spirited posts

DIY Decor

2012-02-10T11:43:00.004-06:00

I've been on a decorating kick again- painting, re-arranging, plant inspiration, etc. I've been working on making this headboard for the guest room & I recently came across these genius book ends. Can't wait to try them! Here are some pics of the DIY headboard. All is finished except the tacks (which I haven't decided what to use yet). Riley measured & cut the plywood for me and Meghan came to help me with the foam, batting, & fabric. We ran into issues getting the fabric to fit around the corners without bunching & looking weird. In the comments section of her blog, we found another crafter who had a similar problem. Apparently, the solution is to cut & sew flaps. A bit tricky to explain & the seams do show but all in all I'm happy with the almost-finished product. Now, to find brass tacks :)

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Isaac's Fav Spot

2012-02-08T19:58:00.003-06:00

Isaac still wants to me with momma most of the time. His favorite spot (besides outside) is sitting on the kitchen counter while I work. Tonight as I was getting dinner ready I found him with an orange in one hand and a medicine syringe in the other. He poked a hole through the orange and was extracting juice in his mouth like it was an everyday task. This boy is funny!

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Warm Winter

2012-02-07T14:03:00.003-06:00

Emerging daffodils...
Observing bird nests...
Planting seeds...
Playing sidewalk chalk!

What a fantastically, warm winter it has been so far. Thank you Lord for warmth, sunshine, land to roam & fresh air!

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Gunk

2012-02-06T14:29:00.002-06:00

Is this pickle soup? Noooo! It's gunk, of course! Making gunk with excess kitchen supplies is the girls' most asked for activity. This particular batch of gunk included pickles, caramel syrup, sprinkles, cherries, dish soap, ketchup, mustard, lime juice, baking soda, blue food coloring (it turned into green), flour, water.

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Sickness Has Struck

2012-02-05T20:30:00.001-06:00

Everyone but Ellie and I have been struck with the sickness. We've both been slightly feverish & tired so we hold our breath and wait

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West Point Pics

2012-02-02T21:55:00.004-06:00

Riley's high school friend, Nick, stayed with us this past weekend. The guys spent Saturday skiing in Hunter and then they watched Kyle in Spiderman Sunday night. Here are some fantastic pics Nick took of WP while he was here.

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Valentine's Boxes

2012-02-01T19:36:00.005-06:00

Ellie's lovely purse box. Her supplies were pink spray paint, heart tissue paper, red pom pom & crayons

Saedi working diligently as stenciling. Her supplies were crayola paint, felt, colored paper, stencils, markers, feathers

Final products! And NO I am not pregnant, just a very un-flattering pic of my tummy here!

Saedi hot gluing her feathers

Since getting off Facebook (more on that later) I've been making more time for crafts with the girls. The other night we spent an hour after the boys went to bed making these adorable Valentine boxes from Silly Eagle Books. The craft was extremely easy & cheap/free because we used only supplies we had in our craft closet. It was a blast seeing the girls' different creative flares.

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Stripes

2012-01-31T18:44:00.002-06:00

And this past weekend I painted more stripes on a whim after the boys went to bed. Again, fast project- start to finish 5 hours (including 2 surrounding walls that I painted the solid brown). Riley usually doesn't say much about my decorating but he loves this entry room now. Fun! Last night I covered the lampshade with a fun geometric white/blue fabric to add some contrast.

The tiny bathroom is the room I started with. Was simply inspired to paint stripes. I was able to start and complete the project during nap time- fast and easy! Used the leftover gray from my bedroom and since the photo was taken I've hung portraits of national geo faces from around the world. Love this room!

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Arghh Matey

2012-01-30T20:23:00.000-06:00

Tooth number 3 is out! Ellie pulled it herself a few days ago

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Surgery

2012-01-30T06:49:00.003-06:00

Solomon's circumcision is at 730 this morning in NJ. They're letting Riley stay with him until he's under. We'll keep you posted.
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Happy 4th Saedi Girl

2012-01-29T19:27:00.005-06:00

Sweet, sweet Saedi. My carefree bug. Hardest pregnancy and labor. Most content of babies & children. Always smiling, satisfied, friendly, easy-going. Perseveres and does not get frustrated. Loves food. Loves sleep. Loves animals. Cuddle-bug. Happy 4th sweet girl! I love you so much!

Little princess in her Rapunzel dress with her castle cake that Ellie designed. Tea party birthday with Ellie, Avery, Allie, & Haddie.

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Skiing

2012-01-26T16:55:00.004-06:00

Skiing!

Bundling up all four and going to the ski slopes as a family- This momma won't be doing this again anytime soon :)

Not a big fan of the cold/snow

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The girls have been taking Ski lessons the past few weeks. A cadet is teaching Ellie and Riley is teaching Saedi. They LOVE it and Ellie claims it as her favorite sport. Both girls can go up the rope tow and down a good portion of the bunny hill. That's more than I can say for myself! So proud of them and glad they're digging it!

Children's Museum in Poughkeepsie

2012-01-21T15:41:00.001-06:00

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Family Update

2012-01-14T11:16:00.004-06:00

I have been horrible about blogging! I missed Thanksgiving & New Years and all that was in between. To pick up to the NOW, here's the latest & greatest:
Riley: duck/goose season ended on the 9th of January so he's started working out again. Gonna train for a half ironman. Pheasant or grouse hunting with a friend as of now
Me: sick with bronchitis and coughing my head off. Happily running when I can (signed up for an all womens half marathon in NYC in April) and eager to paint some more of the house. I'm thinking big, fat stripes in bathrooms. I'm reading a lot, Crossfitting again, and like always, purging the house of things we don't use.
Ellie: I've been making more of an effort to do more things for Ellie and focus more attention on her. Her favorite thing is playing with friends, which shes been happily doing a lot of lately. Also started ballet and tap classes last week and that fits her personality well. Still loves to look in the mirror and put on earrings that Mimi gave her
Saedi: asked to go winter camping with her Dad for this upcoming Bday. Last weekend was unusually warm so they spent the afternoon fishing & hunting & then set up camp in the backyard and fell asleep watching Rapunzel on the computer. Sadly, she woke in the night vomiting so that was the end of her Bday camping adventure. She still loves Jack and cuddles with him every chance she gets
Isaac: will say anything we ask him to "chocolate" being our new favorite to hear him say. Some days he walks around the house saying "Mimi, Papa, Papa, Mimi. Momma, Dada, Dada, Momma. Juice. Ball. Jack Jack," etc just to hear himself talk. He loves balls and his new tball set.
Solomon is obsessed with toothpaste tubes. As soon as his feet touch the ground each morning he races to the girls bathroom and finds as many toothpaste tubes as he can. He, like Saedi, likes Jack-Jack and those are words he repeats more than any either. This boys is high speed and together the boys will spend hours climbing up and down the stairs. Sols favorite game is taking "stuff" out of drawers, standing or sitting at the top of stairs and throwing whatever he can find down those stairs!

And dare I give anyone a heart attack and mention that we're starting the paperwork to adopt again? Hooray!

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Duck-ageddon

2011-12-02T21:24:00.003-06:00

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Goose Apocalypse

2011-11-19T08:31:00.002-06:00

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Spidey Night in NYC

2011-11-14T12:03:00.007-06:00

Lynette, fantastic friend from our college days, met me at my house Friday morning and we took the train to the city for the day/evening. We had an amazing time together, and by the end of the evening my abs were sore from laughing so much with friends. Here we are in Grand Central Station eating gelato within 10 minutes of getting off the train!

Besides the bathroom & ordering gelato our first stop was meeting up with another college friend, Ben. Here he was graciously mapping out shopping & metro stops for Lynette & I. Clearly annoyed/embarrassed at all of our tourist picture taking.

Kyle & Ben met up with us early evening on the High Line to walk to dinner before the Spiderman show.

Kyle, wonderful food connoisseur led us to a fantastic pan Asian restaurant called Ember. Perfect!

Lynette's man, Steven, met up with us after work at the restaurant too...adding to the fun, laughter, and my sore abs.

College Buds 10 years later

Ben, me, Kyle, Lynette, Steven on the Spiderman stage while Kyle gave us a backstage tour after his FANTASTIC performance. Such a perfect day/night!

And where was Riley you ask? He gave me the day!!! He graciously took all 4 kids all day (besides his early morning hunt) & hosted cadets and his former Commander from Ft Campbell in the evening. Great day had by all!

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Bubsy's 1st Haircut

2011-11-13T16:44:00.001-06:00

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The Race

2011-10-31T20:06:00.006-05:00

My Cheerleaders! Rachel with Solomon, Adam with Tess, Saedi, Riley with Elllie & Isaac

Ellie & Saedi loving the metro

Pit stop to strip down to shorts, eat a fig neuton & give kisses to the children...Mile 16?

Praise God I survived the 26.2 and felt pretty darn good! I was getting worried on Saturday when it was hailing, snowing, raining during my packet pick-up and we were getting word from friends that West Point was having a blizzard. Thankfully, the weather cleared Sunday morning, and although the start of the race was chilly, I ended up finishing with sunshine in my trusty shorts and tank. Although my goal was 4:20 I finished in 4:30:12 but felt strong most of the time. I took my time stretching, walking through food and water stations, switching out socks, kissing my children, etc. And, who did I think of in my weakest moments? The Ethiopian fuel carriers! Yes, my legs hurt and I got a little nauseous around mile 16, but there was an end to my race and I had people handing me water, food, and cheering for me. Let alone, I was in a safe environment with other runners packed in next to me doing the exact same thing. I'm so thankful God gave me the courage to run a marathon again-- to run it 30 min faster, to feel stronger, to gain a new perspective.

The best part of the weekend, though, was staying with our friends, Adam & Rachel (who we hadn't seen in a few years) and meeting their daughter, Tess. What an amazing family these guys are! Not only did they spend Sunday morning with Riley and the kids chasing me around the course, they watched our 4 kids so Riley could track me down at the finish line. I really enjoyed getting to know Rachel more (she was usually deployed during our time in NC) and conversing over stay-at-home parent issues with Adam since he got out of the Army a year ago and is taking care of Tess. It was like we hadn't missed a beat with each other even though so much time had passed. I do have to admit, that I didn't recognize Adam right away since he's gone all Grizzly Adams.

Approaching the Finish Line on the final uphill climb

DONE! I'm happy but this hurts!

