Headed to the Airport

As I type this, my husband is loading my suitcase in the car. My flight for Manila leaves in exactly 1 1/2 hours. From there I will fly on to Hong Kong tomorrow morning. I will be leading in another conference for our ladies there. I will be traveling with a friend from Bacolod, Des. Please keep us in your prayers as we travel and lead in a time of renewal for the group. Satan has been working overtime this week with so many distractions at the last minute, that I am expecting God to do something wonderful in the lives of these ladies. We will be studying on Relationships in the Christian Life, focusing on loving one another, encouraging one another and forgiving one another. Please pray for open minds and hearts.

One of those last minute "distractions" included Caleb busting his head open last night as I was packing! He was alone in his room (which was clean by the way) and somehow tripped over his carpet/rug and hit his head on the closet door. From what I can figure out, he hit it on one of the hinges and gashed it open. Of course, being a head injury, it bled like crazy for a few minutes but thankfully stopped by the time Wade and I could get a good look at it. It closed up very nicely, so we opted out of a trip to the ER this time. After a few Tylenol and an ice pack, Caleb was feeling much better! But he's got quite a knot on his head and I'm sure it will be quite sore tomorrow. Please say a special prayer for our Caleb - especially while Mommy's gone.

September means School!

September means school, so here's some pics of a typical day of homeschooling at the Allen house!

We start each day with our Bible reading after breakfast.

Once we are in the schoolroom, we start with the pledge...

...and prayer...

...and praise!

(As you can see, Caleb usually does more moving than he does singing!)

And then it's on to Language Arts.

Here Caleb is working on his "Yy" page for his alphabet book.

And Carly is busy working on math.

Carly and Caleb display one of their science projects...a weather vane.

Our Favorite Fruit

Recently, we were surprised to find our favorite fruit here in Legazpi. (Normally, we don't get it in our area very much.) It is rambutan, pronounced "rhom-boo-tahn." It is one of the exotic fruits of Southeast Asia and comes from the word "rambut", which is the Malay word for "hairy". Our kids affectionately refer to it as "porcupine fruit"!

In order to open a rambutan, you first poke through the outer skin with your fingernail or a knife. After that, the skin easily peels off and you can pop the fruit out.

The fruit somewhat resembles the texture of a grape, but with a different taste. It's a mild taste and hard to describe, but very delicious!

The fruit has a pit inside of it - that you don't want to eat. Around that pit is some sort of nutty covering. I'm not sure if you're actually supposed to eat the covering, but I usually do.

Anyway, it's hard to describe something so strange and different here in this format. So, I guess you just need to come to the Philippines and try it out for yourself!

For more info and pics of this wonderful, yet strange little fruit, see http://www.rambutan.com/.

Dolphin and Sea Lion Show

On September 17th, we had a unique opportunity to take the kids to Naga City and watch a traveling dolphin and sea lion show. We met our friends, the Hagens, there and had a fun day together.

The kids anxiously await the start of the show.

Carly and Mikayla

Dancing dolphins....

...and dancing Caleb!

Since our kids somewhat "stick out" in the crowd, they were picked several times as volunteers for the show. Here Carly gets a big smooch from one of the dolphins!



And Mikayla was chosen for a special ride around the pool!

After the show, we went back to the Hagen's place - which was on the way home from Naga - for some play time and visiting.

And nothing against dolphins and sea lions, but the REAL reason we went to Naga was to pick up some pizza from Pizza Hut!!!

Vacation with the Murphys - Part Two

Ok, if the truth be known, one of the highlights of going to Manila is the food! You see, when we are there we have choices such as Chili's, Outback Steakhouse, Tony Roma's, TGI Friday's, etc. Even fast food such as Burger King, Wendy's and Taco Bell are a real treat!! (Basically, anything other than McDonald's!)

One of the first places we went to eat with the Murphys was Chili's - mine and Connie's fav!! However, next to the Chili's is a new Krispy Kreme Donuts. The kids were pretty excited...especially when the HOT LIGHT was on!

While the kids were watching the donuts being made, one of the managers came up to us and asked if the kids would like a tour of the kitchen! Of course, they jumped at the chance to get a closer view.

"As long as we have to wear these goofy hair nets, let's make some goofy faces for the camera!"

Listening to the instructions to keep our hands behind our back and NOT TOUCH ANYTHING!

As the manager was talking to the kids, I caught Caleb - with hands still behind his back - wishing for a lick!

The kids even got a chance to make and decorate their own donuts...sprinkles and all!

Carly and Jamin

Caleb shows off his new hat

The next day, we all spent the day at the Mall of Asia, the 3rd largest mall in the world! Carly's been begging to go ice skating there for over a year, so this time, Mom agreed. (Caleb and Dad opted for the arcade instead.)

Carly has actually ice skated before, but she was 5 years old and doesn't remember it at all. So for all practical purposes, this was her first time. She did pretty good, although she never quite got to the point of letting go of either me or the wall.

Thank you, God, for good food, good fun and good friends!!

Vacation with the Murphys - Part One

In mid-September, we spent a few days in Manila with the Murphy family, celebrating our first 5 years together here in the Philippines. Since we live several islands apart, we don't get to spend time together very often. So it was quite a treat to take a few days off and vacation together.

The first night we were together, we took the kids to a mall to see a movie. While we were buying tickets, the kids found this interactive shadow thing and had a blast playing around with it.

For some more pics and video, see the Murphy's blog: http://lifeaccordingtojaminandjesse.blogspot.com/2007/09/our-trip-to-manila.html

We took a few minutes to pose for a picture while the kids were riding the carousel behind us.

The next several pics are from the Philippine Science Centrum. We weren't really sure what to expect there - since we'd never been - but we all ended up having a lot of fun! It was very interactive, which was great for the kids. They were running around all over the place and our biggest challenge was just trying to keep up with them!

Carly enjoyed messing with this fish!

No, we didn't stick Caleb in the corner because he was being bad!

Learning about our Digestive System

I don't know if you can understand everything Caleb is saying, but he's giving a demonstration of what happens during an earthquake.

Robert and Jesse trying to figure out a puzzle

The heat and humidity were just a little too much that day for this experiment to work very well, but if you look closely at Carly's hair, you can see it beginning to stand up.


I think of all the exhibits, we all enjoyed the mirror the most! We laughed until we cried! After a demo from an employee, the kids, and even the dads, were anxious to give it a try.

Robert and Jess

NOW we know why Caleb talks to much! He has two tongues!!

Reminiscing - Part Three

May 2006 - Bacolod City

May 2006 - Cebu

What goofballs!

Each year around our September anniversary, we try to get together with the Murphys for a few days of vacation (when we're all in country.) The next few pics are of our vacation in Manila last year.

Manila Bay

At the Mall of Asia

Toys R Us!!

Last November, we were hit with a huge typhoon here in Legazpi. (See blog archives for more info.) Long story short, we had a lot of damage and clean up in our house. Connie went way beyond the call of duty when she flew to Legazpi for a week to help us clean. It wasn't as much the physical help that meant so much as the moral support. Connie, I'm forever indebted to you!

These last two pics are from our field conference this past February. It's amazing how much these guys have grown up since we first arrived. It doesn't seem possible that it's been 5 years!

A personal note to Rob, Connie and the boys....

Words can't express how much you guys mean to us. We feel so blessed to be able to serve together with you here in this place. Only God knows what the next 5 years will bring. Our prayer is that our families will have many more great times together! We love you guys!

The Allens