Siblings So Sweet

Big Hair!

2012-03-01T17:19:00.000-06:00

Harper has her winter concert tonight and she asked me to do her hair. I thought it looked cute but said it was too big.

Coffee is addicting

2012-02-25T09:32:00.002-06:00

Coffee is addicting. What started out as something fun for Peter and Fisher to do together has turned into Peter and Tate's thing. Tate loves roasting the coffee and drinking it. Fisher will drink it sometimes but he does not seem to have the same enjoyment as Tate.

BSF!

2012-02-24T21:07:00.000-06:00

The girls told me that they were BSFs (Best Sisters Forever)! I think they were buttering me up and wanted their picture taken together so lovingly because they wanted me to take them to Walgreens to get them lip gloss! That is okay, I will take it!

Hello Netflix!

2012-02-23T21:05:00.000-06:00

Love that I caught the boys both tucked into a sleeping bag together in the basement watching Netflix! So excited we can stream this to the televisions we got rid of a few cable boxes and downgraded or cable package. How much longer will we really need cable?

Sleep Issues

2012-02-14T20:30:00.000-06:00

As everyone knows EB has trouble with her body and we are so grateful to all that have helped her and continue to help her to learn about her body and have control over it. I am so so proud of her for working internally on what she is feeling and working on expressing it to others. We were seeing Dr. G on Wednesday and Monday night/Tuesday morning EB woke up at 12:45 a.m. and was never able to go back to sleep. The next day she wanted to write Dr. G a story about what was going on so she could help her. Here it is....

E.B. DanielsFebruary 14, 2012Sleeping IssuesI'm having trouble sleeping at night and I don't know why. Maybe it is my medicine. I don't know, but last night, I couldn't fall asleep at all, and nights before that I did fall asleep till like 8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. And woke up at alike 6:00 a.m.. I don't know how much I'll sleep tonight but I hope I get more sleep than 8 of 9 hours and I don't want this to keep happening so can you please try and find a solution to help me because I really want to fall asleep at the normal time. I don't want to be tired in school also I want to sleep to get my rest because then I'm really tired ruing the day which I don't like. I want to sleep at night not during the day. I also want to get my rest that I need too.We love EB and are glad you have had 2 good nights of sleep. Glad Dr. G could give you some new meds. While I am so proud of you for all this it breaks my heart you have to go through this.

Be Mine!

2012-02-13T10:22:00.000-06:00

Love that my kids love each other! Tate wrote this to Harper.

Keurig Loving, Sumatra Swilling, Ethiopian Taught Newbie Dad

2012-02-11T18:49:00.008-06:00

I originally posted this in Sweet Maria's Forum, but Jill loved it and suggested I put it here, too. This way, I can also add pictures.

You gotta hand it to Keurig. They make it so easy when there's only one busy coffee drinker in the house. If you have a minute, you can have a coffee. My two Keurig brewers kept me fat and caffeinated for a good six years.

Keurig has a big menu of coffees from a variety of places. I kept trying different ones, especially Ethiopians. But I always found my Ethiopian brews to be, well, sour. Same thing with other origins, more or less, except my extra bold Sumatra. I always gravitated toward dark roasts and Sumatra, especially. Still, I never liked Starbucks or worse, Peets. Even though I liked dark roasts, those always veered into charcoal for my taste. Who needs those places, anyways. I had my Keurig and it served up competent, extra bold Sumatra, extra fast.

I learned pretty early on that I could make my little boy really happy with just a little taste of coffee. Judge away, but it's in his blood. He had his own coffee tree growing up and used to roast his family's beans with his mom in a vented skillet over an open fire. My son is from the Sidama region of Ethiopia where most of the country's best coffee is grown.

There's a little Ethiopian bodega on the north side of Chicago and I was browsing it with my son. "Daddy, daddy, look!" My son was holding a black, vented skillet with a wooden handle. "Coffee!" He said. He pointed out a bag of green beans. I asked him if he knew how to roast and he said "Yeah! please, please please?" We brought the stuff home and forgot about it for about a month.

We found the beans one Saturday morning and he brought me over to the stove. "You go like this," he said as he swirled the skillet over the fire. "Daddy, I'm tired." he said after about 2-3 minutes and I took over. "When do I stop?" I asked, squinting the smoke out of my eyes. "When it's brown... that's good." And it was good. Really good. This was no sour Ethiopian, this was a whole lot of flavor.

It took me about two weeks to break the skillet. No offense to my Ethiopian son, but we pop a lot of popcorn and I thought one of those cranky stovetop poppers would do a much better job. So, I Googled it and discovered I wasn't the first person to have that idea. I also read that air poppers do the job better, but I felt like I had to go with my first instinct. That was a mistake. The crank popper I bought had a flat agitator and it didn't roll the beans. They just burned on one side and under roasted on the other.

Lucky for me I have an understanding wife and a local Menard's that carries West Bend air poppers, cheap.

Since then, I've been roasting my first four pounds from Sweet Marias. Here's what I've learned. Ethiopian Coffee (Sidama Aleta Wondo) can be fantastic, especially if light roasted (City / City +) though I like full city roasts, too. Guatamalan (Acatenango - Finca La Soledad) is wonderful, even with citrus fruit. Yemen (Mokha Harasi) was my favorite roast, spicy, earthy but full of flavor. Sort of like my beloved sumatran, but way, way, better. And My Sumatran (Tarbarita Peaberry)? That was easily my least favorite of the bunch. I probably won't even buy Sumatran on my next purchase. But I'll be keeping a sharp lookout for more Yemen.

