How my life has changed...

I'm tanned.
My hands always smell like bleach.
I buy my produce from a person.
I buy my meat at joint I would have never stepped into back home.
Sweat...
My kids pretend to speak Swahili when they role play.
The call to prayer is my clock.
If I want hot water I have to boil it.
I can feel cold when it is 27 degrees. Weird, I know!
I home school my kids.
Explaining how one schools one's children at home is a daily event.
I am an employer.
Most my clothes have been made for me.
I clench my teeth often when I'm out. Processing about my surroundings.
Eat mango and pineapple everyday.
Spend my free minutes looking for school stuff online...not my favorite thing to do.
Half of the things I cook are a flop...I used to know how to cook.
Nairobi is my Regina.
I haven't baked cookies in 7 months.
Swallow a malaria pill once a week, and trick my 2 year into it too.
Haven't been in a Walmart for a long time. I'm good with that.
I bath instead of shower.
Water is used with thought
The wind is a gift from God.
I live with ants. Although it has gotten better in the last while. Still I'm always thinking, "Will the ants come if I leave this here?"
Our family can eat out for 8-10 dollars. Nice. I like that one.
Years of being told to drink my water...and I do now...without making myself.
I haven't driven in 7 months or more.
I rarely wear makeup(hard to apply on top of sweat) and my hair is always frizzy.
Can't throw food away like I used to.
Often don't know what anyone is saying. Smile and nod.
Sleeping under a heavy blanket has become my idea of a luxury.
My feet are NEVER cold. When they are (in Nairobi), it's heaven.
I live in a city.
I live in an apartment.
I know some Swahili. Some being, a little.
My kids drink soda...often.
Driving on the left side of the road is normal now.
Jon and I are falling asleep every night at 9:00pm or earlier.
I don't have a landline. i.e. I have a cell phone...of my own...that I know how to use.
I have a gas stove.
No drier for the laundry.
We do have a washing machine but most of the time our clothes are washed by hand.
My bath tube is in a different room from the toilet. Handy.
I sleep under a net.
I never wear pants.
Monkeys come visit us about once a week. No squirrels.
Most of my friends don't have an oven...nor would they want one.
I carry my two year old on my back with a piece of fabric knotted around my shoulders.
Most of people I know now have never seen snow.
That's all I can think of for now...

ps. I like a lot of these changes.

Cookies on my day off

Today I have a full day at home. Weekends are a beautiful thing. What have I done so far? Nothing important, which makes the day even better.
When i have time to kill my first instinct is to bake in the kitchen. So I started a batch of oatmeal cookies. I put the 1 cup butter in the Kitchen Aid, then the 1 cup br. sugar...then realized I needed my recipe. Have just moved I could not find my favorite oatmeal cookie recipe. I all through all my cards but it was nowhere to be found. So I turned to my "Cookies" by Martha Stewart. On page 90 she has a excellent oatmeal recipe. I have such a hard time sticking to a recipe. Something in me makes me always want to change it up. Here is her recipe followed by what I did today
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup plus 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1 tsp bkg soda
1 tsp bkg powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1 cup light br. sugar
1 cup unsalted butter
2 lg eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups raisins
Okay here is my version

3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup spelt four
1/4 cup heaping all purpose four
1/2 cup bran
1 tsp bkg soda
1 tsp bkg powder
1 heaping tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup butter
1/2 cup honey
1 cup br. sugar
2 lg eggs
vanilla? I forgot that
1 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips...no one in my family will eat raisins ( I know they are crazy!)
So as you can see I changed it a bit. But they turned out good. Probably nothing like Martha's but who really cares....they are cookies made by Amie!
And what mother an resist posting adorable photos of their children.

Oh by the way...Jon just came home from the men's breakfast and downed a cookie. Then says, "Man those are good honey, I'm going to have another one." He then goes the frigde and pours himself a glass of milk, grabs another cookie and sits down to enjoy them. I'm a happy wife!!!

Grace's Birthday

This was the best birthday yet. I made the cake but used a boxed cake and premade icing. What a cop out. the decorations as you can see were gummy butterflies that Grace picked out at the Bulk Barn. She also picked out the sprinkles on the top.
The garland I saw on Prudent baby. I changed mine a bit but I think it still turned out nice.
I had to leave it up cause it makes the kitchen look pretty!

