Praise- for a cold?

I wanted to share this praise with everyone back at home because for us it is a big one. Many of you know that one of our major fears about moving to Romania was Liam's respiratory problems. In fact it was the last thing really holding us back from the mission field until I heard something a much wiser missionary women from Cambodia (Yuko Williams) had said. She said "If you don't do missions work because of your children, then you limit your children to only experience a little bit of God". That finally sealed our decision to move to Romania with the boys. That didn't mean we were going unprepared though. We took enough medication and two nebulizer machines just to be proactive. For those of you who don't know- when Liam was one he ended up in the hospital with a severe respiratory problem. Over the next two years, every cold he got turned into asthma like symptoms and he need steroids and albuterol. Last year our pediatrician took an agressive approach and he was on inhaled steroids from the first cold of winter until the end of April. He did much better and only occasionally needed the albuterol. We were going to start him on the steroids this year in September but decided not to. He got his first major cold last week and we kept him home from school for several days. On Monday he was back to normal- no medications, no breathing treatments, no respiratory problems at all. What an answer to prayer. This is the first cold since he was one that has been just a "normal" cold. A little hot water with honey and lemon every day and he made it through. I just wanted to share this with you as so many of you have been praying about this and we thank you. - Karen & Maurice

Romanian Experience

This past Thursday I had a "Romanian Experience". This is an exspression that we have come up with here to explain when something happens to us that is truly unique to Romania. We do not pass judgement, it is not right or wrong, just different. So Thursday is the only day that we can pick up international packages from the post office. Melanie missed her opportunity to pick hers up last week and knew that she had more this week. Knowing that she would have an arm load of boxes, I offered to drive her(she does not drive in Romania). I parked behind the post office where I always do. We got back into the car and noticed that was a ticket under my windshield wiper, it was a parking ticket. There are several different types of police here and I do not completely understand the different jurisdictions and responsibilities, but I got this ticket from the community police. They are slightly different from the normal police. I got the ticket at 11:15 AM and I was ordered to appear at the Police station at 1:00 PM the same day. I was a bit confused for many reasons. I never saw any no parking signs. Signage is not as specific here as it is in the States. In many ways the most frustrating and exhausting part of a foreign culture is not understanding the "unwritten rules". So I talked to Roberta, the pastor here, and she explained to me where to go for my appearance. She said that she would be happy to go and translate for me. Keep in mind that my Romanian is greatly improving, I do not speak it perfectly, but I understand alot. I am pretty comfortable in most situations that I can communicate well enough to get by. When it comes to the police, legal, or governmental issues I always want a translator in these situations. So I stopped by her house on the way down to the police station to meet Roberta, but she was not back from a pastoral visit. I did not want to be late and I figured that the police would just want me to pay a fine. How hard could it be? I thought I can handle this.
You also must understand a little about about our car. In Romania you can tell where a car is from by simply looking at the license plate. Our car is registered to the Church of the Nazarene in Bucharest, so our plate says we are from Bucharest. Now Bucharest drivers have a famous reputation for being bad drivers. Also police are far more likely to ticket a Bucharest car up in this region of Romania. So I went down town and walked into the police station all by myself. The ticket says nothing about how much the fine will be, so I have no idea what to expect. I am taken into a large room with about eight male and two female officers who were sitting around smoking and drinking coffee. This was incrediblely intimidating for me as a foreigner. This is were I usually announce in Romanian that I only speak a little Romanian, but this time I decide that I am just going to go for it. So one policeman says you are the one from Bucharest parked behind the post office. I answered him that my car was from Bucharest but we lived here in Sighisoara. Another asked how long I have lived here, and I answered six months. He complimented me and said that I had learned Romanian very well. They then asked for my passport but I now have my VISA that allows us to stay one year. We have humanitarian VISAs for the work that we do here, and says that we are American. This has gotten Karen out of a ticket already once, just by itself alone. So the policeman that had my ticket and information did some paerwork while I made more small talk with the other officers. Eventually he made me sign something, told me something about where not to park again, and then said thank you and goodbye. He did not fine me at all! I do not know his reasons for letting me off, if it was because I was not actually from Bucharest, if it was the humanitarian VISA, or if it easier for him to let me off. It may have been a combination of factors, but I strongly feel that it was my willingness and ability to speak their language. I walked out obviously happy to not have to pay a fine, but also proud of my assimilation into the society here. It happens so slowly, that it is hard to even notice sometimes. Then an incident like this happens and I realize how far I have come in a short period of time. Maurice

