I am not 100% over my illness but I am getting close. As Cecelia said this morning, “this house goes through tissues like they are going out of season!” If I never have to use another tissue in my life, it will be a-ok with me.
I woke up on Thursday and walked around all morning while I was getting ready for school saying “Happy Thanksgiving....Happy Thanksgiving!” I didn’t think that I would get wished Happy Thanksgiving many times during the day so I took it upon myself to do so. I was pleasantly surprised when I got to school and one of the members of staff had made a pumpkin pie for morning tea. With two Americans on staff (myself and the Assistant Principal) she said that she couldn’t resist. Now this pumpkin pie is not the same as it is at home but it was honkin’ good! She made it from scratch (that’s a lot of work) so it was light and fluffy and didn’t have as much of a zing or punch as the spices in canned pie filling or frozen pumpkin pie have. You see, here they normally eat pie like a vegetable--boil or bake it, sometimes skin and all. It is surprisingly very good (despite what my father said that when I told him about it...”OH YUCK!”). I taught the kids all about Thanksgiving, we wrote a list of things that we were thankful for, wrote what each of them would want if they had their own Thanksgiving dinner and made the infamous turkeys out of your hand! The kids loved it, they names their turkeys things like Frank, Joe and Bob.
The other notable thing about Thursday is that I had fairy bread at school. Now fairy bread is bread, with butter spread on it, and then hundreds and thousands put on the butter. What are hundreds and thousands, you say? That is just the question that I asked....SPRINKLES! Let’s just say that it sounds interesting and it IS interesting. The soft bread with the hard sprinkles is not really all that pleasant of a texture but it doesn’t taste bad...it doesn’t taste good either.
Friday morning was TERRIFIC! I woke up early so that I could call my family and wish THEM a Happy Thanksgiving (it was just before 1 in the afternoon on Thursday in New Mexico). It was so fun to talk to them--David answered the phone and was hilarious right off the bat. I talked to Paul, Mel, and Mom for a while and then David and Dad got on for the finale. Let me just say that David and Dad together on the phone is a lethal but hilarious combination. It was so good to talk to them and to hear all about the normal Thanksgiving preps. Mom was making the potatoes (my favorite) and the boys were watching football. I am sad that I missed it but I am sure they had a blast. I hope they ate those extra bits of stuffing and mashed potatoes for me! I love them all and can’t wait until I see them all again soon. Let’s face it...I have the coolest family in the world!
Friday also happened to be my best day at school yet. I got to be a part of teaching every lesson but one (which meant that I was teaching all day). I taught the kids to play Multiplication Baseball...they loved it! Every time that a multiplication problem totaled more than 30 it was a home and run and the kids would yell and throw “HOME RUN!” and throw their arms into the air. I had my Cardinals hat of course! Sue even thought it worked so well that she wants to know exactly what I did so that she can use it again...now THAT’S SUCCESS when even Sue is pleased. When we were on recess duty we took out oversized umbrellas for shade (it’s hot on the top oval and there is no shade). So there was Sue and I with our HUGE umbrellas and heaps of little Kinders and Second Years crammed in around us trying to get a bit of shade. I wish that there had been someone there to take a picture, cause I am sure it was quite a sight!
Yesterday was another busy Saturday. Sue and I went to the Farmer’s Market and I bought some amazing local grown cherries and Rocky Road. No my friends, not the ice cream but marshmallows and nuts covered in chocolate. I haven’t tried it yet but I will let you know how it goes. I ran into gobs of kids from school and Sue and I had a fun times wandering around the stalls and picking out little things. After that I made sugar cookies for the Branch Christmas Party that night. Let’s just say that cooking here is an adventure because you have to convert EVERYTHING--the butter is in huge blocks that is divided into grams, the oven is gas and labeled in Celsius, nothing is measured in ounces...ugh it’s a pain. We had the party that night and we all played water balloon volleyball and had a barbie (BBQ). I was soaked before the whole event even kicked off because filling up water balloons with Elders is dangerous business. If for some reason the balloon slipped while they were tying it, the darn thing inevitably came right at me. This whole Christmas in the summer thing is a little bizarre for me, I am not feeling it quite yet but I might get there.
It has been a fun weekend and I have even got the Garlicks talking like me. They say “that’s cool” all the time now...more then I do, in fact. Things here are going well and I am still enjoying every moment. Once I get over this cold I will be unstoppable for the next three weeks until David gets here and than the real adventure begin!
I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with lots of joy and turkey. Enjoy those cold winter days and I am looking forward to talking to all of you when I return home!

