For-going the chaos for some comic relief!

The last month has been

well

a great deal for all of us

and the coming months

although they will be filled with joys untold

we didn't fall of the cabbage truck (as my great-grandmother used to say), yesterday

we know we are headed for what could be some tough times all around

so

this post is nothing but

FUN

*****************

************

Ari fun

...Ari goes to hippotherapy each week on Wednesday's at a beautiful horse park in the city. His therapist Brent is INCREDIBLE! awesome beyond words, and has the patience of a saint!

still, our little Ari can take ya there! not in a bad way, he's just, well - he NEVER stops talking and he says "huh" about 1,000 times an hour lately, and...he ask why after every single thing you or he says - LOL.

So, Brent has assigned one of the volunteer leads (the young girls that lead the horse by a rope as the therapy sessions go on) to be the "Ari answer person!" Haahahahahaha! Very funny! Today, that lead young lady literally ran away when the session was over! LOL, I think Ari must have asked her a record number of questions. He is persistent and you cannot give fake answers because he tests your logic like a CIA interrogator!

WE LOVE THIS KID!!!! and so do they, it's just the funnies that make him him.

*******************************

Mommy fun

......I think it is kind of funny actually that I have not totally lost it yet! This international adoption "stuff" is h-e-a-v-y, in so many ways, it blows your mind. Eyes opened to the orphan crisis about does you in too....so heavy.

here is something cute I saw on a blog that I wanted to do:

A - Age - I am the big 40! and I'm not going to lie, I kind of feel 40.

B - Bed Size - King, and if there were any bigger and I had a bigger master bedroom, I'd go for an even bigger bed.

C - Chore you hate - I actually love to clean. A fresh, sparking house makes me feel great. I do however very much dislike doing the baseboards and under the stove. I truly do not know how all that grossness gets under my stove!

D - Dog - I love dogs, cannot stand cats (I am deathly allergic to them). I had 4 dogs as a child: Cotton, Muffy, Lucky, and Baraboo (who we called Bootsie). I SO BADLY want to get the boys a dog after Ian is home but, that is going to be a battle that I just may never win! Daddy is set against it and I don't blame him. He thinks he will end up having to walk "it" on cold mornings and, well, with two 5 year old boys and a mama that does not like mornings - he's probably right!

E - Essential start to your day - A big fat kiss from Ari (and soon Ian), and regrettably, a grande iced coffee with a shot of espresso and one pump of sugar free cinnamon dolce from Starbucks. Let's just say, I have a real Gold Starbucks card that has my actual name printed on it...such a shame. I do dream about kicking the caffeine...someday:)

F - favorite color - Orange

G - Gold or Silver - Silver, resoundingly

H - Height - 5' 7 and a half

I - Instrument you play - my brain? does that count? LOL I took the following in school: The OBOE (was forced to quit by my mother who could not afford to keep replacing the reeds because I would rather chew on them than play), The VIOLIN (never practiced), The PIANO (a passing fancy, although I can still play Mary had a little lamb and read a tiny bit of simple music), The COMPUTER - I have written an entire album worth of music that I composed myself on my computer using ProTools and a midi controller. My Pop Star name is "Areal" and my album is called "utopic."

J - Job Title - Program Specialist/Lead Teacher for Special Education

K - Kids - Ari Marley and soon...Ian Will

L - Live in - Georgia. My hometown is Racine, Wisconsin

M - Mothers name - starts with a C

N - nicknames - mom, G, hey, pumpkin

O - Overnight Hospital Stays - hmmmm, several: had pneumonia once; hard pregnancy; childbirth, and H1N1.

P - Pet Peeve - other people telling me to calm down

Q - Quote from a movie - any lines from the Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy or The Fifth Element

R - Right or left handed - Right

S - Siblings - none

T - Time you wake up - when I am dragged out by Craig or when my son starts pulling my covers off...it's not pretty - at all!

U - Umbrella?? Keep several in the car but none in my purse, which means when it rains then I have to run to the car while it is raining and get an umbrella - hmmm, might need to rethink this one...

V -Vegetables you dislike - Lima Beans - yuk! double yuk! oh and black eyes peas - triple yuk!

W - What makes you run late - just about everything

X - X- rays you've had - oh geez, I dunno, a few, chest for sure and several MRIs

Y - Yummy foods you make - A dish called "moosho chicken" everyone raves, really they do

Z - Zoo - Tigers

*******************************

Daddy fun

is

simple

S - L - E - E - P!

Thanks for having some fun with us today!

This week is actually filled with some really FUN stuff!

I am going to have the great pleasure and honor to photograph the homecoming of Eliisa Vika Koening as she and mama Corrie arrive back from the Ukraine this Friday

I may be in for some fun cooking or playing with the Ferrone children too, as mama looks after new little treasures from the Ukraine that need some special care

I am going to have SO MUCH fun this Saturday, when folks come out to our local mall to shop until they drop for the 70 plus orphans at Ian's orphanage - we are going to fill the van with clothes for these kids!

and

most of all

I am going to have FUN

packing our bags to get ready to go and see

HIM