11 weeks

Joel Thorne

11 weeks

(and he is NOT a night owl... Praise the Lord!)

Late Nights

For those of you who did not know,

Panchito is in Venezuela right now.

His dad went to be with our Lord

on Wednesday and he traveled to

be with his mom and sisters for two weeks.

Since he has been gone, the nights

have been the toughest.

Especially for the kids.

We have a very strong bedtime routine

consisting of telling stories in

our bed with flashlights, praying, nightlights, etc.

Because the nights have been so difficult

the kids have been staying up later than usual.

My mom found them matching pajamas and

the theme is very fitting:

"Night Owls."

We love our little "night owls"
more than ever and can't wait for our
"Buho" to return.

Double Date

Before Panchito left for Venezuela
some dear friends invited him and Katrina
out on a double date.
So, Tuesday evening Katrina got all
dolled up and waited for Ellie and her dad
to come and get her and Panchito.

They had a wonderful time together.
It was very timely for Katrina and Panchito as
she was very sad about him being gone for
2 weeks in Venezuela with his family.
They went to the mall and got their nails painted,
had dinner, played in the play area, looked around
at Claire's and enjoyed a slushie.
Thanks, Ben and Ellie, for a great idea and a
SUPER fun time.
And thanks, Megan and Josie, for spending some time with
Samuel, Joel and me at the house!

The Chupi Brothers

Survey says...

Who do you think Joel looks like?

Joel Thorne -- 2 months

Cast Removal -- Part 2

Samuel got his cast off.
For good!
It was a long 4+ weeks but God healed his
little leg and he is doing well.

Duck-Duck-Goose

apple dumpling, anyone?

Apple Orchard 2011

Today we had the privilege of going on
our second field trip with the RVA.
We went to Helene's Hilltop Orchard in Merrill.
God blessed us with an absolutely gorgeous day
for this field trip!
Katrina and Samuel invited a friend to join them
on this field trip
(and I got to invite a friend too! --
Megan, Ellie and Josie, we had the BEST time with you girls!).

We started our rotations (eat lunch/play, wagon ride and pick apples)
eating lunch and playing.
No pictures were taken during the wagon ride
because Joel had to eat a bottle and I am not
that talented!

Picking apples is Katrina's favorite fall activity,
hands down.
She was so amped up this morning before we left that
I wasn't sure I even wanted to go!
Samuel looked for all the smallest apples still on the trees
and then enjoyed a large, juicy Cortland.
(he is going to be famous for that scowl --
trust me, he had a great time, he just doesn't like to pose for pictures)

Or maybe I should say he doesn't like to pose for pictures
without Josie! (upper right photo)
It was a SUPER fun time.

Joel was along, but only got his picture taken
once we were loaded back in the van
since I carried him in a front carrier the entire
field trip.
He did a great job on his first trip to the orchard!