House Hunting

There are so many things we love about our home here in Pogradec. 

View from our balcony

We love that it is in the center of town and it's easy for people to stop by. 

We love the spaciousness of our kitchen and the busy view outside. 

We love that we have space for teams, family and guests. 

We love it. But one day, we would like to move. 

Not from Albania, not from Pogradec. Just to a different home. 

We are so thankful for where we are right now but would eventually like to find something with more longevity. 

Right now, we live on THE single highway/road/freeway that runs through Albania. 

Like living on a 405 on ramp. If the 405 wasn't paved and there were just as many people as there are cars...and a few donkeys.

It is extremely loud and dusty and busy. 

I love to look out the window and watch the busyness as I drink my coffee in the morning, but I also don't like the 18 wheeler earthquakes at midnight. 

We would like a place where we can sit outside. We would like a place with some sunlight in the winter. We would like a place with an entry way instead of 25 marble steps right inside the front door. 

Just one day. 

But that kinda means that we have to keep our eyes and ears open right now. 

Why? 

There are no "homes for sale" listings in the newspaper. 
There's no website.
There are no realtors. 
There are no "for sale" signs. 
There are no new developments being built. 

So what do we do? 

We walk around Pogradec and if we see a house that might work, we ask in our broken Albanian if it is for rent. 

We ask the shopkeeper across the street. 
We ask kids in the youth group if they know of anything. 

The reason it is hard to find something here is that families build their own houses. Grandparents, aunts and uncles all live together. 

So people don't commonly rent homes. They rent apartments. And the homes are custom built. 

When people do rent homes, that usually means them moving out of their home and renting a smaller apartment so someone else can live in their home. 

Sometimes we hear of homes that are for rent and have to go find them. I think there are addresses here but nobody goes by them. Everyone gives directions based on landmarks. 

So today Melodie heard from a taxi driver that one floor of his home was for rent. 

These were the directions we were given: 

It is behind the pazaar, behind the school. It is the house across from the house with the big chimney...

There are like dozens of homes back there. They all have chimneys. What's a big chimney? 

We walked around for about a half hour and asked for the house of the taxi driver and we actually ended up finding it. 

The Grandma was there taking care of her grandson and very graciously showed us the home. It was beautiful but only one floor was for rent and there weren't separate entrances. 

When we were saying goodbye, she offered us a candy (Albanians always have a bowl of candy they offer you when you visit). Cory and I both took one and then she offered Shiloh one. 

(Shiloh scooped up the last 8 pieces into her arms and took off running the other way...we are working on her manners, among other things.)

So we will continue to house hunt until one day we hopefully find something new. 

This is also an illustration of how life just "takes longer." 


For instance last Tuesday our power was out all day because our landlord had backed up bills she hadn't paid for since before we moved in. 

Cory went outside to flip the power switch and their was a locked padlock on the box...

He has spent hours going around to offices, talking to the landlord, trying to get the bill figured out. 

It ended up coming back on 5 hours later. But in the meantime there wasn't much we could get done. No oven, no internet, no washing machine. 

I understand that some people live like that some places but their life is set up for that. 

On the contrary our life is set up for electricity. But then the electricity doesn't work. 

Cory fixing the overflowing toilet in the dark

So it feels like we are living in a houseboat that has holes in it. It kinda floats...but it kinda...sinks. 

So it just "takes longer." 

On Sunday Shiloh had some kind an allergic reaction that literally covered her body. It was really scary looking. We ended up driving to Greece to see a doctor and get some groceries like I have mentioned HERE. 

We drove two hours only to find out it was a Greek holiday (they have SO many holidays) and the doctor wasn't there. 

Thankfully she came into the office when I called her and took a look a Shiloh. 

But that was our whole day. The doctor. 

Before we moved here people would ask, "What will you do every day?" 

I had a broad idea. I knew what our goals would be. I knew what our mission would be. And since moving to Albania, I have written about our bible studies and youth group and meeting with kids and the drama and the 6 week challenge and the women's bible study. 

But, 

what is hard to put into words is that sometimes, the every day tasks take much longer than we are used to. 

This is partly because of the language barrier. 
This is partly because of the cultural barrier. 
This is partly because some things are simply less streamlined here. 

Sometimes entire days are wrapped up in solving one problem. 

In fact, often many days are wrapped up in solving one problem. 

