Busy Week

We have had a busy week and a half with Crow here. The boys have been having a great time with Crow or as Leo calls her "Tow". Crow has been teaching Aidan how to play Lego Indiana Jones or wait, maybe Aidan has been teaching Crow. They have been playing Candy Land, cards, dominoes, Legos, ball, reading books and they worked outside raking leaves. Most importantly, we had a super great Thanksgiving dinner. I forgot how much I love a really good turkey dinner.

On Friday, we went to the Aquarium which was great fun! When we first moved to the DC area, Jason and I were never really impressed with the B'more aquarium. We thought it was way overpriced and overrated. But we have changed our mind. They have added a number of new exhibits including a jellyfish exhibit, Dolphin show and Australian exhibit and it is fun and impressive. Crow even liked it.

Crow has done some serious Christmas shopping which has been great for me as well because I have gotten a lot of my Christmas done as well! I still need to make a list but I don't think I have much left to buy. How great is that?!

Today we ate a delicious lunch at Mario's (don't be jealous Pa and Sarah!). Crow and I split a "Lefty's special" and the boys had pizza. For dinner, Crow made us chili which we now have frozen for dinners later in the year. And today we put up a lot of Christmas decorations. We put up just about everything but the Christmas tree. It was great! Crow, Leo and I put the decorations up outside and Leo had a great time. He is really getting in the Christmas spirit and excited. Leo made us go to the other side of the street and admire our handy work!

Tonight we are going to play Wii. I'm going to show Crow how tight rope walking is really done!

Tomorrow is a very sad day in the Holma Family household. Crow is leaving tomorrow in the evening. We will all be so sad but will be awaiting her return in April (& Grandma Jackie!)

Happy Thanksgiving

What were thankful for:
Amy: I am thankful for the good health of my family and friends
Jason: I am thankful for two great kids
Crow: I am thankful for being here with the Amy, Jason, Aidan and Leo
Aidan: I am thankful for me and Wii
Leo: I am thankful for thanksgiving so we can put up our Christmas tree and the plane game

Happy Thanksgiving!

Bugs and Bats

So I am ready to go back to Jakarta to the comforts of the Grand Hyatt. I am constantly tired, dirty, sweaty, sun burned, puzzled by the toilet situation, sick of bugs and thirsty. Yesterday was the day to end all of days we were constantly on the go talking to people here and there through an interpreter. It was exhausting. We ended our day with dinner at a restaurant on the sea which would ordinarily be beautiful and a lovely experience but instead the restaurant was covered in stink bugs.

They were miniature versions of the stink bugs we have in DC but there were thousands of them. They were landing on our clothes, in our hair, smacking in our face, and landing in our food and on our table. It just got exhausting. At that point I was done with Aceh and ready to leave. As wonderful as the lime and pineapple juice was, and the fresh shrimp and fish and of course the company, the dinner was not pleasant because of the contant bug attack. They are harmless bugs but incredibly annoying. I don't do bugs well.

Alternatively, yesterday I had a fruit called rambutan (check it out Aidan and Leo it has a fun outter cover) which was delicious though the shells were a bit covered with ants which was annoying. Also I had my first fresh coconut, cut directly from a tree and opened with a machete. It was good, surprisingly tart, and it seemed like it had a bubble like a weak seltzer. I also had this delicious and amazing honey bread which melted in my mouth.

Also Aidan and Leo I saw a Fruit Bat today, actually I saw lots of them flying in the sky. They are huge and look to be the size of a crow. I took a picture but in the picture they look only like a speck. There must have been 10 of them flying around. I couldn't believe I saw it. Remember Aidan when we were looking in your bat book and we saw the fruit bat and I made you quickly turn the page because it was so ugly and big? That was it!!!

Today we have more meetings, visit one more school, and then we head to the airport to go back to jakarta.

I had some pictures but I am down in the breakfast area and they are up in my room. I will share them with you soon. It's too hot already at 7am to want to go back up to my room.

Aidan and Leo: your last surprise before I get home is somewhere in the house. I will give you one hint: it is upstairs in mommy and daddy's room. You can search all over our room to find it! I hope you love it and I can't wait to see you in a few days.

I'm missing you so much. Love you all day! Love you to the fartherest star in the sky and back.

Mommy

Banda Ache

A view from the top of a barge that landed about 2 miles aways from the water.

A beautiful Mosque in the center of the city.

I don't have a lot of time because my computer is running out of power but just wanted to let everyone know that I am now in Banda Aceh. We made it safely yesterday (it's a 2.5 hour flight from Jakarta), went to our hotel, went shopping a bit, and then had meetings all afternoon. After work some one from the Save the Children Office took us around to see some of the wreckage and impact from the Tsunami that occured the day after Christmas in 2004. There are no words to decribe what we see here today. It is unbelievable the impact the Tsunami had here (it was the closest place to the epicenter) and yet people from here speak about how amazed they were with all of the help that came to this area after the Tsunami. It's hard to imagine the toll that it has taken on people mentally. The person taking us around said that it was still hard to see it all.

The area is beautiful. There are big mountains, some 10,000-12,000 feet, right on the water, and with lots of palm trees. It is not covered in cheap tourist stores like Bali and it is has a busy, vibrant downtown.

A veiw of homes that were destroyed by the Tsunami that were never

claimed or never rebuilt.

A large ship that landed on tops of homes. The Mayor bought this land and is turning it into a memorial or museum.

The other half of the ship on top of a home.

We leave here tomorrow to return to Jakarta. It feels like we have been here for months rather than a week and a half. I am definately ready to go home.

Love you all!