So, what about my Ethiopian son? He still loves drinking coffee, but roasting in the air popper just doesn't cut it for him. His American-born brother, on the other hand... He runs to the kitchen whenever I say I might be roasting a batch. He climbs up on a chair, peers into the top of the popper with me and catches the chaff in his hands. "Dad, that was first crack, right?" I'll give him a little for breakfast, too. Judge away.

Harper's Elephant

2012-02-01T10:34:00.000-06:00

Harper did a wonderful job on her art project. Her job was to copy the elephant onto black scratch paper. It was very hard to get it scanned in but trust me it is good! Way to go Harper!

Fisher's First Real Snow

2012-01-20T21:48:00.000-06:00

Today was the first day Fisher had seen real snow. He was not too sure about it at first but once he went and got his googles on he was a new kid. I think he was tired of the snowflakes sticking to his eyelashes. The boys had some friends over after school and imagine their thrill when they found after school there was 6 inches of snow. They had a great time with Joey, Finn and Jackson!

Cleaning

2012-01-15T21:57:00.000-06:00

Today was a major cleaning day from cleaning the walls to under the fridge and vacuuming under all cushions. Peter was out to finish up the Lego sorting.

EB got a few nests of bunnies under the fridge -- she was loving it!

Busted Tate for sitting on the job -- he was supposed to be vacuuming under the cushions.

Fisher was on fire with a bottle of spray and doors and trim to clean.

There was no stopping Peter with his lego sorting.

Brothers!

2012-01-09T19:56:00.001-06:00

I love that the boys love each other!

Zoo Lights

2011-12-29T19:24:00.001-06:00

We headed to Brookfield Zoo today as it was WARM in Chicago -- 49 degrees! Does not get any nicer than this in December!

It was very smelly looking at the Hippo and the only one of the kids that could not handle the smell was Fisher. The picture below cracks me up. He had just gotten done telling me he saw these in Sidama!

Picture of us finally!

LOVE this picture of the 4 kids together!

Time for some playground fun!

EB wanted to run off with the Wolves!

Chinatown!

2011-12-28T19:14:00.000-06:00

My cousin Alyssa was in town for Christmas and we were so glad she came out to spend the night with us. We were excited to show her the City and after much debate about what we were going to do we decided on lunch in Chinatown! We all had so much fun and the best part for the kids was they got Whistle Candy. It is nice and loud -- what is better than candy and loud?

Christmas

2011-12-25T23:44:00.000-06:00

Christmas day was wonderful and full and we were so thankful for all we have. It was wonderful to have Fisher home with us this Christmas!Christmas morning is not complete without the kids singing a carol for us before they can get their stockings.

Present time!

EB was so excited to share her pottery that she made for us. We love it!

Fisher made us an ornament in school and it was enough to melt anyone's heart. We love you Fisher and glad you are part of our family.

My Little Santa Clauses.

Pile on!

The last present was a big one with a treasure hunt at the end. There were 4 nested boxes and they lead to Tate opening up a box with 2 cans of vegetables and a note to go to the Wii room!

Waiting outside the Wii Room to see the new XBox which we had convinced them they were not getting! They were so surprised.

Breakfast -- tried to take some great pictures of them like all the places I got the recipes from -- it was wonderful to have a nice homemade breakfast to fill up on!

Blueberry Breakfast Cobbler.

Sausage Bread!

Cinnamon Rolls!

Grandma and Grandpa come and bring the highly desired toys!

Off to Indiana to see my family out there. David is always so so happy to see us. We love him so much and it was great he was able to get down and play with the boys.

David was so excited to show off his racing shirt with his name embroidered on it by Stitches So Sweet.

No trip to Indiana is complete without sitting in the race car!

Fisher and David playing some PlayStation!

Peter and Uncle Bernie.

Alyssa and Harper.

Uncle Tom, Grandpa, Uncle Bernie and Aunt Mary Ann

And now Silly Faces!

EB DANIELS

2011-12-16T10:26:00.000-06:00

I love how we Blessed we are with all the people in our life. Mrs. Moore, EB's aide, wrote this for her. How wonderful that others see the EB we see!

Happy Hanukkah!

2011-11-25T17:34:00.000-06:00

Overheard in the craft room:

EB: You didn't celebrate Christmas in Ethiopia?
Fisher: No.
EB: Did you celebrate hanukkah?
Fisher: Huh? What's that?
EB: It's an African American holiday that they celebrate over there. I think.

We're all about cultural awareness, here.

8th Birthday Celebration for Tate and Fisher

2011-11-13T19:46:00.002-06:00

We had a great birthday celebration for Tate's 8th birthday and Fisher's 8th birthday celebration. Since we are giving him August 28, 2003 as his birthday and decided this in October Tate wanted to share his birthday with Fisher. It was fun all weekend long. I love how great the boys got along this weekend for their birthday celebrations!

Zipline Time

2011-11-07T17:55:00.000-06:00

Love EB's sweet narrative of her Zipline Time in Mexico. It was a fun time!

