Beggars: The Silly & The Serious

Seeing beggars is an everyday part of our life here.  It's one of the things that took a lot of getting used to.  Well, maybe it is better to say it is one of the things we will never get used to.

We typically do not give beggars money (for several reasons, one of which I will explain later), but try to keep some food in the truck to hand out to them.

This morning, while we were out running errands, Mr. Sojourner gave a handicap beggar money and afterwards this conversation insued between him and Little:

Little: Daddy, why did you give that man money?
Mr.: Because he only had one arm.
Little: Will he buy another arm with the money?

It is amazing how litteral of a thinker Little is (or any kid at her age for that matter).  Leave it to Little to lighten up a serious issue. :)

Handicap beggar.  Picture credits.

"Tomato Can Boys."  Picture Credits.

While looking up some pictures to share I came across this really great (in the informative sense) article about Tomato Can Boys and I thought it does a good job of giving the truth, seriousness, and sadness of it.  If you get a chance please check it out.  The article shares the reason behind why we don't give these boys money, but instead give them food they can eat right away like bread, bananas, etc.

Kind regards,

Quitting

Little Sojourner (while cleaning her ears): "That's nasty. You shouldn't eat that"
Me: "Kinda like eating your boogers."
Little Sojourner: "Yeah, I don't do that anymore."
Me: "Since when?"
Little Sojourner: "Since 9:30."

Little & Me, October 2008

Good to know...

If only it were for real.  One can hope, right? 

Pretty much the thing that grosses me out most in the world is boogers and noses and yet my kids are pickers.  Ewwwwww!  Seeing anything to do with noses, hearning noises invlolving noses, even thinking about noses makes me gag.  Seriously.  It's an issue.  Did I mention that I live in a culture where nose picking is culturally appropriate (as long as you do it with your proper hand; the left of course)?  Oh.  My.  Goodness.

Do you have any remedies for nose picking kids?

Kind regards,

"The Talk" (& A Little Book Talk Too)

I've been dreading it.  Since I was pregnant with my Ms. Sojourner.  10.5 years ago.

Did you know my parents never had "the talk" with me?  I thought maybe that would be the way to go, but then I remembered the horror of piecing things together from peers and being clueless in Sex Ed., and then I decided not to do that to my kids.

Why did I have to have girls?!  If I'd of had boys this would be Mr. Sojourners job and life would be much easier.  But alas, God blessed me with three girls and cursed me with this responsibility.  (I am pretty sure having to have this conversation is part of the curse from Adam & Eve's sin in the garden.  I am not sure how, but it just has to be there fault.  Curse you Adam & Eve!)

While we were in the U.S. I got a few books to help lead the conversation.  (We'll just pretend they are "How to Have 'The Talk' for Dummies" books.  I googled that and they don't have it; you should write it!  I'd buy it.)

Here is the one I used:

There are a couple more in the series.  One before the above book: The Story of Me (God's Design for Sex)(which we have and have used in the past).  And, two after the above one I used: What's the Big Deal?: Why God Cares About Sex (God's Design for Sex) & Facing the Facts: The Truth About Sex and You (God's Design for Sex) (which I purchased in case I need to have further "talks" in the next 19.5 months).

Since the announcement of the baby on the way there have been a few questions.  I figured it was time to whip out the books and give it a try.  How bad could it be?!

My 8 & 10 year old giggled the whole book.  OK, maybe only when private parts were mentioned.  It was mortifying for me.  But, I survived.  They now know the basics.  We even included another talk about inappropriate touching.  (We have had those talks before.  The sexual abuse statistics freak me out.)

So, when did you (or do you plan to) give "the talk"?

Kind regards,

In Honor of Tuesday

And, (in what seems like a lifetime past) Chick-fil-A Kid's or Family Night ('cause we used to love those nights where kids eat free!)...

I would really love one of these...

Or, maybe just this...

(with some sweet tea).

Or, possibly just one of these.  Yeah, that's sounds real good this morning.

