Yes, he will survive.

Poor Tyler has been hacking for about two weeks now. Yesterday I had enough!

I made an appointment for 4:30 this afternoon, so Tyler didn't have to miss school. He's finally realized it's easier just to go than do all the makeup work.

Of course since it was one of the appointments of the day, his box was four deep. We waited 45 minutes. And we were out in 10.

So down to he pharmacy we go. To wait for the new "chemist" to take another 30 minutes. Whew! 

After all was said and done, he ended up with 10 prescriptions!

And we think Americans over medicate.

Happy Birthday to my Nephew!

I completely missed my nephew's birthday! 

SO....  HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU CHRISTIAN!

Come check out my new blog.

www.picturethis400days.blogspot.com

Follow me!  Should be a good journey!

Adieu Africa... Bonjour Paris!

We went home for about a month lasty year, from the middle of June to the middle of July.  On the way we had a three day "layover" in Paris.  We decided to see the sights and we saw them about as fast as you could.

We left Johannesburg on Wednesday night, flying into Paris Thursday morning about 5:00AM.  I think that most of the time it wouldn't have been a bad fllight but they had to change our plane at the last minute.  I think they gave us the one that the air didn't work on because it was incredibly HOT all night.  That makes sleeping VERY difficult  for grown-ups.  Clayton crashed out and slept from lik 11:30 until about 4:00.

View from our hotel window into the back courtyard

We got in and got to our hotel, Villa Daubenton, in the Latin Quarter.  It was very far south and a bit off the beaten path.  It was clean, the staff was friendly and it was about 3 blocks from the subway. 

Tyler and Brian kicking back, waiting on the train. 

We rode the subway ALOT!  There were plenty of interesting people to watch while riding.

Our first morning there we wen to the Basilica Sacre Coeur.  This is a beautiful Catholic church that was built from 1875 to 1914.  It's at the top of Monmarte Butte in the Monmarte/Opera are of Paris.

You are able to go inside for no charge but you cannot take pictures.  They have some amazing paintings and sculpture throughout the church.  The top of the basilica is the second highest point in the city next to the Eiffel Tower.

The next stop on our trip was the Arc de Triomphe.  This thing is HUGE!  It was beautiful!  I'm not sure why they put the world's largest round about around it.  The honking and rumbly engines don't do much for the ambiance.

The arch was commissioned in 1806 by Napoleon and not completed until sometime between 1833 and 1836.

The sculpture that surrounds the arch depicts "nude" Parisian youth fighting German soldiers in chain mail.  I haven't found out the significance of why they are "nude" yet.  But I'll let  you know when I do!

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

This is also where the Tomb of the Unknown from the first Wold War is located.  It is the first eternal flame in Easter Europe and what inspired the flame in Washington DC.

After we finished our site-seeing here we headed towards the Eiffel Tower. 

Along with riding the subway we spent a lot of time walking.  And when you walk you also get to see  lots of cars.  Especially when your with Doug!

We saw a chrome wrapped Maserati...

And we saw the Lamborghini store...

We finally made it to the Eiffel Tower.  We got off the subway and walked up the steps and there it was!  And there was the wind!  It must have been the way the buildings were lined up but the wind here about blew us away

The line for the lifts to the top were huge, but the moved pretty fast and before we new it we were at the top. 

This was about the time we all started to fade.  Clayton had a meltdown and Tyler thought for sure he was going to starve to death.  It was time to get some grub and head back to the hotel. 

One thing we didn't realize is how late the sun stays out. This picture was taken about 9:00 at night. It looked like it was about 4:00 in the afternoon!

The next day we woke up and it was cloudy and cool.  It makes for great walking, which we did A LOT of.

We headed to the Louvre!  I was super excited to go and explore.  The kids were troopers and we had some fun of your own!

Making our own art!

Brian checking out some ancient Egyptian cats.

Notre Dame.  The line was like 100 people deep and admission was pretty expensive so we just peeked from outside and were on our way

Time for a snack!

Brian found a sticker he liked!

CatchUps and Mid-Year Slumps

Hello to all!  Seems like it's been a while... well it has been a while!  Here I am trying to catch up all the exciting things that have been going on here the last few months and setting some new ideas in motion for the rest of the year!

