Birthday Boys

This past week both of my boys had a birthday. The Moose turned three years old! In addition to no longer qualifying for "free" kids meals he announced that at three years old he is way to big for his afternoon nap. He made this announcement enroute back to our house and then fell fast asleep in the car.
The Moose had a small party (Just Momma and Daddy, a handful of presents, and Thomas the Choo-Choo cupcakes.)
I can't believe my son is three years old already. He is so capable and compassionate, not to mention hysterically funny and smart.

And,now that he is three look what he can do:



He is taking after his father more and more each day. This makes a Momma proud.

Article on Ethiopia

Locust are destroying crops in Ethiopia. Here is an article regarding the issue. Please pray for the Ethiopian people as they battle this amid an already devastating power and food shortage.

Prenatal Yoga

So, I have just a few hours ago returned from my first session of Prenatal Yoga. It is a class that I signed up for with the hopes that the stretching will do as much good for my body as the fellowship with other pregnant yoga doing mommies does for my conversation starved mind. My opinions on class number one are nothing but praise. I felt good driving to the class, tasting a bit of that freedom that a parent experiences when they know that no little darling is going to ask them "why?" every single second, and returned happily relaxed with ice cream in hand. Yes, I said ice cream. This is what is excellent about pregnancy~ I went to a yoga class and upon the conclusion of class I promptly pulled into Sonic ordering a large reeces cup ice cream (extra reeces) and because I am pregnant this is totally acceptable.

The other ladies in the class are lovely. There was a fair bit of humor as bodies creaked and cracked outloud especially at the start of the stretching. I did find that most likely I have the least built up maturity level of all the woman in the class, however, as I laughed out loud when told to stretch my perineal sphincter. That word (spinchter) just does me in every time. I thought about asking exactly where the heck said sphincter is actually located so that I could stretch it appropriately, but kept my mouth shut and pretended. Upon looking it up on google just a few moments ago I learned that I had fair reason to laugh when told to stretch it out. If you do not believe me then I would like for you to think of your most personal and private places and then image releasing them to the chi and chai and choo and all that other yoga stuff in a room full of spandex wearing ladies and one awkardkly misplaced maintaince man. See, funny.

But, all of this stretching and movement is supposed to decrease my back pain, ligament pain, heart burn, and head aches. The best part is that supposedly what I am doing now, spinchter stretching included, is going to make that day of labor a bit easier. At the end of class we practiced concious relaxation which we were instructed to practice daily in order to melt into this state upon the actual moments of delivery. I am going to have to work on this state of mind. During my concious relaxatoin this evening all I could think of was that I am darn happy that I told my OB to meet me in the parking lot with my epdirual.

Well, enough about prenatal yoga. It was great. I love Man Mondays....the day that my boys venture off to do manly-man things and I get some time to myself. The Moose was happy when Mommy came home. He wanted me to teach him yoga, which I did. He also reported that for dinner he had smores and popsicles. Hmmm....maybe it is a good thing Man Monday is only once a week for more reasons than just giving my spinchter a rest. (Sorry, had to say that word just once more!)

Water Front Property

We finally have it. Waterfront property. Check it out......hehehehe......

Snapshots of my Pirates

Daddy and the Moose on a bike ride. The Moose is riding a bike now. At first he did not have the right muscles built up to take him far. Now, just try and keep up with him!


Backyard sprinkler playing is a big SuBRABia activity. One of the best things about my husband is that he is a kid at heart. It took absolutely no begging or pleading for him to jump right in and play along.


Ah, men at work.


So~ I asked the Moose to go feed the dogs. He was gone for an unusually long time. Puka and Mihyla were VERY happy with the job he did and as you can see they were fed a bit more than a cup.

Our Garden

We have had our share of gardening challenges this season. The two largest issues have been shade and PUKA-DOG. Our backyard has a lot of shade, not making any one spot conducive for a great garden. The one spot that I was thinking of using has city lines buried right beneath it so that ruled this out. The second challenge is the Puka-Dog (Pictured below for your viewing pleasure).



He may look relaxed and calm, but that is because he just ate my cucumber plants and now is ready for his afternoon napathon. PUKA-DOG has munched on my cucumbers, watermelon and cantelope. The latter two he ate from the root up so they are no more.

This year in our garden we have the following:
Cucumber
Tomato
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Squash
Peas
Snap Beans
Basil
Cilantro
Strawberries

We attempted carrots, but they did not sprout.
We will get our peaches, blackberries, peppers and most of everything else we need from local you pick it farms.

To combat the shade in the backyard we planted were we could and used containers to actually plant in our front yard as well. The container gardening is going well. A benefit is less weeding. PUKA-DOG stays out of the containers and we used chicken wire to keep him at bay for most of the other plants. We garden organically and thus have lost a fair share of produce to pests and rabbits. The other day we caught a rabbit in the container of broccoli. He was just munching away on the leaves! PUKA-DOG, no doubt full on a recent feast of my shoes, lay idly by and let the rabbit have his lunch.

Here are some pictures of some of our plants. The Moose is fasinated by them and points out any change. Gardening is a great way to get little one's to eat their vegetables...if only this worked for husbands too.






