Eli Loves his Rice and Beans!

Eli is a lover of Brazilian cuisine (we all are for that matter). He turns up his nose at all of my cooking but every time he goes to Gracie's school the teachers rave about what a good eater he is and how he consumed three platefuls. (or something ridiculous like that). What's the deal? Why does this little toddler of mine only eat the Brazilian school food? I decided rather than beating the problem I would simply surrender and learn how to make rice and beans like a Brazilian! Today I went to Gracie's  school and this is what I learned...

 Brazilians love garlic. This is a little mixture of garlic and salt that is applied generously to the rice and the beans.

 A little onion action for extra flava....

 Saute the garlic and onion in oil and consume that garlic aroma!

 Add your rice to the heavenly mixture and let it saute.

Next add heated water and let the rice steam for about 20 minutes. Pretty Simple!

The key to the beans is this little contraption right here. It's called a panela de pressão (pressure cooker) This makes it so you don't have to soak the beans overnight. You just cook them in this little contraption for 30 minutes and transfer the cooked beans to a pan with sauteed onion and garlic. Next add salt to taste and they are good to go! I am told a little bacon makes them over the top delicious. Not surprising! Bacon makes everything a bit more delicious.

I think I might have missed my calling in life as a school lunch lady ;) Yikers! Hopefully now Eli will eat for his Mama. I am going to attempt to make these this weekend. It seemed simple enough but we'll see if the Monson crew approves :)

Tchau!

Monkeys and Angels

Last Saturday was a fun day filled with monkeys and angels :)  The American Society here in Brazil hosts a Christmas party called The Angel Party; it's for local orphanages in the area and it was a day to be remembered. Also ( much less noteworthy) we saw our first monkeys in the trees by our playground. I was wondering when these little guys would make an appearance and finally they popped out of the trees.

Eli was pretty darn excited to see a Monkey. I love the picture of him pointing out the monkeys to the little girl next to him. Sky loved them too...he and a friend succeeded in feeding the monkeys some berries. It was like having our own little zoo in our backyard. 

The Angels of my day were these little people. It's hard to go and not want to adopt as least a handful of them. I helped serve them lunch and they had smiles from ear to ear. It's quite an event with games, music, delicious food and the magical moment when Santa ( two of them at this event) deliver a bag full of presents to every child there.

Loved this group of boys waiting outside the gym for their turn. Their excitement to meet Santa filled the place with a whole lot of happiness :)

I would love to have the opportunity to get involved in our community here. There are so many ways to do it and I just need to find my thing. I especially want to make Christmas extra meaningful while in Brazil . There is so much need. I love the idea of simplifying our holidays and looking outward.

Tchau Tchau

Sonda not Saída!

Learning a language is not without its hiccups. Yesterday I wanted to go to a supermarket that I had been to with a friend a month or so ago. My first mistake was that I couldn't remember the name of the store and I confused the name of the store SONDA with the word for exit SAIDA, while looking for parking in the parking garage. I drove all the way up the 6th level of the parking garage looking out for the store and then proceeded to get out of my car and asked a local, "Saida?" "Saida?" This of course means, "Exit?" "Exit?" so it would definitely explain the super confused look on his face. Finally, I figured out my mistake and drove back down to what I thought was the correct parking garage. I walked into the entrance from the garage, shopping cart in hand, and quickly learned I was right smack in the middle of the mall...no grocery store in sight. This time I asked someone where SONDA was and they told me it was another level down and in the back of the mall. I was embarrassed to be pushing a shopping cart through the mall, so I ditched the cart and made the trek to the correct part of the mall. I made it to the store and after I finished, I remembered that I needed to validate my parking card. I dutifully handed the card to the girl at the kiosk who does the validating and she started speaking to me in Portuguese. She held up a yellow piece of paper and I explained I don't speak Portuguese. Finally, after getting nowhere with the language barrier, I thought oh well, I have no idea what this girl is saying so hopefully there will be an attendant in the parking garage who will let me through. I made the trek through the mall all the way back to my car, this time with a cart full of groceries, and loaded them all in my car. When I went to go through the gate, the card of course didn't work, and the attendant said I need to pay 4 reais or get my card validated. This is where the frustration sets in. I can't tell him that I tried to validate my card because that would require speaking Portuguese. I just sit there silently in my car, I show him I only have a credit card and no reais and he nods and motions for me to back up my car. There are other cars trying to get out, so we all have to back our cars into reverse and maneuver through the dimly lit and tightly packed garage while I find  a space and park. The attendant then tells me, " Se Valedados!" He wants me to trek back through the mall and figure out how to validate my ticket. Doesn't he understand what he is asking? My kids are going to be home in 30 minutes, I have groceries loaded that need to be in the freezer, I need to start making dinner for a sick friend, the grocery store is clear at the other end of the mall and down a level, and above all I DON'T KNOW HOW TO SPEAK PORTUGUESE! I begrudgingly go back down to the store and basically say to one of the cashiers in Portuguese, "Yellow Paper?" "Yellow Paper?" Luckily she knows what I am talking about and gives the  me the yellow golden ticket so I can validate my parking card and race home to my kiddos.

