What Goes Around…

I guess there’s truth in the saying: What goes around, comes around. I have always been a big foodie and now guess what?!! My little girl is a huge foodie and she’s only 19 months old!! I foresee in our future: fun with food!!

Seriously, sometimes I wonder if something is wrong with Veronika when she constantly coming to me asking for a bon-bon which is the kreyol word for cracker or cookie. She is happiest with both her fists full of food and a big glass of cold water or kombucha!! And she even knows how she likes her stuff for example, ever since she was tiny and I mean TINY she always wanted her milk and water to be ice cold otherwise she would only take little sips and then give a distressed cry!

When she started eating table foods I tried to feed her as healthily as possible but my choices are very limited and finally I gave up. Now I just feed her. I do try to limit her sugar intake; I do not give her sugary drinks or candy besides tiny bits of chocolate every now and then. But thanks to others she still gets some. Here she is eating a bright blue sucker with her bio brother! I just shuddered looking at all that sugar and food coloring going into her little body. Little stinker, Veronika enjoyed every lick!!!!

Unfortunately I do not have the food choices here that I have in the states so I will have to wait to introduce Veronika to some of my favorites till she can go lot bo dlo a!!

Food is something I miss a lot here in Haiti. I miss the little noodle houses, the spring rolls and peanut sauce, lamb gyros, succulent greek salads, goat curry with naan and dhal, and the occasional splurge on sushi. I miss good seafood, and I miss things like thick creamy greek yogurt, real maple syrup, fresh peaches, and real cream in my coffee. I miss going to foodie places like china town and drinking bubble tea through a thick straw, and trying things like warm bean curd, and pink meat and pastries so good that I dream about them at night. I miss the Italian Market with its endless samples of cheeses so good they literally make your taste buds stand up and sing the hallelujah chorus, olives out of wooden barrels with sprigs of fresh herbs swimming in the thick rich oil, fresh pepperoni. I miss german pickles, goose liver, rye bread, swiss cheese and spicy mustard…                       

And of course I miss crackers and gravy, pan-haus, levervasht, and eggs from happy, relaxed chickens…

You get the picture!

I love food and I miss food. And like me, my daughter loves food. That’s why I cant wait to introduce her to all that good stuff and see if she like me will love everything except brussel sprouts and tripe.

We do have good food here in Haiti too but our choices are very limited so we eat the same things over and over. I miss the variety and the ability to choose whether I want to eat rice and beans or a greek gyro, plain yogurt or beef tongue, pizza or mashed potatoes and gravy!!

Though I miss that stuff  and look forward to enjoying them again someday, I will be content for now to eat my rice and beans, banans, chicos, spaghetti, cabbage and canned turkey.

And my baby will go on begging for bon-bons until she discovers there’s a whole other world out there