Tag: Poland

Trying to Escape the Heat

It’s really hot right now. According to a Czech news Web site, we’re experiencing some of the hottest days on record in Czech Republic. That wouldn’t be a problem except for one big factor: no air conditioning.

Now I want to make sure I’m really careful about what I say and how I say it. I know, for instance, of missionaries who live in intense heat all year round. They have to live with constant warm air in their house with very little relief. That is not the case for us whatsoever. To those friends and missionaries that serve in unbearable heat week in an week out, God bless your ministry. I mean it. Just little taste of the heat this past week is reminding me to think and pray for you, wherever you may be. That being said, I do want to comment on what we’ve been trying to do to escape this heat.

Our apartment just holds heat in. With concrete walls and no air conditioning, we’re just stuck trying to get air to move through the house. Over the weekend we just couldn’t do it anymore and decided we were leaving town to a large mall in Poland to find some AC. On Saturday we basically the entire day there, walking around, eating meals and letting the kids play in the air conditioned play area. Judging by the number people there I think they all had the same idea we did. Above is a photo I got of Karis while Bethany looked around one of the Polish stores.

When we got to the mall, the first place we decided to go was to Pizza Hut (shown above). For you American readers, you’re going to have to lay aside all your preconceived notions of what Pizza Hut is and allow me to tell you about Pizza Hut in Poland. To compare it, it’s more like California Pizza Kitchen. It’s a fancy, sit-down, restaurant (at least this one was). We had heard they were nice, but we were shocked. They had waiters, lots of salads and pasta on the menu, and really good pizza! We all ordered pan pizza, except for Titus because he wanted spaghetti. Everything tasted it great and we even decided to go for the Chocolate Chip cookie dessert which was an oversized cookie with vanilla ice cream on top. It was a lot of fun and here’s a picture of Avery’s pizza.

After food we did some shopping and eventually grabbed some coffee. The mall we went to is huge and we eventually made our way to the kids play area. You pay a few bucks for an hour of play time and they have staff there to help the kids and there’s a ton for them to do. Why America hasn’t jumped on this money making machine is beyond me. I sat and read a book while the kids played and Bethany did a little shopping with Karis. Here’s a photo of Titus with the playground behind him.

Since we were going all American on the food we decided for an American class, Burger King, for dinner. We wanted to get the food to go and head to the hardware store to look at little air conditioning units. Titus went with me to order the food and we got those Burger King crowns which I wore through the mall with Titus all the way back to the car. At points their were Polish people tapping each other on the shoulders and pointing at me because I’m sure I looked ridiculous. Bethany and the girls were in the car and when we got there Bethany was just laughing at me and said, “You’re a good daddy.” Thanks, babe. I’m sure you were laughing WITH me and not AT me.

We tried six different stores to find a little air conditioning unit that was both powerful and affordable. This is no easy task in a place that doesn’t really have AC. What we ended up finding and buying was a little unit that was around $160 (US) that we currently have sitting in our window sill. It’s a swamp cooler that uses water to cool down the room and it’s been a pretty big help the past few nights. Here’s a photo of it in the store (the price on the side is in Polish currency). I’m calling it R2-D2.

The next day we basically did the same routine, only this time we went to a Czech mall instead of Poland. Essentially all we did was go there for lunch, walk around, and let the kids play. There was a bench near the kids area with Ronald McDonalds so I took a little photo of the kids next to him. Quite honestly I’m a little jealous that Ronald gets to sit there all day, enjoying the air conditioning looking all happy.

We’re trying to have a positive attitude, but it’s been rough. Right now I’m sweating, we have six fans running, and we’re sleeping in the living room because it’s just too hot in the bedroom. Every time I get hot I just go and take a cold shower which really does help. The weather is supposed to be like this for at least the next week so we’re buckling up for more heat. If you think of it, pray for us, especially our kids. It’s hard to sleep when you’re sweaty and hot and we’re all trying to just make it through until cooler air comes our way.

Tags Czech, heat, hot, mall, Poland, temperature, weather

365 Czech Republic

A Tooth Tale

Post author By Shay
Post date June 16, 2015
2 Comments on A Tooth Tale

Ever since I got hit in the face with a baseball while warming up for a Little League game when I was nine, my teeth have never been OK. I’ve had multiple root canals to fix problems, oral surgery, and my front teeth are only half real. I brush, I floss, I get regular cleanings and checkups, but even this past January I had to have another root canal on one of my front teeth that was damaged when I was nine. It’s not my favorite by any means, but it’s just reality.

