Culture Shock

“I’m going to lose my goggles so I can find them!” We were taking a three day family vacation at an indoor pool complex in Slovenia when my oldest son Enoh unknowingly contextualized one of Jesus’ sayings. I thought about following up his remark with a conversation about Jesus but as soon as I saw him throw his goggles in the air and turn around with his eyes closed, I realized I was the one receiving the lesson.  Usually we talk about the act of losing something as a mistake. When we lose our keys, phone, or glasses it’s always a matter of misplacing something or forgetting where we put them. But here Enoh was making a conscious effort to lose his goggles. And not only that, he was trying to lose the one thing that would normally be most helpful in finding something lost at the bottom of a pool.  Did my seven year old just help me understand the Bible?  Jesus’ words as recorded in Matthew 16 are about making an effort to lose something - namely one’s l...

There's something special about your first kid starting school. It's nature's way of telling us that it's time to get serious about parenting while giving us a few more moments of peace to do so. For Enoh it was pure excitement. I'll be honest, I don't remember my first day of first grade. Maybe in Iowa it was a big deal. But here in Croatia it's a BIG DEAL. At the end of school last year they invited all the kids anticipating entering first grade to a presentation put on by 2nd, 3rd and 4th graders welcoming them to the school. It was at that time that Enoh was designated a First Grader. Over the summer books were ordered, supplies were bought and many, many, many questions were answered.  On Monday all the first graders and their parents stood outside the school in anticipation of which teacher they would get and how many of their friends would be in their class. When we finally entered, one of the teachers informed us she was just as nervous a...

Last year, I asked our kids to pick out a few of their favorite things; 1 book, 1 movie and 1 toy they really like. I recorded them telling about their choices. You can watch it here . As it turns out, watching themselves talk about their favorite things is one of their favorite things to do. So, we decided to do it again. Here's an updated version of their favorite things: Enoh's Favorite Things Ian's Favorite Things Emily's Favorite Things David's Favorite Things (According to his siblings)

Now the oldest brother was more crafty than any other offspring of the home that the Bohall Family lived in. He said to the little brother, "Did daddy actually say, 'You shall not touch anything in the yard'?" And the little brother said to the oldest brother, "We may touch any of the toys in the yard, but daddy said, "You shall not turn the handle of the faucet that is on the side of the house, neither shall you touch it, lest you be sent to the naughty corner." But the older brother said to the younger brother, "You will not surely be sent to the naughty corner. For daddy knows that when you turn the handle your hands will be skillful, and you will be like daddy, able to fill the swimming pool." So when the younger brother saw that the faucet was good for drink, and that its red handle was a delight to the eyes, and that the faucet was to be desired to make one powerful, he turned the handle and drank and he also gave some to his litt...

The fish my son received for his birthday is only free if it's in water, if it has food to eat, and if it eats the food it's given. "Greenlighty", the name our oldest son gave his new fish, died three days after it arrived to our house. Enoh wasn't devastated though. The fact that Greenlighty wasn't eating gave him a few days to prepare for his death. _________________________________________________________________________________ Last week, I spent a couple days up in the northern part of Hungary with some guys from America, Hungary, Serbia and Croatia. For the second time in three years, we were gathered with the intent of being renewed. Our conversations were centered around the New Testament book of First Peter. In the second chapter of this letter, Peter calls the Church to live as free people. I wonder how foreign that must have sounded to this persecuted group of exiles. Yet as we continue reading, we find that the freedom they are to live ou...

We almost forgot. The Jurassic age that had arrived last week had disappeared over the weekend. We no longer had any expectations on Monday morning. So when we came into the living room to get ready for pre-school we were surprised to find our prehistoric friends very comfortable. We were still in a daze so we didn't even think about how they might have made the popcorn. But it turns out food is a major part of their lives.  There was no question their leader was beginning to assert herself more and more.  In fact, all of their personalities were beginning to come through.  After all the eating, terrorizing and building, they found some time for play. But now it was time to spend a couple nights at baka's  house. Would they follow us? Unfortunately, there were no dinosaurs at baka's  but as soon as we got home, we asked mom and dad if they had done anything else while we were gone. They said no, so we forgot about it ...

One of the things about culture shock is that you expect to experience it to some extent when you move to another country.  New faces, different mentalities and foreign behaviors are all things you're ready to be confronted by when mingling with a new culture. And even though it's sometimes difficult, any reasonable person is ready to make some adjustments to the new world around them. But what happens when that foreign culture enters your home? How is one to adjust to their personal space being invaded - especially when there's anthropomorphism and a time warp involved? Monday morning was supposed to be a normal get-ready-for-preschool kind of morning. Yet, when we woke up we happened upon the following scene: Our favorite peanut crunchy snack -  bobi flips  - were being consumed by prehistoric beasts! Yet, when we sat back and took it all in, there was something exciting about seeing dinosaurs outside of their natural habitat. Would this just be a one time occu...

Eight, eight O eight. Eight o clock in the morning. Our lives will never be the same. Five years since we saw your striking face. Fascinated by your every move. Three siblings following in their own seasons. Each reacting with their own unique voice.  Two parents humbled by the grace shown in birth. Both prouder than can be expressed.  One. Only one Enoh Daniel Bohall.  Happy Birthday!

