C. A. A. T Connection

Alethia's guitar debut

2011-11-05T23:35:00.000+08:00

Here is Alethia's first guitar solo. Thanks Mr. David for letting us
"practice"

long time and random start

2011-10-25T20:49:00.000+08:00

I made this great dessert tonight with a recipe from allrecipes.com

Slight twist on a peach cobbler. Maybe Dutch origins?? not sure.

But very yummy and easy. I halved it for a 6 serving recipe what follows

below is the halved version.

Sour Cream Peach Kuchen

Original Recipe Yield 12 servings

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons sugar, divided

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup cold butter or margarine

1 (29 ounce) can sliced peaches, drained

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

TOPPING:

2 egg yolks

1 cup sour cream – I substituted yogurt with good results

1 tablespoon sugar

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

This recipe's Ingredients were scaled to yield a new amount. The directions below still refer to the original recipe yield of 12 servings.

In a bowl, combine the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt; cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press onto the bottom and 1 in. up the sides of a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dish. Arrange peaches over crust. Combine cinnamon and remaining sugar; sprinkle over peaches. Bake at 400 degrees F for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine egg yolks and sour cream. Spread evenly over peaches. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over top. Bake 30-35 minutes longer or until golden brown. Serve warm or cold. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

How Asher eats vermicelli noodles

2011-01-28T02:09:00.000+08:00

Asher is having a hard time these days staying clean for meal time.

Her Singing Debut

2011-01-13T00:52:00.002+08:00

She is really into making up songs these days.

Happy Birthday Day Jesus!

2010-12-28T23:28:00.000+08:00

On Thursday we had a birthday party for Jesus. A little early but we
had a fun time celebrating while making music and eating cake.

Caleb's surgery

2010-12-28T23:19:00.000+08:00

Caleb had ACL surgery on Tuesday, December 14 and watched every bit of
it on the camera. He stayed in the hospital until Friday. He was a
good patient even though they were only giving him something like
extra-strength tylenol for the serious pain he was in. He then had
to stay on the couch for two weeks. He got his stitches out today,
December 28 and should be able to walk around with just one crutch in
another week or so. At first he was going to physical therapy every
day now it is just every other day. The doctor says he is progressing
as he should. So we are thankful that all is going well.

The Christmas Pageant

2010-12-28T23:09:00.000+08:00

We have been blessed with some new friends while in Malaysia. Here
they are performing the Nativity.

Asher was the self-directed innkeeper and Alethia was the angel. It
was a great time of celebrating our Savior's birth.

Awesome Asher -

2010-12-20T23:01:00.000+08:00

"The Fonz" better move over --- here comes AAAAsher.

Gingerbread House

2010-12-20T22:51:00.000+08:00

Alethia and her two friends (Malia and Ayu) got together for a special
afternoon. They dressed up and make a gingerbread house. We were
leaving town within the next few days so I let them eat the candies
until their hearts were content. Actually their bellies got sick
before they were tired.

Festival

2010-12-19T23:03:00.000+08:00

>
> In between Caleb's birthday and Thanksgiving, we took a family trip
> to the village. We spent the night there to participate in one of
> their celebrations. The men get to "knife fight" and the ladies
> pretty much just cook and cook and cook. It was fun to see how they
> do things.
>

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-12-19T21:19:00.002+08:00

We had yet another wonderful Thanksgiving here in "Stink Stink." The Fishers came for the 3rd year in a row bringing the bounty from a nearby island. The Stillmans came from the capital city with the Turkey and we had a single American guy, a single lady, the only other American family in our city, and 4 national enjoy our day with us. It was a festive and very yummy occasion. I found real sweet potatoes on the island 5 hours away from us. I was still suspicious that they would work but they did and they sure were yummy. Our crate from America arrived the day before our guests did. It was a mess -- but a good mess. We had plenty of brown sugar, corn meal, cooking oil, and all sorts of goodies to eat.

Caleb's 34th Birthday

2010-12-19T21:02:00.003+08:00

We got back from Malaysia a few days before Caleb's birthday. We had some friends come over for some German Chocolate Cake and Decaf Starbuck's (a real treat). Enjoy the photos. He got a necklace from Alethia. She is the master "regifter" of whatever she finds around the house --- She loves giving gifts. She said it was a rock star necklace so he had to do a rock star pose. He other gift was an Iphone (used that is) --- but works great over here. Think he really likes it.

15 month old check up

2010-11-02T00:23:00.004+08:00

Today we went to the doctor in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to get Asher some shots.

He is 10.3 kg and 75.5 cm long. For those who are metrically (sp?) challenged that is 22.7 lbs and about 30 inches long. He got his MMR shot in the left arm. Sister had already prepped the nurse and told her that Asher would not cry. Well, he did cry for just a few seconds and then he was ready to go again. He has been walking for 2 months now and just this week started to climb up into chairs. Which means nothing is safe anymore. He played at his first big playground today and had fun but wasn't too fond of the little holes as he was walking across the bridges. He can say some words now. His favorites are ball, cat, mau (indonesian for want), no, duck, hot (the newest word), dada (bye in Indo), mama, dada (da as in daddy). I think I heard please once. He is gets his point across and lets you know if he is content or not with whatever situation it is. He is still a great eater and will eat anything I give him. However, yesterday in Sunday School he stole some bread from a little girl when I wasn't looking. They are beginning to play together as brother and sister. It is fun to watch and most often involves chase or some time of sing-song screaming-laughing escapade started by his sister. I think she is falling more in love with him. I heard her singing just the other day, "Asher is a cutie pie". Mommy and daddy sure think so.

