Blossoms and Bumblebees

What a lucky shot with my simple point and shoot camera!

A 'Peace' of Solitude

Once in awhile a busy mama needs the peacefulness of solitude.  I am thankful for this little piece of creation near my home where I can go to commune with God and come away refreshed, rejuvenated and ready to face the day.

Peace and Blessings,

Love,

Homestay Mama

May's Mish-Mash

Here's a mixture of miscellany from the month of May!

Hyun Wook, my former homestay student from South Korea, and his mother visited for a couple of days en route to his brother's graduation from Berklee College of Music in Boston. It was wonderful seeing them again!  Hyun Wook has the distinction of staying the longest in my home--six years--while he completed the intensive English program and then his associate's and bachelor's degrees.  During that time his family made several visits and his brother also lived in my home for a year.  Yes, the Cho family is very special to me!

* * * * *

This is what happens when you have a soggy spring and an old, kaput lawn mower!  If you're thinking that looks pretty pathetic, I totally agree!

So, I splurged this month and bought this fancy little machine! The old mower had left me frustrated and cranky, not to mention totally humiliated more often than I wanted to remember. Repeated yanks on the cord  extracted mostly whimper-whumpfs from the mower, and I'd end up dragging it down the street until I found a neighbor with some muscle. This new, self-propelled mower starts with a key--let's me save face AND my sanity.

* * * * *

I've got lots of pretty flowers in my yard, but my yard is not pretty.  The weeds have been growing gangbusters and it's been too cold and rainy to do anything about it.  Well, that plus I've been too tired.

Does anyone know the names of these flowers?  I think the yellow is called candy-tuft, but what are those blue flowers? Weeds?  They just voluntarily planted themselves in my yard and I just kindly let them!

* * * * *

I'd like to pick a bunch of these gorgeous lilacs to bring into the house, but this bush has completely gotten out of hand!  All the blooms are way up at the top--about 15 feet or so!

My golden chain tree looks quite nice in this photo, but it is really sprawling out of control and needs some serious pruning. Obviously, I have some major yardwork to do this summer!

* * * * *

And finally, here was tonight's dinner.  It's been eons since I made taco salad!  I couldn't remember what ingredients to use, so I did a quick Google search, but none of those recipes sounded like the taco salad I remember my mom making, so I combed the recesses of my memory and came up with the following: 

1 head romaine lettuce, torn into bite-sized pieces

2 ears of corn, lightly steamed, then sliced off the cob

1 basket of cherry tomatoes, cut in half

1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 bunch scallions, chopped

1 can olives, sliced 

1 avocado, diced into 1/2 inch chunks

1 pound hamburger, cooked, crumbled, fat rinsed off with hot water and then seasoned with 1 rounded teaspoon each of cumin, chili pepper and paprika, plus salt and pepper to taste.

2 cups ( approx) of corn chips broken.

For the dressing I mixed a little mayonnaise and salsa together.

I put everything into a very large bowl and mixed it all together.  It turned out to be simple, yet very filling .   Actually, it tasted quite good.  Some shredded cheddar cheese would have made it even better.

Well, that's the mish-mash. for May.

Love,
Homestay Mama

Mount Vernon Tulips

For my birthday this year (in April) we went to the tulip festival in Mount Vernon.  I love tulips!

There are always acres and acres of tulips in a rainbow of colors.  The tulips draw people from around the world. 

Toshi and the crowds of people in the background.

I love this color combination.

Tae and Toshi out in the fields.

 Red tulips are my favorite.  I especially like this photo.

More colors with the Mount Vernon hills in the background.

Tulips with an unusual shape.

Patriotic tulips and grape hyacinths.

 Love this colorful tulip bed--just look at that shimmering florescence. 

I'm awestruck with the huge variety of colors, shapes and sizes. 

Toshi and Tae by the windmill.

Our trip to the tulip festival was part of my birthday present.  Tae and Toshi also bought a cake from the Korean Bakery near my home.  Their cakes are just the way I like them--not overly sweet--

and they are so pretty.  

 Toshi bought my birthday card and made sure all my homestay students signed it.  

I had no clue he was doing this.  What a wonderful surprise!

Just look at their sweet messages! They make this mama's heart sing!

It was a most wonderful birthday!

But that's not all!  For the rest of my birthday present, Tae organized a kitchen clean-up.  He emptied the trash and cleaned the kitchen with a little help from Toshi.  What a thoughtful young man!

I think I'm one very lucky (and a little spoiled?) homestay mama!

Come See Me, Gramma Sue!

Nothing can top being a grandma!

My first granddaughter is a gift from God. You can read my first post about her here.

