The Akin Family

He is a he

2009-12-03T21:28:00.000-08:00

Many of you may know by now that we are expecting our 2nd baby around the middle of May. Ever since I got pregnant I had a gut feeling that it was another boy, and sure enough at 12 weeks our doctor made a guess that it was indeed a boy. I have been referring to him as a boy since then. Well, I know everyone says thats too early to tell but at my appointment Wednesday, I was 15 1/2 weeks the doctor did not even have to tell me, it was very obvious it was another baby boy! So "he" is officially a he.

We are so excited for this little guy and are ecstatic that Levi will have a brother to play with so close in age. He has been obsessed with new born babies lately. I was holding a friends new born the other day and he came up and said "Ohhhh". He may just love this baby too much, in that we will have to watch the smothering!

This has been a great pregnancy so far, 16 weeks today! I have felt great and we are blessed to be able to receive an ultrasound at every appointment, it really puts our minds at ease about the baby. I am so excited to back to America in just two weeks, but I will sure miss my doctor here and the care I have received.

In other news we have been quarantined to the house. The boys have had the flu, getting better everyday thank goodness. We only have two weeks before we leave Turkey, it seems like we have a lot to do as each day is flying by with increasing speed. Hope to get a post in every now and then.

Brothers!

We've gotten to live here for 2 years

2009-11-24T12:55:00.000-08:00

I went to the Christmas pazaar yesterday, essentially a big craft fair put on for the international women of Istanbul. The pazaar is great but one of my favorite parts was riding the boat to the European side and taking in the beauty of this city. So often we are in such a hurry, racing to get to our destination, bumping into everyone along the way, we forget to take in the amazing view. Our 2 years here have not come without difficulties or homesickness but I must admit a rush of bittersweet memories has rushed over me lately. The people here are so hospitable and we have made many friendships we will never forget. As our time draws to a close I am trusting that the Lord brought us here for a reason and for now he wants us back in America. We will continue to pray for this city and praise him for the time he has given us in this incredible place.

We did have a birthday party for him...

2009-11-18T11:36:00.000-08:00

I just haven't blogged about it : /

But we did, about a month ago have a get together with some good friends here to celebrate this big boy's one year. We had a great time and I think Levi was more excited about the other kiddos to play with than gifts. The party did start around 6, and he is usually really happy to be in bed by 7 so he pulled a late nighter and we all had a blast. He wasn't thrilled with the cake, somewhat anti-climatic for a mommy and daddy who wanted him to shove it in his face, oh well! I made a football cake, which I almost thought I would have to give up on because the sides kept falling apart! Luckily my mom gave me a few pointers and with a few first layers of thin, melted icing, I was able to finish off the job. It was so much fun and we look forward to many more birthdays with this precious boy!

Playing with some new goodies!

I put that cake on his face, that is how uninterested he was.

Yes, there are six candles, at the time I thought the traditionally 1 looked really lonely on the very large cake.

I can't believe...

2009-10-20T12:09:00.000-07:00

Our baby is 1 today. A year ago today I was in the Acibadem hospital here in Turkey, hopefully resting, but probably anxiously waiting to take my precious bundle home. The labor/delivery went so well and we were so blessed to welcome our little man right around 7 o'clock. My mom was able to be here for the delivery, we still talk about how it was such a precious time to be together. I am pretty sure she fell head over heels in love with Istanbul.

These past 12 months have been such an amazing learning experience for the both of us. Way too many precious moments to count and lots of laughter in between. Levi is above and beyond what we could have ever asked for in a son. He is sweet, kind, very adaptable, and loves people. He also has a great sense of humor. I know that some people probably would say you can't see that in a 1 yr old, but we sure can. We are so excited about all the new things he is learning, he is now cruising/pulling up on things, playing catch, and throwing anything and everything. I have known since I was a little girl that I have wanted to be a mommy but Levi has made that role mean so much more to me than I could have ever imagined. We praise the Lord for a safe and healthy 12 months with him, and pray that he continues to grow and mature into Godly man.

We love you Levi and we are so glad the Lord gave you to us on October 20th, 2008!

Here are some memories of our first year with him, they definitely aren't in great order especially since our computer crashed :( And, is it terrible I am too tired its hard for me to really tell exactly which month is which?

I know we are biased but we sure think he's wonderful!

The picture above is from his birthday party, it was a little late, thus the no smile and binki-in-mouth. I will give more details on that soon!

Love all of you and thank you so much for all of your love and support for Levi and for us this past year!

Are you ready for some football?

2009-10-19T11:06:00.000-07:00

We are starting up another football season for the Stallions, and before our opening game we were blessed to have a group of coaches from Virginia come over here and work with the team for a camp. Everyday they practiced and practiced, taking a break for lunch at our house. Levi loved hangin' with all his favorite buddies.

Tim was super pleased with how the camp turned and we were so excited to see the team learn so much from these coaches.

We also got a visit from Southeastern, who brought their basketball team to play some of the local colleges/clubs here.

Levi and I had a great time watching our favorite player.

And, Uncle Nate came to stay since he was also playing for the team. Needless to say Levi loved hanging out with his uncle and followed him all around the house.

Both groups were a lot of fun and I think the football team loved having them here. We are so grateful they traveled all this way.

We finally had the first game last week. It was scheduled for one week and got changed at least 4x! Really frustrating for a coach, and therefore a coach's wife : )

But we finally had it.

Observations:

1. It was hot, beautiful, not a cloud in the sky kind of day, but a little warm

2. I kept telling the coach to put this tough guy in, I don't think he heard me.

3. Football jerseys smell yucky while washing them a week before a game.

4. The coach looked super cute, and very professional.

5. We were so proud of all the players. They played so well and have improved a lot.

6. Referees can be unfair.

7. Do not place large bottles of water around angry coaches.

8. Had SO much fun with all my buddies on the sidelines. Including the Waters girls, Rindy, and Nilgun.

9. We'll get em' next time ; )

Our next game is this weekend, Sunday we think so far....

We will keep you posted!

Maybe we'll have Levi give you a call.

Veggie Lover

2009-09-07T06:23:00.000-07:00

I am cherishing a lot of moments these days with this little one. I am especially enjoying the fact that he got excited about a cucumber the other day for an afternoon snack.

And he ate the whole thing...

Summer Recap and a New Critter

2009-08-29T03:48:00.000-07:00

Hey there!

Once again its been awhile so I thought I may just do a quick recap of our Summer up to this point. Unfortunately Summer is coming to an end. But I will say we are looking forward to/already enjoying cooler temperatures. We are very proud of ourselves having made it through the hottest parts with no AC. We bought an AC for our last apartment but sold it to the new tenants.

Well by now a lot of you have heard about our vacation to Africa. It was amazing and it was a trip we will never forget. We went to Nairobi to see Paul, Kari, and Micah (Tim's brother, our sister-in-law, and our nephew) and we also got to meet up with Tim's parents! It was so refreshing to spend time with family and we are so blessed to have been able to go.

We have a ton of pics so I'll spare you all ba-jillion of them and just include some favorites.

Some highlights of the trip included

-Spending much needed time with family
-Watching Levi and Micah play together, these boys are already best buds and Micah is too cute!
-Speaking of Micah, getting to watch him dance! That boy has moves!
-Watching Tim and Paul be together
-Going on the Safari, it was surreal almost how beautiful everything was and how close the animals were
-Riding in a Hot Air Balloon! I never thought I would do this!
-Riding in the Safari truck, talking and catching up with everyone
-Kazuri Beads!! Kari talks about this on her blog, these are so pretty and we spent a lot of time in their stores. I have so many cute earrings, bracelets, and necklaces now, the problem is just picking one out each morning!
-Hearing English spoken, and eating more "American" type food
-Shopping at all the great stores in Nairobi
-Enjoying the landscape and people of Kenya, and just enjoying a new country all together
-Going down to the center where Paul and Kari used to work, it was so fun to meet all their friends
-Catching up with some old friends
-Going to the Tea Farm, it was so beautiful!
-Getting to meet Josephine
-Spending time with family, I said that already, but again, it was great, and I thought it should round out the list

We are so grateful that Paul and Kari let us come and so glad Danny and Charlotte could be there too.