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D.C. Bound

2011-10-28T14:22:00.001-05:00

D.C....here we come!

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Free Bird

2011-10-27T15:22:00.001-05:00

We've been eating a lot of delicious pheasant & duck these days thanks to the Master-Hunter.

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Tea Parties

2011-10-27T06:33:00.004-05:00

The girls modeling their new $5 yard sale dresses

Saedi had been asking me for weeks to have friends over for a tea party. I finally felt like it was do-able so the girls made last-minute invitations which we hand-delivered and then had our orange-food-themed tea party. Saedi had her friends over for 1 1/2 hours in the morning, and Ellie hosted in the afternoon. All the girls had fun painting rocks (I couldn't find small pumpkins without driving a ways), decorating cookies, and enjoying ham and cheese leaf sandwiches, orange jello, cantaloupe, carrots, cheese nips, & hot chocolate with orange marshmallows.

Haddie, Julianne, Saedi, Maryann (Analynn came later)

Meg, Ashley, Ellie, & Jaycee (Alyssa came later)

Painting Rocks

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26 Miles

2011-10-25T19:23:00.009-05:00

Five years ago I swore I would never run a marathon again, and well, here I am 5 days out from doing it again (funny how that works, huh?) Since moving to West Point 4 months ago I've met a fantastic group of girls who enjoy running & talked me into another marathon.

So, why do I run? I just do. I like it. It's good for my soul. It's a break from the kids and time to think. 5 years ago I ran the OBX (Outer Banks, NC) marathon-- 26 miles, 26 years old, on the 16th anniversary of my mom's death. I ran that race for myself and for my mom. I remember reading once that daughters who have lost their mothers will often drive themselves to do/finish things their mothers never had the chance to do- like run a marathon.

What am I running for this time? I'm running for the amazing women of Ethiopia. In our Lonely Planet travel guide I had read about the women who collect firewood to make a living. These women travel miles just to reach the bottom of a mountain that they climb daily to gather the sticks of Eucalyptus trees. They climb, climb, climb 4,000 feet in elevation up Entoto mountain and tie the sticks in bundles and carry them on their backs. Then they travel back down the mountain with 100# of firewood on their backs that they sell in Addis for about 50 cents a day. Can you imagine walking a marathon daily with 100# of scratchy wood on your back? How about in unsafe conditions? They do this even in the rainy season dealing with mudslides, slippery road, etc. They risk confrontations with guards. They try to work in groups because rape is common. They do it to survive.

Our last day in Ethiopia I asked our driver to take me to the mountain so I could meet some of these women, pray with them, and give them money. I talked to four women:

Meet Tsaiganesh. While she was friendly, she wasn't overly-interested in talking with me. Why would she be? Surely she was eager to get down the mountain, get the load off her back, and sell that wood. I gave her money, which she was extremely grateful for, but I learned my lesson to talk with the women resting.

Meet Asnagish. She had no husband, which more than likely means he died or left her. She wouldn't smile at me at first. What was a white woman in a van going to do for her? I shared with her that Jesus carried a heavy cross of wood on his back willingly for her. She warmed up to me and we chatted briefly, prayed together, and I asked her if I could feel what her load felt like? She smiled immediately, strapped the wood on my back and I stood up and took 3 excruciating steps and felt the tears come feeling what she had to do daily. I knew right then I was running this race for her. I thanked her for her time, got in the van, and let myself cry a bit.

Meet Abobonich. Her name means flower. She was a beautiful lady and a widow. She was old and tired and proud of her beauty. She wanted to fix her head covering before our picture together.

Meet Aragush. She, too, was a widow. When I saw her sitting alone on a hill her hands we caked with dirt & grime. Her fingers were nubby, and I'm guessing she had leprousy. I tried to hold her hands, but she was full of shame and pulled them away. She told me she was never able to have kids, which makes for a very lonely outcast. Yet in her heartache, she continually spoke blessings over me, "May you live a long time. Take me home with you. I'll clean for you. I'm tired." She let me rub her back and snuggle next to her, but always hid her hands from me.

I said goodbye and went back to our guesthouse and Ry, Solomon and I got ready for our flight home that night. I knew I wanted to run for these women. We long to help them, but how? Our immediate response was to buy a $75 donkey for these ladies so they wouldn't have to carry the load themselves. But, they would have to care for that donkey and theft is an issue. I'm still kicking myself for the "why didn't I"... carry the load down the mountain for those ladies (not sure if I could have physically) or at least thrown the sticks on the van, paid them for the wood, and given them a ride home. It's one thing to give someone money, but it's another thing to carry someone's burden for them.

You can read more here.

So, on Sunday I will run my 26 miles for Tsaiganesh, Asnagish, Abobonich, & Aragush & the other strong firewood carriers of Addis. While I didn't do any fund-raising, below are two reputable organizations where any amount you give would help the beautiful people of Ethiopia:
Project 61
Christian World Foundation

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Family pics by Haley

2011-10-16T08:11:00.004-05:00

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Kids at Cullum Hall

2011-10-15T20:31:00.002-05:00

My friend Haley was kind enough to spend over an hour with our crazy family this afternoon trying to snap some decent shots of us. Here are some really cute & funny candid shots of the 4 kiddos in front of Cullum Hall at West Point.

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10 Year Reunion

2011-10-12T20:30:00.006-05:00

I love this picture that Meghan took during Riley's 10 year reunion weekend. Sean was able to convince somebody to let him borrow the old mule costume. Cheers to the best mascot every! Too many good memories! I've been too busy/lazy to sort through and post all the pictures but this is by far my favorite.

Sweet Paddy

We had a fantastic weekend with everyone- Drew & Steph and their twins stayed with us; Daniel & Anya and baby Jack were visiting from Switzerland and they stayed with Sean & Meghan just a few streets over. We got together each night for dinner/dessert/and catching up. Dave & Haley came Fri night and Matt & Emily joined us Sat night. So weird & wonderful to be together again--with kids! I also got to see my cousin Kim & her husband, Brooks. My college friend, Gella, also came for the day/football game on Saturday and stayed the night. So fun! And, Army won!

The crew, minus our boys

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Post-Adoption Fog

2011-10-09T19:13:00.004-05:00

Shoooo-EEEE! Life just got a bazillion times busier in the 4 weeks that Solomon's been home with us!

First, what a FANTASTIC little man he is! Within the first two weeks home he started signing "more" "eat" & "all done" along with saying "da-da" and "ma-ma." He jibber-jabbers quite a bit and sings a little 3-syllable tune frequently that he either made up or the nannies sang to him. Very sweet. He's a quick little guy--climbed up 4 steps immediately upon seeing them. He loves to chase the other kids around the house on all fours, and he likes to be chased. He's crazy for Jack and I'm thrilled as Jack can easily handle one more little friend poking his eyes, pulling his ears and pinching his fur. So he is adjusting better then I expected. As long as that boy has his bottle he's happy as can be!
All this said, I feel like I'm coming out of the "postpartum cloud" ...you know, that place where you try so hard to concentrate on what other's are saying, that place where you wonder if you just fell asleep at the dinner table for a split second, and you get yourself into bed at night and realize you lasted the entire day without brushing your own hair. Raising these 4 is the toughest challenge I've faced, but I'm loving almost every minute of it.

Our family is so blessed to have so many friends and family praying for us and actively helping us-- making & delivering meals, watching kids, sending encouraging texts or emails or phone calls (although I rarely catch those in time) recommending doctors, driving kids places, meeting us at parks, sending us clothes and fun care packages-- ALL OF YOU HAVE KEPT US SANE...thank you!
Aren't these too little ham's so cute? Isaac calls him "awe" and loves to rub Sol's head.
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Korah

2011-09-24T19:25:00.007-05:00

And we prayed, "God, help us to not forget what we saw. We don't want to return to the rat-race of life at home and lose desperation for these people in need. Give us wisdom to know how to help. We want to make a difference. Give us tenacity to act upon what we experienced and to not lose heart for the people of Korah."

On our last day in Ethiopia we visited the poorest of the poor in Addis Ababa...the village of Korah. Left and right, we had been hearing about Korah for the past year or so. It wasn't until this trip to Ethiopia & building a relationship with our translator, Maste, that we decided to get involved. After all, Masti grew up in Korah, so his heart and passion are to help the people there, for he knows the desperation.

On our first home visit we met this 30-year old ___ sitting on a tiny stool in a dark room the size of my bathroom. She has been hiv positive for the past four years, but as of lately, is very sick. Immediately at looking into her eyes we saw she was in deep pain. I talked with her and tried to touch her as much as possible, to show her she was loved. We brought her gifts of cooking oil, pasta, personl hygeine items, & gave her money. We asked her what was on her mind and how we could help. All she cared about were her 3 kids she would be leaving behind when she died. Riley and I promised to sponsor them and make sure they could go to school. I held her (she was too weak to stand alone), wept with her, prayed with her, and said goodbye.
There's so much to tell and I wish I had time to sit down and gather my thoughts a little more, but this will have to do for now. This family was our 2nd home visit. The man above has TB and can't work so his wife is the sole provider for the family. We were able to buy food, etc for this family & their 3 children.
A few facts about Korah:

Korah in Amharic means "cursed".
75 years ago the Ethiopian government moved everyone with leprosy to this area of Addis Ababa.
Approximately 100,000 people live in the slums of Korah - the "outcasts" of society.
The city dump is located in Korah.
The people, both adults and children, spend their days digging through the dump searching for anything to eat or sell.
God is alive and well in Korah thanks to Pastor Sammy Liben and Project 61 Ministries. They have started an education sponsorship program for the children of Korah.

A teenage boy happily feeding one of the men with leprosy

The beautiful children of Korah

Until we gather our thoughts a bit more, I challenge you to google Korah and Project 61 and read about real need. And read about real testimonies of all the amazing acts people have done to help those living in Korah.

Maste, our fantastic translator, with a couple of the boys

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In da Hood

2011-09-15T23:28:00.002-05:00

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Our First Moments

2011-09-15T12:17:00.010-05:00

Helen, the social worker, bringing "Edilu" to us

He's obviously unsure of us & "what big teeth you have"

Here come the tears

We brought cakes for all the kids & staff at Acacia Village & the nannies made the sign for Sol

Happy 1st Birthday Sol!

