Whatnot Wednesday

I mentioned last week that I had finished the Twilight series... and before that the Harry Potter series.  Now I've moved right on to the Percy Jackson series.  I guess one day I'll get back to adult literature.  We are headed back to Disney World in November and we found out that it was going to be Harry Potter weekend at Universal Studios that weekend.  Needless to say, we are going down a day early now to visit Universal.  You will be able to find me enjoying a butterbeer with Harry, Ron and Hermoine at Hogwarts. I'm so super excited:)

We spent the weekend at the beach.  It was so nice - sort of a mini vacation for us.  We rode go carts, went to stores, ate good food, played on playgrounds, swam in the pool, spent the day at the beach and throughout all of that, Jack's favorite part of the trip was finding a small giraffe at Harry T's.  Can you see him?  Sitting in front of our Dave?  His name is, of course, Plastic Dave.

Because I'm a super crafty mom {dripping with sarcasm} and because past experience tells us that giving Jack's teachers lots of gifts isn't a bad idea {not that there would EVER be any BEHAVIOR issues}, I decided to make this cute and easy wreath from crayons for Mrs. Helen.  We also made a red, wooden title that says, "Mrs. Helen's Little Friends."  Jack thought it was pretty cool too - He said it was two color rainbows put together.  And it is that... or a circle.

College football starts this Saturday.  I already feel the crazy creeping up on me. I'm trying to fight it a little bit this year but I it's really pointless. I will submit to it eventually - almost assuredly by this Saturday at noon.

I've fallen head over heels in love with pinterest.  I had to finally just request an invite because I couldn't get a friend to invite me.  Anyway, I have TONS of Fall decorations pinned. Assuming I ever get around to replicating them in my house, we may not be able to walk around, but there will be some really cute pumpkins everywhere.  On the other hand, I may just print a picture of my Fall board and hang it up.

Head over to The Wonderful Happens and tell us all the things going on in your rambling whatnots right now.  And if you know any good children or teen book series, let me know.  I'm going to need something to read when I finish Percy Jackson.... :)

Whatnot Wednesday

I didn't blog much last week because I spent every free minute reading the Twilight Series and watching the movies. Everyone was right - it's really great. For the record, I'm Team Edward, but I really like Jacob too. However, when I watched the movies, I just wanted Edward and Jacob to dump Bella and find a different girl. I loved Bella in the books but found her extremely irritating and NOT AT ALL a good representation of the book Bella in the movies. It's disturbing how much I disliked her. Anyway, not much blogging, but obviously, time well spent.

Ben and I went to New Orleans yesterday for the night. We told Jack we would bring him back a surprise. We bought him a book of the 100 Greatest Movies. There's a poster of each movie in the book. I had to get a store employee to help me find it and I still don't think they understand why I was buying that for a four year old. It went over like gangbusters with Jack, though.

I'm currently reading Mountains Beyond Mountains by Tracy Kidder. It's a book about the quest of Dr. Paul Farmer. The book is phenomenal. Dr. Farmer spends much of his life in Haiti. The author was talking about some fruit and was calling it by it's common Haitian name. One of the fruits was soursap. I took great pride in the fact that I not only know what that fruit looks like, but also what it tastes like.

Jack has been loving preschool. I'm over the moon about it!! He still doesn't like to talk about his day much though. My mom picked him up one day last week. She was asking him about his day and really pressing him to tell her what he did at school. Jack finally said, "Granny, I want to talk about nothing."

Jack has also started enjoying talking on the phone. He will call me sometimes from my parents' house and leave me messages. They normally sound something like this, "Hello? Hello? Hellllloooo? They didn't answer. Mom? Hello? She didn't answer." You get the idea. The other day I was listening to one of these messages which always make me smile and in the midst of the "hellos" and "she didn't answers" he just said, "Roll Tide." Just out of the blue - I loved it so much.

My birthday was last week. Ben and Jack got me a Falcons t-shirt (Julio Jones got drafted by the Falcons so we are BIG fans of them this year) and houndstooth TOMS - all just in time for football season. It was a great birthday.

Like I said, we went to New Orleans last night. We stay right next to Bourbon Street sometimes and this was one of those trips. I got in the room and it was like I had taken sleeping pills. I couldn't keep my eyes open. We ordered room service and a movie in the room. Right beside Bourbon Street - oh yeah, we are TONS of fun!! :)

For even more fun, head over to The Wonderful Happens and join us for Whatnot Wednesday... you have about three minutes of Wednesday left.

