Well tonight we leave for the airport.
And so it is natural to assume there would be lots of excitement around here--- which there has been.
Let's just say it involved a little boy getting wet and one Mama going crazy because of it.
But it ended well, and I am back to being cool, calm, and collected.... for the time being.
In a few hours we are going to Andrew's piano recital and then we will begin dropping the kids off with friends and family.
While I am in Ukraine, I will not be blogging here--- instead you can visit over here for daily updates where you can meet the two newest members of our family.
Hope you all have a wonderful next couple of weeks!
P.S. Our dishwasher stopped working and I was sure it needed to be fixed or replaced. Wonderful timing. I was fine with dealing with it after we came back from Ukraine, but John wanted to take a look at it. He googled what was wrong and found someone who had the same problem with the same dishwasher and paid over $100 for a repair man to come out and reset it. Instead of everyone else paying for this same problem he posted the instructions on how to reset it. And so John was able to reset our dishwasher and now it works! Praise God!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Small Group
This afternoon we met with our small group for fun, food, and fellowship. It was so much fun! All the kids enjoyed the slide-- especially Alex and Dennis! After dinner we gathered around for prayer for our trip to Ukraine on Monday and our friend Paul's back.
Doesn't it look Annalyn is walking on water??
Doesn't it look Annalyn is walking on water??
Friday, June 11, 2010
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Caleb's Graduation
Caleb graduated 8th grade today! What an amazing young man he is turning out to be! He is so charismatic and well rounded-- thoroughly making the most of his 8th grade year! At the graduation ceremony he was awarded (boy) student of the year for his school! Only two of these awards are handed out each year--- one to a girl and one to a boy--- and it is an honor to be selected by the whole student body as one who demonstrates all six pillars of character. Trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, citizenship, fairness, and caring--- what awesome traits to have. Way to go Caleb!
Caleb attended his graduation dance and is now on his way to Denny's to eat and hang out with a few friends.
Happy graduation Caleb!
School is Out!
After a fun and crazy day for all the kids--- school is officially over!
Now off to Caleb's 8th grade graduation.
Now off to Caleb's 8th grade graduation.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
My Special Day
So today was my birthday. Not a big deal considering everything else we have going on. Point proven when John got a call at work from his Dad reminding him that today was my birthday.
First, my Father-in-law had called this morning to wish me a happy birthday and to see if I wanted to go out to dinner.
"Sure Dad, but you should check with John first because I don't know what he has planned."
Let's just say, John was very thankful for the reminder call from his Dad and called me immediately to wish me a happy birthday. I was none the wiser until he confessed that he had forgot.
First time in our 16 years of marriage and ummmm-- don't you think he has a lot on his mind right now given the fact that we leave for Ukraine in just five days? Of course I was incredibly forgiving and John went ahead and made plans with his Dad and Mom for the four of us to go out to dinner. Later, I got to joke with him how crazy it is that he forgot my birthday since he took the girls shopping two weeks ago for my present. With our upcoming trip and him preparing to take off work, it is no wonder it slipped his mind. But the kids did not forget. I got lots of hugs and well wishes from all the kids, a few cards, and the coziest pair of slippers on earth! Adam babysat for me today and did a few extra chores around the house because I feel the need to clean everything I possibly can before I leave. What a good boy he was to vacuum under furniture. :)
Even my Mom and Sister came out for a visit. And though sweet Julia wanted to make me a cake-- I discouraged her because I just caulked our kitchen sink late last night and didn't want it to get wet yet. Still.... sticking to tradition.... I blew out a candle stuck in a raspberry Zinger.
It was sweet.
And though it sounds like no big deal, I think this birthday was just perfect.
I'm simple like that.
Anna Stomps Her Stuff!
Anna was in her talent show this morning. There were many performances but I have to say that Anna and her friends were the best! I hope that is okay to say because you know, I am a little biased. ~~Smiling.~~
Watch Anna stomp her little heart out! She is an American girl through and through!
P.S. This was wonderful to watch.... with it being my 35th birthday and all. I also got some incredibly cozy slippers this morning.
Watch Anna stomp her little heart out! She is an American girl through and through!
P.S. This was wonderful to watch.... with it being my 35th birthday and all. I also got some incredibly cozy slippers this morning.
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Awards Galore and a Little Dance Skit
Today all my junior highers got awards!
Annalyn got three-- one for hr 3.5-3.9 GPA, one for reading 1 million words, and one for outstanding achievement in Social Studies! She was so proud-- as was I!
Julia got 2 awards-- one for 4.0 GPA, and one for excelling in Mathematics. Way to go!
Caleb was recognized as the outstanding boys softball player of the year! Woo-hoo!