'Cause really nothing else in this world sounds at all appetizing.  Nausea is not my friend!

And, I am pretty sure I couldn't really even stomach that once I had a bite or two. But, hey...at the moment, it sounds really tasty.

So, when you get a chance...have one for me! ;)

Kind regards,

In honor of MLK Day (a little late)...

(And, because the cute little Sojourners say they funniest stuff.)

Middle Sojourner (to Little Sojourner): Today is Martin Luther King George Day!  He said a speech to millions and millions of people.

Little Sojourner: {blank stare}

Middle Sojourner:  Let's go play!  We'll pretend that you are white and and I am black  and we will put all the people together!!!

Little Sojourner: OK!

I overheard this while lying in my bed and dying suffering from extreme nausea.  It made my day.  I love the way kids think and process things they learn.  They don't always get it exactly right, but they retain the just of it.

On a serious note, Martin Luther King Jr. was a great man and I am so thankful that our country honors his life and memory each year.  His most famous speech is more then inspirational along with much of what he said and did.  (Below are a few of my favorite quotes.)

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. -Martin Luther King, Jr.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character. -Martin Luther King, Jr.

Never succumb to the temptation of bitterness. -Martin Luther King, Jr.

How did you celebrate your MLK Holiday?

Kind regards,

Which way is home?

You know you have absolutely, positively, no sense of direction when you are trying to make your way home in a taxi (which consequently is falling apart, so you are hoping it stays together long enough to get home) and things look familiar, but you still have no idea which direction home is.  Then, your four year old (who got her father's sense of direction; thank goodness!) tells you, "Mommy, we just passed it!"

You tell the taxi driver to stop.  You get out and you're still, for the most part, lost.  You ask your four year old which direction home is.  She points and leads you.  She takes you the several blocks delivering you directly to your gate.

When you get home you write a blog about it so the whole world knows your shame: a four year old is smarter then you.

A really cute four year old, though.

Needs a map and compass,

Sick Little

Little Sojourner has been sick with high fever and stomach issues the past 48 hours.  He took her to get some blood work done today.  Thankfully it came back negative for malaria.  The doctor thinks it may be a parasite and so she is now on meds for that.  She just asked for some mashed potatoes after 48 hours not being able to get her to eat anything so of course I whipped some up!  Hopefully she will be able to keep them down.  It sure is hard a Momma when her Littles are sick, you know?

Kind Regards,

My Little Peacock

A friend of the Little Sojourners gave them this peacock feather.  Little Sojourner likes to put it in the back of her shirt or dress and pretend to be a peacock.

Did you know a peacock sounds like Fozzy the Bear?  According to Little Sojourner it does. (But really peacocks sound kinda like geese to me.  We get them in our yard from time to time.)

She is a really cute peacock though!

Pancakes!

Today was a pancake kind of morning.  We are savoring our last few days of Summer before heading back to school on Thursday.  I have so enjoyed having all of the Little Sojourners home again.  I really miss our homeschooling days and hope that someday, God willing, we will be able to do it again.  This will be Ms. Sojourner and Middle Sojourner's second year not to be homeschooled and I am dreading it.  But, today instead of focusing on how much I am going to miss them, I am focusing on thoroughly enjoying them.  Who knows what fun we will have today!

Middle Sojourner with the syrup.

Since it is about $10 for a small thing of prepackaged syrup here we opt to make our own and the girls are great helpers in this.  It is super easy too!

Maple Syrup Substitute:

1 cup sugar, 1 cup brown sugar*, 1 cup water.

Boil until desired thickness.

*You can use white sugar and 1 teaspoon maple flavoring.

(We usually add a little bit of maple flavoring even if we use brown sugar, but you can adapt it to your tastes.)

Ms. Sojourner enjoying every bite.

To make this a little bit simpler of a meal we make up our own Pancake Mix:

10 cups flour, 2 1/2 cups dry milk, 1/2 cup sugar, 1/4 cup baking powder, 2 Tbsp. salt.

