ONCE THERE WERE TWO LITTLE GIRLS...

...who we love more with each passing moment.

MEMORIAL WEEKEND EAC STYLE!

Every year on Memorial weekend our agency (European Adoption Consultants) hosts an agency-wide reunion of families from all their adoption programs at the Cleveland Zoo. This was the first time we attended and, boy, it was fun! Friday night started the weekend off with a cookout/kids' fair on agency grounds, followed by all day Saturday spent at the Zoo. At one point I overheard someone saying that that day every year is the busiest day at the Zoo because of the attendance of so many adoption alumni from EAC. I met in person lots of families whose blogs I had been following and that were in the yahoo group to which I belong, and I met a lot of new families also. And our two social butterflies (Logan and Ciara) were in their glory with so many people to entertain, lol.

Flamingos!!! (BTW...see that clippie in Logan's hair? I'm going to post some exciting news about it very soon! Ssshhh...I made it!)Logan sssssliding outta the ssssnake pit.KangaLoganKangaCiaraRoger and I feel soooo blessed!There was also a parade for all the families to march in around the zoo lined up by country and then by province or city in that country.Logan and Ciara were pushed around all day in what to me looked like a mini rickshaw, lol. Ciara proudly displays her place of birth while Logan wearily waves China's flag.Halfway through the parade Logan made the mistake of getting outta her seat at which time Ciara quickly konked out!Yikes, Papa! Grizzlies!Mother (Leyna) and daughter (Logan) pose in front of the bears!This was also our China travel group's 1st reunion since getting home with our daughters. We all met at Lori and Dan's for supper after the zoo. Two families came in from near the Atlanta, GA area, two other families are from the Cleveland, Ohio area, and of course our family in Pennsylvania. We had a great time reminiscing about China and catching up with each other's lives since we got home. All five girls have adjusted beautifully and also had a great time playing together.

From left to right are: Dan, Lori and their newest daughter Shawna; Roger, me and Ciara; Chris, Catherine and their daughter Harper; Matt, Ingrid and their second Chinese daughter Zadie; and Tom, Karen and their daughter Heather (who, BTW, we think was having a little red couch picture taking flashback. She's the oldest of the five girls and probably remembers the most.)

LOGIE CROCKER

We're having a late breakfast this morning and Logan just whipped up the pancakes. She's a great helper in the kitchen!

Chef Logie Crocker!

CIARA AND TIPSY

We have three cats, Tipsy, Cinnamon and Teenie. Two of them (Tipsy and Cinnamon) are sisters born on August 24th, 1994 (my brother Jeff's birthday, that's how I remember it, lol). That will make them 16 years old this August. Their mother Lacy was also a pet of ours, but was hit and killed by a car when they were 6 months old. They were both born in the double wide trailer we lived in while my daughter Leyna and I watched. To look at Cinnamon you wouldn't think she was anywhere near 16 years old, she still jumps, runs up the steps two at a time and torments our dog Lulu. Tipsy on the other hand is a bit heavier and slower and sleeps most of the 24 hours in a day. She has a lump at the base of her spine that I ran my hand over last year and got bit by her for the first time ever since I've had her, but she still lumbers on, doesn't go up the stairs that often anymore and basically just sleeps on a blanket under my computer table. Logan and Ciara have been told that they can't pick her up and to generally just leave her alone as she's old and will probably not be with us that much longer. I left the room for a minute and when I came I found this...she was being so gentle with her.

DANCE, DANCE, DANCE

After we got home with Ciara in September of last year, I was taking her with me when I took Logan to her tap dance class. Ciara was only 2 1/2 at that time. The first class after we came back just happened to be an observation week so Ciara and I were actually in Logan's class watching her practice, and while I was holding her she mimicked everything that the girls in Logan's class were doing. While I was watching Logan, every one else was watching Ciara, lol. After that class, Logan's teacher asked me if I was going to put Ciara into tap and I told her that if she wanted to I would when she was old enough, which at the time was 4 years old. It just so happened, the teacher told me, that they just started a new class that was for the wee little ones. Ciara was very excited because she wanted to do everything here Jie Jie (Logan) was doing. The first couple classes she wanted me in with her the whole time, but after that she sailed through the fall and winter with flying colors to finally.....THE BIG SHOW!! And both girls did great and both acted like old pros! The theme was The Wonderful World of Disney!

Leyna and Logan at dress rehearsal the day before the show. I just love the look on Logan's face.Ciara not cooperating while getting her picture taken, but still looking cute.All dolled up the afternoon of the show and waiting to go on. Ciara's class was the 3rd act and Logan's was the 11th.Our beautiful Logan MayLogan's class performed to "Yes, Sir! That's My Baby."Logan was right smack in the middle!Ciara's class waiting in the wings. Only ten are actually sitting in this picture, but there were actually 17 that went on stage, lol. Brave teachers!Waiting backstage to go on!Ciara is the fifth one from the right, and also the smallest of the bunch, lol. Her class performed to "I'm A Little Teapot.""Tip me over and pour me out!"

THIS BLESSING IS FOR YOU

My mom and dad, my granny, Leyna, and Roger and I all went to Ireland in August of 2002, the year Leyna graduated from high school. Our hotel was in Dublin, but we traveled back and forth quite a bit to other cities in Ireland. We toured to the south to the Wicklow Mountains, went west three hours to the Cliffs of Moher, and drove around the Ring of Kerry, we visited castles and pubs and...IT WAS FANTASTIC!!! If I ever get the chance to go back, I'm gone! I was sent an email today with THIS LINK attached. Please take a look at it, it is absolutely beautiful!

WHAT'S BEEN GOING ON? (PART II)

The month of April went along quite smoothly, mainly due to the fact that Logan and Ciara spent most of it...OUTSIDE! And that is perfectly O.K.A.Y. with me. We had been cooped up all winter long and all of us had had enough of each other and needed some relief. It is the first question both of them ask when they wake up: Can we play outside today? As you'll see in the pics below, these two girls love the outdoors and they love to help with whatever chores we are doing outside.

We planted peas in the first two rows and the girls are now watering them.Taking a break for a little pizzaThe girls each planted their own flowers in these containers...unfortunately since then they all got left outside one night and the frost got 'em. We plan on replanting once the last frost hits at the end of this month, lol.

Logan also started playing soccer this year, and if she's anything like her mother, she's going to be a great athlete. The following pictures are not the best at all, but I couldn't use my flash inside the gym, and for some reason when I don't use the flash with this particular camera, the pictures come out blurry.

This really wasn't during the game, it was during the warm-up, lol.

And we all know that the most important part of any team is what color your shirts are, and in Logan's book since red is her favorite color, she was on the best team!GOOOOO, RED!!! And for the past few springs this little guy has been coming back to our feeders, at least I'm assuming it's the same one, it's the only woodpecker that has ever come around.Our evenings were spent doing various activities like...

Hair dressing...Or recovering from another grueling round of "Go get the ball, Lulu"...Playing with oven mitts...yes, we play with our oven mitts. Got a problem with that?

Generally lookin' cute...And we built a fort in the livingroom.Those are Roger's feet sticking outta that fort on the left, lol

There's more, but I guess I'll have to do a Part III, so stay tuned.