Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! I had a great day - we went to Wisconsin to visit my aunt and uncle and their family, and my grandma who lives with them. It was a lot of fun although I think more of the day was spent in the car than anything else :) I wanted to share some of the things I am most thankful for today.

- My God and Savior Jesus Christ, and my salvation through Him
- The power and privilege of prayer, and the Bible by which I am able to know Him more
- My husband and his affection and support
- My family and friends who give me many laughs and show much love, and the time I get to spend with them
- My trials - it is through them I grow
- The health and abilities of my family, friends, and myself
- Our many material blessings

There are so many more things I couldn't list them all if I typed all day - I hope you had a chance to reflect on what you are thankful for today.

And, now that T-day is over, may the Christmas season (and Christmas music) begin :)

My grandma, siblings, cousins, Narasimha and I, and Bella (not in that order :)

Narasimha and I

The First Snow

Today was the first snow of the season - it is so beautiful! I was talking to my mom on the phone this morning and she said that it was snowing where she was, and I looked out the window and saw that it was snowing here too. I hadn't noticed until then. It is fun to have it snow this early in the year - last year I don't think it snowed until after Christmas. So I was in the holiday mood today - I even started thinking about writing a Christmas letter which I am going to try really hard to do this year. We live out in the country, so once when I looked up there were a few deer just a few feet away from our fence in the back yard. And actually, from looking at our backyard it seems like we got several inches and like it may be sticking around for a while. This was Bella's first experience with snow, and she is so short that it rubs her belly when she walks - I don't think she likes it. She was woofing at it and trying to "eat" the problem - as soon as she stepped out the door she was trying to lick up all the snow. One of our other dogs, Topper, also likes to eat snow. I am really thankful for the aesthetics of the snow today, although I am not sure what it will mean for those who are traveling tomorrow....

Poor Bella is a little too close to the ground :)

Taj and Topper enjoying a run (our back yard).

Standing at the end of our driveway looking down the road to get to our house.

Our Weekend

This weekend was so much fun! I went to the Mall of America with my mom and sisters, and Narasimha stayed at my parents' house and did major yardwork with my dad and brother and they even caught a hockey game Saturday night. We girls have started going up to MN at the beginning of November to sort-of kick off the holiday shopping season. I think it was originally meant to actually shop for gifts for other people, but we end up more just shopping for ourselves and getting ideas of what to get one another. We stay in a hotel overnight (one with a hot tub) and shop for 2 days in a row. I just can't ever believe how mammoth that place really is - it took us over a day just to do all the stores we wanted to do a first time! So when we got home last night we both slept like rocks because shopping is actually really exhausting, and Narasimha shoveled gravel and carried big rocks all weekend, and it was cold and rainy at least part of the time.

Our First Visitors

This has been an exciting week for me. My sister decided to take a break from college and told me last week that she would come stay overnight with me on Tuesday night. I was very excited to see her (and do her laundry of course), and then just a little before she got here, my other sister called and told me that she was on her way too. So one planned and one sporadic visit ended up being a very fun Tuesday night/Wednesday morning. We didn't do anything special - just chilled, watched TV and went to Chinese buffet as per the request of my sister with the tape worm. Then, Wednesday (yesterday) a few of our friends from our old church in I-town came and spent the afternoon here. Besides family, they were some of the first visitors we have had at the new house. I was so thankful that they could come, even though the house is still embarrassingly messy. It was fun to get to see them again, but it was also reassuring that even though I haven't seen either of them since like July, we got together and talked and it felt like we hadn't ever been apart. I guess if I am going to be in M-town, I feel better knowing that I still have my friends from before, even if I don't see them much. I guess didn't lose anything in the move - I just gained the new friends I have made here in M-town and I am now more thankful for the time I get to spend with those friends I maybe don't get to see as often as I'd like.

Veteran's Day 2007

Today is Veteran's Day. I hope you had a chance to go to a ceremony, thank a Vet, or at least reflect on what you have as a result of sacrifices others have made on your behalf. Our church had a special tribute to Vets, which was nice. There were more in our church than I would have guessed. Then, we went to a ceremony at a WWII Monument, and the speaker talked about the difference between Memorial Day and Veteran's Day. I didn't know this: Memorial Day is in memory of our service men and women who have lost their lives while serving while Veteran's Day is to pay tribute to all men and women who have served honorably, whether in active duty or not, and no matter when the service was. He encouraged us to especially remember and thank those Vets who have served at some time and are still alive today. Thank God today for those who have risked their lives for you and the freedom you are able to enjoy!

Word Combinations

I think it's really funny when people combine words - this is a trend that I first noticed a few years ago when I was in college. I think my friend Kelsey was the first person I ever heard do this. For example: gigantic and enormous = ginormous. Fantastic and fabulous = fantabulous. Chillin' and relaxin' = chillaxin'. You can even do it with names, as they do for the A-listers in Hollywood. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are often called "Brangelina" when referred to as a couple - there are many more examples of the name combos. Here is my shot at it: Narastina spent their fantabulous weekend chillaxin'. Too bad that didn't turn out sounding as cool as I'd hoped - haha :) Anyone else want to try?

