We are home!!

From Virginia! I love being on vacation, but like being home as well. Today we spent way too much time in the car, like 11.5 hours and well. . . I'm tired. It's veg time. I'll put my photos together and post. And as I actually look at the pictures taken, we didn't take a whole lot as the kids were in their own sessions and the adults were in their sessions. So I'll have to sort pictures out. I will tell you that Mr. B, my DH, took a few pictures of me driving around the hills/mountains, cliffs, whatever you call them as my palms sweat and I was a nervous wreck. I realized during this trip that I have a VERY HEALTHY fear of heights!! Until next time!

WOOHOO! Massanetta Springs Virginia

So we made it to camp and have enjoyed meeting lots of new people and eating s'mores and dancing, dancing, dancing. . . We are actually settling down as I right. The girls are figuring out what their classes are for tomorrow! I'm not loading pictures tonight because I'm tired and well. . . I just want to lay down!! So until tomorrow morning. . .

Vacation in Virginia

We are over half way to Virginia and my girls are still sleeping. We put on over 500 miles yesterday and will have a nice scenic ride today. We are all excited to be in a different place and meet new people, make new friends. It'll be nice to see people that I am facebook friends with but otherwise haven't met yet! So we are on our second day of journeys and I don't know if we'll have internet access for posting.

A funny: While I was routing the trip on Rand McNally, Bayat says to me, "Mommy, we should have just flown, it's going to take too long" She's actually enjoying the drive and noticing some different things from what we have at home. At one point around Chicago, she said for us to look at the power towers and notice how some of them looked like flowers and others looked like rockets! Pretty imaginative I'd say! We head into the mountains of the Appalachia today and I've not been in the part of the world before, so I'm pretty excited. I'm hoping to try out my new camera a bit!

How's the weather you ask?

Good Tuesday morning~

I just have to admit I am NOT a good routine poster! I don't make the time to post everyday and by the time I realize I've not posted, it's way past bedtime! Life is happening and well. . . . . .

So it's Tuesday and we are getting ready to head out to Virginia tomorrow for the Ethiopian Heritage and Culture Camp. . We are all very excited. We are busy readying the van, getting clothes and stuff packed, etc.

We've had excessive heat warnings here in the midwest and yesterday was the beginning of a string of very hot days. (heat indexes to 112). The humidity is getting everyone. To make matters worse, wast week on our way home from Minnesota and the Mehaber I started with a tickle in my throat. I started drinking Airborne hoping the tickle would just go away.


It did not go away. Last Monday, Fenric and I attempted to run, only getting in 1.5 miles before I thought my lungs were going to pop out of my chest. I tried to believe it was just a common summer cold, as it seems I cannot escape any summer without a stupid cold. . . so procrastinated going to the clinic. By Thursday, my body was not functioning like 'normal' and I went to the clinic. I have bronchitis. Really? In the middle of the summer, bronchitis! I was thinking perhaps a sinus infection and was hoping for a quick fix. The docs won't consider a sinus infection unless you've been suffering for at least 10 days!! I was only on day 5!! Really, bronchitis? Two weeks for it to be done. It's a virus, so no antibiotics, just wait it out and make me comfortable! So I have a really cool inhaler (hear the sarcasm here) to use every 4-6 hours and it is helping, but the humidity is making it really difficult to breath. I now understand better than ever what people with asthma go through on these days!


So my DH prefers the heat to air conditioning. He lives for 90+ degree weather and still will be found wearing a long sleeved shirt to work. And for the most part, I'm usually good with that. But Sunday night it was wet and sticky and thick in my house. We let the girls sleep in the basement, where it's always cooler and they think it's an adventure, and my DH slept in our room. I started out in the living room with the gigantic fan, moved to the basement and finally landed in our room about 3:30 am. Needless to say I didn't sleep. So my DH's profession requires him to be on call 24/7 and at 4:30 A.M. he got a call. So he showers, dresses and realizes that he too is having a hard time dressing when he can't get dry so he turns on the air conditioner!! YEA!! Fast forward to when everyone gets up! It's not as humid in the house, but it's still in the high 80's and not cooling down! After some initial investigation, we conclude that the air conditioner is not working properly! UGH! Really, bronchitis, wet and sticky and now the air is NOT working! This is NOT good. I'm glad that the girls and I are planning a power shopping trip to Madison for trip preparations. At least we'll be in the van and the stores where the air is working!!

Fast forward to coming home: The HVAC guy is sitting in his air conditioned truck writing up the bill when we arrive home with our goodies. It's really a small price to pay to have the air conditioning working and comfortable quarters to sleep in. I'd really prefer to not have the air on either, except for this time I'm having a difficult time breathing and that is making for a somewhat grumpy mommy!

So now that our house is cooled off and we are all functioning within normal limits, life is good! I am thankful that we have air conditioning and think about those who don't and/or about those folks that are working outside in this weather! This is crazy heat.

Tuesday: the day before Wednesday; the last day of work for DH before vacation begins; day of preparation for vacation, making sure the packing list is complete and begin to pack and check it off; the day after Monday; a long day of meetings for DH daytime and evening.

