is it spring yet?

It is said that when the weather is good, it's GOOD and when it's bad it's BAD. Well, I am ready for the GREAT! It is still a bit cool here and coats/jackets are still on stand by every time we leave to go out. Today it looks and feels more like fall- gray skies, windy, and brown. These are the days I wish to be back in the states, where in the south shorts are being worn and boots have been replaced by flip flops. Flowers have been planted and the grass is green. More than anything I wish I were home to celebrate our risen savior with the family I love and miss so much. I have been lonesome for a church family- where the excitement over this season and what it means to our faith is absolutely contagious. In this culture, church attendance is an obligation and there is no joy. Most of the cities have processions but they all depict the death of Christ and the weaping Mary. I am looking for the celebration!!! We reflect upon the death of Christ and what it means to us and what it accomplished for us- but in this culture it pretty much stops there. I want to praise my risen savior who is alive and working in and amongst us. This holiday season, I pray for opportunities to tell the rest of the story......He lives, he lives, Christ jesus lives today- He walks with me and talks with me.

To Busy to Blog!

Whew! It has been a wild few months. Things have been good but crazy. Ian and I are working about 25-30 hours combined at the Chat Room as well as trying to meet with people to practice Spanish and keep up with our personal studies. Due to budget shortfalls the company has had to make several cuts and our language budget was cut, so we are on our own. It has been difficult and we have definitely noticed a difference in our progress, but God is good to us and we will get it....it just might take a bit longer.
The girls are doing wonderful. It has been hard to tell how much progress that have made because the will not speak Spanish to us. Someone told us that children relate languages with relationships and so for us it will be English. Since the weather has been nicer we have had more opportunities to be outside with them and have seen them interact more with their friends on the playground and we are so happy with what we see. They are getting along wonderfully- of course they make mistakes but they are being understood and seem comfortable using what they know. At a recent teacher-parent meeting the twins teacher mentioned in front of all of the other parents that our girls were the best Basque speakers in the class. While it was a bit embarrassing it was nice to know. Bianca was invited to a birthday party last week and I was a bit nervous about just dropping her off. I had to work that afternoon so Ian took her, but I made her put a piece of paper in her pocket with our cell phone numbers....just in case. She did fabulous and had a wonderful time.
Ian has started training for a triathlon. He has been interested in doing it for years and now he has finally taken the plunge. He is doing well in the running and biking, but the swimming is kicking his butt. He is reading lots of blogs and training advice on line and I know his hard work will pay off.
I have finally gotten back behind my sewing machine. I had to order fabric from the US and pay almost 30 dollars for it to be shipped. I paid the equivalent of 10 dollars for 5 yards of elastic and there are not any stores that offer pleating services. I will not go into all of the details, but it took me 2 days to pleat a simple garment. In the states it may have taken me 10 minutes. So while I am sewing again I do not see myself cranking things out as quickly as before.
Well,that is all for now- will try to do better with updates.
Love to you all,
Katie

Thanksgiving in the Basque Country

This weekend our Txat Project hosted a weekend in english at a farm house. The theme for the weekend was "Giving Thanks". We had a semi-traditional meal with a brief history of thanksgiving and all of the Americans that were there with us shared with our Basque friends our individual thanksgiving traditions. Our Basque friends are very into differences in cultures so they were very open to trying to new foods and hearing about our family traditions. I think they were amazed at the amount of food and the number of desserts. We also used the leftovers today for lunch and shared with them about how we eat the left overs for DAYS and some of the creative things that people do with the meat. I think they appreciated that we didn't waste what they perceive as an unnecessary amount of food. I think that the weekend was a success and that our Basque friends Ana, JoseMari, Miguel, Ainoah, Asier, Maider, Josetxo and Corro had a great time improving their english and getting a taste of all the good food we have to offer at Thanksgiving. Thanks to our friends at Keller BC in Texas for coming to help and bringing some special items so that we could have some of our favorites this Thanksgiving.

