Motherhood Moments #21

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

broken glass and glass shards. Our main door is a sheet of glass with bars surrounded by a metal frame. The door is difficult to close at times. On Saturday evening, as I went to close the door behind me, it did not shut the first time. In my hurry to get the littles inside, I pushed it a little too forcefully and the entire glass plate shattered! I did not realize how weak the glass was until that moment. After an embarrassed stutter-filled apology to Kevin, he cleaned up the remaining bits from the house and called Pepe to come get it fixed. The next day, Pepe came to measure the door and by Monday we had a new glass.

Francy sealing the glass

We have a functioning door again!

Mother Moments #10

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

I believe this moment needs no explanation. The "three-nager" years have been rough for this little boundary pusher. Some days it takes every bit of grace and prayer to make it to bedtime. Often times I just want to giggle when I catch the things I end up saying to her:

"Don't ride your brother! He's not a horse!;
If Solomon wanted you to lick his face, he'd tell you so!;
Sweetheart, mommy can't walk while you are hiding under her skirt.;
Stop growling at your friend - she is scared of dinosaurs!"

I must be doing something right if I have to laugh at the things that come out of my mouth!

Motherhood Moments #7

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

But then again, it also quickly turns into this...

Sister has decided that being cute and posing for photos is not nearly as fun as wrestling with a squirmy baby brother. I think she has been watching her daddy too much. It is hard to tell who won since he almost outweighs her!Oh well, c'est la vie!

Motherhood Moments #6

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

What's so special about a big pile of laundry? Well, when we start our washing machine, it locks the door. So, when we lose electricity, our laundry is locked. I cannot open the door to hand wash them. I must wait until the electricity returns in order to continue, and our generator is not strong enough to support our machine. What you are looking at is one load of laundry that was started at 6 AM and the electricity cut soon after. It is now 6 PM and I am waiting anxiously for the electricity to return with two more loads just from that day. I have been known to get up in the middle of the night when the electricity returns to continue washing laundry. Yes, I have been that desperate!

Motherhood Moments #5

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

Sitting on the floor watching the boy explore and play peek-a-boo. I love simple days like this where the house is a mess and all I do is enjoy what God has placed before me. With a never-ending "to do" list, it is a constant (internal) struggle for me to sit instead of keeping myself in constant motion all the time.

The other day when Kevin and I were doing our devotionals, he found this verse and it immediately struck a cord with me:

"A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." Proverbs 17:22

Sometimes, sitting on the floor enjoying those baby blues staring back up at me is the perfect way to have a more cheerful heart!

Motherhood Moments #4

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

I often ask myself why I don't work out often enough and then I try to work out and I quickly remember why...clingy toddlers. Do you know how hard it is to transition from Chaturanga to upward dog with a toddler on your back? No? In this photo I am attempting a down dog with a high leg but little girl is riding the leg that needs to go up. She knows how to turn basic yoga into a Crossfit workout!

Motherhood Moments #3

Here we are on week 3 of Motherhood Moments. In case you missed week 1 or week 2, just click on the highlighted week to catch up.

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

Boiling water for baths. During dry season there is no rain for a few months (June - September). Because we don't have rain, we tend to have less water flowing from our taps. Often, there is no water coming out of our faucets upstairs because there is no water pressure. So, I have to fill up buckets/pails/pots/pans of water from the kitchen sink and boil it for bath water for the kids and then carry it upstairs for their bath. Lucky for me, they only bathe once or twice a week! And yes, the water is not clear. We do not have the privilege of having treated water (fluoride, chlorine, etc.), thus our water is filled with pollutants, dirt and sediment, rust, and parasites. This is why we do not drink the tap water and use only filtered water for cooking, brushing our teeth, and drinking.

Which is why every morning, motherhood looks like this...

I have to fill up our bottles every morning or we will get behind. Since it is so hot and humid here, we tend to drink on average 3L per person, or two of the bottles in the photo above. Phew!

Motherhood Moments #1

Continuing with my "Life At Home" theme, I would like to introduce to you a new series (at least until I forget) titled "Motherhood Moments." Each Monday, I am going to post a photo of what motherhood looks like to me while living here, similar to my photo challenge photos. Some photos will be similar to an American lifestyle and others will reflect my life living in Africa. I hope you enjoy the photos!

Sometimes motherhood looks like this...

A sad child. Today, we woke up to the proprietor chopping down our "swing tree." Sweet pea had a swing hanging from this huge tree and we are not certain yet if it is still there. Since we are renting this property, we did not have to be informed of their beautification changes and choices. Sweet pea has been standing at the window for the past half hour crying the words "tree" and "swing" over and over. I am hoping they leave the swing and the swing branch but will have to wait and see.

Confidence and Bugs

My ability to speak French is lacking. It truly is my fault for not having the confidence in myself to attempt to talk to others. Part of this photo challenge was a way to force me out of my shell and speak French. Today my shell was cracked open!

My gas tank was a bit low so I grabbed my cash on the way out the door to pick up little girl. When I pulled into the gas station, I recognized the attendant as someone I had spoken to before. I must have made quite an impression on her because she immediately began asking where I had been. She said she thought I had left. So I told her the truth, in my broken French. I said, "My daughter broke a bone." Then, I attempted to pronounce clavicle in French but settled for pointing to it. At this point, I pulled out my iPhone and showed her the X-Rays. She asked her age and I said she was three, but attempted to correct myself and say she was going to be three on Wednesday. She told me her name was Jezebele and I told her my name. I was feeling pretty good about the progress in our relationship!

At this point she went to pump my gas and I had left my car window down. All the peddlers took this as an invitation and came forward pressing me to buy tissues, gum, and hard candies. I normally buy from them but today I was low on cash. I had a crowd of 5 guys outside of my window disappointed but I decided to tell them why I was low on cash. I proceeded with the story of our little girl and how she fell out of the car getting out, breaking her collar bone. The guys were all nodding solemnly and tsk-ing at the right moments. When I pulled out my iPhone to show them, they all jumped forward, pushing each other aside to see the X-Ray. It was then I realized they had never seen an X-Ray before. They began touching their bones attempting to discern their shape and began smiling with knowledge. After my story, they politely left.

Delphine selling me tissues while
waiting for school traffic to move

But a new gentleman walked up to my car. He was definitely new to me and his goods were new as well! I was so delighted I asked to take a photo.

When I got home I had to ask Maman Cele what these bugs were. She explained (in French) that when the palm nuts no longer grow on a palm tree, they cut it down to make way for a new tree. When the tree rots, termites grow. These lovely bugs are termites and they are to be cooked and eaten. I did ask if anyone eats them not cooked and she just grinned. Might be one of those silly things kids dare each other to do. The termites are a delicacy but Maman Cele agreed with me that they don't look too appealing. I was not feeling THAT adventurous today!