Keeping Christmas - Winter Walk

I saw the coolest thing but didn't capture it on film. A flock of geese came barreling over this frozen river at hi speed. As they raced around the bed into a tunnel I felt as if I were watching NASCAR, nature style!

Pretty Art Nouveau Embassy building get even prettier in the snow.

Will and I tried making a snowman but the snow was too powdery and wouldn't stick, so we took pictures of ourselves next to snowmen statues around town and counted that on our things-to-do list as mission accomplished!

Ceramic tree in front of theater.

 

 

 

Keeping Christmas - Dec. 21 Puzzled

I love how God can choose to speak to us through everyday normal things.

This afternoon we finished our 1000 piece puzzle, only to discover that three of the pieces disintegrated into the mist before we finished it the first time. I think they didn't make the move from our first room to the second even though I was careful to crawl around on the floor and look under the radiator.

This is what most see.

This is what I see.

 

Perhaps because it is in my DNA to FINISH well, I find this more annoying than it actually should be. We completed all that we could do...we finished the 997 pieces that we had.

99.7 % is an A+

And yet the holes and unfinished-ness bother me.

 

I can't even blame it on anyone. My parents were very encouraging of everything I did. I never felt pressure from them to do better or be more. I think I just came that way, and Jesus is teaching me how to deal with the holes in my expectations, circumstances, and performances. The funny thing (or genetic joke) is that I seem to have five kids and a husband who think this way too. I hope I can learn the lesson of centered contentment that Paul wrote about in Philippians soon, so that I can help my loved ones figure this out as well.

I find myself in brain-whirring overdrive when it is time to sleep. It's mostly a jet-lag time-zone thing, and staying up too late reading books on vacation, but now that I have finished all my books, I lay down to sleep and then get up, turn on the lights, and start making lists. Lists of details for Christmas, for the birthdays, for the new year, for the new school year, for the groceries we've run out of, for my exercise class that has been on the back burner since summer of 2011.

I am wondering if I will feel at rest when this leg of the journey is finished or if I will start chomping at the bit for the next thing. (Please, God. May it be rest and not restlessness.) For those of you who pray for us, this is my next request. Quietly regrouping in January.

Jesus, You are the Alpha and the Omega.

The beginning and the end.

He who began a good work (in our family) will be faithful to COMPLETE it.

Philippians 1:6

Perhaps You hold those missing pieces in your pocket so that I learn to delight in You, and not in pridefully finishing the tasks and challenges You allow us. You are the Finisher and I will trust You.

 

Keeping Christmas - Dec. 21 Christmas Market Old Riga

I found these woven ornaments at the market and will try to make paper ones with the kids one day.

I know that you can get these at craft fairs in Asheville, but I decided to get us each a monogrammed one. The Latvian alphabet doesn't have a W so we chose a V as in his diminutive birth name, Vilnie.

 

I could see how being near this guy could keep baby Jesus warm.

The Holiday Market smelled really good with wood fires, pigs on spits, and mulled drinks in the air.

No American looking Santas to be found although there was a skinny guy with a red and white hat and a shoulder-length red cape.

Demi-tasse...very small, very rich... Mmmm.

This one I find disturbing. Topless Christmas Lady Bunny?

This scene was decorative, but I am adding horse-drawn sleigh ride to my bucket list. Beautiful!

We found our Davis family lock on the bridge in the park where A locked it on our (his) second adoption trip in October on our 13th anniversary and Natalia's birthday.

 

The lights in the trees in a nearby park run down "icicles" to give the illusion of it snowing or being in a meteor shower. Very pretty.

At home, Andy, Laurel and Brennan celebrated Mary Jayne's seventh birthday with a trip to the movies and the rollerskating rink. I hate that we will have been apart for Natalia's, Mary Jayne's, and Will's birthdays (and our anniversary) this year, but I am very thankful that this chapter of our family history is almost complete. See you home midnight on the 23rd baby girl.

Love,

Mama

 

Soap Operas and Language Lessons

Things that crack me up. Ugen Scraggs. Or something that sounds like that. Translated as "Fire something or other"

Tonight I let our kids plan our next day as we are done with official business. Their perfect day revolves around seeing the next episode of a nighttime Latvian soap-opera (that kind of reminds me of our parents watching Dallas in the 80s). They scrambled to get their baths, make their hot tea (they came that way... I didn't even have to train them!), and finish their schoolwork so that they could plop down and see what happens next. "He took the money! He's the bad guy that shot him in the leg!" "No, he's not a bad guy." A man in a wheelchair needs 100 million dollars ... No $100,000 for an operation. Heated discussion breaks out as my two newest children discuss the drama that they will NEVER FOLLOW once we get back home to the US. But here, now on winter break, it's just plain funny to watch how serious they are about their tv. Poor kids. It must be something of a shock to get a school-teacher sort for a Mom.