On to Ottawa

Narasimha did get an appointment at the US Embassy (over the computer - he must have listened to the man's advice and checked very frequently) to get his passport stamped in Ottawa about a week before Christmas. He will have to go alone which I don't think he is thrilled about. And we did figure out that this process by the time you consider fees, traveling, accommodations, etc. will cost about $1000. I think I could think of more fun ways to spend that money :( Hopefully this is the last time he will ever have to do this - 4th time's a charm.

Cat and Mouse

I am normally not really a "cat" person, and Narasimha is actually allergic to them, but I will take the first to avoid the other (see title). It is getting cold outside, and we have already had one mouse inside that went through the whole kitchen making a mess and eating things, including my (Pampered Chef) spatulas. I actually don't know the extent of the damage because I haven't unpacked nearly everything since the move. A few weeks ago I also found a dead mouse in the back yard, about 10 feet from the deck that's attached to the house. So today we went to a friend of a friend of a friend and got some 9 week old kittens that look like potentially good "mousers." They will live in the garage, and hopefully all the dogs and both the cats can learn to live in harmony, although in reality they probably won't see much of each other. I asked one of our neighbors if she had mice in her house, and she said that she did every year until they got their cat. Sounds like a good investment to me! We are going to call the black one "Rocky" and the grey one "Smoky" - like the mountains.

Being Foreign in America

As I have mentioned in an earlier post, Narasimha isn't a citizen of this country. He is here currently on a work visa - the same one that required that we move to M-town. He will be on this visa for 3 years before being able to apply for a green card. He used to be on an exchange student visa, which had to be renewed every year. (In the following process, FYI, there is no part that is without monetary cost.) To get the visa renewed/stamped, the foreigner has to go to a US Embassy, of which there are none inside the US. We chose to go to Toronto and Ottawa, Canada, because those were closer than any others for us. This has not been an easy process. First, he has to apply and get a Canadian visa to go into Canada to go to his appointment at the US embassy. Then, he has to get there to go to the appointment. We have always driven. Then he has to do the appointment, and wait for a few days in Canada to see if they will grant the visa. If they don't, and they don't have to have a reason not to, then he doesn't get to come back to America - no questions asked. Even if he has a job, wife, house, etc. here, and even if he did everything exactly and perfectly that they asked him to do. Actually getting to Canada driving requires that you go through Detroit and through the border police. The way to Canada isn't bad - they check your passport, ask a few questions and wave you through. The way back to the US, however, has been pretty much a nightmare every time we have gone through. I can't believe how rude and racist they are. I understand they have a job to do, and trust me, I want them to do it well. I don't want terrorists or the like making it through our borders. But there is no reason for them to be unnecessarily rude and condescending to everyone who goes through and isn't white. Last time I checked, it wasn't considered a crime simply being not-white. I have been literally embarrassed for the way I have seen them treat people on the way through - embarrassed to even be an American and be associated with these unfriendly and cold-hearted cattle-herders. So, since he has a new visa, he has to get it stamped at an Embassy if he leaves the country and before he can come back. Since we are planning a trip overseas soon, he is looking at making the Canadian trek once again to get his visa stamped. He called the Embassy today (there is a website that you can use, but there are never any appointments available, so the Embassies allow you to call directly and for $2/min you can attempt to get an appointment over the phone). He talked to a man who was less than helpful. The man said that no, they don't have any appointments. Narasimha asked why not, and why don't they ever show up on the website, since he has been religiously watching the site, and also, how is he ever actually supposed to get an appointment. The man said that they do come onto the website, but Narasimha should be ready to check the website "between 40-50 times a day to get an appointment." Thanks for your help - now can I please have my $2/min back? Whenever we deal with these people, we always comment on how unfortunate it is that the people who are representing Americans on the front lines (literally - at the borders) are showing us to be a bunch of arrogant pigs who care nothing for anyone but ourselves, and treat everyone we encounter, good, bad, or otherwise, like the dirt on which we trample. After seeing first-hand how "we" treat foreigners as a first impression, I wonder a lot less than I otherwise would why whole countries of people hate us and threaten us and even kill us. I also wonder a lot less (not that I at all think it's ok) why people are here illegally - it would be much easier and cheaper for us to break the rules!

Puzzling Results

We had a follow-up test from a surgery that happened about a year ago, relating to our infertility struggle. The results are puzzling. The test showed way more improvement than we were anticipating, which is great, but also hard to believe. The results we got last week would honestly be nothing short of a miracle, which we know God is more than capable of doing, so we are hesitantly excited. God is good, but at this point it looks also like some kind of human error has played into the picture. We think we are going to follow-up with another facility to see what is going on. If the results are correct as they were reported, then glory to God for working a real miracle in our lives - maybe pregnancy isn't so far off after all, which at this point remains still a very big "maybe."