7 Quick Takes

A blog I enjoy reading has a regular Friday activity: Just post seven short items, they don't have to be connected at all. I feel the call to blog but don't have anything major to say, so I thought it would be a good day to try it. Here we go!

1. The chicken fajitas were pretty good. The cilantro-lime coleslaw was AMAZING. Even Russ loved it, and he's not a coleslaw eater. The rest of the week's menu ended up less than exciting though I did make beans in a pressure cooker for the first time and was quite pleased with the result. (We are going to have to get our stove fixed before I can use the pressure cooker again. The heat is just too high.) So many of our meals were centered around the beans I made. We had fajita "bowls", then I refried the leftovers so we could have them for another meal.

2. Next week we're spending the week with Jerry and Lynn Jones. They're going to present their marriage seminar to us and then help us learn how to teach it. It's an amazing opportunity and something that can potentially become a great way to help families here in Salvador.

3. Yesterday I was incredibly frustrated when someone I've been trying to do business with essentially flaked out on me. It was a major disappointment because it's to do with something really big. At times like this, it's hard to keep from getting angry and doing or saying things I will later regret. The world tells us that we have every right to be mad and vent. But I've got to keep a cool head and just move on.

4. Jackson has a major Cheerio addiction right now. He calls them "rice", which is a little confusing, because he also calls rice "rice". I don't know why he started doing that. I keep the Cheerios in a big glass jar that used to have rice in it and in fact says "RICE" in big letters on the side. So it was a little weird when he started doing it but I am under no illusions that he's taught himself to read at 17 months.

5. Speaking of Jackson and his vocabulary, watching him develop is awe-inspiring. Yesterday's word of the day was "baseball". It's now what he calls the Wii when he wants to play. He watched Kelton and some of the daddies playing in real life on our team retreat and now the video game seems too make more sense to him. He used to just swing indiscriminately but now he waits for the pitch and then swings. Yes, this generation is differrent.

6. I am really struggling to keep my church work part time. The challenge for me is that much of my work is done on the computer so it's always available for me to work on. When Jackson and I are home, it's tempting to sit and work while he plays (or watches Backyardigans).

7. I'm making cinnamon raisin quinoa to go with lunch. Yum.