Health Class Part 2/ Recipe for Black Bean and Corn Salsa

I taught health class at the Academy again yesterday, this time on exercise.  I focused on 2 primary things - 1) The extraordinary benefits of regular exercise and 2) how to exercise without gym memberships and special equipment.  It was such a fun class to teach.  I won't go into the litany I went into with them, but I will just share with you some of my reasons for loving exercise:

1)  It gives me energy, especially on those days where the night before was disrupted by a wakeful baby.

2)  When I exercise regularly, I get sick much less often.

3) I put on more muscle, therefore, higher metabolism, therefore, I can eat more and still lose weight.  Especially helpful after those sleepless nights when I need to eat more to offset the sleep deprivation.

4) It helped me, both times, lose the enormous amount of weight I gain when pregnant.  

5) I feel dang good!  My mood is elevated because I work out (all those endorphins), and I feel good because I am vain, and there is no feeling quite like fitting into your pre-pregnancy clothes, or those jeans that used to fit perfectly.  As much as I love the health benefits, and the future benefits, I have to admit that the improvement in the view in the mirror is one of my favorite things about working out.  

6)  I feel like a better mom because I am being proactive about my health.  I am an example to them by prioritizing my health, and I am more likely to be around for them in the future.

I also have to say that it is pretty cute when Jaya picks up 2 cans of mackerel and starts "liftin' weights."  

As you can tell, teaching this health class has been awesome for me.  I get to talk about the things I am most passionate about.  

I promised some recipes to help with the increasing your fruits/veggies, so here is one.

This is one of my go-to easy lunch/light dinner recipes.  It is kind of summery, but I use it year-round, and those of you in the US could make it now before the summer is totally over....

Black Bean and Corn Salsa

2 cups frozen corn, thawed (I like to heat these up in a dry pan, they kind of "roast" and smell and taste yummy, but you can just thaw or defrost in the microwave)

2 cups canned black beans, rinsed and drained

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 small minced red onion

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

1 minced serrano chili (optional)

juice of 1 lime

Combine, and salt and pepper to taste.  If I am in a hurry or feeling particularly virtuous, I have a few scoops on some salad greens.  You can also add diced tomato. For a more substantial meal, keep reading.

Guacamole

2 ripe avocados, diced

1/2  onion, minced

1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped

1/2 serrano, minced

juice of 1 lime

Mash one of the avocados and leave the other diced.  Combine all the ingredients, and salt and pepper to taste.

Cheese Quesadillas

tortillas (preferably whole-wheat)

canola or other vegetable oil

shredded cheese (your preference)  I like using a combo of Sharp Cheddar and Pepper or Monterey Jack.  Cheddar for flavor and Jack for melty goodness.

Put a small amount of cheese (if it's good cheese, you won't need much) on one half of a tortilla, and fold the tortilla over.  Make a non-stick pan HOT, so the tortillas will get nice and crispy.  Instead of putting the oil in the pan, brush the tortillas with oil so they get nice and brown all over.  Cook, and flip when browned and cheese is melted.  Serve with the corn and black bean salsa and guacamole.

This has satisfied many a carnivore, in my experience.  I wish I had pictures, but I don't have the ingredients to make this here.

Now I'm hungry.  

Enjoy!

Look what Raja figured out today...

Brother is obsessed when it comes to learning how to get around as well as sister....and Sister is obsessed when it comes to what she used to call "bellets."  Good thing it rains in Cebu as often as it does...

Check out our little darlings...

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Eat more! / How to add more fruits and vegetables to your day

So, I forgot one major rule in the post below. And that is....Eat 5+ times a day, not 3. I eat about 6 times a day. Snacking is good! Better for your metabolism, your energy level, and your waistline.  

So, I thought I would list some (easy) ways to eat more fruits and vegetables....
For breakfast -
- Saute veggies (whatever you like, I use anything I have, I especially like spinach, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, bell pepper...) in a non-stick pan, and when they are done to your liking, scramble some eggs in there. If you are really ambitious, make it an omelette instead. You can add a little bit of cheese (full-fat and full-flavored, please), or a little ham or bacon if you like.
- Cut up fruit and put it in your oatmeal. I like bananas, apples, and dried apricots for this especially, but try anything.  I also like to add nuts.

