Kristi Brausch

I remember out first week here in Nicaragua.  It was so hot.  I remember thinking we were crazy to have moved to a place so hot.  But after that first week it wasn’t so bad.  I think it had cooled down a little, but really we had adjusted to our new climate.

It’s amazing, a few weeks ago it was 77F. degrees and I felt cold.  Where as I remember a year ago in Costa Rica dying of heat at 78F. degrees.  Our bodies amaze me.

I have to say though, it was really hot today (95F.).   We moved here in November so we haven’t been here for the summer yet.  I hope we continue to acclimate as well as we’ve done so far.

Yesterday James and I watched the last episode of Battle Star Galactica (if you haven’t seen it stop reading.  I spoil the ending.)

For those that don’t know the story I’ll do a quick recap.  Four years ago there was a big war between the machines and the humans.  The planet was no longer inhabitable so the remaining 50,000 people went in search for another planet to live.  While they also continued to run from the machines (the Cylons) and would have battles.  Last season the Cylons and humans came to an agreement and joined the search for a new home.  Anyway, in this last episode they found a planet.  It had a few tribal people on it, but for the most part was empty.  But it was full of animals, plants and beauty.

They decided not to set up any government or large cities.  Instead, the remaining 30,000+ people spread out over the globe.  Left to do whatever they wanted, live alone, live with others.  But there was this huge world open and free for them to explore.  A “clean slate” they called it.

They brought all of their supplies with them but they flew their ships and technology into the sun.  Everything was now…..simple.

As I watched the end of the episode I found myself being jealous of them.  There are so many rules and governments and restrictions now-a-days there really isn’t anywhere you can go that is truly free anymore.   Maybe one day….

A little over a month ago our landlord brought over a bicycle, (it was actually on my birthday that he brought it over.)  just out of the blue.

I had been wanting a bicycle so it worked out great.

We live on a hill, not a really steep hill, but steep enough that I couldn’t ride my bike all the way up it.

But for about the last week I’ve been able to make it all the way up the hill.  It’s pretty exciting.

Yesterday the boys wanted rides on the bike.  So I put them in the basket on the front of the bike and one at a time took them for a ride.  I had already come up the hill twice before I gave them rides making it four times up the hill for the day.  When I was done my legs felt a little like jello but I was so proud of myself.  After resting for a few minutes I was fine.  I expecting to feel sore for a few days.  But I’m not sore at all.

I’m totally a stud!

I commented to James as we were walking home from preschool with the boys, “it’s nice to have little boys now instead of little babies.”

My boys are so great!   They feed them selves.  Only one is still in diapers…Peter’s not far off from being potty trained though. They go to preschool.  They’re getting so big.

I’m loving this phase!

Kristi

About a year and a half ago I was diagnosed with endometriosis.  It was only in my c-section scar but when I had my period my scar hurt like I had just had surgery all over again.  I did a treatment for six months that helped while I was on it.  But all the hormone changes led to carpel tunnel so I had to stop the treatment and the endometriosis flared up again.

I am now able to start that treatment again at a lower dose.  This month my scar was a little tender but that’s it!  My carpel tunnel is doing fine too!  I’m so excited!

For my birthday I got a pair of wide-leg yoga capris from Old Navy.  I have to say they are now my favorite pair of shorts!!  They are so comfortable (as I’m sure you could have guessed by the name) but they also look really nice.  A BONUS…they are slimming!  I would buy 5 more pairs but they’re sold out (go figure).  Anyway, I just had to write about these fabulous shorts and how much I love them

Last night we had some friends over for a game night.  Their 13 year old daughter came with them.  While we were playing games she was reading a book and I looked over at what book she was reading and it was “Sideways Stories from Wayside School”.  Oh the memories.  That was the first “big” book I read when I was a kid (more than 20 pages was big for me back then.  I think the book has about 130 pages.)

It was fun to remember when I read that book.  Amy, my older sister had given me the book.  I remember when she gave it to me we read together in her room that night.  She was reading one of Jack Wayland’s books.

I remember reading it at night in bed.  I shared a room with Jennifer, my younger sister.  I remember reading out loud to her the chapter entitled “Jennifer” or maybe it was “Jenny”. Anyway the girl came to school on a Saturday in that chapter.  A great book.

Good times!

When we first moved to Nicaragua (we live on the beach) I agreed to come here because James LOVES the beach and the ocean.  He’s always wanted to live at the beach.  I grew up in Utah swimming in lakes.  I hated the ocean; all the sand, the icky salt water and I always got REALLY sunburned.  When we would vacation to the beach we would be dirty the whole trip and the hotel would be filled with sand and I just hated it….anyway, you get the idea.