Second and Third Time

Well it happened again. Roberta, the pastor of both the Nazarene Churches here, went away for a week and a half. She had to go to a conference in Switzerland, so she asked me to preach again. Must be no one complained loud enough to her last time I preached. I said yes, I would love to. So last Sunday evening I preached in the evening service in Tsigmandru and then this past Sunday in the morning service in Sighisoara. I preached the same sermon in both services. I am not as polished or professional as Roberta. She preaches every Sunday morning and evening, and she never does the same sermon twice on the same day. Oh well, I am just a substitute. It went very well though. I liken it to a public speaking course I took in college. I am very nervous preparing and anticipating the actual event, but once I am doing it I feel very at ease. It is a great privledge and responsibility, that I do not take lightly, to stand behind the pulpit and preach God's word. These three times I have preached have been a great blessing for me. Maurice

I Rode on a Caruta!!

Today was a really cool day for me. I went out to Tsigmandru at lunch time on the maxi taxi. It just so happens that Maurice was on his way to Marius and Anina's house in the village so I went long with them. Anina made beef snitzel which was delicious and mashed potatoes. Afterwards we went back to church for a while so Maurice and Marius could finish a section of flooring. When we were done we asked if Marius wanted a ride home. He said no- he had to go to his sister's barn.

Note- at this point in America I would have looked at the clock, thought about all I needed to do, and say "Okay, See you later". But- if there is one thing I have learned since being here is that wonderful blessings come when you take time for relationships. So- instead I said " Can we go to?".

We walked back to the barn through a whole lot of mud. It was a nice little Romanian barn with some very loud geese in the barnyard, a haystack with puppies on top, and a haymow full of loose hay- and it smelled like a barn. I tried to explain the smell to Maurice on the way home. It is not a good smell by any means but for me it is a very comfortable smell and reminded me of my dad's farm when I was little. When we had thoroughly explored the barn I asked if I could milk a cow. Sure- but not today. Cows get milked at 5:00, but another day I am more than welcome to. All the cows in the barn get milked by hand- about 20. There is a small milk tank to hold the milk cold but everyday the milk is put in cans, loaded on a horse and caruta (pronounced carutza) and taken another rode over to the milk truck.

When we were ready to leave we thought we would have to walk back through the mud but instead there was a horse and caruta waiting for us. I have always wondered what it was like to ride one. It looks so easy but without hay in the wagon it is a little more difficult. It was still great.

Lesson is: Take time to live life rather than rushing through it.

Cooking Romanian Style

Mel and I went to Doamna Maria's house today (Liana's Mama)for our next lesson in Romanian cooking. This time we make Cozonac and Lique. It was a long day of cooking but what a great experience. When we got there we had breakfast. This breakfast was very traditional. We had slanina (solid porc fat) with hot peppers and pickles. Doamna Maria also brought out her homemade rosehip jam and bread. After we had thoroughly relaxed and finished our breakfast the cooking began. Cozonac is similar to cinnamon swirl bread but instead has nuts and cocoa in it. Cozonac is the bread that is served on any special occasion in Romania and we were learning to make it from one of the best. We also made a desert called Lique. This is done by taking some of the Cozonac dough and layering it with gris, apples, and a sour cream mixture and baking it. We did all of this by hand (Mel has a few blisters). I will add a picture album so you can see some of what we did to make it.


We took time out for lunch which was a delicious homemade soup similar to Navy Bean soup. We also had a cold pasta dish which was macaroni with a little pesmet, ground walnuts, and cinnamon sprinkled on top. I am going to give you a simple recipe that we watched Tata make while we were there. I made it today and it is very good and very healthly. I am going to call it Tata's Winter Salad.

1/2 celery root- grated
4 carrots- pealed and grated
5 apples- pealed and grated

Squeeze the juice out of the grated ingredients. (This is great to drink)
Mix in a carton of natural yogurt (strawberry is good)and a heaping tablespoon or two of honey. Mix and eat.

