Moses is 9

Moses is lucky enough to have his birthday on St. Patrick's Day...his brother's patron saint. Fun day!! It's all about green....and celebrating.

Cam took Moses's bike into the shop for a surprise make-over. I wasn't too sure about the orange tires on the yellow frame but...WOW....Moses loved it!! Also new hand grips, water bottle holder with Ethiopian flag water bottle, and a tune-up. 

The good thing is he is highly visible....you can see him from the moon!

Moses chose pizza for dinner! This was great for multiple reasons....pizza is not a restaurant that's crowded on St. Pat's Day, it's delicious....especially in the middle of Lent, and it was fun!

Our favorite part is the basket of BlowPops. Everyone enjoyed some sugar on the way home. It was a dessert warm-up. 

Birthday dessert is traditional....mint ice cream pie with chocolate crust. Yummy! And yes, I am wearing a nightgown to serve dessert....I guess I forgot that I'd be in the photos. 

Happy Birthday to my sweet mild tempered easy going helpful kind hard working talented 9 year old! You are a delight to have as a son and a sibling! I can ALWAYS count on you to help me...willingly and happily! You have a kind heart and I am proud of you. "Be a good neighbor" is a lesson you have taken to heart and strive to live out each day. You are a talented artist and have amazing agility in sports. You are strong and dedicated. I love you my precious Bear!

Thinking Outside The Box

Sister is creative and free spirited. She is great at thinking outside the box. I truly admire that as it is not something I can easily do. 

At school the kids are asked to color/decorate a cutout person and make it like themselves. Sis was enthusiastic about this homework....which is optional. My boys have never chosen to complete it. 

Sis sat at the table working and when I came to check in and see if she needed any help she had done all of the coloring. She made an adorable kitty! At first I thought...ummmm.....you are not a kitty. But, then I got my thoughts (and comments) in order and told her how great it looked. Very creative!!

I helped her with the spelling on the descriptive part. She came up with what to say.

She is:

A Girl

Ethiopian

Smart

Awesome

Fun

and a Sister.

I loved it when I saw her finished person hanging in the hallway at school. The kitty stands out and I love it! This is a girl that marches to the beat of her own drum. And I love it!!

Little Toes

I love this picture of Sis's toes. It took this pic last summer and I think of it often. It's so precious to me. It makes me think of her soft little baby feet and how she loved to jump on my lap. She sleeps in a crazy bunched up position...something different every night. I never know what I'll find when I go check on her before I go to sleep. Right now she likes to sleep with her head and the foot of the bed. She likes one blanket under her and one on top of her. She will have various dolls and/or toys in bed with her too. Last week I came in and found the entire Barbie Camper on her bed. She is growing so fast....it's bittersweet. I miss the little baby that was so round and soft and snuggly. I love my tall thin busy girl just the same. She is changing so fast but she will always be my baby girl. 

Photo Shoot Turnout

As I said in my last post I was going crazy trying to figure out all our outfits. I finally settled on this bunch.

The scarves on top of the ironing board I borrowed from my fab friend and neighbor Ann. I could NOT decide which scarf to add to my outfit. I asked the kids numerous times. They just smiled and said, "yes, that one" even though I was wearing a different scarf each time I asked. I asked Cam too. Finally he warned me not to talk to him about scarves.....ANY MORE. Sheesh! I settled on the scarf on the left side. 

The only items I purchased for the photo shoot was a red bow for Sis and Cam bought a new down vest. Not bad! The rest of it came right out of our closets....matchy and all.

It was a long 90 minute drive to the location for the photos. The kids were not excited about spending that much time in the car. I gave them the "mom does lots of things for you" speech and then plugged in ALL of our electronics to charge for the trip. 

The setting was amazing! Exactly what I wanted for our photos. An old farm with a huge barn, fields of grass, a pond and lots of lovely trees with fall leaves. Oh my!! 

We spent one hour taking lots of shots. The kids were good and put up with all of it. Of course the promise of pizza and root beer kept them smiling and posing nicely. 