If You Break Your Leg...

...you're going to work anyway.

Those were the words I said as my husband decided to play basketball with two friends. At the age of 30. In flip flops. At night. With no lights. I, being the responsible adult that I am was sitting with two girlfriends. In a chair. Watching my child play with his cousin, Brannon. Running my mouth. :)

It was about two hours later that Ben's uncle said, "We've got a problem. Ben hurt his ankle." I honestly thought he was kidding due to my earlier statement and then Ben came hobbling over with an ankle the size of a grapefruit.

Don't believe me?? Check this out.

Maybe the size of an orange, but you get my point.

My husband says I'm the most unsympathetic person in the world and that may be true, but all I was thinking is, "I don't have time for this - not this week!" and "He's not going to be able to go back to work."

I know - totally loving and concerned:) After a trip to the ER, we have been told that it's just a really bad sprain (although SEVERAL self-proclaimed doctors have found that difficult to believe). Ben is on crutches for a few weeks. He should be able to go back to work on time. But, I didn't really have time for this:)

So, it was going to be a crazy week anyway and it's just been a little crazier than crazy. Par for the course around here. I gave a shower for my cousin on Sunday which meant deep cleaning my house on Saturday... with a LOT of help from my Mom and Dad. Then, about 50 people in my house on Sunday and a crippled husband. But it was a nice time and I have found that the world will not fall down around me if things don't go exactly according to plan and have been able to remain somewhat sane throughout all the crazy around me:)

Helping with the positive attitude is the fact that Jack started his new preschool today. He did GREAT! I've known his teacher forever, but Jack didn't know her. She called me Sunday and left me a message that said, "You have such a precious child. I'm looking forward to this year with him. Thank you so much for entrusting your child to me this year!" Oh yes, W.E. H.E.A.R.T. H.E.R!!! She met us at the car this morning and Jack went right inside with her.

She said he had a good day. Jack's not much of a talker about his day. He just doesn't care to give that information to anyone. After much questioning, he did finally say that he played the bongos at school. I thought that sounded fun until he told me that Ms. Helen told him to stop. I'm assuming that wasn't an approved activity. Then, he told me that he sat up on his chair when he was supposed to be sitting on the floor and she told him to get down. And he said he ate his snack. Sounds like a good day to me:)

Anyway, after all the crazy, it's been a good week. Good things have happened. I got to spend sweet time with old friends this week. My child did better than we ever hoped for at school today. My house got cleaned really well. Good things happened. And while I'll watch what I say from now on, I have learned that if you break your leg.... life goes on and I like my crazy life.

Whatnot Wednesday

I totally had this typed Tuesday night and FORGOT to post is yesterday. I'm still calling it Whatnot Wednesday as a defense against my forgetful brain!!

We're planning another trip to Disney (YAY!) this November. Jack heard me making the reservations on the phone last night. He went in his room, picked out clothes, PUT THEM ON (something he has NEVER done) and said, "I'm ready to go to Disney!" It's amazing what motivation can do. Too bad is was 9:00 p.m. and about 4 months too early. To say he was pretty bummed when he realized bedtime was the plan instead would be putting it mildly!

I've been able to communicate with some of my translators through facebook since I returned from Haiti. I completely bombed when they tried to write me in Haitian Creole. They were using words that I'm supposed to "know." Edrick wrote, "Yeah, you're still not good." True friends feel they can be honest, ya know?

In other news, I have ordered the Pinsleur language program for Haitian Creole. Seriously.

Elizabeth and a couple of other friends have started "Words With Friends" games with me. The first time I tried to play, I don't think I was even able to play an actual word. I'm not sure what I did, but I know I didn't do anything good. Apparently, words are not a strong point in English either.

I'm hosting a wedding shower for my cousin this Sunday. That means I had to get started cleaning my house. The bathrooms need scrubbing, the furniture needs dusting, the floors need mopping... you get the idea. So I've started. I put about 4 years worth of pictures in albums this week. It is a job I have been avoiding for about 3 and a half years now. I will literally do anything to get out of mopping.

Some of you know that Jack is NUTSO over "True Grit." He knows he can't watch it because it's PG-13 and "I'm not 13 yet." We were at Walmart earlier in the week to look at the movies as a treat to him. (No toy isle for us!! :) He found John Wayne's "True Grit" and saw that it was rated G. Grand celebration ensued!!

