Wow! Where has this year gone? I can’t believe Christmas is only a few months away….eeeek!  I’m actually dreading Christmas this year.  Our minister and his family will be leaving Dec 29th, so it will be a sad Christmas.  For now, we are trying to spend as much time as we can with them.

I’m off Fri, Sat and Sun this weekend…woohoo!!! I was trying to think of something to do with the kids and i’ve decided to take them apple picking.  I’ve never taken them and I think they would really enjoy it.  There are hayrides and other activities, so hopefully it doesn’t rain.

I went to UFIT last night.  We had the other instructor, “S”.  Boy was he full of energy!  I was exhausted after class.   I am going again on Wed and then my other aerobic class on thurs.  The two classes compliment one another.  UFIT involves ALOT of cardio and then some toning and weights.  The Fall Fitness class is all about toning, weights, exercise ball and then some cardio.  So I’m getting really great workouts all around.  Here’s to living healthy!

I’ve been thinking alot about the soldiers overseas since my highschool friend called me from Bulgaria the other night.  While he is not fighting in the field at the moment, he has done two tours in afghanistan and thankfully has come home safe.  My son’s school sends packages to the soldiers thanking them for all they do.  I can not imagine spending months at a time away from my family in a foreign country.  Please take the time to remember these special individuals and the sacrifices they make.

Here is a letter to my son’s school principal thanking the students for the packages:

Greetings Principal D:

My name is Captain Terry Hunter and I am a native of Charlottetown now living in Ottawa.  I am currently on tour as an unarmed Canadian Peacekeeping Military Observer with the United Nations Mission in Sudan or UNMIS for short.  I am stationed in a remote teamsite near the village of Torit in the south of Sudan close to the Ugandan border.  There are two other Canadian United Nations Military Observers (UNMOs) stationed with me along with 18 UNMOs from various UN countries around the world.

It is our job to monitor the implementation of the comprehensive peace agreement signed in by the North and South Sudan to end the civil war which started in 1956 (in our location of Torit) and has been ongoing until the signing of the peace agreement in 2005.  It has been a long terrible war for the people of Sudan with over 2 million civilians killed over the years. We are busy patrolling to villages in the area which take about 3- 4 hours to get there because of the state of the roads in the rainy season.  We do what is called “Village Profiles” to
determine what assistance the villagers require including schools and wells.  Everyday, we see Sudanese soldiers walking around carrying their AK-47 Assault Rifles.  It’s definitely not main street, Canada.

While undergoing two weeks of introductory training in Khartoum at the beginning of my tour this previous August, I received several packages directed through the Military Family Resource Centre in Charlottetown addressed to me.  The packages were dated June 30 by the Belleville, Ontario post office and were sent from  SIS. The packages contained several items such as gum, Crystal Light drink mix, soap, deodorant, reading materials, trail mix, Kraft Dinner, tooth brushes and toothpaste and other great items.  These items, easily obtained at home, are unavailable to us over here or difficult or expensive to purchase in the main city of Khartoum of which we are a two hour jet flight away.  I passed out packages to other Canadian UNMOs at our residence called Canada House in Khartoum and also to the other Canadian UNMOs in my teamsite.

I would like to take this opportunity to say thanks to your students for sending these packages as they are well appreciated by us.  Unlike the Canadian troops in Afghanistan, Canadian Peacekeepers in the the Sudan are responsible for providing their own food.  We do not have a mess hall or canteen.  Many of us shipped food packages over in late June or early July which we started consuming upon our arrival in Khartoum around August 2nd.  Most of my food consists of canned meat products such as Spam or Corned Beef commonly called “Bully Beef” by the Canadians during the First and Second World Wars. Other products that we previously shipped over (and are having shipped over) are rice, cereal, canned tuna and ham, condiments, spices, powdered milk and toiletries.

We are stationed in a UN camp located in the middle of the Jungle and there are no modern supermarkets to purchase food in the village.  The villagers live in mud huts called Tukul huts which are what you would see in a National Geographic magazine.  There is a small outdoor market where we can purchase flat pita style bread and some vegetables but that is about it.  There are some venders that sell goat meat and beef but it is sitting out in the hot sun all day and is usually covered with flies.  Because of sanitary conditons, we don’t purchase the meat - hence the reliability of canned meat from home.

Our food packages sent by our families from Canada must go to Belleville, Ontario to Canada House in Khartoum to Juba in the south and then by UN helicopter to our teamsite in Torit.  It takes about three to four weeks for this.  Our food packages, unfortunately, do not have priority on the UN aircraft so they may be delayed by a week or so.

So the packages sent by your school were much appreciated by us Canadian Peacekeepers overseas.  I’ve included a few pics of the myself with some of the children I met in the villages we have visited and even some of a typical meal we may eat over here (Bully beef and beans for example).

