Independent

Nenes something I have tried since a very early age is independence.  I am a believer that you guys need to entertain each other and as you grow up new things are tried and more responsibilities are giving.

Nenes bed time around the house is between 6:30 and 7:00 and  yes I know many of my mami readers would think I am insane but I find that it does wonders.

So after you guys go in your room even if you don't go to sleep you read you sing and you tell each other stories.  You are only allow to leave your room to go the pipi room, and in the morning mami go and gets you however the last couple of days I wake up to some dress up princess in front of my face.  It has work because I find it adorable but nenas it would not last much longer.

 Talking about independence Samia can make cupcakes all by herself, you do everything the only thing I have to do is put them in the oven and remove them.  I was amaze the other day when you told me you wanted to make cupcakes and then you just took the lead and you did it. 

 And Amir while the girls cook you make a mess and for some reason Amir I have come to realize that boys just love to get dirty I change your onesie like 3 times a day you just don't mind dirt.

Cooking and many other things!

So tomorrow is my big day...nenas you will have figure it out by the time you read this that mami celebrates tomorrow at midnight that is when the gifts would be giving food would be serve and we all would celebrate Jesus being born.  Christmas day is just a day to stay home and play with the toys eat left overs and enjoy each others oh and get to wear our matching pants....nenas I think this would be the last year we would be wearing pink, I don't think the baby and  baba would agree to pink in years to come Inshallah!

I being doing many many things and the only way all of these stuff gets done around my house is with lots of caffeine I am addicted to it what can I say and I have never follow that rule of No caffeine I don't believe in that stuff or else my two nenas would have being born bouncing off the walls.  I love my Cuban espresso coffee but now I have a new addiction Vietnamese coffee I think some time earlier in the year my friend Kim gave me the coffee and I had never done it but last week my friend Bonnie made some for me and what can I say I am addicted to it around 3 PM instead of my mid afternoon Cuban espresso or cortadito  now I do Vietnamese coffee. Here is the place I learn how to do it is so soooo worth it and my Louisiana people the community coffee is great with it.

So as the usual we eat tamales ~ natilla for Christmas eve.   This year I venture to make empanadas so so worth it I did them I think yesterday and since they can be frozen we have being taking them out and frying and eating them.  This are some of the stuff we would eat the next couple of days.

For the empanadas I make a sofrito with tomatoes, onions, potato, garlic, meat and just cook it.
On the side make the maza and then prepare them.

Today I finish making the tamales and la natilla.

Once again I being multi tasking here are a few things for the baby that I have being working on...I did two blankets simple but I love them so baba can wrap him up...Nenas a little secret mami has never being able to wrap you guys for some reason baba and Abuela are the experts they always have done it.  Baba loves doing it and he takes so much pride doing it we call it the taquito wrap some others call it swaddle. 

I also made a pair of pants for the baby from Samia's pants usually Guido and Zetu send us pants and shirts from Egytp and they send so much that I always have left over so now I make the baby pants from Samia's I did play with it here and there to make them funky...now I have to start working on the onesis I am just waiting for them to arrive from Egypt so I can start playing with them.

And here is mami at 29 weeks pregnant for some reason baba took the picture and cut off my face..not that I mind I am not to fond of pictures.

Funny, silly people

Lately I have being in a funky mood my hormones are out of wack and I am a cry baby literally if you look at me the wrong way I start crying poor baba he comes from work to find a cry baby. I know is the time of the year the pregnancy being alone so much time, but oh well this is life and what can not kill us only makes us stronger. Nenas remember is okey to feel this way we are humans after all and not at all times we are happy and dandy. After having a couple of crying episodes, we decided is good to have Abuela home with us for some days...I can not wait to have her home for 5 days Yippi yippy.



Well it looks like our next stop is New Orleans and very soon....I am glad I miss being in a city...I confirmed it I am not a small town gal this thing of driving 30 minutes in a green pasture to get somewhere is just not my style I need traffic, honks, cement people rudeness I confirmed it.


