Shhhh......

Don't call Kim about this post until Friday the 29th, because she doesn't know about it yet. The other day we finally decided to get Megan's hair cut. We were thinking of doing it kind of short, but when we got to the dollar cuts the first thing that the girl said was, "Really, you want to cut it short? I like it so much better long." Some of you may be familiar with Kim's timidity when it comes to hair cuts. That little comment was all it took to take the wind right out of her sails. We ended up cutting off about a quarter inch, for which we payed ten dollars (plus tip). I wasn't happy with the cut (what cut?) and I know that the more courageous side of Kim wanted it shorter too, so when she went to work tonight I decided to take it upon myself to surprise her with a cute new Megan for when she wakes up tomorrow. I put on some kid's music, whipped out the kitchen scissors, and turned our bathroom into a hair salon.



Megan kept stopping me to look in the mirror and say "I look pretty" and "I look like Princess Fiona" (from Shrek, although arguably she looked more like Princess Fiona before the haircut.)


Here's the finished product (I'm not sure what the red shiner is under her eye, but it contributes to the waif look she's got going on).




I did have to promise her some ice cream in order to keep her still (it didn't really work, but she got ice cream anyway.)


Here's some reference shots from a few days ago so you can see how much I cut.



She looked beautiful before, but it's a nice change. Plus, it will always grow back.

P.S. As a side note, Megan has named the door knobs that hang above her changing table. The white one is Mom, the one on the left is Dad, and the one on the right is Megan. That's what she's explaining in these pictures. I'm not really sure what that means, but it sure is cute.

But he is going to find a job soon...

Sorry about the lack of posts, Mike left our camera charger at the hotel in Istanbul. They are in the process of mailing it to us (we hope). In the mean time click here to see what Mike has been doing 12 hours a day for the last 4 or 5 days. You can also click on the link in the sidebar that says "James and Lonna."

(If you just can't stand the suspense, I'll tell you -- he's been working on a short film with James and his brother. The link will take you to photos of the shoot. There are also some recent pictures of Megan on there if you scroll down.)

Interfaith Dialogue

We cannot possibly do justice to our trip to Turkey in this one post. We spent 10 days in Turkey, boarded 14 planes on 7 different flights, traveled over 20,000 miles, visited 5 cities, 4 seas, 2 continents, took over 500 pictures and ate A LOT of food. There was very little sleeping, and no "down time." This was not a relaxation vacation.

Last semester we were lucky enough to get to know a group of Turkish Muslims here in Austin through my World Religions course at the LDS institute. My institute instructor had visited Turkey with them the year before, and last semester our class was invited to attend a Ramadan dinner that the group was hosting downtown. We let it be known that we would love to be invited on one of their trips to Turkey, even though the organization does its best to bring influential people from the community (for example, they have taken the mayor of Austin, and our trip included the Sheriff). The group pays for everything except the plane ticket to Turkey through donations from ordinary Turks who believe in the idea that the East and the West, Christianity, Judaism and Islam all need to come together and talk in order to understand each other better. We were very lucky and blessed to be invited.

NEVSEHIR (Cappadocia)


Cappadocia is located in central Turkey and was originally the land of the Hittites. Later it was occupied by the Assyrians and then the early Christians. The geography and climate were very similar to parts of southern Utah, and the rock formations were astounding -- straight out of Dr. Seuss. The people who lived in Cappadocia built their homes in the rocks themselves, which were soft and easy to carve.




The entire region is covered in these kinds of dwellings, and peppered throughout the caves are churches and frescoes that bear witness to the hundreds of years that Christians spent here hiding from the Roman empire.


While here we also visited an underground pottery facility that has been run by a family in the traditional manner for generations.



IZMIR (Ephesus)

Next stop was Izmir, a city on the Aegean sea that boasts the home where Mary spent her final days under the care of John, and the great city of Ephesus where Paul came to preach. Our host sponsors for this portion of the trip met us at the airport with flowers for all of the women who went with us. This set the pattern for how gracious, generous and kind all of the Turks were with us.

Here is Mary's house, a pilgrimage site for Christians all over the world


The ampitheater at Ephesus where Paul preached.


The ruins at Ephesus were astounding, and we were able to wander all throughout blocks and blocks of city streets. Here is a photo of the library of Ephesus, the second largest library of the ancient world.


ANTALYA


Next we flew to the Mediterranean coast to the city of Antalya. Antalya is a very popular tourist destination, especially for Russians, and sits atop imposing cliffs that drop to the sea surrounded by the Touros mountain range. We ate lunch next to this waterfall.


The Mediterranean was kind of cold.


