We Like to Call Him "Goat"

Some of you may have noticed that under Josiah's name to the right is the nickname "goat". You may be thinking that our nicknames for our children are slightly mean, and even wondering if as our children get older they may need counseling. I assure you though, our children are quite mentally healthy(at least I think so) and even love the names we have given them. (Ok, so they are not quite old enough to understand the possible meaning of their nicknames, but I tell you they love them, and I'm sure if they do need counseling it will be from far worse things than just what we name them...I mean goodness, their parents are weirdos!)

Anyway, we call Josiah "Goat" because he eats anything. He loves fish. Seriously loves it. In Morocco they eat fresh sardines and BBQ them with the guts and all. He'll eat them with reckless abandon. He also loves raw onions, broccoli (i love that too, so thats not too weird) and many other veggies that most kids turn their nose at. Paper will not stop him from eating a muffin, scone or even gum. Just gives him a little more fiber.

He enjoys a sip of beer every now and again, even Guinness. But His favorite drink is black coffee, and make it strong. And if that isn't enough he thinks coffee beans are an even better way to get his caffeine. This past weekend we were serving coffee at a huge soccer tournament in the area (huge being 161 teams!) and as we were setting up or something Joey placed Josiah in the back of his truck. His truck being the way we often transport coffee to the coffee shops and other places there were a few spilled beans in the back. Next thing we know Josiah is munching on the beans and asking for more.

Like I said, we like to call him "Goat."

Oh, the babies...

Last fall Willie (Joey's Dad) lost his dog "Spud". We don't know exactly what happened to him but it looks like someone stole him. It was a really sad day. A sad month really. Life without Spud just wasn't the same. So before Willie left for Morocco in February he did something about it. He ordered a new springer spaniel puppy.

Yesterday Joey got to pick up the new little puppy that will be ours until his Dad returns from overseas. He is the cutest little guy. Our two other dogs (Mocha and Sheba - both Australian shepherds) aren't super sure what to do about him. Mocha is 12+ years old and doesn't really want to be bothered and Sheba has too many friends in the neighborhood to pay much attention.

So now I have three little ones to look after. Josiah, Benson and now "Bert". His name is short for "Bertolinos" which is the name of our coffee shop. Spud was a huge part of the coffee shop before he went missing. Everyone wonders where he is. So Bert will have to fill Spuds shoes. No better way to do that than to start out with a name from the coffee shop itself. Isn't he just the cutest little thing?!

Complaining

Yesterday was a "good mom day" for me. Things went smooth, I was patient with the boys, got things done that were on my list and didn't stress about life too much. What made the difference you ask. Attitude, its all about attitude...and a reminder about reality.

I went for a walk with my sister-in-law yesterday morning. We walked a ways together and then split up so I could run down to the stop sign and back. (I didn't go the whole way, not yet, but I'm getting closer and closer.) While we were walking I was complaining about Benson being fussy. She mentioned that he didn't seem that fussy to her and then we got to talking about other things. Well as I ran I started to think about things. Earlier yesterday I had sent an email to my mother-in-law also including some complaining about Benson's fussiness. I sure was complaining a lot. I found myself thinking about my complaining spirit and frustrated attitude. That wasn't helping anyone and it definitely wasn't pleasing the Lord. It needed to change.

Not to mention the fact that my sister-in-law had pointed out Benson wasn't that fussy. It just felt like it from time to time because I have things I am trying to get done and he is needing attention. How old is the kid anyways? He's only 6 months old. He's not Josiah. He can't entertain himself with a car for 20 minutes while you fold laundry. He needs and wants my attention. So when I returned from my walk I decided to make a few changes in my focus for the day and the days to come.

I started with trying to be purposeful about my schedule and what I was doing with Benson and Josiah each day. I am trying to work with Benson on sitting up, having tummy time and rolling over. So I tend to just leave him sitting there. Which works for all of 2 minutes and then he's toppled over or is screaming so loudly I must attend to him. So yesterday I tried to spend at least 5 minutes sitting with him. Encouraging him as he played with various toys and helping him figure out putting the teething toys in his mouth. (he's teething, so that's part of his fussiness.) I also tried to do the same with Josiah. I did get some of my list accomplished, and they did both work on playing on their own, but my focus was more on them, and less on the tasks that needed to be done.

I also tried to work on my attitude and my complaining. I am sure when Joey got home I did my share of whining. I confess I struggle with complaining and whining. I want things easy, uncomplicated and the moment I want them. The Lord says not to complain though and I shouldn't, so I am trying to work on that, really I am. I do have to make an effort to keep my attitude right, it isn't going to happen over night. (ooh, that rhymed!)

