Jolly Days at the Children's Museum

On Friday my sister took a half day off work so that we could take the kids to Jolly Days. We all had soooo much fun! The kids loved playing in the special igloo, sock skating on the pretend ice pond, baking in the kitchen, grooming the reindeer, and, of course, sliding down the giant Yule Slide. They also had fun showing my sister the new Egypt exhibit that she hadn't seen yet. Ben especially enjoyed the trains and dinosaurs as well, even though we've seen them a hundred times! We took a lot of pictures, and since my sister was there, there are even a few with me in them (unfortunately!). Enjoy!

Ben in Egypt!

Ben in Dinosphere

I know, it's a lovely picture of me:-) But I'm trying hard not to leave myself out of Ben's life in photos even though I HATE having my picture taken! In this picture we were digging up dinosaur bones!

And another lovely shot of me, this time crawling out of a cave.

Ben tending to the reindeer

Who knew sock skating on a fake pond (while wearing socks with grippers!) could be so much fun?

Ben and his cousin, Belle, sliding on the little igloo slide. She is such a great cousin to him and always helps him-even when he doesn't want it!

"Baking" cookies together in the holiday kitchen.

Getting a kiss from a stuffed penguin-he did this all on his own. It wasn't a pose!

Playing in the igloo

Playing in the Snow

We got about a half inch of snow over night last night and Ben was soooo excited to see it. When I opened the blinds on the back door to show him, his first reaction was, "Oh,no! Mess!" which totally cracked me up. But, once we were outside he loved playing in that mess!

Last winter he was too small to enjoy it, so this was his first chance to get out in it. We put on his new snowboots, mittens, coat, and hat and had a blast playing with my niece out in the backyard. Sooo much fun and soooo much joy in just a simple snowfall!

This is what happens when it gets quiet around here...

Today I was washing dishes in the kitchen while Ben ran back and forth between the living room and kitchen. (We have an open concept home, so I can keep a pretty good eye on him except if he sits right beside the couch on the opposite end from the kitchen.) I realized that it had been a few minutes since I heard or saw Ben run past, so I dried my hands and went to investigage since I KNOW that quiet isn't a good sign when it comes to little boys:-) Apparently somewhere in the totes full of Christmas decorations, Ben found a blue marker. When I found him (at the end of the couch where he knew I couldn't see him), he was happily drawing himself a mustache and had already decorated his hands. Of course, like any good mom, instead of taking the marker from him I ran to get my camera to capture the moment! Luckily he hadn't gotten to decorating the carpets or walls yet!

Random Silly Picture

This picture is just a random picture of Ben being goofy, and that's why I love it! He was growling at me and pretending to be a tiger, so I grabbed my camera to capture this memory forever. His growly face is made even "tougher" by the little bandaid under his eye because he kept scratching at his face:-) Of course, I also had to get a picture of him in his latest hat. What can I say, I am obsessed with hats for my son and he really has the perfect head to pull off the hat look!

PS: the little dog booty showing in the bottom corner is my fur baby, Spencer, who was our first "kid"!

Every Girl's Crazy 'bout a Sharp Dressed Man

Had to share these pics of Ben in his sports coat. We were going to a funeral, so it wasn't a happy occasion, but BEN was happy and that made my day. I love dressing him up in little suit coats and such. I've been told I better enjoy it now since he'll soon be big enough to protest:-) The first picture is him slouching because he was imitating me crouching down to take his picture. The second is pretty blurry because he was running toward me, but I love the look on his face and decided to share even though it isn't the greatest picture.

FFF: Give Thanks!

This week's FFF theme is one close to my heart. I have been trying all year long to have a thankful heart and to remember that everything I have is a gift from God. So, I have so many, many things I could list under giving thanks!

I am thankful that I am allowed to serve an awesome God who loves me even when I am at my most unloveable.

I am thankful to be married to the most wonderful, thoughtful, and sweet man who has loved me unconditionally and put up with me through 3 years of dating and 9 years of marriage. (Love you, Will!)

