Almost 18 Months...

Samuel will be 18 months this week! He's doing well- getting into everything and talking more. Much to my dismay, his new favorite phrase is "All done!" I don't know where he picked it up, as I have worked hard to speak Spanish to him most of the time and always say "No mas!" when he's done eating. He does say "agua" and "mas", so there is hope for some bilingualism... or just cute Spanglish.

We've had a good couple of weeks around here. I turned the big 3-0 and survived. Being 30 isn't too bad so far! Samuel had his first overnight at the grandparents. Apparently he slept well, just not sure how well the grandparents slept as Samuel was between them! Samuel also had his first sleepover experience at home. Erick stayed the night Saturday and they had a great time. Today we made another trip to the newly rennovated Fritz's (train restaurant) with Miss Bella. Here are a few pictures....

Sleepover!

Welcome Home, Paulo!

Yesterday we were so excited to see little Paulo Harris arrive to Kansas City! He is the son of our friends, Todd and Nicole, one of the couples who have gone through this process with us here in the area. Paulo is just adorable and we're looking forward to having playdates with another guatemalteco in town!

Out of the six children being adopted by our little group, Caterin is the last one we are waiting for. Her sister, Cindy, came home last fall, but Caterin has had some complications in her case. Please join us in praying for her to come home soon! Here's the link to their blog: http://web.mac.com/dorseyco/Site/Blog/Blog.html

Samuel and Erick giggled together in the backside on the ride to the airport. I couldn't get a good picture from front seat, but you can see from Samuel's expression that they entertain each other very well!

Just one more fun picture....

Read this!

One of my favorite parts about my time in Guatemala was the blessing of meeting so many diverse and amazing people. One of those people, Melissa, is still in Guatemala with her husband and daughter. I just happened to read the last two blog entries on her blog today: http://seekingtheforgotten-melissa.blogspot.com/ They aren't short, easy reads, but I highly recommend taking a second to read.

I read it and then went on to check my email, etc. and then had to go back and re-read and look at the pictures again. God just grabbed my heart and reminded me that I am accountable for what He showed me and taught me while in Guatemala. Just a challenge for me and for anyone else whose heart this grabs to ask God how He would have us respond to the needs in Guatemala and around us locally?? I still am wrestling with what that means for me here.

Mel- if you read this- thanks for your post!!