The biggest thing with the boys that I need to remember is that they are just kids. They are suppose to fuss, explore and do their best to figure out the world. They aren't going to be perfect, they are going to make messes and keep me busy. But isn't that why I do this? To help them along the way, give them opportunities to learn about life, show them Christ as best I know how and to be blessed with the joy of watching them learn and grow? And it is a blessing! Shoot, I get to be the one fluent in the language of Josiah, I get to watch Benson figure out how to transfer a toy from one hand to the next, I get to laugh with both boys as they look at each other and giggle every morning... wait, why was I complaining again?

A Little Bite of Wednesday...

As usual, Benson woke up first. So we headed off to see "brother" and get him up. Josiah loves to have Benson get in his crib with him so they can sit next to each other and laugh. This morning Benson wasn't feeling it as much as Josiah was. He cried and fussed. Josiah ever wanting to make his brother happy did all he could to get him to stop crying. Singing, clapping, giving him toys and finally a quick kiss.


Like most boys getting naked was the only option left that might make Benson happy, so we enjoyed our time getting dressed and spent some extra minutes lying on the floor playing with our belly buttons.


The morning went well and now I sit here eating the most amazing sandwich ever. I made one yesterday, wanted to tell you about it, but ate it too fast. So today I made sure to document the yumminess of this lunch. Apples, carrots, Ritz crackers, two cookies, a glass of water AND a turkey and avocado sandwich. I have just 20 minutes to enjoy this delightful little guy before Benson is ready for his lunch. So, off I go. Oh my goodness I can hardly wait!

It really is SO good.

10 hours

For the first time ever Benson slept through the night. Everybody Praise the Lord with me!

Mother's Day

Its Mothers Day and I thought it was a perfect opportunity to talk about my Mom, and since I've known her for almost 30 years, I thought I'd tell you 30 things I love about her.

1. She is beautiful. The woman doesn't look even close to her real age.
2. She is funny. She makes me laugh all the time.
3. She is the all time best soup maker in the world. Seriously, no one compares. Her Beer-Cheese soup is the best, although it is a close tie with the taco soup yumminess.
4. She can't make cornbread the same way twice. She is a great cook, but she can't follow recipes because she is always thinking of ways to improve...therefore the cornbread is always slightly different. I love it!
5. Landscape Architect. She is the most talented landscaper I know. She can walk onto a piece of property and suddenly she has a great vision for how the yard should look. She is SO good.
6. Hostess with the mostest. She is the best entertainer. Taught me everything I know. Show up and she'll take care of you, weather you called ahead or not.
7. She'll try anything at least once. When she came to Morocco this past year, we ate sheep guts for one of the meals. She tried it! It was amazing. No one is ever willing to try that stuff!
8. She gets really tan and stays that way all year long. Ok, this technically is one of the reasons I am jealous of her. Her skin is super beautiful and always a lovely color. Unfortunately she didn't share that little gene with me, but I try not to hold it against her.
9. She is super generous. With time, money, things. It doesn't matter she loves to take care of people.
10. Snacks for the Road. This goes along with the one above, she wants to take care of you so she always makes sure there is enough food for the road. Be the trip one hour or 24 there is going to be snacks galore somewhere in the car.
11. She loves me. Even when I've been a jerk she still cares about me and wants what is best for me. Thats true with all her kids.
12. She can sew like nobodies business. Give her a pattern, or not, and she'll make you something super beautiful in no time.
13. She knits too!
14. She thinks I'm funny. I already mentioned that she makes me laugh, but she also laughs at me even when I tell really lame jokes.
15. The Mom Dance. I'm pretty sure she invented it and there is nothing quite like it. I cannot say more, but if you know her you know what I'm talking about.
16. She is the mastermind of embarrassment. Freshman year of high school, after a band concert. Our car was parked next to a boys car that my friend had a crush on. We commented on how the car was dirty. My mom opens the car door and starts cleaning said crushes car!!! We look up to see said crush walking towards us!!! Like I said mastermind.
17. She loves girl movies, and will watch them again and again. No one knows how many times she's seen "An American President", but she can quote almost the whole thing.
18. One of her favorite movies is "Pretty Woman".
19. She's never once gotten mad at me for taking so long to be born - 23 hours, plus surgery :-S
20. She supports me in whatever I want to do. Little and big things, she's behind me all the way.
21. When we had to take piano lessons she took them too.
22. She likes to talk on the phone.
23. She's learning how to use the internet!
24. She can do anything artistic. Arrange flowers, draw you a picture of a house, etc. Her gifts are uncanny.
25. She loves to laugh at herself.
26. Overly obsessed with OSU football and other OSU sports. Seriously I think she is one of the biggest fans there is.
27. She loves and worries about my kids, and is therefore an excellent Grandma.
28. She takes care of my Dad. Without her Dad would be "hurtin' for certain."She sure does love him and that makes me super glad.
29. She can keep one eye super closed and smooth while the other eye is wide open. Its a bit trippy, but really cool.
30. She leads by example. She taught me how to be a good daughter, a good daughter-in-law and a good mom.

