Our Internet went cuckoo last week and it would not work properly. They could not send a technician out until Friday. So now that it is fixed and we are back online I will catch you up on our week last week!
Tuesday I had another ultrasound. The doctor wanted to check on things and see if there have been any changes. First they did it from the outside then there was a special wand that had to be inserted, I will let you figure out where, and they also took pictures that way. I also went to the produce stand and bought all this for only $33!
Wednesday We attended Naomi's Kindergarten Potluck at Forest Park. We brought an awesome salad from out garden. We were able to meet some new families. But the highlight was meeting a mom who had great dreadlocks in her hair. I felt a bit nervous, wondering what she would think of Naomi's dreads. But she said they looked great! Another bonus was that she does dreadlocks professionally. So I got her card and she said we could connect. I have been doing my best by watching You Tube Videos but it will be so great to have some one on one lessons!
Thursday We attended Micah's Open House at Port Gardner. He had some cool projects that he worked on in his classes. In his Middle School Block Class they studied Medieval Times and in his Science Class they studied Populations and Ecosystems. Some of the projects below are his own and some he worked on in a group.
Comic Micah made about Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
Shield he made that represent him
What his group knew about Medieval times before they studied it
What his group knew about Medieval times after they studied it
Have you heard of Green Juice? Our family is taking small steps to live healthier lives. Darrick and I decided to kick off our campaign with green juice. If you search anywhere on the Internet, they just praise the health benefits of green juice.
The first thing that you need to make green juice is a juicer. We have a Jack Lalanne juicer that we bought back when we lived in Hawaii. We use it every once in a while and it is still in good shape.
The second thing that you need is greens. The best kind to get is organic, but if you don't just be sure to clean them well. We are so blessed to have a beautiful garden right now. It is going crazy-it has to be the chicken poop! For this juice we used cilantro, rainbow Swiss chard, spinach and a variety of lettuces.
Then you put them in the juicer and start juicing!
To help balance out the taste, you can add more fruits and veggies. We added apples, carrots, lemon, celery, and radishes.
Cheers! Here's to our health!
We have been drinking at least two of these a day, and the kids are too. It takes time getting use to because our taste buds are so accustomed to artificial flavors, but it is so so worth it!
This weekend Darrick and I were given the beautiful gift of a weekend away for just the two of us (well Oliver went with us too). We decided to get away from it all, take out our new tent trailer for the first time, and find some nice warm sunshine.
We decided to go to Potholes State Park in Othello, WA. We have never been to the Eastern side of WA and were excited to check it out. The Cascade Mountains run almost right down the center of WA state. The western side, which is where we live, is very wet and rainy. But the eastern side is a desert climate and hot and dry. It was a 3 hour drive for us.
Once we got inside the park, and were driving to our site, Oliver was ready to hang his head out the window and let his ears flap in the wind.
We set up camp and Darrick did great setting up the tent trailer for the first time!
We took a nice long walk around the park to check it out, had chili for dinner and then relaxed by the fire. The next day we took a couple of big long walks. The views were beautiful and so different from our side of the mountains!
There was also a really huge lake called Potholes Reservoir. It was fun to walk down to it and watch all the boats. Darrick even went out and kayaked one day in a kayak a friend let him borrow.
A highlight of the trip was that we saw 3 snakes but I only had my camera when we saw one of them and he was a big one!
Yesterday I went on a Field Trip with Jacob's class to Silverlake. The goal of the field trip was team building and water safety. Being a teacher myself, I have been on a lot of field trips and this was a really good one. The first thing we did was ride the bus to Silverlake. Jake was my partner. It was about a 20 minute drive.
I have never been to Silverlake, even though it is really close to our house. It was really pretty. In the summer they have a beach that you can swim at and some nice playgrounds. I think it would be a great place to take the kids this summer! The first thing our group did was a challenge course. It took our group working together to complete each task.
Then we went on to water safety. The kids learned all about life jackets and how to have the right fit. Then they learned about canoeing. They had to practice their strokes on the dock before they got to try the real thing.
I was not planning on riding in a canoe but Jacob wanted me to, so I did. I sat in the middle and Jake sat on one end and his partner was at the other.
The kids did pretty good but there was a lot of bumper boats going on...
