Dorm Retreat: To the Beach and Back Again!

The last weekend in February, our family had the pleasure of joining students from the Men's and Women's Dorms on the Annual Dorm Retreat. This time, the destination was the beach town of Sihanoukville, Kompong Saum Province. About forty Khmer and four Americans - us! - traveled on a rented tour bus about four hours to take a dip in the ocean, enjoy seafood-laden meals, play games, hear sharing from the Word, pray together, play on the beach, and visit a near-by rock formation/waterfall. On Saturday night, as the guest speaker shared and invited the students to consider placing their trust in Jesus Christ, two female students accepted the pastor's invitation! They were prayed for by the group, and we are excited by their steps of faith.

It was a lot of travel for a short weekend, but the journey there and back factored large in the whole experience. Our time on the bus included love song singing sessions (in a call/response style popular in Khmer Karaoke videos), rounds of worship music accompanied by guitar, guessing games and silly group games, and a Khmer comedy DVD. There were more stops (for snacks, potty, etc.) than the Americans thought necessary, who are used to trying to make time in "getting there." We reflected afterward that our Khmer friends live well the truth of the journey being more important than the destination. There were lots of opportunities en route to absorb Khmer language and culture, laugh, interact, learn more names, and join in the fun. We think the students are a great group of young people, and we really enjoyed the time together. Our kids did well, too (for the most part!). Sleeping with all four of us in one tiny room always has its challenges. By the time we arrived home Sunday night at 7 pm, we were exhausted! A full weekend, but we're looking forward to the retreat next year!

At one "pit stop," Kosal pretends to drive the bus

Singing a silly song Saturday evening

Juliana and her friend Sophea (So-PEE-a) play in the sand

Kai and Pengin by the beautiful, clear water

Our whole group, minus Sokheang, the cameraman (Sophal, WD Director, in white hat in middle)

- Bethany

Kids Walking and Talking...

Ah, the joy of having children! As any parent knows, there is something amazing about seeing one's children passing significant milestones. The biggest family news around here is that Kai's having fun learning how to walk around. Granted he sometimes looks like he's not quite sober as he stumbles around, but it's great fun to watch. We've praised his efforts so much that when he walks and we're not looking/praising, he does the cheering himself by saying something that is the equivalent of "Yea! I did it!" He's also becoming more adventourous in eating more "un-pureed big people food." He loves bread, bananas, oranges, and carrots. Below is a picture of the little guy before he had his face wiped after a messy meal.

Juliana continues to amaze us with the way her mind works. She is very observant and asks terrific questions. One of her favorite story books is one about the life of Job. As we read to her, her thoughful theological questions sometimes leave us with no other option but to say, "That's a great question Juliana, I'm not sure how to answer that..."

The way that Juliana articulates her love for her brother and her parents is also quite cute. During one meal she said, "I wanted to share my bread with 'bapes' (Kai's nickname, based on the word 'baby') because I love him and I want him to be my friend." Before going to bed one night, she said, "I love Daddy the best and Mommy the best and I don't want to get married because I want to stay with them." She's really thinking ahead isn't she? Below is a shot of the the little smirking girl. -Ryan

Fun with Parents/Grandparents-Part 3

Our vacation time together was a wonderful time of relaxing and connecting more with Mom and Dad/Maw-Maw and Paw-Paw.

Eating breakfast at the guesthouse where we stayed

Daddy and Juliana posing for a picture with a young crew of traditional "Apsara" dancers. We ate supper at a garden restaurant that also had a live show which included traditional Khmer music and dance.

And what would vacation in January be without some outdoor swimming! Here Kai and Paw-Paw enjoy splashing in the cool water.

Juliana's first experience in a jacuzzi was quite amusing. She laughed up a storm as she felt the jets shoot water against her legs. It was too funny!

At the close of Mom and Dad's time with us here in Cambodia, I asked them, "When people ask you how we are doing, what will you tell them?" After some thought they said that they will share that it seems we're adjusting well to life here. We were happy to hear this. As we continue to go through the "growing pains"of making Cambodia "home," it was helpful to see ourselves through Mom and Dad's eyes and to recognize the progress we've made in being ourselves, learners, and blessings here in this land.