This is what we ate (some substitutions were made b/c of what is available:

Roasted Chicken, Baked Ham, Cornbread Dressing, Green Bean Roll Ups, Macaroni & Cheese, Creamed Spinach, Roasted Broccoli & Cauliflower, Rolls with honey butter, cranberry sauce, Carrot Cake, Pumpkin Cheesecake, and Chocolate Pecan Pie

Happy Thanksgiving!

Long time....no update.

Hello friends and supporters! We have just been horrible at updating, but it is only because we have been really busy. Everyone is doing really well. We have had parent meetings with both of the girls teachers and we got great reports from both. The twins teacher, Amaia, told us that they are both very caring and not quite as selfish as many of the other kids their age. That is always nice to hear. Bianca´s teacher, Maite, said that she was really enjoying her friends and doing great in her studes. Both teachers said the girls were doing great learning their Euskera and picking up some Spanish as well. They have their first field trip this Friday so they are really looking forward to riding on the big bus- they use huge charter buses for school buses here so to a preschooler it looks like a carnival ride.
Ian and I are also progressing in our studies. We could both use more opportunities to speak but we do alright when we need to. Everyone keeps telling us that it will get better with time. We have started working some at our Txat Room and getting a chance to meet with clients. It is a lot of fun and we just want more opportunities- as soon as we get out of lang. school we will be working there more and be more valuable to our team. We are getting ready for a weekend event with a volunteer team from Texas this month as well as a team retreat.
I have invited one of my friends over for Thanksgiving. Her mother was an American and I thought she might like to experience this holiday with her American friends. My friend, Cristina, says she remembers how hard it was for her mother when she first came here and so she wants to be my friend and help me- I love that! Ian's mom is coming for Christmas so we are looking forward to having our first visitors. It is the rainy season right now so I hope it all stops before she gets here and we can get out without getting soaked.
Ian will be testing for his Spanish drivers license this week so you can think of him as he finishes studying and taking the exam on the 10th. I am also hoping for some changes in my learning situation so you can remember that also. I will let you know the specifics once I know something definite.
Thanks again for all your support-sorry the updates are so infrequent, but while we are busy, the days are fairly predictable and their isn't much new going on. Love you all!

For our friends in Boca Raton!

Wow! I am just realizing that we have not blogged in over two months. That is horrible...We have a lot going on. Some good and some challenges. After 6 very long months we are finally in our destination city of San Sebastian. I continue to be amazed at how beautiful it is here. We found a great apartment only about 300 meters from the beach with a great view. From our terrace we can see the water and the mountains around but not the beach. There are lights on the mountains and at night the view is nice as well. The temperatures have been in the high 60s ans low 70s. We have had a few days int he 50s but those are rare.

The girls started school about 3 weeks ago and they are doing well. I think they are understanding more everyday. They are actually being taught in the Basque language (Euskera) and that has been...interesting. The public schools teach exclusively in Basque but the private school the girls go to teaches in Basque until the 5 yr. old school year and then they do a few subjects in each language. So right now the girls are learning Spanish on the playground and from their friends in class. The school day is pretty long and they are happy when the weekend comes and we all get to be home together.

Ian and I started back to school this week. It has been boring. They assigned us to a level 2 class and we are a bit higher than that. We are requesting a change for next week so we pray our request is granted. One of our teachers has spoken to the director and agrees we should be moved to the next level. I hope next week is more challenging. We need to move forward and get this language. I feel like we are in a bit of a valley with our speaking. It is so difficult and when we try to speak the words seem to get jumbled and just fall out of our heads. Or we know the words but can not get them in the proper tense or person. You should totally give grace to everyone you know who is not a native english speaker- it is very difficult to learn and live in a second language. I have meet one girl who is the mother of another set of twins in our girls class. She is half American and wants to practice her english. She was raised here so Spanish is her native language- we meet once a week for a language exchange and she has been great at helping me know what is going on! Sometimes I feel like I am walking around in a fog- I am hoping that the smoke clears soon.

This next week I would like to get the girls enrolled in some kind of extra- curricular. I am looking into swim for Bianca and dance or gymnastics for all three. Any way we can connect with people would be great. I am thinking about joining the gym right next door and I am sure Ian would like to get back into the gym as well. He has been running but has not been out on his bike yet. He finally got his surf board last week so I hope that he will get out and try in the next week or so. I also pray that for him it is "like riding a bike".