Malak is a happy little 2 1/2 year-old who bubbles with energy and laughter. Today she called me all the way from her home in Saudi Arabia. I was on my lunch hour; she was ready for bed. I asked her how she was in English--she told me all about her day in Arabic. I don't know Arabic. But, the excitement and enthusiasm in her voice made my day--especially when she sang the ABC song that I had taught her back in October.

Before she hung up, [with her mommy's help], she said in English,  "Come see me, Gramma Sue."

"I'm coming, my darling. Only eight more months and Gramma Sue will come see you in Saudi."


Love,

Gramma Sue

 [aka, Homestay Mama]

Cooking is Innate in Men!

Cooking is not my 'thing.' I do it because I have to.
Men are better cooks. I swear they are. It's innate in them.

I will admit that I can make some pretty good pancakes, but my omelettes burn on the bottom. Every time.

Toshi doesn't cook--doesn't even make sandwiches. The most I've seen him do is put a bag of popcorn in the microwave!

So anyhow, this morning I was late getting breakfast on the table. Toshi was starving--well, not literally--but he stood staring into the refrigerator. I could tell he was very hungry.

"Toshi, if you'll help me, we can have breakfast real soon."

"OK," he hesitated, "but what can I do?"

"Break 6 eggs into this glass measuring pitcher, then get the egg beater out of the drawer and beat them until they are well mixed and a little fluffy." I seeded and chopped a plum tomato, a couple tablespoons of an orange sweet pepper and three green onions.

"OK."

"Now put the skillet on the stove and turn the burner to medium. Pour in about a tablespoon of oil. Sprinkle a couple drops of water on the oil. When it starts to sputter, the skillet is ready." I stirred the pancake batter.

Pop, sputter, crack! "I guess it's ready now."

"Yep, sounds like it. Now pour the eggs into the skillet and sprinkle the chopped veggies over them. Then shake some salt, pepper and a little onion powder over the top." I flipped a couple pancakes.

"Like this?"

"Yeah, that's good. OK, now put the lid on the skillet and turn the heat down to simmer." I flipped more pancakes. Toshi warmed some maple syrup in the microwave and set the table.

When the pancakes were done, I lifted the lid to check on the omelette. It was ready. I cut it into wedges and loosened it around the edges, then gently lifted out the first couple of pieces. They came out too easy. Nothing was sticking to the pan. Nothing was burned. The bottom of the pan was clean as a whistle!

Amazing! My omelettes never turned out like this! Never!

See? I told you cooking was innate in men and now I offer these pictures as proof!

Toshi was pleased. And, I was humbled. Next time I'm going to watch how he does it and learn from him!

Bowing to the next great chef...
Love,
Homestay Mama

Helping Japan One Pin Badge at a Time

March 11, 2011 at 2:46 p.m. will forever be etched in my memory! Sadness engulfed me as I learned about the earthquake, tsunami and radiation leak that devastated the northeastern coast of Japan on that day.

What about Toshi's family? Were they alright? And what about all my former Japanese homestay students--all thirteen of them? Where were they when this triple whammy slammed Japan? Were they alright? Or, were they--God forbid--among the tens of thousands who perished?

We quickly learned that all of Toshi's family were safe--their house received a few cracks from the earthquake, but nothing major. They live far enough inland that the tsunami didn't touch them. Thank God!

I've also heard from two of my former homestay students. One lives in Tokyo and the other lives in Kyoto and neither were affected. Praise God for that good news, also!

But, I continue to worry about my other eleven homestay students. And, my heart still aches for those I don't even know who lost their family, their homes, their livelihoods--literally everything! Their needs are staggering! I want to help. But how?

One of my former homestay students is married, living in New York City and working on his medical degree. His wife (from Japan) has a master's degree in art. Today I received this e-mail from him....

"My wife is helping a non-profit designer group to support the aftermath from the Earthquake, Tsunami and Radiation disaster in Japan. Each artist has designed and produced a pin badge at their personal expense. The designers will donate profits from the sales of their pin badges to the American Red Cross for the casualties in Japan.

Their web store launched this week, and about 40 buttons were sold yesterday. We hope to continue raising funds to help the people of Japan in need.

Please, visit our site to support our cause by pasting the following into your browser or clicking the link: http://hopejp.wazala.com/

If you could spread the word to your family, friends or colleagues through any type of communication medium like Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Personal Blog or e-mail; we would be grateful. Thank you for taking the time to read this email and for your contribution." Ryan and Kanako

I was thrilled with this unique way to help! By buying these pins badges, I'm helping the people affected by this disaster. By wearing these pin badges on my lapel, I can bring attention to this unique & worthy effort and be reminded to keep hope alive as I pray for my homestay students and the people of Japan.

There are many more designs on their website. I hope you will check them out and place an order if you can. Every little bit will help.

Also, I hope you will continue to pray for the people of Japan as they face the daunting and overwhelming task of rebuilding their lives!

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Love,

Homestay Mama