Christmas 2005
Saturday, December 24, 2005
Merry Christmas from the 3 Smiths!!!
The Story of Christmas
"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them and the glory of the Lord shown round about them, and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.' And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men.' "--The Christmas Story as told by Luke the Physician and Linus the Peanut
City of the Seven Hills
Wednesday, December 14, 2005
We have been very busy the past few weeks preparing and hosting a conference for student workers from all over the world. It was a first for us and tons of work, but such a great time to meet other like-minded people from literally every different continent. Each morning we had some worship time, and James Tealy (from New Orleans) led us. He is extremely talented and in only one afternoon, in his hotel room, he recorded a song about our city. PLEASE check it out, it is amazing (and you may even recognize the people he mentions in verse two!). Click here and then click on City of the Seven Hills in the play box. Thanks, James!
Baby Stuff!
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
Seven months ago, we had no idea how much "stuff" we would need to get for Baby Smith. Unfortunately, most of those baby items are a little out of our price range here in Turkey. But, the internet is a wonderful thing and we have been able to shop online for most of the things we will need. A friend brought over a new car seat and a ton of baby clothes for us last week. It was like Christmas! (Many thanks to Mr. Little, John and Dr. Vanzura!!!!) Some of you have asked how we can get packages over here so we created two registries online that you can order from and the gifts will be shipped to us (via my mom coming to visit in January). Check 'em out at Babies R Us and Target.
Sonic Flood
Sunday, December 11, 2005
Although this isn't the norm in Turkey, we actually had Sonic Flood perform live at a local club this week. It was amazing how many open doors the band was provided with, and along with their performances, they shot a music video that should be released sometime next year. You can check out the band's blog here and see some of their pictures and thoughts on their trip to Turkey.
World Series
Saturday, December 03, 2005
We have been teaching baseball and softball for over a year now, and we finally had an opportunity to the show the players a REAL baseball game. Although much overdue, it was a nice evening (and a great learning experience). We all met at a cafe near campus where one of the students had reserved a room (which comes with a large screen TV). We sat in comfy lounge chairs and just enjoyed a few hours of baseball. We actually showed them Game 2 of the World Series since it was a great game with a lot of action (and they didn't know who was going to win anyway). 
Jeff with two of the baseball guys. The pipe the middle guy is holding is a Nargile pipe (or Hookah as some people call it). Smoking nargile is very popular in Turkey, most cafes have numerous pipes available to use. The water in the pipe is generally flavored, so it is sometimes a nice break from the smell of regular cigarette smoke. 
Andrea with a few of the girls. 
