Sprink Smidge for LUNATICS like US!

We are on another family adventure this weekend to visit my brother in MN. On the way, we discovered the the fabled partially sprinkled doughnut is actually available at Dunkin Donuts in Illinois.


Here's a little secret about our family.... Everyday, something happens that reminds us of a Brian Regan bit. Here's a link to the Donut Lady bit that we have relived each time we enter, pass or even think about a bakery.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1Yzb3WhnQo




Here's a picture of Will's Sprink Smidge. It was delectible!

A Video Update

Oh my what an incredible adventure this has been. The past few days have been full of so many stories and great experiences for our entire family. We left Antigua on Wednesday afternoon to go to Santiago Atitlan. We drove (well Venicio did the driving) through many small villages, a busy town (Chimaltenango) and up into the mountains. We traveled on the main highway but still, the road was incredibly narrow. The entire trip was on a paved road but there were about 10-12 bridges and turns that only one car could pass at a time. Venecio drove us to Panajechel where we boarded a boat to ride across Lake Atitlan to Santiago - a 25 minute ride.

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Here, I had to leave a few bags behind to help Lily and Max negotiate the sand covered rocks.

It was a rough ride with 2-3 foot waves.

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I LOVE being married to this woman!!

I find myself staring at her many times on this vacation and wondering things like -

"She is so good to me."

" She is gorgeous."

"What a great Mom."

"Why do these crazy vacations make us so happy?"

We arrived at La Posada de Santiago and with much help, lugged all of our bags from the dock up to La Hacienda - about 100 feet up the mountain. We only had enough time to swim in the pool for a few minutes when it started to rain. Rain like it does not rain back home.

Then the power went out. But they were still able to serve dinner. In fact, everything on the menu was available, except drinks that required the blender. If you listen closely to the audio, you can hear our dinner entertainment. Gabbie and Will treating us and the few other guests to a pop bottle version of "Hot Cross Buns".

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The next morning was a cool and misty, but we could see the volcano across the bay very well. It rained again that afternoon, although not as heavy. Then we left on Friday morning to visit with Dora and Ruben in the city. After another 3 hour drive we arrived and they were very gracious hosts. Teh served a great meal and even tought Carrie how to make Tamales. They were delicious.

Things that speak to my heart (part two)

Need I say more?? I met this adorable little boy at an orphanage (fundaninos), yesterday. It was love at first sight! I'll just say that it is probably a good thing that adoptions are closed here right now or my husband would have one whiny wife on his hands "please, just one more?" Anyway, I was able to spend some time loving on the little honey. What a handsome little guy, don't you think?

This reminded me that although adoptions are closed right now in Guatemala, there are thousands of little kids in orphanages around the world waiting to be loved on, and to have a family of their own. (For those of you wondering, we still think four kids is a good number).

the things that speak to my heart

Our time here in Guatemala is certainly a time of vacation for our family. However, it is also a time of giving to those in need, a time a listening to the Lord, and a time of continuing to grow some relationships that are so precious to us. So, with our time here, comes a rush of emotions that range from laughter with my husband and children, wonderful memories made with friends, and pain and heartache from the devastation that saturates this beautiful country. Every time we are here (and this time is no different), the Lord shows Himself to our family in new and beautiful ways. I think that is why I long to come back here. Here is a story that I will carry in my heart for the rest of my days:

We arrived in Guatemala on Thursday, exhausted from the trip down here. Our wonderful friends picked us up from the airport to deliver us to the school and children's home where they work with and minister to over 400 children that live in heart of the drug and gang capital of Guatemala. The town that they live in is noisy, crowded, dirty, and full of violence. However, once you enter the gate to the home and school, the children there are happy, playful, and full of hope. How amazing it was to look outside of the walls and see despair, and inside to see life. It was like seeing Heaven and Hell at the same time. What a privilege it was for us to see this amazing family serving the Lord in this place. We stayed there only one night and had much fun playing with the kids and taking in all that this wonderful ministry has to offer.

