Chicago

We got to stay the weekend in Chicago, so after all the animals were fed, cleaned, watered and exercised, we decided to take advantage of it! Taking the metro was a first in the U.S. for both of us, but we managed it. It was about a 35 minute ride to the central of downtown. We got off and walked up onto the street and were greeted by an amazing view of the tall buildings and city lights. 

"Cloud Gate" sculpture in Millenium park, nicknamed "The Bean"

There were so many people and cars, honking, talking, and yelling. There were so many sights, sounds and smells it was a little overwhelming. We headed East to Millenium Park. I was determined to see "The Bean", because I've heard so much about it. It was amazing!

Jess hugging the bean.

The night skyline of Chicago reflected perfectly in the 110 ton stainless steel sculpture. We had some strange urges to just hug this giant thing...so we did. Going under it was crazy too, there were so many reflections of us big and small.

It was huge!

We also went to the 94th floor of the John Hancock building. The view was incredible, you could see lights for miles and miles. After finding our way back down, we stopped into a busy brewery for some hand crafted ales. We ended the night on a fun and safe note by actually finding our way back to the metro and jumping on the one that took us to our vehicle.

Chicago skyline seen from the John Hancock building.

Overall it was a blast! We were really surprised by how friendly everyone was. We were told about this, that although Chicago was a huge city, it was also still a Midwestern city, with Midwestern values. Anyone we casually asked for directions was overly helpful and went out of their way to show us the way. The friendly people, the exciting atmosphere and the beautiful sights made for an amazing night!

First Week!

Ellie the coatimundi, when she's being sweet.

Well we survived our first week! We ended up teaching 11 shows at 10 different schools in 3 different states (Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois), and reaching 2,610 different children, all in one week! We did a lot of driving, and a lot of loading and unloading the animals every morning and night and for each show. It got tiring and traffic was frustrating at times, but each time we got into a school, and got up there in front of all those smiling little faces, our buckets were completely filled again.

Maki loves peaches!

Here are some of my favorite things the teachers said:

• "This was incredible, I saw some children smiling today that I haven't seen smile in a long, long time."
• "Kids did you hear they went to college for this? You can go to college for anything, not just to be a doctor or a teacher. But you have to do really good in school and you might  get to do something as cool as what these girls are doing."
• "What do we say every day before class? Learn something new, be kind to one another, and have a great day. I think we all learned something new and awesome enough for a month!"
• "Thank you so much for telling the kids to get outside as much as possible, most of these kids never get outside, and they really needed to hear that."
• "I want everyone to thank these two young women for getting out there following their dreams and doing their part to save the planet."

Irwin the Blue-Tongued Skink

Here are some of my favorite things the kids said:

•  When told to "Get outside as much as you possibly can, because it's so good for you" One kindergartner said "Ya, especially if there's a fire in the house!!"
• One girl came up and asked "What was the first snake in the world?"
• When they started getting really loud, we said "We have to have you guys quiet down, because you might scare Pickles", everyone said "We're sorry Pickles!!"
• When asked what's something they think of when we say rain forest one little boy said "Soggy trees!"
  
  
  

  

  Pickles the Gold and Blue Macaw

  Overall it's been an amazing first week. We noticed some pretty apparent trends too. For example, the more urban the area was where we were teaching, the more frightened and skittish the children were by most of the animals, especially the "scary, creepy" ones like Carl the tarantula, Herbie the red tail boa and the Madagascar hissing cockroaches. In fact a few girls even said "gross get it away" when we brought cute little Maki (baby ring tail lemur) near them. This was interesting to us to see how little experience they've had with animals and nature in general, and how disconnected they seemed to be. Those are the schools we really love to go to, to show kids what nature has to offer. I really hope out of all the children we reached, we made a small difference in even a couple of their lives.
  
  

  

  Ellie loves a good belly rub.

First Show!

My sister Bailey got to meet "Maki" the lemur before saying goodbye. 

Our first show was in a little town called Russelville, Arkansas. We spoke to a crowd of 200 children. For our first run through, it went really well! We took turns handling and speaking about each animal. We also spoke at the beginning and end about what a rainforest is and all the awesome things we get from it. The excitement on the kids faces as we brought out one amazing animal after another was contagious. An hour breezed by without us even realizing it because we were having so much fun sharing with the kids. It is hard to  believe this is actually a job, because it already feels like I get more out of it than I give.

Our crazy gypsy van!