It's been awhile since daddy posted. It's been even longer since he let us post. So we'll try to pick up the slack a little. No, this one doesn't have anything to do with culture shock. If you're looking for a more frequently updated American perspective on Croatia, head over to the zablogreb .  For now, here are a few of our favorite things:

Like most siblings, there are many characteristics Enoh and Ian share.  For example, they both enjoy their evening routines of reading, being carried upstairs and even brushing their own teeth.  The way  they brush their teeth though is a different story. Any idea which toothbrush belongs to which brother? Both toothbrushes were brand new a month ago.

We returned from America exactly a week ago. During our first dinner, Enoh looked around and said "I'm so glad to be home!" Then he sank his teeth into some burek .  Apparently the other two agree. Here they dance to their favorite Croatia song by October Light :

Milk has been on my mind more than you would normally expect a beverage of such bland taste to be.  Here's why: 1. Enoh spilled his milk the other day...and didn't cry. I gained some confidence as a parent when I realized that he is already following the advice of at least one famous proverb.  2. A friend came over to take care of Ian while I took Enoh to preschool and Petra was away. Being Croatian, she decided to warm up the milk in the microwave before pouring it on his corn flakes. Being American, I was repulsed. Being a toddler who eats just about everything, Ian didn't seem to mind.  3. After looking at the stats they keep here at blogger, I realized that the most popular post I have written in my 3.5 years of blogging is the one on acerpohobia . And you know what is even more bizarre than the majority of my traffic coming from a few thoughts about a phobia most people don't know exists? The fact that they are doing so because I spelled it wrong! So t...

(Photo by: Jeremy Bohall "Ribbit...ribbit...ribbit!...Daddy, what does a butterfly say?" Enoh was engaged in the processes of learning and teaching. Prompted by the animals on Emily's walker, he tried to teach her the sounds he knew while asking me about the ones he didn't know. "I'm not sure what a butterfly says, Enoh" I told him.  Undeterred, he quickly relayed the information to his favorite pupil. "We don't know what a butterfly says, Emily," he explained sympathetically. As a teacher, there were a few things I was reminded of as I watched him: 1. I teach best when I have recently learned something I am excited about. 2. There is probably no one who benefits more from a lesson I prepare than myself. So why not prepare the best I can? Then, there's a good chance the excitement and hard work will rub off on a student. 3. In one way or another, shouldn't we always be a part of both of these processes? Shouldn't...

For some reason, my boys take greater delight in eating their fruit when they each have a cow watching them.

Enoh has been "doing school" with his Mommy lately. In the Croatian activity book we have for him, there are several pages that encourage the young student to place stickers in their appropriate environments.   Petra has shown Enoh where some of the stickers could be placed strategically in order to make the picture look complete, but she found that he had the habit of putting all the stickers on one section of the page.   When she asked him why he didn't spread them out he said... ..."because mommy - they're friends!"

Teaching our kids two languages felt more like an experiment than anything else at the beginning.  We decided, when Enoh was in the womb, that Petra would speak Croatian to our children while I spoke English.  Enoh was confused for awhile - and he began speaking much later than many toddlers.  There were times when I thought maybe we were being cruel to the little guy.  But my wife deserves credit for convincing me to stick with it.   It's paying off.  Enoh seems to already understand who to speak to in English and who to speak to in Croatian without really thinking about it.  Of course, he doesn't know either language well yet.  But he gets by in both.  I've been surprised at how quickly he has learned. Here's a glimpse at what a bi-lingual conversation looks like at 1-and-a-half years old (Ian) and 3 years old (Enoh):

Our two year old, Enoh, is close to being potty trained.  But he's not quite there yet.  So every opportunity I have to help him remember to go to the bathroom is a valuable one.  For example, today, after his nap I said: "Enoh, what's the first thing we have to do after our nap?" After pausing to rub his eyes, he responded with enthusiasm: "Wake up!" Unable to correct him, I laughed and admitted his answer was better than the one for which I had devised the question.  As I sat and waited for him to finish his business I began to think about the implications his response had on my life.  So I went to the revelation of Truth itself and found this written in Paul's letter to the church in Ephesus: "Wake up sleeper..." As a strong believer in the fact that there's "no text without context" I backed up a bit to find out what it was that Paul was getting at here.  He's talking about being visible.  How are we supposed to be v...

Turning two - and having a child that turns two - can be shocking.  Although I've done the former, I can do a better job of reporting on the latter.  Let me give you some adjectives to describe the culture shock that has accompanied Enoh's transition into the twos. 1. Terrible .  Don't stop here!  It's not that bad.  But sometimes you just have those instances, like the one below, where you wonder what got into your kid.  For those of you who received our Christmas card this year, this was the scene 10 minutes before the family picture was taken.   Yep, it can be terrible, but those moments only last for a...moment.  2. Turbulent.   This is the one my wife prefers to terrible.  And I get it.  The life of a parent of a two-year-old is a plane ride over the Icelandic volcano - up, down and all around.  You just never know what response you'll get to a "no" or which parent, grandparent, or stranger they'll prefer over yo...

A compromise has been reached.