-Ryan

Fun with Parents/Grandparents-Part 2

While Mom and Dad were here, we took a vacation trip six hours North to Siem Reap, the most popular tourist area in Cambodia. During one of the days there we took a day to walk around several of the ancient stone temples.



A smiling group. (Juliana was more interested in a new-found flower than seeing some old buildings...)

"Maw-maw", Juliana, and "Paw-paw." This was the first temple we saw and Juliana still had a good amount of energy. She, her brother and her Daddy only lasted half the day of hiking and sightseeing. They chose a nap instead of seeing the famous, "Angkor Wat."

Dad and Bethany in front of "Ankgor Wat," the temple complex that is displayed on the Cambodian flag. The day was fun, but tiring. The rest of the vacation was a bit more relaxing...

Fun with Parents/Grandparents-Part 1

The past several weeks have been a whirlwind of activity as we had a blast hosting Mom and Dad Freed. It was a real privilege and treat for us to have them here as they got to experience what life and ministry is like in Cambodia. This is the first of several blogs we'll post about our time together. This blog will feature various activities we did in Phnom Penh, our home city.

Mom and Dad enjoying good ol' Asian "Bubble Tea."

Dad, Mom, Bethany, and Les Frey at Toul Sleng Genocide Museum. (Les was in Cambodia for a short time with Global Disciples, doing some agricultural teaching.)

Dad gives Juliana a "Whoop-dee-doo" and gets lots of giggles in return.

Dad talks with Piseth after the Sunday service at Phnom Penh Mennonite Church. Piseth was the moderator for the service and translated for Dad during sharing/testimony time.

Stay tuned for the next blog within a few days...

New Look for '09 and Grandparent Glory

We've had a hard time keeping up with all the happenings around here lately, so before I get into the most current, most exciting news, I'm going to make you wait and start with some older news to catch you up. : ) (I guess you could always read bottom up, but that'd be cheating!)

On New Year's Day, Kai finally received his very first haircut!

This is how long his curly locks were before the cut...

This was right before the shearing.

Here we have the freshly-shorn boy (who cooperated for the most part, held by Daddy and distracted by Juliana's Cinderella movie) and the stylist. He looks very different!

Okay, so the big news around here is that we have visitors of the personal, familial variety! Mom and Dad Freed arrived at the airport around 11:30 pm Friday (our time) after traveling over 28 hours to get here. They reported uneventful flights, and so far, jet lag has not seemed to bother them too much. We're so grateful to be able to spend lots of time together, and are planning to travel on Friday to Siem Reap, home of the ancient temple complex of Angkor Wat, for a week of vacation.

"Maw-maw" and "Paw-paw" and grandchildren at an outdoor restaurant (Kai seems to be wondering where he can get a cool hat like Maw-maw's/Juliana's)

Paw-paw and Kai getting (re)aquainted. So far Kai is really enjoying his grandparents, which is a blessing and noteworthy, since he surely doesn't remember them from 9 months ago.

We were also very blessed, overwhelmed and thankful for the two, full suitcases of gifts, etc. that came along with them. We feel extremely loved and cared for! Thanks a million to all who contributed to the stash of goodies - we love you, too!

Checking out the gifts after Christmas came again

A special treat for all of us are/were Nana Umble's banana muffins, per Juliana's request. They made it fine all the way to Cambodia - mmmmmmm! (So did the sweet potato bread, Auntie Joanne!)

- Bethany

Christmas, etc.

Well, as I’m sure is the case for many families in the U.S., much has happened in the life of our family over the past several weeks.

One thing we did this year to make Christmas special here in Cambodia was singing some Christmas carols by candlelight after our suppers during the last two weeks before Christmas. Juliana now recognizes more carols than her two favorites: “Silent Night” and “Away in a Manger.”

Following are some snapshots of Christmas day and the days following...

We enjoyed receiving many Christmas cards from Church family and friends. We also had fun opening thoughtful gifts from our MST on Christmas day...


Juliana quickly leafs through one of her gifts: a Cinderella Storybook.

