Apple Picking!

A couple of weeks ago we went apple picking at our favorite fruit farm. We actually weren't supposed to go until the first week of September, but we got an update from the fruit farm saying that because of the weather, they were moving up the apple picking of our favorite, Honeycrisp, one week.

Picking for Honeycrisp apples is REALLY popular around here. It's usually from Friday to Sunday. People who wait until Sunday though usually don't get much pickings at all. So Friday morning we were up and ready to get our apples. 

Although this was Eva's second year going apple picking, she understood it a lot more this year and was excited to actually pull the apples off the trees. Even though we got there mid-morning, the place was starting to fill up fast!

We got our 2 bushel bags and starting filling them up :-)

Taking a quick break

Okay....ready to pick some more apples!

 

 We had such a good time. Eva found a stick, got to pick some apples........by herself and with her Dad. John got to eat apples off the trees, and I had fun taking pics the whole time. This was possibly our last apple picking season....at least for a few years. Maybe we'll be able to come back after Baby "B" is home with us and give her the whole apple picking experience. In Florida, they're all about the oranges.

Melkam Addis Amet 2005!

Happy New Year.....in Ethiopia!! 

While the majority of the world celebrates New Year on January 1, the country of Ethiopia celebrate their New Year on September 11. It marks the end of the rainy season and the beginning of spring. While we use the Gregorian calendar, Ethiopia uses the Orthodox Julian calendar which is 12 months of 30 days and then a 13th month of 5 days. That leaves a 7 to 8 year gap between our calendar and their calendar. So while we are very much in the year of 2012, Ethiopia is celebrating the New Year of 2005.....just think about how old you were and what was going on in your life 7 years ago :-)

This past weekend we went to an Ethiopian Festival (Enkutatash) to help celebrate the New Year with the Ethiopian community. It was an all day festival. There were a group of Ethiopian girls that did several dancing/singing routines throughout the day.

There were 2 tables that sold Ethiopian clothes, jewelry and home decor. But the best part of all was lunch!! Doro Wat. Red lentils. Yellow lentils. Salad. Cabbage and potatoes. Rice. And most important...injera. In traditional Ethiopian custom, we had some kaffa (coffee) afterwards. Strong, smooth tasting, and oh-so good!

I think what really made the celebration special was that other representations of countries were there as well: Burma, Nepal, Cameroon, Eritrea, Somalia. It was really beautiful to see the support and love. We all had a wonderful time. It was important for us to attend this year as this will be the last year we will celebrate Enkutatash here with our friends. Our prayer is that by this time next year we will be in Florida celebrating with a whole new Ethiopian community and group of friends.
 

 

Has It Already Been 18 Months?

Today is a very special day. Not only is our beautiful little girl 2 1/2 years old, but she has also been home with us EXACTLY 1 1/2 years now!! I can hardly believe the time has flown by so quickly. I remember the cute chubbiness that was in her cheeks and legs. Now she's starting to become thin and lean. And even though she will probably be petite (like her BM - birthmom) it's so amazing watching her getting taller. 

Everyday has been an absolute miracle. Obviously both Eva and myself have had our fair share of not-so-great moments: her screaming, crying and fit-throwing, my screaming, crying and fit-throwing. There were a lot of days that started off terrible and ended on a good note and a lot of days that started off great and ended terribly. Neither one of us is perfect and everyday I have to ask God's forgiveness and ask Him to make me a better person, a better mother for the next day. Even after a year and a half, we are still learning about each other each and every day. I wouldn't change a thing. 

Eva is such a strong person. I often forget how much she had to fight just to survive, so when we butt heads and she's fighting me, it's usually John that has to remind me that it is the fighter in her coming out! That also brings out even more of the pride I feel for her. Already she wants to be so independent, the very thing her BM said she would like for her. I just pray that I can continue to instill in her that feeling of independence so that she can grow to be a strong, vibrant, caring young woman. 

I thank and praise God for giving me this wonderful person to be responsible for. She is such a gift and has taught me so much about myself. She's helped me to sometimes ask myself the hard questions and answer them. Sometimes she will say something that I KNOW is not anything that she's been taught or heard of before and I KNOW THAT I KNOW THAT I KNOW that it is God teaching me through her. 

To hear her speaking in full sentences, having conversation just blows my mind!When I hear her reason something through or mirror something back to me that I've just explained to her, it is nothing short of God's goodness! We feel truly blessed to be Eva's parents and to this day we look at her in awe and amazement feeling a bit surreal still after all this time that she is here with us. Out of the millions of orphans in this world, God divinely planned her for this family. She is the perfect fit!!

Ballet Time

Today was Eva's very first ballet class. Well, actually, technically, Saturday was her very first ballet class but we had to miss it because of already scheduled plans. Eva woke up a little earlier than usual and asked if it was time to dance. She was so excited to put on her ballet dress and carry her dance bag!

The class is 30 minutes, just long enough to keep a bunch of 2 to 3 year-olds entertained, focused and controlled. She did a real good job of listening and following her teacher's instruction. And afterwards they all got stickers. So proud of my little one. Can't wait to see how she progresses over this next year!

                 

Both Hands Daddy!