A first take on photography

2010-11-02T00:14:00.002+08:00

Here is Alethia's try at photography

Take 1

Getting better

Third time is the charm and even little brother cooperated

She took this one with mommy's Digital SLR and there was no view window. It was old school and she had to look through the view finder. Not a bad job on this special puppet from Jakarta.

Fall Fun!

2010-11-02T00:04:00.003+08:00

Since the only leaves we see fall are usually palm branches and banana leaves. It was kind of hard to get into the fall spirit. A keeps telling people that the leaves are falling (in America she finally adds). We bought these pumpkins at the local grocery store (i.e. market) and painted them for some festive fun.

Happy Birthday Asher Bear!

2010-07-24T23:24:00.003+08:00

Our little fellow turned One on July 23rd. We were traveling back to the island that day so we will celebrate on Tuesday. The past 365 days with our baby boy has just flown by. We can't believe how much he has changed. He is crawling up and down stairs and cruising all around the furniture. When he has both hands full of toys he usually stands up on his own. He loves balls, flash lights, remote controls, and cords. He doesn't like to have his clothes or diapers changed. He still doesn't like to go to sleep but he has slept better since we got here. He still loves food and doesn't like to be in his high chair unless the food is already ready and on the spoon. We loves this little Asher bear and his sister loves him too. Happy Birthday Asher Bear!

We are Home!

2010-07-24T22:59:00.003+08:00

We got home on Sunday and stayed for a week then left again for about 5 days. We do not have anything scheduled until at least the middle of August. So we are home for a while. Here is a picture of our room on the boat. We arrived about 6 am on Sunday morning and had a time getting help with our bags. Usually they are begging to take your bag, but our were American sized adn American weight. There was only about 14 of them.

Not home yet!

2010-07-07T00:37:00.003+08:00

We have been traveling in Indo for over 2 weeks now and we are still not home yet. No, it does not take that long to get to our house but we have been in a series of meetings, training seminars, parenting conference, a few days of enjoying Bali, and then to Lombok for another meeting. We should be home on July 10 after two flights and an overnight boat with all 14 of our bags. I will post a few recent pics.

More Easter

2010-05-02T02:39:00.003+08:00

Easter in Evanston

2010-05-02T02:16:00.002+08:00

playing with cousins and friends in the windy city

2010-03-31T13:17:00.004+08:00

We are in the Windy City for one month and have enjoyed the snow,the cold, the museums, the music, the trains, the pizza, the parks, the rain, and today the sunshine, the dirt, and cousin L and some other friends. Seeing cousin J and S tomorrow.

4 month pic

2009-12-17T13:48:00.003+08:00

Asher turned 4 months old on Nov.23 - HE weighs 17 lbs and is 25 1/2 inches. We go to the doctor today to get more accurate stats.

Thanksgiving Week 2009

2009-12-17T10:56:00.003+08:00

We had great fun with the L family and the F family that came to visit us on the island. The house was filled with 6 children under 4, 2 pregnant women, 1 nursing mother, and 3 great dads. The turkey was brought to us as carry on luggage by friends from the capital city a few days earlier. It was yummy. We had all the trimmings.
Turkey and dressing
mashed potatoes
corn casserole
green bean casserole
carrot souffle
cranberry salad
pumpkin casserole (in place of sweet potatoes)
macaroni casserole
Pumpkin rolls

Then for dessert: Key Lime pie, pecan pie, and pumpkin pie - but we were all so stuffed that we didn't even touch the desserts that evening.

The kids showing off their creation - turkey centerpiece made from a melon, grapes, pears, and cheese (brought to BB by a special friend - thanks JT and CT)

Just Cuteness!

2009-11-18T22:51:00.002+08:00

Happy Birthday Caleb!

2009-11-18T22:15:00.004+08:00

Caleb turned 33 on Nov.15. We celebrated with a cheesecake and a special coffee called "Kopi luwak - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kopi_Luwak. It was no small endeavor because I had saved the cream cheese and raspberries from April. That is one of the trickiest parts about living on the island is that you have to plan ahead- way ahead sometimes.

Alethia and I decorated the house while Caleb was away on a trip and when he came home it was all decorated (And still is at the moment). We also made our own birthday hats. Alethia had fun cutting up bits of paper and putting them on her hat. She reminded me that Asher needed one as well- so we made him one of a different variety. Here are some birthday poses.

3 month stats

2009-10-30T22:29:00.003+08:00

Asher weighed in at 15lbs and 25 inches - (keep in mind we were weighing him at home)
For his 2 month stats he was 14lbs and 24 inches. We love our chunky monkey.

Love My Little Broder

2009-10-30T22:20:00.004+08:00

Alethia loves her little brother.. She now calls him her best friends. precious

Party Time

2009-10-28T00:07:00.003+08:00

My close friend here in town got married last week and here are a few shots of the wedding and reception. Only close friends go to the wedding but everyone and their brother goes to the reception. No matter where you go the same exact food is always served. Sometimes if we are lucky we get to eat chocolate/durian ice cream. Alethia is wearing the traditional dress that Kim's mom made for her a while back.