Like I said we are excited about going to camp and I'm going to bring the laptop and hope that I can get wireless somewhere. . . I bought a new fancy camera (really a small point and shoot) and am excited to play a little with it. Easier to use and upload pictures! This IS Good! Lots of swimming in rambling thoughts today, but it's a post!

I know wordless wednesday but. . . .

I've been thinking about the blog. . . and I've been feeling icky since last week and haven't been feeling like posting, thinking and sometimes want to stay in bed. . . I feel like it should be winter time and I should be wrapped up in a blanket with a fire in the fireplace, but that's not the case. Instead my hubby is sitting on the couch eating chocolate cheerios and watching Battlestar Galactica (sp?) and I'm attempting to write something. . . Have a great night all~

Fenric & his pool!

The Mehaber

Blog entry for July 9, 2011: There is an annual Mehaber in Minnesota at their state fair grounds. It’s a day event, about 5 hours long and there are vendors, Ethiopian food, Ethiopian goods to buy like clothes, jewelry, coffee, spices, etc. There are also organizations there supporting causes, like water well building projects.

We attended last year and had an enjoyable time, so thought we would do it again. My in-laws have a place up north Wisconsin, so it makes the drive time bearable, a little over two hours. We always take pictures before we go because we often forget to take pictures while we are busy “doing”. We did manage to take some pictures as you can see. . .




The program on the big stage seemed more organized this year. The stage was full of song and dance and there was even a gentleman who planned to read a poem in four different Ethiopian languages and then in English. We arrived and of course it was all about the food, so we got our name tags and then proceeded to find Ethiopian food. The girls each ate a very big adult sized plate of food! I sometimes feel like they lose their minds when they smell ET food and some instinctual behaviors take over. Anyway, then the shopping began. We found some great beaded necklaces and bracelets that support women in Ethiopia. Their organization is called Global Team Local Initiatives (GTLI) and their website is www.gtli.us. They have some cool projects, go take a look. Another organization called Empowering Ethiopian Children by Education was present. They were selling jewelry and bags to support the children’s education. They currently support 20 children and their first full week of school was held November 2010. Go check them out too!

I did manage to get a spice list from Workinesh Spice Blends, Inc. They don’t have a website, so I was hoping they would be at the Mehaber. They are still working on a website, but if you call them with an order, it’ll be shipped the next day! They are located in MN and their phone number is 952-303-6710. We also bought some t-shirts and a wall hanging of an Ethiopian women weaving a basket! Very cool. . . .

We didn’t manage to get to the two water projects, but the ones represented at the Mehaber were Water to Thrive and Mudula Water . We wanted to listen to the one speaker near Gondar, but lost track of time and missed the session. So it’s online searching we go. .

We sat and watched the little kids (K-2, so 5-7 years old) dance to Ethiopian music. We then listened to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church choir sing traditional songs with drums. It was calming and we really enjoyed it. We visited the churches booth and they let the girls put on traditional Ethiopian church clothes for us to take a picture.

So for the last hour, we let the girls go and play on all the inflatable stuff (slides, jump houses, etc.) since they are kids and they can’t sit and listen and watch all day. . . .so off we went to spread out a blanket for the grown ups and watch the little girls play! At the close of the event, we drove back to the cabin, all having a great day!

An excursion to the woods

So these are writings from the weekend! I am just now getting them up. . . I've been feeling under the weather since Saturday evening and well. . . just haven't posted! So here are some posts. . .

June 8, 2011: We manage to finally get to the cabin up in the deep deep woods, (not really that deep, but no internet, so deep enough) about 7:00 ish. . . We unload and rearrange and then go out for dinner as planned. It’s late for the girls and for that matter all of us to be eating that late, but we do and then come home and crash! It’s going to be an exciting day on Saturday. Side note: I always envision things a certain way, for example, leaving at a specific time planning for certain activities, etc. Even though I try my darnest to get things done, packed and loaded it never seems possible to leave ON TIME! It was even hard with just the two of us, but now with two little people it’s even more fun!! Fenric the dog is easy and he has his own little bag for all his belongings!

sorry about yesterday

I wasn't feeling well and well it's not like my posts are considered deep reading material. . . . . So today we are off to the deep woods and I won't have internet access so I'll probably not post Saturday and then late Sunday! We are off to MN for the Ethiopian Mehaber. Mehaber means gathering, so a gathering for all things Ethiopian. The girls will have a great time even though it's only a day event. . . We'll eat Ethiopian food, dance to Ethiopian music and even be able to purchase some Ethiopian goods! We went last year and had a nice time. . . So my pre-apologies for not possibly posting on Saturday, we'll see if I can find a hot spot and at least upload some pictures from the Mehaber. Until then, have a blessed weekend. Peace,

Just Chillin'

with his favorite masters shoe!

Sorry short post

I'm really tired. We had company over for dinner and they left a little later than perhaps expected, so now I'm doing my nightly can't sleep browse through the web world! Looking at crazy stuff like the wild goose festival and the blog writings of the sarcastic lutheran. It's an odd night and I'm needing to go to bed. . . .but my journey of weirdness isn't over yet!! Anyway, short post, good night.

