the princess gang

here's hazel and all her princess friends. they all sat together for the christmas pagent and had good times giggling and sharing candy...until hazel decided she needed something to drink and had to be taken out while the bell choir played. everyone here has learned she has a set of lungs on her.

milk

every monday and friday morning we are brought fresh milk that our pimbantu then heats so we can have it all nice and clean from whatever is in the milk that shouldn't be. there is a nice cream that comes off the top and this gets in the drinks and what not...and all of this is suppose to be just the best milk around! but i just can't stomach it yet. i almost get sick pouring it over the kids cereal in the morning!

our first ever elementary christmas pagent

Gavin played the part of a cow...i mean bull...in this year's "christmas around the world". in the picture he is the third one over from the left. dog, sheep (this little guy was soo hot by the end! and this is one of gavin's good friends at school...always planning how they are going to have social interaction after school), then gavin, the bull, a horse, another horse and she is the little girl in the class, frog (my first time to see a frog in a christmas pagent!), boy in pink bunny suit (my first time for this too!), and a mouse(played by Levi...our dutch friends...he was quite the ham on stage and gave everyone reason to sit and chuckle the whole way through :D). gavin's head was on lopsided the entire time but it was very cute to see his whole class stand up there. they did very well singing 4 songs with the whole elementary and then just as a class they sang "away in a manager". brought back memories for me singing in these things and wearing costumes. but i think i was usually an angel. ???? i think an angel is easier to make than a cow...i mean bull. but he was very proud and excited for this night...a first of many to come!

horse back riding and flowers

yesterday we went up the mountian and found some horses to ride. the trek was pretty rough as we climbed high...fast. we went with our dutch friends who all rode their own horses but greg and i opted to hold paul and hazel. this was not easy to hang on to them while also riding with no handle to hang on to. there was a saddle...but no handle!!! anyway...my lack of love for horses did not grow this day but we had a great time. the view was gorgeous, the fresh air was good, the day was full of laughs. this lady you see in the middle walked all the way up the mountain with us just in case we needed a drink when we got to the top. so we did drink even though we were not thristy :D. after stopping at the hindu temples and the natual hot water springs...we headed back down the mountain and it started to rain...making it a slippery ride for the horses. we all made it in one piece and we are praising God today for the beauty He has put on this earth! amazing! after our trek we checked out the local nursery's for some plants to bring home. both edith and i bargained very well and were happy with our 6 kids...two husbands and 15 plants in the car on the way home. it was only an hour! good thing indo doesn't require carseats!

Circus and Bad guys

Saturday we thought we would go to town because there was to a be grand performance. some guys from america have been traveling the world on their bikes for 7 years... giving towns and cities a circus act of sorts. i would like to see how they get the elephant on a bike!!!!...and that is why i wanted to go...this would be an amazing show to see! we were told 5 pm at the Ramanyana. we (greg, edith, yon and i) showed up at 4 with our 6 kids who were eager for a circus show. we thought there would be many many people who would want to see this and we wanted good seats or standing space. but no one was there. the parking lot was empty...mostly. so we thought we would give them the hour and we went inside the store to the top floor where they have arcade games...a kind of "chuckie cheese" if you will??? and we thought if the circus didn't show...we could at least call the games "the circus." so at 5:20 we went back out and no...nothing. Edith called our rep who told us of the event and the rep said...it had been postponed until 7...or maybe tomorrow? nothing here is for sure until after it happens! :D so we began to go to the car and the kids were only a little bit frustrated. a fairly normal looking man approached me. he said something about "black hawk" and i repeated trying to understand for my indonesian isn't THAT great yet. i figured he was talking about the circus. no. he turned his cigarette around and bit the burning end off--- chewed it up and spit it back at us. ok...so this guy is not happy. then he gets in my face a little more, and yes, he is indeed angry. we are all trying to figure out how are we going to get out of this...with our kids watching. he turns to edith's husband and yells something of which if i could have understood, i'm sure i wouldn't have wanted to...then he turns back to me and yells some more of that i COULD understand. this was getting a little intense. then he decides to leave on his own..."whew!" i was thinking when BAMMMMM...the guy had come behind me and punched me from behind. yes...this is martha talking...he punched a GIRL! this was in public...maybe people were around. i can still feel the blow today in my shoulder...he meant it. i don't know why...we didn't do anything. i was grateful an indonesian woman and her husband came over to apologize for him. she said he was bad and we should excuse him from "indonesia" - i agree but i am just shocked. at first i was scared. then i was hurt. then i was mad. now i don't know?! what is culturally appropriate to do in cases like this? what do we say? what do we do? what do we NOT do? what can we do just because we are humans and what do we do because we represent Jesus? turn the other cheek? or shoulder? hmmm...i am thinking through so much...culture is a lot to process...Christianity is more of laying it all out and giving it to Jesus. when we got home Paul said "mom, why did he want to be mean?... i don't want to go there ever again...i don't like it when people hit you." and my heart sank... i know this is one instance that he prob. won't even remember but i didn't want him to have to process this too...i want him to be able to trust this country...and yet...everything happens for a reason...i trust that...so together we processed and it even helped me to take it to a 3-year-old level... we shouldn't hit anyone cuz it hurts their feelings and makes others around them feel scared too. fists...and even words too...paul added.

it has already been christmas here!

with it being December we thought we should put up a tree even though we were sweating while we did it. i went downtown to the local "christmas shop" and bought a fake tree and some fun little ornaments to go on it. when i returned home, the boys were shocked that the tree was in the bag and not "on top of a car" like the real ones SHOULD be! i have been asked to go back out and buy a REAL one. what to do...anyone? yeah...so we also received many packages this weekend and instead of putting them under the little tree...cuz they just wouldn't fit...we opened every one! thank you thank you KJ, Kelly, Dustin, Andrea, Grant, Mari, and Trey! it was truly Christmas morning when we were through! and i have more faith in the postal system now...maybe things are looking up here anyway...

Edith...pronounced A-det

here is my new found friend, Edith. She keeps me encouraged as she inspires my heart and mind....we have so many things in common... she has 3 kids...i have 3 kids...she has lived in amsterdam...i have lived in amsterdam...she is dutch...i think i am dutch from all the dutch i have hung around...but she is true dutch...speaks it more than english! we have same heart ministries...i don't like coffee and greg does...she doesn't like coffee and her husband does...all these similarities add up to a good friend and i am sharing her smile with you so you can be encouraged as well :D

kids and pavers

we recently put some pavers down in our backyard to make a patio. we had some leftovers so the kids have been busy for several days creating and recreating with friends and neighbors. they are making kitty/puppy house and track for the two to run in. the funny part...the animals actually like it :D slide and all! the animals are fitting in well to the family but they are "extra" for mom and dad...if you know what i mean! i'm potty training the dog now BEFORE hazel!