Tonight, as Will worked to commit his new alphabet to memory, I had Natalia try and help me pronounce the Latvian alphabet. They have a rolled R like in Spanish. So, yesterday, when our taxi driver was trying to explain his untimeliness, he said " CRRRRRRRRRazy TRRRRRaffic ". That reminded me of when we first met Will at the airport and he said AIRRRRRRRplane! That sound has disappeared from his every day speech and he is quickly adapting to English...except that he still prefers the non standard version of PO-lice. Ha! Ha!

The also have an ñ sound so maybe they'll take up Spanish more naturally in high school.

(Note to novice iPad useless such as myself: When you turn on the international keyboards you get all sorts of CRRRRay autocorrections!!! Proofread before posting!)

Will is now making a trap for the bad guys on Ugen Scraggs using piles of dirty laundry. That is a pretty hefty punishment for bad guys as something is definitely rotten in the state of Denmark...make that our Latvian hotel room. Perhaps too much wearing of the same layers?

I will actually look forward to doing the laundry next week. Never thought I'd say that.

Cries of "What? It's not supposed to be over!!!" are coming from the next room. They must have season cliff-hangers here too. Smiles.

 

Keeping Christmas- Dec. 20pm Dash to the Embassy

Our adoption decrees!

Dual citizens until age 18

 

The winter has taken it's toll on the Riga taxi system. Our driver was 30 minutes late and not excited when I asked him to please wait ten minutes so that he could take us back home from the Emabssy since it was about to close. Apparently someone was also waiting in a restaurant for him. Hmm, no sympathy for the diners on my part. I shot up some prayers and imagined I had the "charm-speaking" powers of Aphrodite (been up too late reading stories about Greek myths lately) and he decided not to leave us. Although the traffic was bumper to bumper with (?) holiday shoppers, he managed to get us into the Embassy before closing time. He muttered something that I am fairly certain was obscenities on the phone the whole way, but seemed to be fairly jolly once we made it. We ran up to the compound doors with everything already out of our pockets and turned off, trying to save a few minutes in security.

We were told yesterday by our lawyer that the Visa office had forgotten to have us sign something, but when we got to the window the woman assured us that our packet was fine, and that it was several other families that were missing things. I sure hope she was right as I don't plan to make any more return trips. Three is enough!

The ride back gave us some neat opportunities to see the city at night. We don't venture far from our hotel in the winter winds, but there are really pretty lighted trees and streets that we got to see by warm cozy taxi. He told us that it is supposed to be -20C next week and that the river (where the cruise ships come in) is frozen over a meter thick. Wow! That's why we love hanging out inside the cafes getting our wifi groove on to techno beats.

Time to celebrate! In another groovy coffeehouse that is much like Starbucks.

As you can see, I quickly lost the desire to be fashionable and wear just about everything that I brought on our walks. Three pairs of socks, ski pants, cuddle duds, two sweaters and a long coat!

I did see our attorney wearing a cool pair of snow boots that had heels, but the heels were on the inside and the bottom of the boot was flat for better traction. People who live here do the winter look much more fashionably!

I'm loving these folk-straw ornaments and hope to find some as we explore around tomorrow.

 

Keeping Christmas - Dec. 20 Winter Wonderland

Here are a pictures of my not-so-great parent involvement. Will and Natalia played outside in the hotel courtyard while I watched from the glass lobby in the warmth of the orchids. They were content. I was content watching and taking pictures, although a part of me wished I was more like one of those let's-all-play-together-because-you-want-to kind-of moms. Did I mention that it's cold here????

I did teach them the put-your-brother-under-a-tree-and-then-shake-the-snow-down-on-his-head-trick that Andy taught Brennan. And I did take Will for a walk in the park to get his energy out and give our hotel some peace later in the day. Natalia elected to stay home and watch "her favorite show".,

 

 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch....

Brennan helped pass out the Marwin Christmas Turkeys

More Dining Out for everyone... East and west....north and south

 

Hotel yoga

Hotel embarrassment - We daily inactivate our key cards by placing them in my purse too close to my phone. Each morning I go downstairs to reception and apologize. The don't seem to mind, but if I were them I would be thinking, don't Americans learn anything from repeated mistakes?

I have now been in the hotel lobby long enough to recognize the playlists.

800 years of history

I have always been drawn to Old World things. When we built our house I picked shutters and windowboxes like they have here and a rounded door. As I walk along Riga streets, I smile, because it's like two more pieces of the Old World have found us...except they like electronics every time wifi is available!

 

Scandinavian designs are common here as Latvian neighbors.