November 2006

The hound dogs. The black one is Obi, short for Obediah. The brown one is Val or Valley Girl, short for Valentine.






















Brother and sister getting along well.

Friends came over to help us rake leaves. It took 3 weekends and over 40 bags by the time we were done. Yikes! Thank you Brian and Julia!


Mae is getting over her 3rd set of ear infections since we've been home. I am waiting for the doc to start discussing tubes. At least she takes her medicine well. She is even getting through doctor visits without too much fuss. We still drive a 1/2 hour to the group of doctors we saw before we moved. It is a good set of doctors. None of them specialize in adoptions, but I like them a lot and they listen to me and my concerns.

Thanksgiving was nice and quiet. We had the grandfolks over and a friend who has no family in town. Oma and Opa took the kids Wednesday night so Erich and I could get stuff done around the house that night and the next morning. It was great. More family came over for dessert later in the afternoon. We played cards and had a great time. The kids did great all day.

I love watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. A co-worker went this year as an honored guest. They got quite soaked. Another co-worker went up a couple of years ago with her family and were balloon handlers. They said it was a neat experience. Eventually, I'll get to go, maybe when the kids are teenagers or something.

The Day-After is also a big day for us - and no, not shopping. My parents since Karen and I were kids would take us to the train display in downtown Cincinnati and out for lunch. As we got older and stopped going, they started taking the grandkids. They said both kids behaved very well. Erich entertains the guys at the house. Normally they play Civilization which apparently can last 7 or 8 hours. The ladies and I go scrapbooking at Archiver's. I go early and try to stay as late as possible (11 PM). This year I wasn't feeling as well so we left at 4 PM to join the guys for games.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween was a lot of fun with the kids. We started off together, all four of us. We knew Logan could and would want to go longer, so we split. Mae and I headed back to the house (stopping for more trick and treating along the way) and Erich and Logan went farther. They ended up walking with a neighbor and soccer buddy. We left candy outside our house for the trick or treaters. Amazingly enough, it wasn't all gone by the time we got home. (more at the bottom)


We also had our 6 month follow up home study visit with Cherub International. Everything went well. Mae showed off for a while and then we put her to bed. Logan was a little wound up too. Heather continued to ask us questions and that was about it. We also finally started occupational and speech therapy. Wow! What a process! We started this is May!!! We are working with Help Me Grow which is a program in Ohio. They matched us with Hamilton Co MRDD. Again, it is not that Mae is mentally or physically slow. It is a matter of exposure. She gets frustrated when she cannot express herself so we understand.

Soccer is now done for the season. We gave Logan the choice for the spring: soccer or baseball. He chose soccer. He and Mae continue to do well together.

Also, this month we had a Geoppinger wedding and baby shower. Welcome 2 new members to the clan! Bob and Anna are getting a new rood, windows, and siding to their home. There are talks of possibly air condition in the future. Yea! Well, that's about it for October.