Update

Finally. I finally have an internet connection at my house. I have had a random floating wireless connection since I've been here, but I could never count on getting online. I also never knew how long the connection would last. Now we are set up with our own wireless so the possibilities for blogging are endless. Now my problem is time. Well time and tiredness. We have been pretty busy going and doing since our wireless connection was established on Wednesday night. I have had very little time to actually sit down and blog. Then when I did have time I was so unbelievably exhausted that the thought of looking at words on a screen made my eyes cross. Now. Now I have just awakened from a 2 hour nap. I feel rested. I am blogging.

Wow. Can I just say that living in America is more exhausting than I thought it would be? I know that isn't completely true. It just happens to be a true statement of these past three weeks. I have been to Walmart more times than I care to count. I have spent more money than I care to know about on things like a mop and bucket, a printer, measuring cups and spoons, and telephones. And that is just a sampling of the lists and lists and lists I've brought to Walmart with me. All of those things were so much cheaper than they would have been in Turkey, but they still add up.

Another thing that has worn me out is school. I'm not in school, but I almost feel like I am. Erica and Will have to get on the bus at 6:50am. They get on 2 different buses since they are going to 2 different schools. I am used to getting up about 7 so getting up an hour earlier to make sure they've had breakfast and have lunch has been an adjustment. I am not a morning person or a night person per say. I just need some sleep to function. I prefer to stay up late, but I have barely been able to keep my eyes open past 9pm the past few weeks. I hate that!

Anna Grace and Jacob don't leave for school until 8:25. I must admit it is nice to get the two older kids out the door before having to wake up the younger two, but by the time they leave on the bus I've been up for 2 1/2 hours already. I want a nap by that point! I did manage to take a nap one day last week, and boy did it feel good!

Blogging about naps...twice in one post already. Um...let's move on.

The kids are doing a pretty good job of adjusting. They have had some culture shock going to school here which was expected some. I was surprised at how different things were from what I remember. Anna Grace seems to be having the hardest time. She doesn't do well with change so I expected that. There have been many tears and exclamations of "I hate this school" over the course of the last two weeks. On Tuesday of her first week of school I got a call from the counselor who was trying to calm Anna Grace down. Evidently the math is different than what she was used to in Turkey. Something about a 4 step process. I had no idea what she was talking about, but I talked Anna Grace into going back to class. The next morning she cried about going to school. I managed to get her ready and out to the bus stop. As soon as she saw the bus coming down the street she came and hugged me and said she wasn't going. She was adamant. She started to try to run for the house, but I managed to grab her and hold her there. I told her she had to go to school. I told her that everyone understood that she didn't know how to do the math. The counselor said that the teacher was going to sit down with her and show her how to do it. The bus pulled up and all the kids except Anna Grace got on it. She wouldn't let go of me. I knew that if I gave in and took her to school it would be a fight every morning. The bus driver was telling her that she could sit in the front. Finally at my wits end I started to cry. Through my tears I told her she had to go to school. She looked up at me, saw the tears, and turned and got on the bus. Poor girl. Made me weepy all day. At lunch her math teacher called to welcome us to the school. She said that Anna Grace mentioned that she made me cry that morning at the bus stop. Yes. Yes she did. Reverse psychology. It works...even when you don't mean to do it.

We still have almost all of our Christmas shopping to do. The adults were taken care of before we left Turkey, but the 8 nieces and nephews as well as our own children might like it if we gave them a present. I have seen wish lists from some of them which should make the job of shopping easier. The problem is that after all the necessary shopping to set up house I haven't really wanted to Christmas shop. I am not a big fan of shopping in general. Unless it is for shoes...for myself...which hasn't happened at all since I've been here. It's been 19 days and I haven't purchased a pair of shoes yet. I haven't even looked at shoes! I did buy 2 pairs of slippers, but that doesn't count! What is the world coming to?

Oh. Our Vonage phone is now working as well. Same number as before. If you don't have it and want it email me. It will be our main phone line here.