Well it has been another busy week in the Land Down Under. Two Sunday’s ago we had General Conference (yea, two months later). Since it is about 2 in the morning on Monday when Conference is live they watch it when the DVD’s come out here. Between sessions of Conference I introduced the Branch to the beauties of Rice Krispie Treats. Now they weren’t exactly the same--first of all Rice Krispie’s are called Rice Bubbles here-- and I had to use strawberry marshmallows cause that’s what Cecelia got. But they turned out surprisingly well and the Aussie’s seemed impressed. They were surprised that they weren’t sweeter but I don’t know what they expected considering the main ingredient is about the blandest cereal on the planet. That night Sue and I went to the Trots--yes, more horst racing. It was a fundraiser for the Catholic schools in the area. I just stood there and laughed--I really can’t get behind this sport. I promise they only enjoy it for all the gambling. It is just a bunch of horses running round and round in a circle--baseball is definitely better!
Last week I began teaching a unit on the United States. It was a little hard for the kids to grasp the concept of Hawaii and Alaska being part of the country but not touching. One kid asked, “How do people get there?” Come on kid, the same way that people get to this island country that you live on... they fly! But it sure was cute. They also thought there were thirteen stripes on the flag because there are thirteen countries that speak English. Close, but no.
The end of last week was absolutely (almost) freezing cold. I mean, it is supposed to be the end of spring here and we hit 1 degree Celsius! I was not prepared for these freezing cold conditions. Everyone at school just had to laugh at me walking around layered in both of my lightweight jackets--hey, they are the only ones I’ve got!
The staff has taken to picking on me a bit. In staff meeting last week they were talking about taking student teachers for next year. And Mike says in his most serious tone, “Well I would take one but Sue told me that they are just trouble. She told me not too.” Of course he was talking about me...punk! Nobody got the joke until I threw down my papers in “disgust” and said “Man, No Respect!” They all got a good chuckle out of it. Then on Friday I got into a debate with the principal about the number of States in the U.S. He insisted that there were 52 states and 52 stars on the flag. “Yeah, 52 with Greenland and Hawaii.” “You mean ALASKA and Hawaii.” “Yeah, that.” I should have known that we were off to a bad start. No matter how many times I told him that there were only 50 he kept at it, insisting that he was going to prove me wrong. I was feeling pretty confident so I told him to go right ahead. Finally Mike (yea, same one as before) said, “Peter, she’s the American!” Later I took him a copy of the flag so that he could count the stars for himself. He had found a website that in fact said there were 50 states but he thought he had better recheck for us--all those little states in the northeast, maybe we missed two. Peter said that he had talked to several staff members who all thought there were 52. Good thing I am here to stamp the ignorance out of this school--I don’t care if the Australian textbooks supposedly say there are 52! Don’t worry, I won’t leave this country until I have set the record straight.
I am teaching my students the Virginia Reel as part of their United States’ cultural experience. They loved it so much that we are going to perform it at the upcoming Christmas Concert. So I am now coaching these kids in the Virginia Reel--little do they know that I don’t know the Virginia Reel--thank goodness for Google!
I also took my life into my hands last week and got my hair chopped. I kind of feel like now that I have done an everyday thing like get my hair cut I officially live in this country instead of just being a tourist. I was kind of worried at first but it is actually the most pleased I have been since I whacked all my hair off in high school. Who would have known that I would have had to fly half way around the world to me satisfied with a hair cut!?
This past weekend I went to Sydney--the weather finally turned warm and it was a gorgeous weekend! First stop was the Taronga Zoo. We didn’t even make it through the gates and some guy in line behind us started giving us a hard time about our Indiana University ID’s. Sure, we get it, pick on the Americans. We took a chair lift (gondola) to the top of the mountain (the zoo is on the side of a mountain). I can’t say that I really enjoyed being in a swinging small and confined space but the view was amazing. Then it was off to see the animals. I saw my first koala--adorable--and my first live kangaroo. Yes, I am saddened to report that the first kangaroo I saw in Australia was dead on the side of the road. But I found one at the zoo that was alive. It was a fun trip and a gorgeous zoo--I mean how many zoos do you take pictures of giraffes and the Opera House is in the background across the Harbour. Totally unreal!
Then we headed off to Manly Beach. We soaked up some sun--lathered in sunscreen of course (thanks Mom!) I think Jenn ended up worse off then me. I got a nice tan and she turned into a lobster. Sad :(. But the beach was gorgeous. The water was seriously aquamarine. They don’t make water like this in the U.S.
I can’t wait for David to get here. We are going to paint the town red! I have big plans David, so be prepared!
There isn’t really a whole lot to say after this weekend. My worst nightmare was realized on Monday--I got sick in a foreign country. It is just a cold--a nasty one--which is apparently going around because of the drastic weather changes. We are in the high 30’s now and it doesn’t look like things are going to cool down again. I made it through school on Monday but thought that I was going to pass out in the afternoon. I haven’t been to school these last two days (Tues. and Wed.). Cecelia took me to the Chemist today (that’s the Pharmacy) and they gave me “the strongest stuff we’ve got”. It is working really well and I should be back into the swing of things tomorrow.
I am sad that I am missing Turkey Day. Everyone eat some stuffing and a large piece of pumpkin pie for me!
Things here are awesome and I wish that you could all be here to see it. I am telling ya, everything is better in Australia!

