A morning at the wildlife refuge

I have spring fever. I don't know how I survived for so long with the long winters up in Cheney. The ones in Tri-Cities are a little shorter, but still too long. In order to coax Spring into being, Owen and I ventured to McNary Wildlife Refuge on Saturday. The weather in the morning was clear skies all around, no wind...the appearance of a perfect Spring day. We waited to head out until about 10 a.m...had to let the frost melt away. By the time we got there the clouds had rolled in and the wind had started ruffling the grass. This is Owen, though, and it didn't stop him from exploring. We walked along the trail, seeing lots of ducks and a group of trumpeter swans. Owen picked a feather to carry in his pocket. As he got closer to the water the birds startled and all flew at once. Probably a thousand birds in the air at the same time. The sound was amazing. It got a little cold, so we ate our picnic in the back of the van. Owen protested...wanting to eat on the grass with the birds...but I had to object. As much as I complain about my Town & Country (gosh, that is a terrible name, no wonder they are going under), it was nice to have all the space in the back to lay out the blankets and be protected from the weather. Owen got to walk around while he ate lunch. We had a great time. I can't wait to take him there when we only have to wear t-shirts and shorts.

Adoption news: paperwork is being prepared at the Burkina embassy. Just waiting for that very special phone call.

Finally, an adoption update

We got the long awaited I-800A approval this week. We sent our packet out the last week of October '08 to US immigration. It was quite the wait...seems too long...but I don't remember much of it. Time goes by in a blur. Now we are ready to receive a referral for our baby. Another period of waiting. Not sure how long it will take...a week...a month? My hope is before the end of February. We are the only family ready for a referral, so it shouldn't take too long. Once we receive a referral, more paperwork must be filled out and sent back to immigration. Of course, I will post pictures as soon as I am able.

Do you "Facebook"???

Well...I do now. After several conversations with some friendly Facebookers I finally decided to try it. So far, it is a little addicting...but I have to get my account set up, right?! I have already "talked" with a couple of friends who I haven't seen in years...which is nice. I think I worked my persuasion magic on Janell last night and she will be joining today. Girl...I know you are reading this...so don't let me down.

Owen is sick...really sick. He has had colds before, but this one tops them. He doesn't sleep well at all. Poor kids looks like he hasn't slept in days. We are currently watching the Cars movie for the 3rd day in a row. And, if you know me, I really don't like him to watch tv every day. Just looking at him would make you want to give him anything he wants.

He has been in some good spirits though. Who wouldn't be with their favorite dude in the whole world (aka Dad) swinging them around.


Yes, those are Lightning McQueen slippers. He also bought himself some Lightning McQueen shoes on Friday. They were strategically placed on the bottom shelf in the middle at the shoe store. He saw them the minute we walked up the to the toddler boys section. "Owen want to buy these ones." I couldn't resist. They light up. I remember seeing a little girls shoes that lit up several years ago and thinking to myself 'my kid will never wear shoes like that." Well...those days have come. He is so proud of his choice. The kid definitely knows what he likes.

No new adoption news to report. :(.

Beautiful day in January

The Tri-Cities really is a great place to live. We drove down to the river this morning and took a nice long run on the trail. It was peaceful, perfect temperature for a winter morning run. No wind, no snow, just a crisp cool morning. Owen had a great time watching the geese, ducks, and seagulls. Oh...and the boats. None of them were out on the water, just sitting in the marina, but he still thought they were the best thing of the morning. We then ventured over to the playground and hung out with the sturgeon and salmon statues. What do I always want after a run...food! The best place to go on a Sunday morning is the local bagel shop. We get bagel sandwiches and drinks...yummy. Owen loves it there. They used to have cars from the Cars movie to play with but they went missing one day. He still asks about them though, hoping that one day they will show up.



We cut the hair. It got way too long and fuzzy. We would have to go days without washing it in order for it to look good. The cut was a piece of cake. Stick Owen in front of the Cars movie and he will pretty much let you do anything. This picture shows his new hair cut. And...for those of you who don't see Owen a lot...it also shows the love of his life...Teddy (Ted for short). He holds onto the arm with his hand and sticks it right up to his nose will sucking his thumb. Pretty much the best thing in the world.

Adoption update: I called immigration on Monday. They still haven't assigned our case, but she said that they have 90 days to review it. This would put us at February 14. My goal now is to call on Feb 14 to check the status. I am hoping that we will hear something before that and I won't even have to call.

Another Christmas Down

Another Christmas down...another year coming to an end. Owen has now experienced three Christmas seasons in his lifetime. This one being the only one he will remember...at least for a couple months. He got a pair of car on fire rubber boots from his auntie and uncle...featured in the picture above. Another present of note is a new book called Fast Friends (based on the Cars movie). We have read it 50 times already. "He's sure and steady, Mater thinks he ready to become as fast as a race car." Can't get it out of my head.

We spent 8 days up in Cheney with family, while Matt stayed behind and worked. Somebody has to bring home the bacon. Cheney was filled with snow...3 feet of snow. Maybe more. Owen got to sled once. Grandpa pulled him around in the "Thundercat" (only the best sled from my childhood). However, Owen didn't want to sit in it alone...so Grandpa got to pull around an extra 120 pounds (me) in addition to Owen's 30 pounds. Whip! Whip!

Most of you know that my mom had a couple of tumors found over the past couple of weeks. I am happy to report that everything is going really good and that in a couple weeks she will hopefully never have to worry about them again. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and prayers as she went through doctors appointments.

Adoption update: I plan to call immigration on January 5 to find out the status of our paperwork. I am trying not to call more than once a month. Last time I called was December 3. I think I am being pretty patient...really proud of myself :). My hope is that we will have a referral before the end of January...might be too optimistic but you never know.

Have a safe and happy new years!

It is SOOOO cold!

This week has been freezing. I think back to the time when Matt and I were thinking about moving up to Alaska to teach in remote villages...and even planning to have kids and raise them up there for a couple of years. What was I thinking??? Cold weather bites. At least we have some light during the day.

And, snow in the Tri-Cities. Not uncommon, but not that common. Mainly because it has actually stayed for more than 5 hours. Owen experienced the first snow he can remember this week. We put him in his snow pants for the first time. And...put him in some shoes. Ooops. No snowboots. Grandma bought him some snowboots a couple weeks ago, but they are two hours away. He didn't seem to mind at all. And, since the snow is so dry, his feet didn't get wet.



Matt is sitting in the room next to me playing star wars on the Wii. We love our Wii. Just got it last week. I picked up Wii Fit last Friday. Lucky! They sell out everywhere 15 minutes after a store opens the doors. It was just sitting on a counter at a game store. We both have been doing yoga, aerobics, strength training, and balance exercises. It really is a good workout. Maybe not a complete aerobic workout, but definitely a good strength and core workout.

Owen and I will be heading up to Spokane once the snow lets up. The airport is closed and they are getting dumped on right now.

Hiking Badger Mtn.

Owen and I took a great hike last Saturday. We hiked up the local "mountain." A hike we have done before. This one was special because we couldn't have asked for better weather for a December hike. We went with some folks from my work. Tim carried Owen up the mountain and I carried him back down. What a great day.



We are getting excited for Christmas to come. We will be heading up to Cheney for a couple days while Matt stays home and works.

Adoption update: absolutely nothing! Still waiting on paperwork.