There are so many other things I love about her, these are just the tip of the iceberg. I was super blessed to have her and my Dad come and visit us this weekend. Thanks Mom for being so great. I love you more than I can say.

6 months!

Benson is 6 months old today! I can't believe how fast time flies. Our little Moroccan is growing up super cute and full of joy. He loves his older brother and his daddy. I love watching him get excited when he sees one of them. His mouth opens in a huge smile. Josiah lately has taken to really paying attention to him. He walks up to Benson and leans real close to say "hi". Benson loves it. I love being the mom of boys, especially these two!

Benson is a little over 18 lbs and 28+ inches long. Yep thats right building my little football team :)

The story of our travels, part 4

Here we are at the end. Its always sad when you get to the end. Especially the end of a great trip. But we're here, so we'll enjoy it while we can. The wedding day started slow and comfortable. We all took our time getting ready. The guys made sure things were set up and that the wedding would go off with no problems. The wedding planner, dresses, throne chairs (you'll see in a minute) and the throne tent would arrive around 5pm we thought, and the plan was to begin at 7pm. Kinda late, but that's the way they do it.

Everything was ready to go, all we were waiting for was the wedding planner. Finally we called her to find out that she was sitting in town waiting for us?! So quickly we dashed down to see her. She came finally dresses, etc. in hand. We got Elena dressed in one of her 5 dresses and rushed upstairs for some quick posed photos. Then we were off.

I mentioned before the part of the wedding is to drive around town honking your horn. Here are the cars all decorated and ready for the trip. Daniel and Elena rode in one car and all the rest of the guests followed in cars, trucks, vans anything they could find.

Daniel is holding two flags out the window. One is for the bride and one is for the groom. They keep these flags on their house for a week or so before the wedding. Then when the groom comes to get the bride he takes her flag with him to his house.

When we got back they come and sit in front of everyone on these big thrones. These are the most "tame" chairs you could rent. You should see some of the other chairs. Here Elena is wearing her first of 5 dresses. Its a lot like our traditional wedding dresses.

Josiah & I got to wear traditional outfits too. It was so much fun to get all dressed up.

After a brief sit, we did a ceremony that mirrored our traditional weddings. In Morocco there isn't really a time of commitment during the weddings, its just a big party. It was great to include this part of the wedding for them to see. Willie gave a brief message about love and respect. It was translated into Arabic so that everyone could participate.

After changing into her second dress (check out the necklace!) they were carried in and danced around. A couple times we thought they were going to drop them, but the made it. It was hard work though, those seat things they are sitting on are heavy!

For her third dress we all danced together. Normally the bride wouldn't dance or show much excitement at all. Elena however is a dancer and she was so excited she couldn't sit down for the whole wedding. It was hard to dance though in that dress. You can't see it but the train on it is almost cathedral length!

This was Elena's 5th and final dress. There was a pink one in there, but we didn't get a good picture of it. I think this one was my favorite. After a quick sit they finally got changed and headed out for their honeymoon around Morocco. They drove away around 2am!

After they left the party continued until around 3am, which was early for a normal Moroccan wedding. Us foreigners just like our sleep too much!

The next day we all took our time waking up and enjoying each others company. We went out to a special dinner with the whole family (minus D & E). We were all wishing we had more time together, but glad the time we had was so full of joy. The next day (Sunday) we headed out early in the morning to catch a train back to the capital city of Rabat. We spent the night there and then the next morning jumped into our rental car and drove down to the Casablanca airport.

8 of us in one tiny little car.

The trip home was pretty uneventful. We stayed one night in Madrid, went to a fun Irish pub there for dinner. It was early so they didn't mind the kiddos joining us for dinner. Then we slept and off we went the long distance home.

We go and pick up Daniel and Elena tonight. They have had some great adventures it sounds like traveling around Morocco. I hope it was a time full of joy for them. We are so excited to have Elena as part of our family now. And extra excited that she wanted to join our family with a Moroccan wedding!