We were able to tour the dorms where 60 of the (orphan) children live. (The other 340 kids live outside of the walls). On our tour of the dorms, one thing was very clear to me. These kids do not have any toys! I did not see one toy. Clothing, beds, kitchen, yes, but not one toy. Wow, and these kids are so happy. Later that day, we were loading up the van, and one little girl (that had spent some time with my girls), came running up to the van. She was all smiles as she announced "Yo tengo un regalo para Lily"....I have a present for Lily. In her little, sweet hand, she held a small Ariel Princess doll. Earlier that day, my girls had talked with her and she and Lily bonded over their common love of princesses.

I was tormented at the very depths of my heart. How do I allow this child to give my daughter this little doll when it may very well be the only toy that she calls her own? My first thought was to not allow her to give it. Then, I realized that I would be stealing her joy. We thanked her and hugged her and quickly snapped the photo below. She was so very happy to give. I ask myself, do I give that joyfully? That sacrificially? Will I ever learn to give as this little girl did? I was reminded of the widow giving her last penny. I can imagine that our heavenly father was smiling down on His precious child.

The Land of Eternal Spring

What a great day here in Antigua. It is amazing what can happen when you are together in a foriegn country and just trying to get a few things done.

On the agenda for today was to get some Quetzales (money), eat a late breakfast, and go to the store to get food and a pinata for Lily's party tomorrow. We did all of this but it seemed like every where we went, there was so much more to the story.

A short carriage ride to the Santo Domingo

For breakfast, we decided to eat at one of the fanciest and most expensive hotels in the city, Casa Santo Domingo. We had heard from several friends that the food is world class and the price is reasonable, so Why not go? Our kids all remembered being there last year, and enjoyed the beautiful gardens complete with ancient statues and parrots. The meal was excellent and it cost about $30 for all six of us. That's only a little more than McD's would cost us back home....

Before we left, Lily even led the parrots in a screaming contest (I think she won) and she saw a real live Princess (there was a wedding going on and we ran into the bridal party).


Later in the day, Carrie and the older two kids went to the local market to find a pinata while Lily, Max and I found a place to sit and get a light snack. Well, at one point, Lily dropped the cap for her bottle of juice, there is no 5 second rule here, so the cap will not be used again. I am holding the uncapped juice and some of a pastry in my right hand, and using my left hand to hold Lily on my lap. When I lift the pastry to my mouth, the juice pours all over my leg making it look exactly like I have wet myself. Max sees this and begins to laugh while drinking his 7 up. He spews a good amount of 7Up at me. So here we are on a busy sidewalk, my two little kids laughing and burping, and me looking incontinent. Good times....


Then we meet up with Carrie again and Gabbie is carrying the biggest pinata I have ever seen. They had asked for a princess so the man in the market was digging through his inventory fow quite some time. When he came back with this, she couldn't reject it. And what princess loving 3 year old wouldn't love a 4 foot tall Belle at their party? We became the most popular photo op in Antigua for at least 15 minutes.

We are going to have so much fun beating the Dulce out of her tomorrow. - Belle, not Gabbie.

Can Three Beautiful Princesses fit in One Tuk Tuk?

There are a few other stories to tell, but I will save those for another time.

Thanks for checking on us.

The Adventure Begins!!!

We arrived safely in Guatemala yesterday morning and have enjoyed the great hospitality of our friends, the Smiths. (http://web.me.com/thesmithfamily5/Site/Welcome.html)


It was an amazing day. We were running a little late (30 min) getting to the airport this morning and we BARELY made it onto our 5:40AM flight. In fact, the agent that helped us check in told Carrie about 5 times "You are not going to make it on that plane" With 4 kids, 9 checked bags, and 6 carry-ons, it did seem like an impossible task, but she helped us anyway and we made it onto the plane just minutes before it left the gate.







One more quick story... Our boys spent a good share of the evening playing soccer with 6 or 7 boys who live here. It was a ton of fun, and the footwork some of these kids can do is amazing. After playing into the darkness, Max informed us that "I have the same soccer skills as the Guatemalan boys. And I didn't even practice." I love that boy's confidence.