-Have fruit with your (high fiber) cereal.
- Have a fruit smoothie. I like the ones that are all fruit, not much milk or ice. Put a spoonful of peanut butter and a spoonful of oatmeal to the blender too. (Sounds crazy, but it tastes so good and helps keep you fuller longer too). My new favorite - throw an avocado in there. So tasty! And good for you! (Yes, I know it is high in (healthy) fat and calories. So eat it instead of those 2 glasses of Kool-Aid and that bag of Doritos).
- Have yogurt and fruit. Or yogurt, granola, and fruit.
- Make pancakes (use whole wheat flour), and add frozen mixed berries or frozen blueberries to the batter.
- Think outside the box. Eat last night's leftovers (full of veggies,of course) for breakfast.  I love doing this.
For lunch -
- Eat salad. And not iceberg lettuce and salad dressing. I never liked salad when I thought that is what it had to be. Try spinach, romaine, arugula, watercress, spring mix,etc. Add some sliced apple or pear, orange sections, strawberries, dried cranberries, etc. Toss in some pecans, almonds, cashews, pine nuts, walnuts, etc. Add blue cheese or feta or goat cheese or Parmigiano Reggiano. My favorite lunchtime salad - a plate of spinach, a small handful of toasted pine nuts, a small handful of dried cranberries, crumble some goat cheese on top, and drizzle on some balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. Try it. I have served this to some very picky salad/spinach haters who loved it. I will post more salad recipes in the future - I have a ton!  And then I can live vicariously through those of you who will use them, because fresh greens are hard to get here.
- Microwave a bag of frozen veggies, add a little pat of (real) butter, salt and pepper, and enjoy. My favorite vegetables (and Jaya's) to eat this way are broccoli and green beans. When you are feeling motivated, saute it all in olive oil instead and add a couple of crushed garlic cloves to the oil. Stores now sell really good mixed vegetables, with lots of variety. Try a good bag of mixed asian veggies with a few drops of sesame oil and some slivered almonds or sesame seeds.  Add salt and pepper.  I truly believe a lot of people don't like veggies because they have only had them overcooked, which kills their flavor, and without seasoning to enhance their flavor.
-Make a sandwich and pile on the veggies. Buy jarred roasted red peppers, bagged spinach, jarred artichoke hearts, olives, and regular and sun dried tomatoes. All good added to sandwiches. You can use cold cuts, or try throwing a portobello mushroom in a saute pan with some olive oil and garlic and using it as the "meat". (Or even throw it in a George Foreman grill). Use avocado or hummus a spread for bread instead of mayo.
For snacks -
- Eat edamame. You can buy it frozen now, and it is very fast to make. Jaya loves this!
- Eat fresh fruit. (Duh).
- Eat apples and peanut butter. Or try almond or cashew butter. My favorite pre-workout snack.
- Eat a small handful of nuts (I know, not a fruit or a vegetable. But a plant food nonetheless.)
For dinner - ok, I promise I will post more recipes. But a couple of ideas...
- Eat pasta and load it up with veggies.  I may have a million pasta recipes.
- Roast vegetables. So easy and so tasty. Toss veggies (sweet potato, tomatoes, eggplant, asparagus, cauliflower, etc.) with just enough oil to coat, salt and pepper. You can add garlic and/or herbs and/or spices, and roast at about 400 degrees until tender and delicious.  
- Eat beans. We love beans!  And throw beans in your salads too. I will post some bean recipes also.

This post is so exciting!  I love talking about food.  I will stop now and save some for another day.

Wait!
One last thing. 

I have talked to a lot of people who say....but eating healthy is so expensive. To that, I say:

 Buy fresh, in-season, locally grown produce and shop wisely (sales and coupons and bulk).  Cut down on meat.  Stop buying pre-made frozen food and processed items.  If you live in an area where even with all that, it is costlier to eat healthy...well, to that I repeat my mother's words. "Health is wealth." If eating like this gives you a longer life span and a better quality of life, isn't it worth cutting your spending somewhere else?