This morning I was flossing (yes, flossing!) and the floss got stuck. As I gently tried to remove it, the floss tore and was literally stuck between my teeth. It started hurting instantly because of the pressure it added and I spent the next fifteen minutes trying to get it out. Eventually I ran to the store to find some kind of tooth to try and fix it, but what I ended up buying just wouldn’t work. Finally, I gave up and called a friend to see if they could suggest a dentist. He pointed me to his dentist, I called, and I got an appointment for 7pm this evening.

I didn’t even consider driving (OK, maybe for a second, but that’s just because I’m lazy). It took me 9 minutes to walk to the dentist. I crossed the border into Poland and while literally standing on the border there was a car with a camper trailer. The camper was parked in Poland and the car was in Czech. Below is a photo I got during the walk. It’s a ridiculously beautiful 9 minute walk.

While walking up the street towards the address I had this is what I saw (below). The dental office sign is the gray one in the foreground on the right.

I don’t know what I expected when I got inside, but it was super nice in there. Only about one human can walk down the hall at a time, but here’s a photo of the entry / waiting room.

The dentist finished up with another patient and saw me in. Thankfully, he spoke great English and was able to start working on me right away. It actually took a lot longer than I thought. Little by little he worked away until he got all the floss out. I didn’t even know floss could do that. When he was finished I asked him if I should floss tomorrow and he said, “Well, if you want to?” Maybe I misunderstood because his first language is Polish, but for me that translated to: A DENTIST TOLD ME I DON’T HAVE TO FLOSS TOMORROW! Cue “We Are the Champions!”

I really wish there was a moral to this story, but alas I have none. In fact, even telling a tooth story is a bad idea. That’s why on today’s post I leave you with this four minute video clip and words of wisdom from comedian Brian Regan.

Tags border, dentist, Poland, teeth

365 Czech Republic

On Visiting Auschwitz

Editor’s note: As much as I have enjoyed writing about baby Karis this past week, I must take today’s post to break away and talk about something different. For regular blog readers this will be a departure from my usual tone and focus, but I felt I needed to write about what I did today=. This will not be graphic, just simply getting my thoughts down on paper so to speak. I will return tomorrow to our regular scheduled programming.

Today I visited Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi concentration camp (1940-1945). Even though it’s only a one hour drive from our house here in Czech, I don’t think I’ll be going there very often–maybe even once is enough. It was something that my father-in-law and I had been talking about doing, but since it would just be he and I we weren’t sure if we would have the time. An opportunity presented itself this afternoon and we decided to go and take a standard 3.5 hour walking tour. It’s a sobering place, but looking back on today I am very glad we were able to go.

In his travel book, American travel-guide, Rick Steves, answers the question “Why visit Auschwitz?” He writes,

Why visit a notorious concentration camp on your vacation? Auschwitz-Birkenau is one of the most moving sights in Europe, and certainly the most important of all the Holocaust memorials. Seeing the camp can be difficult: Many visitors are overwhelmed by a combination of sadness and anger over the tragedy, as well as inspiration at the remarkable stories of survival. Auschwitz survivors and victims’ families want tourists to come here and experience the scale and the monstrosity of the place. In their minds, a steady flow of visitors will ensure that the Holocaust is always remembered— so nothing like it will ever happen again. Auschwitz isn’t for everyone. But I’ve never met anyone who toured Auschwitz and regretted it. For many, it’s a profoundly life-altering experience— and at the very least, it will forever affect the way you think about the Holocaust.

After visiting the sight today I can only agree with his assessment. To walk the grounds, visit the buildings, and hear the detailed history is humbling, overwhelming, and saddening. It’s only as a Christian who knows that the Lord is sovereign over history that I could really make sense of it. Within the first few minutes I found myself pondering Ecclessiastes 7:2, “It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting, for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart.” Auschwitz is a house of mourning and today I laid it to heart.

I took very few photos and even the ones I did take aren’t too heavy. Mostly I just wanted to listen and take it all in. The tour is well planned and very informative while not being overly emotional. I’ve been to the Holocaust museum and memorial in D.C. twice and I think it was way more intense than Auschwitz is, at least by design. Our Polish tour guide was very calm, quiet, and that’s how it should be. Even the lighting inside isn’t so intense. What struck me was that even though we live in a digital age and we love to take photos, I could tell that generally people were limiting their use like I was. And really, other than a few snaps for this blog, I’m not exactly sure what I would do with a bunch of photos of a place like Auschwitz.

