16

This is Carter's version of the perfect birthday celebration....chocolate cake, Dr. Pepper, barbeque chips, and, what's not in the picture, chocolate ice cream.

I can't lie -- I enjoyed it too.


And like anyone else in our house with a birthday, he got lots of help with the candles.

Don't feel much like cooking.....

This is Bethany's latest post:
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The political situation and my safety

11:42am Today

Hello everyone, of you have been reading my notes or are remotely in touch with me you know that I am spending an exchange year in Venezuela. Venezuela is very politically unstable right now because the President, Hugo Chavez wants to turn the country socialist. On Sunday there will be a vote on a reform of the constitution which proposes among other things: restrictions of internet access, government control of schools, children would be under the government´s total authority, a mandatory dress code, no drinking alcohol in public, the list goes on. There have been many demonstrations in the cities of Venezuela against the constitutional reform, and since marches and protests are illegal, the army has put these protests down with force, resulting in countless injuries and many deaths. During the lead up to the elections there have been rumours of numbers of things: that Chavez will cancel the elections before hand and enforce military rule, that he will do so after, that the army will put down any marches with even more violence, etc. Everyone is scared and everyone is keyed up. So where does this leave a US exchange student?

Here are my plans for the elections as laid out to me by my host family. Classes ended today at 10:00 in the morning when the army came and took over the school for the elections (it´s a voting center). Let me tell you that nothing wakes you up in the morning like fully uniformed men carrying kalishnikovs in your school´s cafeteria. For the next two or three days I will be here in my house in Carrizal, but I won´t be allowed to leave our enclosed compound because it´s too dangerous for people with light skin and eyes. On Friday or Saturday my host parents will drop me and my host sister off at my host aunt´s house in Caracas, and will then go to vote about six hours away in the town they used to live in. From what it seems like to me, there will be deaths in Caracas. I will be packed and ready to go to the airport if Rotary decides to pull us out. Rotary in the United States, however is now negotiating with Rotary in Venezuela and my parents to see if they want to get us out before the elections. I´m fairly certain of my own personal safety at this point, but I´m also fairly certain that I´ll either breath tear gas for the first time in my life, or, I hope to god no, see my first murder. Keep me in your prayers, and I´ll keep you updated.

Lots of love,
Bethany

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My daughter's safety has been on my mind non-stop. I have been pushing for her to come home for about a week now, especially since she got sick (she may have Chron's disease). I'm sure it sounds selfish because you all know how much I miss her. There's a little bit of that going on (about .05%) but the rest is pure "Mom Gut" telling me she's not safe and she needs to leave that place.

She's having a very, very hard time because she's become so attached to the place and the people. And if she decides to leave herself, Rotary won't place her somewhere else to finish out the year. If Rotary decides to pull her, they will likely place her somewhere else. It's a sticky situation and meanwhile, the tension and threats of violence increase. On Monday a demonstrator was killed in a town 2 over from Bethany's. Please keep her (and us) in your thoughts and prayers. Hopefully she'll be home for Christmas.

Happy Black Friday

Now that the Thanksgiving victual gorging is over, we can celebrate the beginning of another form of over-consuming.

Apparently I need to engage in this to prepare for the upcoming holiday:

Or this:






Don't get me wrong. I like to shop. I like to get gifts. I like to give gifts. I just get scared and sad when I think about people literally getting trampled for the sake of stuff.

So after I dug out of the avalanche of sale ads in the yesterday's newspaper, I found a few things on-line to help me stay focused and try to simplify:




this book or this book

and this book




And as usual, Mothering Magazine has this article
that speaks to kids and consumerism.

Have a good Friday.

For all my dear ones near and far (you know who you are!),

I am thankful for you.

After watching videos of the muffins as newborns

Me: "Ohhh, they were so sweet."

Him: "Does it make you want more?"

Me: "Ummm, not really. Does it make you want more?"

Him: "Not really. Are you sure it doesn't make you want more?"

Me: "Yup, pretty sure."

Him: "Are you sure?"

Me: "YES!!"

Him: "I sense some waffling."

Me: "Waffle this!"

2 years old -- YAY!

For some reason, Logan's birthday holds special significance for me.  I guess it's because it means I'm that much closer to being able to reason through situations rather than waiting out a tantrum.  Maybe it's because I'm that much closer to wiping my last poopy bottom.  Or, it could be because I'm that much closer to never again having to say "Logan! Don't put (insert one of the following:  Lamby, my clothes, the toothbrush, Daddy's watch) in the toilet!"  

So don't be surprised if you see me giddily putting baby and toddler stuff curbside with a huge sign saying FREE!!! PLEASE TAKE!!!  

Happy Birthday Logan!

What's Cookin' Wednesday

Fall has definitely arrived and as it gets cooler I find myself wanting warm, cozy, comfort food. Here's a soup that's easy AND tasty. I put it in the crock pot and skip the puree step -- that makes it even easier. Serve with crusty bread. Yum!

