Noah is the cutest guy around. Big blue eyes, LONG eyelashes, the blondest hair ever with little curls in the back now…he’s constantly mistaken for a girl and I don’t mind a bit. He’s just that pretty. He’s recently learned to clap his hands and does so constantly. Noah is also the slowest Duer boy yet, showing very little progress in walking. Oh, he can walk…about once a day he’ll walk clear across the room to either me or Andy. But after that, he’s done and goes back to crawling the rest of the day. He loves to play ball and loves to eat any kind of meat on the bone or on a stick. He also loves cheese and ramen noodles. Noah weighs 22 lbs, which is exactly what Elijah weighed at 1 year – this is right at the 75th percentile, though the local people are always telling me he’s too thin.

For Noah’s big day, Andy blew up about 50 huge balloons and put them in the living room. Noah had a blast plowing through them most of the day. I made chocolate cake and strawberry ice cream pie, which was enjoyed by everyone. I don’t have any pictures of the cake part of the festivities because we recorded it using my new iPod. We’re trying to figure out how to upload it on the blog, so be patient with that. In the meantime, here are some pics of our cutie patootie:

wearing his Mr. One-derful hat from Grandma

wearing his birthday stocking hat and shirt from Jamie

trying to catch a balloon with one of our local friends

Happy Birthday Noahbelle! We can hardly wait for all that’s in store for the next year!

slicing the pork

a pile of chickens

five huge woks cooking our lunch

our table - posted behind on the red paper was each person's job assignment for the day

the lunch crowd

After we finished eating, we took the boys out for a mountain hike. The weather here has been beautiful – warm temps and bright blue skies. Little boys love to play and explore, and it was the perfect day to get out in the village and spend some time together while we waited for Esther’s parents to finish entertaining.  Andy took us up a mountain that he had explored previously, and the boys had a blast.

the amazing view from the top

riding a neighbor's water buffalo

Nate stops to give me a quick smile

We hiked for an hour or so and then returned to visit with our friends. We brought Esther a huge purple balloon from our city, and she loved it. Happy Birthday Esther!

(Preface: I enjoy going to the village. The complications arise when we have three little ones in tow and are often not aware of what we’re in for or how long we’ll be there. The Father is growing me in this area…recall that flexibility is not my strong suit.. I struggle to be out of our routine and find myself quickly resorting to “survival mode” as we spend long periods of time in the village.)

To start with, we had no idea how far away the village was or how many other people would be joining us. Louie had invited many of his friends, most of whom also live in our city. Unbeknownst to us, Louie had told his friends that we’d give them a ride. We decided to depart at 10:30 am, thinking we’d get there in time for a late lunch and be able to visit in the village that afternoon and return home about dark. These plans were not to be. As with most things around here, when we say yes to something, we don’t necessarily have full knowledge of what we’ve said yes to.

About 11:00 am we were pulling out of the parking lot when Louie told us his cousin was coming and wanted to ride with us. A young gal arrived a few minutes later, and we all scooted together on the back seat of the van to make room. A few miles down the road, Louie asked Andy to pull into a nearby bus station because two other friends had just arrived and they wanted to ride with us as well. So, our little van was now carrying 9 people instead of the original six. Nate and Elijah had to share a seat, and Noah just got passed around the whole time because there was no room to buckle in his car seat. Here I am, trying my best to just go with the flow.

At last, we were on our way…an hour passed and we all chatted in the car and talked about all that was going on in the countryside. We got stuck in traffic for a good 20 minutes because of the huge crowd that had gathered in the street to watch bull-fighting in one village. Very interesting for little boys to see. One o’clock came and went and we were still not to Louie’s parents’ house. I get car sick pretty easily, and it’s worse when my stomach is empty, so I asked if anyone else was hungry. Since we were driving along very bumpy and curvy roads, the two other gals in the car both groaned saying they were incredibly car sick, too, and wanted something to eat. Louie called home to ask his parents if the pig was ready to be eaten yet, and they said it would still be a while, so we decided to stop at the next town we saw for a late lunch.