The story of our travels, part 3

After a quick weekend break, I am back to tell you all about the wonderful wedding we had in Morocco. Have I mentioned that it was a ton of fun? It was truly one of the best weddings I've attended. Perhaps because the whole family was together, or maybe because we love Daniel and Elena so much, then again it could simply be because Morocco is a wonderful place. For whatever reason it was the best.

So I mentioned that we killed a cow, two sheep and some chickens for the first night, that was Wednesday. Then on the next day we woke up early (relatively) and Elena put on her special henna garment. Those of you who don't know henna is a herb that is mixed with water and something else to create a paste that works as a temporary pigment for your skin or hair. I think you can use it on other things too but it is mostly for those things. One of the Moroccan traditions is that the bride has her hands and feet covered in decorative henna. The detail is so complete it appears as if she is wearing socks and gloves. She sits pampered while receiving this treatment. Then allows the henna to dry and color her skin. It lasts about 3 weeks depending on your skin. Anyway, Elena wore a traditional dress for having henna done and all of us ladies also got a small amount done too.

Around 1pm we ate the first of many feasts. Beef Tagine with olives and prunes. One of my favorite meals. It was spectacular. The men ate on the roof under the tent, and the women ate in our formal sitting area. Many women from the villages we are building in came to join the celebration. There was dancing and singing. Some of the women did some traditional Berber wedding singing and then we also heard some traditional Arabic wedding singing.It was great fun. The men always tell us that the women have all the fun at weddings. The men just eat and run, us girls hang out and have as much fun as possible.

That evening we gathered on the roof for Daniels henna party. Traditionally Elena would not be present, just the family and the grooms friends. We were blending the traditions though and so Elena and all of us girls joined the men for the party on the roof. We ate another feast (Beef Tagine again - YUM!) and then we all danced together. It was so much fun to dance to Moroccan music and some American music too. Since it was a gathering of close friends we were able to be more relaxed and enjoy each others company. It was one of my favorite parts of the wedding.

At the end of the evening we danced to the "hokey poky". It was great! We foreigners did it first and then invited all of the Moroccans to join us. They hesitated at first - this is not something they had ever seen before, but then they jumped in. Oh my word they LOVED it. I remember specifically one guy trying to do the moves and he was laughing so hard that he could hardly hold his "right arm out and shake it all about." It was so much fun we decided to add it to the next nights list of activities.

Speaking of the next night...The last and final night was Friday. It held all of the traditional things we would find in one of our weddings. We would have called it the main event. But I'll just have to tell you about that tomorrow! Ha, sorry to make you wait again, but I want to keep you coming back. See you tomorrow with the final installment of "the story of our travels".

Elena receiving henna, notice all the cushy pillows. Ya, pretty relaxing.

The final outcome, isn't it beautiful?!

My henna. I loved it, but its already worn off! Guess I'll just have to go back to Morocco! ;-)

Here we are minus Benson, he was taking a nap.

Nate, the photographer. He is living in Morocco right now, which was lucky for us. He did all the pictures for the wedding. He does amazing work. Check out his website.

The bride and groom the night of the henna party.

All of us dancing and having such fun!

Josiah loved sitting and watching the dancing.

Last but not least, the Hokey Poky - "Thats what its all about!"

The story of our travels, part 2

I was thinking I would tell you about the wedding today, but there is really so much I have to tell you about first. So, depending on how this goes we might make it to the wedding, but we probably won't. I am just helping you all learn how to be patient :-)

Once we arrived in Morocco and got settled we started talking about what all is involved in a Moroccan wedding. Daniel and Elena both wanted to include Moroccan traditions as well as including some of our traditions. So we needed to know what that meant. I've talked about weddings in Morocco before, So you may know a little about what they include, but let me fill you in as much as I can. The wedding actually lasts quite a while. Ours was a full 3 days. The first day they set up a tent, get things ready, kill the animals that we'll be eating for the feast and then eat the guts that night. Sound gross? It is, but they love it. A major part of a Moroccan wedding is the food. We had a cow, two sheep and a bunch of chickens for our feasts. We ate the evening of the first night - the guts like I already mentioned, then lunch and dinner of the second day, and then again lunch and dinner of the third day. So much food, and oh so good!

