How to Live Vicariously Through Lizziey and Jamie (Pioneer Woman Style)

Jamie and I have heard many of you say things like “I wish I was there!” or “Thanks for letting us live vicariously through you!” Because we love you all SO much we wanted to enhance that experience and give you a chance (challenge) to prove you mean every word you say! 

So this, my friends, is how to take a shower, Jamie and Lizziey style.

Before beginning shower process gather the things you need:

2 5-gallon buckets

1 or 2 small pitchers for scooping water

Shampoo (I use a shampoo bar)

Shaving cream if desired

Razor

Let's begin!

1^st:  Turn on Water Heater. Wait 15 minutes. This will produce lukewarmish water. Yes I said lukewarmish.

2^nd:  Place large bucket under water spigot. Our water pressure is extremely low, so if you are doing this at home turn your water on 1/4^th of what you normally would and make it lukewarmish. This temperature is enough to not feel like ice, but still cool. Wait 5 minutes for bucket to mostly fill.

 

 

3a:  Turn water spigot off. Place dry hair in bucket. 

2b: Pretend this picture is not upside down. How do I rotate on a blog? 

4a: Lather up! I use LUSH shampoo bars (lushusa.com $10.95). This one pictured is called Karma Komba. It is vegan and smells a little like citrus. I like it a lot as it produces a great lather with only one or two swipes.  It will last a long time. I used gentle lentil (lushusa.com $9.95) and it smelled good but was not nearly as good of a lather and did not last as long as Karma Komba.

 

 

5^th: Transfer hair to empty bucket. Use the pitcher to scoop water from the clean bucket over your hair and into the empty bucket. This water will be sudsy. Complete process until your hair is no longer very soapy. 

 

6^th: Use sudsy water to shave your legs. You may add some more shaving cream/shampoo/conditioner if you’d like. But remember the more you put on, the harder it is to clean off.

 7: Rinse with leftover clear water and towel of as best as you can.  Travel towels are excellent but this one pictured by Sea to Summit is my favorite. The Tek Towel featured here ($14.90 + shipping, backcountry.com) is ultra soft, ultra absorbent, although somewhat heavier than others for the size (16 x 32 inches. Still, it is enough to dry myself. It's THAT good. 

Enjoy your shower, folks! And if you accept our challenge, please comment and let us know how it went!

Thoughts from the Veranda.

            When was the last time you unplugged? When was the last time you went a whole day without electricity or internet not because you were on vacation or a day off, but because you truly wanted to live the simple life? 

            Jamie and I were born into the beginning of the technology generation. We are the students who taught our professors how to use computers. Computers are the foundation of our days; We socialize through Facebook, write papers and keep a budget with Microsoft office, and learn whatever we desire through Google Search.

            This week we have been forced trade in facebook for conversations, Microsoft office to pen and paper, and we are learning by philosophizing on our new experiences. Our new experiences give way to revisiting old passions.   My artsy friend Jamie spent this morning making the most time consuming yet creative decorations I have ever seen.  While she is being crafty, I’ve sat on the veranda playing the guitar while the sweet breeze swirled around by body and the goats and sheep chattered in the background.  I stare out at the horizon, scattered with unfinished cement block homes, and worship God through my guitar. The goats chatter as if to join me. I could see the small garden of pineapple from my porch.  Yesterday Jamie and I ran down the dirt road from our house to the school, around the school, and then back up.  After some drills in the soccer field we met Sister Mary Elizabeth in the garden. She was planting spinach but explained that it takes two years for the pineapple to grow.

            While gazing over the pineapple garden, I see rows of unfinished buildings. My eyes land on my future school, and I contemplate what fruit I will leave behind. The school is under construction; all that appears are large concrete rooms, decorated only with the cracks in the plaster. Like the pineapple, my growth is gradual. Like the buildings, people are constantly under construction, ever changing. And I am finding that my own soul has caught that vision of Africa.

            For I am slowing blooming and constantly changing. There are rough edges and spiny leaves. A room of my personality is half way built, and then life creates steps to a different floor.

It is not that Ghana will suddenly cause me to find myself-for there is nothing “sudden” in Ghana except power outages. But there is a peace in knowing that one can take time to grow, a peace in knowing that all people are constantly under construction, that comes from living in this place.

So I'll continue to take the time to unplug- not just from technology, but from the worries and thoughts that consume my day. It's time to focus on the important instead of the urgent. I cannot dream of a better place to do it than from my veranda in Kasoa, Ghana. 

Live to love,

Lizziey June

The First Night...duh duh duh!

Jamie Thordsen and I settled in to Ghana yesterday. The beginning on the day was rather expected: we toured the grounds, met some goats, ate some food, and hung out.

Then Jamie and I drank some Zen Tea.


On our way back to our room a little gecko friend entered our room. Now I, lizziey june, am not scared of much. But I hate iguanas. I will run away from them and cry like there is no tomorrow. A gecko is not an iguana, granted, but I do not care for them in my room. I began to itch all over with the thought of my little lizard friend crawling around me while I slept.

I distracted myself with the internet until the lights went off. Then I played computer games until my battery died. Then the electricity came back on! repeat entire scenario except the electricity stayed off until this afternoon.
 

So Jamie and I, not tired at all, turned on our cool solar power lamps and read some books. I wrote in my journal, I read Health magazine, I finished two games of expert Sudoku on my Nook. And then we stood on our heads.

Earlier I had put up a poster of a pilates workout.  At about 2 am Jamie decided to get out of bed and do some pilates. At SpringHill we used to say that living with a person for a month was the equivalent of living in the real world with a person for a year. If this is true, I have the feeling that living in Africa with someone makes you closer friends twice as fast. Especially since I found myself attempting to stand on my head at 2 am with the lovely Jamie Thorsden.

Finally sleep found us. But we did not wake up until noon today. We drank our first cup of Via Starbucks instant coffee (AMAZING!) and ate our first bowl of Fufu.  Then we jogged a bit. It's been a good day.

Tonight there is a party! I must go ready myself in my shower bucket.  Farewell, Friends!