Fourth of July family reunion

I always say that there is a distinct difference between a “want” and a “need”. It seems that everyone thinks they “need” something when they really just “want” it.

Today we went on a road trip to the other side of the state to the annual fourth of July family reunion on Michelle’s side of the family.

When we got there Matthew and I saw this and I’m SURE that we “NEED” this! Matthew just loved jumping in this bounce house. He must have played in it 4 or 5 different times. It’s about all he wanted to do! We could hardly get him out of it.



He did enjoy a few other things though – the huge inflatable slide with daddy, playing with the pinwheel as it would spin in the wind, enjoying a ring-sucker which turned his mouth blue and playing with the bull. He also loved petting the pony’s but wouldn’t ride them for anything – No way! Well maybe next year!

Overall it was a very fun day!!!!

Kazapalooza 2012 - Sandusky, Ohio

This weekend was the annual Kazapalooza convention where over 300 families from across the United States and Canada get together with the children that they have adopted from Kazakhstan. This year the event was held at the Kalahari Resort in Sandusky, OH. The Kalahari is a huge indoor/outdoor water park.

We left home for the 5 hour trip on Friday morning at about 7AM. We stopped a couple times along the way to stretch our legs. Matthew did very well in the car too! We arrived at the resort around 2PM and registered for the event. Dinner was an outdoor pig roast with a bunch of other tasty fixings.

On Saturday we got up and played in the water park and splash park until the big lunch where there is also a raffel with the proceeds going to the orphans that are still in Kaz. It was a lot of fun seeing so many people we have come to know during and after our adoption journey.

We spent the rest of Saturday playing in the wave pool, the kiddy pool and going down the lazy river on inner tubes. Matthew sat on my lap going down the lazy river and really enjoyed that too!

This morning (Sunday) we got up and made our journey back home. Matthew even took a 2 hour nap on the way home. I think he might have been tired from all the excitement of the weekend. It was a great time!

Father's Day 2012

Today is my second official Father's Day with my son Matthew.

At Church today our Children's Ministry Director played a slideshow that she made with a bunch of kids from our Church. My little Matthew was one of them. Seeing him with his little sign brought a tear to my eye. I'm so proud and so blessed to be his daddy.

I love you Matthew!

Matthew's first dentist visit

Last week Friday Matthew and I were playing as we always do after work. It was about 4:55PM and as I was tickling Matthew's belly while he was laying on the floor I could see all the way into his mouth since he was laughing so hard.

As would be the case I freaked out when I thought I saw a black spot on his very back tooth in the top row. Black??? What in the world could that be??? Does he have a cavity already??? I take the responsibility seriously of brushing his teeth every day once in the morning and once before bed. So how could this be happening to my precious little boy?

I grabbed my phone and called the dentist office and told them that I need to get him in as soon as possible. After I hung up I brushed his teeth again focusing on that back tooth on the top. I then took a little flashlight and he let me look at all his teeth. It looked as if his very back molar was pushing though - maybe it wasn't black after all.

Today was when the dentist could get us in. I figued we might as well go anyway since he's almost 2 1/2 years old and had never been there before. The Hygenist was very nice and Matthew remained very calm as he sat on my lap with the little bib over his shirt as she counted his teeth. Ten very beautiful teeth on the bottom and 9 1/2 nice ones on the top with that last molar all the way through! The Dentist came in and looked too. He counted Matthew's teeth and even looked at them with his little mirror. Everything is ok with the little guys teeth! Whew! Daddy freaked out over nothing!

Our visit ended up with Matthew picking a toy from the toy chest. He selected a little race car that I'm sure mom and I will enjoy feeling under our feet.

My 2nd Father's Day

Father’s Day is quickly approaching. This will be my 2nd Father’s Day with Matthew.

I realize that this day is about getting Dad a card and telling him that you love him, but that’s sort of hard for a 2 year old to do. Matthew has started to master pronouncing the word “love” and I love to hear him say “I loooove YOU!” as he yells the word “you” out at the end.

For me this day is about being Matthew’s Dad. About the unbelievable gift that God gave me, and the love that I have for Matthew that is impossible to put into words. The love for my son is like no other. I would die a million times over for my little boy.

I look forward to all of the years to come, yet I don’t want them to come too fast. It seems like this past year has flown by and as much as I try to document it in this blog or in pictures I feel like I’ve missed so much. Time never seemed to go so fast before I became a Dad.

My little boy is growing up, he’s becoming so inquisitive and his mind seems to be like a sponge picking up every last little detail about things. He knows almost all the names of the other kids at daycare; he remembers the names of every dog that he has seen; he’s getting really accurate on saying his colors; and every time I hear him singing his ABC’s, even though they aren’t complete, he can get blocks of 4 or 5 letters at a time; and he’s getting pretty darn good with counting his numbers from 1 to 10.

So on this Father’s Day I want to hold my little Matthew, give him hugs and kisses, play with him on the floor when he asks “Daddy play?” and just show him that he means the world to me.

I love you Matthew! I love you more than I will ever be able to tell you or show you. You’re my son!!!!!!!

Kazapalooza Raffel - Kazakhstan Bear

Today we went over to Michelle's mom's house to pick up something she made for the Kazapalooza raffel. It's a one of a kind Kazakhstan bear. It was made with bandanas that we purchased at Wal-Mart a couple months ago. Michelle's mom is really crafty. She cut up the bandanas in such a way to make this bear. He is approximately 16" tall! (Click on the pictures to see a large version)



Of course grandma made Matthew a smaller version that he absolutely loves!



Thank you mom!

29 Months Old

Look who is 29 months old..... almost 2 1/2 years old.

I can't believe how much our little guy has changed. I'm so proud to be his Dad.

I love you Matthew!!!