heading home!

Today we leave Ethiopia for the long trek home.

Some quick hitting notes:

the food at our guest house has been amazing!
the people here are very warm and friendly
the weather is a near perfect 76 degrees
the boys are starting to be clingy and are avoiding bed time at all costs.
we are a little worried about being THOSE PARENTS on the plane with the fussy screaming kids. (prayers please!!!)
I will be glad to see “normal” driving again. They drive super crazy here.
ohh yes – we are looking forward to sleeping inour bed!

That’s about it for the moment. If we have time (read no screaming boys, and we have energy left in us) in LAX, we may blog / facebook some quick updates.

June 6, 2009

I think we have things all set. Spent last night running some last minute errands then went to dinner at Camarones at the chandler fashion mall. Wow it is really some of the best mexican food we have ever had. We both got vegetarian dishes, and really tasty stuff. We even went and saw Star trek last night. For those that know us, we rarely see movies at the theatre. Not really sure why, just not our thing.

Got home kind of late, then spent a few hours packing. In bed by midnight.

4 big suitcases and 2 carry-ons. All under the max sizes and weights (which was the hard part for carry-ons).

The travel plan:
PHX to LAX via commuter.
LAX to Dubai (stay sunday night)
Dubai to Addis monday morning.

Please say a prayer for us. We’ll try and post something on the blog if we get access to an internet cafe somewhere.

June 1, 2009

7 years

thats how long I have been lucky enough to have such a great wife. Sometimes I still think she is crazy for marrying me. She is pretty much the best wife any man could hope for.

Thanks for an amazing 7 years Stephanie. The next 7 should prove to be even more exciting I am sure!

just for fun, a pic from our wedding.

May 22, 2009

New Pics of Noah & Ezra

thanks to John and April for taking new photos of our boys. We are always excited to see them!

Anyone else noticing a trend here? Ezra is not usually a happy camper. You can tell he was crying, and in all the other pics John & April sent he is crying. While Noah is cool as a cucumber. im sure once Ezra is held more, and grows up a bit he will settle down. Otherwise maybe he and our niece Abby can exchange tips on being crabby (im kidding, abby isnt that crabby, sometimes she’s quite giggly and happy)

May 18, 2009

Noah & Ezra!

Introducing Noah Esrael and Ezra Yakob born on November 14, 2008!

Ezra is on the left, Noah on the right. Angie was so sweet to take this video for us when she was there!

Here are their referral photos taken February 10, 2009:

Ezra Yakob

Noah Esrael

I am sensing a theme in their daily lives, two different families traveling weeks apart have both sent me this scene:

Ezra crying and Noah giving him a look

Lots more pictures in the photo gallery!

May 6, 2009

down to 2

2 days left till court.

2 Optimistic dreams

We pass court with no hiccups
we get the May 28th Embassy appointment as scheduled.

Can I get an amen on those?!

May 4, 2009

4 days

4 days, 4 life lessons I hope to teach the boys (you know, because 4 is all they really need).

God loves them. No matter what, God wants the best life for them. A life of freedom, choices, & exploration.
Love, respect for others opinions / beliefs, and hard work go further in life than anything else.
Never put a ceiling on what you can do. Big dreams cant have 8 foot ceilings.
Respect women at all times. Open doors, listen, be gentle and kind.

i am sure there are more lessons I hope to teach them, but this is my top 4 for the moment.

May 2, 2009

6 days

wow Stephanie had to bring her A-game on the last post. how can i compete with that.

6 ways stephanie is going to be a great mom

she is already in loving mom mode over these boys. its only going to get better
she will spend a lot of quality time with them
I think she is pretty creative when it comes to things kids like to do. She is always finding crafts, and activity books that she and the boys will do together.
those boys will hang out in the garden and play in the dirt learning all the good things home grown gardens have.
Stephanie will worry about the boys. In a good way. Nothing will get by her, and she will always be thinking of them in anything she does.
Stephanie has such a huge heart. She can foster 6 kittens, have 4 pets of her own, and be sick, and still make sure everyone is taken care of. 2 little boys should be a piece of cake. (okay they are probably harder than 6 kittens + 4 pets)

April 30, 2009

8 days

with 8 days till court, I cant help but be excited about 8 specific toys i look forward to playing with the boys.

legos. I really enjoy legos. Even if the little ones will destroy anything tall i build.
cars and trucks. seriously, the cool stuff they have today.
hot wheels! I know, i need to wait a few years for that one.
bikes. These boys are gonna be on bikes way early. I’ll pull the pedals and cranks off so they can be walkers / running bikes so they get the hang of balance. No training wheels here.
coloring books. i didnt wait for them here. I already enjoy them. I have my own box of crayons.
art projects. glue, stickers, markers, cutting paper. all fun stuff.
musical instruments. I suck and melody and rhythm, but that wont stop us from rocking out on the kid instruments we have already.
remote control cars. they have them for little kids now. super simple, but noah and ezra will enjoy them for sure.

April 28, 2009

10 days

It’s only 10 days till Noah & Ezra’s court date. I thought I would share 10 big things we are looking forward to (in no real order).

finally holding you boys
hearing you giggle and make goofy baby noises
seeing you discover new things for the first time
napping on the couch with you
seeing you be fascinated with the cats, yet they wont let you catch them (yet)
taking way too many photos
oddly enough, I do look forward to trying to figure out two of you at the same time.
Watching you play with your toes and your tongue.
seeing you in all the awesome clothes we have and fun cloth diapers. You guys are gonna look so cool.
did I say holding you yet?

Stephanie thinks we can keep a list a day up for each of the 9 days left. We’ll see how that goes. I stole most the good stuff here. Any ideas on what other lists we can expand on over the next 9 days? We probably need the challenge to keep our minds occupied.

April 19, 2009

new wheels times 2

We did get a new (to us) car. One of just a few cars out there that fit the 2 rear facing kids and me.

The 03 4runner. Its a 4×4 and a v8 (i know, I know, you are thinking gas hog). Its actually pretty fuel efficient for its size. So far we are getting 21mpg (way better than a suburban or something). I think its pretty cool. Very comfortable, quiet, and lots of cool toyota features.

and yes, i already added the appropriate stickers. I just need to get some good biking related ones.

(click for full view)

This week I also got my new bike. Finally after a few months of no road bike, the replacement is here (last one was stolen from a friends house). Its a 2009 Jake the Snake Cyclocross Bike. Meaning its a road bike, but burly, can fit knobby tires, and is meant to be taken in the grass, dirt & mud. Not sure if I will ever run a cyclocross race, but its cool to have a bike that is quick on the road, and can cut through the park when i want to.

April 13, 2009

will green hippies judge us?

If we drive an SUV?

I know, I know, we are all about being green, environmentally friendly, bike ridding, organic garden growing, line drying hippies. But in a sad reality, most cars dont fit twins with rear facing car seats, and 6′ 3″ drivers.

Nope, no station wagon, mid size car, cross over SUV works. Its down to a bigger Minivan, or full size SUV. Sure we would love to rock the prius, but its just not a reality.

I will say I have a new understanding for families of twins or more, and families with 3+ kids. There really are not many real options for cars out there that get over 23mpg. Sure, some newer SUVs and vans can get 25+mpg, and still seat 7. But Who has $34k to go out and buy a new car. We do not.

So please dont judge us for having to rock the big SUV. In our defense, we are still trying to get the most fuel efficient SUV possible, and we will drive it like old people, with 40psi in the tires.

April 7, 2009