International Festival

On March 17th the school hosted a fantastic international festival. There were booths set up around the sports field representing more than 25 countries.  The booths featured food, clothing, and crafts from the featured country. The kids also could take passports around and get them stamped for answering questions about the geography or history.  They also had games, crafts and other activities for the kids.  There was a stage that had dance and music performances as well.  I'm glad I came hungry because I was able to sample food from around the globe:  I had a delicious plate of Indian food, dim sum, a French baguettes with cheese, treats from various parts of Africa, pizza for the kids, and finally a cup of Turkish coffee and some baklava.  I left stuffed.

Here are just a few of the many photos I took that day.

And finally on the walk home we experienced some of the local culture. My youngest got to ride on a vegetable vendor's donkey.

Cheers,
Jenn

Mother's Day

Yesterday was Egyptian Mother's Day. My older daughter surprised me with two lovely cards: One was a very glittery card that promised massages and house cleaning services and the other was written in Arabic (she wrote it herself in Arabic class). My husband bought me a lovely alabaster candle holder.  Then the whole family went out for Korean food at my favorite restaurant. It was a lovely evening.

This best part is that this year I get to celebrate my awesomeness as a mother twice!  Actually if I play my cards right and travel around a bit I could celebrate Mother's Day up to 31 days of the year. I guess my next stop is Slovenia which celebrates Mother's Day on March 25th.  You can find a calendar of Mother's Day celebrations on Wikipedia if like me you want to milk this holiday for all it is worth.

Cheers,
Jenn

52 weeks of Happiness: Thanksgiving Weekend and an Update.

For Thanksgiving this year we had a lovely time. We had family and friends over for a potluck Thanksgiving. We had tons of food and a lot of fun together.

After Thanksgiving we were invited on a camp out with some good friends.  We had a great time walking through the woods, making s'mores, and spending time together at Buescher State Park.

After long weeks of going back and forth about the big move we are really getting things moving. We were worried last week when unrest began in Cairo... but now that the elections are moving along as planned we have begun moving forward again. I will probably not be posting much during this busy time... but I'm sure once we are settled in I will have tons of photos and news to share.

Cheers,
Jenn

Happy Birthday to a Wonderful Man!

Happy 40th birthday to a fabulous husband... a wonderful father and a fine man!

Makeover Monday: A Banquet Partaken in Anxiety

A crust eaten in peace is better than a banquet partaken in anxiety.
Aesop

I suffer from anxiety. I'm a very anxious person, but for the most part I keep it under control. When I was a teen I had problems with tachycardia... basically my heart would go into overdrive and I would start to panic. This rarely happens anymore... my mind and my body have matured and I can prevent a full on panic attack. When I was in college the doctors told me that I'd probably outgrow it... I'm still not sure if they meant that I'd outgrow my flair for the dramatic... or if there was some physical component to my problem that would go away when I reached a certain age.

But the anxiety... the anxiety... remains, and it rears it's ugly head as often as I let it. When do I get anxious? After a stressful day maybe? Perhaps when I'm stuck in traffic? Maybe I get anxious when disaster strikes and I have to go into overdrive to solve some problem? Actually... no. I may have a little flutter of stress when these things happen... but my worst anxiety happens when I'm having fun. Yep that's right I get anxious during the party times: summer vacations, birthdays, holidays, etc. You know... the times when I'm suppose to be having a good time.

This weekend was the end of my husband's summer vacation and also the celebration of his 40th birthday. We planned a big party, grilled some meat, had chips and dip on hand, invited over our best buddies and drank a few cold ones. It was loads of fun. Throughout the planning of the party and the party itself I had a wonderful time. The next day, however, I was a mess of stress. Did I have a hangover? No not really. Sure I had a few beers... OK more than a few... but I didn't wake up to a morning of hugging porcelain. I didn't even have a headache. What I did have was anxiety. I start picking apart every experience... I obsess about tiny details. It is no fun at all.

So what do I do about it? How do I vanquish anxiety from my life? Do I just have to quit having fun? Absolutely not. I think I might have stumbled on the answer when I was looking for ideas for my Makeover Monday post. It is something that I've known all along: Diet, exercise, rest, and staying hydrated are the keys to feeling good. When you're off on a vacation or having a fun time at a party, however, the fruits and vegetables tend to get pushed aside while the empty margarita glasses pile up in front of you. That is part of the reason why the early college years were so anxiety filled and why now I only stress out when I'm having a blast. Can I still drink beer and eat nachos? Certainly... but I should follow those nachos and beer with a glass of water and a piece of fruit... or maybe some whole grain bread and hummus and a cold glass of juice.

You are what you eat... and when you put crap into your body you are going to feel like crap...that is unless you follow it with a little TLC. So here it the plan... the plan to makeover my vacation depleted body and soul. First of all I'm going to take a break from the alcohol and drink lots of water. Second I'm going to start doing yoga again. And finally, I also plan to get more rest and start a diet rich in foods that are suppose to help with anxiety. Check out this article on Livestrong for ideas.After reading the Livestrong article yesterday I made myself an Elvis Special, peanut butter and banana on whole grain bread (I skipped the whole frying it in butter part), and I felt loads better. Those complex carbohydrates and foods loaded with tryptophan sure hit the spot! And yes that is a photo of Elvis looking rather anxious next to his famous recipe for a PB and banana sandwich (It is from the cookbook Fit for a King).

Foods and Beverages to avoid:
caffeine
alcohol
sugar and processed foods
saturated fats
simple carbohydrates
fried foods

Foods and Beverages to eat:
fruit
vegetables
nuts
soy
whole grains
lean proteins
LOTS of water

Thanks for stopping by... I'd love to read your comments...

Link up and let me read about your makeover ideas or tips... and be sure to stop by the Zany Housewife.

Happiness is a Birthday Bash

I had a wonderful birthday... Roses, chocolate, and handmade cards from the kids... a night out with my husband... and a wonderful family dinner at a fun restaurant the next day. It was two days of non-stop fun.

I have always wanted to go to a Teppan restaurant so this year I decided to give it a try for my 41st birthday. We had a wonderful time. The food was good, but what is really terrific about it is the show. Who knew that cooking could look so much like a circus? The whole family had a great time and I can't believe I waited this long to experience something so fun.

The cook really put on a show.

An onion volcano!

Here is my daughter trying to catch a shrimp in her mouth. My husband caught his on the first try... the rest of us only wished we had such mad skills.

Thanks to my friends and family for making this fun night possible.

Cheers,
Jenn

52 Weeks of Happiness:Mother's Day, Guest Post, and Blogging Award

Mother's day weekend was terrific and certainly a very happy time for me. We spent Saturday geocaching (treasure hunting) in a gem of a spot in Central Texas called the Benini Studio and Sculpture Ranch. It is a huge outdoor area with tons of stuff to see. Here is just a sample of what you can find there.

After a hard day of hiking and hunting it was nice to relax at a pizzeria and brewery in Wimberly... The kid ate pieces of pizza that were bigger than there heads and their parents enjoyed equally big beers.







A great time was had by all!

Jenn

I am doing my first guest post today. You can find it at Simply Kate. Swing by to read about my adventures in hair care and make sure to post a comment and wish her a happy birthday!

I also wanted to thank Pinay (In Texas) Cooking Corner for awarding me the versitile blogger award.
I would like to pass this one on to a few of my fellow bloggers... I will be posting my picks on tomorrows post.