Pumpkin Patch

Can I first start off by saying how much I love fall! The weather is beautiful, the colors are so pretty, and it’s just a great season. Well in my opinion anyway. To celebrate the beginning of fall we went to the pumpkin patch this past Saturday. We actually went with all the couples that were in our birthing class. So it was our “class reunion.” It was so fun seeing all the little babies. There were six couples and six babies plus Jayci. We were the only ones there that have previously had kids.

All that being said, let the picture madness begin!

Jay & Jayci seeing how tall they are

There was a fun little play area with a slide and a bunch of hay around it. Jayci loved playing on it. 

All the babies! 4 girls and 2 boys (on the end).

A few of the babies. You can see the 2 on the left are fighting over Sophie the Giraffe. I have recently heard of this Sophie. We do not have one but I am under the impression that Korbyn may need one to be able to keep up with the “cool” babies. HA!

My beautiful babies. Of course I can’t get them both to look at the camera for the same time. At this time Korbyn was about to melt he needed a nap so bad.

Me and my beautiful girl.

I sure love this precious boy!

Our family. It was so sunny outside it was hard to get a good picture without  there being a bad glare.

  Eek! Isn’t he just the CUTEST!

Our whole group! Jayci with the animals. This girl is really coming into her own recently. I am loving watching her grow and just become her own little person. 

After the Pumpkin Patch we went to the club house where my dad golf’s to watch the end of the Razorback game. Let me just say watching that game with a bunch of old men that had been drinking was one of the funniest things ever. Either way we won. So GO HOGS!

After the game we went out on the deck of the club house and played in the grass and just visited for a little big.

 

My dad and Jayci. She loves her Papaw so much!

I hope you guys all have a good week.

~ Kristen

Win a Stay in Aspen!!!

I would like to introduce you to Mary Beth. She is a dear friend who I met several years ago at church. Mary Beth and her husband, Casey are so passionate about Ethiopia. Their passion for this country is such an inspiration to me. Below you will find a way you can help and also have an opportunity to win a stay in Aspen!!!



Thank you so much Kristen for allowing me to post on your blog about a subject that is so important to me.


Over three years ago, my husband and I began our journey to adopt our son from Ethiopia. And since that time, God has been filling our hearts with an overwhelming love and passion for the people of Ethiopia. We returned a year after our first adoption to bring our daughter home. After arriving home with her, we knew we had to do more.


We have been so blessed to team up with other adoptive families around the U.S. and with Lifesong for Orphans. Lifesong is doing some amazing work through a small nursery school that they support in Adami Tulu, Ethioipa. You can read more about Adami Tulu here.


Last year, we, with five other families, raised over $40,000 to build a new building, restroom facility, and gate at the Adami Tulu school. In August, we got to return to Ethiopia to see the new building. We had an amazing trip, and have absolutely fallen in love with Adami Tulu. You can read more about our trip here and here. The school is changing the lives of so many vulnerable children in the area by offering them a wonderful education and two nutritious meals a day.


We've returned home with the knowledge that we have so much more to do in Adami Tulu. So we've agreed to continue our work with Lifesong by raising funds for another school building on the Adami Tulu campus. This will enable the school to expand to include 1st and 2nd grade. More details will be coming soon, but we're anxious to get a jump start on fundraising. We know that this project will cost at least $50,000. But, for these sweet faces, we'll do anything!





We are very excited to announce our first fundraiser for our next phase of the Adami Tulu project: another Aspen Giveaway!





Our Aunt and Uncle have, once again, generously donated toward our fundraising efforts. Only this time they've offered us not one but FIVE stays at the Hyatt Grand Aspen.






Any one of these November stays might make a great early-Thanksgiving get together for you and some friends or family!


We will begin the giveaways today and draw winners on October 15. To enter, donate $20 by clicking the link for the stay that you're interested in. For every $20 you donate to Lifesong for Orphans, you will get one entry in the drawings. By the way, 100% of your donation will go to our work in Adami Tulu.


