Emma's 9th Birthday

Emma turned 9 on March 15th. I can't believe she's this old. Where in the world has the time gone? Just like a kid, she's been planning her birthday party for months. I remember telling her in December that we needed to get through Christmas first, then we could talk about her birthday party plans. She changed her mind a bunch of times but finally decided on what she wanted.

And she had it down to every last detail. Made it pretty easy for us!

She wanted a sleepover with two of her best friends here.

Getting Ally ready for the party

Gotta have those nails painted

Jack helped me make a Cinnamon Roll Cake for breakfast the next morning. We don't have refrigerated dough here and I didn't want to wait for dough to rise and all that jazz...so I found this recipe. It's terribly unhealthy, but good. Especially for a slumber party.

Made a sign and put balloons everywhere

She picked out her own birthday plates and napkins

Let's get the party started: Olivia, Ashlyn and Emma

Emma wanted a dinner of Daddy's spaghetti, cucumbers, garlic bread and southern sweet tea. It was a hit! The other two girls are from the north but they loved the tea :)

What's a Costa Rican party without a pinata?

With tons of candy

Cupcakes with pink icing and strawberries on each of them

We gave her a trip to a camp this summer for her birthday present. But Daddy decided to give her something else too. We watched the movie "Ramona and Beezus" a few days before and Emma said she always wanted to squeeze a whole tube of toothpaste into the sink. So, this is her opportunity. Of course she said it was her favorite gift.

Duct tape bracelets. They made them all that night

Haha of course

Olivia gave her a bunch of manicure items and a homemade diary. Emma loved it! And I'm glad she won't be stealing my nail polish anymore.

Toothpaste in the sink. Everything she dreamed it would be.

Making duct tape bracelets and watching Phineas and Ferb. After they got into their pajamas and watched High School Musical 1,2 and 3. They went to bed at about 2am. I think we'll start a new rule of a midnight bedtime. Live and learn with these slumber parties.

Wanted a pic of me and my girl. She said it was an amazing birthday! We had a lot of fun celebrating with her.

Emma has grown so much over this past year. She has really developed into an even more beautiful girl both inside and out. She's very thoughtful and introspective and easily shares her thoughts and feelings. She's always been a logical thinker and it's neat to see her understanding more and more about the world around her. She's kind and friendly and LOVES meeting new people and developing new friendships. I know God has special plans for her and she makes me want to be the best mom I can be. She has such a pure heart and a sincere love for the Lord. We love you so much Emma and are so blessed to call you our daughter. Life just wouldn't be the same without you. Happy 9th Birthday!

Going on a Date

Will and Emma go on a Father/Daughter date every year right before Valentine's Day. This tradition started when our home church had a dance and now they have continued the tradition here in Costa Rica. This is Emma's favorite night of the year....she will tell you that. Once she even bought a fancy dress in May to save for the next year's date with Dad. Surely she won't outgrow this...right?

She's already concerned about sharing this day with Ally. Will has assured her that they can each have their own date.


I sort of helped her get ready this year. She had her outfit, jewelry, perfume, purse and makeup all picked out. So I just sat on the bed and talked with her. It was fun. Here's a pic of my big girl all ready to go.

Daddy/Daughter Date 2013

Will brought her flowers and some goodies, picked her up at the door and they were off. Our car had broken down the day before, but surely that wouldn't happen again...

And here is the "grua" towing them home

And Emma got to ride in the front seat while being towed...her favorite part of the night.

The car was put in the garage (bad alternator) and they quickly regrouped and called a taxi. Shortly down the road, the taxi started acting strange and broke down at a gas station. Can you believe it...the taxi's problem was the alternator too! Hilarious.

Once again, the courageous couple regrouped and hopped in another taxi. They went out to Momentum Mall and ate at a yummy Japanese restaurant.

This pic cracks me up. She did this exact face as a baby.

Now she was ready for a picture. Pretty girl.

 

Fancy dinner

And gelato ice cream after

I just love this sweet picture.

And guess what?!?! The next week my handsome son asked me out on a date too. He came to pick me up at the door with flowers and everything. We drove to Denny's on a Tuesday night (because kids eat free) and had a great time. It was so fun just getting to hang out with Jack again. It was just the two of us at home for several years and I've really missed our time together. He said later that we need to do this more often. I agree.

