Eli Turns One

I have to say I was dreading Eli's first birthday.  In our family 1st birthdays are a big deal and we usually have a big family party.  Cake, singing, presents, the works.  I knew that Eli's birthday was going to be different and that made me really sad. 

We have only been here a couple of weeks so although I came prepared with a few birthday decorations and a cake mix, presents had not arrived (with the excetion of my mothers... she is so on top of things).  We have all been feeling VERY under the weather and it just didn't seem like a birthday.

The kids however did make the best of the day.  We put up what decorations we had and spent the afternoon making the cakes.  Everyone did their best to make Eli's day special for Eli. 

Emma and I worked on baking the cakes and then I turned over the frosting and sprinkels to the kids and they each decorated one cake.  I think this has become their favorite part of the birthday tradition.  I used to order cakes because it was a "special" event.  But they love decorating so much it makes the day that much more special.   

The picture below is of my mother on the phone singing to the birthday boy.  She was such a trooper it took him almost an hour to eat (and decide he couldn't eat any more) cake and she was on the phone for the whole of it.  I wish we would have throught a head and brought our camera so we could have skyped. 

This is how all of the cake was eaten:  a big handful and then shoving as much of it into his mouth as possible.  It will probably not surprise you that a good portion of the cake ended up on his lap. 

 How do you not love that smile???

When he was done eating he began just playing and throwing it everywhere.  Emma called it the Splash Zone.  He had a blast!

 

Eli offered many times to share his cake with everyone else.  He is such a great sharerer.  We however refused. 

 I could not decide which of the following pictures was better so you get both.  I have them as the background on my tv so everytime I turn it on I laugh. 

Last but not least I would like to take a moment to remember my father-in-law.  He died 14 years ago on this (April 8th) day.  It has always been a difficult day for our family, but last year on this day our little angel came 2 weeks early to change all that.  I like to think it was Paul's doing; reminding us that he lives on through our children (and believe me the genes are strong).  I believe Eli still gets to talk and play with him all the time and knows him well.  I didn't know him very long but I know he is a great man.  I am thankful for his love and example to my husband.  I am grateful for the home my husband was raised in with strong roots and abounding love that surrounded him.  I hope we can/are providing that environment to our children.  You are missed Paul!  We love you!

Things That Make You Go, Hmmmmm

For security reasons I can't post pictures of our house.  However there are a few things about it that I think are funny enough  to share with you. 

Every single door and closet in the house comes with these keys.  If you want the closet to stay shut you need to lock it.  So all over the house we have keys sticking out of doors.  On day number 2 Emma thought it would be funny to lock Isaac into his room, and then she couldn't get him out.  Of course it was somehow his fault.  

It is hard to tell but this nob is right up against the shower door and does not turn anything on or off.  It appears to be there so we can wonder why it is there. 

I know, this seems like a perfectly normal picture of the front porch light.  However you will find it in my living room.

No comment needed. 

Yes, my washer and dryer are in two totally different rooms.

This is newly laid sod.  It appears to be crab grass.  Our tax dollars at work. 

This is how the trash is collected.  These little bins sit out infront of each house and you take your trash out to it.  They come once or twice a week (no specified day) to collect.  So people just have trash out in front of their house all week long.  

We couldn't open a couple of the doors in the house.  They told us that if we looked in the office we would find the "extra" keys and see if they work.  This is what we found.  60+ keys and hours spent trying to get them to match and the lock smith still had to come out. 

This is our front door.  It is hard to see but you can look through the lock and see right through to the street. 

Nintendo DS fun for the whole family. 

Hope you got a chuckle.  More later.

We Made It!

I wish I add pictures to share with you but we are still without Internet access.  I have been going through withdrawal so when I sent the kids to school today I came to the Embassy with my husband to use the computer here. 

So far so good.   Our bags did finally arrive late Sunday night, so my hubby didn't go to work in shorts and an t-shirt and the kids only had to spend one night without underwear. 

When packing I thought I was so smart I packed a whole carry-on bag of just swim stuff so even if all of our bags got lost (and like that would happen lol) we would still have swimming suits.  Well we arrived and our pool is broken.  What a waste of space.  I could have packed underwear in that space!

The kids started school today and are excited to not spend the day with each other. 

Our house is new to the housing pool so it has many, many, many issues.  Although it has been a great big pain in the butt, I know it is a blessing because it has forced me to use my very crappy spanish with all the people coming to fix it.  I so appreciate that people are patient and with me and willing to point and laugh with me.

I would love to spend time telling you all about my week, but I desperately need to spend some quality time with Amazon.com.