Okay, I know its a lot, but it was so hard to choose, there are too many favorites!!

We also got a visit from Uncle Gregory!! It was so great to see him and we loved taking him around the city. I was also glad that he got some rest from all that backpacking! Thanks so much for taking the time to see us!

The rest of our days have been filled with lots of preparation and practice for the new football season, on Tim's part. Getting some new friends settled in, visiting with local friends whenever we can, and chasing after this new critter!

We have a RAT.....

A Rug Rat that is...

Every time I turn around he is eating our shoes, eating the fuzz from our rug, and trying to play with any electronic device/cord he can get his hands on. I am convinced he has a large fuzz ball from the carpet in his tummy and since I had to wrestle him to try to get some fuzz out of his mouth the other day, with the struggle ending with him swallowing it!

Oh well! I guess thats the stage we are in with this active crawler!

We took some "9 month" really 10 month pictures the other day with a friend. We think he is awful cute!

His face is totally smushed in this picture, and I don't think he knows what to think, its obvious I love my kisses!

Hope to be back soon!!

Beach Bums

2009-06-21T23:02:00.000-07:00

We went to the Beach last week with Seyfo and his family to their beach house in Saroz. Tim says it is close to Greece, I'll have to look for myself on a map.

Anyways, it was so wonderful to get out of the city for awhile. Instead of seeing concrete we drove for 3 hrs with this as our scenery.

Saroz was so beautiful. It reminded me of when we used to drive to Kansas to see my sister, with a big body of water next to it. The complex where the beach house was so cute, and quiet. It was so nice to hear the trees moving with the wind, and the birds chirping in the morning.

Seyfo's mom was an incredible hostess. We ate like kings the entire time. We ate almost every meal outside on the balcony, one of my favorite things to do. Every morning we would have Turkish breakfast which consists usually of olives, cheese, tomatoes, cucumbers, tea, and bread. I have to admit that I think I would choose that over any American breakfast from now on. She is an amazing cook, we were so blessed to be able to spend time with her and Seyfo's aunt. They love Levi and he was never at a loss for someone to hold him and love on him.

We did some of my favorite things while we were there. Of course we went to the beach everyday. The water was so cold but the last day was really hot and it felt great. Levi loved the beach and he had his own personal baby pool which worked out great since he wanted to eat all the rocks on the beach. We also went to an amazing bazaar. I got a cute little dress for about 2 dollars! Yeah! Tim and I also got a good chance to rest and slept any chance we could get when Levi was sleeping. It was so refreshing.

We had a blast getting to know their family better, relaxing, swimming and eating wonderful food. We hope that this is the first trip of many others this summer.

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Where have we been?

2009-06-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

About 3 weeks ago we got the dreaded gray screen and flashing question mark on our desktop which=our hard drive was done! Emails, documents, and the worst part all of our pictures GONE! I have really enjoy our MacBook and would recommend it to anyone, but man it was a PAIN to get it fixed here and find someone who would take our AppleCare. We finally got our computer back last Friday and our Internet would not work either! Luckily I have a computer friendly brother who helped us get back online. I am not sure if we are finally in the clear, but I thought I would at least blog while I still can.

This past few weeks have not been without some action. One week I almost flooded the entire apartment while trying to fix our water valve on our toilet. Water was literally pouring full blast out of the wall. I thought Levi and I would have to start treading and eventually swim out of the apartment from the balcony. I was also scared because Tim was on the European side, about an hour away, for a meeting. Luckily we have the best neighbor ever and he helped me clean up that mess! He is pictured here with Levi, we have been having tea with him occasionally, which is wonderful language practice.

Our neighbor also just yesterday helped Tim get out of the elevator which he was stuck in for about 30 mins with two of his players. We really do not know what we would do without him.

Summer has arrived, well at least to me anyways, here in Turkey. There is not a cloud in the sky, and I love it!! The produce is so delicious right now and I can't wait for the peaches to really start showing up. Levi and I have been hanging out in the baby pool on our balcony and I am not sure who likes it more at this point ; ) We are glad he is getting used to the water because this week we get to go to the beach with some local friends for 3 days. I can't wait to see my little water baby in action! No crawling yet, although he looks like he is getting close.

Tim is gearing up for another season with tryouts both this past week and the week before. He is excited about the new players that we will be adding to the Stallions family next season.

We missed yall!

Its good to be back!

Of course I wouldn't leave you without some recent pictures of our cutie!

Levi and Daddy at the last football game

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My how far we've come!

2009-05-06T10:50:00.000-07:00

Levi has changed in a lot of ways in the past 6 months,

and in some ways, not so much

The past 6 months have flown by and we can't believe our little man has gotten so big. He is now eating solids and sitting up like a champ! He loves his toy football (much to his Daddy's delight) and loves a good game of peek-a-boo. He brings so much joy to our lives. We are so blessed to have such a sweet, content, and happy boy. Okay, enough gushing ; )

Here are a few of our favorites from a recent 6 month photo shoot.

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24

2009-03-25T22:22:00.000-07:00

Despite the fact that we look 16 in this picture, we did celebrate this man's 24th birthday yesterday.

And thanks to my Mom and my Dad (who by the way is always so sweet to gather everything, get it ready to send and mail us goodies from the States) the house was dressed in full B-day attire. Complete with a table cloth, Birthday banner, and plates and napkins.

We had chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, Yum! And opened presents. Who needs gifts when there is wrapping paper?

We even got the courage later on in the day to venture to the European side and brave the traffic to go to Johnny Rockets.

It was Levi's first time in a high chair, and boy his Mommy and Daddy were sure smitten with how cute he looked.

The waiter even gave him his very own Johnny Rockets hat.

We all had a great day celebrating but have to admit we were tuckered out at the end of the day.

By the way, this came just in time to celebrate his birthday,

It's his all time favorite. And the first one in Turkey. We had a great time last Friday celebrating Tim's birthday with the team and introducing them to his favorite American restaurant. And we all took witness as he took down a Chocolate Molten Cake all by himself, which you know for Tim is a feat.

Happy Birthday Babe!! You're my best friend, a wonderful father, teacher, and coach. I am so proud of you and everyday look up to you more and more! Love you!

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New Apartment

2009-03-19T22:53:00.000-07:00

I just looked over my previous blog and saw I forgot to post pictures of the new apartment! Here it is! We got it fully furnished and are really happy with all the new paint and floors.

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Hi, it's me again.

2009-03-18T11:27:00.000-07:00

I know I have been missing. I hadn't really felt that guilty about the way I have neglected our blog until recently. Today I was looking at my sisters blog and saw a link to mine in which the most recent post was "3 months!". The fact that Levi is 2 days away from being 5 months reminded me again that I am a terrible blogger. I love looking at other peoples blogs and know I do not do my part to contribute to the blogging world. I feel like I do one of these posts every couple of months in which I try to make excuses for my negligence and this blog is no different. We are tired. Each and every day lately has been packed to the minute it seems. Each night I feel like we are rushing to get Levi bathed and I am scurrying around trying to find something to make for dinner, which recently has been around 8:00. A few weeks ago we started apartment hunting and were blessed to find one that suited all of our needs and we love it! (Pictures later on in this post) In the midst of all of that we have looked, signed and moved in in the course of a few weeks. We have internet now, it took awhile, and I still have some rooms that need to be organized. Pictures of their status will not be shared, but it feels so good to be settled again.

In other news the Stallions added a new member to the football team this past game, # 7, and I have to admit he is really cute in his uniform ; ) None other than Coach Tim Akin helped the Stallions take their first victory with a score of 20-0. He would never tell you but he scored 2 Touchdowns!! We were all so proud of the team, they did awesome! It was a cold day but filled with lots of fun with the small crowd of friends that came to cheer them on. I am so excited to see how they do in the next couple of games. I got some video of the game but unfortunately always forgot to start the camera during the really exciting moments. Sorry Akin brothers.

Levi is still growin, growin, growin. He now can easily roll both ways and loves to put everything in his mouth. We are so proud of him; especially the way he handled the move and all of the places we have taken him lately.