Over the Holidays

Well I suddenly find myself with an hour alone. The boys are outside playing and Maurice and Melanie won't be back home for at least another hour. That means I actually have quiet time to write a blog. It has been quite a while I see but that doesn't mean there isn't anything to blog about. I guess I will work backwards from today

Cooking- Romanian Style
Last Friday Mel and I had the opportunity to start learning how to make traditional Romanian foods. I am sure you have heard me mention before Liana and Emil. Well Liana's mother worked in a several restaurants during the communist period. She is a fantastic cook. It has really been my desire to learn to cook the traditional Romanian food we have eaten here so that I can take that part of Romania back to America with me. On Friday we prepared Salata de Beoff. Previously I might have described it as potato salad but after making it I realize it is much more than potato salad. It is made from homemade mayonnaise, cooked chicken, cooked carrots, cooked potatoes, dill pickles, canned peas, an apple. Everything in the Salata is the same size (pea size) so Mel and I did a lot of chopping. Once it was finished Liana's mom helped us mold the salad by hand and and then decorate it. We decorated it with slices of pickled peppers, cooked egg whites, and carrots. It was delicious. What made the whole experience so special was the relationships we got to enjoy. When we first got to her house we sat and had coffee and homemade pastries. There was no cooking until we had relaxed and talked together. This Friday we are going to make Cozonac. A delicious Romanian bread for special occasions.

Ministry Starts Back Up

Over Christmas and New Years we had a break from ministries but last week they started up again. Maurice is back to doing flooring in Tsigmandru with Marius. This has been really great because he spends more time talking to Marius. Maurice gets to practice his Romanian and Marius is learning English. Maurice has even gone to his house twice for lunch. What a privilege. I have taken the boys there and they love it. It is as close to grandma's farm as they have had. There were pigs, chickens, rabbits, and even puppies.

Mamarute has also started back up. This semester we are doing 10 weeks on habitats around the world. This week was Africa. The kids have fun because we make a poster for each habitat. They color all the pictures and then we glue them on. They are getting to be quite creative. Please be in prayer for one of the little boys in this group. Adi's grandmother died around November and he has really been acting out since them. Please pray that we will know how to help him during this difficult and confusing time.

The Thursday after New Years we hosted an ice cream party for the teens from our church. we invited Liana and Emil's two boys- Lian and Andrei. They came a brought a couple of friends. we made banana splits and I am pretty sure none of them have ever had such a thing. Most kids liked it. We played a great game called "Pass the Pigs" that my sister-in-law sent me for Christmas. The teens loved it and now we play it at any teen gathering. We also had an open gym day at the Baragan school on Saturday to reconnect with the Baragan teens. It was a fun two hours (but I'll admit I was a little sore the next day). We also invited Lian and Adrei. Lian said that it was "forte frumos" meaning it was terrific.

Doama Lenuta (pronounced Lenutza)


If you recall from previous posts this is the elderly women we met during the food drive. We have been continuing our weekly visits to her. She enjoys talking about old traditions, questions about God, and telling stories from her childhood. She wants us to write her stories down and take them to America. When we get them all compiled we will put them on the blog to read. Please be in prayer for her as well. She had some heart problems over Christmas and needs a new pacemaker but can't afford it. She trusts God though to provide for her needs. After Christmas Roberta, Maurice, and I went to see her. She said she had questions about the church and would not have peace until she had the answers. She always asks me who is home with the boys. When I tell her that Maurice is- she just chuckles. She really gets a laugh when I tell her that he washes dishes and does laundry. I guess that is just not man's work here. She likes him anyway. She has promised to go to church in a couple weeks when Maurice is preaching but she is very nervous about all the stairs. Please be in prayer that she will safely get down the stairs when we take her to church.

New Years

Almost everything in town shut down for the first two days of the new year. That pretty much left us nothing to do except stay in our pajamas all day and watch "Pride and Prejudice" - TWICE. The first one was the one Melanie had which is the new version. After that we watched the 6 hour version I have. Maurice is probably a little sick of girl movies. In addition to that we had a visit from Lian and Andrei with their friend Roxi. They came with a rose and pine branch wrapped in tinsel. After some miscommunication I finally understood that Mel and I were just supposed to stand there. They sang us a song and tapped our shoulders with the flower. I am not sure what it means but it was fun.