We have several events coming up that we would like you to remember: English chat weekend in October and a movie premier for surfers in October as well. Ian and our team mates are looking for a venue for the movie premier, we are hoping that this can be used as the catalyst for some other project in the surfing community.
Thanks to our friends in Boca Raton, Fl for keeping up with us and reminding us that there are people back in the states that love and care for us...even if we do not even know them personally!

PS-If you are on Facebook and we are not "friends" please add us and send us a message letting us know who you are and how you "know" us. This is a great place to see pictures and keep up with us day to day.

Why? Because it's better.

One of the hardest things for me to understand about this culture is why they do things the way they do. I am sure that everyone who has ever lived abroad has asked the same question. I struggled with this for a while because I thought I was being too hard on them and maybe I had a bit too much pride about being an American. I never want to be the American that always thinks that whatever we have in the states is superior to everything else in the world. It's simply not true. I have, however, discovered that for the most part the answer for all of my "why's?" is the same no matter who I ask-" Well, because it's better." I am not exaggerating. They really truly believe, with all that is in them, that their way of living, their food, their health system, their education system, their everything is better. I was talking with my nanny last week about this very thing. When it has been decided that something is "better" that's it. The end.  Nothing is left up to the individual to decide. Take salad dressing. My nanny has eaten only one salad dressing her ENTIRE 26 years. Olive oil and vinegar. There are simply no choices. I have searched. Every now and again I can find a little variety, but nothing to get excited about. It has been decided that oil and vinegar is the only acceptable and healthy choice so that it, end of discussion. 

I know that sometimes people think that we are here trying to make everyone like us- because we think WE are better, but that is really not true. Many of the people here have never experienced anything outside of their own culture- I mean why should they? The best is here - Right? and who am I to disturb their precious apple cart. I think it is important to me that other points of view be considered because otherwise what we are doing is futile. If it is "better" to live a life void of spirituality, living only for yourselves and your immediate family and if they are not open to a new way of thinking then how will they ever be open to hearing the message that we bring. If they won't even consider that MAYBE, just maybe my way of cooking is just as good as theirs will they ever be able to consider the life I am offering. Not a life to be lived just like me or even my way, but God's way. I want it to be understood that we are not trying to make them into versions of "us" only better versions of themselves.

Español Solo (3)

We did it! Last weekend we spent the entire weekend communicating in Spanish. We attended a weekend retreat with the church we have been attending here. We Katie and I did take the liberty to communicate with one another and to the girls in English, but since we were surrounded by so many Spanish speakers, we figured it was okay.

It was a fantastic weekend. We spent each meal with our new friends, and got a chance to eat a bunch of traditional Spanish foods. One of my favorites is morcilla, a type of blood sausage. For our Louisiana friends, it is not all that unlike boudin, except of course for the blood.

Everyone was very gracious, and they exhibited a great deal of patience as we fumbled through sentences and absolutely butchered their language. We attended four teaching sessions throughout the weekend as the pastor who led the retreat took us through the book of Ephesians. We did okay following along, as long as he stuck to the passage. As soon as he would follow a tangent, we would be completely lost. It is amazing how much more one can understand when he/she is aware of the context, in this case the biblical passage. Their were a couple of young teenage girls there who took to our girls. They kept an eye on our girls and let us participate in sessions and talk with people. We greatly appreciated their help in that.

Thanks for all of your prayers for us as we were gearing up for and participating in this weekend. It was a great learning experience, and our we were able to take alot (and not all of it language) away from the weekend).

Español Solo (2)

We had noble intentions, but we came up with some really good excuses not to have our Spanish only weekend. Two weekends ago we decided to postpone and instead invited our Finnish friend from language school to hang out with us for the weekend. It was a great time, but there was not much Spanish practice. Last weekend we had a team going-away party for a couple that is heading back to the US for a year. Once again, lots of English practice, not much Spanish.

