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365 Czech Republic

Titus Goes to Work

I decided to take Titus with me to the office today to give Bethany a little break. She can definitely handle the kids on her own, but because the office is a little more quiet during the summer months I figured it would be alright to bring him and let him hang out. He actually did really great, spending most of his time playing on our iPad, but also playing with the dinosaurs and toy cars he packed in his back pack. Going to work with Daddy also included going out to eat with daddy and the rest of my team. We have been showing our interns a few fun places we like to go so Titus got to come along today and he really liked that. Later in the afternoon he actually helped Rachael with a little bit of work and below is a photo she got of him “helping” her. She said he actually did help and was sorting buttons for summer camps this year. I like that the little dude is getting some work done!

Helping Miss Rachael (6/18/15)

Speaking of Rachael, we ended up just having the same dinner she made for us last night again tonight. We had plenty of food, so it was just kind of nice to be able to not have to prep anything again because quite honestly both Bethany and I are really tired. Having a new baby is a little like getting over jet lag. You just feel really tired at weird parts of the day. Tonight I’m barely keeping my eyes open as I write this!

Making Snowflakes (6/18/15)

After dinner I ended up showing the kids how to make snowflakes with paper and scissors. I realized that it’s been way too many years since I’ve done that and I’m terrible at it. At one point I tried to cut out circles and ended up making these sweet glasses that you see Titus and I wearing in the photo above. The kids and I got better as time went on and more paper was wasted, so that’s good. In the end we were coloring pages and then making rainbow snowflakes which Avery thought was great fun.

Normally I do my Bible reading right after I finish the blog, but today I did it right when Titus and I got home and while I was holding Karis for Bethany. I had a feeling I would be really tired tonight and that turned out to be true. The clock is just about to strike 9pm, but my body might as well think it’s 2am. With that I’m signing off for the evening. As always, thanks for reading!

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365 Czech Republic

Life Keeps Moving

Titus' Class Photo (6/5/15)

We may have had a major event in our lives this week with the birth of our third child, but that doesn’t mean that life here has just stopped. I had this realization today as I took Titus to school and picked him up today. His teacher handed me the photo above of his class which you may remember from the day they took his class photo a little more than a month ago. As I quickly found Titus in the top row middle, it was as if I just realized we have three kids. They are all at different places in their lives, especially Titus who plows ahead with Czech schooling and learning tons of new things. Avery continues to make us laugh, especially with all her new questions about baby Karis. As for Karis, she just loves to eat and sleep but I know it won’t be long before her preschool teacher is handing me a photo of her class. Life keeps moving.

Sidewalk Chalk (6/5/15)

Bethany’s dad (aka “Papa) and I spent a ton of time today mapping out our plans for the next week. Papa and Nana we will heading back to the States next Saturday and we are still hoping for them to see a little more of Europe. They have thoroughly enjoyed their time here, but Nana’s birthday is on Sunday so we’re going to try and take her to Krakow to celebrate. It’s only a 2-hour drive from here so we figure we can make that happen for her, even with a newborn. We’re hoping to leave tomorrow at some point so you’ll just have to read that blog and see what happens!

We had a handful of visitors today who came to see Karis for the first time. A few of our missionary friends came by to meet and hold her, many of whom came bearing gifts as well as our landlord who came down with flowers, new clothes, and a winter outfit (shown below). I love having all the pink flowers in the house and it was just nice to see our friends and even have the opportunity to introduce them to our family. You’ll also notice in the photo below a little card from our landlord which we couldn’t completely understand but was so nice (I should also note that along with the clothes and card, she handed me a bag with a bottle of champagne). Again it’s just fun to have people here in our home celebrating with us!

Gifts (6/5/15)

Karis is doing great and again gave us some good chunks of sleep last night. It’s never easy to adjust to a new baby sleep schedule, but Bethany has been incredible this week and I’ve been doing my best to help her. It’s a little different this time around as I still feel the pressure to spend time with Titus and Avery while also helping Bethany take care of Karis and this is just part of the transition from two to three kids, I guess. It’s definitely nice to have the help of Papa and Nana and I’m doing my best to convince them that they could adjust well in Europe.

Karis Yawn (6/5/15)

Papa and I took Titus and Avery for a bike ride / run this evening and we discovered a great new place at the end of our street. I’ve never gone down to the other end of our street (barely two blocks), but tonight we went there and discovered the river and Polish border. We’ve been to the river and border many times but not right at the end of our road which was new and fun. The weather was perfect of a bike ride and I grabbed a few photos. The first photo is literally at the end of our street, about a 1/4 mile away from our driveway.

