Spanish, it's gonna kill me

I sometimes despair that I'll EVER understand Spanish. Seeing the words written is so very different than hearing them spoken. My homework was to listen to a song online and fill in the missing blanks.

People, after an hour I had figured out TWO words. TWO WORDS! After an hour. *sigh*

Iff'n you'd like to give it a whirl, go right ahead and try. And don't tell me if you do a lot better than two words after an hour, 'kay?

I was much more successful with my sewing project. Yesterday I finished the matching mother/daughter aprons for my sister and her two little girls. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out, considering I didn't have a pattern and made it up as I went along. The hardest part was trying to shrink the pattern to fit the girls. (Have I mentioned math is not my strong suit?) But I think they are about the right size. Hope so anyway! I bought the fabric for these aprons over a year ago. Not setting any speed records, am I? But hey, at least they're done now. And going out in the mail as soon as I get an envelope!

While we're on the subject of sewing...we'd like to make some puppets but the website my co-worker thought would have the patterns charges big bucks. Anyone have a clue where we can get FREE or very inexpensive puppet patterns?

While I was happily cutting and sewing, and ripping out seams (did I just admit that?) and trying to do a little math, my hubby was installing the light fixtures in the living room and bath, running the gas line to the spot in the kitchen where we have a heater now, installing another outlet in the kitchen...AND he took time to make an amazing lunch! He whipped up a yummy asado and we thoroughly enjoyed eating on the back patio. The tomatoes and peppers are from our "garden" (i.e., plants along the wall). We're finding our favorite way to cook the readily available butternut squash is simply to roast or grill it. The sugars caramelize and make it so tasty!

Mondays are always pretty low key as we unwind from the weekend. Most people unwind on their weekends. For us, weekends are usually our busiest. 'Cause that's the best time to hang with people ☺

Week 14, Project 365

Something so satisfying about writing Week 14 ☺ I just love checking off another number and I'm sure many of you feel the same way!

Last Sunday afternoon the hubby and I spent a little time "just a swangin'" in our hammock. I took some pictures of us, our feet and the view from the hammock. This is the only one that made the cut. Even though our feet were clean, the tan lines from our sandals make 'em look dirty. I figured there's only so much I can expose y'all to before you quit coming back!
We're back to walking most mornings so I have a few shots from our paseos. First up is about two blocks over; I loved how these two very different houses sit side-by-side, one with its modern sensibilities and the other with it's classic lines. Aren't those garage doors great?!
We like interesting architectural details, like this undulating fence. We're starting a "scrapbook" of things we really like, so that if we're ever able to build a place of our own we'll have lots of ideas to work with. This next photo is dedicated to some friends of ours, whose last name is Chopp (hey, Chris & Amy!) and who we knew would get a kick out of this "Chopperia" ☺ A step up from a bar, it's basically a place to drink beer. Thursday they buried a former president of Argentina and flags were flying at half mast. This flag sits in a plaza in front of a nearby grocery store. The plane is a French-made Mirage and dates from the Guerra de las Malvinas I mentioned in Thursday's post.
Friday's trip into Cordoba yielded only four photos (too busy doing other stuff). One I shared yesterday. The hubby took this one while sitting and drinking coffee as I perused this fine establishment with all things household related. Reminded me a bit of Pier 1 Import but it had more furniture. They have a lovely tall, blue vase I'm not yet at the point where I want to buy things like that...it would be better to wait until I have a table to set it on ☺ Seven of my thirteen rose bushes are in bloom. I'm wondering if it's the last hurrah before winter. It was 55 when I woke up this morning! Brrrrr! I know some of y'all would love to have it that warm, but after 80s and 90s, 55 seems quite chilly. This photo shows the two bushes on either side of our front gate. I'm going to pick a couple of the buds to finish blooming inside so I can enjoy its beauty all day long and not just when I'm out in the yard. Just a final note...I'm sure most of you know that Sara's Aunt Mary Nelle passed away last Sunday. If you haven't had a chance to read Sara's Tribute, take time now. It's a beautiful testimony to the life of Mary Nelle Grusendorf...and Sara!

