Ethiopian Shiro

If you've eaten Ethiopian food, you've probably had Shiro since it is a staple in their diet. It comes from dried, ground chickpeas. Here is the lovely cook who made our yummy shiro (vegetarian paste) and doro watt (chicken stew) for dinner tonight. I kept asking her Momma for the Shiro recipe and she told me every time, "there is none- you just have to watch her do it". Well, today I did just that and attempted to write everything down. It was truly delicious! This is my interpretation of the recipe:



boil 3 1/2 cups water
then add 1/2 cup oil and whisk together
add 3/4 cup of Shiro powder, whisk frequently and continue boiling for about 5 minutes
Add 2 teaspoons salt, 1 Teaspoon of minced garlic and 1 Tablespoon of butter.

Continue stirring over medium heat for another 5 minutes til the Shiro thickens to a thinish paste. Spoon over some injera and enjoy. Konjo!

Injera for dummies :)

This post is for my friends who are bringing home children from Ethiopia.



I was determined to learn to make injera for Spiderman in case he needed some comfort food during his adjustment to America. It sounded very intimidating when I read recipes for injera and it almost scared me off. Anyway, this is my recipe for Faux injera and to tell you the truth, both Hope & Spiderman claim they prefer it this way. It is wheat instead of teff and it is NOT fermented.

Keep in mind that I am NOT a cook, it is not my hobby or my preference to make things in the kitchen. (some of you know this) I say that so you know this really is easy or I wouldn't have made it more than once. If you want to do this, you really CAN do it. Here we go:

You will need a large skillet (preferably non-stick) and some sort of lid (mine doesn't even fit on my pan). I use a ladle but Ethiopians actually pour the batter from a pitcher.

2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
4 cups of water, maybe more

Whisk the batter until smooth and very runny. In fact, it seems like it is too runny but the key is to keep the injera very thin, more like a crepe. See this photo.
















Heat your skillet with medium-high heat and gently coat the pan with cooking spray before each piece of injera. Pour the injera into a spiral, about 1/2 cup. This is where I thought it was tricky at first. I can't pour it spiral enough to keep it thin and joined together SO... I use the back of my ladle to spread the injera as thin as I can. Put the lid on the pan and let it cook for about 45 seconds. You can peek underneath but you don't want the bottom cooked crispy, the top is really just steamed.
















Look at this photo and you can see it isn't all cooked on top. When it is done, it will not look wet like this. Your finished injera will feel spongy and that is just right. Stack them on a plate and cover with a towel if you'll be eating soon. I usually make them early in the day and you can microwave them just fine. Wa la!

Now if you've never eaten injera before, this will give you the right texture and idea for eating but it isn't at all sour like the fermented teff version (Nat & Jen, that means it won't evoke those "memories" for you). It's really pretty good. When Spiderman came home, he liked to eat injera with his scrambled eggs (he loved eggs!). I thought it was a small gesture to show him we wanted him to feel at home.

Happy 2008

OK, one more try at shameless advertsing and fundraising, all wrapped up into one. For those of you who haven't checked it out yet, our adoption agency puts out a calendar every year of the adorable children they have helped join their forever families. The proceeds go toward their orphan care around the world (they do not just complete adoptions). Anyway, as you can see by their website photo, Spiderman made it in the big shot for May. What you can't see is that Boo made it in as the big shot for June. I don't know how we pulled that off but since we did, I feel the need to get the word out (or brag, whatever I should call it). You can order your very own calendar from allgodschildren.org and then you can see these sweet faces AND remember to pray for the approx. 143 million orphans around the world. Happy new Year!

Oh what joy...

new Christmas jammies
The Lego chaos began
Spiderman with his very favorite, RC car
Christmas is exhausting! Who needs a nap?

The kids loved this fun gift from Aunt Susie and it filled up our afternoon yesterday.
excitement!

