November, November!

November was just as crazy, if not more.  

The deck railing was done, the bookshelf was finally a thing of the past and we spent the month purging our house.  Dumping closets, giving away kid clothes, sorting, cleaning, and working.  Lots of working.  Then, we headed to the country... 

'Kitty' is one tough cat! 

Does a startlingly good job at playing 'strangled by the toddler' however...with a little scratching behind the ears, quickly pops out of its hypnotized like state of being!! 

 Checking cows, looking for deer and figuring out life! 

 Of course, we shot some 'turkeys' with Grandma from the Hunt'n Cabin with the new pop guns! 

 Then, a little practice with the real thing.  

We had a little challenge between us adults.  And, I think that Grandma had the best shot.  So, we let Kaleb take a 'practice shot' as well.  Well, we went to look at it to 'find' where he hit the target.  Not seeing any changes on the target box Kaleb very confidently and quickly informed us:

"Mine went through Grandma's"

Ahh, why of course...'went through' the hole nearest the bulls-eye.  

Oh, boy.  This kid is way too smart!! 

 Kudos to Wes for snagging this big 'ole buck! 

We named him "Jerky" :) 

 Of course, we needed to make cupcakes for Grandpa's birthday as well. 

 Auntie tried keeping up with her 'helpers'!! 

 The next weekend, we actually had a video crew from Hawaii come visit us.  

They say we're interesting and our kids are cute.  I think they're at least half correct.  We'll see if they can edit us to the point of looking exciting, and normal-ish.  

In all seriousness however- we had a great time meeting the people from Chosen and Dearly Loved. 

A year ago, we were headed to China and really, really broke.  

And this group, came in with a matching grant which allowed us to go pick up our Elsie without coming home to a giant credit card bill.  They truly hold a special place in our hearts- we greatly, greatly appreciate them.  It was amazing to meet them in person and help them share the story of their organization's ministry!  

Seriously, check them out here:  And, if you want to help get more kids home...donate too! 

http://chosenanddearlyloved.org/ 

 And suddenly, it was Thanksgiving.  

Due to a twist in plans, we made the meal at our house. 

It was fun and pretty simple.

And, suddenly November had flown by.  

Oh, October!

This fall was a blur.   Like a really fast, blurry, pile of craziness.  

Mostly involving a lot of work.  And, some fun along the way too....Here we go! 

Family Day 2015! 

 Slurpies for breakfast, of course! 

 And, our tradition of DIY decorated cupcakes.  

Heavy on the sprinkles, obviously.  

 Our 4th Family Day!  

So thrilled God sent us our Kaleb...love you my sweet baby boy!! 

 Followed by a movie with Doritos...

 This fall is my first year not spent in a classroom since 1984.  

Seriously.  That is a freakishly long time ago.  

Oh, my.  Wow. 

 Anyways...because of an out of state trip and the fact that I had my 40 hour work week done by like Tuesday of the week, I loaded the kids up and we headed to Spearfish Canyon!  

 Because I'm unaccustomed to fun adventures such as this... I of course forgot Kaleb's jacket at home and of course it was like 20 degrees colder in 'the canyon' than at home.  

Mom of the Year, 2015! 

 Lest anyone think, this little sweetheart of ours is all smiles and cherub like behavior.  

Elsie seems to perceive the stroller as a form of 'confinement'.... 

Kaleb of course, was thrilled by the day.  

 On our adventure, we saw waterfalls, collected leaves, discovered the 'tree cave' and a blast! 

 Then, I spent the remainder of the week tackling this incredibly large and nasty looking old bookshelf.  I sanded it till my arms literally fell off.  Then came the cleaning with mineral spirits, more sanding, cleaning, cutting in edges, priming, and then 3 coats of painting.  

 About 3 hours in... me thinking, what have I done to myself. 

 Between breaks from all the saw dust, we headed over to Kaleb's first Preschool Fall Festival.  

It was a blast!  Kaleb was super excited to have his face painted.  After waiting and waiting in line.  It was finally his turn.  His sweet preschool teacher had a quickly growing line as the cold wind kept her fingers very, very frozen.  She sweetly asked Kaleb how he wanted his face painted...

To which he replied 'a tiger'.  Not so simple, easy or fast.

And bless her heart...that she gave him.  

 The remainder of the  month was spent dealing with that pesky bookshelf project.  

What felt like a never ending project...finally came together.  

At the close of October... we snuck away back to Greeley for a certain Aunt's surprise 40th Birthday Party :)  It was a blast!!  Of course, we got to hang out for the weekend as well.  

 And, as an incredibly special treat- we managed to go out to an Ethiopian restaurant for lunch the one day!  Kaleb's first Ethiopian restaurant that he remembers.  Words can't explain how much it meant to me to go dive some injera into my favorite Atkilt Wat and Kik Alicha.

Just One Year Ago...

The other night, I wondered back to our blog and started reading through the posts from a year ago.   So much has changed in the past year.  So many answered prayers and blessings.  A year ago, I was teaching.  Kaleb and I did the commute in the car with our waffles, coffee and KSLT playing.  I remember a year ago yesterday, that Kaleb asked me in the car 'Momma, when will we get a picture of my sister'.  To which I would always reply- God's not ready yet Kaleb but it's really, really soon.  That the last morning I answered not knowing when God would reveal our sweet baby girl.  A year ago this morning... we got 'the call'.  It was there in the car with our waffles and coffee and KSLT playing that God introduced me to my daughter.  Here's the post from last year- Praise the Lord...