So this weekend it is time for our Spanish only weekend. And this time there is no way to postpone it. The members of the church that we have been attending here invited us on a church retreat at a camp about two hours away. So Friday at six we will load up in the car and head out for a true Spanish only weekend, and we won't be returning until Sunday evening. Two of the members of the church speak English fluently, but they, along with everyone else, are only going to communicate with us in Spanish. I am sure that some of our conversations are going to look more like a game of charades than anything else, but we anticipate that this weekend will be a great opportunity to learn.

During the retreat we are going to be studying the book of Ephesians. I look forward to God using our time of study to show us something new in His Word as well. How amazing that it does not matter the language; God's Word transcends all cultural differences. God can do incredible things.

update!

hello everyone,

my mother in law reported to me that she had some friends who she knew were praying for us last weekend and we are so thankful! We did, however, have to put off our weekend for another week:( We have a friend from Finland who lives here- she is 20 and completely alone. So, when she heard we were going to the beach last weekend ( as we always do) she asked to come along and we were so happy to have her with us, but we didn't want to force our weekend crazy on her. I am sad that we didn't get to have our spanish weekend, BUT I had a great time talking with Rebecca and it was an opportunity to sow some seeds so we took it. We are so grateful that people care about us and what we are doing and that they take the time to lift us up. Your prayers for last weekend were not wasted! We are just getting one more week of school in and we will try again. 

Thanks so much for your support!

KB

Espanol solo!

Ian and I are going to have a "Spanish Only" weekend. We are about 8 weeks into our language training and we have a lot of information and a good vocabulary we just need practice...in a safe environment:) So, we have decided that this Saturday and Sunday until after church we will only speak to each other in Spanish. It has the potential to be a very quiet day! Just kidding.... 

We are going to need to use some English with the children but we are going to spring this on them too and see how they handle it when we only respond in Spanish.  I have mixed feelings about this but I think that it will be super helpful in the long run. Keep us in your thoughts over the next few days as we try to beef up our vocab and get mentally prepared. Especially lift us up over the weekend. Our ability to speak and communicate effectively is the biggest thing we need to be able to start really meeting people and building relationships.

Hasta Luego!

Hi everyone,

Nothing big to report-just checking in! Ian and I are still plugging away at Language school. I think we are making good progress, but I am looking forward to being able to actually say something. I am working with our Nanny, Barbara, on speaking and she is a great helper. She wants to practice her English so it is a good trade. We are still going to the beach a few times a week...or 3 or 4 times:) We just love it and the children LOVE playing in the sand. We hear lots of Spanish and are beginning to understand more and more.

The girls are still doing great. Bianca is going to be taking swimming lessons in July and we are joining the club where she will be taking. That will be a good opportunity to meet people and for the children to have others to play with. Today I think we are going to the Guggenheim Museum of Modern Art. It should be interesting. I will be sure to post pics on my next extry. 

Thanks for your love an support,

KB

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

Earlier this week I was walking home from the grocery with my push cart and starting laughing to myself...this life is SO different from the one I left behind. I just started thinking about all of the ways things are different here. So here are some things I thought about:

1. We grocery shop every few days instead of once or twice a month. My meat and veggies are usually prepared just a day or so from when they were purchased. This is MUCH different than the way I used to do it- buying in bulk from Sams or sales at other stores and having a small grocery store in my deep freeze in the garage.

2. We walk or take public transportation everywhere. I think we go in the car only once or twice a week and generally it is on the weekend when we want to go to the beach. I think we walk an average of 4 miles a day between going to and from school and running errands.

3.  9 pm is the average bed time for children. I have always been a huge fan of the early bedtime. My girls went to bed at 630p until they were a little over 2. Kids here don't get out of school until 5 so that makes a 630 bedtime impossible.  The average dinner time is between 8-9. My girls go to bed early compared to some and they usually turn in between 8-830. 

4.  I bring my kids to bars. Yes,  those kinds of bars! It is completely normal to bring kids of all ages to bars. They are just like the ones you are thinking of, but it is just as normal to order coffee or hot chocolate as it is to order an alcoholic beverage. It is nothing to see a mom and dad enjoying a beer or a glass of wine and the kids having a hot chocolate or a coke.