Fun By the River (6/5/15)

Fun By the River (6/5/15)

Fun By the River (6/5/15)

Finally, Titus found his kid-friendly razor and shaving cream that he got for Christmas and all day has been talking about “shaving” or saying “I gotta shave.” Tonight he finally convinced me to let him (note: it’s just this Spiderman themed foaming cream and plastic razor–no blade). So in keeping with tonight’s blog title that “life keeps moving,” I present this photo of my five year old. How is it that my third child is born and my five year old starts shaving in the same week!?

Titus Shaves (6/5/15)

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365 Czech Republic

What Happens At Czech School Stays At School, Unless Of Course Someone Speaks English And Tells You All About It

Today was a very beautiful, sunny day. It was a very bright spot (pun intended) in an otherwise sickness filled week. Titus was back in school and I was back in to work even though we both still have congestion and coughs. As I dropped Titus off at school I heard other kids with similar symptoms as his so two things ran through my mind: 1) I’m glad it’s not just us and 2) I don’t feel so bad bringing my recovering kid to school. I thought for sure he would be sad after another week out of school and he was for a moment, but he was quick to jump in to the class and play with toys. Bethany called me around lunch time after she picked up Titus from school and told me all about his day. Apparently the class walked to the fire station (which is literally across the street from our apartment) and got to play with the fire hose. Titus said that they “pretended the big tree was a fire and squirted it with the hose.” Sounds like fun if you ask me! He said he enjoyed it so that’s definitely a bonus.

Sunny Day (5/18/15)

Later this afternoon Titus and I had an appointment to get hair cuts which we did and Bethany ended up walking over with Avery to meet us for ice cream. We’re glad it’s both warm enough for ice cream and the little shop that we like is open. We ended up just staying outside in the sun for a while and enjoyed our ice cream and just hung out on the benches in the town square. The kids love running around the big fountain there and since other kids were around playing they just ran around with their “friends” (any kid that’s in Titus’ vicinity is his friend). While out and about we ran into the English speaking mom I met a while back at Titus’ school and Bethany had never met her before. They were introduced and we were talking for a bit near the town square while all of our kids were playing.

She has two kids, a girl and a boy who are both very close in age to our kids. Her son and Titus are actually in the same class and he speaks English! This turned out to be very interesting when I walked up to him and talked with him and he said, “Did you know that Titus hits us at school?” Oh boy…come again? “Yeah, it’s not all the time but he hits us.” Of course I looked to Titus when the boy was sharing this insight and he denied it, but then began to say that they boys hit each other. “They hit me too, Dad.” This turned into a longer chat with Titus and then of course with Bethany as to how to process forward with this new revelation. Pray for us. I don’t say this jokingly, but we always need prayer as parents in regards to wisdom and handling situations and these are new for us. Like any parent, you don’t love to hear your kid is hitting other kids and you definitely don’t want to let it go un dealt with. Things just get a little more complicated when you add a language barrier between us, the teachers, the other parents, and the other kids.

With that I’m off to bed. I’ve got a bit of sinus pressure that won’t go away at the moment and it’s causing a headache. On the bright side, I was able to taste that ice cream this afternoon which is the first thing I’ve been able to enjoy for a few days now. Sadly, my taste went away again around dinner…oh well. Such is life.

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365 Czech Republic

Sunday School Speaking

Something amazing happened today: I heard Titus speak Czech. Now, before we get really excited, I will say he was just saying Czech words, not phrases. However, this doesn’t really make it any less amazing in my mind because of what was going on in Titus’ brain. Here’s the story.

During Sunday School this morning I stayed with Titus in his classroom. The kids were doing some kind of activity where the teacher was asking them questions and she was going around in a circle and they were responding. When she got to Titus, I heard him say something and we couldn’t really understand it. I said to him, “what was that, buddy?” He said it again and I was still unclear. Then the teacher said, “Ohh…tři, čtyři, pět” which means “three, four, five” in Czech. Even though Titus couldn’t answer or didn’t understand what was being asked, he had made the switch in his brain to answer in whatever Czech he could–in this case it was numbers. It was literally the first time I had ever heard him attempt Czech numbers or words in response to someone speaking Czech to him. A little later the kids were playing a game where one person thought of an animal and the kids had to guess. I was impressed by Titus because he figured out what they were doing and tried guessing an animal. He said, “krokodýl” nice and loud which means “crocodile.” His guess wasn’t right, but I was amazed at the process in his mind. It’s a fun process to watch him grow and learn.