Hopefully it won't be so long before there is another post, but I am not making any promises : /

Levi thinks his Daddy is hilarious

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Some footage of the game. Tim is #7 in the back and has the hand off to #11

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Levi and his girlfriends

3 months

2009-02-02T05:15:00.001-08:00

We had our 3 month check up a few weeks ago with no shots! Yeah!! Levi weighed in at 15.9 lbs, our Doctor informed us he is in the 90th percentile for both height and weight. Just this week he woke us up around 2:30 crying and he had rolled over on his back. We quickly got over our grumpiness of waking up at 2:30 am and were very proud of our little man, he is such a big boy! Here are a few recent pics

Lounging in his Boppy and sucking on his hands, a new favorite hobby

Looking a lot like his Daddy

I love that chubby wrist!

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Johnny Rockets

2009-02-02T04:51:00.000-08:00

Tim and I finally ventured over the the European side and went to a huge mall to eat at Johnny Rockets. I think the mall was at least five stories high, and we both felt like big time foreigners as our jaws dropped and we just stood in the middle gawking at all the stores. Trust me, you would be doing the same if you saw this

Kinda felt like the small town ppl coming to the big city

We enjoyed Johnny Rockets and had a few conclusions,

Burger: Really Good, a lot better than Num Num's, another burger joint that has ridiculous prices

Music: Great, and a ton of fun, a great mix of oldies and we even chose a few with our personal juke box on our table. Levi loved it so much he got up on the table and danced

Atmosphere: Really fun, like you are walking into an old diner, and it was nice to be able to speak English to the waiters.

Milkshake: Average, it was good I think because I hadn't had anything Oreo or Cookies and Cream most of the time we have been in Turkey, but a Steak n' Shake milkshake would have probably won the taste test if I had one next to me.

Drinks: Really Good, they have fountain drinks, which is a huge treat here, and syrups like vanilla and cherry you can add to your drink

Overall, worth the trip and the traffic, we didn't think the prices were to shabby either. We both agreed we would visit again.
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Levi is napping more than hour, thank goodness! Any tips on this or is he just getting to that stage where he is taking an "afternoon nap"?

I should be doing this,

I like the sorting and putting it in the washer part, its the folding and putting away part that I don't like so much. Anyone else have this problem??

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A few pics for the Grandparents

2009-01-08T02:57:00.000-08:00

I know some of these might all look the same after while, but since they don't get to see him much I have to keep GiGi and Papa, and Lottie and Grandanny updated!

"Mom! Enough with the pictures!"

A little full after eating

He has really discovered his hands this week

Enjoying his Christmas presents

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Buds

2009-01-08T02:48:00.000-08:00

This is Selah and Levi. Selah loves Levi and Levi doesn't appreciate her enough right now, but we know he is going to love her too. There are a number of reasons why we know these two are going to be great buds in the next couple of months. First of all, we always get to hear how excited she is to see baby Levi and we've heard she prays for him often (what a great friend!). Second, Selah always looks out for Levi's best interest, carefully looking for his binki whenever needed and presenting a toy if he starts to get fussy. And last, how could anyone resist that adorable red hair?! What more could a little guy ask for in a pal? I can't wait to see as Levi becomes more active how much fun these two will have! Thanks for coming to see us Selah!!

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One year ago today....

2009-01-07T09:57:00.001-08:00

We packed up 8, 50 lb suitcases and my Mom and Dad drove us to the airport to fly to Turkey, our new home, for 2 years.

(A few pictures from the day we left (before the crying)

I remember telling people before we left what we were doing and where we would be living for awhile and them giving me kind of that "Your crazy, but I'm trying to smile and be nice" look. And yes part of me thought we were crazy too, especially as we slowly began our departure into Istanbul and had that feeling of "there's no turning back".

As Tim and I reflect over the past year we are grateful for so many things that Turkey has taught us. We have learned to become more patient, as we are foreigners living in a country, stumbling through language and culture. We have learned how to live in a huge city, and are pretty proud that we are able to get around. We have learned hospitality like we have never seen. Turkish hospitality blows America out of the water. We have learned endurance, not only physically (with a lot of walking) but emotionally. Saying goodbye to friends and family was not easy and definitely being so far away is even harder. We have learned to depend on each other and learned even more how blessed we are to be each other's best friend in a context that is so unfamiliar. We have learned so much more about service to each other and to all of our wonderful friends who have taken care of us here. We have learned a lot more about communication both in Turkish, and our own language.

Yes, living in a foreign country is difficult sometimes, and I'm not going to lie, more than a few times this year I have said, "I want to go home." But slowly without even realizing it, Turkey found a place in our hearts and became more like "home" than we ever could have imagined.

Thank you Turkey for teaching us so much about the world and ourselves. For being such a wonderful host for the past year, for being the place our first baby was born, and for being a place we will never, ever forget.

Our favorite souvenir from Turkey :)

Christmas

2009-01-05T22:39:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not I had been working on a post about Christmas for the past couple of weeks and had some great video to show from the football Christmas party we had, but as usual time got away from me. Also, I really wanted to post some video's and I have no idea how to convert our video from our digital camera so everyone else can see it. Any ideas???

Well Christmas has come and gone and it went by way too fast! This year the Akin clan gathered right here in Istanbul for a Turkish Christmas. The festivities kicked off when we picked up Paul, Kari, (who we hadn't seen in a year), and Micah (who we never had met!) on the 22nd with the rest of the family coming in on the 24th. Needless to say, we had a blast! We toured the sites of Istanbul, took a trip to Ephesus, and just enjoyed each other's company. Of course the boys played a lot of Wii, and I think Kari and I would have rivaled their playing time had we realized she like Dr. Mario as much as I do : )

Even more fun this year were the newest additions this year, Micah and Levi. Micah is so precious and we had so much fun watching him with Levi. We can't wait for the years to come as the grow to have more and more fun with each other. Both boys did such a great job considering we just strapped them on and took them all over Turkey! They were troopers!

Levi got some wonderful goodies from the states, and loves them all! I am slowly taking pictures of all his fun new toys and outfits to post. So far he loves his seahorse and Baby Einstein rings from Aunt Heather, Uncle Greg, and his wonderful Spencer cousins. He also loves his rain forest crib attachment from Gi Gi and Papa, it really helps him settle down for his naps, which Tim and I may like it more than he does for that reason. And, Uncle Gregory, he loves your books! I am amazed how much he already focuses on some of them, he loves looking at other babies.

We were sad to see everyone leave last week, and even tried our hardest to get them to stay longer. Tim and I now are super excited about seeing Africa this summer, we can't wait! Thank you Akins for coming to see us, and making this Christmas away from home a lot easier. Love all of you!!

Here are a few pictures from the month of December.

We played White Elephant with the football team and didn't realize it would be such a hit!

Ephesus

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One Month

2008-11-21T08:15:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Levi turned one month! As most new moms have experienced, I cannot believe a month has already passed, it went by so fast! Levi is getting so big, today we had his one month checkup and he now weighs 10lbs and is 22 in. That is 2 more lbs and 2 more inches since birth. We are so proud of him as he is doing new things everyday. Within the past week I have been able to tell a huge difference in his focus in the bouncy seat. He loves looking at the toys and even gets his hands up there to hit them every once and awhile. He's also sleeping more and more every night, which makes Tim and I very excited. More updates to come! I'm sure month 2 will be here before we know it!

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Levi's Room

2008-11-16T12:03:00.000-08:00

Levi's room used to be filled with football equipment but with a few trips to IKEA (my favorite!!) and crib from some friends it is the perfect little bedroom for a baby boy!

Cozy in his bed!

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Binki Love

2008-11-16T12:00:00.000-08:00

Levi loves his "binki" as we like to call it in our family. So much so he wants to make sure it stays in at all times!

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Levi's story

2008-11-15T10:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I just looked at my last blog post, dated about three months ago, to those of you who even check our blog anymore or get those update things, my sincerest apologies. Seeing that we now have our precious Levi and have added a grandbaby to our families I am realizing the importance of blogging more often since our little guy is changing so much everyday. I thought I would first catch everyone up to speed on the day he was born.