I am thankful to be called Mommy by my miracle son, who adores me even when I'm having a bad day and who brings a smile to my face every time his sweet voice says, "Mama" (which is at least a million times a day!)

I am thankful for the privilege of raising my two nephews, who are turning into amazing young men right before my eyes.

I am thankful that I can stay home and spend my days looking after Ben and my niece. There is not greater joy or responsibility than raising a child!

I am thankful for my parents and the fact that they are alive and relatively healthy.

I am thankful for my church family, who has been an endless supply of support and love.

For more FFF, hop on over to www.memeandmonkey.blogspot.com

Silly boy!

I've been watching my cousin's baby girl for a few days while she spent time with her father, the one who died yesterday. Ben has loved having her here for a playmate. He cracks me up because he either wants to BE the baby or he wants to take care of the baby. My cousin's daugher is only 11 months old, but is nearly as big as Ben, so it is really funny to watch him try to feed her, change her, pick her up, etc. I'm attaching a few pics of him being a baby and being a big helper. Too cute!

Ben climbed in the carseat we've been using for the baby, buckled himself part of the way in, asked me for "help" then sat in it and sucked his thumb while saying, "Ben baby" over and over. He is such a goofy boy!

Ben got the baby's almost empty bottle off the kitchen table and tried to "help" me feed her. She thought it was a really fun game and so did he!

Sad...

Tonight I found out that cancer claimed the life of my mom's baby brother. He was 48 years old and has three children, a step son, age 25, a daughter, age 23, and a son, age 15. He also has 2 grandchildren who think the world of him. Would you please pray for his children, my grandma, and his siblings? His death was expected, but still very much grieved. Rest in peace, Uncle Daryl.

Catching up!

Wow! I have been a very lazy blogger this past month! I can hardly believe I haven't posted anything in over a month. Life has been pretty busy for us, so I guess that is my only excuse!

Last month we wrapped up Tony's last season of high school soccer, which was also Drew's first season. They had a record of 10-4-1, which is the most wins in school history and an amazing change from the past 3 years when they won 0, 1, and 4 games. I'm sad to see Tony's high school career come to an end, but happy to report that he MIGHT get to play for a small college here!

Tony is on to wrestling and Drew is on to indoor soccer now, so the business keeps on going. We're also in the midst of preparations for our church Christmas play, which both of the teenagers and Will are involved in and I'm directing. Ben doesnt' have an official part, but he is along for the ride:-)

Of course, no post is complete without at least one picture of Ben, so I've attached two here! The first is him showing off the fact that he can now climb onto my storage ottomans. The second is him as a fuzzy caterpillar. I'm not really into the whole Halloween thing, but I couldn't resist dressing him in this fuzzy, cuddly caterpillar suit!

Hi!

Saying "Hi!" and waving to anyone and everyone is Ben's new favorite thing to do. It is totally priceless and he gets soooo much attention because of it. Of course, he LOVES the attention, so that just motivates him to show off even more. I love how his little personality is just blooming more and more with each new day!

Soccer Boy

We sepnd a LOT of time at the soccer fields, so it is a good thing Ben is so happy to be there! He loves to walk around in front of all of our friends and family and ask for a bite of whatever they might be eating. He also loves to watch the boys on the field kicking the ball around. A few times he has tried to head for the field himself, but mostly he just watches. I think we may have a soccer star on our hands since he also already takes his ball and dribbles it all over the sidelines, knows how to do a throw in (although his arms aren't long enough to do it right yet!), and can stop the ball with his feet. I guess I'll be spending a lot of time at the soccer fields for the next 17 years! :-)

2 years ago...

2 years ago today, the most beautiful, precious baby girl was born in Guatemala. On that day, her mom made the heartbreaking decision to make an adoption plan for her precious baby.

2 years ago today, we were eagerly anticipating our referral for a baby girl from Guatemala. We had no idea if she had been born yet or not, what she would look like, or anything else. But we knew already that we loved her.

