FREE crib!

This is Baby Frank's new bed! The Warner family from VCS gave us this crib for FREE! We are so thankful and excited for this gift. They also gave us a free bathtub and fire truck. We have been hugely blessed by the community at our school. The bed still needs a mattress and some more love, but we're on the way!

New Look

Hey! Some staff at VCS recently updated our school's website, and it looks great now. Please take a minute to check it out, and maybe you'll learn something new. You can see photos of staff and students, too!

www.viennachristianschool.org

Up, Up & Up

Hi. We prayed in my class this morning, like we normally do, but something struck me about it I'd like to tell you about.
A couple things to preface...fourth graders LOVE to pray and they LOVE to pray for Baby Frank! So he has been covered in prayer for months as his arrival draws nearer. What a blessing! So today, Rina, a sweet Japanese girl in my class, prayed for Baby Frank.
SIDENOTE: The Japanese language is full of what we call vowel sounds, so it's interesting to hear the language spoken or see it written because there are vowels EVERYWHERE. It's sometimes silly! I'm sure it makes total sense in Japan and they wonder why we have consonant blends:).
So Rina. She prayed today for God to help Baby Frank grow up and up and up. I thought that was a great way to ask God to continue the work He has started in Baby Frank already. I'm not sure if that means he will keep growing taller and taller and taller, because there isn't much room left in my stomach, but still, I am thankful for Rina's simple way of stating something I so much long for.

The Hot Dog Clan

This is from our field trip in December to the Vienna Christmas Market at the city hall, which here is called the Rathaus (meaning "advice house"). Glory, Elizabeth, Rina, me & Selyn all enjoyed those Kasekrainer hot dogs I mentioned yesterday. So you know what's on the docket for tonight's dinner! Also one more cool thing...my class managed to throw me a surprise birthday party today in the middle of math. Someone came and told me that Chris needed to talk to me for a few minutes and they'd watch my class. So, Chris detained me in his office for a few minutes while the kids prepared the classroom with confetti, signs, and chocolate covered marshmallows. Then the huge "SURPRISE!" greeting came when I arrived back from my chat with Chris. Wow...they really love to serve people...AND not work:) Hehe. Don't worry! We'll find the time to finish math later today. :)

You Know You're Pregnant When...

A student gives you a package of 3 sausages for your birthday!!! I must have mentioned once or twice that I really have been loving these sausages here called Kasekrainers, which are sausages filled with melted cheese. They serve them at outdoor stands in a long hot dog bun....mmmmm.....just what my prego tummy often wants...but does not need!

Anyway, today I opened up this gift and to my surprise! Sausages! Happy Birthday Mrs. Frank!

Hope you laugh as much as I did today:).

The determining Part

if you know what I mean :) look straight up here ^

4 Pounds of Fetal Power!

Just call me...

the VCS Tax Guru.
I held a couple meetings this week to help out the VCS staff with their US taxes. Today was the bigger meeting with all the second year people - filing for 2004. How'd you manage that, Chris??? It's called an extension. It allows us to qualify for a credit for living outside the US. So I helped explain that and walked them through the form. Then I ended up helping a few others with the 1040 too.

It's funny, cause I never thought of myself as good at taxes. But I just know how to do the things that I've had to do myself. So I guess I can explain those things to others pretty well. It was fun, actually - but I still don't care for taxes that much. It bugs me when they say "to fill in this blank, see document 9312" Then I look at document 9312 and it's 80 pages long!! Ugh. Thanks Uncle Sammy.

Viennarnia

Do you get it? Vienna + Narnia = Viennarnia

It IS winter, and there WAS Christmas, which was super by the way. There is NO white witch, except for Mrs. Frank after a long week with fourth graders AND being pregnant! And lastly, I CANNOT find my wardrobe anywhere! I guess there's no leaving Viennarnia for now. Come soon, spring!

In Vienna today, trees are frosted with perfectly fallen snow. Sidewalks are caked with perfectly muddied up slush. Eew! Necks are adorned with colorful scarves, and kids at VCS are armed with a bazillion new Christmas toys. What could better explain our first week back?
It's long and tiring trying to get back into the swing of things here with jet lag lagging us down. Thankfully, though, it's TGIF and dinner is almost ready!

One more note...a new belly picture is coming very soon...Blank Frank, and my stomach, are HUGE. I'm wondering if I'll make it until the end of March. More bigness to come!

A Few More

We had a great time hanging out with family in California over Christmas...here are a few more pictures.
~Chris & Carrington
~Anne & Leighton
~Chris & Grandpa Coleman (didn't mean for the lamp to look like his hat! hehe)

A Quick Recap

Here's a quick photo recap of the last few weeks of us galavanting around the USA~
~In N Out Burger
~Chris & Anne at the Luginbill family dinner
~Anne on Christmas morning
~Floats in building stages for the Rose Parade (THAT was cool:))
~Frank family on the beach! Yahoo!