Fake Fall

2009-10-27T22:48:00.002+08:00

When the weather where you are is nothing even remotely close to fall (The only leaves we have that change color go from green to dead brown because of the heat.) at least I can still bake as if it were fall. I made these yummy pumpkin muffins the other day. I don't know why buy there were so so yummy. I ate two almost immediately. I may even go an have another one right now. I used peanut butter chips instead of butterscotch because that is what I had on hand. For the pumpkin I had some left over in the freezer from where I had baked a whole pumpkin in the oven and then just mashed it with a fork. I got the recipe of another bloggers site - (sorry I can't remember where). Let me know if you try it.

Pumpkin Butterscotch Muffins
3/4 c. whole wheat flour
1 c. unbleached white flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
2 tsp. Pampered Chef Cinnamon Plus (or 1 tsp. cinnamon plush 1/2 tsp. ginger and 1/2 tsp. nutmeg)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1/2 c. melted butter
1 c. canned pumpkin
1 c. butterscotch chips
In a medium bowl, stir together flours, sugars, spices, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs, butter, and pumpkin. Stir into dry mixture. Stir in butterscotch chips. Pour into greased or lined muffin tins. Bake at 350° for 17 to 20 minutes.

Meeting the Princess

2009-10-05T23:02:00.003+08:00

We got to meet the regional representative for the Miss Indo pageant the other day. We told Alethia she was a princess but she wasn't buying it because the girl didn't have a crown or a princess dress. Asher was happy to have his picture made with her and then Alethia eventually warmed up to the idea after we had been traveling with them on the plane for about 3 hours.

Welcome Asher

2009-09-17T15:09:00.004+08:00

Our Australian friends on the island gave Asher a welcome to to the world party. Ez who is 6 I think (maybe 7) did all the planning, decorations, games, and most of the food by himself. He made a great host. Asher has a hard time showing appropriate appreciation for anything but breast milk at the moment. Alethia played musical chairs for the first time and was not happy that she didn't win. She got better on the balloon races. Wearing her party dress excited her the most!

A First

2009-09-09T17:38:00.004+08:00

A got here first partial black eye from her little brother's right hook. Not really. She fell coming up the steps into the kitchen and hit the fan. It is a floor fan and she managed to hit her face on the part that holds the two metal pieces together that has a sharp handle. Ouch... Ouch.. I was expecting her eye to be damaged severely but it looks like it will be okay. She didn't cry that much and held an ice pack on it while she watched "A Bug's LIfe".

A was having a good sleep today so I thought I would snap the cutey while he was asleep. He hasn't been asleep this soundly in about three days so that was a good first for him too. He is not in his bed because the ants decided they wanted to sleep there too.

Our 6th Year Anniversary

2009-08-14T03:37:00.004+08:00

Caleb and I celebrated our 6th year anniversary on June 28th. As you can see I was greatly pregnant at the time and the coffee cup is sitting on my belly not levitating.

A good friend was in town and kept Alethia all day while we took a lunch date that turned into evening by the time we got back. The restaurant was "The Oasis" and has served the likes of former President Bill Clinton and Hillary, Margaret Thatcher, and a host of other dignitaries. They are famous for their "rice table display" which is at dinner time a 12-dish meal. Similar to a personal buffet but is specially displayed and served with various attendants. It is a great way to sample some of this countries best dishes. We had the scaled down version at lunch but still had a lovely time.

The funny thing was we started writing a list of how we had celebrated each year - and the verdict is ... We need to keep a written record because we couldn't remember each year's celebration. So either we need to celebrate bigger or at least write it down.

She loves to Dress Up!

2009-08-14T03:31:00.004+08:00

Alethia loves to dress up! Little brother gave her a mermaid costume in the hospital too.

Sweet Dreams!

2009-08-14T03:21:00.004+08:00

Here is Asher having a sweet 8 day old dream!

Caution: Labor and Delivery Story

2009-08-14T03:12:00.001+08:00

Here is a run down of my labor and delivery with Asher as best as I can remember it. - This is long and detailed.

We were at a friend’s house (The T’s) on Thursday, July 23, having lunch. The power was out for all of lunch and then we went up stairs to chat a bit and then the power came back. So we decided to try out their Wii. This was the 2nd time that I had played. I had read the night before on my brother-in-law’s facebook that he was playing Wii Fit to loose his belly. I had wondered at the time if it would help me go into labor too – (aka –loose my belly). So maybe that was already on my mind. Anyway, Caleb and I played a little tennis and did some bowling. Then Caleb headed off to the gym to workout. I stayed at their house and did the Wii fit. Well besides my Wii Fit age being absurdly old and them calling me overweight I enjoyed the experience and I was beginning to get good at the Hula-hoop. That is going in the clockwise direction. I will never know about counter clockwise because after I hit 300 twirls we started laughing and I had to make a b-line for the bathroom. Well, I realized then that my water had just broken. The time was 5:30 pm. Thanks, Wii Fit-otherwise my doctor was going to break it the next Wednesday.

