Book Talk

Daniel's book talk is tomorrow in the library. We had our last practice this evening. Hopefully he will do this great tomorrow...




Thanks George and Lori for coming through at the last minute with the goat! We searched all over town and came up empty!!

The sad news is that my memory card got full right there at the end. You'll just have to read the book to find out what happens...

Psalm 119:11

Sorry I haven't been posting lately - I have been sick and just can't seem to get my energy back. But, we're hanging in there. Daniel is doing well at school. We've been practicing his book talk (which is like an oral book report, with props!) so I should have some cute videos soon. In the mean time, he is still learning a new verse every week for school so here is last week's verse....

Jet takes flight

One of the things Daniel really wanted for Christmas was a remote control helicopter. That's an item that's a little bit too old for him, but his mind was made up. After considering all of the options, I picked the one that said 'perfect for first time fliers'. It's a jet instead of a helicopter, but it's made out of this flexible material that's supposed to be hard to destroy. We'll see...

So that sad thing about getting that kind of toy for Christmas is, it's not really great weather for jet flying - especially with all of the snow we've had lately. Well, we had a rare nice day last weekend so we took the jet out for it's first flight. It was a little too windy but we still had fun...

I love this picture. Jason is the launcher and Daniel is the pilot. You can see the jet at the very top. Daniel was whooping and hollering....

Basketball star

Daniel is still really enjoying his basketball games. He is turning into a bit of a ball hog though. He has discovered the high of making a shot so that's what he wants to do every time. We are having such fun watching. It's a hoot!

I love this picture. That blur in the middle is Daniel jumping through the air to give a high five after he made a shot....

Stupid human tricks

Can you lick your elbow?

Yeah - neither can we!

Memory verse and Go Cards!!

Orange belt

Daniel has been in karate for 8 months now. Tonight he completed the test to qualify for his orange belt. We were so proud! They have really helped him with discipline and respect (Yes Ma'am!!). It's been a great experience for him so far. Here are some cute photos....

He was so excited that his board broke into FOUR pieces:

Getting his new belt:

Adoption quote

I read this on another adoptive mom's blog and thought it was so great I wanted to share it here. She didn't say who or where the quote is from so it's unknown, but good...


"For anyone who is in fear of the monsters that may be lurking around the corners of adoption, yes, as with anything, there are monsters to be conquered and there is that potential that they could gobble us up, which makes our actions so much more important. But please consider for a moment that as you are reading this, there is a child who is battling very real monsters alone. And imagine that when you make a commitment to take up arms, side by side with the child, how many unnecessary scars you, as a family, can prevent."

What a blessing to to have that reassurance. Adoption is scary but such a great blessing! (to us parents first, even before our children!)

Snow Day!!!

Mom - I did it!!!

After much practice - on Monday Daniel tied his shoe by himself!!!! He was so excited!!! (now if we can just teach him to swing by himself)

Bitty Basketball

We signed Daniel up for basketball at church. We decided we aren't going to be those parents that run their kids through a million different activities, but he needs to try a few things out to see what he likes, right? So, we tried baseball and soccer and now it's time for basketball. We were kind of worried about how it would go. He already knows how to run and kick, so he could fake his way through soccer but dribbling is hard!




So today was the first day. We thought they would just have a practice today, but they practiced first and then had an actual game. It was so hilarious - Jason and I laughed and laughed at how sweet the kids are. None of them know what they're doing. They shoot at the wrong basket, stare off into space, steal the ball from their own teammate, pick up the ball and take off running - it's hilarious! Daniel did really great and had fun. (I think it's all of that U of L basketball we watch!) He made 2 baskets, blocked a few shots and played great defense. He didn't get frustrated and fall on the floor crying and he didn't hit anyone - whew! We were so proud. Here are some shots for you - check out those chucks! (I got them at a yard sale - he's retro!)








I thought it would be great to get his verse and then have him shoot the ball. Unfortunately, my batteries ran out right at the end - sorry!! This is I Timothy 4:12...

Verse movies - catch up

First week of 2011

We've had a great time playing with all of our new toys.

Uno Attack:

Rock em Sock em Robots:

And taking pictures with his fancy new digital camera:

I was really worried about the first week back to school. After all of this fun, staying up late, playing and consuming more sugar than usual - how can he ever go back to be a good first grader? Well, off to school he went and believe it or not......he has had 4 great days!! His teacher actually emailed me about taking him off his behavior plan (which is that daily report that comes home in his folder). We are going to give him another week to make sure it's not a fluke but so far, 2011 has been a major turning point for us. WOW! Praise the Lord!!

Happy 2011!!

We spent new years eve watching the Cards lose :( playing with toys (UNO Attack!), and then a quick trip to the bowling alley. We rang in the new year sound asleep (well, most of us). Here are some shots from our little bowler...

Check out that form:

Victory Dance:

Giving High Fives:

For more bowling action, here is a link to a video I posted to You Tube...