Captiva Island - Spring Break 2009

This year we had the opportunity to join Chris's sister and her family on their family vacation to Captiva Island in Florida.  It is beautiful!  It has been a very relaxing week so far and we are looking forward to the rest of the week.  Here are a few pictures of our vacation so far.  I have tried to load more, but it keeps coming up as an error.  Maybe tomorrow...

Clayton, our nephew turned 16 on Saturday and we were able to celebrate with him!  

The sunset was beautiful on Saturday and Sunday.  Our God is so awesome and He must be a great artist.

Here is a picture of the whole gang.  From left to right....Chris, Gerry (Chris's mom), Riley (nephew), me, Mark (brother-in-law), Angie (Chris's sister), Clayton (nephew) and Tegegn in the stroller.

I am so ready for nice weather!  It makes such a difference.

Items to take to Ethiopia

There are several families traveling to Ethiopia real soon and I thought I would post a few items that we took that I am happy that we had while we were there.  

• Child Back Pack or Front Carrier (a must for the airport & carrying luggage)
• Flashlight (Lights go out in Addis a lot)
• Enough Kid Snacks (puffs, cheerios, mum-mums) to last the entire trip
• Pants (no one wears shorts)
• A few toys
• $20 US dollars per person for visa at airport
• Some diapers
• Wipes
• A couple bottles or sippy cups depending on age of child
• A camera
• Formula in case there is a shortage in Addis

I hope this helps!  We are praying for the Whipples and the Gutweins as they leave next week to pick up their boys!  I can remember the emotions and the anxiety we felt during this time before we left for Ethiopia.  We are so excited for the parents of these beautiful children and the future playmates of Tegegn!  

Not Slowing Down...

So, when we were talking before we went to Ethiopia, we wondered if we would slow down at all.  The answer is NOPE!  We always seem to be on the go and we are so glad that Tegegn doesn't mind at all.  He actually loves meeting new people and often has a hard time leaving.  He gets really sad.  Last weekend we went up north to visit our friends - The Bigelows.  We had a wonderful time together and we were happy that we were able to meet the newest addition to their family, Little Miss Audrey.  She is a beautiful baby.  She seems so tiny since we are so used to Tegegn.  It was fun catching up and exchanging what it is like now that we are parents!

The new mothers with their children - our first group picture.

A precious picture of Audrey

On Monday I started my last class at IUK - YIPEE!  I am so thankful that it is only an 8 week course.  It is a lot of group work, but it will be okay.  I have class on Monday's and Wednesdays.  

On Thursday, our niece Amy and her boyfriend, Brelin, came to visit us while they were on Spring Break.  We had an amazing time with them.  It means so much to me that they love our son and cherish the time they get to spend with him.  Tegegn loves them so much!

Tegegn showing Amy where his head.

Tegegn playing with Brelin.

On Friday, Chris hung out with some of his guy friends and I had the opportunity to go to Lafayette to meet up with some of our dear friends in out Ethiopian Adoption group.  This is the first time that they have met Tegegn.  It was amazing!  Since all of us are going through the same thing, we have such a deep connection and it feels like we have been friends for a long time.  Several of the couples have referrals, three couples passed court within the last week, some should be getting their referrals any day and others are working on their paperwork.  God has really blessed us with this group of friends.  They hold a special place in our hearts and I think it will be wonderful for Tegegn to know that other families are just like us.

Speaking of adoption, today we had Brad and Meagan over to our house.  I met Brad through work last November.  He works at Roche and we decided to set up an "exchange of ideas" to benefit both of our companies.  Little did we know at that time that our paths had crossed for a reason.  Brad emailed me while we were in Ethiopia and when I responded to him I apologized for the delay and told him that we were in Ethiopia picking up our son.  Brad emailed me back right away and told me that they just started the process to adopt from Ethiopia too!  We became instant friends and decided to get together when we settled in a bit.  We had a great time sharing our experience with them and we look forward to seeing them again in the future.  

After Brad and Meagan left, we decided to go to Greentown to walk and play on the playground.  We had a blast and Tegegn loved it.  He absolutely loves being outside.  What a great fit for our family!  We played on the equipment and pushed him in the jogging stroller.  What a great day!

Chris and Tegegn walking the balance beam.

Tegegn loved the swing.  He was talking up a storm.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures of our little guy.  We both decided to pick up a new hobby.  We are really loving photography these days.  

Tegegn was so tired at the end of the day.  Isn't he precious?  

He love his bunny.  This is his comfort.  He has had it next to his side when he sleeps every night since we met him in December.  

Having some Ponsler FUN

We have really enjoyed being parents!  Tegegn has brought us a lot of joy and we want to share some pictures with you.  We celebrated my birthday yesterday with pizza and ice cream and it was a big hit!  Tegegn loved the pizza.  He is just like his momma. 

Another favorite family portrait...

Having some fun playing in the evening before bath time...

Just chilling on a Saturday morning with mommy and daddy...

"Look at me, I'm standing!" (this only lasts for about a second)...