I didn’t get any photos today, but I did get a little timelapse video from Titus’ Sunday school class. Usually they have a little drawing activity and so I got some footage of all of the kids at their tables. You can watch it below.

Sunday School Timelapse from Shay on Vimeo.

As for the rest of the day we had a great lunch at home with some fresh croissants we got at the store. Steve and Judy spent a lot of time just hanging with us today which was a lot of fun. I just love the questions they ask and they have been a huge encouragement to us. We’ve talked of books, ministry, life, parenting, missions, and anything in between. It truly has been such a joy to be with our “family,” that is our extended church family from the States.

Tonight we decided to have a quick dinner with Steve and Judy at McDonald’s in Poland. We ended up going to Poland because there’s a new McDonald’s just inside the border, about 7 minutes from us. But when we got there it was actually not even open–that is, it’s so new it’s still under construction. So instead of going back in to Czech we drove a little further into Poland toward another set of Golden Arches. I’m so glad we did because our drive home was right around sunset and it was stunning. Rain had been falling this afternoon, but the sunset peeked through the clouds while we drove and we were in awe of God’s amazing creation. A photo wouldn’t have done it justice!

There are some plans tomorrow do a little shopping with Steve and Judy in the morning after we take Titus to school. Right now I’m planning on staying home for the morning to get a little work done, but hopefully we’ll find something fun to do in the afternoon. They are only here two more days so we’ve gotta pack our time in and see what else we can show them! There’s also a rumor that Bethany and I will be taking a date night which just sounds really fun. Until then…goodnight!

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365 Czech Republic

Party at the Zoo

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

We enjoyed an incredible day today at the zoo with our friends, celebrating both Titus’s 5th birthday along with Gabe and Alex (twins) who turned 4. The weather couldn’t have been better and I’ve even got a little redness on my arms and neck to prove the sun was out. The day started at 10:00 at the zoo and we stayed until a little after 2:00. We brought cupcakes and met a bunch of other families “near the goats” inside the zoo. Everyone joined in singing happy birthday to Titus and then we did another round of singing for Gabe and Alex. After cupcakes and singing everyone headed in to the park and we mostly lost the other groups because we grabbed lunch with our kids, but we still had a great time with Steve and Judy and just walking around enjoying the animals. I got a ton of photos, so here they are!

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Let’s pause here a moment for a little story. Above is a photo of Titus eating a hot dog during lunch. Shortly after he was playing on the playground behind him. He had brought a toy car with him that he got for his birthday and was taking it up and down the slide. But then he started crying and came over to use saying he lost his car. I asked him what happened and he said, “That big boy took it.” I asked him which kid and he pointed, so I walked up to the kid and said, “Kde je auto?” or “Where is the car?” He immediately said, “Nevim! Nevim” or “I don’t know. I don’t know.” We walked around and looked for a while, but were unable to find the car. I consider it a lost cause and even if the boy had it, I wasn’t going to dig through his pockets to get it. But that didn’t sit well with Bethany so she walked over and asked the same questions, except she found another little girl to help her talk to the boy. Finally, after a few minutes the boy went to his backpack and gave back the car. I joked that Bethany was in “mom mode” there for a minute and no language barrier was going to get in the way of her getting that car back!

Ok… back to the photos

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Party at the Zoo (4/25/15)

Titus’ friends Beni and Caleb got him gifts that we opened in the parking lot just before we left. Beni had been talking about it all day and was so excited to give Titus a present. It was really sweet and both Caleb and Beni were asking Titus, “Is this the best day ever?!” It was fun to see them all so excited about Legos and Spiderman and Titus was really blessed. Thanks everyone for making it such a special time for Titus and our family!

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365 Czech Republic

Titus’ 5th Birthday

We celebrated Titus’ 5th birthday today, although it the real party isn’t until tomorrow. This was the first time that Titus had school on his birthday so I felt like it was just a little weird that we kind of had to wait until he was out today before we could celebrate. We were all up this morning and we got to tell him happy birthday, but then we were quickly out the door to get him to school. Afterward we enjoyed opening up some of the many presents that were sent to our family from our friends in California and delivered by our friends, Steve and Judy. So, in a sense, it was like a party for all of us! Boxes of Kraft Mac-N-Cheese, brown sugar, yellow mustard, books, toys, chocolate almonds, etc. were all inside this jam packed suitcase! Thank you to our friends who blessed us in this way. You are awesome! Some families even sent individual packages which Titus loved opening. Here’s a few photos from that.