There are two parts to the tour. The first takes you through Auschwitz I which was a Polish army base that the Nazis converted to a concentration camp. The second part takes you to Auschwitz II which was built completely by the Nazis using prison labor. Like most Americans I had to study this horrible place in school, but today as we entered Auschwitz II I was overwhelmed by the sheer scale of the facility. No picture will do justice to just how big the camp is. The electric fence lining the perimeter just seems to go on forever, along with the railway which runs right down the middle of it. Below are two photos I took from the guard tower which give a little context but still the scale is hard to capture.

In the second photo above, if you were to follow those tracks to the very back (more than 1/4 mile–far!) there is a memorial that was erected for the more than 1.3 million lives that were taken at this place. On the ground beneath an artist’s sculpture are large placards written in every language that was represented at the camp (there must have been 10-12 of them). Below is the one in English.

For the sake of my wife and others who might read this, I’m leaving out any details about the buildings and actions taken inside. If you know the history, then you know what happened. But I just wanted to say that standing in the rooms and seeing what the Nazis did caused me more than once to consider the sinfulness of my own heart. As much as it is right to be angered by the atrocities that took place at Auschwitz, it was the work of men just like me who did these things. They were just like me in the sense that they have the same sinful heart that I do. Mark 7:21-23 records the words of Christ when he said, “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.” I guess that’s what I meant when I said earlier that I was taking it to heart. How could I not?

One of the last things that we heard today was about the liberation of the camp on January 27, 1945 (for some perspective, my own dad turned one year old on Jan. 28, 1945). The Russians were able to free the camp and about a week before this the Nazis (knowing the Russians were coming) began to destroy as much evidence of their crimes as they could. They blew up buildings, burned things to the ground, etc. and then fled. As I sit here tonight and ponder those events I’m actually thinking about the glorious and wonderful gospel which liberates our hearts from the penalty of sin. I don’t have to run from the Lord in fear like the Nazis did from the Russians, but my soul is liberated by the horrific death of Christ on a cross. The Nazis may have outrun the Russians (only 10% were convicted of their crimes), but unless they knew Christ and trusted Him in faith, they were never (or are never) able to outrun the God who judges their souls. It’s only in the Gospel that I can make sense of Auschwitz. Christ died for the men, women, and children who were murdered there as well as the men and women who ordered their deaths. He also died for my sin and your sin. As overwhelming as a place of death like Auschwitz is, I am equally overwhelmed by the place of life given to me and many others through the work of Jesus.

As Rick Steves said, “Auschwitz isn’t for everyone,” but the Lord used it today to remind me of His amazing work. For that I’m eternally thankful.

Tags Auschwitz, Auschwitz-Birkenau, camp, death, Poland

365 Czech Republic

Nana’s Birthday

Today is Nana’s birthday! We celebrated with her in Krakow again today and it was a blast. The day started around 10:00, not because people weren’t awake, but because Bethany and I just had a bit of a rough night with Karis. Karis is doing awesome, but she just decided she wanted to be awake from about 3am on. Not too unexpected for a six day old, so no complaints on our end. But when we did make it out of our rented apartment the first thing on the agenda was a carriage ride through Krakow with the whole family! Below is a photo that Nana took of our new family of five while we were riding the carriage through the Old Town. It’s one the second photo ever taken of the five of us!

As you may have guessed, bringing a six day old on a mini vacation has it’s challenges–the main one being that she has to eat often. This brings challenges to trying to plan the day, so we mostly let Nana and Papa explore on their own today and enjoy the parts of the city that they wanted to see. But that wasn’t before our good man, Rick Steves, led us to a great pizza place via his tour book on Krakow. We had his book out while we grabbed fruit smoothies before lunch and found a place called “Cyklop” which serves incredible, gourmet pizza. The pizzas were being made literally in an oven next to our table and it was a great experience.

After the kids took naps, I told them we could go to the castle in town. Avery said, “Daddy, can we go to the castle where the princesses live?” to which Titus added quickly, “And the kings!” These kids have seen more castles in a few short years than I’ve seen in my life! As were leaving for the castle (just me, Titus, and Avery–Bethany stayed back to rest with Karis), Papa and Nana were arriving from their excursion and decided to join us. Instead of making the big walk with the kids to the castle, Papa saw a little golf cart service that would drive us up there so we did that. It saved buckets of time and definitely helped our tired legs. We made it to the castle in time to walk around, but were just a little late for tour tickets. Either way it was fun and here’s a few photos.