Haddush, the transition home director, giving "Edilu" one last kiss.

Sitting on Daddy's belly, warming up to us at the guest home

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He is ours!

2011-09-15T09:05:00.003-05:00

After much waiting and dealing with "African" time, we finally linked up with Solomon Edilu yesterday. He was hesitant with us at first, followed by all out fright. The nannies there were great and helped him get used to us over the course of a couple hours. Once he had settled down, we had a sweet birthday party for him with the other children, complete with cake and candles. His care givers were obviously happy for him, but you could also see they were sad to say good-bye. I can only imagine the mixed emotions they must go through every time a child goes home. After good-byes all around, we drove Solomon back to the guest house. He was peaceful and content, even falling asleep in my arms on the ride. Within a few hours, he was laughing and playing with us and the other children at the guest house. It was a blessed day!

We had our embassy appointment today and everything went smoothly. We pick up his passport and visa tomorrow and then fly out early Saturday morning. We can't wait to get home and have our family all together again. We are so close... thank you for all the prayers and support back home!

We will post more, with pictures, when we get a good internet connection again.

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Awassa

2011-09-14T00:13:00.007-05:00

Yesterday our driver & translator drove us 3.5 hours South to Solomon's birth place of Awassa. We drove through the beautiful countryside & farmland, and I even saw monkeys on the side of the road, before arriving in the fishing town of Awassa. Isn't it fitting that God chose our son to be from a fishing town? Riley's particularly tickled about that one! Here's a picture of some local boys getting their fishing nets ready. Those crazy birds were everywhere! There are also hippos in the lake, although we didn't see any.

We wanted to see Awassa first-hand to get a bigger picture of who Sol is based on where he came from. God really blessed us. Thanks to our translator, we were able to locate the one person that knew most about his earliest days and we also met his initial nannies at the Awassa orphanage. We got a ton of pictures and even some loving notes from those people in a small journal for Solomon Edilu.

Michelle with some of the children of Awassa.

Edilu's first nannies in his first orphanage in Awassa LOVED seeing the book I made him of his recent pictures. They love that boy so we left the book with them.

Awassa

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Pics from afternoon stroll

2011-09-12T08:29:00.007-05:00

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Ethiopian New Year

2011-09-12T05:34:00.005-05:00

Our flights went smoothly. We enjoyed flying into Istanbul and spending a nice layover there. We arrived in Addis Ababa shortly after midnight this morning and ALL of our bags made it (we had 2 bags of donations!!! AWESOME!) Today is Ethiopian New Year so as soon as we stepped off the plane we could smell all the cooking fires, cigarette smoke and rose perfume from celebrations that had just taken place. So most things are closed down today because of the New Year, but we just got back from a long walk and photo shooting the locals around our guest home. Lots of sheep, goat and chickens are being slaughtered today to eat/celebrate for their holiday.

Tomorrow we're hiring a driver and leaving early for Awassa to spend 1/2 day there. We're hoping to visit Solomon Edilu's first orphanage and get photos of his birthplace.

Hoping to visit the local lepers and support them by purchasing some of their handmade items on Wed morning before we pick up Solomon.

We go to Embassy on Thursday and then should receive his visa Friday before we fly out Friday night.

Internet is sporadic so if we get a chance we'll continue to update and upload pics.

All is well and so happy to be here. We slept well this morning and our swollen feet are less swollen :)

Love you all.

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Praise God!!!

2011-09-09T07:24:00.002-05:00

Our long-awaited days have arrived!!! We're leaving for Ethiopia tomorrow night and picking up Sol a few days later! Our Embassy date is Thursday the 15. Mimi is on a plane right now headed here for a couple of weeks to stay with the kids. I can't thank everyone enough for all your prayer & support through money, donations, meals, time, listening ears, hugs, advice, etc! My mind is a spinning whirlwind right now and my heart is singing! Here we go...!

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Ultimate Frisbee

2011-09-03T19:16:00.004-05:00

Riley and some other guys in the Social Sciences (SOSH) department get together and play frisbee once a week. The kids and I will usually bring a picnic lunch and head out to South Dock to watch the games.

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More Solomon Pictures

2011-09-03T07:31:00.002-05:00

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Solomon says...

2011-09-01T20:11:00.002-05:00

This is one of our newest pictures of Solomon. Riley loves it because it begs for a funny caption. We thought it would be fun to see what you all imagine Solomon saying in this picture.
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Date Night

2011-08-31T19:29:00.002-05:00

Last Friday night Riley and I finally had our first date night since being in Ethiopia together, 3 months ago! Our friends, Isaac & Kerry watched the kiddos and then we swapped and watched theirs on Sat night...perfect! We went out for dinner at The Hudson House in Cold Springs. It was a perfect evening to enjoy seafood outside on the river. We both left our meal ready to schedule our next date night

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I'm Famous!

2011-08-29T20:50:00.002-05:00

I'm famous! Ok, not really. Click on the link for my debut on Meghan's blog :)
She's so on top of it because my two pieces are sitting untouched in the basement.
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Hurricane Irene

2011-08-28T10:20:00.002-05:00

It rained all last night and we've already gained 6" of water. The rain hasn't let up yet and we're expected to get another 4" or water. The wind isn't very strong for us right now, but all the roads are closed, church canceled, etc. Here's a picture of the creek out our front door...looks like we could go white water rafting!

Our street is empty of cars in case any of these old trees fall

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Items For Orphanages

2011-08-26T19:58:00.003-05:00

Still no embassy date yet, and we plan on writing to our Senator this weekend as we feel our case is at a standstill. Our agency is supportive of this as well. In the meantime, please continue praying for Sol, that God would keep him healthy & safe. He's legally ours, and it's a very weird feeling to know that we have a child that we're not able to protect, watch over, or bring home. Several people are asking how they can help. Pray!!! We're trusting in God's timing and in the meantime, collecting items to give to the orphanages when we finally go to pick up Sol.

If any of you would like to donate, we're planning on taking suitcases full of diapers, formula and the requested items of
• Lice shampoo
• Clotrimzole cream
• Diaper rash cream
• Multivitamin drops for infants

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Girls' Bedroom Tour

2011-08-25T20:43:00.003-05:00

The girls room was somewhat easy to decorate because I already had the bedding that I loved. However, the shape of the room is odd...very long and narrow. Meghan helped me pick out a rug from The Carpet Mill, curtains & the swing from Ikea and from there I was inspired on my own. I re-painted Ellie's white dresser and stuck that in the closet. I moved Saedi's dresser into the boys' room & replaced hers with the cubby unit from Target. The cubby is great because she can maneuver the baskets easier and clothes stay more organized. Saedi picked the pink baskets, which happily go with the pink paint that the girls chose.

The map on the wall is my favorite part of the decor. I found the old map at Paradise Point Marketplace on the way home from the Barren River Lake State Park in Kentucky when we vacationed with The Moons. Nat and I were hot, swollen and a month away from birthing our boys. I bought this map and she bought a similar one as well, so there's a it of sentiment that goes along with it. And, it just so happens that we're working on memorizing the States and Capitals with the girls so it's PERFECT!

Fun Reading Swing

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Central Park

2011-08-22T20:09:00.003-05:00

Sunday was the kids first jaunt into the city! We spent most of the morning playing in Central Park, and Uncle Kyle linked up with us too. We walked around Times Square, ate ice cream & then hit up Rockland Bakery on our way home. Fun Sunday!

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Kindergarten

2011-08-21T19:18:00.005-05:00

Friday was Ellie's first day of Kindergarten! When I asked her what she was most excited about, she said, "Wearing my new clothes & my necklace from Mimi." She is her mother's daughter!

Riley got dressed up and took the girls out for coffee & donuts the morning of their first day. Ellie was up, dressed, teeth & hair brushed, & accessorized by 630 am waiting at the front door for Daddy to return from his run. She was jumping off the walls excited for her first day! Saedi, our sleep-lover, had to be woken up...just like most mornings.

Ellie's necklace that Mimi made for her first day

The girls standing outside the Post Chapel, where our co-op meets every 2nd & 4th Friday. Yes, we decided to home school again this year & we're all excited about it!

Our story...Originally, we had registered Ellie for Kindergarten and like in past years, I was not content with the decision. We prayed & talked & the night we decided we wanted to home school God was instrumental in the timing of it all. We were playing at the school playground and Ellie's older friend, Taylor, was talking about being home schooled for 2nd grade & Ellie asked if Kindergarteners could be home schooled too...it was a perfect set-up for us to explain to her that indeed, she would be home schooled.
There is a fantastic homeschooling group at West Point & a new Christian homeschooling co-op that formed this year. We meet 2 Fridays a month & while Saedi is in the preschool class, Ellie gets to do Science & Drama with the Kindergarteners & first graders. I'm helping out in the nursery so I can stay with Isaac & Solomon once he arrives. At home, we're using a mix of programs:
Sonlight for Science
Sigapore for Math (when she completes her current book we'll try Horizon Math)
Explode the Code for Phonics
Classical Conversations for Geography & History
Rosetta Stone for Spanish
Ambleside Online suggestions for nature study & American Girl books for literature
and a few other odds & ends books about manners, thinking skills, etc

Saedi's pre-school class. She & Julianne are the only girlies.

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Master Bedroom Tour

2011-08-19T15:12:00.008-05:00

I love our bedroom! It's a nice sized-room with 3 bright windows. In decorating, I knew I wanted to use the color slate. I started with the bed as we were in need of new bedding. For the longest time I had my heart set on this bedding from West Elm (in slate), but it never went on sale! And it's really tough for me to buy things that aren't on sale. Then, after talking with Riley we decided we'd be better off with a quilt as were were always hot using a duvet. Anyway, when I saw this quilt I loved it immediately and snatched it up before it sold out. I thought it would work perfectly with slate walls! After I purchased the bedding, Meghan introduced me to the Carpet Mill Outlet where we found this cute light grey shag rug. Next, I painted my walls Paramount by Behr from The Home Depot. I loved it! Curtains are from Ikea. Piece by piece, I found the small nightstand and painted it white. And the best deal of all was our fantastic dresser we got for FREE off Craigslist. All we had to do was get rid of a couch for someone and in return they gave us this dresser. After a little wood putty this Pier 1 beauty looks great! Meghan helped me choose an accent color (berry/magenta). I found the adorable pillow, candle, & lamp with shade on clearance at Target. We also added the white ceiling fan (less then $30 from Home Depot). Lastly, I wasn't sure what to put on the dresser and my budget was gone so I used a mirror & 2 frames that I had and got crafty. I taped berry-colored yarn to tissue paper and that worked great as a picture inside the frame! And I had a magenta/grey scarf in my closet that adds a nice pop of color. The walls are still bare, but at least it feels comfortable & classy, which I guess is my style :)

My free dresser, free plant, & homemade artwork.

