New Picture--finally

Well, as you may have noticed we have a new picture on our page! I have been trying to get a picture of the two of them that actually reflects our blog name, our girlS(emphasis on more than one) for some time now. For whatever reason, they will NOT cooperate with my photographic efforts, so for now this one will have to do.

Hopefully soon I can get a picture of the two of them where they at least both looking the same way. Hey, a girl can dream right?!?! :)

Bunna lover!

We have a little girl with serious love for coffee---particularly Ethiopian coffee (bunna in Amharic). Makenna has always asked for coffee whenever we have had it since she was little. At first we resisted for obvious reasons (really who needs a toddler hopped up on caffeine??) but would occasionally give her a sip or two. As time has passed, she is no longer happy with a sip or two, but really loves to have it. We ate at an Ethiopian restaurant a week ago and she drank almost an entire cup of coffee throughout the course of dinner. Everytime she had a chance (when I wasn't paying attention) she was sipping out of my cup hoping that I wouldn't notice. Of course I did when my cup was nearly empty! The craziest part is that this was at 8:30 p.m. at night! But, she fell asleep as soon as we got in the car (around 10 p.m.) and slept with no problems. Wow, dodged a bullet there right?!? :)

(playing with an empty cup that she would not throw away because we had gotten coffee at an Ethiopian cultural event and she could still smell the coffee in the cup-took me 2 days to get this away from her-crazy girl!)

She also seems to notice the difference in the type of coffee. Ethiopian coffee is usually brewed pretty strong and has a smooth distinct taste. When we have had other types of coffee she will ask if it is bunna, like she knows that it isn't the same. Weird! Who knew a 3 yr old could be a coffee snob? She even asks for bunna candy. There are coffee flavored Werthers (which are great by the way) and she would choose them hands down over any other candy. Cracks me up when she talks to me with her little baby coffee breath.


Oh, and we aren't completey irresponsible about the effects eithe. We have done some research on the amount of caffeine in coffee and it's affects. It seems to be a pretty common thread with a lot of families who have adopted from Ethiopia, especially older kids, because coffee is regularly given to kids. As far as we can tell, no stunting of growth here(which is NOT true), she's still a tall drink of coffee! :)

Do people really not recognize the continent of Africa?

Okay, warning, this may turn into a mini-rant. You have been given fair warning! :)

I recently purchased this awesome necklace from a lady who is selling them to help raise money for her daughter and son-in laws adoption from Ethiopia on this Etsy sight. I LOVE mine and think the idea is awesome. And, obviously we have a deep connection to the continent and it holds a special place in our hearts, so I am proud to be reminded of that daily.

However, I have had more people than I care to admit ask me what it is. And several people have even asked me if it is Wisconsin! What???? Why would I wear a necklace of Wisconsin? I mean its not something that I am THAT proud of, and anyone who knows me, knows that I would move in a heartbeat to anywhere other than WI. And, besides, it's CLEARLY not WI anyhow.

I am shocked that people don't recognize an entire continent. Really? Is it possible that there are that many narrow minded people still in this world? Or is it because it is Africa? Is it not worth caring about? Or acknowledging? Or, is this just a sign of how selfish we truly are as Americans? Regardless of the reason, I am bothered by it....a lot!

On a positive note, my girls both LOVE this necklace as well. Makenna noticed it the first time I put it on and told me how pretty it is. So, I showed her where Ethiopia is and what the necklace was. She was smiling the whole time I told her that Ethiopia was so special to me that I wanted to remember it every day. And, Kya plays with it everytime she is near me. So, I am thinking of getting them a similiar version of this necklace and see if I can get their names engraved on them and save them for them until they get just a little older. Something special that they can have the same as mommy you know! :)

Tagged!

I have been blog tagged by Heather to do "The 8". It took me a while to come up with some of these answers. Not sure if I am just so tired that I can't think, or if my brain is going soft. So anyway, here goes:

The 8

8 Things I'm Passionate About:
-My family
-God
-Ethiopia
-Photography
-Travel(though I don't get to go as much as I would like anymore ;) )
-Laughing
-Learning about different cultures
-Spending time with people I really enjoy being with
-Children

8 Things I Want To Do Before I Die:
-Go back to Ethiopia
-Get in shape
-Live abroad, preferrably in Africa
-See my children grow up and be happy
-Celebrate my 50th anniversary
-Go to Thailand- I have a friend there I would love to see!
-Adopt another child (at least one!)
-Fly an airplane

8 Things I Say Often:
-Kya, Uh, Uh, Uh (our way of saying no!)
-Makenna leave your sister alone
-Brown eyes to blue eyes(when I want Makenna to look at me, it's our little code)
-Shut up?? (in a suprised way when I hear something I didn't know about, although I can't say it in front of Makenna or I will be corrected)
-I am SO late!
-Seriously?!?
-I have a headache.
-What am I going to wear to work? I have nothing to wear.