When we first got here it was a big ordeal to go to the beach.  I’d put the boys in swim diapers, swim trunks, and swim shirts.  Then I’d have to get a bag of toys, my camera, hats etc.

But now after living here for awhile I love it!  I think it’s because I chilled out about getting everything just right.  The boys usually swim in the ocean in a t-shirt and a pair of underware.  Yesterday we were taking a walk near the beach and the boys wanted to play in the ocean so I said, “why not?” and they got in the water in their clothes, shoes and all.  We had so much fun.  I just hosed the sand off when we got home.

It sounds silly, but I was proud of myself for not making a big deal of it, for just having fun!  It was great to “let my hair down”.

Today was our 5th wedding anniversary.  It’s weird sometimes to think back on the last five years, it feels like such a short time, but a long time all at once.  Thinking about who I am now and who I was before I married James…it’s hard to express, but it feels like I’ve lived more in the last five years then I have for the other 22 years of my life.

I’ve become so much of a better person being married to this wonderful man.  I am at a lose for words to express how grateful I am to him for…everything.

Today was a wonderful day.  We hung out with the kids during the day.  At 4:00 our friends came over to watch the kids for us while we went out for the rest of the night.   We went to a nice nearby hotel.  We started out swimming in the pool and lounging in the chairs drinking juice and sodas.  Today was a very nostalgic day.  With it being our anniversary I thought back on the last few years and even thought back to when I was a little girl.  It was very enjoyable.

After swimming we ate dinner in the hotel’s five star restaurant.  The food was amazing.  It reminded me of some of the nice restaurants we went to in Park City Utah.  When we were done eating we went to play with the spider monkeys that they have there.  It was fun.  In some ways it reminds me of playing with the kids…except that the monkeys don’t talk, and they cuddle a little bit more.

When we got home our friends were putting our kids to bed and had cleaned the house.  It was so nice.

I have to say, it was a great day!!!

In every family there’s the thing about being the favorite or not.  I thought about that a little when I was a kid and wondered if parents really did have favorites.  I think now being a mom I have the answer to that…at least a little.

I think there are moments when you look at one of your kids and think, “at this very moment you are my favorite”.  I remember thinking back on my childhood and I know a few moments when I was my mom’s favorite or my dad’s favorite or when it was one of my siblings.

Today I had moments with both of my boys when I thought “at this moment you are my favorite”.  I had some time alone with each of them while the other was taking a nap.  Jimmy was so cute and polite and just funny and wanted to be with me.  Peter was my little teddy bear and thought I was the greatest.  He also was just being so cute and fun.

It’s days like this that I truly love being a mom!

As I’m sure most of you can imagine a 3 year old and a 2 year old can be quite a handful.  James has been so great helping me with the boys!  He takes them for walks, takes them to the park and gets them ice cream.  Last week he even gave me some money and told me to go shopping and have lunch all by myself.  It was really nice.  I love my children, but it’s nice to have a break from time to time.

Thank you so much James!  I love you more and more.

There’s a little place in town that we go to often and have pitas and salads.  The last time we went we brought home a little cup of their greek dressing, it’s really good.  Then James said “Greek dressing has to be pretty easy, I should look up a recipe and make some.”

So the next day James came back from the store with a bunch of stuff and made greek dressing.  It was so good!  It was even better then the one from the restaurant!

We ate salad all day long.  My little toddlers even had two salads and asked for a third.

The last two weeks Jimmy has been such a little stinker about taking naps.  It’s been making me crazy!

When as I was laying in bed last night I remembered my sister telling me what she did when her son stopped taking naps.  She started playing one of those read-along CDs that came with one of his books and he started taking naps again.

So today I got on iTunes and sure enough there were a few audiobooks for kids.  So I downloaded a few keeping my fingers crossed.

When nap time came I tried to be more laid back about him going down for a nap.  I didn’t want to stress about it any more.  Then I talked up the stories he was going to listen to.  For about 5-10 minutes he screamed and cried….but then he happily played with his toys for 20-30 minutes then………fell asleep.  Hallelujah!!

Two hours later when he woke up he was my happy little Jimmy again!!  It was so great!!

I’ve been feeling really “BLAH” lately.  I just don’t even want to do anything.  I think it’s mostly from hormones.  I had a miscarriage about two weeks ago.  I was only about two weeks pregnant so it really wasn’t that big of a deal.  But miscarriages just mess up your hormones for a month or two making most people depressed (most people I know anyway).