You gotta love cardboard boxes...

Bath time, bath time, bath time....our famous chant at 7:15...

He was caught riding dirty....

Oops...he was caught riding dirty again!

We hope you have a great week!  

Tribute To Uncle Greg

I have to be honest.  It has been a rough week.  Last Tuesday, my Uncle Greg went to be with the Lord.  Chris and I were really close to Greg and so this hit us pretty hard.  Greg was only 43 years old and he has a beautiful family that resides in Ohio.  

Death is really hard for me.  I don't like the pain that is caused by death.  My heart hurts for his wife, children, father and sisters.  I know that God has a plan, but it is really hard to see what His plan entails at this point.  

We were able to spend time with our family which always helps when grieving to loss of a loved one.  The viewing was on Saturday and Sunday and I have never seen so many people come to show their respect to Greg and the family.  The Memorial Service was on Monday and the church was packed.  Greg made a huge impact on the people he knew and it was neat to remember his life in this way.  

Greg and Nancy have been our role models for a long time.  We look up to them in many ways. 

The family is CRAZY!  Here is a family picture that was taken in the fall.  I love all of them so much and I miss my Uncle.

On February 15, 2009 (two days before he passed away) Greg and his family came to Indiana to meet Tegegn.  We are so happy that Tegegn was able to meet his Great Uncle.  While the family was here, Tegegn would not let anyone else feed him or hold him other than Greg.  Greg will always hold a special place in Tegegn's heart. 

I am thankful that Greg was my uncle and that he was a part of my life.  I will cherish all of my memories and will continue to trust in the Lord because I know that He does not make any mistakes.  

More Favorite Photos

I thought it was time to update the blog with some of my favorite pictures.  I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend!

Tegegn showed no emotion when we pulled him in the sled.  I have to admit that I don't think that he was able to move so that might have had something to do with it.  Since he is a bit short, we had to put hair ties at the bottom of the snow suit because he did not fill it all out yet.

Some mother and son quiet time.

Tegegn did a face plant in the snow and could not move , so he just laid there.  I don't think that he was super excited that I took a picture before I cleaned it off his face.  Oh well!  I think the picture was worth it.

One night this past week we were getting ready for bath time and as we were taking off his shirt he loved having it stuck on his head.  He seriously was a wild little boy for 15 minutes with a crazy shirt stuck on his head.  He thought it was great - silly boy!

Tegegn LOVES driving with his daddy.  I intentionally dressed him in his vest after I knew that Chris was wearing his.  I am glad that they didn't mind sharing the same fashion for the day.  

Happy Valentine's Day!  

My Boys

I have to tell you that I can't get enough of our son.  Whenever we are together as a family it makes me happy.  I seriously want to be with him and Chris all of the time because they make me smile.    This week we are in our normal routine and it went better than anticipated.  I think it helps me knowing that he is with his grandma's while we are at work.

Every night around 7:15pm Chris and I start chanting - Bath Time, Bath Time...Tegegn starts flapping his arms because he loves it and understands what we are saying.

This play mat has been our saving grace when it comes to changing Tegegn's diaper because it keeps him entertained.  I think most people use these for infants, but not the Ponslers!  

I think that one of Tegegn's favorite things to do is slobber.  He has been slobbering nonstop since we met him on December 15.  We now own more bibs than clothes.  

We were biting this block for at least 20 minutes and he thought it was so funny.  I love his laugh.  

Tegegn loves his Daddy.  He laughs really hard when Chris puts his nose on his tummy and sometimes he even snorts.  

Here is a shout out to my friend Ashley who will be induced on Monday night - Although I have no idea what you are experiencing with the pregnancy, the end result is the same and nothing compares to being a mother.  It is amazing!  You are in our prayers!

Sleep?

Been a while.  Everything has been going really well.  We have talked to a social worker with CWA and she gave us some tips on helping him sleep better.  It has been working a little better.  We are getting a solid 6 hrs without waking (knock on wood) so I think this is helping all of us.  He has been such a joy.  He is incredibly good during the day, spending full days with both grandma's this week. They tell us he is doing great as well.  Hopefully he hasn't convinced them to cover for him yet.  We went to church for the first time since getting back on Sunday and it felt so good!  We missed it but we wanted to ease him into everything.  A surprise to us he spent the entire service in the nursery without us.  Sarah was planning to stay with him but as soon as we got there he jumped down and crawled right over to all the stuffed animals.  We are so lucky to have an awesome nursery with only 4-5 kids so he gets a lot of attention.   To everyone's surprise we have been staying busy on the weekends.  We had a chance this last weekend to spend the night Greg, Cari, and Elli's.  We had so much fun and it was great to just hang out, catch up, see Chris and Ehrin and their kids.  I can't wait until all the kids are running around and we can go camping and take trips together.  For some reason I don't think that is far away.  Both Elli and Tegegn LOVE Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and if your kids haven't heard the Hot Dog song and dance at the end of the show, it's worth checking out. Elli and Tegegn love dancing to this song.  We were already talking about our first trip to Disney World.  

