tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37133235755410768432024-03-13T03:36:26.104-06:00Here We Are...Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.comBlogger102125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-3749182548801877372013-10-20T07:20:00.001-06:002013-10-20T07:20:43.282-06:00First vacation<p dir=ltr>I don't update my blog because it's such a hassle to turn on many computer and then retrieve all my pics off of my phone or camera. I know, I know - first world problem (btw - I HATE that catch phrase). I finally just sucked it up and downloaded the app even though it doesn't let me format the blog the way I want it to look. Hopefully I'll be a little more diligent about updating this way. <br>
After a year with all 7 kids at home we finally got a few free days to escape real life and head to the beach!  They have loved every minute of it and we are all dreading leaving tomorrow.  What can you say about a beach vacation?  We swam in the ocean and the pool, had dolphins swimming within 15 yards of us, built sand creations,  had arguments about whether or not we could bring living sea creatures home (the answer is no, in case you wondered) and ate more than was necessary. It's been a great long weekend.  Now we can endure months of answering the question - "when can we go back to the beach? "</p>
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I was sitting at dinner on Sunday night and realized that we had been home with the girls for exactly 3 months. It seems absolutely crazy that that much time has passed. I, of course, had fully intended to post regularly about the ups and downs of transitioning to a family of 9 and a family with pre-schoolers again but - I had TOTALLY forgotten just how much work pre-schoolers are and how little free time is actually available. I had also completely underestimated how messy 3 pre-schoolers could be and how many dishes and loads of laundry would be required to keep the family in some semblance of order. To top it all off - my computer crashed (blue screen of death) the week we got home. So much for updating the 'ol blog. As seems to be a
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On October 6th we boarded a flight from Bulgaria back to the good 'ol USA. Our traveling party had doubled in size. <br />
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As stated in the previous post, "N" now known to all as Sara, was NOT in love with her brother and would have preferred staying in Bulgaria over sitting next to him on the flight home. Too bad.<br />
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We had a 2 hour layover in Vienna on the way home. They were already sick of flying - not a good omen since we still had a 9 hr flight to D.C. and then another short flight home.<br />
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Honestly, the flight home wasn't <i>that</i> bad. Although it felt awful at the time. The only kid movie available was <i>Mirror, Mirror </i>which just doesn't hold the attention of 3,4, and 5 year olds - especially when it is in a language they don't understand. The two younger ones slept a combined total of about 3 hours. Sara didn't sleep at all. That means that Eric and I didn't sleep either. They didn't cry or throw too many tantrums and luckily we were seated behind a couple of moms who really didn't seem to notice the commotion behind them. All that being said - we were SO glad to get home! All the kids were so excited to greet us but Joseph was just beside himself. He is SUCH a good brother!</div>
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My mom had helped the kids make a "Welcome Home" sign to greet us as we walked in the door. </div>
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But life had certainly changed. Within 12 hours of being home Eric had gone to Lowes to pick up these:<br />
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And install this on the pantry (which doesn't have a door):<br />
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As they explored their new home they felt the need to get into EVERYTHING! All of a sudden our counters were covered in items that were labeled "don't touch" to the 3 newest additions. (Happily this phase only lasted a week or two). Nothing was sacred - especially not phones and ipods.<br />
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Jet lag sometimes got the best of us at the most awkward times,<br />
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But overall we were adjusting well to having new little ones enter into every aspect of our lives.<br />
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Luckily it was a warm fall because they absolutely LOVE playing outside!!!<br />
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Katya - Age 3<br />
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Sara - age 5 (although she turned 6 last month)<br />
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Bethany - (age 4)<br />
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After months of searching we FINALLY found a van that would fit the bill. With 9 people in our family and a wheelchair, our needs are slightly different than a lot of families. We knew what we wanted and luckily, with a lot of searching on Eric's part and a good dash of patience thrown in, we came across my beloved beast of a van. It is 8.5 feet tall and has about 120 square feet inside of it. We can fit the whole family (and 1 extra), the wheelchair, and still have room for luggage. I can stand up in it to buckle car seats. It is huge but I LOVE it!<br />
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Before we knew it, Halloween was here. With little sisters around, the middle schoolers felt no shame in dressing up and heading out to trick-or-treat with the family.<br />
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The girls were a little apprehensive at first but it only took a couple of houses to realize that this was a wonderful concept! "Go to the door, say some words I don't understand, hold out my bag, stranger puts in a handful of candy. Yes!!!" We came home with WAY too much candy (and a dozen cupcakes). Luckily that gate on the pantry still works great. Candy locked up - check!<br />
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November brought the celebration of a beloved Aunt's birthday. We went duck-pin bowling and had a grand 'ol time, even if the scores were on the (very) low side.<br />
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This little one (Bethany) would not keep her hands out of the ball return. Those suckers come back fast - as she eventually found out.<br />
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She eventually lost the fingernail on this hand and it still looks a little funny.<br />
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We went out for Thai food after the bowling extravaganza - Charity was <i>thrilled</i> (sarcasm - she is the world's pickiest eater and, unfortunately for her, Eric and I don't cater to pickiness....) and the rest of us really did love it.<br />
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We headed downtown that same afternoon for a missionary convention that was in town. The kids loved looking at all the different booths and we ran into several of our friends from church so it was a good way to end the day.<br />
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Katya was exhausted :)<br />
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We had an appointment with the International Adoption Clinic early in the month. Everything looked fine on the outside but labs still had to be run. I was NOT looking forward to getting 5 or so vials of blood drawn from each child but eventually I sucked it up and took them in.<br />
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They did fine - lots of tears but no real drama. As we were getting back in the van I realized that they had forgotten to do the TB pricks. Guess how happy the girls were to go back to that awful place that makes you cry. No amount of stickers was going to make that go well ;)<br />
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I plan on homeschooling the girls through Kindergarten (our school system only offers full-day Kindergarten which just doesn't work for me) and so I have been "evaluating" their "skills" through craft projects and games. Our Thanksgiving projects turned out really cute and they loved hanging them on the mantle for everyone to admire.<br />
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Thanksgiving weekend is always a fun-filled but busy one. </div>
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We watch the parade.</div>
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The family comes over for a Thanksgiving meal.</div>
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(Hey look - Sara likes Michael now. Only took about a week at home before she figured out that he wasn't all that bad.)</div>
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After a full night of shopping for mom - the whole family heads to the local Christmas Tree lighting ceremony.</div>
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They have a live nativity and if you are cute enough you can pet the animals (okay - so they let anyone do it - but my kids <i>are</i> really cute!)</div>
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Last, but not least, on the agenda is picking out the Christmas tree. Our next door neighbors joined in the fun this year (in order to avoid going to their older brothers' wrestling meet). Charity was ticked that someone else's tree choice won out this year. </div>
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The little girls knew all about Christmas trees and honestly had a good grasp of the whole Christmas season. I'm not sure they had ever heard that it was for Jesus' birthday or not but they have picked up that by now and sound just like all the other sunday school kids their age when you ask them a question that is church related - they yell out "Jesus" :)</div>
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Why do we celebrate Christmas? - "Jesus"</div>
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Who does the Bible tell us about? - "Jesus"</div>
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How many books are in the Old Testament? - "Jesus" </div>
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Look at the love in this house :)</div>
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Sara had dental work done at the end of the month. She needed 4 teeth pulled, 3 crowns and several fillings so we had it done under anesthesia. She did great and is anxiously waiting for those teeth to come in (they are the 4 front top ones).<br />
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We had family pictures taken by a friend of ours. I don't know how he did it but somehow we got several good options to choose from. He must be a miracle worker. Here is my favorite of the kids.<br />
Sara is IMPOSSIBLE to get a good shot of....<br />
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<br />We hosted the annual Thanksgiving/Christmas celebration for my step-dad's family for the second time this year. Apparently Uncle Alan is also a miracle worker because he was able to get the whole crew together for a very good picture as well.<br />
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December starts with back to back birthday celebrations for Sara and Michael on the 7th and 8th.<br />
We took Sara to get her ears pierced and out to lunch on the day of her birthday. Our little drama queen actually did really well with the piercing - only a few tears. And she absolutely loves wearing them. She is anxiously awaiting the day (January 18th) when she can take them out for a little while and try out some of the other pairs that she has received as gifts.<br />
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Birthdays are the one time where I let the kids choose what we are eating for dinner. Sara knew exactly what she wanted for her birthday - pizza, banitsa (a Bulgarian dish) and funfetti cake. Quite a combination but, whatever. She loved being sung to and we didn't have to explain about blowing out the candles. She knew exactly what to do and still beams anytime someone asks how old she is and she can answer "6". <br />
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The day after Sara turned 6, Michael turned 12 - booooo! (It's hard to believe my 1st baby is one year away from being a teenager. I certainly am not old enough to have a child that old ;) ) He chose Beef Carbonnade (Belgian beef stew) for his dinner with a White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake for dessert. I love eating Michael's bday dinners but cooking them is an all day affair.<br />
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He continues his obsession with the Chicago Bears and Purdue and was thrilled to receive a "throw back" Matt Forte jersey and a fun Purdue winter hat as birthday gifts.<br />
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I finally got the little girls' hair cut. We have been growing out bangs but I couldn't take it any longer. We removed about 7 inches from Sara's, 5 from Katya, and shaped up Bethany. She is the one I caught a couple of times cutting her hair when we were in Bulgaria so it was pretty uneven. <br />