5. We live in an apartment. Our apartment is about 1300 sq. feet and we live in a building with about 16 units. We take our trash to the community dumpster and share a playground with anyone who walks by and wants to play. There are no back yards therefore, no private play areas. 

There are pros and cons to everything listed. Most days I very much like living here. It would be nice, however, to send my kids out in the backyard and not have to worry about what I look like or if they have on matching socks. BUT, we are adjusting to most things alright and I think we are wired for this more relaxed schedule and for this kind of outdoor living. 

In other news...school is going fine. Some days are good and some are bad. I am going to be having a conversation time with my nanny ,Barbara, once a week so I will get to practice what I am learning and work on not sounding like an American speaking spanish words. Ian is hoping to get a nice bike ride in over the next few days and I am encouraging him to take a surfing refresher class so he can get out there and do that as well. There is a nice size surfing community at the beach we go to each weekend- I say why just sit here an watch when you can get out there and do it!

Well, we love you all and thanks for your support!

Katie

People, People Everywhere

We have been asked by many people about what it is like to be living in Spain. While there is no simple answer to that question, I have come across a few statistics that might give you an idea of how different our current community is in comparison to the last several communities we have lived in.

The last three cities we have lived in are Youngsville, LA; Sugar Hill, GA; and New Orleans, LA. Youngsville is a suburb of Lafayette, LA, and has a population density of approximately 597.3 people/square mile. Hence, we had a nice, big yard and a neighborhood surrounded by sugar cane fields. Sugar Hill is a suburb of Atlanta and has a population density of approximately 1239/sq mi. Before Sugar Hill, we were in New Orleans, which has about 2518/sq mi.

About two months ago we moved into an apartment in Portugalete, Spain. Portugalete is very small in terms of land area. It's total area is only 1.24 square miles, but the population is 51,066. That translates to a population density of 41,202.6/sq mi. Here there is high rise apartment building after high rise apartment building. There are people everywhere. For perspective, New York City, one of the most densely populated US cities, has a density of 27,147/sq mi, significantly less than what we have here.

Being around that many people is a lot different than living in the suburbs in the US. We have always thought of ourselves as city people, but we have not ever experienced anything like this. Living in an apartment rather than in a house with yard is different as well. Not better or worse, just different.

Nothing new to report

Hi friends,

Not much new going on. We are in the  beginning of our 4th week of language school. Ian's class has  made some changes so he is doing great and it looks like I will be joining them next week once Barbara (the sweet nanny) starts coming to be with the girls. I am really struggling with my study time and I am so grateful to have her be here so I can get some real study time in. Ian is doing great and really does a fine job communicating when necessary. I, on the other hand, seem to freeze up when I need to say something. I know all of the words, they just fall out of my brain when I need to use them. I am also hoping that having Barbara here will be helpful to me and my speaking. Just having someone here that I can try to talk to everyday. She speaks English but I would much rather her speak spanish to the girls and to me as much as possible. We will see...

anyway, not to much else going on. The weather is getting better. Still a little colder than I would like. We did reach 77 on Sunday but that was only for a few hours and it seems like since then it has gotten colder again. So we remain in the 60's for the most part. This southern girl is dying! I would at least like to see 80's. Anyway, we are doing well- I may be getting into my first little bit of culture shock, but I think I am keeping things in perspective and that will help get through it. Thanks again for your support.

Love you all,

KB

Eat, sleep, drink....Spanish

Just an update about our language learning. We are doing exactly as the title implies! Our only job right now is to learn the language. We get up in the morning and Ian goes to class then when he gets home we change duties and I go for my lesson. When I get home it is time to get dinner ready and then it is girls in the shower, in the bed and we hit the books. I think we are doing pretty well. Ian has had a difficult time in his class- not with the learning, but how slowly the class moves. He is in with 2 Koreans and a girl from Finland. Ian has some Spanish already and so he is ready to move on after being reminded of some things and the rest of the class is not. My teacher moves at my pace, so as I understand things she moves forward. It is frustrating for Ian because I learn more in 2 hours a day than he does in a few days. He still knows more from previous exposure but is so ready to move on to new things. 