Cruising, Shimmying, and Eating

Raja has been cruising (walking holding furniture), pulls himself to stand up every chance he gets, and has even momentarily stood on his own. It is so fun to watch him grow. He has started nibbling on solid foods here and there, grabbing from our plates, and seems ready to add to his diet. Those pesky teeth have still not come all the way through yet though, and he is still struggling to push them out. He is not ever content to be left out of things, and wants to be "in the mix" every chance he gets. He always wants to play with whatever sister plays with, climb on whatever she is sitting on, and grab whatever she is grabbing. She is always making him laugh.
Jaya is quite obliging to her little brother, and it's a rare occasion that she doesn't willingly share with him. If she really wants to hold on to whatever it is she has, she will ask us, "Can you grab Raji please?" How did we get this girl? She is always teaching us by example. She has also been teaching us that maybe we should sometimes keep our mouths shut:
Jaya: (in whiny, crabby voice) Momma!
Me: I don't like that voice Jaya. Don't use that voice.
Jaya: (still whiny) Moooooom!
Me: Jaya, I don't like that.
Jaya: (normal, excited voice) You mean when I get pissed Mom? You don't like when I get pissed Mom? I won't get pissed no more, Mom. I won't get pissed no more! (big Jaya grin)
One of our favorite J-Bugs quirks is that since she started eating solids, she shimmys her shoulders and shakes her little booty when she eats something delicious. She has been doing it less and less over the last few months, but this week she brought it back into her toddler repertoire. We will do our best to get this on video before it is replaced with some other, though probably equally cute, quirk.
Marei and I are getting back into our pre-pregnancy shapes (I know, but Marei gained sympathy weight with each one. A small fraction of what I gained, but he gained nonetheless).
I taught a health class at the Academy this week. So fun! This one was on nutrition/ healthy diet. We covered a lot of different things, but I will share with you what I consider MY rules for eating healthy. (I am not an expert, this is just what I apply to our family, and it works).
1. Eat lots and lots of fruits and vegetables (as many as you can fit in, and as much variety as you can). And if you don't like them, well then you just haven't tried the right ones and/or haven't had them prepared properly. So try some more! If you only change one thing about your diet, make it this one. The other things will follow.
2. Make most of your carbs whole grain.
3. Make most of your proteins beans, nuts (protein from plant sources) and fish/ seafood. Most of the time, use meat sparingly for flavor rather than as a main dish.
4. Make most of your fats healthy fats from plant sources.
4. Control portion sizes.
5. Eat high-fat, high-sugar foods in moderation. And when you eat them, eat the real deal (see #6)
6. Don't eat, or rarely eat, foods that were made in a laboratory or whose ingredients read like a chemistry lab inventory. This includes soda, fat-free and sugar-free food, margarine, and processed food. Also, choose low-fat foods carefully - if it doesn't taste good, and you'll end up eating twice as much to try to satisfy yourself - don't eat it.
7. Don't ever go on diets. Especially weird extreme ones that cut out whole food groups. Just gradually change your lifestyle if you have poor eating habits.
8. Drink lots of water.
9. Moderation in all things. Learn to be satisfied with smaller portions. If you love something, don't cut it out. Just eat less of it, and less often, and make sure when you eat it, it is the real deal.
10. Enjoy food! Eating should be a pleasurable, gratifying experience.
I love butter, cheese, and a good rib-eye. I just don't eat them all the time, and I'd rather have real butter on a warm roll once in a while than margarine on toast every day. I'd rather have a big fat juicy steak with a gob of gorgonzola once a month than a burger from McDonald's every day. I've got a wicked sweet tooth, I've just learned to be satisfied with smaller amounts of what I like. I've learned (am still learning) how to eat s-l-o-w-l-y and savor every bite. Food is....oh so good...(insert shoulder shimmy and shake).
Happy eating!

Coincidence? I think not

Yesterday we went to the Ayala mall (It is so different from the US - I LOVE going to the mall here. Marei calls me a mallrat). Anyhow, we were walking, I told Marei we should go up to the 4th floor, where we had never been before - primarily because it was just a food court, mostly fast food. Seeing as how I try not to eat much fast food or feed it to my family, he said, are you sure, and I replied, yes, let's just go up there. I didn't know why we were there, until, someone jumped up and said to me, "Are you Leela's daughter?" Crazy, I know. My mom's co-worker of several years is from Cebu. She had told my mom she would be here visiting, and needed my contact info. I emailed it to her weeks earlier, and she hadn't gotten it. She had wondered the night before we ran into her how she would possibly be able to find me with no contact info. How? Well, we just ran into each other in this city of 3/4 of a million people. Amazing! So Emmalina and her husband came over today for some dinner and it was so lovely to have them. Everything happens for a reason! Thanks Emmalina and Joe, for the wonderful visit!

what percentage of eternity is 5 years?

Thought we'd give you guys some insights into us...on our anniversary...
How long have you been together?
We've been married for 5 years.
How long did you date?
We dated for one year before we got married. We got engaged on the 4th of July (America's Independence Day) and got married on August 15th (India's Independence Day).
Who eats more?
Marei, but Leatha can give him some serious comp.
Who has more speeding tickets?
Marei, by far.
Who does the dishes?
Marei.
Who cooks dinner?
Leatha.
Who is more sensitive?
Leatha.
Who is more stubborn?
Leatha overall, but Marei has his moments.
Who is more laid-back?
Marei.
Who is more flexible?
Leatha.
Who is more creative?
Leatha.
Who is more extroverted?
Marei.
Who is more demanding?
Leatha.
Who is more independent?
Leatha.
Who is more friendly?
Marei.
Who is more competitive?
Marei.
Who is funnier?
Leatha.
Who is more fun?
Marei.
Who is bossier?
Leatha.
Who is nicer?
Marei.
Who is more patient?
Leatha.
Who is calmer?
Usually Marei, but sometimes Leatha.
Who is more analytical?
Leatha.
Who is more decisive?
Leatha.
Who does the laundry?
Both of us, but Marei right now.
Who is more practical?
Leatha.
Who is more daring?
Marei.
Who is more athletic?
Marei.
Who has a more addictive personality?
Marei.
Who is thriftier?
Leatha.
Who is more optimistic?
Marei.
Who is nerdier?
Debatable.
What do you have in common?
We have the same values and beliefs. We love being spouses and parents above all else. We come from different cultures but have a lot of things in common culturally. We love family and friends. We love food. We love to laugh. We both have passionate natures and strong emotions. We both can get fired up, albeit about different things. We like things neat and clean, and life orderly, although Leatha is more OCD about organization. We see eye to eye on parenting, for the most part. We both love trying new things, whether it is a different food or a different country.
How are you different?
Every other way. (See above). Leatha is cautious, Marei is more reckless. He's trusting, she's a New Yorker. She worries, he doesn't. We are so opposite, but it is perfect. Looking back, it really is incredible how much we have been blessed with in the last five years...we feel so blessed to have found each other. Life is awesome when you are married to your best friend.