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She now looks a lot like Dora or maybe Boo from Monster's Inc. if we put in some pig tails. (She was in a staring contest with Mr. Snowman here. I think she lost. Something about the snowman not having eyelids.) <br />
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We had our first significant snowfall on the first day of Christmas vacation. The kids were getting dressed to go our by 7:30 a.m. I convinced them to at least wait until 8:00 before waking up the rest of the neighborhood.<br />
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It always drives me crazy that you spend 30 minutes getting everyone ready to go outside and inevitably they are outside for 15 seconds and ready to come inside. I think they just go out so that they have an excuse to ask for hot chocolate.<br />
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We had a great Christmas with my brothers and sisters at my mom's house on the 22nd and with Eric's side of the family on Christmas Eve. The kids actually sat through the Christmas Eve service really well - even with little to no naps and all the excitement running through their little heads. We ran into 2 families of friends that we met through our Ukrainian adoption at that service (we were actually at their church since it is closer to Eric's dad's house than our church is.) They didn't know we had adopted again and so we had a nice few minutes catching up, exclaiming over how much all of our kids had grown/aged since we saw each other last and showing off our "sweet ride" to all of their kids. Big families can fully appreciate my beast of a van.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bethany's big honkin' candy cane</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Uncle Chris teaching Joseph how to fly his new helicopter.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Papa and the girls</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Christmas morning dawned bright and early with the big kids going in and waking up the little girls at 6:00 so that they could come downstairs. We have a tradition of reading the Christmas story to the kids each year in our bed before going in to look at the tree and open presents. This is going to get more hilarious each year as we all barely fit this year into our full-sized bed and the kids are just going to get bigger :)<br />
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The kids of course loved opening their presents - except for Sara. She was ticked because apparently everybody else was getting better stuff than she was. She was mad that the biggest boxes were not for her (not that she wanted what was inside once they were opened) and at one point told us that we could throw her new doll in the trash. Charity asked if she could have it and Sara told her "no, trash." I'm not kidding when I tell you that these girls have been <i>spoiled</i> by their former caretakers! I'm glad they were loved and doted on but sheesh, give me a break already! She eventually snapped out of it (when she realized pouting and crying weren't going to work on her mean parents - even on Christmas morning) and ended up happy with her new stuff (even the baby doll) but it definitely made for a, shall we say, memorable Christmas morning. </div>
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Okay - so there is a quick recap. I will do a beginning of 2013 post soon - we have had 2 more birthdays already :) </div>
Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-39793039811622079262012-10-04T12:50:00.001-06:002012-10-04T12:50:28.246-06:00Discoveries and Adjustments<span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>So parenting is tough - I don't think anyone with a brain in their head would dispute that. Parenting preschoolers is tough and exhausting - another well documented fact. Parenting preschoolers who speak not a word of English and have been spoiled for a majority of their lives is darn near impossible - especially in a foreign country. The girls are AWESOME - don't get me wrong, but anytime they have to go to sleep is difficult and we had honestly forgotten just how much trouble this age can manage to find. NOTHING is sacred - Eric has "lost" his bookmarks out of his books several times, hairbows have gone missing, Michael's backpack was commandeered from day 1, toys get thrown, one sister hits another one, someone falls off the furniture that they had been told repeatedly not to jump on, one steals the other one's toy, tell mom "ne" aka "no" and run in the other direction, open the door to the apartment and try to escape while mom is dealing with one of the other sisters, they pull all of the clothes out of the cabinets and take all of the bedding off of the beds all in about 7.2 seconds. "M" has much shorter hair than her 2 sisters. I had kind of wondered about that and Eric and I talked a little about it in passing but this week we figured out why her hair is probably so short - little miss has an affinity for scissors. I didn't realize that there was a pair in a drawer next to our bed where she was "taking a nap". When I went in to check on her she had a nice little snippet of hair that she was trying to hide before she was busted. A hair-cutter, just what I need! "N" has decided that Michael is her least favorite person on the planet (which is RIDICULOUS since he is an absolute sweetheart to her) and will NOT sit by him or hold his hand when we are walking somewhere. Unfortunately for her, she has 2 little sisters who need mom and dad's supervision a little more often so she is stuck with him often. We had quite the little meltdown as we left the American Embassy today when she had to sit in the back seat with him and later we had our facilitator warn her that she WOULD be sitting next to him on the airplanes because Mom and Dad would be needed with her little sisters. Her basic response was - I think I'll just stay in Bulgaria. ;) (Not really, but that's what her look said). Of course then we get back to the apartment and she has as much fun chasing him and playing with him as the other 2 do. </b></span></span><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>I'm so tired and I am having to relearn some of my "coping techniques" from when Michael and Charity were this age :)</b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>I'm also thrilled beyond belief that we got the 3 coolest and most adorable kids in this whole country - sorry to disappoint all of you guys still waiting for your referrals ;) They are full of energy, no doubt, but they are also incredibly loving to us and each other, they are hilarious and they appear to really enjoy being a part of a family. They jump right into anything we are doing with both feet - even laundry and after dinner clean-up. </b></span></span><br />
<span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>We are ready to come home and figure this stuff out in the comfort of our own home. We had our Embassy appointment this afternoon - painless, and the girls' visas will be picked up tomorrow afternoon. </b></span></span><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>We
get to have lunch with our Bulgarian friends tomorrow so that will be
fun. We stayed with them for most of our first trip over here and I
know they are excited to meet our girls. </b></span></span><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b> We are scheduled to leave on Saturday morning and arrive home at 6:55 pm that same day - not that we are eagerly awaiting that or anything. One more day....</b></span></span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-70007740016026040182012-10-01T09:18:00.001-06:002012-10-01T09:18:09.218-06:00Whirlwind of a week...<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>I always admire God's sense of humor. No sooner had a posted on our blog about traveling to get our girls at the end of October and I get a phone call asking if we can be there at the end of SEPTEMBER! Yes - do the math. I got a phone call on Monday asking if we could be there on Sunday which means leaving on Saturday. That's about 5 1/2 days to get packed for 6 people and get everything lined up to leave 3 children at home. So we said, "Sure, no problem!" Called our travel agent and grandma and I writing this post with one of my newest girls sitting on my lap. It still seems surreal. We hopped a flight on Saturday afternoon...</b></span></div>
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<b style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">and killed time in Chicago playing a little Phase 10 (a favorite at our house).</b></div>
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<b style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">We had a 45 minute layover in Munich which bummed Michael out since his favorite soccer team is there and he was really hoping to blow some money in the gift shop. We at least got a picture in front of the window so we have his silhouette in Munich :)</b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiduUjxUNUtlckqSOez_BoUmmH5t7YXylFhNpKSNkmjb7RPOehZnLQNlfEGFhrAfAj7JLY2Zzz79sRsCZV8vaJggjzO7nBV4th8Ib4erzFKShZ1kptfeC81me0wouxH-jNR8gdfbOQVnpuH/s1600/IMG_8383%5B1%5D.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiduUjxUNUtlckqSOez_BoUmmH5t7YXylFhNpKSNkmjb7RPOehZnLQNlfEGFhrAfAj7JLY2Zzz79sRsCZV8vaJggjzO7nBV4th8Ib4erzFKShZ1kptfeC81me0wouxH-jNR8gdfbOQVnpuH/s320/IMG_8383%5B1%5D.JPG" width="240" /></a></div>
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<b style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">We were picked up from the airport and taken to our apartment. It is a 2 bedroom right near city center and is PERFECT for this trip. 2 bedrooms and lots of toys - what else could we need. </b></div>
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<span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-weight: bold;">We drove over and got the girls at about 10:30 this morning and have been on the go ever since. Leaving was pretty emotional. The girls were honestly loved there so it was hard for the babas (volunteer grandmothers) and workers to see them go. It was tough on "N" as well. She is old enough to understand what is going on a little so she was crying as we left. She was her normal self about 1/2 an hour later and has been fine since but I'm sure there will be bouts of homesickness over the next few months</span><br />
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<b style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: start;">This afternoon we had medical appointments and passport photos and applications. We are playing it low key and staying in this evening. It's been a heck of a week and we need to rest :)</b></div>
Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-58185150956515822092012-09-23T18:57:00.002-06:002012-09-23T18:57:19.143-06:00It's not ALL about the adoption (it just feels like it)....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>While it may seem that our whole life revolves around the adoption - since that is what I talk about the most on this blog - that is thankfully far from the truth. The waiting is hard enough when we are this busy. So, because I have been negligent in updating my blog on a regular basis we will do a quick catch up. </b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>Jonathan got to attend camp this summer. He has wanted to go for a couple of years but circumstances (many of his own choosing) kept him from going. This year though he was determined and old enough to attend the camp put on by the local children's hospital specifically for special needs kids. The whole place is wheelchair accessible and the staff:camper ratio is at most 2:1. It is really an incredible place and Jonathan had a great week - so much so that he cried from the minute we showed up to bring him home until an hour after we had arrived home - that is over 2 hours of tears! Needless to say, he is planning on returning next year and would really like to stay for 2 weeks. I'm not sure this momma could handle that!</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>Joseph made a big decision at his session of church camp this year - he accepted Jesus as his savior! Thankfully he was smart enough to save his baptism for a time when Mom and Dad could witness it since we were out of town at the end of camp. It's has been really fun to see his excitement and to see him growing in his faith (and apparently in stature as well - look how tall he is getting!!)</b></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b><span style="color: orange;">It wouldn't be summer at our house without a healthy dose of 4-H. While Eric still dreads it, the rest of us enjoy every moment of fair week (except the oppressive heat) and they have so much fun seeing their placings that it is worth all the fights, sleepless nights, and tears that go in to finishing the projects. Charity and her cousin are in the same grade and so they model their sewing projects together. It was sweet to see that even though they were each others' competition, they were still willing to pitch in and help with all the little adjustments that need to be made as you wait for the judging. And lets face it - they are both stinkin' adorable!</span></b> <span style="color: orange;"><b>(In case you were wondering, the girls made their shorts/skirt.)</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>Michael and Charity also showed
