These are a few of my favorite things...
1. Wearing a scarf in the tropics- In October we went on a trip to Bromo, the coldest place in Indonesia. We took the train for 12 hours to the other end of the island, went on a quick river rafting trip under bat infested waterfalls, then traveled up the mountains. The next morning, we woke up at 3:00am to go see the sunrise over the volcanoes. We took a jeep up the switchbacks and parked behind the hundreds of jeeps that had beat us to the mountain top. Our driver took us to a special spot with a perfect view. It was freezing at 4:00 in the morning, but the view was absolutely worth it. The rest of the morning we did a little hiking, enjoying the fact that we got to wear an extra layer in the tropics.
2. Crossing things off my "bucket list"- On that same trip to Surabaya, our driver Jojo had much knowledge on the city and all its features. Somehow on our drive down the mountain the topic of coffee came up, and then of course came the topic of Kopi Luwak, the coffee beans that come from the poop of a cat-like animal. Usually this coffee is extremely expensive, running from $100 to $600 dollars per pound. Jojo had the hook up with a place that had it for only $10 for a small pot. So, I made the rest of my non-coffee-drinking friends come along on this special occassion to witness me cross something off the things off my "bucket list." The coffee was pretty good, nothing too spectacular. The process was pretty cool and the experience was unforgettable. 
2. A taste of home- Pastor Mark and Laurie (from my home church in Flagstaff) came to visit in November. They came to lead a staff retreat for the BAIS teachers, and to see exactly what it is that Charity and I do here in the tropics. It was such a sweet time of fellowship, encouraging conversation, laughter and good, solid teaching. They were such a blessing to our staff, and fit it perfectly here in our community. Both Mark and Laurie spoke in chapel and devotions and got to spend time with various families around the city. It was so cool to have them here. It felt like all of Grace was getting to see me in my new home doing what I love. I am so thankful for Grace, for Mark and Laurie and for all of you back home who encourage and pray for me while I am here.
3. Coffee- There is a coffee place here in Bandung that has been around for almost 80 years. They are said to have a special way of roasting their beans. I know that Pastor Mark shares my appreciation and addiction to the legal addictive stimulant, so I thought it would be a perfect place to visit while they were here. Turns out the process includes hundreds of bags of coffee sitting in a storage room for 5-8 years. I didn't quite understand all the details, but being around all that coffee was totally worth it:) 
4. Ideas that work- Social Studies and Science are both my worst subjects. I have very little knowledge and am totally intimidated by all the information I am supposed pass on to my students in a manner that helps it stick in their heads. So you can imagine how excited a successful moment in a Social Studies unit would make me. For the end of our Middle Ages Unit, I had each student choose one of the important people we talked about in our readings. They then had to research and prepare answers to various interview questions about their character's background and role throughout the Middle Ages. On the last day of the unit, the students dressed up as the character they chose and were the special guests on "Middle Ages Morning with ME and JY," a 4th grade talkshow:) They did such a great job. Their costumes were awesome and they really got into their characters. I had a blast playing the talkshow host along with my ESL student Joo Young. That afternoon we celebrated the end of the unit, and their acheivement of their I Love to Read Month class goal of 15,000 pages, by eating pizza and watching Princess Bride at my house. It was a great day in the 4th grade:)
5. Indonesian Thanksgiving- On Thanksgiving Day the BAIS staff did a progressive dinner in Kota Baru. Our house was in charge of appetizers. It was a fun day of cooking and our Stuffed Mushrooms, tomato, basil and mozzarella, 7 Layer Dip, and eggrolls were a total success. It was a wonderful day full of fellowship, laughing and telling stories. The next day a group of us along with some BAIS parents went up to Garut to a Sunda Resort where we did some interesting teambuilding, ate some spicy Sunda food, played with water buffaloes and went on a scavenger hunt in the local kampung. It was so good to take a break from the bubble, spend some time in worship and fellowship, and be reminded of why I love the people in this country. The scavenger hunt was the best part, forcing us to get out there and practice our Indonesian, pour into the lives of strangers by asking them for their signature, if we can hold their baby or fry some kerupuk in their kitchen:) Not quite like the cobra, but an unforgettable Thanksgiving for sure.
6. A Water Buffalo named Mona- During our trip to Garut, I met Mona, a baby water buffalo who lived at Mulih ke Desa. She was so cute and we bonded while I gave her a bath after teambuilding/playing in the mud. It was definitely one of the coolest things I have ever done. I asked my roommates if we could get one...a water buffalo...but we don't have a yard, or a rice paddy for it to help plow. Maybe next year:)
7. Cats (yeah, I know...)- So, one morning as we were getting ready to leave for school there was a visitor waiting outside our garage door. It was a tiny kitten with the cutest little face you've ever seen. Jennie and I (surprisingly) were ready to take the poor little orphan in as our own, but Emily and Emma were very much against it...only because they were strong enough to resist being swayed by the adorable blue eyes and that tiny little meow. We agreed that if the cat was still there when we got home from school, we would talk again about keeping it. I was the first one home that afternoon and there it was just waiting for me. The Crowthers came by (a family who lives around the corner during the week) and I told them our story and they agreed to take the kitten and care for it and said I could be an "auntie." I fed the little guy and took care of him on the weekends while they were away. Unfortunately for Tom (that's the cat's name), he had ringworm, so they had to give it away. Kind of a sad story I guess, but little Tom helped me gain a greater appreciation for felines.
8. Christmas Cheer- The thought of staying here for Christmas was a lot easier to think about in September when it was so far away, but as the season got closer and I was reminded of all the traditions I was missing out on, all the things that have in the past made Christmas such a memorable time, the homesickness set in quickly. Fortunately, there were a lot of things to look forward to this holiday season. Our cookie baking marathon/house decorating night was a success, I even made Peanut Butter Fudge. We then had several families and friends over to help us eat all the cookies. We had the first Christmas Program at our new campus. The kids were so cute and I got to sing in the Hallelujah Chorus. Our Staff Christmas Party was a sweet time of fellowship, carol singing and eating Mexican food! I got some great packages from family and friends that included some of the things that put me in the Christmas spirit including marshmallows, potpouri, fake snow and the movie Elf:) One of the traditions I missed out on this year was the annual picture of my sisters and I with Santa. Fortunately, plastic, dancing, and Indonesian Santas were plentiful. So family, you may take your pick of pictures to stick in the albu
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