Instagram-"ing" Our Life

So for the last several months I had seen people on facebook post pics using some app called instagram....well, honestly, I was a little annoyed.  I was like "just post the picture".... nothing fancy.  Well, I got a new phone and I must apologize....because these "fancy" pictures are fun.  Here is a week in instagram.

 the quietest time of the day....and the most precious

 loving the candy canisters at Sweet CeCe's

 Chocolate covered banana at Comfy Cow (yeah we are sweets kind of family....or mommy rather)

 Chillin' at Cardinal Towne

Rockin' the nautical hoodie

Zoo, Zoo, Zoo

We spent a few hours of my day off this week with the Brown family who I talked about two posts ago.  Tedi enjoyed the water park and playing with their boys, Kenenisa and Chera.  Enjoy a couple of pics.

 Chera in orange and Tedi in yellow

City of Addis...... how will you change the world

Welcome Home Brown Family

Our friends Justin and Donna Brown had no children this time last year.  They were anxiously waiting bringing home their daughter, Zoey Hiwot, from Ethiopia while their paper work on their sons, Chera and Kenenisa, drug on in Ethiopia.  Zoey came home in December 2010 and their sons were still not here.  Into the spring of 2011, they found out they were pregnant.  Their son, Asher, was born in July 2011.  FINALLY, almost three years after starting the adoption process to bring home their sons, Chera and Kenenisa walked down an escalator in Louisville, Kentucky.  You read correctly.  They had zero children this time last year, and now they have a 1 month old, an almost 2 year old, a 4 year old and almost 7 year old.  We rejoice with this sweet family.  JT even had the opportunity to meet the boys and Zoey while they were still Ethiopia last July.  The pictures below are from the airport on Satruday night.  This is the best part of adoption....celebrating with others.

 Loving the Escalator

Tedi and Dawit....

 Justin with Kenenisa to his right, holding Zoey with baby Asher (with their friend's son)

Chera, the oldest, hugging Tedi...

 (he hugged everyone but Tedi was a little shy)

First Day of Pre-K

Who is this boy?  I am not quite sure.  There is an undeniable difference in the small child who started pre school last year.  

Our goals for school last year:

1) Learn our colors (we thought he was color blind....who was I kidding...he now knows 'tan', 'beige')

2) Share  (we are working on this but much improved)

3) Write our name (not absolutely there but getting there)

Now, a year later, he told us he liked school.  He came home and could count to ten in SPANISH today.  I think that would be his fourth language (tribal language, Amharic, English...)  His teacher, Senor Pete, taught him this.  I wish you could hear him say "Senor Pete." It was so funny and cute.  Unfortunately, I was unable to be there to take him to school...you know, that work thing.  BUT his fabulous daddy took some great pics for us to cherish.  Check out the difference.  Look what some love, some food, and some time can do for a child.  Man, we are lucky parents!

August 24, 2010

First day of pre-school

August 22, 2011

First Day of Pre-K

Collateral Damage

I read an article the other day on a friend's facebook discussing how UNICEF is against international adoption in order to keep children in their home country. The author of the article discussed how children in these countries are often "collateral damage" for the sins and choices of adults....

....the children in the African horn, specifically Somalia, are dying because of war and fighting and famine.  I do not claim to know the politics of Eastern Africa, but as I watch Anderson Cooper's special on the healtcare and death in the region, my heart aches.  Not only do I ache watching this for the 600,000 children that are dying, the children so malnourished I can see their bones.... but I ache thinking of my own son's birthplace, his birth family.  Even now, children are being prohibited from getting vaccines, thus dying of preventable diseases like measles.  And here we are as a world.  Here we are with dead children.  Children without parents.  The drought...maybe not of man.  But the death, death from starvation.  Bono said it best on the program, "You can blame droughts on God, but famine is man made.  We know how fix this."  Children are the collateral damage in this world crisis.

....but this is not a "developing" country problem alone.  Unfortunately in my job (as a pediatric resident at a children's hospital), children are the collateral damage from our choices... who is injured in the car accident when the adult is intoxicated.  After the economy crashes and people lose jobs and tempers flair.....who are the victims....victims of abuse.  Think about it.  Every choice we make affects other people, no doubt.  However, children, the most vulnerable, are the most affected....every decision we make can affect our children, and not just our children but the ones around us... When we text and drive and wreck into someone else's car....when we are frustrated and selfish and do not tip as well as we should, the waitress may be short on her normal food budget....when we turn our back to children starving worlds away because the aren't "our children", children die. 

Collateral damage.  I do not know how to fix it but I know it is enough to make you think.

Soccer Man

I know, I know.  I have been a bad blogger.  I am not quite sure why I have been so absent because I love blogging.  I keep writing all kinds of blogs in my head.  There is one that I keep writing over and over and am sure it will be posted soon!  In the meantime, we have been busy around here...

Tedi spent the end of June and three weeks of July taking swimming lessons.  He went four days each week, and though he continues to protest that he needs his swimmies, he does quite well.  He also went to four days of soccer at Mockingbird Soccer Camp, thanks to his Granny Sylvia.  He was so excited for soccer.... Well, day 1 came with some issues.  I showed up thirty minutes early to watch to find my son not listening to the coach, ending up in time out.  (Thankfully the coach believed in discipline.)  I took him to JT's office where he got a talking to...I will admit it; I was upset.  Tedi knew it.  Well, the next day, he apologized to his teacher and his babysitter made sure he listened.  He came home that night and told me how he listened and hoped we were happy.  I do not want him to do things to "please" but he does have the kindest heart.  I love this little man and his wonderful heart! 

Tedi also went to bible school with his "favorite cousin" Grant.  He loved the Panda theme seeing as how he loves Kung Fu Panda.  The last day they made panda masks.... He and Grant were too cute even if they have looked a little bit like bank robbers!