Best regards

Terry Hunter
Captain
Canadian Forces United Nations Military Observer
Teamsite Torit
United Nations Mission in Sudan

Well, I made it through my first 2 weeks of the fitness challenge.  I went to 3 high impact aerobic classes this week and it felt sooo good!  I’m a little sore, but not too bad.  My cloths are getting a little loose and people are actually noticing I’ve lost a little weight.  It’s not much…only 7 lbs.  But it feels great.  I’m hoping to lose 15 more pounds by Christmas.  I know I can do it!  Hubby has lost 10 lbs also…not that he needs to.  I think he looks great!  He weighs 180 lbs  and I’m down to 161lbs.  I weighed 195 lbs when I was pregnant with Gabby…Yikes!!  I’m only 5′2″ so that is alot of weight on me.  It feels great to be healthy again.

I was preparing supper the other day when I discovered I was missing a key ingredient from the recipe.  Time to improvise!  I love taking recipes and trying different ingredients.  My best meals are made when I just grab a few things from the cupboard, fridge or freezer and through them together.  So here is what I came up with the other day…it is sooo delicious!!

FIERY SHRIMP AND RICE WITH CHEESE

2 cups instant white rice
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup of precooked shrimp (more if you like)
1 cup frozen broccoli
1/4-1/2 cup of president’s choice memories of thailand fiery chili pepper sauce
**depending on how spicy you like it**
3/4 cup tex mex shredded cheese

PREPARATION

prepare rice according to instructions on box.  use chicken broth instead of the water to prepare rice.

cook shrimp and frozen broccoli in a skillet on medium-high heat for approx 10-15 min.

toss cooked shrimp, broccoli and cooked rice together.  add cheese and chili pepper sauce and mix.  enjoy!!

YUMMY!!

I picked up these two items a few weeks ago to help store school info, bills, recipes etc.  The denim pouch I picked up at walmart for $5.00.  I have all the kids school info, bills and other info I may need.  It has 4 pouches for storage.  The other item is a steel mesh magnet pouch I picked up at zellers for $3.00.  I have it on the fridge and I keep my meal plan recipes for the week, my grocery list and other things I may need for the week.  I love it so much, I think I may pick up a couple more!

denim pouch

magnetic metal pouch

perfect next to my calender!    

and sweat I did!!!  Tonight was my first night back to UFIT in over 6 months.  It felt sooo good and it’s a great workout.  I am always drenched in sweat when I am done.  I’d like to know how many calories I actually burn in one class.  Not to mention it is such a great stress release for me.  I feel so calm and relaxed when the class is over.  The instructor is phenominal also.  She really gets you pumped and I don’t think I’ve ever been to a bad class.  You Rock Julie!!!!

We received some very sad news today.  Our minister and his family are leaving our church and moving to N.S. in December.  He has been our minister for 12 years and he and his wife have been instrumental in bringing me closer to God.  He was the minister that married my husband and I and my husband thinks of him as one of his best friends.  Hubby has spent many a night there watching football and chowing down on home made donairs.  Our minister also has amazing superbowl parties and many of the congregation go even though most of them don’t enjoy sports.  We are all devastated.   They are two of the most wonderful people you will ever meet and they are both so caring and easy to talk to.  They will be making an official announcement on Sunday and I know there will be many tears shed.  We all knew they wouldn’t be there forever and it’s a given that minister’s have a calling.  I know he is struggling with leaving too.  They will truly be missed.

There are so many people I know suffering from depression.  It can be very debilitating and it’s awful to see someone you care about suffer.  I have a Seasonal Affective Disorder, which is a form of depression.  I have a terrible time in the fall, but medication makes things a little easier.  I’m thankful that the symptoms are usually manageable.  My cousin whom I am very close to has a terrible time with depression.  She is going through a bad spell right now and it just kills me to see her suffer.  I’ve was there for her when she lost someone close to her a few years ago and it was awful.  She couldn’t eat or leave the house for months.  She was very frail at the end.  Thank goodness she was able to come out of it eventually.  I am heading in to visit her for a bit before I go to work.  I’ve always been very concerned and protective of her for some reason.  I think of myself as a “big sister” more than a cousin.  I’m praying she will get better soon.

Tonight was my first “keeping fit” class and what a class it was!  I am going to be sore tomorrow.  We used the exercise ball and free weights.  Who knew you could do so much with an exercise ball?  There were things I did with that ball that I don’t do with my husband!  The instructor is very creative and I used muscles tonight I didn’t know I had.   Thursdays class is a power walk/run.  We are starting at the Wendy’s uptown and ending up at the Wendy’s downtown.  It’s quite a jaunt…5km at least!  I can feel the burn!!!

Today, Rafael and I celebrate 7 wonderful years of marriage.  It’s hard to believe it’s been 7 years.  I couldn’t stop shaking the day he proposed.  It was a total surprise and I was so excited.  I can’t imagine what my life would have been like without him.  He is an amazing man, a wonderful father and husband.  Happy Anniversary hon! Love you lots!!