On the road again...To Ethiopia that is!!!!!!!

That's right friends, we're going back to Ethiopia to bring home another little one!!!!This family of three is becoming a family of four!!!!!

We mailed in our application on Monday and just found out today that we've been approved for an infant boy or girl. Now the paperwork begins!

Yay yay yay yay! We've been praying about this little guy or gal for quite some time and are so ecstatic that the Lord has led us back to Ethiopia to bring him or her home.

How you can help:
First and foremost, Pray!! Of course we would love to have each of you praying over us, our family, our little one-to-be and all of the paperwork, waiting, embassy and court appointments to come, etc.

Encouragement and support! We'll need lots of it as we proceed though this adoption journey. Having experienced it once before we know there will be lots of ups and downs along the way and we know that we'll need our Heavenly Father, family and friends to keep lifting us up.

Lastly, adoption is quite costly, so we'll be doing some fundraising throughout this journey to help get this sweet baby home. So if you feel led to help in that way, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

We thank you regardless just for the love and support you've shown to us over past several years and for the love you've shown to our sweet little Bear. We know this new additon to our family will be loved just the same! We are so very blessed. Yay God!!!!!!

Bear's First Haircut...Pics!

Here he is before with his big afro...



He was so great, he didn't cry or fuss at all. He just sat there like a big boy, a little nervous but so brave! I'll admit I was nervous too but I stayed strong so he'd be brave.


And here's the after! Wow, what a difference! He said "Thank you" when we were all done. He's so handsome!!



Here are a couple more after we got home. I sure do love this boy!

Bear's First Haircut...Since being home that is

I knew this day would come eventually. Yep, after a little over a year and a half the day has finally arrived and it brings with it a lot of mixed emotions. This haircut, for me, symbolizes many things. I feel attached to that beautiful head of hair he has. I've spent the past year and a half pouring time, love, sweat and tears into it. Being a white mommy to an Ethiopian baby with no idea how to care for his hair type, there have been hours spent talking with friends, researching online, oh and don't forget all of the YouTube videos. Yes, quite literally, hours. But I made a vow to take care of that hair the very best that I possibly could and I've loved watching it grow and grow.

The thing about it is that while I loved learning about his hair type and how to care for it, experimenting with hairstyles, etc., well you see, Bear... he did not. He would cry and cry every time I combed it out. I learned the right kind of comb to use, made homemade detangler and moisturizing products, learned to take small sections one at at time so his hair wouldn't pull and break... I could go on, but he still fought it every single time. I was committed to this so I kept at it anyway. The longer it's gotten the longer it takes to detangle and style which means the longer there are tears and frustration. So after some discussion and some prayer, we decided it's time for a change. I do believe it will be good for all of us.

Having said that, it's still harder than I thought it'd be. Not only does it symbolize all of that, it also symbolizes him growing up. Our baby boy's getting a "big boy" haircut! Going to a barber shop, the little guy sitting in the big chair, man, it really melts my heart. Also the fact that his hair has been the same since the first day we saw him face to face, though it wasn't as long then, I can't explain it but there's just something about that fact that stirs something in me. I guess it's silly really, but I can't help it. I'm just the sentimental type.

It's time though for a change and I know it's going to be good.
I'll let you know how it goes when we get back. With pictures of course!

Being crafty

So you all know about the website Pintrest right?! Well I've been a bit crazy about it lately. There are just so many great and creative ideas on there. Everything from yummy recipes to home decor. From fashion to funny quotes to brighten your day. Photography to kids crafts. Not to mention how-to's on just about anything. Especially Christmas decor and gift ideas right now. I've really enjoyed finding fun ways to help Bear with fine motor skill development. The cloud dough and slime recipes I found were a big hit! Really, you've got to check it out if you haven't.

After scouring the site last week, I felt like being crafty. I thought I'd share a couple of things I made...and this is only the beginning!

Christmas ornaments made from paper and brads...


A scarf made from an old t-shirt!


I felt a bit awkward "posing" for a picture of something I made so this is how I combated it... by embracing my inner dork!

