Random Thoughts

Ok, I have about twenty different blog posts in the process of being written in my head tonight. I would love to be able to tell you all about them in great and glorious detail, but for now you’ll have to deal with the “Cliff Notes” version. (Am I totally aging myself with a cliff notes reference?!)


In a period of three days last week the Howards went from no pets to three. I told you about Obama the chicken, but we’ve now added two puppies, Jax and Bristow. I’ll have to share the story of where they came from another time, but the good news is Mercy’s gone from being very afraid of them to happily petting them, as long as they don't lick her face or sit in her lap. There is hope for her relationship with Morley!

Speaking of Obama the chicken, I have a great story to tell of Laney’s frightful experience feeding Obama last night… but again, that’s for another day. But oh my, was it funny.

Brian, the street kid, that I mentioned in a post earlier brings several friends with him each day now when he comes to eat lunch and dinner. At some points we have 17 people for a meal. God keeps providing enough food. I should say it reminds me of the loaves and the fish, but my mind keeps going to Strega Nona. I hope to have more to share in the next couple of days about how you can help Brian and his friends with both food and education. You can read more about the “homeboyz” and more on the latest in the Howards' life on their blog here.

On Tuesday Anne mentioned to me that she had a dream about cheddar cheese and how she was longing for some. So later that afternoon while I was out, I ran by our favorite fancy deli and picked up 12 slices of cheddar…. For $7. Do you know how hard it is for this “coupon-loving mom” to pay $7 for cheese!? But let me tell you, the grilled cheese sandwiches we made with it were fantastic! I’m so glad Anne decided to share her belated birthday gift of cheese with all of us. I also made potato soup. In case you are wondering, it’s not easy to peel potatoes in Africa with a huge peeler on tiny, dirt covered potatoes, especially when you are cooking for 14. I’m just saying! I have the dirt in my nails to prove it. Got to work on that before my man gets here tomorrow!

That reminds me, I really need to tell you about prices for things here.  Some things are so cheap compared to the US, and others are ridiculously expensive.  Again, that is a whole blog post on its own for another day, but I paid $4 the other day for hair conditioner.... VO5 hair conditioner that is always on sale at Walgreens for like 69 cents.  Ugh!
Have I told you about the glories of Coke Light? Beth asked the man who owns the beverage store (we'll call it that because they sell alcohol, but lots of soda too!) by her house if he had any Coke Light. He told her “No, I ordered it before, but I only sold a few and the rest expired.” She promised him that if he would order it, we would buy the whole case and it would not expire! Today we picked up our 2nd shipment. Love.it!

My girl Mercy loves sour and tart things. She loves lemon or bitter tasting stuff.  It is so fun to watch her experience new foods. She loves vegetables and will go for them first on her plate every time. Emma and Avery think there must be something wrong with her. Ha!  She also loves to cover her body in pineapple.  I don't blame her.  The pineapple here is fantastic.

My Canadian friends that went to court with me several times a couple of weeks ago and had been stuck here for months fighting for their kids… they got to go home on Tuesday. It’s so exciting to see pictures of their family all together. You can see pictures here.

Ok, enough random thoughts for you. And some of you have asked… yes, it’s ok to email me. I do read them and I have internet at the house as long as the power is on. I love to hear from all of you, but sleep is also precious to me these days, so I may not always respond to them all, but I promise I do read them.