Many hours are spent trying to complete a seemingly simple task. 

Many hours are spent trying to fix a problem that we spent hours accidentally creating. 

Such is our new "normal." 

And I know that working through these things and solving these problems is part of obeying God. 

He has called us here and that doesn't just mean that we get to lead bible studies and watch people come to Christ. 

While that is our greatest joy and our ultimate motivation, it is not what we do 24/7. 

We also "live life." But that's part of what God has called us to here. 

And even though I want to bang my head against the wall sometimes, it is also an extremely incredible adventure. 

Kind of like being Shiloh Belle's mom :) 

3 Years Ago

Cory and I first came to Albania in 2012. 

The first year, everything was new. 

The second year it felt like we were coming home. Of course we noticed new things and learned more about the country and the culture but that first wide eyed "shock" was gone. 

Last year we moved here and in living here, learned 1000's of things we never would have on a summer missions trip. 

Cory's parents are here this week for the first time and it's such a blast to show them around because it's as if we are reliving that first summer all over again. 

They are noticing and commenting on things I have long forgotten are weird, or different, or shocking. 

I'm sure in 10 years I will read the blogs from my first year and laugh at what I wrote about. 

Cory's mom has taken a ton of amazing pics of our family but also of Albanian life. Here are a few...

This is a section of the "Pazar." 

It smells of rotten cheese. And everyone wants you to buy their cheese. They even let you taste it. 

The plastic bottles of Fanta are actually filled with olive oil. 

I have yet to learn what many of those herbs are. 

This is what Cory and I call the Sheep swap meet. Every Thursday on this hill, there are hundreds of men and their sheep. And goats. They seem to be "swapping" them. As you drive by in both directions you pass shepherds herding their sheep, or driving them in a horse drawn cart or a beaten up truck. I've never seen anything like it. 

And this, I love. 

I love it because it means so much more to me after living here nearly a year, than it would have if I had seen it before that. 

That sweet old lady is a widow. 

Widows dress in all black after their husbands death. For the rest of their life. A lot of women here are widows for decades.

I didn't know that 3 years ago. 

These clothing shops surrounding her are owned by families. 

They all sell similar things. 

It is their livelihood. 

Every morning and every night they take everything out and put everything back. 

3 years ago I wouldn't have known the weight that lays in them selling a shirt or a pair of socks. 

3 years ago I didn't know any of the words I was hearing. Now I can understand what is going on around me. I recognize the numbers, the questions of "how much is this?" 

And if I had seen this picture without ever coming to Albania, 

I wouldn't be able to hear the shouts of the shopkeepers yelling out the prices of their goods, or the crunch of the gravel under everyone's feet. 

I wouldn't be able to smell the tobacco smoke, the Turkish coffee, or the mothball scent of the clothes. 

I wouldn't be able to feel the dust in the air, the humidity of the weather, or the cash in my hand that has become my only form of payment. 

And when I first came here 3 years ago, I had no idea how dear this place and these people would become to me. 

And I can't wait to know and to understand more. I can't wait until I hear every word. 

And I'm so thankful for how both of our parents have embraced our life here, supported us in every way imaginable and encouraged us with their words and prayers all along the way. 

And this....

what can I say? 

Taliah Pauline Cramer

Time flies when there's a newborn in your home. 

The days and nights blur together. 

Hours fly by like seconds. 

So, nearly a month has flown by and I will pick up where I left off...

Although we had been nervous about our time in Tirana, we ended up having a blast. It was a special time with Shiloh as a family of  3. There is a lot to discover in Tirana and we spent much of our time walking and exploring. 

So while we were ready and waiting, we enjoyed the time in between. 

While there were some crazy moments in the hospital, Taliah's birth itself could not have gone smoother. I was only in labor for 5 hours. We ended up arriving to the hospital 45 minutes before she was born. 

And...that is why we spent the month in Tirana. We actually wouldn't have made it to the hospital if we had been in Pogradec! 

The greatest challenge was the language barrier and the fact that I wanted a natural labor. The doctor had a bit of a different philosophy.

In the end, I agreed to "collaborate" by being silent and monitored during the end of my labor. Probably the hardest 45 minutes of my life. 

It is unnerving when you are being talked about but you don't know what is being said. 

And the fact that I came in at the end of my labor absolutely freaked the doctors and nurses out. 

There was a distinct moment when I remember thinking "This is very different..." 

