Food and Family Fun

It has been several weeks since I have done a post on random daily life.  Here is a look at what we have been up to lately. 

That inflatable pool (although small) has provided them with many hours of entertainment.  On this particular sunny day, Cruz built a shade for himself out of a tarp, some string, and a few poles. 

All three of them enjoying an afternoon in the pool.  I could not believe they could all fit.  That pool has taken a beating but has held up well. 

Cruz made himself a mask using a paper towel and some rubber bands.  He is always trying to build or create something.  He didn't wear it out but played with it at home.

On this day he took a plastic grocery bag and taped it around the end of our air pump.  He and Ben would take turns inflating it in their shirts.  They thought it was the funniest thing ever.

They have spent many days digging in the dirt in our backyard.  Those holes are deep!  They even dug tunnels to climb through.   They have taken their trucks and cars out there and played for hours at a time.  These days when we are tired of being at home and burned out on keeping them entertained, I am thankful for this small patch of dirt to help keep them busy. 

We have worked several puzzles.

We have played all sorts of games.  Here are David and Ben playing checkers.  Ben is really good and usually beats all of us.

more checkers in their bedroom

We all enjoyed watching the space shuttle launch. 

Ben reading a chapter book to me while I cooked breakfast one morning.

Another morning they turned their bedroom into a movie theater.  Here is a schedule of what was showing that day. They posted it outside the door of their room. They invited us to come in.  They had beanbag chairs, snacks, and even a few toys in case we got bored.  When the movie started they turned the lights out and pretended we were in a real theater. 

There were two tropical storms that passed through Guatemala this past week- Amanda and Cristobal.  We had rain for eight straight days.  It was cloudy and cool all week long.  One afternoon Cruz built another fort in the front yard to sit under and watch the rain.

We could see him from the living room window and would look out at him and laugh.   

The rainy nights made our house very damp and cold.  Several nights in a row we built a fire. It made the boys and I so happy!

We also love roasting marshmallows in the fire.

Rainy season has also started so we are expecting many more rainy nights over the next few months.  I anticipate more fires and roasting in our future. 

Since everything here shut down there has been a great increase in delivery services.  One of those delivery services has been grocery stores.  Even when we are not allowed out of our houses the delivery services can continue.  That has been so nice!!  You order online and they will bring it to your home.  We have ordered once so far from the Paiz in San Lucas (about 30 minutes away).  It can take a few days to get your order so you have to plan ahead.  There are also several new produce delivery services available now in Antigua.  They tell you their delivery days, you place your order, and they bring your fresh fruits and vegetables to your door.  Services like this have sure made life more convenient during this time.  I hope they continue even after the stay at home orders are lifted.

I have been spending a lot more time in the kitchen since finishing up our school year.  I have made two different batches of sausage balls.  Ben loves them!  I mix up the ingredients and he likes to help me roll them out. 

I made eight pans of cinnamon rolls to freeze. 

I tried a new dessert recipe.  It is called Cookies and Cream Cups.  They are so good!  I will definitely be making this recipe again soon.

I made another chocolate chip cookie cake this past Friday for our movie night.  I later added icing to the edges.  This is becoming a family favorite. 

The boys love for me to make them these chocolate popsicles.  I have been making these since they were small.  They make a delicious sweet treat on a warm afternoon.

Lastly, I have also been making them juice popsicles.  Here Cruz is enjoying one made from Rosa Jamaica (a Jamaican rose tea).  It is a popular drink here in Guatemala. 

We just had our first weekend in several weeks where we were not on complete mandatory lock down.  We do not get out much at all anyway, but something about not being able to get out just messes with you mentally.  This past weekend we enjoyed morning and late afternoon walks around our neighborhood.  We also got out on Saturday afternoon and rode up and down the streets of Antigua just to see something different than our house.  

It is so strange to see our city so empty.  Antigua is the tourist capital of Guatemala.  If you have ever been here you know that it is most always bustling with people and cars.  We miss those days and long for their return. 

At some point during our drive we noticed the boys had gotten very quiet.  I looked back at them and this is what I saw.  What a peaceful moment for David and I!  We just kept driving on purpose to let them sleep and to let ourselves soak in the stillness of the moment. 

On Sunday morning it finally stopped raining.  We woke up to blue skies and sunshine.  It was a beautiful day!

We took another morning walk around our block.  That afternoon we walked all the way to the Panorama gas station.  While there we enjoyed some Sarita's ice cream.  We sat on the sidewalk and ate it before walking back home.  The fresh air and sunshine did us all good.

Lastly, we ended the weekend having a Sunday night meal around "the big table".  For the longest time we only used it when we had guests.  I have been purposely trying to use it more especially on Sundays.  The boys get very excited when we do.  I remind them that they have to use their best manners when eating there.  It is good practice for when guests come.  We cannot wait to have friends around our table again.  I miss that greatly.

Hope you all are doing well.  Thanks for keeping up with our little family.