Ecotourism - 2/2

After spending an hour among the pine nuts seeds, we continued the exploration of the area...

 on the way, Ghadi learned the most common tricks we used to play when we were kids!!!

 blowing in a rolled leaf,

blowing away dandelions, 

 even detaching flower's petals (no, not yet the -she loves me, she loves me not- trick)

 then we tried to catch the amazing huge white butterflies

 and to top it all, we picked some lemons! 

 look at that proud smile!

the trail ended by the river side again... a beautiful wooden deck bridge connected both banks...

Ghadi hesitated before he accepted to cross the river..flying... trying for the first time the zip-line!

and he enjoyed it so much that he did it twice!

 a well deserved break!

 meanwhile...

 Jamil was doing his best to prevent Sary from jumping IN water!

 he was extremely excited and we spent about an hour just laying there...

  satisfaction!

and pure happiness in the beautiful nature! 

Ecotourism - 1/2

"Ecovillage" is a place where one can practice ecotourism at its best.

wooden cabins installed on pine trees, educational activities, swimming in the river and eating a healthy organic meal, is among the many activities offered in this unique project at Chouf area. 

the setting is amazing, the founder of this village greeted us and in no time we felt like at home 

the day kicked off, by introducing the concept of solar energy...

then after a short rest a very funny old man took us in a promenade between lemon trees and organic herbs, explaining and naming the different plants and the useful uses of each and how to recognize them!

Sary was not fine...at first he was like this

then mostly like that:

 I am not sure what was exactly wrong, 

but it seems the spring is bringing more than blossoms and butterflies...

for Sary, every spring would announce the stimulation of his "atopic march" symptoms.

this allergic manifestation dates back to when he was infant, the typical sequence included eczema, asthma, and now it's progressing to skin inflammation and food allergy.

now, back to our journey!

we reached the river side and boys were thrilled!

it was still cold so we didn't have the guts to let them hit the water,

but we had great joy by throwing pebbles, discovering a baby frog, and watching the tiny truite fishes! 

 

then off we took the trail leading us to the tiny little farm.

 

 

 

Ghadi was so excited to see the chicken, the rooster and those little eggs!

the chicken were not as excited as we were, they were panicked and I don't blame them!

 then we stumbled upon a pile of pine nuts that were already peeled..

but boys decided they'd try to search for leftovers! 

 we'll post about the rest of this amazing day tomorrow! stay tuned  ;)

"Date a girl who reads"

I stumbled upon a text posted by a cool blogger who writes about books...her blog is called "Book Lovers Book Club", the text/essay she posted is written by a Filipino author Rosemarie Urquico, and there's a nice story behind it, you can follow it here if your are interested...
but I really couldn't let that text pass by without  pasting it here, hoping that it would be read some day by my boys...
and then they'd remember me... because the author is talking about me...literally...
well, it's about any girl... who reads! (I told you, me, ME!)

"Date a girl who reads. 
Date a girl who spends her money on books instead of clothes. She has problems with closet space because she has too many books. Date a girl who has a list of books she wants to read, who has had a library card since she was twelve.

Find a girl who reads. You’ll know that she does because she will always have an unread book in her bag. She’s the one lovingly looking over the shelves in the bookstore, the one who quietly cries out when she finds the book she wants. You see the weird chick sniffing the pages of an old book in a second hand book shop? That’s the reader. They can never resist smelling the pages, especially when they are yellow.

She’s the girl reading while waiting in that coffee shop down the street. If you take a peek at her mug, the non-dairy creamer is floating on top because she’s kind of engrossed already. Lost in a world of the author’s making. Sit down. She might give you a glare, as most girls who read do not like to be interrupted. Ask her if she likes the book.

Buy her another cup of coffee.
Let her know what you really think of Murakami. See if she got through the first chapter of Fellowship. Understand that if she says she understood James Joyce’s Ulysses she’s just saying that to sound intelligent. Ask her if she loves Alice or she would like to be Alice.

It’s easy to date a girl who reads. Give her books for her birthday, for Christmas and for anniversaries. Give her the gift of words, in poetry, in song. Give her Neruda, Pound, Sexton, Cummings. Let her know that you understand that words are love. Understand that she knows the difference between books and reality but by god, she’s going to try to make her life a little like her favorite book. It will never be your fault if she does.

She has to give it a shot somehow.

Lie to her. If she understands syntax, she will understand your need to lie. Behind words are other things: motivation, value, nuance, dialogue. It will not be the end of the world.

Fail her. Because a girl who reads knows that failure always leads up to the climax. Because girls who understand that all things will come to end. That you can always write a sequel. That you can begin again and again and still be the hero. That life is meant to have a villain or two.

Why be frightened of everything that you are not? Girls who read understand that people, like characters, develop. Except in the Twilight series.

If you find a girl who reads, keep her close. When you find her up at 2 AM clutching a book to her chest and weeping, make her a cup of tea and hold her. You may lose her for a couple of hours but she will always come back to you. She’ll talk as if the characters in the book are real, because for a while, they always are. You will propose on a hot air balloon. Or during a rock concert. Or very casually next time she’s sick. Over Skype.