We wanted to do something special for Nana, so on our way back from the castle Bethany gave me instructions to pick up some cupcakes from a little shop we had visited before to celebrate Nana’s birthday. I was hoping to keep it a secret, but because Nana and Papa joined us I let them in on it and allowed Nana to pick a few for herself. We got a dozen cupcakes and took them back to the apartment where we all sang “Happy Birthday” to her. It was a great way to end our time in Krakow before packing up and heading home. Here’s just a sampling of some of the flavors we got (in the photo below).

Since I struggled to get us to Krakow in a timely manner yesterday (e.g. we took the “scenic route”…aka: we took a LONG route), I made sure I thoroughly checked the map before leaving today. Thankfully, the route I chose was the right one and we got home in no time tonight, just around 10pm. We had a bit of a pause at the border because the Czech police were doing mandatory checks, but they checked my passport and documents and let us go. The kids had fallen asleep by the time we got home, so Bethany, Nana, Papa, and I enjoyed another cupcake together! It was a lot of fun celebrating this weekend and letting Papa and Nana see a little more of Europe since they had flown so far. We have another week with them before they head back to the States and we’ve got lots more to see even still!

But as the clock strikes midnight, I think I’ll sign off. We’re heading tomorrow to a government office to start paperwork for Karis’ birth certificate, so please be praying for that. Until then, good night!

Tags birthday, Krakow, Papa and Nana, Poland, trip, vacation

365 Czech Republic

Krakow With Family

We took a five day old on a road trip to Krakow, Poland. I know…we’re crazy.

Tomorrow (Sunday) is Nana’s birthday and I guess we were having one of those “when in Europe” moments and decided kind of last minute to get everyone in the car, rent a small apartment in the Old Town and head to Krakow. It was kind of a dream last week but we just didn’t know how Bethany would be feeling and if we could make it work with a newborn. But that’s in the past now because I’m sitting here in Krakow and we’ve made quite the trip today.

Krakow is only about two hours from where we live so it’s completely in driving distance. To my knowledge there aren’t any good trains, so driving makes sense. At least it makes sense until you take the “scenic route” like we did today and added about 45 minutes to our driving time. I would rather not discuss how that happened because 1) I don’t know how it happened and 2) it’s probably still a sore subject in my heart. We did finally make it here and after getting everyone settled in to our little apartment we hit the Old Town!

It was really fun showing Nana and Papa around Krakow and to get to experience it again ourselves. This is my second time here and Bethany’s third, so we’re definitely not pros but it’s a lot easier after you’ve done it once. Europe is just overwhelming in some sense. Everywhere you look it’s old, incredible, and full of history. Today it was really warm here, especially in the town square where you the heat just kind of sat in the middle and baked us, but we made it work by finding shade and eventually grabbing dinner and dessert.

A photo posted by Shay Thomason (@shaycam) on Jun 6, 2015 at 12:55pm PDT

We left Nana and Papa after dessert and they went for a carriage ride through Krakow. Our new family of five made our way back to the apartment which was surprisingly cool thanks to the rare air conditioning units this one has. Avery and Karis did alright considering that Karis was just born on Monday! Karis slept a lot and we tried to find places to rest as we walked around and enjoy the town. Tonight I ran to the grocery store to stock up on water and juice as we just felt a little dehydrated with all the heat. We should be set for day two tomorrow and we’re excited to see what else this beautiful city has to offer.

Here’s a couple more photos from this afternoon.

Tags family, Krakow, Papa and Nana, Poland, trip, vacation

365 Czech Republic

Prepping For Baby

With the help of a Czech friend, I was finally able to get our winter tires changed over to spring ones. Sadly, however, the weather didn’t seem to get the message that it’s actually spring. This morning as I walked with Titus to school it was 46 degrees fahrenheit! I realize it’s technically still spring, but it’s the end of May. For this California native, wearing a jacket in May is like…actually, I have no comparison. I don’t know if I’ve ever worn a jacket in May. But I digress.

With a jacket on, I gave my father-in-law a quick tour of the town this morning. I needed show him where the little grocery stores are and how to get around just in case this baby decides to come soon and they are in need of food. We’re hearing that when she does go into labor she’ll be in the Czech hospital for at least three days so we’re prepping Papa and Nana for life abroad with two little ones while we’re at the hospital. It was fun to quickly walk the town and see Bethany’s dad’s reaction to walking around a European city. I remember that feeling well and every now and then it bubbles up which is really fun.