We have a FABULOUS Japanese Steakhouse in our town. It is sooo good. My husband doesn't like it. Not at all. I keep talking him into trying it again and again with me. I just need for him to like it. The sushi is just phenomenal. We went again tonight. He still doesn't like it. I'm getting concerned that this is going to hurt our marriage.

Jack has preschool orientation tonight at Little Friends. I attended preschool there just a "few" years ago. Well, 26 years ago to be exact. Jack wore MY Little Friends shirt I made to HIS Little Friends' orientation. Yes, we're that family:)

A Mushy Friendship Post

I went on a trip this weekend.

A girl's weekend.

The second annual girl's weekend with Emily and Karen.

We didn't go anywhere special this year.

We didn't do anything special this year.

All we needed was food, coffee, and beds.

Honestly, the beds were optional.

Because there was very little sleep.

The food, of course, was not optional.

We talked.

We laughed.

We cried.

I loved it. I enjoyed it. I needed it.

It was refreshing for my soul.

I know God gave me these two ladies.

They are two of my most favorite people.

I can talk to them for hours and then talk to them for more hours.

And it isn't just talking.

It is something that renews me, refreshes me, revives me, and reminds me.

Reminds me of God's faithfulness to provide us with what we need.

Like friends who understand us.

Care about us.

Pray for us.

Love us.

I am so thankful for these two beautiful ladies.

So thankful that I will write a mushy friendship post JUST for them!! And because they know me, they'll know that's love:) Thank God for girls' weekends, but more than that, thank God for the PERFECT girls to spend them with!!

Whatnot...Thursday

I just totally forgot about Whatnot Wednesday yesterday. That is mainly because since I returned from Haiti, I've had no idea what day of the week it is at any given time. After I came home, I went to my new two day work week, but b/c of some co-worker's illnesses and other issues, I have worked some pretty crazy hours and days and have had zero routine there so far. Plus, it's the summer so the television line-up doesn't offer a lot of help either. I'm thankful for church and Sundays - that gets me back on track at least once a week.

Ben and I had our first IMAX experience a few weeks ago. We watched Transformers with some friends. I have no idea which Transformers it was since it's the first one I've seen, but it's the one that's on in theaters now. Anyway, Ben was super excited - like really excited - like stupid get on my nerves excited. But it turned out to be VERY cool. I'm not a fan of the regular 3D, but this was really impressive. I think Ben explained it best when he said "I really just feel that my life is a little more complete after that experience."

I finished the Harry Potter books and I've watched all the movies except the last one. I'm patiently waiting on my husband to get home from work in another week to watch the last one with him. I use the word patiently extremely loosely here. I'm very concerned that it's not going to be playing on IMAX anymore when he gets home. I really hope that it still is for Ben's sake because I can really see me blaming that on him if it's NOT still on:) The reality is that I just don't have anyone to watch it with other than him. My one friend that would have gone with me went on Saturday while I was watching Winnie the Pooh. I saw them there watching it and it was really shameful how jealous I was. Anyway, I should get to see it next week (fingers crossed) and I'm super excited - like really excited - like stupid get on your nerves excited.

I took Jack and some of our closest friends' two children to watch Winnie the Pooh (can you tell we like movies???) and to Build-a-Bear Saturday. Just FYI: Build-a-Bear is the most horrifying place on earth with the possible exception of Chucky Cheese's. I literally wanted to slap the girl taking fifty FOREVERS to stuff those bears. The line was forever long and this chick thought she had to make every last second something funny and cute. Really? It's 110 degrees on Saturday in Florida and there are 1000 people in line. Do you really think I wanna wait on you to be cute?? But, amazingly, nobody else seemed to be bothered, but instead very appreciative of the time and care she took with each child and their bears. I just realized on that day that I'm not that kind of Mom. I don't know what kind it is, but I know I'm not her:)

Although the best part of Build-a-Bear was leaving, the kids really did enjoy it. And I tried very hard not to ruin it for them:) One thing I did like though was that Jack made a monkey and picked out an Orlando Magic basketball uniform for him. He named him Superman. Not after the superhero of course, but after the Orlando Magic player Dwight Howard. His nickname is Superman. He's also my FAVORITE player. Nobody else has been very impressed by this and I realized that pride in our child comes in different and unique forms in the Foreman home sometimes.

