HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!

It is 2009 in Lithuania!!! We just came home from standing on a bridge outside in 21 degree weather to watch fireworks! Yes, fireworks! It is what happens every New Year's Eve. People shoot off fireworks everywhere and you can look in any direction and see the sky light up. People were everywhere on the streets. The sound of fireworks popping will go on for a couple hours.

This year Vilnius will celebrate its 1,000 year birthday and we are the Cultural City for Europe. There will be lots of celebrating in the city.

In the distance on the second picture you can see the TV tower is lit up. Several years ago this was done to get in the Guiness Book of World Records as the tallest Christmas tree. It seems that they were still a little short to break the record but it is nice to see each year.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Christmas Eve in Lithuania is a special family night. Most homes have a traditional meal of twelve items and no meat. There is fish and mushrooms and salads and poppyseed cookies and milk to be drank. (We ate our traditional taco meal.) It was very nice having Matt at home with us. (This year his trip home was a gift from the MK office and we are VERY THANKFUL!) We gave him some gifts to remember Lithuania when he is back at Evangel. His hat and two shirts will definitely let others know where he was for Christmas!

We were blessed with a big package of goodies from the Women's Ministries in Fennville, MI. They have adopted us for several years and blessed us in so many ways. This year a box of books, music, peanut brittle and many other things. It kind of them to think of us in such a special way.




We went to the McClung's (our fellow A/G missionaries) for Christmas Day dinner and enjoyed a delicious ham and all the extras. Our evening was spent playing games and we had a great time relaxing together.

We are blessed to be in Lithuania with friends and have Matt here with us too.

MATT IS HERE!!!!!!

Matt arrived for Christmas break! (Thankfully the ice storm that hit was the day before!) He will be home for 2 1/2 weeks and we are excited to have him here! Some of the Doan's family came to welcome him too. (Doug and Eva were there too.) Josh, in the white jacket, was Matt's closest friend while living here. (We are amazed at how much everyone grew up and were talking about how we remembered when they were all much shorter!) The Doan's boys all became great friends of ours over the years. Josh is home too and it is really special that Matt can be with his friends again. We are looking forward to making some good memories while he is home with us.

Pakilk

Last week for the first time the whole leadership team for Pakilk, ministry to women, was together for their planning meeting. It was really great! This is the team God has given to Bette Sue to help lead our women in the churches in Lithuania. Our desire is to encourage, strengthen, and serve the groups in our churches. We want to see more women learn about Jesus and reach out to their neighbors with the HOPE Jesus gives each one of them.

Kristina, Lija, (on the couch) Sveta, and Bette Sue are eager to see more happening with women in Lithuania. This is a fantastic team!!!!!!

THANKSGIVING

After celebrating Thanksgiving in the states two years in a row, it was good to be back in Lithuania to celebrate with our team once again. Our 7 kg. (15.4 lbs.) turkey cooked perfectly in the roaster we brought back from the states. This allowed our small oven to be free for cooking other things. We had plenty of food and pies to last the day. It was a time of resting (as you can see Bob doing this after we ate) and having fun together. We all played games and then tried to watch the Lions football game through the computer. It is amazing to think that we could actually watch a live football game on Thanksgiving day...that is, they got to watch when the computer cooperated and the signal stayed on :) It was a day of blessing in every way! We thank the Lord for His faithfulness and want to keep a heart of THANKS giving each day.

PAKILK

Our first leaders' training conference for PAKILK, which means Rise Up, was held in November. This is the new name for ministry to women in the Pentecostal Union churches. Bette Sue is directing this ministry with her leadership team. Mary Selzer came from Michigan to teach and did a fantastic job presenting topics on team leadership, vision statements, and why minister to women. She was loved by all!

There were 15 churches represented and 55 women attended. We were excited! Everything went smoothly and the women were eager to learn.

Mary had small group topics and many creative ideas came from the women as they talked together. The whole event was a success and a wonderful start for this ministry. We praise God for His faithfulness and know that there are more great things ahead.

Friends, Food, and Fun!

