Indoor Fun

Now that some wet and cooler weather has moved in and our African born sons think that our Kentucky Fall is brutally cold (don't know yet how we will survive the Winter...), our play times have been more focused indoors.

Some of our new favorite things to do...

Play in the sink with bubbles and water. I should just give him the dirty dishes and a scrub brush and save myself some time...although cleaning up after him probably wouldn't be saving me any time at all.



And puzzles! My, how we LOVE puzzles! He will work on one puzzles for hours at a time...and has even completed a 500-piece...completely on his own! Smart kid, I tell you. He gets it from his mom...


We also like to paint! (Thanks to Gammy for the paint and brushes!) Tried to get Sam to finger-paint, but he would only use one finger. He doesn't like to have his hands dirty, so I'm guessing that includes paint and just gave him his brushes back!

Punkins!

"What is 'dis? Pineapple?"

So, this was our first glimpse at a pumpkin. I was impressed that Charlie knew the word "pineapple", but quickly let him know that all the "orange balls" he saw were indeed pumpkins...not pineapples. (Or "punkins" as Sam calls them!) And were NOT for kicking...as we tried out our new soccer cleats on the nearest one!


The other night we introduced the boys to pumpkin carving with the Jolly's help, which was immediately dubbed "Yucky!", as is everything else that we don't like. We soon got past the yuckiness (once Sam put his hand in the pumpkin, Charlie couldn't be outdone!) and began cleaning and carving away!

They had a blast and Charlie leaned over everyone's shoulder after he finished his own pumpkin creation, critiquing each and every thing that was done. I guess in Ethiopia, once you have carved one pumpkin, you become an expert, as he directed each mark and cut that was made with a drawn out "Nooooooo" or "Yes! 'Dis, 'dis!"


After several picture attempts and trying to get Charlie to smile, I told them..."Show me your teeth!" hoping to see toothy grins. Instead, my very literal 2-year-old is proudly showing me his teeth...

Happy Early Halloween...pictures of Spiderman and Superman soon to follow...

A little bit of Ethiopia in Louisville...

As I've said before, we are blessed to go to a church that has a huge adoption community--including many from Ethiopia! Last night, we all got together at the local Ethiopian restaurant, Queen of Sheba (love their food, by the way, if you are looking for a new place to try).

We have lots of Ethiopian friends and love any chance we get to all hang out. I was a little worried about how the boys would do, since this was our first experience with Ethiopian food since coming home...but they showed us what they do best...EAT! They both scarfed down their food without missing a beat!




Charlie & Sam working at the craft table


Pastor Kevin with most of the kids...


Daddy & Sam

Five

At 4:00 pm on October 16, 2004 at First Baptist Church of Pinson, Alabama, I headed down the aisle towards the man I had had a giant crush on for at least the last four years.

It took him three and half years to realize this...all the while, I sat patiently waiting for him. And I would have waited another three and half years for him...


Today, we have been married for 5 years. While it doesn't seem that long, I can't imagine life without him. He especially deserves to get "Husband of the Year" and "Daddy of the Year" after this week...I have been deathly (as in, I really thought I might die) ill for the past 6 days. My parents happen to be here for the weekend and that was a huge help, but after they left on Monday, he took over and handled it like a pro. Mr. Mom... Doing dishes, making dinner, giving baths, telling bedtime stories...all while I laid in bed fighting for my own life. (Okay, so maybe I am slightly exaggerating, but I was pretty sick. Once you pass 103.5 on the thermometer, you just stop counting...) All that to say, I'm pretty stinkin' fond of him right now...

Five years. Four moves. Two states. Three cities. Eight jobs changes. Three churches. A few trials. Lots of laughs. One six year old. One two year old...

Best five years yet! I love you more...

Kids say the darndest things...

Charlie's language changes on a day to day basis as he learns new things. Today we learned what a pop tart is called instead of just saying, "Uhhhhhhhhhh!". But if this was your first time to be around him, you might be slightly confused by things that we are now used to. "No eyes" means he can't see something or that he would like to see something for further clarification on what it is before he agrees to it (such as food, etc) and is most commonly used if he thinks you are going to make him turn off the TV. "No ears" means he can't hear the TV and would like for you to turn it up. We haven't established words like volume, hear, etc yet. (And no, he doesn't watch TV all day long, although given a choice, probably would.) "Nafgin" means napkin. "Sim" is Sam...which I am sad to admit that it took me a while to pick up on that! And please don't ask him to play a "game" unless you are speaking of the Wii...I've tried to clarify, but he's not catching on yet.

"Tracif" is traffic (hilarious to hear, by the way). And the way we came about "tracif" is that Charlie is somewhat of a back-seat driver. He keeps me well informed of what color the traffic lights are..."Green, Mom. GO!" "Oh, no...red!" And most definitely lets me know if I have run a yellow light..."Slow down, Mom! Yellow!" The other day we were sitting in traffic and the light was green. He was getting quite agitated that I wasn't going despite the green light. I told him there was too much traffic..."Tracif?" Now if we are anywhere near a green light and not moving, he yells, "Tracif!"

And here lately with the trend of overcast skies, we are constantly questioning if it is "Night?" Really, he is just clarifying that he doesn't have to go to bed yet, but it is still funny (and only slightly annoying) to answer the night question 47 times...in one hour!

We also had a little marina life lesson a while back. He thought all fish were sharks. As I tried to explain, we saw a catfish, which I named and pointed out to him. His response..."Cat? Fish? Noooooo...." Okay, okay, it's just a fish! Guess that's too confusing!


