Eggplants and winter!

This summer as we are staying in the parsonage, we have a very small (and weedy--my fault) garden. Mostly it's filled with herbs, but since I found a Japanese eggplant plant, I thought I would try to grow that too. Those are the kind of eggplants we had in China. I am so proud that even though my weeding skills are completely lacking, it's growing!

Also, although the weather has not been too hot here, I would hardly say that it warranted hat and gloves. We found some old winter things, and the girls wanted to wear them around. Bella liked the gloves because she said they gave her pink fingernails.In other news, Ellie is rolling all over the place. She often finds herself stuck in places. The other day she rolled up to the bookshelf and looked at the books as if she wanted to pick one out and read it. Of course by the time I got the camera, she was off to other adventures! So here are some cranky pictures. Hopefully, I'll get some of Elijah. He's been gone everytime I've gotten the camera out.

And baseball is almost all over...

Elijah's last T-ball game was last night, unfortunately he didn't get to play. Earlier in the day he was playing on some monkey bars and busted his chin open. He got three stitches and a trip to the ER. How fun for him!
Isabella's last baseball game is on Monday. We have been so impressed with how much she has improved. She had two solid hits her last game. I'm hoping on Monday she can get to score a run too.

In other news, the pool is open. The first day that Bella and Elijah were in the pool getting their chins wet was major trauma. But we are doing lots better now. Bella is even swimming with floaties with her face in the water.

Lydia is at the tail end of being potty trained. We are so impressed with how well she is doing. She is growing up on us so fast. Her vocabulary is exploding although we don't always understand her. One funny thing she is when she needs to go potty. Instead of saying "pee pee in the potty," she says "pee pee in the panties." I don't really care which she says as long as she doing it right!

Elliana is also getting big. She's over 16 lb. She eats two jars of food a day with cereal. And she rolls all over the floor. She rolls until she gets herself stuck, a lot of times under the couch. Although yesterday she rolled over to our bookcase (the one that Tim built) and started browsing through the books. It was really cute. But as many of you know, by the time you get the camera they've rolled off somewhere else!

Summer baseball days...

Well, I know that it has been a really long time since I posted...sorry, we have been so busy traveling around and getting set up. But the kids have started playing ball. Here are some pictures from Elijah's first T-ball game. He hit the ball twice. And he ran for the ball every time the other team hit it. He was really on top of it! We are really proud of him. Next week Isabella will be playing in her first game. I will try to stay a little more on top of things.

I know, I know...

Sorry, I have not kept up with this recently. We have been in so many states in the last three weeks, I have more jetlag from changing time zones here than when when we came back from Asia! I do have pictures, unfortunately, no way to upload them this week. I hope that next week to be able to post some pictures. But for now, here is one of the last pictures we took in Asia.

In other news, many of you have already heard, but Tim has been accepted to the Ph.D. program at Southern Seminary. We hope to move to Louisville in August. It is nice to know what we are doing at least for the near future. I am really hoping that once we settle into one place here, I'll be better able to keep up with the blog.

It's Bacon!

One of the great pleasures of living overseas is all the interesting translations. Well, as this is probably one of the last posts from overseas I thought I would put a picture of a package of bacon.

Elaborate Bacon (I'm not sure what makes it "elaborate"--although it was pretty lean)

Piece in heart Fragrance in mouth...is that a "piece" of bacon IN my heart? Will my arteries clog that quickly? And isn't a "fragrance" something you smell, ie not in your mouth?

These things, I will miss...except when it's important information that I can't figure out what they want me to do. Such as, "olymepics" on official banners. And an "Aboriginal Tribal Restaurant," I'm not really sure what they would serve. And I won't go to "Line up this" instead of "here" anymore. No more heads on my chickens. Ok, maybe I won't miss that. This week I have been thinking a lot about all the things I will miss here. And these are just a few of the things I will miss.

Play Ball!

The kids are really excited because this summer, Isabella and Elijah will be playing softball and T-ball, respectively. Lydia feels a little left out though. She loves balls and likes to through a lot!
In our country, eggs are rarely refridgerated...something I had a hard time relaxing about at first. We have to wash the eggs as well since the sellers try to prove "freshness" by leaving evidence of the eggs last place of inhabitance. So sometimes the eggs will sit on the counter until we have time to wash them. A couple of days ago I was sorting Isabella and Elijah clothes in their room, when Lydia came in and yelled "BALL!" She threw something that I first thought was a toy, but then I realized it didn't bounce. I turned to look and see what "ball" she had thrown and lo and behold, it was an egg! It was really funny...a mess clean up but still funny. I'm looking forward to having counters she can't reach!

Each of them is unique!

I decided it was time to start comparing the kids...not who's the best, but who looks like who (or is it whom?). Enjoy these "through the years" pictures.

All the kids about 20-21 months, in order...

All the babies within the first few months, in order...

Sorry for the pause...

Things have been a little crazy between meetings, traveling, packing, and illness, we've felt stretched a little thin. Happily, the weather has taken a turn for the better and we have our windows open letting in a little warm air.

Elliana will soon be 2 months old. She's growing really fast. While we don't know how much she weighs and she isn't exactly "fat," she is already able to wear 3-6 months clothes. She is really long. The poor thing has a little cold, we are praying that she will be better soon.

Lydia is 21 months now and talking up a storm. This morning Elijah was trying to get her to say "spiderman" but instead, she said "diaperman." Her favorite words are "no," "cookie," juice," and "I'll get it."

Elijah is really getting taller. He is really excited about playing T-ball this summer. And still loves doing his pre-school.

Bella is continuing to do well in school, even though it's always a little difficult to get back in the swing of things after a vacation. But her reading skills are still exploding!

Anyway, here are some pictures that I took yesterday, hope you enjoy!

Long time, no blog...

Sorry for my used to be regular readers. It has been quite a while since I wrote last...sorry. I hope that soon things will calm down, and I will be able to post some pics of the kid from Thailand. But for now, we are going, going, going. Tomorrow is a day off, so hopefully we will be down at the beach for a little R & R. Sadly, though, we only have a few more days left in Thailand...really hoping it will warm up a little before we go back!

Tigers

It's amazing to think that Elliana is already more than a month old. She has slept through the night a couple of times. But even though she doesn't seem to be making it a habit, I'm still okay with her getting up once a night.
Tim took Isabella and Elijah to the Night Safari here with some friends. These pictures prove that they are pretty brave! One of the older girls got to hold the cub, but ours didn pretty good petting.

3 Weeks Today

Believe it or not, Elliana is already 3 weeks old. It seems like she was born last week or just a few days ago. Alright, so I guess it's still not been THAT long. Anyway, Tim and Elijah have gone back home. And we girls are just hanging out waiting for her passport and the boys to come back. So here are a few pictures of the girls. Hope everyone enjoys these!

Chick- ow!

Lydia's idea of fun is to pull all the shoes off the shoe rack. First, she piles them up, and then slowly she hides them all around the house...it makes for a lot of searching!