We went to a yummy pizza place for dinner. It was so fun!

My favorite yummy beer too!

Look at my loves! So precious!

We have seen just one of the photos so far. LOVE!! I can't wait to see all of them. I will post them here soon! I have one fabulous and gorgeous family!!

Spring Break

We had a fantastic spring break. Cam took the week off too. Vacation Baby!!

Usually when we have a staycation I don't really relax. It's hard to be home and look around at everything that needs to be done and yet relax.

But, this time I think I did it! Cam got the party started with a surprise trip to our favorite beach! Yippee!! He booked two nights at a beach front condo. It was CHEAP!! Best of all it was very fun.

We headed out on Easter Sunday (Western Easter to us)....we still have a few weeks to go yet. Our easter....Pascha is May 5 this year.

After coming home we spent the week hanging out and having fun....and trying not to do chores. :)

We saw The Croods. Very fun! We had movie tickets from Nana and Grandpa so it was a super bargain for us....$13.00 for popcorn and pop. Okay, that's not a bargain but it was all we had to pay for. It's really fun that the kids are all old enough to enjoy the theater now. Listening to the kids giggle was great!

We spent more time at the beach....our local rocky beach. The boys played catch with Cam and the littles ran and played and threw rocks into the water with Tuba. Then ice cream and french fries in the sunshine. Magical I tell you!

We went to a mid-week church service. It was so nice to enjoy a Lenten liturgy as a family. The pre-sanctified liturgy is one of my favorite services. It's truly beautiful.

The boys attended TKD classes with Cam. They had testing at the end of the week. We now have a red belt (Busy Guy), a second degree red belt (Mr. P) and Cam had a midterm testing....he's a 1st degree black belt.

Then we headed into the big city and played tourist. We took the kids to a very fun neighborhood called Fremont.

Fremont is full of fun things to do and see....for mostly free. The troll under the bridge is a must see. The big boys had just watched The Hobbit so they were especially interested in seeing this troll.

Then we wandered around looking at things. There are many statues and a rocket and ships and more trolls. We stopped for a hot drink at Fremont Coffee. They made fabulous foam art! The kids (and I) were thrilled. We sat on the outdoor wrap around porch and watched the people go by. 

Time to snuggle and visit.

Then off to find more sights. There were lots of fun shops which Sis and I wanted to go into....but we were outvoted. Ahhhh, another day.

We ended our week with church on Sunday and then it was time to get ready for back to school and work. Phooey! 

It went so fast...but it was so much fun!

Freak

Here I am enjoying my vacation. So at peace. I let my brain relax like no other time of the year. The ocean hypnotizes my hyper little brain cells into submission.

Most of the time my brain is doing things like this:

The other day I was thinking about how I am such a Control Freak. Yes, I totally admit it. I embrace it....BUT, sometimes I try to shut it down too.

So, I was in a situation where I REALLY thought I could do it better, fix it, smooth out the wrinkles...if only I was in charge. I kept up the self talk, "don't say anything, let it be, stop trying to control everything". I did this while biting my tongue and squishing my eyes closed. It did work. :)

Then while I was mentally congratulating myself for my self control I got to wondering if there are support groups for Control Freaks. I envisioned myself sitting in the meeting....getting less control freaky. Then envisioned how I would like to be in CHARGE of the meeting. Yes, the Head Control Freak.

Ugh.

God's Heart

Bucket List

I've been thinking about my Bucket List...you know the list of things you want to do in your life. I thought I should write it all down. Here's what I've been thinking of....

See the Grand Canyon-

We are going to AZ this fall. Yeah! My SIL is getting married in Flagstaff and we will of course go to the Grand Canyon. So excited:)

Go on a mission trip-

I have had this on my heart a lot lately. God is speaking to my heart. I'd like to put together a group of women to go to Ethiopia. I'm hoping to get working on this as soon as Cam is done with school. So, all you wonderful lady friends of mine....start thinking about this too. :)

Go to Ethiopia with my kids and hubby.

