WHY?

Why?
Why would a small (almost 2) child-who-will-remain-nameless take off his diaper and smear the poo on a leather chair?
Why?
And then, why would he think it's funny?
Why?
It was not funny...and it was very stinky.
Not the high point of today...and it will likely stay with me through the night. It was gross...
Why?

Bedtime sweet nothings...

Natan: "I uv you..." (with that SWEET smile and big, brown eyes)

Mimi: "Mama...I your daughter."

George:"Woody!"
"To iffinty...be-ond!"

ALL (singing): "I've got the joy, joy, joy, in my heart...in my heart...to play!"
(Compliments, I believe, of Judy Alfele..."Miss Judy")

On our list of goodbyes tonight when we sang "Good night, babies"
--Sally
--duck
--house
--Duddy & Dorsey
--Julie (Julie S.--they apparently were thrilled that you visited with them tonight!)
--Nana

Most people relish the time when their kids are in bed so they can be without them...we can't stand leaving them--I have to pick a weeping Jason off the floor at bedtime because he's right...there is never enough time.

The season is upon us...

We are off and running with the holidays!
Yesterday, Jason and I had three choirs perform at "Christmas with the Arts" in Henry
County--they were amazing! Now, we are preparing for something each week until Christmas! The kids are over the top excited about the holidays and we have already had to put a barrier around the tree to keep Natan from pulling all the ornaments off! They saw Santa at the mall last week and no one screamed!!!! They all looked pretty stunned in the picture, but that is just what one would expect!
We have also been enjoying some rain here--never enough, but it is a start.
Here's to a chaotic Christmas season (we LOVE the chaos!!!).

Oh, and here is my "5 things I'm grateful for today" list:
1. Aunt Sally (just because she's awesome!)
2. Christmas lights (because they make our kids go crazy)
3. Cornbread dressing (duh)
4. The name "Shrek" for our new kid if it's a boy (chosen by Mimi!)
5. Holiday music (could listen all year long!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

We made it home! We left Cobourg Tuesday at 4:00 pm...made it to Bowling Green, OH by 10:30. VERY surprised to find a huge whirlpool in our room--big enough for all five of us! What a way to wind down! (Of course, there are pictures in Picasa!).
Had a nice long visit with Nana before we returned her to Canada--she is now recovering in peace at home!
We got to see all the Gaymans, the Everests, John Jewell, the Stinnys, and Dad, and had a whirlwind trip in Cobourg for only 4 days. Saw the Cobourg Santa Claus parade with Uncle Neb--it really was too much for him to handle...
Natan made our trip up and back interesting...diarrhea in Knoxville, KY--Jason did the honors while mum and I watched men wretch on their way out of the bathroom!
And then, in Dalton, GA, last night as we went through the drive thru at Chik-fil-et (late night chicken noodle soup!!), Jason was tickling Natan's leg and realized his hand was COVERED WITH POOP!!!!!! He literally exploded in his seat! I was very helpful-- I sat in the back with G and E gagging, laughing, and exclaiming that the car must be sold--we will never get the smell out!!!! So...Jason did the honors again (I offered but he said "it's a job for dad!"), so I didn't argue.
And to think...I had pointed out that the car smelled like stinky feet from all three kids' shoes for most of the trip--oh, how I missed that odor!!
So, we're back and in recovery...
Oh, and it's raining-finally!!!

Are you kidding?????

I was told today at my second appointment that I am having a "high-risk" pregnancy because of my "ADVANCED MATERNAL AGE!!!!!" In other words, I'm old! Nice...two days before my 35th birthday! Well, also because of our previous birth defect history, although there is a 1/1,000,000 chance of this baby having what George has.
They referred me for a fancy ultrasound and offered me amnio which I refused--hello...needle in my belly button!!!!!
So...the old mama is feeling great, considering her ADVANCED MATERNAL AGE--and I was down one pound. Very unlike the first time around!!!
Mimi and George were very excited to hear the baby's heartbeat, but were even more fascinated by mommy wee-weeing in a TINY plastic cup. Mimi wanted to know "do you drink it?" Umm...no. It's pee. I gave them their own cups with their names on them which they filled with water and tried to have labs done on. Man...what a morning!!! Nana survived...barely!

Quotes...

OK, here are some quotes from the kids:

#1
MIMI: These are M & M's? (eating some Halloween candy)
MAMA: Yep.
MIMI: They taste a lot like chocolate.

#2
GEORGE (at Mary Clare's birthday party after stripping): I just need to be naked!

#3
GEORGE (had control of my new camera and knows how to snap pictures): Mama...take a picture of my penis! (Umm...NO!!!!!!!!)

