Busy Weekend

It's nice to be spending the weekend at home, but that doesn't mean we've actually spent too much time at our house:) Yesterday we headed up to Lafayette for a get-together with our Ethiopia group. I love this group. No matter how much time lapses between our get-togethers, I feel like we pick up right where we left off, like old friends. It's so neat to see all the kids together...there are an over-whelming number of boys...maybe some of the families who are in process to adopt again will add some girls to the mix:)

This evening we're heading back up to Lafayette for family pictures! A very talented lady in our Ethiopia group has recently started her own photography business. Check out her website here . I absolutely LOVE her pictures and any opportunity to support a fellow adoptive parent:)

I've also been spending a lot of time reading more and more about photography as well as working on learning Photoshop. I've been looking into classes here in Indy and hope to get registered for a photography class at the beginning of the year. Here is a picture of Abram in which I used a texture...I love the pictures I see that use textures, so I'm practicing this in Photoshop:)

Another collage

I'm having a lot of fun learning all there is to do in Photoshop. Here's what I've been working on:)

Collages

I've been trying to teach myself to use Photoshop. It is so complex, but I'm learning...slowly:) I don't always have the patience to sit and try something over and over until I get it right, but am getting better. Today I figured out how to do simple collages. Here are a couple I made today!

Back home again in Indiana:)

We spent the last week in Virginia, visiting my sister and her 3 kids. The boys and I had a great time! I should start by saying that they are AMAZING in the car. On the way down we drove 12 hours, stopping only twice! They barely made a peep the whole way. I don't know what I would do without the DVD player and handheld video games:)

The boys had a great time playing with their cousins Coleson, Ellie, and Cooper. We took them to the beach one day to try to get some good pictures of them. We were also there for Halloween (and Courtney's birthday) and took them trick or treating. We made the drive home yesterday and though sad to leave their cousins, the boys were excited to get home to see Daddy! Here are some pictures from the trip....more to come:)

Good Weekend

I took the boys down to Dale Hollow to spend our last weekend on the houseboat for the season. The weather was beautiful. The boys had a great time playing on the playground and in the sand. They are getting so big and do so well spending several days in a small space! Here are some pictures of the flags on the back of Mom and Dad's boat...recognize them? From left to right; Ethiopia, American, Guatemalan:)

Birthday Party!

Now that we've all recovered from the party, I can take the time to sit down and write about it! It was a GREAT day, as Grayson would say. We just love having our friends and family over to visit and especially when we have something to celebrate:) It was, once again, a Thomas-themed party, and after opening all the presents it looked like the entire Island of Sodor had exploded in our living room. It was such a nice time.

I still can't believe Grayson is four; despite the fact that he has been telling me every morning when he wakes up! He is such an amazing little boy. He is so sweet and really loves his family and friends. Then there's this little streak of spunkiness. This is the part of him that is bouncing off the walls pretty much most of the day:) This is also the part of him that tends to be a little dramatic, throw fits, and get into trouble! He is also very particular about the way things are done (I don't know where he gets this). But, what floors me the most and makes me the proudest, is the kind of brother he is to Abram. Sure, they have their moments...many of them. But, he loves Abram with every ounce of his being. Many disagreements between them are caused by Grayson being TOO affectionate with Abram. Even with such a small gap in age, Grayson truly plays the protective role of big brother. It's not uncommon to see them hugging, kissing, and holding hands throughout the day. I'm just so proud of what a great big brother he is.

Family Learning Day and the Zoo

One of the things I love most about Grayson's school is Family Learning Day. One Saturday each month, families are invited into their child's classroom for a morning of activities. The activities all relate to a specific exhibit they learned about in the weeks prior. It's so great to see Grayson take charge and teach us what he's learned. We had our second family learning day this past Saturday.

I also really love the emphasis that is put on the arts. There are so many things that public schools HAVE to teach children that often there is not much room for art. Already this year, Grayson has learned about Mexican art, African art, glass art (Dale Chihuly specifically), and so on! And, for each type of art that they've learned about, they've done a simple art project as an example. This past week, they learned about the Arctic and visited the new Polar Bears to Penguins exhibit. When I inquired about the art Grayson brought home that day (a huge pile of gluey marshmallows) he said, "it's an igloo!" How cool.

After family learning day on Saturday, we headed to the zoo. It was a nice, fall day and a chance for us to celebrate Grayson's birthday with just the four of us. We had a great day! I'll post about the party tomorrow:) The picture is of Abram watching for dolphins at the zoo.

