the return to normalcy or at least a version of it!

Sorry! Sorry! It's been a bit since my last post. Trying to settle in here is still taking time - more time than originally planned but it is getting easier. More days are good then bad, although I do still have my "I hate Macedonia" moments like today when I slipped and fell down the stairs of our apartment building with a stroller in one hand and Cal in the other - twisting my ankle pretty bad in the process. There are obviously things about living here that are not like living in OHIO, but I will say that this past week was the first point where I started to feel a bit normal - as normal as one can feel in a foreign country when you are still unable to speak the language. I think something that has helped me on my way to normalcy is that I am no longer feeling intimidated about going about life here. I kinda felt paralyzed a bit in these past weeks so unsure of where to go, what I could say (or not say); afraid of just about everything which for me is no NORMAL! I pride myself on being pretty independent and industrious - but here I was sorta feeling like I was back at my first day of high school (I think most of us can relate to this feeling... it's what I refer to a a "LOST" feeling).

Another BIG factor in my return to normalcy was a little reminder of it... Upon moving to Macedonia we were told that there was another Crusade couple in the capitol and that we had to of course meet them and their boys. So this is just what John and I did. We went to Skopje (pronounced scopia), which like I said is the capital of Macedonia to visit Scott and Jennifer Matthews and their boys Ely & Noah who are the exact ages as our boys! Just arriving in Skopje you know your no longer in little Strumica since it's just a scosh bigger than we have become accustomed to in the past month. As we drove up to the Matthew's house... a house and not an apartment... with real grass in the backyard... well let's just say I was so excited. To make things better we were greeted with two smiling boys ready to tire out our two boys and the smell of fresh-baked cookies. Then the cherry on top... a babysitter would be coming in two hours to watch all the boys so we could go out to dinner! We were thrilled for ourselves and the boys. Our dinner btw was magnificent. We went to a fun little cuban place in the middle of downtown where John and I both had a wonderful steak and not just for Macedonian standards. Then we had this delicious chocolate cake that immediatly upon cutting into erupted with fudge - it was a truly great night. We were out for almost 5 hours (the longest we have both been without the kids in weeks)... we are looking forward to doing it again real soon.

We drove home the next day and Brady said "that was really fun... i think we should move to here, I just know we can find a new hotel to live in here"! Yes, a hotel... Brady think we are living in a hotel because the building is five levels - it's both funny and cute - whatever works; all he knows is that it's different!

So now that the "LOST" feeling has become somewhat removed and although I cannot say it is totally gone, and it may never be which I think that I am OK with. I am an after all American (proud to be) and not Macedonian but I hope that the two will continue to meld together and my time here will be fruitful in so many ways.

The Honeymoon is... what Honeymoon?

So we definitely live in Macedonia now. Don't believe me; actually I hardly believe it myself but here's our address.

John & Sara Jakus

Ul. Braka Miladinovi
br. 55/1-13

2400 Strumica

Macedonia

Well lets start from the beginning. We left Chicago August 22nd at 2:30pm for our 8hr flight to Frankfurt - it went surprisingly well and the boys were well-behaved. Cal fell asleep about 3hrs prior to landing but Brady fell asleep on our decent into the Frankfurt airpot which turned out to be a fiasco. Most people may not know this about Brady but he sleeps like a rock and when he is out he is out but with that being said he does not take very well to being woken up. It usually creates for a very unpleasant environment! So there we are at the gate in Frankfurt (sometime around 10:30 in our minds) with two kids passed out; two pillows, two blankets and three carry-ons to get off the plane. John and I looked at each other with a bit of anxiety and thought how are we gonna manage this. As everyone exited the plane some of our fellow travelers were kind enough to see our dilema and help us with the bags... the kids on the other hand were a bit more tricky. Of course our strategic goal was to keep them asleep but as anyone who has ever flown through Frankfurt airport before that was a very lofty goal. OK, so I think Frankfurt airport might be the most poorly designed airport I have had the privledge of flying in and out of. Your must walk what is at least a mile to get from gate to gate and before entering a new gate area you have to go through security which of course would make total sense because you could have acquired something very dangerous while you were 30,000 feet above the ground for 8 hours. So with that being said our children did not make it through our excursion through the airport and security and remain asleep. They in fact did wake up... Cal was fine but Brady was quite a sight. Trying to block this part of the trip out, but I am pretty sure he tantrumed and curled up on a ball in the middle of the floor saying leave me alone continually until reaching our connecting gate then slept during our four hour layover - he did not wake up again until we got to the airport in sofia (where the same behavior happened again - what JOY)! When we arrived in Sofia we were all tired but so excited to see our friends, Larry, Courtney, the Gills and of course for John, I and the boys - Milen. Milen of course is from Bulgaria (3hrs outside of Sofia in a small town called Yombul) and left our home in Ohio early June to see his parents for the summer. It is still weird to think we will be here in Europe while he is in the states the next few years.... but anyways. That day is a blur... we were all so jet-lagged and the boys just wanted to sleep which of course made for a few interesting nights with them up for 4-5 hours hungry and ready to play. We spent two full days in Bulgaria relaxing and seeing people which was very nice... then on Aug 25th the other US players (Jeremiah, Todd, & John) arrived and we headed to Strumica (pronounced Strumitsa).As most people know driving in a new place can present some challenges but when you are in a country where there are no real rules of the road and all speed limits are optional it can be more than just a challenge and downright scary. I am from NJ where people are naturally aggressive drivers and John is very comfy driving in a BIG city and we were still intimidated. We were following a large red van carrying the team and most our bags and from the way this bus driver was driving you would have thought his butt was on fire. We lost him numerous time and they even popped a tire which you would have thought to be and encouragement to sow down, but now way. Needless to say 5 1/2 hours later we rolled into Strumica, eat dinner and were brought to our new apartment.
Originally John and I thought we were going to stay in hotel for a few days while we looked for a place to live, but the existing missionary couple (Ryan & Jyl Smith) had found us a place unbeknownst to us. So let me tell u a little about our place. First off it is on the 5th floor and there is NO elevator. It is probably 500 sq feet... a little bit smaller than what we are used to and when we walked through the door at midnight after traveling in a car without air conditoner at 95 degrees it was a bit of an emotional hit. In addition to the size we realized quickly (since there isn't much to see in 500 sq feet) that there were no beds for the boys to sleep in that night. Obviously we were all exhausted so we improvised and made it work between our bed and the couch cushions. It would only be for one night since the beds were to be delivered in the morning. So... of course the beds were not delivered in the morning. They were delivered 6 days later - it was a long week! I cried alot and few days a I am pretty sure I told John I was going home and he couldn't stop me - pretty mature huh? Not my finest moment, but slowly Myself, John and the kids are settlin' in here and our little apartment is feeling like home and the five story trek up to our place is probably the best calf/bun exercise i have every done... especially holding Cal or five bag of groceries.
Brady started Macedonia school today and I had my first playdate with Cal today. John will coach the first scrimmage of the season tomorrow (pray they win bc if they do John has promised to take me to Greece so we can hit up the IKEA again - we went the first weekend we were here). We have had a few language lessons and I can at least say hello like a local now! I have shopped in the huge open markets and successfully bought peaches, bananas, apples and pears. Oh and I drive everywhere. We can drive on the sidewalks here and well I am starting to think that the worse you are at driving the better - all the 16 year old first time drivers should come and learn here because then they for sure could drive anywhere. I feel that there is so much that I missed so if you have any questions just post 'em and I give you the scoop!