Even without a grand country property we are going to have a bounty of fresh produce as this summer continues. I love that.

Playdate

We are fortunate enough to live in a community that has several other WONDERFUL Ethiopian adoptive families. Last week a few of us were able to get together for a playdate. While the Mommies talked adoption, child rearing, and traded hilarious motherhood stories over our lemonade our sweet boys ran a beautiful muck. Mamush, Solomon and Samuel Mussie are all within a couple years of one another. They played cars, danced the evening away, and did what boys do best~ made noise, noise, noise.

Here are a few pictures, thanks to Mamush's mom Jenni, that I wanted to share of our sweet boys!!!

Organic Coupons

It is hard to find coupons for Organic products. However, I came across this and think it is worth sharing. Click here on the link and it will take you to twenty some Organic coupons for brands like Earthbound farms, Stoneyfield, and Annies.




Most of the coupons expire towards the end of this month.

Second Trimester, Amen!!!

I made it. I can not tell you the relief that has washed over me simply because I have come to a date on the calendar that signifies that things are supposed to change for the better. What am I referring to?

As of this week I am in my second trimester. Goodbye month one, two and three. Hello to the hopeful and just around the corner relief from relentless nausea, exhaustion, and hormonal explosion. (Fingers crossed!)

I never intended to become pregnant and thus had no real expectation of what the experience would be like. But, I have to admit that I did think it was a bit more pleasant and heartwarming that it has been thus far. One of these days I would like to sit down and have a little conversation with Eve (as in the Garden of Eden) because I think pregnancy could have been a little more like it is in the movies had she not eaten that stupid apple. Perhaps, she ate it when she was pregnant though and then I have to admit I understand entirely. She had a craving, enough said.

Here is a little list of things (Good, bad and otherwise) that I have been keeping regarding things I did not know about pregnancy.

1. I have puked so much that my three year old son knows the "puke drill" and promptly brings his mother a cup of water and stars screaming for daddy to come to the rescue.
2. I have the heightened smelling sense of a mutant who transforms into a evil maniac at the smell of almost anything aside from grass and fresh ice tea.
3. People assuming/stating/implying that our pregnancy is somehow more of a miracle than our adoption.
4. I sleep all the time and yet drag myself lethargically around like a woman who has not slept in days.
5. Pregnancy does something to your glands so that you produce a lot more saliva. I never knew that when pregnant I would actually slobber on myself.
6. As if I already did not have a peanut sized bladder...
7. The impulsive and unpredictable tears that come as a result of just about anything I would never normally cry over (like genuine anger that the government permits television commercials displaying food items that will then make a pregnant woman puke on site simply because Olive Garden is having a stupid lunch special and had to advertise it on my TV).
8. I would despise things I once loved~ coffee, guacamole, human beings in general.
9. Did you know that even MOLES get bigger during pregnancy? Really. Isn't that terrific news? Moles. Of all things. Moles. Great, just great.
10. Pregnancy produces some pretty funny farts. That is good payback for the two menfolk I live with.
11. I did not think it possible to actually have boobs as big as the cantaloupe I just bought.
12. I think I thought that I would feel cute. WRONG. I feel fat. Just fat.
13. Never knew I would happily wear Jason's underwear because even grannies panties cut off my circulation.
14.. I can add to my resume that I can grow people.
15. I can wear a T-shirt of Buddha that says, "touch my belly for good luck" and it will actually be kind of funny.
16. My attentive and gracious husband actually said, "I am so happy today. You are feeling good enough now to be irritable, that is great honey!" And, he meant it. Bless that man.
17. I have embarked on the world hamburger tour.
18. People at church only smile at me when I come in late toting the worlds largest cherry lime-aid from Sonic. They understand my slurping during service and I can get away with drinking soda during communion.
19. Having my son ask me if there is a baby in my tummy and then moments later asking me if there was bacon in there too.....
20. For the first time in my life I have some "junk in the trunk" and I like that a little bit, but I did not know that my butt and my chin would grow along with my tummy.
21. Being able to successfully use the phrase, "Sweetheart, The baby needs a Reese's peanut butter cup ice cream sundae with extra Reese's."
22. On really bad days being able to chalk the absolute lack of domestic productivity up to growing a brain...or lung...or another vital organ....and thus being very productive.
23. Oh my word, maternity clothes are so expensive! And, really it is hard to find my style.
24. I never knew that a pregnancy craving that is satisfied (like my dire need for my great-grandmothers strawberry shortcake) is seriously better than anything in the world at that moment.
25. I never knew pregnancy would make me a maniac. Seriously. A maniac.
26. I never knew sleeping on my side, a shirt touching my neck, or the thought of ranch dressing would make me puke...in Walgreen's. Nice, huh?


There is more. Lots more. But, alas exhaustion has set in and it is bedtime for me.
A cute little story to end on~

At the doctors office Samuel was head over heels blown away by the fact that people can and do at times pee into a cup. He announced upon learning this, "That is so cool! Can I pee in a cup too?"

And, that there is why I can handle more days of puking and even the very thought of growing moles....because it all adds up to another sweetheart that will make Jason and I glow with pride, surprise, and love.


~ KLB
Isaiah 46:3-4