FFF-favorite picture

Today's challenge was to post a favorite picture from January.

No small task.

January was filled with so many moments. We went to Oregon, we played with our other friends from Guatemala, Peter had his birthday. It was hard to choose so I narrowed it down to two. They are both of our snow trip and in both of them Lily is playing with her big cousin.

More than anything this month Lily is showing a change.
The girl has stranger anxiety pretty bad. A stranger constitutes anyone you don't see on a daily weekly basis. She does not like strangers looking or speaking to her and is not at all afraid to show her opinion about that fact through her actions. She scowls, sometimes grunts, and my all time favorite yells no at them. When we go to friends houses it takes an excruciating time for her to get down and play. The change is I think we are working through it. It seems as if it is taking less time for her to warm up. Less time to show others the charm we get to see at home. I am so excited to see this phase passing. It has been around 3 years. I was beginning to think it was a personality trait and not a phase :)

Yeah, for my girl who is learning to trust!

Auntie Monica

Meet Auntie Monica.

Monica is the closest thing to a sister I will ever have. She is that friend. The one that you are lucky to have. Monica and I met in college. She was my saving grace. She is the friend I can tell all my secrets and know that no matter what it might be she will lend me a ear without judgement. She has seen me through college boyfriends, infertility, adoption, marital bliss and at times strife. She was there at all hours to eat fried food with me and tell me it would be okay. She also taught me about waxing my eyebrows. That alone makes her a really good friend. I lived with Monica throughout college and years later. If it were not for our current significant others I am quite sure we would still live together. When Peter and I got married she left him with detailed instruction on how to care for me. Including if she has a headache ask if she's taken anything to dull the pain and if you offer her an orange you have to peel it or she won't eat it. So why am I telling you about my friend Monica well cause I am not a very good friend. 2 years in a row now I have forgotten her birthday. With each of these years I have duly noted that it is January so it is Grandma Ely's birthday Auntie Monica's birthday and Peter's birthday. And each year somehow her birthday has passed by and I have missed it. SERIOUSLY what a schmuck. This year I actually went out to lunch with my dear friend and it did not occur to me until after I got home that I missed her birthday.

I know she reads my blog and I know this will bring a smile to her day. You mean the world to me twin and Happy happy 29th :) birthday.

P.S. I do not have any pictures of us together. How could this be. I must have left all of my college pictures somewhere along the way. If you have any I would love to replace that tiny although beautiful picture of you with one of us in all our tanning glory.

FFF Favorite animals real and stuffed

I enjoyed this theme it was fun to look back through fun times with our animals.

Meet tags, tags doesn't fit the theme but just couldn't be left out. Tags was our first friend the first american we bonded with. Tags is a boy I don't know why but when referring to tags we always say where is he. Lily actually asked me if tags was a boy and I said well he is a blanket but we do call him he. We still sleep with tags and bring him to preschool with us although he stays in our backpack these days. Tags is looking pretty tired and he seems to carry around a certain odor at times. We say Lily we must wash tags and she says no mommy he's not stinky, but really oh my!

This is our tiger. His name is Apple tiger, don't ask me why? Apple Tiger sleeps with Lily every night (along with tags of course) and before bed each night Lily asks if Apple will protect her and I say yes of course he will. She has quite vivid dreams and she doesn't like them scary or not. She tells me that now when she has a dream she covers both there heads and he protects her.

And then there is Stuey aka Lily's baby brother. They get in trouble.

They take family pictures together with equal amounts of cooperation.

They both need their naps.

And lastly they get dressed up with the same amount of enthusiasm.

Miracles

I spent the evening with our friends Jen and Dave and Aviana. Previous to this last summers tragedy and subsequent miracle I thought a miracle was something that happened to the lucky. Maybe those that had enough prayer, positive thought etc.... and then this random miracle would happen. Miracles didn't usually happen to me or others that I know. Now though I see a miracle differently. Aviana's sweet presence with us is nothing short of a miracle, but it has nothing to do with randomness it has to do with the audacity of hope. The audacity to look people in the eyes in the face of disaster or failure and to tell them no. No I do not and will not except that. As Aviana gets better it has nothing to do with divinity or a random act it has to do with work and perseverence on her families part (I am talking a LOT of work). Jen says we all have this strength her family possess in us. I do believe that she is right. So now instead of a random act a miracle is this: A miracle is something born in the heart of someone who had the audacity to try. Seeing a miracle this way makes me see them everywhere. Most effectively in my friends lives and it put me in the drivers seat to make my own miracles happen. And this brought me to thinking about Haiti and if we all sat and waited for some divine miracle to heal that country well really nothing would happen and those peoples lives would continue to falter in their disaster. So in the name of Aviana I donated money to the red cross. Not a lot cause I do not have a lot but if we all did just a little we would also be a witness to a miracle we helped create. Just a string of thoughts and a change of perspective in my own corner of the world.