Another friend, Romi, came over today to help Bethany fill out all the paperwork for the hospital. Bethany said it was a lot more than she had thought and she was very thankful for Romi’s assistance. During Romi’s visit, I drove Papa, Nana, and the kids over to the local grocery story, again, to give them the lay of the land in case they need to go to a bigger store for anything. We needed some groceries anyway so it worked out. There was lots of new fun things at the store today, including a bunch of Kellogg’s brand cereals. I was actually shocked because normally the cereal aisle is pretty limited. Needless to say we bought a box of “Frosties” (aka: Frosted Flakes) just because we could. Here’s a photo of Avery in the cereal aisle in her little car cart (if you look closely you can see a box of “Frosties” in the bottom left).

When we got home from the store Avery wanted to park the car like Titus did the other day, so I let get some time behind the wheel while Papa captured video. Avery is clearly not as aggressive as Titus, but I think I like her style. Here’s what he got.

After the successful car parking, Titus had started a pickup game of baseball with Nana so Avery, Papa, and I joined in on the fun. Titus eventually let me bat and after hitting what I believe was a line drive over the third baseman’s head, he chased me down and tagged me out. Papa somehow captured a short video of that as well and here it is for your viewing pleasure.

Finally we ate fast food tonight and went to a grocery store in Poland to find a baby bath sponge pad. We had tried different stores today but were unsuccessful and found one tonight in Poland which was a great. We got back kind of late so we quickly put the kids to bed and now I’m ready for the dream world as well. Good night!

Tags Avery, baby, baseball, car, driving, Poland, tires

365 Czech Republic

Papa and Nana Go To Poland

I don’t believe the sun has come out a single time since Papa and Nana arrived, but we’re doing our best to make the most of this rainy weather. Tonight we decided to make our way across the border for a little dinner out. Technically, we could’ve walked but with all the rain we decided to drive and stay dry. We took everyone to the place that Bethany have been to just a few times, a nice little restaurant on the town square in Cieszyn (photo of the outside below).

For Papa and Nana, this was really their first European meal experience and they loved it! We all ordered something different and just enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and the rain coming down outside. Titus and Avery did pretty well while we all talked and just spent the evening together as a family. There’s something very nice about restaurants here that is not common in Southern California, mainly the calm and quiet. You don’t find yourself yelling over the table to have a conversation or feeling rushed by a waiter trying to get you out the door. I think Papa and Nana were very impressed with the meal and loved all the new flavors. We even had time (and room in our bellies!) for dessert which included Tiramisu, ice cream with hot raspberry sauce, and hot apple tart. Not a bad way to enjoy a meal out with Papa and Nana!

After dinner the kids wanted to run around the fountain in the town square and despite the rain we decided to let them. They had their rain boots on, so “jumping in muddy puddles” was first on the priority list. Papa and Nana had their phones out and were capturing personal photos and video and the kids were as happy as clams. I was very content just watching them play with my hood on and rain falling all around. I think for all of us it was a really great evening together as we wait for the arrival of baby #3.

Bethany is still feeling those early contraction pains, but nothing has been too intense yet. Our Czech friend Romi is coming over tomorrow afternoon to help finish up some final paperwork that we need for the hospital so that will be a huge help and load off of us. I’m really hoping we’ll have everything in place before Bethany goes in to labor because it’s already complicated enough just having a baby in a foreign country. Continue to pray for us if you think about it!

I continued to battle sinus headaches today and this afternoon it got really bad. I tried to lay down, but just couldn’t fall asleep as my head was pounding. I’m not exactly sure what’s going on, but this is about as bad as it’s been since I first started experiencing sinus problems back in college. I’m experiencing a little relief this evening, but am hoping that this pain will subside soon. I can handle headaches for a short time, but when they go on for hours it’s really hard on me. Again, if you think of us, pray for me and this continued health struggle.

I don’t want to end on that low note because today was a pretty fun day for all of us. We’re excited to have family here and even more excited about meeting this new addition to our family!

Tags dinner, Papa and Nana, Poland

365 Czech Republic

Polish Mother’s Day and Papa and Nana Are Here!

Post author By Shay
Post date May 24, 2015
2 Comments on Polish Mother’s Day and Papa and Nana Are Here!