Bette Sue got to celebrate her birthday with Rocklettes at the Millsaps' home, indoor fireworks and games! The birthday cake is called Shakotis, which is a traditional cake here that is used for very special occasions. (The fireworks were sitting on top of the cake.) She was blessed with beautiful flowers, cards, and gifts. The whole celebration was fun from beginning to end. Friends greeted her at church and dropped by the house to help celebrate together. Birthdays are important in Lithuania and definitely a time to honor others in a variety of ways. This year just reminded us again of how blessed we are to live in Lithuania and have so many dear friends here that we count as family.

Bean Soup and Doughnuts

Yes, you read it correctly. BEAN SOUP and DOUGHNUTS! They are homemade yeast doughnuts rolled in powdered sugar and eaten with the soup. It is delicious! Ask any of our team members and you will know why this has become a Lithuanian Team tradition.

This has actually been a Baltes' family tradition for years and years. Bette Sue's family has eaten this as a family favorite and it has been passed on to the next generation now. (Since we don't have parsnips in Lithuania it is missing a bit of the full flavor in the soup but it is still tasty. Plus, most everyone really comes for the doughnuts!) Seems like everytime someone got married we had this as a "test" or "initiation" into the family. The big question was, "Will they eat the doughnuts with the soup or as a dessert?" Over 24 years ago Bob passed the test with flying colors as he picked up that first doughnut and ate it with his soup. He has been passing the test ever since!

This is one tradition we hope to continue on our Lithuanian team for years to come. The Millsaps and McClungs passed the test too and enjoy their doughnuts with the soup!

It's a Cat's Life

All summer we have watched this cat and her kittens play. Isn't that what summer is about? A time to play and relax. As we were reminded by our leadership recently, we all need to take time to relax and enjoy ourselves each day.

Looking back over the summer we had a great time with so many friends. It was so nice to have Justas and Indre in our home one evening. They got married while we were in the states and we had a good time hearing about their wedding and sharing in their joy.

We also spent an afternoon at the summer home of Robertas and Maria. This is Sharon McCammon's landlord. They invited us to their summer home and we sat outside for several hours just enoying the sunshine, fresh breezes, and delicious food that Maria cooked for us. (The bees even joined us as they sipped from our drinks and nibbled on our food. They were really everywhere this summer.)

It was a wonderful way to get to know each other more.

This is FUN!!!!!!!

The VanMeter family was here working on their Russian visas. Don't their kids look like they are having a great time in the leaves? Brenna, Mia, and Micah are SUPER MKS!!!!!!!!

New York Colors

OK, I couldn't resist sharing this picture with all of you. This is the home of Rory and Susan Wade in New York. Susan was in a kayak on the lake and took this picture to share with us. This is gorgeous and makes me want to be there in that kayak too! Enjoy :)

Surrounded by Fall

Here is the view from the windows around our home...

Isn't it great that God chose to give us such beauty to look at in the Fall?! He is so wonderful.

ALL DONE FOR THIS YEAR

This week Bob and some of the men from a couple churches put the metal on the third cabin and the last windows on the cafeteria/kitchen at camp. Everything is sealed up for the winter now. We are so thankful for all the work done this summer. Now we will wait, pray and seek God for what will be done in 2009.

More about Missouri Trip

Our niece, Jenny Smith, works with Chi Alpha at MSU in Springfield. She is with US Missions and in leadership in Chi Alpha and doing a great job for the Lord.

We were blessed to stay with Dianne Eklund, missionary friend from over here and from Michigan. Stopped in to see Terri Griswold in her office at Health Care Ministries. It was really great getting to see so many friends in Springfield!

Our dear friends all the way back from our Germany days before we were married, Jeff and Vixie Friedman and their family, live in the Springfield area now. They are AGWM missionaries to the Jewish people around the world.

These are only a few of all the friends and co-workers we were able to see while in the states. We count ourselves very blessed to have so many wonderful friends!

Fall is arriving

This beautiful tree sits outside our kitchen window. We are already enjoying the colorful changes in the leaves. Our weather has been cool. You would think that this would be the time of year that we would especially see the squirrels and chipmunks running around the area storing up their food for the winter. We are often asked if we have them here. Our answer has always been that we have never seen one here. In fact, when we have been home to itinerate, we have fun watching them run around everywhere. Well, I, Bette Sue, can now say that I have seen one of each of these furry critters in Lithuania. I was visiting a pet shop at the mall and there in a cage was a black squirrel running frantically back and forth. Another cage had a chipmunk looking around as well, but not quite as frantic.

