IT'S TUESDAY, Neighborhood Ladies Come

I helped Lady make some wheat thins and a cheese ball for the ladies. I can be in a deep sleep, but when she opens a cheese package, I am there!

 Today, Lady taught the other ladies how to make baskets from rope and cloth.

 What a mess! A little dog can get lost!

 Trying not to get tangled up again.

Even Sonya is making a basket.
Here's the recipe for the Wheat Thins:
Ingredients:
2 cups Atta (wheat flour)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp milk powder
Mix these in a bowl and cut in 6 Tbsp butter
Add 1/2 C water.
Lady's recipe called for 1 Tbsp of molasses and 2 Tbsp of wheat germ but she didn't add either of these and the taste was good.
Knead till smooth. Roll out half the dough very thin on a greased cookie sheet with a floured rolling pin. Sprinkle lightly with the seasonings of your choice. We used seasoned salt, onion flakes, parsley, paprika, garlic salt, chili flakes.. then roll once more. Cut the dough into a rectangle and then into small rectangles. Prick with a fork.
Bake at 375 F for 12 minutes or until brown and crisp. Lady made me some plain ones in star shapes because she says I am a star! And because she can't find my bone cookie cutter!

EASTER BLESSINGS

Happy Easter dear readers! The Easter Beagle came!

 I got a dead bunny! Where's the fluff?

 I got chew shoes and a squeaky bear

There's other good stuff in there, too!

 Gettin' scratched by Christy, and my dead bunny.

 Listening to Easter Story with the Resurrection eggs. Yes, I ate the biscuit.

 Making crafts

 The guys

 Aunty from the Home, sent 30 hard cooked eggs. Each kid decorated an egg. Lady colored one for me.

 Opening gifts

 Aniket plays with his Slime.
Thomas and aunty helped Lady do the mountain of dishes. We had sandwiches, soup, chips, fruit, eggs, and carrot cake. Lady made home made Cadbury creme eggs but forgot to pass them out after dinner. Yeah, right, Lady! She ate three for breakfast cuz she hasn't had chocolate in six weeks!
We're pooped! But Lady has a training tomorrow -Breast Cancer Awareness in a small village not too far away.  I'll just hang here and play with Dead Bunny.
I hope you all had a blessed Easter!

SATURDAY

One more day till the Easter Beagle comes! Two parties down and one to go. The neighborhood girls came today. Sonya and Nancy came to help Lady with all the activities. They also helped her get ready for tomorrow's party after church for the children's home. Christy came, too. 

 My favorite (besides Christy) Tanya came! She's in green.

 Nancy loves me. She was on our very long day trip with us. I sat in her lap some. Nancy's my favorite, too.

 I managed to snatch a bit of Christy's resurrection roll! Of course Christy is my favorite! She takes care of me when Lady goes out of town.

 The girls made sock bunnies today. I donated the stuffing from all my dead toys.

 Nancy hid eggs outside for the girls to find.

Padma came out and joined in the fun. 
We're pooped!! Lady is speaking in Nancy's church tomorrow. I'll hold down the fort till they get back to prepare for the kids from the home. 
TOMORROW IS EASTER! Yippeeee! Can't wait!!

GOOD FRIDAY

We have this batik on our wall of Jesus hanging on the Cross. Bad people did it. I know all about Easter because every year Lady reads a book or tells a story about it. So, what's so good about Jesus dying? Lady says that's what Sunday is all about. The rest of the story. He didn't stay dead. He came back to life! This is hope. This is love. Jesus loved us so much He gave His life for us.
Lady went to church today but I didn't go. Four hours is too long for me. Besides, she had more shopping to do for the parties this weekend. I was good and didn't jump on the furniture (that Lady could tell).

The batik on the wall is from my homeland, China. The one on the table is from Sri Lanka.

Wednesday

 Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa, for these flowers!

 Padma lives downstairs. She turned two today. She often climbs the stairs to come visit me. She asks Lady for biscuits then gives them to me

 ...or allows me to take them. Don't worry, I'm gentle.

 I didn't go to her party because there were a bazillion little kids running around screaming and popping balloons. I could hear them from up here! No thanks. 

