2 Boys 2 Girls and 2 pugs

Somethings Missing!

2009-05-21T21:36:00.004-05:00

Book Meme

2008-10-15T12:34:00.004-05:00

Apparently, the average American has read 6 of the following books. How many have you read?

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare -I have read most, but not all
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meany - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen
69Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens8
2 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

The ones I have read are in red. I counted 29. Better than the average but still.

North Shore Weekend

2008-09-28T19:00:00.019-05:00

We went to the North Shore this weekend. We did a 5 mile hike. The the kids all did really good, especially Birtukan. Bob and I were both impressed on what a trooper she was. She walked over 4 of the 5 miles. It was one of those days when you are just reall proud of your family. We had a great time.

Comfy!!

2008-09-25T10:40:00.003-05:00

My standard Sleep/lounge wear is baggy sweats and a baggy music t-shirt, preferably of the Irish punk genre. My daughter has decided this her sleepwear of choice as well. the one difference is she looks a adorable and I just look like a slob!

Do good parents get their kids spiders?

2008-09-21T14:16:00.003-05:00

Our Anniversary is coming up. It more a family event. We always get presents for the kids. The one thing Dylan has been asking for is a tarantula. After alot of research and discussion we decided to order him one that looks like this. Quiet! He doesn't know his spider is coming! The jury in my own head is still out on wheither we are supercool or superstupid parents!

1st tooth and Preschool!

2008-09-15T18:52:00.003-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posting. We have been going thru some s

2008-08-19T00:33:00.003-05:00

One Year ago

2008-08-19T00:30:00.007-05:00

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

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We met our girls for the first time. Here are some of pictures from our trip.

EKC Picinc

2008-07-02T21:28:00.003-05:00

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This weekend we went the EKC Picnic . Were able to see old friends, meet new friends, jump, play, dance. It was a good time!

Summertime Fun- Finally!

2008-06-23T20:44:00.007-05:00

It is finally warm!! We have done a water activity 4 out of the last 5 days!

Wedding Bliss-Travis & Tatiana

2008-06-08T22:07:00.016-05:00

1 Year Ago

2008-05-22T21:55:00.005-05:00

Last May 23 at about 1:30 in the afternoon we got the call and saw these beautiful faces for the first time. When I think back to that day and the year since it is almost overwhelming. I remember going almost crazy waiting to go get our girls.

I wish I could write the words I feel in my heart. I think it a mix of Joy of what these two beautiful girls have brought into our family, sadness for what they have losted, a bit of a broken heart for the family in Ethiopia whose daughters are on the otherside of the world, grateful for all the wonderful people I have meet through this process, most of all humbled with the honor of those little voices call me Mommy and Bob Daddy! I love you girlies!!

the Good the Bad & the Ugly

2008-05-20T10:43:00.003-05:00

THE GOOD

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Dylan had a piano recital Friday night. He did a great job!

THE BAD

Junie ended up very sick this weekend. We took her to the vet Saturday morning and found out she had Lyme's Disease.

THE UGLY

Because of our sick pooch we missed a weekend in Chicago with Ethiopian travel group. I hope you guys all had a wonderful time!

Daddy's Girlies

2008-05-05T14:34:00.004-05:00

I made my bed myself!

2008-05-05T14:22:00.003-05:00

Sometimes it is the littlest things are what melts your heart as a parent. Birutkan came into my room this morning and said "I made my all by myself!" She did a pretty good job as you can see!

Sick Boys

2008-05-05T14:08:00.002-05:00

This was the scene at our house this weekend! I hope the girlies don't get it!

Spring in Minnesota?

2008-04-11T16:20:00.005-05:00

Birtukan Gets Glasses

2008-03-30T08:34:00.006-05:00

Birtukan Is a little nearsighted but she loves wearing her glasses. We had convince her she didn't need to wear them at night.

As much as dislike pictures of myself especially at 7 am. This is our Saturday morning cuddling.