The Lego store moves into our home - or so it seems

The precious baby Becky gets a new outfit
she's got personality Goose was inspired to give Santa a little advice

As you can imagine, it was an exciting holiday at our house. For the last 3 years, we have eaten a traditional Guatemalan tamale dinner to celebrate Christmas Eve. NO MORE. None of the kids were thrilled to eat them and our Guatemalan "princess" was sobbing in her room because she didn't even want to try them (yes, we required it). That is not worth it! Well, after dinner we had our traditional birthday party for baby Jesus followed by reading the Christmas story. Jaybird did the honors and read it to us for his first time, precious! Then, they get to open Aunt Susie's gifts - new jammies to wear for Christmas (I love family traditions). You could feel the anticipation at bedtime and Goose penned her last minute message to Santa.

Despite going over the "rules" of Christmas morning last night, Spiderman still ran into my room at 6:23 AM today and asked, "Mom, can I go get my stocking?" Please, go, just let us sleep!! By the time all were up and fed (yes Mom, we still do the poptarts in our stockings for early feeders, just like when we were kids), they were ready to dig in to the tree. As you can see by the plethera of photos above, they were very pleased with their gifts. Thanks family, for all your gifts which added to the fun. Spiderman said (more than once), "there is no Christmas in Ethiopia". What a bittersweet comment to think he's never had a Christmas gift before but also to think, we overdo so much in America. While they do celebrate the holiday, it certainly isn't anything like what we do here in the States. May we truly be thankful for the real reason of the season and not get caught up in what we did or did not receive this Christmas. I'm reminded that there are still so many children in the world who long for a meal, a hug, or a family. We are all so very blessed.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

It's so much work taking a photo of the four kids together, this was the best we got. I did think you might appreciate the hard work if you saw some of the looks they gave me in the unedited versions. :) Notice who the biggest goofball was.

With one week til Christmas, I wanted to write a little note for all of you who may just be tuning in to this blog. I know, it was lazy of me not to write a Christmas letter but I figured if you really wanted to know what's going on, you'd be willing to come here to find out. :) Nice to see ya!

Also, 4 months ago today we boarded a plane from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to bring our new son home to America. It is amazing how quickly time flies! We really have settled into a familiar routine and Spiderman seems to blend into it naturally. The biggest change we've seen in him has been the amazing speed at which he has learned English (and lost his Amharic). To think we struggled to communicate on that long trip home and now he speaks so clearly I forget this is a new language for him (although we have the fun accent). He can even read at a Kindergarten level which still surprises me. The second biggest change is that he will eat most of the things we make with minimal complaining :) My man laughed the other day when I said we were having chicken for dinner and Spiderman said, "I love that". He sure has changed his tune about some things. The third biggest change is that he can sleep on his own comfortably now. For the first 3 months he needed to share his bed with big brother and now they usually alternate every other night. (we did overhear Jaybird telling him one night, "you know for years before you came, I slept alone everynight".) When you think of everything this sweet boy has been through in the past year or two, it is amazing to see God bind his heart to us so seemingly easily. We had really braced ourselves for a long, challenging transition this year and we marvel at how little was really necessary.

OK, as for the rest of the brood, you can read more about them if you look back at Novembers' posts. Jaybird continues to excel in his schooling and really loves to get it done so he can play Legos or chess. Goose still spends her time dreaming of motherhood and taking care of her baby doll or her siblings, whoever will let her. Boo is enjoying drawing and writing her name more and more but still lives in her imagination.

As you can tell, I'm on my third year homeschooling and that takes up most of my "free time" (HA). Whenever I feel overloaded, it's good to remind myself how much more I get to see of them and do with them than if they were gone each day. I'm also looking forward to seeing what develops with a new foundation I get to be a part of. Kinsman Redeemer (link is at the right side of the blog) has been started by some friends who have a heart to financially help families who feel called to adopt children. I have seen God do amazing things at our church this year regarding orphan ministry and I sense He is nowhere near finished working here. I'm thrilled to have a front row seat!

Not to leave out my man of course, he is plugging away working for the Conservation Department. He really is good at his job and it's amusing to watch how excited he can get over hearing quail nesting somewhere they haven't before or complaining about some annoying species of grass choking out the native wildflowers (of course he uses their ridiculously long names when he's doing it). No surprise to anyone who knows him, hunting is still his passion (check out the buck photo from Nov) and working on his parents' hunting farm is icing on the venison cake.


