Getting in the groove...

Well we've been here 3 and a half weeks, and I just now feel like I have the time and energy to sit down and write about what's happening. It has been a whirlwind, but we are finally starting to feel somewhat settled!

The flight here was a piece of cake. We were hoping for the airplane with the cool individual video screens on the backs of the seats, but didn't get it. The kids were disappointed, but it ended up working to our advantage because they slept almost the entire time instead of being distracted by movies. We had a little bit of a stressful moment at the airport in Germany because we didn't know where to go and ended up walking all over the huge airport with tired grumpy kids (and parents) before we finally found our gate... only to discover that it had been moved... and had to walk all the way back. It could have been so much worse.

We were warmly greeted at the Prague airport by Jim, Cindy, and Tomas and brought back to Jim and Cindy's house to spend the first few days. It took us at least a week to get over jet lag.. Eleanor and I had it the worst. We both woke up every night at about 1:00 and couldn't go back to sleep for a few hours. Luckily we had each other for company, so it ended up being kind of a sweet time together in the middle of the night. :) Henry got a stomach bug on the third day and threw up 4 times while we were trying to move into our temporary apartment. It's only the second time he's thrown up in his whole life. It was sad, but the Lord was good to heal him so quickly and protect the rest of us from getting it.

Our temporary apartment was in the same building as our permanent one, but with only one bedroom. We were hoping it would only be a few days, but it ended up being 2 weeks. It was very cramped, but definitely made us thankful for our spacious three bedroom that we're in now! We spent those two weeks really just trying to figure out how life works in Prague. We found the grocery store, the tram and bus stops, the metro, the bank, the park, etc. We are in a great location and can walk to any of those things in less than 10 minutes. We figure out really quickly that Czech children are extremely well behaved and quiet. Even at the park they don't really yell. Our kids stick out like sore thumb because they ARE very loud. Everything is so exciting to them and they just can't contain it! We are really fighting to control the urge to quiet them out of embarrassment instead of just letting them enjoy their surroundings. It's really hard! There are all kinds of cultural norms for children that we are constantly breaking. I think we probably gave Jim and Cindy's neighbor a heart attack when Eleanor and Henry ran outside to greet them in bare feet. If little girls sit on the ground or come outside with no shoes then they will surely become infertile. Oops! They are never bundled up as much as the other kids and are constantly taking off their coats and hats because they are hot. So far I've never seen a Czech kid take off his hat outside. They are loud and crazy and excited on the tram and metro. The other kids just sit quietly in their seat. :) Once, Henry said loudly in the middle of a crowded but silent bus.... "Daddy, did you hear that toot I just did???" At least probably no one understood him. The bottoms of your shoes are considered really gross, so to put your feet on a seat or accidentally touch someone with your shoe (like while crossing your legs if you're sitting across from them) is incredibly rude. So we're trying to teach them to watch where they put their feet and take their shoes off when they go in anyone's house. We also live on the fourth floor with all wood floors, so every time they run and jump it's really loud. We sound like a herd of elephants coming up the stairs, and Henry running with his cowboy boots and horse feels like an earthquake....

All this to say, after a few weeks we really started to feel the stress of all of these expectations we had on our kids and ourselves. We literally had no place to go where we didn't feel stressed out. Even at home we were constantly tense because of the noise. So we just decided to let them be loud. We call Henry "hop a long henry" because he hops everywhere. He can't control it. We like that. We don't want to make our kids hate this place because we immediately expect them to change. So hopefully we aren't making any enemies in the building. So far, so good.

The grocery store is by far the most challenging thing for me so far. I'm actually really happy with what I've been able to find there (although finding it can be tough since everything is written in Czech, obviously). The stressful part is the planning, paying, and carrying it home. Planning is so different than what I'm used to. In America, I would shop once a week. I was used to always having a semi full fridge and pantry. I would get kind of panicky when things would start to run out. Here, I have to shop every other day or so. I can only buy what I can carry and lug up four flights of stairs. Everything comes in tiny containers (which is good because it's easier to carry) but it runs out really fast. Pretty much every time I'm out, it's a good idea to run to the store and get a few things. At home, I would be wasting a trip to the store to just buy one or two things. Here, I'm wasting a trip out if I don't pick up a few things. So the planning is different. I plan for maybe 2 days meals... sometimes just one. It's kind of nice in some ways because I don't like planning for a whole week, and then a lot of times something will change with our schedule and food will be wasted... we don't waste anything around here! And they really don't have any convenience food. Hardly anything pre packaged or frozen. I know it's healthier, but it's you know... not as convenient... when I don't feel like going to the store or cooking. I am pretty lazy. I don't like to have to work... I like to work when I feel like it. God has been showing me that lately. And also reminding me that He will help me... and He has been.