#4
MIMI: Mama...I can't wait to see Nana. I gonna scare Nana in bed. (She has a gross furry "animal" and she is waiting to use it on Nana--should be good!!!!)

Kids by the Dozen...

Had trouble sleeping last night, so I watched a TLC show called "Kids by the Dozen." It is one of those shows following the lives of large families. However, this one is pretty good--they are not some freaky religious family, but a normal, Massachusetts family who just happened to have a lot of children. The woman said, "Once you have three, you may as well have thirty." She is a stay at home mom, and he is a US Postmaster. They do not live extravagantly as you can imagine, and they have a super loving group of kids. So, I told Jason (who was asleep and not with it) that we can have 12 kids, and he mumbled, "OK."
Hee. Hee.
Oh yeah...check out our new photos in the Picasa gallery--major cuteness from Halloween, if I do say so myself!!!

Woo hoo!

Made it to the doctor today for the first official visit. They couldn't measure it the regular way (no details needed!!), so they did an ultrasound...I saw it AND heard the heartbeat!! Very cool...
I am due May 19th. Everything's fine and there's only one!!!!!

Grab a tissue...

The foundation we support on Mimi's behalf, "Love Without Boundaries" sent an update on a little girl we are sponsoring in China. She is getting ready to undergo her second heart surgery (her heart defect is the reason we elected to support her). They sent this YouTube video today. In light of what the Heart Walk does to raise money for the American Heart Association, and dealing with George who has heart disease, this got me (could also be those hormones!). I am not posting it as a plug to support it, just as a reminder that man, are we fortunate...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceAmyu1FpBc

Oh, Baby!

OK, the first one was NOT like this!
My stomach never bothered...my boobs did not hurt this much, and my joints did not feel like they were being ripped apart!
Not complaining, well, maybe a little, but man--I'm whooped!
One of the few foods I can tolerate are sub sandwiches...lovely. Coffee is off my list as of Sunday. Can still eat PBJ! Yea!!!!
Other than that, all is well!
My mum is finally home from Scotland so I can resume our daily phone conversations!
Mimi's favorite thing to say depending on her level of undress: "I naked." or, if she has pants on but no shirt: "I naked on top." Even better, if she is fully in the buff: "I naked as a jaybird!"
Silly, silly kids!

Prenatal Yoga Part One

Not successful...
I dusted off an old DVD from my first pregnancy: Prenatal Yoga. I think my first indication should have been that the woman hosting it spoke far too calmly. I know, Sara...that's Yoga!! My sister is a Yoga expert (seriously, I'm not being fecicious). I applaud her efforts now.
So...the kids are all three excited! "Yoga! Yoga! We going to do yoga!" We all sat on the floor in our sunroom, wonderfully bright on a gorgeous fall morning--67 degrees outside. Perfect yoga weather, right?
No sooner does it start, then George revs up his new garbage truck (loud).
Natan climbs into my lap where I am trying to do a "calming sitting thing" and focus on my breathing and pelvis (yes, I am aware of my pelvis because he is jumping on it!).
Mimi is doing all the moves, but is right in front of me, so I have to pretzel myself to get around her. Then, she runs to the bathroom in a rush to wee-wee, holding her own pelvis which she has now too become aware of.
Then, I hear, "Mama...I sorry..." from the bathroom. I pause the yoga DVD, disentangle myself from Natan, and step over the loud garbage truck.
I find Mimi standing IN FRONT of the potty, with a puddle of wee-wee under her. When I take off her BRAND NEW running shoes, another gallon of wee-wee spills out. She is sorry, and I am not feeling very zen, or namaste, or whatever you are supposed o feel.
Granted, I only made it through the first 2 minutes, and one downward dog.
Perhaps one should attempt any kind of calming, pelvis-y type event when the kids are in bed!
I went for a run on the treadmill while they napped instead!

what a week!

To recap: last Saturday morning, we went to see "Sesame Street Live, Elmo makes Music!" It was fabulous--I want that woman's job! I didn't realize when I bought the seats that we would be on the floor, so when the characters stepped out, they walked right past us! Our three just stared the whole time with looks of utter awe on their faces! Then, on the way home, all we heard from the back seat (Nati was sound asleep by now!), "I wanna see Big Bird! Where's Elmo?" etc. We had a BLAST!
Saturday night was spent at the annual "Meadows' Music Party" which is always tremendous fun!
On Sunday, we gathered together some folks (the usual suspects), for George's third birthday. The theme was "construction/building/tractor/gaggo." It was all pretty good!
Spent Sunday evening at the Knoll's for our weekly Sunday night dinner.
So, this week will be a quiet one--zoo with Aunt Sally and not much more!
Note: I would like to say that Dudley responded to the offensive email and I am more grateful than anyone could imagine. I do not know many ministers who would reach their necks out like that and ripple the waters by acknowledging stupidity head on. Thanks, Dudley...and thanks to those who felt the same anger I did.

