A new President and new Residence

While I was unable to watch the Inauguration from school today... I did catch some "live feed" of the events in our IMC. Our family is very excited for our new President Obama. Mehandis continues to call out his name when he sees pictures of him on t.v. or in print. He also claps and says "Wow" when watching his speeches. And no... we aren't straight forward teaching this behavior, just lots of modeling I guess!

On a very different note, our adoption agency has recently sent out information regarding an upcoming move for the "children who are waiting for adoption" in Addis Ababa. So our second child will not be in the same building that Mehandis stayed in... but in a building about a half a mile away. The new care center is called "Mussie" and was previously a private residence. I have included some photos of the new residence.

This is the view from a balcony. The yellow building on the right is the previous care center. The same nannies will be in Mussie that worked at the center Mehandis stayed in.

One of many bedrooms is seen here... with an attached bathroom.

One of two kitchens is pictured above. A lot of Bebelec formula to be made here!

I thought it was interesting to see a map of the area we stayed at. When we were Ethiopia we walked from the Guest House to the Care Center and the Former CHSFS Administrative Office. Looks like the walk will be a little longer next time.

"Ice" Skating Lessons

We just got home from another fun Chicago weekend. Due to another "cold" day off from school, we were able to catch an earlier train and join my mom for a delicious dinner of chicken and dumplings (a long standing favorite meal of mine!). After a cozy conversation by the fire, our friend Will and his girl friend Eileen came by. We braved the cold and went to a wine bar for some catching up and great vino.

The next morning we went to the Children's Museum and joined in on their winter celebrations. They had pretend snow fort building, snowball fights and an "ice" skating rink. The ice skating rink was actually some sort of smooth slippery bouncy surface that the kids skated around on in their socks. Below you can see Mehandis practicing his jumps... he now gets both feet off the ground!


I think cast-offs from the Wiggles were the skate instructors. They had incredible enthusiasm and were getting quite the work out.


I think Mehandis may be a speed skating prodigy!

The fun continued on from there, as we joined good friends Dara and George for afternoon cocktails and then mastered the "L" to celebrate cousin Joel's engagement to Rhonda. Thanks to my mom who watched Mehandis during many of these outings... and who kept explaining to Mehandis that Grandpa was not home (or the Hero Pilot of the Hudson on t.v.) but in Germany this weekend.

Broken Counter?

So anyone know what the number of "visitors" to this blog was at last count? Not a contest... but looks like my coutner at the bottom of this page is no longer running. Hmmm.

1-19-09 Note: It is now working again. Guess just like the "Secret", if you put out your request it will come!

What to do with cabin fever...

Michael convinced me that Mehandis should try out his sled on an actual hill this year... so we gave it a go. I was pretty nervous seeing other kids on the sled hill with snow boards and tubes, but we chose the less populated side with less of a decline. Michael was right about Mehandis liking it. As soon as he and his smile got to the bottom he requested "Again!". Don't you think it looks like a scary steep hill? Yikes.

Sledding is a great way to conquer the cold, or at least if you are the one pulling the sled up the hill!

I think we will bring hot chocolate for Mehandis next time... since he had shivers for a while after returning inside.

Apparently Mehandis is tiring of his indoor toys, as he shows that more fun can be had with ALL of our tupperware.

Another new favorite winter past time is "shoveling" with Michael. Mehandis has his own shovel hanging in the garage next to his dad's, and whenever we are going in or out of the car he cries out "Shobel? Dad?". So Michael, being the great dad that he is, now occasionally shovels with Mehandis after work... even when there is no snow.

Quiz Answers and Winners

Congratulations to Peter and Uncle Gregg! Both of their answers to the 1975 Quiz were 100% accurate... plus they received Extra Credit for getting the bonus question right. Your prize is being delivered, as promised.

Here is Peter at the Devil's Lake triathlon... perhaps 2 years ago?

Mehandis and Uncle Gregg enjoying early summer days with the wagon that was newly put together.

For curious minds, the answers to the quiz are:

1. What actor was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II on March 4, 1975?

Charlie Chaplin

2. What country's forces seized the SS Mayaguez on May 12, 1975?

Cambodia

3. Who did President Ford posthumously pardon on August 5, 1975?
Gen. Robert E. Lee

4. Who fought in the "Thrilla in Manila ?

Muhammed Ali and Joe Frazier

5. On March 18, 1975 which TV character was killed off in their series?

Lt. Col. Henry Blake (M*A*S*H)

6. Which team won the NBA Championship in 1975?

Golden State Warriors

7. Who won the men's singles title at Wimbledon in 1975?

Arthur Ashe

8. What was the top grossing film of 1975?

Jaws

9. What king of Saudi Arabia was assassinated in 1975?

King Faisal

10.What U.S. President got married in 1975?

Bill Clinton

Extra Credit - Which member of my immediate family was born in 1975?

Acceptable Answers - Cousin Karen and Husband Michael

Thanks to all that played!

10 questions about 1975 in honor of being #75

In honor of hitting the 75 mark, on the unofficial waiting list for our next family addition, I found have copied a quiz about 1975 trivia. I have the answers and you can reply (or email me) with your educated guesses. A photo of the winner will be posted on a following blog. Good luck!!!

1. What actor was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II on March 4, 1975?
A Charlie Chaplin
B Laurence Olivier
C John Gielgud
D Ralph Richardson

2. What country's forces seized the SS Mayaguez on May 12, 1975?
A Cambodia
B China
C Laos
D North Vietnam

3. Who did President Ford posthumously pardon on August 5, 1975?
A John Wilkes Booth
B Richard Nixon
C Gen. Robert E. Lee
D Jefferson Davis

4. Who fought in the "Thrilla in Manila?
A Muhammed Ali and Joe Frazier
B George Foreman and Joe Frazier
C Muhammed Ali and Ken Norton
D Muhammed Ali and George Foreman

5. On March 18, 1975 which TV character was killed off in their series?
A George Jefferson (All in the Family)
B Lt. Col. Henry Blake (M*A*S*H)
C Edith Bunker (All in the Family)
D James Evans (Good Times)

6. Which team won the NBA Championship in 1975?
A Washington Bullets
B Phoenix Suns
C Boston Celtics
D Golden State Warriors

7. Who won the men's singles title at Wimbledon in 1975?
A John Newcombe
B Arthur Ashe
C Bjorn Borg
D Jimmy Connors

8. What was the top grossing film of 1975?
A Shampoo
B One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
C Jaws
D The Rocky Horror Picture Show

9. What king of Saudi Arabia was assassinated in 1975?
A King Khalid
B King Fuad
C King Abdullah
D King Faisal

10. What future U.S. President got married on October 11, 1975?
A Ronald Reagan
B George H.W. Bush
C George W. Bush
D Bill Clinton

Extra Credit - Which family member in our immediate family was born in 1975?

Happy New Year!!!

We bid 2008 adieu and welcomed in 2009 with the M's on New Year's Eve. What a fun time it was with word games, a great spread of food and Andre (the champagne). There were five families in attendance along with 6 children. Jonah got the award for the latest kiddo up. Michael and I were actually the last to leave at 2 AM (Sorry about that Maira!) which is a rare thing. Thanks for the festivities Maira and Peter.
Here are the ladies, a little while after Sarah left, enjoying the last of 2008. It was great having Jen in town to join in on the fun.

And here are the kiddos quite a bit before midnight.