On October 17th I went in to see my doctor and discovered it would be my last as a preggo lady. We had discussed me being induced earlier in my pregnancy, especially because my parents were flying in from America, but more and more it seemed like a distant possibility. We were getting ready to leave when all the sudden she asked "So Anna when would you like to be induced, Monday or Tuesday?". Most of you who know me know I am pretty indecisive however this took me a total of 2 seconds to decide I wanted to be induced on Monday. Levi was already getting pretty big, I was uncomfortable, and my Mom scheduled to fly in on Sunday. So we scheduled me to come in at 9 on Monday morning. Tim and I left the hospital a little in disbelief and excitement knowing we would have a baby in just a few short days.

Sunday came and my Mom flew in, and man was she a trooper!! I am usually falling over I am so tired after an international flight but she was great, and she was wide awake on Monday morning at 9 ready to go to the hospital. When we got to the hospital they did a few routine procedures and around 11 am put me on an IV with pitocin in order to put me into labor. I prepared myself to be ready for a long day as I had heard of some friends who had been induced were in labor a really long time. However, when my doctor came in (who I love!!!) she gave us a surprise saying that she thought Levi would be here by the end of the day around 7 or 8. I was so excited, and relieved!! The pitocin was doing a good job or at least it seemed so to me but the nurses were coming in every 30 mins or so asking if I had any pain, to which I pleasantly answered, "no not at all". In response they would, with a smile, go to my IV and pump up the dosage. I kept thinking I would feel more contractions but I really didn't feel that many.

Around 3 my doctor came in to check in on me and at that point "accidently" broke my water. I guess it was ready to break, and I definitely started feeling contractions then. Luckily my epidural came soon after, and the pain subsided. Around 6:30 I really started feeling the urge to push, as they also started to bring in all the equipment. (Which by the way, is a little scary, it was my first delivery but does anyone else think those trays of sharp objects are a little creepy??) At one point during this time I told Tim to go get the doctor because I felt like he was coming right away. As soon as he walked out she was walking in and soon after I started pushing. With my mom and my husband by my side Levi was born at 7:02 after 30 mins of pushing. He is absolutely gorgeous and continues to look like Tim and I in different ways.

Having a baby in another country was definitely an experience working through the language was a challenge at times. It is an experience we will never forget. The hospital we go to is beautiful and everyone we worked with was wonderful. I am so grateful to everyone who came to visit us and help us as we got through this first month, we couldn't have done it without you! I can also tell that we had a lot of prayer for us during this time and for that we are so grateful. This is a long story cut very short but I hope to keep you updated as much as I can on our little man in the coming future.

Here are some pictures from that special day!!

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The Papa in Istanbul!

2008-08-22T01:45:00.000-07:00

A few months ago we were driving down one of the popular streets in our area when I spotted a "Coming Soon" sign and at the bottom I saw a very familiar emblem which read "Papa John's Pizza". Needless to say I was very excited since it is the pizza I grew up on. Since then every time we drove by I would eagerly look to see if it was open, and this Sunday Tim and I saw that the sign had been lifted, and it was open!! It is actually a sit-down-and-eat restaurant, which I don't think there are any in America. Anyways, as we were eating one of the managers heard us speaking English and asked us if we had ever had Papa John's. Of course I explained that Papa John's started in Louisville, my home-town. I all of the suddenI felt like some kind of expert on the subject. His eyes lit up and he told us that he had just recently visited Louisville, Kentucky to visit the Papa John's headquarters. Being that it had just opened he wanted our American opinion right away. Let's just say it was good pizza, but, not enough sauce. I guess that is an American thing, but there is barely ever any tomato sauce on the pizza here. But other than that, it was great, and it was very exciting to see such a familiar place from home.

Can you see the Papa??? He is smiling pretty in the bottom left corner.

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Turkish Wedding

2008-08-22T01:15:00.000-07:00

Wow! I just saw that my last blog was July 15th, pretty sad. I know when the baby comes I am probably going to overload yall with pictures, so lets just say that I'm pacing myself. That's my excuse for now at least. This month has been somewhat uneventful except for this past weekend.

Since we got to Istanbul one of Tim's football players and his family has really "adopted" us and taken us in when we definitely needed a surrogate family so far from home. They even helped me celebrate my birthday and made me a beautiful cake. This past weekend one of the uncles and his wife decided to celebrate their wedding in Istanbul since they had originally been married in her home country. It was such a privilege to get a little taste of a Turkish wedding. When we arrived at the house all the women were looking fabulous, looking like they all had had a day at the salon.

We hung out for awhile as they were putting on the finishing touches. Tim was actually shooting the breeze a little with one of the men in the family, in Turkish, I was so proud! Finally the groom arrived, and a very anticipatory moment occurred and the the bride was "revealed"!!! It was so cute! Tim's football player explained that it symbolized that he was coming to take her from her home to their new home together. As we left the bride and groom got in a decorated car with a beautiful flower bouquet adorning the hood and the rest of us caravanned behind. Driving through the traffic of Istanbul we got lots of honks and cheers for the wedding, a really neat tradition I think.

We drove to a beautiful restaurant on the sea and were served a full course, delicious meal. Since the couple had already been married awhile they didn't actually do a ceremony, however, there was a wedding party below us, so we got to witness a real ceremony. Honestly there wasn't much to it, short and sweet. The bride and groom are introduced with some fancy music, they walk in and are seated at a large table with two witness and a man from the government. The man then proceeds to read the marriage vows, and they sign the document along with the witnesses and then they are married. A large party proceeds the ceremony, but there definitely wasn't much to the ceremony, compared to some of our long American weddings.

The other bride and groom getting married (a little dark)

After we ate, the dancing began as the party below us had two live bands. One was an traditional Anatolian Rock Band, lets just say not my favorite. But we had a blast watching everyone kick up their heels and have a wonderful time. This family has been such a blessing to us and they continue to help make Istanbul feel more like a home.

Tim and I, and the bump (large and in-charge)

Our view for the evening

The family

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Isn't she a BEAUTY?!!

2008-07-15T11:34:00.000-07:00

That's right folks! We now are official owners of a quality Arçelik air conditioner or klima as they are called here in Turkey. It is such a treat to sleep in the cold once again and be able to use a sheet. We decided to put it in the bedroom and I must admit I have been finding alot of excuses to hang out in here and turn the air conditioner on : ) We know its not a necessity but it for sure has made things a little easier. We'll I'm off to go fire her up for the evening at a cool 21 degrees Celsius and try not to convince myself to turn it down to 18 ; )

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2 years ago today....

2008-07-15T11:20:00.001-07:00

Tim and I were getting ready for our wedding. It was such an exciting day and we were so blessed to have been able to share it with so many special friends and family. The Lord has blessed me with an amazing husband who just happens to be my best friend. These past two years have flown by, with so many exciting events in between. I'm looking forward to many more anniversaries and I am so grateful I have such a wonderful partner to share in this journey.

To celebrate we went to a really fancy restaurant here we like to call TGIFriday's. Yep, we went there again, a place that we always say we would never go if we were in the States, but their food sure does taste good right now. And, here it is definitely anniversary date prices.

Here we are before going to dinner (sorry so close our self timer works best on a bookshelf right in front of a table)

We also have had the opportunity to use a car, which is such a treat! I haven't had to ride the bus in awhile and Tim is getting really good at driving a manual.

My driver for the evening

Happy Campers in an air conditioned car!

Happy Anniversary Babe! I love you!

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The Little Kicks

2008-06-16T08:45:00.000-07:00

Most of you know by now that we are expecting a baby boy in late October. We are so excited!! Recently it has become more real to the both us as he has started to kick. At first he would always kick for me and then stop as soon as Tim would come over to feel, that little stinker! He is already stubborn like his dad! But now he is doing some major kicking we both are able to feel all the time. We have an amazing doctor here who is so personable. I think she may have more fun watching the ultrasounds than we do at times. At the last appointment she took 11 pictures!! It was wonderful. She got some really great shots that I'm hoping everyone can see. We go for our 21 week appointment on Thursday so I'm sure I'll have many more pictures to post. We are so grateful that the Lord has blessed us with this precious gift and would covet your prayers in the next couple of months.

Sorry these are so blurry!! P.S. Dad, I thought you would enjoy the Seinfeld reference in the title!

There he is!!

His cute little feet! If you look close you can see his toes.

Waving for the camera.

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Wonderful Week With Family!