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Then we went outside to play some baseball and bubbles in the yard, as well as take a little tour of our landlord’s garden which is blooming a lot right now. I was too busy playing with the kids and hanging with Steve and Judy to capture any photos, but I think it was worth it. We all ended up napping in the afternoon and walked to dinner at a local place we really like. Titus wanted to have pizza on his birthday so he was able to get a big pepperoni pizza at the restaurant which he enjoyed. Afterwards we came home and had birthday cake dessert and opened a few more presents. I did manage to get some photos of that. Here you go!

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Titus' 5th Birthday (4/24/15)

Along with some imported whiffle balls, Titus scored a ton of Legos! I spent a lot of time this afternoon helping him build the little cars and trucks he got and I’m considering building another set he got while he’s asleep because hey, who doesn’t love Legos!? During the day we just enjoyed spending time together and talking with Steve and Judy who are here until Wednesday. They are such a blessing to us and I just appreciate their heart to come here and be an encouragement. We’ve really enjoyed their company and look forward to a few more days together. They’ll be joining us tomorrow at the zoo and hoping it will be a lot of fun for everyone.

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365 Czech Republic

Speaking of Titus

While saying goodbye to Titus at his school this morning he said something interesting. I had glanced in to the room to see what the other kids were doing and I saw a few boys had lined every green army guy they could find in formation. I said to Titus, “Look, dude! Army guys!” He’s been playing with army guys a lot at home so I thought for sure he would be excited too. But instead he glanced over at them, turned back towards me, and calmly said, “Dad, those are for the Czech boys.”

Kids (4/22/15)

I didn’t quite understand it until Bethany and I talked this afternoon after she had picked him up. In a broken Czech/English conversation, Bethany had discussed both our kids with Titus’ teacher today. First, they had to talk about some paperwork needed for Avery when she starts preschool in the fall, and then just some quick things about Titus. Bethany understood a really simple Czech sentence from his teacher when she said, “Titus is better.” The context of that conversation was regarding his understanding Czech and we assume she’s just really saying, “Titus is getting better at understanding Czech.” W’re thankful, but that’s just language. A little later at home Bethany was asking Titus about his day and said, “What did you do at school?” He said, “I did nothing” in kind of a down tone. “Did you play outside?” “Yeah” he said, and added “but that big boy wanted to push me.” Hhmmm… I wonder if Titus’ comment in the morning is related to the one in the afternoon?

What’s interesting is this is the first time Titus has really expressed any kind relational issue at school (that I’m aware of). As in any kind of community environment there are going to be little things like this, but our biggest desire in it is to shepherd Titus through it. First we want to make sure he’s acting in an appropriate way towards his classmates and secondly we want to help him understand how he should respond to those who might sin against him. In the case of the army men, I wonder if it’s something related to him not being able to speak Czech? Maybe the kids feel that distance and separation from Titus (and likewise Titus towards them) as they can’t always communicate. I know I feel that tension every day as I go the gas station or get groceries! And in the case of the boy pushing him, this sounds like a classic schoolyard moment. I’m not saying the other kid is a bully or anything, but I know I had my share of mean moments at recess (in fact, one time I deliberately kicked a soccer ball at another kid I didn’t like and we both were sent to the principal’s office). Nevertheless, even in these “little” things I want to be able to help my son think, and think rightly about situations. As his fifth birthday approaches in just two days it’s a reminder that he’s only getting older. I would do well to remember Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.”

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365 Czech Republic

An Early Birthday and the Trinity

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus got to celebrate his birthday a little early today. Technically he doesn’t turn five until next Friday (the 24th), but since Papa and Nana sent him a package in the mail yesterday, we asked them if he could open it today with them watching via Skype. So with everyone gathered on or around the couch (and Papa and Nana watching via video), Titus dove in to his presents today with full throttle excitement. He ended up scoring (baseball pun intended) a pack of baseball cards, foam baseball bases for the yard, and some new Legos! He was pumped about all of them and here’s the photos of the “event.”

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

His baseball cards had three Dodger players!

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

Titus Open His Birthday Present from Papa and Nana (4/18/15)

We let Titus stay up late tonight and build his new Lego airplane. Why was he up late, you ask? Keep reading!

