And a side of carbon monoxide with that?....

It has only taken me 10 months of living in Vietnam, but I finally had my first experience of eating street food....on the street! This is usually a no-no for foreigners who do not have stomachs of steel, like myself, and are just asking for a parasite or food poisoning. Since I would like to have neither, I had strictly avoided eating any food from the street cooks. Our plan tonight was to go out  to dinner with our friends Steve and Ivan and then go to a donut shop. As we were walking down the street to dinner Steve suddenly stopped and asked which table we should sit at. What!!??? I only agreed because Ivan swore it was safe and tasty food. The food was delicious...still unsure on the safety part. We'll see how the next 24 hours go...

Crossing the street to look at shops while waiting for our food. I'm letting the lady in purple cut through the traffic and following her lead...

Street vendors coming up to our table to sell their goods.

Trying to barricade the boys in using chairs.

Dessert. Not bad but no Parsons Bakery in Bountiful. I can't wait for a fresh apple fritter from Parsons when I get home :)

These boys are happy with anything chocolate...

Fighting off cabin fever....

The temperatures are changing here in Vietnam and it is getting HOT again. It's the in-between time of year...the few months after the cooler weather but before the rainy season begins, it's just hot. This makes going to the park and being outdoor a little unbearable. To cure our cabin fever I have started taking the boys to the pool at least once a week. Why has this not been a part of our weekly routine since moving over to Vietnam?...it's pretty much a  pool in our backyard right? Because my boys have just recently reached the age and heights where watching them in the pool area by myself is manageable. Before this time, Drey was so scared to let go of me in the water and of course I had to hold Enzo as well. To say the least, one of my favorite past times was no longer enjoyable. Therefore, we have been avoiding any pool time until recently. Today was our pool day!

The kiddie pool.

The other pool...I don't get to spend much time here.

This boy loves the water...

This boy is working on his relationship with the water...he has trust issues.

Enzo has no problem climbing in and out of the pool on his own. I really have to keep a close watch on him .

Someone's too cool for the camera...

Snack time! This usually happens about 2 minutes after we arrive at the pool.

Prefers to eat his granola bar in the sun...

HAS to eat his granola bar in the shade.

Finally comfortable walking around and venturing on his own in the water.

There's not much to do in the pool so the boys have discovered throwing dead flowers from the garden is pretty fun.  (The gold urn to the left  is for the resident's Buddhist ancestor worship. They burn incense and papers. Apparently there was a  problem with people doing this in their home and having open fires.)

Practicing his breathing and kicks. 

Only one thing missing from a nice morning at the pool....TROY!

This is what I love about Sundays...

Today I heard a church talk given in English, two prayers spoken in Korean, one prayer in Cambodian, and a testimony in Vietnamese....all in the same branch, I loved it. The mission President of Cambodia, Pres. Moon, presides over Vietnam and was visiting today for missionary transfers. Earlier in the week we had invited the 6 missionaries serving in Saigon to come over for lunch after church. This morning they called to let us know that the meal for 6 would now be for 9 adding the two AP's and one new sister transferred here.

Elder Tai (in the red tie) is from NYC and will be returning home in July. He just got transferred to Cambodia to finish out his mission. He loves enchiladas so I made him enchiladas for his last meal with us. Elder Liem is from Cambodia. We're still trying to figure out where the cute little boy between them came from.

The Elder's table.

The Sister's table

This is Elder Tai and Sister Lam's (pink shirt) last Sunday in Saigon before leaving for Cambodia. It was so nice to have them in our home. Elder Tai gave a spiritual thought on the Lord's timing and Sister Lam shared a few thoughts. While Sister Lam was sharing her thoughts in Vietnamese, Elder Huynh was translating for me in English while Elder Liem was translating for Elder Khanh (AP in red tie) in Cambodian. To close, Elder Gibson (AP or the only white Elder....haha) gave the closing prayer in Cambodian. I strongly believe in the gift of tongues :)  

The Elders leaving our house after lunch...three white shirts on bicycles.

The other three Elders going in the opposite direction back to church. Since the AP's don't have bikes, one Elder had to double up and get a ride on the back. This may look weird, but it is very common in Vietnam to get around with someone on the back of your bike. However, it's not very easy.

The mission field is awesome and I would dare say the best part of living in Vietnam.

Can somebody please clue me in?

What is the trick to making rice krispy treats with M&M's? I'm not sure why this four ingredient recipe is so difficult, but it has proven to be beyond my cooking skills. Is there a secret to the timing with the marshmallow and butter melting before adding the cereal? Did I add the M&M's too soon? I'm at a complete loss as to why this normally simple, delicious treat always goes wrong with me. 

I decided to make this treat for some friends that came over tonight to interview Troy about being a foreigner living in Vietnam, it was their class project. Troy can vouch for me that in my cooking world, looks is as much a part of the meal as taste. Many a time I have thrown away jello salads, cakes, and other dishes if they did not look right. Thank goodness our guests were unaware of how a true, correct, rice krispy treat with M&M's should look. In Utah, this treat would not be making it to any social gatherings, only Drey & Enzo's tummies. Which... P.S. while Drey was eating his square tonight he stops and says "mom I found a bone in mine" and walks over to the table to put a piece of burnt marshmallow crisp on the kitchen table. I literally had to give a small warning to our guests before serving them....beware of bones in your rice krispy treats! 

I have failed homemaking 101 today.

some sad looking rice krispy treats....with Christmas M&M's  :)

Does serving them on a silver platter help?

the unfortunate partakers of the treats