A first birthday party!!!

 

 

 

 

Keep scrolling b/c as usual I coudln't get all the pictures I wanted to in!

Nataga and Henok

 

 

 

Aren't they handsome!? We are so lucky to have such awesome boys in our family!

The fun ctd.

 

 

 

 

Ooooo... money, toys, and a first birthday. Can life get any better? I suggest that it cannot!

Happy 2002... For Ethiopia!

For those of you who may not know...

September 11th is both New Year's Day and the Feast of St. John the Baptist. The day is called Enkutatash meaning the "gift of jewels." When the famous Queen of Sheba returned from her expensive jaunt to visit King Solomon in Jerusalem, her chiefs welcomed her back by replenishing her treasury with enku or jewels. The spring festival has been celebrated since these early times and as the rains come to their abrupt end, dancing and singing can be heard at every village in the green countryside. After dark on New Year's Eve people light fires outside their houses.

The main religious celebration takes place at the 14th-century Kostete Yohannes church in the city of Gaynt within the Gondar Region. Three days of prayers, psalms, and hymns, sermons, and massive colourful processions mark the advent of the New Year. Closer to Addis Ababa, the Raguel Church, on top of the Entoto Mountain north of the city, has the largest and most spectacular religious celebration. But Enkutatash is not exclusively a religious holiday, and the little girls singing and dancing in pretty new dresses among the flowers in the fields convey the message of springtime and renewed life. Today's Enkutatash is also the season for exchanging formal New Year greetings and cards among the urban sophisticated in lieu of the traditional bouquet of flowers.

What I have felt like lately

 

This year has been SOOO busy. Really, I have had LITTLE time to do anything. This year instead of working for a school I am going back to school to get another degree. Yes full time, and when people ask me how it is going... I can only respond with BUSY. Luckily, I get some days home with Nati during the week and then the weekend. Trying to juggle him, keeping our house/yard up, and school work is almost impossible. I often hear people describe Nataga as "the most active kid they've ever seen" and he IS VERY active. Also, David has been working non-stop. He often works 12hours in a town that is about 2 hours away. He also preaches for a local church Sunday, Sunday night, and teaches class on Wed. (as often as he can). He is involved in several town committes and he has been calling football games for our local school on Fridays. So if you start to see lags in our posting OR if you have noticed we haven't posted on your blog... sorry, this would be why!

Nataga

 

This picture is of K's first football game! His daddy announced the game this past Friday! I messed up the logos on purpose so you can't see exactly what the team is... you never know...

 

He fell asleep on his changing talbe!

 

This was taken today!

 

This was taken the day we arrived in the US.

When size 2 will no longer do...

Today Nataga officially graduated to a size 3 diaper! We had about 20 size two diapers left and have been working like crazy to use them up before he outgrew them. Lots of "Oh, your a little bit wet, lets change you." Well today it was more "Woah! You're a LOT wet -head to toe." That didn't stop me as we've had those off and on. So Nati gave me a second WET diaper. Still didn't stop me... so Nati took matters into his own hands, or something like that... This time he wasn't just wet from head to toe... Someone FILLED his outfit front to back and it literally was from head to toe. I had JUST changed him too. If that doesn't call for graduating up to size 3, I don't know what does! Needless to say he got his bath early and I got to do some extra laundry :)!

What else? Nataga has a birthday in a couple of weeks and will be turning one year old. I don't know where all the time has gone!