Tate's Halloween Spirit

2011-11-07T17:43:00.000-06:00

I laughed out loud reading Tate's homework. I love his spirit and tolerance for people having their decorations up on November 1st! Wonder where he gets it from? My dream is to only have Christmas decorations up for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and to wake up on the 26th with no decorations up! Unfortunately, only Tate and I feel this way in our house!

Some twists

2011-11-07T08:29:00.000-06:00

Fisher's hair is getting long, I mean about 5" long. We really have no idea how to do his hair or work with it. I keep trying new things and more new things. He wants it twisted so today before school I brushed it out and then finger twisted. Looks pretty cute I think? If only we had the extra hour due to the time change everyday.

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T19:37:00.000-05:00

A fun, fun Halloween!

Water Polo!

2011-10-30T19:16:00.000-05:00

This weekend Harper had a water polo tournament and she did great. It was 14 and under so that means she was playing with some really big 14 year olds and she held her own and even got the ball and moved it for a long distance! We are so proud of you Harper! Harper was 19!

My picture needs some work but what can I tell you, I shot it in Sports Mode and that was as good as it got!

Halloween First!

2011-10-30T19:11:00.000-05:00

There are still so many firsts for Fisher and this was a fun one. He loved his huge pumpkin and still has not gotten why we put a face in the pumpkin. Cannot wait until tomorrow when we light them all up. He did talk about how he ate these kind of seeds in Ethiopia but it was a little different! Fun day doing some carving -- pictures will be posted tomorrow!

6 months ago -- Dentist

2011-10-26T15:13:00.000-05:00

Love going to the dentist with the kids and seeing their pictures from the last visit. Cannot believe how much they have grown.

Harper's Movie Night

2011-10-21T21:22:00.000-05:00

While the boys are away, the girls will play. Tonight was Harper's fun movie night and she had a great time with her friends.

Boys Weekend!

2011-10-21T20:41:00.000-05:00

It is time for the fall campout! Glad the left smiling, rested and clean! Should get a picture of the 3 of them on Sunday! Have fun -- we miss you!

My "Gole" by E.B. Daniels

2011-10-21T18:55:00.000-05:00

I am so proud of EB for all that she has accomplished and how hard she has worked to get back to Ogden, her home school. She could not have done it without the love and support of those that are there for her everyday and were there for her! We thank you and so does EB!

Glitter

2011-10-11T19:10:00.001-05:00

I admit the craft room redo has been fun and I was amazed that we would end up with so much glitter from our neighbors. I thought it would be fun until they actually started using glitter but how can I be mad when this is what EB made me?

Art Work!

2011-10-06T08:25:00.000-05:00

Here is some artwork and drawings that the girls have brought home the last few days.

How he has grown?

2011-10-04T16:26:00.000-05:00

Today Fisher had his official 6 month health visit home. Since coming home he has grown 2 1/2" and gained 7 pounds! He also had a bone scan and some blood tests -- anxious to hear about what those tell us about his age!

I have an EB!

2011-10-02T16:27:00.001-05:00

I asked Tate how lucky he was to have a brother and 2 sisters and he said he was lucky because he had an "EB".

First Sleepover!

2011-09-23T20:16:00.000-05:00

Tonight Peter is away with the girls on the campout and I let the boys each have a friend over to spend the night. They are all having a great time eating the entire package of cookies and watching Indiana Jones! Let's hope they go to sleep!

Kibru comes to visit!

2011-09-22T20:21:00.000-05:00

So excited Kibru got to visit us for a night. So great seeing them back together again.

Fisher's Christening

2011-09-17T21:11:00.002-05:00

Today was Fisher's Christening and it came one day after our 6th month as a family. It was a private baptism with just a few people. So glad we kept it small as Fisher was overwhelmed with it initially.

The kids outside of church.

Meeting up with Peggy!

Fisher and Godmother Mrs. Curry!

Fisher by the Baptismal Fount.

Fisher receiving the sign of the cross by Peter.

Fisher receiving the sign of the cross by Godmother Ms. Focht.

Getting Holy Water poured on his head. He was not sure what was happening but can you blame him?

6 months home

2011-09-16T20:42:00.003-05:00

Today Fisher has been home 6 months and it has been 6 months of learning and loving. We are so happy to have him be part of our family and love watching him grow. I always get choked up seeing the referral pictures and Fisher's pictures here are no different. It is amazing to see Fisher grow into a much bigger, more confident and less scared little boy.

Fisher's referral pictures -- knowing him now you can tell just how scared he was in these first pictures.

Wonderful pictures we got from travelling families.

Ready to go home with Daddy!

At the airport!

First bath -- did not know what to do with all the water and now he is on swim team!

One of the first of many, many brother pictures!

Today, a confident little boy loving life and soccer!

Us all together to celebrate Fisher and baptism.

Another brother picture!

Here are some wonderful things that Fisher has learned and taught us all since he as been part of our life.

1. We are blessed to have each other, family and friends -- without everyone's support there would be no Fisher in our lives.

2. Fisher is a smart, kind and compassionate little boy who loves deeply and hurts deeply.

3. Fisher has had great sadness in his life but also great joy and lives with his focus on joy!

4. Fisher loves loves school and all his great teachers from his first teacher Mrs. Morkes to Mrs. Repsis in summer school and Mrs. Robertson in 2nd grade and all his great team at school. He just loves to learn.

5. Life is hard adopting an older child but all good things hard?

6. Life is wonderful adopting an older child, you can watch them grow and learn and become a new person with some love!

7. He has a family in Ethiopia that we will forever be thankful to for giving us their son and brother to be ours forever.

