Love, Life and Appreciation

Aquamarine exhibit at the National History Museum.

About three weeks ago Rex and I went to the National History Museum in Washington, DC. We had been to the museum in the past with my friend Carmen and her family and our kiddos over 4 months ago. It was actually Rex and the kids and I's the first time going. We have been to other museums in the DC mall area, more recently to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. I was very nice and inspiring in the museums but we usually have to rush the visit when with the kids, so when my parents took the children a few weekends ago, Rex and I decided to view more of the National History Museum. The children had a really great time with their grandparents in NJ and they went to the Adventure Aquarium in Camden, NJ. I would have put pictures in this post but my parents didn't take any.

It was so nice from what saw before. We went to the butterfly section and ocean section before. This time we saw more of the Earth and the minerals and gems. I didn't know the Hope diamond was there and I was determined to see it this time. I did and saw so much more. I really liked the gems and the meteorites were so amazing, including a large meteorite which made Meteor Crater in Arizona. I have a smaller piece of the meteor when my parents and I, saw the crater in AZ, over twenty years ago! I remember I was hyperventilating when I saw the crater, my mom thought it was a big hole in the ground.


Rex and I saw minerals and gems at the National History Museum. Here's just a look at a couple more:

A rainbow of minerals and gems.

Rainbow, cont.

The Hazen Diamond Necklace.

Cat's eye.

The Hope Diamond!

We'll take May and Nia to the museum again and so much more! Speaking of the space rock or meteorites, Rex, and the kiddos and I just completed a project for their daycare. The project is about the moon, as May and Nia are learning about space currently. Rex and I are so happy we found this daycare and it's a home daycare but our provider was previously a classroom teacher and is so understanding of our situation ever since we came over a year ago now. The curriculum is more like pre- K curriculum and May and Nia are getting such as great education.

Rex and I looking at kindergartens for May as she will be attending kindergarten next year. She is 4 and a half now, I just can't believe how fast she and Nia are growing, but she won't be 5 until December. Rex and I decided to enroll her next year for kindergarten for the Fall of next year, but we know we have to enroll her early next year. We might be moving too, closer to my job in White Marsh and it's actually not too far from our daycare provider as well. We will have to see though because I did just start working and it has been very informative and my teammates are very nice. Rex and I have some time though because though we have not faulted on paying the bills, we increased our debt more and we both would like to decrease that a bit before moving or something like that.

Sigh, with all that we all had a good time making the moon project this morning. I decided to do the phases of the moon from foil and Nia and May helped to crumble the foil, glue the pieces including the pompoms as galaxies and nebulas and cut the paper. Rex helped to draw the circles and cut the paper too and put on the glitter. I think it turned out good and it was nice to flex our creative muscles. I remember making projects with my father. He would really go all out for the projects. I know there will be plenty of projects for the kids in the future and I'm sure one of them will have lights and holographics.

Our finished project 😀 :

I'm back with another installment of the 30 Things series. It's getting more. Hehe. Here we go!

8. What are 5 passions you have?



1. Family

I have been family oriented ever since I was younger. I have been so blessed to have positive role models in my family. My parents, my grandparents, my uncles, and aunts and cousins, and so much more. My husband is so caring and my children are so curious and cheerful. Many of my friends are family.  I am truly blessed even though I live in another state from my relatives and friends, we all still have strong bonds that can never be broken and I am so thankful for that.



2. My husband and children

I can't thank God enough for the life I have been given and meeting Rex so randomly and having everything fit so well into place. We have two gorgeous children share a some of our personality traits and are so themselves. Seeing them grow into beautiful women, later though, it all makes me want to cry. I am passionate to work hard for them and Rex and to be the best mother and wife I can be. I want my children to learn and to continue to learn and I am very passionate about education.



3. Learning

Life is full of lessons and mistakes are sure to be made, but learning from those mistakes is really what is key to a successful future. There is only so much that can be learned in a day but in a lifetime we must keep our eyes and ears open. I love to learn and stay current with the latest trends in tech and the world. I remember being in my social sciences class in middle school and my teacher was shocked when we said that no one reads the newspaper. "Don't you want to know what goes on in the world?" she proclaimed. From there I said, "Yes" and I follow the topics and try not to get lost in some topics but one topic I will never stray from is science. My father got me into science and that has lead me to, my Masters in Science and far beyond in articles and presentations. I also am passionate about history and knowing that learning help to sustain us in the future.


4.  Earth Science and the World itself

I squeal every time I see a rainbow and I think about all the mechanisms of how the rainbow occurs just at the right moment with just the right conditions. It's truly amazing the World we live in and to think we are the 3rd rock from the Sun, spinning in the galaxy with billions upon billions of stars. The weather, water, mountains, trees, plants and so many more, are so beautiful and though at times the weather can be quite destructive, the beauty that is nature is outstanding and I am passionate about preserving it and educating others. We have to protect the World we live in, so that future generations can actually breathe on this planet and actually see the beauty in which God has given us.