Happy Polish Mother’s Day, I guess? I’m still trying to figure out if that’s what we were celebrating at church today and I have a feeling I’m at least close on that guess. Poland celebrates Mother’s Day not on Sunday, but on May 26th every year. We were tipped off by another missionary that our city (which is literally on the border of Poland) would be celebrating the holiday this weekend. The town square had lots of things set up and today at church there were all kinds of special things going on.

Titus and I were the only ones that went to church today because Bethany just isn’t feeling well and I didn’t want to have to try to wrangle both Titus and Avery (thus Avery stayed home too). When we got there things were already in motion and the kids were lined up in the hallway to go on stage. I didn’t know this was going on, but they tried to hand Titus some flowers and usher him on stage too but I just ended up taking him upstairs since we didn’t really know what was going on. By the time we got up there, the kids were in place on stage and music had begun so I got my camera out and started getting video (shown below). We also took the above photo to send to Papa and Nana because while we were at church they sent us a text message updating us on their trip progress. They had just landed in Amsterdam and had one more leg of their trip to Prague. You can see just how excited Titus was!

As fun as Polish Mother’s Day is, it pales in comparison to Papa and Nana coming to town! We spent the afternoon getting the house ready but the kids were asking all day, “Is it time to go get Papa and Nana!?” Their train wasn’t schedule to arrive until about 8pm tonight, and it was running just a few minutes late. But we ended up coming over to the train station and finding a spot on the platform where Bethany could sit and we could wait for them. I wasn’t positive which platform they would be coming in on, and I really wanted us all there to receive them when they got off the train. Incredibly, the spot we chose couldn’t have been more perfect. We sat and waited and just happened to be sitting right where their train door opened! Here’s a video I got of them pulling in which was really fun.

Papa and Nana had a pretty good trip from Seattle, but they did have one little hiccup in their trip when Papa fainted on the airplane. He said he felt like he needed to walk around a bit and headed towards the bathroom on the plane when he fainted and he told us when he came to “there was a Dutch doctor and a Norwegian nurse working on me.” He got a few scrapes on his face from the fall, but overall he’s doing alright. They made all their connections, all their bags arrived, and they made it on to the train towards our house all by themselves. Not bad for their first time flying to Czech! They also came bearing many gifts for us, including lots of our Christmas gifts that left in the States when we visited them this past Christmas. The kids of course were going crazy about everything and it was like Christmas in May in our living room as the suitcases were opened. There’s so much I could say her, but it’s getting late and everyone needs to get some rest. Here’s a few more photos from our time tonight and we’re excited about three weeks with Papa and Nana in town for the birth of baby #3!

We forgot to grab Avery her jacket before we left for the train station, so I gave her my sweater and she was all bundled up as we waited for Papa and Nana.

We decided to just walk home from the train station. I brought the car to bring the bags, so Bethany drove the stuff home while we all walked. It was just all part of the experience of coming to Czech. Avery held hands with Nana and just kept telling her about everything. It was a lot of fun.

Above you can see Titus and Avery opening the suitcase which held all the goodies. In the second photo Titus got to open a belated birthday gift from his uncle and aunt which Papa and Nana delivered. This was just part of the fun and there was so much excitement in this house for every little thing that we opened. It was a lot of fun and I was really happy to be reunited with some of my books that I got for Christmas as well other things that were brought over. Not bad for day one with Papa and Nana!

Tags family, Mother's Day, Papa and Nana, Poland, visitors

365 Czech Republic

Date Night in Poland

Bethany and I had the chance tonight to spend a little time out on the town (square) in Poland. Thanks to Steve and Judy for watching our kids, we got to go to dinner and just enjoy a little people watching in the border town of Cieszyn. We found a little restaurant that we really like and this was our second time there. We sat in a window seat and just had fun people watching. There’s a film festival going on there right now so it was an interesting crowd walking by. It was really relaxing actually, just to sit and enjoy being together and talking. As much as I love our kids, it’s not always fun to take them out to eat (which we don’t do often anyway). Most of the customers at the restaurant sat outside, but we were inside and it was quiet and peaceful. Those moments are few and far between, but when they do come they are special. We took our time eating and even got dessert which was really nice. This was one of those nights where you remember you’re living in Europe…and it’s amazing.

After dinner we walked around town a bit and caught a few photos of the scenery as the sun was setting. The golden sunlight was making everything even more beautiful than it already was, and I don’t think my iPhone photos are going to do it justice, but here are two I got.

