What did you do today?

So, I don't have a typical 9 to 5 job. When people come visit us, they like to know what a typical day is like. I've said several times, there is no typical day. Today was a good example. I got up this morning and worked from home. Melissa is working with a short-term team this week. So she had activities with them this morning. The kids, Kate and Michael (our foster child), didn't want to go, so I planned on staying home with them. When Melissa was leaving Michael decided he did want to go, so he and Melissa headed off to the tent-school. I worked on some of the mission payroll and personnel issues, worked on a grant for some funding for our school in Bombita for a Canadian organization, answered e-mails to the Orlando office, and personal e-mails too, and completed some worked related to child sponsorship. I know it's exciting. Melissa and Michael came home for lunch. During a lunch conversation had an idea for a blog post (not this one--hopefully I'll get to it this week). Then we headed off to school. Michael and Kate both attend the afternoon session, so school for us starts at 1:50. Melissa had a meeting scheduled for the afternoon, so we all headed out. Now, dropping the kids off for school requires a small detour through the neighborhood of Policlinica where we pick up about 10 kids and take them to school. So we head to school singing along to the CD in the car. The CD is in English, and the kids love two of the songs on the CD so we listen to them everyday as they sing along with their own version. You may not have known it, but one line of the song "Every Move I Make" is "taca taca taca". Okay, you probably sing it "I take I take in you," but not in our truck!! We drop the kids off at school, pick up our mail from Agape flight, that we normally pick up in town, but a neighbor dropped it off at the school for us. Them Melissa and I head to the Health Center, where Melissa has a meeting, and I need to get material for an afternoon training. I meet Kathy LoSasso (fellow missionary) at the Health Center, and we head to Bombita for an afternoon training with the volunteer community health promoters. We have scheduled to meet with them for training on the monthly weighing of community children that are five years and younger. We have a great time with the promoters practicing with the scales and growth charts. We head back to the Health Center to pick up Melissa, I have a few minutes to talk to the Doctor to see how the afternoon clinic went and then we go to pick up the kids. For some reason the number of kids we are taking home this afternoon doubled from the morning. We head back home amid a chorus of "taca taca taca". Melissa, Kate, Michael, and I head to dinner before church, we eat in a small local restaurant in Charamicos, just down the street from our home. Melissa and the kids head to the house to get ready for church, and I take a motoconcho back to the school so I can hand out keys to the men that drive the trucks we send out to pick people up for church, and I am driving the truck to Bombita tonight. I get in the truck, it is low on gas, so I swing through the gas station to get gas, and it is going to be a 20 minute wait, because the gas truck is filling up the tanks and evidently they can't run the tanks and fill them at the same time. I am running a little early, so I decide to grab a Dr. Pepper (the store stocks them occasionally) and wait. I get my gas, and go pick up the people from Bombita. We head to church, enjoy a night of the kids singing. I am able to talk to a few of the church members about some problems they are having and encourage them. Then we make the return trip to Bombita. I swing back by the school, to drop the other drivers off where they can catch a public car (taxi) home. I get home, and get a call from one of the members from the short-term team that they are having a medical emergency. I ask the hotel to call a local doctor, and head to the hotel to help out. Thankfully it was a minor issue and resolved without the 30 minute drive and a night spent in the ER. Get home, chat with Melissa, and decide to type up what happened during the day. And now I'm going to bed excited about what tomorrow holds!

Habichuelas con dulce (Sweet creamed beans)

We are currently at the end of Semana Santa (Holy Week) here in the Dominican Republic. Easter week, the Dominican Republic comes to an even slower crawl. Schools are closed, business have reduced hours, and Friday through Sunday you will be hard pressed to find an open business. Traffic laws are stepped up, and the police presence on the street is very noticeable. Because, ironically, because accidents are more likely due to the increased drinking. Another interesting tradition during Holy Week is a traditional dish, Habichuelas con Dulce, or Sweet Creamed Beans, three words that I never imagined together. Here is recipe I got off of Dominicancooking.com, so that you don't think I'm just making this stuff up.

Habichuelas con Dulce is one of Dominican's most cherished traditions. It is prepared in Easter in large quantities and shared with relatives and neighbors.

Time: 60 Mins
Difficulty: Advanced
Serve: 6 people

Before starting to cook: Cut the sweet potatoes into small cubes. Boil with a teaspoon of salt until tender. Put the beans and the water through the blender. Strain the beans to get rid of the skin.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup of raisins
• 2 teaspoons of butter
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 2 cups of boiled red kidney beans
• 2 cup of water from boiling the beans
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1 cup of coconut milk
• 3 cups of evaporated milk
• 1/2 teaspoon of salt
• Cassava bread (may be omitted)
• 1/2 lb of sweet potatoes
• 10 cloves
• 1 cup of milk cookies (may be omitted)

Preparation:

1. Put the beans, the coconut milk and half the milk in a pot and bring to a boil. Add the rest of the milk, sugar, raisins and sweet potatoes and let boil medium heat for 10 minutes. Stir regularly to avoid sticking. Add the rest of the ingredients and boil to the desired consistency.
   
2. Spread butter on the cassava bread, sprinkle with salt and put in the oven until it turns golden brown.
   
3. Serve the beans chilled with the cassava on the side. Put cookies on top of the beans.

So, if any of you have would like to whip up a batch, you can experience a taste of the DR. I have to say it is actually surprisingly tasty.

Melissa was introduced to the specialty this time last year, when we were down looking for a house, at a church member's home in Bombita. A visit I missed. Melissa is not what I would call an adventurous eater, but when you are sitting in someone's home and they offer you a glass full, it is very difficult to say no. So, she tried what she thought was a drink, and actually enjoyed. She was a little shocked that a piece of banana was floating in it, but she managed to be polite. However, she really didn't believe that it was a bean drink until the lady went to the kitchen and brought out the dried beans to end any language barrier. This year, we bought a few cups of the beans in front of the house of one of the church kids, that had set up a little Lemonade stand, and she was selling her mom's Habichuelas con Dulce. We have been given a few jars from friends, and are able to enjoy it in small servings.

That will be five pesos and two chicklets

We were at Playero (pronounced PlyJero) the other day. For those of you that have not been to the Playero it is the closest we have to an American Grocery Store. Nice aisles, refrigerated meat sections, frozen foods, Canadian chicken breasts, you know all the staples. Anyway. We stopped off with the team from the Mid-west. They were buying snack foods for a youth event with the Dominican Youth Group. As, one of the team members said it, we were going to introduce the Dominican Youth to the "Trashy American Diet". Melissa and I took the opportunity to get some of our shopping done. When we checked out the check out lady handed Melissa her change, Five Pesos and two Chicklets. She said, "I'm sorry, I'm out of pesos." She didn't have any 1 peso coins, so she decided to give us our two pesos in Chicklets. Now, all the rest of the team just thought they were given a mint like when you go to the bank, they weren't yet as quick on the peso math, but anyone that day that was getting less than five pesos back got the balance in candy. Just another fun day in the DR.