Our friends drove me and A back to the guesthouse and I put the finishing touches on all of our packing but was not in too much of a rush because I hadn’t really felt a contraction yet. Then Charlie went to get Caleb because he was in the middle of a work out and didn’t have his phone with him. I took a shower and that was the first time I felt something that I thought might be contractions. We got some grilled chicken and rice for dinner and left about 6:30. By this time I really didn’t want to eat but thought it might help me to have some strength for the long night ahead. I also brought an apple along and that was what I really wanted to eat. We thankfully got to the hospital within an hour, which was a blessing because the traffic could have been much worse. I was feeling contractions in the car on a regular basis (3-6min) apart but was still able to talk. I was checked into the labor room by 7:45 and by then was 4cm dilated. My friend Stephanie came around 8:15 complete with some Ipod Christian tunes, which was perfect time because Caleb was help up in Admissions for 45 minutes. During that time the contractions were getting stronger and we got to see the chicken and rice for the 2nd time. Dr. Gozali got there at 8:30 and asked if I was handling the pain. I think all I could do was mutter a shy “yes”. 8:30-9:30 was the by far the hardest time with Stephanie counting the length of the contractions, me trying to breath and remain calm, and Caleb trying to comfort me by allowing me to clutch/pinch his hand until he lost all feeling I am sure. I was up trying to walk around, squat, sway, etc….. Then one of the later contractions totally exhausted me so I got in the bed to “rest” a little. Then I could focus and breath better because the contractions were not so excruciating. The doc came in at 9:30 and said I was fully dilated but the baby was not totally engaged. He said it would be about an hour before I was pushing. I could feel a strange pain in my lower back and in my lower hips. I felt like the baby was just stuck there. I didn’t want to move but knew I had to do something to get this baby down. However, every time I moved the pain got worse and I wanted to push. With C and S help I got up and stood on the floor and tried to rock. Well, I got things rocking and wanted to push – but just a little bit. So I got back on the bed this time on my hands and knees trying to relieve the pressure off of my back. Thankfully, it worked. There was this 3 min sense of calmness and I asked S why I hadn’t had a contractions. It was the calm before the storm. There is a special name for this breathing period before you are getting ready to push. Dr. Gozali was in the room given me reminders on how and when to push. I was trying to listen in between contractions and then they were shouting. “We see his head.” I was exhausted so I lay down on my side. I thought I had kept it all together until this point. But it was as if I went to another world. I knew I was holding on for dear life on the nurse’s shirt – partly because I didn’t want to fall out of the bed ☺. I could hear them saying things like, “Oh, we see his head, he’s got hair, you can do it, and just a little bit more.” But their voices were in the distance. Then, I felt Asher come all the way out and it was heaven on earth. Of course, being able to hold him and see him healthy was a great joy too. He came out very purple but after a minute of cuddles with mom he was given some oxygen and quickly gained his color.

I could not believe how incredibly smooth everything went. I was so afraid, nervous and scared about delivering in a developing country. Especially, knowing the nurses do not like to deviate from their norm and wondering if the baby was going to be healthy. But God’s word says that perfect love casts out all fear. I was relying on His care for me and remembering a verse that one of my teammates from WFRMS told me when I was getting ready to deliver Alethia.
CSB 2 Timothy 1:7 For God has not given us a spirit of fearfulness, but one of power, love, and sound judgment.
God provided just what I needed right when it was needed most!!!!

We praise Him that we had a healthy baby boy born at 10:45pm that night. Only 5 hours from when my water broke and without any complications. He was so faithful to see us through and give us a 9lb and 20 inch long super cute little man or “baby bruder” as Alethia likes to say.

He is Here!

2009-07-31T00:20:00.002+08:00

Asher Raymond Coppenger made his appearance on July 23, 2009. He weighed 9lbs and was 20 inches long. I will post more labor details later but here are some of the pictures.

Still pregnant

2009-07-19T23:12:00.003+08:00

As of Sunday, July 19 at 10:15pm - I am still pregnant and 2 days past my due date. We may go to the zoo tomorrow to do some walking. I am also getting a pretty bad cough and cold - not a good combo for a pregnant lady. I have to post this pic of Alethia since all my facebook friends liked it.

Also - A just got a dress up outfit from some sweet folks who are in America at the moment. It is a Fancy Nancy dress and she loves it. I think she has worn it for the last 4 days. Her friend Jess, in the big city, let her borrow a book about Fancy Nancy. She just informed Caleb that she is going to do the cha-cha with Grandma Gladys when she gets back to America. Grandma, I hope you are ready.

Happy Birthday Gagee!

2009-07-15T23:41:00.003+08:00

Gagee,
We were really hoping Baby Asher would come on your birthday but it does not look like that will happen only 1 hour and 15 minutes until this day is over on our side of the world. Gagee we wish you a Happy Birthday and hope to give you another great grandchild within the next few days. We love you and miss you!

Who are my friends?

2009-07-15T23:19:00.004+08:00

Alethia loves having friends to play with. There is usually someone new staying here everyday. So she asks in the morning "Mommy, who are my friends today?" Here are some of her friends.

From our time with the Webels in their city

2009-07-02T00:52:00.002+08:00

We can Post Again.

2009-07-01T22:46:00.003+08:00

We are now in the big city - awaiting the birth of our little boy. His due date is July 18th. I think he may be a view days early - but hopefully not too early. We still have some things to do. Just got a recent diaper grant from cottonbabies.com. Thank you all so much. They are going to be wonderful - 12 free Bum Genius cloth diapers. The new baby will not have to use Alethia's old nasty ones nor use the ones that are purple and hot pink. He should feel blessed.

