A pic of my smiley girl...

Schuelanfaenger Uebernachten...

Friday night, Leyton's Kindergarten held a sleepover for the kids who were moving on to the next grade. They camped out on the classroom floor, played games, had a cookout, took an evening walk through the local cemetary, and practiced for the performance at breakfast the next morning. On Saturday, all the parents were invited for breakfast, where we ate, and were treated to a lovely Spanish dance number... followed by each of the children saying thier name, and what they want to be when they grow up.

Schuelanfaengers have breakfast...


The Spanish Dance...








Muase Gruppe Schuelanfaengers...


"My name is Leyton, and when I grow up, I want to be a doctor... to help the kids in Ethiopia."

Horseback Riding...

Leyton has been taking riding lessons since February... although, he had a few months off, when the instructor fell from her horse, and hurt her neck. He has been back in the saddle since the beginning of June, and is doing really well... He loves it, and though the lessons are becoming more difficult (English Riding), he is always excited to go! Here are a few shots from last weeks lesson.

Everyone should watch this video....

Randy Pausch died today, at age 47.... 10 months after being given 3-6 months to live. Randy was a professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. The video shows his "Last Lecture" and is a must see for everyone. It truly does put life in perspective.

(To listen to the video from here, please turn off my music at the bottom of the page.)

She received her Welcome Bag!

I received pics in my inbox this afternoon, of Tensaye in her "Germany" t-shirt, looking through her welcome bag... I so wish that I could post pics here, I would love for you all to see her! Let me know if you would like to see pics! She is such a doll!

I also received another letter from her today, and with it some long awaited sizes!
I love the letters... She seems so excited to finally have a family, and has requested that the whole family come to pick her up, so that we can all see Ethiopia together! I love her so much already!

Still no word on our court date.... We are getting down to the wire, to make it before the closure. Of course, I hadn't planned on us getting through, but would love it, if we did!

Something Horrible Happened...

I logged on this morning to our agency group, and read the most horrific note.

The coordinator for AAI's Ghana program, reported that in the night, four armed men broke into Eban House (the orphanage in Ghana). None of the children were physically injured, however, one of the house mothers was raped repeatedly to get her to tell the thieves where the valuables were hidden. Four of the older girls (ages 7-8) woke up, and saw this horrible event take place. The coordinator said that the girls were praying out loud, and were remarkably brave.

As if the house mother's physical and emotional suffering are not enough, In Ghana, when a woman is raped, her husband divorces her. Please keep this woman, Esther, in your thoughts and prayers, as well, as the 4 little girls who witnessed the crime.
Two of the girls ID'd two of the men as being men that were hired a few weeks prior to paint at Eban House. They took this information to the police, hopefully it will be helpful in finding the men who did this.

There is also a huge financial loss. The men got away with two laptop computers, a digital camera and $1,200 in cash, which is a fairly major financial loss for a small adoption program that focuses on placing older children and sibling groups. The loss of computers will significantly hinder communication with the staff in Ghana, and their administrative work.

If you would like to donate to Eban House, you can go through the "donate now" button on the AAI website (and there are separate funds for Eban House and for Esther).

Thank you for caring....

Letters...

One of the best things about the Ethiopian Adoption program, is that you have a chance to correspond with your child. We were blessed today, when we recieved 2 letters and a new photo in the mail from Tensaye. (Thanks so much Ann!)
I can't wait to get back to Addis! If Jon weren't coming home in a few weeks, I would seriously check into tickets to go now!
Isn't it amazing the faith that a child can have? I can't wait to bring her home!

Photo shoot...

A few cute shots of Ava and her BFF, Parker.... I don't know how photographers do it.... Good thing that ours is a good friend! Thanks Elena!

Dinner with Friends...

Last night, we went to dinner with some friends after a taking Parker and Ava for a little photo shoot... Pics to come later...
Here are some shots from dinner!

"Junkin'... "

In small towns and villages all over Germany, it is time for the anual "junkin'"... This is when locals, clean out their basements and attics,and renovate thier homes, so that they can throw out the old fixtures... streets and sidewalks are lined with all sorts of 'junk/treasures'... And the roads are clogged with Poles in vans, rummaging through it. Its a great system really.... the Germans set the date, advertise it in Poland, and the Poles come and haul away more than half of the junk put out.

The phenomenon reminds me a lot of college... you know, someone puts a chair out, and by morning its gone...



Here is our pile of 'junk'... We are getting new furniture when we move... we have had ours since our marriage, and lets just say, that the light gold is not a good color for kids, pets or husbands.... It has definitely seen better days. Anyway... I thought it would be better to get rid of part now, so that we have less to haul ourselves, when the time comes.

Sand, Sun, Surf.... What More Do You Need??

We made it back.... It was a great weekend, and I'm so glad that we were able to get away for a few days. Here are some shots from Blankenberge.... We can't wait to go back!