The Turner Family

A belated birthday for Nick and some of his buddies, we took them to Funtyme for miniature golf and go-karting. Upon our return home, there was renewed interest in my repairing our go-kart. What picture with kids would be complete without the rabbit ears? Jason, Nick, Mason, and Tyler (actual sized, and he's older). And another picture to boot.

Again, I can't see the pictures so I will describe them here. The first picture is of the Box City... Accra style. When you don't have toys you make them! Next is the first full day of school and the kids getting on the bus. The bus picks them up right at our gate. Lastly we finally were able to deliver our French professor's gifts to his family, which turned out to be quite an adventure. The family's shop is DEEP in the heart of Accra; we ended up having the taxi pull over so we could walk since it was faster.

Per mom's email this morning (in re to communicating with the Ghanian Turners), I got Ahni and Jason, Meg and Garrett on a video conference call this afternoon using the program Skype , freely downloadable here . If you have a broadband connection, and if you have a webcam (they're built-in on all iMacs and Mac laptops ) you can see and talk to them (or us) for free using Skype. Even if you don't have a webcam, your computer's microphone allows you to speak to any Skype user for free. With a paid Skype plan, you can even leave voicemails for Skype users, or use it as a text messager to people's mobile phones. Simply download and install Skype, acquire a username or handle (mine is turnec , Tiffani's is coniso23 , and they are alwturner ) and you're all set to videoconference. Skype is a terrific means for maintaining contact -- did I mention that it's free? -- it's how I was able to say good morning and goodnight to the kids while I was travellin

Recently, we traveled with Sophia to Ann Arbor to consult with her hand surgeon, and over lunch she expressed her desire to get her ears pierced, so on the way home we obliged. Actually, our waiter recommended a nearby tattoo parlor for the piercing, which we all thought would make a great story, but we were turned away due to her age. Thus, a visit to the Lansing Mall . In advance of the gun. Directly after the simultaneous guns. Sophie was stoic for quite a moment, but the gal on the right of the photo exclaimed it's OK to cry, to which she obliged. A shy attempt at thumbs up, a tear visible on her left cheek. A forced thumbs up.

Fors some reason I can't see the pictures to add the captions in the proper place so I will do my best to describe the photos here. The first shot is of Meg and Garrett in the pool at the temporary quarters. Next, Meg and her friend Becky on horseback at LaBadi beach which is a ten minute drive from our house. The beach wasn't terrible but I wouldn't go there to swim or lay in the sand. The third picture is of us visiting a local Bakery/Ice Cream parlor. Samuel is on the left, he has been our driver for most of our outings. He is employed by our Social sponsor and drives us around when he can. He's also becoming quite good at bowling. The woman standing next to him is Lisha, she arrived a few days after we did so she tags along with us on our adventures. The last picture is of Meg's friend, Becky, when she finally got her lobster!

One of the activity goals for the Belknap Turners for the Lake Placid trip was for all of us to go paintballing, so Tiff did some advance research and found an outlet within a half hour's drive of Mirror Lake. Not much discussion about the event took place until the morning of, when some participants equivocated upon hearing about our recommendations for long sleeved shirts and pants, and reflecting on the pace of the projectiles. It was determined that Nick and Garrett, being similarly aged, should choose teams; Nick demonstrated limited family allegiances when he chose his mother and not his stepfather, but with the passing of time I'm now over it. Really. Some two plus hours later, with games of Capture the flag and Normandy , a resupply of paintballs, innumerable welts and fogged lenses, everyone participated and there was tremendous camaraderie and buzz afterward. Tiffani, Jenny, and Emilee strike a pose before the event. Curiously, we're actually waiving liabilities