There were some frustrated tears on the way home. Maybe a little bit of feeling sorry for myself...

But then I walk in my door and my empregada is on the kitchen floor holding Eli in her arms and the two of them are happily singing in Portuguese together. She has a look of pure joy on her face and Eli is smiling with delight ( his one little dimple is there). A little guilt sets in. My empregada lives in a favela next to drug dealers. Her life is HARD. I would feel so ashamed explaining to her that I was crying because I couldn't validate my ticket at the mall. I am struck with the realization of how lucky I am. This is our dream. To live and love this country and to speak Portuguese! We want this so much  for our children and I need to set the example. My enthusiasm needs to be infectious or this won't happen.

 I am grateful for a new perspective. I am stretching myself in ways I couldn't imagine. I am observing life through a new lens and that is always a good thing :)

Tchau!

São Paulo: The City That Is Making Me Stronger!

My friend invited me to do a class at her gym on Wednesday morning. It was just the medicine I needed to refocus and sweat off my negativity. Exercise is like gold right now. I have always known this about myself, so it is a wonder I ever stop, but working out sort of stabilizes my emotions and energy in a way that nothing else can. The act of willing myself to push past pain and fatigue in a difficult work out somehow translates to a stronger will to do hard things in all areas of my life. At one point after getting through a training circuit, I walked over to the big open window and thought about this new view before me. This view is fresh and exciting. It's not perfect, in fact it's a little rough around the edges but there is a lot of beauty in it. For one, I get to be whoever I want to be here... I just have to own it. I get a new focus and I am working on myself in ways that I haven't in a long, long time. My little change in thinking might be why I decided to face a HUGE fear I have here in Brazil...

That fear would be driving! The kids go to a school about 30/45 minutes away and I have been terrified to make the drive. My goal was to attempt driving to the school within 6 months of living here. However, on Thursday morning I sent my kiddos off to school and realized that Thais forgot a paper and I forgot to send Skyler to school in Pajamas and with his favorite toys for a celebration they were having in class. My mom guilt  couldn't stand having him show up as the only kid  without the toys and pajamas, and I knew I had to go. I didn't want to bother with a taxi, and I knew I had to get this over at some point so I grabbed the goods and my amigo, Eli and off we went.  

It took me an hour. I probably took the off beaten path a few times but the point is we made it! I love the look on Eli's face because it's like he saying, Wow mom, You're scaring me! This poor little guy is going to be subjected to many of my driving escapades but I sure love having a buddy doing this all with me. Don't worry Eli, soon your Momma is going to drive like a Paulista!

As a way of repenting for my negative attitude, here are the things I  am loving right now. This is our basketball/soccer court in our complex.  The coach comes to our complex every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon to teach the kids. I love that. I don't have to drive around town dropping them at different activities, it is here and it has been fun. I want my kiddos to pick up this sport that is beloved by the entire world except America ;) Thais especially has loved playing and I love watching her!

The school my kids go to is a huge blessing. It is pretty darn wonderful and they are thriving. Today we had parent teacher conferences and Skyler taught Jordan and me about the magnet experiment they have been working on :)

Of course one of my gratitude items has to be about food! I stinkin' love the Orange Juice here! Every place I go it is fresh squeezed and muito muito delicioso! I had some at lunch yesterday after my long drive to the school it was a glass of orange happiness! Way to have amazing OJ, Brazil!

Tchau -Tchau!

Comfort {food}

We are back! We just spent over two weeks in Chicago and Michigan getting our permanent visas and we are back for good..

Being back has been hard.

I probably did this to myself because I predicted this would be the case before we left. The thing is, we were just getting into the swing of things here in Brazil and we left just as we were getting adjusted.  The kids were finally adapting to a new school and new way of doing things. There was talk of a few new friends and even a few play dates. I had started up a few things, one of them being Portuguese lessons. I guess it just feels daunting to start all over again. 

I was actually surprised by how much I missed being back in the U.S! We are excited about our new adventure out here but there was a tangible weight taken off my shoulders going home. At one point on the trip, Thais wanted to have lunch at school with all of her friends. We offered to pick up lunch for her and a friend and have them eat together at school. I set out to do this, along with a million other errands, and I relished the fact that everything was so darn EASY. The driving, ordering food in English, the minivan, the convenience. Just going to the kids school alone out here is really stressful. I have to call a taxi because the school  is about 40 minutes away (not ready to drive that yet) and somehow communicate with the cab driver in really, really bad Portuguese. The whole time I am in the cab there is this constant subconscious worry about my safety. It's more the São Paulo traffic than anything else, but I am always acutely aware that I am a new girl in a new country and I can't speak the language.

