Friday, November 26, 2010

one hot girl on a cold day


This has been a trying week.  Sharon felt horrible on Monday and had a little bit of a fever.  She recovered quickly though and felt pretty good by Tuesday.  But it was then that Eliana started getting sick and running a fever.  She seemed to be doing better on Wednesday so we figured it was kind of a 24 hour thing like Sharon's bought.  Until Wednesday evening when her fever ramped up and she started shaking and moaning incestantly.  We took her temperature and she was reading 104.5 so we called the Jacksons to figure out where the emergency room is and what to expect.  We arrived at the hospital around 8 pm.  Once there the doctor examined her and called for some tests.  They drew some blood and started an i.v. to get her hydrated.  After 4+ hours we were released and told to come back the next day (Thanksgiving).  They were concerned but not enough to admit her.



So we went back to the ER yesterday and they ran some more tests and found that she was doing a bit better.  The doctor ruled out pneumonia and said its just a viral thing that needs to run its course.  So we are watching her and giving her ibuprofen every 6 hours to keep the fever down.  Thank God that we just got some kids medicines in a package from the States recently (thanks!!).
Last night Eliana spiked a fever of 104.5 again but it didn't last too long.  She also hit the 105.1 mark this morning but after the medicine kicked in it dropped down close to normal.  She is feeling alright for the most part and is playing and mostly happy when the meds are keeping her fever low.

Also, it snowed today here in Ljubljana!  It started dusting around 9-10am and hasn't really quit.  I think we have around 6 inches.  Eliana hasn't seen much snow so today was a special treat for her.  I also taught her the ancient art of snow eating and how to choose the right stuff to consume.


It's always tough when a kid gets sick but the timing of this illness was also difficult since we were supposed to be at a Thanksgiving retreat for the JV missionaries of the southern countries.  It's brutal to spend Thanksgiving away from family and friends.

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Rolam Y'all

Rolam: Slovene for "I skate"


While in Lithuania I never found a good hobby that gets me out and encourages exercise too.  So before we came to SLO I wanted to get a long board so could get around town, burn some calories, and not get cabin fever (which I am fairly prone to contracting).

Weather permitting I skate thorough the center of town each weekday on my way to my Slovene classes.  Its always fun for me dodging people, cars, and sometimes buses as I bob and weave through the city.  It gives me time to pray so I thank God frequently that Ljubljana has bike paths around much of the city.

Since longboards aren't common I often get funny glares from the old ladies and envious glances from the 8 year old boys.  Today however, was a good day for boarding.  Now you need to know that I have had some wonderfully humiliating times riding around town.  I have had some good crashes, some sweet spills, and one wicked slide that put me face down spread out in the middle of a crosswalk in one of the busiest intersections in the country; right in front of a bus of spectators.  Ugh.  There have been some highlights too.  Like hanging on to the back of a moped as some dude pulled me through some crazy city streets doing 25mph, even across cobblestone.  It got the adrenaline pumpin.  Another time Gašper and I grabbed onto the back of a big utility truck and got towed around Old Town. But today, was the first time to be hit by a car!  I knew this day would come and luckily it was very minor.  I and my board rolled away unscathed with only minor pride damages.  I was shooting a crosswalk when a lady in a Yugo came cruising and was only looking at traffic to her left and NOT me to her right.  She saw me at the last second and slammed on the breaks.  I barely rolled up on her hood.  Close is for horseshoes and hand grenades right?

Then later today I was pushin across town and on my way back went into our neighborhood market. There I was stoked to meet another longboarder in the check out line.  Mind you this is the 3rd other longboard I've seen in SLO and he lives 1 block from me.  We started chattin and exchanged numbers so we can go ride sometime.  I've been praying for someone outside the church to build a friendship with and practice Slovene.  We'll see what God's up to.

A good day for boarding indeed!

I realized I don't have any photos of me on my board so here is something even better.  It is a clip of Barbara and Maja on my boards thrashin around Lake Bled.




Monday, November 22, 2010

College Group


Right now our group of university students that we meet with gets together the first and third Sunday evenings of each month.
Currently, we are going through the "One Anothers" of the New Testament. Each meeting we discuss a passage that contains this phrase and then try to put wheels on it.
(Note, I am trying to work on diminishing the amount of idioms I use since they don't usually translate well.) We want to be people who are consistent with what we believe and live out our faith in very practical ways. So often the church is known for its hypocrisy and the bad taste that leaves in peoples mouths. (Note, still working on it.) So last night we discussed putting others honor and interests above our own, Romans 12:10 and Philippians 2:3.
It was humbling to take an honest look at how much we love ourselves and how hard it is to put others interests above ours since we think no one will look out for us. We then did some praying and thought about practical measurable ways to make these verses a reality the next 2 weeks until we meet again.

Feel free to pray for us. That God would make a community of people who truly love Jesus here in Slovenia and who love those around them well as they give their lives away like Jesus did.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Horse Play

A couple days ago I met up with Miha, a dude from church, and we went out cruising on my longboards. It was his first time and he did amazingly well. We kicked around the center and then out to the HOT HORSE stand near Tivoli Park. We grabbed some finger lickin chow and chatted for a while about life in Slovenia. It was a fun afternoon.

For those of you who don't know, Hot Horse is a fast food chain here in SLO. They specialize in Horse Burgers with all kinds of fun topings. I had one with nacho cheese, onions, and tobasco. And let me tell you even though that old mare had given her life to nourish mine, she still packs quite a kick. (For all you horse lovers out there - please don't hate me.)


One of the cool things about Ljubljana is that it is fairly small for a capitol city. There are around 280,000 people and its amazing how small it feels. I don't know that many people yet and I see some of the few people I know kinda often. In fact I saw 3 different people as Miha and I were out and about the other day.
Quaint is a good word for our beautiful city.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

A First

Today was a special day for me.

Eliana was sitting next to me on the couch as we read through some books together.

Right before she got off the couch to go to her next project she wrapped her arms around me and said something like, "ahhlblbloh."

And I realized it was my first unsolicited, unprompted, totally spontaneous
hug and "I Love You" from my daughter.

Today was a very good day!

(Despite my cheesy grin, this is one my current favorite photos of me with Eliana.)

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Learning to smile for the camera

It's a new concept - learning to smile for the camera.



We're still working on it.