Holidays in Kazakhstan!

It was a strange Christmas. People here do not celebrate Christmas so it was different for everything to be open on Christmas day and everyone going about their normal business. We celebrated with good friends here and still had a great time though! We had a lot of fun but the best part of it all was enjoying the true meaning behind Christmas together!

Christmas Eve with Tara, Salta, Tammy, Carrie and Tiffany...

Our beautiful dinner table and friends :)

A group picture in front of the tree (before I fell running to get into the picture)
Tiffany, Tara, Vic, Tammy, Salta and Carrie
Roommate Shot!

Precious Friends...
Tiff and I
Tammy reading Carrie the Cajun night before Christmas...
Tara made gravy - it will was prett good - just a little thick. This is Carrie trying to pour it!
Tara serving the delicious food!
Vic and Carrie :)
TONS of AMAZING food!

Tammy's Christmas outfit...get it!

Christmas Day! Christmas is not celebrated here so Salta had never had a Christmas before. We really wanted to give her the full experience and she loved it! Ok - we ALL loved it!! We left Santa cookies and milk, couldn't sleep all night, and woke up at the crack of dawn! Salta had to work at 8 so we all woke up at 5:45 (I went to bed around 3 or 330) and Santa had come!! He filled our stockings, our pillowcases (a tradition in my family), and left us gifts under the tree! Fun huh?? haha.

Salta leaving cookies and milk...

Santa ate them!!! (Or I dumped the milk down the drain and put the cookies back in the tin) I felt like a mom with her little children!

Santa came!!

Roomates at 6 in the morning on Christmas day!

Tara, Salta and I look rough this early - but we have our pillow cases! We kind of look like theives I guess...haha!We went over to the Horsley's to celebrate Christmas with our teammates and other friends!

Dauren and I - the guy that was in the bad accident a while ago. He is improving and is currently living with Matt and Jonna.

Finally...this is my WHOLE team -minus Sarah (one of the Horlsey's daughters). Jessica will also be arriving soon but for now - this is my team :)

This is my winter coat - I feel like an eskimo but it is warm!! I never thought I'd be wearing one of these...but here I am! It is COLD here!

Picture update :)

I am so sorry I have not updated my blog recently! It has been kind of a hectic month or two!!!

I have been working with an organization called KELT (Kazakhstan English Language Theater). I will be living with the director of KELT - Jessica. She gets here on January 9th. KELT usually puts on big performances but due to the director not being in country - they did a lot of small things this semester. At the end of the semester, we had a small party for some of the KELT members.

Ainura and Abzal...

Our fun picture :)

Ainura, Selbi and I...

For Thanksgiving - the Horsleys always have a BIG group over to celebrate. We had 5 turkeys and TONS of food. It was a great time!! This is most of the group that was there! We played games, sang songs, talked, made new friends and ate A LOT!

My friend, Zulya and I :)

This was the first snow - we played in it!

Dad is a great provider! I have made some great friends in the past few months - Carrie and Tiffany. I met them where I learn Russian and we hit it off. We LAUGH a lot, watch a lot of movies and have great conversation!! They have been such a blessing and encouragement!

Vic, Carrie, Tiffany, Oksana

We made Christmas cookies on one of our Christmas movie marathon evenings :)

I made mexican one night!!! Tiffany, Alma, Feruza, Salta, Vic and Alua!

My friend Raushan and I - we played at an arcade all day :)

Alua and Feruza! These two girls have become great friends of mine - especially Alua. We hang out at least once a week and she is great. We have been able to have sp. conversation once or twice but there is not a whole lot of interest there. We have a lot of fun together and each time we get together - I feel like we get closer!

Tara and I had one of our studnets, Fatima, from Bishkek come to visit us!

We went to Medeo - where we climbed close to 900 stairs and then climbed back down!

The view at the top was way worth the climbing :)

Vic, Fatima and Tara at the top!

Fatima, Vic and Tara

Feruza, Tiffany, Carrie, Vic, Alua and Alma

Tammy and I did a book club this semester and at the end of the semester they came over and made some traditioal Kazakh food for us!

Alua and her best friend Dinara! We always goof off and have fun together!

Please lift up my friend Alua - she is so special to me and I want her to know Him more than anything!