Okey I am 6.5 months now I have started to buy some stuff for the baby and also sewing I made him a pair of jeans today...I can not believe I will be having a little boy in my arms soon...I can feel him kicking and kicking more often I think he is going to love noise and action between wild Gamila and sweet Samia. Oh nene I think we came out with the name it starts by Z and ends in A like we wanted, I don't really think we are going to change it but for now I am keeping it a secret incase I change my mind I don't want you to know later on in life you had so many choices and mami and baba choose the name you did not like or viceversa.



Gamila now we would talk about you I have to tell you the chancla has being visiting your nalgas very often lately is sad to say buy is the only way I can keep up with your tantrums...Gosh I never knew those existed in such a way, you love to make them anywhere and everywhere is all new to me, but I know you will outgrow them como que me dejo de llamar Anamaria pero esa vaina se te va a quitar aunque se a punto de rejo. Gamila another thing that craks me up about you is that you will ask for something and when you don't get it you start changing your voice making it more hoarse is so funny to watch but I know is not right and it has to be corrected.

Today we also made bread pudding well actually Samia made it, is the first time I ever make and I love it so easy to make and baba loves it since we don't put that much sugar is his favorite dessert he is not too much of a sweet person...Wow I wish I was like him the sweeter it is the better for me...Milo is like me and Samia like baba now we would just wait a few years to see what baby likes.

We have decorated the house for Christmas I am not sure if I am doing my village this year kind of lazy we still have to hang some stuff and since they are not hang look what Samia and Gamila use them for.

Here are a few videos they are so funny is usually what we do after dinner just goof off and be funny people.

Bias Tape, Colors, Cooking fun!

So I should start by saying this was the first weekend we spend in our new home alone just the 4 us. I had to be sincere it was fun just being us. Nenas finally baba was off and he made sure he was ours the whole day.

I finally did a dress for Gamila but it was a complete disaster I was following a pattern and she is very good but for some reason this pattern did not work. Half way thru the dress I realize the opening for the head was a bit small, but trusting her patterns I figure it must be my imagination. So here I am with a beautiful dress but I can not get her head thru, I was disappointed and very upset at not trusting my sewing instinct. I was not going to let the dress go to waist so I ended up just making straps out of the sleeves. Milo sorry nena the dress is a big bit for you, however you did not want to take it off.

In our house coffee is a necessity there is not a day we don't drink our cup of cuban coffee or expresso like some like to call it. Nenas you love coffee but since is so strong we water it down with water and you guys think is the coolest thing in earth.

Samia you are starting to love to sew, every time I am doing something you always help me holding the fabric. I also try to make you part of every activity I am doing, I find this helps me getting more things accomplish is easier to incorporate you than to try to entertaining you with something else. Here you are playing with my patterns and some fabric scraps.

Daddy was in charge of the kitchen this whole weekend and like always he loves to make things with Samia his helper or like she told us today"I know how to cook and bake"

Baby last night I finish making you a little kimono I being working on. Since we don't know yet if is a boy or girl I made it yellow with some bias tape I made out of scraps. I have to admit it I love it so did baba and Samia we were all so excited when we hang it in your closet.


This is how we looked Sunday night!!!

What a weekend!

It was a great weekend Allhomdulliallah! Baba was off and we were up and about early Saturday morning. Our first stop was in "Opa land" we went to a Greek festival, we had so much fun. We walked around looked at few things they were selling, but the truth we were there for the FOOD yes we love Greek food well WHO? does not like it.


We had a nice plate of roasted lamb right there in the spot this kind of food reminds me of New York when baba and I started dating. Gamila you loved the meat, Samia you were a little hesitant because you did not want to get your little hands dirty.

After baba mention of taking a drive to see the house, is not that far from New Orleans anyway so we drove that way and I know baba likes crab and there are some good places to buy crab so I figure I will tell him to buy some and we could come home and cook them. Nenas the house is finish yes finish almost, is so pretty we are so excited.

Nenas I take this opportunity to talk about being modest. Always remember to be humble, don't brag about what you have or what you got. Abuelo and Abuela always teach me that being pretentious is not a nice trait, it just shows how empty and how much material things mean to you. Samia and Gamila always remember that simple things makes us very happy.