Gabbie's Birthday!!!!!

I cannot believe that our oldest child turned twelve this weekend. As a mom, I could fill this entire blog entry with all sorts of sappy emotional jargon. I could write for the next two hours about how I held her in my arms as a newborn baby what seems like just last week and about how it must have been yesterday that we were teaching her how to ride her bike without training wheels. But now my eyes are starting to fill with tears and this blog entry was supposed to be about what a great celebration we had this weekend, so I will try to stick to the point.

We surprised Gabbie with a room make over. Her mattress has been on the floor for the past nine months. She has been using the comforter to cover up with that I made her when she was 2 years old, and that was two houses ago. Yes, her room needed a little attention. So, we decided to go all out. Chad made (yes, he made) her a platform bed with a gorgeous upholstered headboard. (What an amazing man he is, but again, I will try to stick to the point!) I picked out the rest of the decor, and I tried to really choose the style that my preteen daughter would love. Some great friends helped to get her out of the house for the afternoon, and here is the result:

notice in the picture below that Max is covering his ears because his sister is screaming so loud. Yeah, I think she likes it!

If you can get past Max in his unders, this is the best we could do for a "before picture".

Gabbie had a fun celebration with some friends at the Mall last night.

Anyone for a Mall scavenger hunt? What could be more fun for this great group of girls?

How much is the most expensive pair of men's shoes in the Foot Locker? How many different colors of "CROCS" does the Hallmark store have? Any guesses? These girls had to answer those questions and more as part of the adventure.

Will woke Gabbie up on her birthday with a surprise scavenger hunt at our house which included finding ten different flavors of Jones Soda. I must say, this was a very creative gift that he came up with.

Anyone for a Jones Soda at 8 A.M.?

Happy Birthday to my wonderful daughter!

The Auto Show

A few weeks ago I took Gabbie, Will and Max to the Auto Show. We had a great time and I really enjoyed experiencing this with the three of them. Each one was able to enjoy the show for unique reasons. Gabbie loves all of the fashion and design on display. Will searches out the most unique or expensive car. Max loves the free stuff and being able to sit in the cars like he's the driver.

Max with Max.. Can you tell which one speaks with a German accent??

The ultimate Fashion accessory.... a Smart4two

The Audi R8... Just like Tony Stark drives in Iron Man

Maybach... Check out the reclining rear seats.

Here is another great story. What can a dad do to get his 5 year old to get dressed when the batman shirt that he ( the 5 year old) wants to wear is dirty??? Well, Max and I were able to get him to be Batman with out wearing said t-shirt. How?

I give you...

Bruce Wayne

and his lethal brief case!

Gotcha!!!

Today, our family celebrated the two year anniversary of Lily being home with us. What a wonderful day of reflecting on the joyous home coming of our daughter. We waited so long to bring her home. During the time of waiting, our faith was tested in more ways than I ever thought possible. I begged the Lord to hear my prayers in a way that I had never done before. I asked questions that I had never asked of the Lord and His plan for our lives. Here is this little girl, without a family, we love her, and will take care of her....what more do you want from us? Bring her home. Yet, it wasn't our timing, it was His. I will forever look back on that time of waiting and know that we were in His grip in a way that we will cherish forever. We had no control over this situation. We waited on Him. We prayed. We waited. We prayed. We waited. The Lord taught us that there is a mountain top experience after you spend time in the valley. God has been so amazing to our family. We are so very thankful to Him.

So, we spent the day talking about "remember two years ago".....remember saying sad goodbyes to Guatemala, remember waiting in the plane on the runway with a hot, tired, scared little girl in my arms (we had only had her with us for 5 days at that point...she was missing her wonderful foster mother and all of the comforts of the only home she had ever known), remember touching down on U.S. soil, being so thankful that my daughter is now an American, remember sitting in the airport in Texas with delay after delay due to engine problems knowing that our kids were waiting for us to arrive in the airport with their sister. Remember the crowd of family and friends waiting for us in the terminal to welcome us home. Remember eating cake at the airport at midnight to celebrate as all of our loved ones got their first glimpse of our new beautiful daughter. Remember the ride home...thinking wow...four kids....can we do this??