The paying is just plain stressful. It's super crowded. There are no baggers. You bring your own bags and try your best to shove everything in them as fast as you can before she finishes scanning.... that's REALLY hard! Because she doesn't wait. Everyone stares while I fumble around with money I don't quite understand, and as soon as I pay she starts scanning the next person's items... even if mine are still there! There are tricks, and I am learning them (Cindy has been so helpful!)... but some days I just do everything wrong. Usually when the kids are with me I get distracted and forget all of the rules. The kids like the grocery store because they get a balloon, sucker, and a piece of candy from the check out lady almost every time.

I can't believe I wrote that much about the grocery store. :/

We really like our team. When we first me the Polish staff, I was worried that they would feel really foreign. But they didn't. Honestly, they felt like old friends. It has been so fun to spend time with them. Ella and Kuba have been married less than a year and are so cute. You can tell they are so in love. :) Ella loves to cook and Kuba is an excellent piano player. They're both super smart... Ella was at the top of her class in college and has a degree to be a Pharmacist. Kuba is really interested in history. Martin and Aneta are about our age and have a 3 year old (Matylda) and a one year old (Kornel). Martin is really funny and outgoing. He has a really amazing story, and actually accepted Christ in college after coming to a viewing of The Jesus Film in his dorm. Aneta is really pretty and fun. She likes to remind me that she is not the typical mom. She doesn't like to cook, and she really wants to be as involved in ministry as she can be. Even though she isn't "typical" I can tell she's a really great mom to Matylda and Kornel.

Jim and Cindy are also really great. It is so easy to see how much they love Czech people. I think their hearts literally break for the lostness around them. They are great encouragers and have really welcomed us with open arms.

Tomas and Jovanka are Czech and have four kids. That is very unusual here... most have one child and a few have two. Tomas works in the administrative side of ministry and Jovanka works with students when she has time. Henry has a little crush on Jovanka and always wants to talk about his guns with her. :)

Here is a picture of our team (minus Aneta, Matylda, and Kornel... they were sick)

that's Jim, Jovanka, Cindy, Ella, Kuba, us, and Martin.

There are several Athletes in Action (part of Campus Crusade for Christ) staff here too. Kelsey plays basketball on a Czech national team, Jenny runs track, Zach coaches football, and Billy who is married with kids teaches at the Sports university. So we have plenty of opportunities to watch sporting events!

Collin has just started to really get a feel for what ministry will look like in the last few days. It looks like the majority of his time on campus will be with the English classes. This semester he will participate with the intent of establishing and building relationships with students. He's been to two classes so far and has already gotten to share his faith and been invited to lunch with a new friend, Daniel. Next semester he will begin teaching a few of the classes (there are 17 every week!) He will also be doing one on one English lessons... the guy that heads the class will be filtering students who seem to be interested in spiritual things and sending them to Collin to meet with individually.

I am hoping to be able to host a girls night at our home... plans are still in the works. I also really feel like part of my ministry here is with other moms. We are at the playground almost every day and I usually see the same few women. The Lord has impressed it on me that they are part of why I am here. I don't know what that means though!

Homeschooling is going pretty well. We officially started on monday. It was a rough day. Eleanor is super smart and loves to learn.... but hates it when she doesn't "get it" right away. Handwriting is that thing that just doesn't come as naturally to her. We both got frustrated and ended up crying. Great first day!! It has gotten better each day. We do handwriting first and get it over with. And we pray before we start that we won't get frustrated!

Well this is super long and there is so much more that I could say. Overall, we are doing well. We know that this is where we are supposed to be, but can't say that we have a clue why. Maybe we never will... who knows! The kids are doing miraculously well. They aren't sad at all. Sorry grandparents!! It's really weird, but they just seem to always be happy to be here. Their attitudes are much better than ours pretty much all of the time. We are so thankful for them. We've had our sad moments (mostly at night) when we miss home and everything familiar, but mostly we feel content here. We're fighting to stay close to Jesus. It has been a fight. We're busy and tired... but this would all be pointless if we didn't walk with Him. So if you pray for us, pray for that. The rest will fall into place.

Love, the Arledge family

the view from our kitchen window (the inner courtyard)

Henry refusing to cooperate

Skype shoot- out with Grampa

Zach's team... the Prague Lions

View from our apartment (a little coffee shop on the corner)

front door of our building

Playground in our neighborhood