As Jaya says, Happy Nam-a-ver-sa-ee!

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Two months already....

The last week and a half have been punctuated with bouts of illness. Nothing major, just those annoying little blips of discomfort on life's radar. It was the kids, and now I am the one who is sick, in bed with the laptop blogging away. I thought I'd take some time to reflect on the last two months...

What we miss about our life in the US -friends and family (all of us) -hot running water (Leatha) -driving (M and L) -HD TV (who do you think misses that most?) -working at Willowcreek (Marei)

What we will miss about our life in the Philippines -all the great friends we've made -the friendly, hospitable culture -being able to play basketball almost every day -how kid and baby friendly it is here -how breastfeeding friendly it is here -our ward at church -cost of living in general -being able to eat out when we feel like it, for cheap -the cost of clothes, shoes, accessories, massages, almost everything -being able to afford housecleaning help -the rain, and the air after it rains, and how green everything is -all the time we get to spend together as family -learning about a new place and new culture -fresh seafood anytime -having time to relax -the beach/ ocean -fresh mango, fresh pineapple, baby bananas -friendly driving - to some it might seem like crazy driving. But to us, people CAN drive this way, because they are always looking out for each other. -how everyone loves to sing -did I say shoes? -the scenery -no more eczema/ dry skin for the kids and I -it's not unusual that we all sleep in one bed -it's not unusual that we've got a nursing toddler -being able to afford babysitters whenever we'd like some help -malls are fun here -lots of things revolve around food - just the way we Kingis like to roll

We'll make a new list in a few more months. There are other inconsequential things we miss, like watching What not to Wear and the NFL. But we love the Philippines!

I not a big girl YET....

...as Jaya reminds us from time to time. Sometimes we need her to remind us of that, because it is so easy to expect too much of her because of the way she talks, and how old she appears to be at times. She is such a special little spirit, with so much joie de vivre. She has so much passion for everything she does. She is so smart and is constantly humbling us with her observations and her natural inquisitiveness. She just loves to serve - to take care of her brother, to rub Daddy's back, to bring Mommy water, to help us with chores. She loves to play kitchen and cook for us, so she got a kitchen this week made from a cardboard box, a mixing bowl and a cheap faucet. She loves it, and was very vocal about saying so - so polite. She loves music, and sings now more than ever. She is still very into being a mama, and likes to nurture and care for her baby doll. She loves all things girly - including nail polish, lip gloss, purses, and high heels. She is always cheering for and encouraging her little brother, and takes her job as his protector very seriously. We told her how important it is to keep Raja safe, especially now that he is crawling, and, true to her cautious nature, she is hyper vigilant about making sure there is nothing that can hurt him. "That's too little for Raji!" Raja adores his big sister and wants to be wherever she is, playing with whatever she is playing with. She is always making us smile. We love our little J-Bugs!
It is usually pretty difficult to get much good footage of her on video, as she gets somewhat camera shy when we start taping, but we got a few good shots of her recently. Here's to our two year and seven month old sweetheart!

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My first post and Raja crawling

After being asked by Editor-in-Chief to share some thoughts or comment on some of her posts...this is it - I've finally decided to write an entry! (if I sound smart or something its because my lovely intelligent wife has done the grammar and spelling check). I must say that Leatha does a great job at explaining in detail (I tend to leave those out) what happens here and how wonderful of a time we are having. I have no problem with Leatha doing all the posts because I enjoy her writing skills and she does a much better job than I could. The kids are growing up so fast and it is a blessing to be able to watch them daily and be there 24/7 by their side. As most of you know, my duty here is as a stay home Daddy. I admire Moms and Dads of this world who devote all their time and energy to their children day in and out. I'll admit that it has been hard for me to do this great duty full time. One important lesson I think that I can learn here is to how to be a devoted stay home Father and Husband and enjoy it, not thinking about what I am missing out on or what I want to do. Leatha is so unselfish and this allows her to put me and our children above her own needs. I realize how good I have it and that I was lucky enough to marry this great Woman. Enough of that. My dear son has decided that he wants to crawl now! Leatha cried when he did, saying that "he's not a baby anymore." He has been sitting up for the longest time now and often crashes head first (sorry boy, you got my jug) trying to move forward. Well, this evening we saw him on his four legs ready to unleash the beast inside of him! After many attempts to get him to move forward he did so and is loving every minute of it. Watch the video and see for yourself. Note that Jaya is his coach and motivator! Leatha added the slide show so can't take credit for that.