2008-06-06T06:36:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we had the privilege of Tim's Mom, Dad, and brother Nathan coming for a much needed visit! From the start Tim and I were spoiled rotten with lots of super fun goodies from the states (which I want to thank everyone for being so sweet to send us and the baby something, it was such a treat and so encouraging!) and lots of wonderful dinners while they were visiting. We ate at TGIFridays twice, which I know some of you are saying to yourself " big deal" but to us it was like being back home. They were the most "American" type meals we had had in 5 months. I'm pretty sure the waiters remembered us the second time we went, and therefore decided that we deserved some honorary TGIFriday's hats!! Which by the way have "Miller Light" written all over them! Tim and I tried to make sure they got the full experience, we ate a ton of Turkish food, saw all the sights, and visited with some of our new friends. Danny, Charlotte and Nathan were great sports even when they were subjected to a hour and a half, very interesting, ferry boat ride.

One of my favorite things we did while they were here was visit Buyuk Ada, which is one of the 3 islands across the water from Istanbul. Buyuk Ada is the largest with the literal translation "Big Island". These islands are a wonderful retreat for anyone living in the city because they don't allow cars, only service vehicles, which even too are a rare sight. The only type of transportation you really see are bikes available to rent and horse drawn carriages. The quiet roads are very relaxing and the houses are beautiful. When we got to the island from a ferry we rented a carriage to the middle of the island. This first ride proved to be somewhat thrilling and terrifying all at the same time. One of our horses did not want to run fast up the hills and kept knocking his whole body around which resulted in Tim, Nathan, and I fearing for our lives. We were tossed back and forth thinking we would be tipped over any second. It was not funny at all at the time, but now makes for a funny memory at least. Once we reached our destination we hiked, and it was definitely a hike, about a mile and a half of incline, to an old monastery. It was defniately worth the hike for the view and the beautiful chapel at the top. Afterwards we grabbed a quick bite to eat and found a boat that takes you around the island to a beach club. It was really nice, and to me was a complete surprise. They had a nice place to change clothes and had chairs with umbrellas on the sand. We were even serenaded by man with a Speedo and a guitar, yes, its quite a combination, I've included a picture. He was definately not speaking English and none of us could figure out where he was from. We all decided that he sounded like a poor man's Louis Armstrong. It was a great escape for me to be able to just relax and sit in the sun. Nathan and I both left pretty pleased with our "basecoats". It was a great day. Tim and I plan to go back soon, I can't wait!

We were sad to say goodbye to our visitors but look forward to them coming again at Christmas! Love yall!! Miss you already!

The guys outside the Blue Mosque

Fun at the Haggai Sophia

Inside the chapel at the monastery on Buyuk Ada

The view from the top of our hike

Tim and I inside the carriage

View of our driver

At the beach club!

Our "singer" for the afternoon

Our view of the beach from the boat

TGIFriday's and our new hats!!

One last pic with the family and Seyfo!

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I'm Back! So sorry I've been such a slacker!

2008-05-16T06:48:00.001-07:00

Well, to use a quote from my sister's blog, "we are still breathing"! Again, I apologize for being MIA, life here just gets crazy sometimes as it does I'm sure for everyone. Heather (my sister) tagged me on her blogged, I've never been tagged but secretly have always wanted to be ; ) So here it goes,

Four jobs I've had:

1. Concessionaire, Lifeguard and Receptionist (this has probably been one of my favorite jobs) at Lakeside Swim Club then a lifeguard again at Wildwood Country Club
2. Cashier at WKU bookstore (my sister has been a good reference for me at both Lakeside and WKU : ) )
3. Nanny
4. "Floater" (what a job title!) at Southeastern

Four movies I've watched more than once: ( I have alot of these but I'll try to narrow some down, I like movies!)

1. Pride and Prejudice
2. The Sandlot
3. Elf
4. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

Four places I've lived:

1. Coco Beach, FL (I bet this does'nt really count, I lived there till like age 2, I don't remember any of it)
2. Lousiville, KY
3. Wake Forest, NC
4. Currently residing in Istanbul, Turkey

Four TV shows I watch:

1. The Office
2. LOST
3. Friends
4. really anything on HGTV, but we don't get it here

Four places I've been: (I'm hoping for this list to grow more interesting in the next few years)

1. Cyprus
2. Arizona
3. The Outer Banks, NC
4. Florida
(wow, I feel kinda lame)

Four of my favorite foods: (I'll do restaurants too)

1. Panera Bread
2. Chick-fil-a
3. Popcorn
4. Mostly all fruits, I can't get enough of it!

Four things I'm looking forward to in the coming year:

1. The birth of our first baby!! It's a boy! Due Ocotober 30th
2. My Mom and Dad coming when the baby's born!
3. Danny, Charlotte, and Nathan coming in a few weeks, and everyone coming at Christmas!
4. Hopefully going to the beach this summer

Four friends I'm tagging:

1. Lindsey Isham (you may have already done this tag)
2. Marsha Turley
3. Bess Contreras
4. hmm... not alot of my friends have blogs... sorry I can't think of a 4th

That was fun! Thanks Heather! Can't wait to see everyone elses!

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Fenerbahçe Futbol Fanatic

2008-04-10T10:22:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Tim got an amazing opportunity to go to the Fenerbahçe vs. Chelsea futbol game. After a few days of wondering whether or not he would get a ticket a few friends from the American Football team pulled through and got him a seat. He was ecstatic and I have never seen him so interested in soccer. The day of the game finally came after much anticipation and we started to realize that he would stick out like a sore thumb in the middle of all the fans. We made a quick trip to the Fenerium store, bascially the "book store" of Fenerbahçe's team, which is filled with all the gear any fan would need for a game. Luckily we stumbled across a great European-looking jacket and ear warmers for him to wear that night. He also wore an official jersey given to him by one of his friends on the Football team. It is really cool and even has his name on the back! With all his gear I felt alot more comfortable that even though he might stick out people would know for sure that he was cheering for their team.

Tim left the house around 6:00 with the game starting at 9:45. He met a few of his friends from his team for dinner which turned out to be quite an event in itself. They got their food, which they ordered, and would not tell Tim what it was he was eating. It turned out to be intestine, yep you read right, Intestine!!! YUCK!! (Note to self: Do not let others order for you!) After dinner they headed to the game and Tim said he instantly got into the cheering and over all had a blast. I had a great time at home, not with all those crazy fans, watching the game on TV and listening to the cheers linger from the stadium into our apartment. Even more exciting is that Fenerbahçe pulled out a win against Chelsea. That game will definately be one Tim will never forget.

An example of the craziness in the stadium, not the game he was at, but I can only imagine. He had a great time, I think I would have been overwhelmed.

My futbol fan, I felt like I was sending him off to his first day of school.

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The Stallion's Stumble Late.

2008-03-21T06:23:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday afternoon was the season opener for the 2008 TFL (Turkey Football League). This was the first of five regular season games. There are 12 teams in the league and the league is divided into 2 groups. Each group has 6 teams. Therefore, we will eventually play each team in our group and the top three teams from each group will advance to the playoffs. We began our season by playing "The Tiger's." We were very excited about this matchup, for we had played this team back in early December (Before I arrived) and were defeated 32-0. Therefore, we knew that it would be a great measuring stick for how far we had come as a team.

Sunday was a beautiful sunny day, with the tempature being around 60 degrees, it was a great day for a football game. The players were excited about dawning their new uniforms, of which they have proudly said are the best looking uniforms in the league. We won the opening toss and elected to kick off and defer to the 2nd half. The team was pupmed up and appeared ready for the game. We took the field with great confidence and looked as if we were prepared for a victory. I have to constantly pound into these guys heads that they must have confidence in their ability and begin to have the attitude of a winner.

We kicked off and covered the return very well. However, their offense came out sharp and proceeded to drive down the field and convert on 4th and 5 on the 5 yard line for the first touchdown of the game. They then convereted the 2 point conversion (There were no Field Goal post). The game then became a battle between the defenses as both offensive unit's began to sputter and struggle. However, mid-way through the 2nd quarter, we connected on a long pass play and the receiver ran in for the touchdown. We then converetd the 2 point conversion. With less than 2 minutes left in the first half we had the football and were driving. However, on a called run the play, the QB juggled the ball on his way back to the RB and allow the defense to get pressure and wrap him up for what looked like a sack. However, the QB decided to try and throw the football out to his receiver and ended up throwing an interception that was returned for a touchdown. They then converted the 2 point conversion. Therefore, the score at the half was 16-8.