Annalyn got three-- one for hr 3.5-3.9 GPA, one for reading 1 million words, and one for outstanding achievement in Social Studies! She was so proud-- as was I!
Julia got 2 awards-- one for 4.0 GPA, and one for excelling in Mathematics. Way to go!
Caleb was recognized as the outstanding boys softball player of the year! Woo-hoo!
Caleb was part of a dance skit put on by the Leadership team. They danced to the Grease song, "We Go Together!" It was so much fun to see my son up on stage dancing and having a blast!
Go ahead and let Caleb know what an awesome job he did-- I am sure he would appreciate it!
P.S. I don't have a picture, but Rachel also got an award for her 3.5-3.9 GPA! You go girl!
The Contempt Shown To Parents of Large Families
I came across this article and as I began to read all I could do was agree over and over with each sentence. I too find myself apologizing when I am running errands and have many of my children with me. Shame on me--- one more thing I am going to work on.
A funny thing happened to me the other day when my wife and I had, thank God, another baby (a boy). Many of my friends didn't seem all that happy for me. Sure, they went through the motions of smiles and congratulations. But it was evident that many thought me insane. Why would a young man and his wife ruin their lives with eight children? Who could afford the Jewish day-school bills? Didn't we want to live life a little, and not just be burdened with kids?
It got downright surreal when a European film company, pressed me, while my wife was in labor, to finish shooting a segment that had an urgent deadline (I obviously told them they were insane). And the next day, I was mildly criticized by a Jewish organization which was supposed to be hosting me for a lecture for having to cancel on them because the lecture clashed with the baby's bris.
I don't mind that the world doesn't really love babies, just that it pretends to. It's time we got honest about our priorities. Most people get a new car every two or three years, but one or two babies through the life of their marriage is plenty. You can get drunk on an airplane, laugh hysterically with your mates, and still not really anger people. But if you dare bring a crying baby on board you will be given malicious looks as if the little thing is a package that ticks. If you walk your dog along the street, people will stop you to tell you how cute he is. If you walk down the street with a baby, you might find a woman or two who coos, but for the most part, you'll be utterly ignored.
Indeed, the contempt shown to parents of many children is the last acceptable prejudice in our society. As a father of a large family, I find myself apologizing wherever I go, as if I committed a crime. The frequent and loaded stares from scornful onlookers imply that the famine in Africa was caused by my selfish insistence on overpopulating the earth. Long ago my wife and I discovered that few hotels were prepared to accommodate so many children, even if we took three of four rooms, which is why we bought an RV for travel.
How strange to live in a world where loving children casts one in infamy. Having a family with many children implies a backwardness and primitivism that is deemed unbecoming in the developed countries of the West. Large families, it is thought, exist only among religious weirdoes or the teeming hovels of the Third World.
Rich countries, by contrast, prefer to increase their standard of living rather than the number of the living. Looking at Western birth rates for the year 2001, the United States averaged only 14.2 births for every thousand Americans, and the birthrate among white Americans is so low that the United States will soon lose its white majority. Indeed, one can go for days in a wealthy city like Manhattan without encountering a single pregnant woman. Riches and children have become inversely proportional such that the more of the former, the less of the latter.
Hence, the high birth rates of extremely poor African nations like Uganda – at 47.52 births per 1,000 – or Niger with 50.68 births per 1,000, are deemed to be prime causes and indicators of their penury. The abundant fertility and unconstrained sexuality of these countries confirms the unspoken Western mindset of these country's inhabitants as being just one step above savages. Contraception has become a synonym for civilization.
A Christian mother of six once wrote to me, "I find it troubling to worry about getting pregnant again ... because I don't want to face the criticism of friends and family. Why do people not see children as a blessing?" A fair question which deserves a fair response.
Why is it that even many synagogues today are not children friendly? Why are people impressed that Jay Leno owns 20 motorcycles, but disgusted that some religious families choose to have 10 children?
Let's not finesse the response. We all know why. A world that has lost its innocence has trouble appreciating beings who are innocent. A world that has become selfish has soured to the idea of leading a life of selflessness. A world that has become grossly materialistic is turned off to the idea of more dependents who consume resources. And a world that mistakenly believes that freedom means a lack of responsibility is opposed to the idea of needy creatures who "tie you down."
They can go fly a kite.
By just looking at my children, I become more innocent. By loving them, I become more noble. By spending my money on them rather than myself, I find transcendence. And by being a father and liberating all of the love in my heart, my spirit soars free. I work hard to support a large family and I give up no pleasures in doing so because my children are my foremost pleasure.
