know it was really our love that kept us warm….awwwwwwwww.

Here’s a photo of our carriage that I took while we were walking away. It was really fun and we almost wish we could’ve brought our kids with us…almost.

We took a little break this afternoon and went back out this evening for a walk and some coffee. The town square comes alive at night with lights and shows. Actually, they had a bunch of Polish dancing and doing something on stage that we didn’t understand, but it was still fun to see.

Above is the dinner we created from the street vendors. The chunks of meat you see were basically the most tender pieces of ham I have ever eaten. Bethany and I split those and added mushroom, veggies, and potatoes as sides. We brought it all back to our apartment and enjoyed a little meal inside. For dessert we got waffles at a little shop topped with powdered sugar and raspberries. We didn’t finish it all, but it was fun!

Tomorrow we’ll head back to pick our kids from the Millers house, but we have had a great time the past 24 hours. Right now we’re watching a favorite TV show and just hanging out together. Even though we’re in a great city in Poland, it’s just nice to rest and enjoy time together.

Tags anniversary, Krakow, Poland

365 Czech Republic

Day One in Krakow

Thanks to kind friends, Bethany and I are spending today and tomorrow in Krakow, Poland. Our 9th wedding anniversary is this coming Wednesday and we were hoping to do something fun and get away for a little rest. Yes, I guess “rest” is the theme of the 9th wedding anniversary when you have two young kids and another baby on the way. Our friends, the Millers, are watching Titus and Avery for the next two days so we’re staying in a little apartment here in the old town square of Krakow.

We arrived here around 5:30pm and after figuring out the apartment rental situation (which, by the way, is the only way to travel!), we started walking around the town square. The whole square is lively with Christmas things and a big market. Oh, and as you can see in the photo above, apparently a huge semi-truck with a Coca-Cola logo and a picture of Santa (ironically, not pictured here) with a huge Christmas tree behind it really says, “Merry Christmas from Poland!”

We enjoyed a great meal at a place in the square that a friend recommended to us. Both of us tried traditional European dishes that we really liked. Afterwards, we roamed around the Christmas market just enjoying all the different things the little shops. Below are some photos of what we saw (captions below each).

I liked these blacksmith guys. That is all.

Handmade Polish ornaments were readily available.

This wood shop was amazing. But hey, nobody light a match!

We spent way too much time in the Polish pottery shop. They had some incredible stuff, especially these little Christmas trees which we really liked.

Notice just how they pack in the Polish pottery at the shop. You have to really dig through stuff, carefully of course, to find what you want but it can actually be fun. Bethany stressed me out just a little with her gloves and picking up pottery. She was kind enough to take them off after about the third or fourth time of me saying, “…be careful.” Oh, marriage…

On our way back to our apartment we considered taking a horse and carriage for a spin, but our cold hands had other plans. We’re staying up a little late tonight enjoying one of our favorite TV shows and we’ll see how tomorrow goes!

Tags anniversary, Krakow, Poland

365 Czech Republic

Slowing Down

There’s something about Saturdays here in Czech that have been much different than the ones I remember in the States. I realize we’ve only been here just under six months, but more than ever I am finding that Saturdays here really cause us to slow down. Oh sure, we’re still working around the house and getting things done, and maybe it’s mostly in my head, but I feel like today especially got to just take in the day and enjoy my family.

The photo above is proof positive of what I’m talking about. The weather was strangely warm today (high 40s). Oh sure we were still bundled up, but in comparison to freezing rain temps it’s like a heatwave. We walked to the little grocery store near our place as a family and on the way we were passing a little restaurant that we like. It was actually around lunch time and even though Bethany and I weren’t that hungry we decided to go in and have the kids split a pizza while us parents ordered just soup. Normally we don’t just stop what we’re doing and go eat at a restaurant like this, but I think we were just walking, enjoy each other, and thought, “Hey, why not?” I guess for that’s slowing down for us. Anyways, I just love Bethany’s face as she’s looking at Titus while he searches the menu for the pizza he thinks he wants.

Maybe it’s the walking? Czechs walk everywhere and when it’s all so close it makes it really easy. Walking makes you slow down. You have to be patient to get to your destination. You don’t have to stress out about finding a parking place. Walking makes you move slower by default and forces you to take in things at a slower pace. Maybe that’s what I really liked about today? Even as we walked by the church we see ten times every day, I took this photo of the kids (above). Bethany said, “I don’t know what it is about that church, but I think it’s pretty.” That’s what slowing down does. Even when you’ve seen something a thousand times, you might see it in a different light when you’re just slowing down and enjoying it.

I think the church is pretty too. I love when the golden sun shines on it. I don’t know how many photos I have taken of it out of our kitchen window, but I found myself grabbing my iPhone and shooting another oner today (below).

We’re going to be doing a little more slowing down the next few days which will be really nice. Bethany and I have some planned time away and thanks to some friends it’ll just be us two for about a day and a half. But I’ll save all that for another blog.

Tags family, slowing, walking

365 Czech Republic

We’re Coming to America

That’s right. Amazingly, on Christmas Eve we are flying to Washington state for just a few weeks. We really weren’t expecting to be returning this soon, but Bethany’s brother is getting married and our family is part of the ceremony. Since we’re flying all that way we decided to spend the holiday there with Bethany’s family and flights out of Prague were much more reasonably priced on Christmas eve. We’ll be there for about two-and-a-half weeks and coming back in January.

I don’t know how all missionaries do trips home, but we’ve been keeping a list of things we want to bring back with us from the States. You know, things like: ranch dressing mix, salsa, green chilis, coffee beans, and even hand soap! Oh sure, you can get hand soap here in Czech, but we’re just used to the smells of the kinds we would buy in America. It’s so funny how you miss the little things you have grown up with your entire life. We just got done video chatting with Bethany’s parents about the trip and we were dreaming about American food that we might be able to enjoy. Call us silly, but sometimes you just miss that good ole’ Tillamook cheddar cheese.

With the help of Bethany’s parents we’re also going to be able to get our annual letter out in the mail this year. We worked hard on it the past few weeks and it’s all printed and ready to be shipped. Bethany’s family is going to help get all the envelopes stuff and shipped out which is a huge blessing! Hopefully you’re on our mailing list because something special is on it’s way very soon!

Finally, please pray for us as we travel in less than two weeks. It’s a long way to go and it’ll literally take planes, trains, and automobiles!

Tags America, home, traveling, USA