Diego Rivera, Taters and The Daily Abi-ism!

I found a new snack that Abi actually enjoys!
Homemade Potato rounds and our variation of a Tzatziki dip...

Potato Rounds
slice thin-med thin circles and fry them in a bit of oil. We use about 4 potatoes and like to toss them in salt, pepper, paprika and chilli powder as they cook. Flip them often. Use a wok.

Dip
Roughly 2-3 cups of plain yogurt. We buy 4 litre tubs of the stuff so we always have it on hand.
A couple handfuls of fresh cilantro.
Sea salt and ground pepper to taste.
4 cloves of garlic
squeeze a few drops of lemon juice into it

Blend and serve! Abi is a big fan and all the garlic keeps the colds away...

-----
I tire of telling people I'm no longer vegan and then hearing them exclaim "Oh good! It's not healthy for you!" or, my favourite: "Vegan food is gross anyway!"

Veganism done right is totally healthy for you, just make sure to take B12 supplements. And vegan food is like any other cuisine, there are good dishes and bad, but a talented chef can make anything taste decadent, vegan food is no exception! We still eat mostly vegan food now. I loathe meat and have just been eating seafood, but the majority of our protein comes from beans. I'm not big on dairy, however this trimester of my pregnancy I've been chowing down. See 4 lt. yogurt above ;) Most of our baking is vegan.

Anyways, after I'm finished gestating I'll most likely return to veganism, but I doubt I'll tell anyone. Too many opinions.
~~~~~~~~
Since Gabo has returned to school we've had to come up with cost effective ways of saving $. Some of the helpful tips I've found are as follows:
-always buy lemons, vinegar and baking soda in bulk and constantly have them on hand. We don't purchase any cleaning products because of this and lemon water is so great for a nice complexion.
-shop wholesale and buy in bulk. Large amounts of produce can be chopped up and frozen to use in stir frys and smoothies or to make applesauce and pies. Just doing this alone cut our grocery bill in half, we have a rule that we don't go to save on or planet organic anymore (we still frequent the farmer's market, how could we not?), and as a result we eat just as well for half the cost!
-cut up pieces of old flannel make excellent cleaning rags and cloths.
-we make our own detergent, or buy biodegradable recycled soap flakes.
-make your own baby wipes! buy some recycled paper towel, cut in half and moisten, dribble a couple drops of tea tree and eucalyptus oil over top and place in ziploc bag. Viola!
-make your own shampoo bars out of Ivy and tea tree oil. I've given a few bars away as gifts and have gotten great feedback. Smells nice too. In the summer you can find your own Ivy in the river valley.
-cook everything from scratch (when you can). Certainly not time effective, but if you plan ahead you don't really notice the extra labour. So much cheaper and better for your body. Homemade bread and pasta taste divine. I don't understand why anyone would want to eat canned soup when you can easily prepare your own. Cooking from scratch doesn't require a lot of skill either. I started by following recipes but soon got the knack of it and now just make my own. We eat delicious, healthy, home baked goods every day. Home made granola bars taste so much better. Abi calls packaged goods like cookies and such: junk.

Speaking of whom, he is absolutely besotted with Diego Rivera. We don't have any books specifically on Diego, however we do have a few on Frida Kahlo and Mexican history. Abishai has memorized which pages contain Diego art work and flips through them each morning. We've taught him what 'revolution' means, although he has limited understanding, but he does make an impressive left fist arched proud in the air.

Yesterday evening he was flipping through his anatomy encyclopedia...
"Mama, where'd the stinky tunnel go?"

"Umm...stinky tunnel?"

flipping furiously through pages:
"I found it! Stinky tunnel!"
points to a picture of the human intestinal tract. hahaha!

And this morning:
"Mama, people's hurt Abi?"
"Mama is here, and I'll keep you safe."
"Mama sad?"
"Oh Abi, Mama is SO happy because I'm with you!"
"Mama happy. Abi keep Mama safe. People hurt Mama no more."

<3. I love love LOVE that kid.