We’re getting sad that we’ll be saying goodbye to Steve and Judy tomorrow night. They’ll be taking an early train on Wednesday morning and we’ve had a really good time with them the past few days. Anyone that knows this dear couple knows that they are such an encouragement. Just by hanging out with them your prayer life will increase, you’ll be speaking Truth more, and even talking more about what you’re thankful for–at least that’s been our experience this past week. Those are the kind of people you want around!

Tomorrow we’re going to take them to the Josiah Venture offices and give them a tour and then maybe over to the JV hotel area where our conferences are held. Then I’m hoping to take them to a favorite lunch spot near there. We’ll see how the day goes and look forward to sharing that story with you tomorrow.

Tags date, date night, Poland

365 Czech Republic

“I Gotta Go Work on the Blog”

Post author By Shay
Post date April 19, 2015
No Comments on “I Gotta Go Work on the Blog”

We had lunch this afternoon at home and Titus was the first one done. The kids know they need to ask to be excused from the table to take their plates and silverware to the kitchen sink. As Titus got down from his chair, he said, “I gotta go work on the blog.” I began laughing hysterically, but Bethany missed what he said the first time, so Titus repeated himself and then we were both cracking up. It was in that moment that I realized just how many times he has heard me say that since we moved here. Actually, it’s possible he’s heard that a few hundred times.

Today marks our three hundredth day in Czech which means there have been as many blogs. Although I don’t usually start working on the blog until we’ve put them to bed, not all nights are the same so no doubt the kids have heard me say, “I gotta go work on the blog” more than once. It has become such a part of our lives that even this morning I said to Bethany, “Wait?! Did I write a blog last night?!” I genuinely couldn’t remember. It’s like when you can’t remember if you brushed your teeth or put deodorant on (maybe that only happens to me?). It is just part of the routine and some things get some routine you have a hard to remembering if you forgot to do it! We ended up letting Titus go over to my computer and “work on the blog,” so I got this photo of him in front of the computer this afternoon (shown above). This is spot where the blog happens every single day. It’s a joy for the whole family!

We’re preparing for Titus’ birthday this weekend and we needed to go to the store to get a few supplies and try to find out if they have cupcakes. Instead of shopping in Czech, we actually went to Poland because they have a big store there with a ton of variety, and we also knew they had party supplies. Titus has been really in to Hot Wheels for some reason, so we tried to find some themed items there. They did in fact have Hot Wheels plates and even some of those noise makers that you blow air in to so we picked those up. Unfortunately they didn’t have cupcakes, but we’re going to try to figure out another solution to that problem. We’ll be joining up with our friends, the Stephens, whose twin boys turn four the day before Titus. All of us are going to the zoo on Saturday and hopefully some other people will be able to join us!

As we walked in to the Polish store late this afternoon all I could see were people holding ice cream cones. You would’ve thought they were handing them out for free by the sheer number of people eating ice cream. Then we saw the line! There were a ton of people waiting for ice cream at this little pop up style store just before you walk in to the store. I told Bethany we needed to see what all the excitement was about when we leave the store. We did just that and above you can see the photo I took of the place, complete with American flags. It was called “American Ice Dream” and I have no idea why it was named that. We were trying to figure out the Polish words for vanilla and “mixed” when the guy behind us said, “Do you need some help?” We were very thankful for him and we chatted for a few minutes in English which was nice. In the end we spent $2.68 (USD) to get all four of us ice cream! It was awesome and check out my “large” ice cream (below).

Since we didn’t want to eat in our car we settled down in a bench near a little kids play place in the mall and enjoyed them as a family. The kids wanted to play so we let them for a few minutes, but right next to was this little merry go round that Avery was excited about. I’m guees I’m a bit of a softy when it comes to Avery, so I ended up spending the fifty cents to let her and Titus ride around. She loved the fish she chose to ride and when they were finished we left for home.

It’s gonna be a full week with one of our pastors from our sending church and his wife coming to visit, Titus’ birthday, a doctor appointment for Bethany, and final preparations for the upcoming Josiah Venture spring conference. I’m excited for whatever the Lord has in store for us this week and look forward to telling you all about it right here on the blog. It reminds me of the classic line from Pinky and the Brain. “So Brain, what do you want to do tonight?” “The same thing we do every night, Pinky. Try and take over the world!”

Tags 300, blog, family, Poland, shopping, writing