8. Our lives have forever changed for the better with Fisher coming home.

Brothers!

2011-09-13T21:56:00.000-05:00

The road has not been all smooth for the two boys since Fisher has gotten home. There are many love hate moments but right now I am loving this moment!

Harper's 4th Grade Letters

2011-09-12T21:30:00.001-05:00

Harper got these letters back from 4th Grade. I love seeing what she has written.

Harper's BFF Anna

2011-09-10T22:00:00.000-05:00

Harper invited Anna over on Friday night to watch "Prom" and Anna brought her this card. I think it is the sweetest note ever. So glad they are friends.

Harper's Meet the Teacher

2011-08-31T20:51:00.000-05:00

Tonight was Harper's Curriculum night and Peter went while I was at swim team tryouts for EB, Tate and Fisher -- all of them did great. I just love the work that Harper did and had on her desk for Peter. So proud of her!

EB -- 4th Grade

2011-08-30T16:17:00.000-05:00

EB is in 4th grade and all day at Ogden -- yeah!!!!! Tonight the kids are trying out for the swim team so I could not go to curriculum night so I snuck into her classroom after school. EB was so shy showing me around but I loved every minute of it!

EB and Mrs. Schremser

Self Portrait of a Road Trip

2011-08-27T10:43:00.000-05:00

A road trip, as seen through a series of self-portraits. This series includes an additional shot from St. Louis. I drove back down for yet another deposition on the day after we got home so it was pretty much indistinguishable in my mind.

On The Road: Bright Eyed and Bushy Tailed

A Close Encounter

Old Coots in a Cave

Shopping for Shoes

Coffey, Honey?

Atop Mt. Evans

Abe and Me

Walking with Dinosaurs

We are not Alone

A Couple of Jackasses

Chiseled Features

Badlands to the Bone

Just 16 Hours More

Eye of Patina

Home Sweet Home

Gateway to Hell

First Day of School

2011-08-23T19:38:00.002-05:00

Today was the first day of school. Harper is in 5th, EB is in 4th and the boys are in 2nd. It was a great day to have all my kids starting the school year off at the same school!

Day 3 -- Meramec Caverns

2011-08-07T18:42:00.003-05:00

Peter did not have to work today so we headed to Meramec Caverns and had a great time. Tate was not so sure about it but by the end he said it was so so so fun!

Ready to go in!

The girls!

Peter and Fisher

A family shot -- Tate before he started to like the cave!

Harper trying to catch a drop!

Tate trying to smile!

The steep walk up to the "wine table".

Some smiles from all!

Peter and the wine table -- there is only one other known structure like this and that is in Italy!

The "wall".

Our tour guide -- Peter had to have a picture with him!

A video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WEpSdw7E80

Day 2 -- Chesterfield, MO

2011-08-06T20:51:00.000-05:00

Peter was taking a dep all day and the kids and I were off for some fun but had to stay nearby so we could bring lunch to everyone at his deposition.

Chesterfield has tons and tons of parks. The city is only about 20 years old and a lot of urban planning went into this city and you can tell!

This sculpture is so cool and bigger than you can imagine! They climbed all over the statue and Fisher was upset I would not let him climb to the top of the hand and swim from the thumb. He failed to recognize that the metal was super slick and not climbable!

We were off to the Butterfly House and decided to play some at the great park near it!

Hello Butterfly!

You cannot see all the butterflies here but there were so many and some were HUGE!

Did you say cockroach?

Inside the Butterfly House were so many butterflies it was crazy. They said it is the largest house in the US.

And there were flowers.

All Fisher wanted to do was catch a butterfly but he never did! They were quick!

EB by the Korean Orchid!

Under the "Arch".

Tate did not make it for long in the butterfly house because truly in his defense there were so many it was like the movie the "Birds". He was a tad freaked out and spent all his time in a chair in the room after you left the butterfly house. It was cool and he had a chair, who could blame him!

Out on our adventure we found a Panda Car -- we had to stop!

On our trip we are playing this great license plate game to help earn the kids some spending money -- they have to work together and be a team to get the money. We found Hawaii in the parking lot of the grocery store. We had to get a picture! The owner of the car was so nice when and told the kids to make the Hawaiian hand symbol. They were not sure what to do and Fisher just refused.

And another Panda siting! They are everywhere!

We finished the day with Peter taking the kids to a great municipal water park while I shopped for some clothes and we had a great dinner at P.F. Chang!

Day 1: La Grange to Chesterfield, MO - 310 miles

2011-08-05T21:12:00.001-05:00

Today we started the first trek of our trip out West. We are tagging on a week because Peter has some depositions in St. Louis and Des Moines. First stop Chesterfield, MO.

Stop at Pizza Hut for some pizza for dinner.

We always see this great ice cream place on the way to St. Louis and this time we decided to stop. Who can resist a picture with a pink elephant or a ufo?

Harper

Tate

EB was so excited to get this HUGE ice cream cone she nearly dropped it in excitement!

Nothing like ice cream for all 6 of us for $10.00!

The Pink Elephant!

Love that bike -- if only we could climb on it!

Harley Dude!

Are they coming or going off the UFO?

Peter on Route 66!

Peter's self portraits -- when you are not driving you have LOTS of time to do other things!

The Wedding!

