Sorry, friends. We'll try to do better :)
Here's quick recap of....about 3 months.
We've deleted the Google Translate app from our phones! This is a milestone to celebrate! Early on we would sit around the kitchen table, type in what we needed to tell them, and then wait for their reactions, wondering if it made any sense. Thankfully now we can communicate quite well on a daily basis. We have pretty "normal" conversations at dinner time and understand most of the things they tell us they've done in school that day. Every day it seems we hear them use a new word or phrase correctly. It's amazing, fun, and crazy how quickly they're learning!
Fall has been exciting! The kids have adjusted well to school and are learning so much! One day we picked up Matthew early from school for an appointment and he said, "Thank you, mom and dad, for school. I like school." It was so precious! We are thankful that he values his time there and enjoys his classmates so much. We couldn't have picked better teachers for our kids. We know they are loved and cared for while in a good learning environment. Behavior-wise, the older two have adjusted well and do a pretty good job at following directions and taking cues from classmates. AK, on the other hand, wants to know just how far she can go and what she can get away with. Slowly-but-surely, she's learning that life is a lot more fun when she listens at school and after school care. Lately we've had more smiley faces on her behavior calendar than sad faces. We celebrate each day, the small victories.
October:
The kids got to dress up for the first time to go trick-or-treating! They had a blast, of course.
After they got candy at the first door, there was no stopping Minnie Mouse, the fairy, and the ninja from running full blast through the yards and banging on doors. It was a work-out for all of us to say the least.
We also had a fun family day with cousins at the local pumpkin patch, and ZooBoo!
November:
On Thanksgiving Day, we went to play on Poppa's farm. The kids got to ride/drive the tractor with Dad, and watch Poppa feed the cows. They chased the dog all over, and ate lots of turkey. I think they're a fan of Thanksgiving :)
Here are the girls watching their brother ride on the tractor.
One pictures shows their true personalities...
December:
*drumroll please* We celebrated Vivian's birthday!!
Her birthday was actually a
school day, so we celebrated a few days early (!) on the previous Saturday. Her
big day began with a present at home, then an IHOP breakfast date
with Dad. My sister Terri was with us, and we all went to The Home
Depot for a Kids Workshop activity. Later that day, the cousins and
grandparents came for dinner, cake, and presents!
She got all she
wanted, and more, including...
the famous Hello
Kitty taska (bag),
a “unicorn pony,”
Barbies,
sixty dollars (hello, grandparents)
and a baby stroller
and doll.
Not to mention a
bear that sings a Christmas song. The same song. Over and over.
We picked out of first real tree for Christmas! Since Gareth and I have been married, we've used an artificial tree. This year we decided to go all in and pick out a real tree together.
Since this picture was taken, we've learned not to put a real tree on carpet where the water bowl *may* leak and spill, soaking the carpet and padding. If this happens, you *may* have to slide the decorated tree onto the kitchen tile, move furniture, and pull the carpet up to let it all dry out. (Next year, we'll know better.)
Remember these ornaments we sold as a fundraiser last year??
A year ago, we didn't know who (or how many) would be helping us pick out our Christmas tree and hanging up this ornament. So thankful for God's plan for our family!
Our very talented friend, Jeff Chao of Chao Photography, offered to take some family photos for us this year! We made a fun Friday night out of it by taking pictures, going to Chick-Fil-A, and bowling. The kids were pretty cooperative, and we're thankful to Jeff for his hard work!
Here are a few shots:
Of course, Christmas is fast approaching! (9 more sleeps!)
The girls check and ask about the stockings (or as Vivian calls them, the socks) every day.
Vivian: "What INSIDE? I don't knowwww!"
We are so excited about spending our first Christmas together as the Bonner Five, and we are thankful for your support!
Merry Christmas:)