8 TV Shows I've Recently Watched:
-Music Videos in the morning to wake-up
-Project Runway
-An Adoption Story
-Don't Forget the Lyrics
-Hi-5(kids show)
-Little House on the Prairie
-Dora
-What Not to Wear

8 Songs I Could Listen To Over and Over (in no particular order):
-No One (Alicia Keys)
-Killing Me Softly With His Song(The Fugees)
-Be With You (Mr. Big)
-Mama I'm Comin' Home (OO)
-I Am Not My Hair(India Arie)
-Buffalo Soldier (Bob Marley)
-My Idea of Heaven (Leigh Nash)
-The Story (Brandi Carslile)

8 Things That Attract Me To My Friends:
-Funny
-Honest
-Outgoing
-Easy to laugh with
-Comfortable
-Open minded
-Generous
-Caring

8 Things I've Learned (or been reminded of) This Past Year:
-My girls are my life and I love them more each day
-I DO need to ask other people for help
-I DO have the best family in the whole world
-My husband is a really great dad
-I really miss Ethiopia and wish we could go there more often
-I have met some of the most amazing friends through this journey that I would never have met if we hadn't adopted. I have also realized that our true friends will always be there when we need them.
-I have the most awesome group of friends

8 People I Think Should Do "8":
-Edie
-Jessica
-Rebekah
-Laura
-Shonna
-Mel
-Kerry
-Stacey

9 months old

Kya turned 9 months old this week. I can't believe how fast the last couple of months have gone since I have gone back to work, and it seems like Ky can do something new every week.

She is officially crawling when she feels like it. She still will do this weird scooting/dragging her body with just her arms thing when she gets in a hurry. She has been doing this for over 2 months and we finally figured out that she does it because it is easier than crawling. We have all wood and tile floors on the main level of our house, and it is much easier for her to "slide" around on the floor, than to get up and crawl. Crazy kid! :) But, now she is already trying to get up on her knees and pull up on everything she can find. Oh, and sometimes she does a little showing off too and adds a little extra kick to the crawl.

She has grown a little again, but is still a short little thing. She also now weighs 22+lbs! She has doubled her weight in about 4 months! She is a solid little brick. She also is strong, ridiculously strong and often tries to out muscle her big sister (who only weighs 33 lbs). It is hilarious to watch...for now at least! But, she is also very tolerant of her sister and enjoys just about anything Makenna dreams up to do to her. Including lay on her and pulling her around by her feet(under supervision of mom and dad), which sounds dangerous, but Kya LOVES it. See the evidence below! :)

And, she says Da Da ALL of the time! When Daddy walks in the room she is babbling instantly. We have also been doing sign language with her and she consistently signs for her bottle, and is starting to do food, more and all done. So, we are making progress on the communication front as well, which is SO important for her. She gets frustrated very easily, so I think this will be key.

She has changed so much already from when we got home. It's amazing how resilient kids are. She is funny, determined, loud, a snuggle bug when she is tired and is still a major Daddy's girl(that part hasn't changed :)). She is a joy to have around (most of the time-ha ha!) and I love watching the girls together. It is amazing to see their love. It is so sweet, pure and undeniable. It's what helps us get through the days when they forget that they really do love each other! :) I really can't imagine our life without her. I remember what it was like, but I can't imagine going back to that life. We have blessed in a way I barely understand.

SOOOO big!

That is Kya's latest trick and she is SO proud of herself when she does it. It is always followed up with applause and a lot of cheering by her big sister(and mom and dad of course), so I'm sure it's a trick that will be around for awhile since she worships the ground her sister walks on. Makenna swears that "she taught Kya how to do it just like me". Seems like the proof is undeniable after all. :)

Kya will bust out her trick whenever she thinks it will distract us from correcting her, or any time she is into something she isn't supposed to be. It was funny at first, but now Makenna thinks it will work for her too, so we have our work cut out for us! :)

Art---3 yr old style

Sorry to go missing in action again for so long. Life is kicking our butts again around here, but hopefully soon things will get back to "normal".





Clearly you can see that we are SO busy working on important things like playing with PLAYDOH! This is one of Makenna's new favorite things to do. She made a nest and eggs (and did an awesome job I might say) and commissioned me to make her "a momma birdie" for the nest. This is our collaboration. Pretty cute huh? Clearly you can tell I was never an art scholar!