 Lady and I gave her a basket of fruit. SHe didn't want to put the package down.

 Finally, her mom let her open it.

 When her mom wasn't looking, Padma stripped off her tights and skirt! She's learning to go shu-shu in the potty instead of on the floor.

Dad cuts the cake for the first bite, then Lady cut up the rest to serve.

 Lady was working on the craft for the neighborhood ladies and I kinda got tangled in it.

 She turned that fabric and rope into a basket.

Eggs!

As promised, Lady gave me eggs. She broke the first two trying to blow out the insides. She's says I get more tomorrow! Oh, Happy Day! So today was out first Easter party, for neighborhood ladies.

Yummy! Lady had a basket of plastic eggs each containing items to remind us of the Easter Story. Each of our guests had eggs to open and then read the verse in their language. She spread the eggs out so everybody could see the contents.

 One of the eggs held a half of a biscuit in it -supposed to be the flat bread from the Last Supper. I ate it. Lady frowned upon that behavior.

 See the blue egg? It was just lying there in the open. What would you do?

 Lady covered our screen with all her spring-colored duppattas (like a scarf). She has a lot. You can see that all the ladies have them on as well.

 Lady explained the tradition of coloring eggs. She only managed to get 4 blown out since two broke. They boiled four of them in natural stuff like tumeric and coriander.

The ladies also made a lemon bundt cake. I didn't get any but that's okay. 
Lady and Christy went shopping for our Easter parties this weekend. Our second party is Saturday with the Girls Club, and the third is Sunday afternoon for the Children's Home for twenty-two kids and six adults. So, we're very busy preparing the gifts, food, and activities. Lady said there is nothing good here for Easter - no Cadbury Cream Eggs (so she will make some), no peeps, no Hershey's eggs, no jelly beans... but she'll make some good stuff. 
I checked in all the bags to see if she brought anything for me. I found leftover Domino's pizza!!!!!

Takin It Easy

I tried to catch up on my handsome sleep today after yesterday's long trip. Lady was busy preparing for the neighborhood ladies coming tomorrow. She is going to tell them about Easter. I did go with her to the market to get some stuff. I do need to make sure I walk Lady at least twice a day. I give her a work-out by letting her carry me up the flight of stairs to our road. I'll have to take a picture for you. It's straight up because we live on the side of a mountain. When we get to the top and cross the road, she carries me up to our floor in the house. Lady wants to save my back. I don't want to have to wear those wheels again, so I wait and let her pick me up. 
I am so excited! Lady bought eggs! She says I am getting eggs for breakfast cuz she needs the shells for her Easter craft. Whatever, I am just glad to get eggs again. I like them scrambled or hard boiled. Living in India with a vegetarian, I don't get too many.I wonder if the Easter Beagle will bring me eggs this year. 
We got three Easter cards in the mail today! Oh happy day! Lady and I just love getting real mail!

A Very Long Good Day

Lady had to go to a remote village to do a breast cancer awareness program. Did you know that one in twenty-two women in India will get breast cancer? Did you know only 50% will survive? I went along with Lady, Nancy, Vick, Sallu,  Seema, and Sonya. I just love going on road trips! We left at 7:30 am and returned home at 8:30 pm. It took almost 4 hours to get there! The driver stopped for breakfast on the way, and tea on the way back.
This road isn't as rough as the one to Apple Country which takes 8 hours, but it is like a bunch of s's winding around the mountains. Lady says it's kind of like a roller coaster ride. Our driver was going so fast on the parts without too many potholes. 40 kph may seem slow to you, but not on these roads!

 We had a beautiful day for our trip.

 Peepee break.

 I did NOT leave those logs on the cement pipe! I left mine on a bush.

 When we finally arrived I was ready to have a rest.

 The little humans loved me! Sonya and Seema are teaching them a song!

 Fuel. Lady doesn't dry my poop.

 Isn't she precious? She liked scratching me. I helped keep the wee ones quiet during the training.
We finished up by 4:30 and hit the road. It was just as rough on the way home. I tried to sleep, but it didn't work. I am so pooped! I'm calling it a day!