Vacation 2010 - Part 2

Our first day of play at the beach was wonderful! It was my birthday and I enjoyed every minute of the fun. I love the ocean and the freedom that it gives my children. Our backyard has a fence. But the ocean brings endless opportunities for running and jumping and exploring. One of my favorite comments of the week came from Little Buddy. As he went to bed after his first day of play at the beach, he wanted to know who was putting the gate up around the ocean, so that no one would fall in at night.

Water and sand: hours of entertainment!

Here are Elsie and M&M, my two big girls. They must have walked and talked like this for an hour. It was beautiful to see. There is a line in M&M's baby book, where I wrote, "Today you met your best friend." It is true, they are. I wonder what they were talking about...

I think I have fifty pictures just like this one. Little Buddy shoveled the whole time we were at the beach. There is a shovel in his hand in every picture. I think that boys must have a strong need to move dirt.

Our newest parenting strategy: If your kids are getting out of hand or running around, bury them up to their knees and they are much easier to keep track of.

Sweet Momma

Vacation 2010 - Part 1

Last week we spent our vacation on the Oregon coast. This was our first big trip with the little ones (that is if you don't consider the trip to the US from Ethiopia) and their first trip to the ocean. How do you describe the ocean to someone who has never seen it? They were very excited and we couldn't wait to watch them experience it.

During our last year of homeschooling we focused on American history. We studied all about Lewis and Clark and their discoveries of the western United States just 200 years ago. On our way to Oregon we took the opportunity to visit a wonderful Lewis and Clark Museum located on Cape Disappointment in Washington. This point of land is where the Columbia river meets the Pacific Ocean. We all enjoyed reading journals from the expedition that told the timeline and adventures that they encountered on their journey. I was amazed at the bravery it took to travel west with no real knowledge of how long it might take to reach the Pacific.

After our time at Cape Disappointment we traveled on to our condo in Gearhart, Oregon. As soon as we unpacked we ran down to the beach. We were amazed at the hundreds of people on the beach. We love this little town because of the quiet atmosphere. It just happened to be the Fourth of July and everyone was there to celebrate.

It was quite cold and windy. We decided to go back to our condo and watch the fireworks from the comfort of our couch. Sunshine and Little Buddy were in awe. There were fireworks going off in every direction. It was absolutely beautiful!

The best part was putting the kids right to bed as soon as it was all over!=)
This is the incredible sunset that God gave us on the 4th! Man-made fireworks don't hold a candle to this kind of display!

Sweet Momma

It's Official!

If you ask Sunshine what happened today, she would say, "I America now!"

That's right, as of today, Little Buddy and Sunshine are American citizens. The picture above shows us with Court Commissioner Dicke who signed all the documents. This was the easiest part of our adoption journey.

The US issues American Birth Certificates, which seems strange to me. We also added the name that we have given them to their documents. They are very excited to be American right in time for America's Birthday.

Happy 4th of July and God Bless America!!!

Sweet Momma

Puppy Love

Summertime is fun. But sometimes when you are having the time of your life something unexpected happens.

Pumpkin experienced the unexpected today as he went flying off of a bike and into gravel at a friend's house today. I got a call from M&M that sounded urgent, saying that I had better come quickly because there was a rock in his knee.

Foreign objects in body parts was enough to send me running. When I got to the house he was a bloody blubbering mess. I don't believe that I have ever seen one of my children bleeding from so many places all at once. He is my oldest boy, so I guess this is just the beginning.

I was informed that the rock had been dislodged, but he may need stitches. What I saw was more than my medical expertise could handle. I am so thankful for the ability to go to the doctor and be seen right away.

The lovely nurse at the clinic put numbing gel in four places and came back after 30 minutes and scrubbed his wounds. He ended up needing four stitches and thanks to the numbing gel, he did not feel a thing.

While in the office, I reminded him that he told me last month that he wanted to be a dirt bike racer when he grew up. I think that is out.

He has gashes on both knees, one elbow and a hip. He will be very sore for a while. But he is still all in one piece. Thank you God for your protection.

After dinner I found him laying on the floor with his head in our puppy's bed. I know exactly how he feels. Our sweet puppy is very comforting when you have had a hard day. She's exactly what the doctor ordered.

Sweet Momma

Pumpkin's First Recital

This year Pumpkin Started taking piano lessons. He has enjoyed the process and is always excited to share a new song with anyone who will listen.

So, what does a seven year old boy play for his first recital? Boy tunes of course.

We are proud to introduce Pumpkin, playing "Meet the Flintstones" and "Star Wars."

Sweet Momma

Sweet Pea and Her Busy Fingers

Her is a sample of Sweet Pea's recital pieces. She played "Jig" and "Busy Fingers."

She has really improved this year. She has experienced the joys of improvement with diligent practice. And also that piano ability does not improve without practice. She is growing into such a lovely young lady. We are all so proud of her.

Sweet Momma

M&M's Music Box Dancer

M&M has improved so much this year. This song makes me happy. I love to see her expression through her music. She is such a beautiful young lady.

Please enjoy.

Sweet Momma