What My Kids Are Used To

Will takes the kids with him on his trips to the country whenever he can. These trips are difficult 5 hour drives through terrible roads with very few stops. My kids have gotten very used to this, and I love that. Our friend, Andy, came in town and Will and Fernando took Andy and the kids on one of their pastor visits. I wanted to share a bit of what my kids are now used to:


Eating sugar cane off the side of the road

Playing with new friends. Emma took a bunch of stuff she doesn't use anymore and gave it away. This was totally her idea. I love that.

  

 

 

Playing together...because they're all just kids

 

  

They don't have indoor bathrooms in this area and they all use an outhouse. Pretty gross, but this is where the outhouse runs off...and my kids are playing in it.

And Emma has "it" all over her. But she doesn't care.

Chasing chickens 

  

A woman was not okay with Emma having "dirty stuff" all over her. So she pulled some water up from the local well and washed Emma off. I told Emma I was just glad she didn't drink the well water. To that she said "Oh I did drink it Mom". Great. Looks like we need to de-parasite ourselves before we leave here.

Beautiful scenery that I know we will miss terribly.

And of course there is a disco on board the ferry on the way home. Why not?

All of this my kids now find extremely normal.

And I love that.

Ally - 4 months old

My baby girl is now 4 months old. Where has the time gone? The newborn stage is officially over. I can't believe it! There is such a love/hate relationship with that newborn stage, but mostly I am loving seeing her growing up. Well, I'm not sure growing up is the right term. We took her to the doctor and she still hasn't broken the 10 pound mark! She grew another half an inch, so she is now 24 inches long. The doctor was not concerned though. He said they measure a baby's growth in length and brain development, not so much in weight anymore. He did give me some suggestions on nursing that I'm working through so we'll see how it goes. Ally is very scheduled and does very well on a schedule. These past few days I've been trying to feed her constantly which is just making her upset and not sleep as well. So we're heading back to a schedule, I just might shorten it a bit so I can fit an extra feeding in per day. I told him I was feeding her 5 times a day, and he said it should be more like 7 or 8. He also said adding a formula bottle or two a day wouldn't be a bad idea. So I'm going to get in 6 feedings a day and add a formula bottle at night. Hopefully this new plan will help her gain some weight before her next appointment. God just made her a little bitty thing!

She is such a happy baby and such a joy to be around. She is very content most of the time and has been sleeping through the night for a while now. I do a dreamfeed at around 10pm just so I can get another feeding in...otherwise she would probably sleep through that as well! She is rolling over both ways and is still really strong. She loves to have her mouth open and drools on everything. She doesn't spit up much which is so strange to me (Emma and Jack spit up constantly). She is so adorable and stops traffic everywhere she goes. The thing I hear the most is "Que Cosita!" (what a little bitty thing).

I still get advice constantly on dressing her warmer. I'm not sure Costa Ricans know that they live in the tropics. I always have a hat for her everywhere we go so I won't get comments. But I still hear them: "She really needs a hat that covers her ears because of the wind", "It's really cold outside isn't it", "She really should have a shirt that covers her shoulders", "All babies should wear sweaters", and "Where are her socks". And my favorite was the other day when we went through the toll booth, the man told us that we needed to lift Ally's head up because she was bent over sleeping. And I usually have my other two kids with me so it's obvious I have done this mothering thing before and have kept them alive.

I guess if I asked for suggestions that would be one thing...but I can't imagine just constantly telling a stranger what to do with their baby. Funny.

Finding Rest

I just love this picture of Emma and Ally. I see the sisterly love flowing out of Emma and I'm so glad this was captured. Emma is probably the best big sister I have ever seen. I'm so thankful that she is able to have a baby sister at her age.

I also see the spiritual significance in my life through this picture. It reminds me of my Heavenly Father's love for me even when I'm flailing about wanting to do my own thing. I think I know best and I want my own way! I pitch a fit, scream and holler when life doesn't go my way. He holds me steady, tightly, lovingly, patiently, all the while knowing exactly what is best for me. Ally was fed, changed and needed to sleep. Period. But she just flat didn't want to. All she had to do was lay her head down and everything would be fine. She would find rest in the person who knew better than she did.

I pray I remember this lesson.


"Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
Matthew 11:28

Finally an American

Our little Ally Tatum is finally an American. Her picture is so cute. Here is her passport and her US birth certificate "born abroad":



And here is her real Costa Rican birth certificate:

And here is her social security number application: 

Finally, in order to leave the country, we have to have a letter notarized by the Registro Civil that says we are able to take her out of the country. Here is the letter, but we still have to get it officially signed. After that, she's good to go!

This girl is gonna have quite the paperwork! It will be funny registering her for school one day and having to take all of these documents with us. Our souvenir from Costa Rica will always be our little Ally T!