Here Kai poses with a puzzle he has thoroughly enjoyed chewing on.

Sandwiched in-between Christmas and the New Year, we enjoyed a few days at the beach. While many in the U.S. were experiencing cold weather, we traveled four hours to enjoy the water and the sun.

Juliana eats a snack on our rice-mat.

Bethany and Kai enjoy the warm waters. Kai loved his first ocean experience!

Our Christmas vacation time was very relaxing and refreshing. It felt like it did for us what a vacation is supposed to do. Life is busy and challenging, but we enter this new year excited to learn, grow, and be a blessing... -Ryan

Umble Holiday Snapshots

The following are a collection of recent pictures, giving you some snapshots into recent events during the holiday season here in Cambodia...

"Merry Christmas!" from a Cambodian Santa.

Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus (center) in Phnom Penh Mennonite Church's Christmas play. The church did a fantastic job of organizing a joyful Christmas celebration.

Bethany stands with her language teacher, Socheata, for a picture at Khmer School of Language's Christmas party.

We recently had the pleasure of hosting "Yey" and "Tah" (grandmother and grandfather) and their family. Because this family, as our first landlords, was the first Cambodian family that we interacted with on a regular basis, they will always have a special place in our hearts.

And of course, Kai turned the big "1" on December 17th. The little porker had a cake (appropriately) in the shape of a pig. Though not as sweet as American cake, it was yummy and Kai had no problem enjoying his first taste of dessert.

Juliana did a fantastic job playing a sheep as part of Hope School's Christmas Concert. We were impressed by how well she remembered the lyrics and music to the songs they sang. She's got the Umble musical gift.

Merry Christmas from us to you!

May you enjoy this season of celebrating our generous God,

and may we all grow more like Him, being people of generosity...

-Ryan

Birthdays All Around...

A very special event happened on 4 December 2008 (as we write the date here): Juliana Raine Umble turned the Big 4! We celebrated this once-in-a-lifetime, "golden" birthday by packing a picnic breakfast to eat at a new playground downtown. Mommy and Daddy took the day off language study to party, and we all had a good time. Enjoying the "suen-ko-maa" (playground) on her big day

After an afternoon of making whoopie pies to share at preschool, Mommy got tired of the never-ending process and dumped remaining batter in a cake pan for an impromtu whoopie cake - delicious with peanut butter icing! Juliana was tickled pink.
Here she shows the balloon gifts she received from Ginny, talented Korean missionary that lives next door to us with her family.

And just for fun, some pix of the younger brother who will have his own birthday in two days!

Proving that he knows what to do when the camera comes out, and sporting his "I need a haircut!" hairdo

- Bethany

A Pedagog and a Party

For those of you who wait for each new blog post, I apologize: I worked on the following post last week, saved it to finish later when a sleeping child awoke, and then the week got away from me and it never got posted. So, a week later...For the past two and a half months, we've been studying Khmer in a classroom setting, Ryan at the Institute of Foreign Languages, and I at the Khmer School of Language. I'm finally getting around to introducing you to Socheata, my language teacher. She's a student herself - after teaching at KSL in the morning, she studies Geography (to be a teacher) at the Royal University of Phnom Penh in the afternoon. She's young, full of energy and lots of fun. We have a good time together, and she's a good teacher.

Two Wednesdays ago, we had the privilege of being invited to a neighbor's birthday party. The birthday girl turned ONE, and it was quite the party! Lots of people, lots of good food ("Bine-hoy" - rice noodles eaten with fried pork, pineapples, cucumbers, etc., wrapped in lettuce and dipped in a yummy sauce, and delicious skewers of seasoned meat eaten with a spicy "salad"), lots of children's birthday party songs on karaoke, and then, lots of cake. Traditionally, Cambodians didn't celebrate birthdays (we've heard of people that don't really know when they were born, but consider themselves a year older on Khmer New Year), but the birthday thing has certainly caught on in recent years (at least in more well-off circles). It was very fun to hang out with the neighbors gathered there, and to learn to know some of them better.

In photos above, Ree-ZA (in green dress and party hat) checks out her cake after guests feasted, then admired the tower of cakes.