Christmas Treat

For a Christmas treat over the holidays we all went to a swimming pool about 1/2 hour away. It was a great time and the water felt like bath water. It was a little expensive by Romanian standards but it was actually about the same as going to the movies in America. Nolan and Liam really loved it as they have only had a couple of opportunities to swim since we have been here.

Christmas Day

Christmas Day in Romania was very different than America but no less busy. The boys slept until 8:30 at which time Nolan exclaimed that Santa had found his presents and put them under the tree. We had breakfast before we even opened presents. I tell you this to contrast my American Christmas morning breakfast to my Romanian Christmas breakfast. In America we usually spend the night at my parents and when we wake up Christmas morning we have a huge breakfast- pancakes, homemade apple topping, egg omelet baked in the oven, donuts, oranges, bacon, etc.. Our breakfast this year was no less exciting although most of you will not think so. We all ate cereal. Not just any cereal. Our Christmas package from our church contained an 8 pack of little Kellogg's cereals. We each ate two of these and Melania finally opened her box of Lucky Charms she brought from America. This may not sound exciting to you but it was to us although I must say that there is a lot more sugar in American cereals. After that we opened presents. We had quite a variety from grandparents, aunts and uncles, and some we brought from America.

Around 12:30 we went to Roberta's house for Christmas dinner. Thanks to whoever sent me Raspberry jello I was able to make jello for dinner. I also made green bean casserole. You say- whats the big deal- a can of cream of mushroom soup, some Durkee french fried onions, and beans. Well it is not so easy when you have to make everything except the beans from scratch. I also made a banana cream pie which Maurice was nice enough to share his favorite pie with all of Roberta's guests. The banana cream pie was a real hit with the Romanian dinner guests. Dinner at Roberta's was like Thanksgiving dinner with turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and cranberry sauce. It tasted wonderful.

Now this should have been the end of our busy afternoon until church that night but at the end of Christmas caroling last night we got another invitation for Christmas dinner. Of course I said yes- it was a Romanian family and you don't turn down Romanian hospitality. I also wanted the experience of a Romanian Christmas. As soon as we had finished eating at Roberta's we headed to the Ludu house. Dinner was started with the traditional molded potato salad. I love that stuff. There was also homemade grape juice. After that was done and cleared from the table they brought out a piece of homemade sausage and sarmale with sour cream. Sarmale is the traditional food for any celebration in Romania. It was really good. This was followed by plates of homemade cozonac. This is also a traditional bread for Christmas. There were several varieties- nuts, poppy seeds, turkish delight, and raisins. They were delicious. Then Mrs Ludu served mint tea made with leaves from their garden. That was really good. I had brought a fruit salad and that was brought out at the end. It was definitely an American fruit salad- oranges, pineapple, bananas, whip cream, cut up strawberry marshmallows, and white marshmallows. The Ludu girls loved it.

We relaxed and enjoyed some wonderful conversation. Most of the Ludu girls speak English but Mr and Mrs Ludu do not. Instead of making the girls translate we tried our best to speak Romanian. It was a lot of fun. But alas- on to the next event. We had church in Sighisoara at 6:00 that night. The church was all lit with candles and was beautiful. Melanie and I sang along with Sandy Ludu and Ligia. We sang traditional Romanian Christmas songs along with a couple American Christmas carols - only in Romanian. The group of us that went caroling the night before also had a chance to sing. The Christmas story was told but also the analogy that Christ came to the world to be a light in the world. That is when the last advent candle was lit. At this point oranges were passed out. Each orange had a candle in it. Roberta talked about how we were also called to be a light in our world. Each candle was lit and it was simply beautiful.

Our day was not quite finished though. Mel took the boys home and put them to bed but Maurice and I went back to Roberta's house. We warmed up leftovers for one last Christmas meal. This gave us energy to do the mountain of dishes left from Christmas dinner. This was a real service to Roberta. About two 1/2 hours later we finally headed home and Christmas was over.