GO BLUE!! (or Red?)

In our home the most important color has been BLUE.  It is my favorite color as well as Mark's, but most importantly it is a way of declaring allegiance for my husband.  For those who don't know, Mark was born in Michigan, and as far as sports go, he is true to his home state.  It is true that he only lived there for the first couple years of his life, but a boy is taught sports by his Father and Mark has not strayed from that teaching.  From a very young age he has tried to instill the importance of rooting for the "right team" in our sons.  GO BLUE!!

Elijah is still too young to vocalize his preferences, but that has never been an issue for Gabriel.  He was vocal very early and definitely knows his own mind.  For a while now he has known that his favorite color is Red.  Everything should be red in Gabriel's eyes.  When we go somewhere he wants the town, person's home, or store to be red.  Not too long ago, when Mark was driving in circles waiting for me to come out of a store, Gabriel asked him if the circles they were driving in could be red.  He wishes the whole world could be red.  This is one of the colors of the "evil rival", so this fasination with all things red has been a bit of a concern for Mark. 

 

(His facination with the color might have something to do with a certain red race car.  Cachow!)

Recently, Gabriel said to Mark, "Daddy, when I grow up and play football on tv, I will wear red and you can wear red too and cheer for me in red."  At first, Mark's face fell and I could see he was a little sad because of this declaration.  But, my wonderful husband just looked at each of his sons and said, "I will always cheer for you and Eli, no matter what.  Even if you choose to wear red."  Now that's love!

Visiting (Birth) Family

About two months ago we were talking to Andrea, Gabriel’s birth mom, and we mentioned that we would really like to come see her again. We were able to see her and her mother, Tammy for the first time since Gabriel was born last August. We had talked on the phone, on the internet, and sent her pictures, but it was so wonderful to actually see her and spend time with her. Since that first visit, Mark and I had talked about how we didn’t want to go so long between visits again. So, when I broached the subject with her in November we were hoping she would interested in another visit as well. She definitely was, and told us that her grandmother and grandfather, who we also met when Gabriel was born, were upset that they hadn’t been able to see us (well, mostly Gabriel) during our last visit. Andrea said we could probably meet at her grandparents’ home this time, so we started making plans. We all agreed it would be easier to plan a time after the first of the year, so that is what we did.


One week before we were supposed to travel the two hours for our visit we all got sick. It was just a cold, but a fairly serious one, and I was very worried that we would end up having to reschedule. We prayed that we would recover in time to go and we were blessed. The day before we went we were all in good health, finally! We gathered everything we were taking with us and were on our way. The trip up and back went very well, which is no small feat with a three-year-old and one-year-old. When we got there Andrea, Nana Tammy (Andrea’s mother), Grandma Donna and Grandpa Ken (Andrea’s grandparents) were all waiting for us. They welcomed us in quickly and we immediately exchanged gifts. We had bought a single picture frame to put a picture of Andrea and me together in, and a collage in which I had already put pictures of her three children (including Gabriel). We hadn’t expected it, but they had gifts for both Gabriel and Elijah. The boys were thrilled to say the least! We spent the next four and a half hours talking and playing with the boys. They were wonderful! It was so obvious that they loved seeing Gabriel, but they also loved on Eli as though he were their grandson too. How could anyone think that having more love in a child’s life could possibly be a bad thing? It felt so natural to talk to them and be in their home. At the end of the visit we all agreed that we would like to do this more often. We told them that we would like for them to come to Gabriel’s birthday party in August, and we are planning a trip up to see them again in a few months. Mark and I are both very happy with the way our relationship with Gabriel’s birth family is evolving. We love them. We are family.

Sunshine!!

I've been working on a post about how

 I don't like winter,

I miss the sunshine during these months,

I long for warmth. 

Then the crazy Ohio weather gave us today. 

The high today was 62 degrees!!! 

It was sunny and beautiful

and we took advantage by going outside and playing. 

So, I'll save that winter pick-me-up post for another time

and just be thankful for the great day we've been given.