pigs this year. We are taking a breather from that project next year so
this year was extra important to them.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>Joseph had a great 4-H year - receiving champion for his woodworking <i>and</i>
foods projects. Of course that meant we had to re-bake his muffins for
the State Fair but we were super proud of him. Both of those projects
are very competitive so it is quite a testament to his (and my brother -
the woodworking coach) hard work. He thinks animals are too much work (smart boy) so he spent way too much of the week like this:</b></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">The three older kids enjoyed the watermelon eating contest. Notice Charity on the end cheating by using her hands and not caring who sees her. </span></span></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">In the end, Joseph came the closest to winning but still fell short of a perfectly clean rind. </span></span></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">I couldn't resist the yummy watermelon so I conned my cousin's wife and
her sister into going out to compete in a lady-like fashion. I have to
say - it was delicious!</span></span></span></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>Jonathan ran into one of his buddies from camp one day. They spent several minutes catching up and playing ball. </b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>The bottom line for fair week: It's a lot of hard work,</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> <b><span style="color: orange;">tiring, </span></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>and downright fun! (These are from the battle of the 4-Hers - basically an excuse to get wet and dirty!)</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>All too soon, summer was over and it was time for the first day of school.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>Jonathan is in 3rd grade.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>Joseph and Charity are in 5th grade and at the middle school with Michael who is in 6th grade.</b></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxRscf1bzai8tTQV-icU8h3bkFL8uj2k66YUuDICjeQfXA5HY6dRn8n9otjJYwQxQ64HcWXH07SN2Bnp6ptxi9A7biIHIPw6vJ_gXLfQkhl_UlHqNVvDXOfGEOEeMGzBxZY3xIebqXdf2P/s1600/IMG_8303.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxRscf1bzai8tTQV-icU8h3bkFL8uj2k66YUuDICjeQfXA5HY6dRn8n9otjJYwQxQ64HcWXH07SN2Bnp6ptxi9A7biIHIPw6vJ_gXLfQkhl_UlHqNVvDXOfGEOEeMGzBxZY3xIebqXdf2P/s320/IMG_8303.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange; font-size: small;"><b>We have had a busy fall with two football players and a "futbol" player. Luckily Joseph and Michael are on the same team and Eric is assistant coach for Charity's soccer team so it keeps our running to a minimum. </b></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYlPahEPCe3KU2I3XJ4SwCgyy-QQG8loMmCT9DF7JeGjPqJO-mCcup-N0AEAbxQLvLyrBnl6Rk0xSwLRZku0dysUTLzTZDcJvbMM1ZOnWtJXb9G7erRke9jaZ8vrqegAjHhV2rlyqyGCVn/s1600/IMG_0043.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYlPahEPCe3KU2I3XJ4SwCgyy-QQG8loMmCT9DF7JeGjPqJO-mCcup-N0AEAbxQLvLyrBnl6Rk0xSwLRZku0dysUTLzTZDcJvbMM1ZOnWtJXb9G7erRke9jaZ8vrqegAjHhV2rlyqyGCVn/s320/IMG_0043.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Michael plays center and nose guard.</span></span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKukL1EOPIXSryLdD3XWyC_qjAT4CeY5oabuIEjHlDkkaxTcpXwHWDkqcbdubyUIp3JYxZ44wg8BsInwAuLQtdCmbdz2zNoLUo-iyJUnHFhuTgLFH-mxcLGg07hfGaHA5Kmb4soaAwsUKH/s1600/IMG_0077.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKukL1EOPIXSryLdD3XWyC_qjAT4CeY5oabuIEjHlDkkaxTcpXwHWDkqcbdubyUIp3JYxZ44wg8BsInwAuLQtdCmbdz2zNoLUo-iyJUnHFhuTgLFH-mxcLGg07hfGaHA5Kmb4soaAwsUKH/s320/IMG_0077.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Joseph plays running back and defensive end.</span></span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Soccer pics will be coming soon - I just haven't made it to a game with my camera yet. (You can bet little miss has given me grief about that one!)</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Just in case you think we haven't had any adoption work going on - <i>so not true!</i></b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>First things first - get the American Girl dolls that I received from my cousin shipped off to the Doll hospital for a makeover.</b></span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2y4MEAUZc4k6HaaTHsurhmugAXeQ8qTG7UVMokIpRDoAZFa3NPB0-f2ZA_YEeDAarfE1ABiBEPnN4rHXBDc_W1VEpGRmQ7KF7vNcsA5E_5dQxWqAzafm0lsfet94TyI2XnYazyWu-oN7Z/s1600/IMG_8304.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2y4MEAUZc4k6HaaTHsurhmugAXeQ8qTG7UVMokIpRDoAZFa3NPB0-f2ZA_YEeDAarfE1ABiBEPnN4rHXBDc_W1VEpGRmQ7KF7vNcsA5E_5dQxWqAzafm0lsfet94TyI2XnYazyWu-oN7Z/s320/IMG_8304.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Before (this picture cracks me up. I call it "Babies in a Box"! )</span></span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGQt-KO2rCuK6Zjz7LqXb2QgoaHbUF0RW_WV6rCCGoBx68zir5H_KxTQAT-pUOwV7NQh8bPNBCt2PDf5wkDjyOfW4bV8DHb4kmEWu7VK2FoZXURzG-HbERL9ZMJdlCAWpKMqBZgW-T-n7N/s1600/Photo08291431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGQt-KO2rCuK6Zjz7LqXb2QgoaHbUF0RW_WV6rCCGoBx68zir5H_KxTQAT-pUOwV7NQh8bPNBCt2PDf5wkDjyOfW4bV8DHb4kmEWu7VK2FoZXURzG-HbERL9ZMJdlCAWpKMqBZgW-T-n7N/s320/Photo08291431.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After - they are SO cute!</span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b> Next, take black bunk beds and make them white....</b></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPX6tySanl81ggnFO2t_7sWuMRpu5pSRz2Uz8RAhob5qwrf4tExWVk-JI1YmDluRofq-Ok1eXqXXek_T_YsoMOVP0shGcLX9ihsEXLf9de1Cw0I6CNLKlPo-Gn7_hT9qCJKyOMxSan7S2I/s1600/IMG_8307.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPX6tySanl81ggnFO2t_7sWuMRpu5pSRz2Uz8RAhob5qwrf4tExWVk-JI1YmDluRofq-Ok1eXqXXek_T_YsoMOVP0shGcLX9ihsEXLf9de1Cw0I6CNLKlPo-Gn7_hT9qCJKyOMxSan7S2I/s320/IMG_8307.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWFmcAVm6D9dLl_7uyyWMv8f8TDQyHVBpC9XGpGCuqPlxmCGwfdgEwua4MQYxA_rfs5Ur1ObDe3mT5AzfcautLaH2JW44-XcmtrzLcwmkA4b3tb7iEXK422wc82iFn_s_rab9zWBHZP-oy/s1600/IMG_8316.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWFmcAVm6D9dLl_7uyyWMv8f8TDQyHVBpC9XGpGCuqPlxmCGwfdgEwua4MQYxA_rfs5Ur1ObDe3mT5AzfcautLaH2JW44-XcmtrzLcwmkA4b3tb7iEXK422wc82iFn_s_rab9zWBHZP-oy/s320/IMG_8316.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b><i> </i></b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Then turn this room:</b></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecyXCHOA0MPnH3iNI1nIaJCw9N-nX8bUNLGtzyWRpbJYlcPZfALkayWrqU_mH6Td50ZM8RT5je-HuzkwFqEKVXu-VRolaoinHmtkxUk_u-HqOCL1xfOPtdnQW24bPU2FBSRLVEk8ASVFJ/s1600/167947_10150105398894841_8106198_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecyXCHOA0MPnH3iNI1nIaJCw9N-nX8bUNLGtzyWRpbJYlcPZfALkayWrqU_mH6Td50ZM8RT5je-HuzkwFqEKVXu-VRolaoinHmtkxUk_u-HqOCL1xfOPtdnQW24bPU2FBSRLVEk8ASVFJ/s320/167947_10150105398894841_8106198_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>into this:</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>And the final step on this side of the pond is - packing! I managed to fit all of the girls' stuff into one suitcase so then Michael, Eric and I will have two checked bags to put ours in. I had to guess on sizes, not knowing how much they have grown in the past 4 months. Thank goodness dresses and leggings are forgiving! </b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b> Now we just wait to hear when we will be traveling. We hope to know by the end of the week since we had court on the 14th of this month. We are anticipating late October or so but honestly it could be earlier or later - we just don't know. </b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>So, there we are. All caught up. I'll try to be better about updating once I am home with 3 little girls. I'm kind of living it up in my last few weeks of relative freedom and trying to get all the things done that are made more difficult with preschoolers in tow - such as going to the hairdresser, dentist, trips to Cost.co, volunteering in the kids' classrooms, going to the gym, afternoon naps, catching up on Net.flix - you know, all the important stuff.</b></span></span></span></div>
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Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-82083073137581474672012-08-10T07:29:00.000-06:002012-09-22T19:28:38.386-06:00We received a court date!<b><span style="color: orange; font-size: large;">We got an email this week that we have been scheduled for court on September 14th. Hopefully 6-8 weeks later we will be allowed to go and grab the girls and bring them home (our agency goes to court on our behalf so we won't be making a trip until it's time to bring them home.) I like having a date. I was bummed that we weren't able to sneak in before the courts close for their summer holiday but I didn't realize how much NOT knowing was bugging me. I like having a timeline - even a hazy one so knowing when "we" are going to court gives me that. I now know I need to have the bedroom switched from "8 year old boy" to "spunky little girls" by the beginning of October - wishful thinking that it would be needed that early but still...better to be prepared :)</span></b>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-91576029643537009012012-06-08T11:44:00.000-06:002012-06-08T11:44:04.444-06:00Last visit<span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Yesterday during the girls' nap time we went to visit Rila Monastery. This is the largest monastery in Bulgaria and they are rightfully proud of it. It is beautiful, well maintained and in as wonderful a setting as you can imagine - high up in the mountains with a flowing river nearby. Our driver visits here often and could tell us all about the area and the history. It was a great way to spend the "waiting" time and our girls got a nice long nap since we got back to the orphanage a little bit later than normal. It made for a very fun afternoon with them. Have I told you how great they are? :) </span><br />
<span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">We had our last visit today. It was so hard to leave them, not knowing when we will be allowed to return to bring them home - my babies (although they will ADAMANTLY tell you that they are </span><i style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-large;">not </i><span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">babies! We were only there in the morning today but we stayed a little longer than normal. The kids were tired and hungry by the time we left but it made them more willing to snuggle so it wasn't all bad :) "N" asked if we would be back tomorrow and our facilitator explained to her that we had to return to America to get their bedroom ready and do work before they could come home. She took it well and told us as we were leaving that they would wait for us - break my heart. We are really praying that we will be able to have court in July. Our documents are all here, updated and ready to go so we'll pray that God intercedes and we get an early court date. </span>
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<span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">After we returned to the city, our facilitator dropped us off in the city centre (aka downtown) and we walked around for awhile, ate a leisurely lunch and then took a cab back to our hotel. The hotel is very nice (Hotel Geneva). It is slightly outside of the city centre and therefore about 1/2 the price but with all the amenities that we spoiled Americans expect in a hotel - even in Eastern Europe. ;) We took naps this afternoon and will be packing tonight for an early start in the morning. Our flight leaves at 7:15. I'm torn between my desire to stay and spend some more time hangin' out with my girls and the fact that I miss the other 4 yahoos who are waiting patiently for their parents to come home and show them pics and videos of their new sisters. It won't be long and we'll be back in Bulgaria- ready to bring some more fun and laughter into our house in the form of 3 spunky sisters!