In Antalya we also visited a "religious garden" where a Christian church, Jewish synagogue, and Muslim mosque all operate on the same grounds. If you look closely at this picture you'll see a cross to the top right, a crescent moon at the top left, and of course a star of David down front.


The Imam of the mosque showed us around, explained some Muslim beliefs to us, and recited from the Koran in the traditional style.



URFA (Uz)

Back on the plane, and down to the Syrian border to a town known as Urfa. Those familar with the story of Abraham will recognize it as Ur, and those who know the story of Job will call it Uz. Urfa is much more of what one would expect from a Middle Eastern town. Here is our group in front of the cave where Job lived when he lost everything and was covered in boils.


Inside the cave


This tower was in Harran outside of Urfa, and dates to the time of Abraham. Our guide told us it was used to study astronomy.


While there we stopped to have tea with a family and their daughter sang for us.


This is the mosque built over Abraham's birthplace.



I really like the colors in this picture I took of a hookah at a copper store



ISTANBUL

Istanbul straddles two continents -- Europe and Asia -- with one leg on each side of the Bosphorus Strait, a body of water that connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmara. It has a population of twelve million people, making it the largest city in Europe, and has been known in the past as Byzantium and Constantinople. I was fascinated by the architecture of this amazing city, and we were lucky enough to spend three days here.

We went for a ferry ride on the Bosphorus and passed under the two bridges that connect East and West Istanbul.


This is the Hagia Sophia, a monumental building which has been alternately a church and a mosque. Ataturk, the founder of the modern republic of Turkey, made it into a museum and opened it to the public.


The Muslims believe that Jesus was a prophet, and they highly esteem Mary and some of the other saints, and so left many of the frescoes inside when it became a mosque, despite the fact that the depiction of people is taboo in Islam. Here you can see a giant disc with Allah written in Arabic on the right, Muhammud on the left, and a fresco with Mary and Jesus in between.


Here's a huge underground cistern where the city stored water.


Some muslim women chatting it up in the courtyard of the Topkapi palace where the Sultan lived.



Kim and I in front of the Blue Mosque.


A shaky video of the interior to give you a better idea of what it was like.



Shopping in the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul.



The sun setting over Istanbul on the Sea of Marmara.



FOOD AND FAMILIES

Because the object of the trip was to inspire interfaith dialogue, we had the privilege to eat almost a meal a day with a host family, and to visit schools in the different regions. It was very touching to meet with people and eat in their homes. They were very kind to us, and this was one of the best aspects of the trip.

















This was an incredible experience for us, and hopefully these pictures conveyed at least some of what was so special about it. The people were very friendly, the history was amazing, the food was excellent, the cities were incredibly clean, there was no graffiti or garbage, and the faith of those we came in contact with was so refreshing. We truly came to appreciate the similarities of our faiths and the sincerity of their beliefs, and were able to rid ourselves of the stereotypes and one dimensional portrayals that we had picked up here in the U.S. If you ever have the chance to visit this wonderful country, do not pass it up.

Hangin' with Megan

So I'm a stay at home dad again this summer while I look for a way to support my family. Although Kim is only working three days a week (12 hour shifts) it feels like 7 days a week. Megan and I struggle to fill up the day with things to do, and sometimes I feel like all we do is watch Cars, The Little Mermaid, and Mary Poppins over and over again; however, here are some pictures to show you some of the other fun things we do.

One day Megan put Mrs. Potato Head's ears into her own ears. She ended up with a whole new face.


We don't always do great at sitting down to eat meals for breakfast or lunch, but she snacks all day long. I try to give her healthy things like string cheese, peaches and wheat thins.


We made her a tent in the living room the other day. She made me play in it with her and I had to lay on the ground, half in and half out.



She loves to go to the park, and she has gotten very good at climbing. She can climb this thing over and over. She also has incredible hanging abilities. There is a zip line thing that she hangs onto while I push it. I haven't been able to get a picture of that yet because I have to follow underneath her with both arms waiting to catch her if she decides to let go without telling me (which she usually does.)


Megan loves to draw and color. Here she is with her water colors. She made me have my own cup of water to rinse my brush, and she didn't really want to share paints, but we worked it out.



Here's my picture (of course I had to hang it on the fridge).



She is pretty grubby all the time (especially her hair), so I'm glad she likes to take baths. She sometimes takes two a day, and is quite happy to run around au naturale afterwards.


This is actually a Sunday picture, not a normal summer day, but she is so pretty I couldn't pass it up.


It sure is going to be hard to leave our little girl for two whole weeks when we go to Turkey, but I'm sure the family will take good care of her. Hopefully these pictures will give them an idea about all the fun things they can do with her.