You will smile so hard you will wonder why your heart hasn’t burst and bled out all over your chest yet. You will write the story of your lives, have kids with strange names and even stranger tastes. She will introduce your children to the Cat in the Hat and Aslan, maybe in the same day. You will walk the winters of your old age together and she will recite Keats under her breath while you shake the snow off your boots.

Date a girl who reads because you deserve it. You deserve a girl who can give you the most colorful life imaginable. If you can only give her monotony, and stale hours and half-baked proposals, then you’re better off alone. If you want the world and the worlds beyond it, date a girl who reads.

Or better yet, date a girl who writes."

– Rosemarie Urquico –

Photo credit

Don't stop the Music!

Ghadi keeps bluffing me with his questions & comments and requests!
but still I can't deny the fact that 5.5 years old boys rock, you know why?
because simply they are so keen to please everybody around them!
no rebellious acts,
no nerves-teasing destructive plans,
no misunderstandings,
no aggressive answers..

Ghadi even surrenders to any punishment gracefully, and admits it when he commits mistakes!

this is now what keeps my sanity safe when I encounter those non-stop tantrums of my 2.2 years old Sary!
he wants milk, you don't jump on the spot to prepare his bottle? he throws himself on the ground, crying out loud, hitting his foot on the floor so intensely that neighbors living at ground floor can hear them. (we live on 4th floor by the way!)
preparing his bottle, you forget to give him the cap so HE closes the bottle when u finish adding the milk? yes, throwing, crying, hitting floor
you give him the bottle and lead him to his bed, the pillow is not in place? or you changed the cover? ok, you can imagine the third tantrum in a row within 5 minutes...
and don't yo worry, i'm not taking any pills to keep myself from breaking into pieces when this scene repeats often during the weekend...

My reaction to his tantrums is simple application to all the stuff i learned and read about this type of toddler expressions... sometimes I smile , other times I walk away, I even hug him (causing myself severe bumps when he kicks me away, and I'm telling you, this boy will is able to hurt me for real if I didn't pay attention to his reactions! he kicks with his head, with his fists, with his tiny-powerful-feet)..

But to be fair, he was having acute conditions lately, from skin eczema to food allergy, severe constipation, throat infection, mild fever... All this together and he can't even express or figure out what's happening with him! this is why I'm being patient with him and I'm trying to absorb his frustration...as much as I can!

back to Ghadi,
this almost 6 years old boy, is controlling my car radio, whenever he rides the car with me, he switches between stations broadcasting the mainstream music and refuses to put children songs!
So I decided to arrange a custom-made CD for him including the favorite songs from Movies soundtracks!
here is the list:

*Collision Of Worlds from Cars2
*Hot Wings from  RIO
*I like to move it from Madagascar3
*_this one cracks me up_: Axel F from Monsters Vs Aliens
(they adores that scene when the president plays this music on his keyboard!)
*and finally I'm telling the world also from Rio!

since I got the CD,  the boys didn't stop dancing and rocking at home, and it's a great substitute for watching TV!
couple hours before bedtime...and pouf! they sleep like babies! (insert here that evil laugh of mine!)
ah, but the downside is that I could never resist staying away so I join and I jump and dance,
and it happens that sometimes I hit the bed before THEY do!

Today Ghadi asked me to add other songs
I was more than delighted and asked him which songs he would like me to add
so he said that he has no idea, but I should add the songs I know he'd like!
a Typical male-thinking-attitude!
OK!
I'm a supermom, and supermoms always come up with something!

What's the best part in a Veggie Soup? - according to Ghadi

During the last 2 weeks, Ghadi had school vacation and he had to stay home since my mom was also away, visiting my siblings abroad...
staying home means having to come up with new activities every day and doing more effort to ensure he's having good times during his free time, and it also means, preparing his daily meal. (which is mom's mission during school days!)
so couple days ago I made vegetables soup, kids usually eat it at mom's...
so Ghadi was eating when he suddenly asked me:
- mom it seems u didn't eat enough vegetables when you were a kid?
I was kind of offended and said: of course I did, why do you think I didn't?
and he replied in his soft convinced tone: because you are too soft mommy!
- ???
- look at your skin and your hands, very soft...unlike you, dad must have been eating lots of fruits when he was a kid... you always say that this stuff gives us the vitamins to grow and build a good body!
I sighed...
 Then I had to introduce human physiology and explain the anatomical differences between men and women... and sometimes, while explaining such stuff, you don't really know when to stop, what is the limit that his brains can handle, is it right or wrong to go through details...and say terms...
after a while, he didn't seem convinced though...
- so all moms have soft hands?
- ....I suppose so...
-...hmm... and mom why didn't you put meat in our vegetable soup?
still surprised by the shift in his questions I answered without thinking:
- because this is "Vegetables Soup!"
- but teta (grandma) adds meatballs when she makes this soup
(now more surprised):
- really? but it is supposed to be only vegetables, that's why it's called veggie soup!
- u know mom? ... well, the best part about vegetables soup, is meatballs...

waw... thank you Ghadi for enlightening me...
so the next time you make a vegetable soup for your kids, think MEATBALLS!