Saturday, December 25, 2010

Catching Up

Like I said in my previous post, my blog and I have not been getting along! This has been erased several times, so I'm praying it works!

It's been awhile, so I thought I would just catch you up on a little bit of life through pictures.

The latest addition to our Christmas traditions! I got this in the mail right before we moved to Indo and the kids have loved it! I hope it's something I can take with us to all our Christmases, since I have a feeling we won't be "home" (where ever that is!) for all of them. I usually tried to read a scripture every day to them. I hope to add more creative things as the years go on like a craft or special treat. I thought about getting a more "grown up" looking one, but I think the kids will enjoy this even when they are older.

I brought another touch of home, our stockings. Reece colored a wooden nativity scene on the left and the one on the right is from my Mom. Reece felt the need to "put them to bed" every evening, so the colored ones hide behind the stable and the wooden ones got put in the stable with the doors shut.

Daniel, Joe and the bat-removal tool. I really don't like to think much about that evening, so if you want the whole story, you can check out my husband's blog.



First day of school picture! Both the kids had a great time! Joe didn't even cry when we dropped him off, and Reece says she already has a best friend there named Normie. There are about 20 kids there with 3 teachers. It is about half Indoneisan kids and half westerners. They can't wait to go back, but they don't start for another 2 weeks!

Joe and his new big boy bed. He is loving it, but his Daddy and I are not loving trying to make him stay in it every night!

Another first day of school picture. And, yes, Joe had cowie the whole time at school! What will we do with that cow?!


This is our teeny-tiny Christmas tree! They actually have bigger, nicer ones here in Salatiga, but we chose to buy a tiny one because we have a nice one in our crate. It did spend most of it's life tipped over on the ground. We liked our little tree, but while we were out of town for a little 2 night trip, someone came in our house and put up a nice, big tree complete with lights and ornaments! So, now we have two treess! Thanks secret Christmas tree givers!

Reece is having a blast in our little blow up pool! Since it is rainy season, you really have to get going early if you want to play outside or if you want your clothes to dry for the day! But, we got in a good time of splashing this morning. Too bad it ended with Reece being overcome with itching! I really didn't see anything bite her (and I'm pretty sure she would have screamed about that!) but after a shower, dose of benadryl and a nap, she was okay.

The clouds are rolling in over our house fast!

More splashing.

Joe really enjoys wearing his helmet all the time. We didn't even have a scooter at this point, but he still insisted on wearing it all the time! He likes to wear all of our helmets now, and he is obsessed with riding the scooter! He insists on sitting in the front and throws a fit when it's Reece's turn in the front. I really need to get a picture of all of us on the scooter. It must look rather silly!


Reece enjoys wearing her helment, too. Just not quite as much as Joe! :-)
That's all for now! I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas!

Friday, December 24, 2010

Merry Christmas!!

Wishing you a wonderful Christmas as you think about the birth of Jesus! He has changed the world!!
Much Love from Indonesia, Daniel, Becky, Reece and Joe!
Photo Credit: Our wonderful, awesome, kind, generous, talented photographer friend Jonathan Chang!!
He took so many wonderful pictures of our family right before we left. I wish I could share them all with you, but my blog and I are not getting along right now, so I will have to try to upload them again later.

Sunday, December 5, 2010

Want to send us a package??

Lots of our friends and family have asked us about sending a package. I wanted to give the details of the "do's and dont's" and then also list some suggestions of what to send. I've talked to several friends here in Salitiga, and these are some of the things they have suggested.


Our Address:
Daniel Perez
JL. Arjuna # 45B Rt. 03/05
Jawa Tengah
Salatiga, 50701
Indonesia

-From what I understand, the best option is to send a package through USPS flat rate boxes.
Here are the prices I found on-line
Small Box-$13.45 and 4 pound limit
Regular Box-$43.45 and 20 pound limit
Large Box-$55.95 and 20 pound limit

-When packing the box, please take everything out of the packaging (include instructions if needed) You can place things in ziplock baggies (freezer quality is best). This is for two reasons. One, I can re-use the ziplock baggies! :) And, two, this will cause the value to go down on the item.

-If the total value of everything in the box is over $50, then we will have to pay taxes on it, but I don't think it really adds up to that much, unless it is something really expensive, like electronics.

-You will have to list everything in the box and list the price. Since the items are "used" (out of the packaging), you can put garage sale prices. I think the reason they do this is because they don't want you re-selling the items over here in Indonesia, but don't worry, we won't do that :) But, I'm not saying you should lie, either.

-I hear the flat rate boxes only take 10 business days to get here, which I thought was pretty amazing!

-Oh, and if you are going to send more than one box, please make sure they are going to arrive a few days apart. If we get two packages in one day, then we have to add up the total value of ALL the boxes and then pay taxes on that.

Here are some things you might think of sending. Since we have only been here a few days, these are mostly things that other people told me they like to receive, so I may change it up a bit later:

Crystal light (or equivalent off-brand … strawberry lemonade or raspberry lemonade are faves)
Instant oatmeal packets (lower sugar preferred)
Zip lock bags (particularly freezer brand)
Candy: a few faves are peanut/regular M&M's, skittles, Snickers, Nerds
Sidewalk chalk
Water balloons
Corn meal (for sprinkling around the house to kill ants and/or making corn bread … Jiffy corn bread mix would work too)
Jerky or summer sausage (especially hard to get pork here and beef is sometimes avail but expensive)
Velveeta or Parmesan cheese (or any kind of cheese that doesn't need to be refrigerated)
Hair detangler-kids brand
Flushable wipes
TV series on DVD
Paper plates
Fall-themed items to give a taste of home
Childrens' Books
marshmallows
Salsa mix
Clorox wipes
Children's acidophilus
Mouthwash (fluoride)
Mac & cheese (you can sometimes find here)
Wax paper (i hear you can sometimes get at an import store here)
Magic cookie bar stuff
Canned pumpkin
Salt & pepper shakers (just the little cheap ones that are sort of 'disposable' and already have salt & pepper in them)
Peanut butter (they also have that here, but it is expensive for a good brand and only comes in small jars)
books & movies
Mayo (they have it here, but it tastes kinda bad)
Frosting
Microwave popcorn
Glow sticks
Canned tuna (solid white albacore in water preferred, any brand)
Scented candles
Crunchy taco shells
Campbell's cream soups for cooking
Kindergarten worksheets/work books for Reece
Magazines
Garlic powder and/or garlic salt
Small toys for kids
dried fruit (crasins) and nuts (I'm not sure how available these are here, yet, but I thought I would add this one in anyway.)

I feel a little silly having a blog post about this! We certainly do not expect you to send us a package, it's just that so many people have asked, I thought this might be a better way of getting the information out there. There is actually quite a lot available here (more than I thought!) so don't feel like you need to send something. Only if you want :)

And, thanks in advance! Terima Kasih!

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Check this out!

My husband has a blog!! He's a lot funnier than me, so you would be missing out if you didn't visit:
New post coming from me tonight, hopefully :-)
Enjoy!

A Glimpse into the lives of a family on a journey to serve God through aviation in Indonesia!