Today is the day I quit Mongolian Sign Language Classes. I hated quitting, but a few weeks into a 6 week class I got a virus (probably Covid but I was never officially diagnosed). The school was AMAZING and I had one one-on-one online make-up lesson and another where I participated live on Zoom. But… Read More The Day I Quit Mongolian Sign Language Lessons
Some people love to cook. I do not love to cook. But I love to eat, so I cook. Cooking here often involves a few extra steps. For example, while on our unexpected time in the US we discovered an amazing quinoa taco recipe. It’s a crock-pot dump recipe so it’s super-easy. All you need… Read More Just a few extra steps
The heat is lower in our apartment. Our apartment is not as hot as it was when we lived here before. This is a welcomed relief! We are able to comfortably sleep with a blanket on the bed and did not change into shorts as soon as we got home. We have so much stuff.… Read More Initial Reflections on our First 48 Hours
This is a largely information post about what arriving at UBN Airport in Ulaanbaatar with Covid Protocols was like for our American family of three with current visas but outdated registration cards. If you’re planning a trip to Mongolia through UB, I’m happy to answer any questions about the process as long as you know… Read More Upon Arrival in Ulaanbaatar (December 2021)
We took a quick trip to Europe. Here’s a sampling of the photos Cory took.
Thursday morning we found out our flights to Mongolia were cancelled. We had been increasingly expecting this. So, while it was a disappointment, it was not a surprise. Later Thursday night I saw a news article on a Mongolian news site saying that Turkish Airlines (the carrier for our flight) had cancelled all of their… Read More Hope Deferred
You might have questions about our return, now that it seems imminent. Here’s our attempt to answer them. Feel free to ask (either in the comments or on Facebook) about anything we didn’t answer! What’s your Visa status? Mongolia closed their borders last March, making it impossible for us to return. While stuck in the… Read More All The Boring Info About Returning
We were playing I Spy at a Mexican restaurant here in Michigan because Mexican restaurants, with their brightly decorated chairs, tables, and walls, make for the best I Spy games. It was our daughter’s turn and we’d narrowed it down to something gray or brown, part of a painting, above table level. Then I asked,… Read More “Is It Edible?”
Where are you? We are staying in Michigan. Our home church has a house that is used for displaced people (usually immigrants who are settling in the area or cross-cultural workers like us). It was available when we were heading this way in March for, what we thought, was going to be a few weeks,… Read More 2020 September Update FAQs
Our daughter began her 3rd term at her primary school on Monday, January 6. On Tuesday at 3:23 we got an email with the draft schedule for terms 3 & 4 including holiday breaks and spring break. 18 MINUTES LATER we got an email saying the Minister of Education had told the school they needed… Read More On Being Flexible
You can read about our previous (mis)adventures paying bills here and here. We are over a year in and we’re still learning. Last week we learned you can NOT pay your electric bill for six months with basically no consequences (or notice). Here’s what happend: AS we understand it, our СӨХ (pronounced “suuk” basically, the… Read More Oops (or What Happens When You Don’t Pay Your Electric Bill for Six Months)
We are planning a trip to Singapore over the Christmas holiday. Singapore, like many countries, requires that your passport be valid for at least 6 months from date of entry. Our daughter’s is not. So we are renewing our daughter’s passport overseas. And it turns out is amazingly easy to renew a US passport in… Read More Today We Renewed Our Daughter’s Passport (Overseas)
Ellisons in Mongolia 