</span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-2739760148767265562012-06-06T10:57:00.001-06:002012-06-06T10:57:30.654-06:00Visits 2 & 3<span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">Every day looks the same for us on this trip. We leave the apartment around 9:00. Arrive at the girls' orphanage at 10:00. Play until lunch. Kill time until 3:00 (when they get up from their naps) and then play for another couple of hours before heading back to Sofia. The kids have been very open to us and would be perfectly happy if we took them with home with us on Saturday. Unfortunately for all of us, that is not allowed. They will be traveling to the coast for a few weeks this summer so they are happy not to miss that. They are such funny girls. "N" is the oldest and very much in charge. She is only 18 months older than "M" but she lords that difference over the other two. "M" and "K" are 11 months apart and chatter at each other all the time. "M" is very sweet and generous, "K" is the spoiled baby. They all prefer to spend their days outside so today we sat outside and colored, climbed on the playground equipment, painted nails and played with play-doh. That playdoh has caused so many arguments! They each have 3 containers of it but they can't seem to keep from trying to steal their sisters' - especially "N" and "K". "M" is very picky about hers and doesn't want her colors mixed together (a girl after my own heart) but the other two have smooshed pink, purple, green, and orange in all sorts of <strike>n</strike></span><span style="color: orange; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;"><strike>asty</strike> fun ways. "N" was quieter today and was obviously torn between spending time with us and playing with her friends. We told her it was fine to play with her friends but she still stayed with us and looked longingly at them. Eventually one of the girls came up to where we were and she and "N" played for awhile across the playground from us - still within yelling distance for "N" and Mama and Taty. Tomorrow will be more of the same. We only have about 6 more hours to spend with them - boooo. We are praying that we are able to have court in July so that we can return hopefully in September. It will go fast, yet feel like an eternity!!! </span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-45618318168459915642012-06-04T13:46:00.000-06:002012-06-04T13:46:06.834-06:00The adventure begins<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">We are here and THEY ARE AWESOME! I can't be too specific but today we met our new children. We arrived in Bulgaria yesterday and spent the day with our dear friends Latcho and Lucy, in whose home we are staying. They took us to a church with a cloister of nuns about 30 minutes outside of Sofia and they fed us lots of yummy food and then sent us to bed early :) This morning we stopped by the notary's office to sign paperwork before traveling to the kids' orphanage for our first meeting. It went as well as we had hoped and leaving these sweeties in a few days is going to be very difficult. Tomorrow we will visit in the morning and the afternoon. It is supposed to rain so keeping busy hands and feet occupied when we can't go outside should be a trick. Keep praying!</span></span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-41533860593188421602012-04-26T18:39:00.000-06:002012-06-04T22:13:39.383-06:00Good News!<div style="color: orange; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: large;">I don't know if anyone still checks this (besides my sister - she is very loyal) but thought I would share just in case. We received and accepted a referral for 3 little girls this week! I can't give any more details than that right now but they are absolute darlings! (I have never met them and they aren't officially my children yet so I'm not biased - right?) Eric and I will make our first trip over there in about a month and then hopefully bring them home sometime in the fall. The other kids are BEYOND excited and obviously it is all we can think about right now. I completed and mailed off a huge stack of paperwork today and hopefully will have another stack to mail out tomorrow. We are furiously trying to scrape together the funds for our next couple of payments so if you are reading this and have some extra cash lying around that you want to throw our way - contact me and I can set you up with a 501-c3 that you could donate to "for us". Just kidding - kind of. I hate fundraising!!! The kids also still have puzzle pieces that they are still trying to get sponsored.</span></div>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-47724121283277303872011-11-01T07:01:00.000-06:002011-11-19T14:42:57.327-06:00Terrorizing the Neighbors aka Halloween<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial;">I realized this year just
how much I HATE Halloween! The actual
event itself is fun but it makes my blood boil as I buy hundreds of pieces of chocolate
that I <i>don’t even get to eat</i> (880 this year) and rack my brain trying to come
with costumes that my 10 year old boys will think are “cool” without being gory,
satanic or expensive. Charity is just as
hard – I don’t want my darling daughter to look like a street walker! Anyway – now that my little rant is over here
are a few pics of last night’s romp around the ‘hood. They had a great time and got enough candy to
last for awhile. I will be sorting
through to pull out all the sticky/chewy stuff today – they all have sealants
so none of that is allowed – but it looks like they will still have WAY more
candy than any kid should eat in 6 months! </span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial;"> Let the sugar highs begin….</span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: small;">There goes the neighborhood....</span></b></div>
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<b>Motley Crew</b></div>
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<b style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Our Egyptian Prince </span></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;">Meets his Cleopatra</span></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;">Every father's nightmare!</span></b><b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"> </span></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;">"Hello ladies."</span></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;">Our Beautiful Bug</span></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;">When 900 years you reach, look as good, you will not.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><b>Joseph's (bat) and Jonathan's (cat) pumpkins</b></span></div>
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<b>Michael's (spider) and Charity's (Larry the Cucumber) pumpkins.</b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;"> </span></b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBOGNytO_l3T0KwJIZmik1fjhwNkN-VcA_fYDSB8YIpcyOQGigccE2eCuw2zkRv4xz8URQ6OTs8_6g6iJIyj1QgyY7XHakP7y8XNbTwsmLBL7c9_7udob4Q4aTQqfs277GnD-_DF4Irb9i/s1600/DSCN0054.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBOGNytO_l3T0KwJIZmik1fjhwNkN-VcA_fYDSB8YIpcyOQGigccE2eCuw2zkRv4xz8URQ6OTs8_6g6iJIyj1QgyY7XHakP7y8XNbTwsmLBL7c9_7udob4Q4aTQqfs277GnD-_DF4Irb9i/s320/DSCN0054.JPG" width="214" /></a></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="color: orange;">Remember - Charity had that green pumpkin. It never turned orange which she was very happy about so that her "vision" for it could be realized.</span></b></div>
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<br />Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-32514932992695930792011-10-17T19:31:00.001-06:002011-10-17T19:31:27.418-06:00<br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Okay – so I always have the best of intentions when it comes
to this blog. When I’m taking pictures I
mentally compose entries – I just never seem to get around to actually doing
anything with it. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">I commandeered my step-dad’s camera last weekend to grab
some pics before our sports seasons were over. </span><br />
<br />
Michael is in his element every fall. The kid eats, sleeps, breathes and
eats again football. He was super excited to be on a team again with his favorite
coach this year. <span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div>
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We spent the past three months cheering on the Cardinals and specifically "big" #80. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcE2o4D9cyIDuRRwM8ycGcMqC0Ak4DcA_01z5uJRcdpcCyfXiQe8kE_bFPMbW2HbJ7HRuv0K7CxNymylIwCsVODfakVpeVjcg_uMVncxBmhfO-V4Y5gd6hoV5ddw3UFRuz7Cc9fFRr1uQu/s1600/IMG_6843.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcE2o4D9cyIDuRRwM8ycGcMqC0Ak4DcA_01z5uJRcdpcCyfXiQe8kE_bFPMbW2HbJ7HRuv0K7CxNymylIwCsVODfakVpeVjcg_uMVncxBmhfO-V4Y5gd6hoV5ddw3UFRuz7Cc9fFRr1uQu/s320/IMG_6843.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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On offense Michael played center - a new position for him. He did great, had a few bad snaps here and there but enjoyed the position and wasn't afraid of getting creamed by the other team. He knew his mother had that fear covered.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8V4Nv3bBKQqXMINuFktoCSoxOEl7M1kTzhlTKIoE-7g6oClv2WNvbz36qRv4EKk9uw42kOeGRd6vvPukoyMLizkFFf-SWtjlB_CIjuy2kNpUk_5mS4TCObxstP3raJM_VFuzf5L6Hnbjk/s1600/IMG_6852.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8V4Nv3bBKQqXMINuFktoCSoxOEl7M1kTzhlTKIoE-7g6oClv2WNvbz36qRv4EKk9uw42kOeGRd6vvPukoyMLizkFFf-SWtjlB_CIjuy2kNpUk_5mS4TCObxstP3raJM_VFuzf5L6Hnbjk/s320/IMG_6852.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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Defense saw him on the line. This is where my gentle giant really comes alive. He is a very sweet kid in general but get the boy in pads and a helmet and he becomes a whole new child. He LOVES to hit and takes great pride in every tackle credited to him. <br />
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Our season ended in a close playoff game on Sunday. The boys were disappointed but as much as I love winning (and I really love winning) it is kind of a relief to have a little more down time in our calendar.<br />
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After two dismal seasons playing football, Joseph decided to give soccer another try this fall. He loves all sports so we really weren't too concerned about him having a good time. He is naturally athletic (which I can say in all modesty because he shares no genes with Eric or I) so his biggest challenge is keeping his ego in check (: <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5YaT0wvrR9Q9Z20XNxSKrazjfvZryGl36PKKGiEETgjGEYhRRNR4X6A1Ama91A6evNca-o7SaqliZUj-md9nXrxX2ngwjakPbMNJRvwQqWj2LgkGf3oWRFtt8aAhMxdaQ_-s-FHpSDSgW/s1600/IMG_6925.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5YaT0wvrR9Q9Z20XNxSKrazjfvZryGl36PKKGiEETgjGEYhRRNR4X6A1Ama91A6evNca-o7SaqliZUj-md9nXrxX2ngwjakPbMNJRvwQqWj2LgkGf3oWRFtt8aAhMxdaQ_-s-FHpSDSgW/s320/IMG_6925.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Luckily he had (assistant) Coach Dad to keep him grounded.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> The keys to Joseph's game?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLp6vvcQmL2oh-cCkuWO7Bb_dQ_W1wCPskSg96Z2NkhbUpZwj_DawN2cyJd6IYhAjTOyma2Vz1RT6B3lmMYrhVVObvB1AzzRB8NafNy-prTZsMyVtX1hkUm-QF9j0VpnZA3vRZ3iIX5YpT/s1600/IMG_6906.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLp6vvcQmL2oh-cCkuWO7Bb_dQ_W1wCPskSg96Z2NkhbUpZwj_DawN2cyJd6IYhAjTOyma2Vz1RT6B3lmMYrhVVObvB1AzzRB8NafNy-prTZsMyVtX1hkUm-QF9j0VpnZA3vRZ3iIX5YpT/s320/IMG_6906.JPG" width="213" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">1) Focus</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjblimtJ259M4IaGOsAh5LBVjjp8qUDCORy28x1pfWDRwpeUqiloPcDaqNE8pVL4CurYZIx9ZcE4UHISh7-lGJjp_3xXaohyTrVtMJpyColp8iXuX9aPVzaAJ_cMRubqyhqw90nEtZpQs4m/s1600/IMG_6899.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjblimtJ259M4IaGOsAh5LBVjjp8qUDCORy28x1pfWDRwpeUqiloPcDaqNE8pVL4CurYZIx9ZcE4UHISh7-lGJjp_3xXaohyTrVtMJpyColp8iXuX9aPVzaAJ_cMRubqyhqw90nEtZpQs4m/s320/IMG_6899.JPG" width="320" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">2) Hustle</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7DWQ0yxn7xT0IFod7DgkY0QmmXsuVUPS2u56Q8UMJViOr2CtlXKZ_mct9hrsZ1uSTI0ewmO9qHEUBvx8Ip1xt6qWWx3bdtiom-XO7KKhEmasW7EUJoUdsVQgyIAauFuvpnR-Vr5w_pfQ/s1600/IMG_6895.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ7DWQ0yxn7xT0IFod7DgkY0QmmXsuVUPS2u56Q8UMJViOr2CtlXKZ_mct9hrsZ1uSTI0ewmO9qHEUBvx8Ip1xt6qWWx3bdtiom-XO7KKhEmasW7EUJoUdsVQgyIAauFuvpnR-Vr5w_pfQ/s320/IMG_6895.JPG" width="212" /></a><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">3) Throw in a little fancy footwork for good measure!</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">So, how did the season go? Let's just say- the boys had a great time but Coach Don had a full head of hair at the beginning of the season....</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ACtLLUFR36d6z5yZplYrZz0XYIObEbQuEaCVqOf7lGgXmv4lkz-nDYhr1YdaN8hPmKFqYvBUDmb_Y_Z7rWbb4Hb6VSXBwloR87VP9dnmpTp-ay3GBAcRADsrXfXLn6Rx6HFRHlxBfFCW/s1600/IMG_7043+%25282%2529.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8ACtLLUFR36d6z5yZplYrZz0XYIObEbQuEaCVqOf7lGgXmv4lkz-nDYhr1YdaN8hPmKFqYvBUDmb_Y_Z7rWbb4Hb6VSXBwloR87VP9dnmpTp-ay3GBAcRADsrXfXLn6Rx6HFRHlxBfFCW/s320/IMG_7043+%25282%2529.jpg" width="213" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Charity's game has always been soccer and she absolutely <i>loves</i> to
play it. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpEEt0ksN8T8vvUSgvyjfJ6ID-faPZjDuj1qGi0JJUlxUtVPxdKTqG13BquPNJYT-lsCSKMgNkKFKjPE0oNyesx0IkGxW5x6e7NM4Fbgh2F3vzDPbQH7MF4jv8sEl89lc9UQbqIfvwmdqU/s1600/IMG_6800crop.JPG" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpEEt0ksN8T8vvUSgvyjfJ6ID-faPZjDuj1qGi0JJUlxUtVPxdKTqG13BquPNJYT-lsCSKMgNkKFKjPE0oNyesx0IkGxW5x6e7NM4Fbgh2F3vzDPbQH7MF4jv8sEl89lc9UQbqIfvwmdqU/s1600/IMG_6800crop.JPG" width="212" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">She broke her ankle this
summer and had to sit out the first couple of games. It has taken awhile to come back from her
injury but she got 3 goals in the last 2 games and ended the season well. It’s hard for her to choose her favorite part