We are staying in a nice place - sort of like a guest house. We have our own sleeping quarters and bathroom with microwave and fridge. Then there is this community area for cooking with great cooking facilities and even hot water for washing dishes. The whole place is air conditioned so I am not even sweating that much inside.

There is a pool we can use but it has a habit of turning my hair green. Not cool. Alethia is enjoying seeing so many folks and having "friends" to play with. She loves blowing bubbles and running around kicking the soccer ball. We often find her in the common area sitting amongst a big pile of books that she is "reading". She is also a big fan of puzzles and can do some pretty difficult ones with the help of mommy or daddy. She is convinced that we are having a boy and a girl - then she proceeds to count to 10 - as if her parents are planning on having that many children. I will leave that to the other J.Coppenger family and to the Lanfords. Will try to post some pics.

Alethia's 3 Year Old Photos

2009-03-03T17:59:00.003+08:00

Hope you enjoy these photos of our 3 year old! No one would ever guess she was in tears about 15 minutes before hand.

Alethia's 3 Year Old PIctures

You can double click on the one that is a single pic to get to the album if you would like to print.

Our Trip to Myanmar in Feb

2009-03-03T17:53:00.002+08:00

Here is the link to the pictures from our Trip

Myanmar

A's 3rd Birthday Party

2009-02-09T16:58:00.001+08:00

We had a great time celebrating A's birthday party at the beach with about 50 other folks. The kids enjoyed playing in the sand and the waves. I think they even liked the fish cupcakes. Alethia was to content to eat cake and play in the sand. She didn't even open presents until we were back home - and just one family was with us. It is tradition here to not open presents in front of your guest. Check out the link. Enjoy....

From Alethia's 3rd Birthday

I felt the earth move....

2009-01-22T01:12:00.003+08:00

under my skin - actually it was just like little butterflies - but I felt the baby move for the first time yesterday at 15 weeks. How fun - what a sensation! Either the baby likes manicotti or it was telling me he/she didn't like it.

Finally some Christmas Pictures

2009-01-22T01:02:00.002+08:00

I just got to the capital city and can upload photos now - So here are the ones from Christmas. We had some good friends come and see us and bring us another turkey. How amazing two turkeys in one year --- Man, we are living high on the hog- or high on the turkey..... Hope you enjoy the photos finally.But who knows when more will happen --- Our camera bit the dust when we were having our community Christmas party - so only borrowed photos at the moment.

Christmas 2009

All Alone

2009-01-19T00:20:00.002+08:00

Alethia and Caleb are back in BB and I am here in the capital city for a meeting. I have already gone to Outback, and I am getting ready to drink some fresh milk - WOW! Tomorrow I go to the doctor for a baby check up and then to have my teeth cleaned. It is fun being here but since Alethia and Caleb aren't here - I am missing something. They help keep things lively. Also, thanks goes to my mom who did a great job going through my maternity clothes and sending some to a friend. Thanks to Katie who brought them out. I guess it was mom who washed my clothes - but they had such a good smell of America. It made me homesick!! Miss you all.

Thanksgiving Week 2008

2008-12-05T01:36:00.001+08:00

Thanksgiving 2008

Caleb's Birthday. You can click to make this bigger!

2008-12-05T01:17:00.001+08:00

We have a turkey!!!

2008-11-24T01:47:00.002+08:00

Our friends that live several islands away from us just got here today. We are so excited. There little girl E is the same age as A. They have already had fun together. The cool thing is that they brought us lots of goodies because there area is a little more western. The best was a turkey.... They got the biggest they could. I had to go and have a special pan made for it. I hope it fits. Maybe I can post pics. We also have another family, the F family, arriving by boat tomorrow. So the Americans have invaded BB. We still don't outnumber the Australians that live here.. we are one adult short.

Happy Birthday Caleb!

2008-11-15T23:02:00.003+08:00

Today my sweet hubby is 32 years old. I am grateful that I have gotten to celebrate the last seven birthdays with him!!!

Happy Birthday Honey! I love you very much. I hope you enjoy your present. Thanks to all the family that helped to contribute to the dive Computer. It is a Vyper Suunto Dive Computer if you want to check it out.

My husband has gone barefoot for a whole week!

2008-10-15T22:56:00.002+08:00

Caleb is in the woods/jungle for 10 days with a local village. He is supposed to come home on Friday night or saturday morning. He told me the other day that he is trying to go a whole week without wearing shoes. It is part of the tradition of the people that you have to take off your shoes when you get to the top of the mountain. They then pray at the grave of the "king of the jungle"