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the Baby Celebs

I've written a little about how much attention the kids get here. People are so friendly and just adore the kids everywhere we go. Whenever we go out, we have to plan accordingly and account for the time needed for the kids to greet the public. At church, people seem to be waiting in line for their turn to hold them, and at restaurants, waitresses offer to tend them while we eat. We've been calling them the baby celebs for a bit, but the name was stuck when the other day, a saleslady kept telling Jaya how sweet and cute and lovely she was. After I paid at the register, Jaya started walking to the door. I called to her, "Jaya, say bye-bye to the nice lady." Jaya paused, turned her head back and looked over one shoulder, and with her head slightly cocked and a closemouthed smile, the kind reserved only for her adoring public, she blew the woman a kiss.

Teething, Crawling, and Eating

So Raja has been working extra hard on pushing out his first teeth this week. He's been fussy, and poopy, waking (very) often, and had a low-grade fever for a couple of days. But he still gives us that big toothless (for now) grin all the time. He is just so sweet.
One of the ways we knew he was teething was that he wants to eat our food. He grabs rice from our plates and shoves it in his mouth. He also helped himself to my ice cream the other day, which Marei caught on video (see below). He is also very eager to crawl. He just wants to move, and can scoot around pretty well with a combination of lunging forward, rolling, and sitting. It is so fun to see the absolute joy in his face when he gets to where he wants to go. We love his mad face too, when he can't go where he wants. His new name is Baby Badge, Marei being the Big Badger. Why Badger? Marei's nickname from childhood - since badgers are little and ferocious. Like our Raji-paj. I just can't get enough of my baby badge.
Here are a few moments from the last week.

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Hot pavement and long hair

Yesterday was a hot day. Jaya had kicked her shoes off while she was in the stroller, and when she jumped out onto the concrete, she yelped, "Too hot!" and said "got owies on my feet." Fast forward to today:
Jaya: "I am mad at the sun! So mad!"
Mama: "Why are you mad at the sun?"
Jaya: "Because it buhned (burned) my feet!"

It has been a long-time struggle in the bath with washing Jaya's hair, because of her aversion to getting water in her eyes. Lately, she has been telling me that she wants long hair. So today, as I was washing her hair, to encourage her, I told her that she should be brave and let me wash her hair without getting upset, and then she could have long hair soon. She let me wash her hair with minimal fuss, and was silent for a while. The wheels were churning, because about 10 minutes later...
Jaya: "Mama, I don't want long hair."
Mama: "You don't want long hair?"
Jaya: "No, I want crazy hair, like you."

Beach Outing

We finally made it to the beach! We joined our friends on a trip to the Portofino Resort, about a half hour from where we live. We had so much fun. As you can see, the water is so clear, and the beach is just beautiful. Our friends kept telling us, wait until you see one of our white sand beaches...
Jaya went nonstop all day, and could not get enough of swimming and playing in the sand. Raja just loved it too, splashing and kicking around. He even napped in the ocean, as he fell asleep on me in the mei tai. Jaya is learning how to go under water. She doesn't like water in her eyes, so she was very excited about her new goggles. They are serving double duty at bathtime. Raja, on the other hand, loves to splash and splash, and doesn't seem to care one bit about water in his eyes, salty or not. He has, however, developed an unusual fear of basketballs and volleyballs and the like. (See below).
What a great day. We were all so worn out from swimming, that all four of us fell asleep at 8:30 that night. Jaya keeps talking about "da ocean." We're all excited that this was just the first of many trips to the beach.

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Lyrics, overheard

Lately, Jaya has been singing a LOT, as in, nearly all the time. She woke up before 6:00 am today and played for a couple of hours while I worked. I decided to jot down some of the lyrics our budding songwriter belted out:

"I will mess it up, up, up then I will mess it down, down, down"
"good morning good morning the old lady said"
"whoa me brotha, I got a piece in my hair, look at the mess shadow shadow shadow"
"I going da da do do doo do, we all going poo poo poo poo"
"I already play with my 'mato (tomato), I already play with my sun, I play with my 'mato stick"
"fight, fight, fight"
"where's doggie at? okie okie okie, namie namie namie"
Interjected as the chorus to many songs is, "You put your whole body in, you put you whole body out..." or "wheee, whee, whee" or "la, la, la" The chorus, although the same, is adjusted to fit the rhythm of the particular song.

Not to be outdone, Raja has been saying "DaDa!" We wonder if he will be as loquacious as J-bugs.

A busy week

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We were so busy this week!  Some highlights:

 - Raja says "amma" now.  Not totally sure if he knows he is referring to me, but he says it around me the most.  He loves sitting up so much now that he will really growl if he forgets how to sit himself up and needs some help.  He is also busy trying to crawl, although it is more of a lunge in his case.  He is so strong, we have to be very careful about what we leave around him - he grabs anything in sight, and has an iron grip.  

- Jaya has been telling us at night what she plans to do "tomorrow."  She has also been asking to pray herself, with our help.  She also told me the other day, mama, you look cute. She resists her naps often, too excited by what she might miss while asleep.  Lately, Raja has been sleeping in longer than Jaya (so I have been too!).  So when he wakes up and she hears him, she gets so excited and yells, "Raji's awake! Raji's awake!  We have to go see him!"  She runs into the room and Raja is all grins and giggles at his sister.  It is so cute!

