On African Thyme: July 2013

Okay, so I'm waaaaaaayyyy behind. Like four months behind. Luckily, I'm pretty sure no one's life depends upon my blog, so I think I'm okay. No excuses, just a crazy life. So, I think this post will be pretty much a catch-up on what we've been up to...

March ended with a surprise trip to Disneyland for Spring Break. The family has been earning money for it for the past year and the kids thought it would happen this summer, but with fire season stealing Colt each summer, we decided to surprise the kids with it for Spring Break. It was not nearly as organized as it would have been if I hadn't been working full time, but we saw palm trees, Mickey, Shamu (SeaWorld), Optimus (Universal Studios) and swam in the ocean so I guess it was a success. We dragged Grandma along as well, and she luckily survived our family's craziness. We cannot find the FULL memory card of pictures I took from the trip, so the bummer is I can't share all of the great photos that I know I took!!! )0:

SeaWorld wtih Grandma (one of the few pics we have!)

My Dancing Queens

April and May came and went with a blur. May brought the three-year celebration of having the girls in our family. It coincided with the girls' dance recital, so there were flowers and treats aplenty! Sometimes it is hard to believe that there ever was a time that they were not with us!

The last day of school came at the end of May and was a "psyche" for the kids as I worked all the next day and have continued to work. My hours are less and of my own scheduling now, but there is so much to do and I know I won't have time to do it once school starts that it's now or never. Part of it is just my desire to have it organized better, part of it is discovering that there has been a lot that has not been done due to the lack of a librarian having time to get to it. Last spring I spent 30% of my time in the library, all the rest I spent helping teachers in class. Not that I don't love the time spent in class, but the library needs more than 30% of my time to be a library that the students deserve. Hopefully this next year will bring the librarian back to the library...

So, summer has entered the scene and brought with it the craziness of juggling kids' activities, 5K's, triathlons, fires and traveling. Both Noah and Wyatt are on the Craig Swim Team, and Noah and Tsegereda did tennis lessons for the month of June. Tennis is Tse's favorite activity and she is getting very good at it (could use some private lessons from a State Champ though...hint hint Uncle Marty!!!). Noah was very good at hitting, but needs a little more help with the aiming part! Rodas has swim lessons and soccer. Wyatt is playing soccer on a U16 Team, which is a little daunting for him, but he's holding his own. An older teammate who is an outstanding ball-handler is an awesome role model and coaches Wyatt while they play, so it's been a great experience for him so far.

Hiking by Elkhead Res. with Aunt Joan (0:

My dear friend, Joan, came to visit in June and it was wonderful to see her again. She was a great support during the rocky years when we were trying to adopt, and it was very special for the girls to finally get to meet and know "Aunt Joan."

After Joan's visit, the kids and I attended an African-Caribbean Adoption Camp for three days in Denver. It was fantastic! I nearly started crying when the kids first went to their groups...for the first time, my girls were not the only brown-skinned kids around. Wyatt, Tse and Noah made some great friends and Rodas enjoyed playing with other little girls that looked just like her!!! Finally, they weren't the "onlies" as I call it. If only we could provide that for them every day.

The girls had their hair braided by two very sweet Ethiopian women, one of whom was from Mekele, where the girls are from. We discussed hair and speaking Tigrinya and bringing the girls to Denver to get their hair done and learn more of their culture. It is so important to me that the girls do not forget where they came from and have that link, especially as they get older and struggle with deciphering their identity in this crazy world. Denver has a large Ethiopian community, and an Ethiopian Community Center devoted to teaching youth about Ethiopian culture, of which we are now members. Suffice it to say, the camp will now be a yearly family occasion and our trips to Denver will increase as we try to keep our daughters' heritage alive for them, and teach the rest of us more about Ethiopian culture.

The Mortenson runners.

He seriously IS the Energizer Bunny!

May brought the first of many races with the Hayden Cog Run. Supposedly the oldest running race in Colorado, the Cog Run consists of a difficult 8 mile run up "the Cog"--a really steep hill outside of Hayden--and a 5K. Noah and I did the 5K while crazy Wyatt ran the Cog (with Dad riding along on his bike). He did awesome and had some help from a middle school friend (Tse's best friend's older brother) who is a phenomenal young runner as well. Wyatt came in in the middle of the pack with a time of 1:06 (I think). Pretty awesome for a 10 yr. old. Noah did great in the 5K and left Mom way in the dust! (0: Another 5K in Craig put Wyatt and his siblings in the local newspaper (http://www.craigdailypress.com/news/2013/jun/15/runners-wake-whittler-saturday-loudy-simpson/), which they loved. Wyatt won first in his age group and came in sixth place overall with a time of 21:26. Noah also did a personal best time and came in 20th. Tsegereda and Rodas ran the mile kids fun run with the boys, Tsegereda coming in first in her age group. Both Tse and Wyatt received wonderful wood carvings for their prizes. Noah got lots of treats, which made him happy!

My Tri Dudes!

The boys also did their annual Meeker kids Triathlon at the end of May, and both took first place in their age groups. Way to go, my Tri Dudes! The whole family got up at 5 a.m. to drive them down and cheer them on. (0;

So now the 4th of July has come and gone, and I can already see summer slipping away. I fear it will be gone before I have time to truly savor it...but I'm beginning to realize that that is life with kids. You savor the moments and the seconds, and the Oreos before bed, because that's all you have time for! (0;