The other thing I missed are the American stores. I fully admit this is lame, but I may have gotten a little emotional walking through Walmart/Target/Costco and Trader Joes ;)  I just couldn't get over the surplus of choices. We can buy almost any genre of food and there are a hundred things to choose from. Thais has a cute friend here in our complex and she came over last night and she said to Thais excitedly, "You are Back! Now tell me EVERYTHING you bought at Target!" It is quite common to hear expats out here dreaming of roaming the isles of that beloved store!

I suppose I just have to remind myself that that is why I wanted to come... to change my focus a bit. I love the U.S. dearly but I knew I could learn some things from another culture. It's harder here in Brazil in a lot of ways but Brazilians are happier. Maybe I will write something sometime about why I think that is, but for now I think it's because "stuff" isn't the priority, people are. I miss the ease of being home, but I can already feel that my perspective on life/gratitude/people/blessings has changed for the better. 

So, while I am getting through the growing pains of being in a new country, I have to take comfort in the little things. 

Today, that comfort was my newly stocked pantry of American foods (I totally smuggle food in my suitcases)

I realize it doesn't look like much (it's actually rather bare looking) but you have no idea how grateful I am for some of these things... 

Even though it's 80 degrees outside, I decided to drink a Fall beverage and make some pumpkin cookies, so I could basically eat my sadness away. Who cares that my dryer takes 5 1/2 hours to dry anything and I am really missing my USA peeps! Pumpkin makes everything better!

Wish me luck on beginning the journey all over again. Tchau!

"People Who Love to Eat are Always the Best People" -Julia Child

I wouldn't be a true Monson if  there wasn't a blog or two about what we are eating around here. I have been very happy with Brazilian cuisine. There are many, many delicious restaurants in Sao Paulo and I have only been to a handful of them so there is much to taste and explore! 

Yesterday some friends took me to a Fiera (Farmers Market) and I was in heaven because it reminded me of the Eastern Market in Detroit. Below is a gorgeous array of peppers which is exciting because my friend and I made  fresh salsa. Salsa is really hard to find here and when you do, it's not exactly my favorite. It's all good though, because I am loving it fresh!

I already posted about how much I love the eggs here! I thought it was cute that they display them in nests.

Tomatoes galore! We eat these like candy!

I feel like this hunk of meat deserves a moment of silence. I am not a crazy meat lover (although I do like meat) but there is something about this picture that makes me want to grab the end and eat this baby cave-woman style!

 Variety is the spice of life! I want to know all of the tasty dishes you can make this many spice options!

It has been so much fun trying fruits we don't have in the States. So far my favorite is a fruit that looks like a large bumpy orange. It is quite heavenly!

 Sushi is really big here. No complaints about that!

 This guy is making fresh cane juice with lime aka Nectar of the Gods!

 These guys make a mean sandwich!

I have to say, one of the things I love most about good food is how it brings people together. Most of our traditions involve eating. For example, below are our General Conference cinnamon rolls. I told my kids we weren't going to have them this time around because my Bosch hasn't arrived yet in our shipment. Thais starting crying and said that we HAVE to have them because that would be breaking tradition. Luckily, my friend offered to make us some and the tradition was saved! You gotta love life's little pleasures :)

Tchau!

A Day in the Life of an Expat!

I have to give myself a pep talk before I attempt to drive here. I get sweaty just thinking about it. I would never boast being a good driver anyway, but here, you factor in the motorboys, the street signs all in Portuguese, the traffic, the potholes, safety issues and the general lack of driving rules and it is basically a recipe for disaster. Here is an example of what Sao Paulo traffic looks like:

The motorboys, as they call them here, are always weaving in and out of cars like mosquitoes and it scares me to death! There are no rules with them. I saw one drive in the opposite lane toward on coming traffic and he didn't even move as an oncoming car approached him. He simply moved to the side a bit and continued in the wrong lane to bypass all of the traffic that was built up in the correct one.

That being said, Gracie-girl had to go to the Dentist today. We said a prayer before we got in the car and I put the address in my trusty GPS and off we went. Apparently, I am too vocal about being scared to drive because at one point I caught Grace praying vocally that "Mommy would be safe and not scared!" She actually ended up praying three different times on our journey there and back. Bless her heart!

Everything went great at the dentist. I am actually convinced we have the most darling dentist in all of Brazil. The picture says it all!