of the game. Is it:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: small;">The snacks?</span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN66QdbTo8pOf0xp3ux_lbaEQjM8S734urvIjSUz-tg1ao7BQ3zmqPnHm_OmLqEqTvJVFbQ8pDYkWkofSNfIcMCGkE2Fgvy2P9BcJYkNjo8kbgWANXm-PgZIdFnE5rZUc9ZeyklcdtD4cF/s1600/IMG_6833.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN66QdbTo8pOf0xp3ux_lbaEQjM8S734urvIjSUz-tg1ao7BQ3zmqPnHm_OmLqEqTvJVFbQ8pDYkWkofSNfIcMCGkE2Fgvy2P9BcJYkNjo8kbgWANXm-PgZIdFnE5rZUc9ZeyklcdtD4cF/s320/IMG_6833.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">The medal?</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFoiZA7MavzZxFN5kC9JQBatesRKfqbHSvu-Fn9rVNdE0onc52GxY7o9-xGmGmNodg0SlS5wFBm5LY_dtnDMPtvJ0AyJIrCIcV8oMRHHJ-CQIpInviY79qhUaHEAAQJPZq_pHcfmFVXzTL/s1600/IMG_6837.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFoiZA7MavzZxFN5kC9JQBatesRKfqbHSvu-Fn9rVNdE0onc52GxY7o9-xGmGmNodg0SlS5wFBm5LY_dtnDMPtvJ0AyJIrCIcV8oMRHHJ-CQIpInviY79qhUaHEAAQJPZq_pHcfmFVXzTL/s320/IMG_6837.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Or the friends?</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: small;">Whatever the choice - she can't wait until spring soccer starts!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLt3uxiG80CPtfTjhg5ZGfdv1hnGeHaVs6T_4JSnIEZwJpIOFkSney_DjCeGtup5vslvjIIBwXviVprSQ0GNMPDSwvw7hFXokf6HB048wEEMFVo-xlPKQ7jLYQctC7M9X4QHsbDQTco9Ic/s1600/DSCN7086.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">So what does Jonathan do while all these games and practices are going on? Unfortunately the answer to that is - a whole lot of sitting around and hoping that someone else's sibling will be there to play with. He has been having some behavior issues and so part of the discipline process has been a fall season devoid of extra activities for him - bummer.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLt3uxiG80CPtfTjhg5ZGfdv1hnGeHaVs6T_4JSnIEZwJpIOFkSney_DjCeGtup5vslvjIIBwXviVprSQ0GNMPDSwvw7hFXokf6HB048wEEMFVo-xlPKQ7jLYQctC7M9X4QHsbDQTco9Ic/s1600/DSCN7086.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLt3uxiG80CPtfTjhg5ZGfdv1hnGeHaVs6T_4JSnIEZwJpIOFkSney_DjCeGtup5vslvjIIBwXviVprSQ0GNMPDSwvw7hFXokf6HB048wEEMFVo-xlPKQ7jLYQctC7M9X4QHsbDQTco9Ic/s320/DSCN7086.JPG" width="213" /></a><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>
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But our little charmer is absolutely impossible not to love :)</div>
</div>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-73574840437181750652011-02-04T20:21:00.000-06:002011-02-04T20:21:15.503-06:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3R3XFwpLTAY2gUow-EOeoOIeKjM4Le4JRRsJcrlAxVl0CTHZYMdMcmrOncBooN-b60heiDz8xNmX8FxiJ8gBzTyEzNeFVyTOL-NOJFvFDlUSo8ylW9T1TlpbhtjB_Cs-8QvCPfMGBwUa/s1600/DSCN0244.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><img src="http://img2.blogblog.com/img/video_object.png" style="background-color: #b2b2b2; " class="BLOGGER-object-element tr_noresize tr_placeholder" id="ieooui" data-original-id="ieooui" /> <style>
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</style> <![endif]--> </a></div><div class="MsoNormal">At long last I’m posting on my blog – mostly because my cousin guilted me into it. So, here you go Julie.<span> </span>As we speak I should be packing to go to Ukraine.<span> </span>Charity and I are leaving on Sunday to go with my neighbor to finish up their adoption.<span> </span>It should be a good trip and we are all really excited.<span> </span>Mostly just to get this little girl home to her family – she’s absolutely WONDERFUL and we all love her.<span> </span>We had a big day in our house today and while nothing will physically change for us – it does change the dynamics in our household a bit.<span> </span>We moved a year ago out of the little bitty house we were renting:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguyyIh1egcrtpU8Dna1rQ6wNvoK-QWfT1Jksf3QchEe1yerBRsLy91c-anMDbXI2Z6i8Olj2uKD5kYjjj_3eiSxotc58qYZcDFKzp5p2ZGzC21hZ17IpP6_VDAO2v12jwX6lsm1o0FtZmS/s1600/pics+688.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguyyIh1egcrtpU8Dna1rQ6wNvoK-QWfT1Jksf3QchEe1yerBRsLy91c-anMDbXI2Z6i8Olj2uKD5kYjjj_3eiSxotc58qYZcDFKzp5p2ZGzC21hZ17IpP6_VDAO2v12jwX6lsm1o0FtZmS/s320/pics+688.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">Into a bigger house to rent.<span> </span>Today we signed the mortgage/purchase agreement to buy the house we’ve been living in and after 5 or so years – we are homeowners once again.<span> </span>Pictures are below.<span> </span>(Thanks to my friend Senda for the pics of the outside – I am blatantly stealing them!)<span> </span>The house was built in the 1890’s or so and is so much fun.<span> </span>Like any other old house, there will always be upgrades to do but we really love it and are very excited.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3R3XFwpLTAY2gUow-EOeoOIeKjM4Le4JRRsJcrlAxVl0CTHZYMdMcmrOncBooN-b60heiDz8xNmX8FxiJ8gBzTyEzNeFVyTOL-NOJFvFDlUSo8ylW9T1TlpbhtjB_Cs-8QvCPfMGBwUa/s1600/DSCN0244.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB3R3XFwpLTAY2gUow-EOeoOIeKjM4Le4JRRsJcrlAxVl0CTHZYMdMcmrOncBooN-b60heiDz8xNmX8FxiJ8gBzTyEzNeFVyTOL-NOJFvFDlUSo8ylW9T1TlpbhtjB_Cs-8QvCPfMGBwUa/s320/DSCN0244.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDxsduxgVn_Kc_kV-v0ABAjiVNgxboCXq7nKtCuQeKv0CKtSq2YTHUIBjmfHqIe85jFZ4Puf6XsoSj-ziyrE8WuejnRj1rbO_zzAlfhu8oy4doFolIKBwtv8wkRBUmXddI_NGtD9OlNJ4v/s1600/dossier+pics+021+-+Copy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDxsduxgVn_Kc_kV-v0ABAjiVNgxboCXq7nKtCuQeKv0CKtSq2YTHUIBjmfHqIe85jFZ4Puf6XsoSj-ziyrE8WuejnRj1rbO_zzAlfhu8oy4doFolIKBwtv8wkRBUmXddI_NGtD9OlNJ4v/s320/dossier+pics+021+-+Copy.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" LatentStyleCount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style>
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<div class="MsoNormal">No post would be complete without at least one pic of the kids.<span> </span>It’s been so long since I posted that I have tons to choose from.<span> </span>This one is from the Homecoming parade in October.<span> </span>The older boys were in the parade.<span> </span>They all have blue hair because their little league football team was the Lions.<span> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSexYg9kb0kqYZ4x68WySJX8kFCGQKPq3ZPDwzRyTLCVbbWrXvaUpt5-Yp_ogjZPZmIVYAu1QItp1K84gGC5ZCh71kxIQ6Cnx7Zd5hVDOPULun9_x38Bo_lM7W4bbETezV_cVql9YtP2AP/s1600/291.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSexYg9kb0kqYZ4x68WySJX8kFCGQKPq3ZPDwzRyTLCVbbWrXvaUpt5-Yp_ogjZPZmIVYAu1QItp1K84gGC5ZCh71kxIQ6Cnx7Zd5hVDOPULun9_x38Bo_lM7W4bbETezV_cVql9YtP2AP/s320/291.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
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</div><div class="MsoNormal">The final picture is of the hand-off of our dossier by our adoption guru at the airport as it made it’s way to Bulgaria with another adoptive couple who was kind enough to hand deliver it. We are officially a waiting family.<span> </span>And while we anticipate a long wait – we are VERY excited!<span> </span>“Dear Lord, protect my “babies” until we can get there to bring them home.” </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj782nujM1zNfruL18DAJd6_HcLTIKM7soH1Y2JUgJQx36GEdyBiG0P6WIzw-ui5yC27KmI9Wwe5gLwn8BvYpPjFcOiv5pae7RRRoJo0aEoMqJX_dNNKfnmjINNRx1Qr6lWjpMmBsLq4PA/s1600/002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj782nujM1zNfruL18DAJd6_HcLTIKM7soH1Y2JUgJQx36GEdyBiG0P6WIzw-ui5yC27KmI9Wwe5gLwn8BvYpPjFcOiv5pae7RRRoJo0aEoMqJX_dNNKfnmjINNRx1Qr6lWjpMmBsLq4PA/s320/002.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-19060552632649575072010-12-22T20:06:00.000-06:002010-12-22T20:06:54.290-06:00Merry Christmas!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWpDZ9QDySO6k6XXkf6cIofeEC43qrVWovxu-CQr6rfhP5crzo3I51SKdV9qWRg871rrcJyz0UxsRS78n6OKZ3P-G3rhyNQQiDjMgQ3wWTaTuKyce-Os932GNjwSDVDua2hr-LefNKD3Jv/s1600/DSCN5427+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWpDZ9QDySO6k6XXkf6cIofeEC43qrVWovxu-CQr6rfhP5crzo3I51SKdV9qWRg871rrcJyz0UxsRS78n6OKZ3P-G3rhyNQQiDjMgQ3wWTaTuKyce-Os932GNjwSDVDua2hr-LefNKD3Jv/s320/DSCN5427+%25282%2529.jpg" width="240" /></a></div><span style="color: #e69138; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: large;"><b>We <i>ARE</i> still here and I <i>DO </i>intend to post regularly again soon. In the meantime - Merry Christmas from our whole clan! </b></span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-51094047048361034892010-09-16T13:00:00.004-06:002010-09-17T10:14:22.953-06:00Do you know their mom and dad?<b style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Or are you their mom and dad? The Ukrainian government maintains a website of waiting children. Saturday morning Eric was browsing the pictures and ran across one of the boys we know. He also has an older brother who we spent quite a bit of time with. We met these boys when we were hanging out at Joseph's orphanage. They were wonderful boys - sweet, but not too sweet and good, but not too good. They were fun to hang out with and the older one would come down to spend time in Joseph's room often - the room where his little brother slept. He appeared to be a good influence on the younger boys and they loved playing with him. The younger boy is 9 and his older brother is 15 years old - about to age out. It terrifies me and makes me so sad that this sweet boy/young man is about to be denied the chance at a family. So here is my plea - help me find these boys a home - FAST! Please post the link and share it with anyone you know who might be able to help them. Pray for them and let's get them home.</span></span></b><br />
<div style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_780506858"><br />
</a></div><div style="color: black;"><a href="http://www.sirotstvy.net/ua/child_needs_family/2708.html?pg=31%20"><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.sirotstvy.net/ua/child_needs_family/2708.html?pg=31 </span></span></b></a></div><b style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrNIxObIinyS5xAdsh8wbNgQQsO5JQx_TGM1ubutuNyxrjFnIlPHKkaNwr7gCuIek7qRLlGg31Pk4_fuKTVVw1wnMRG2ngQ5Cp1aL_1Yl9hAlQJ-iVCROuqbynH7rV7HauUQsmKVqpu2qy/s1600/Picture+311.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrNIxObIinyS5xAdsh8wbNgQQsO5JQx_TGM1ubutuNyxrjFnIlPHKkaNwr7gCuIek7qRLlGg31Pk4_fuKTVVw1wnMRG2ngQ5Cp1aL_1Yl9hAlQJ-iVCROuqbynH7rV7HauUQsmKVqpu2qy/s320/Picture+311.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzsVqLAIwp1wJ-ru1roTrXxrnNUX-IrJFSJD0xOlx_1MJsISBb70fUgzCh5G5ViVn3cDquGk9OJxPlNiSIFadA0puNjz_aJrlLgmMY5rYyHkArP8hzkLT-sxLYZ8RB8rMpVjfkf5BvxS2/s1600/Picture+285.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpzsVqLAIwp1wJ-ru1roTrXxrnNUX-IrJFSJD0xOlx_1MJsISBb70fUgzCh5G5ViVn3cDquGk9OJxPlNiSIFadA0puNjz_aJrlLgmMY5rYyHkArP8hzkLT-sxLYZ8RB8rMpVjfkf5BvxS2/s320/Picture+285.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWH6IjYQpVZmKp7-wU93xfnSEyODYO-xZKQESN9hYjcGGxCVLItC6aL8TdHs-lc1_RgOQusxNwo4Te0nQVxlOVuCRC_9SAnXttm2-8Y01VhDcpgNPO1LYZ4xlB-EVmCt_d-VyFg4WgUKVZ/s1600/Picture+364.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWH6IjYQpVZmKp7-wU93xfnSEyODYO-xZKQESN9hYjcGGxCVLItC6aL8TdHs-lc1_RgOQusxNwo4Te0nQVxlOVuCRC_9SAnXttm2-8Y01VhDcpgNPO1LYZ4xlB-EVmCt_d-VyFg4WgUKVZ/s320/Picture+364.jpg" /></a></div><b style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br />
</span></span></b>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-39000819416350829962010-09-01T19:01:00.000-06:002010-09-01T19:01:53.549-06:00Adoption Disruptions....<div style="color: orange;"><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I didn't intend for this to be my first post after my hiatus but I just got done reading it and thought it made some excellent points (and ranted in a constructive fashion - an art I have yet to master!)</span></b></div><br />
<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></b><a href="http://minichfamilyblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/for-as-long-as-we-all-shall-live.html">http://minichfamilyblog.blogspot.com/2010/09/for-as-long-as-we-all-shall-live.html</a><br />