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Cheddar Potato Soup

• 4 cups peeled, diced potatoes (about 4 medium)
• 3 cups vegetable broth
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 2 cups milk
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• seasoned croutons

In a large saucepan combine potatoes and broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Puree in small batches in a blender until smooth; return to the pan. Stir in the cheese, milk, salt and pepper. Cook and stir over low heat until the cheese is melted. Serve garnished with croutons.

If the shoe fits.....

Logan is a week shy of 2 years and is in the full-blown toddler tantrum throwing stage.

Fun times.

When things get really bad I want to call him a monster but instead I call him a monkey. At least is sounds slightly endearing and I still get the firm feeling of the "M" coming out of my mouth.

I used to love "falling back"

Ahhhhh......the good old days......the days when you look forward to the end of daylight savings time for the extra hour of sleep. Staying up a little later on Saturday night and watching ALL of SNL.

That all changes with very young children in the picture. Children who don't have any concept of "sleeping in." Children who believe that "when the sunshine is ready" (Brennan's way of understanding when you sleep and when you're awake) you're supposed to be up and going. Monday it was 6:00 am. Today it was 5:40 am. Seriously!! Go back to bed!!

Befy Update #3

It seems like a long, long time since Bethany left for Venezuela. We're actually 4 days shy of 2 months. That's not that long. But when it's your daughter, and the only other female in your immediate family, it's a long time.

Yesterday I was missing her female comraderie so much that I slept in her room, in her bed, under the quilt that my Nana, her Nana and I worked on. It's only a simple quilt, but it's girly and was made with lots and lots of love. It felt good being under it and thinking about where I came from, the women who have been (are) ahead of me and the woman who is behind me. That helped. I didn't feel quite so alone.

So, here is her monthly update:

My second month in Venezuela, or no quiero regresar!

Hi guys in the US, I have just completed my second month in Venezuela, and I am very content, and very settled in. My Spanish has grown by leaps and bounds, and people I talk to for the first time say that my Spanish is perfect ( but it´s only because they haven´t gotten to know me well). I CAN say everything I want to say 99 percent of the time without my dictionary, which is a big improvement, and I understand practically everything people say to me, which makes my time in school a lot easier and a lot less frustrating. Now I´m focusing on learning the culture so I can really start to integrate myself in to the life here.
Something I´m really satisfied with are my friends. I´ve come to wholeheartedly love and appretiate the friends I´ve made, they are so great, and in the 1 month I´ve been in school, they have already supported me and helped me through so much. My social life has also picked up, although it´s hard to negotiate around my host family´s plans, mostly because my host mother likes to change them at the last minute.
Speaking of my host family, I finally feel comfortable living here as part of this family, that it took two months to feel that way wasn´t their fault but mine. They welcomed me from the first day, and always included me in family activities and duties, it just took me a little while to shed my ingrained politeness and step out of the guest-shell I had been living in. I can´t imagine the pain I´m going to feel when I have to go back to the states in July, it will probably top the pain I felt at leaving my family in the US, since this time I know that it isn´t garaunteed that I will see them again.
The only thing that throws a shadow over my exchange so far is the political situation here. For those of you who don´t know, the President of Venezuela is Hugo Chavez. Chavez has been slowly gaining power by taking over the public schools, which teach the poor children who can´t afford private school, that Chavez is close to a God and will solve all of Venezuela´s problems. He has also taken over the free television channels, so the poor are constantly fed propaganda. At the same time, he is trying to push through a major reform to the constitution which totally bans access to the internet, restricts free speech, sets a country-wide dress code, and takes over control of what all the schools in Venezuela teach. Chavez will have no trouble passing this reform, since the National Assembly of Venezuela was handpicked by him, after an earlier constitutional reform. While Chavez focuses on gaining power, there is a shortage of wheat, sugar, eggs, milk, and cooking oil, and bread is starting to be rationed ( the other day my sister and I were sent to buy french bread, and they would only let us buy three small loaves per person). There have been marches in protest in Caracas and Maracaibo, which were put down violently by the government-controlled police. Many people were injured in Caracas, and a girl was killed in the march in Maracaibo. I saw all of this on the last non-government controlled station in Venezuela CAN-TV .
Despite the disturbances in the big cities, I am perfectly safe here, for those of you who would worry. As long as I lay low in the streets and don´t participate in any protests I should be fine. Daily life here continues as normal , and I can still go to school, and although the necessary food stuffs are a little harder to find, I have never gone hungry here.
Everyone take care of yourselves in the United State, and now that I am happy here and having a great year. I´ll write again in a month!

Love,
Bethany

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Yes, I'm worried and afraid for her. I've already asked her if she'd consider coming home early and she "No way!" Her dad and Carter are going to visit her the week between Christmas and New Years. That will help us get a sense of how she really is.

It's hard being a mom.

Halloween

As you can see, some of us had more fun than others.......maybe next year.