Neither us or her first mom had any clue 2 years ago just how short her precious life would be, or how much it would change all of us forever. If we had known, everything might have been different. Her first mom might not have made an adoption plan for her. We wouldn't have accepted her referral, and we wouldn't have flown to Guatemala a few months later to meet her. We wouldn't have happily bought adorable tiny baby girl clothes and shoes and started preparing her room. We wouldn't have joyful shown her beautiful pictures to anyone and everyone who would look at them. We wouldn't have spent hours chosing just the right name for her.

Lots of people might wish, in our situation, that they had known what the future would hold so they could protect their hearts and not go through the pain of losing that sweet baby. I, on the other hand, would choose it all over again. she was worth every tear, every heartbreak, and every painful moment. Just one of her smiles could fill the whole world with light. I miss her so very much, but I am so incredibly blessed to have been her Mommy, even for just a little while.

Today Ariana would have turned 2 years old. It is hard to believe so much time has passed because I can so clearly remember every detail of the moment we found out about her and the week we spent with her. It seems like both forever and yesterday since I held her in my arms. I take so much comfort in knowing that one day in Heaven, I'll hold her again.

Happy 2nd birthday, sweet baby girl. Your family loves and misses you very much.

Tony

I don't often post pics of my two nephews because this is mostly Ben's blog, but I had to share these pics of Tony that I took for his Senior Night at soccer. I can't believe that this young man is the same baby that I held when I was in high school! It is amazing to think that he is now older than I was when he was born. It's also amazing to realize that I am raising a child who is getting ready to graduate in May. Where did the time go? I am so proud of him and the person he is becoming. I only wish that his mom, my sister, could be here to see him.

Sleep-Eating Boy

While we were on vacation in Texas, a friend took a funny video of Ben and posted it on You Tube. We were eating dinner one evening and apparently the heat and excitement of the day had taken its toll on Ben because he kept falling asleep at the dinner table-and it wasn't even close to bedtime yet. Watch the whole video because it is HILARIOUS! (And I promise that he did not hurt himself at all and never woke up the entire time-in fact ended up sleeping until the next morning!)

You Tube video of Ben sleep-eating

Heaven is the Face

I heard this song today for the first time. It is by Steven Curtis Chapman, who lost his daughter in an accident last year. This song so perfectly reflects all that I still feel about our Ariana and I just had to post it here as this is a tough month for our family. Thursday will be the 5th anniversary of the day that my sister and niece went to be with Jesus. Saturday, September 26th would have been Ariana's 2nd birthday. As you probably figured out, it's a lot to think about and then song just really spoke to my heart. I hope you enjoy.

Vacation

FFF-Wonder

Since there is no theme from Sarah's blog, I'm posting my latest favorite foto of Ben. I love this picture because you can just see the wonder in his facial expression as he points out the ducks to me at a park near our friends' home in Ohio. I love that he wants to share this new and exciting discovery he is making with me, and I love even more that he is holding my hand to take me with him to check it out. He never ceases to amaze me with the new things he is learning and doing each day, and I feel so blessed to have him in my life.

Weekend Fun

This weekend we went to Cincinatti to visit some friends we met through adoption. Ben and his friend, Hope, had a blast playing together and were sooo cute. We also got to join some other families with children from Guatemala for a while on Saturday. It was great to see some familiar faces and meet some new people too. Hope you enjoy the pics!

Ben and Hope enjoying a snack together.

This is Ben's newest thing-he points to anything and everything that catches his attention and says either "Mama" or "Dada" repeatedly until we look as well and comment on what he is showing us. I LOVE this age!!! (In this picture, he is showing me a bunch of ducks in the pond)
Crawling down the slide to get Hope's balloon. I love how he always sticks his tongue out when he is concentrating on something. It cracks me up.

Hope and Ben waving for the camera at the Tri-State Friends through Guatemalan Adoption event. These two even had fun just sitting in their strollers together.

Sooooo BIG!

Again with pointing to get my attention! This time he is pointing at a model train going around the Highfield Discovery Gardens. I love that he wants me to see what he is so excited about!

Smelling the flowers

Ben loved playing with Frog and Toad at the Discovery Center.

Ben playing peek-a-boo with Daddy around the back of the couch. This was after we got home and right before bed time last night. He is such a funny guy and loves to play games.