Our Multi-Cultural Weekend

Every year I book out time with my two favorite girls, 

while their parents take a weekend away.

There are some typical things that happen,

 like swinging,

 pancakes of some delicious variety,

quietly shared moments,

and antics
[including but not limited to alarms set for 2:30 am,
by a child who knows she is adored].

As the babes get older, I find myself having some time to myself,

reading as I listen to their play,

reflecting as they entertain themselves
[with my camera it would seem...],

even my own swing.

And then, to keep things interesting, this year we found ourselves in the midst of a multi-cultural experience.

First, there was dinner at The Greek,

 which this one needed a little talking into

 but in the end we all loved.

Then there was the drive through Amish country,

 in one-lane construction, behind a truck holding a load of manure.
[The smell of tar and manure combined is terrible, just so you know.  In Sarah's words, it smelt as if we were "inside of someone's pants!"....a culture none of us want to experience ever again.]

 Ultimately our Amish adventure left us with treats,

and a stop at a country store for lunch
exposed us to the culture of country living.

Then, we hit the Asian market,

 for a dumpling making extravaganza

involving lots of chopping,

 inanity,

challenge,

and reward.

There were other cultures explored,

 

stepping back in time,

 and through whatever culture introduced Monkey Bread to the world.

Sunday morning church consisted of
making the dough and watching it rise,

then--chopped into pieces--

we rolled it all up in buttery cinnamon goodness.

And though we researched but could not find the original culture of the Bread of the Monkey, I have my suspicions that we did not really need to look far:

Multi-cultural or no, 

I'll take any kind of weekend with these, 

my favorite monkeys.