After a two hour drive to the next town, a good break down conversation of what we can improve on, and an awkward encounter with a flirtatious semi-truck driver, we arrived in Huntsville, Arkansas for our next show. 

A beautiful hi-way in Arkansas.

The path to Huntsville was on a winding, steep hi-way that passed through thick forests and beautiful open valleys dotted with log cabins and livestock. We were both pleasantly surprised that Arkansas was such a beautiful place. Our program in Huntsville was for 450 children from kindergarten through 2nd grade.  Everyone there was so helpful and kind. Jess and I both smiled when we heard our first "ya'll". The second show went just as smooth and we were more confident. Of course Ellie the coatimundi decided to knock the bucket of fruit loops onto the floor, but the kids got a good laugh out of that.

Maki making a friend in the mirror.

 We headed to Westphalia, MO to find a hotel for our show tomorrow. And after getting all the animals watered, fed and clean cages, we are finally relaxing.  Of course our definition of relaxing is probably a little different than a week ago. We're watching a movie as Pickles the macaw sits on his perch, Maki  the lemur chirps at us and Ellie the coatimundi grooms our hair. I think I can get used to this :)

Ellie the coatimundi helping me style my hair. 

The Ultimate Adventure Begins

All it was was a phone call. And then everything changed. I checked my voicemail and it was from my old professor at UNL. He said that Wildlife Encounters is looking for a traveling environmental educator and he thought of me. I knew Wildlife Encounters, I've worked with them before bringing them to our Wildlife Club for meetings and even our big banquet. They are a non profit organization that owns exotic animals used for educational purposes. I called Stacie from Wildlife Encounters to inquire about the position, almost to entertain myself. I have a job right now that lasts until December, and I didn't want to think about all the complications of applying for a different one.

However Stacie was thrilled to hear from me. The person who had this position had a family sickness and had to leave abruptly with short notice, so she was desperately trying to fill someone. She said that she has known me for years, she knows I would be amazing at this, and if I wanted the job it would be mine. I couldn't believe it! So I asked her details about where, when and how long the position would be for. She said it starts in two weeks, and it lasts until the end of May/beginning of June. Oh and about the "where" and the "what"? Here it is: Me, a lemur, a parrot, a  burmese python and a coatimundi all together in a van traveling up and down the east coast doing different educational programs at schools all along the way.

I was in shock, and told her that sounded amazing and I needed to get back to her with my answer. Of course I called me boss, who was amazing and told me he wants whats best for me, it sounded perfect for me, and when I come back in June I can continue working for him. I called my mom and dad and tried to keep my cool as I explained the opportunity. I felt like I had just won the lottery, like I finally caught my lucky break. Everything I'm passionate about just signed itself up as job that placed itself in my lap; environmental education, animals, traveling. I called Stacie back quickly and accepted the offer. My first program is in Arkansas and I leave Sunday January 22.

Here is an exerpt from the Wildlife Encounters website of the program I will be offering to children all over the east coast:

Wonders of the Rainforest

"See the Rainforest spring to life as our national touring Wild Encounters wildlife show presents “Wonders of the Rainforest.” 

Explore rainforest habitats and the plants, animals, and people that live in these ecosystems.  Learn what products come from the rainforest, why rainforests are considered the lifeblood of the planet and the factors that threaten their survival and what people can do to protect the rainforests around the world.  Discuss the relationship of rainforests to climate control and global warming.  Identify ways to use rainforest products without destroying the habitat.

Wild Encounters will showcase live animals and products from the rainforests around the world and talk about their survival, natural history, geography, natural behaviors, and conservation education."

And now meet my new travel buddies for the next four months!

A lemur, which live in Madagascar

An albino burmese python

A coatimundi

A macaw

So...that's my big news! I can finally fulfill my childhood  dream of being a traveling gypsy accompanied with exotic animals! I can't describe how excited I am. Yes, yes, I will miss Ben and Kingston and my family back home. But I will see them again before we all know it. Until then I will be heading east with a van full of creatures from the rain forest and a mission to educate today's youth about the wonders of the natural world. 

I will be updating my blog at least weekly. I'm sure I will have a lot of funny stories about trying to keep a lemur from jumping on the hotel beds and all the other excitement that will entail. I can't wait!

Wildlife Encounters website:

http://www.wildlifeencounters.org/

A Taste of African

 African cuisine, or more specifically Ethiopian cuisine is one of my favorite foods. There is an African Restaurant here in Lincoln, NE that is a must try for those of you who have never experienced African, and is a must go for those of you who have and love it.