We realize only God knows the future but we are looking forward to a quieter year ahead (quieter than what?) building new family memories. It is sad and sweet at the same time to look through family photos. Sad to see how much of our life has passed without Spiderman "doing things" with us but sweet to hear him say, "when can I do that?" We have lots of things to experience again so that our memories will be shared ones. You are invited to check back in on us here, throughout the year, to see what is going on with our crazy, colorful clan.

Santa likes Sugar cookies, we know.

wishing for: new clothes for the baby doll she has had since her first Christmas. (This is the doll she was crying about yesterday because she couldn't take it to heaven with her when she dies).
wishing for: a new baby doll and a baby house. (this from the girl who only wants to play with Goose's favorite doll despite having plenty of her own).
wishing for: the Lego house building set (the tooth fairy let us down) and he was asked by Santa if he would like his two front teeth.
wishing for: way too much - let's see I heard remote controlled Lego dinosaur, Lego Aqua base set, remote controlled crashing helicopters and a crashing Lego #13 car. I think he memorized the Lego catalog as it went on and on.
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Tis the season to visit chubby old men. We offered this trip to the kids and of course they wanted to go. On the way I asked the kids to think about what they could tell Santa they wanted for Christmas. Goose was distraught as she realized she forgot her baby Becky doll and Santa wouldn't know what size clothes she wanted for her (I pointed out she could show him the right size with her hands and she felt better). She was also the bravest and willing to approach the jolly old man first. Next went Boo and Spiderman (who really wanted to go up but definitely wouldn't do it alone). I was so impressed when my majorly shy guy begrudgingly climbed onto Santa's lap as if it was the most embarrassing thing he's done yet but hey, at least he was willing. Boo told Santa what she wanted and then skipped out on Spiderman once she got her candy. Spiderman by now was getting into it and listed exactly what kind of Legos he wanted for Christmas. Jaybird was convinced he was too big to be allowed on Santa's lap so he opted to sit on the arm of the chair instead. Everyone was content with their chat with the big guy until Goose realized she had not asked him what kind of cookies he likes so we can leave some out for him (this is not something we've done before but she is insistent). The news is out, it's sugar cookies, make a note everyone.

I did find this funny on the way home. I told Spiderman I was proud of him for being brave and going up on Santa's lap for the first time (this is a whole new concept for him). He said matter of factly, "no I didn't". I reminded him that I just witnessed it with my own eyes and he said, "that wasn't me. It was someone else."

The Big Chill

This tree is normally upright and you'll notice the main trunk is actually broken. :(

Well, we were part of all that weather news that you heard this week. The ice storm hit us Monday night and Tuesday it just kept coming. The kids thought everything was fine and dandy until we lost electricity the first time. All of a sudden, it was a big deal that there was no Christmas music, videos, Christmas lights on the tree and no hot cocoa after sledding! God was kind and we had electricity in time for a hot dinner that night. It got really interesting when the power again went out while the kids were taking baths that night. Even with candles, they seemed unsettled and Goose announced to reassure the others, "this is how the Amish live". Spiderman was not impressed with this development and I was amazed at how quickly someone can become dependent on electricity when living in America. The kids had a campout in the girls room to conserve body heat as we had no heat until about 10 am the next day. Wed and even Thurs we played "how long will it last?" - trying to guess how long the electricity would stay on for the next round. We really can't complain though, so many in our county were without electricity for days and as the boys learned, you can sled much faster on ice!

Slip, sliding away...

We finally got the snow Spiderman was desperate for and boy does he love to sled! To add to the fun, our good friend (who arrived in her forever family one week after Spiderman did - from the same orphanage), was at our home when the storm hit. I was blessed to watch her try sledding for the first time and just like Spiderman, she loved it! Can you tell by these faces? Making snow angels and throwing snow balls, how fun to see these kids experience something we all take for granted. In fact, she called 2 days later to ask if she could come over for sledding again. :)

Jaybird, the speed demon of the snow.

Goose and "friend" (I don't have a code name for her)moments before wiping out hard!

Now as for the old timers, Boo really could care less about sledding as it's "scarey" so she'd rather wander around and eat snow. Goose can take it or leave it but when others are into it, she's right in the mix. Jaybird is obsessive however. This boy lives to sled and without fail is the last one in the house. In fact, the evening of these photos, he was out past dark and upset that everyone else had given up already. For him, Spiderman is a sledding partner from above as they are both adrenaline junkies for speed (they spent the summer riding the red wagon down these same hills - with no brakes). The boys definitely outlast the girls and other than competing for the "favorite sled", they were made to play together.

