Carnaval

It is Carnaval time in Portugal!!

The Carnaval celebrations started on Friday and ran through Tuesday. Friday the girls school had a HUGE party. All the kids were dressed up, similar to Halloween but nothing scary, and they had a parade around the school. They threw confetti, had tons of food and had a blast playing with friends! We didn't realize that parents were welcome to join the party so we didn't get pictures of them parading- oh well now we know for next year:)

Bria and her friend, Beatriz
Cinderella- so excited to go to school!
Sahara and Tomas

Christmas is really over now...

We are now officially done with Christmas... Just after Thanksgiving my parents mailed us two Christmas packages- in plenty of time to receive them and have the gifts safely under the tree for Christmas morning. And since all of the other packages that anyone has sent have taken 2 weeks or less to arrive, they thought they were getting them sent early. So we anxiously waited the packages but Christmas came and went with our them, and then January came and went with no sign. Mom and Dad sent another package... it made it to us in record time but still no Christmas packages. I gave up. I really really hate for things to be lost and since I had no control over finding the missing packages... I just gave up.

And on the same day I had made myself give up- February 9th 2009:) I came home from school and Mark handed me one of the two missing packages. Yep, that's right!

I carefully inspected the box- the address was right, postage was paid... and then what's this? A sticker and stamp from SLOVAKIA! What!?! The ,oh so well educated in geography, post worked in the U.S. had coded our packages to go to Slovakia- not Portugal. Even thought my parents had wisely labeled in black sharpie PORTUAL on the package.

Now I know you are wondering about package #2... that same day it was delivered back to the return address, my Uncle's house in Washington State. Why? I have no idea! But my Uncle got it resent and it arrived in exactly a week- again waiting at my house when I arrived home from school.

So now I am enjoying some yummy chocolate, Mark summer sausage and the girls new sweaters, candy and books!

And I beg all of my American friends to not allow their children to grow up not knowing the difference between Slovakia and Portugal and while your at it explain to them that Africa is a huge continent not a country! Go ahead, be bold and tell them about the whole big world out there! Someday, some one's Christmas benefit because of it:)

And now Christmas is finally over for the Portugal Bustrums...

Make a Smilebox slideshow

V-Day

Valentine's Day is not a big holiday here. Most people have heard of it but it isn't really celebrated. Here it is called Dia dos Namorados- which kind of means Day of Boyfriends. I thought that was really funny the first time I saw it.
The girls had a lot of fun taking some Valentine's card to their friends at school. And Sahara's friend, Tomas, made her a card too. I think his Dad lived for the States for a while so he knew the tradition of giving cards.
On Saturday Bria has a birthday party for a friend at school. It was at the Pharmacy Museum. I know sounds really strange but it was a lot of fun. They museum had a little show/program for the kids. They did the mentos in coke trick and all those kinds of things and then the kids helped make some goopy stuff that they all got to take home.
The museum is downtown and right next to it is an amazing look out point over the river. You can see one of the big bridges across the river and the Cristo Rei statue. So Mark I and walked down there while the kids were entertained and enjoyed seeing the view and taking a few pictures.
After the party we did a crazy Saturday IKEA run to pick up the bookshelf that I need Mark's help to get and then ended up at the mall next to IKEA for dinner and Starbucks. It was a fun day of just enjoying being together!!!

Make a Smilebox photobook

Language School Update

Many of you have asked about the our new language schools are going to I thought I would give an update.
Mark and I both started new schools this month. We had been studying together, which we really enjoyed, but it was time for some changes so we have different schools now. We were a little sad to get separated but it is going to be good for us in the long run. Mark's strength has been writing and mine talking and I think we compensated for each other a lot so now we have to really hold our own in all the areas.
Now Monday through Thursday Mark goes to the University of Lisboa for 4 hours of class. He has a wide variety of Nationalities in his class and has met lots of new people. On Tuesday and Thursday afternoons he works with one of our old language teachers, Rui. Mark really enjoys this time and it gives him lots of time to practice talking.
I go on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays to a small school that is just around the corner from our house. Really just around the corner, I walk and it takes about 5 minutes. I am really enjoying my class, it is just me and the teacher so I am really getting challenged! I do all the reading, talking, listening and writing. Last week she mostly just reviewed with me, trying to figure out what I already knew and what my strengths and weaknesses are... last week was easy. So I was thinking I would just be hanging out doing some good review- great. Let me tell ya, my teacher is bringing it this week. Seriously making my head spin but in a good way! I am learning so much. On Thursday afternoons on of our old teachers from our last school comes to the house to work with me as well. We just started last week and I really enjoyed the 3 hours. Being in the house brought up new topics and I was very comfortable and able to really practice talking.
So we continue to enjoy this process of learning Portuguese. There are times that are tough, challenging and when it feels like we will never get good at this language. But for the most part we know why we are doing this, and the more people we get to know, the most lostness we encounter... the more motivated we are... to learn this language, to share the Message!

Sporting

Remember that big green and yellow soccer stadium that we could see out the window of our hotel room when we first arrived in Portugal? Well, we got to go see a soccer game there last night, it was AWESOME! It was between 2 of the 3 main teams that are here in Portugal. Sporting (home team) and Porto (which is another large city here in Portugal in the North of the country.) Both good teams and very fun to watch play. It was a heated rivalry but our team, Sporting, took them down good with a solid 4-1 WIN!

Bria with her friend, Brooks, beside her. She kept careful track of the score- and was serious about rules. I think she is going to be a referee:)

Sahara was cheering away the whole game, she was trying to learn the Portuguese cheers that everyone around us were yelling.

And Tirza, she liked the soccer ball (as she calls the game.) But Sporting's mascot is a lion and so she was a little nervous about the lion. She was sure that a real one was going to appear at any minute, during half time she was especially nervous and it didn't help that they kept playing a roar over the loud speaker:)

Mark and I were so excited to get to go to a game! It was a blast! Another perk of where we live, tons of live soccer games to go to! Here are a couple of videos for all you soccer lovers out there- I thought you would enjoy hearing the roar of the game. (David the videos are especially for you.)

WE Learn cont...

We had such a great time seeing old friends and making new one during to our trip to Germany. We went with 4 other families from our team, got to see friends from FPO, get to know some fun friends that we had really just met one time and I got to see one of my college roommates, very fun! I also got to get to know Courtney. (see picture below) Our families have know each other for a long time. It's a little crazy that Courtney and I were hanging out together in Germany, just a little way away from Arizona:) We thought our Moms would enjoy seeing a picture of us together!