Mmmmm....Feet....

Say Cheese!!

Natural Born Athlete

Our little guy loves a ball! He throws really well and quit straight actually! I'm thinking H2o player for sure! But he likes any ball!! Especially if he can play with Dad!

Mmmmmm....Guacomole!!

Cruzin!!

Finally I can get the pictures up of our trip! Before we went to Vegas we stopped at Michael and Cindy's house to hang out with them and their twins! Ben and Seb wore their Halloween costumes all day...totally adorable!!

Halloween Fun!!

We had such a great time in Vegas with my family! And I think our little pumpkin did too!

A Way to Give Back...

AS some of you know, I have taken a very active roll in helping to raise funds for AHOPE for Children...an awesome orgazination with a fabulous cause!! When Mike and I were in Ethiopia, we were priveledged enough to be able to visit the care center. We played soccer with a beautiful little boy and met all of the children and care takers. Since then, it has held a special place in my heart and I am doing what I can to help! The following is an email I received from Marissa Baker, another passionate AHOPE volunteer!

The AHOPE Store is now selling packages of AHOPE holiday cards to send to family and friends this season. The front of the card features a vibrant, colorful photo of happy children at AHOPE. The photo is courtesy of the talented photographer, Lisa Qualls. They come in packages of 12 and we are requesting a $15 donation per package. This is a great way to raise funds for AHOPE and also inform your loved ones about the organization we so passionately care about. The quantity is limited so please act quickly! You can order the cardsat www.ahopestore.org.

While you're there please be sure to check out the new items that have recently been added such as hooded sweatshirts, beautiful jewelry(including the "offical" AHOPE Necklace), and memorial bracelets. These will make great holiday gifts. To those that who supported the AHOPE Store already, thank you very much! It's been a very successful venture thanks to you. We have exceeded our goals and have set them even higher. Through your support, we have not only raised tremendous funds for AHOPE, but have also spread the word about these remarkable children. As always, there is much more to be done.

With gratitude,Marissa Baker
AHOPE Storewww.ahopestore.org

P.S. We recently ordered a new shipment of bracelets. When selecting the names of the children for the bracelets, we chose the name of a 12-year-old boy named Tilahun. Sadly, last week Tilahun passed away from meningitis. We hadn't planned to offer AHOPE memorial bracelets until January but Tilahun he will be our first name. He will be the first child we honor. His memorial bracelet is now available on the store website. The memorial bracelets will include a photo of the child along with a celebration of his life through words. It's one way to keep the memories of these children alive.--
Marissa BakerAHOPE Store
www.ahopestore.org
www.ahopeforchildren.org
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Cruisin with the Cruzes

I don't know what the heck is going on, but I can't upload any of my photos...so I have a lot of catching up to do, but it will have to wait!

Ethiopian Playdate

Here we are having a fabulous time at our monthly Messob meeting! Michael was MIA as he had a softball game, so Marley and I had a good date and caught up with friends!!

Halloween Preview

Here's a sneak preview of the cuteness that will be his first Halloween! I think a pumpkin is quite appropriate!! Beware: the following photos could cause cuteness paralysis!!

Swing Batta'

Michael plays softball on the weekends at our local parks. The name on Dad's jersey is "Marley's Dad" and his number is 85...the month and day he and I were married! Although Dad is the one who scores the points, Marley is always the big hit at the game....oh God, that was even a little pukey for me!!

Ethiopians for Obama

And that my friends needs no explanation!!

Fun with Julie

We went to Julie's house on Friday after a long day at school...what's better than friends, muffins, dogs and music??

Everything's a Drum

Our little drummer boy loves to drum...

Recycled Plastic Apple Hat for the Whole Family

We decided to support Marley with his headware obsession...

Birthday Party

As I mentioned, we went to Princess Gracie's 1st Bday party last weekend! The evite touted "The biggest party she will never remember!!" Appropriate...it seems that Bday parties for infants are more for adults and older kids...no complaints here! I am all for bouncy houses and Corona with a lime...perhaps not together, but I think you get my drift!! It was Marley's first bouncy house experience, which of course should be expected since he has been standing upright and walking for only about 6 weeks now! I think Dad got a bigger kick out of it then Marley did!!

There were quite a few older kids there, you know the mature 3 and 4 year olds who were sitting around talking about mutual funds and the impending financial bail out...we noticied many from this crew under a great deal of stress, perhaps it was the imminent VP debate, or maybe they were still realing from the Obama smack down on Friday night...who knows....but they all seemed to want whatever it was that Marley had in his hands, and they never shyed away from stealing said object from him. Our little trooper just looked at these kids, perhaps with a glimmer of symapthy, for they must be very deprived to continiously prey on our little man, and then delight in the disovery of anew toy...until he finally found something the other kids didn't want!

One of the many great things about Marley is that when the above mentioned would happen, he wouldn't cry. He justs looks at the toy thief, who is usually screaming "MINE!!!!" for a few seconds and then goes and gets something else to play with. It used to make me sad (this isn't the first time I have witnessed such behavior), but now I am thankful and proud. My friend Kelli pointed out how blessed we are to have such a low maintenace, mellow happy child!! I guess if he isn't upset by it, then I shouldn't be either! I just don't want my little guy to ever get taken advantage of...but I have seen his stubborn side as well and know that when it is something important to him, he will fight (or scream) to get what he really wants...

If anyone out there in bloggerville can tell me how to rotate a video I would be much obliged!

A New Question Asked...

On Sunday we went to Grace's first Birthday party (of which there will be more pictures!)

Our friend Kelly was there with her 11 week old daughter Emma! She is the tiniest little thing and Kell has settled quite nicely into motherhood! Mike and I had talked about having bio kids, actually one bio child, but once we came home with the little man, that idea rapidly flew out the window! Neither of us was in love with the idea of waking every two hours to feed or change...totally selfish, maybe..but at least we can be honest!! So instead, we will be adopting another Ethiopia beauty...but an older one...after we pay down our monsterous debt and save for the adoption...no more refinancing!!

But this still brings up the question of how Marley will react to being a big brother and sharing his mom and dad with another person! I got to hold Emma yesterday and I think he did ok! When he first discovered cute little being on Momma's lap he came over, stared at her and gave me a hug...very cute, but I was undecided as to how he felt about the whole idea!

So I pulled them both on my lap, and I have to say I was pretty good at multitasking two babies (at one point I was feeding Emma and pulling Marley up on my lap at the same time)! But, Marley then began to "pet" Emma...I am not sure from where the petting came: curiosity, jealousy, friendship...so the topic is still a mystery and I suppose we will have plenty of time to let unfold before we really start preparing for a new family member!!