5. Helping Others

The above picture is last year when I competed in a dragon boat race with my team at AOL. I'm 2 spots in front of the person in blue. We were raising money for the Catholic Charities. I will have to write a blog post about that event. It was so much fun and training for it was intense but it was for such a great cause and giving back is a big passion of mine. I try to help others in many different ways from just being an ear, to providing advice, to mentoring, to teaching how to read and work the computers, to monetary donations and food donations. I know that many people are struggling and even a smile can lighten the mood for at least a second. I try to pay it forward and I hope to engage in more events and give back until the day I am no longer on this Earth. 

Potato Leave (Grain) Stew with Fried Chicken

Ah, it's Labor Day and we all had off for today. I actually am happy to have off for today. I started my new role as an Informatics Specialist at Mosaic Community Services about a week ago and there is so much with information overload, but I am happy to be doing something I really enjoy to help others, and I have employment after 8+ months unemployed. The kids are doing well and Rex and I let them sleep in. They are learning a lot from A Kid's Agenda, our daycare provider. Our daycare provider is so amazing and nourishing and heartwarming. We have been taking the kids there for over a year now and May is writing her letters and Nia is learning more complex shapes. Rex will be starting school on the 6th, he has two more years and then he'll be graduating with his certification as an electrician. He is doing well with side projects as well and Rex even fixed the light and ceiling in my parent's kitchen. He and my father went to Home Depot a few weeks ago and it didn't take them more than 30 minutes to complete the project. The ceiling was falling apart and had been that way for some time now.

Just yesterday we actually went to NJ for a BBQ with my maternal side of the family. The BBQ was held at my uncle Ernie's house and it was so nice to see the family and have a good time. The trip was about an hour and 40 minutes from the home in Maryland and the drive to and from NJ was not too bad at all.

Seeing family is wonderful and one day I really hope we can see in person Rex's mother and brothers and sisters back in Liberia. It is so great with technology that now we can see them with cameras on phones. We talk through Facebook Messenger and we smile so widely. Rex hasn't been to Liberia since he first came to the United States in 2006. I love learning about the culture from Rex and he also makes cultural dishes. I'm starting to cook more of the dishes as well as cook more homemade meals. We love salmon.

Today, since we were all together at the home and because it's somewhat of a holiday, we decided to make a popular Liberian and West African dish, Potato Leave (Grain) Stew with Fried Chicken. The dish is primarily potato leaves and can be made with meats like chicken, turkey and also fish. We made the stew with fried chicken and I documented the whole process. I'm going to include more cultural dishes to the blog as well as other cultural topics. The result of the stew is so delicious. It is also very warming and filling. Here's the recipe with pictures:

Ingredients
4 packs of potato leaves (grain)
3 onions, chopped
1 to 4 Maggi Seasonings packets 
2 packs of chicken, legs, and breasts 
2.5 Cups of vegetable oil
1 tablespoon of salt
1/2 tablespoon of pepper
1/2 ground pepper flakes
1 tablespoon of Ms. Dash
1 8oz can of tomato paste
1/2 of water
2 cups jasmine rice

*Note: 
The potato leaves (grain) can be found at an International Store. 
2 green or red hot peppers, chopped, can be used for making the dish spicier. Add the peppers with the onions and before the water and tomato paste.

Yield: 6
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cook Time: 40 minutes

Before cooking, wash all potato leaves, chicken, onions, and rice.

Season chicken evenly with 1/2 of salt, pepper and Ms. Dash and in a big pot add 1 1/2 cups of oil. Place on medium-high heat to fry the chicken.

While the pot is warming, line up the potato leaves and cut off stems, leaving the leaves.

Cut the leaves into finely chopped portions, repeat for all the potato grains from the packs.

Save the chopped potato leaves in a separate bowl.

You might need a second hand for this, place the raw chicken in the pot with the oil and start frying. Turn the chicken occasionally to prevent burning.

The chicken should be crispy. Save the fried chicken in a separate bowl.

When the potato leaves have been chopped and the chicken has been fried. Add a 1/2 of the salt along with the onions and 1 to 4 Maggi seasonings (depending on how much seasoning you wish) to the chopped leaves.

Maggi seasoning.

Add 1 cup of the oil to the chopped potato leaves and add the grains to the oil.

Add the ground pepper flakes to the stew and stir and cover the pot.

Cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the tomato paste, and water to the pot and the fried chicken. Stir occasionally, and cover the pot. Cook the potato leave stew for 35 minutes.

When the stew is finished, the green will be soft and the chicken pieces will fall off.

While the stew is cooking, boil jasmine rice in water and serve stew on a bed of jasmine rice. Enjoy!

• Stable, not a temp job and one that I can work in for many years
• Friendly co-workers
• Volunteer opportunities
• Training and career advancement opportunities, flexibility 
• Able to utilize skills and voice
• Great benefits for myself and the family
• Non-micro management, freedom
• Work from home option, or nice looking office with windows and temperature control
• Up to do with current technologies or at least moving toward them
• Not too stressful, I can outstretch my arms and breathe 😀