"Bitterly Cold"

So, Sunday morning we woke up to this (see post below)....And this morning, Tuesday, we woke up to this....
It snowed at least a foot yesterday. The high today is supposed to be 14 degrees, the low -9. The forecast for this evening says "Bitterly cold." Not just cold, or very cold, but BITTERLY cold. The high tomorrow is supposed to be 11 degrees.

But, the snow and cold did NOT stop the Poles from during their normal thing. We spent the past two winters in Tennessee and DC and when a storm hit like this one (in TN's case, on a much smaller scale) EVERYTHING shut down. Remember how the federal gov't shut down for an entire week?
This morning the garbage man came. Yes, I took a picture of the garbage man. We are THAT hard up for entertainment
And the embassy's maintenance and repair crew delivered our new washer. I'm not joking, they were singing "Jingle Bells" at the top of their lungs when they came in the house with the washer. I guess the Poles dig this whole winter bit.
And the weather didn't stop the neighbors from going to the market
Nor did it stop our consumables shipment from being delivered.
So, hats off to the hard-core Poles! Who knew we would learn so much about Polish culture from our kitchen window? Sadly, I have a feeling much of our Polish culture experiences over the next few months will be taken in from the kitchen window.
A lazy morning...
So, at least we get to go to Italy in a few days. Ben has a FAO conference and we get to tag along. The forecast? Rain.

Winter Has Arrived

This morning we woke up to this... winter is officially here! So, only four more months to go, right?

Marine Ball 2010

Marine Ball, 2010: THE social event of the year (or so that's what I've been told). Neither of us were really looking forward to it, but we actually had a REALLY good time. Compared to balls we've attended in the past, I must say this was a step up (actually several steps up) on the classiness scale. When we walked in I was like, "Where are all the tattoos, trampy dresses, and drunkards?" Nowhere to be found (according to Ben this was because the ball's participants consisted mostly of older people like Polish generals, the ambassador and State Department officials rather than young soldiers and their spouses). It really was an elegant evening.

Me and my hot date. I call this my Nancy Reagan dress... it just reminds me of Nancy Reagan (not a good thing).

To me, the most important factor in making a party great is the FOOD (Can you tell I'm a Blackburn?) And the food did NOT disappoint.

Check out the spread... and these are just the cold foods...

These dishes contained various hot meats...

The dessert table... need I say more?

The cake... it was a little hammered

Our chefs extaordinaires... (they were a little confused as to why I wanted to take their picture)

Random attendee in a kilt... there were guests from all over Europe.

And I got a quick shot of the American ambassador to Poland... hehehe

Ben and his fellow military compatriots
Ben's date at the ball: Ok, Ben spent almost the entire night talking to this retired marine who had so many crazy stories. When he found out we were Mormon he told us about one of his commanding officers who was Mormon and made his men recite the Pearl of Great Price if they ever got out of line. What the? He said that he would recite it all the time too when he got nervous or in some kind of stressful situation... he'd just start reciting the Pearl of Great Price.
So, while Ben was chatting the night away (or rather listening) I went and got a snap shot with the Marines
Fellow Utahns.. these guys are from Salt Lake City. They are the greatest.

One Year

I can't believe it's been a full year since my dad left this world...

It seems like just last week that I heard the news...

After a year the shock still has not worn off

We miss him so much, but are so grateful for all the cherished memories and for the fact that he was such a wonderful father

Happy Birthday Ben!

Ben's birthday was November 7 and we had a little celebration for him
Ben's homies: Richard, who he works with in the district presidency; John, an American who served an LDS mission in Poland 10 years ago and now teaches English here and is an avid football fan, just like Ben; and Kystof (sp?) or Christopher, Ben's Polish classmate at the defense academy. He met all these guys since we've been here... he's really great at making friends fast!
Emily posing with her dad after giving him his b-day present. Yes, she has a drinking problem.

Em with the classic Myrtle neck, just like her mom.
And then she really started vamping it up for the camera...

8 MONTHS

Today marks 8 months since Caroline joined our family... she hasn't let her mom have an uninterrupted night's sleep since, but we'll keep her anyway! Although she's a small fry, she's happy and we all adore her!

All Saint's Day

In our effort to immerse ourselves in Polish culture, we went and visited the most renowned cemetery in Warsaw on All Saint's Day, November 1. It is one of the biggest holidays here, a day in which they remember and honor the dead. Everything is closed... malls, stores, restaurants, it's crazy!

This is the outer wall of the cemetery and you can see the lines of people waiting to get in. It was packed!
One of the many vendors outside the cemetery selling mums. I tried to be sly in taking his picture but he caught me at the last minute.
Inside the cemetery... the headstones are unbelievable. Each is unique and many have intricate carvings and are several feet tall... very different from American cemeteries.

One of the many interesting headstones... a husband and wife buried next to each other
I love this pic!! A perfect Halloween scene...
Some gravesites didn't even have what I'd call a headstone... it was more like a mini cathedral. This one was about 20 feet tall.
Our awesome American friends the Jagards. They both served LDS missions here and are fluent in Polish. I am the odd one out! (Man, I wish I could speak Polish. Life would be a lot easier!)
Ben was excited to discover this gravesite. This is where a colonel who fought in the Polish underground during WWII is buried
The Poles place tons of flowers and light candles in honor of the dead

And of course, just outside the walls of the cemetery was McDonald's, the only place in town that was open. It was packed and the food was gross (no surprise there).