I am often asked by women dating men how to tell whether they are marriage material. I tell them, "See if he enjoys children." A man who loves children is playful. He will spend his life joking with his wife because he loves to see her laugh, and will flirt with her because he loves to see her smile.
There was a time when husbands and wives worked hard to ensure they could afford the blessings of a large family. Today, the higher your earning bracket the fewer children you have, but then we always knew that many turn money from a blessing into a curse.
Before he died, the Lubavitcher Rebbe launched a campaign asking parents to have one more child than they originally planned. It is a campaign that a dwindling Jewish community should revive as it continues to disappear.
Posted: March 02, 2006
1:00 am Eastern
By Rabbi Shmuley Boteach
© 2010 WorldNetDaily.com
A funny thing happened to me the other day when my wife and I had, thank God, another baby (a boy). Many of my friends didn't seem all that happy for me. Sure, they went through the motions of smiles and congratulations. But it was evident that many thought me insane. Why would a young man and his wife ruin their lives with eight children? Who could afford the Jewish day-school bills? Didn't we want to live life a little, and not just be burdened with kids?
It got downright surreal when a European film company, pressed me, while my wife was in labor, to finish shooting a segment that had an urgent deadline (I obviously told them they were insane). And the next day, I was mildly criticized by a Jewish organization which was supposed to be hosting me for a lecture for having to cancel on them because the lecture clashed with the baby's bris.
I don't mind that the world doesn't really love babies, just that it pretends to. It's time we got honest about our priorities. Most people get a new car every two or three years, but one or two babies through the life of their marriage is plenty. You can get drunk on an airplane, laugh hysterically with your mates, and still not really anger people. But if you dare bring a crying baby on board you will be given malicious looks as if the little thing is a package that ticks. If you walk your dog along the street, people will stop you to tell you how cute he is. If you walk down the street with a baby, you might find a woman or two who coos, but for the most part, you'll be utterly ignored.
Indeed, the contempt shown to parents of many children is the last acceptable prejudice in our society. As a father of a large family, I find myself apologizing wherever I go, as if I committed a crime. The frequent and loaded stares from scornful onlookers imply that the famine in Africa was caused by my selfish insistence on overpopulating the earth. Long ago my wife and I discovered that few hotels were prepared to accommodate so many children, even if we took three of four rooms, which is why we bought an RV for travel.
How strange to live in a world where loving children casts one in infamy. Having a family with many children implies a backwardness and primitivism that is deemed unbecoming in the developed countries of the West. Large families, it is thought, exist only among religious weirdoes or the teeming hovels of the Third World.
Rich countries, by contrast, prefer to increase their standard of living rather than the number of the living. Looking at Western birth rates for the year 2001, the United States averaged only 14.2 births for every thousand Americans, and the birthrate among white Americans is so low that the United States will soon lose its white majority. Indeed, one can go for days in a wealthy city like Manhattan without encountering a single pregnant woman. Riches and children have become inversely proportional such that the more of the former, the less of the latter.
Hence, the high birth rates of extremely poor African nations like Uganda – at 47.52 births per 1,000 – or Niger with 50.68 births per 1,000, are deemed to be prime causes and indicators of their penury. The abundant fertility and unconstrained sexuality of these countries confirms the unspoken Western mindset of these country's inhabitants as being just one step above savages. Contraception has become a synonym for civilization.
A Christian mother of six once wrote to me, "I find it troubling to worry about getting pregnant again ... because I don't want to face the criticism of friends and family. Why do people not see children as a blessing?" A fair question which deserves a fair response.
Why is it that even many synagogues today are not children friendly? Why are people impressed that Jay Leno owns 20 motorcycles, but disgusted that some religious families choose to have 10 children?
Let's not finesse the response. We all know why. A world that has lost its innocence has trouble appreciating beings who are innocent. A world that has become selfish has soured to the idea of leading a life of selflessness. A world that has become grossly materialistic is turned off to the idea of more dependents who consume resources. And a world that mistakenly believes that freedom means a lack of responsibility is opposed to the idea of needy creatures who "tie you down."
They can go fly a kite.
By just looking at my children, I become more innocent. By loving them, I become more noble. By spending my money on them rather than myself, I find transcendence. And by being a father and liberating all of the love in my heart, my spirit soars free. I work hard to support a large family and I give up no pleasures in doing so because my children are my foremost pleasure.
I am often asked by women dating men how to tell whether they are marriage material. I tell them, "See if he enjoys children." A man who loves children is playful. He will spend his life joking with his wife because he loves to see her laugh, and will flirt with her because he loves to see her smile.
There was a time when husbands and wives worked hard to ensure they could afford the blessings of a large family. Today, the higher your earning bracket the fewer children you have, but then we always knew that many turn money from a blessing into a curse.