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<b style="color: orange;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Read it. Ponder it. Pass it on.</span></b>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-80689599602392329012010-08-05T08:17:00.000-06:002010-08-05T13:52:09.304-06:00VBS Week<div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>Last week was VBS at our church. They brought in a <a href="http://www.outcastbmx.com/">BMX</a>/<a href="http://www.unitedfmx.com/index.html">FMX</a> team and had all kinds of stunts each night. The kickoff was Sunday and it has so HOT outside. But the blow-ups were fun (our church loves blow-ups) and the tricks were pretty spectacular and hopefully it brought some new faces to our church and ultimately to their Savior.</b></span></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxEHThnO-lyL_ojhPPQBFAIQ-9ePI8Kx6WZn2QjVW6QuPe1GjK9isRS4EdmloEvNMxkW1jnE6IfilKhxjQA8sWTZRPpl6MqFsIDqFYcFQ_QKBnRDGOgB41i6p-XP-G2kNo2CfxbfTu9ktl/s1600/147.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxEHThnO-lyL_ojhPPQBFAIQ-9ePI8Kx6WZn2QjVW6QuPe1GjK9isRS4EdmloEvNMxkW1jnE6IfilKhxjQA8sWTZRPpl6MqFsIDqFYcFQ_QKBnRDGOgB41i6p-XP-G2kNo2CfxbfTu9ktl/s320/147.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Jonathan loves the blow-ups too. He would play in the</span></span></i><span style="color: orange; font-size: x-small;"><i><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">se things 24/7 - even when it's over 90 degrees outside</span></i></span><span style="color: orange;">!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCxhWdlq_tSncJ7mbZvpsFR9sINeYjQm9BEkE4qCw_-iHqvBax_Bynvk_L3nOtoF6jBD1UyPPOFyuO6m916ecyAVToF_AgaViYduwiGrbboh3zBjw45FhVll3J13cm4oPF7i2vTzy86yi/s1600/152.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoCxhWdlq_tSncJ7mbZvpsFR9sINeYjQm9BEkE4qCw_-iHqvBax_Bynvk_L3nOtoF6jBD1UyPPOFyuO6m916ecyAVToF_AgaViYduwiGrbboh3zBjw45FhVll3J13cm4oPF7i2vTzy86yi/s320/152.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Michael loves this human wrecking ball game. He has surprisingly good balance and didn't get beat by the 3 girls that were playing against him!</span></span></i></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRe-rpS_tGASfb7cHAU9rcl7-aTZJOjhp2WlJMASAPCrGta9r1eDOsEX9olyy2zqhZzfd5G5MkVUcUB1W2y5q-B0EDy3NS4KAPqWYK7wwsBACZR8lal8oCBQHsxP4phC-jw0yilw81n1gC/s1600/167.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRe-rpS_tGASfb7cHAU9rcl7-aTZJOjhp2WlJMASAPCrGta9r1eDOsEX9olyy2zqhZzfd5G5MkVUcUB1W2y5q-B0EDy3NS4KAPqWYK7wwsBACZR8lal8oCBQHsxP4phC-jw0yilw81n1gC/s320/167.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Best friends and best neighbors!</span></span></b></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga6r751CGVv_Amxx1iXmw8nobtWDi4AfhwVYkuoywG03PYM3DyMG9zOAt5egiCNxuZe40gKPhoGzguyI66CqEtxQX4Ydca14r9WTUU0ZABkYKGAGoN1Purjjk4yguM8v1Kc9eWzP6v9rQH/s1600/179.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEga6r751CGVv_Amxx1iXmw8nobtWDi4AfhwVYkuoywG03PYM3DyMG9zOAt5egiCNxuZe40gKPhoGzguyI66CqEtxQX4Ydca14r9WTUU0ZABkYKGAGoN1Purjjk4yguM8v1Kc9eWzP6v9rQH/s320/179.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="color: orange; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">I DID NOT need anyone giving Joseph any more ideas on how to inflict bodily harm on himself (but they were super cool)!</span></i></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8uP-PKrdkvab04604MSK2MAdHVu5Fz4J761vjMiDGkpx8fQ2Ia6sfRfHZ2hFGCpmqmr1UX0D4luhwGLXQHEZ4J0iKggu8E9s8JBYH62rlZG3Kn34dm7AyL0sCw_jHh2edY7OFpLH_f_gu/s1600/171.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8uP-PKrdkvab04604MSK2MAdHVu5Fz4J761vjMiDGkpx8fQ2Ia6sfRfHZ2hFGCpmqmr1UX0D4luhwGLXQHEZ4J0iKggu8E9s8JBYH62rlZG3Kn34dm7AyL0sCw_jHh2edY7OFpLH_f_gu/s320/171.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr style="color: orange; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Family fun at Summer FX - did I mention it was really hot!</span></i></td></tr>
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</b></i>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-57253455021324701982010-08-04T19:08:00.001-06:002010-08-04T20:46:14.201-06:00"Puzzling" news...aka "Every Piece Counts"<div style="color: orange; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>So my darling children want to do something to help raise money to bring home their next siblings. They have talked about a lemonade stand and an ice-cream stand. I said no to both of those because - let's face it, I'm going to have to do most of the work and will probably watch them literally eat up all the profits. Not too long after one of these discussions I noticed Charity and Joseph standing out by the street trying to sell their "artwork" as a fundraiser. It simultaneously made me laugh out loud and touched/broke my heart. They want to DO something! That same day I was reading a new blog and saw a fundraiser that her kids were doing - I knew it was one my kids would LOVE and was something they could actually do and that hasn't been done by every adopting family we know. So, today I ordered a 500 piece puzzle by my favorite artist. The kids will get "sponsors" for each of the 500 pieces. We will then write the name of the "sponsor" on the back of the puzzle piece. The goal is for them to be able to see 500 people give a little bit (minimum of $1) to help them meet their goal. 500 people who will have a part in something bigger than themselves. We will eventually frame the puzzle with glass on both sides so that our family - and especially the new ones will have that reminder of God's faithfulness and the kindness of our friends and family (after the adoption is over - since framing isn't cheap and one of the main goals is for them to raise some money :)! I love this for many reasons but also because most kids can scrounge up a dollar or two and so I won't care when they hit up their friends to be a "sponsor". This should be fun!</b></span></div><div style="color: orange; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-size: small;"><b><br />
</b></span></i></div><div style="color: orange; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">This will be the finished product:</span></i></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwvNztxZ7Ti3cflim82tQA7ZNh3dNCjWrutt8nIsa0_jGBxS1uCviP_7KIbKREj0fYk9c2tl7DL8JKphlYq5Hi_NjtMu_iJ_-3EwBp4ICV9AkmSe18k8jnyvIXHKKmq4NYCQ5CHMwKOkL2/s1600/media.nl.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwvNztxZ7Ti3cflim82tQA7ZNh3dNCjWrutt8nIsa0_jGBxS1uCviP_7KIbKREj0fYk9c2tl7DL8JKphlYq5Hi_NjtMu_iJ_-3EwBp4ICV9AkmSe18k8jnyvIXHKKmq4NYCQ5CHMwKOkL2/s320/media.nl.jpg" /></a></div>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-42196679788065430642010-08-03T20:21:00.000-06:002010-08-03T20:21:43.236-06:00July is gone :(<b style="color: orange;"><span style="font-size: large;">Which means school is just around the corner (7 days to be exact - booo!) The kids got their "teacher" letters in the mail this week and we bought school supplies last Monday so I guess technically we are ready to go back - that being said, I'm never ready to go back. I'll drown my back to school blues by reliving some of the fun from this summer!</span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSDwHkpcYluApBkaOSIT6WrHnkN2emmuNw_QFP1WfuWCrNDVINSF_5fuGIWzCOKVwDX5nYsdTq5SJ4Zn0hsE86LUzLz2cVxtmrEGYlrkEC-IRJa3njhpHq-hMrcwLqs9bZBUnicNKNsviV/s1600/IMG_1439.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSDwHkpcYluApBkaOSIT6WrHnkN2emmuNw_QFP1WfuWCrNDVINSF_5fuGIWzCOKVwDX5nYsdTq5SJ4Zn0hsE86LUzLz2cVxtmrEGYlrkEC-IRJa3njhpHq-hMrcwLqs9bZBUnicNKNsviV/s320/IMG_1439.jpg" /></a></div><b><i><span style="color: orange;">The 3 older kids spent a week at camp in the middle of July. They were placed in "family" groups for the week. They had a great week learning all about the Creation and having their lives touched by the missionary from Haiti. (I don't have any pics of Charity yet but I'm sure she looked just as "campy" as the girls in this group!) </span></i></b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: orange; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfklxhUufdRfv-xFMoqjN7PifInO39TwnhxHTGCTx9774Q2bHxtfx9ab305AmbA_p2MVmWpuUtTOKB34bshP-i8IdoYGjoLhm0gaEZ0e3ko1Fd6tmmXR3jdkhj6D7tv1b5IqchEpcNtomC/s1600/IMG_1405.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfklxhUufdRfv-xFMoqjN7PifInO39TwnhxHTGCTx9774Q2bHxtfx9ab305AmbA_p2MVmWpuUtTOKB34bshP-i8IdoYGjoLhm0gaEZ0e3ko1Fd6tmmXR3jdkhj6D7tv1b5IqchEpcNtomC/s320/IMG_1405.jpg" /></a></div><b><i><span style="color: orange;"> Joseph loves mini-golf....</span></i></b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDS_KfKLu_QNEsvPECBICL2afI1QaQbPGjj0-UV2LRw85Uy8qwiKod-2mQoa34n_YxT3rwSIGcCEkzgjNmj5HzUgdH2PCXTdM0h9MMsx1nU9N-j6oX4IdbHYFi1RKwgcY54lsblIZdruc_/s1600/IMG_1406.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDS_KfKLu_QNEsvPECBICL2afI1QaQbPGjj0-UV2LRw85Uy8qwiKod-2mQoa34n_YxT3rwSIGcCEkzgjNmj5HzUgdH2PCXTdM0h9MMsx1nU9N-j6oX4IdbHYFi1RKwgcY54lsblIZdruc_/s320/IMG_1406.jpg" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b>Especially when he sinks his putt!</b></i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGMaFJ2fkPShqYBH6R7gD2N6cewQp-GbnEIMp0YiZUbu9Jeo18fCywFwlwr8Z_RseHvuSApm0cF4C9hcg3IH6yP2m3touwjiRy_GHz_ObbpQdeXLBM3uekNMSl8dhRcIbWEpzzlSdrHzmx/s1600/IMG_1453.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGMaFJ2fkPShqYBH6R7gD2N6cewQp-GbnEIMp0YiZUbu9Jeo18fCywFwlwr8Z_RseHvuSApm0cF4C9hcg3IH6yP2m3touwjiRy_GHz_ObbpQdeXLBM3uekNMSl8dhRcIbWEpzzlSdrHzmx/s320/IMG_1453.jpg" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b>I'm not sure what the deal with the bandanna's was but they wore them all week apparently, and have continued to sport them at home every now and then!</b></i><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b style="color: orange;">While the kids were at camp, I was here:</b></span><i style="color: orange;"><b> </b></i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZGBNATpQxaZro7A4uhwhJLy_iWXaARfg7CNDlRoqBLKj1jJ3-WOtySobhms9aNrOt2v8fDrl-ZMrbkHIRRsTM8vH8nVcbqIzdMompyN2AXGil-FgYFiVA42B79qvqHrgnBSkGtz6PufhL/s1600/026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZGBNATpQxaZro7A4uhwhJLy_iWXaARfg7CNDlRoqBLKj1jJ3-WOtySobhms9aNrOt2v8fDrl-ZMrbkHIRRsTM8vH8nVcbqIzdMompyN2AXGil-FgYFiVA42B79qvqHrgnBSkGtz6PufhL/s320/026.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: orange;"><b>With them:</b></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5hriBVuXpp5aqmmweIWvW2hnJ195M8Yn55rEKjXZ6sbin8jmNTDgMOJDKx7HqXXTcMTZ9gffcOE8qdK2h1eD8_udKkYlzyP2ZS_rS33n7FYQYTcc5voMnSMgIQgclS4A4IR3l2rnkHFKk/s1600/38455_1550698486315_1200696691_1542999_3718087_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5hriBVuXpp5aqmmweIWvW2hnJ195M8Yn55rEKjXZ6sbin8jmNTDgMOJDKx7HqXXTcMTZ9gffcOE8qdK2h1eD8_udKkYlzyP2ZS_rS33n7FYQYTcc5voMnSMgIQgclS4A4IR3l2rnkHFKk/s320/38455_1550698486315_1200696691_1542999_3718087_n.jpg" /></a></div><b><i><span style="color: orange;">This isn't the most flattering picture of all of us but riding the bikes was one of our favorite parts of the trip so...it makes the blog! It was a great week with some great friends and proof that we all married great men who allowed/urged us to go.</span></i></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: orange;">The day after we all got back it was time once again for the county fair.</span></span><i><span style="color: orange;"> </span></i></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfQAHkVkY8sZdwgho8RTh97kuMS_yxRhXRtz2ySkS7NxAKO_ZxGs620lxTH3TB9xUshND-6b6r1Mum5Shv8u3tXqdNLWPcGYm1lDynR_1r1w6gv0tjhR1DNI21CblXLUkkWWuZH7x47PPC/s1600/076.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfQAHkVkY8sZdwgho8RTh97kuMS_yxRhXRtz2ySkS7NxAKO_ZxGs620lxTH3TB9xUshND-6b6r1Mum5Shv8u3tXqdNLWPcGYm1lDynR_1r1w6gv0tjhR1DNI21CblXLUkkWWuZH7x47PPC/s320/076.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<i style="color: orange;"><b>Tell me this isn't the quintessential 4-H kid picture! On the way to the fair!</b></i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4BBNM1Co1HdIDAWngAvIF9IL02i3OhBTye_J1AoGHbE1JWVsyiqx-4ueAbQ_b6wTvXbcUTfAY8u6zsbMxkq0KOfb_PvhYa2DrNjQ4AHVZz3HKmU0NIeBoK0G6FF5-7qrXaHe1bYwCV0L_/s1600/080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4BBNM1Co1HdIDAWngAvIF9IL02i3OhBTye_J1AoGHbE1JWVsyiqx-4ueAbQ_b6wTvXbcUTfAY8u6zsbMxkq0KOfb_PvhYa2DrNjQ4AHVZz3HKmU0NIeBoK0G6FF5-7qrXaHe1bYwCV0L_/s320/080.JPG" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b> </b></i><i style="color: orange;"><b>Okay, this one is pretty good too!</b></i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaZzG7rcT08KvXf5qXCz9E9YSEjAVv6dr_y3v8t-YO0EoXty_ApVLg4Hbuwi1GQsI18BYL7TJvxuK8Z8AShyphenhyphen3PorRyIy_nG5fNohguV0JMUWuIksFpxqpwQsK5OptsnL93WucCOIsKEwWw/s1600/099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaZzG7rcT08KvXf5qXCz9E9YSEjAVv6dr_y3v8t-YO0EoXty_ApVLg4Hbuwi1GQsI18BYL7TJvxuK8Z8AShyphenhyphen3PorRyIy_nG5fNohguV0JMUWuIksFpxqpwQsK5OptsnL93WucCOIsKEwWw/s320/099.JPG" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b>Joseph and his bff - these two are so stinkin cute. They passed the football ALL WEEK outside of the dairy barn. Kind of annoying to people trying to pass through but it was nice for the moms - we knew exactly where to find them!</b></i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOqM63dfUJSSu7kfOx6mqq6yo4xuMJ0d6XnW-GEyZoCYtRASDwZj0QtIIC7l7_UAeqbHU11XObNQG8CmQawK_smC6cxXL6mgahsedcLwHDjUqSI7ViC1JPNpkeZjxopiwfRMiNvd_eDpjr/s1600/120.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOqM63dfUJSSu7kfOx6mqq6yo4xuMJ0d6XnW-GEyZoCYtRASDwZj0QtIIC7l7_UAeqbHU11XObNQG8CmQawK_smC6cxXL6mgahsedcLwHDjUqSI7ViC1JPNpkeZjxopiwfRMiNvd_eDpjr/s320/120.JPG" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b> Not a great picture but it's the only one I've got right now - and he did SUCH a good job showing his pig. It sounds silly to those who haven't done it but it takes a lot of work to do it right. He surprised us all with how well he did. He really loved it and had a great time!</b></i><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivBd6SH9tyGtQ9jHdYMy5JJtzXPYWjC6daB0yue-PAGQRt49UeWLK4z8naqm9Dure6I8SZBNjsc0dC8zR0qjw6iB_qKtleI2f6ehmxhMiVaZqoG9bLd1-zepWcHBow2ALME_n65BfsmiKQ/s1600/115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivBd6SH9tyGtQ9jHdYMy5JJtzXPYWjC6daB0yue-PAGQRt49UeWLK4z8naqm9Dure6I8SZBNjsc0dC8zR0qjw6iB_qKtleI2f6ehmxhMiVaZqoG9bLd1-zepWcHBow2ALME_n65BfsmiKQ/s320/115.JPG" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b>One of the best parts of the fair is hanging out with our cousins. Charity is in the white shirt - I'm not sure what these crazies were discussing but my guess is - if we could implement it - it would CHANGE THE WORLD!</b></i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPtaAnV6x97qqZ7_hMIhbDxHu-NakRe6noNogcSaofzLcEf3xfPmcBmi8KWXr5YhiqeTwhmCgBPoeO7NoAd9TWkpn-YYwFYZFBSjflWQf_GvdwOHtBPQaHeuo9mqCoPq8q1GeSQo3lq9C/s1600/136.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPtaAnV6x97qqZ7_hMIhbDxHu-NakRe6noNogcSaofzLcEf3xfPmcBmi8KWXr5YhiqeTwhmCgBPoeO7NoAd9TWkpn-YYwFYZFBSjflWQf_GvdwOHtBPQaHeuo9mqCoPq8q1GeSQo3lq9C/s320/136.JPG" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b>This might be my favorite picture of the week - Michael and Alida giving pep talks to their "girls" before going in the ring.</b></i><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05QlmUGpuhzgQH_qqH_xTEfTs2y8HjSOEsF__MVPGn-90jZxlZ5Zw1VOmP6LA1UZR2Ey_LfQPxAWnqHfpcnu-Ah2JlQL2yF2_eyzG0cZhamDuuSa9ECWaiuaBlZvg3hVJYXTF90O-pe6Q/s1600/146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh05QlmUGpuhzgQH_qqH_xTEfTs2y8HjSOEsF__MVPGn-90jZxlZ5Zw1VOmP6LA1UZR2Ey_LfQPxAWnqHfpcnu-Ah2JlQL2yF2_eyzG0cZhamDuuSa9ECWaiuaBlZvg3hVJYXTF90O-pe6Q/s320/146.JPG" /></a></div><i style="color: orange;"><b>The week pretty much revolved around Michael but this proves that the others were all there supporting him and having a grand ol' time in the process.</b></i><br />