The fun began when I stopped for gas after the appointment and realized that I must have dropped my credit card on the street. To make matters worse, my phone was running out of juice and I had to have enough for the GPS on the way home. I called the dentist office to make sure they didn't have it, and that used a lot of battery because they have to search the whole office for someone who speaks English and then I waited for them to search the office for the missing card. After confirming it wasn't there I quickly sent Jordan a text and told him to cancel the credit card and I would call him later to explain after I made it home.

That's when we got lost.

Sometimes the GPS wants me to turn crazy places that don't look safe and by avoiding them, I end up on quite the adventure. All I know is that after driving for a good 10 or 15 minutes I ended up driving right back where I began at the dentist office. I thought about getting out to walk the street and look for my darn credit card, but I felt it was a hopeless cause and I was worried my battery was quickly going to die before I made it home. So after a few more prayers that my phone wouldn't die and we wouldn't die I can thankfully say that we made it! One more Sao Paulo drive under my belt.

On a very happy side note, Jordan called me right when I got home to tell me about an amazing phone call he had received. A random Brazilian business owner called him at work, explaining that he had found a missing credit card on the side of the street. He saw that the credit card said JORDAN MONSON and he took it upon himself to google that name. Out of all the names he found, there was only one Jordan Monson working in GM Brazil. The man called GM headquarters here and asked for Jordan and that is how the two got in contact. Jordan is swinging by on his way home to pick up the card from this guy. I love when negative stereo-types get contradicted. All I have heard since I got here has been the lack of safety and I have built this fear that everyone on the street wants to steal from me. Don't me wrong, I know I have to be careful, but it does my heart some good to remember that kindness is everywhere!

I am loving my experience so far. Brazil has many beauties and most impressive so far are in the hearts if it's people!

Tchau, Tchau!

A little Blue and Mostly Yellow

Whenever I think about it, I try and have my kids tell me their happy and saddy (not quite sure the spelling of this invented word) events of  their day. I decided to color coordinate this post and talk about the Blues (sad things) and the Yellows (happy things) of our lives around here lately.

The Blues 
Skyler was beyond excited to inform us last Friday that a girl in his class gave Beta Fish as a surprise to all the kids who attended her party. We missed it, but he told us she was going to give him one anyway on Monday. All weekend we talked about this fish. Skyler even wrote a book about his fish that Thais illustrated for him and read to the entire family. They decided together to name this fish BLUE. They could hardly wait for Monday to come, so they could meet this highly anticipated new pet fish! Sure enough, Skyler came on Monday proudly carrying his fish and boy was he ever ready to take care of this thing. The problem is, Skyler + Pet Fish=Disaster. He fed the fist an all-you-can-eat buffet within minutes of owning this little guy. I caught him trying to hold it several times, and we told Skyler Blue was going to die if he kept touching it. Unfortunately, there are just some things kids have to learn for themselves. Our poor Blue lasted just one day in the Monson household. Sad :/

The other Blue around here happened to our poor Gracie. She was jumping on the bed and knocked her teeth! Her front teeth were pushed back pretty far and she got a pretty good lookin' fat lip. This tooth displacement has made her lisp even more evident and although it's adorable at four, we are hoping her teeth move back and we lose this lisp at some point. The good news is that apparently dentistry here in Brazil is top notch and I really love her dentist! So does Grace. They were instant friends :)

The Yellows

This is kind of random, but one thing I love around here are the eggs. I have always been told that darker colored egg yolks mean the egg is healthier. The only egg yolks I have eaten in the States are large and light yellow (even though I buy the brown healthier ones). Here the yolks are small and so dark they are deep orange. This picture shows the cheap large white eggs versus the brown ones here. Like I said, random! Makes me happy though.

The next happy are the kiddo's schools! I spent all day yesterday at the schools and I feel beyond grateful for the sense of community, and quality of education available here. First, I went to Skyler's assembly where he had a little speaking part. I visited his classroom after and took a picture of the girl Skyler is crushing on ( yes, a crush already!)


His face says it all! Mom you are embarrassing me! Oh Skylee, boy! Get used to it ;)

Skyler's teacher is the coolest! Quite often she will text us pictures of our kids throughout the day. Here is Skyler reading to his classmate.

After meeting with a few of Thaisy's teachers as well, I headed over to the little Montessori school to join Gracie girl for lunch. They actually allow Eli to come on an hourly basis when I need babysitting and he loves it too!

My last happy is an app called WhatsApp! Basically this app allows smart phone users to call or text anyone world wide for FREE! You are using the internet so when you are at home you use your Wi-fi and when you are out you use your data plan. I have LOVED talking to friends and family over the past week. It did my heart some good! It made me feel like I am not so far away ...

Tchau!