I had kind of forgotten about ditching the computerized dolls in the hallway and all the craziness of that day!  What I didn't mention in the post is how incredibly impossible it was to pay attention to the professional development meetings that day.  What a day it was!! And, then there was the telling to family...oh, what precious fun & memories- Start Spreadin' the News.  And, then the real craziness began!!  

As I kept reading my way back down memory lane, I came to the post about her name.  And, we named her- we didn't know how much God would show His abundance!  E is for...

The abundance of God has been poured out into our lives this past year.  Financial abundance when were out of money and there was a trip to China coming fast.  An abundance of prayer for her, our travel, our transition and our family.  An abundance of help from family who loved on Kaleb for 16 days while we journeyed to pick up our Elsie.  An abundance of endurance for the plane ride home.  An abundance of patience and mind numbing emotional exhaustion during those first weeks home.  An abundance of sleep deprivation and trust building and emotional healing and dying to self in a pile of nothingness on the couch by the end of the day-ness.  And, then... came the first glimpses of healing and safety and smiles and togetherness.  And, it started to grow from glimpses of progress to outright overflowing abundance of progress.  

 These two are the best of friends like I've never seen in my life! 

You couldn't make two siblings more emotionally connected.  Two peas in a pod, indeed.  

Nine months ago today, we woke up together for the first time as a family all on the same continent.  And, now we see the incredible abundance of love and joy and laughter and fun and companionship and humor and spunk our little Elsie has brought to our family.  

Hauling one of her favorite kitties around wearing her Dora the Explorer dress up skirt with her huntin' cap & jacket.  What a gem of a girl she is! 

You couldn't find two siblings more in love with each other.  They're quite the pair and are incredibly emotionally connected to each other.  It's crazy the bond of doing life together.  What a beautiful thing to watch.

  

And, she's got a healthy dose of spunk in her too!  But anyone would given the fact that a year ago tonight she was sleeping in an unheated institution where food was scarce and the kids were many.  

You'd learn to throw a good punch and defend yourself too!  But through it all, she's came out shining like a little star all ready to light up the world around her.  Today, thumb sucking is those last few minutes before falling asleep.  And, most days life is still fine after she finishes her one little sack of fruit snacks after nap time.  I would guess her vocabulary is in the hundreds.  Knows all her body part words, all the normal basic colors and started to love singing.  I'll hear her playing and humming to her baby.  I am so proud and excited to see what this past year has brought to our little Elsie AND, to live in the abundant blessings she has brought to our lives!

She is funny, a little crazy, loves a good laugh, is a prankster and loves doing handstands on the couch with her brother 'spotting' her ;)  She also does a sweet summersault for a 2.25 year old who could barely walk last March.  Last night, the two kids spent a solid 15 minutes rolling across the living room floor laughing and laughing and laughing.  And, a handful of times a day she'll just walk up to me and say 'hugggg'.  So, we just stand there or sit there for like a whole big ole' minute and hugggggg.  And, life is good.  And, God is good.  

We are incredibly thankful for how God has built our family.

He knew what our family was to be long before we had a clue.  

I am so thankful I get to call you my daughter and that I get to be your Mamma. 

Praise the Lord!! 

The Crazy of September...

And, suddenly- it is October.  September has been one of our most jam packed month.  It has been good, but it has also been a ton of work, or so it feels like.  We've been to Colorado Springs, helped with a jumbo crazy garage sale, had company for a weekend, drove to Sioux Falls for the weekend and completely re-built the railings on our deck and porch.  It was crammed full of goodness but not much down time.  That good however.... here's some of the crazy good this past month-

First stop... Colorado Springs which included garden of the gods.  Beautiful place indeed! 

Followed by the wedding... why we came in the first place ;)

 Precious fun indeed :) 

Because we were near-ish by, we stopped in Greeley to catch up with the cousins and family.  

 This is why kid gates are well... pointless in multiple regards ;) 

 We got home and it was the first day of preschool for the year...

Kaleb requested...pancakes for breakfast.  

Of course.
Grandpa Robert should be quite pleased, I am sure ;) 

 Literally bouncing with excitement!

 Preschool has been great!  They've already had field trips to the library, the fire department and apple picking is just around the corner.  So fun to watch his enthusiasm to learn things.  

That Friday, we crazily chopped off large sections of deck railing. 

The beginning of a really, really long process....

Fast forward 3-ish weeks and we have replaced the deck railing building it from scratch, primed it and painted it.

Today, it looks like this...

(cap rail and touch-ups still to do but...lots of progress)

The next Saturday was awesome- we helped out our really good friends with their adoption yard sale.  It was fun to see how God provides and multiples in just the perfect way :) 

 That next weekend, Wes' parents were in town.
Oh, the fun times!!!

Because the grandparents were near- we figured it was a great time to dedicate Elsie to God.
It was a precious time to stand with our church which has helped us so much in the building of our family.  So grateful to have our church in which to raise our kids so that they know the love of Christ, are discipled in His truth and to fellowship with fellow believers.  Thankful indeed!!

After a week of building deck railings, priming deck spindles .... there were cupcakes to bake. 

 SURPRISE!!!!

Happy Birthday Auntie Ashley :) 

We love you!! 

 Good work, Justin!  

So thankful for you in our Ashley's life :) 

 Then, we headed for the water fun! 

Kaleb stepped up his game and headed for the big slide.  

It was a wild adventure indeed!! 

 Happy Golden Birthday, Ashley :) 

And, we worked full time. 

Traveled for work, ate a lot of pizza and DQ, Played with kids, did daycare and a few other random adventures along the way too.
It was good and fun and busy. 

And, it explains why I'm tired ;)  

September was good and so very full of life.  

Thankful, indeed!!