brownies and STUFF...

I'm sitting right now watching River play in a rubbermaid bin filled with water. It's amazing just what little will amuse these little guys. His nanny also "made" him one of the favorite local toys. Basically, you just bang this old curtain rod (or whatever you can find for that matter) against this dried out palm frond that's tied to a tree. It makes for minutes (hey, he's two!) of excitement. With both boys sick with colds today, I'll take those precious minutes of joy. This toy is yet another reminder of how little the majority of the people live with down here. Most of them have never even been out of their little villages. They are still very happy people. I couldn't believe what our housekeeper said when I asked her to bring her 7 year old son to work with her one day to play with Ryder. She said, "Il es negra. Es bueno?" and pointed to her skin. She was basically asking if Ryder would mind if her son Michael was brown. I told her that we didn't see color and to please bring him. She said he was ecstatic all week because he really wanted to play one of Ryder's different video gaming systems. He'd never played one which is very different from most 7 year olds in the States. It makes you realize just how blessed we are, but that there has to be a happy medium. The lesson for today: You don't need so much crap! A couple of "stuff" that I'm not willing to live without for much longer is the Siracha Rooster Sauce. (I wonder what Lizano and Rooster sauce mixed together would taste like?!) Our good friends will be the first visitors to the Putnam compound on Wednesday and I've requested a bottle. Along with some rag mags (guilty pleasure) and maybe a tv??? Dad, are you listening? :) We need one for Ryder's room, since Chris' got completely smashed on the trek down here. Apparently, you have to handle your own carry on baggage with care. We, on the other hand, had a two year old who probably walked on the bag or something. You never know with the "raging River"! So happy to have good friends coming to visit on Chris' birthday! We are going to try to catch an American flick before we pick them up in Managua. Yay~ American movies and just plain old Americans! And chef Ryder and I made Ghiradelli brownies for dessert. We have also migrated to listening to our favorite Hawaiian songs cd and Daddy just walked in the door from a surf. More good news: Ryder starts school tomorrow. Good STUFF!