update on my babies

The kids are doing so well. Here is an update on each one.

Mari'An- She continues to be an amazing child. We were sent a picture book of her family in Africa. We sat down with her and she shared who each person was (mommy Fate, daddy Kedir, and all her siblings.) I asked her where the pix were taken and she said at her home in Africa. She said her house fell down (or maybe someone "boom boomed") and all the houses around her house fell down. So, someone or some group must have taken them out for some reason. ?? I asked her where she slept and she said on the ground with no house above them. The pix are a treasure.

Luke- He is the cutest thing. He thinks it is so funny to tease mommy. I will run after him to kiss him. He puts his hand, pillow, blanket, whatever in front so I kiss it instead of him. Last night he came up to tease and then smacked a real kiss right on my lips. He ran and stuck his face in the blankets on the couch. My shy boy, but sweet as ever. His English is coming along better than expected. I thought he was relying on Mari'an to translate everything and would be the last one to learn English. But, now I think he just wants to speak English only- no more Amharic. He just does not know all the words yet. He speaks more and more each day.

Amelia- She continues to grow by leaps and bounds. Her tantrums and attitudes are completely gone now. She is absolutely gorgeous! She knows she is a princess and acts like it. She likes to be cuddled and needs to be VERY close to us. We call her the pack rat as no matter where she is at, her hands are full of toys or dolls. She needs to have something in her hands at all times. Her English is coming along, a bit slower.

Nadia- Let me just say her smile and eyes help her get out of alot of trouble. She just looks at us with her Nadia grin and we crack up. It is hard to discipline her when she is so darn cute. She said she does not want to wear a diaper. We will see where that goes. I am not sure I am ready for potty training. One day at a time.

Joshua is just a wonderful kiddo. He absolutely loves his new sibs. He plays with them, tries to help them learn, and just wants to help them. We are surprised at this because we never thought he was a baby kind of kid. The Lord is doing something amazing in his heart and we are so proud of him.

Kayleb- He is our teacher. He has helped them learn to ride bikes, swing, rollerblade, etc. His goal is to teach them everything and then go play. We have added slides to our deck which are a blast. K loves the outdoors and will do anything to get out there. He wants to teach the new kiddos all about outside.

J'Dyn- She continues to love having sisters to play with. Her hair has never seen so many bows, clips, and ponies in all her days. The new girls are teaching her how to be a girl. She did not have a chance with just the boys. :) She lost her 2nd tooth on Dec 31. YEH!