A few minutes later I was sitting in a small restaurant with Noah and our friends while Andy searched for a bathroom and Elijah and Nate played outside. The food finally arrived and we were all starving. I called Nate and Elijah into the restaurant and they both came running to get some food. Unfortunately, Nate stepped in a puddle up to his knees and started screaming at me to come help him. Thankfully, Andy showed up and I was able to pass Noah off to a restaurant worker while I tended to Nate. It turns out, he didn’t step in a puddle, but rather raw sewage – all the way up to his waist. Keep in mind that it was freezing cold and raining this day, so to take his clothes off would not be kindest thing I could do. Thankfully, we were able to take his shoes and socks off as well as his outer pants layer and he ate lunch wearing only his long johns from the waist down. As soon as we finished eating, we found a store nearby and bought the first pair of pants, socks, and shoes we could find. Nate put them on, and we were off again to our friend’s house.

About half an hour later, we found ourselves deep in the woods on a winding, narrow trail. Our friend assured us that we were getting closer. After two and a half hours in the car, we were ready to get out and walk around. We made it to the house and met our friend’s parents, who were much too busy dealing with the freshly slaughtered pig to talk with us too much. We decided to go on a walk in the woods and let the boys burn off some energy. We had a great time on the farming trails, and I was thankful for the quiet of the woods after being jammed up in the van for so long.

our friend's home

the beautiful countryside

About 6 pm, the food was finally served. (Did I mention our friend had invited us for lunch?) I wish I could have taken a picture of the whole feast, but my camera battery died just after our walk in the woods. There were about twenty of us gathered around two tables, and there were no fewer than 15 different dishes to choose from. Pig intestines, pig blood, pig fat, and all manner of other pig parts were stir fried in the wok and put before us. We stuck to the usual good stuff: pumpkin soup, stir-fried peanuts, pork and onions, and a bowl of leafy greens fresh from the garden. It was delicious!

doesn't get any fresher than this

Noah being held by our friend's cousin

By the time we finished eating, it was getting dark and we were eager to get on the road so Andy could see out of the woods. We all piled into the van and off we went, arriving home about 9:30 that night. We threw the boys in the tub and then tucked them in, only to hear Elijah scream “Nate’s throwing up!” Andy and I ran to see what was happening, and sure enough, Nate had thrown up all over his bed. We got him out, cleaned him up, put new sheets on the bed and tucked him in again. Three hours later, we were doing the same thing for the 4th time…and I was so utterly exhausted that I decided to throw Nate in our bed with Andy and I collapsed on the bottom bunk in the boys’ room. At 3:16 am we finally drifted off to sleep…our village adventure was over and I did survive.

A certain sign of grace is this: from a broken earth flowers come up, pushing through the dirt…

-David Crowder Band, Wholly Yours

Now, before you start thinking that we are fair weather friends, I can say with all certainty that we loved the Broncos long before Tim Tebow. Well…, actually, Andy loved the Broncos before T.T., and the rest of us followed suit. The proof is that this sweatsuit Noah is wearing was actually bought about seven years ago when I was pregnant with Elijah and we’d just found out we were having a boy. In all his excitement, Andy started buying baby clothes for all his favorite teams. Our three boys have all worn this suit, but this year it’s a little more exciting as the Broncos are causing quite a stir in the sports world.

Andy was born right outside ofDenverand grew up loving and cheering for the Broncos, who were actually a very good team in the early and middle 1980’s. Andy has been a faithful Broncos fan for all these years, and when we got married I simply went from loving Clemson orange and blue to loving Bronco orange and blue – and since Clemson is college and the Broncos are pro, I can cheer for both without having to choose which one is better.

Now, as far as Tim Tebow goes, we also love him. From his time at University of Florida (which, by the way, is a great school – great academic programs, great sports programs, and a very low price – we’re highly recommending it to our boys already), we have loved to root for this homeschooled MK who is not afraid to say he loves Jesus. What’s not to love? This past summer Andy and I both read his autobiography, which only made us love him and his family more. When we found out he’d soon be wearing Bronco’s orange, it was like a marriage made in heaven – two things we already loved now together as one.

It is with that spirit that we say “Go Broncos!”

The Pro: aka Elijah

Biking history: he learned to ride without training wheels while we were in theUSin 2009 at four years old. At the time, we thought he was a prodigy. In the two and a half years since we’ve been back, he has not ridden at all.

Current status: after one lap with Andy running beside him, Elijah was zipping up and down ramps and chasing after the other kids on the pavement. After an hour and a half of non-stop riding, we made him get off and eat a sandwich for lunch.