We had just arrived at the hospital, Cory and Melodie were stopped at the entrance to put on surgery garb, and I was literally pushed into the delivery room by myself. 

I could barely open my eyes from all of the florescent lights, there were 4 gloved, masked nurses staring wide eyed at me. One was trying to stick an IV in my arm while I tried to pace through a contraction. Another was trying to make me sit on the bed. 

I picked up words but not complete sentences. I legitimately didn't know what was going on. 

The doctor was snapping his gloves on without a word. 

Finally, Melodie came in and was able to talk with the doctor and express my wishes. I could not have done it without her. Knowing someone knew what I wanted, was able to communicate that and was fighting for me was huge. 

20 minutes after the doctor told me I wasn't close and needed an epidural (which I refused because I'm terrified at the idea of having a needle in my spine)...

Taliah was born at 10:15 pm on her due date, healthy and beautiful. I was able to leave the hospital less than 24 hours later. 

In the end, the doctor said it was "a perfect birth." 

I've recovered quickly and she is gaining weight and eating well. 

I'm so thankful and relieved and feel very blessed and undeserving. 

We are back home in Pogradec and getting used to life as a family of 4. 

Thank you for your prayers and encouragement as always. I know that people were praying for me and for us all along the way. 

Taliah Pauline Cramer 7 lbs. 8 oz. 19 inches long

Melodie :) 

My Dad was able to visit a few days after Taliah was born. We had the best time with him and Shiloh sure does think he's the best! Love you Dad! 

Here we are in an alley in Tirana trying to get Taliah's passport. It was quite a long day if you can't tell...

I really love these girls :) 

The girls in my bible study came a few days after Taliah was born and had this beautiful cake made for her. They brought hand made gifts and were so excited to celebrate with us. 

Now, Pogradec is coming alive in so many ways for us. Not only is the weather warming up but our life is so much more full here than it was a year ago when we arrived. 

We are so thankful to be home and so excited for what the next months will hold. 

Baby in Albania

No...she's not here yet. 

But I wrote a blog the other day while I was waiting for the doctor and somehow lost it...

But it went something like this: 

I have been waiting "10-20 minutes" for the last two hours. 

I'm not really sure what's going on except for that the doctor had been doing "caesareans" all morning. They are never referred to as C-sections. They are sometimes called "incisions." 

About an hour ago he walked up to me and said, "Any problems?" 

"No, everything is good." I said with a smile and started to say more as he responded with: 

"Then you will have to wait." 

And he walked away. 

He is actually a really nice man, a great doctor and he wasn't being rude. Literal translation provides some pretty good one liners. 

When I call him, he answers the phone by saying "Talk to me." 

At my last appointment I was given a paper by a lady and told to "Give it to the girls..." I wasn't sure who the girls were but assumed she meant the nurses. 

I am told to eat chocolate before my ultrasounds so the baby "will make party, party." 

Last week the nurse walked in and all she said was, "Take off your clothes." 

Um....ok. 

Most of the time I find myself strapped or hooked up to something before I really know what is going on. 

They don't know how to explain what they are doing in English, so they just don't. I guess that's more my fault than theirs. I'm in their country. 

I have also had to get used to the fact that everything is "ok." "Ok" means good. It doesn't mean there is something lacking. 

My blood is ok. 
The baby is ok. 
The glucose test was ok. 
My weight is ok. 

Ok. 

The only thing better than "ok" is "very ok" which is only used by certain people in certain contexts. 

Shiloh was born at UCSD. I had a midwife, a doula, and a nurse who had given birth to her son at a birth center. Cory was there the entire time. I walked around for the majority of my labor. I didn't have any pain meds. I guess I was more afraid of having a needle in my back than of the contractions. I'm pretty sure that makes me delusional but oh well. 

In Albania, scheduled c-sections are very common. Men are not present during labor.  Actually, the mother-in-law is the only person present. They have probably never heard of a midwife. And when I say I don't want medicine they will probably pin me down and shove the needle in me...well not really. 

So, in many ways, even though I have already given birth, I have a feeling this experience is going to be drastically different. 

The communication will drastically drop. 
The bedside manner will somewhat be lost in translation. 
The routine procedures are not very similar. 

Is this scary? 

Sure! There have been moments where I have been gripped by fear...

