The Hartland: Fall Fun!

I have been very bad about updating the blog on time. Other things have been on my front burner, nothing too exciting but the blog has become less of a priority. However, I want to keep it up for posterity’s sake. Having said that, here are some things we’ve done and/or experienced this recent fall season.

Jason, David and Masamo set off rockets with the Boy’s Brigade group from our church. Masamo only had a rocket because David was not able to make it to the rocket launch last year and had an extra rocket. I think the boys had a great time!

Right after the rocket launch we headed over to a nearby church where the Ethiopian adoption group we are a part of was having their monthly play date. Unfortunately this is the first one since Masamo came home that we were actually able to make it to. There were several other families there and it was nice to see other families who looked like ours and to just enjoy being together and feeling “normal”.

David playing with one of the little girls there, they took a real liking to one another

I was able to go on a field trip with Masamo’s preschool. They were going to the nearby pumpkin farm that I mentioned in the previous blog update. We went on a hayride, picked out a pumpkin, got a snack and then were free to play.

On the hayride

Masamo and his friend Parker, who at first mispronounced Masamo name as "Miss Elmo"

As a part of Masamo’s birthday gift, Jason and I gave him a traditional Ethiopian outfit. I almost cried when I saw how natural and handsome he looked in it. To go along with it, we played some Ethiopian music from You Tube. Here is a video of the three younger kids dancing to the music and Masamo entranced watching the dancers do the “shoulder dance” on the computer screen.

I was able to capture a rare event on my camera recently. We went out to dinner at Waffle House and as we were sitting there a double rainbow appeared. I happened to have my camera in the car and so ran outside to capture it. I’m sure the picture would have turned out a lot nicer if the Waffle House sign wasn’t in the way!

We spent a weekend at the land in October. It was beautiful and chilly, but not too cold. Ella brought a friend (Tori) for the first time. The girls were hard to find as they had set up their own camping area right down a trail from our trailer. The boys felt a little left out but amused themselves just the same. Here are some pictures from our time…

The girls' camp

My mom and dad bought our kids passes to Kings Island for the 2012 season for Christmas and so Jason and I also purchased one. We took advantage of the fact that you were allowed one visit during the 2011 season and went to enjoy the day at the amusement park. It was Masamo’s first time at Kings Island. I wasn’t exactly sure how he’d take to the rides but my fears were put to rest when we got done riding his first roller coaster, the Beastie. The Beastie slowed down and he looked around with a disappointed look on his face as if to say “That’s it?!” He was eager to get right back on and do it all over again! I was so relieved, next year is going to be fun!