Top 10 Unique Foods + Homemade Ice Cream (Without an Ice Cream Maker!)
Top 10 lists are so fun! As I mulled over what to make my list about, I kept thinking about the, ahem, unique foods I’ve been able to try over the years. If you’ve even visited another country, you’ve probably tried something your taste buds hadn’t met before. Some foods may make them dance a […]
My Top Ten Children’s Books
My Top Ten Children’s Books Now that I’m back in the States, I don’t have as much contingency planning to do, but if you’re overseas we all know that comes with the deal. I thought I could help you out today with a fun contingency planning exercise. Here’s the situation: you have 24 hours to […]
10 Reasons This Pregnant Lady Misses Home {And 10 Reasons She Continues to Make this Foreign Land Her New Home}
I am the grumpiest pregnant woman there ever was. I can say that, my husband can’t. Being pregnant in a place that is not my home seems to make the normal everyday Africa complications somehow cosmic. The electricity going out before baking cookies seems to bring the whole world to an end. Having to walk […]
Top Ten Signs You Know You’re in North America, not Europe
Five and a half years of living in Europe changed me. Not all of the change was deep, spiritual change; some of it was simply “I’ve learned how to do life differently” change. And it’s in that vein that I give you my top ten because after several months back in America, there are still […]
Top Ten Ways to Fight Fear
Maybe you’re a rare bird who has winged her way overseas without one single fear, but chances are somewhere in your overseas journey your stomach has knotted with the weight of so many question marks. I know mine has. As I’ve journeyed across continents and through deep seasons of anxiety and fear I’ve learned a […]
10 Survival Tips While Your Husband Is Away
Out of the past twelve weeks my husband has been gone six of those weeks. I love serving our family here while he heads to Africa and South America (his two recent excursions) to work on water and sanitation projects. But let’s be real…It is exhausting. His longest trips are three weeks. We set that […]
Clean, Green, and Not-So-Mean
It matters. It matters how we use the few dollars, renminbi, baht, pounds, euros, and pesos that come and go through our hands. For our health and that of our planet, it matters how we clean our vegetables and our floors. Seeking justice is as close as the next “buy now” click, and walking humbly […]
10 Ways to Reconnect with Family When You’re Back in the States
As I write this I’m flying over the big blue ocean, a 4-year-old contentedly playing a LeapPad game next to me, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty showing on the tiniest airplane screen you’ve ever seen. My little sister is getting married, so I’m headed back to the US, more than ready for three weeks […]