Hi Friends and Family,
Woah, a lot has happened! First there was the passport debacle of 2012. I was supposed to get our passports done while we were still in Ohio, but alas procrastination got the better of me. So, we started the process here the second week of January. It was ridiculous. First I fill out the forms wrong three times! I filled out the wrong one, then I wrote the wrong address, then I finally brought it up to the counter at the post office (the post office our GPS decided was best to take us to which was a half hour from our house), and had to fill it out all over again because I had signed it without thinking in the car. You have to have it witnessed when you sign it – so I filled it out again!! The post office was filling up with people who were visibly annoyed that it was taking us so long at the counter. But our nice post lady stayed calm even though there wasn’t another person at the desk for a good ten minutes. We got the paper work all done and then I handed her our pictures. She said they weren’t good enough. I had tried to save money by doing our own passport pictures through this free website online which assured me they would be just fine – I mean really all you are doing is standing in front of a white background, how hard can that be? Website was wrong. So nice post office lady takes Elly and I behind the curtain to the interesting, well, not exactly interesting, workings of the post office. She snapped my picture, we waited for the printer which was a couple minutes. It didn’t work. Okay, do it again. Wait for print. No go. Again….wait…print…doesn’t work. We’re not done yet folks…picture…wait…print…wrong. And now we have to leave for Champy to get to work. So we pack up all of our paperwork and such for the next fiasco. Onward to the pharmacy. We go to the photo counter, order our photos and wait while the attendant shoves the display of chocolate out of the way for us to stand in front of the pull down white background. Ok great. At least today I’m having a good hair day. So, he takes our pictures then takes the digital camera to the back to print them out – after retaking them two times each – of course. He printed them out and handed them to me. They were bad. Dark and fuzzy. I look at him and am thinking ‘seriously? how many stinking times can I get my picture taken?!!’ So one more go around with photo man and we’ve got them. We decided to go for the closer post office this time. Apparently Emma the GPS didn’t like this post office because she took us around it for a good ten minutes, which when you’ve already gone through a ridiculous amount of unnecessary steps seems like an eternity. You could say nerves were a bit raw but we got there with all the paperwork accounted for and pictures in hand. Again the line piles up and I feel super awkward, but again we have a wonderfully nice post office lady helping us. Finally after one more step we order our passports. And after all that drama they arrive TWO WEEKS later in the mail!! They were supposed to take four to six weeks, but they arrived in two! So, I’m legal until 1/22/2022 and Elly is until 1/22/2017!
Then came some bad news. My grandma, who I dearly love, died. We drove the long drive back to Ohio, grieved with family and remembered and celebrated a beautiful life. I wanted something of my grandma’s to bring back to Kansas City with me, so my mom gave me the ring that my great grandma had given to my grandma, who had given it to my mom. She was planning on giving it to me for a surprise for my birthday in April, but gave it early so I had something tangible of her’s to take home. I’m excited to have my pink ring with me in Indonesia.
Right before we left for Ohio I did our taxes, which if you know me is a real miracle to get done so early. I think I needed something to do. The good news, well great in fact, is that our tax return was much more than I had anticipated and we could order our tickets! We had been looking online and Champy had called a couple travel agencies that he went through in California before. After a few more frustrating paperwork steps, we ordered our tickets on this past Friday! We are officially going! Champy’s family is texting daily with new plans – family pictures, a wedding vow renewal party (it will be our 10 year Anniversary while we are there), food to cook, a house rented in Bali, tickets to fly to Jakarta for the World Prayer Gathering Conference, and more. We get multiple pictures a week of our new nephew who will be a little over four months old when we get there. He smiles in his sleep! It’s amazingly adorable. We finished the book we were reading out loud together about Indonesia last night and found some awesome clearance deals at the outlets yesterday so we’ll have some nice summer clothes to take. It’s moving fast now!
On the home front, Champy is continuing to get more hours at the tennis club and is really enjoying it. Elly and I are discovering libraries, parks and doing school at Panera weekly. Elly’s violin lessons are going splendidly and she’s having a fabulous time exploring the woods with her friend; packing up snacks, water, binoculars and a first aid kit to chart and map this unknown territory. :) The weather has been strangely nice. It feels like spring most of the time.
We are settling in here – finding the best treasure troves – aka thrift stores and the place is feeling more like home. We’re connecting with friends and building community here. I’ve decided to get as healthy as possible before we leave so I’ve been doing a detox diet which actually isn’t nearly as hard as I thought it would be. Elly and I are eating so much better! Champy is sometimes – the draw of so many amazing Asian restaurants is quite strong. :)
Oh! And we moved up the date, we’re leaving April 24th!! It’s just around the corner! Elly’s birthday in March, mine in April, add in visits from my mom and stepdad and our friend Kelly, and we are off! It is starting to feel more real and exciting. I’m reading up on the culture and country and trying to prepare Elly, but more than anything I am excited for Champy. I can’t wait to see his face when we land, when he gets to eat his favorite food, see his family, meet his step-father, play tennis with our first nephew and hold his second. I can’t wait to see Oma Lani’s (his mom, grandma = Oma) face when she gets to hug Elly for the first time. I can’t wait to be with family and finally understand some of the cultural differences which have been perplexing me for ages. I can’t wait to renew our vows and to get a deeper understanding of what I said in mine almost ten years ago, “your people will be my people.” It’s ten years coming, and its gonna be great!
It is hard to eat healthy, when just around the corner from where I work there is a chinese buffet that offers $9 for whatever you can fit into their to-go box. I counted that one box could easily be 5 meals for me.
Anyway, I am super excited with all the steps as well as this plan on going to Indonesia that Father plans for us. The last time I was there was in 2000, just found out that most of the Indonesian money (Rupiah) that I have, may have been expired years ago.