$15 Goodwill stand that I sanded & painted white.

Magenta accents from Target

Fantastic view & sound of creek out our front bedroom windows!

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Isaac is 1

2011-08-18T08:23:00.006-05:00

The girls' neighborhood friends, Bethany & Blanca.

"Isaac" means laughter and it's a fitting name for this boy! Looking back, I was definitely in a funk after I miscarried, but 6 weeks later we found out we were pregnant & God used Isaac to get me out of that sad time. Isaac was my easiest & quickest labor & already at one his sense of humor is evident. Just the other day I was nursing him and he was passing gas on me, so I laughed and said, "toot toots!" He looked up and started laughing and saying, "toot toot" every 15 seconds while laughing. He loves to cuddle and likes all types of music. He's very verbal and mimics words, sounds, tones, etc. Although he's taken a couple of steps his 23# is not walking as he still prefers to crawl everywhere. Jack is his buddy & Isaac feeds him every chance he gets. Isaac loves to eat...everything except eggs! He's joyful and still sucks his "gang" fingers.

We spent Isaac's birthday spoiling him with a giant balloon, lollipop for breakfast, feeding fish at the hospital pond, & playtime at a small playground with Paddy Morrow. We ate cupcakes & ice cream sandwiches & had a casual get-together with friends at Lake Popoloken, where he swam, played in sand, and Riley gave the kids boat rides in fast Eddy (of course, I forgot to take my camera).
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Speechless

2011-08-11T20:25:00.003-05:00

Acts like this leave me speechless.

Giving is not 2nd nature to me. I think. I plan. I give because I know I should but not because I like it. I desire to become more generous, more selfless. I know giving is a great quality and people are drawn to givers. I married a giver and I become friends with givers. I see the joys of giving and I'm growing in this area.

So when people like our friends, Jen & Trey, who give selflessly desiring nothing in return, gave us an amazing stroller I think they should be recognized. From the depths of my heart, thank you for your generous gift of this amazing stroller for our boys! It has already been a blessing & Sol's not even here yet. I'm extremely grateful for friends like you & I keep learning from you!

Thank you!

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Princess Tea Party

2011-08-11T10:44:00.000-05:00

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The Heart

2011-08-10T14:54:00.004-05:00

Proverbs 4:23 says, "Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life."

Today, Riley and I celebrate our 9th anniversary! I feel so blessed to be as crazy about Riley as 9 years ago. I would say our life feels harder, but much more fulfilling at the same time. He instills a confidence in me that no one else has had the power to do. I'm grateful for my best friend, soul-mate, and Love.

As far as our adoption goes, we received an update that as of this morning... there is one man refusing to give further info unless he's contacted directly by the Embassy through MOWCY

So frustrating that this Planning Expert's heart is hardened! Everything within us wants to be angry that one man is stopping Solomon from coming home. But, we know the greater truth. God is over all man. God softened the heart of Pharaoh and we will pray for this man's heart as well. God softened my heart 24 years ago when I realized I needed a relationship with God. Pray with us for this Ethiopian man that his heart would soften and he would give the needed information. Pray for the country director that is working on Solomon's behalf- that God would give him grace & patience as he is trying to work with the planning expert

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Nat & Kids

2011-08-09T14:36:00.003-05:00

Isaac thieving Jeremiah's food

Dance Party Fun

Saedi, Meadow, Brooke & Ellie

6 Bugs in a Tub with Isaac begging for freedom!

Natalie came to visit with the kids a few weekends ago and it was DELIGHTFUL to see them again! As soon as Brooke & Meadow stepped out of the car they were bombarded by screams and hugs from Ellie and Saedi. It was so sweet to see that time did nothing to hinder their friendship. Nat and I headed to NYC Saturday and Riley was a trooper and watched all 6 kids! All the below snapshots are of his cheat night with the kids. Nat and I had a blast in the city. Unfortunately, I'm not able to get those pics off of our other camera yet. But, we took the train from Garrison into Grand Central. Kyle met us there and we walked with him around Times Square a bit. He hailed us a cab (we were laughing hysterically at his expertise doing this) and sent us to the High Line. We sampled some fine food- kimchi tacos, chinese dumpkings, natural lemonade/teas and then walked the High Rise to Union Square where sampled cupcakes and did a little shopping. We took a late train home and got in around 1am...pooped but happy. It was fantastic to have a girls night with Nat, and I need more visitors so I can have a excuse to do that again!!!

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Applaud God

2011-08-04T13:46:00.003-05:00

In my inbox today I received 2 things:
1. This beautiful picture of Solomon standing and looking so happy and well-cared for.
2. A message from our friends we met in Ethiopia (also Americans adopting) who were on the same time line as us. Their paperwork cleared on Tuesday & they received their travel date of August 16th. While we're happy for them, it's so excruciating hard to not feel left behind right now. While I look at Sol's picture and cry God calls me to Psalm 100

Psalm 100
On your feet now-applaud God!
Bring a gift of laughter,
sing yourselves into his presence.

Know this: God is God, and God, God.
He made us; we didn't make him.
We're his people, his well-tended sheep.

Enter with the password: "Thank You!"
Make yourselves at home, talking praise.
Thank him. Worship him.

For God is sheer beauty,
all generous in love,
loyal always and ever.

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Birthday

2011-08-03T19:18:00.004-05:00

Our internet was down the past 5 days so I'm definitely behind in the blogging! I celebrated a fantastic 31st birthday last Thursday treating myself to a hair cut (and color), pedicure, & shopping. A friend watched the girls and I put Isaac in hourly care. Following my pampering, Riley and I attended a party with his department before picking up the kids. After getting the kiddos, we bought a few slices of pizza and ate them outside at Lusk Reservoir, which is so beautiful and quiet! Finally, we went home where the girls decorated brownies for me as my birthday cake. I even got to blow out a Hello Kitty candle! It was a lovely day! Oh, and that lovely box next to me turned out carrying a Schwanky-Fabulous-New-Food-Processor!!!

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Marathons and Adopting

2011-07-29T06:48:00.004-05:00

When we began our international adoption process, we had a number of people advise us that we needed to approach it as a marathon, not a sprint. While there is some utility in this analogy, it has one fundamental flaw: both sprints and marathons are measured races in which the participants can know at any time their position relative to the finish line. The adoption process, on the other hand, feels like a race in which the finish line continues to retreat as you get closer. And not only does it move, but each move is unpredictable in both timing and length.

As many of you know, our recent move to New York required us to re-do a number of documents and gain bureaucratic approvals to remain current in an approved status. Thanks be to God, we seem to have passed that hurdle quicker than we anticipated. However, we received news over the past couple of days that things in Ethiopia are not going as smoothly as we had thought. The US Embassy in Ethiopia is implementing additional verification requirements for every child approved for adoption. In our case, they want our adoption agency staff members to work with the Awassa Regional Police to verify witness statements regarding Solomon’s relinquishment. This requires the police to cooperate and, unfortunately, adoptions are low on their list of priorities. If the police do not provide the required information, the Embassy is requiring the adoption agency to run a 4-week ad in the Awassa newspapers to ensure that Solomon was freely given up for adoption.

Together, these changes will add weeks and possibly months to our process. We continue to trust God and his timing in all of this, despite our lack of understanding. It is frustrating and disappointing to feel so close and to think we can see the finish line only to have it moved over the next hill. We covet your prayers as God works in our lives and refines us in his fire.

Fast Eddy

2011-07-27T17:05:00.004-05:00

Please welcome our newest addition, Fast Eddy:

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Cadets

2011-07-17T21:00:00.005-05:00

We found our nice camera! We had it stashed away in the back of Riley's bedroom closet, but now that we've got a working camera & charger I'm back in business & will have to post pics of our house & all my fun projects. In the meantime, here are some pics of our day today...
These are 4 of the 1250 new cadet candidates who arrived 3 weeks ago for their summer training called Beast. Once they make it through those awful 6 weeks they officially become cadets and their academic year as a plebe begins. These guys have had no internet access, phone access, and have been drilled and harassed constantly for the past 3 weeks (even 10 years later Riley remembers that well). Today is what they call the Ice Cream Social, where the cadets are allowed to go to a host home on post for the afternoon to relax, eat, sleep, talk, call home using our phones, & get on the internet, etc. The four cadets who came over were so young -it's hard for me to believe Riley and I were this young when we met! The young men were extremely grateful for the food, especially the raw cookie dough & the ice cream sundae bar Ellie & Saedi set up. These guys were a pleasure to have in our home! I took some pictures of them to send to their mothers & I've already received two emails letting me know how nice it was to hear their son's voice & to see close up pictures of them.

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New Pics of Sol at 9-10 months

2011-07-11T16:34:00.004-05:00

I love it when these fun email surprises show up in my in-box. We received over 20 pics of Solomon today. Here are my favs...

looks like he's beginning to crawl & scoot

happy boy!

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Jellystone Park

2011-07-10T21:14:00.002-05:00

Here's a fun Post Family picture from about a month ago...that's how far behind I am.
This past week we went on our first family camping trip since Isaac's birth. We stayed at Jellystone Park and it was a perfect one-nighter trip with the kids. We had a lovely campsite on a stream so we could hear the water at night and the kids had lots of exploring. There were fun activities for the kids (cake and ice cream for Boo Boo's birthday, wagon rides with Yogi Bear, water balloon tosses, bingo, etc) but we mainly hung out at the water park and added small detours to the playground or hiking around the lake. Our camera wasn't working so I have no pics of Isaac's first camping trip. Oh, and all 5 of us slept in a 3 man tent but it went well!