I continue to be overtaken by the joy that adoption brings. What a gift we were given, two years ago. What a gift today to be mommy to this beautiful little girl.

I also cannot help but think about families that started this process when we started and still have not brought their children home. My heart aches for these families. I cannot imagine missing out on the past two years of my daughter's life. My thoughts and prayers are with these families tonight as they wait to bring their little ones home.

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We were so thankful to be home.

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Here are our wonderful family and friends waiting to welcome us home!

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Tonight, the four kids together enjoying our "Gotcha day" celebration that included watching a princess movie that we gave to Lily today. Also, rice crispy treats and peanut butter balls were part of the little party!

Splash!!!!

I am very excited to share this video with you all.

Lily has been able to swim pretty well for a few weeks now, but we finally brought our camera to the pool to document this achievement.

Thanks to Max for his Mad Film Making Skills.

Icing on the top

There was a nice coat of Ice on everything this morning.

Christmas Card 2008

We hope that all of our friends in the Blogosphere have a Picture Perfect Christmas!

Let it Snow! Let is Snow! LET IT SNOW!!!!!!

It doesn't show signs of stopping, and I've got some corn for popping......

For those of you that are reading our blog and don't live in West Michigan, we thought you should have a look at the Blizzard conditions that we have been enduring for the last 24 hours. Chad and the kids decided that they would bundle up and brave the wintery conditions this afternoon. At the time that they went out, the temperature was 10 degrees. Gabbie, Max, and Lily returned inside for some hot chocolate after these photos were taken. However, Will stayed out and helped Chad finish the shoveling (the snow blower stopped working on him.....great timing!).

We have spent the day finishing up our Christmas wrapping, baking, and cards. This year, if I'm not ready for Christmas, I have no excuse!!!

Check this out

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

A Day at the Park

One of my favorite things about homeschooling my kids is our weekly outings. We call them fieldtrips...some are educational, some are just for fun. We had a beautiful fall day last week, so I decided we would get in one last trip to the skate park before the winter weather sets in. The great thing about homeschooling is that you can go places when everyone else is not there. I don't think we would last two minutes in the skate park when it is full of teenagers. However, we went when everyone was in school and had the park to ourselves. The kids brought a bike, a scooter, rollerblades, and a little ride on toy. What a blast!!

Seven is Enough!!

This weekend we have had the pleasure of adding three children to our family. What a blessing to enjoy some extended time with our friend's kids who also happen to be our kid's friends. The kids have been a joy to have around and have fit in very nicely to our family. We have made some great memories this weekend.

One thing that Chad and I have learned this weekend, though, is that seven kids are a lot of kids. That translates into a lot of dishes to wash, a lot of voices to quiet, and a lot of shoes to keep track of. Of course, it also means a lot of giggles, a lot of interesting conversations, and a lot of fun!

We will cherish these memories for years to come!

Thanks, Troy and Lisa for sharing your kids with us.

This was what happened at bedtime the first night.....oh my, it may be a long night!!!

On Saturday, we decided that some good physical activity would be fun for everyone, and just might wear everyone out a bit, so we spent the day at the gym for some rock climbing and swimming. That is one full hot tub!

Sophie shows off her underwater tricks!!

Josh and Will enjoy the ride down from their difficult climb!

A big smile from Sophie after she made it to the top of the rock wall!

ALL THE MAVERICKS IN THE HOUSE, PUT YOUR HANDS UP!!! The kids had a great time watching some polital reruns of SNL online today and enjoyed rapping and dancing to them. I just had to snap a pic of this...they were having such a great time. With that being said.....if I hear this line one more time this weekend....I may just loose it. (I cannot believe what my two year old has to put up with.....shouldn't she be watching Barney or something?)

I'm not trying to make a political statment here, just having a little fun after this election week. I'm so glad the election is over...really, SNL was fun, but all of the ads, I could do without!!