Someday we will take our whole family and tour Ethiopia. We want them all to see it and I want to see it with them. Cam and I have each been but not together.

Take a photography class. I love photography. It's my favorite art form. From the looks of the photo on this post...perhaps Cam should take that class with me? The ceiling is nice but I think Busy Guy's face is much cuter. ;)

Take a surfing lesson...in Hawaii of course.

The Big Island is calling my name. I want to see the volcano and all the vastly different areas of the island. Of course I want to lounge on the beach and have a pina colada too. Yummy! And, I want to worship with the Schroedels at their parish. If we can't move to the Big Island I can certainly vacation there as much as possible.

Visit an Amish community.

I am so fascinated by the Amish. I love the simple way they live and of course love the quilts.

Have a big get together with other families whose babies were at Wanna House (orphanage in Ethiopia) at the same time our babies were there.

We think of those children as our kids' Ethiopian cousins. Our kids spent the first 6 mos. of their lives at Wanna House with many other babies/toddlers. I hope some day to meet in person some of these kids and their families.

Learn to make cinnamon rolls....really good ones...gooey sticky ones...no frosting just goo and nuts. Mmmmmmm.

Grow a garden and raise chickens.

I can't wait to learn how to do these things. The country life is the change we want to make. If only our house would sell.....come on housing market.

Sister

Check out the hairdo! Snazzy;)

My sweet little girl is OBSESSED with shoes. I know it's a cliche to say that...but it's true. We don't wear shoes in our house...except that Sis will not follow this rule. She is constantly raiding the shoes rack and putting on shoes. She clops around in all her brothers shoes. She can't manage to walk well in Cam or my shoes. But, she did pee in Cam's sandal this week:) It was bound to happen since she loves to be naked AND wear shoes. Her very favorite shoe is this adorable snow boot. No, we haven't had any snow but Sis doesn't care. She asks for "boots" any time we leave the house. She can get all her shoes on herself...even on the right feet. Spooky. I'm thinking for Christmas this little girl needs some slippers...and maybe some dress-up shoes!

She is growing so fast. She's going to be 2 at the end of the year. Talking, singing, counting...all day long. She counts to 10 and then yells, "ready NOT, here COME!". She is right in the mix with her brothers but also is starting to love playing with her babies. She puts the binky in the baby's mouth and covers it with a blanket. She and Baby George are a hoot. They are so much like twins sometimes. They will hit each other on the head or pull each other's hair and then when the injured one cries they pucker up and kiss. So precious! First thing in the morning when Sis wakes up she calls for me. The second thing she does is YELL her brother's name until he wakes up too and can join her in yelling my name. They are in separate cribs in the same room. Double trouble.

Homecoming

One year ago today Cam and Lydia came home from Ethiopia. It was a wonderful day...finally getting to hold my daughter in my arms. We were now a family of 6...soon to be 7. Baby George is even in the photo...you just can't see him under all that tummy :0)

Today we had the re-adoption here in our state. By coincidence it was booked on this special anniversary. Now it's a double celebration day:) We got all spiffed up and went to the court house to appear before a judge. After the ceremony we went out for lunch to celebrate. Tuba is seated WAY off to the side because he liked sitting there and we knew if we made him move and stand up that it could turn UGLY! So...it is what it is! Here's our beautiful family...we are gorgeous;)

Exciting News

Last month was my month to host book club and I chose There Is No Me Without You by Melissa Fay Greene. I was thrilled that everyone loved it and was as moved by it as I was. The best thing of all is that one of the gals is now adopting a sibling group of 3 kids from Ethiopia. All because she and her husband read this wonderful book! Amazing:) I'll keep you posted on her adoption progress.

A Year

One year ago Cam was getting ready to leave for Ethiopia to bring home our sweet baby girl.

One year ago I was just days away from giving birth to Baby George.

One year...one amazing year...one crazy busy year...one unforgettable year.

It's been challenging and tiring and busy and hard work. I worry that everyone isn't getting what they need from me...that I'm stretched too thin. I worry that I won't remember all the special things. I worry.

