I am having so much fun working through all of the fun questions we were asked. Here are all the questions and answers related to food!

Do Peyton and Conner have a hard time with the different foods?

Peyton and Conner have really surprised me on our travels. Peyton has always been open to trying new things, but Conner has been more picky. Since we traveled though, they both have really expanded their eating habits, and have happily tried new foods. Jarrett and I think that eating should be a joy, so we have never placed any rules on their eating. We have never made them eat at certain times, or finish their plate, or made them try a bite of food. I think that has made them not be scared of new foods, and open to trying new things, since there is no pressure or negative association with trying new things. Plus, many times we have all been very hungry, and when we happen upon  a food stand, the boys have to eat whatever is there. We also try to eat pizza, chicken and french fries, and other western foods when we come across them for a treat.

Conner and his chicken and vegetables. Conner loves rice and will eat almost anything mixed inside of it.

Conner trying out his chopsticks on his bowl of soup in Japan-hehe

at a restaurant in Utila, Honduras waiting for our pizza to be cooked

learning to make vegan chocolate in Nicaragua-Peyton liked it, Conner hated it

orange juice in a bag in Honduras

Peyton’s 7th birthday cake from a bakery in Pai, Thailand

one of my favorite photos from our travels. Peyton chilling in a floaty while he waited for his food at a restaurant in Utila, Honduras

fresh mangos in Phuket, Thailand

I look at all the food you are eating and wonder if you have had digestive problems at all?

We have been traveling for over a year now, and we have not gotten sick once from local food. But one weekend when in Chiang Mai, Thailand we ate at a lot of western restaurants getting pizza and hamburgers, and we all felt awful the entire time. Jarrett used to be constantly sick from our eating habits when we lived in America. Especially since he was the General Manager of a restaurant, so he had access to lots of rich foods. We took him to many doctors and had his allergies tested, but everything came back negative. His body just can’t handle fried and processed foods. Since we have been traveling, he has not been sick one time, it has changed our family having him feel good all of the time. He has lost 60 lbs so far, he calls it the 3rd World diet:) Jarrett feeling healthy has been a surprise benefit of him working for himself.

family fajita platter with friends in Matagalpa, Nicaragua

sushi in Japan. We eat a lot of sushi, Peyton will eat it with us too, Conner only likes to eat the rice with the orange fish eggs on it:)

food court full of vegetable-noodle-rice-meat dishes at the mall in Chiang Mai, Thailand

paninis and hamburgers on the beach in Honduras

Trek snuggling while I enjoy a fancy coffee drink in Tokyo, Japan

We eat egg rolls a lot here in Thailand, most of them are fried, but these raw eggrolls in Pai, Thailand were amazing

a fun pizza place in Honduras

What foods do you miss the most?

MEXICAN food!!!! A day does not pass that we don’t talk about Mexican food. We love chips and salsa and fajitas, I love sour cream, we like Tex Mex the best. We have found it a few times on our travels, but we can’t wait to get back to Texas to visit, and eventually live in Mexico for a while, to enjoy it again. We love pizza too, but we find it all the time in every country. I miss cheese products and Italian food in Asia.

Peyton and Conner enjoying wood fire pizza in Nicaragua

no matter where you go in the world you can always find coffee-in Vang Vieng, Laos

sooo happy to find a Chilis in Penang, Malaysia

our favorite Mexican restaurant in El Gigante, Nicaragua. Chips and salsa and Lobster (4 Lobster tails caught that day for $11)

margaritas at El Picantes mexican restaurant in Honduras

we have enjoyed cheap glass bottled Coke in every country we have travelled so far. I wonder why CocaCola has abandoned this recycling in America? it is really fun!

western food in a restaurant in Phuket, Thailand

splurging on room service in Nicaragua before we fly to Honduras. I have the best memories from this night. We booked a night in a fancy hotel, and Trek just sunk into the down comforter and smiled:)

What foods will be hard to live without when you go back to the U.S.?

Nothing! We have decided that America takes other nations’ food and then makes it better. We were so excited to go to Japan and enjoy sushi, but we found it very fishy tasting and not even close to as good as the sushi we have had at home. And even though we loved so many foods in Central America, nothing compares to what Texas has done to Mexican food with sour cream sauce and cheese:) We like Thai food, but I will not miss it. I prefer more savory type foods. Even when we lived in Maui, we looked forward to visiting mainland America to enjoy all the amazing restaurants, and the variety of foods available at the grocery store. Ok, I will miss the cheap seafood in Central America and Asia.

Thai milk tea in Bangkok, Thailand. I enjoy it, you can buy it anywhere in Thailand, but I prefer iced coffee. (look at my cute little date:)

ok I will miss these fried buns from a Chinese restaurant in Thailand-delish

window shopping for food in Nikko, Japan. these displays helped so much since the menu was in Japanese

a fun playground for children at a restaurant in San Pedro Sula, Honduras

one of our favoriet treats-Dairy Queen in Thailand. 30 cents for a cone, and $1 for a blizzard

fresh lobster in Utila, Honduras

How do you grocery shop and/or cook in a foreign country? Do you have pots and pans and all the things you need?

We do a lot of shopping at markets. There are stands set up along the streets in every country we have been to so far (except Japan). They have fresh fruits, raw and cooked meats, and lots of vegetables, also cooked or raw. There is also usually a grocery shop in town where we get things like milk, butter, and cheese. I do not travel with any cooking items (just a sharp knife for fruit). Every house has come with everything we need, and if it does not, we buy it and give it away when we leave.

our kitchen in Pai, Thailand where I cooked one meal a day (we got street food the other meals). I usually cooked eggs and bacon or tacos and rice.

We have bought all our fruit on our travels from street vendors and snack on it all day long. Enjoying some fruit from a street stand in Matagalpa, Nicaragua with Peyton and Trek

my kitchen in Surat thani, Thailand. I have a single burner, and mainly cook omeletes with vegetables and rice.

Tokyo, Japan had the most amazing displays of desserts

fried Mulberry leaves in Pai, Thailand

our American style breakfast delivered to our sleeper train across Thailand

in Thailand every food booth has many sauces and spices to add to your dish-we usually watch the Thais and do what they do to their plate

Are the grocery stores very different from those in the US?

In a major city, the actual grocery stores are basically the same, just with more local items. In the smaller towns, we just have to eat like the locals, in those towns there is almost nothing familiar at the market.

the boys riding bicycles around at Bush’s super market in Utila, Honduras

meat at the market in Surat thani, Thailand

the gas stations in Japan had these amazing cold Starbucks lattes for $2

the ice cream lady ringing her bell as she bicycles down the street in Thailand

specialty food shop in Nikko, Japan

Peyton enjoying a fresh coconut

all kinds of fruit from the market

there are McDonalds all over the world. The ones in Thailand will greet you with a Ronald McDonald and a wei

there are many Korean BBQ places in Thailand, they bring you raw meat and you cook it at a grill on the table. Jarrett thinks it silly to pay to cook your own food:)

This is the most favorite dish we have ever been served. We were in Phuket, Thailand on June 20, 2012, the day before Trek died. We ordered rice, and the waiter thought it was for Trek so he made it into the shape of a bear for him. It was a little bittersweet since Trek could only breastfeed, but still it was Trek’s 1st restaurant order:)