- The Academy students are there to learn how to operate a business.  (Hence, the Academy for Creating Enterprise).  So some of them asked me to teach them how to bake banana-coconut cake and oatmeal cookies, and they have been selling them.  It has been really fun, and neat to see if things I cook would actually sell. They sold out the first day, and have continued to since.  Kind of a neat way to see if there is a  possibility that maybe one day I could actually make money doing something I like to do even for free.  

- Our house feels more and more "normal," as we often have visitors and dinner guests, just like in the States.  

-The weather has been hot and humid but bearable.  Not sure if it's the weather, or we've just become accustomed to it.  In either case, it's nice! 

I (heart) cheese

We had a great weekend.  We were invited to dinner at a friend's home on Friday.  It was so nice - we visited with a bunch of families, and Jaya loved being around other kids.  They are a mixed family like us - she is Filipina, and he is French.  So we ate a delicious dinner - yummy Filipino food of various kinds, and cheese!  Real cheese!  It was SO good.  Brie and Camembert and goat cheese...I was loving it.  Cheese must be imported and so it is quite expensive, so we've decided to forgo buying it for the year.  We've decided not to buy anything imported whenever possible.  The one major exception we've made is butter - Dad will be proud - we buy butter imported from New Zealand.  We don't use it too often, but it's there for when we need our fix.  Yes, I am a margarine snob.  Nothing beats the taste of real butter.  We don't buy milk, because not only is it imported, but it isn't fresh.  It comes in boxes that don't need to be refrigerated until opened.  The taste is..well, what do you think milk that comes out of a box in the pantry would taste like?

Jaya has been having fun crafting.  Here is a pic of her with some flowers we made.

Raja has been sitting up my himself for a while now, and is thrilled with all the fun he can have sitting up.  He loves to make noise by banging his sister's toys around while he sits up.  He startled himself the other day by starting out laying down on his belly and somehow getting himself sitting up.  He has been babbling a lot - maybe he'll be a chatterbox like big sis.  Speaking of which, here are some choice Jaya chatter-moments:

Jaya was playing with her shadow.  "Jump, shadow, jump!" and she would jump.  "Clap hands, shadow!" and she would clap.  After commanding her shadow to do several different things, she said in her bossy (yes, she got it from me) way, "Shadow, do it without me. Do it without me, shadow!"

She informed us the other day, "Monkeys don't live in houses.  They live in trees.  They look for the mommy monkey."

She's also become extraordinarily polite.  She thanks us for everything.  Tonight after her bath she said, "Daddy, thank you for drying my legs."  Yesterday, Raja woke up hungry, and when I ran to go and get him and feed him, she told me, "Mama, thank you for feeding Raji, he's hungry for milkie."  My sweet-natured little girl!

Just a quick little update...

...to say that we are fine.  The typhoon's biggest impact on us was that short power outage we had Friday night.  We were sad to hear about the ferry, which was actually on its way here to Cebu when it capsized.  What a terrible tragedy.

On another note, Raja ate his first food the other day.  We fed him some banana mashed up with a little breastmilk.  He did swallow some, but he spit out most of it and was more enthralled with the spoon, which we pretty much expected.   I'm a big believer in following baby's cues when it comes to eating solids, and he shows some signs of readiness, but not all.  We'll let him "practice" whenever he wants.  In the meantime, considering his heft, I think he is more than okay on the nutrition front.  I don't think Marei has called him Raja in 3 or 4 days now, as his name of choice right now is "fat-boy."  Check out this sweet double chin:

I love his belly rolls and his chunky thighs.  Jaya was such a fat baby too!  Here is a picture of her at 6 months, refusing solids.  Jaya clearly dispels the myth that not feeding your baby solids by 6 months results in poor eating habits.  Jaya had no real interest in solids until about 8 1/2 months, and even then, didn't start eating more than once a day until she was nearly a year old.  And that girl eats a bigger variety of foods than many adults I know.  (Proud mama moment).