Are you ready for this? The price posted on the cage was unbelievable. The squirrel cost 759.00 Litas (Lithuanian money) and the chipmunk was 1,590.00 Litas. How much is that in dollars?
Now this is a real bargain... one black squirrel for $322.98 and one cute chipmunk for $676.60!

Isn't that a deal?!!! It may make you want to gather up all those little critters around your house and send them to Lithuania to be sold! The thing is I am not sure who is going to buy them. Who really wants a squirrel or a chipmunk?

By the way, a skunk was for sale too. He was only $343.00. HMMM??? What will be next?

They do sell hairless cats there too and cute puppies and lots of birds.

At these rates, I don't think we will be seeing them running up and down this tree very often!

Evangel Friends

One thing about going to Evangel is that you can make friends that you will have for a lifetime.

Matt has the rare opportunity as an MK to go to EU with a friend from his childhood days. Sarah Gleason went to Kindergarten through third grade with Matt while we were pastoring at Trenton A/G. Her family lived around the corner and Matt and Sarah were together all the time. Now they are studying together again! Sarah is a Senior and we had fun spending some time with her while we were in Springfield.

It was so nice to be with Paula and Bill Nelson and their family again. Their daughters, Eva (not in the picture) and Natalie, are studying at Evangel this year. We also got to visit with Dennis and Marilyn Kemper. Marilyn, Paula, and Bette Sue were together as students in the "good 'ol days!"

These really are lifetime friends!

BETTE SUE WAS THERE TOO!

I, Bette Sue, was a student at Evangel too. I graduated in 1976, yes, 32 years ago! I went to my old room to check things out. This room was home to me for four years. Funny thing though, I thought it was room 328. Either someone switched the numbers around or my roommate and I both have forgotten the number! We both thought it was 328 since I called Beth this week to see what she remembered. Oh well...it was the right room no matter what the door said! They have remodeled but it was still our home and filled with lots of memories.








Our friend, Paula (MacDonald) Nelson, a fellow student way-back-then came along to check out her floor too. We had some good times in Spence Hall and got to walk down memory lane together. Paula's two daughters are at Evangel now too. So, we were having fun being together again.

MATT is at EVANGEL

We have been in the states to take our son, Matt, to Evangel University in Springfield, Missouri. Here he is in front on his new dorm/home on the first day he arrived. We had a week with him while he settled in and started his classes. Matt feels God has a plan for him in the area of Business Management. Please keep him in prayer as he takes this journey for his education. We all know that this is much more than a journey of learning through books. He is making new friends and experiencing changes in every area of his life that will affect him for years to come.

We had the opportunity to visit with friends that Bette Sue graduated with 32 years ago. We will post more pictures and things about that later.

Visit at a Summer House

We recently visited our friends at their summer house about 1 1/2 hours drive from Vilnius. They have a house that is in a small village (about 6-10 homes) surrounded by farmland. It was such a relaxing time with them.

Valerija, Audra's Mom, made us one of our favorite Lithuanian foods...blynai! This is a thin pancake similar to a crepe. The ones we had were filled with Varske (a dry Lithuanian cheese similar to cottage cheese pronounced var shkeh) and you can put sour cream and homemade jam on top. They were delicious!!!!!!

Most likely the milk came from these cows and the eggs came from these chickens. We did eat fresh Varske (in a solid cheese form) as well with homemade honey on top. It was mouth watering!!!!! The fresh milk tasted wonderful too. All the berries were picked from the nearby forest. Later we ate soup and salad. All of their ingredients were from the garden and forest too.

As we got ready to leave, Valerija's brother and his family came to visit. Everyone enjoys a day in the village to relax. Mindaugas and Audra (our former language teacher and dear friends) have worked hard to fix up their summer home. Eventually they plan to add running water. The outhouse is close by, so for now it is comfortable for them. Their children stay here with their grandmother for most of the summer. They can swim in a nearby lake and play with friends all day long.

We had a wonderful day in the village.

Sewers at Camp

The sewage system at camp was started in July with the team from Ohio working very hard. As you can see, it was a big job!


They also got the roof on the second cabin. One day the sewage will be fully connected to the cabins and the cafeteria.

The campers are excited about the possibility of sleeping in these great cabins! This is the second cabin and it is sealed up for winter now. We will need to purchase doors and windows too.