Happy 4th of July - Happy Birthday America

I have to say that I am not really a patriotic person. I go along to get along on these holidays. . . Our city doesn't have a parade so that's an easy one. We have a picnic at church and I'm good with that, an opportunity to fellowship with people and meet new people seems like a good way to spend a holiday. The girls love the fireworks and I think they are "pretty" so we watch those too! I tend not to wear red, white and blue, in fact I wore green today. I don't know. . . a friend posted a poem by Langston Hughes on Facebook about 'America the free' and how really this American land hasn't been the land of opportunity and freedom, with slavery, overworked underpaid workers for years, etc. I should find the link and post it. So for my girls, the 4th of July is about the birthday of America and the cool fireworks and for me, it's about getting together with folks for good food, fellowship and sharing the fireworks too!

Swimming in the vegetables!

This year we joined a CSA. The acronym CSA stands for community support agriculture.

"Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy local, seasonal food directly from a farmer. Here are the basics: a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public. Typically the share consists of a box of vegetables, but other farm products may be included. Interested consumers purchase a share (aka a "membership" or a "subscription") and in return receive a box (bag, basket) of seasonal produce each week throughout the farming season." (www.localharvest.org)

We are supporting a farm in a town nearby ours that offers 26 weeks of farm fresh vegetables. Additionally they offer a winter share and we are taking advantage of that as well. It's been great. We are eating local food, cooking differently, shopping differently and the family is loving it. We've not eaten as many greens ever in this house. Our CSA shares started in May and will end in November, just in time for the winter shares. Here is a picture of our first share box, a little light as the farmer says because it's early spring, but wonderful eating.

They also offer u-pick dates for strawberries, mulberries and in the fall picking out pumpkins. We had a great time picking strawberries as you can see.









So all in all, we are just lovin' the farm fresh vegetables and are enjoying trying and experimenting with a variety of new foods. We also a growing a garden of our own, but more for canning than anything else. More to come on that another time.

Pre-pool activities (before the pool)

Here is a short video of the girls and Fenric the dog are playing in the sprinkler. The girls almost always have to get their hair wet before doing anything else! I don't know why, it just is the way they are. So for the entire time the girls are working on their hair-do's, Fenric is trying to conquer the sprinkler, at one point, not on the video, putting his mouth around the sprinkler to contain it!! I like just watching, it's pretty entertaining.

To swim or not to swim

So July's theme is SWIM. Well, being that it is summer, I can do that! This month will be devoted to swimming in the real sense as well as in the abstract, such as swimming in thoughts, pictures from the recent few months and random swimmers itch! We'll see if I can actually stick to it this month. I don't have work, school (homework) or any other things to distract me. I will say I have lots of catching up to do from the past 16 moths, but with time and persistence I'll get caught up. . .

SO I BEGIN. .

Today it is going to be up to 100 degrees here in the great midwestern state of Wisconsin. We decided this year to get the girls a pool that they can use for the entire summer and we did not have to repeatedly fill and empty, fill and empty. . . .So we bought this~

And the girls love it. It's still a little cool/cold for the grown ups to go into, but yesterday after a lovely 90 something degree day, it felt "doable". Today I considered going in and then after lunch actually did go in and play with the girls. It was lots of fun.








We started out the summer with this! and it was just not a groovy pool! I'm sure you will concur!

Long time no post

I know, I know. . . I've just not posted. Easter came and well. . . I just got busy with end of the year school stuff and now that school is finished, I can breathe a bit. I've got lots of pictures and stories, now I just have to get them up!!

wordless wednesday

Here are some more protest pictures

I think (actually I know) I'm glad that I didn't post anything while the protests were going on. Why? Well, because I think I might have blown up on the blog. . . I really don't want to offend anyone, but I DO feel it's important to be able to have and state an opinion. There were many a conversation had that included topics around friends and family not talking because of the differences in opinion. I really don't want to be that way! What I have been continually asking myself throughout these past few months is "Who benefits from this bill?" I surely know who will be hurt with the passing of this bill and it will be millions of people.




I feel my blood boiling just a bit remembering all the media talking about all of the "union thugs" that have been living high off the hog in WI. HELLO!! Okay, I'll stop, get off the soap box, remember I don't want to offend anyone~ Keep calm. . . .




In short, I think the 14 DEMS did a damn good thing leaving the state and camping out in Illinois so that this bill could explode and be brought out into the public the way it was. This is what my tax dollars are spent on and believe well spent! Here is a video that I took (I did take many, just not all turned out the greatest) from one evening at the capital. (I've tried twice to upload video without success! I'll try again after school)



I'll post some more great pictures tomorrow from when the 14 dems came back to the capital. The crowds were 100,000+ people! And not ONE incident!

This is how we spent February

We protested at the capital. Yes, the capital building in Madison, Wisconsin with thousands of others who were outraged by the new Governor's bill. . . Here are some pictures~







This is our crew in the car on our way to Madison.









This is inside the capital. I have quite a few of these~





















Mine and Bobbie's girls exercising their rights to protest the injustice!

feel like a poll

but don't know what to do a poll on? share some of your ideas . . .