We made some adjustments at the half and came out on the opening drive of the 2nd half and drove the ball right down the field and scored a touchdown. We relied heavily on our 230 pound RB/LB who ran like a "MAN" and carried the team down the field. However, we were stopped on the 2 point conversion. The score was now 16-14. The defense remained strong and forced 3 interceptions on the next three possesions by the Tiger's. However, each time our offense sputtered out. At this point, with about 10 minutes remaining in the game it was clear that we were wearing out fast. Furthermore, both of our strong RB's who also play LB were out of energy (The game had already taken 4 hours at this point, so know wonder they were tired). Therefore, I tried to go to our back-up RB who has shown some promise, however, he ran the ball tentatively, therefore, I took him out. So, with our RB''s tired, and the fact that our WR's were getting open, we went more to the pass. However, with us driving, and the ball on the 50 yard line, the QB through his 6th interception of the game and it was once again returned for a touchdown. They converetd once again converted the 2 point conversion. The score was now 24-14 with less than 10 minutes left. On the following possesion, due to pentalties, and fumbled snaps we were forced to punt out of our end-zone. So, on 4th down punting out of our end-zone, the punter fumbled the snap and they recovered for a touchdown. On the following possesion, the QB threw his 7th interception and they proceeded to drive down and score only their 2nd offensive touchdown of the game. However, I was proud of the fact that the team did not quit. On the final drive of the game I put in the 2nd the team and we drove the ball all the way down to the 20 yard line where we were eventually stopped by the clock. This was done on their first defense. Therefore, the final score was 38-14.

I am obviously dissapointed by the loss and upset with how we fell apart in the final 10 minutes of the game. It is clear that our conditioning must improve and that we must change our way of thinking in order to get over the hump and get to the next level. However, the guys gave great effort and it was clear that they continue to improve. Furthermore, we had 4 players in particuliar that gave excllent effort on both sides of the football and showed incredible heart. I was extremely proud of their effort. This game made several things clear to me. First, we continue to to get better each and every day. Second, we need to improve our conditioning. Thirdly, we must work on finishing tackles, runs, blocks, plays, drives, quarter's, halves and games. Fourthly, we have the leadership on which to build a winning team. We must develop a winning attitude that is consistent on and off of the field.

I am continuing to work on trying to get some live video footage of the games up on the web ASAP! However, we continue to have difficulties with youtube and it is constantly being blocked for one reason or another. Our next game is the Sunday after Easter, we are facing the number one team and defending champions. I am very excited about the chance to play against them and to see how much we continue to improve.

Some things we miss...

2008-03-12T12:55:00.000-07:00

We can offically say we have lived in Turkey for 2 months now and it is really starting to become a reality that it will be our home for the next couple of years. Recently, I have started to miss some things from America, ALOT! According to Tim and something he heard about moving to another country 2 months is usually the time when the "honeymoon" stage wears off and culture shock/missing home begins. First and foremost I have to say of course I miss my friends and family the most. However, I can't tell you how much I am missing some good ole American cuisine these days. The other day Tim was asking me what I wanted for dinner and I think I remember my answer being "A Chick-fil-a sandwich with a slice of Papa John's pizza on the side." What is wrong with me?!! I told my mom I guess me missing America has just translated into missing American food. In reality, if I had those options I don't know if I would go for them, most of you who know me know I'm a salad kinda gal (especially Charlotte). But right now those restaruants sound so good! One more thing I miss big time around here is lunch meat. I used to love eating a ham, or turkey sandwich for lunch and it is not to be found here at the grocery stores. There is some kind of sliced chicken which Tim and I have both decided tastes like bologna, ew. I know this has been a complete pity party but I had to get it out. I found some pictures on the internet of some of the food we miss so if you see something that is close to your house do us a favor and go eat some, appreciate it, and send happy thoughts our way.

These are the things we miss the most!! Love you all! P.S. I stole alot of these from other blogs and facebook!

Here are a few more things we miss!

Check out that yummy lunch!

For some reason I miss this cereal alot right now.
A Louisville favorite!
All of you know Tim misses this ALOT!
Kinda random but yes, I miss dryer sheets.

Lots of cheese here, but no cheddar!

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Language Learning

2008-03-04T06:04:00.000-08:00

On any given day in language class Tim and I often find ourselves sounding a lot like Joey in the video above trying to speak French. We started language about a month ago and really like our teachers. They both are very interactive and excellent at teaching us the basics. At the end of our lessons I can tell they have worked us hard and I get completely tongue-tied with some of the words I try to pronounce. I just started meeting with a tutor last week and I can already tell she is helping me to actually practice what I am learning in class. Tim is starting tomorrow to meet with two football players who will be his tutors. We were both recently encouraged when we went out to buy some dinner and understood bits and pieces of what our waiter said. However, we both know that learning a language is a long journey and we have to be patient. In the mean time we always remember Joey on Friends and we have a good laugh cause we definitely have some "Le fleup de flee!!" moments.

A picture of us and two of our new friends!! Thank you Redhouse for publishing a pocket size Turkish-English and English-Turkish dictionary!!

The Stallions' First "Friendly"

2008-02-27T00:08:00.000-08:00

Beautiful Cyprus!

Team picture of the Stallions

I am writing my first blog in a series of blog's about the Stallions 2008 football season. I will write a blog recapping every "friendly" (the word used in Soccer for scrimmage, which the football teams around here have also adopted) and all games. So, please check the blog out every couple of weeks for a break from the girly stuff and an update on the progress of the Stallions.

We recently had three coaches and one athletic trainer come from Alabama to put on a four day min-camp with our team. We had two a day practices the first three days and due to snowy conditions (it seriously looked like Lambeau field) on the final day we had to end the camp early. The temperature here was in the low thirties every day and it snowed three out of four days. However, the players and coaches all bowed up and we had a very profitable camp. We were able to sharpen up our offense, defense and we put in all of our special teams. I recently went to a "friendly" between two teams in the league and the first four long-snaps to the punter were snapped over his head. Therefore, we made this one of the priorities of our special teams practices. By the end of the camp we found our long-snapper and he has yet to mess up a snap. The coaches really related to the players well and did a wonderful job of teaching and coaching. However, I do have one complaint. The coaches had the guts to bring a ton of Auburn and Alabama t-shirts for our team. The only thing that could have been worse would have been Tennessee t-shirts. However, the players seemed to really like them and some even wore the ugly things home. All in all we had an outstanding camp and I had a blast showing this Alabama country boys around the city and introducing them to American Football in this part of the world.

This past Sunday we got back from Cyprus, where we spent 3 days practicing and scrimaging with the EMU Crows (a university team located in Northern Cyprus). On thursday February 21st we flew out of the airport at 9:00 A.M. with a rag tag group of twenty-eight football players, half of whom had their shoulder pads in a trash bag that was wrapped in duct tape (it reminds me of something my friend Brandt Waggoner would do). Furthermore, we had one assistant coach come and Anna was brave enough to make the trip as well. We landed about 10:30 A.M. and we were in a place a far cry from our new home. Instead of snow we had beautiful sunshine and instead of concrete we saw grass. It was a nice release from the big city. We eventually had a total of thirty-three players all of whom stayed on campus in the university dorms. However, Anna and I stayed at the home of the opposing coach.

Thursday afternoon we practice with the other team. We split into two drills. One drill was a 7 on 7 passing drill and the other was an inside drill where we worked on running plays. Lastly, we brought the whole team together and scrimmaged against one another. The crows run the spread read-option offense. Furthermore, they have several good athletes and are well coached. Therefore, Thursday afternoon was a very tough day for the Stallions. We were not used to this type of offense, for they are the only team in the league that runs this offense. Furthermore, we were a step slower that the crows. However, I was extremely proud of our effort and it was clear that we were getting better.