Baby Gets Beads

2008-03-30T08:20:00.003-05:00

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Princesses

2008-03-09T14:45:00.004-05:00

My little ladies

2008-02-25T15:35:00.010-06:00

On the 6 months Anniversary of the girls being home, I want show what ladies they have become!

Friends

2008-02-24T15:15:00.006-06:00

Sometimes we get focused on what is bad in our lives and when I was looking at these pictures it reminds me of what is right. All these beautiful "brown" girls are truly a blessing. This a blog shout out to Miss M and K. We love you!

tagged!

2008-02-14T11:19:00.002-06:00

Thanks Kari! I was hoping to avoid this

The 8

8 Things I'm Passionate About:
-My family
-God
-Ethiopia
-Pugs
-Food
-Adoption
-Bob
-Health
-Art

8 Things I Want To Do Before I Die:
-Go back to Ethiopia
-Run a Marathon
-Have Grankids
-Dye my hair a weird color
-More Travel
-Be really old
-See an opera in Italy

8 Things I Say Often:
-I love you
-Are you serious?
-Good job
-What did you say?
-This is Shonna Strom (answering the phone)
-I'm so tired
-Say your sorry
-No, yellow pages usage has not decreased

8 TV Shows I've Recently Watched:
Don't watch tv

8 Songs I Could Listen To Over and Over (in no particular order):
-No One (Alicia Keys)
-Con te Partio (Andrea Bocelli)
-Any one but you (the moldy peaches)
-Anything by Flogging Molly
-Maps (Yeah Yeah Yeahs)
-Cupid (Sam Cooke)
-Crazy(Patsy Cline)
-The ring of fire

8 Things That Attract Me To My Friends:
-don't take themselves to seriously
-Honest
-funny
-passionate
-up for advetnure
-Open minded
-Generous
-Caring

8 Things I've Learned (or been reminded of) This Past Year:
-Boys and girls are really different
-Life is short
-I like my husband (that's a reminder)
-I love my kids
-Change the things you need to, let go of the rest
-I am a dork, but that is ok
-I like having girls

8 People I Think Should Do "8":
-Suzy
-Tamara
-Anyone else who hasn't done it!

Braces

2008-02-11T20:17:00.003-06:00

Sorry it has been so long! Logan got braces today! Ouch! The other picture is story time!

Sorry it has been so long!

This made me Smile!

2008-01-10T18:28:00.000-06:00

I can this to show up but click on the box. It makes me laugh!

New Ride!

2007-12-16T18:47:00.000-06:00

I have a new car! We tend drive our cars til they are dead so it was kind of fun!

At the dealership!

Daddy's girl

First Snow!

2007-12-01T19:01:00.001-06:00

Well the girls finally got to see a big snow fall! Some of us liked it better than others!

Beads

2007-12-01T18:40:00.000-06:00

What else is there do on a snowy day but put beads in our hair!

My Future Stylist!

2007-11-21T22:48:00.000-06:00

It was been a very busy few weeks. The girls got to meet Auntie Christa and Uncle Dave from Scotland and Uncle Mattie and Auntie Tamara and our Cousins Joseph and Jacob from Michigan. We love you guys! We were in a cabin in Nisswa, MN. It was a little rough on the girls at first but they quickly got use to all the attention and then loved very minute. It was so neat to see our families fall in love with our 2 beautiful girls as much as we have. We truly are blessed with 4 great kids and families and friends that have been so supportive.

I was searching through all the pictures finding the best ones to post. Sorry, Travis but I couldn't resist. That's what Uncles are for, to practice doing hair

Christa and Dave were here for about 10 days. After they left I had actually start thinking about going back to work, which I did on Monday. I was really hard. We never did the daycare thing with Logan and Dylan so that is new for us. Our Neighbor has a daycare, and is really sweet. So over we went at 6:45 Monday morning. The girls were fine. They did well all week. Me, not so much and Bob wasn't thrilled either. But I guess we need to make the best of it.

On the 25th we will be home 3 months and think back to those first few weeks and how far we all have all come. I am truly amazed.

Dress up!

