Happy 12th Birthday Sami!!!

Happy 12th Birthday Samantha!!

You are such a lovely little lady!!

It is an overwhelming JOY to be your mom!!

I LOVE YOU LIKE CRAZY!!!!

In celebration of her 12th birthday, Sami is having a

12 NECKLACE GIVEAWAY

on her blog, Little Good 2-Shoes!!! 

Check it out here and send her some birthday love!!

Duck, Duck, Duck, Goose!!

Every so often, the kids and I grab the old bread out of the pantry and head to a murky, marshy pond in a neighboring community to feed the ducks.  While the kids wouldn’t rate it up there with rollercoasters and waterparks, I love the simplicity and the tradition of these outings, and hope the kids one day have fond memories of these little breaks from the usual hustle and bustle of our daily lives.

Every morning, when his brother and sister board the school bus, a look of disappointment washes over Trey’s face.  I can tell he feels left behind, and because his English is so limited, it is impossible for me to explain that he’ll be able to join them someday.  In an attempt to give Trey something to look forward to after the bus pulls away, we’ve been heading out on our own little adventures – a wagon ride by the lake or a walk through the woods.  On Thursday, I proposed that we take a trip to feed  the ducks.


Typically, the ducks already on the water come hustling in the minute you arrive, while others start descending with splash landings from various directions.  This day, however, there was not a single duck in sight.  While Trey was quite happy to run freely up and down the winding wooden dock that wraps around the pond,  he was clearly confused about the bag of bread we had brought along and probably was doubting his understanding of the word duck.  We waited patiently for quite a while, and just as I was concluding it was time to head home, along came…


…and the little ones who followed behind in her wake.



Moments later, another mama approached us…


…who was shortly followed by...



Trey was delighted to hurl the chunks of bread over the railing and laughed hysterically as the birds competed for their share.  Every so often, he would pause and pop a piece into his own mouth.  You just can’t plan for things to work out so perfectly. 


I’m a lucky duck to be able to share these simple traditions with this silly goose.

Mother’s Day Weekend

He's a Happy Boy

I have to start by apologizing to those who’ve been wondering about us.  After a few friends jokingly asked if Dave ever made beyond Frankfurt, I realized that I have neglected my blog and left some of you wondering – and maybe worrying :/

Dave and Trey arrived home on Thursday night just slightly behind schedule.  The kids and I were able to meet them at the airport for a sweet and simple reunion.  They were both understandably beyond exhausted.  Dave had not slept a wink in over 38 hours, and they arrived at 1:00 a.m. Ethiopia time.  We spent a few quiet hours at home on Thursday night with take-out pizza, while the kids played with blocks on the living room floor.  That was enough.

For the past 5 days, we have been busy having a ridiculously good time.  Trey has been absolutely delightful.  He’s been sweet and loving, and seems to be bonding equally well with everyone.  His whole world has changed completely and he seems to be taking everything in stride and enjoying all of the newness.  We’ve been on walks through the woods and wagon rides around the neighborhood.  We went to Toby’s flag football game and we’ve played baseball in the backyard.  All of the forgotten toys are new again, and we’ve become reacquainted with our old friends from Sesame Street.

There have been a few sticky spots.  For example, Trey is definitely disturbed by the presence of a dog wandering around the house.  In Ethiopia, dogs are not house pets and children are taught to be wary.  Luckily, Gracie, our Shetland Sheepdog, has been amazingly well behaved.  She clearly senses Trey’s fear and will hide around the corner out of his view.  We should seriously grill that dog a steak.  We also shed a few tears at bath time for the first few days.  However, today we threw in a few rubber frogs and snakes, and he could have splashed around all day.  We also went for our first doctors appointment today, which required a little blood work.  That’s all I have to say about that.

For the most part though, things have been incredibly good.  He doesn’t seem to be the same shy, scared little boy that we met last fall.  He’s a happy boy.  He’s very affectionate.  He likes to be carried around by his sister and loves to roll around on the floor with his brother.  He’s only been home a few short days, and already, we can’t imagine what it would be like without him.  God has been so good to us.