Fall 2010

Helayna had her first homecoming dance last month...her and her BFF went together.

Fall 2010

Late Summer, Fall 2010

I can't believe how much time goes by sometimes in between posts for me...A friend reminded me I haven't updated in a while,so here goes....

Let's see....what's new since June?

Well, it's not like we're living on the face of the sun anymore, thank goodness. Summer in Arizona seems to last FOREVER!!!! It feels like it's NEVER going to cool down and pretty much every year, I start wondering why the heck I chose to move here!!!! But then, fall comes and with that, beautiful temperatures and I remember what I love about Arizona....while everyone in the midwest is freezing, we are enjoying the sun and beautiful 60's-80's....so, I think we'll stay a while longer...
We spent July 4th with friends and watched fireworks in their driveway, which was nice. They also lit off their own fireworks which I thought might kill us, but we ended up surviving after all....this was Sebastian's first 4th of July and he wasn't affected at ALL by the loud noise or lights...not really surprising, since he's not affected by much at all. He is one of the most easy going kids I've ever met.
He pretty much likes everyone, we can take him anywhere and as long as we bring cheerios, he's fine. He gets a little grumpy when we take his food away, but other than that, he is a happy little guy.

I took him for his 18 month checkup last month and he's gained 3 lbs and grown 3 inches since he came home in January. He's in the 50th percentile for height and 25th for weight, so he's right on track.

He eats and sleeps well, is running, jumping, trying to talk, and into EVERYTHING...he definitely keeps me busy! His favorite words are: please, shoes, shoot (thanks to me!), car,Sid (from Sid the Science Kid tv show), outside (he says "side!"), Daddy, Momma, Dia for "Mia", Bon Nwe (which means goodnight in Creole), cake,cookie,cereal, and of course, NO! He has learned sign language for "eat, drink, please, more and cookie". Sometimes, he does them all if we aren't giving him what he wants. It's pretty funny.

He's definitely starting to have some separation anxiety...when I leave the house, he usually cries and if Helayna comes with me, he cries even more.
Me and the girls took a weekend trip to Flagstaff last month with a friend and Eric stayed home with Sebastian. I think it bonded them a little more. I noticed he was saying "Daddy" a lot more and when he hears the door open, he screams for him. It's so cute.

We have Sebastian's adoption court date on Nov 24, and our adoption might be finalized then. Although we don't have a paper with consent from his natural parents, so it may be a little more difficult, but we're hoping not. Since the earthquake, a lot of paperwork has been lost and what's not lost is at the Embassy. So, difficult to get a hold of. We'll see what happens. We aren't worried.

Eric hasn't been back to Haiti since June, but Leve Project is going strong. We have partnered with an organization called Fonkoze, which handles microloans so we don't have to. They've been around a long time, so this is a great partnership. We can now concentrate on finding the women in need, developing a relationship with them, helping them with childcare, sharing meals, doing bible study and more. Fonkoze will handle the financial aspect of the program, which will hopefully, get them back on their feet. This is very exciting and we're hoping to get over there right at the beginning of 2011 to find housing, since the first house fell through.
We've had some wonderful volunteers step up to help, support and set up meetings with churches and we are so grateful for this. We still need TONS of help, though...if you are interested in helping in any way, plesae check out our website or contact one of us:
www.leveproject.org

Our church opened up it's new building a few months ago and it's been a crazy ride...it's so much bigger than the original, so at first, it seemed strange to us. Just didn't feel like Parkway....we had some issues with sound, finances, attendance, and just all out bad stuff happening to many members. It just didn't feel right. But, we all hung in there and things have come around. Changes have been made, we've all rededicated ourselves to God and serving Him and I think we have a new focus. We've been led by a wonderful pastor who has a vision that he is willing to adjust if needed, and continues to challenge and inspire us by his openness and being "real". I feel honored to be a part of this place and hope that our family can contribute to what's going on there.

We had "Trunk or Treat" on Halloween and it was CRAZY! Our small group decorated our car with a giant spider and passed out candy to the thousands (yes, thousands!!) of people that came through. We had games, food and lots and lots of candy! It was packed full!!!! And so much fun....
We also took the kids trick or treating on actual Halloween night and since it was Sebastian's first Halloween, we were excited to see how he reacted. He loved it! We gave him a bag and walked with him up to the door. He was a little confused why the man put candy in his bag and he just sat there, holding it open....Then, he started to walk into the house! He thought we were going in! So funny...he got the hang of it after a few houses and got lots of candy. Mia ran ahead with her little friends and had so much fun! Helayna walked around her best friend's neighborhood, which I still haven't gotten used to, even though she's almost 15!

I still can't believe I have a high schooler! Helayna will turn 15 in December and has turned into a wonderful young woman...I know that sounds cheesy but it's true. I am so proud of the person she's becoming and pray that she continues down the road she's on. She's doing so well in school, helps me so much with the little kids, and has been hanging out with us and our friends a lot lately. She really just doesn't like the "drama" that usually accompanies teenagers, so she says she has more fun with us. Which is fine with me....I enjoy her company and I think my friends do too. Of course, she still has typical teenage moments, but they are few and far between. She really really wants to go back to Haiti with Eric and I respect her so much for that. She has fallen in love with it and the people and her dedication amazes me. She really wants to become a nurse and go back to help the people there. I can't wait to see where God leads her.

Mia is my little firecracker....little body with big attitude! She is doing well in first grade, although we had a rocky start and I even thought of homeschooling her. But, she's come around and things are going well. She loves math, writing and reading. She is reading so well now, and I love to see that! She spends most of her time at her little desk in the family room, writing and drawing. She hardly plays with toys. Her 7th birthday is coming up in one week and I cannot believe it! We are having her party at a place called Kidding Around Playtown, which should be fun for the kids.

We did take a trip to San Diego (Coronade Island) and it was a blast! We absolutely loved it and want to go back. It was so fun driving across the bridge every day and our hotel was incredible...feet from the water! We had a day at Sea World and also at the beach. The beach was, by far, everyone's favorite. Just beautiful...

We ended up getting rid of the stray dog we had for a couple months. She was so sweet but we learned she was dog-aggressive and I didn't want to take a chance with our other dog or my kids. So, it was sad and hard, but we had the humane society come pick her up. Hopefully, they found her a better home. So now we're a one dog home and I'm loving it! So much easier and Logan is so much happier....

Alright, well, as I type, Sebastian is having a fit because I told him to not stand on the couch, so I better go....He is SUCH a boy!!! And I truly thought I'd never say that...I've learned it's SO true!

I will add some pictures below....enjoy!

Michele :D