Basketball Champs!

Henry has had a great basketball season. His season ended this weekend with a play-off tournament. The Hawks won both games on Saturday to go on to play in Sunday's championship game. It was a nail-biter of a game.... the kind that really isn't fun to watch because it is so close but is fun to think about once it is over.... especially if you win. WHICH THEY DID!! The final score was 12-10 and it was down to the wire with the other team throwing up some close shots in the last seconds of the game. Henry was so excited and proud of his new trophy.

We have been very fortunate to play on this team. Other than Henry's good friend, Caleb, all the other boys go to another school. Last year the league placed us on this team which had room for 2 players. Henry's coach is kind and patient with alot of basketball knowledge. The other children and families are kind and welcoming. This does not seem to be the case with many of the other coaches and teams in the league. When I watch some of the other teams I am so thankful that we landed where we did.

Enjoy the pictures of our basketball champ.

A Sunday with Aunt Beth

Sunday the 20th was the day after Meghan's birthday. The weather was beautiful so we decided to each lunch (leftover pizza!) outside. After eating we played with Meghan's new bubble toy and the kids rode bikes. We took a minute to take some pictures with Aunt Beth. The best part about the day was after we dropped Aunt Beth off at the airport.... she came back for more fun! Her flight to Detroit was canceled so we got to have her for another day.

A First Time For Everything

There is a first time for everything in life. Meghan had a special first the day after her birthday. Sunday after lunch we cracked open the play make-up kit from Aunt Beth and I painted her fingernails at the kitchen table. It was very fun and a sweet time for both of us. Aunt Beth and Nana were there to enjoy.

Meghan's Birthday - Part 3

At last.... opening presents. After the party, we enjoyed pizza for dinner with Mimi and Papa, Gigi, Uncle Chris, Aunt Beth and Nana. It was quite a gathering. Meghan had so much fun opening presents and her brothers had lots of fun helping her.

Unfortunately, our camera battery died before we opened a few of her presents. She got a new purple bike which she is excited about. Also, a baby doll bunk bed, several craft kits, a play make-up kit, a purple unicorn pillow pet, a baby bunny (stuffed, not real!!) and many other fun things.

Meghan's Birthday - Part 2

Here are more pictures of Meghan's party. We decorated gingerbread man cookies, played in the Lollipop woods, tossed the "peanut" with Grandma Nut and did a gumdrop relay. Everyone seemed to have fun and I think (I hope!) Meghan felt celebrated and special. Enjoy the pictures.

Meghan's Birthday - Part 1

Meghan turned 4 on February 19th. We celebrated with a Candy Land party here at the house. We invited 8 friends over for games and cake & ice cream. Here are a few pictures of the house and party things before the party.

Also included are pictures of Henry (aka Lord Licorice) and Owen (aka King Candy). Henry and Owen dressed up and played parts in the party. King Candy's castle was our trampoline which Lord Licorice attacked during the party, messing up all of King Candy's "gumballs." Henry did such a great job with his part that he scared one of Meghan's sweet little friends to tears.

A Home School Day

Here are a few pictures to give you an idea of what our home school days look like. Alot of the day the boys work on their own with just a little guidance from me. On some days, they require a little more help or one on one time with me.

In these pictures, Owen is doing his listening. He reads from a book of classic childrens stories. They are all recorded and posted on the internet by another Coram Deo mom (God bless this woman!!) so I don't have to read them aloud. He sits near the computer and follows along while the story is read to him. He often fills out a short worksheet about the content of the story when he is done. His day is mostly filled with phonics, math and spelling.

You can see that Henry has a favorite spot to do school. He likes to set up this small card table in front of the fireplace and do his work. In this picture, I think he is even enjoying a hot chocolate..... rough life!! He spends alot of time doing math worksheets and learning cursive. He also has bible and history where he is learning about Greece and Rome this year.

Finally, Meghan is painting at the kitchen table while they work. I would like to say that is a regular occurrence but often times she is in front of the TV or playing under our feet. It is great where we have days when I have enough time and patience to start her and help her with something like painting but that is not all that normal.

Pinewood Derby

Today was Henry's first Pinewood Derby race for Cub Scouts. He and Eric worked so hard for the last few weeks perfecting Henry's "Pika Truck" which is a truck modeled after the Pokemon character Pikachu. He won "Most Humorous Car" for his den. His was not the fastest car but it sure was creative and well made....We are so proud of him. It was a great first year and he is excited to try again next year.

Adoption Update

Just a quick update on the adoption. About a week ago, we received our court date. We will travel to Ethiopia on March 4th and be in court on Wednesday the 9th. Eric and I will make this trip on our own. We will visit our daughter's birth city, Gondar, which is in northern Ethiopia. We will be in Gondar for only 1 day/1 night and we will do a little sight seeing and visit Bridge to Hope Orphanage. We will spend the rest of the week in Addis Ababa, the capital city.

Snowed In!

We have had some serious winter weather in Dallas this week. It started with an ice storm (the weather man called it a "thunder snow") on Monday night with temperatures only getting into the high teens on Tuesday and Wednesday. With the temperature so low the roads remained really bad.

Thursday night we added about 5 inches of snow to the ice pack that had not yet melted. The snow that fell on Thursday night and into Friday was alot more fun than the ice storm and so on Friday we actually got out and played for a while. Friday afternoon was so pretty as it was still snowing big flakes but the sun was peeking through the clouds. The pictures are from Friday afternoon. Eric rigged up a "sled" from an old door he has been holding on to in the garage for years. He attached a rope and pulled the kids around the greenbelt behind the house.

Someone forwarded me this verse this week and it really made me think. Job 37: 6-7 "He says to the snow "fall on the earth" and to the rain shower "be a mighty downpour." So that all men He has made may know His work, He stops every man from his labor." That is really what happened this week.... most everyone I know was stopped from their labor and just rested. It felt like God must have looked down at His overworked, overtired, stressed-out children and said "Y'all need a little break!" OK, so "y'all" may not be in His vocabulary but you know what I mean.

We have been out of school all week. We have enjoyed the fireplace alot this week. We have seen alot of each other. Eric has worked from home almost the entire week. I am a big fan of "quality time" but i am honestly not going to be sad when everyone goes to school next tuesday.

Trampoline

In celebration of a great fall semester and as an early Christmas present, we bought a trampoline for the backyard. We surprised the kids with it when we came home on their last day of school before Christmas break. It was (and continues to be 2 months later!) a big hit. It is a great way for all 3 kids to go out and play together in the backyard. It has also been a fun toy to share with our neighbors and friends.

Christmas 2010!

Here are some pictures from Christmas day. We had a nice day here at our house. Nana was here with us and Mimi, Papa, Uncle Chris and Gigi came in bright and early so that the kids would not have to wait too long to open presents. It was a fun family day. Here are some of my favorite pictures....