Finally we got home to cook the crabs and like always we call Zetu she is the expert in seafood and in the conversation crazy Guido tell us how to differentiate the males from the females so baba and mami just made the cooking a biology lesson along with a crab race. Samia you did not want to get close to the crabs Gamila you on the other hand wanted to dive with them.



While we were driving back home I am not sure how the conversation started the only thing I know was that baba promise Samia to go and pet the goats???? Okey I look at baba and ask him where are you going to find goats to pet? and his answer was THE ZOO...so nenas as you can imagine Sunday at 9:30 AM we were at the Zoo.

Samia you took control of the map and the whole time said to the right to the left, I just love to see how much you have grown. Is in places like this I can see your changes because I always can compare it to the last time we were there. Mami just wanted to go straight to the petting zoo, but I then felt bad so we took the scenic long hot route. The zoo here in Baton Rouge is very hummmm...not many animals to see, although they do have a nice petting zoo and playground and I have to be nice the giraffes are always out and about.




After petting the goats we headed to the playground..this another place I can see how different you two are.

Samia you the cautious here you are crossing this little bridge going turtle speed and holding on to the bars. Milo here you are crossing the same bridge running and not holding on to the bars.


Samia today was the first time you went down cover slide not sure how to call those, well I should also tell you Samia the only way you will go on it was because I was going up the opposite side, thank God they are wide if not it would not had being a pretty picture.


Samia you have become my little princess so I made you this gown and you asked me to make one for Gamila after the two of you had them on you told me I needed my princess dress. So you went and go it for me, and requested the princess to take pictures and the best part you wanted mami to put her mono like you. Here we are:

Food, sleep, paint just Elashry Casa

Today we stayed indoors after being out yesterday chasing ladybugs and tomorrow hopefully picking some strawberries it was only fair for mami to enjoy her air conditioner. Baba had to work that is not fun but what can we do that is the retail world work on weekends.

Today I was a bit creative for breakfast hoping Gamila eats she is a little harder to feed than my Samia so mami created a girl in a flower garden:

To my delight they eat it all Allhomdulliallah!
Samia had some fun painting at home we did some potato stamps and then she painted with her hands.

Oh I also had to show this a couple of weeks back baba got me this spice holder not sure how to call it. Is made out of wood and I know it is from India and I just love it I put all of my cooking spices the ones that I use more often like Salt, pepper, Cumin and my Bokharat or also called Seven spice mixture

Here I go with my disorganize out of order thoughts just trying to catch up, So Milo as you already know we are always complaining about your hair..mami things it is tooo messy baba is always brushing it and brushing it to make it straight just like Zetu does when she is with you. Baba bath them last night and took a chance to brush your hair and this is what I found


Baba is worry about the hair and not the runny nose it figures his obsession with straight hair.

The other day Samia helped me cook this delicious pasta I took from the Martha Stewart site..I love the recipe fast, healthy and I could used all of my herbs from the garden, Samia enjoyed helping me cut them and washing them.



Samia you have become a big helper for mami, well that is when you want to cooperate, but something I have started to notice is that you give it your all and that is something that I love, nenas always remember when we do things they have to be 100% even if the outcome is not perfect we know we gave our best. This way you would not feel any kind of remorse that it did not come out right because you did not give it your all..remember nenas life is a trial an error journey.

Nenas baba has being working alot since he is having to commute almost 2 hours each way, but even like this he finds time to spend with you guys even if that means that he falls asleep while he read you guys a book. Nenas always remember baba has worked very hard so mami can stay home with you two. Gracias pollito!!!

And to finalize nenas there is a world health scared there is a type of influenza called Swine flu, apparently it all started in Mexico but now it has travel up the USA and as of today there were some cases already reported in Canada. Inshallah it gets under control soon..is sad but usually when things like this happen in third world countries the death toll rises rapidly. Hopefully it does not get out of hand, so you guys would not have to read about it one day in your school books as one of the epidemic of the 21st century

Cooking & Bethlehem

So baba is being working so much that I have not being cooking much what can I say I just don't like cooking for only the girls and me. So this morning I woke up in full gear of cooking and more cooking I made arepas,

I used precook corn meal mix it with some salt and then take hot water and start pouring little by little until the dough is not too watery but soft to play with.