Here are some details and pictures about the Hyatt stays:


Hyatt Grand Aspen has complimentary continental breakfast, a pool and hot tub, fitness center, fire pit, daily room cleaning and nightly turn down service complete with chocolates. There is even a little hut by the hot tubs where you can hang your robes to keep them warm for you! The hotel is within walking distance of lots of shops and restaurants in Aspen.


The retail value of each stay is approximately $2,500.



To get to Aspen, you could fly into the Aspen airport. The hotel will pick you up and, since everything is within walking distance, you can go without a car during your stay. Or you could fly into Denver and rent a car to drive to Aspen. Or, of course, you could also just drive to Aspen.

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Hyatt Stay Giveaway #1:

• Sat.- Sat. November 5-12 (full week stay)




• Studio Unit (Like a nice hotel room with small kitchenette.)

To enter the drawing for Giveaway #1, donate to Lifesong for Orphans here:

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Hyatt Stay Giveaway #2:

• Sun.- Thurs. November 13-17 (five days/ four nights)




• Two Bedroom Unit (Two Bedrooms and Bathrooms, Kitchen, Livingroom, Dining Room, Washer and Dryer, etc.)

To enter the drawing for Giveaway #2, donate to Lifesong for Orphans here:

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Hyatt Stay Giveaway #3:

• Sun.- Thurs. November 13-17 (five days/ four nights)




• Three Bedroom Unit (Three Bedrooms and Bathrooms, Kitchen, Livingroom, Dining Room, Washer and Dryer, etc.) Maybe a family could do an "early Thanksgiving get together" in this one.

To enter the drawing for Giveaway #3, donate to Lifesong for Orphans here:

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Hyatt Stay Giveaway #4:

• Tues.-Sat. November 15-19 (five days/ four nights)




• One Bedroom Unit (All the things a two bedroom has but only one bedroom and bathroom)

To enter the drawing for Giveaway #4, donate to Lifesong for Orphans here:

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Hyatt Stay Giveaway #5:

• Tues.-Sat. November 15-19 (five days/ four nights)




• Two Bedroom Unit (Two Bedrooms and Bathrooms, Kitchen, Livingroom, Dining Room, Washer and Dryer, etc.)

To enter the drawing for Giveaway #5, donate to Lifesong for Orphans here:

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Just imagine, you could win a stay in Aspen, just for donating $20. What a deal! Plus, you get to be part of this amazing project to help these precious kids in Adami Tulu.


If you are unable to use one of the stays, you could donate your entry to a friend, or minister, or someone who could really use the time away.


Help us raise money to expand the Adami Tulu school and spread the word about our giveaway. Please repost on twitter and facebook! Thank you!

A Little of This & That

I am not really sure what we did when there were not any cell phones around. I have a pretty nice camera however 90% of my pictures are taken on my cell phone. Anyway, I thought I would share what has been going on in our neck of the woods through cell phone pictures.

Last Thursday was picture day at school. I know that my sweet little girl probably did not still look like this by the time pictures came around. Oh I can’t believe how much she is growing up. That is a whole different post.

Later that day Korbyn and I went to this new kids boutique in town. I bought this onsie and baby legs. Jay was a little hesitant on the outfit (especially the baby legs) at first but he liked them after he saw this cute baby.

Saturday was a big day here in Central Arkansas. It was the first Razorback game here in Little Rock. We didn’t actually have tickets to the game but we decided to go tailgating still. It was a beautiful day and we had so much fun. We just played out in the grass and enjoyed each other.

Me and my little tailgating buddy. (Can’t really leave a nursing baby for a full day. He is really good and easy so it wasn’t a big deal.)

Jayci & Cousin M having a picnic lunch.  So since we had to bring Korby we decided to bring couple of other kiddos with us. They had so much fun playing.

Jay and Jayci

Sunday Korbyn went to Sunday school class for the very first time. Look how big he looks in that chair.

 

Later Sunday afternoon was K’s (the one in the purple tutu) 5th Birthday. It was the CUTEST birthday I think we have ever been to.

   

The little tea party she had set up.

And finally today we tortured Korbyn just a little bit. Yea he really looks tortured. Ha. When I was pregnant I bought Jayci a Moby wrap to put her babies in. I have one for Korbyn and she wanted one too. Well today we just decided to put Korby in it too. Trust me she was very well supervised. He looks so big with her holding him in it. Anyway, this lasted about 5 minutes and then they were both done. 