2011-08-02T22:01:00.003-05:00

What do you do when it is the hottest day all summer -- you plan a wedding! The kids were so excited that Peggy and Tate were getting married again. Harper presided over the ceremony and Tate called her the nun in white which Harper did not love. Fisher was not sure what to make of it all but he did get dressed up for the special occasion. The reception immediately followed the wedding with cookies made from a cake mix! A good time was had by all! Welcome to the family Peggy!

A picture before the festivities started!

The happy Couple! Way to dress up Tate for your big day!

Waiting for "his bride".

Maid of Honor -- EB

And the bride wore Pink!

Tate not buying Harper's long long story about the rock which is the "rock" of their relationship.

Both touching the rock!

Ring exchange!

The rings!

The happy groom!

Forever and ever!

Take me to Borders!

2011-07-27T20:00:00.000-05:00

Borders is closing and Tate has so badly wanted to go up there and get Mad Libs for our road trip. I finally caved and also told him he could get a little book for himself to read in bed. He loves to get books where he can learn about things. He was beside himself with excitement over this book! It is very very graphic but I think that was what sold him!

You are faster!

2011-07-24T14:05:00.002-05:00

Fisher was telling me about the food Marta used to make and how it was all yummy! I asked him if he liked the food I made for him and his answer was you are faster! Did not get that ringing endorsement I was looking for! lol

Twists!!!!

2011-07-22T17:11:00.002-05:00

Finally Fisher got his hair done in twists! It looks so cute and he is so so happy! I am hoping it looks this cute tomorrow!

Pain

2011-07-21T14:36:00.002-05:00

This breaks my heart. EB wrote this this morning!

Tonsils!

2011-07-20T14:22:00.006-05:00

Today EB and Tate go their tonsils out. This is the 2nd surgery they have had together. They got tubes and their adenoids out when they were much younger.

Who can resist how cute they look cuddled in the chair waiting for surgery.

Tate was not too sure of this!

When he said goodbye he refused to smile for the camera!

EB watching some TV and waiting for her turn! She was such a good patient.

Tate recovered really quick and I enjoyed the 10 minutes he wanted to cuddle with me!

Only Tate would ask to see his tonsils after they came out and then proceeded to watch a youtube video of the actual operation. He LOVED this part the best!

EB was all snuggles!

Waiting here for mommy to get the car for them!

Easy Rider

2011-07-01T19:40:00.002-05:00

On Fisher's fist day home, an unseasonably warm St. Patrick's day, we bought him a bike. I took him to the lot near our house with all the other kids and started teaching him to ride a 2-wheeler. No, you won't find this idea in The Connected Child, or any of the thousands of books and blogs on attachment. It's not our first time off script, won't be our last, but given how well things are going, I'd say he wasn't too traumatized.

Well it's been really, really busy since then and we just haven't gotten around to lesson no. 2. Not that Fisher hasn't been pestering me, it just hasn't happened. Finally, on Wednesday, we found ourselves with time and no reason not to go, so I said "yes"and brought the children over to the lot for some bike riding.

Apparently, Fisher had been practicing on the sly because it took about 30 minutes for this to happen:

Then, of course, this happened:

But, you know what they say about falling off a bike:

Today we had lesson no. 3, and he started riding like a pro. Well, that is until he had a head-on collision with a five year old on training wheels. He knocked her to the ground but everybody was OK, including the girl's (understandably) hysterical mom. I explained this was only his second time on a bike and she apologized for yelling at him. Here he is tooling around like a champ:

Beautiful Mommy!

2011-06-25T07:22:00.002-05:00

Does he know how to melt my heart or what?

Hard Times

2011-06-22T11:53:00.005-05:00

EB has been having a couple of really really hard weeks. She is just not right and having the struggles of the past, struggles we never hoped to see again. It has been hard on all of us and Harper has had no tolerance for her. I understand that it is hard for a 10 year old but also know she needs to be there for her sister when she is struggling, just as she is for her brothers and her friends. Today at swimming EB needed a friend and Harper flat out refused to go to her and be her friend. This is her punishment -- she was given a list of things think about and write about.

VFC v LFC

2011-06-20T22:30:00.004-05:00

Tonight was the big meet between VFC and LFC. It was a lot of fun but we missed EB swimming tonight but she was not feeling well so she hung out at home with Fisher.

Tate and his buddy Brooke, can you tell why he likes her?

Harper and Tate

Tate and Cam waiting forever for their turn.

Had to get a picture of his butt in spandex! Thinking it won't always look this cute.

Ready to go off the block!

And he is off!

Harper and Lizzie killing time with only 2 arms!

Harper ready to go!

Super serious Tate!

He is getting to be a pro now!

Happy Father's Day

2011-06-19T22:39:00.000-05:00

For Father's Day we grilled out steaks and chicken burgers and had a nice time with all of us and Grandma and Grandpa. It was even fun to get a little face time with Uncle Joey and Theo. We tried to get a picture of everyone together but EB would not smiled no matter what the bribe was. May next year she will smile! :)

5 are gone!

2011-06-19T22:33:00.000-05:00

Tate now has 5 teeth missing. He was so nervous about taking out his "2nd" loose tooth. This was very exciting to have him loose his 2nd tooth as his 2 front teeth got knocked out and his other 2 top teeth were pulled to help with his expansion of his pallet. We are hoping any day now he gets his two front teeth in.