Since then, the girls came down with a nasty 12 hour flu of violent vomitting for about 7 hours. They're feeling great now, but they were pretty bummed when we had to shift cheat night from Sat night to Sun night! Oh, and I finished the last of the painting (for now...ha ha) tonight! So, the living room/dining room, girls' room, kitchen, & master bedroom are done! Riley starts back to work tomorrow and I've got to get used to having the kids on my own again. Our home study visit is Tuesday, and several other appointments are thrown in there as well. We've received Solomon's birth certificate and we finish up our doctor's appointments on Thursday. After that, there should be no more paperwork for a bit. Each day we're getting closer to bringing our son home!
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Happy 4th!

2011-07-06T06:10:00.005-05:00

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Whirlwind!

2011-07-05T20:28:00.003-05:00

What a whirlwind we've been on this past month! I've done a terrible job documenting our family events lately, but I've been intentional about getting us settled in NY as quickly as possible, and so that commitment is taking up all my time. Before I try to summarize this past month I'm still in awe and praise about how well we are settling in and bonding as family and feeling at home here at West Point.

We've been here for 2 weeks now and I'm slowly learning my way around (the first 2 weeks are always my least favorite since I'm directionally challenged). Our first week here the girls attended Pandamania Vacation Bible School on post from 9-12 each day. VBS was a short walk up the street and a perfect way to get the girls meeting kids. It also allowed Isaac to get his morning nap, Riley to get in-processed & me unpacking. Our friends Sean & Meghan introduced us to people who have introduced us to more people, and Riley knows a lot from his time here as a cadet, etc. We quickly met another family who have a 3 year old son adopted from Ethiopia. Veronica is my age and they also have 3 biological kids so we've had dinner with them a couple of nights already.

The house is coming along fast! The dity move went smoothly and between CraigsList, Target, Home Depot, Ikea & the Carpet Mill the house is live-able and actually starting to feel cozy! Meghan helped me pick out rugs and from there I found a lot furniture off Craigslist (I need a separate blog about that). Paint colors were decided Thursday night, purchased on Friday and the living room, dining room, kitchen and girls room are all painted!

Another fun highlight for me is that I joined a running club. It's called the Knight Runners and they meet every Sat morning at 730 for a group run. They usually have a 4 mile route and then a longer route option since several are training for upcoming half marathons. I've run with them twice now and have met some neat gals that way. My legs and lungs are quickly adjusting to there brutal hills!

Uncle Kyle was our first house guest!!! He took the train up yesterday and spent the 4th with us picnicking on the Hudson River, watching the Cornwall parade, licking ice cream cones, watching the amazing WP fireworks display and swimming at Round Pond.
The girls were in awe of fireworks this year-oooohing and awwwwing and commenting after every explosion.

And the adoption...well, we've got the court decree saying that Solomon is ours, but we can't bring him home yet because we're required to re-do several documents since we moved and have a new state. Big disappointment as we were hoping we could bypass all that. After several days of frustrating phone calls we finally chose a local agency who will come out and give us a home study update and file all of our NY background checks, physical, etc. We're praying for speed in processing & that none of this will delay getting an Embassy date and that we would remain patient with the system.

And now, the past month...
While Ry and I went to Ethiopia the girls had a great time with Grandma & Grandpa in Ohio. They saw their Aunt Meg everyday and loved all the things they did together- rode the carousel, played at the beach, went shopping at the mall, read lots of books, & played with their cousins.

After Ohio we drove to NY to see our new house, unload our things and spend 2 days unpacking. We drove to Niagra Falls on our 12 hour+ drive to Michigan.

Riley spent several days with his high school friends back in Michigan while the kids and I stayed at Mimi & Papa's. We went strawberry picking, played with cousins, & went to the Holland street fair where we watched street gymnasts, ate candy from the Peanut Store and watched Mary Poppins at the theater.

We spent a week in Indiana at Potato Creek for a "Post Family Reunion" with all Ry's siblings and kids. We had a great time in our own cabin but meeting up with everyone for Story Time, walks to the general store, swimming at the pond, paddle-boating, play-do, parade, pinatas, and dinners together.

After Potato Creek we drove back to Ohio to spend a few days with my parents at their lake cottage. We spent Father's Day with my dad and he and Riley got to do a bit of fishing.

Then, we drove to NY again to stay!!!

-Ellie lost her first tooth while driving from Ohio to West Point. She immediately wanted to call her Aunt Meg and everyone else she knew to announce her big news. Every morning she wakes up in our new house and asks to sit out on the front porch. She loves to be outside, picking flowers and watering flowers and making boquets. She also loves wrestling and punching her Dad.
- Saedi likes to wear headbands everyday, but she wears them across her forehead instead of on her head. She's a funny girl and likes to make up jokes (like calling Ellie "Ellievator") and prank people with fake pooo. Her favorite part of our house is the "Vasement"
-Isaac refuses to take milk from anything other then me. While Ry and I were in Ethiopia for 5 days he refused milk. He has 7 teeth and has stopped all baby signs. He purses his lips together and says, "oooooh" to everything. The boy is huge. 23 lbs and in 18 month clothes at 10 months old. He eats more then his sisters (3 meatballs and a large slice of watermelon) for dinner plus full nursings still. He pulls himself up constantly and loves to climb stairs but has yet to take a step.

Love you all! More to come...

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Best Phone Call Ever

2011-06-06T00:48:00.001-05:00

We got the call on Friday (3 days after court)...he's officially ours! Just waiting on his passport, visa, & then our Embassy date so we can return to bring this little man home! We're allowed to post pics now!

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Court Trip to Ethiopia

2011-06-02T05:56:00.003-05:00

Us outside balcony of guest house

God’s Hand

We returned from Ethiopia yesterday and we have tons to tell, but before we go into the details of the trip, we wanted to share how God has worked for and on us during this trip. As many of you know, we are in a hectic season of life right now: moving, changing jobs, traveling for adoption, etc… Often, we have found ourselves planning and arranging the many moving pieces with the idea that through sheer force of will & hard work we could corral the chaos. Still, it has felt like we have been standing at the base of tidal wave waiting for it to crash down upon us.

However, God ignored our perfectly laid plans this past week and reminded us how His timing and his provision is beyond anything we could create. Despite our last minute planning, He put us in the Family Morning Coffee Guest House for our stay in Ethiopia. The guest house is run by an amazing lady named Birtukan, a previous World Vision sponsor child and current women’s ministry organizer. A beautiful spirit that provided us much needed physical and spiritual renewal.

Then, when we went to visit Solomon Edilu for the first time, God turned the rules and our plans upside down again. We were instructed to not take pictures and that our visit would only be a couple of hours. We had all kinds of schemes in mind to change that, but the director approached Riley and willingly offered to let us stay for almost 5 full hours and even arranged for us to have some pictures of Solomon (not allowed to post pics of him yet). Riley and the director, Huddush, hit it off and Huddush was able to provide us with some great, previously unknown details about Solomon’s story. We couldn’t have hoped for more from our visit.

And Solomon himself… what words can we use? He is perfect. His loving nannies described him as “peaceful” and “happy” and we agree. He was a little unsure of us at first (we probably look/smell/sound different that everyone else he knows) but he warmed up to us quickly. He is quiet but content. He can sit up but is still a little tippy. He has one little tooth and loves to put things in his mouth. No crawling yet, but he is starting to push up with his arms. His ‘fro is gone, replaced with a little buzz cut. We got to feed him and he even fell asleep in Riley’s arms. Peaceful and sweet.

The court date, the reason we were required to travel, was actually anti-climatic. Our agency lawyer was extremely professional and had us fully prepared. We only answered a handful of yes/no questions with the judge and the entire proceeding lasted little more than two minutes. Solomon’s case is complete pending a letter from the Ministry of Woman’s Affairs, which we expect to see in the next couple weeks. Once everything is together, the judge gives her final approval and that essentially ends the contentious portion of the process. We will still need US Embassy approval but that is largely a formality once the Ethiopian courts have approved the case. We are praying for a return date within the next two months, at which time we will collect Solomon’s birth certificate, passport and visa and then bring him home.

We want to thank all of you for your support thus far. From prayers to donations for the orphanage to taking care of our children (Gpa and Gma Mott we LOVE YOU!), you have all blessed us with your participation in our journey. We still covet your prayers as this process nears completion. Additionally, we will try to bring even more donations on the next trip so things like diapers of all sizes, wipes, bed sheets (queen and crib size), formula and children’s clothing would all be blessings for the orphanage.

So tomorrow we head/move to West Point, kids and all, to start the next chapter. We are blessed to have friends like Sean and Meghan there that have really helped with that transition. We can’t wait to RELAX with them and other NY friends and family in the near future.

Blessed,

Riley and Michelle

Traditional Ethiopian Coffee

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We're Off...

2011-05-28T01:46:00.002-05:00

Here we go! I'm leaving in about 15 minutes to link up with Riley in Cleveland. We'll fly to DC and then to Addis. So excited and nervous and looking forward to sharing all these thoughts/feelings with Riley. I'm excited to sit on the plane (although not for as long as I'll have to) & read my book, "Before You Were Mine." I feel like although we've known about this court date I haven't made time to prepare like I've wanted. I've got diapers, wipes, clothes, toys to donate, but I don't have all of my questions sorted out in my heart or written down on paper yet. Soon...it's all so soon!

We're still praying that the first court date will pass. I realized I haven't updated the blog since last Monday where we learned that our case never made it to court b/c paperwork hadn't yet been submitted (for our case and for all the other cases scheduled for that day) by MOWA (Ministry of Women's Affairs). We're praying and trusting that it will pass by Monday (2 days) because our court hearing is in three.

We'll update as much as possible while over there...tootles!

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Muddy Buddy

2011-05-22T22:40:00.005-05:00

Riley & Joe

Me & Tara

Tara, Joe, Michelle, Riley after the race

Riley & Saedi in the Mini Muddy Buddy

Brooke, Riley, Saedi, Meadow, & Natalie after the Mini Muddy Buddy!