Sledding has become a daily event and considering the ice storm hitting us right now, I'm curious to see what tomorrow holds. It may be a bit too fast for Mom's comfort and not nearly soft enough for safe landings. Of course, it's been great to have them blow off some energy outside, we'll have to wait and see.

Ballet anyone?

Last week we were blessed with some free tickets to the Nutcracker ballet. I have taken Goose to the ballet before this one but it was a first for Boo. The girls were so excited and had watched Barbie's version of the Nutcracker earlier that day (I bet some of you didn't know Barbie is a moviestar). It was a packed house so our seats weren't the best but that doesn't matter to 4 & 6 year old girls. Goose chose to stand in the aisle for the entire performance so she could see better and Boo sat on my lap, oooing and ahhing over the costumes and especially the "Sugar Plum Princess". (After all, she wore her own ballerina skirt that has lights and music) It didn't phase her at all that we could only see from their knees up (second row seats). The girls spent the intermission dancing in the aisle and dreaming of their future fame as ballerinas. For those of you wondering, the men folk opted to go to the high school basketball game. :)

Just for laughs

Many of you know the man I married and today he made me laugh with some "inspirational photos" on my computer. In an effort to bring more humor to the world today, I just had to share these two with you. Enjoy!

Learning, growing, building, inventing

This weekend we spent some time in St. Louis with friends but the kids had begged to go to the Science Center so we made sure to squeeze in a few hours there. Watching them marvel at the wonders of the world, the laws of science and the miracles of God's creation was thrilling as a mom. It was another reminder of what a gift it is that God has allowed me to home school my children and get to watch the learning and transforming taking place. It has been fun to learn right alongside of them. This little visit did get me thinking though of the recent passions they have had around the house and I know that at least the grandparents love to see things like this :) so here are a few.

This was our project on this cold Sunday afternoon. A K'nex roller coaster that actually works. As you can imagine, the kids were enthralled despite that the age range is a bit older than they are. With some help from mom we put it together (the last 2 days we just made things from our imaginations with the set) and each had a part (even Isabel who helped sort and pile the pieces). They plan to keep it up and running for awhile but we'll see, these boys of mine love to invent new things.

As for building, this set of Lego's was given to us a couple weeks ago by some friends. This was actually a 2 day project and when all was said and done, we didn't even have all the pieces. That didn't keep the boys from enjoying this model of the U.S.S. Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier. I love to listen to their imaginations as they play.


This final photo is the best one yet. We recently rented the movie "Meet the Robinsons", which we love for many reasons. My favorite one is the beautiful adoption message woven through the story. The kids however, think it is so cool for all the INVENTIONS! The boys found these old video games in the basement and proceeded to dismantle them to create their own time travel machines. The sweet thing was watching them tape the wires and pieces to various electronics in the house (after promising me each time they would not take apart anything that still works) including the tape player, RC jeep and battery charger. They were truly surprised when their inventions did not work (Louis in the movie used toasters and such and travelled through time!). We talked alot about perseverance and how the great inventors like Edison and Franklin had thousands of failed attempts before success came. They just worked harder. To cement the inventing passion even more, we picked up the video "Jimmy Neutron" from the library a few days later (not as impressive in Mom's book) and the boys' brains were on fire. There is no end to their vivid imaginations and when they make it big someday with one of their ideas, you heard about them here first!

All I want for Christmas is my 2 front teeth....

- - - One down, one to go (notice our outfit)

- - - - -TA DA!

Well, it finally happened. Spiderman has a new grin. He was so anxious to have the tooth fairy visit that he kept threatening to punch himself in the mouth. Turns out his big brother was willing to help him out as some rough housing resulted in a tooth in hand. That night he was determined to catch the tooth fairy in action but sleep robbed him of the opportunity. The very next night the second front tooth was gone so he determined to try again. The verdict was that she is too "sneaky". He is thrilled with his money though and daily reports that he's planning to buy a helicopter, vacuum cleaner or a truck. Yep, he loves to think big!