Sam still just repeats a lot of what he hears, but has proven to us that he is listening...Now, we he is done with a task, such as eating, watching a movie, or say...pooping, he will say, "Are ya done? Are ya done?" and look at us like he has just made a great proclamation and we should do something about it! I think what he is meaning to say is that he is finished, but is instead repeating what we say to him when he appears to be finished.

The same goes for when he needs help. I have told him over and over, instead of crying to just say "help". The other day he got stuck in his booster seat (it was not meal time, he was playing in it...) and I hear from the kitchen..."MOM! Say help!" I laughed when I got to him and told him, "No, just 'help'!" To which he responded, quite exasperated I might add, "Just help." By that time he was probably thinking just get me outta here, lady!

Everything Sam says is also said very fast and repeated several times before he gives you time to respond. For example, "Mom, mom, mom!" or "Say help! Say help!" or "Cheese, cheese!"...you get the point! "Charlem" is Charlie...no matter how many times I correct him. "Woohater" is water...also, fairly funny to hear. "Tomnjerry" is Tom and Jerry...all one word.

And the gold medal winner..."Shint, Mommy, shint!" The word for bathroom or potty or something equivalent in Amharic sounds something like "shint"...I know, I know...You gotta know God has a sense of humor when He does things like this! So, my favorite is when Sam announces this loudly in public and people think I'm teaching 4-letter words to my 2-year old. Nice. But even in the privacy of our own home...He just yells, "SHINT!" and heads to the bathroom! I can't help but laugh...even funnier is that our little buddy Emma, who is from no where near Ethiopia, has decided to use our new bathroom word, too...I'm sure her mommy & daddy just LOVE that!

And while "shint" is the gold medal winner on the humor side of things, the one that makes Mommy the proudest is that Charlie has learned THREE Bible verses for his Cubbies class at church and can say them to you without hesitation, reference included! (Well, he says them to me...maybe not to you. We are still a little shy!) Now, if that doesn't make you smile, then I don't know what will...!!

What now?

Well, we've been home for 6 weeks now. To say the least, life was turned upside down when we came home. But upside down in the best way possible! I don't think you can do anything, read anything, listen to anything to prepare you to be a parent. And especially to jump into parenthood at age 2 & 6! Just pray a lot...oh my, I pray all the time...


The boys are doing AWESOME! That's not to say we haven't had our ups and downs and our share of tears. Both of the boys have experienced some grieving, both boys have tested and pushed limits, but hopefully both boys are loving life! They seem happy, well-adjusted, bonding well and know exactly who mom & dad are (despite Sam's tendencies to call Nicole "mommy"...it's okay...why shouldn't he call her that? Grace & Emma do!). They are picking up English at an alarming rate...although Sam usually just repeats whatever you say to him like a little parrot (I especially love to tell him "I love you!"...he repeats it right back), and Charlie's big struggle is that he understands FAR MORE than he can verbalize. (Although, this past week, we have put together several sentences!) I'm no speech therapist, but I know that makes for a frustrated kid!

The boys took to "Charlie & Sam" great! We used their Ethiopian names for a while, but gradually made the transition. We were able to communicate enough with Charlie to determine that he was okay being called that and he has actually corrected us/himself if Nuredin is used. Sam could care less what you call him, as long as you pick him up and hug him! They still call each other Nuredin & Edaso, but have also used their new names when talking to each other.

We have kept Sam's age as 2. We feel that's pretty accurate. But after a bone scan (simply an x-ray of his wrist), we have bumped Charlie up to age 6. He doesn't know it yet, but I think he'll be okay with the change! He thinks he's 7...but really what's a year when you live to be 80?

We are homeschooling Charlie through kindergarten this year to give him a chance to catch up, learn phonics, learn English, etc and most importantly to be able to stay at home with me for a full year. He is already reading, writing, spelling but does a lot of things by sight and memorization. He is SO smart and picking up everything SO fast. He surprises me on a daily basis with new words or concepts that he has picked up on. This week we have been learning that we live in the state of Kentucky...he usually just looks at me, shakes his little finger and says, "Nooooo...America!" We'll keep working on that! He is a great big brother to Sam. He continues to be our shy one and can shut down on us and pouts with the best of them if he doesn't get his way, but learning that mom & dad's way is usually better! :)

Sam is by no means shy! He is our mischievous one. You can tell just by looking into his eyes! Everything he does is funny and to hear him laugh is contagious! Sam sings all day long and some of his favorites are "Jesus Loves Me" (although, it comes out 'Jegus'), "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star", "The Turtle Song" and the "ABC's". He loves to be held, but not necessarily cuddled. He will give out free kisses, but only on his terms! He is also a very smart little boy and I know one day he'll stop just repeating everything I say... :)

Kenny & I are completely and totally in love with these two little boys!

Stay tuned for current news with the Cook Family...we are certifiably crazy and you never know what we might do next! We justify that by following God's promptings and will for our lives...and you can't call God crazy! Just Mighty...

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. The Lord works out everything for his own ends--...In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps. Proverbs 16:3, 4a, 9

...not the way it's supposed to be.

Having just been in this place less than 6 weeks ago, I have no words to add... What will YOU do to "visit orphans"?

Peanut Butter Jelly Time!

The boys are nothing short of obsessed with peanut butter & jelly sandwiches. We can put PB&J on literally ANY type of bread and be happy! They would eat it every meal if I would allow it. As a result, Sam tells me "peanut butter jelly" at least 47 times a day...so I introduced the song...(you can watch the first 10 seconds or so to get the point...)



I don't know why I know the song, but I do.

He sings this ALL the time now! I'm sorry to subject you to my singing and significant lack of dancing skills in this video...just pay attention to Sam! Hilarious!