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.

Hello and Good-bye

Hello, Coats Family!

When Darrell and Susan Caldwell returned to the U.S. this past spring after twelve years of service with EMM, we were the only long-term EMM workers in Cambodia. Well, we're no longer alone! We are excited to introduce you to John and Debbie Coats and their boys, Micah(14) and Jesse (12). Join us in thanking God for the new relationship we are establishing with this EMM family!

Though new to EMM, the Coats family isn't new to Cambodia. They have been working here for about 17 years! They've had experience in medicine, agriculture, and church planting. Currently they are operating a tuberculosis clinic, providing mentoring and support to local church leaders, and running a character-shaping program for children. They've just recently joined EMM and we are excited to get to know them and help support each other in ministry.

John, Debbie, and Jesse live 3-4 hours outside of the city and Micah is boarding at his high school here in Phnom Penh. Because of the distance that separates us, we may not see them much more frequently than once a month, but we'll look forward to our times together.

Hello and Good-bye, Don and Keith!
Last weekend we had good opportunities to spend time with Skip and Carol Tobin and John and Debbie. We also had the honor of hosting/visiting with Don Sensenig, former long-term EMM missionary to Vietnam, and Keith Weaver, moderator of Lancaster Mennonite Conference. Don and Keith were in nearby Vietnam for some meetings between the Mennonite Church and the Vietnamese Government. Because they were close to Cambodia, they decided to swing over and it was a joy to have them with us for a few days. They were able to learn more of what EMM and MCC are doing here in Cambodia. Below, Keith and Don join in a time of prayer at our house.

Good-bye, Greta!

This morning, Bethany took Greta Kauffman, the one year EMM mission intern, to the airport. Greta has served and learned here in Cambodia for the past year. She is planning on going to medical school, so was interested in getting her feet wet in medical mission work. She helped Debbie Coats with some medical research and served in some clinics here in Phnom Penh. We regularly hosted Greta for supper once a week and we will miss her. Juliana and Kai have enjoyed having an "aunt" around. Below is a recent picture of Greta and our family.

Hello, care package!

We were excited to receive a care package this past week with all kinds of fun items for the kids and Lancaster County treats. (Thanks Ted and Ann!) Below Juliana and Kai are having fun with the box the goodies came in...

Most likely the highlight of this week will be Juliana's birthday. It's her golden one, so she'll be four on the fourth! We're plan to celebrate with a trip to a local playground area and, instead of cake, homemade whoopie pies. We plan to share these PA Dutch treats with Juliana's pre-school class as well as some neighbors and friends. Come on by and we'll share some with you too...

-Ryan