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</i></b></span></div><span style="color: orange; font-size: large;"><b>It was a great couple of weeks. VBS was last week - pics to come but for now I'm off to sleep - hoping for a fun day tomorrow and maybe a spare half hour to post some more. I DO miss you lovely little blog.</b></span><br />
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<div style="color: orange;"><b>Oh- quick what's cooking (I always forget):</b></div><b style="color: orange;">We had baked potato bar tonight with homemade buttermilk biscuits. Not sure why we were carbo-loading but boy was it good!!!</b>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-44205143221204316392010-07-06T19:26:00.001-06:002010-07-29T18:29:41.520-06:00Random Pics<span style="font-size: small;"><b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Since</b></span><b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> I have been</b><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> bad about updating on a regular basis for the past 6 weeks or so, I will take the most boring route and throw a bunch of pictures out here for the far off relatives and readers who like to watch my kids grow up. For all the rest of you - feel free to skip this one (although I have to tell you - I don't really trust anyone who doesn't think I have great kids!)</span></span></b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7icoFbdzvXl5UspoSPvaxromwTiuB7Wh3_UtbLpQf1fsK-LV_K9PNjutVnImD-jC7qgeYMkN3ZKPS78lVYSpgxwWE2Dsx-pxOw8nvWhUl5M1SV3j-Q2itPMHBU4yi1P1T4gHSVrMKUkci/s1600/018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7icoFbdzvXl5UspoSPvaxromwTiuB7Wh3_UtbLpQf1fsK-LV_K9PNjutVnImD-jC7qgeYMkN3ZKPS78lVYSpgxwWE2Dsx-pxOw8nvWhUl5M1SV3j-Q2itPMHBU4yi1P1T4gHSVrMKUkci/s320/018.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> We have been doing a lot of swimming (at other's houses and at ours)</span></span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHaa2m7JH3elTZ_i2PExT31PKsKv7O7JR_ieM3BwkOKZbum0adxoLmodNDZnJwUvghQFU86-_VTTI3o9vzo9slMMaifpQiifCqiXPs9y-qAcji08SZBr1GGhagUEABcDU83Ycsd31_h0L4/s1600/005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHaa2m7JH3elTZ_i2PExT31PKsKv7O7JR_ieM3BwkOKZbum0adxoLmodNDZnJwUvghQFU86-_VTTI3o9vzo9slMMaifpQiifCqiXPs9y-qAcji08SZBr1GGhagUEABcDU83Ycsd31_h0L4/s320/005.JPG" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Swimming and diving....</span></span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRu5fe7BhKxqY33mapeu1w0rcIn0vlmisTlYeW-_kuxMrMw1vSHUYMtX0EYnA0a6utazcWgiyGzCClvTsdk51kFkPd36HlvFUnIDkCuMD2f2fQFgyoy4VSl6ofUhcAqI8meAeaTDKWjBGC/s1600/007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRu5fe7BhKxqY33mapeu1w0rcIn0vlmisTlYeW-_kuxMrMw1vSHUYMtX0EYnA0a6utazcWgiyGzCClvTsdk51kFkPd36HlvFUnIDkCuMD2f2fQFgyoy4VSl6ofUhcAqI8meAeaTDKWjBGC/s320/007.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Or doing something fearless off the diving board (this kid couldn't swim last year and hasn't had any lessons to change that but has managed to pick up enough skills to keep from drowning)</span></span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFXWhqp1FzONELz-Hnrd_LYFISlGJg-H30qisqMGXR3-ToqvSci9SXh9bWeiKvh7UQ1FLhnv6J8-5wivrycR46iL58lVHB8DSn4JAnTngHuUtkM5Dw0JZhei6cjwRSnk-ZTLJ80tExI7c/s1600/015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFXWhqp1FzONELz-Hnrd_LYFISlGJg-H30qisqMGXR3-ToqvSci9SXh9bWeiKvh7UQ1FLhnv6J8-5wivrycR46iL58lVHB8DSn4JAnTngHuUtkM5Dw0JZhei6cjwRSnk-ZTLJ80tExI7c/s320/015.JPG" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Or trying to drown themselves (or look at the bottom - whatever....)</span></span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ7cOSC5SyZfJSiKP_y1OfqTIooVz0nzD5mseGG657pImleNhU6xLn802xRJ-gJXbgIyJP7twFXfxGEyECqv-CEcbfeOgt_d_L8ZtH_wCGTuLWPMes7UmM7-M3ASYAqlV9L5ed-x0jN5HP/s1600/060.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ7cOSC5SyZfJSiKP_y1OfqTIooVz0nzD5mseGG657pImleNhU6xLn802xRJ-gJXbgIyJP7twFXfxGEyECqv-CEcbfeOgt_d_L8ZtH_wCGTuLWPMes7UmM7-M3ASYAqlV9L5ed-x0jN5HP/s320/060.JPG" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">and doing it all with great friends and neighbors!</span></span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikTNZWGd6MiPxqjtbwsugalq1k87IljcX5bY_tbWm-5zsncaRh0GxLiUCVHSPvbGlF0sM3LKRFwZthYIMVw1QE6rDq44jMZPSuO-MCq-OIeioRxT5LHW0PGQwPEN8EipsgwEBNqF27jVTK/s1600/012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikTNZWGd6MiPxqjtbwsugalq1k87IljcX5bY_tbWm-5zsncaRh0GxLiUCVHSPvbGlF0sM3LKRFwZthYIMVw1QE6rDq44jMZPSuO-MCq-OIeioRxT5LHW0PGQwPEN8EipsgwEBNqF27jVTK/s320/012.JPG" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So, have I mentioned that we are adopting from Bulgaria? Well this is what sealed the deal for Eric - I sip (shot?) of Bulgarian brandy. He decided he must visit and bring home a child from a country that can make something smell so sweet and taste so <strike>awful</strike> wonderful. (please read that with LOTS of sarcasm)</span></span></b><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW4_cpNZ0Rf0xzh0fBrf8SqmLxyke6y2BfDvyvzs6eFWssJt4kL0_eaUp_9x_AiyC-y7xR8GinRPJbmrtKGdWOon0ZXyIEM4M1XRCooduW-tT0iT4m4r8vDX9OqeiHtPIT-EB6JOn9hUMH/s1600/001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW4_cpNZ0Rf0xzh0fBrf8SqmLxyke6y2BfDvyvzs6eFWssJt4kL0_eaUp_9x_AiyC-y7xR8GinRPJbmrtKGdWOon0ZXyIEM4M1XRCooduW-tT0iT4m4r8vDX9OqeiHtPIT-EB6JOn9hUMH/s320/001.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> He did like the beer though (actually I think one of those is Ukrainian - but we love that country too)</span></span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> </span></span></b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52QTijfa-q01svMhflOnnvYIuvj1LoK0T6EL9S8aHVSsORk4a8VyhJ0nsXCNnzWYa-0DoztdIgR68gkgLVRMT2pTdVdKQgy2VcG6DygZ7HzvqqzEB_taxXeGjq7EujsIKtGJ4mT73PN9b/s1600/025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52QTijfa-q01svMhflOnnvYIuvj1LoK0T6EL9S8aHVSsORk4a8VyhJ0nsXCNnzWYa-0DoztdIgR68gkgLVRMT2pTdVdKQgy2VcG6DygZ7HzvqqzEB_taxXeGjq7EujsIKtGJ4mT73PN9b/s320/025.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Never did figure out why my daughter decided to dress up as a flamingo for an afternoon. She ran around the neighborhood looking like this. Hmmmm.....</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span></span></b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b></b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b> </b></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidTusVYWVaPY7GlDtuBwV7vChFbG-LTjNXeOlFz0PijJhyISi5HZbqGkWZi2QHlUyVUVRkQqbJBH3hgLNaNkzxebYm-MyyOHIZ2_VQLzZ381yg8Jry-Lt9gYZlLBCqjrRPRHYBONVPwZzy/s1600/044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidTusVYWVaPY7GlDtuBwV7vChFbG-LTjNXeOlFz0PijJhyISi5HZbqGkWZi2QHlUyVUVRkQqbJBH3hgLNaNkzxebYm-MyyOHIZ2_VQLzZ381yg8Jry-Lt9gYZlLBCqjrRPRHYBONVPwZzy/s320/044.JPG" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">So I </span></span></b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"><b>mentioned that we were in the midst of 4-h madness (and lovin' almost every minute of it.) This is Hank getting hosed down before a little walk.</b></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidl85T73scZzW2ZUa9Mw0US-mZPvCwZPZN92eDQHNkC65BBHyMJFcGYKZN0-j4_PhpEb3HYoquY3TA_cqgdG2Ni0GqReHzl7jMt7yJIoKUXV8fJx2RgRb8w8YVMNRAhRTjqKfRSTZAG5O8/s1600/045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidl85T73scZzW2ZUa9Mw0US-mZPvCwZPZN92eDQHNkC65BBHyMJFcGYKZN0-j4_PhpEb3HYoquY3TA_cqgdG2Ni0GqReHzl7jMt7yJIoKUXV8fJx2RgRb8w8YVMNRAhRTjqKfRSTZAG5O8/s320/045.JPG" /></a></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Uncle Brian (my baby brother) plays "judge" and helps Michael learn a thing or two before show day.</b></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2LWc6ApIGSvRwdNP47QIUw8CbsyW7ByqD7pSnSey-LxZx60zzAEhZ9M1qo-rMr2TSHYYP_rJmjlZ8Nyfqs_Vx8UlKarA7Krm5x508UGGU1IotTew1Cx1imXf0ynuNvpjKftZjejt96Vfy/s1600/050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2LWc6ApIGSvRwdNP47QIUw8CbsyW7ByqD7pSnSey-LxZx60zzAEhZ9M1qo-rMr2TSHYYP_rJmjlZ8Nyfqs_Vx8UlKarA7Krm5x508UGGU1IotTew1Cx1imXf0ynuNvpjKftZjejt96Vfy/s320/050.JPG" /></a></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>We waited at a pharmacy for several hours so each of the kids could get physicals and our two bio kids could have their TB tests read for the homestudy. Joseph and Jonathan test positive for TB and have been x-rayed (negative) and treated with 6 months of antibiotics so they are in the clear. The kids were actually very good and we got through them quickly. </b></span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNm14POP-N08liG7oO2J6mmsZhNMiM7RfgMEJe8FhgOosjSMgn99Z_KQ3KfDgBZBikMvTjCIc9cy1VvbzE4lugDU2rwhNGJ74vWX1ipRHKhaHSo3HIas2cNWSECcmJLF0CRw6VrIKNzsTK/s1600/IMG_5046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNm14POP-N08liG7oO2J6mmsZhNMiM7RfgMEJe8FhgOosjSMgn99Z_KQ3KfDgBZBikMvTjCIc9cy1VvbzE4lugDU2rwhNGJ74vWX1ipRHKhaHSo3HIas2cNWSECcmJLF0CRw6VrIKNzsTK/s320/IMG_5046.JPG" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Aren't they sweet? Jonathan was in trouble (again) and not able to join in the fun. It's been a rough summer for that little monster.</span></span></b><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4MCtrKnwMnrMShqVW09j5uT1jxTqdAZ3kRpyIOP0irh_-herLKEbI7NfNfSGrKhYcuurtVSGkiHXMC_xOjMdmEULalrogx473DtNH2yocQwAk_LrcopL1ucb7IK0ZJP984UwqAP_yLT9/s1600/IMG_5042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4MCtrKnwMnrMShqVW09j5uT1jxTqdAZ3kRpyIOP0irh_-herLKEbI7NfNfSGrKhYcuurtVSGkiHXMC_xOjMdmEULalrogx473DtNH2yocQwAk_LrcopL1ucb7IK0ZJP984UwqAP_yLT9/s320/IMG_5042.JPG" /></a></div><b><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> Looking through pics on Michael's camera to see if he had any shots for his poster - notice how my mom's head is turned away - she did that as soon as I came over to take a group shot :)</span></span></b>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-68975570272190906132010-07-06T14:43:00.000-06:002010-07-06T14:43:33.719-06:00Progress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Guess who just mailed off her homestudy paperwork? Yep - that would be me!! We are on our way. Unfortunately the next two weeks are completely booked and a majority of our family will be away from home so the actual home visit will have to wait until at least the last week of July but boy is it a relief to get the part that I can control done.</span></b></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgm-vviyIg7vfyNQjWhqI0oHVi9pF3vfmnb88CZbaMQk3Rpthputc_6R4J-_VQl9XzinmAVvZKU4FFsKvt3TwPCkur-WB123Zw_Og3PwUbuBzpLIH4aE2OmAkRlSxfOvgsX71-KfgRxrGH/s1600/068.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgm-vviyIg7vfyNQjWhqI0oHVi9pF3vfmnb88CZbaMQk3Rpthputc_6R4J-_VQl9XzinmAVvZKU4FFsKvt3TwPCkur-WB123Zw_Og3PwUbuBzpLIH4aE2OmAkRlSxfOvgsX71-KfgRxrGH/s320/068.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">That pile of papers in the corner (covering the return address to maintain <i>some</i> privacy) are my copies of the documents.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Now we wait - and gear up for all the fun of the next two weeks. A well known fact about me (and my kids and extended family) is that we are fair rats. Absolutely love hanging out at the fair, watching the shows, and catching up with friends. This year is Michael's first year of "real" 4-H and so we have spent this week finishing up books and projects between morning and afternoon trips to the barn. (And of course getting physicals and fingerprints for my homestudy - did I mention I got that done?!) Our dining room is 4-H central right now - which is fairly inconvenient since it is stinking hot out there and it would be kind of nice to eat inside. </span></b></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAMsJCtDakDK6-6SlVcyNbkxA9mFdXQI2fn_77CaM9k8jxi8cGBJWwOJxoVHnGS2MDTr1SYKPMIDr__dPuy0_pMhWZsg-tck39NjuFxkUyElp89AAAF3o8aJqGpIjDQho89be8uDKyoqUZ/s1600/055.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAMsJCtDakDK6-6SlVcyNbkxA9mFdXQI2fn_77CaM9k8jxi8cGBJWwOJxoVHnGS2MDTr1SYKPMIDr__dPuy0_pMhWZsg-tck39NjuFxkUyElp89AAAF3o8aJqGpIjDQho89be8uDKyoqUZ/s320/055.JPG" /></a></div><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">We have poster board and pictures for photography, an electric circuit board, and 5 4-H manuals in here, a bird feeder and model for Joseph's mini 4-H, a pillow and friendship bracelet making stuff for Charity's mini 4-H plus in the lower right hand corner is all my adoption paperwork - but that pile is greatly diminished now that I mailed off the homestudy paperwork - not sure I have told you all that interesting bit of news yet.</span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">Our goal is to get his photography project done tomorrow and then we will be done until Saturday. He will mix up his cookie dough and stick it in the freezer so that he can slice and bake them when he gets back from camp - the day before the fair starts. That's right ladies and gentlemen - my kids go to camp the week before the fair. Now for those of you who have never done 4-H this might not sound like that big of deal - and really it doesn't have to be. However, I am a procrastinator and it took a good deal of work and discipline on my part to pull off getting projects done a week early instead of an hour early. </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: small;">So the three older kids leave for camp on Sunday afternoon and I leave for a hiking trip (just me and 4 friends - HOW MUCH FUN IS THAT?!) to Colorado on Sunday evening. After this week I think I'll need it. But, at least I got my homestudy mailed off....</span></b></span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-42709759424996003332010-06-29T07:18:00.002-06:002010-09-16T13:22:19.722-06:00Pop Quiz<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; text-align: left;"><b>Q: What is white and green and red all over?</b><br />