Friday morning I got my team together and we practiced for about an hour and a half by ourselves. We added some things to our offense and defense. Furthermore, we had the opportunity for the linemen to push a sled for the first time in their careers. They were tired of it after five minutes, it no longer looked as fun to them as it once did. Lastly, I tried to simulate the spread offense for them by playing quarterback against our defense. I think it is safe to say that I looked a lot like Pat White against Oklahoma. That afternoon we participated in a controlled scrimmage with the crows (each team would run 10 plays and after every play the ball was brought back to the same point). We played much better for about the first five plays of every series. Our defensive adjustments were working. However, it became clear that our conditioning was not what it needed to be to compete with a team of this caliber. The crows posted a 6-2 record last year and averaged right at 60 points per contest. So at the end of the day it was clear that we had gotten better, however, I was not very confident about the scrimmage game coming up the next day.

On Saturday, we lined the field with yard markers and end-zone pile-ons and played a four quarter scrimmage game against the crows. We received the opening kickoff and we were shut down on the first two plays from scrimmage. Therefore, on third down we called a pass play and the quater back was hit and fumbled the ball and they recovered on the five yard line. The defense held strong for a couple of plays, but then broke on third down. However, we came back and held strong on the 2 point conversion (most fields including this one do not have filed-goal post). The following kick-off was a touch back and so we began our second possession on the 20 yard line. We recovered well from the previous possession and held the ball for a total of 20 plays that lasted close to 15 minutes (yes, this is correct, we looked like some kind of BIG 10 team). We converted on two third downs and on three fourth downs, including a 4th and 10 on their 40 yard line. I still do not know what I was thinking. We had the ball first and goal on there 6 yard line. We ran 3 plays up the gut and were stopped to 4th and 2. We ran a pass play to our big tight end. However, the pass was a little out of his reach. So, our 20 play drive amounted in no points. The Crows proceeded to score on the final play of the half on a 50 yard run. They then converted the two-point conversion. So, the score at half was 14-0. The second half was a little less eventful and the entire 4th quarter was played by the second and third units. The final score was Crows 26 and Stallions 0. However, I was extremely proud of my team. We played inspired, with heart and with much more intensity than we had the previous 2 days of practice where we were practically run off the field. Furthermore, I was proud of our 20 play drive, it showed that we could hold the ball and sustain a long drive. I believe that this was a great start to the 2008 season.

We flew out the following evening and arrived home around 9:00 P.M. We had all of the players and coaches. We are working on putting together another "friendly" next Saturday against the Tigers, a team we scrimmaged back in early December before I arrived. They beat us 32-0. Therefore, this should be a very good test of where we have come as a team. So, please stay tuned for more updates on the Stallions.

Coach Akin

(Sorry no video yet, just pictures, Anna and I are working on getting some video posted)

Walking (Alot) in a Winter Wonderland

2008-02-19T11:51:00.000-08:00

View from our apartment-If you look closely you can see the down pour of snow

A few days ago we had what I would call a mini-blizzard. It snowed for three days straight and we got at least a few inches. The snow was like nothing I had seen before in Kentucky, it was just a solid down pour for hours on end. I really enjoyed it and it definately made for a cozy weekend at home. I found myself looking out the window a ton. It is so funny to think that the things people do in snow wouldn't be universal, but for some reason I was surprised to see all the snow ball fights outside our apartment and snowmen. I was fascinated! In a such a big and busy city the snow brought everyone out onto the streets to play. I saw alot of families laughing, having a wonderful time, and it put a big smile on my face. Of course Tim and I had to get out there and have a few snow ball fights of our own. And I continue to get hit with a few by my husband unexpectedly when we run errands. Sadly, our winter wonderland has turned into a winter slush, which makes it pretty gross to walk around the streets. Ah well, I guess we can cross our fingers and hope for maybe one more snow before winter goes away.

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Pazar (Bazaar in English)

2008-02-03T12:43:00.000-08:00

The bazaar on Tuesday's and Friday's near our apartment is quickly becoming one of Tim and I's favorite places to go in Istanbul. I love it for several reasons.

#1- I have never seen my husband get excited to go shopping until we experienced the bazaar.

#2- It's really fun to go with Tim see everything together, and embarass ourselves trying to use Turkish the best we know how.

#3- The prices are unbelievable.

#4- You can get anything you can think of, clothes, socks, shoes, kitchen supplies, jewelry, baby gifts, scarves, produce, name it, its probably there.

#5- The produce is so, so good!! Everything is so fresh it tastes amazing!

#6- In a very modern city, the city really makes us feel like we are in a special foreign place.

The pictures I have posted and these reasons cannot describe how fun the bazaar is, just another reason for everyone to come visit!! You have to experience for yourself.

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An Akin in Turkey, besides us

2008-02-03T12:33:00.001-08:00

A fun sign we saw the other day. I looked it up and emlak means real estate, but we were just excited to see Akin of course.

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Where does it come from?!

2008-02-03T12:16:00.000-08:00

I mentioned in an earlier post about cleaning my floors, and how it should be a whole other post in itself, well here it is.... The picture above is my washcloth after only a few swipes on my floors in our living room. Let me explain, we are not generally dirty people. We always, always, take off our shoes when we come in our house, since we do so much more walking. Futhermore, it was probably two weeks ago that I cleaned my floors, and maybe this is what I should be expecting, but my floors never got this dirty at our place in North Carolina. I guess this is just something I have to get used to and toss it up to "city life". There is a humongous living on the other side of our walls and it finds its way to seep onto our floors. Needless to say cleaning the floors could become an obsession for some people, but I'm going to try to not let it control my life! But it does feel really good to know that I have gotten up all that dirt off my floors. And, I have to say I am one tired cookie after all that cleaning!

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Ahh....Much Better!

2008-02-03T11:48:00.000-08:00

So, as you can tell my blog just got WAY CUTER!!!! I am so excited it turned out so well! It really does give me inspiration to go to my blog and write more. I definately recommend Jennisa (my blog designer) to anyone who is tired of their bland, boring, blogger template and wants something a little more enjoyable for themselves and their readers. She has some great colors and patterns to choose from on her website. You can find it on the little square on my blog that says "I just got PIMPED", how cute is that?!!! Anyways, she is so helpful and creative, you won't go away disappointed.

Thanks again Jennisa!!!

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Touring with Danny and Charlotte

2008-01-26T00:27:00.000-08:00

Tim and I were really lucky to have Tim's parents come to see us only about a week after we moved in. It definately helped with the first rush of homesickness. While they were here we went to several of the tourist hotspots. We had the privilege of having one of the guys on Tim's football team take us touring. It was so much easier to have him with us considering we had no idea where we were going around the city. Needless to say at the end of it all we were all very tired. We had a busy week of going out to eat, shopping, and hanging out with friends. Danny also got to go help Tim out on a Wednesday night practice. Tim and I were so glad they could come, Thanks Danny and Charlotte! Can't wait to see you again in May!

Tim and I at one of the highest points in the city, it seems like it goes on for forever.

At the Haggai Sophia (in Turkish they pronounce it more like Aya Sophia), it is beautiful.

Drinking Turkish Coffee, I'm totally faking here, I wasn't a huge fan. But Tim surprisingly really liked it.

Have you seen our view??!

2008-01-22T00:55:00.001-08:00

The park outside of our apartment, the literal translation of its name is Yogurt Man Park. It's got a great little track to run on, kinda like our own little Seneca Park.

View from our apartment of Fenerbache Stadium. One of the nicest soccer stadiums in Turkey. It also has a great little grocery store in its bottom level. And yes, on any given game day we hear some great cheers coming from the soccer games.

A canal across the street, when we get our boat we'll park it there. YEAH RIGHT!!

Well these are a few views of the surrounding areas in our neighborhood. I am really starting to appreciate the area we live. It has so many wonderful conviences like a bazaar on Tuesdays and Fridays that huge, and has wonderful produce. I also have a grocery store really close, and in a big city it is wonderful. We also will only be a few minutes away from our language school, which is a huge blessing. Sorry also it has taken me so long to post some photos, blogger here is really slow on photos. It has literally taken me three days to post these. I don't mean to complain but it is a little frustrating.

Taking it one day at a time....