Watermelon Love

Ian LOVES watermelon. So much so that the seed in his belly button may sprout and grow him his very own to have at all times. Wouldn't that be convenient! Sorry you can't see his face. The picture is more about the seed in the belly button :)
Hot like Hades here today. Good training for Mombassa
blessings

knitting, and saskatoon berries

We've got a mix today. First i had to show you this beautiful picture of Grace and Ian. She is a really good helper. I can't thank the Lord enough for the love Elijah and Grace both have for Ian. They are always willing to help me with him.

Second I had to show you the vest completed. I changed it up a bit and he wears it as a tank top. I like the changes I made though. More summery.
And Thirdly, I wanted to show you the Saskatoon Berries I picked this afternoon with the kids and my friend Leanne. I wish I had remembered to bring my camera with me to the berry patch. We had a lot of fun. The kids found caterpillars and spiders and Leanne and I picked. The kids also accidentally knocked over the pails a few times, so they need a good bath when we got home. So that's what I'm doing in this frist picture. Two pails worth in the sink with cold water. Alot of the leaves and sticks and stuff floated to the top conveniently.


Then I took my little strainer and scooped out the berries. As I poured them into the bowl I grabbed out the bad ones and anyother stuff I don't want in my jam.
And here's the bowl full of yummy clean Saskatoon Berries. I picked too small of a bowl so they eventually ended up in my largest Tupperware bowl. It is unfortunately white, so I'm scared it is going to turn purple...but what's a girl to do?! I try to remember to take picture when I turn it into jam.

Mummy's helpers

Here are some pictures of the kids and I working together in the kitchen. Elijah and I made some muffins. He used the mixer all by myself. Grace was especially helpful. She feed Ian for me, peeled the carrot for the soup, opened the cans for the soup and stirred the soup. I think she even helped me with the dishes. I hope this will be a trend that will carry on into her later years...helpfulness!

Elijah's sweater

So after i knit Grace's sweater I had to make one for Elijah. So here it is. I used one of his monster drawing as a template for the picture I stitched on the front. I think he really likes it. It is a bit of a heavy sweater. It may be good for the spring, when that's all you need to wear outside.

I also made him a hat. I got the idea for the rim off Etsy . I made a pink one for Grace but she seems to have misplaced it already. Very sad. I'm sure I'll find it somewhere and then I'll post a picture of it. I think it made it a bit deep.
My next project is a sweater for Ian. In Regina I bought some beautiful pima cotton, Merino wool mixed yarn. I'm planning on using a Debbie Bliss pattern.
All this knitting has really dug into my reading time. Not really getting any done. Its hard to knit and read. So I'm still not done "Shake hands with the Devil." Its pretty depressing, and very long. I try to read a few pages while I'm nursing. Ian doesn't take too long though so I only get a couple pages read at a time.
We have been watching a whole lot of Olympics. The TV is on alot. Its a bit addictive. I'm getting tired of hearing CTV say, we have a great chance on getting a medal and then we get 4th or 5th. I wish they would stop jinxing us like that.

The kids are all having fun crafting this morning. Ian is watching his siblings with awe and amazement. It makes a big difference now that he can sit all by himself. He'll sit long periods of time just playing with his toys or watching the older two.

A Saturday with the kids

Jon is gone to Yorton for today and tomorrow. He is playing in a mens tournament.
For the most part my day with the kids went smoothly. We went into town in the morning. I wanted to get a few things at Walmart. I'll have to return a few. I definitly bought the wrong colour yarn for Elijah's sweater. It looked redish-orange in the store but when i got it home it was more pick than anything. So that won't work. I remembered to buy diapers for Grace and Ian. Surprising.
I'm reading a book called "Grace based parenting" I'm only a little ways in but he's talked about loving your kids for who God made them. I was reminded of this today when Elijah was begging and pleading for me to arrange a play date for him with one of his friends. I find this very difficult. #1 I don't want to bother other families. #2 I don't want to and often can't leave the house to take him somewhere. #3 I didn't want even more of a mess in the house from having another 5 year old to help my two take every toy out. Not today. I was getting very frustrated by his pleading and need to be with other people. I think I can say no to him and he needs to except that decision but I also think I don't want him to get the impression that there is something wrong with him for wanting to be with people all the time. I also don't want to give him the impression that he is an annoyance to me. This is very difficult. To not allow my frustration with the situation to dictate the way I treat him and talk with him about it. Lord give me wisdom.
I'm going to attempt to go to church tomorrow by myself and the kids. I may have to send the two older ones to children's church on their own if Ian is sleeping. I can't just leave him there in the pew and I won't want to carry the car seat all the way to the classroom. I talked with Cristy tonight and asked if I could sit near her. Then she could watch the Ian when I take the kids.
Anyways, off to bed for me. Never know what Ian's night will be like.
much love
amie

The Jungle Book

I was putting some books away today. I picked up "The Jungle Book" and flipped through it. The book opened to the story " Toomai of the Elephants". This is the poem the story begins with.

