Let's Get This Party Started...

with a few fireworks, shall we? ...

We celebrated Craig's birthday on Monday...and we had a little too much fun with the fireworks! I bet that Jayme and Jared's neighbors are still scratching their heads wondering what the 'yabanci' (yah-ban-jee) (foreigner) neighbors were doing! We had so much fun, but Katie might have gotten a little singed carrying the cake out! We've got to make a birthday away from home special, now don't we...

Jared has become master of the 'mangal' (the barbecue). It teeters over the edge of their balcony while before the purchase of a new mangal fan this past week, Jared had to blow on it to help ignite it! But he always does a great job and we had some burgers again thanks to the Yates' balcony and their barbecue.

We watched some 24--of course, one does like to do one of their favorite things on their birthday, now don't they. We saw a nuclear bomb go off, and Jack helped save the day once again in season two. It was real touch and go there for a few episodes. It was a great party.

I've started a new class this week. It's at another school here in town, Turkish owned and run and we are serving as teachers for conversation classes, but I prefer the title that they really do use, 'English conversation consultant.' Has a better ring to it, I think.

This is my class. We were playing a game here. (Ali was very good humored as was the class that his picture was taken while he was blindfolded! They love a game!) They're really sweet once I get them to quiet down. I basically have had to translate everything I say from Turkish into English and at some point, share both with them before they understand. But they've come early to both classes because I let them help me practice my Turkish before class, but during class, I constantly chide them to only use English.

They holler at me, saying 'Hocam, Hocam' which means, 'My Teacher, My Teacher!'...but sounds something like...(hoe--like a backhoe--and jam--like a British person would say jam)...It's pretty humorous! In this class, we worked on present, future, and past tenses today, but my other class is a bit more elementary--in age and language. We learned body parts today and sang the hokey pokey. They loved it! and I think they learned a few things in the process! I was so nervous about teaching a whole class of children, but I think I'm looking forward to going again next week.