Since Caleb has been away we have been trying to keep busy. On Friday - we had girlfriends over for homemade pizza and then we made jewelry. On sat we went to the beach to have a quick sunset picnic. On Sunday we went to church, went to a party for a neighbor, and then went to take friends to the airport. Unfortunately, their plane was delayed - so our afternoon was pretty much shot because of the uncertainty of the flight schedule. They don't have lights on the runway so the airport closes at 5pm. It is usually really dark here a few minutes after 6pm. On Monday, I went to teach school and Lei-Lei stayed with a friend. Alethia says "mommy teach" . The class is at the university and usually taught by Caleb. It was actually pretty fun. It sort of made me miss teaching a little bit. We did the same thing on Tuesday. On Tuesday night, me , Lei-Lei and Tuti (my friend who has been spending the night us). went to the downtown boardwalk area. It is usually filled with lots of junk to buy that is all lying on the ground right in Lei-Lei's view point. You can buy fried snacks - like fried bananas, fried things that are a dry version of sweet potatoes. Then you can drink this special drink called "seraba"which is made mostly of ginger and sweetened condensed milk. A's favorite thing to do is fish. They have plastic pools filled with plastic fishes that you can catch 10 fish for 10 cents. A is getting quite good. We then had dinner "chicken satay and lonton" - tiny pieces of grilled chicken with a yummy peanut sauce and rice that has been steamed extra, sticks together, and then cut in slices. Yummy with the peanut sauce. We were right on the water and all was well until the little street kids came begging for money - or for A's crackers- only to be chased away by the drink boy. I guess you try to get used to that. On Wednesday we had sort of a down day. A enjoyed playing in a water bucket and helping me get the weeds out of the "garden". When she was inside she enjoyed watching Miss Patty Cake DVD. She loves her songs. Then this afternoon I did some more teaching for the older children of our landlord. No real plans for tomorrow. Just can't wait to hug my hubby.

Cooking with What???

2008-08-25T23:45:00.004+08:00

You may ask what is this:

Would you believe me if I said ice cream? Well, actually it is the sea weed that I used to make ice cream. I have made 3 batches now and it keeps getting better and better. A friend who is staying out in the village on our island for a school project invited me to come and learn how to make different things with seaweed. There is this type of candy you can make called dodol, another jelly drink called cedrol, and then another one with coconut water, young coconut, pieces of sea weed, and drink syrup. I got the recipe for ice cream and brought it home and experimented. The sea weed was originally dark purple. You have to soak it in rice water (The water you rinse off your rice with) for two days. Then soak in Alum and it is ready to be used. Sea weed has some amazing help benefits and is often found in jelly type products. In ice cream it keeps it from becoming icey and I think it acts as an emulsifier too. If you blend the sea weed enough you can't even taste it is in there. Pretty amazing. I made it without the ice cream freezer. I don't think I am ready to open up my own business, but it was fun. My neighbors here sure have enjoyed my experiements. The first flavor was chocolate, then came vanilla with the vanilla bean, and then lastly mocha last night. Mocha was the best. I still have one more batch to work with.

I just have to share that I came across the neatest substitute for eggs the other day. I can't remember the website - but we have to thank the vegan community for this one.

Use 1 teaspoon ground flax seed and 1/4 cup water for 1 egg. I have made brownies and subsituted one of the eggs. They were yummy. I made lemon-poppyseed scones and used the subst for the egg in the recipe. Then today, I made zucchini bread and did two regular eggs and one flaxseed combo for the other egg. So far the results have been great. If you did this with cookie dough - you could eat the dough. I might try that soon.

Do you have any neat cooking substitutes? Or sea weed creations?

Happy Anniversary!

2008-08-21T23:47:00.002+08:00

Mom and Dad,
I just wanted to say Happy Anniversary to you. Let's see if I am 31, Terra is 35 so that means ya'll have been married for 36 years. Thanks Treena Lu for setting them up with a great place to go out to dinner. I ask mom if it was good - she said no, it was fantastic. Mom and Dad, we love you very much and thank you for the love you show each other and to your family. I hope you have at least 36 more years together. Enjoy the beach together this weekend!!!!!!

Love,
Tiff

pictures

2008-08-14T23:23:00.003+08:00

Alethia loved having her grandparents here.

They shared many laughs.

What has Lai Lai been up to?

2008-08-14T22:16:00.002+08:00

Alethia has been busy traveling this summer. At the end of June She went to Thailand for a big meeting. She loved going to her "school" each day and really enjoyed her friends, teachers, and music. Then her Grandpa and ShuSha (Caleb's parents) came for a visit. They were touring Asia but they did manage to make it out to our little island. Then they took us for a wonderful trip to Bali. We were sad to see them go. Miss you Gan-Pa and ShuSha.
I tried to post pictures but they didn't go through. So I will try again

Trying Again, Trying Again

2008-06-25T01:10:00.004+08:00

Okay - problem with video - not uploaded sorry

On my own time

2008-04-25T22:25:00.005+08:00

Things have been busy here on our little island. Caleb was in the capital city from Sunday to Thursday and brought back some wonderful cheeder cheese, zucchini, broccoli and bail peppers and lots of books for Alethia. We missed him but tried to fill our time with fun things. On Sunday night we had our usual worship with the other expat families here. Then on Monday afternoon we took a picnic supper to the beach and watched the sunset with the other american family here, who will be leaving us soon :-( . Remarkably the water was very clean which is rare and the tide was low sow the kids had fun splashing around. Alethia likes to get her sand toys and proclaim, "Alethia go beach, go beach" - On Tuesday I had a house full of 11 local people here from the family of my language helper. They tasted spaghetti for the first time, bread sticks, and carrot cake. Alethia loves to help me cook and she is pretty good at stirring up the ingredients. I just have to make sure she doesn't add some of her own. Then on Wednesday, some single ladies came to the house and taught me how to make "Ayam Sewir" - chicken in a unique sweet, tangy, garlic, and onion sauce with cashews and carrots. We completed the night by watching American Idol - I am a big Jason Castro, Brooke White, and David Cook fan. in that order. I hope I can post a picture of Alethia in a traditonal costum. One of my friends gave it to her and she has not wanted to wear it - but at the last wedding we went to it was her idea. So on her own time she wanted to don the cute and fancy outfit complete with bracelets, necklaces, and her hair up in a bun. She is in the picture with the niece of my language helper. They have fun exploring together and "talking the local baby language". Caleb along with some others found some unique ceramic stuff down in a cave when they were scuba diving. It has been the talk of the town and recently we got to meet the mayor of our city (He is like a star here) when he came to see for himself. Tiffany has also started an aerobics class for some of the ladies here on the second floor of our house. We are having fun.