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<b>A: The flag of the birth country of our next child (or two) - Bulgaria. </b><br />
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<b>Eric and I officially started the process to adopt from Bulgaria at the end of last week (i.e. we sent off the first payment - ouch!) Hopefully our homestudy packet will arrive today and I can get going on that. Now that we are out of the waiting phase I'm ready to just get moving and get that referral as fast as possible. You know me - very little patience when it comes to getting my kiddos home! I'm not sure what to expect from this adventure. I should really stop reading the blogs - they only confuse me; such different information and experiences. The good thing is, we have complete trust in our agency and their staff. I know they will make this process as painless as possible - love them!!</b></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-67479298729240852292010-06-24T08:34:00.004-06:002010-06-28T14:13:03.479-06:00Not so great news<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjajdHgXYH7oVLP3SvMAv4yutrEUfG1KewFewQVaZboeeFxvzM1qGeE4IctJZWfganNE2fiSFrVWny0fHJ1AMwNZx8yKnXJJTRFngpFJ2CYaAZ7FjwGgQkjqX0CdKuvXTadk_xxv6zCA0Ek/s1600/thumbs+down.png"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 162px; height: 297px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjajdHgXYH7oVLP3SvMAv4yutrEUfG1KewFewQVaZboeeFxvzM1qGeE4IctJZWfganNE2fiSFrVWny0fHJ1AMwNZx8yKnXJJTRFngpFJ2CYaAZ7FjwGgQkjqX0CdKuvXTadk_xxv6zCA0Ek/s320/thumbs+down.png" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487920094722495250" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">A few weeks ago we got an update on the registration of the other 4 children we were hoping to add to our family. The news is - they aren't registered yet. The judge apparently wanted some more information and it has slowed the process down considerably. The bottom line is that by the time the kids are available for adoption the oldest one will be 14 years old. I hate saying it but that puts a whole different spin on things. I know the hormones are going to be out of control with 4 girls all within 4 years of each other anyway but the reason it was doable was because they would have been with our family for a couple of years before things really kicked into high gear. We're not sure it's smart to add 4 of that age when we will be dealing with another 4 that are only slightly younger than that. We won't be able to give anyone the attention they need and I'm afraid it is a recipe for disaster. Technically we don't have to make any real decisions on this issue since they were never truly "ours" but it feels like a loss all the same. I feel really bad for the kids. They didn't have a great shot at finding families before but now their situation has just gotten worse. Please pray for these poor babies. Pray that God will open the hearts of their forever family (I really thought <span style="font-style:italic;">we</span> were that family) and they would obey the call and go get their kids. As for us, stay tuned....</span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-17448361038932884022010-06-10T13:36:00.007-06:002010-06-10T14:36:17.588-06:00Odds and Ends<span style="font-weight:bold;">I've kept you, my lovely readers, up to date for the most part over the past couple of weeks but I do have a few fun pics that haven't had any place in any of my other posts. So, in no particular order here we go:</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRJpwUppPj_I6kXAGtUeNwtMXvEVte2CTMh2CY3SwN_ADKARJVxEPrtxObPqjXF4zcmcZTwY3jPNXaZQRl5FmVNQKBbbcqCGQ1i1EwBDf65sfJDx4GB6HiwHWVvbL1F-ZfJWimivqthsXo/s1600/003+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRJpwUppPj_I6kXAGtUeNwtMXvEVte2CTMh2CY3SwN_ADKARJVxEPrtxObPqjXF4zcmcZTwY3jPNXaZQRl5FmVNQKBbbcqCGQ1i1EwBDf65sfJDx4GB6HiwHWVvbL1F-ZfJWimivqthsXo/s320/003+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481232441167488098" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Michael is in his first year of 4-H. This morning they had an electric workshop for 1st year members and they actually worked on their projects. My step-dad provided MJ with the board for his circuit-board (beautiful piece of walnut) but Michael had to stain/polyurethane it. Go WITH the grain Michael, with the grain. The workshop was a success. Michael and Eric worked hard and took their time and it looks nice. Hopefully the judge agrees. Most important is the fact that Michael did the work and understands the ins and outs of his project. I'll admit I was NOT saying that when they came home - in fact I did a pretty good impression of the Wicked Witch because the wires aren't perfectly straight, they don't have crisp corners, etc. But I'll just keep telling myself - he did it himself and he's 9 years old. For now we will strive "To Make the Best Better", perfection will come in time :)</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJQF1MUsQWcvaxMJf8V7VziUxhkCBxCvm2W5XNv51_YuF27CXdjn37zCyhPG8jzdEk637O2izYt3MAsDNCWeUQrQtbpHbVWOrgRDlj0j7TFHivwGG2s0iU9Moq7nL-JdAk0J2FEumW06XC/s1600/june+018.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJQF1MUsQWcvaxMJf8V7VziUxhkCBxCvm2W5XNv51_YuF27CXdjn37zCyhPG8jzdEk637O2izYt3MAsDNCWeUQrQtbpHbVWOrgRDlj0j7TFHivwGG2s0iU9Moq7nL-JdAk0J2FEumW06XC/s320/june+018.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481233947314187330" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Another Michael 4-H picture. He is mixing up feed for his pig - Hank.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4FqYd4KpVRWwxJz3Mbinibh7-Ex3rZalWK81rfqtUVkHrMYo8sKvU8LRLDp6ustcAoFrD3oZBCWmJGogJwmakzGx9sllgeCJDBXotRhutizIAXAK9r7N4cNejT6LcmDnV9Lud_-kAjNBJ/s1600/june+020.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4FqYd4KpVRWwxJz3Mbinibh7-Ex3rZalWK81rfqtUVkHrMYo8sKvU8LRLDp6ustcAoFrD3oZBCWmJGogJwmakzGx9sllgeCJDBXotRhutizIAXAK9r7N4cNejT6LcmDnV9Lud_-kAjNBJ/s320/june+020.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481233957847679474" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Meet Hank.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg666hIlwfBxzNknPBqK_zyyVKU4oXTYa5iNO-JWWOpE-vGXfZrxwli6X5R5oa5j5-tfOXqeTZVFmgC4u7hkZ_cZ_798VgO0qpJE5SVW3a_4KNXrDKoB6oySlh_v5ekqJp-Y8NxpCaUeTDf/s1600/004+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg666hIlwfBxzNknPBqK_zyyVKU4oXTYa5iNO-JWWOpE-vGXfZrxwli6X5R5oa5j5-tfOXqeTZVFmgC4u7hkZ_cZ_798VgO0qpJE5SVW3a_4KNXrDKoB6oySlh_v5ekqJp-Y8NxpCaUeTDf/s320/004+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481236360019955970" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">This is not something I see a lot of out of this kid. He is SO active - getting him to sit still and read is torture. Reading is also still on the difficult side. I mean, he's only been in this country for 18 months! He's close to reading on level so hopefully a few more moments like above will bring him closer to that goal.</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsk-hhlQs3tt1MXDYMaL61GsL4-jTEBHDmnjY2rHEKZ8Bg0q6FrbIj3dMwxFuBgRRyvfS_svPRaNBqOlxZ1Xh0EOYSChey61DyYrYdTFb4W5fdui7mK9j0dMOSUykPYd3oeq9w2zTJZZSx/s1600/008+(2).JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsk-hhlQs3tt1MXDYMaL61GsL4-jTEBHDmnjY2rHEKZ8Bg0q6FrbIj3dMwxFuBgRRyvfS_svPRaNBqOlxZ1Xh0EOYSChey61DyYrYdTFb4W5fdui7mK9j0dMOSUykPYd3oeq9w2zTJZZSx/s320/008+(2).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481237198189340354" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Our neighbors are hosting a Ukranian girl this summer (in fact, she comes tomorrow!) We are all excited but Charity especially is beside herself. This family has 4 boys and the kids pretty much run back and forth between our 2 houses all day long. Adding a girl to the mix for a few weeks will be like heaven for Charity. She went over to help set up girl toys in the guest bedroom for her yesterday.</span> <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7DvE07NHKRUMsI2vacoeoh-l3Lhgfzy0FtMPwkyI_DfJoE8HvB01_QLVFR7Dczj-kzEFDtKpz3BzTrNMRmleMOxzy3xI4BIIWS9U-YXFzKdjUuxvGhefzHOo6D_FlQdytWS_Pgq4eN5Qf/s1600/035.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7DvE07NHKRUMsI2vacoeoh-l3Lhgfzy0FtMPwkyI_DfJoE8HvB01_QLVFR7Dczj-kzEFDtKpz3BzTrNMRmleMOxzy3xI4BIIWS9U-YXFzKdjUuxvGhefzHOo6D_FlQdytWS_Pgq4eN5Qf/s320/035.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481239151567703410" /></a><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">Yet another boy in our neighborhood! He was in Charity's class for the past 2 years and he and my daughter are good buddies. He has more freedom than my kids (I watch too much crime-drama on TV to let my kids run around unsupervised) and will show up often to play with our yahoos.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">WHAT'S COOKING?<br />I had kind of forgotten about this feature but since I looked back at my blog I realized that I kind of like it and will try to remember to keep it up.<br /><br />On the menu for today - Smothered Pork Chops. My kids got me <a href="http://americastestkitchen.net/">The Complete America's Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook</a> for my birthday. I love that show and have a great time reading the cookbook and all their magazines. We will be trying this recipe for the first time tonight but I know it will be a success because the ATK staff has already tried it dozens of times!</span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3713323575541076843.post-40653603417080568762010-06-10T12:22:00.006-06:002010-06-13T17:53:32.693-06:00Pool!<span style="font-weight:bold;">So my mom has one of those pools that you take down every year (we affectionately call them hillbilly pools and love swimming in it!) but she decided not to put it up this year. Instead she decided to send it to my house. I'm sure our neighbors LOVE us (the kids actually do) but we set it up in the backyard the other night and the kids have been dying to use it ever since. Yesterday the pH leveled off so Eric let Charity take the inaugural swim. It is still cloudy and probably 68-70 degrees but in she went.</span> <br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br />First she had to check her goggles to make sure they don't leak...</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusXDmIl-L571c0HWSEzlkbzoE6E8GdRilm9cT7OJ4v2UdFAkB9xHcBvbN_Ztitu8KCo6QRy9ByjSKTXmrwzNL8TgdAyEe0OOw0n9g_SiYZ1ze_JN8DO53sH2bhab3ow_xjZwS-uluuFPE/s1600/june+006.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusXDmIl-L571c0HWSEzlkbzoE6E8GdRilm9cT7OJ4v2UdFAkB9xHcBvbN_Ztitu8KCo6QRy9ByjSKTXmrwzNL8TgdAyEe0OOw0n9g_SiYZ1ze_JN8DO53sH2bhab3ow_xjZwS-uluuFPE/s320/june+006.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481213962464371506" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">And jumped right in!!</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyS5zOyH1eqgZb0pcwXl7jx4bWa_xq6SQs_Wa37a0ZBPrdSXQfuoq82DmqDuUYFqNgtCyNVnFggJotEh6Dw6mw-zs_QlbRBTsF40nYsPBsWauRWi-S0SmCCdB5AnPLctnovBT5ObqhGuvV/s1600/june+013.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyS5zOyH1eqgZb0pcwXl7jx4bWa_xq6SQs_Wa37a0ZBPrdSXQfuoq82DmqDuUYFqNgtCyNVnFggJotEh6Dw6mw-zs_QlbRBTsF40nYsPBsWauRWi-S0SmCCdB5AnPLctnovBT5ObqhGuvV/s320/june+013.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481214830205759074" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;"><br /><br />And this is today:</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1Rjp6jIBxQ-vlqedwCk42ZCv8ogk-Nzpi_OMtKn4vLaVIUhG3duW8ycxQm1SQ2sDHSJQzbHLW0ujR6aOKdDuUFl8AaN1-taUOdBg5Hy2YjFOb5sLTa_hpcsobsCV5acPS_JU-bFd2pL6/s1600/6-10-10+002.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP1Rjp6jIBxQ-vlqedwCk42ZCv8ogk-Nzpi_OMtKn4vLaVIUhG3duW8ycxQm1SQ2sDHSJQzbHLW0ujR6aOKdDuUFl8AaN1-taUOdBg5Hy2YjFOb5sLTa_hpcsobsCV5acPS_JU-bFd2pL6/s320/6-10-10+002.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481217029107978322" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The neighbor kids have been as antsy to get in as my own 4 were. They don't care that it isn't pretty (or warm) yet. Just like everything else at our house (myself included) it is a work in progress....</span>Mehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14194422659035157907noreply@blogger.com3