The next activity was survival skills. Somehow I was picked to be the injured person and the kids had to carry me on a stretcher. This was my view:
It was actually scary. I could not tell where we were going and I was scared the kids might drop me. The came close a few times when someone could not hold up their end.
Once we reached our destination we had to pick the best supplies, from a list, to help us survive. It was fun. At different times through out the day, I had my own group of kids. I loved it and it warmed my teacher heart. I just love kids and teaching them and interacting with them. It was a great time.
I do not watch a lot of TV personally but when I see something about Adoption it totally sucks me in. I saw a commercial for a show called "The Little Couple" and knew I had to tune in. I had heard of their show before but had never watched it. It is on TLC. The couple, Bill and Jen, are little people and have been trying to have a family through many avenues and are blessed to now be adopting.
Well on the last episode they traveled to China to meet their new 3 year old son and bring him home-he is also a little person.
Being an adoptive parent myself I really appreciated how they portrayed adoption. Bill and Jen had all the emotions I think most adoptive parents to be have.
But a lot of times on TV adoption stories are of infants and so once the new parents are handed their precious bundle it is euphoric. Well the Little Couples new son is 3 and they did not edit out the hard time they had when they first met each other. He was crying and did not want to go to them, one time he even tried to hit them. He clung to his caregivers not wanting to go to these strangers.
Bill and Jen were amazing. As much as they wanted to just grab their son and love on him, they didn't. They did not force themselves on him and let it happen in its own time. I am definitely going to be watching the rest of the season to see their adventures as a new family.
When we adopted Naomi she was 2 years old. When we got to the orphanage it was lunch time. When it was time for us to meet she was taken away from her lunch and escorted into the room.
All I wanted to do was hold her and kiss her but she was unsure. I offered her a doll and she took it but she did not come to me. As a mom, who had been waiting months, to hold my little girl, it was painful but I understood. I was a stranger to her.
But that moment she was finally placed in my lap, because she did not come on her own, was like giving birth. But if you look at her face it is blank. This picture truly shows what it can be like to adopt an older child and the varied range of emotions.
This picture was taken much later in the day, it is our first kiss, and she is starting to relax. Naomi did not talk to me for a whole week-she said nothing. At night when it was time to go to bed she would hit me. It was hard but so so worth it.
Our dog, Oliver, can be such a good sport. Naomi likes to dress him up in all kinds of clothes. It usually gives us all a really good laugh!
The other day she dressed him up in my Halloween costume, yes mine. I was a Bee last Halloween and I looked cute! When I saw it on Oliver it was too cute to pass up! Photo op! Enjoy!
A few weeks ago we had Field Day at Port Gardner. It is a carnival like event to celebrate the end of the year. Every year there is a booth where the kids can get their hair sprayed. It has never been much of an issue before, but this year since Naomi has dreadlocks I wasn't so sure it would be a good idea. I am in charge of Field Day so Darrick was on Naomi duty. I told Darrick to have them spray it lightly.
Well as you can see from the picture, that did not happen. While Naomi was getting her hair sprayed, Darrick was sitting on the bleachers talking to his buddy Eric...no comment...
With the dreadlocks and orange spray she picked, it looked like she had Cheetos all over her head. Disaster...
But thankfully it just took a few shampoos to get it out. Then it took 5 hours the next day to re tighten the dreadlocks. Oh well what can you do?
Yesterday we celebrated Memorial Day by hanging out with our friends the Alvines. Darrick and Steve both love BBQ and when they get together it turns into a meatfest. We started off with grilled bread that had butter, salt and honey on it. The smaller ones were gluten free.
I barely got a picture of the wings before they were all eaten up. I don't eat wings but I heard they were good.
I just had to get a picture of sweet James. The Alvine family adopted James a few months ago from the Philippines. He is a very active little boy and does not sit still for very long. He was running around or riding his little car around and the whole time he kept saying "fast!"
This was the brisket that Steve cooked.
This was the famous pork roll that Steve makes. It is pork that is wrapped in bacon.
Then to round out the meal Darrick made his awesome pulled pork with delicious homemade BBQ sauce.
Good thing the Alvines invited their neighbors too because there was more than enough meat to go around!
We are a family of five, who love God and each other. We desire to follow His plan for our lives which has led us to Washington. Our life is full of adventures and surprises. Come along!
