Meus Pais (That means "My Parents" for those of you who don't "FALAR PORTUGUESE"...at least I think it does!)

As my loyal blog readers and leeches already know, I am in Brazil right now visiting my parents who are in the Brazil Fortaleza Mission. Over half of my visit with them is already over and I haven't even blogged yet about Brazil. Time flies when you are having fun and staying busy I guess. But I finally decided today that I'd better get with it and blog because when I get back to the "real world" I'm pretty sure I won't have as much time as I do now. But ahhhhhhhhhhh I do not want to go back to the "real world." I'm going to try not to think about going back right now as it is making me sad. So here are some pics for you...

My parents are pretty much the same...they still think they are SO hilarious. They had this frog greeting me in my room at their place. They also had a little ceramic frog in my bathroom to welcome me as well. As if I hadn't had enough frogs in Paraguay! Anyway, it is fine with me that all they have to tease me with is fake frogs. It is SO nice to be staying in a nice bug and frog and animal free place. Wow...I feel like I am in heaven now that I don't have to share my bathroom time with 20 frogs!

This is my dad giving me his "I'd better not see this picture on your blog" speech while making a Vitamina (that's what they call smoothies here...I think). He gives me such mixed signals about this whole blog think though because then he is always telling me stuff like "hey you should blog about that" or "that would be a great picture for your blog." So maybe he secretly wants to be a blogstar on my blog but just can't admit it...I don't know.

Anyway...things are still pretty much the same in that he makes smoothies almost every day...just like he did back in Idaho. The only thing that's changed are his smoothie fruits...now instead of strawberry, blueberry, banana, and orange...he has guava, mango, passion fruit, super delicious South American bananas, pineapple, mandarins, and green oranges. And he doesn't put weird stuff in his smoothies like he used to at home in Idaho...stuff like tofu, oatmeal, and various wheat products. He's all fruit now...all the time.

But...my dad has changed a lot too. For example he is wearing short sleeved shirts now...something I never witnessed in Idaho (except for that one time we caught him in his Superman shirt). He and my mom go walking along the beach almost every night and we even somehow amazingly got him to wear real workout clothes (like the ones in this picture)...I guess working out in Wranglers just doesn't feel as great in a tropical climate as it always did in Idaho. And in his defense...in the picture above was taken after he got back from the beach so he might be a little sweaty...but I think he looks pretty buff in his new work out clothes. Truly, getting him to wear something like that, at home or in public, is a miracle that maybe only my immediate family will really understand, but let me tell you, it is a HUGE change for my dad.

Another day, a little better dressed, but still making smoothies.

My mom in front of their front door where they have this lovely piece of furniture and flowers. It is kind of weird because they live in an apartment so this furniture is just out in the hall.

However...it is much more normal than their next door neighbor's fabulous collection of dolls, bunnies, and even a Keebler Elf looking thing...with a great big mirror behind to set off the collection. Not the greatest pic, but you get the idea. My mom has been willing to make some changes too in her life as a missionary. I even got her to take a bite of a banana...and she hates bananas. I told her that she should give South American bananas a chance because they are so much more delicious, sweet, and less slimy than the bananas we get in the US...which probably come from Ecuador anyway but just aren't that good probably due to a long journey to America as a young green banana.

So she tried it...but she still didn't really like it. She did admit though that it was better than any other banana she had ever had.

Anyway, I'll be sure to post more soon (if my dad doesn't kill me or ground me from the computer).