Roy, the owner of The African Restaurant in Lincoln,  NE.
 Photo from his website: www.letseat.at/africanfood

However after many visits to this wonderful restaurant I decided to venture out and try to make it on my own with the help of my like-minded buddy Rachel :)

The most difficult part I anticipated would be making the injera, which is the bland spongy flatbread that you put the stews and vegetables on. Injera also acts as the dining utensils, as in this cuisine you tear off pieces and grab the food with it, instead of using a fork. 

The most amazing part of Ethiopian: The spices! Not only do they add a kick to the dish, they add a beautiful earthy color as well. These are all the spices the recipe calls for mixed together. 

We decided to cook a venison stew in spicy berbere sauce. The original recipe calls for beef, but venison was a wonderful subsitute. Here is that recipe:

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/beef-stew-spicy-berbere-sauce-10000001157813/

Spicy Venison Berbere Stew

Ingredients
2 medium onions, quartered lengthwise
1/4 cup butter
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

1 tablespoon each ground paprika and cayenne
1 teaspoon each ground cumin 
1/2 teaspoon each ground turmeric, cinnamon and cardamom
14 teaspoon each ground cloves and allspice
1 can crushed tomatoes in puree
1/4 cup dry red wine
2 1/2 pounds boned venison cut into small pieces
Salt

Preparation 

1.In a food processor, pulse onions until very finely diced (almost pureed)

This is the caramelized onions after adding the spices. 

2. Melt butter in 4 to 5 quart pan over medium high heat. Add onions and stir until browned, about 10 minutes..
3. Add all the spices ( I measured and put them all in a cup first, then threw them all in). Stir until fragrant, about 1 minute.
4. Add tomatoes, wine and venison. Bring to a simmer then cover and reduce heat. Let simmer for two hours, stirring occasionally. 
5. Add salt to taste.

Here the stew is simmering. I wish you could add smells to a blog, because the aromas were amazing. 

 Now I hope you noticed that this simmers for two hours, which is a perfect amount of time for you to get started on the injera and spicy vegetable side. For the vegetable side dish we chose spicy potatoes, cabbage and carrots. This dish takes your familiar potato and carrot dish, flips it on its head and gives it that bold but mild East African kick that makes you think you've never truly had potatoes or carrots before. Plus it's easy!

Here is the recipe we used: http://localfoods.about.com/od/sidedishes/r/potcabcarrot.htm

Spicy Potatoes, Cabbage and Carrots


Ingredients


2-4 Tablespoons of butter
1 onion, chopped
6 cloves of smashed or minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 head of savoy cabbage or 1/2 head of green cabbage cored and chopped
3 potatoes peeled and diced
3 carrots peeled and diced

Preparation:


1. Melt butter in a large frying pan or medium pot over medium high heat. Add onions garlic and salt. Cook for 3 minutes until soft, stirring frequently.


2. Add all the spices, stir for 1 minute. Add cabbage and stir, then cover and reduce heat to medium low. Cook the cabbage until it wilts, 5-10 minutes.


3. Add potatoes, carrots and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to a simmer.Cook until vegetables are tender. If there is too much liquid, cook with the cover off to reduce liquid. 


 Lastly, we fried up the injera. Here is where we had our trials, errors and lessons learned. When making something so out of the ordinary and out of your culture, there's bound to be something that doesn't go exactly to plan. But we learned, adapted and came out with delicious injera!

Injera is an Ethiopian staple that is cooked weekly and eaten daily in most East African households. It is made from teff flour and water, which is allowed to ferment for several days. This fermentation gives the injera a mildly sour taste, and gives the spongy texture to the flatbread. 

Injera is traditionally cooked on a large black clay plate. Photo from wikipedia commons. 

We decided to make the traditional injera with 100% teff flour. Here is the recipe:

http://www.food.com/recipe/authentic-injera-aka-ethiopian-flat-bread-96980 

It simply calls for teff flour and water, then fermenting it for 3 days. However after doing this and frying it up, the smell was terrible, and the taste was probably similar to what your dog leaves behind in the yard for you to pick up. It didn't look that great either...

Injera gone wrong...

So we continued in a different direction, with a recipe more like this: 

http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/bread/recipe-injera.html

This recipe only used a 1:4 ratio of teff flour to white flour. For a quick rise we put it in a bowl with about 2 tsps of yeast and let it sit for 30 minutes.

Injera

Ingredients

1/4 cup teff flour

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1 cup water

pinch of salt

vegetable oil

The trick to injera is to pour the batter on a hot oiled pan, and wait for it to cook all the way through without flipping it. You will know it's done when you see many bubbles and it looks cooked. 