It has been super rainy this week, but the sun is supposed to be out this weekend. The temps are still in the high 50's to low 60's BUT we may be getting as high as 68 on Friday and Saturday. We are hoping to get to spend some time at the beach with the girls playing in the sand. Other than that not too much to report.

Thanks for your continued support- oh, and feel free to comment so we know you've been by!

With joy,

KB

PS-  I drove ALL BY MYSELF last night! Yeah for me:)

For Real!

I have been forgetting to tell everyone that the Mullett and Mohawk are the official haircuts in the Basque Country....and that isn't just for men!

What's cookin'

 I have been cooking like crazy now that I have a kitchen. The girls are eating like teenaged boys and are adapting well to Spanish food. Here are some examples of things we are enjoying..

This is heaven in a cup. It is SUPER thick and tastes like a cross between brownie batter and chocolate pudding. Let's just say it is so good and soooo dangerous!

They eat a little afternoon snack here called "tapas" or "pintxos" in basque. It is like a pre- dinner meal, or perhaps an appetizer. It is usually eaten around 6 0r 7 and then dinner sometime later. We enjoy them so much that I have been making Ian pintxos style sammies for a meal. Here is his favorite. 

The basics are a sweet, tiny, po-boy style bread with melted Havarti cheese, 2 slices of chorizo, and Jamon curdado (cured ham), and some sauted green pepper. The green pepper looks a little different than the bell pepper we are used to . It is long and doesn't have any seeds and has a stronger flavor. We really like it:)

Next, you put a fried egg on top of that, preferably over medium.

This is what you get!!

This is Ian's favorite part...when the egg yoke bursts and gets the bread all wet and yummy!

We have also made our first gumbo. With all of the pork products in this city there isn't any smoked sausage. We opted for some chorizo and had a wonderful result. 

Can't wait for you to come and visit and try some new things with us!!

Nanny Update!

So the Lord has definitely answered our prayers!! We found a girl, she is actually a young woman. Her name is Barbara and she is 26 and he dad is the pastor at one of the evangelical churches here. He mom was actually converted by American M's many years ago and she loves what we are doing here. Barbara has been living in Philly working on her English (yippie she speaks English!) and will be back here next month before starting her masters in Music Ed. next fall. We are just so excited so have home come be with the girls. I am hoping that she will be able to teach them some Spanish. I told her mom that I didn't necessarily want her to speak English to the girls, but that I was super happy that she would be able to understand them. Thanks be to God who gives immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine!

Since she can't start until mid May I am going to be working with a private tutor and then will join Ian in the classroom as soon as Barbara starts. 

Thanks for all of your prayers!!

Pictures!!

View from our apartment.

Girls sitting on the terrace in the master BR

Basque country side-absolutely breathtaking.

Typical looking street

Beach at Getxo

And the skies went dark

Sorry it has been so long since our last post. We have had a lot going on. We did not have much luck finding a furnished apartment near our school, so we have been staying in hotels. When we first arrived in Spain, we were staying at the High Tech Hotel in the city of Getxo. It looks fancy, but apparently it had the best price in Greater Bilbao for a family room, and the quarters were pretty tight. Once we got some transportation, we decided to move to a Basque house (kind of like a bed-and-breakfast) called Bisalde in Bakia for a few days so that we would have a little bit more room. Of course there was no internet there, so we were not able to post any updates.

But the days of being vagabonds is over. Yesterday we got into a great apartment in Portugalete. It has really been a relief to finally have a place of our own. Today we spent the whole day just hanging around the place, except for the hour we spent on Katie's first driving excursion on European roads (I don't know if it was more stressful for the driver or the passengers; I will let her tell about it). Bianca, Eliana, and Giada are excited to have a place to call home again. Giada even said she that she doesn't live in the "helltel" any more. I promise she came up with that on her own, and did not pick it up from her parents.

We have a few things about which you can pray. I am leaving Saturday morning for New Orleans to pick up or visas (we are approved!), but I will be there for several days, and Katie will be here with the girls by herself. We also start language school on April 20, and we have not yet secured childcare. Pray that we will get that settled soon. We will post more and maybe even some pictures later.