2007-10-30T15:43:00.001-05:00

These were so cute I had to post them! We were looking at pictures of Ethiopia and the girls wanted to put their Ethiopian dresses on. Somehow Junie and Murphy had to get dressed up too!

2 months!

2007-10-28T13:30:00.000-05:00

We have been home for 2 months now. Sorry I haven't posted in a while, the time just seems to fly by. We have taken the girls to meet extended family, great grandparents, aunts and other friends. They are getting more social and do well in new situations anymore.

We had our first sleepover friend. Bob's niece Anna who is 5 came and spent the night. It was the first time they had met so they were all a little shy at first but after a little while they got along really well.

We got family portraits done at the park by our house. I haven't seen the pictures yet but it went well. The girls got their ears pierced a couple weeks ago. They did really well. They love them! They keep wanting their hair done and headbands are not cutting it anymore. The pictures are of Birtukan with her hair in little puffs. I think I did a pretty good job for my first attempt at girl hair.

The girls started speaking to each other in English now, which is bittersweet for me. They really like to talk on the phone, play with babies and dance. They have a play kitchen but I guess I need to cook more because most of the time they make lotion. I made a homemade lotion for their skin.

We are all ready for winter with snowpants, hats, mittens, and boots. Pretty soon they will be Minnesota girls!

It's been a month

2007-09-27T13:53:00.000-05:00

We finally got a family picture. Tuesday the girls have been home 1 month! It seems al ot longer. I can imagine them not being here now.

We went to the International Adoption Clinic Yesterday. They were poked and prodded, We even had to do a stool sample! The girls did well. They felt they could possible be a bit older so when we go back in 6 months They will test their development again and get an xray of their wrist to determine their age. They also have heart murmurs that have to be looked at. Other than that they felt they are doing well.

This past week the girls have really opened up to interacting with other people. They are less clingy when we meet new people or are somewhere new. and they always give everyone their prettiest smiles.

Sleeping Beauties!

Ethiopian and American Girls

2007-09-20T11:13:00.000-05:00

Here are some pictures of the girls in their Ethiopian dresses that we got from the good-bye ceremony at the care center. Our Social Worker came for our post placement on Monday. That night Birtukan told us "Birtukan, American girl. Netsanet, American girl." We told them they are Ethiopian and American girls.

When we leaving Ethiopia I felt really sad for Everything the girls were losing. They will not grow in Ethiopia. Even if they go back there one day it won't be the same. They are both Ethiopian and American girls. It is my hope for our girls that they appreciate both cultures.

The best smiles ever!

2007-09-14T15:15:00.000-05:00

The girls have the best smiles! They light up their whole faces, the whole room for that matter!

We went to visit my work this morning. Netsanet seem a little off all morning. Which she was because she throw up all over self right after we left. Luckily I had Logan with. So I have a sick sleeping baby and a laptop on my lap. This gives me an opportunity to check up. Logan is entertaining Birtukan, which is helpful.

The girls are going well. They pet the dogs a little bit now. I think Murphy liked it better when they were scared of him as he not overly fond of little kids, but he tolerates them very well.

Birtukan and I were looking at some kids clothes websites and she has very definite ideas about what she likes and what she doesn't. She does not like jeans so I must dressed dreadful all the time!

At the Beach

2007-09-05T15:24:00.000-05:00

Here are a few pictures from when we took the girls to the beach. They seemed to like the water. They did go out very far but would splash water on each other and laugh!

Everyday seems like they get more settled and more comfortable. We have had our share of tantrums but not anything to bad. The girls are getting use to Junie and Murphy. They still don't like the dogs but at least will tolerate them being in the same room. Logan and Dylan seem to enjoy having little sisters. They had their first day of school yesterday and Birtukan and Netsanet were so excited when they got home. Overall I would say the first week home went really well. We are starting to here more and more English. One of Birtukan's favorite words is Shoes, which she loves! She is a girly girl. They have the best smiles, they light up an entire room!