  After a couple of hours of chopping, stirring, simmering and frying, we had a beautiful plate of boldly tasting Ethiopian food. The venison was so soft you could cut it with a fork, the sauce tasted as intoxicating as it smelled, the spicy vegetables melted in your mouth and the bland tasting injera held everything together perfectly. The best part was it tasted 99% like the food we had at the restaurant! I'm excited to cook this again, maybe for my family? We'll see if they are ready for it :) Thanks for reading, and remember, no cuisine is ever too out of reach to try in your own kitchen!

Life Lessons I've Learned From My Dog

A year ago tomorrow, my best buddy Kingston was born. And since then he has made my life richer and happier in so many ways. This past year has been filled with memories, adventures, travels and of course many games of fetch. These are the lessons Kingston has taught me along the way.

Happy birthday buddy, I love you.

Whenever you see your loved ones wag your tail

Dogs don't battle their pride every day before they let us know how they feel. I admire that so much. Whether it's been 5 days or 5 minutes since Kingston has last seen me, his whole body wiggles and wags with excitement, which is a prelude to a lot of puppy kisses. It warms my heart and teaches me how important it is to tell our loved ones how much they mean to us. When is the last time I showed that much excitement just to see someone I loved?

Be grateful for all the treats in life

Whether it’s a chew bone, a  belly rub or a walk around the block, Kingston never takes a thing for granted, and is quick to show me how thankful and happy he is. How often in life do I expect something instead of show gratitude for it? It's so easy to take the tiniest things for granted, I'm so glad I have Kingston here to teach me to enjoy the simple things in life.

When making friends, judge them not on their appearance but their character

Being an only dog, Kingston loves making friends! Whether we're at the dog park, a lake or traveling, Kingston will get so excited at the sight of another dog, or in his eyes, another potential playmate. He doesn't distinguish the dog's size, color or appearance before deciding to engage in a game of chase.

You are alive! Be excited about that!

Kingston's enthusiasm for life is contagious, and when I see him so energetic and happy, I can't help but let it warm my heart. How often have I been upset or sad over the little petty things in life? Compared to people all around the world with real problems, I have it great. My reminder for this comes in a little black and furry package with a smile on his face every day :)

Always cuddle and kiss good mornings, good nights, hellos and goodbyes

Besides sticks, bones, squirrels and leaves, Kingston's favorite thing in the world would  probably be cuddles. I don't think there is a better medicine in the world than a sweet gentle puppy cuddling up to you. I am so grateful for that.

Be a loyal friend

Kingston is my best friend. He knows when I'm happy and shares my excitement for every day. He knows when I'm sad and I need a kiss or a laugh at his silly antics. We go everywhere together, step by step,  and we try to make the best out of everything. He is the best side kick I've ever had, and such a loyal companion.  My life is so much richer for having him in it.

It's ok to make mistakes

Don't get me wrong, Kingston is far from perfect. As a puppy and now an almost grown Lab-German Shepard mix, his energy and mischievousness know no bounds. He loves to sneak behind my back in the kitchen to see what tasty treats are in the garbage. And he would sooner jump up to reach your level then sit calmly for you when you get home. But he has learned a lot in the past year, one of which is it isn't the end of the world if you make a mess or forget a rule. We all make mistakes, its what we learn from them that counts.

Forgive easily, and love unconditionally

It's astounding how easily dogs will forgive you. Whether you had to scold them, or you had to leave them in the kennel all day, the minute they see you again they have already forgiven, forgotten and are ready to love you unconditionally. How long do I hold grudges? Are they worth it?

Turn every day into an adventure

Kingston came into the perfect family for this atitude. We love going on adventures, and now with this crazy dog in our life, our adventures are so much more fun.  No matter where you are, there is always something to be discovered. You just have to sniff every tree, run through all the bushes and toss a few rocks :)

Take time to play outside

I've always been an outdoors woman, but having Kingston has enriched that so much. It's a thrill to watch him pounce through a meadow in search of the next smell, little animal or leaf that is around the corner. His excitement just to be outside is contagious, and he takes in everything through all his senses. He's the best side kick an outdoors person can have.

Don't bite off more than you can chew

Kingston, like most dogs, has an affinity for sticks. But sometimes he gets a little cocky and chooses logs, or even "sticks" that are still attached to trees. I usually have to inform him that that is not yet a stick, but a branch. He's still working on this one.