Happy Birthday Peter!

2011-06-18T20:10:00.005-05:00

Today was Peter's 42nd birthday and we wanted to make it special for him -- after he cleaned the garage and I was done working for the day. We headed to RA Sushi for happy hour sushi and had a great time sitting outside and enjoying our time together.

Fisher could not get enough of the hot sauce. He is literally eating it from the spoon here while waiting for his 3rd order of gyozas.

All of us!

Harper needs to stop growing.

Daddy and his kids!

Mommy and the kids

EB, Fisher, Harper and Tate

Fisher is picking EB up here and she LOVED it!

This is Tate's new smile since he is missing so many teeth!

Fun at Oberweis with the kids for a little birthday ice cream.

Swimming at OBBT

2011-06-16T20:41:00.000-05:00

This was Tate's first swim meet and he was so nervous about it but he was brave and wanted to swim. He had a private lesson with Coach Terry after practice to boost his confidence and he did great. All the kids have VFC swim spirit!

Tate and Joey being serious, if there is such a thing.

Tate and Joey doing funny faces.

Tate getting ready!

Matt, Tate and Cam

Lizzie, Anna, Maddie and Harper. Harper could not swim because of swimmer's ear but she was there to cheer everyone one!

Tate and Joey with Franking wanting in on some action but the boys kept him away by trying to grab him. I cannot post here on the blog about what was said.

Tate in line waiting to swim practicing his burps. Previously he had had been doing body farts with some of the boys. Not sure what is better!

Tate wanted to go off the block and got right up there. Terry is giving him a pep talk here!

Go Tate Go!

He made it all the way across without stopping! We are so proud!

EB is ready to go and has her war paint on. Nothing is more fun than writing all over your body with sharpie, right?

Hard to be a serious swimmer when your googles are on upside down!

In the water ready for backstroke!

EB doing the backstroke! She did great and cut time off for both freestyle and backstroke.

Grandpa's Birthday

2011-06-16T12:41:00.000-05:00

Today was Grandpa's 68th birthday and we met him for lunch at Ellyn's. Harper made him a Red Velvet Cake and all the kids wanted to get their picture taken with the birthday boy! We love you dad!

Good Job, EB!

2011-06-13T18:15:00.002-05:00

Fisher is very efficient when he carries the laundry downstairs and always says do like this in Sidama! Today EB wanted to help him and they worked together. EB had some troubles keeping it on her head but finally she got it and Fisher yelled, "Good Job, EB!"

5x7 Folded Card

2011-06-08T19:24:00.003-05:00

Dots Slate Multi 5x7 folded card

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5x7 Folded Card

2011-06-08T19:24:00.001-05:00

Dots Slate Multi 5x7 folded card

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New Deck

2011-06-07T19:04:00.003-05:00

Finally we have new steps going into the house from the yard. Sad but true, we have had our construction steps since we completed our addition almost 6 years ago. This new deck was done by Uncle John and we could not be more grateful for him in making it so beautiful. Also need to add we loved him hanging with us for a while and letting the kids talk his ears off! We love you Uncle John!

Cell phone?

2011-06-07T08:58:00.001-05:00

The girls each want their own cell phones. Not sure who they are calling but it is a big deal. We have one to share but apparently that is not enough. I told each of them to do something persuasive to convince us we need two phones. EB did a speech and Harper is writing something. I have yet to see Harper's though. :)

Last Day of School

2011-06-06T18:58:00.000-05:00

Today was the last day of school and the start of summer. Hoping for a fun summer with all the kids, our first one with Fisher home.

2 months home!

2011-05-19T07:30:00.000-05:00

Fisher was home 2 months on May 16. After 2 months it feels like we are settling in and we are figuring out how to be a family of 6. Fisher's English is getting better, he loves school and loves to eat.

We went to the doctor and gained 2 1/2 pounds -- now 47.5 pounds and 1 " now 48".

Happy Mother's Day Grandma!

2011-05-08T15:35:00.004-05:00

Grandma is a great Grandma! Everything a Grandma should be, kind, caring, involved, always listens to the kids and always there to cheer them on -- really her grandkids are the most important thing to her. We love you Mom/Grandma!

Harper and EB made the box and painted it themselves.

A Beginning and an End

2011-05-06T16:13:00.006-05:00

Today, EB said goodbye to the most important teacher in her life. After nearly three years, EB is leaving "Ms. Focht's" class and will attend school full time in a mainstream class room. We are so excited, happy and proud of her for this amazing achievement and milestone in her life. At the same time, it's sad and hard to leave a place that's so comfortable and people who have meant so much to all of us. We'll never be able to thank them. But while we say goodbye to the teachers, we know we're not saying goodbye to the people.

EB brought home a memento of her time and we promptly hung it in her room.

Spring is Sprung

2011-04-30T14:57:00.011-05:00

Spring has finally arrived in La Grange.

Goooooooooooaaaaaaaaalllllllllllllll!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-04-30T11:10:00.015-05:00

Today was the first day of AYSO soccer and the first ray of sunshine we've seen in nearly a month.

The girls played the first game, at 8:15 am. Getting all four kids dressed and out the door on time was a major challenge. We never did find Harper's purple socks. But that didn't stop her from scoring a goal!

The boys played next, at 9:30.

Tate got to play goalie (Yes!)

The competition was fierce.

Then Fisher scored!!!!!!!!