2008-01-21T09:53:00.000-08:00

One thing Tim and I are beginning to learn as we live in very large, and foreign city to us, is that often times our days consist of finishing one big task. Today we started our day by walking to a large shopping mall about 20 mins from our house. We both have really enjoyed walking to most of the places we need to go including the bazaar, local restaurants, and bus stops. On our trip today we had a little friend, a four-legged friend. As most of you probably know in large, European or Asian cities there are alot of stray dogs who roam the streets. They apparently get shots and then have tags on their ears letting you know they are safe? (kinda sketchy). I always want to take these dogs home, I still don't understand how a whole city can love cats more than dogs. Well today about 5 mins into our walk we saw a really cute dog that was probably a mix between a lab and an English sheep dog ( I dont know the proper name for this breed) who I proceeded to talk to in a sweet puppy dog voice. Let's see, I think it went something like this "Hey! puppy! How are you?!!" (this was all done in a very wuvy-duvy sort of way). Not thinking anything of it, when all the sudden I see this pup take a 180 and start following us. We both thought this was so cute, until we started thinking of all the busy intersections we would have to cross to get to the mall which in turn made us very nervous for our new friend. Well I don't know why we worried because our little pup definately showed his "street smarts". He crossed those intersections like they were nothing, and every time we thought he was moving away from our path he would show up again. This went on for the whole trip! Tim and I both started to get a little anxious at the thought of a very sad puppy dog face as we entered the mall. As we approached the mall the sidewalk split into two with a wall between, luckily our friend got a little distracted and went the other way, WHEW!! Crisis diverted! I wish I had taken a picture, I have now learned my lesson to have my camera with me at all times.

The big task at the mall was to grocery shop. We have a great place here called Carrefoure, its basically like your average Wal-Mart. Tomorrow we are having two of our friends over and for the recipe I am making it calls for diced tomatoes. I think I looked at the tomato section for at least 10 mins before making my decision. Never in America had it occured to me how overwhelming that section could be. There are diced tomatoes, tomatoe puree, tomato paste, and the list goes on! I am proud to say we made it out of the grocery store with everything we needed for the week and a new cordless phone for our Vonage service! YEAH!!!

So that was our big accomplishment for the day besides me cleaning the floors which is a whole other post in itself. We finished off the night with going to one of my favorite restuarants here so far, Otantik, yum! Sorry still no pictures yet, I've misplaced our cd to download the program for our camera. But I am determined to find it! I hope everyone has a great day! I have to give a shout out to Gabers (my nephew), HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! THE BIG 3!! WOO WHOO!!!

New Years Resolutions

2008-01-06T13:51:00.001-08:00

Right now Tim and I are sitting the O'hare airport in Chicago waiting for our international flight to London to board. All of our packing is done, and you should have seen the ticketers in Louisville when we showed up with 8, 50lb suitcases. We actually heard one of them say and I quote, "We won't be able to take anyone else's luggage going to Chicago today!". Anyways, all that said and done, it feels really good to have everything packed in those 8 suitcases for the moment, and also knowing we won't have to see them again till we land in Istanbul. It was really, really hard leaving my mom and dad today, but I just tried to keep telling myself that with the technology we have today I will be able to talk to them alot, almost like we were in the states. Also there is the hope that they might come visit us : )

Okay, for the New Years Resolution part in my blog title (and I am now finishing this on January 16 a little over a week after we arrived). Here are a few of my New Years Resolutions, yes I know it is past New Years, but as you can see by my blog already, I am a bit of a procrastinator : |

1) START BLOGGING!!!!

Yes, I hereby declare on this day of January the 16th 2008 that I Anna Leppert Akin will blog, to the best of my ability (I had to put some kind of disclaimer in there!) . But yes, I really do want to start bloggin a whole lot more, I have so much fun looking at all of my regular blog sites every day and I feel like I need to contribute my part to the whole blogging circle.

2) Take more pictures.

Especially now that we are living in Turkey, I will definately have alot more interesting things to take pictures of. Plus, pictures on blogs are just more fun.

3) Really stay on top of learning the Turkish language.

Sure when you are learning a different language it is fun to learn some of the vocab and phrases like "good morning" and "hello" but alot of times when you get to the hard parts it is easy to get frustated. Tim and I start language learning on February 4th, and we are both kinda nervous. Please pray for us as we begin this process that while we are studying we will see the goal in language learning which is to begin more realtionships with the people that live in Turkey.

4) Learn to cook more from scratch.

This is a resolution that has become extremely evident to me upon my first trip to the grocery store. Turkey doesn't quite have alot of the conviences American grocery stores offer. For example, there are no jars of spaghetti sauce, and no cans of cream of mushroom soup. Which both were kinda staples to alot of recipes back in the states. I also realized how much I do not know how to cook from scratch when one of my friends here just "whipped up" a pan of brownies! Ah well, it is exciting to know that when we leave here in two years I hopefully will be a much better cook.

5) Drink more water

Kinda random, in comparison to the rest of my resolutions so far but I really do want to do this. Plus, I have also this great new water bottle made by Camelbak. I used to have Nalgene water bottles but mine always leaked, and I felt like a little kid always spilling down the front of my shirt. Anyone who has seen me recently knows that this Camelback has been attached to me like a baby and it's sippy cup. Apparently those extreme "outdoorsy" types know this brand well, they make these really cool backpack water systems. I really like that you bite the straw to get water out, somehow it makes it fun, and in the long run I drink alot more water.

Sorry, I really wanted to have a picture of this water bottle but I cant figure out how to copy one!

6) Learn to sew

Sure I can kinda make up sewing on a button but I really want to learn to sew. My sister is so good at sewing and I have always been jealous of the way cute quilts she has made each baby she has had. Plus, it just saves alot of money to do it yourself. Hopefully one day I can get a sewing machine too!

Well, thats all I can think of right now, I promise I will post pictures of our new apartment here in Istanbul. It took us awhile to get our internet up and running. I also promise to be back soon!

The Lake and a Wedding

2007-08-26T14:00:00.000-07:00

First Dance

The new Mrs. Lance Stuckey!! and sweet Lindsey

Tim and I at the lake, more pictures to come!

This Saturday the Rose family took the whole Akin clan to Lake Gaston. Lake Gaston is a huge lake about an hour away with lots of beautiful houses along the shoreline. We had a great time riding on the boat, tubing, swimming, and water skiing. Tim, Paul, and Nathan all tried water skiing for the first time and did great! It was 100 degrees outside but luckily the lake water was still cool enough to provide a refreshing escape from the heat. We had lots of fun and are recovering with some sore arms and a few sunburns : )

Tim and I left the lake a little early to make it back for the wedding of our friends Cynthia and Lance. I met Cynthia in class my second semester at school and have been so grateful for her friendship, especially in a school full of boys. She and Lance got married in a little chapel here on campus and the ceremony was beautful! The bridesmaids wore chocolate brown dresses carried boquets of fall-colored flowers. Cynthia looked gorgeous and made the perfect bride. I am so excited for the new Stuckeys! They make such a wonderful couple and I'm sure everyone would agree that God is going to use them in many great ways.

Pictures of a few highlights of the summer

2007-08-23T11:38:00.000-07:00

Tim in his official JellyBeans uniform courtesy of our good friend Mr. Larry Jones

A post! finally!

2007-08-21T17:48:00.000-07:00

I created this blog site several weeks ago and I have to admit I was a little nervous about starting to post, but here we go......This blog is Tim and I's best attempt to keep everyone updated with our lives. In the recent months Tim got offered a job in Central Asia as a football coach for a university. We are extremely excited about this opportunity and we look forward to living in a different area of the world. This summer has been one of transition for the both of us as we have graduated college and are both working part time jobs as we wait to leave the country. Tim has been working at a local skating rink called JellyBeans, yes, a skating rink, you read correctly. He has had a great time handing out skates and working the "stuff shop". I have been babysitting and working at school. Also, this summer we got to visit with my family on Memorial Day, spend a week with Tim's family at the beach, and traveled to Orlando to visit some friends. In two weeks we will begin living like nomads as we travel to Kentucky, Central Asia, back to Kentucky, and then Virginia, only stopping in North Carolina a few days in between. Please pray for us as we begin the difficult task of saying goodbye to family and friends. Moreover, as we prepare to leave the United States for 2 years.