Back in the USA

2007-08-28T15:33:00.000-05:00

Sorry this has taken awhile. with all the laundry, the jetlag, and most importantly the girls this the first chance I have gotten.

We got the girls full time last Wenesday night and they switched favorite parent Birtukan started prefering me and Netsanet Bob. That night Bob decided it would be fun to vomit nonstop for about 8 hours. Leaving me to take care of the girls by myself. I am pretty sure it was a flu because the next night Birtukan did the same thing. I felt more sorry for her. Luckly she was better that afternoon because we left that night.

The girls were awesome on the flight home. It took about 30 hours to get home so we all were exhausted. When we landed in Washington Birtukan said some amharic words and then "America" I think she was asking if we in America. It was really cute!

The girls are doing really well. The language is not an issue. Netsanet repeats what we say. Birtukan seeems to understand what we say but I she is really quite so I don't expect to hear alot of talking in English until she is really sure of herself. The only issues so far seem to be the dogs and food. They are terrified of Junie and Murphy but it seems a little better. We are trying to have them around the dogs in same doses. The girls are less then thrilled with American food. Our friends Ron and Kari were very sweet and brought us some Injera (Ethipiopan flat bread) to the airport. The last of that was eaten for lunch. Other than that the girls just like white bread, crackers and bananas. They are trying new foods now but most of the time it gets spit out.

They seem to being attaching to us and the boys. They are girly girls. They love Jamas (shoes) and pink! Anything girly. I was kind of surprised by this.

Arrived in Ethiopia!

2007-08-22T16:53:00.000-05:00

Bob and Shonna have been having some problems with the laptop so unfortunately we have no new photos, but things at the embassy went well.

Here's a quick update via email recently received from Bob and Shonna....

"The girls are verywell behaved and everything is fine. We get the girls at 4 today,then we will keep them. They keep us on a short leash pretty much. We feel like children on a field trip. They drove us through themerkato (giant market) today, but we couldn't get out of the vans. It is too dangerous for us Farangi (white people). It is pretty amusing. That place was a real zoo. Food is fantastic. Last night we went andwatched Ethiopian Dancing on our field trip. Drank some honey wine, it seems to be stronger and less sweet than the stuff in the states. Birtukan is very attached to me. She understands that we are hers. It will be good when we don't have to drop them off to the care center starting tonight. Netsanet liked Shonna yesterday. That was animprovement over not liking either one of us. Be back in three days."

The Girls Birth Certificates Photos

2007-08-14T13:36:00.000-05:00

Here are the most recent photos we have of the girls that came with their Ethiopian birth Certificates! We will be with our Sweet daughters in 4 days!

The Girls Room

2007-08-07T21:51:00.000-05:00

9 days til we leave. The girls is room is all ready to go. It is pink with a Shabby Chic theme. We tried to keep it simple and calm. Which I am pretty sure we succeeded because everyone likes to hang out in there and read. It has been weird to have a pink flowery room in my house. What you don't see because I moved it for the picture is the girl's suitcase, but it has been packed for a month.

The Pugs

2007-08-03T20:33:00.000-05:00

So it is less than two weeks to go. It seems like a dream or not really real or something. One thing we keep hear is that the kids from Ethiopia are terrified of dogs. In Ethiopia dogs are either pack animal or guard dogs either way definitely not pets. When we went the girls photo albums we included these photos hoping it will help a little bit. Otherwise my poor puggies are going to be so confused and not very happy. It is about time Junie learned the universe doesn't revolve around her! Otherwise we just counting down the days and trying to get some projects done.

It's official!

2007-07-27T11:30:00.000-05:00

Well this is my first post! What a week! The girls are officially ours! It was touchy if we were going to travel as scheduled or not because of our Immigration paperwork, but a phone call to our Congresswomen's office took care of that. Our flight leaves Minneapolis on Thursday Aug. 16 and we have a night in DC and then arrive in Ethiopia Saturday Morning. We kept trying to imagine what it will be like to meet the girls but can't. Now come getting everthing ready to travel! 20 days to go!