It's starting to get cold here and all I want to do is curl up on the couch with my blanket and my knitting and STAY PUT!  But I must get up and out!  With the end of the school year coming and so many of my good friends leaving, I have felt a bit out of sorts the last few weeks.  So I am setting a goal: A Picture A Day.  Something exciting  that I can share with everyone. Maybe it will just be a snapshot of our lives or something creative.  We shall see!

There are so many weird things we see here on a daily basis.  Maids leaving the estate with microwaves balanced on their heads, a baby on their back, and a Pick-N-Pay bag in both hands!  Or a pickup truck pulling another pickup truck and both have a bed full of guys heading home for the day!  Or one of the scariest, is a spider as big as your hand just hanging out on the window as you reach for the handle to close it!  Eeeeek!!!!  You just shake your head and say, TIA(This is Africa.)  So many great visual opportunities to share.

I believe my last post was back to school in August for the boys.  The worst part is I wrote a long post about Paris and never posted it!  I'll start there and hopefully a couple posts a week and we'll be all set!

Back To School

Brrr....  waiting for the bus!



Showin off the new backpack




Tyler didn't want to pose.



Biscuits and Gravy

Here in Africa we have to make due with what's available.  Or we have to make it ourselves.  We have all become proficient at making things from scratch,  mixing seasoning blends, and learning the "South African" names of spices and cooking components.

Un fortunately here in SA you can't find American style savoury pork sausage flavored with sage, pepper, and some spicy crushed red pepper.

The pork sausage will be in casing so you’ll have to split the casing and squeeze the sausage out. You can also use ground pork. It’s not as greasy and lower in fat.

I’ve found the pork sausage and ground pork consistently at the Super Spar in Broadacres and occasionally at the Woolworth’s in Woodmead. You may be able to find it at the Berliner/Triolean Meats as well but you will need to call ahead. It’s the butcher that is off Witkoppen and Newmarket Road in Northriding .

Pork Sausage
Ingredients:
2 lbs Pork (Sausage or Ground)
½ tsp Cayenne/Red Pepper
2 tsp Ground Sage
½ tsp Brown Sugar
1 ½ tsp Salt
½-1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper (More if you like it SPICY!)
1 ½ tsp Pepper

Directions:
Mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Shape into patties, links, or crumble.

They had also asked for a recipe for biscuits.

Biscuits Supreme
Ingredients:
3 Cups All-purpose flour
¾ tsp Cream of tartar
4 tsp Baking powder
 ¾ cup Butter
1 Tbs Sugar
1 ¼ cup Buttermilk or 1 cup of milk
1 tsp Salt

Directions:
1.  In a large bowl stir together the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, and cream of tartar. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbles. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Add buttermilk all at once. Using a fork, stir just until moistened.

2. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead dough by folding and gently pressing dough for 4 to 6 strokes or just until dough holds together. Pat or lightly roll dough until ¾ inch thick. Cut the dough with a floured 2 ½ inch biscuit cutter.

3. Place biscuits 1 inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake in a 450 degree oven for 10-12 minutes or until golden. Remove biscuits from baking sheet and serve immediately.

I have a couple of shortcuts if you’d like to give them a try. You can put all the dry ingredients into a food processor and add the butter, cube it first, then pulse the processor until you get a crumbly texture. Then dump everything back into a mixing bowl and proceed. Saves a lot of achiness on the wrist.

You can also roll the biscuits into a log and cut them out into rounds. This is also great if you want to freeze it and save it for later.

And here is the recipe for the gravy.

Sausage Gravy-Just your basic country gravy!
About 6 servings
Prep time: 20 Minutes

Ingredients:
1 lb Pork Sausage
¾ tsp Pepper (More or less to taste)
6 Tbs Butter/Margarine
2-4 Cups Milk
¼ Cup Flour Warm Biscuits
½ tsp Salt (Optional)

Directions:
In a skillet, cook sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add butter and heat until melted. Add the flour, salt and pepper; cook and stir until blended. Gradually add the milk, stirring consistently. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with biscuits.

NOTE: Add more or less milk according to how you like your gravy. Stop at 2 if you like it REALLY thick or add 4 if you like it a bit runny.

Here you are. Let me know if you need help with anything or cannot find something!

CHEERS!

Stephanie