We went to the Marine Corp Ball!!!

Here's some of our marines, that protect the embassy. I'm standing next to Ty, the Detachment Commander. He and his wife Erica just moved here and we pretty much LOVE them. They're our new buds.

I ordered a dress almost 2 months ago online and it never arrived! 3 days before the ball, I put this together, borrowing both pieces from different friends. Had to alter the dress just a TOUCH and cut up a skirt for the material to cover up the low neckline of the dress. It all worked out!

It was fun to get all dressed up and see everyone outside of the embassy all fancied up. It always took a few seconds to recognize friends because everyone looked so different.

 These are some of Greg's buds from the embassy.

Tim and Tricia Boles! This is the family that just moved here and are Mormon! Woohoo!!! They are super nice and have really great kids. Scarlet and their daughter are basically soul mates and completely obsessed with each other. It's really sweet. They live just around the corner which is great. They've only been hear a week and a half!

This is Erica!!! Her husband's the DET Commander (above). They've only been here 3 weeks, but I think this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship :) I just LOVE this girl.

We got down on the dance floor.

I honestly had the time of my life. It was so fun dancing. It felt a bit like highschool prom. Dancing with Erica reminded me so much of dancing with Amy Hutcheson. It was just so much fun.

Managed the night with only one blister, so I did ok. Everyone's been talking about it since we arrived to Bishkek, so it was nice to finally go and see what it was about.

Thanksgiving's coming up and then CHRISTMAS!!!!! I am so excited for Christmas!!! I really wanna make a big deal of it, with Scarlet, and plan something everyday.

B folds his arms for prayers! It's pretty awesome! It's cute. He'll even just hear me say, "Ok, it's time to say prayer" and he'll just fold his arms and smile. So cute. It doesn't last long, but all the same- it makes me happy. I think I mentioned before, but Scarlet says prayers on her own now and has for months. Sometimes they're a little short, but what she does pray for, is completely from her head and I love it. "Thank you that we can go to the park. Thank you I got to play with friends today" things like that, that we've never told her to say- she'll just say. I love that she understands.

Brighton has been so cute and wanting to try on all of Scarlet's dress up clothes. They're all girly, but I think it's so cute. He'll bring her Little Red Riding Hood dress to me and tell me he wants it on and he gets so excited when I dress him in it. We need some boy clothes for this one!

He's talking more and more and more and it's been so much fun.

He throws fits. Big time! He'll ask for chocolate and I say no and he falls to the ground crying like he's dying. It used to really bother me and it was hard not to give in, but I'm getting over it and realizing what it is- just a fit, not emotional peril.

He's really into putting huge tupperware dishes over his head. It's really cute. Scarlet used to do the same thing.

He's officially switched to one nap. Which would be amazing if he would sleep more than 90 minutes. But he usually doesn't, which just really stinks. But there doesn't seem to be any way around it. HOWEVER. More and more Scarlet is taking NAPS AT THE SAME TIME!!! BOOYAH!!!! That is pure heaven.

Scarlet just keeps getting older everyday. It's been such a delight to watch her grow! I don't know if I mentioned that when I got really sick, a month or so ago, Scarlet was very attentive and kept bringing me water and blankets and was just so sweet! I loved it! It really blew me away! She really loves us and it's really sweet. She's been so good at following directions and sharing with Brighton when he wants something in her hands. She's really a good sister! She still talks about her old friends, but not as much. Same with her "sister baby".

She's been getting really scared at night. I don't like it. I hate to leave her in there, knowing she's frightened or she just sleeps in our bed, which STINKS and then nobody sleeps. I think we'll just have to wait for this phase to end. But I REMEMBER being scared at night. FOR REAL. The hand under the bed, scary characters from CAREBEARS, all kinds of things. I really would get scared at night! I don't want her to feel that way! I always explain to her, that whatever looks scary in her room, just looks different because the lights are darker, but she still stays scared. It's hard.

Life has been crazy and nonstop. I basically had a meltdown the other night, but I guess it was a good thing. It made me realize I need to stop trying to do so much on my own. Living here has just been far more difficult than expected, in endless ways. I need to cut back. Go into "new baby mode". Paper plates. Disposable diapers. Basically creating a lot of waste to save my sanity. Making beyond simple meals. That one will be hard- I honestly don't know if I can do that, but I will try. No more sides unless it only takes 2 minutes of prep. I'm having our sitter come twice a week. It's 5 hours total. That's got to make a difference, right? No matter HOW I spend those 5 hours, it's just going to help release some tension. Right? And I need to hire someone to clean the house. I had someone do it, off and on the last 2 months, but it's never been a regular thing. I need it to be permanent. I just need more help. It's clear I cannot do this on my own and I basically need to keep my life as simple as I can.

It's been weeks since we've been in the mountains. We have been CRAVING it!!!! We've just been so busy! Hopefully in a few weeks??? It will most definitely be cold! Maybe we can break out our snowshoes in a month! THAT would be exciting!!! 

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