Into the Woods We Go

We had our first family camping trip a few weekends ago. We had the whole thing planned out for weeks and ended up getting sick a few days before we were to leave. We planned on heading out on a Thursday but decided not to because we weren't feeling well and it was going to be pretty cold that night. We were really disappointed because we had really been looking forward to this trip for a while; we love to camp and were super excited to introduce our little guy to the camping experience.
Well, we woke up Friday morning feeling a bit better and decided you know what, we're just going to do it. We're going to load up and go! The weather was going to be warmer the next couple of days so we packed up the truck with everything we needed, including lots of allergy meds, and headed out. Boy were we glad we did!

We had an awesome campsite with lots of trees and open space to run around.


The weather was beautiful during the day and that perfect chilly temp at night for wrapping up in our sleeping bags.


We went for walks talking about all of the beautiful things God created (including the cute armadillo we saw)and down to the beach to play in the sand.





If you know me you know I had to put my feet in the water! It was FREEZING but I couldn't help myself and of course our little guy had to do it too. I love that he loves the water as much as I do. Our Heavenly Father truly cares about every tiny detail of our lives.




It was so much fun to watch him get excited about everything he experienced and saw. It brought us great joy to see him run and play in the dirt, the sand and the leaves. He was literally rolling in all of it and couldn't of been happier!








I would say our first family camping trip was a definite success and we can't wait to do it again!

Who Knew Rice Could Be So Much Fun!!

The end result was Bear sliding on the floor which he'd covered in rice! Good times were had by all!

Pumpkin Patch

We experienced the pumpkin patch a couple of week's ago for the first time with our sweet little Bear. He had a blast playing on the slide and in the bounce house, running through the rows and rows of pumpkins, going on a hay ride, petting the animals and picking out a pumpkin to take home.











It may be pretty cliche to say, but this really was a very special time for us. If you know us, you know that we've prayed and struggled for years and years to have a child and very much looked forward to being able to have experiences like this one. I'll tell you what, our hearts were so unbelievably blessed to be able to do this for the first time this year. We give all of the glory to our Heavenly Father who loves us, knows our hearts' desires and blesses us so amazingly.

Chickpea Burgers with Tahini Sauce

One of my goals this year has been to go through my recipe binder, full of recipes I've pulled out of magazines, received from others or printed from the Internet over the years, and make each one to see if it's a keeper or if I can toss it. I went into tonight's recipe very hopeful and really, expecting to put a star by it (a star means not only is it a keeper but it's a favorite!). The picture looked very appetizing and after reading over the ingredient list I was looking forward to making it. We try to eat a variety of meals with different ingredients; I'm always up for trying new things, while still eating healthy and on a budget. Keeping all of this in mind, I try to incorporate more vegetarian meals throughout the week and we all like chick peas and hummus so I had no reservation going into tonight's dinner.

Chick pea burgers, a tahini sauce made with lemon and yogurt wrapped in a whole wheat pita with steamed veggies on the side. Everything cooked up well and tasted pretty good individually. I plated it up and we all dug in. As everyone took their first bite, I looked around to see their reactions. There was this audible silence and we each had a look of distaste on our faces. It wasn't good! NO! We actually spit out the burgers and just started laughing. I think we all were in shock at the unexpected flavor. When everything was put together it was just so overpowering that we couldn't eat it. We laughed and joked about it for a bit (I even got a "No, no Mommy" from my 2yr old!) but did try to eat what we could of it. I'm thankful for my guys' willingness to at least try everything so far through this recipe experiment. Unfortunately though, that recipe is now in the trash!

I chalk it up to being part of the process of going through each recipe and trying it out. Some are good and some, well, just aren't. Like I always tell my sometimes, although rarely reluctant family, you never know unless you try and who knows, it might just turn out to be something really awesome. We have actually found several keepers through this process already!

At least the veggies were good. Now, on to the next recipe adventure!

September / October Bear Sightings

Just a few cute moments from the past month... Lots more are on the way; I've got some catching up to do plus lots of new stuff to post as well!

August Bear Sightings

Bath time is always a fun time!














Chillin'













I love how expressive his face is













Enjoying every last drop and we're enjoying every last drop of him!