Don't take yourself too seriously

If you want a cure to being uptight, rigid and serious all the time, get a dog. They teach you to let loose and have some fun once in awhile, (or in Kingston's case, most of the time).  Kingston could probably never be bored, he is always coming up with games to entertain himself. For example, one morning I was awakened by him jumping in the bed and tossing around in the covers. He kept pouncing on something and tossing it in the air, then diving in the covers and finding it again. I was annoyed that I was woken up so early on my day off, and was about to get angry with him. I looked to see what was so exciting that he couldn't wait to show me until I woke up: It was a dry kidney bean.  I broke down in laughter, and with such a funny and quirky start had an amazing day :) What if we all laughed a little more and argued a little less? What kind of world would that be?

Take time to listen to people

It warms my heart how much Kingston really tries to understand us when we talk to him. He cocks his head from one side to another in an effort to decode the garbled English language, even though he doesn't understand. How hard to I try to listen to people that I actually understand? 

Don't let being different hold you back

Kingston was the runt of nine puppies, and was born with a broken tail. We later discovered that he had some type of neurological condition that wouldn't let him separate his two front legs when he trots or runs, so instead he hops. We thought that he would grow out of it, but yet here he is one year old and still hopping like a machine. Yet he doesn't let this disability hold him back at all, in fact I've never seen a dog run faster than him at the dog park. Differences are only abnormal in a perception. Kingston gets along great, even though he does a lot of things differently. I was afraid of him drowning if he couldn't separate his legs to swim. But not only does he still swim with his disability, swimming is his favorite thing! He doesn't let anything keep him from enjoying his life, and has more character because of this. This is why we love him. 

Pumpkin Bliss

I'll admit, since graduating from college I've felt like your typical 20 something year old trying to go head on with the world and tackle its problems one by one. I really do pity action heroes; the need to save the world is a tough feeling. So most days I try and take joy in the simple things in my life that are making it so happy and meaningful; drinking coffee with Ben in the morning before we go off to work, waking up to a snoring puppy with his feet stretched in the air, the love pouring through from my family in things as simple as facebook posts or phone calls.

And lately, my own personal redemption against the chaos of the world; cooking. I've always loved it, but through college didn't get much time or have enough energy for it in such a get up and run out the door lifestyle. Since graduating I've learned to slow down and really immerse myself in the present moment in everything I do, especially cooking.

So yesterday, instead of tackling the world's problems, I tackled pumpkin butter :)

I bought three small pumpkins from the farmers market, and was excited to put them to use. I searched for recipes all over, until I came across this simple crock pot pumpkin butter recipe. Then I got to work. I’ve never done anything with a pumpkin before besides carve it (who knew it was edible?!).

The recipe calls for about two of these smaller pumpkins. I chopped them in half to get the seeds out, and then I peeled the skins off with a knife and cut the meat of the pumpkin into smaller inch long pieces. 

Then I dumped these into a crock pot, and added about a cup of sugar, ½ a cup of brown sugar, and a handful of cinnamon with a few pinches of nutmeg and allspice. I also added about a ½ cup of milk. 

Turn the crockpot on low, and cook for 8 hours. An hour into it I decided to help the process by blending the chunks together so it looked more pureed.

After this your work is done and the crockpot takes over cooking it while simultaneously filling your house with amazing autumn aromas. I made some fresh bread that was finished baking just as the pumpkin butter was ready to taste. A spread of the freshly cooked butter over a piece of homemade bread tasted like a perfect fall day melting in your mouth.  It turned out great and I look forward to making more of it maybe for Christmas gifts!

But of course, the pumpkin possibilities didn’t end there. I had saved the seeds, rinsed and dried them. 

But instead of salting and roasting them as usual, I incorporated them into my homemade granola. The result: pumpkin bliss.

Here is my granola recipe (Of course I change it everytime, so feel free to do with it what you want with whatever you have around)

About 3 cups of plain oats

1 cup of brown sugar

½ cup of honey

3 tbsp of melted butter

1 cup of crushed walnuts

1 cup of sliced almonds

1 cup of pumpkin seeds

Cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, or any other spice you can think of to taste.

Mix all together and spread out on a baking sheet. Bake for 60 minutes at 250degrees, stirring every 15 minutes.

The smell alone of this baking in your oven will make your mouth water. Plus, homemade granola is a lot cheaper, tastier and fresher than store bought, so why not make it yourself!

Moral of the story: Cook a lot, eat well, and relish the sweet, simple things in life :)