It was up to Goalie, Tate to keep the score 1-0.

He did it! Great game, boys!

The complete Daniels soccer team:

Fisher's post game interview:

What if?

2011-04-27T09:05:00.000-05:00

What if?

Today I was getting ready to walk the boys to the corner for school and we had to stop and put something in Tate's backpack before we left the house and I was explaining to Fisher he needed to wear his rain coat. I have to admit I was a little frustrated with them but I am no longer. Had I not stopped to put something in the backpack or convince Fisher to change his coat I wonder what if. No more than 15 seconds before we were on the sidewalk in front of our house a car came up onto it and hit a tree. The lady passed away. I stood and said a prayer for her and her loved ones and I said a prayer of thanks to God for giving me the patience to take the extra time with the boys this morning and sparing us.

Easter Part II

2011-04-24T19:29:00.007-05:00

This Easter was a little backwards. We went to Church and then did a little yard work as it was our first nice weekend in a long time. We then ate dinner, had our Easter Egg Hunt and then dyed eggs. What can I say? It all got done and we had a nice backwards kind of day.

Yes, Tate stuffed all the eggs for the "hunt".

Fisher loved gardening with Peter and put his all into getting those weeds out!

Little Backyard fun!

THE HUNT!!!

Love this picture as Ellie is moving so fast in the background she is nothing but a blur!

All 6 of them!

Sorting their loot!

Dying the eggs!

Shrink wrapping Tate's Star Wars Eggs.

Go Blue!

Easter

2011-04-24T12:41:00.006-05:00

Today is Fisher's first Easter with us. We decided this year to skip our huge Easter Egg Hunt and just have our family and Ruthanne and her boys over for a quieter, calmer Easter. We are missing Grandma and Grandpa and wish Annie and Theo where here to join in the fun with all the kids.

Here are a few pictures the kids would let me take of them before they peeled off their Easter clothes in search of play clothes to enjoy the sun and warmth we have today.

A piece of paper

2011-04-21T19:06:00.002-05:00

Here Fisher is holding his Certificate of Citizenship. It is just a piece of paper but really so much more than that. He is a full fledged US Citizen!!!!!!

Two Little Bunnies

2011-04-20T20:21:00.000-05:00

The Easter Bunny came early to the Daniels' house with these cute little bunnies. The boys each brought one home today from school.

Brothers

2011-04-19T20:24:00.000-05:00

Can you tell who is who? Love that they left for school today holding hands.

Camp Tecumseh

2011-04-17T22:08:00.000-05:00

Peter had his first campout with both boys this weekend. They left Friday after school and came back on Sunday in time for lunch. I missed them a bunch but it was great seeing all the pictures of them while they were gone.

EB is 9!

2011-04-16T21:40:00.006-05:00

EB turned 9 today and it was great because it was a girls' day all long. She had a ton of girls over for her party. We ate lunch, decorated bird houses and then cupcakes.

I was so proud of EB for asking that all her presents be giving to the Children's Hospital so she could make a sick girl smile. After the party we headed down there to donate all her gifts. She was so excited to bring them into the hospital and I was so proud of her.

After stopping there we went to get her dolls' hair done at the American Girl store. I should have taken before and after pictures as those girls can work miracles there. For desert and to end the night we went to the Hershey store and she got to fill the bucket of chocolate. Truly she has wanted to do that for years and I have always said on your birthday and she held me to it!

Happy Birthday EB, we love you so much!

The birdhouses waiting to be painted.

A birthday cupcake with a lot of decorations!

Aren't they pretty?

Love their smiles.

Look at all those presents! Way to go EB!

Ready to get to work!

Cranking!

Putting so much into it her hat fell off!

She is one serious worker!

Is Fisher a Fish?

2011-04-11T20:37:00.000-05:00

EB, Tate and Fisher started swim lessons this spring to help them get ready for swim team. I was not sure how Fisher was going to do but he LOVED them so much. He was a little sad that Mrs. Morkes was not his teacher but he was still all smiles. It was neat when we got home he was telling us that in Ethiopia he went swimming 3 times -- one place was far away, one place close and one place a little far. I love that he told us he swam in jeans, his one brother was off swimming and his birth mom never swam. Cannot wait until he can tell us more.

Not one but two teachers!

Tate was an old Pro and EB was off in the big pool.

All smiles LOVING his hooded towel.

Smores

2011-04-09T21:28:00.001-05:00

Having a fire in the fire pit and having smores is one of our favorite things to do on a nice night. The kids were very excited to show Fisher how to toast a marshmallow. Not sure he ended the night a huge fan of them but there is always next time!

Foggy Times in the City

2011-04-09T20:50:00.000-05:00

We headed downtown today for some Ethiopian food for Fisher and he was thrilled to get a sambosa or 6 of them! Afterwards we headed to the beach but it was so windy and foggy you cannot even tell we are at the dog beach, minus Levi. Perhaps that is because Levi would have NO fun at the beach and would rather sleep in his cage.

Harper and Tate lasted about 2 minutes outside the car.

Fisher showing off his new "metal" in his mouth. He is very proud if it.

Let's get creative

2011-04-08T21:12:00.000-05:00

The girls had Peggy over after school to play and dress was the theme of the play date. They put together some play that was very creative. These pictures just crack me up!

I love you more!