This is the shape they should be they can even be made thin or thick I like them medium, then we put them in the parrilla. (This parrillas I have I got from Colombia usually you need two have 2 parrillas going so is enough for everybody, I usually put them in the oven once they are done while I make the rest.

After they are done, I get a little of butter and spread them over them and then to the oven till is time to eat.

In Colombia we eat them with hot chocolate but I love my cuban coffee so we drink coffee oh and it has to be boiled milk there is nothing better than boil milk, Abuela makes fun of me why I don't use the microwave to warm up the milk, I just don't like it I just love la nata from the milk.

Before I get them out of the oven I throw some white cheese it can be any kind of cheese preferably spanish cheese but this time I put some shredded mozzarella.

While I was doing the arepas this was my little helper washing the dishes and Gamila dancing

Then I tried for the girls to help me Samia making them and Gamila eating the dough


Nenas when I was a little girl my grandmother Aleida that lived in a small town of Colombia Chinchina would make the best arepas of the world well I guess she had many years of experience and specially in the quantities she used to make them. Abuelo has 14 siblings yes 14 siblings let me just name them to see if I still remember them (good memory exercise): Gonzalo, Alberto, Octavio, Geraldo (que en paz descanse), Arturo (Que en paz descanse), Ligia, Aleida, Gabriela, La popochita, Javier, Hernando, Samuel, Margarita I think I got them all. From all of these aunts and uncles only 3 did not have children since Javier and Hernando are priest and Margarita a nun, the rest have at least 2 children with some of them having 3 and some up to 4 so you can imagine many many arepas...and the best part we lived far away from Abuela Aleida and when I used to come and visit her she remember how I like my arepa.

Since I was in the kitchen after having breakfast I decided to cook dinner so Baba could take to his second home TARGET land, so I made Lentils and on the side Beef Stew Elashry Way.

Lentils


I take Green Onions a tomato and chopped it.

I put some olive oil in the pot in medium-high and once is hot I throw the onions and tomato with some garlic.

I add my spanish sazon Goya, and some Egyptian cumin.

Wait for it to start sizzling then I add some pieces of meat to get some good flavor and start adding water little by little.

Then I add some potatoes and then big pieces of Celery (Abu always puts celery in her food so it can always be moist since Celery has some much water, I make them big so then I can take them out)

After everything is in I put more water and let it cook in low-medium for a couple of hours.

For the beef stew I get the meat and I hammer it with my colombian Hammer I don't like to used meat tenderizers the meat taste so good after I hammer it and it makes it so soft as well

I put some olive oil in the skillet and cut the onions let it grill for a little bit and then I put my masala seasoning..

After I put the meat cut some tomato on top and also some pieces of celery.

I cover it with foil paper and then a kitchen towel on top (also Abu's ways and I just follow)


Bring the fire down and let it cook.

After lunch baba went to work and I headed out with my nenas. We went and got some fabric As of these Christmas the whole family would wear that same pajamas pants on Christmas day...and I convince Baba to wear pink since Samia pick the fabric out and it was pink for princess, well Baba has no choice majority wins. Afterwards mami went and did some shopping and then I bought the girls their presents for EID tomorrow is an Islamic holiday and we will be celebrating it I just got them some little things for the goody bags.

Then we headed to Bethlehem, I had seeing on a magazine that this church by Highland Road was having like a reenactment of the Christmas Eve the night Jesus was born in Nazareth, it was lovely they had a little Christmas Village, Samia did some crafts and then we follow the lights. The place was very nice set up we first encounter Virgin Mary talking to Angel Gabriel, then we encounter Joseph in his workshop, then we encounter some Pastores (not sure in spanish) with some angels telling us that Jesus was going to be born that night and then finally Virgin Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. It was very nice done they even had a real donkey, beautiful singing etc. Samia just follow the lights..Oh I should mention while all of these was going on my daughter kept on asking me Mami where is Santa???? I wanted to die so then I had to tell her about El Nino Dios like we say in spanish. Remembering in the car on my way back I was not introduce to Santa till the first Christmas in the USA, in Colombia when I used to live there I only heard about el Nino Dios.