In the midst of all that's going on in her life, Sara has continued to graciously host Project 365. Thank you Sara!

To build or to buy? That was the question.

We traveled into Cordoba Friday for our monthly pilgrimage, although this time we didn't take such a long "to do" list. For one thing, the place where we'd been buying just about all our non-food items (cleaning, paper, personal care products) burned down recently and we haven't found comparable prices elsewhere yet. Meanwhile we're just buying locally on an as-needed basis, rather than in bulk.

The primary purpose of this trip was to look at furniture, seeing what's available and pricing different pieces. We spent three hours hitting a three block stretch filled with furniture stores. After you've been in a few, you've pretty much seen it all. But the reconnoissance proved helpful as we debated how much the hubby should build and what we'd be better off buying ready-made. Considering how ridiculous some of the prices are, the hubby's project list just got a LOT longer!

We did get some good design ideas, surreptitiously snapping photos of things we especially liked. Our favorite is arts & crafts (or mission) style with straight, clean lines and little or no ornamentation. Which is good, since that will be easier to build. The hubby brought tools but not for the fancy schmancy stuff. In addition to the things already on the list, he's going to build nightstands, end tables and a coffee table. Wish he could build a couch! After sitting on a good many VERY uncomfortable pieces of furniture that were quite expensive, we're sort of discouraged about what's available in the area of sofa beds. Maybe we'll find something we like better. No big hurry; we just need to have a couch that doubles as a bed by the end of the year when we're expecting a house full of company.

We did find two light fixtures (living room and bath) so that's exciting. No more dangling light bulbs! Plus we picked up a storage bin for potatoes, onions and other vegetables; it's got three wire "drawers" that slide out, and the piece fits perfectly under the kitchen sink. I love getting more ORGANIZED!

And we made the requisite stop at Walmart for tin foil, wax paper and peanut butter, a few of the things we just cannot buy locally. Gotta have my p.b. and banana sandwich periodically! What's your favorite peanut butter sandwich? Plain? With jelly? Banana? Something else?

Can you imagine life without peanut butter?! I'm so glad I don't have to ☺

History in the making

Today is another national holiday. This one is to honor those who served and died in a little conflict the rest of the world called the Falkland Crisis, but which is known here as the Guerra de las Malvinas (War of the Malvinas).

School children in Argentina are taught the Malvinas belong to their country; my hubby was an adult before he realized the population spoke English and flew the British flag on the Malvinas. His younger brother, with dual citizenship, almost fought in the Conflict (he was 19 when the war broke out).

It was truly a haunting experience listening to my hubby and his brothers sing patriotic Argentine songs during one of our family reunions. I imagine their feelings are a lot like ours when we hear The Star Spangled Banner or America The Beautiful. I remember goosebumps on my arms during a memorial event at the American Embassy in Uganda shortly after 9/11, when we stood to sing our national anthem. Doesn't matter if it's a Little League ballgame or a swearing in ceremony for new American citizens, there's something about our flag and the songs that convey how we feel about being part of one of the world's greatest democracies.


Today is also the day they buried Raúl Alfonsín, the first democratically elected president of Argentina after the Guerra de las Malvinas and fall of the military dictatorship. President from 1983 - 1989, he was booted out of office due primarily to hyper-inflation and a populace unhappy with how slow the wheels of justice were turning for those implicated in the "Dirty War" of the 1970s. But today was a day for remembering the positive things he accomplished and Argentines by the thousands descended on Buenos Aires. Probably good that it was already a national holiday because I think the funeral would have brought everything to a stand still anyway. I'm learning about Argentine history and, like our own, it's complicated and not as black and white as the textbooks try to make it. These holidays and events like the funeral help bring home what's important to this people, to this culture. The learning curve is immense when you move to another country, and we ex-pats can use all the help we can get! I'm an American and will always be a proud citizen of the U.S. but I can appreciate what my new country has to offer, and learning the history is the least I can do.