Enkutatash!

Happy Ethiopian New Year! (on September 12). We are doing an assortment of things to celebrate Natan's first NY with us. We headed to the Atlanta millenium Festoval on the weekend and saw some traditional dancing and heard some fabulous music. The food, of course, was delish!!! Natan was practically drooling! We took Mary Liz, Mary K-K, and Sally along to help us celebrate!
This Friday, we'll head to our fave place, Queen of Sheba for some Ethiopian food and hang with the folks who work there.
Here is a blurb from the agency website about the Millenium:

This month, Ethiopia celebrates its Millennium. Ethiopia uses the Coptic, or Julian, calendar, which is seven years behind the Gregorian calendar used in the Western world. The new year begins on Meskerem 1 -- or September 11 on our calendar. This year Meskerem 1 will mark the start of the year 2000.

The Ethiopian Millennium

Enkutatash, as the new year holiday is called, is traditionally celebrated by giving bouquets of flowers, or more recently, greeting cards. This year, Ethiopians count down the days to the new year as they converge on Addis Ababa for massive celebrations. Ethiopians in the diaspora who can't make it to their homeland will celebrate in their new homes , in the United States and around the world.
The coming of the millennium is a time for Ethiopains to reflect on their nation's history, as well as its future. Because of the unusual timing of the millennium, shortly after the Gregorian millennium and on a date significant in recent history, the rest of the world is paying attention. Coverage in Time Magazine and England's Independant are highlighting this exciting event.

You must read this all the way through!!!!!

I got this from a fellow blogger on an Ethiopian adoption website. It is hilarious, especially to those of you with kids...and those of you who, like me, hear this question constantly: "Are they all yours? Don't you have your hand full!"
Click the link below and read. It's an expired Ebay sale item ad.
http://cgi.ebay.com/LOT-OF-POKEMON-CARDS-THAT-MY-KIDS-TRIED-TO-SNEAK-BY-ME_W0QQitemZ130144061675QQihZ003QQcategoryZ60238QQ

Nothing much else happening here. Just a lot of pooping and wee-weeing...life in the fast lane, baby!

Atlanta Heart Walk 2007

Yes, folks--it's that time of year again for The Atlanta Heart Walk which raises money for the American Heart Association. George is living proof that money = research = life!

So...mark your calendar for Saturday, November 3rd and join us for a fun-filled morning at Piedmont Park! This is our third year walking, and this will be the best year yet!

If you are unable to walk, you can still help us out by joining our team and raising at least $150.

There is no fee to join Team George, and you will receive a cool Heart Walk t shirt if you raise $150 (Imagine...if 20 people raise only $150 each, we would have $3000, almost half our goal!).

You will also receive an official "Team George 2007" t-shirt!

Don't miss out on a few hours of easy exercise, beautiful Atlanta weather, and a wonderful event celebrating lives like George's!
Click on the "Atlanta Heart Walk" above or to the right--both will take you to our Team George page!

JOIN TEAM GEORGE 2007!

Is stupidity contagious??

In my new but probably short-lived lengthened nap time (due to George, the Instigator having a double ear infection so he's zapped!), I can blog. I remembered something from our trip to Nova Scotia that I can't believe I let go unmentioned, although it was placed immediately upon arriving home in my "Stupid People" journal which now has 27 entries! It goes something like this:
"Umm..._____ (name of idiot husband/father) wanted me to ask you, umm, well, Natan and _______ (name of kid) accidentally shared a water bottle yesterday, and, umm, well, we were wondering, does Natan have just a regular cold, or is it...??" Followed by an awkward silence b/c she didn't quite know how to put the rest of her ignorant question!
At this point, I spoke up because a) I was tired of the Prozac-smiley face and soft voice b) the overuse of the word "Um" which should never be used anyway, and c) I knew that she was concerned that we had brought our African baby near hers and OMG--he might catch something African!! I said very curtly, "No. It's a common cold." My inner voice was saying evil words which I cannot print!
What I DIDN'T tell her was that at the time, we were still waiting for his Hepatitis C results to come back!!!! HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!! Hep C is transmitted through sharing of utensils, cups, water bottles, etc. HA HA HA HA HA!!!!!
Based on my knowledge of this person, she and her husband probably think being black is contagious. I wonder now if I should be concerned that in sharing the water bottle in question, Natan should be in jeopardy--are stupidity and blandness contagious??????!!!!!!
I wish now I had been creative and outlined to her all the things he was being medicated and had been tested for: HIV, HEP A, B, C, ringworm, intestinal worms, impetigo, giardia, TB, typhus...you get the picture.

