Ashley Lauren: Este 2010 deja?? It's 2010 already??

The holidays have come and gone quite quickly, haven't they? I can't believe it is already January 16th! Since my last update (which I realize was well about a month ago) we have been keeping quite busy. A few days before Christmas, Tanner Romania Mission received such a great surprise and blessing! A charity foundation based in Italy sent a truck full of supplies to little Nicoresti...and I mean a huge semi-truck full. Supplies included loads and loads of food(especially pasta), tons of clothes, tables, chairs, kitchen stuff, heaters, bedding, toys, tools...everything and anything you could possibly think of. Over 20 of us made a line standing a few meters apart in the snow from the main road to the side room of Casa Rachel and passed every single box through one after another for well over an hour until everything was unloaded. Everyone was so excited for all the new stuff and everything has now been divided amoung the houses and stored. We have been enjoying much of the Italien pasta here at Elisabeta.

The front end of our assembly line: Nicoleta and Doina

Christmas was very special here, and yes, I finally got to have a white Christmas. We spent the week before Christmas clearing snow from the road to Elisabeta so that Mama and Tata could come over for meal via car-so fun to be outside shoveling side by side with the girls, boys, house women, and staff. In Romania they celebrate Christmas the 25th, 26th, and 27th of December so we had traditional Romanian food for lunch those three days followed by delicious homemade pies by the house women. Yum Yum. Sarmale, salada de carne, a potato salad type thing, mammalita, and so much more that I do not know the names of...

Casa Elisabeta, taken a week after Christmas, before all the snow started to melt away (It has since been snowing again and we are expecting lots and lots of snow this week):

New Year's Eve has been another highlight. I waited for midnight upstairs with most of the girls chatting and watching TV in our pjs, and right at midnight the house woman on shift, Mericica, came upstairs and we all danced together, laughing and yawning. She then surprised us with a cheese pie she had made, which I guess is tradition to have at midnight. So good, and so much fun. Needless to say January 1st was a little less eventful as all the girls, myself and the house woman were exhausted...We did find time, however, to do some more Romanian dancing in the telivisor.

Other events have included the January birthday party (probably one of my favorite parties that we have had), a trip with some of the kids to Tecuci, workshop resuming in the morning (walking there with one of the girls in particular, Verginica, is always an adventure and can take up to an hour depending on the ice/mud situation...mai rapide and hai, este singura neroi is a common phrase I can be found repeating over and over again to her), choir where we are learning a new song: Tu Esti, as well as a trip to Carefour in 30km away Focsani with all the girls where they were able to spend their earned money on what they want. Purchases included new clothes, pillows, jewelry, hair stuff, and one of the girls even had enough to buy a DVD player, on which we wathed the Wizard of Oz this past week and I tried to explain the plot to the house woman and girls in Romanian...pretty positive leaving them more confused...I have also had the great joy of working at the boys house two afternoons a week helping two of them with homework, teaching Marius how to use a computer, counting and playing legos with Mihai, coloring and chatting away with Gelu, and so much more.

Verginica's priceless expression to me as we make the trek to Casa Jacob for workshop:

Oh how things change when you are warm and inside, chatting with Vergie safe from the cold and ice indoors:

I think that is everything that is new here...I know, doesn't sound too exciting, but trust me: everyday is filled with so much fun and laughter. I am officially returning home to California February 19th which makes me both very excited and sad. I miss everyone so much and home, but the thought of saying goodbye to the girls, the house women, the boys, Sandie and Bruce...well, I can't even begin to imagine how hard that will be. Thus I am doing my best to "make everyday count and not count the days" (on a card that Katie perfectly sent me) and stay very busy...which is easy to do here. I spend almost every waking hour when I am here at Elisabeta with the girls upstairs...which I love.

Impromptu snowball fight on the way to workshop: Marianna looking for trouble-