This past weekend we did the Muddy Buddy race with friends. Natalie watched the girls while Riley, Joe, Tara & I performed the running, biking, and obstacles while finishing together by crawling through the infamous mud pit. After the adult Muddy Buddy race, Riley took Ellie & Saedi through the obstacles (Ellie ditched before the mud pit) while Nat took her girls. Very fun way to spend a Saturday morning! Also, a very big shout out to Silvia who kept Isaac for us starting at 6am!
*click on the words "Muddy Buddy" above to learn more about the race

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Creative Entertainment

2011-05-20T15:44:00.002-05:00

While all the toys are being packed away I've been so impressed with the kids finding alternative ways to play...clothes basket rides...
tent hideouts in Mommy & Daddy's bathroom...
and secret hideouts in the shower :)
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Mother's Day

2011-05-18T19:32:00.002-05:00

I had a delightful Mother's Day this year. We spent the weekend in Nashville for a marriage retreat with childcare for the kids. After the retreat finished, we browsed around an outdoor fair in Centennial Park. We ate fair food & enjoyed the hot, sunny day! So blessed with my hubby & kids.
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the 23rd

2011-05-17T12:38:00.002-05:00

Please pray & intercede for Solomon Edilu this week. Pray for favor from the judge that she would see fit that Solomon is eligible for adoption. His first court hearing is Monday the 23rd, and we're praying, hoping, trusting, & believing that his case would be in the 50% that passes the first time. We received about 15 new pictures of Solomon today & he's definitely growing, looking happy & well taken care of. Definitely a breath of fresh air amidst the business! Please also pray for some potential paperwork hangups regarding renewals, moving, etc.

Also fitting during this time is the 23rd Psalm (The Message):
"God, my shepherd!
I don't need a thing.
You have bedded me down in lush meadows,
you find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.

Even when the way goes through
Death Valley,
I'm not afraid
when you walk at my side.
Your trusty shepherd's crook
makes me feel secure.

You serve me a six-course dinner
right in front of my enemies.
You revive my drooping head;
my cup brims with blessing.

Your beauty & love chase after me
every day of my life.
I'm back home in the house of God
for the rest of my life."

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Goodbye Toths

2011-05-13T15:25:00.002-05:00

Ellie & Caleb, friends from birth, gave each other one last hug goodbye. They've grown up together in Georgia, North Carolina, & then here at Fort Campbell. Ellie's been asking if California is close to NY. gulp.

...and then there's Joshua & Saedi, always a cute pair.

We're so grateful for one last playdate

The whole crew. Joshua, Saedi, Gideon, Evelyn, Ellie, Caleb & Isaac
We love you, Toth Family, & we miss you so much already!

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Mimi & Papa's Visit

2011-05-12T10:37:00.000-05:00

I'm way behind in blogging because so much has happened since Easter...Mimi & Papa came for a visit, we finally closed on our house (SOLD), we've said goodbye to even more friends (boo!), we're packing, booking flights to Ethiopia, arranging childcare for kids & dog, & working with friends trying to help us find our next home. Phew!
Below are some pics of Mimi & Papa's visit. They were here for a weekend, and we had wonderful weather. We spent our time grilling out, hiking, fishing, picnicking & simply catching up around our backyard campfire.

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Miss Na'lees Egg Hunt

2011-04-29T07:44:00.001-05:00

Joshua with his loot

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8 Kids

2011-04-27T15:51:00.003-05:00

Meadow, Saedi, Brooke, Ellie & Emmy

Riley and I went on a date last weekend to Kohana, Target & Books a Million (exciting, I know) while our friends Jen & Trey watched our 3 kiddos. (We returned the favor the following night so they could go out.) We kept the 3 Moon kids at the same time- totaling 8 kids. We had a blast hosting on a cheat night. We stuffed their little faces with corn dogs, pizza, & roasted marshmallows. Riley & Trey were the masterminds behind it all so they could take their lovely wives out for an evening without kids, and I'm so impressed with men that would rather play with the kids instead of pay a babysitter. Kudos to them! Riley pretty much kept watch over the 5 oldest while I took care of the babies. On a funny note, I asked Ry if he would prefer playing with 8 kids as his full-time job or if he would prefer his current job. You guessed right, he's gonna stay in the Army. :)

Brody (4m), Jeremiah (6m), & Isaac (8m)

Saedi & Meadow bumming around

Ellie (5) , Emmy (3), Brooke(4)

Ellie, Emmy, Brooke, Saedi, Meadow, Jack, Brody, Jeremiah (Isaac was on my back)

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Together on Easter

2011-04-24T16:10:00.004-05:00

Thankful our family is together for Easter

Thankful that Jesus Christ died for us, even as sinners. God's plan is always perfect and we celebrate Jesus raising from the dead to give us life! Jesus is our Redeemer, Healer, Lord Almighty, Defender, Savior, King:

Your Great Name
written by Krissy Nordhoff and Michael Neale

Lost are saved, find their way
At the sound of Your great name
All condemned feel no shame
At the sound of Your great name
Every fear has no place
At the sound of Your great name
The enemy has to flee
At the sound of Your great name

Jesus, worthy is the Lamb
That was slain for us
The Son of God and man
You are high and lifted up
And all the world will praise
Your great name

All the weak find their strength
At the sound of Your great name
Hungry souls receive grace
At the sound of Your great name
The fatherless find their rest
At the sound of Your great name
The sick are healed the dead are raised
At the sound of Your great name

Redeemer, my Healer, Lord Almighty
Defender, my Savior, You are my King

Ha ha...you try getting 3 kiddos to smile and look at the camera at the same time :)

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Court Date & a Name

2011-04-21T22:07:00.003-05:00

We finally have our first adoption court dates in Ethiopia! On Monday I was hiking with Isaac when I get the call from Sue! I called Riley with the good new and bad news. The good news:

May 23 is the first court hearing (we don't have to attend this one). Although we will not be present, the hearing is a major hurdle as it determines Solomon's eligibility for adoption. In the past, 50% of cases were approved at their first court hearing and 50% were not. We're praying that all the necessary people needed to testify will show up & that our judge sees fit for the case to move forward. Our second court date (the one we attend) is on the 31st of May! During this hearing, we will state our desire to adopt Solomon and the judge will (God willing!) approve the adoption. Riley and I are thrilled that we got a court date so soon amidst all the recent changes in the Ethiopian government. (Just a reminder that we will NOT be bringing Solomon Edilu home yet...that will be a different trip)

The bad news: that's the weekend we were supposed to be moving! ha ha. It's not "bad" news, really. I just have to laugh at God's timing sometimes. Still not sure of the logistics of it all yet, but we close on our house 1 May, Riley's change of command is 26 of May & then we'll try to leave Ft Campbell that night. Grandparents will keep the kids, we'll skip our planned trip to NY to be a part of the housing draw, & Ry and I will hop on a plane!

I know I just threw it out there, but Solomon Edilu is right! We agreed on the name and are happy to call him by name now. Edilu is what he is being called in Ethiopia right now and we wanted to keep that as his middle name. We can't wait to meet this beautiful boy face to face in just 6 weeks and now you all can pray for him by name.

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The RunAway

2011-04-19T18:38:00.004-05:00

We were invited to a fun costume party this past weekend. Tara (pictured above with little Claire) wanted to throw her husband Joe a welcome home party, but she was creative enough to celebrate all of the missed holidays. Decorations were a mix of Christmas trees, fourth of July stars, & valentine plates. Everyone dressed in their Halloween costumes, and we all brought a Thanksgiving dish. We toasted to champagne for missed anniversaries & dessert was birthday cake. I've probably missed a holiday or two in there, but it was a great time!

Riley & Joe shooting off 4th of July tanks for the kids. Notice Riley's costume? ha ha. We thought it best to duck tape over David's man-parts.

Saedi enjoying Emmy's piggy costume for one-last party! I love the wear her little piggy buns stick out!

The kids cheering for more fireworks!

Mr. Trey changing the princesses slipper.

And that concludes our fun, holiday party. However, when we arrived home at approx 7:00 that evening we noticed that Jack was missing. Unbeknownest to us the underground fence was off and he was gone. Riley scoured the woods. I got the kids in jammies and then loaded them in the van and stuck in a movie. I roamed the neighborhood stopping at random houses that I knew had dogs asking if they had seen "this dog." Riley didn't find Jack in the woods so he ran through the neighborhood on foot calling him. Friends offered to come help but there wasn't much else to do but to hang signs. Finally, one of the last houses I knocked on had seen Jack. She said a man and little girl came by around 6 with him on a leash asking if he belonged to her. She pointed us to the house they returned to, but no one was home. So, we hung signs and went to bed. In the morning as were heading out the door for church we got a call they someone had Jack. Riley went to pick him up, and the stories began!...

"Oh what a good dog he is! We didn't have any dog food so we went out and bought some for him. Then he slept at the foot of our bed like a good dog. At 4 I woke up to him staring me in the face cause he needed to be let out. What a great dog."

"We didn't know his name and our granddaughter thought he was the color of a donut so she named him "donut."

Those neighbors had taken such good care of Jack-er. Riley didn't have the heart to tell them that we don't even let him sleep at the foot of our bed! He returned to us fat and happy like he was king of the world. That rascal! Needless to say, the girls are thrilled to have their dog back. And his new name is Jack Donut Post.

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Lots o' Guests

2011-04-15T11:58:00.006-05:00

We've been hosting a lot of guests lately. This birds nest full of sweet little eggs were the first to arrive. I love Spring, love our yard, love our deck, and I love entertaining. We put off grilling as long as possible hoping the eggs would have time to hatch, but that was not the case. We moved the nest onto a box on the deck, knowing that more than likely the Mommy would not come back. Needless to say, we think Jack got the eggs.

Our next set of friends to come over were the Q-Course Crew. Once we realized the Peters were set to move immediately we threw together a party within 24 hours. These guys graduated from the course together at Ft Bragg 4 years ago, and while we couldn't stay with all of our friends from that era we were blessed enough to get stationed with these friends here at Ft Campbell. Definitely going to be bitter-sweet when we all go our separate ways in just a few weeks:
Trey: staying at Ft Campbell; Chuck: Dubai; Riley: West Point, NY, Dave: Monterey, CA

Of course, it would only be expected that Mr. Trey would be the 1st to let Isaac suck on the beer bottle

Enjoying perfect Spring weather on the deck

Tindolls, Peters, Kenneys, Posts

And The Toths came over for a last-minute get-together, which really are my favorite kind. Less planning equals less stress! They came over to borrow our Camry for a few weeks and we ended up feasting on pizza, roasting marshmallows over the campfire, and chatting til almost 10 o'clock, which is pretty much unheard of given our crew of 7 kiddos. The Toth's take off for Monterey, CA soon, so it was nice to have them to ourselves one last time!

Gideon, Kristen, Isaac, Evelyn, Kevin, Joshua, Saedi, Ellie, Caleb, Riley

Best Friends, Ellie & Caleb. Ellie's already asking how far away New York & California are from each other.