The second day they do henna for the women in the morning and then a henna party for the groom in the evening. Usually that evening there would be a dinner at the Brides home where all of the grooms friends would come, but not the groom. In our case we did it all at the same house including the Bride and the Groom since we were all staying there. The third and final night the groom comes and picks up the bride at her home and they drive around the city honking cars (I was told that they only do this in the country, not in the cities in Morocco - its kinda a "redneck" thing :-)) The Bride and the Groom then arrive and spend most of the evening sitting on large chairs getting pictures taken with people and watching all of their friends dance and eat. The bride will change her dress as many times as she likes depending on the money she has and the number of dresses she has to change into. These aren't just any dresses either, they are elaborate fancy things.

So we had to figure out all of these details. We went to see a woman who we dubbed "the wedding planner" she was great. She has a shop where you go and rent everything you need for a wedding - a tent, dresses, chairs, even hand washing things. So we spent time with her talking about what was needed and what we'd like. We spent one day actually picking out dresses. Elena settled on 4 fancy, traditional Moroccan dresses and one more traditional wedding dress. Each of us girls were given the opportunity to rent a dress for the main wedding too.

Like I said yesterday we were able to visit with friends and do a little work too. Joey and the guys headed out Monday - Wednesday morning helping with various building projects. They had a blast getting to spend time with the Moroccans.

Well, I think I'll wait to tell you about the wedding tomorrow. For now here are more pictures to help tell the story. It is so much fun looking back over these pictures and remembering our two weeks there. It was really too short, but full of lots of great memories!

A typical morning in Willie & Gretchen's apartment. Believe it or not, we're not all there!

Josiah and Thomas had way too much fun together on this trip. Here they are pushing stools around, and loving it. Only in Morocco!

Having more fun climbing on stuff.

Josiah has started to do this thing were if you're sitting he wants to come and sit by you like a big boy. Here he is sitting with Gramps.

Listening to music. He loves it!

Benson and I hanging out.

Another big part of a Moroccan wedding is dancing. They love to dance and I think ever night we were there they were dancing a little bit. They usually tie a scarf around their buns to help them jiggle more. Here James is getting a scarf so he can "break it down" with the best of them.

Daniel & Brent helping a guy "mow" his lawn.

The tent getting set up on the first day of the wedding. We set it up on the roof of our building.

Daniel and the cow. They butcher it right there where he's standing, and we all watched. Its pretty gross, so I don't watch the whole thing. Its all part of the fun though! Maybe we should add that tradition to our weddings?!

Josiah on one of the sheep, he sure does love Moroccan sheep!

The story of our travels, part 1

Two babies under 6 months.
One 1 year old.
Two crazy toddlers.
One excited 3 year old.
Eleven anxious, tired and slightly weird adults.

17 of us headed out for our flight that left at 7:50am, Wednesday, April 16th. That meant we headed to the airport at 4:00 with a quick stop by the coffee shop for necessary caffeine. Scattered around the airplane we enjoyed movies and trivia, did our best to keep the little ones contained and tried to catch a few moments of shut eye. Our first lay over was in Atlanta, then a 9 hour flight to Madrid where we met up with Joey's dad, Willie. Amazingly enough the kids did great, sleeping a lot and generally enjoying themselves. Praise the Lord!

Once we got to Madrid, we rented two cars and drove down to the coastal town of Algeciras, Spain. Due to weather the ferries across to Morocco were delayed and rescheduled. We decided to stay the night and head out the next morning. We finally arrived in Morocco mid-afternoon on Friday the 19th. Quickly we headed to a restaurant for some of the best food in the world.

Once we got to Morocco our travels were not done, but our hearts were light. We were finally in the country we love, excited about a week among people who we adore. We rented another car and off we went. The 6 hour drive was long and windy, we arrived after dark ready to eat and sleep, and SO excited to finally be there. Our time was short so we did our best to jump into things right away. We visited friends, did some shopping, checked out houses being built and spent some time getting ready for the wedding.

And oh what a wedding it was! It was so fun, and the details came together so nicely...but I'll have to tell you about that later, for now enjoy a few pictures of our trip and check back soon for the rest of the story :-)

All 17 of us before our first flight. (From L - R: Me, Benson, Amanda, Ben, John, Sarah, Thomas, Brent, James, Joey, Josiah, Clif, Judah, Becky, Katy, Elena & Daniel) Sorry its blurry, we were a bit tired :-)

Watching the airplanes

The walk from terminal to terminal in Atlanta was long, kinda like a runway, so we struck various poses since we're models you know :-)

Need I say more?

The whole family, with the rock of Gibraltar behind us.

Make shift jungle gym on the ferry.

Finally enjoying great Moroccan cuisine.