I Taught Youth Group Tonight (4/18/15)

Tonight I had the opportunity to teach on the doctrine of the Trinity at our church’s youth group. There were about twenty-five students tonight and I had the help of one of the girls who translated for me. This actually proved to be much more difficult for me than I originally thought. It’s really hard to keep any kind of cadence to your speech when you have to stop after each phrase for translation. I never really felt like I found a rhythm, but I’m hopeful that the things I was able to teach were communicated clearly. I told Bethany afterward that I thought it was really difficult and I struggled to communicate what I wanted. Not only is the Trinity full of words that we rarely use in English (e.g. “Godness”), but I just never felt like I could expand on what I was saying because of how long it was taking to translate. Nevertheless, I did enjoy it for what it was and I was able to have some good conversations with some of the guys after regarding the Trinity. I have been very blessed this week to have been thinking on this wonderful doctrine and my study was worth it, even if it was to answer some of those questions.

Lastly, I will just mention that it tried very hard to snow today. I did see a few flakes here and there as the weather took a dramatic change from the beautiful spring air we had earlier this week. Titus and I played outside for a bit, but it was honestly too cold (mid 30s!) to stay out there very long. I guess we’ll just keep our jackets out of storage a little longer.

That’s all for today. Dobrou noc!

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365 Czech Republic

Health, Flags, and Avery’s Babies

As much as we’ve talked about how sick we’ve been over the past ten months, I’m happy to report we have been healthy now for a few weeks! This is definitely an answer to prayer and we’re thankful for the break from sore throats and runny noses. With the weather warming up this has allowed us to get outside a bit more, which I think is helpful, and having regular sunshine can’t hurt either!

Bethany and I were talking last night just how strange it is to have an actual spring season. In southern California it usually goes from semi-fall to summer overnight. Right now in Czech we’re experiencing the slow change from winter to spring like today which was a little cooler, windy, and rainy in the afternoon. This week it’ll be warmer the next two days but cooling back down and stormy into the weekend and next week. This is actually kind of strange to me because I just haven’t really experienced that kind of weather. California gets storms, but it’s pretty warm all the time.

I Love My Kids (4/13/15)

Today at preschool Titus colored Czech flags (shown above). Flags are so interesting because of what kind of emotions they evoke, especially in Americans. I wonder if the Czechs have the same kind of pride with their flag that Americans do? I know that Czechs are excited about their country. In fact, the other day at the store I saw a whole section of flags, colored pencils, and scarves that all were in support of the Czech hockey team. In a few weeks, not far from us there will a big hockey championship (actually, the USA team will be here!). I have a feeling that little section in the store was for that event, but I can’t be sure.

I Love My Kids (4/13/15)

More than ever, Avery is being more girly than I feel like she has ever been. Tonight she wanted to play “dress up” and wanted to wear a princess outfit, complete with a crown. And on more than one occasion recently I have found her babies somewhere in the house, complete with a pillow and blankie (as you can see above where she had them in the middle of the kitchen floor). As well, tonight I was wrestling with the kids on our bed and Avery just stopped in the middle of it with her two babies, put them in a little red wagon and said, “It’s their first day of school!” Obviously, it’s really cute and we are constantly laughing at her. I love it.

I’ve got more studying to do for my message this Saturday on the Trinity to the youth at our church. I’m getting more excited to teach on this topic, mainly because I’ve been so blessed by the study of our triune God. There is so much packed in to that often confusing doctrine, but the more I read and think, the more I am realizing just how beautiful the doctrine of the Trinity is. Please continue to pray for me as I prepare and then share on Saturday.

Finally, I will leave with this. Tonight as we were eating dinner Titus told us that it was someone’s birthday at his school. He said they sang the birthday song in Czech and Bethany asked him, “Do you know how to sing it in Czech?” He immediate reply was priceless. I posted his words to my Twitter account and Titus said,

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365 Czech Republic

Mystery Monster Tree (A True Tale)

There is an old walnut tree that sits in the yard
I can see him staring at me like a castle guard

I don’t like his skin, it’s broken and rough
I’ve tried looking away, but it’s just not enough

His eyes so big, one on top of the other
And a large open mouth, “Is this a monster?” I wonder

There he stands, so tall and so straight
I know that he’ll eat me right off a plate!

Surely Dad knows of this mystery monster tree?
I know I’ve tried to tell him, not once, not twice, but three!

“A scary monster!” I yell, while pointing towards the beast
But Dad says, “Son, I see nothing” and stares off toward the east

How can I convince him of what I know to be true
This monster tree will eat me like Mother’s beef stew!

With a scream and a gasp, again I will try
To show my Dad, “There’s a mouth and that’s an eye!”

Looking again, my Dad caught it’s gaze
He was staring right at him, with both eyebrows raised

Walking towards the creature, Dad began to smile
“I see him, Son,” no longer in denial

– A short story by Shay Thomason (Dad), inspired by Titus Thomason (Son)

Mystery Monster Tree (4/12/15)