Kevin with his 3 boys

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Weekend at Phila's

2011-04-11T13:18:00.010-05:00

Daddy's with all the kiddos exploring the creek

Isaac (almost 8 mo & Jeremiah 61/2 mo)

Jesse with Brooke (4y), Ellie (5y), Saedi (3y) & Meadow (3y)

Saedi, Brooke, Meadow & Ellie on their be-loved bridge

For the past year or two my friend Meghan has been telling me about an amazing Bed and Breakfast getaway run by Phila Hach. (Just google Phila Hach and you can read about her impressive credentials) A few weeks ago Natalie and I went to check it out on a random trip to Nashville. We were beyond impressed with Phila and her place, so we booked a two-night stay to give our families one last vacation together before Jesse deploys and before we move.

Meadow proud of her catch

I couldn't have asked for a more relaxing family vacation. It was 80's and sunny the entire time. The kids entertained themselves by picking flowers, catching minnows in the creek, and exploring the 3-story farmhouse. We went on walks, had a campfire, slept with the windows open, drank coffee on the balcony, and simply enjoyed being together. Even Jack came along and was in heaven. With Riley just getting home we wanted family time but we knew this was the only time for he and Jesse to spend time together...one last time. And we've always had a blast vacationing with the Moons. It really worked out great. Natalie even brought her kettlebell so we could do a workout together.

Ellie & Meadow, the fireballs. Saedi & Brookey, the tender-hearts.

Isaac (almost 8mo) and Mommy (30y)

Michelle (30y), Isaac (8mo), Riley (31), Saedi (3), Ellie (5), Jack (1)

Brooke (4), Natalie, Jeremiah (6.4mo), Jesse, Meadow (3)

Natalie & Jeremiah

View of old tobacco barn from our cabin. Phila uses this to host parties, etc.

Riley & Jack

Isaac & Jeremiah, 6 weeks apart

Saedi & Meadow, 4 weeks apart

Brooke & Ellie, 9 months apart

Daddy & Isaac

Mr. Jesse exploring water creatures with the girls

Riley with the kiddos & grilling dinner...very impressive!

Natalie discovered these quilt coats and we couldn't resist modeling them

Best Friends

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Tea Parties, Annie Oakley, & Fishing

2011-04-07T08:07:00.006-05:00

Within the first few hours of Daddy being home, the girls wanted to host a tea party for him.

Presents from Daddy! Ellie received a pink Red Ryder BB Gun & Saedi got her very own tackle box with fake worms to organize!

Shooting Glasses

The set-up. Ellie got a balloon on first shot!

Good old trampoline how we love you! Daddy let Jack on it too.

Mommy got an ingrown toenail cut out yesterday and is gimped up on the couch so Daddy took the girls for the afternoon. Saedi finally got to use her fishing pole, which was a birthday present from Mimi & Papa (back in January)

El & her fishy

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Daddy's Home!

2011-04-05T10:40:00.004-05:00

Ellie(5y), Saedi(3y), Isaac(7.5m) Waiting for that plane!

It's coming! Let's bundle up!

The plane landed and the kids began jumping up and down chanting, "Daddy! Daddy!" but changed to "Daddy's ! Daddy's" as they were excited for their friends, too! The Post girls were quickly spotted and heard by Daddy on the plane because of their long blonde hair and chanting!

Here they come!

First hugs...a heavy load with a big ruck on back plus 8 months of girlie growth!

Ellie, always a Daddy's girl, is happy to have her best friend home!

Little Saed-Saed warming up and investigating

First family pics...still in raincoats and poor Isaac exhausted

Our best family pic...too bad my eyes are closed

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Get It

2011-03-28T21:25:00.004-05:00

I was trying to get some cute clips of Isaac in the early stages of crawling. As I was taping I repeatedly said, "Get it" which Jack understood as his cue to get in the way. I'll try again in a day or two, but here's a few clips of the cute baby & jealous dog. (Pause music on the side if it's annoying to you)

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Good With Words

2011-03-25T12:08:00.002-05:00

This is one of my favorite blogs. And Katie's life is real. I especially love today's post as she touches on her struggles and the reality of adoption. Her words are real & accurate & I because it's tough for me, I appreciate people who are good with words. I feel her heart.

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Meat or Veggies?

2011-03-24T21:00:00.002-05:00

I've been testing out a lot of new meat & veggie recipes on my girls, and they've been fabulous sports. One common trend I notice with the girls is that while one prefers her meat the clearly other prefers her veggies. Ellie could easily adapt to vegetarianism while Saedi has always been a carnivore.
While this meal is not a good example of my cooking potential, here are some of our favorite kid-tested-mother-approved healthy recipes:
kale chips
breakfast pizza Fantastic & filling!
carrot scallion latkes
carrot banana muffins
roasted balsamic beets This was my first time making or eating beets. Ellie & I loved them!
Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole
Pumpkin Pie
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Paper Chain

2011-03-23T12:27:00.004-05:00

The countdown is on. The girls made the long-awaited-paper chain last night (with a few extra links b/c we know that's just how it goes). It was decked out in duck tape, camping & fishing stickers & a few flowers because...they're girls!
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Lots of Spring!

2011-03-21T21:37:00.004-05:00

Lots of Spring in the air and we're loving it! We've had warm, even hot, sunny days already. The flowers and trees are in full bloom, the windows are open, and we're spending lots of time outside. And the spring cleaning bug has arrived too. Last week while at Tara's she taught me how to make homemade laundry detergent and an all purpose cleaner. And she sent me home with the links to make homemade deodorant. All 3 recipes (laundry detergent, all-purpose cleaner, & deodorant) I tried and love. So, of course, I'm going to pass along because they're safe, inexpensive & they work fabulously!

All purpose cleaner :
1 C water
1 C distilled white vinegar
can add a little dish soap if you want
Put in spray bottle and clean! For soap scum sprinkle baking soda first then spray on top. Works way better then scrubbing bubbles & magic eraser...plus there are no toxins!

& laundry detergent:
1 C borax
1 C washing soda
1 bar of bath soap, grated ( I went with Tara's suggestion & used Dr Bronner's lavender soap from Target)
Grate the soap and then mix ingredients together in tupperware. Use 1-2 TBSP per load of laundry.

Deodorant:
1/4 C baking soda
1/4 C cornstarch
4-6 TBSP coconut oil (in soft solid form, not liquid)
Mix baking soda and cornstarch together. Using 1 Tbsp at a time mix in coconut oil until all ingredients are mixed well. I ended up using only 4 tbsp of coconut oil. I stuffed everything into an old deodorant dispenser and I store mine in the fridge since it's warm out and the coconut oil will get too soft sitting out.

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Isaac & Claire

2011-03-15T22:10:00.003-05:00

My friend Tara & her daughter Claire came over for dinner last week. Tara's husband, Joe, & Riley work together so needless to say, we're two very eager wives! She and I were laughing at how similar Isaac and Claire look. Claire just turned one, but these two could easily pass for siblings, if not twins!

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Adoption Update

2011-03-14T21:15:00.003-05:00

We accepted the referral I blogged about last week. Really, we were hooked on this baby boy immediately, but needed to meet with doctors as a formality and to make sure we had the big picture. He is called Edilu & he's a beautiful baby boy, about 6 months old & from the Southern part of the country. Aunt Carri and her boys asked to call him "Eddie" for the time being & Ellie really wants to call him "Jeremy" for some reason. So, what's next? As of now all of our documents are getting ready to be submitted to the Ethiopian courts. Basically, we wait (which as my SIL Carri said to me on the phone, "this is where the work begins"- b/c in the waiting we pray, intercede, & remain out of control. The Ethiopian government will assign us a court date (typically this would be 3-6 months from now, but with some recent changes it's hard to know what to expect) and at that time Riley and I will travel to Ethiopia to petition for this boy. We will meet him and be able to have some interaction with him. Ry and I will return back to the States and wait until we have "the go" to return to Ethiopia and bring him home! So, pray with us as we've got long battles before us.

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Atlanta

2011-03-13T22:10:00.007-05:00

Last weekend the kids and I went on our first road trip...Atlanta here we come! We dropped Jack off at Ms Marian's late morning and then drove to see my younger brother, Steve-O & his wife, Jenn-AY (my phoenic spelling), cousin Hailey (3 weeks younger than Saedi) & my newest neice, baby Kaitlyn Beth who was just 2.5 weeks old!

Bye-Bye Jacker

The girls love to sit in the very back of the bus, I mean van, and they were digging the wireless headphones that Daddy bought for their new dvd player. Thanks to Mandi who donated a whole album of dvd's to occupy the girls during this 6 hour road trip!

Steve-O and Kaitlyn

It was rainy the entire weekend, but the kids didn't mind spending Saturday morning at the local indoor jumping park.

The 3 oldest at a local pizzeria (found by my restaurants.com deal...$25 gift card for $2)

Wresting rides with Uncle Steve-O

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More Pics By Kristen

2011-03-09T19:23:00.002-06:00

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Good News

2011-03-08T13:30:00.002-06:00

Our adoption case manager called yesterday to inform us that they have a referral for us! We received the medicals, pictures and limited background on the child via email last night. The child is a little boy that is approximately 6 months old. We are obviously very excited, but still trying to still our hearts to hear God's voice about the referral. Please pray for wisdom and discernment.

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Isaac 6 Month Pics

2011-03-06T21:37:00.004-06:00

The kids & I had a photo shoot with Kristen this past Thursday and she took so many phenomenal pictures. I asked for a few 6 month pictures of Isaac, but in addition to that, she took some great pics of all the kids and I. I will cherish these pictures since I have very few of myself with the kids. I love how all the personalities have been captured! There are many more great pics of the girls that I'll post later, but these are my very favorites of Mr. Isaac. Thanks again, Kristen!

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Great Reader

2011-03-03T22:22:00.003-06:00

No post to pics, but I wanted to give a special shout out to Ellie, who after 6 months of hard work, completed her reading book last week! I'm so extremely proud of her perseverance, and as a result, we have a very fine reader on our hands, Ladies & Gentlemen! I would recommend this book to any parent desiring to teach her children how to read. Doing these lessons with Ellie & watching her progression into an excellent 5-year old reader has been one of the most rewarding experiences of parenthood thus far! She enjoys several series of books: the Little Critter series by Mercer Mayor, the Berenstein Bears books, & Fancy Nancy.