Island Intrigue

2008-03-07T22:11:00.005+08:00

We have had a fun last couple of weeks. We went to a traditional wedding. They do things differently here. There is a ceremony usually in the bride's home and it is open to only family usually. Then later that day or a few days later there is a big party much like an American reception but a lot bigger. We got to have our picture made at both events. The next week a friend from another part of our country came to visit. No many people come to visit us because we are so far but she did and we had such a good time. I was a little "homesick" when she left.

Alethia is getting so big and and acts so grown up. She enjoys singing with stars as we watch American Idol complete with golf club as a microphone. She has gotten addicted to sweet tea (it is mostly water) and tv way too fast. She enjoys trying to ride her tricycle and being pushed in if around the house. She loves to push around her little baby too. You can carry on conversations with here and she is always willing to fill anyone's class with water from the water dispenser. She insists on having a normal place at the table and now wants big people size silverware too. She has even begun wanting to pick out her own clothes. The funniest things is that since our electricity goes out quickly, she even knows were the fuze box is and tries to use the broom, like her short mommy, to turn it back on. She has fallen in love with a book called "Four seasons for little people" we read it at least once a day but that it good because there is only the dry and rainy season here. She is so much fun.

I have been spending time with some great college girls. They have taught me a lot about the culture here and have been good friends. I also have a new house helper that has been a good change and help. I have taught her how to make banana bread, flour tortillas, french fries, southern sweet tea, how to wash dishes in hot water (we have to boil the water first). It is fun that she goes home and tries to make them herself.

Caleb continues to be the brave explorer and just recently ventured by boat to a nearby island to try out a long ride on his motorcycle. He loves to explore new areas and meet new folks. He has also taken up a new hobby of catching yummy and huge lobsters. Old Bay seasoning can really cook them up right and delicious with garlic butter.

Two Cuties

2008-02-25T23:50:00.003+08:00

I just couldn't resist taking this picture of the two cuties this morning. Alethia had just woken up and she still has good hair - Her mom on the other hand is a different story. Caleb was getting ready to go scuba diving and he is sure handsome... Alethia and I couldn't resist giving him a kiss

Where have we been? Catching Up

2008-02-22T00:11:00.004+08:00

I tried to publish pictures buy our connection is slow and will not let me - maybe at some point.

Well we are back on out little island now after a trip to North Carolina and Arkansas and Thailand. I just can't get to my blog because I spend so much time reading everyone else's. We had a wonderful time visiting great grandparents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. Then we headed back to our island with a stop over in Thailand to visit with some more Threatt's and to finish up some classes. It was wonderful to see old friends who are in similar situations and for Tiffany to finish up her class work. Caleb has a little bit more to go. Two girls from Appalachian and Two from Southeastern came and helped take care of Alethia and her friend Emily while we were in Thailand. Which was a huge prayer answered for us parents.

We came back to the island Jan.21 and celebrated Alethia's two-year birthday on Jan. 24. We had our landlord's children, my language helper, and some other western friends with a butterfly them. I made a butterfly cake and we each made butterflies from pipe cleaners.

Then about a week ago we bought a motorcycle. Alethia is riding one we had especially made for her. Just kidding g-parents it is a model in the store - but she sure did love it. Caleb and I got to go on a date on Feb.15 and we rode the motorcycle. It was a lot of fun not to mention the fact that I HAD to hold on tight and get real close to my hubby. The night before we hosted a Valentine's Party for some national friends - We had a blast. They really are some neat girls and I look forward to spending more time together with them.

Then our shipment came from America. Which we have been waiting on for several months. The things were packed in Oct. 2006. I am so glad that I have good pots, pans, silverware, and velvetta mac and cheese. Our kitchen cabinets got finished today so that is so exciting. I now have 3 drawers at my disposal... They are already filled to overflowing. We are still waiting on them to up our electricity from 900W to something that can comfortably run a coffee maker and an air conditioner all though not at the same time.. I would just like to cook rice and rice clothes at the same time... In His Timing - Oh, yeah we had an unwelcome addition. This is actually the second little critter of the rat variety that has come into the house - I am sure there will be more because the door upstairs that does lead outside is more than 2 inches from touching the floor. Par for the course here. Hope there are no invaders next week as we are having our first spend the night house guest.

On a really cool note - We would like to say hello to Josiah Roberts Coppenger that is just a little over a week old. Hope your parents (Jed and Melanie) are treating you right. We send our love from Smellville.