Before he died, the Lubavitcher Rebbe launched a campaign asking parents to have one more child than they originally planned. It is a campaign that a dwindling Jewish community should revive as it continues to disappear.
Posted: March 02, 2006
1:00 am Eastern
By Rabbi Shmuley Boteach
© 2010 WorldNetDaily.com
Monday, June 7, 2010
Happy 13th Birthday Sveta!
Today we celebrated Sveta's birthday! She was so excited.
Dennis and Alex kept asking me if it was Sveta's birthday or theirs. They just wanted to make sure.
No trick candles on her cake this year-- so she blew them out no problem!
Sveta enjoyed all her presents.
It was pretty cool that Sveta could count her money this year!
Cousin Matt and Jenn
My Mom-- the great potato salad helper!
The weather couldn't be nicer. The pool was fabulously refreshing!
Dennis and Alex kept asking me if it was Sveta's birthday or theirs. They just wanted to make sure.
No trick candles on her cake this year-- so she blew them out no problem!
Sveta enjoyed all her presents.
It was pretty cool that Sveta could count her money this year!
Cousin Matt and Jenn
My Mom-- the great potato salad helper!
The weather couldn't be nicer. The pool was fabulously refreshing!
"Don't splash me!"
Annalyn and Gina let Alex push them into the pool over and over. Alex loved this!
Rachel knew it was only a matter of time before she would be back in the pool.
Dennis is back to loving the water. I took him and Alex in every day this past week and insisted that they stay in for at least 10 minutes. It paid off with Dennis who now loves the water all over again! Alex is still not quite there-- but he will be.
Annalyn and Gina let Alex push them into the pool over and over. Alex loved this!
Rachel knew it was only a matter of time before she would be back in the pool.
Dennis is back to loving the water. I took him and Alex in every day this past week and insisted that they stay in for at least 10 minutes. It paid off with Dennis who now loves the water all over again! Alex is still not quite there-- but he will be.
Sveta we love you so much! Thank you for being such an amazing and wonderful daughter! Happy Birthday!
Saturday, June 5, 2010
We Are Going To Have Another Teenager in the House!
Tonight Julia and Sveta helped me make a three layer coconut cake from scratch. Yes, it is time consuming but it is always a hit! And someone special requested it for their 13th birthday-- so how could I say no?
Can you guess whose birthday we are celebrating tomorrow?
************************
Can you guess whose birthday we are celebrating tomorrow?
************************
Caleb enjoys skateboarding. He is very good at it too! Tonight he landed a trick he has been practicing all day-- and his Dad got it on tape. Check it out!
Friday, June 4, 2010
Last Day of Pre-School
Yesterday was the boys' last day of pre-school. I joined them in their swim party festivities. It was wonderful to watch Alex and Dennis with the other kids from their classes. Boy, have they grown by leaps and bounds socially, emotionally, and don't forget their language--- it has exploded for them!
Dennis was able to blow bubbles. This is a new thing for him since he barely learned to press his lips together.
Alex's teacher is so awesome!
Dennis loved pouring the water from container to container.
Alex and his class sang Baby Beluga.
There was so much for the kids to do outside. The boys started out at the bubble station.
Dennis was able to blow bubbles. This is a new thing for him since he barely learned to press his lips together.
Alex's teacher is so awesome!
Dennis loved pouring the water from container to container.
One year of pre-school--- over.
My boys are growing up.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Yes, I Can Be a Beast
Today one of my daughters presented me with this-- and it isn't even my birthday or Mother's day. It was much appreciated because quite frankly, I can be a beast. This is one treasure, I will remember forever.
Last weekend we went to Grandma and Grandpa's house for dinner and swimming. John's brother's family was down visiting which is a treat for us all.
Grandpa made the most delicious pulled pork and hamburgers. Caleb couldn't decide-- so he made a sandwich with half and half.
John with his younger brother Matt and his son Thomas.
Our kitty Bella continues to grow and get cuter every day!
The boys just adore her.
Glad I took this picture because Bella is no longer interested in milk anymore. She has moved onto canned cat food!
Last weekend we went to Grandma and Grandpa's house for dinner and swimming. John's brother's family was down visiting which is a treat for us all.
Grandpa made the most delicious pulled pork and hamburgers. Caleb couldn't decide-- so he made a sandwich with half and half.
John with his younger brother Matt and his son Thomas.
Our kitty Bella continues to grow and get cuter every day!
The boys just adore her.
And they are quite gentle with her too.
Glad I took this picture because Bella is no longer interested in milk anymore. She has moved onto canned cat food!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
LinkWithin