Lin

Just Like Daddy

2011-03-01T21:06:00.005-06:00

Flannel & a ball cap...just like Daddy

I don't know why, but the girls and I get a kick out of dressing up Bubsy in hats. Here's a few shots of the happy little guy in the Ergo. Note the color of Isaac's eyes. I believe they're going to be hazel. When he wears blue they look blue. When he wears green they look green. When he's naked they almost look brown! The girls definitely sport Riley's baby blues, but I think this guy is nearing closer to mamma's brown eyes.

And it was a beautiful almost-Spring day! 55 and sunny. The first of the daffodils are coloring our yard yellow and we broke out the sand tables...woo hoo! And the girls know that flowers in the yard mean that "their beloved arrival" will be here soon! We're one more calendar month down & we're counting down the days!

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Best Buds

2011-02-27T07:40:00.000-06:00

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Change

2011-02-25T20:02:00.006-06:00

"I'm bored" has always been a phrase that makes my skin crawl. I cannot remember the last time I was bored, and every time I hear someone say it I automatically think, "We couldn't be friends. Get a life." How judgmental am I? (Bear with me, I just need to vent!) As opposed to feeling bored, I've felt of lately that my life has been a whirlwind, and I'm about to get swept away. And please don't tell me to "slow down" because sometimes people can't. Mouths need feeding, diapers need changing, children need correcting, bodies need exercising, and I'm tossing something special for myself in there too. Today, for some reason the cumulative effect of so much change & motion got to me.
First, the Van. Mr. Basil hand delivered the van to my doorstep this morning, helped me rearrange car seats, and then I drove us into Nashville and said goodbye to him at the airport. The van is all I could ask for in a van- light brown leather interior that will hide mud, Jack's hair, and easily wipe away yucks. It has a sunroof, which I'm a softy for. It seats 8, which I get a kick out of knowing I have the potential of toting so many people around. And lots of other perks...automatic doors, a "spy mirror" so I can watch the kiddos, in-floor storage, and lots of room. And that's what makes my heart sink a little bit...it has too much room. I already miss my crammed Camry where I can hand the girls gum or swat legs or stick a finger in Isaac's crying mouth. So, yes, change is good and it is time for a van, but change (even though good) is still emotionally draining.
Second, the girls and I spent the latter morning and early afternoon driving to government buildings in Nashville for yet more adoption paperwork-notaries and authentications that had to be updated in order for us to receive a referral. Tiring. And just one for reminder of the grueling, long process of adoption. We started over 1 1/2 years ago, and we've got more long months ahead of us while we continue to wait for this child that we've been praying for & dreaming about before I miscarried & before Isaac. In some ways it feels so unfair that I've been allowed to move on and live my life without this child that I only carry in my heart. My emotions for this boy(?) get more and more raw each day. I've starting weeping again at night for this baby wondering if he's alone, cold, & hungry. And after all that running around I received an email asking for urgent prayer because there is talk of an Ethiopian government shutdown beginning March 4th. It may or may not happen. 15 years ago it happened and only lasted 3 weeks. Just pray.
Lastly, and weirdly related, I bought new shoes today. Not only am I'm excited about these silly shoes because I think they're somewhat cute and trendy, but I'm hoping my knees will quit aching and maybe I'll get some sexier leg muscles wearing them. But on to my ranting of change...even though I'm excited about these shoes, just that small act of changing up my running shoes from my trusty Asics that I've gone back to for over 5 years is dizzying to me. I'm letting it dizzy me.
So, the van, the adoption, the shoes all signify a cacophony of change (compounded by the deployment coming and goings, selling a house, an upcoming move, thoughts of Ellie starting Kindergarten, saying goodbye to fantastic friends) that is trying to whisk me away. And while venting feels fabulous, I cannot do this in my own strength. I will sit in the bathtub tonight and quiet my heart before the Lord, and rest in His presence. He alone is God. He is in control. And whether I am weak or strong, He will be praised from my heart and then from my lips. And I will cling to His Word, and meditate on the below passage, because when I am in seasons of change I need reminders of what is truly important.

Matthew 6:25-28 The Message says "If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don't fuss about what's on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds."

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Heroes At Home Retreat

2011-02-20T19:10:00.002-06:00

The kids and I just returned from a fantastic weekend get-away to Nashville. I got to attend a Heroes at Home Retreat put on by Riley's unit. The kids and I stayed at the Hilton Garden Inn, which is in the fabulous Vanderbilt area. We had all of our meals paid for, awesome childcare while I attended seminars, and they even gave us 2 adjoining rooms so I got a king-size bed all to myself while the girls were thrilled about having their own room (although I propped the door open leading to mine). I drug the poor kids around so I could hit up some of my favorite shops- Express, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Anthropologie, & Luluemon. I even brought my cooler so I could hit up Harris Teeter because it was a double coupons day. And it was so worth it because I spent $2.97 and saved $45.08 (for 1 Chi Chi's salsa, 1 Kens Lite Ranch dressing, 3 boxes Better Oats, Edward's Key Lime Pie, Edward's Fudge Brownie, 2 pkgs Nestle refridge cookie dough, 2 pks Kraft singles cheese, 2 4 packs Activia yogurt, & 2 4pks of Yo Plus yogurt) plus the girls got free cookies & balloons. Basically, everything was free except 2 of the boxes of oats. We went to the famous Gigi's Cupcakery and shared a fabulous Apple Pie cupcake. The girls loved swimming in the pool, playing with their friends (Caleb and Joshua were next door to us) during childcare times, and watching the moon out their huge bedroom window at night. It was quality stree-free bonding for the girls and I, and it was wonderful having adult discussions with my friends and other women who share similar lifestyles. I truly felt like I was being served all weekend and it brings tears to my eyes to feel so valued, understood, & appreciated!

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Valentines

2011-02-17T15:00:00.003-06:00

Back when the weather was cold and yucky the girls and I worked on these adorable Valentine boxes. The girls loved making them, and they didn't cost me a thing! We also got a lot of use out of them because the girls would "send" gifts to each other prior to Valentine's Day. We had a Valentine's exchange at school and had a beautiful 70 degree Valentines' Party at Miss Jen's House.

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6 Months

2011-02-12T12:07:00.003-06:00

Isaac is 6 months old today! I can hardly believe how fast the time has gone. He's a sweet, happy baby. He weighs between 19 and 20 lbs already! Chunk a dunk! He sits up supported now, loves to hold a spoon when I feed him (avocados, sweet potatoes, & bananas). He loves to spit at me, which means I'm the one who should probably be wearing the bib during feedings! He's starting to roll when I change his diaper, and he "talks" every time he sees Jack. I won't be surprised at all if "dog" is his first word. So thankful for this sweet boy!

And just as delightful is this 6 month mark because it means we can pick things back up with our adoption! We are now allowed to receive & accept a referral at any time! Hooray!
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A Stalker's Gift

2011-02-12T09:08:00.004-06:00

Ever since Ellie and I filled up the bird feeder Jack has been stalking those poor birds outside our front door. This morning especially Jack was whining and nagging me more than normal to go outside. I'd let him out for a bit, make him come in, and he was pacing back and forth until I let him out again. Well, after about the 4th letting out, this is what he brought for me. Dropped it on the front porch. He was licking it, but didn't dare eat it this time (which is good b/c last time he ate a bird we had a high vet bill, plus the cost of his schooling teaching him not to eat birds). You've proven you're gaining in self control. Daddy would be so proud, Nasty Little Stalker!

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Little Stinkers!

2011-02-09T18:56:00.000-06:00

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Spring to Snow

2011-02-09T14:19:00.001-06:00

A 50 degree day showing the first signs of Spring sadly turned into what feels like endless snow!

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Isaac & Avocado

2011-02-08T21:08:00.003-06:00

I started Isaac on solids last week, and he's a regular champ! So far, he's not too messy, although he's figuring out how to spit & he still likes to suck his fingers while eating. He loves to eat food, which is no surprise! Avocado was food number 1, followed by sweet potatoes 4 days later. Bananas will begin tomorrow!

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spirited posts

DIY Decor

Isaac's Fav Spot

Warm Winter

Gunk

Sickness Has Struck

West Point Pics

Valentine's Boxes

Stripes

Arghh Matey

Surgery

Happy 4th Saedi Girl

Skiing

Children's Museum in Poughkeepsie

Family Update

Duck-ageddon

Goose Apocalypse

Spidey Night in NYC

Bubsy's 1st Haircut

The Race

D.C. Bound

Free Bird

Tea Parties

26 Miles

Family pics by Haley

Kids at Cullum Hall

10 Year Reunion

Post-Adoption Fog

Korah

In da Hood

Our First Moments

He is ours!

Awassa

Pics from afternoon stroll

Ethiopian New Year

Praise God!!!

Ultimate Frisbee

More Solomon Pictures

Solomon says...

Date Night

I'm Famous!

Hurricane Irene

Items For Orphanages

If any of you would like to donate, we're planning on taking suitcases full of diapers, formula and the requested items of • Lice shampoo • Clotrimzole cream • Diaper rash cream • Multivitamin drops for infants

Girls' Bedroom Tour

Central Park

Kindergarten

Master Bedroom Tour

Isaac is 1

Speechless

Princess Tea Party

The Heart

Nat & Kids

Applaud God

Birthday

Marathons and Adopting

Fast Eddy

Cadets

New Pics of Sol at 9-10 months

Jellystone Park

Happy 4th!

Whirlwind!

Best Phone Call Ever

We got the call on Friday (3 days after court)...he's officially ours! Just waiting on his passport, visa, & then our Embassy date so we can return to bring this little man home! We're allowed to post pics now!

Court Trip to Ethiopia

We're Off...

Muddy Buddy

Creative Entertainment

Mother's Day

the 23rd

Goodbye Toths

Mimi & Papa's Visit

Miss Na'lees Egg Hunt

8 Kids

Together on Easter

Court Date & a Name

The RunAway

Lots o' Guests

Weekend at Phila's

Tea Parties, Annie Oakley, & Fishing

If any of you would like to donate, we're planning on taking suitcases full of diapers, formula and the requested items of
• Lice shampoo
• Clotrimzole cream
• Diaper rash cream
• Multivitamin drops for infants