It has been another exciting week here in the great land of Australia! Tuesday was the biggest day of the year for most Aussies... it was the Melbourne Cup. Now for those of you who are unfamiliar with it, the Melbourne Cup is a horse race. But not just any horse race, one which the entire nation stops to watch. I am not kidding, the principal told me that there are about 20 million Aussies and over 15 million of them would be watching the race. On the news it said that over 100 million dollars was bet on the race. Now, this sounds like a pretty big deal...more than one would think. When it was time for the race we gathered all of the little tikes at school together in the Assembly Hall and watched it on the big screen. It was nuts. The kids were yelling there heads off and there I was wondering what in the honk is happening. All of a sudden they start screaming even louder. I turn to Sue and ask her what is going on. She yells, “They are coming down the final straight!” And it was over. That was it. Three minutes. The whole nation stops and gets all worked up for three minutes. And then they show it over and over again for days.




Here is the whole school assembled to watch the race on the big screen!







But it doesn’t end there. The kids all went home (the race was ten minutes before school let out) and then the staff partied! Champagne on the principal! It was fun, of course they all took time to explain to me what had actually happened after we watched it over and over again. One of the teachers said, “well it’s like the Kentucky DArby” I said, “excuse me, it’s not the DArby...it’s the DErby!” These people and their accent!
Also on Tuesday I had another go at netball. And if I do say so myself I am getting pretty good. I still don’t understand this whole non-contact sport thing. I can’t get the rebound because I am too worried about touching someone. Bah!
On Wednesday I was watching the news and there were three reports that had to do with the United States. #1. Midterm Elections and the Republicans losing the majority. #2. Kristie Alley appearing on Oprah in a bikini. #3. Britney Spears divorce. I thought, no wonder people all over the world think Americans are loonys! I think we are too after that!
Today (Saturday, November 11th) was Remembrance Day in Australia. It is basically a combination of Veteran’s Day and Memorial Day. Yesterday at school we had a huge Remembrance Day liturgy. All the little kids brought in red flowers and there was singing and praying. The kids did a really good job putting it on.
Also yesterday Sam and Luke came and picked me up and we met President Reiri and Aiden at the driving range. Man, I am SO bad! The whole time I could hear Dad in my head giving me little pointers-- “Keep your head town” “bend your knees” “hold the club more like this”. Alas, I don’t think I am going to make it on the pro tour. But it was nice to be invited to do something...so that I can at least pretend to have a social life with people over the age of nine.
Today I wandered all over town and in the evening I found...da...da...da a BASEBALL DIAMOND! Right by my house. It may be run down and decrepit but there were bases and it had been mowed. I was excited...don’t ask me why...a little bit of civilization...ahhhhhh.
Well that’s all for this week, sorry that I don’t have any exciting stories. The kids just weren’t all that memorably funny this week. I’ll tell them to try to do better next week... until then!