We spent a few hours at the Ghion Hotel one day while in Ethiopia and someone decided he was a little tired!

We have mentioned before how flexible he is.  Those are his feet. 

We were having a little fun with Photo Booth on the MAC.  Someone was enjoying seeing himself on the screen, and Tegegn was having fun too.

Someone thinks it's funny to squint now when we take his picture.

This was on the flight from Amsterdam to Detroit.  Poor little guys had his arm wrapped in a sling thanks to the pediatrician who helped us out, pooped all over dad's pants, we all smelled horrible, and we hadn't even taken off yet.  Needless to say the guy beside me kept his headphones on the entire flight.  

Family Time with the Coon Cousins

When we arrived home, my brother was actually in China for work.  Since they were not able to make it to the airport, they ended up coming to Indiana the following weekend.  We had a great time hanging out at our house with four kids playing all day long.  The kids were adorable.  

Life is good.  Being a parent has changed our lives.  We look forward to the time that we get to spend with Tegegn.  His laugh is contagious.  His smile melts our hearts.  We are forever grateful that God had a plan because we would not have it any other way.  Tegegn knows we are his parents.  He looks to us for comfort.  He knows he is safe with us.  He loves to be held.  He hates peas.  He likes cheerios.  He can wave.  Children are amazing.  I am happy that I am a mom.  God is good!

Tagged

I'm sure much to Kevin's surprise I am going to do this.

Three jobs I have had in my life: Landscaping, McDonald's (for a month), College Admissions

Three movies I would watch over and over: Man on Fire, Emelle, Knights Tale

Shows that I watch: Big Bang Theory, Dirty Jobs, PTI

Three places I have been: Ethiopia, Greece, New York

Three of my favorite foods: Cheeseburger, Filet, Ethiopian Tebs

Three places I'd rather be right now: home, out on a boat anywhere, Sarasota, FL

Three things I am looking forward to this year: Watching Tegegn grow up, the start of the NFL and MLB seasons (I know the NFL season isn't over but it is for me), all our friends children coming home for the first time from Ethiopia

Three jobs I would love to have: Missionary, beer taster (I have to stick with Kevin on this one), rock star

Everything has been going well. We are both exhausted hence the lack of updates, hope to put more pics up soon.

Reading some books

We were fortunate to have Zac and Laura come visit this weekend with all the cousins. We all had a great time. Tegegn played well with all the cousin and the cousins played AMAZINGLY with him. They were so loving and fun with him. It was great. We are in the process of reading some books on the sleep issues. Not much has changed as he still wakes up 3 or 4 times a night. So we are looking for different methods to help him and us out. He is doing great with each grandma. He is starting to crawl more raised up off the ground and is pulling himself up, standing up, and climbing all over us. He is doing really good. And likes to feed himself now. We figured this out after grabbing spoons full of food! Yay! Sarah was really sick Sunday night so I am running on empty. I traded time with Sarah being sick and Tegegn waking up in between so this has been the reason for the delay in blogging.

This is a priest at one of the churches. Ty carry a cross around and people will come up to him and kiss the cross and he touches them on the cheek with it. It is a form of respect for the priest and a way of blessing. This is at an Orthodox Church.

We had amazingly generous friends and family who donated money and supplies to take to the Orphanage. Here is a picture of the CWA staff in Ethiopia with the donations at the CWA office.

Here is a pic from one of the local markets. All the food is organic and has so much more flavor than our food. And it's a lot cheaper. We wanted to get some Papaya from Miejer last night. $3 here, $.60 there.

Lamb is the main meat in Ethiopia. As you can imagine, they are sold everywhere. Most of the time they are being herded through town. When you need one let them know and they will bring one to your house.

A pic from the weekend. Looks like he is ready to starting climbing.

A couple better nights sleeping.  Starting to get filled up during the day and taking very little milk at night, which is the direction the Dr. said we should be heading.  We had the opportunity to visit with our friends David and Abbe and there wonderful twins.  They are all doing great.  We had a nice dinner and a chance to talk for a while.  Then all the kids, especially Tegegn decided they were getting tired and started to get restless.  Zac and Laura are coming down today with all the cousins so we are really excited for all the kids to play together and be with everyone.

This is a catholic church service and during the service while they are giving communion they hold these beautiful umbrellas over the priests.  Also while they are walking outside.  This is a picture of the head of the catholic church in Ethiopia.

This is Tegegn watching Baby Einstein for the first time.  We knew he had big eyes but my goodness we didn't know they were that big!

This is driving through Merkato.  Merkato is the largest market in Ethiopia and VERY overwhelming.  We didn't get out as it is well known for thieves and pickpockets.  So we just drove through and it was quite an experience just driving through.

This is the helper making Injera for us.  She makes it about every four days.  She is actually making a special one with Berbere and butter that was very good.  I can't remember the name.

 

This is a mini bus kind of like a taxi.  These mini buses go up and down the same road stopping several times.  What they do is the guy hangs out the window yelling where the next stop is and you flag them down if that's where you are going.