Christmas Treats

Owen and I have had a great time making Christmas cookies this year. I have finally won my war with the margarine in this country (a whole different blog post) and was able to make the perfect cookies and frosting. We're on our third round of baking and decorating. We've given a lot of cookies to friends and neighbors and eaten a lot of cookies ourselves.
I was really excited to find candy canes at a specialty candy store downtown the other day. They were a bit expensive, but I bought one package to hang on my tree and the other package to eat. We were all really excited the other night after dinner to open a candy cane and have a peppermint treat. So our taste-buds were a bit surprised when we licked the candy only to taste a super sweet strawberry flavor. Owen was thrilled, but I have to admit Ryan and I were a bit disappointed. Oh well, they look beautiful on the tree and still add extra Christmas cheer.

Friends over for Dinner

We had our first dinner guests the other night. Serife is a friend of mine that works down the street. It was a great evening. We ate dinner, decorated Christmas cookies with the kids and shared the story of Christmas. They do not speak any English, so it was interesting at moments when we weren't quite getting our messages across, but overall we were really pleased with how well we were able to communicate and enjoy the evening together.

Ridvan was so proud of his Christmas cookies.

Surprise in the mail

Today our doorbell rang and it was the FedEx man. And this is the huge box he delivered.

Our church in Arlington sent us a box stuffed full of goodies from America! What a great Christmas surprise. Here are a few of our favorite things.

Thanks friends!

Celebrating Advent

The Advent Season is my favorite time of year. And it's quickly becoming Owen's favorite too. Since Owen was born, we've celebrated Advent at home by lighting candles, reading scripture and teaching Owen truths about Jesus. We've also been making ornaments that story through the Bible for Owen to hang on his Christmas Tree.

4 Truths about Jesus
Jesus is the Promised Messiah
Jesus is God's Son
Jesus is God with Us
Jesus is the King of the World

Outing with Daddy

A few days ago, while I was at a ladies tea, Ryan and Owen took a train adventure. Pretty much every mode of transportation is available in this city, including the train. Here are pics of their day.


This is how the day ended, a sign of a great adventure with Daddy.

Afternoon at the Barber

Owen was in desperate need of a haircut so Ryan took him to the barber down the street while I met with my language tutor. When Owen arrived he shook the barber's hand and said hello MertBey (Mr. Mert). MertBey had a little game for Owen to play with while he cut his hair. Mert seemed to really enjoy cutting Owen's hair and was convinced that Owen should be in a commercial or on TV here. When the boys got home I got the full report. My favorite part:
Mom- Owen, you look so handsome.
Owen- MertBey put gel in my hair so that it will stay down... Don't Touch It!

Owen reminded me not to touch his hair for the rest of the evening because it has gel in it. Sadly, there were a few tears when I finally had to wash his hair that night.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree!

Yeah! It's Christmas time and I am so excited. This year Owen is old enough to really get into all things Christmas and we have had a great time getting into the Christmas Spirit this week. For a country that doesn't believe in or celebrate Christmas, they sure have bought into the commercial aspects of the holiday. They have basically adopted all of the secular Christmas traditions and changed them to New Year decorations and celebrations. So we were able to find a Christmas tree and decorations this year with very little effort.
We spent all day Sunday after church decorating the tree and the house. We had the music playing and even skyped with our families so they could take part in the Christmas fun. Ikea had little trees for $5, so we got Owen a tree of his own to decorate.

Where to begin?Looking good! What else?Not done yet!
The finishing touches!
Perfect!And here's the Hammett Family Christmas Tree 2009!

A Visit to the Old City

and when I say old, I mean OLD. Think BC, not AD!
We took a boat ride to meet some friends in the tourist part of the city for the evening. We hadn't been there since we moved here, so it was fun to revisit these old mosques, churches and palaces. While we were there, we visited our favorite artist here and bought a piece for our house. We have 2 of his pieces already, but they have found a new home in my mom's living room :)
The highlight of the evening for Owen was feeding the birds simit off the edge of the boat. It's amazing how they rarely miss.

Showing his Muscles

So Owen's teachers pretty much freak out if I don't have at least 2 layers on the child at all times. When I pick him up from school, he is always wearing what I sent him in, plus the extra change of clothes. So I decided to buy him some undershirts to hopefully alleviate their stress about my child freezing to death inside the heated building in 60 degree weather. After roasting all morning at school, I let him run around the house the rest of the day in his "muscle shirt".

This photo reminds me of my brother when he was little. We always teased him by calling him Benny Boy. He would get so mad, he would make fists, show us his little popeye muscles and yell "Don't call me Benny Boy!" He looked just like this.

House Photos

So I realized I haven't posted pictures of our house now that it's furnished and homey. So here it is. We love our apartment and neighborhood and it really is feeling like home.

Our bedroom. We have a 9 ft. tall wardrobe that's not in the picture. They don't have closets here, so we have to use wardrobes instead. There is a small balcony off our room.

Our living room. I couldn't get Ryan to move for the picture :)
Our dining area. Off the dining area is a nice balcony.
The bathroom. Yes, our washer and dryer are both in the bathroom.
Owen's room
The kitchen