I will remember what I was. I am sick of ropes and chains.
I will remember my old strength and all my forest affairs.
I will not sell my back to man for a bundle of sugar-cane,
I will go out to my own kind, and the wood-folk in their lairs.

I will go out until the day, until the morning break,
Out to the winds' untainted kiss, the waters' clean caress:
I will forget my ankle-ring and snap my picket-stake.
I will revisit my lost loves, and playmates masterless!

I was moved by this short poem. I was a nice moment in my day, amid all the folding, cooking, disciplining, bum wiping, nursing and so on.

Blueberry blue

Today Grace wanted frozen blueberries after lunch for dessert. The result...blue (purply-blue) face and hands. What a kid.


This is my kitchen almost any time during the day. Morning till night. Elijah especially really loves drawing, cutting, gluing, stringing beads, sticking fun foam on paper, etc... I'm really happy that he can entertain himself like that, and that he's getting really creative, but my house is so small and my kitchen therefore is small and he rarely remembers to put away the mess (being a 5 year old this comes naturally). I'm trying really hard to love him through this. I guess I just got to keep reminding him..."honey, can you put it away now?" Ah, the life of a mother!

I had to add this one. Elijah and Ian are smiling so nicely. And then there is Grace. She looks like she's half monkey. This photo is reflective of her diverse colourful character. What's not to love? This picture sums up my kids so beautifully!
blessings
Amie

a day in the life

I'm a mother of three with what always seem to be full days, and yet when I sit down in the evening to write a blog I have a terrible time thinking of something to write.
My Moms and Tots group is doing at cookie exchange tomorrow. So today I did my best to make something for the exchange. I don't know why I had to try something new. I made Cream Cheese Swirl Blondies. All three of the kids were either crying, begging , or complaining during the mixing process. I was about to throw in the towel, but I sent to two older one's to their rooms and put the youngest down for a nap. Problem solved! The blondies didn't turn out the way I thought they would. Oh well. I'm supposed to have the recipe typed out for whoever takes my cookies...but that's not going to happen the way the day has gone.
It is so cold outside today. It seems like the past week I've either been in my house or in my van. Walking somewhere is not going to happen. This is not a particularly good thing seeing I've just had a baby, its Christmas and there are always more sweet things to eat, and when it gets cold I always want to eat things with either or both flour and sugar. What's with that? It is as predictable as the canada goose going south for the winter. The temp. starts dropping and I start baking. Hey it just hit me, that would be the good thing about living in the Kenyan heat...I wouldn't ever feel like baking. Who wants to turn on the oven when it's plus 30? Not me!
Well, wish me luck with my blondies at Moms and Tots tomorrow. Hope someone wants them.
Off to bed I go.

Soup, a night out and my growing boy

So this is a mix-mash of the last week.
I made some amazing soup on Monday. Cream of Pea and Spinach. I love the beautiful green color and texture was so smooth and velvety. Here's the recipie
1 small onion chopped small
5 tbsp of butter
1/4 cup flour
4 cups chicken broth
1-2 cups water
2 cup frozen/fresh peas
1 bag of spinach
1/2 cup heavy cream. I use coffee cream

1.melt butter in larger pot
2. add onion and cook unto translucent don't brown them
3.add flour stirring let it start bubbling
4.add broth slowly stirring all the time
5.add water
6.bring to boil and turn down to simmer stirring ferquently. let it thicken to consistency of cream. let it simmer for 10 mins to get rid of flour taste.
7.add peas and spinach. simmer until wilted and mushy.
8.puree in blender in batches. Don't fill blender too much with each batch
9.put back in pot add cream and heat. Don't boil or you may ruin your cream.
Enjoy!!!! Try using broccoli that's good too!

On Wednesday night Jon and I were able to go the Agrobition. We had a lot of fun together. Blayne and Penny Banting offered to look after Elijah and Grace. What a blessing that was. We felt so served and loved by them. We bought tickets for the rodeo. We saw some bucking broncos, cattle roping, calf wrestling, sheep herding dogs, mutten bustin' and lots more. Its a nice crowd, its not too loud and Jon and I were able to watch and have a conversation.

I thought I throw and picture of Ian in the jolly jumper for the first time. He just loved it. I think he was in there for a half hour or more. What a cutie. He's getting so big so fast. Always smiling expect when he's hungry or tired.

I've been given so many good gifts. Thank you Lord.