Got Turkey?

It's official, we had Thanksgiving! Last night, we had several of our American friends from our Ulpan class (Hebrew language school) over for Thanksgiving along with their husbands and boyfriends. Yes, I realize the actual holiday has come and gone, however, this is when we could all get together, and when in a foreign country you do what you can!!

I cooked my first turkey! As soon as I knew I would be cooking it I emailed my Mom..."HELP!!" Of course, she gave me all the info I needed. I even called her yesterday afternoon and asked "How do I know when the turkey is done?" Like she could look in my oven, in Tel Aviv, from Oklahoma, and give me the answer I needed! She did help all she could and the turkey turned out GREAT and was a big hit! Thanks, Mom!

Thankfully, everyone pitched in and brought food because the turkey and rolls I made were all I could handle! How did our mothers do it? They are amazing! We had a lot of food and lot of tastes I'm not used to, which was part of the fun! All the food tasted really good and it was so great to have these new friends in our home away from home! We were eleven people in all plus a dog! One of our guests was the daughter of our friend Gen and her husband. Her daughter's name is Yael and having her with us was very special because we got to share in her first Thanksgiving!

All in all, the evening was a lot of fun and real blessing for Brent and I! It was nice to have a real Thanksgiving meal too!

Skyline Chili......for Thanksgiving???

So, Thanksgiving in a foreign country is a bit of a challenge! This was my first time to not be in the USA for this holiday and only the second time to not be with my family!! It was a bit sad, I must admit. We thought about attending a thanksgiving dinner at a hotel but opted not to because it was too expensive.

So, what did we do? Well, we ate Skyline Chili!! Let me just start by saying, it was a taste of home for us and that was important! For those who know not skyline chili, let me first say, I am so sorry! Skyline Chili is a Cincinnati, Ohio delicacy! If you have ever lived in Cincinnati, you should know what I am talking about. It is a very famous restaurant in that area of the US! To prove my point let me tell a story. Two summers ago when we were in Israel, we were in McDonald's (we ARE Americans) and a young man heard us speaking English. He came over, asked us where we were from, told him Oklahoma and he said he was from Cincinnati. Brent looked at him and said, "I can prove that to be true or not with two words, Skyline Chili!". Well this guy goes crazy! He begins listing all the protocols for eating Skyline Chili. And I think I even saw his mouth begin to water. You need to know that he had been in Israel for nine months and I think was missing home a little. So Brent bringing up something from his home was very therapeutic for him.

So, what's the deal with Skyline Chili? Well, it's nothing like Texas chili!! First of all, it has a completely different taste! It's hard to describe but I think it even has cinnamon in it. Second, you serve it over a bowl of spaghetti noodles. Then after drenching the noodles in this somewhat runny chili, you pile mounds of cheddar cheese on top. You also add oyster crackers to the dish. Of course you can add onions and beans too! Yeah, it's so not healthy!

All this to say, Thanksgiving for us in Israel was a little unorthodox! However, don't fret too much for us. We are having the other Americans from our Hebrew class over this Tuesday for turkey and all the traditional Thanksgiving food! In fact, the turkey is thawing in my fridge right now! I get to cook it and I hope it turns out alright; I've never cooked a turkey before!

So, that was our Thanksgiving in Israel! I hope you all had a great day with family and friends! Bottom line, the day is not really about the food, it's about being thankful and being with those we love! So, wherever you are in the world, you can still celebrate with a thankful heart!

p.s. if you want to know more about Skyline Chili you can check out the website. The site is listed in my links. :-)

Welcome to my first ever blog!!

Greetings,
This really is my first ever blog! Can you believe that? I mean, the internet has only been around for, oh, a LOT of years now! Well, it's true, I am a newbie! I am an amateur! So, welcome to my new adventure!
Let me start by saying, I will be the main blogger for this sight. However, my husband, Brent, will be making special appearances. I know, I know, you can hardly breathe from the excitement! Seriously, though! He is an amazing man of God! He is a very gifted preacher, teacher and writer! You will love hearing from him and his perspectives on life!
So, here's a little about our current adventure, which I think is a perfect way to start this blog!
Brent and I are currently living in Israel. We live in Tel Aviv which is only about a one hour drive from Jerusalem. The picture I have included in this post is a view of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.

We arrived in Israel August 30, 2007! Almost three months ago!! We have come to live here about six months to attend Ulpan. What is Ulpan? Ulpan is Hebrew language school. Ulpan is a tool the government uses for new immigrants to Israel to learn to speak, read and write Hebrew. But "tourists" such as ourselves are also welcome to join the classes. So, five days a week from 8:15 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. Sunday through Thursday, Brent and I are in class, having our brains turned to mush!! I'm not kidding, either. Hebrew is such a hard language! I mean, we have even had to learn an entirely new alphabet for crying out loud! However, we are learning and that is the amazing thing!

We love life in Tel Aviv. We have settled into a routine here very quickly! I have been amazed at how quickly life has become normal here for us. People ask me if I'm ready to go home, and honestly, sorry Mom and Dad, I'm not ready. Brent and I both miss our family and friends terribly! I just wish they were all here with us.

I can't wait to share with you some of the adventures of living in this amazing land. The Promised Land!! It is a daily adventure, as is life with Brent Avery!!! :-)

Well I don't want my first post to be outrageously long so I'll sign off for now!

So begins this new adventure! We hope you enjoy it with us!!