But...it's been amazing...and exhilarating...and fun...and life altering. It's been a very special year. I take lots of photos...even if I don't have the time to put them all into the albums right now...I will have the memories to look back on.

These sweet babes pucker up and smooch each other...usually this is right after Sis has whacked Baby George or taken his toy;) At least she is learning the art of apology! There are moments of jealousy...usually when I'm holding one and the other baby wants up. That has been the hardest thing for me...well, and when they both cry at the same time...or shall I say scream! My hope and my prayer is that they continue to grow into the best of friends. Sis likes to feed her baby brother. She holds food up to his lips and says, "bite, bite". They are precious.

These two babies came to us the same week from opposite ends of the earth. That is an amazing thing. We are truly blessed by God's love and His plan for our family. I can't imagine my life without them.

Well, now I'm all teared up thinking about my babes and how fast this year has gone.

World AIDS Orphans Day

Head over to Erin Henderson's wonderful blog today. It's World AIDS Orphans Day today May 7th.

Here are some of the staggering facts. Please read them... please really stop and think a minute about these statistics.
There are over 15 million children orphaned by AIDS living around the world RIGHT NOW. 15 million is the equivalent to the number of all of the people living in New York, Paris, and Bangkok combined. That is an awful lot of children.
Well over 12 million AIDS orphans live in Sub-Saharan Africa, alone.
Experts believe that millions more orphans remain unaccounted for in India, China and Russia.
At least 10 million more children will be orphans by AIDS by 2010.

Erin lists ways to help and things to do. Take action and remember these precious children in your prayers today.

Precious Moments

Well...Holy Week is going well. Very Busy! I have forgotten my camera every night...UGH. Tonight I WILL remember it. The kids have been troopers. It's a long and tiring week but also a great time together. Last night the babies were tired and cranky so Cam and I took turns taking them downstairs. It was so nice to stand in the service with the big boys. Tuba and Mr. P had candles and Busy Guy was curled up at my feet in his special blanky. I love to see the candle light on their sweet faces as they watch the service and sing along.

This morning I had a nice time with Busy Guy. I got a spur of the moment cleaning itch so I was pulling all the photo albums out of the cabinet and organizing them. I have them labeled with the date and then numbered so I can put them into order and find the right album when I need it. But...I'm way behind getting the photos printed and into albums...it's really bugging me!!! Anyway, I asked Busy Guy if he wanted to look at his scrapbook from Ethiopia. We sat and snuggled and looked at the photos of Nana and I travelling, meeting him, and delivering him into Cam's arms. It was precious.

Monday

The Simple Woman's Daybook...will not be seen today...not a simple day. I took Tuba for a neurology appointment this morning. They turned up the VNS and upped one of his seizure meds. It's only the afternoon and I'm ready for pj's. All these appointments and trips into the city are catching up with me...or maybe having 5 kids is catching up with me...I'm tired today. Here's a sweet picture to share with you. This is Lydia and our darling Godson Gabriel. They were at the same orphanage together in Ethiopia. They have actually known each other longer than we have known them...amazing. We had a wonderful day on Saturday with the kids all playing.

Young love...so cute.

Baptized

Our sweet babies were baptized yesterday. It was a beautiful service and a wonderful day.

The beginning of the service. Godparent affirmations and prayers. Do you notice my little Mr. P tucked under my arm...yes, he's never far from me:)

Big brother Tuba serving as an acolyte.

Getting rubbed with oil.

Baby brother's turn.

Lydia's first up for the full submersion baptism (3 times dunked).

Baby George just out of the water.

Sweet boy in his fancy outfit.

Sweet girl and her pretty dress and cross.

The Chrismation...annointing with Holy Oil.

After the Chrismation having the Holy Oil washed off with a sponge.

The tonsuring when the priest cuts pieces of hair and burns them, "May your life be so consumed in Christ".

Baby George getting his tonsuring...hard to find enough hair.

The wonderful Godparents with our babes.

After the service and the liturgy snuggling the boys with my mom.

For a good explanation of an Orthodox baptism go here.