Grateful Things...this week!

In keeping with those who think about what to be grateful for...here goes:

• Jason, Mimi, George, and Nati
• the Ingrams (future in-laws!)
• macaroni and cheese--what did people do before??
• air conditioning!
• generosity of others (I spent the morning sorting 6 large bins of donated clothes!)
• Dudley Rose's musings on missing the parenting side of things (in a random Sunday morning conversation). We so often hear parents of older children say they are so relieved that they're kids are grown and/or gone. It was nice to hear that he misses parenting.
• people who stay at our church in spite of the fact that they may not agree with everything that is said or done--I can't stand a quitter! How boring it must be to only hang out with those of like minds...yikes!
• NyQuil (oh yeah...)
• Ababa & Enat Alemu...

Olympic Gold???

We started gymnastics last Friday with the most awesome "Coach Dave." Man, is HE patient! He asked that parents be in for the first one or two times, so I got to enjoy watching Mimi and George try to be in a group atmosphere where they are not the center of attention--something they are definitely NOT used to! They did forward rolls, puddle jumps, walking on the black line...it was fantastic! We love Coach Dave! I managed to get a couple of pictures which are to the right!
Some nasty cold has attacked George and I and we are both feeling like CRAP! I have no voice and he is currently losing his. I took my first nap in forever this afternoon...it felt pretty good! Usually nap time is sacred "Let's-get-everything-done-in-two-hours-before-they-wake-up" time, but today was pure joy!
I have also posted a picture of Jason in his new classroom. We were at Woodward's new Primary School on Saturday for a BBQ and tour, and I have to say, best elementary school I have ever seen. I think Woodward's standard of excellence just shot from excellent to "WOW!"

I will survive!!!!

Like the song says...I WILL survive!
Two days without Jason and no one has been voted off the island yet! Although...(!), George pulled a fast but cute one yesterday at nap time. He kept opening his door, then, upon hearing me on the stairs, would slam the door, jump in bed and fake sleep. He blew it with the faking, though, because he was laughing and saying, "I not bad Mommy...hug??" I then tried my best mean mom and shook my finger and whispered angrily, "You get back in that bed this instant!" Greeted by more laughter and a Scary Monster from George (Scary Monster invloves hands up and a growling sound--Nana is often subjected to these on the phone!). I give up.
today was more successful. They are all asleep!

Mimi is changing like crazy each day--it's wild. Today's new comment was, "You look great, Mum" as I changed into a flashy t-shirt! Ok, I didn't say she has good taste, she just knows how to rip off a good compliment!

Natan is speaking more each day, just words right now, but it's getting easier to figure out what he wants:
"Juicy Ammo" (he wants juice in his Elmo sippy).
"Mimi" (referring to his sister--hard one!)
"Dorgie" (yes, referring to his brother!)
And he has two new loves: the dogs and the pool! Loves to be dunked and loves to jump in!!!

Jason is back at work for planning week in the new Primary School. he said it is great and he loves his new space! They're cracking down on cleavage (for teachers), though, so we'll be doing some shopping this weekend--no more deep V-necks for Jason!!!!!

Finally, we've changed the name of yet another children's song...it is now officially " Mr. Eldon Had a Farm," and there's no telling what kind of animals we sing about!! Sometimes Uncle Dane is on the farm and we say "vroom, vroom here..." to imitate the four-wheeler.

That's all, folks!

eh??

We made it to and from Nova Scotia with very little incident...except for an aborted take off in NY...and a 12-hour trip home due to delays!
The kids were in love instantly with their new "Uncle Dane" and they had a blast being in the country!
They finally got to meet Eldon and Janice and now include their names in our nightly "Good Night Babies" song...(tune: Good Night, Ladies, but replace ladies for whatever you want to sing.)
The wedding was very nice...as was the party the night before with some true down home music!
The best surprise was the arrival of Uncle Neb, Jeff, and Heather Gayman! Much merriment caused and I am very impressed with the cover up skills of Auntie Gail! Job well done!
We spent the week lazing around, riding ponies, hanging out at the "Back Shore," and riding four wheelers and tractors.
Natan had a little surgery on Friday and is recovering nicely--pretty loopy from the codeine! Mimi and George are very concerned and keep telling us that "Nati's penis is boken!" Yes, boken. George actually may be concerned that his might break too and is being extra careful!!
It's late...I wonder if I can go to jail for using the P-word??? I hope not.
(new pictures on picasa from the trip)