2011-04-08T15:31:00.003-05:00

I just told Tate I love him more and more everyday and he told me, I love you more and more every 2 hours!

Success Night

2011-04-07T21:01:00.003-05:00

Tonight was Ogden's Success Night. We had 60 minutes to make it to 3 classrooms. Not sure next year when we have 4 classrooms to visit how we are going to do it. The kids were so proud of all their classrooms and it was wonderful to see. The boys had the most fun cracking the dinosaur egg -- a perfect end to their dinosaur unit.

Harper and Ms. Markby

EB and her Chicago Cow --- clearly this one is from Chinatown.

Fishersaurus

Ready to get to work!

Tate worked super hard on his project. I was in the classroom helping and Tate kept his a big surprise from me the entire time. I was excited he finally revealed it!

Fisher's project!

2 little dinosaurs!

Alix!

2011-03-31T21:00:00.001-05:00

It is spring break this week and I headed down with the kids to Lincoln Park Zoo to see the animals and all Fisher could say was Alix for lions. He was so excited to see the lions. We loved that Mrs. Whipple joined us.

Best picture of the 4 of them together.

EB loves climbing Bamboo! It does not get any better for her.

Tate the Human.

Still climbing and taking off her coat as she was working up a sweat!

Fisher stared at this gorilla for a long long time.

Can you see the baby?

Up close and personal with the Lion, aka Alix. Tate was terrified and hung back with me.

Pucker up buttercup!

Nice view of the city and all 4 of them are in the picture.

Hard to believe with all these smiles they all actually whined the entire time at the Zoo!

2 weeks home

2011-03-30T19:41:00.000-05:00

The past 2 weeks since Fisher has been home has been filled with lots of things from smiles and fun times to some crying and not so fun times. Here are some pictures of our first 2 weeks together as a family of 6.

45 pounds and 47 inches

Visiting Tate in school on St. Patrick's Day -- everyone is green!

Not so sure about his hat.

Out to bike ride AGAIN!

Harper and Fisher.

Bike Riding.

My 2 little leprechauns.

2 seconds drawing with a new gift.

EB and Fisher. Note the drinkable yogurt. Fisher LOVES them.

No fear of Levi.

Fisher grabbed Tate and pulled him down to hug him and they were both smiles.

Love the "Family" sign that Tate made. He added Fisher as a star and wrote everyone's ages. For Fisher Tate added "new" and wrote 6 or 7 of maybe 8.

EB sleeping on her new soft pillows she had been wanting for so long.

All clean and hugging.

Harper doing her homework.

Tate wanted to read Fisher stories and Fisher wanted to listen.

Harper's all about me week!

Daddy and his boys.

My little artist Tate.

Yum Popcorn from Mr. and Mrs. Trimarco.

All bones!

We went super early to the MSI before it got too busy. Here is Tate running in a circle. He lasted 10 seconds.

Mommy and EB trying to relax. Can you guess who won this game of relaxation?

I love that Tate did his chart and entered in the people that were important in his life, Mommy, Daddy, Grandma, Grandpa and EB. For the subsequent questions they were all EB. Never knew 2 siblings could love each other this much.

Object of this game was to make a self portrait of yourself using shapes. Tate wanted to do the real thing.

EB got it!

Fisher, Daddy and Harper.

EB trying out some wheels.

EB loving the best climbing tree ever at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Bowling Fun.

Who needs to bowl when you can hold a baby, especially one as cute as Brody.

Welcome Home Fisher (and Peter)!

2011-03-16T19:53:00.010-05:00

Today was a great day having us all together. Grandma and Grandpa met us at the airport or they may say, we met them at the airport. Peter and Fisher's plane landed early and they flew through customs and getting their luggage so they were all waiting for us since we had to wait for EB to get home on the bus before we could leave.

EB worked so so hard on her sign and we were excited to have it at the airport for Fisher's welcome home.

Grandma and Grandpa and Fisher.

Daddy and Fisher.

The girls cannot get enough of him. Hoping it lasts for a while but right now they are all over him!

Tate and Fisher -- cannot wait to get a picture of them both showing their missing front teeth.

Mommy and her boys. Notice the iTouch in Fisher's hand. He LOVES it and does not want to put it down. Thanks Uncle Joe, Aunt Rachel, Annie and Theo.

His first car ride. He jumped right in and buckled up!

Once we got home it was pretty much a mad dash with the kids running around the house trying to show him everything. He was so excited to find his bed and then EB brought in the balloons and off he went!

Dueling remote controlled cars. So much fun!

Tub time -- Fisher was not home long before we put him in the tub for a good cleaning. The boys -- love saying that -- had a blast together.

Off for some fun in the yard on the swingset.

LOVING the swing.

Back to the remote controlled car. It will need new batteries tomorrow. He feel asleep tonight holding it.

Tate was very nice and let Fisher try to ride his bike. After about 45 minutes of sharing we were in the car to get him a new bike. His smile would have melted your heart. Pictures of that to come tomorrow when we get it out of the car.

It won't take long to ride the bike!

Welcome home Fisher -- we are glad we are finally all together as a family of 6! As EB said leaving the airport, I think we are good with 4 kids but if we want one more, let's go to China for her.

My Baby

2011-03-15T23:58:00.000-05:00

Fisher and Peter come home tomorrow and we are all very excited. Fisher may be younger than Tate but Tate and I have agreed that he will always be my baby. Here he is passed out!