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Sorry we don't have more pictures of China and Mitike. China took forever with his homework and Mitike went off on some hikes while I stayed back. We should be getting more pictures soon.  Enjoy!

Surprise!!!

We have searched for any Ethiopians here, but haven't found any. Today my kids were being silly while walking through the MRT and a man started copying them. (I know, in America this would be scary--but not so much here.) Anyway, we chatted and found out that he is an Ethiopian born in Denmark and knows how to cook a few dishes--so we might have him over and see if they still remember any Amharic at all. You never know who God will put in your path here.

A Visit With Raj

Raj used to work at ICS--for around 5 years. He was always Ana's FAVORITE worker. He carried her around, let her help clean the glass, cut rambutans down just for her, and generally spoiled her to death! He is now working construction here in Singapore and stopped by for a visit. We were delighted to chat with him and to see him looking well. His birthday is the day after Matt's--so we're going to try to go out for and Indian birthday dinner!

Homeschooling

Hats off to those of you that do this full time! I am glad I'm doing it, but it is not what I want to do for the next 10 years!
With adopted children there will always be "holes"--information they never received or experiences they never had. One such skill is patterning. To be able to see patterns with words or numbers it is helpful to be able to see it with colors and shapes. Ana has been doing this for a couple of years, but still finds it fun to make a long pattern. Homeschooling gives me a chance to back up and do things that China needs but wouldn't get in a normal 2nd grade classroom. Hooray for homeschooling!

Getting Better!

I did this style on Mitike's hair today. I'll probably braid the back tomorrow afternoon. It's taken me six months to be a decent (not great) cornrower. Hopefully in another 6 months I'll be FASTER! This took about an hour and a half!

Wow!

My father in law came home from Florida and found a letter from the IRS. We had sent in our taxes in Mid February claiming the full amount of the adoption tax credit. I had provided the IRS EVERYTHING they needed for an audit--why not send it in at the beginning and get it over with?? IT WORKED!! We received the full amount--which is a huge number--and will greatly help fund our move!! Praise God for granting us favor with the IRS!

What We've Been Doing...

Mostly homeschooling (which is very intensive right now), cleaning, and cooking. I can honestly say that at this point in time I definitely "don't have a life!" In two weeks though, I have seen improvement in several areas in math, sentence writing, and even some new skills--so I can keep telling myself it's worth it.

Ana is sick--really sick which seems to be her way of doing things--extreme. (I did take her to the doctor right away, because whatever is going around is quite bad.)

We had a shipping company come to give a quote--still haven't heard from them.

We've been inside a lot because it's been really rainy. BUT it makes me happy because it's a least 10 degrees cooler (Fahrenheit degrees)!

I hope to post our last trip to the zoo soon--but don't hold your breath!