I've been trying to cook this week. I mentioned in this post that it had been very difficult for me to think of things to cook since returning from my trip, but I've been intentional about cooking something for me and Jack each night. Tonight Jack looked at his rice, green beans and chicken and then at me and said, "Maybe we should just eat in town."

Jack needed a lunchbox for his new preschool this year because he will take a healthy snack each day. It took me three hours to pick one out. Partly, this is because I wanted something that he could carry easily, but with lots of compartments. I also wanted it to be something he would really like to try to make school a little more exciting for the kid that doesn't like school very much. Anyway, it took forever, but it was a lot of fun. Does anyone else find it ironic that I can never think of anything for us to eat, but I spent three hours picking out a lunchbox to carry our food?

Jack brought a toy out of his play room last night. It was something that I didn't remember seeing before so I asked him if he remembered where he got it. He said, "Straight Outta Compton" and said it with a swagger. There's just nothing cooler than 80s rap. And my kid. There's just nothing cooler than my kid.

If you're a rule follower and by the book, then wait until next Wednesday and head on over to The Wonderful Happens and get your whatnot on. But if you're willing to dare to push the envelope, you could go ahead and do it today... or tomorrow...

Who Knew Cole Slaw Juice Could Be So Good??

I've been in a food slump since I got back from Haiti. I just can't think of anything good to cook. I'm going to the grocery store this afternoon - not because I want to, but because we cannot exist on what's left in this house one more day. We're down to the stuff in the back of the pantry that I never intended to feed my child. In any case, I can't think of anything worth buying at the grocery store so I'm just going to stock up on lots of fresh fruit. Jack loves it and it'll make me feel better about cooking frozen foods for him. As long as you have to turn the oven on, it's cooking, right?

Being the picky eater that I am, I'm always concerned when I travel to other countries about their food. I always take LOTS of food with me assuming that I won't be able to eat anything on the trip. I'm very thankful on this trip that I did, too, because we realized that our Haitian team members weren't eating during the day. We had lots of extra food to share and I think that was just the provision of the Lord there. I haven't talked a lot about the hunger, poverty, garbage and other things that were more prevalent in Haiti than any other country I've ever seen. This is mainly because there were so many wonderful things about the people and culture that I don't want to dwell on this, but those things are some of the things that have stuck with me and haunted me as I've returned home. That may be part of my cooking problem too. I'm really not sure.

Surprisingly, the food was really good on the trip, but also pretty American. Our hotel really catered to Westerners and for that reason, the food was very "normal" for us. I took some pictures just to show you all how I "suffered for Jesus." :)

My favorite meal: Shrimp in a garlic/butter sauce, rice, and fries. (We had rice with every meal but it was about the best rice I've ever had so it worked for me.)

My favorite drink (other than Diet Coke which they had at our hotel - the day I realized this was a GOOD day!): Papaya with milk:

I even got a hamburger one day. It was pretty dry and made with some sort of beans or grain in the meat. Tara didn't like it at all but I prefer my food dry and bland so it was good to me:)

The fish was really good too. It was cooked with onions and mushrooms and some sort of sauce, but we never did figure out what kind of fish it was. We heard it was fresh which was a little disconcerting in the fact that we were told we couldn't swim in the ocean because everything from "up at the hotel ended up down in the water." But somehow the fish was okay??? Regardless, it was very good:

Our team leader - an 80 year old, retired missionary to Nigeria for 35 years and also known as McGuyver or The Bionic Man or The Most Amazing Person Ever - would somehow end up with fruit at the end of each day. We're pretty sure he scaled mountains and killed wildlife with his bare hands and foraged through jungles to get it, but we never asked. Here is some mango he found for us:

And this was everyone's favorite. It's called "kol sol" (which we South Alabamians pronounced "cole slaw" which I'm sure was not endearing, but totally annoying to our Haitian friends). The fruit itself is both sour and sweet and Bro. Don said they call is "soursap" in Nigeria for that reason. Nobody was crazy about eating the fruit, but the juice of it was wonderful! I have really missed it since coming back home:

So, I didn't have to reach too far to try the food in Haiti. It was mostly very Americanized. Still, I miss it a little bit. I'm headed to the grocery store, but somehow apples, oranges, and bananas don't seem all that exotic or appealing. I have a feeling, though, that if I had the friends I made on my trip to share my meal of apples and bananas, they would hold much more excitement for me!! Sometimes, it's not really the cole slaw juice itself, but the people you're sharing it with that makes it so wonderful!