A Fast Connection, And A Few Photos.

A few from the road a few days ago. I love the way the hills look as the sun is setting. These days the greens are mixing with the wild flowers to create one of the most beautiful views ever.

Joey reading with the "cheese" king. Pull out a camera or phone and he's posing immediately.

 A while back Joey saw a guy standing on the side of the road, nothing too unusual in these parts, what was unusual was his backpack, so Joey picked him up and sure enough he was a traveler from Italy. He came and stayed with us for a few days. His English was broken and his Arabic limited, but he was a hard worker and grateful guest. Gotta love the surprises that you find on the side of the road.

 Benson with his chocolate eye art. Yum, yum.

Josiah, such a cool dude.

Hope to post more photos and updates soon. Happy Weekend!

Yesterday

When I was a little girl I remember hearing a story from my mom about sewing through her thumb while using her sewing machine. I vaguely remember something about her calling my Dad to come help and he took a while not knowing what was going on, but finally got there and saved her from the dreaded machine. Honestly I don't know if the story was true, or just a scare tactic to keep us kids away from the amazing machine, either way every time I sew I think about that story and pay attention to where my fingers are at all times. Except yesterday...

Joey and I were talking while I mended a pair of pants for a friend. I looked over at Joey to comment on something he said and next thing I know my finger is shooting pain. Yep, you guessed it, I sewed through the tip of my finger. I still have this surreal image of my finger with the sewing needle poking through the middle of the fingernail. I tried to quickly pull my finger out, but it was stuck. I cried out for Joey to come and asked him to pull my finger off. He didn't want to, it was just too much to see his wife impaled on the end of a needle. Ok, his wife's finger. So he held my other hand while I closed my eyes and pulled my finger off of the needle. Ouch. I had thought the needle was just in a little bit, but Joey later told me he could see the needle sticking out of the bottom of my finger. Uh, Yuck. All is better now. All I am left with is a mark on the top of my fingernail, a sore finger tip and a good story to tell my children!

Pictures!

The internet connection this morning is GREAT so I jumped on and uploaded a few photos. Nothing too exciting, just a few glimpses into life. Things are going great and we're really getting settled. Yesterday we took a family trip to McDonalds and a major store to get a few things to finish the settling in process. It was a beautiful day and a nice trip.

 William found his favorite toy as soon as we got here. An old walker with a steering wheel. What could make a boy happier?!

 As usual our favorite past time is to climb along the wall and drive cars while watching people, sheep and big vans drive by.

 We were able to go have "hot chocolate pastries" with the boys last weekend. The key to eating these pastries is to start in the middle and eat out all the chocolate, leaving the fluffy pastry part for your little baby brother :-)

 You also have to be sure to have hot milk while eating pastries. Trust me its the only way.

 An amazing thing happened last weekend. I made the most incredible macaroni and cheese - with Moroccan slimy cheese! Seriously this was a cheese sauce that Eggs Benedict dreams about. So good. My life in Morocco is now perfect.

William got new shoes and as a result has not stopped walking since. They are pretty stinkin' awesome don't you think?!

The boys also got a new bedroom. We moved them all into one room with bunk-beds. They are SO excite to have their own place. They keep telling everyone about it. I am happy to have at least one room in our house all swept and clean. Its really inspiring for the rest of the house :-)

There you go a few pictures to give a glimpse into life. Have a great week!

Home Again, Home Again. Fly Away Home.

A week ago yesterday we arrived at our house in Morocco. Its hard to believe its been a week and at the same time its hard to believe it hasn't been longer! We had a great trip, that took a total of 4 days. The boys loved getting to travel by plane, train & taxi. They are all such good travelers, we've been really blessed.

Since we've been here we've had the chance to connect with friends, enjoy incredible Moroccan foods and eat our fair share of the most amazing oranges ever. Honestly they are so good, its hard to keep my mouth from watering just thinking about them. Yum!

Today we're headed up to a party to celebrate the birth of a new little baby to our dear friends. They've killed a sheep and there will be more coke & cookies than should be in one place. It is really going to be great. I am looking forward to seeing friends and enjoying watching all the ladies interact.

I tried to upload photos, but our connection seems to be a bit slow this morning. Thought I'd get this off just the same so you that sometimes stop by might know how we're doing...more to come!

Josiah & The Snake Box

I just found this video taken back in June of 2009. Josiah would have been 2 and a half. We were shopping for various little things at a market in Morocco. Joey found a standard tourist item and showed it to Josiah. It is classic. Hope you enjoy!

Dayton, WA

A few weeks ago Joey was going hunting over in Eastern Washington. So we decided to tag along. We left William with Grammy and made the trek over the mountain passes. We were able to stay in the old family house that was just recently remodeled and got to enjoy the snow and outdoors. The boys loved sledding and running around in the old house. The wood floors are really slick and they would slide all over the place laughing and having a blast. I even got to go out shooting one morning with Joey. Lets just say I'm not a very good shot. ;-)

The old Broughton house where we stayed. Isn't it beautiful?!

Waiting by the fire for Dad to get back from hunting.

Still waiting, but enjoying throwing snow on the fire and listening to it sizzle. Its the little things in life isn't it?!

Joey and the birds he got 1 pheasant and 1 quail. I'm holding the little quail. I shot at a few little birds, but didn't hit any. It was a surprisingly really fun. 

 A view from the top of the sled hill. The two black dots in the middle are Josiah & Benson laughing so hard they've both fallen down. Good times!

A Few Thoughts From My Day

How did my children get so cute?! Seriously, they are adorable.

Those cookies look so good. I should probably eat one. Will one cookie result in a whole pound of fat added to my backside? What if I wash it down with black coffee? That has enough acidity to kill whatever fat might have been in the cookie right?

Tired, must find a place to sleep.

I am so very blessed. Why should I get to live such a life?!

Ahh, that is a HUGE spider!!!

I wish I could just sit here and watch movies with my children all day long. Maybe I will. Tomorrow.

Is facebook really real?! Am I being deceived by a false reality while trying to snoop on friends?

What is going on in Tunisia? It doesn't seem normal for a president to just up and leave. Some crazy stuff must have gone down there.

Women who do craft blogs are my heroes. I wish I could do a craft blog. I wish.

I really should get going on school. I wonder if the boys will grow up to be smart at all. Hopefully they'll at least know the difference between a mouse and a squirrel. Hopefully.

If I have to give one more spanking today, I am going to explode.

Water, drink more water.

I am so blessed. Thank you God.