I promise I'll update everyone at some point!

Right now, we're a little overwhelmed:) I don't feel that great and Aaron woke up with a temperature of 102! All of this on top of trying to keep up with 2 toddlers...one of which will NOT let me put him down! Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to hold him, but it makes it really hard to care for Grayson. This too shall pass! I'll give the full update once we're all healthy and rested! Here are a few pics.

We're home!

We're home! We are exhausted, emotionally drained, and completely in love with our life as a family of four! I'll be updating and posting pictures soon! For those of you I took packages for...they made it! I'll be emailing pictures soon!


Okay, here are a couple of pics to hold you over:)

Off to Ethiopia!

Well, today is our last night at home for awhile. We leave tomorrow for Liberty to take Grayson to his grandparents. We will then leave from there in the wee hours of the morning on Sunday to head to the airport!

I still can't believe it's really here. I have a feeling the whole week will seem surreal. Tonight we switched the extra carseat (in Aaron's car) over to the van. Aaron's vehicle all of the sudden looks bigger, quieter, and, let's face it, boring. The van, on the other hand, looks smaller, much more chaotic, and absolutely blissful! I've been waiting over a year to look over my shoulder and see both of my boys in their carseats...that day is only a week away!!!

The guest house we are staying in has dial-up internet. So, I'm hoping to update the blog with a picture or two at least once while we're gone.

And now, I leave you with a very short video of the precious little boy I am going to miss so dearly while we are away (have I mentioned we've only been away from Grayson one time and it was for a couple of days).

On the home stretch!

Wow, I can't believe it's finally here! The week we have been waiting over a year for is finally here. This week we leave for Ethiopia to hold our youngest son in our arms for the first time. Even as I type it, I can hardly believe it. It's the strangest feeling in the world. All this time you guard your heart saying, "It's never going to be here." And then, when it is finally here, you still don't believe it. Sure, I'm going through the motions, packing, planning, cleaning...but I don't know if I'm really convinced this is happening. And then, in this really strange, strange, you-can-only-understand-if-you've-been-there sort of way, it's almost kind of sad. Crazy enough, you almost feel a little sad that this process is coming to an end. Sure, the best part is yet to come. The end of this process is what you've been praying for every day since you started...but, you're still a little sad to see it go. No, you don't wish to go through the stress of waiting again, but you wouldn't mind reliving the elation that comes with "the call" or the updates or the "you passed court" or any other number of really exciting things throughout this amazing journey. Weird, I know. But, at least this time I wasn't surprised by the feelings...I went through this with Grayson's adoption as well.

I'm also finding it really difficult to control my neat-freakishness this week. This tends to happen when something big is coming up. No matter how picked up my house is, I feel the need to do more, clean more, straighten more bedspreads, fix more couch pillows, dust more corners, and on and on. I think I'm feeling as if I may never accomplish another thing with 2 toddler boys. And, while things will be a little harder during our transition, I know life will find a "new normal" and in no time I'll be cleaning with the best of them again. But, even those thoughts can't stop me this week! I'm telling you, don't sit still too long, you may get swept up around here!

Okay, okay, enough rambling. I'm taking a much needed break tomorrow and going to the Children's Museum with Rita and Toby. I'm trying to enjoy this last week with Grayson as much as possible!

Here are a few pictures from one of the fountains on Purdue's campus.

10 days until departure:)

Well, I don't have too much to say, other than we are getting everything together for the trip and are trying to take plenty of breaks to have some fun before life gets a little more complicated (and joyful)!

We had a great 4th of July at Dale Hollow, knowing that it may be a little bit before we get brave enough to take 2 toddlers out on a lake! Grayson had a great time with his cousin Ellie.

Today, we went to Monkey Joe's with Rita and Toby. Monkey Joe's is a place filled with bouncy houses, mazes, and slides. The boys had a blast!!! And, the best part is, parents are allowed to "assist" children under 4. So, I of course decided Grayson needed a lot of help on some of the really big slides:) Needless to say, Rita and I had as much fun as the boys!

There was some disappointing news in Ethiopian adoptions today. An agency will be closed for the next two weeks and will not issue opinions for court cases scheduled during this time. This means that those cases will be reassigned. However, we are coming up on the rainy season, so there is not a lot of time left for cases to be heard before court closes for a couple of months. Please pray for the families that this effects!

Here are a few pictures from Monkey Joe's.