Some pics...

This is Sarah (7), Me ("HI!"), and Tia (3) on my second night. I gave them each an Indiana Hoosier shirt...Tia's is more like a dress...

Here I am in all my glory. At the Branch Fear Factor Activity my first sunday here getting worms out of a pan of Cool Whip (the Aussie equivalent) with my mouth and giving them to Sarah (who looks like she is upchucking on in the background...NASTY!)

I will try to add more pics to this later...they take a while to upload...check back! :)

Well Friday started off on a real up but we hit rock bottom by the end of it. As I was about to walk out the door, Tia (3 yrs old) stole my keys and would not give them back. It took me tickling Tia and Sarah (7 yrs old) literally prying the keys from her grubby little fingers in order to get them away from her. Then Tia stood next to me and wrapped herself around my leg as I walked down the hall. Once she realized that that wasn't going to stop me from leaving she laid down on the floor and grabbed ahold of my ankles as I drug her into the kitchen. Cecelia and I finally convinced her that coming with me was not going to be that exciting and she let go. School on Friday was a total nightmare. I have never worked with kids that have so little remorse and really truly don't care if they are bothering the teacher or their fellow students. I tried everything I could to get the class under control and nothing worked. I had kids swearing (private school, remember) and kids just outright laughing at me when I told them to do something. It was ridiculous--there is no discipline plan set up so the kids know that you can't do anything about it if they muck around. It was SO frustrating! I told Sue when she came back into the room and she was mad at the little buggers but just kinda shrugged her shoulders and said that's what they are like. I love working with the kids and some of them are so sweet but I am going to en every day of the next six weeks with a headache!
It finally started raining on Thursday and than rained for three days. This is a big deal since all of AUstralia is in a serious drought. But you wouldn't believe how the kids reacted to about the most piddily thunder that I have ever heard--you would have thought it was Christmas they were so excited (and yes, they celebrate Christmas in December, same as us). It has been pretty chilly here lately and I bundle up in both of the jackets that I brought--I was not prepared for this cold weather and people have been telling me that this is HIGHLY unusual.
We drove to Sydney yesterday and I met up with one of the other student teachers from IU. It was SO great to see Jen--someone that I actually understood what they were saying the FIRST time they said it. We swapped stories and did a little sightseeing. I saw it guys--they Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. They were right there, right by the ferry that we took across the harbour. It was so surreal, to actually be that close. Something that I have seen hundreds of pictures of and dreamed about my whole life. If only it hadn't been overcast I would have gotten some great shots--but no fretting, there will be plenty of other opportunities. Jenn and I went to the Sydney Aquarium and saw some pretty cool fish. There were crocodiles too but I avoided them like the plague. There was this awesome blue stripey fish (sorry Beck, I don't know the name) that was my favorite. And a great shark tank that you could walk in one of those tunnels underneath. I don't normally like sharks but this was neat. It was nice to do something tourist and to be in the city. I am going to go back in a couple of weeks and spend the weekend at Jenn's house for more sighseeing!
When I got off the train to meet Cecelia and the girls... OH yes, the train was a whole other adventure. I had to take the train in from the suburbs where Cecelia's siter lives. I had NO idea what I was doing and so I asked the first Aussie saw. He explained the machine to me--there was no honkin' way I could have figured it out on my own. And then another man had to help me insert my money. Man, I'm hopeless-but gettging better Mom and Dad, no worries :). Anyway, when I met back up with the Garlicks Cecelia told me that when they dropped me off at the station that morning Tia had been asleep and when she woke up she burst into tears because I was gone. Ah, I am telling you these kids are ADORABLE! Little do they know how much I adore them even when they make me read the book about Colors over and over again. I feel like a big sister all over again (but no worries Mel, you will ALWAYS be my favorite--I wish you were here to go shopping with me, you would LOVE it, and they have great shoes!).
Today was church, fast and testimony meeting. Apparantly they have figured out if they leave two minutes between each testimony they can manage to fill the whole meeting. They almost made it too. The branch is really cute and everyone is so nice. I am really lucky that it is small and I already know everyones name. We have netball again this Tuesday so maybe I can refine my mad skills...or just remember how to play would be nice! :)