A couple of months ago, while we were in Bermuda, John made me aware that there was a block of time in July in between my birthday and our anniversary that he had off from work. We discussed going back to Florida to see my parents and booked our airfare. When we got home from Bermuda, we had 3 weeks to decompress and get into a somewhat regular routine before it was time to get back into travel mode.

There is an M&M store in one of the malls in Florida that Eva and I just love to go to. They have so much cool stuff. Since the May trip to Florida, Eva had been requesting purple M&Ms and we told her that soon we would go back to the M&M store. Eva did get her purple M&MS, light and dark purple. That evening when we got home, something really funny happened between John and Eva. Here's what happened (in his words):

I took 4 M&Ms out of the bag and put it back in it's hiding spot! Just as I popped the first one in my mouth, Eva scooted around the corner and said "Dadda, whatcha got?" I quickly swallowed the chocolatey treat without biting or tasting it. I opened my mouth wide and said "I don't have anything in my mouth baby!" Eva looked at me knowing that something wasn't right and said "Whatcha got your hand?" 

Me, being a quick-witted adult, palmed the 3 remaining M&Ms in my left hand, stuck out my empty right hand and said, "See, there's nothing in my hand." I quickly realized that I had underestimated my 28 month-old baby! So as Eva approached me, I passed the M&Ms behind my back from the left hand to the right hand. Eva said "Show me your hands Dadda." I opened up my left hand, showed it to Eva and said "See baby, I don't have anything in my hand." 

Eva - now standing directly in front of me in a wide-legged stance extended her hands held together in a prayer-like manner. She unfolded them showing her palms, just so I wasn't confused about what she was wanting and replied "I said show me both hands Dadda!" I opened up both hands revealing the 3 M&Ms and Eva snatched them out of my hand, popped them in her mouth and said "Thanks Dad!" 

And once again, I have been duped by my 28 month old daughter!

Ohio State Fair

Two weeks ago I took Eva to the Ohio State Fair. It used to be a 4-week event but in the last couple of years it has been reduced to just 2 weeks in length. 

We got there early in the morning since it was supposed to be a scorching day. I was determined to introduce Eva to the wonders of Fair food: funnel cakes, cotton candy, caramel apples, mini donuts. I was all set to have nothing but junk food as our 3 meals of the day, but soon realized that I needed some real food or I would crash a lot sooner.

We ate some gyro for breakfast and started walking. I was able to find Kiddie Land and there we stayed for most of our time. Of course, the very first thing Eva wanted to ride was the carousel........wish granted :-) We rode a couple more rides and then I became aware VERY QUICKLY that if we were going to ride even a couple more rides, I'd better purchase a wristband so she could get on the rides all day. 

As it turned out, there were some rides, that only she could ride by herself. I was too big. I wasn't sure how she'd react. Sometimes Eva just has her moments where she's feeling clingy and I was hoping this wasn't one of those times. I wanted her to be able to ride the rides and have fun and not be scared that I wasn't right there with her. 

She did great! She rode the Water Gator and Bug-N-Around rides all by herself. I was able to ride a few rides with her...even the Wacky Worm, a little mini roller-coaster. She loved it.

I let Eva ride the rides until she was worn out. We got some lunch and then it was time for the really GOOD stuff.....cotton candy and funnel cake! We got a small bag of cotton candy that had blue and pink candy inside. I kept trying to get her to taste it. I even had to push it in her mouth. I mean really....what kid doesn't like sugar?!? Well, as it turned out, she didn't want the BLUE part, she wanted the PINK part! After a few bites of cotton candy, we got on the sky glider and rode from one side of the fair and back. 

By that point it was about 2 o'clock in the afternoon. Eva had not taken a nap yet. The heat was unbelievable with NO breeze, and we were both tired of walking around. I was glad Eva had such a good time. I was ecstatic that she got an even better nap! I was totally worn out!

Bye-Bye Ms. Lindsey

From June 2011 until August 2012, Eva took a movement class called Toddler Time. Every week for an hour, Eva got to bounce on a trampoline, hang from monkey bars, crawl, climb, run, dance, walk a balance beam and much, much more! Eva was excited every week to see her teacher, Ms. Lindsey. In the last couple of months, Eva couldn't wait to give her hugs when she got there and would sometimes go and find her in the classroom and pull her away from what she was doing and say "Come on Ms. Lindsey, let's bounce!" 

It's so amazing to see how much Eva has grown in the last year when I think about how she was June of last year. She used to be timid, and apprehensive. She wouldn't go anywhere in the classroom unless I went with her. She didn't like it when I tried to have conversation with the other moms. Now....it's 180! She's running around the room, squealing and having fun. She climbs on the equipment by herself and helps Ms. Lindsey in the classroom. 


Now it's time to say goodbye to Ms. Lindsey. Last Friday was the last class. The summer program is over with and Ms. Lindsey is pursuing her graduate degree out of state. Now that Eva is 2 1/2 years old, it's time to move her up to a class where I don't have to be there with her. A class where it's just students and the teacher. 

Goodbye Ms. Lindsey. Eva loved having you as her first dance/gymnastics teacher. Thank you for showing her how fun it is to learn and move her body and shake her booty :-) We'll never forget you. All the best to you in grad school. Kick butt!!