   

Hope you all enjoy the rest of your week. Take lots of pictures, cell phone or otherwise!

~Kristen

4-Months-Old

Korbyn,

Oh my I can’t believe you are 4-months-old already. What are you up to this month?

At 3 months (since I didn’t do a 3 month post) you started rolling from your tummy to your back. You still do this sometimes. You may or may not get held A LOT because you are just so snuggly. HA.

You look so big in this picture to me.  You now weigh 14lbs 7oz (39%) and are 25.5 inches long (71%). I think you are going to be tall like your daddy!

You are laughing all the time. It is so cute. You are very ticklish. It is so funny to watch  you squirm and just laugh!

I don’t really think you are teething by any means but you have definitely found your hands. They are ALWAYS in your mouth! And you drool more than any baby I have ever seen.

You are the most laid back baby. You only cry when you are hungry.  Which is about every 2-3 hours during the day still. At night you go to bed between 8-9pm and wake up around 7am. 

 

You definitely recognize all of us especially Jayci. You love her so much. You are always watching her play and you just smile at her.

You also have started to find your voice. You are starting squeal and yell. I think you are starting to come into your own personality. I love watching you grow.

Here are you pictures from L to R: Your birthday, 1 week old, 1 month old, 2 months old, 3 months old, and 4 months old. 

We love you so much Korby. God blessed us with such a sweet baby boy!

~Kristen

Wooo Pig Soooie

So to celebrate Fall, Football, and Arkansas Razorbacks I decided to do a little photo shoot with Korbyn. I mean how much cuter can you get? I love this baby sooo much!

Today he is actually 4-months-old. I have a post in the works but we have his 4 month check up on Friday so I have to wait until then to post it so I can have his height and weight added.

Jayci is still loving Kindergarten. She has her first test this Friday. It’s a spelling test covering the words: I, and, blue, & red. We have been practicing and she knows how to spell them. I can’t believe how much she has learned. It is crazy how much they just soak up at this age.

The weather here is BEAUTIFUL. I LOVE fall. It is my most favorite season. The fall temps, the colors, just everything.

The Razorbacks won there first game. Woo-hoo! However, they didn’t play a real hard team or anything. HA! Next weekend they play in Little Rock. I may or may not feel a little cold coming on and I may or may not be able to go into work on Saturday. I feel like I may have a little Razorback fever coming on and only a little WPS tailgating will cure it. Just sayin’. HA

Look at these blue eyes. I really think they may stay blue. I think it is crazy that I may end up having a red haired, brown eyed child and a blonde hair, blue eyed child. I mean how opposite can you get?

Okay I have to admit this post was completely random. But I just wanted to post all these pictures. And give a little update on what has been going on in our little world.

I hope you all have a great rest of the week!

~Kristen

Kindergarten

My sweet baby girl started Kindergarten today. I just wanted to post a few pictures from her first day.

Mainly because I have no idea really what to say. She is growing up way too fast. I hold Korbyn and I can remember when she was that little and now I just sent her to Kindergarten.

(Jay and Jayci. I had just gotten off work so I did take a picture with her but it was definitely not worthy of posting on the internet. HA)

I know she will do great in school. She loves to learn new things and make new friends. I can’t wait to hear how her first day was!

And now I have to go because looking at these pictures makes me want to start crying again. HA! If you have one starting school or even starting back another year I hope they have a wonderful day and year. Praying for all the students and teachers (and parents) as another school year begins.

~Kristen

Serious Talks

I can imagine as our children grow we will have several serious talks and conversations with them. Some will be light hearted while others will be deep, meaningful and unforgettable. 

I just thought I would share this serious talk between Korbyn and his daddy. It will be one I want to remember…

On another note Korbyn rolled over from tummy to back today for the first time. He did it several times so I’m pretty sure it was intentional. I can’t believe he is growing so fast…Time needs to slow down.

Jayci starts kindergarten 2 weeks from today. I have some mixed emotions about that one…I’m not going to get into those tonight though.

~ Kristen