Monday: Sue left me alone with the class that afternoon because she had to go to a funeral. I had to bribe one of the little boys who is normally a real pillto be good for me but hey--I didn't let him get the better of me. And I praised him unceasingly which really boosted his spirits. All of the kids were really well behaved and I felt good about the whole experience--mostly because I didn't have someone watching over my shoulder and making me honkin' nervous! At recess I had a group of fifth/sixth grade girls asked me where I was from in America. I explained to them where Indiana was and then they proceeded to ask me if I knew any movie stars. Come on girls, CA is way honkin' far away from IN! :) They were cute and of course I told them that I didn't...although I think my parents could pass for movie stars...I mean, they had me, that's enough to make them famous :). I drove on the wrong side of hte road today (well it was the right side here). Cecelia almost had a heartattach--but I take no blame because it was her idea! I must say that I didn't exactly love the experience either but nobody got injured and no animals were injured during the adventure. The whole thing is way too counterintuitive for me. And the highlight was definately when I flicked the windsheild wipers on instead of the turn signal--once again, not my fault that it is on the other side of the steering wheel!
Tuesday: Cecelia let me drive again today (not my idea again). She needed to pick up her car from the shop and so I drove the truck home. I just kept telling myself "My side next to the center line, my side next to the center line". It actually worked quite well and I survived wtih flying colors (or colours). Cecelia watched me in her rearview mirror and said I looked much more relaxed--no joke, she wasn't sitting next to me with sweaty palms. The Branch taught me how to play netball today. I would say that it is a lot like ultimate frisbee but each position is restricted to certain areas of the court. And oh yea, there is a basketball court at each end (minus the backboard). It was a lot of fun and I think I actually got the hang of it by the end (although I wouldn't let them switch positions on me--one was more than enough to think about)! Cecelia is trying her little heart out to set me up with the only eligible bachelor in the Branch. But no worries Dad, I haven't said more than a dozen words to the kid. :) And his name is Sam, we know how well the last boy named Sam went... enough said!
Wednesday: That's today! We had an assembly today celebrating NAIDOC, which I belive stands for National Aboriginal Indiginous Day of Celebration. It was really cool. A former teacher came back and did a smoke ceremony. Apparantly she is an Elder of her tribe and she blessed up that the ancient fathers of the land would protect us. There were also two dancing groups. One group of boys did traditional dances in loinclothes and all smeared wtih white paint. They were really cool, especially the ones where they acted like kangaroos. It was crazy how much they were able to really mimick the mannerisms of a kangaroo! Spekaing of kangaroo, I got to try kangaroo meat, it was surprisingly good. You just have to get past the fact that you are eating kangaroo. :) AFter the assembly the principal, Mr. Newgent, was talking to my class and forgot my name. The little darlings told him that I was, "Miss Steffen from America". Man, I can't wait until they day that they introduce me without my nationality. Cute kids.
That's really all of the excitement of the last couple of days. Every day is an adventure and I will be going to Sydney this weekend so I will hopefully have lots to talk about! Love you all, thanks for the emails!