My littlest boy

Abram is so sweet. He has the sweetest little voice and he just talks and talks all day long. He loves to quote lines from movies which I think is just hilarious. Despite his tough time separating from me in the past, he is doing so well with all the new situations being thrown at him. After a few weeks of crying when I left him, he is loving bible study. His teacher said he sings and does all the motions to the songs. There's something about the fact that the first few months with him at home were so tough that makes me love him that much more.

Getting ready for the birthday party!

Once Monday rolls around, we typically stay pretty busy. This week is even more so due to planning a birthday party:) I can't believe Grayson is going to be 4 years old...4 seems so much older than 3. So we've been staying busy getting party supplies, planning the menu, and working on my video I make for each of the kids' birthdays. Here's a pic of the birthday boy:)

Pumpkin Patch

We went to a pumpkin patch in Noblesville yesterday. It was 90 degrees! A little too hot to be standing in an open field. I didn't take too many pictures of the boys because I wanted to get some pictures of little Miss Abby, our friends' daughter:)

Those eyes!

Both Grayson and Abram have big, brown eyes that make me melt! It's so hard to tell them no:)

The simplicity of children...

The other day, a little girl (about 8 or 9) was commenting on how cute the boys are. She asked if they were mine and I, of course, said they were. Without any hesitation she replied, "I can tell; they have your eyes." I smiled, said thank you, and we went on our way. At first, I just kind of chuckled over the whole thing. But then, I realized how refreshing it was for some one to just so simply accept our family at face value. She didn't launch into a series of questions about how they came to be a part of our family, where they are from, how much it cost (yes, I get this a lot), what happened to their birth parents, etc. Instead, she accepted my response and found a resemblance between the three of us...just as most people would do with most families.

This is not to say that I feel burdened by the questions that people ask. In fact, I really enjoy any opportunity in which I can share the blessing of adoption with others. If I had thought that my family wouldn't draw some attention in public, I would have been just plain naive. However, what I didn't necessarily expect was the number of people that would ask questions just to be nosy. I've even had people stop me so they can try to figure out what ethnicity their fathers must be if I'm their mother...

On the flip side, we receive so many positive comments from wonderful people. Not a day goes by that we don't get stopped so that an older lady can play with the boys, or comment on how cute they are. We are constantly having cashiers and waitresses digging through boxes of goodies just trying to find something to give them. We even have a lady at Taco Bell who gives them free drinks and cinnamon twists. The attention we receive is almost always positive and comes from well-intentioned people.

But, all that to say, it was so nice the other day to have a little girl simply accept our family at face value, no questions asked:)

New lens

Found a great deal on a new lens. I think I'm going to love it! Here are a few pictures I took tonight.

Playground

We've been going a nearby playground several times a week with the weather being so nice. Tonight we took our dinner:) I was only able to snap a few pictures of Grayson...Abram's nose wouldn't stop running long enough to get a good picture:)

Tire swing

I love the "crisp" weather we've been having lately. The boys have been enjoying the backyard so much more than when it was 100 degrees and humid! I got some good pictures of the boys on the tire swing...they love each other so much. Although, it did serve as a lesson on times of day that aren't the best for pictures as well as adjusting the exposure compensation on my camera. Sigh. I really enjoy this photography thing...but, like all things, I find myself getting impatient and wanting to become a professional overnight:)

Pumpkin Patches and Sand Boxes

I got a chance to get a few pictures of the boys at a pumpkin patch this weekend. I love this time of year!

Liberty for the weekend:)

This evening we're heading home to see the parents. I love going home at this time of year...cookouts, pumpkin patches, etc. It's so much fun with the boys at this age...they just LOVE their Papa, Nini, Granny, Grandpa, and Great Grannies!

Here's a picture I took of Grayson the other day. You'll notice he has his best friend, Meerkat, with him. Meerkat goes pretty much everywhere Grayson goes:)

Balls

I mentioned Abram's obsession with the carousel. Grayson's favorite exhibit at the museum is the ball machine. He could stand there and watch the balls all day long. Though, unlike Abram, he doesn't talk about the balls every waking hour!

Carousel

To say Abram loves carousels is an understatement. His obsession is now being fed by the fact that we take/drop off Grayson at the Children's Museum twice a week for preschool. Abram wakes up and almost immediately starts talking about carousels. At one point, the carousel at the museum was closed for maintenance for 3 weeks. He talked non-stop about the carousel being broken. But, it's up and going now and he loves riding it each day after we pick up Grayson!

Photoshop

Aaron got a Photoshop trial installed for me today. I've had fun playing around with the pictures I've taken over the last few days. I have to say that this program is a little intimidating! There is just so much you can do. I think I need to focus more on the photography basics right now and not get too caught up in all the fun that is editing!!