The Newbie: aka Nate

Biking history: none

Current Status: the seat on his bike is an inch or so too tall for him, so we need to make some adjustments. However, even with the handicap, Nate loved pedaling after Elijah and did not give up easily. Next time, Nate, you’ll get him!

The Baby: aka Noah

Biking history: loves to ride on Momma’s back when she drives her scooter around town

Current Status: Noah is focusing more on going by foot these days rather than bike. He’s a super fast crawler and took his first steps a few days ago, but has shown no consistency or desire to continue in the upward position.

The Christmas Cactus – I grew up seeing these in blazing fiery bloom at my grandfather’s house. I dream of having one so big and bright fuschia…but for now I am excited to have one single bloom to appreciate.

Tulips – I bought these bulbs a few weeks ago at our local flower market. The seller gave me some simple instructions and I thought I might be able to hack it. Three weeks later, they are about to bloom! I am so excited…can’t wait to see what color they are!

Orchids – some neighbors of ours have tons of these beautiful asian orchids on their porch. Remembering that I loved them, they kindly delivered a pot to our home this last week. I am very nervous – orchids are much too exquisite and expensive for my taste – and I am nervous that I might kill them out of pure ignorance of how to rightly care for them.

What a gentle reminder of God’s grace in our lives…despite our inabilities he is able to bring beautiful things into our lives. At times when it appears all is still and dead, He continues to work in us as he promised, bringing us to completion in Christ.

Noah digging into his stocking

Elijah loves his new remote control tank

Nate cheating at (I mean playing) a new fishing game

Noah opening a new airplane

Nate blowing out the candles of our "Happy Birthday Jesus" cake. Yes, Jesus likes pineapple upside-down cake.

a new hat handmade by Mamie, Noah's great-grandmother

Three warm hats for three cute boys. Thanks Mamie!

Christmas Day potluck feast with friends

the pretty centerpiece at the grown-up table

I got a stocking full of Heinz ketchup! Andy knows the way to my heart.

the kids table

Nate showing off his new puppy bathrobe

my best attempt at a group kid shot (minus Noah, who was already in bed)

We ate awesome food, fellowshipped with friends, opened lots of gifts, and sang songs of praise to the King of kings! What a great day! Many thanks to our families in the US who helped make our day special. We love and miss you – can’t wait to hug your necks and bring some raucous to your homes!

As of Dec 27^th, Nate is down to taking only one steroid pill each day. This is a huge decrease from his original dose of six pills a day. We have been slowly weaning him off of this powerful medicine for the past month, and hope to be completely done in the next two weeks. Once he is completely done with the medicine, we will wait to see if his body is able to hold it’s own without the steroids. This time will be quite dangerous for Nate – his risk of relapse is very high, and I am frightened to even think about what we would have to do if he does relapse while we’re still here inEast Asia.

The terrible side-effects of the steroids have continued, so we are asking that they would completely subside as he comes off the medicine as well. Just this past week we noticed him growing some facial hair on his cheeks and his eyebrows are darkening and thickening. The high doses of steroids have given him an overload of testosterone, so his body is responding as expected – with signs and symptoms of hitting puberty at two years old. We have noticed his appetite beginning to subside, and his belly has gotten much smaller though his cheeks make him appear bigger than he is.

All in all, this has been a very difficult trial for our family to endure. And yet we know Him whom we have believed. We know He is FOR us. We know he is WITH us. We know he is working good in us and through us. We know He is building in us endurance and maturity which are far more precious than gold. Thank you, Father, for your promises.

We started our time by telling the Christmas Story using our Fisher Price manger scene set. One of the other moms told the story, then I repeated it in my own words, and then Elijah got up and told the story using the toys. We then talked about the legend of Santa Claus and whether he was or is real (the answer to that, by the way, is that he WAS a real man who did wonderful things for children, however he is no longer with us today). I then passed out candy canes from the US and we discussed the symbolism of the candy cane – it’s a sheperd’s staff when upright, it’s a J turned upside down, it’s got red and white stripes, etc.  Then we brought in a Christmas tree and discussed why there is a star on top and why there are gifts below. Let’s just say, I had no problem filling up the time. We ended with making paper snow flakes for them to decorate their classroom windows with and then distributed some candy for everyone to take home. Whew…I’m tired just reliving it.

I don’t have great photos from our time there because I was the one walking around and talking most of the time. Here are a few shots I grabbed of the 47 first-graders making their snowflakes and Elijah distributing the candy bags to all his friends. We had a great time!