Our Plane

Hi Boys!  Hope you had a great day.  As promised, here is a picture of our airplane.  It is huge!  It holds over 500 people.  So Daddy and I were on the plane when you went to bed last night, and we will still be on the plane when you wake up. 

We love you and miss you!

Mommy and Daddy

Day at the Zoo

Today our friend Shanna and her Dad took us on a behind the scenes tour of the Dickerson Park Zoo.  The pictures say it all, but the kids had a blast.  We started by visiting the tortoises.  The boys even got to take a ride.  Dale was a little leery, but Jack loved them.

After the tortoises, we visited the lemurs.  They were so friendly.  One gave me some little licks and I said “Looks boys, he is giving me kisses”.  Next thing I know Jack gives the Lemur a kiss and says “I love you”.  Then he says “Mommy, he gave me a kiss too!”

The next stop was the reptile house.  We got to see all of the snakes up close.  Well, most of us.  David and Jack stayed at the back of the group.  Jack was not a huge fan, which he gets from Daddy, so David was happy to oblige.  We got to see the rattlesnakes up close and hear their rattlers.

We also got to feed the giraffes and pet a 6 week old baby camel.  He was so soft and furry and he had a white spot on his nose.  He looked more like a lama than a camel, except for the hump on his back.

The grand finale was Harry the Hippo.  The kids got to fed him by tossing fruit into his large, open mouth.  He would wait till he had several, then he would swallow them whole all at once.  We got to scratch his nose.  He felt rubbery and cold and he had short, thick whiskers. 

Thanks Shanna for the best trip to the zoo ever!  The boys have been talking about it all night!

Back By Popular Demand

What!?!  You didn’t get a chance to order a shirt the first time and now you really want one but we told you we couldn’t order any more….well, it looks like we will be able to do a round two of T-shirt orders after all.  I know I have told all of you that asked that we would not be able to order a second time (because we had to meet a minimum number) but it looks like enough people are interested.  Yeah!!

Once again tabs have been added to the side of the blog.  We will be taking orders for these shirts until April 1st (ironically the first day we will meet Siri). Your shirts will be ready by time we get back. 

The cost of the shirts are $19.95.  The adult Double XL and Triple XL are a bit more, because they cost more to make.  There is no tax or shipping.

 

The shirt is available in Royal Blue, Red, Black, or a Pink.  There are two various shades of pink based on the size. Infant and Toddler shirts come in Raspberry (the darker pink) and Youth and Adult come in Heliconia (lighter pink). That is why you see two pink shirts in the samples. The shirts are 100% pre-shrunk cotton in a regular t-shirt cut.

On a side note, we are taking the boys to a rodeo this weekend and they are so excited.  David is at home with them (they are all on Spring break) and I just got some adorable photos of the boys having fun with their cowboy hats.  Dale is totally hamming it up, he is all Cowboy.  Jack is a little undecided, he is stuck somewhere between Cowboy and Army guy.  David tells me the middle, serious picture, shows their cowboys faces.  David tells me the middle, serious picture, shows their cowboys faces. Apparently you need to look pretty angry when you are riding a bull. 

Siri's Room

Siri's room is finally done!  Good thing since we leave in seven days and we need to focus on something else besides her room.  But it was so much fun!  My Mom and sister came over for a painting day and we painted the walls a pale gray, which was a much needed change from the flesh-tone color it was previously.

The crib was our only big expense.  I am not sure what I was thinking when I got rid of my crib and kept the toddler bed.  Not a smart move on my part.  But that meant I could get a white one, which went well with her room.  We found the letters on sale at Hobby Lobby.  I just love that store.

Then we accessorized with donated furniture.  The greatest thing about old furniture is that you can paint it to give it new life (and in my case it was free, thanks Mom and Ang!). 

 This old dresser came out of Mom's storage room.  I wish I took a before picture.  David did the hard part and sanded and painted all of the furniture white.    Then, I painted the drawer fronts in colors that matched the bedding.  Next, we added mismatched knobs.  Mom found the flower stickers at the dollar store.  They are meant for the wall, but they worked well to give a little color to the plain drawers.  The mirrors we bought years ago and just never found the perfect place for.  With a little paint, they matched her room perfect.

I love the framed print on the wall.  A friend of mine, Jessica, made up prints for her nursery and had a few extra.  She also made Korean alphabet posters.  She sells them for $13 in her Etsy store, Simple Culture. 

The smaller dresser was a little red dresser my sister gave me years ago.  We used it in the boys' room, but when we moved them to the same room, they had too much furniture.  So, we thought it would go perfect in Siri's room, with a little paint of course.

I also did a tree mural on the wall.  It was inspired by a tree I saw on rate my space.  Two of the limbs have shelves, so you can add little knick-knacks.  Honestly, the tree almost ruined me for painting.  I never imagined how hard it would be to paint a straight line on a wall with orange peel.  Finally, I gave in and decided, “It’s a tree!  It's alright if it's a little (okay, a lot) wavy.”

We intentionally left the wall above this dresser blank.  We hope to frame a cool picture of Siri's foster home or something else from Thailand.

The boys gladly went through their books to pick some out for Siri's bookshelf.  And I know it doesn't match, but I had to get my Curious George carving on the wall.  When we were living in Honduras we lived near an artist named, Miguel Angel, and he carved the plaque for us.  But since the boys' rooms have been sports since day one, I never got a chance to put it anywhere. 

Once I hung the picture, Jack went and got his Curious George Jack-In-The-Box.  It is so cute to see the boys pull stuff out of their rooms to put in hers.  They sure are ready for their little sister!

 

T-Shirts have arrived

The t-shirts have arrived and they look great.  Aren't those some good looking shirt models!

We have them all labeled and packaged up, so be on the lookout.  Thank you all for your orders.  We feel so blessed to have so many supportive family and friends!

Parents, be forewarned, these shirts will cause your children to turn into superheroes!  Once they put their shirts on the boys flew to get capes (kitchen towels) and were hot in pursuit of bad guys. 

Then Dale asked if he could please wear his shirt till Siri comes home.  I think they like them. 

By the way, if you are adopting and looking for a fundraiser to help with the cost, feel free to e-mail Mary Leigh at mary_leigh@comcast.net.  She was wonderful to work with and I hear she is now selling bumper stickers also!



More Pictures

Here are a few more pictures of Siri for your veiwing pleasure...



Doesn't she have an ornery grin? 



I just love that side pony tail!

What a smile!

 - Danyel Anderson

What a day!!

So, we had an eventful day.  Due to some issues in Thailand, our court date has been moved up to April 5th.  This means we will be flying out on the 30th of March and returning home on the 13th of April.  Yep, you read that right.  We will be going to get our daughter in 29 days!!! 

So, while my head is swimming with the details, like work coverage, plane tickets and such...we get this....

An update on our little girl.  This picture was taken when she was 13 months old.  She is wearing the butterfly shirt we sent.  The report says she walks and runs, is very active, and talks a lot.

Who cares that her room isn't done!!  Packing list, schedules, tickets, all of that, just disappeared when I saw these pictures.  29 days!!  Can you tell I am excited!!

Danyel