Or "what ifs?" as Cory calls them. But really, that would happen no matter where I was. I'm just really good at thinking of "what if?" scenarios. If there was a "what if?" game, I would win. 

So, 

No matter where I am, it will hurt. 
No matter who is there, she will come out. 
No matter what happens, God is sovereign. 

And I happened to read these words of Jesus in John this morning,

"When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for the joy that a human being has been born into the world." John 16:21 

A very true, simple reality. 

This really sums up all that goes into child bearing. 

There are many more words that can be said in relation to labor and delivery but this seems to keep the main thing, the main thing. And I am attempting to block out everything else from my mind. 

So, any day now Taliah will be here! 

But for now, we are soaking up these spring days with Shiloh. 

I am very thankful for time to rest and prepare. 

Thank you for your constant encouragement and prayers. They mean so much to us! 

And here is the Queen who's reign is soon coming to an end...and she has no idea. 

New "Firsts"

We are now in Tirana! 

Last pic as a family of 3 at our house in Pogradec!

Officially waiting for the birth of Taliah. We are so thankful for the friends that have let us use their apartment for this time!

All packed up...for who knows how long...

The weeks leading up to our arrival here were crazy and full. 

Shiloh got some kind of virus with a fever that got up to 104. That was probably one of the scariest moments of my life. Definitely of our time here in Albania. 

It is a helpless feeling to not be able to just go to the ER. 

The health care system in Albania and especially in Pogradec is full of corruption, lack of education and lack of funds. 

Every night when we put Shiloh to bed we pray that we he will "take care of her in ways that we can't." 

Its almost easier to trust that God is in ultimate control when you have no other choice. You have nothing else to fall back on. I don't know if that's a good thing or not, but its true. 

Then I got what Shiloh had, minus the fever. I'm surprised my brains didn't come out my nose from all the sneezing I did. Or Taliah, she could've come out too. 

Arriving in Tirana was a bit of a shock to our systems. We hadn't thought a ton about what it would be like and when we got here we realized what a routine we have gotten into in Pogradec. 

We know where to buy produce and meat. 

We walk everywhere. We know where everything is. We have relationships. 

I know where to put things away in my kitchen. Everything has a place. 

We have schedule. We have a language teacher. We have a home. 

It is much more of a "small town" feel in Pogradec. 

Now we feel completely out of place. 

Tirana has 1 million people seemingly stacked on top of each other. 

The traffic is insane. There is no parking. Every street dead ends. 

It is chaos. 

It's also a little weird to think of welcoming a baby "home" to someone else's home. 

The day after we arrived here was Easter. 

We have had some pretty amazing Easter's together. 

The year we were in Israel, we woke up and watched the sun rise over the Mount of Olives. 

We went to an Easter service at the Garden Tomb. 

We read the Resurrection account in the middle of Jerusalem. 

Easter is my favorite Sunday of the year. My favorite "holiday." 

He IS risen! The one ultimate reality in my life that truly matters. 

I love the music and the colors and the flowers and the spirit of celebration. 

And I would be lying if I didn't say I love the Easter outfits. 

And this year, I didn't put on a new Easter dress. 

And it felt wrong. 

How embarrassing. 

I've come to associate Resurrection Sunday with a new outfit. 

And with food. 

No honey baked ham here. 

And to top it all off it rained all day. 

We ate noodles with tomato sauce from a jar. 

I sneezed non stop. 

We didn't celebrate with family or even with all the dear people who have become family here in Albania.

We went to a church we had never been to. 

We forgot to get a family pic. 

I kinda felt sorry for myself. 

Of course then I felt guilty and then overwhelmed with what I have been given...

My wonderful husband. My precious healthy daughter. Another one nearly here. 

My Savior. The Word. 

The ministry we are blessed to be a part of. The lives we have watched change. 

The reality of the Resurrection. The truth within the words "He is Risen!" 

And I wanted a new outfit and a Honey Baked Ham. 

We live streamed the Grace Community Church Easter Service and ended the day feeling so encouraged and blown away by the gospel. 

And I don't think I will ever forget this first Easter in Albania. As cliche as it sounds I was reminded of "what is truly important" and for that I am very thankful.

We are starting to figure out life here in Tirana and are getting so excited to meet our new little girl! 

Could be today...could be 2+ weeks. 

Another first here in Albania! 

Shiloh's first time in the Nursery...she was thrilled. New toys and treats? What could be better??