The First 16 days of August

The first 16 days of August we......

hung out with our good friend Chad

got to see Emmarie and have one last fun time at the lake

said goodbye to our good friend Ellie as she leaves for Boston

said goodbye to Poppa and Nanna ( at least Kayleigh did)

said goodbye to Grandy and Grammie

spent some quality time with Colby and Graylyn

said goodbye to Uncle Johnathan

and....said goodbye to each other. Zeb and I are missing John and Kayleigh so much. We can't wait to be reunited as a family on September 4th. Zeb loves to see his sister on the webcam. She gives us hugs and kisses. He "talks" to her like she understands all he has to say. We are counting down the days!

Lake Norman Birthday Party

My cousin Kathryn had a little boy named Blake a little over a month after Zeb was born. She has been talking about having a joint birthday party for them and Kayleigh ever since she found out we were coming home. So we decided to have a triple birthday party for all three of them at Lake Norman. We had tons of family come! Zeb and Kayleigh met cousins they didn't even know they had or had never met. It was a lot of fun but I was exhausted by the end of the day. Kayleigh loved the boat and jet ski but would not get in the water at all. I am convinced that it is because she can't see the bottom because at a pool she jumps right on in. Zeb however loved the water and didn't want to get out.

Zeb and his 9 month old little cousin Bryleigh.

Me and my cousin Kathryn.

John, Kayleigh, and little cousin Joe.

The birthday kids: Blake, Zeb and Kayleigh.

Once again Zeb had no problem with devouring the cake!

Kayleigh barely touched her cake. She just wanted ice cream.

We gave Zeb a bath in the lake to wash off all the cake.

Picnic at the Park

The Saturday before last we decided to pack up the kids and some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and head to the park. It was a lot of fun. Saturdays are usually our family day. It is always nice to take a break from our normal routine and go have some fun. This park is unique in that it has some rides that you would normally see at a fair. Kayleigh loves any chance to hang out with her friends Bright and Zion and we love to hang out with their parents! We had a great time and even had an audience at times.

This was for the 2008 Olympics. We thought it was quite impressive.

Not quite sure what kind of face I am making there. I think I might have had food in my mouth!

This park is on a lake that you would have to pay me a million dollars to swim in but it makes for a beautiful view!

Morning Out and Giant Grasshoppers!

I have decided to start blogging more about our daily experiences in China. After seeing China through "fresh" eyes ( John's parents) I realized how the craziest things have become some what normal to us. So here goes.....This morning we decided to pack of the kids and have a morning out. We thought it would help keep our minds off of John's parents leaving and the sadness that we feel. So we headed out to McDonald's for breakfast and then decided just to take a walk from downtown. We ended up at Green Lake Park. For those of you who have never been privileged to go to this place you have to understand that there is never a dull moment at this park. John and I realized this morning that we should never leave our house without our camera esp. when going to this park. As we were walking along Zeb started to cry. It was time for him to eat. So I proceeded to stop and feed him on some steps in the park. It took hardly no time at all before we were totally surrounded by Chinese people. After Zeb ate John was burping him and well he spit up quite a bit on the ground. For those of you who know Zeb this is not abnormal. I frequently change his and my clothes daily! An older women walked up to give us her advice on the situation. She began telling John that if he would burp Zeb then he wouldn't spit up. John proceeded to tell her that he had burped him and that was why he spit up. For some reason John's response did not register with the lady because she still explained a proper way to burp Zeb. Her explanation included pulling gently on his ear as that would also help him burp! We eventually moved on from all the advice and begin to walk again. The next thing we see is a Giant Grasshopper on wheels riding through the park. As we come closer there is not only a Giant Grasshopper, but a boat, Elephant and I think a panda. All of which you can ride for only 5 kuai each! So of course, Kayleigh and I hop in the Giant Grasshopper and proceed to ride around Green Lake. ( This is where John and I were beating ourselves up for not bringing the camera!) It had a steering wheel and gas pedal. I let Kayleigh steer while I pushed the gas pedal. Of course I helped steer a little. As we rode, the grasshopper played Christmas music! Only in China! It was a lot of fun and ended up in a melt down from Kayleigh when we wouldn't let her ride the Giant Elephant. Don't worry we plan to go back next Sat. for another day of adventure and this time we will take our camera!