Rub-A-Dub-Dub

...one little man in a very big tub! I let Garin have a bath in our master bathroom this morning, and he just loved the space, but he enjoyed playing in the "waterfall" even more.

Our Bugaboo

I realized this afternoon that I haven't posted any photos of Garin since his birthday, so I grabbed the camera and tried to sneak a photo before he saw it. No such luck - he has camera radar. I did manage to get a couple of cute ones, which are posted here - milk moustache, cowlick (leftover from naptime) and all. Enjoy!

We have had a busy week, getting a whole new set of adoption paperwork together. We're moving to a new agency that is partnering with Buckner to bring our kids home sooner! It is wonderful news, but it has introduced a brand new set of challenges and requirements. We just remind ourselves of why we're doing it. It will be worth it all in the end! God has shown Himself to be an expert at overcoming obstacles and clearing paths throughout these past 10 months, and we know He will provide the way.

I have hardly seen Karl this week. Since his return from deployment, he's been Chief of Mobility/Deployment for the squadron. It keeps him quite busy, but the base is preparing for and Operational Readiness Inspection this summer, and they are doing major deployment exercises at least once a month in preparation. Because Karl has to coordinate this for the squadron, it means he's got to make sure everything and everyone is ready in advance and then make sure the office is manned around the clock during the exercise. He's been leaving very early in the mornings and getting home after Garin is asleep. I won't see him before bedtime the rest of this week. I miss him, of course, but I feel so bad for him. He's so tired and going non-stop. Thankfully, he's not alone in this. Many of his buddies are working 12-14 hour shifts too, and we wives enjoy complaining about it together. :o)

I'm counting down the days (18) until Matt arrives on March 15 for spring break! I'm so excited to have 10 days with him! Hopefully the weather will be nice.

Long Time, No Write

Here's a picture of last night's Dover AFB Annual Awards Banquet. We had a great time! The food was good. The speaker was interesting. The company was exceptional! This is me, Kristi, Melissa and Shannon.

It's been a long couple of weeks. I had a bad bout of bronchitis and basically spent a week lying around the house, hacking up my lungs and feeling nasty. I am finally coming back to myself, thankfully. Hopefully this will be my last run-in with bronchitis this season, as I'm really getting irritated that it won't leave me alone.

We have been offered the opportunity to partner with another adoption agency to try to get our kids home sooner. (That agency has already received their accreditation and could register our dossier right away.) We are in the process of doing a whole new set of paperwork for them, and hopefully can get things moving again soon! The trickiest thing is finding an LPC that can do the psychological evaluation the new agency requires.

Karl will be flying off again this weekend. It's a mixed blessing, as we hate to see him go, but it is something he needs to do regularly for his career. It is, after all, his primary job. It also provides significant benefits to our bank account, which is especially helpful as we prepare for two trips to Russia this spring!

Please pray for JT Scott. He's the 16-year-old son of my friend, Shauna, whom I have asked you to pray for in the past. He has stage four Ewings sarcoma and is having his leg amputated below the knee tomorrow.

Also, please continue to keep my Aunt Pat and Uncle Harry in your prayers. He has done amazingly well considering the extent of his injuries after a farm accident that took one arm, mangled the other and left him paralyzed from the waist down. Unfortunately, after an accident like that, life is not the same. He has been transferred to a long-term care facility (nursing home) for three months before he can move into the assisted living facility that he and Aunt Pat will live in temporarily until they are able to build the house they want on the family farm. I truly believe that they will make that dream come true, in spite of the obstacles they have faced, but it is a process that is painful and difficult for them. Please pray that God will provide them daily with the strength, patience, comfort and peace that they need to get through the next few months.

Happy Birthday Dear Garin...

It's been a day of fun for Garin and a day of reminiscing for Karl and me! I keep thinking of the day Garin was born: the excitement of the morning, the pain and joy of the evening, and even what I ate for my only meal of the day at midnight (chicken salad that our friend Carolyn got for me). What a blessed day a child's birthday is for a mother!

Garin had birthday cake for breakfast. I know, but it's his BIRTHDAY! When Daddy got in from flying, we opened presents and all went to Chuck E. Cheese for dinner before heading off to praise team rehearsal. A good time was had by all!

From Garin: Thank you so much for the cards (and cash!), presents and birthday wishes!!! Mama and Daddy are going to take me shopping. I need new shoes (AGAIN), and they promised to let me buy some toys or books too!

Here are some pictures of my day:

I loved the round-and-round slide at Chuck E. Cheese!

I wasn't too sure at first if Tickle-Me Elmo was demon-possessed or just silly.
Then I decided he was pretty cool and needed a kiss......
......and a hug!
This was my card from Aunt Betty and Uncle Jimmy. I really liked looking at the animals!

2 YEARS OLD!!!

The "teacup" ride at Chuck E Cheese was fun, but not nearly as much fun as putting all of our tokens in the slots!
Time to open presents!


A little help and supervision from Harvey:

This speaks for itself