Aquarium Day

On Saturday morning in Charleston Jeremy was working so I got together with three other moms and their kids. We spent the morning at the hotel pool which was beautiful. We decided to grab lunch out and then go to the S.C. Aquarium before meeting the rest of the group in the afternoon. I am always amazed at how quickly kids get comfortable with each other. In our group of eight kids we had three eight year old girls. I will let you think about that one for a minute and just imagine how much energy was in that little group of girls. The whole group got along great and that made for relaxing day for all of us.

While we were finishing up at the aquarium we noticed it was 3:00 and we needed to be back at the hotel before 3:30 to meet the rest of our group to go bowling. From the aquarium to the hotel was one mile which should be easy but we had eight tired kids with us. We started walking back to the hotel as quick as we could but realized before we were half way there that this was not going to work. We spotted a cab that agreed to take ALL of us back to the hotel. Four moms, eight kids, and the cab driver all crammed into a minivan cab....clown car is what I am sure we looked like when we unloaded at the hotel.

Charleston

Friday morning we left town with snow on the ground and headed south. As much as I LOVE snow I knew it would melt soon and 65 degrees in Charleston sounded much better. This was a work trip for Jeremy but we had a great time with all of the other families in the company. I had lots of crazy adventures with three other moms and our combined eight kids. We had so many laughs this weekend and I can't decide which was better - the cab that all 12 of us rode in back to the hotel or getting a text from Cole (all the kids were at the hotel with a babysitter while the adults had dinner)telling me that the floor of the hotel caught fire but it was out now!!!

I am still going through all the pictures from the trip so there will be many more to come!

Outside of our hotel that we could have stayed at for weeks.

Sponsoring Elcie

For the last week I have been sharing pictures and blog posts of our dear friend (and amazing children's choir leader) Connie's trip to Haiti with Cole and Adrienne. They have both had a million questions and they think Mrs. Connie is the coolest person ever because she went to Haiti on a mission trip.

Adrienne asked if we could just go adopt all the children in the orphanage. I LOVE her heart and I wish it was so easy. I thought a lot about this because Adrienne has been talking about the children a lot this week. I decided there is a way we can help one child in Haiti and hopefully show them love. I went to the Compassion website and searched for children in Haiti. Adrienne found a beautiful little girl for our family to sponsor.

Adrienne is so excited and will not put the picture of Elcie down! I can't wait to share God's love and the love of our family with this little girl. 

Here is the information about our new child Elcie: 

Elcie lives on the plains of Loncy, home to approximately 3,000 residents. Typical houses are constructed of cement and have sheet metal roofs. The most commonly spoken language is Creole.

The regional diet consists of maize, beans, bread, beef, rice and vegetables. Common health problems in this area include coughs, fever and diarrhea. Most adults in Loncy are unemployed but some work as street vendors and earn the equivalent of $21 per month. This community needs employment opportunities, medical and educational facilities, electricity, suitable drinking water and social development.
 
Sponsorship allows the staff of Loncy Child Development Center to provide Elcie with Bible teaching, medical care, social events, recreational activities, academic support, books and uniforms. The center staff will also provide committees and educational classes for the parents or guardians of Elcie. 

 

Christmas 2012

Here is a little snapshot of our Christmas in the mountains and at home. My goal next year is to take pictures of all the other things we do and not just the presents.

We all know every girl should get more than one pair of boots for Christmas and they should come in the brightest colors you can find!!

The Polar Express

A few days before Christmas we took a ride on the Polar Express. Cole and Adrienne enjoy the whole experience from the hot chocolate to the reading of the Polar Express book. Of course we have a great time singing Christmas carols on the train too. We were thankful that the rain stopped about an hour before our train ride after having rained the whole day. It was COLD but we all had a great time!

Adrienne has already told me that we have to go back again next year!

Reminders

I had planned on doing a blog post on our life with diabetes during the month of November which was diabetes awareness month. I never really could think of what to say so I just let the month slip by without doing it. 

On the outside our life is just like every other family with young kids. On the inside I am always on high alert looking for any signs of high or low blood sugar. I had a reminder this weekend of how crazy it can be at times. While the kids were singing in the Living Christmas Tree at church I was looking at Adrienne and she was staring downward instead of singing. I got the all too familiar knot in my stomach and was wondering what was wrong with her. Is she high? Is she low? Is she going to pass out? This whole event lasted probably 5 seconds and she was singing again. Of course it had nothing to do with diabetes.....the spotlight was in her eyes. To me it was just a reminder all the ups and downs we face every single day.

Managing diabetes is a battle that we are always fighting. At the end of the day I know that we were chosen to fight this battle with this amazing girl for a reason. I love that at such a young age she hopes for a cure here on earth but she knows that if it doesn't happen here that she will be healed one day!

The Living Christmas Tree

The Living Christmas Tree is a family favorite every year. I can remember going to see it with my grandmother when I was younger so having my own kids singing in it now is so special to me. All the kids did an amazing job this year even though on Saturday night they started dropping like flies. I think it is safe to say that by the end of the weekend every child in the choir had some kind of sickness. These pictures were taken during the last performance on Sunday night and we were missing a good bit of the choir. 

After the final performance Adrienne and her friend Lillian decided they would take over directing!