Typhoons, popsicle sticks, and nail polish

All day yesterday it rained.  It felt so good to have a reprieve from the heat.  Apparently, we were (and still are) in the midst of a typhoon that brought the storms.  And although the word typhoon sounds scary, the storms really weren't too bad - although I know there have been severe ones here before, these were mild.  After the kids were in bed last night, our power went out for about an hour and a half due to the storms.  Jaya woke up, as did Raja, and it took a while to get them back to sleep, and there were other things to be done - so basically, Marei and I were up very late.  This morning, Marei took the kids downstairs and let me sleep in for a couple of hours.  I never appreciated sleeping in so much until I became a working mom of two!  It felt so good.  I woke up and got to spend some one-on-one time with Jaya while Marei and Raja slept for a couple of hours.  Jaya and I made a butterfly out of popsicle sticks and her handprints cut out of a old magazine.  The girl loves to make things, especially if it involves glue and her "baby scissors."  We walked over to the Academy so she could show it off, and so we could enjoy the after-storm air outside.  The men, who are both sporting freshly bald noggins again, woke up, and we went out to lunch.  We ate the best fried squid we'd ever had, and some delicious grilled fish.  It is wonderful to live in a place where we can get fresh seafood any time we want.  Jaya was loving the squid!  "More-uh, more-uh," she says.  Raja enjoyed the attention he seems to get everywhere we go here - I think he thinks his name is "Baby Boy!"  After lunch, Jaya napped, and my friend Melody who cooks for the staff and students at the Academy came over to learn how to bake a cake.  I taught her how to bake an apple cake, while Raja watched us and played.  It was so much fun, and felt so good to be baking again.  She is going to teach me how to cook some Filipino dishes.  While I visited with Melody, Marei took the kids to the park.  When I got to the park, Marei decided to play his first game in sandals, and says it wasn't too bad, and he could get used to it.  I hope we'll be posting some footage of that soon.  We learned some more Cebuano from the kids at the park.  We went home and played with J-bugs and Raj.  Since my post chronicling Raja's first 6 months, I've realized we call him lots of other crazy nicknames, like sonny bun-bun-buns and sugarplum bum-bum and shinky bubba and little Raj-machine.  Jaya spent most of this time getting her brother to laugh.  It felt so good to just lay around with the kids being silly and carefree.  After our (cold) shower, Jaya and I had a blast painting our nails.   Although she is definitely in the midst of the "I will do it MY-self" phase of toddlerhood, she was actually content to let me paint her nails.  Other things today that she absolutely HAD to do by herself today with no parental assistance:  get her jeans on (backwards), get her shirt on (until an arm got stuck), put glue on her butterfly, get on and off the escalator (so much so that Marei took her up and down more than once), eat her own rice with her own spoon,  and wash her own hair with big-girl shampoo (but mommy still has to rinse).  She reminds us several times a day, "I a big girl."  She also loves to exclaim in the midst of whatever thing we are doing that she is enjoying, "We having so much fuN!"  (emphasis on the N)  After a day of much fuN, we did the kids' bedtime routine, Marei turned the lights out, and went downstairs to bring Dora and Boots upstairs so they could sleep too.  As Jaya laid in bed waiting for Daddy, she said to me(in her I am two-years-old-going-on-five voice), "Mommy, thank you for having fun with me today."  She melts my heart.  Jaya, thank you for the privilege of being your mom who gets to have fun with you.

Here's some videos (and a semi-tour of the house) of the two munchkins:

             

our little Raj is 6 months old...

Our little Raji-paj, I want you to know some things about these first 6 months of your life....

- I was so excited to bring you into this world.  Seeing your beautiful little face was worth every minute of my difficult pregnancy, and I would have done it a thousand times over.

- You got stuck on your way out on your birthday, and had to go through some trauma so we could get you out safely.  You were so brave - the nurses couldn't believe how well your little body handled it.  That is where your middle name, Ohitika, comes from.  It means brave in Lakota.

- Your big sister used to hug and kiss and talk to you even when you were inside my belly.  And from the very first day of your life she has loved and adored you.  She calls you all kinds of things - my Raji, my Raji-paj, my handsome brother, and lil' dude.  We call you Raji-paj too, and Raj, sunnybun, sonny boy, handsome boy, handsome little man, little dude, and, of course, Raja.

- You were an unusually strong little boy from the day you were born.  You tried to hold your head up when you were barely an hour or two old, and you could push up on your belly and turn your head from side to side on your very first day out.  It's almost as though you were never really a newborn - your neck and back were so strong from day one.  You were so healthy and strong, and we had such a good delivery, that we all went home from the hospital the same day you were born so the four of us could all be together at home.

-You were bright eyed and alert from the time you arrived.  You nursed twice in the first hour of your life, showing your voracious appetite early.  You've always known what it means to share, since mama tandem nurses.  You latched on like a pro, and we had no problems with nursing.  You've been able to go a pretty long time without waking to eat since you were about a month old, I think because you've always been such a big boy.  You have your Poppa's big hands.  You regained your birth weight within just 3 days and have been steadily climbing since.  We love your chunky thighs and your belly rolls.  Your height is always off the charts!

-You knew not only my voice, but your big sister's voice too, from that first day, and would turn towards us when you heard us.  

- You had mild jaundice, and they gave us a bilrubin suitcase.  But I made a maternal call that you needed to be held and cuddled and loved more in those first days than you needed the lights, and you got rid of the jaundice very quickly.

- You love to cuddle, and love to be held.  From the very first day, there were plenty of arms to hold you.  Your dad, your mamman, your uncle, and mama were there to hold you.  Your nanny and poppa and amooma and auntie and cousins all came to visit you soon after you were born, and couldn't get enough of you.  Jaya is still always trying to hold you.  You love to sleep right in between your dad and I, and when I shift away in my sleep, you curl your little body closer.   Now that you can get around some, you love to explore, but you still need lots of cuddles.  You are such a snuggler!

