Christmas festivities started on the 24th here. Around 3pm on Christmas Eve a group from the hostel/church in Phnom Penh showed up to help decorate and prepare for Christmas camp. This group included my friend Ashley who is the YAGM serving in that placement. I was excited to have her here and get to celebrate … More Happy Merry Christmas
The weekend before Christmas the YAGM team gathered together again to celebrate Christmas. My placement is one of only a few that would actually get to celebrate Christmas so it was important for us to gather and celebrate this holiday together and we did our best to create the holiday traditions that are important to … More Christmas in Cambodia
Making breakfast doesn’t seem like that difficult of a task, and really it isn’t. There are plenty of times that I have successfully made breakfast for myself or myself and the girls, those stories are just not quite as interesting to tell! This morning I was left home alone which included making my own breakfast. … More Making Breakfast: The Saga Continues!
It is not odd for Pastor Vibol or Sreyleak to take off for a few days and head to Phnom Penh or somewhere else for meetings or training of some sort. I am always left in the very caring hands of SokRy who does all the cooking and cleaning around the house. Last week, though, … More When Mom Goes Home
As I sit here eating the last few pieces of a green mango dipped in a mixture of salt, sugar, and chili powder—a gift from my students that I ate for dessert with my family after dinner tonight—I can’t even count the number of lessons I learned today. It has definitely been an unforgettable birthday … More A Birthday to Remember
This is a long poem that I wrote about my third week in placement when I went to Kampong Thom with my family for Pchum Ben’s Day, a Cambodian Holiday. At first I wasn’t really sure if I wanted to share it, but I think it pretty accurately portrays the range of emotions I felt … More Pchum Ben’s Day: Going to Grandma’s for Holiday
I get the joy of living with a four year old and a seven year old this year. Honey and Hanna bring a smile to my face every day and I am just so glad that I get to learn from them and live with them this year. My relationship with each of them is … More Bedtime Stories
Learning Khmer has been one of the biggest joys and also one of the biggest frustrations for me so far in my placement. It is such a joy when I say something correctly or I say an entire phrase and I’m understood or I understand when someone else is speaking Khmer. But its so frustrating … More Learning Together
Daar leng is one of my favorite Khmer phrases to use. Khnom dtou daar leng! Daar leng directly translates “walk play” and means to hang out or visit. I often go daar leng throughout the village which mostly means taking a leisurely walk and stopping to talk with people who I meet along the road … More Daar Leng
I promised there would be more cooking stories, so here it is! Although this is not quite as amusing as the first! I haven’t done much cooking in my placement. I am so incredibly blessed that I live with an amazing cook who really enjoys cooking for the family and most of the time when … More Making Breakfast: Yellow Soup
Called to Cambodia 