Success

My maiden solo voyage was a success. I drove home without incident on Friday...well, that's if you don't count when the bus almost ran into us when he cut into our space (similar to a lane in Canada but less distinct). I also only got honked at once but if there is one certainty in driving here it is that you will be honked at, at least once during an outing in the car.

Because I was so encouraged by our Friday success, I packed the kids into the car again to drive to church. The trip to church was great, no problems, and I felt in rather high spirits at my new found freedom. The trip home was also great (except for being honked at twice, drivers here are sooooo impatient) until Thomas uttered the words no parent of a recently potty trained child wants to hear while stuck in traffic 15 minutes from home..."I'm pooping." Yikes!!!!!!!! It was a stressful 15 minutes but....he is a legend (as my Australian friend likes to say) and he held it until we got home. Wonderful!!

Thanks for all your prayers and well wishes for our safety at home and driving while Derek has been away.

Maiden Solo Voyage

I am preparing for my maiden solo voyage in the car. This Friday (the 25th) Derek is going out to a village about 4 hours away with a friend. I will have to drive me and the kids home from school. I have driven a quite a few times with Derek in the car but this will be my first time solo.

I am a bit nervous because driving here only faintly resembles driving in Canada. We have roads and cars here but that seems to be where the similarities end. There are no set lanes here everyone just drives somewhere between the two curbs, it is not at all unusual to see 4 or 5 rows of cars on a road with 2 or 3 lanes marked. The right of way seems to be given to the car whose front bumper is the farthest forward. I could go on and on about the "creative" rules of the road here but the most unique is a traffic circle about 15 minutes from our house. The right of way is determined by the route the president of the country would take. Entering the circle you have the right of way coming from the street his house is on and exiting you have the right of way on the street where the government offices are located. (Vice versa on his trip home from the office.) It is really quite confusing unless you ask yourself "What would the president do?". I will try to post a picture of the traffic sign before that intersection.

A Wonderful Visit With Grandpa and Grandma Watt

It was wonderful to have a visit from my parents. They were able to get a 30-day visitor visa (from the middle of March until today). We had great family time and were able to tour around the city and surrounding area in our new car. We also appreciated all the Canadian things they were able to bring including books and movies, fitted bed sheets, new clothes, Easter eggs, Oreo cookies, Mini-Wheats, and much more. Thank-you to everyone who sent gifts and helped to assemble the huge wish list we sent home.

Transcona Kids

The kids received hand-made Transcona shirts from great friends back home. (For those who don't know, Transcona is the name of the community we lived in, in Winnipeg.) The kids were so excited to have a bit of home that they could show off to their friends here.

A Trip to the Mountains

On Saturday, our good friend Meiram offered to take us up to the mountains to Shimbyluk, the popular ski resort just south of the city. But when we got about half way up, we had to stop at a place called Medeo because the army was shelling the side of the mountain further up to prevent avalanches. So we stopped at Medeo (where there is a huge outdoor ice rink) and Meiram took a picture of the family.

Meiram was upset that he wasn't able to take us up all the way, so he drove us all the way to another place in the mountains where people go camping in the summer. There were also three bear statues up there that the kids really liked. Kate immediately gave them names (as is her custom). But the mountains are beautiful and the sky was a brilliant blue that day. We will have to try again soon!

Thomas Is Three

Thomas turned three on March 19th. Grandpa and Grandma Watt were here from Canada to help celebrate. He had lots of fun eating chocolate cake and opening presents.

He is growing up so fast. Just in the last week he has given up his soother (I know...it should have happened a long time ago) and has replaced me with I (as in no more "me want a candy", now he says "I want a candy".) Now we just need to perfect potty training. We could use some prayer on that front!

Our New Car!

Thanks to the generous support of people back home in Canada, we were able to purchase a new car! We contacted a friend of a friend who buys cars for foreigners as part of his job and, after we had given him a list of our 'needs' and 'wants', he purchased a car that had just been brought in from Europe. It is a 1995 Volkswagen Golf. It has a lot of kilometers on it but it is in really good shape. The extra cargo space in a station wagon has been really handy already.

And it sure has made a difference in our daily lives! It is so nice to be able leave a half-an-hour before we need to be somewhere, instead of over an hour. And it has also been great to be able to give rides to our many friends that do not have vehicles. I'm still getting used to the flow of traffic, but so far things have gone very smoothly. And now that the roads are clear and dry, I'm feeling quite comfortable. Thanks again!