Combine it a large bowl.  Stir until blended well.  Store and label in an airtight container.  Use within several months.

To make pancakes with mix:

1 1/2 cups mix, 1 egg slightly beaten, 1 cup water, 3 Tbsp. oil.

Mix the wet ingredients together in a small bowl and pour over the dry ingredients.  Blend well.  Let stand 5 minutes before cooking.

You can also make these great onion rings with the mix (they remind me of Sonic's onion rings):

1 1/2 cup mix, 1 egg slightly beaten, 1 cup cold water, 3 Tbsp. oil, onions cut into rings.

Mix together the wet ingredients; pour over the dry and blend well.  Let stand 5 minutes.  Dip onion rings into the batter, then fry.

Easy peezy lemon squeezy as my Little Sojourners would say.

Little Sojouner cleaned her plate.

So this morning our bellies are full, our hands are sticky, we are high on sugar, and we are ready to enjoy a day together.  I can hardly wait!

I love linking up with Emily at Chatting at the Sky on Tuesdays and "unwrapping" the small things in life like pancakes with my Little Sojourners.  What are you "unwrapping" today?

Kind Regards,

Help! I Am Surrouded by Trekkies.

Mr. Sojourner comes from a family of Trekkies.

The ring leader.

He has decided to pass this weirdness uniqueness down to our Little Sojourners.

Excited for a new episode.

For Mr. Sojourners birthday we got him Star Trek The Next Generation: The Complete Series. I am beginning to wonder if this was such a good idea.

Live long and prosper.

There are now conversations of Star Trek filling my house along with the Little Sojourners' excitement of watching the next episode. I am seriously outnumbered here and it is cracking me up.

I have already been concerned about weirdness upon returning to the US.  I am not sure this is going to help matters.

Outnumbered,

(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Muffins

Paper City

Fun with the Little Sojourners

On Friday we had a pretty laid back day and enjoyed some silly fun. 

Sometimes you just need some silly fun.

Jump roping in the house.

Bless her heart; attempting to jump rope in the house. 

Oh yeah, and she is still in her PJs and this was taken late morning.

Puzzle time.  Puzzles are always fun.

What's gonna work?  Team work!

And blowing bubbles in the late afternoon. 

(Notice Middle Sojourner is still sporting her PJs. 

When asked about it she said: "It's ok, they look like clothes.") 

Then it was time to begin preparing dinner.  I had been wanting to try The Pioneer Women's Beef & Bean Burritos so it seemed like as good a night as any.  This "simple" and "16 minute" meal was a little more complicated on this side of the pond, but still fun.  That morning I started the refried beans in the crock pot (i luv my crock pot!) because you can't get canned refried beans here. 

It is actually really easy in the crock pot:

Toss 9 cups water, 3 cups dried beans, 1 diced onion, 2T minced garlic,

5t salt, 1&3/4t pepper, dash of cumin. 

Cook on high for 5-6 hours.

Drain liquid and set aside. 

Mash beans and add liquid until they are the consitency you like.

    And, we had to make some enchilada sauce (again we can't get it here):

2-3 cups tomato sauce, 1 t salt, 1-2 cloves minced garlic, 1-2 t chili powder, 1/2 t cumin

Middle Sojourner grated the cheese.

Ms. Sojourner chopped the lettuce and tomato.

Little Sojourner helped with the tortillas.

We made up the dough and rolled it into balls.

And then attempted to roll them out.  You would think that after a year we would be experts! 

Not so much.  They have gotten more round; believe it or not.

My Pampered Chef rolling pin helps a lot.  A lot.  It makes me happy too.

Mr. Sojourner even got in on the fun and helped flip the tortillas. 

Aren't they beautiful?  Shhhh.  Pretend!

P.S. The Burritos were yummy!  All the Sojourners were happy. 

So happy we didn't get any pictures.  Sorry.