FFF- Close ups

Join us for a night in the life. A little T-ball in the house. Really why not?!? I can not see anything that could go awry here :) And the outfit don't you all wear a pink baby blanket and a snow hat in the house? Really if you don't, well, your just not quite as fashion forward as us.
And then a little snuggle time with daddy and her baby brother. She insists I tell you and since more than likely she is not getting a sibling we'll go with it.

And here are a few close ups. Umm, I think Stuey is a little camera shy.

And my beautiful baby girl. I had to shop in the big girl section of target the other day. I don't want to be doing that, but I have to tell you the older she gets the more she can express herself the more fun we are having around here. Well most of the time except when she slams her door and says leave me alone mommy I want to be by myself.......

this mommy learned in Oregon that when one wants to be all by herself that it could be that we are hiding in a closet eating an entire pack of our cousins gum. Yep you read that right an entire pack. I said Lily that could have made you very sick and she gave me the look. You know the one I'll be seeing when she is around 15. It could have been accompanied by the hand and she said no mommy gum is good for my tummy.

First Guat get together of 2010

I just love getting together with these children.

It is just plain fun. Today we gathered at my house.

I think Lily may have formed her first crush.

She would not leave J.C. alone.

I will have to say I think he enjoyed every minute of it. Isn't this a sweet face he is getting so big.
Elia is moving away. We will miss this sweet face.

She is taking her big sister with her. We will sorely miss her to.

I don't like goodbyes.

Rayna came out of the playroom just like this. Too funny.

Irma and Rayna were together in their foster home in Guatemala.

How sweet is that.

Lily and Irma are becoming friends. They are both quiet girls so it is taking a little effort.

You must be prepared for any weather.

I told Lily she could bounce on the couch if she cooperated.

You will see below that this tactic worked.

Well by worked I mean she is in the picture I should have mentioned she also needed to smile.

The gang.

Funny Girl

Lily had me laughing tonight. Mostly Lily gets words right these days. Her vocabulary is getting better and better. I still think she is a bit behind developmentally, but she is catching up. Anyways in the bath today we were getting ready to get out of the bath and she wanted to watch bolt here is our conversation.
Lily: Mommy does Bolt have an attitude?
Me: Yeah I guess he does.
Lily: I have an attitude.
Me: Yeah sometimes you do, who told you you had an attitude?
(My mind is wandering thinking that she was misbehaving at school. Sass is the term I use)
Lily:I had a Thomas attitude on my hand.
Me: Oh you mean a tattoo.
Lily: yes I want another attitude on my back like bolt.
Lets hope that if we get an attitude it's much later in life and tastefully done.

Snow

We rang in the new year in Oregon visiting family. We took Lily to visit the snow. She has not been to the snow since she was two. She was NOT a fan at two but two years later is a completely different story. She loved every minute of it.

Our first steps.

Her and I went down the hill together a few times.
Then her and her cousin Sophia went down the hill about 50 more times. Every time they got to the bottom Lily would say again and Sophia went each time until they had a particularly rough landing where she completely shielded my baby from impact. Sophia is turning into such a beautiful woman right before my very eyes and she's beautiful from the inside out. I am very proud of her.

One of my favorites of the day! I love this picture!! Peter's tongue is out while he concentrates on staying on the sled.He did it!!!

Here is Uncle Marcus can you believe they are brothers.

This is our cousin Kai we didn't see much of him, he is 14. I like this picture because that is Sophia coming down the hill behind him.
And the take down. Uncle Peter thinks it's funny that he can still do that. Next trip I'm pretty sure that move won't work.

Beautiful Sophia
Bet you didn't know Peter could fly......

Only for a second

Silly family photo

Rain

New years day we took the perfect walk in the rain. Bee Bop loved splashing in the puddles. Overall I think she liked the change in weather that Oregon brought.

Lily loved every minute of stomping in the puddles. The deeper the better!! By the time we left she was wet up to her knees.

Cousin Kai

Cousin SophiaHappy to be takin a rest on the bridge. Actually she didn't rest at all she ran up and down and up and down. Did I mention she slept REALLY, REALLY well on our trip.

Uncle Marcus and Sophia kickin' back.

Picturesque bridge and rainbow.

I love this picture.