- You are such a happy, sweet-natured, smiley little guy.  You love to grin and to make people smile.  Strangers are always stopping to talk to you, because you just start grinning at people.  Your daddy and sister just love to make you laugh.  You love to get your daddy's attention, and once you do, you just smile from ear to ear!

- You are so handsome.  I love to just look at your beautiful little face.  I think you look a lot like your daddy, and most people seem to think so as well.  You do look a little like my baby pictures.

- You've got a passionate nature, so when you don't like something, you let us know.  You get cranky when you need something, and get over it as soon as you get whatever it is you need, be it milk, a fresh diaper, sleep, or just a smile or cuddle.  Sometimes, you get overtired or you teethe.  You just got your first cold.  And then, you are a mamma's boy.  Unlike your sister as a baby, sometimes you get really upset.  And when you do, nobody can console you as quickly as I can.  

-You are loud!  You talk, cry, fart, burp, and even nurse loud.

- Your sister always wants to hug and kiss and wrestle and rough you up.  You handle it so well!  Unless you are sleepy, you usually just grin at her.

- Your legs are so strong.  You started bearing your weight on your legs at just a couple of weeks old.  You have always loved to kick a lot (you got lots of practice in my belly), and it is impossible to give you a bath without water ending up all over the place.  You often show your happiness by laughing and kicking really hard with your legs.

- You love to sleep, and like your daddy, you can sleep anywhere.  Your favorite places to sleep now are our bed and on me in a carrier.  When you were smaller, you often slept in our arms, and your Mamman was always willing to hold you as you slept.

- The day of your baby blessing was such a beautiful day.  The spirit was so strong in our home as your Poppa and Daddy and our friends took you in their arms.  You have brought so much joy into our lives.  You are such a dear and special little spirit.  Words can't explain what you mean to Daddy and I, and to your Jaya Chachy, and to the rest of your family.  You are such a blessed and loved little boy.  We love you so much!

Happy Father's Day!

I remember when Marei and I were dating.  We were watching Maioha and Jacqueline (nieces on Marei's side), and Jacqueline asked, "Uncle Marei, can you paint my nails?"  And I remember watching, as he awkwardly went about painting her nails, so gingerly, carefully.  Jacqueline was grinning ear-to-ear.  He did it with so much care, with no hesitation.  I snapped a picture of that moment, and have looked at it often over the years. That was one of many significant moments when I got an inkling of the kind of dad Marei was going to be.  Over the course of the last 2 1/2 years of being parents together, Marei has met and exceeded my every expectation of the kind of father he'd be to our children.  I will try, albeit inadequately, to explain to my husband why he is such an incredible dad.

- You see parenting as our job - not as my job that you help me with.

- From the day Jaya was born, you have dived right into fatherhood with the passion and zeal you show for everything you love.

- You are so humble - I will never forget the times I have seen you kneel down to be on Jaya's level and ask for her forgiveness for losing your patience, as we all do.

- You are so gentle and loving and kind.

- You make them laugh every day.

- You don't ever leave them to cry.

- You kiss and cuddle and hug them constantly.

- You do whatever it takes to comfort them - sleeping in a chair all night so Jaya can sleep with a stuffy nose, or pacing the floor with Raja so he can deal with teething.

-  You honor your priesthood - you have given them, and me, blessings in times of need.

- You helped me to bring them into this world - you make my labor and delivery experiences so much better than they would have been without you.

- You cared for me so well after each birth.

- You never get grossed out by kid stuff, or labor/delivery stuff.

- Even though you and I may disagree about little things, with parenting, we always present a united front.

- You are so understanding of my motherly worry/concern/ paranoia, even if you don't worry as much.

- You're so understanding of it that you have driven me to the gym and sat in a parking lot with a nursing baby so I could work out in peace, multiple times.

-You've been in charge of bedtime and bath for Jaya for most of her life.

- You change a lot more diapers than I do when we are both with the kids.

- You are so encouraging of me taking time for myself.  And you make it so I actually can.

- Jaya loves you so much - the day that she first woke in the middle of the night and asked for you made me feel so lucky that my daughter has such a special relationship with her dad.

- You praise and encourage them.

- You always think of their likes and dislikes, and look for ways to make them happier and more comfortable.  You do the same for me.

- You have often expressed how important it is to you to always be involved in their lives, to always be there for them to talk to and rely on.

- You are the fun, cool dad - the one who their friends will love to go see and hang out with.  The one who is willing to play and be silly and fun.

- You support child led weaning and extended breastfeeding, and even advocate them.

- You will read the same book and play the same games over and over again. 

- I love to see the joy on your face when you open your eyes in the morning and the first thing you see is our babies.

- You read to them.

- You sing to them.

- You're good at cleaning and laundry and all the things that multiply after having kids.

- You have made so many sacrifices for them to have what they should - from working long hours and commuting long distances, to giving up your freedoms, to staying home with them even though that is harder than working, and more.

- You teach them new things every day.

- You teach them by example.  They can see in you charity, love, kindness, integrity, humility, a love of the gospel....I hope that they learn and grow to be just like you.  I love you.

Happy Father's day to all you dads out there!