June, June, June

June has turned out to be so far my busiest month. I haven't danced through it gracefully at times, in fact I can usually be found doing that funky dance that Elaine Benes did on Seinfeld. But July is just around the corner.

We've had school finals and MAP testing, two school pool parties, two used curriculum sales where I shopped not sold, a dermatology appt., eleven dentist appts., Awana Awards, my oldest son's 30th birthday and his party, I had two haircuts in one day, helped on a field trip, helped at the Wacky Olympics at school, my high school senior went to his senior prom, threw a graduation party at the bay for Joe and his friend, our third son and his wife are here visiting, went to two school award ceremonies, high school graduation, my two middle school boys went to Mexico on a short-term mission trip, I've worked in the preschool and nursery at church, helped out at the Ethiopian church on two Sundays in the 1st-2nd grade rooms, VBS for a week, and we're hosting a combined co-ed baby shower for two of my sons and their wives. WHEW! Are you tired yet? I'm losing my noodle.

                                                       Joe ready for prom.

I found this chart online and reconfigured it. At the Ethiopian church the kids were told to have the names of   

Jacob's wives, their handmaidens, and his sons memorized. I found this and found it helpful for myself.

Joe receiving a scholarship from the PTSA.

Dad with Abi Mulu and Addis

The birthday boy

                                                         Arianne & Scotty

                                      Distressed Makenna because she has sand on her hands.

                                                         Smiley face Elizabeth

                                                     Miranda & Makenna

                                                 Sarah & Elizabeth

                                                    Meskie

                                                               Anna

                                                         A boy and his stick

more pics tomorrow......

My look, it is a changin'

Over the course of the last year and a half since I've had Bell's Palsy the way I look has changed. It changed dramatically with the onset of the Bell's, the droopy mouth, the funky eye, the crooked smile. My face is slowly going back to normal, but it's still not the same.

The other thing that is changing is my hair. I've had to color it every two weeks to keep it brown. Every.two.weeks. That is not only money slipping away but time spent in the salon getting it done. Since I'm now in my fifties I've decided that I'm going to let my natural color come in. For me I've come to the same thought pattern when I gave up birth control over twenty plus years ago. God knows the best hair color for me at this time in my life. Why in the world do I think I know what it should be more than what He has ordained it to be? Thus, I have entered that transitional time of letting the gray come in and taking the color out.

These are some pictures of me since January of this year. Not only am I going from dark to light I went from long to short. I'm getting used to the short hair, but can't wait until it's long and silvericious.

May Happenings

There has been so much going on here that it seems as though I'm going from event to event or preparing for the next event. I'll actually start at the last two weeks of May to catch up.

Joe's high school volleyball season had come to an end so we attended his volleyball banquet at an Italian restaurant. The coaches put together the photo collage and the team managers (high school girls) gave each of the boys a pink crown with their names painted on the front. Joe won a total of three awards that night which we were very blessed to see he did so well.

Joe had a soccer tournament in San Bernadino. I think we went two of the three days, but that was a month ago so who knows. I know we went on Saturday and didn't go on Sunday, not sure about Monday. We didn't go on Sunday because of the dinner at the Ethiopian church. San Bernadino is about two hours or so from us. That Saturday we only took Sarah and the baby. She needed a break from Little Man so he stayed home with his aunts and uncles for the day.

We have connected with an Ethiopian church here in the San Diego area. Marantha Ethiopian Evangelical Church is renting space from another church and would like to have a building of their own. They held a fundraising dinner where the church members as well as the adoptive families of Ethiopian children were invited to attend. They served delicious Ethiopian food as well as some pasta dishes, which was a blessing for some in my family who don't care for the Ethiopian food. Most of us LOVE Ethiopian food, but what can I say other than some of the men/boys are picky eaters.

The girls wore their Ethiopian dresses to our regular church, which all the older people loved, and then they fit in at the Ethiopian church because the ladies were dressed in their dresses also.

Since Monday the 27th was Memorial Day Steve and I went to the cemetery to honor my uncle who had died in the Vietnam War. My grandparents are buried on each side of him. We placed flowers in the vases and made mental notes that we need to come back and spruce things up like cleaning the granite headstone and gluing one of the vases down.

Even though the girls are in school I like to be involved as much as possible. I was asked if I could go on a field trip to the Space Theater/Science Center. My three youngest went and we had a great time learning and playing. http://www.rhfleet.org/

The next night Addis and some of the high school girls did a Spa Night fundraiser for camp and a mission trip. I signed up for the works. Got a manicure and a pedicure, a massage, and a facial. The girls each made about $50 which we're very grateful for since the camp runs about $500 and Addis wouldn't be able to go if we had to for the whole thing. There are monthly rummage sales, they can get work for people, and there are other fundraisers for the kids to help raise the funds. My boys have done yard work, move a mattress, helped someone run their kayak business. If it's something they can do then they work for their way to camp.

May ended with the piano students from school going to see The Wizard of Oz put on by Christian Youth Theater. The show was excellent. The kids who performed did an outstanding job. We rode the bus about an hour each way. On the way there we stopped at a park and had an early, early lunch. It was a fun, fun day, exhausting, but fun.

To Arizona and Back

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I've posted. The time has flown since we have added three family members to our household. Sarah and her two children have moved in with us for the next year while her husband is deployed.

The two youngest girls, John, and myself drove to Sarah's to clean her house and move them to our house. Since they lived on base she was given a three page cleaning list for her house and yard that needed to be accomplished before they could pass inspection so she could leave. We cleaned under, inside and around the fridge, closet door and sliding door tracks, inside and outside of cupboards and shelves, washed windows, raked the yard, you name it we did it. We were up well past midnight cleaning since we could get a lot done while the two little ones were sleeping.

The movers came the first day so that meant no furniture, no beds, no pots and pans, nothing! Thankfully I had brought my air mattress that I bought myself. Poor Sarah though was sleeping on the floor with a nursing baby.

We had debacle after debacle which at the time didn't seem very funny, but now they give us great stories to tell. My fifteen passenger van was loaded to the gills and off we went in our two car caravan, needing to pull over a little early so Little Miss could nurse. The little ones were crying part of the way so Sarah was a little frazzled by the time we got home, but I had the older kids and our van was a little quieter except for my music.
                                          

It's been a month and we're having fun with our grandson/nephew and our granddaughter/niece. Having little ones does take a little getting used to again. Things don't seem to stay put very long where we put it. Isaiah likes to explore and has his own ideas on where things should go. And poor Elizabeth, my goodness, she's so starved for attention. NOT. That girl is picked up so much that Sarah only has to hold her to feed her. If it's not grandma or grandpa picking her up she has all of her aunts and uncles as well. Poor thing. :-)





We've settled into our new normal for the next year and look forward to our Jesse boy and Sage girl coming home this month for a two week visit, adding in two more to our Crazy, Big, Happy Family. By the way-Jesse and Sage are expecting!!!! We're adding grandbaby #6!!!