Friday Night - Girls Night Out

Friday nights are pretty special around these parts. It means dinner out with my two favorite girls. Rara and Nana are always apt to remind me of our Friday night tradition usually soon after waking up and confirming which day of the week it is. Chiloso is the destination spot and it is rare for us not to see someone we know. One week it was one of my fellow teachers wearing a baseball cap and dressed down. Smart girl knows how to travel incognito. She didn't get to enjoy anonymity though with my two darlings screaming her name out across the restaurant. The Friday school let out for winter break we saw a friend's husband grabbing a snack for himself. In retrospect I didn't see him carrying out anything for the wife or kids. *shrug* We all have our guilty pleasure. Mine is dinner out with my girls on Friday night. It's a way for us to unwind after a long week of school. There is usually a line you have to wait in to order your food and the girls are quite the source of entertainment. They usually are singing some new song, performing some new dance, or just down right irritating the snot out of the other one. I have to admit it is irritating for me at times to remind them we are in a restaurant and not some outdoor free-for-all. I used to think that people were sort of looking at me with raised eyebrows (sometimes the headscarf attracts some attention) but I am pretty sure now it's my performing children. After moving through the line and getting our order personalized to each of our tastes, I have to juggle payment and trays. I feel an immense satisfaction that the three of us can eat for under $15.00 (that includes drinks). I know it seems just crazy since drinks will sometimes set you back over $2.00 a piece these days. Once we have filled our drinks and acquired all the needed utensils and napkins, we settle down in a cozy corner and enjoy an evening of good food, company, and conversation. Who couldn't love the smiles that Friday nights at Chiloso creates!

South Padre 1 - Family Pictures

So Urip and I decided we would spend the morning of our second day trying to get some good family pictures. Two hours later after much crying, fit throwing, laughter, tickling, funny faces (mostly from me) we had a look at all our hard work.

Urip couldn't quite figure out how to get the remote to work.

Wait maybe the remote wasn't working as well as we thought.

Oh no the remote again. LOVE Noora's expression in this picture.

Uhmmm still NO!

Funny thing is the first picture we took was one of my favorites!

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NOORA!

HANA!

I loved taking these pics with the girls!

I really love how this picture is not centered!

Precious!

AWWW My Man! LUV HIM!

Noora took her turn at the camera and took this amazingly cheesy shot!!!! I think it's Fabulous!

......to be continued.

Despair

"Because I remember, I despair. Because I remember, I have the duty to reject despair. I remember the killers, I remember the victims, even as I struggle to invent a thousand and one reasons to hope. "
-Elie Wiesel, in "Hope, Despair, and Memory" his Nobel lecture.

"What we call despair is often only the painful eagerness of unfed hope."
-George Eliot

I contemplated the word despair today because someone my husband knew passed very suddenly. The circumstances surrounding the passing are unknown and the family is not wanting to share at this time the reasons. I however, feel that despair might have been the cause. If this is the case there are so many people who have come into contact through the years that have danced a dangerous dance with despair. I myself at times have felt its chilling company. It was never a guest that I allowed to stay for long, but I know that many do not know how to rid themselves of this oppressive visitor. Hope is such an amazing thing that keeps us fighting in this life even when things seem like they cannot be any more daunting. It is the thing that makes us believe that there is something greater. I think of Elie Wiesel who endured the torment of hell on earth and still clung to hope. Not only did he cling to hope he did so every time he was awakened at night by the nightmares of the reality he endured. I think of so many people today who live beyond torments that I can even fathom. They hold on to the embers of hope and pray that they spark an illumination that leads them out of the darkness that binds their life into the beauty of what life can possess. George Elliot equates despair as the "painful eagerness of unfed hope". That makes me believe that despair is temporal and can be alleviated. When I read the quote I had a vision of a hungry person being satiated by food. If we can feed the hungry with food, surely we can nourish those who have fallen into despair with hope. Just a few things to think about.

Sock Animal Reunion!

So I am in awe of our family sock animal. He happens to be a bear and delights Rara with his presence on a daily basis. He has been through a lot and after a morning of visiting with other of his kind he felt something was missing. After a long chat over a warm cup of coffee, & an amazing rendition of "If I Only Had a Heart" I felt it was important to doctor Bear up with a new felt heart. I was worried that Rara would be a little apprehensive. However, she handed over Bear and reminded me to be gentle. After removing the remnants of his old heart, it took me no time at all to sew on his new one. I did have Rara warm it up and give it special kisses. After the procedure was finished, my little one seemed content with the changes. Now I realize that Bear has probably seen better days. He is old and a bit rough around the edges. This means little to Rara. She is in love with Bear because he a constant in her life. He travels with us everywhere. He is her companion. I can only imagine the secrets she has shared Bear and how many tears he has helped to dry.