Last week we decided to take advantage of the gorgeous weather and go to the park when Lauren got home from school.
Lauren likes to include Hope in the fun so she asked to give Hope a turn on the teeter-totter. A neighborhood friend helped bounce Hope around. Hope loved it.
I love watching the interaction between Lauren and Hope. There is something magical between them. Lauren can make Hope laugh so hard she gets the hiccups. It’s beautiful.
This week we went raspberry picking at a local farm. It was a beautiful day. Bright and sunny with a cool breeze.
I carried Hope in a baby carrier and she was happy as long as I was on the move, no stopping too long at one particularly raspberry bush. Lauren was good for about 5 minutes before being itchy and tired of the bees buzzing all about. Dave was on fairly good behavior. He claimed that he didn’t know which raspberries were ripe and which weren’t. Something about colorblindness. So, he was in charge of the camera.
Forty-five minutes later we had 3/4 of a pound of raspberries. So, we headed home.
I LOVE family outings!!!!!!! Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! 
No, really, I do. It’s a privilege. I told Dave that despite the whining and crying, we made a memory. We plan to have LOTS more adventures.
Since Lana is taking over the blog with food posts (just kidding!), I thought I’d try my own. If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em! Here is Hope’s first attempt to eat solid food (avocado):
She loved it! Unfortunately, her tummy didn’t love it so much…that night, poor little Hope was up most of the night, crying. She usually sleeps about 9 hours straight. The following day, we tried giving her banana but had the same result that night. So, we are stopping solids and will try again in a month.
“To her the name of father was another name for love.” ~ Fanny Fern
I am proud of the father that Dave has become. He is loving, calm, creative, caring, giving, positive, and inspiring. He wants the best for our girls, even when the best for them is not what he wants for himself. His heart’s desire is for his girls to know and love God in an amazing, radical way.
It was my idea to adopt. Dave just kind of went along with my crazy scheme to adopt from Central America. I say crazy because the whole process of international adoption requires a bit of craziness on the part of the parents! Yet, when our world crashed the day of Carmen’s diagnosis, Dave did not blame me. Not once in the past three years has he questioned our decision to adopt. He has only loved and cared for Carmen.
I have no doubt that when our girls are grown they will say that Dave was an amazing father. And when he gets to Heaven, Carmen will thank him.
Happy Father’s Day, Dave! And Happy Father’s Day to my dad and Dave’s dad!
Now for a bit of fun…
Dave put together this video today. I love it!
If you are having trouble watching the video above, click here to watch it on YouTube.
So…how many peace signs did you spot?
NY Grandpa offered to watch the girls while I took Lauren out for something special. So, as soon as Lauren got home from school, we headed out for mommy/daughter time. I didn’t tell her where we were going. I gave her hints. “It’s something girls like to do. It’s fancy. It’s colorful.” When we parked, Lauren looked out the window and yelled, “Yay, a nail salon!” This was her first manicure/pedicure experience and she was quite impressed. Afterward she told me that the lady cleaned her legs. Today was Field Day at school so I bet she did!
Thanks NY Grandpa and thanks Monica the Magnificent (Monica helped watch Hope and Carmen)!
