POLAND 365 :: WEEKS 25 & 26

June 24 - Karis' last day of Zerowka (kindergarten)
They had a fun little ceremony where the kids sang
songs and each had a line to speak in front of the
entire class and parents (Karis practiced her line
and was so proud of herself, despite being very
nervous, and we are so proud of her too! She
has come a long way in her language learning).
The kids also got little diplomas and a gift as an
end of the year reward. Here is Karis with her
teacher after the ceremony.

June 25 - Over this past year we have built some really
neat friendships with people from all over the world
through the international church. This day, we had the
joy of celebrating the new baby of our sweet friend
Renee. She has been an amazing encouragement to
Jenny since arriving in Poland and we are thankful for
her and had were honored to help them welcome their
firstborn son into the world with a cute baby shower.
And how fun is this cake, the cakes made here are
usually filled with things, like fruit, nuts or other types
of filling, this one had mango, grapes and other fruits
(some of which you can see on top of the cake as well).

June 26 - While partnering with the international church is an amazing
experience and so rewarding, we're also finding after our first year here
that it's filled with many goodbyes as well. People are always coming
and going in Poznan, especially if they are from somewhere else. Steve
has the opportunity to pour into the lives of many different young men
in the church here he is pictured with one of these guys. Michiel has also
been a fun friend for our entire family and we are sad to see him go.

June 27 - After Steve's language class he came upon a memorial commemorating
the 1956 uprising here in Poznan. Both the president of Poland and Hungary
were in attendance for the ceremony. 

June 28 - Learning to be more domestic by the day...not
as good as Polish bread, but it was delicious none the less!

June 29 - Isaac presenting his teachers with
flowers as he finishes up his classes this week.
It's common to bring flowers for teachers at
the end of the year and honor them for all they
have done for your child during the school year.
One thing we are really excited about is that
next year he will have the same teachers, which
we think will be helpful for his continued
transition to Poland.

June 30 - We have started going to the park
in the mornings to get our wiggles out and
this particular day we ran into one of Karis'
classmates...she was happy to see a friend
from her school and jumped right into
speaking Polish like the flip of a coin. We
continue to be amazed at her language
learning and how she can so easily switch
back and forth in the appropriate context.

July 1 - One final goodbye to Michiel. Steven (pictured in middle) also works
at PIC and is someone who's become a good friend of ours over this past year.
Never a dull moment when the three of these guys were together! Praying God
does a mighty work through you Michiel as you head back to Holland. 

July 2 - One of the many parks near our home that we like
to visit on a day off. The kids love all the nature, trails
and parks that are available for climbing and adventure.

July 3 - Our kids have become expert puzzle masters! They especially enjoy
puzzles of the world (like maps) and enjoy the joy of accomplishing the puzzle
and then pointing out all the places they have been or where certain friends
and family members live. 

July 4 - We decided to celebrate America's Independence
holiday here in Poland today, so we invited over several
American friends we have here in Poznan and enjoyed
a fun afternoon of BBQ and sparklers. Not the same
as being in America for the 4th of July but holidays
we are used to celebrating are getting easier for us
as we spend them apart from family and friends. 

July 5 - Karis has a language tutor that comes to our home two days a week
for the summer so she continues to learn vocabulary and using the Polish she
already knows. Her tutor is fun and plays games, bakes and does other fun
things with her to help her learn. Isaac enjoys watching but still doesn't want
to participate. But we are happy when he wants to just listen and hoping he
continues to be comfortable with this new language in time. 

July 6 - First lose tooth for our oldest. I have
reflected about how many milestones all of
our children have experienced over the past
year and can not believe it really! Not to
mention how flexible they have all had to be
in the transition from America to life in
Poland, we are so thankful for all that God
is doing in their lives in the midst of so
many life changes at such a young age. 

July 7 - Playdates with classmates from school
are in order for the summer and we are enjoying
the flexibility of being able to meet up with
different friends and their families when possible.
Of course, since the Euro cup is taking place,
all the kids are obsessed with soccer. Also,
The mom of this young man has encouraged me
so much in my language learning process and
decided we needed to talk in Polish for part of
our time together. Afterward she said she was
so impressed with how much I've learned in
just a year, which was encouraging to hear as
sometimes it feels like I'm never learning
(Jenny here) but slowly but surely this
language is becoming more familiar!