We were going to post a Miscellany Monday post.  And then I realized it's already Wednesday.

+ Alan had a four-day weekend, and we spent part of it at a chapel retreat in Waxahachie.  The topic was "Guard Your Heart" and focused on the Proverbs 4 passage.  Not only did we learn more about the passage and its application to our lives, but we really enjoyed spending time together as a family (or partially together--most of the time, the boys wanted to spend time with their friends from youth group) and fellowshipping with friends from the Soldiers' Hospitality House.  There would have been photos, but phone reception was horrible, so our phones were constantly drained.

+ Aside from the regular chores the boys may choose to do to earn money, C mowed a neighbor's lawn with Alan's help.  The neighbor paid him 50 percent more than what he asked.

+ Following the retreat's topic, the youth group leader is running a session this week on anti-bullying and guarding yourself.  He apparently served in protective services during his Army career, and is leading self-defense with a spiritual perspective.

great britain is reassembling the empire + there's actually water in texas

Who wants eslaamboli polow?  Or, better yet, who wants to  pronounce it?

Yesterday, the Soldiers' Hospitality House hosted a "Taste of Nations" in honor of the opening ceremony for the 2012 Olympics.  Families signed up to bring dishes from different nations.

We took eslaamboli polow (chelow), an Iranian lamb and rice dish.  (Didn't see that one coming, did you?)  I couldn't form a nice tadiq, or crust, on my rice--mainly because I forgot making rice is a +2 hour process--so it was sadly not totally authentic.  Oh well.  Lamb makes the world a better place.

And so does my husband.  He made rice in a South American pot after I told him about my tadiq-less rice.  I have no idea why I did not know about this pot earlier, because yesterday was the first time I had crispy rice since 2007.

Anyway.

The food and fellowship were a blessing.  As was seeing London on television.  We had the opportunity to try food from Norway, Indonesia, Peru, Japan, Korea, Greece and a few other countries.  While representatives from various branches of the armed services raised the Union Jack, one of the soldiers at the house joked, "Your stripes are upside down!"

Unfortunately, we (at least Alan and I) were tired by the end of the night, so we only stayed long enough for me to watch the South Korean team enter, and then it was time to head home for prayers, summing up the day and bed.

We explored the neighborhood this afternoon--or rather, we explored what's behind the neighborhood.  There's a small stream bed with lots of fossils nearby, so we took Chipmunk and Ophelia and I charged the battery for the Nikon, all ready to take the first photos of summer with something other than my phone.

And then I realized that I left the battery at home.

So, I carried around an expensive necklace and took photos with my phone.  We also picked up some interesting fossils, some of which I plan to ship home to my dad.

more savings, a workshop and an early birthday

We made another trip to Target yesterday!  We picked up two Milky Way bars with a $.75 off coupon.  I also picked up another cami--originally $8 and on sale for $5, it cost me $2 with a $3 off coupon.  The boys each got a pack of gum--I had a buy one, get one free coupon and the peach mango variety was on clearance.  We also picked up another trial-sized tube of Aquafresh, which was free (plus some overage) after a $1 off coupon--we gave it to the Soldiers' Hospitality House.

While the boys attended the chapel youth group, I went to a "Peace of Mind" workshop at the Soldiers' Hospitality House.  Elizabeth covered 72-hour emergency kits to keep in the event of a natural disaster or anything else that might stall normal life (like having to evacuate) for up to 72 hours.  It was interesting, considering that my family is prepared for a major crisis, but that I haven't given much thought to a shorter event.

Alan made dinner last night (potato parmesan soup) and picked up the boys while I was at the workshop.  Youth group ran late and Alan said everyone seemed enthralled (okay, not his exact words) during the extra half hour--they discussed the Aurora tragedy and how it is part of God's plan--so I had enough time for a quick run when I returned home.

We also celebrated C's "other" birthday--since he won't be celebrating his actual birthday in Texas with us, we gave him a cookie cake (and he had a burger from Five Guys for dinner) and some gifts last night.  Gifts are his secondary love language, and Alan and I are trying to learn to speak it better.