I think I’m also a little overwhelmed with all the newness of moving to a new place.  It’s a great place but still a lot to take in.

I haven’t sent out my weekly update for two weeks now and every time I think about doing it I think “oh man, I’ve got two weeks to write about, I’ll do it later”.  Maybe I’ll just skip two more weeks and make it a whole month .

Also, the boys have been a BIG HANDFUL lately!  It’s mostly because Jimmy thinks he doesn’t need naps anymore and just really fights me about it.  But then if he doesn’t get a nap he is so CRANKY!  Then the crankiness rubs off on the rest of us.

…and I really miss my Mommy!

Kristi

PS I fell a little better getting that off my chest

This last week my Dad and his wife Robin were down here visiting us.  It was so nice.  I never thought anyone would ever come down here for a visit.  It was so cool to have them come!

We met them in Costa Rica and went ziplining near the Arenal Volcano.  Then we tried to see the volcano errupting at night but it was too cloudy.  It was actually really cloudy, cold and rainy for Costa Rica.

Then we came up to Nicaragua and spent a few days hangin’ out and some time on the beach too!

The boys were in heaven!  They got a bunch of early Christmas gifts and loved all of the attention.

I really enjoyed having family here!  I just wish they could have stayed longer.  Hopefully we can get together again soon!

I’d had my camera out taking a few pictures and Jimmy wanted to take a picture of me.  I think he did a really good job.  It’s a little close, but I like it.

We recently moved to Nicaragua and like most Central American countries there’s a park at the center of town.

Whenever we go to the park there’s always lots of children there.  The kids always include my two little boys in their play.  I am so happy my boys have other children to play with!!

Until now wherever we’ve lived there have been very few if any children for my boys to play with.  Because of it Jimmy was really “behind” socially.

For the first few days we were here he would not play with the other kids and would make ugly faces at them if they tried.  But thankfully the kids kept on trying and now Jimmy loves to play with the other kids at the park.

I can’t even begin to express how happy I am that my kids have a lot of nice, friendly children to play with.  It’s so great!!

Isn’t it interesting the things we remember from our childhood? I was taking the boys for a walk a few days ago and bought them each an apple that they ate as we walked the rest of the way home. I was thinking “will they remember this? Will this be one of the few things they remember from childhood?”

Then I thought back to my own childhood and remembered a similar moment with my Mom.

My Mom and I went for a walk to Bell’s, a convenience store about a mile from our house. I was about 4 or 5 because my older siblings were still at school. We both got a soda.  About half way home there was a curb that was shaded by a few trees. There we sat and drank our sodas. I had a can of grape Crush. Every time I walk or drive past that spot I remember “that’s where me and Mom would drink grape sodas”. She may have only done that once or twice..I’m really not sure. But it has always stayed with me. Whenever I have a grape soda I think of my Mom.

Love you Mom…and I miss you!

Kristi

We’ve recently discovered the amazing world of chia seeds.  It’s loaded with fiber, omega-3 and a bunch of other vitamins.

You can also make pudding with it.  Yesterday I made some pudding that tastes just like tapioca pudding.  It’s so yummy!  I had three serving today.

(I must confess that  I didn’t measure as I made it but here’s a close guess as to how much I used.)

4 cups of milk (fresh, raw milk if you can get it)
1/8 tsp. vanilla
2 tbsp.  stevia powder
10 tbsp. chia seeds (you can adjust for thicker or thinner pudding)

Stir well and put in fridge for 10-20 minutes.  Stir again and enjoy.  (It’s even better if you let it set over night)

FYI It looks best with white chia seeds.  It tastes the same with black seeds, but it looks better with the white ones.

-Kristi

PS There’s a bunch of places on the internet where you can order chia seeds in 5 pound bags.

We are so spoiled here in Costa Rica.  The temperature stays around 74 degrees most of the year. If it ever gets up to 78-80 we’re dying of heat.

A few days ago we had one of those days where it rains ALL day so it gets a little cold. That night I put a sweat shirt on to go to bed. When I looked at my clock on my bed side table it said that it was only 70 degrees! I am such a wienie!!

My kids have dropped that clock a few times…so I doubt it’s accuracy. That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.

-Kristi

Before we got healthy and started losing weight I wore a 44 DDD. I wore that size not because it was the correct size but because it was the biggest you could get at most stores. I would buy a sports bra and a regular bra and wear them both to “rein me in” as my sisters and I would say.

Back in April I was able to buy my first Victoria’s Secret bra. (Their biggest cup size is DD). So I got a 40 DD and was so excited!