I Can't Believe It IS Butter

2007-11-29T00:33:00.000+08:00

WOW! We were actually able to get butter here yesterday. They haven't had butter here since our friends came to live here 3 years ago. We bought two, they bought two, and the Australians probably bought some too. The funny thing is, it has been two days since we got the butter and they still don't know how much it costs. Maybe by the time I post again we will know how much this precious gem really did costs. Now, they do have something here that is a far cry from butter, called "Blue Band" I have no earthly idea what Blue Band is made from - but it is yellow in color but has a unique aftertaste that is not like butter at all. However, the oil is not much better so I guess you have to pick your poison. But for the next few baking experiences we will have real butter. I guess that means I need to bake some bread. I will post a pic of Alethia just for your viewing pleasure from her Thanksgiving plate.

Truly a Black Friday

2007-11-24T22:16:00.001+08:00

The Coppenger Family had a truly Black Friday as they mourn the loss of a beloved daughter, sister, sister-in-law, aunt, great aunt, coworker and friend. She went home to be with Jesus on Friday and we all know that she was fully at peace. She was assured of her place in heaven and longed to be with our Savior, Jesus Christ. Being far away from family at this time is hard.

Aunt Anne (or technically my aunt-in-law) was such a neat lady. I first met her when she, Sharon, and Aunt Sue organized a bridal shower for me in Arkansas while Caleb was in Iraq. I could tell from the first time I met her she was a women who loved people and they sure did love her too. Then she, Aunt Sue, and Rebecca showed up again at the Rehearsal Dinner and did what only those ladies could by way of turning a fellowship hall into a room with romantic ambiance. (Complete with using the big fern to camoflage the basketball hoop!) Just before our first Christmas she sent me a box of ornaments for a new bride to start of her Christmas collection. WoW! I think it was shortly after my first Christmas as a Coppenger that we learned of her cancer. That began her battle and she battled it gracefully and full of courage. I got to talk to her about two weeks before she died and she was her same fun self.

What I remember most about Aunt Anne is her thoughtfulness. She cared enough to fly to Florida to be with Caleb, Alethia, and I at a very special time in our lives. She organized a rafting trip for us and a babysitter so we could spend some time meeting special folks in her life and enjoying nature. She would send cards and emails just to say hello. I still have pieces of a calendar she sent me because it reminded her of me and she wanted me to laugh. Even though we are 10,000 miles away she still sent us birthday presents complete with real cards using snail mail. She didn't forget Christmas or even Valentine's Day. She made Alelthia

this precious outfit and it fits her perfectly now. She even when to great links to have Caleb, Alethia and I in attendance at Chesed and Jeremy's wedding (Caleb's sister) this past August by having life size cardboard cutouts of us. But I have to say what impressed me most and touched my heart was when the only Happy Mother's Day card (besides the ones from Caleb and Alethia) was from Aunt Anne. How did she know?? You see Aunt Anne never was a biological mother but she had a mother's heart. She was one of those people who really gave you special gifts because she knew you and listened to you, not because she had to but because she wanted to. I know I am not the only one who was touched and can attest to her kindness.

Aunt Anne was blessed by God to be a blessing to all and she lived up to that. I join with the Coppenger family in saying good bye to a precious woman of God. Aunt Anne we will miss you.

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-22T01:49:00.000+08:00

Just finished making my Pecan Pie and deviled eggs. I think my sister calls them heavenly eggs. It is almost 2 am and we just lost power. Since Alethia didn't have her fan - she is awake and watching me type this post so I will try to keep it short. We are celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow with the only other American family on the island. Our oven is a few centimeters larger than theirs so we are cooking the turkey that they have provided and stuffed. I have had two interesting experiences this week. This first was going to the local university here and expecting to sit in on the lecture. Instead I was the one who gave the lecture. I thought I was just introducing myself but two hours later I was still talking in Indonesian and trying to explain the differences between America and here. First of all they don't have turkeys so we had to get ours from Jakarta. It just so happened a friend had to fly out for some medical stuff and brought one back on the plane - Yummy.... and what a taste of home. There was also a smell of home today... I went to the only place to buy vegetables. - the Wet Market. Wet because all the guts and rotten food is all over the floor. After the market I stop at one of the 3 places to buy take out that is edible for us westerners and smelled this aweful stinch. It smelled just like my dad when he would come in from the turkey house (Love you daddy) and it was coming from me - but where? I realized I had been walking in something that was some kind of gross because the bottom of my pants leg smelled horrible. Like dead turkeys or chickens and then I realized it was a disgusting but nevertheless a reminder of home. So eat lots of turkey and dressing tomorrow.

Alethia has improved her eating and helping habits she now helps with green beans and whatever else I put on the green table. She is especially fond of bread dough so I have to be quick when I am rolling it out.

Wow, It has been a long time

2007-08-25T00:27:00.000+08:00

Too much has happened this year to try to catch you up - So let's just start over. We are in South East Asia. Almost finishing up language school and getting ready to move to an even remote part of the area. You have to get there by boat. They do have an airport -but no airlines fly in there yet.

Today in Lei - Lei's world she got to make chocolate chip cookies with her mommy. We had fun and she really enjoyed licking the batter she was supposed to put in the pan. Thankfully I bought good eggs from the supermarket and not from the local market. Until next time....

Chillin in the Cafeteria

2006-09-21T03:05:00.000+08:00

Here is Lei- Lei when she is eating in the cafeteria. This picture was taken by one of her many "boyfriends" she has met in Richmond.