Monday, March 30, 2009

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.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

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!  

Saturday, March 14, 2009

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.  

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

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!