I recently had to get a new bra which is now a 38 D!

It’s so nice to have my boobs getting smaller along with my waist!

Since we’ve been eating healthy my cravings have changed.  I still get the occasional craving for chocolate or potato chips, but not very often any more.

A few days ago I was looking around the house for something to have for dinner and nothing looked very good.  I suddenly thought how great some broccoli and cauliflower sounded.  So I sent James to the store to get me some.

The next day I was at the little store around the corner from us and I saw a beautiful cucumber and my mouth started watering.  When I got to the house I looked to see if we had all the stuff to make some hummus.  To my excitement we did!!  So after the kids were in bed I scarfed down my cucumbers and hummus.  Oh heaven!

-Kristi

Here’s the recipes:

Yummy Trees (that’s what my boys call it.)

1 head of broccoli
1 head of cauliflower
1/2 cup cream cheese
1 tsp or 1 clove of garlic
Optional 2 cups of grated cheese (Cheddar, Gouda, and Parmesan are my favorites but any cheese works fine.)

Break off the pieces of broccoli and cauliflower into a 9×13 pan.  Stir garlic into cream cheese and drop spoon-fulls of the cream cheese over broccoli and cauliflower. If you’re adding cheese sprinkle over top as well.  Bake on warm (about 150-200 degrees) for 10 minutes.  Pull out and stir.  Put in for another 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted.  Salt and Pepper to taste.

Hummus

2 c. chick pea sprouts (a.k.a. garbanzo beans) sprouted overnight
(I must admit I used canned.)
Juice of 1 lemon or lime (I prefer lime)
3 T. fresh orange juice
1 clove garlic
3 T. raw tahini

Optional seasonings: ground cumin, spike or sea salt to taste, chives, paprika, cayenne pepper (I used chili powder, ground cumin, salt and pepper.)

Blend all of the ingredients. Add water to thin to desired consistency.

I eat it with cucumber slices but you can use other veggies too.

I just had a cool experience.

I had ordered a pair of pants and they just came in.  I ordered them from a new place, so I wasn’t sure how their sizes run.

When I opened the package I held up the pants and though, “oh man, there’s no way those will fit.  I guess I’ll have to order a bigger size next time.”  But I thought I’d try them on anyway.

They were a little snug but they fit a lot better then I ever thought they would.

It made me excited to know I can fit into pants “that small”

Since April of last year I’ve lost 70 pounds!!  I’ve got 20 more pounds to hit my final goal!

At the grocery store I regularly go to there is a bag boy the has a crush on me.  At first I thought it was just a coincidence that he was usually the one to bag my groceries and seemed almost excited when he saw me.  I thought I just was being silly.

But today I had an experince that I would have given anything for when I was 19.

I walked into the store and got a basket and as I was walking to the produce section I saw this boy (I should stop calling him a boy, he’s probably 20 or something, but when you’re a mom that feels like a boy, anyway.) His face lit up and we exchanged pleasentries, hola, como esta etc. and I kept on walking.

After a few minutes I see him coming towards me, I smiled and was about to continue grabbing peaches when he came up to me and asked me my name.  I told him my name is Kristi.  And he continued to ask where I live and where I’m from.  Then he asked if I was a student here.  I told him that I’m living here with my husband and kids in San Rafael.  (He seemed slightly deflated by the word husband.  I could tell this conversation was taking all of his courage.)  He asked one other question (can’t think of what at the moment) and we walked off to do whatever it was we had been doing.

Another few minutes pass and I see him coming back and he asks me what my name was again. I told him, then asked him what his name is.  He said Roy.  (Now we don’t have to call him the bag boy any more. ) I said something like nice to meet you.  Then he says “I think you’re beautiful, I’m crazy about you.”  Just after he said that I was beautiful I said thank you at the same moment he said that last part so it took me a full thirty second to register what he said.  By that time I was walking on to the spinich.

I’m sure by this moment my face was bright red, it felt like it anyway.  I was so flustered, and suddenly felt a little guilty for being kind and friendly with him all the other times at the store.  The culture between men and women is different here.  I was probably leading him on by being nice to him the way I was.  (Which would be normal in the States.)

I felt bad because I know that he’s been working up to say what he said for a long time.  And I can only amagine what a let down that was.  Sorry Roy, if you’d said that to me 6 years ago I might have given you my number.

This feels so weird to be happening to me now that I’m married.  I wanted moments like this all though my teenage years and it happens now that I’m married…in the produce section of all places.

-Kristi