MOUNTAIN GIRL

One of the nicest things about our recent camping trip was watching Jennalee. Anytime we get even close to the wilderness there seems to be a unique peace and calm fall over her. This trip was even more the case. Jennalee, who inherited my (Reed's) sense of melancholy, was as happy as we have seen her. I don't mean to make her sound like she is always sad, but the outdoors bring out something very special in her. She walked, climbed, played, talked, and twittered. She was so satisfied and content - for the entire time we were on the trip. It makes me so happy to know that the wilderness, which has brought me such joy for so many years, is now the source of real serenity for my eldest daughter.


She loved being near these falls. And at one point I noticed she was just sitting there, watching them. This was not a posed shot, this is just what she was doing.
Along with the Thoreau-like contemplations came a sense of adventure. Until we realized it was pointless, we tried to keep her out of the mud; once we gave in, she could not find enough mud puddles - and there were tons.Here she is snuggled up in her sleeping bag. With the way she took to all this, we may need to trade sleeping bags: from Cinderella to Mountain Hardwear.

CAMPING TRIP

This weekend we got to go on a family camping trip to Devil's Den State Park in Arkansas. This is one of our favorite things to do but this trip was different in that it was our first "backpacking" trip. The only sites they had open were a one mile hike into the woods. This went great considering we had two little kids. But it was a bit like the Griswolds and National Geographic all mixed together. Here are some highlights...

The incredible amount of recent rain gave us some spectacular water falls to enjoy. The hiking trail goes behind these falls and Lee Ann and the girls are standing on the trail to offer some perspective.

Here are the girls on a hunting trip for snails and bird eggs. For some odd reason this is what the girls wanted to look for and so this is what we did.
Oh great, we found one!

One of our greatest joys of camping as a family are these times of just kicking around the inside of the tent or around the campsite.

Were you wondering how we got a mile into the woods? This is me (Reed) with my pack and one of the girls on my shoulders! Actually, the girls were troopers. We took a three-mile day hike and Adeline only had to be carried a little bit. Despite the drizzle and hiking, the girls were more content than they usually are at home with their videos, etc. Very cool!
And the trip ended at the Razorback Red/White game in Fayetteville. What a great weekend!

SWEET ADELINE

This is the progression you often get with this little girl...
FIRST: she gets our attention by being sweet.
THEN: she starts trying to 'act sweet.'
LASTLY: she just goes nuts.

GIRLS' ROOM

Didn't think we had posted pictures of the girls' room. Lee Ann and I spent about three days painting it a couple of months ago. We think it is really fun for the girls -- especially girls that pray every night they will be either butterflies or fairies... a grassy little room seems fitting.

(If the pictures look cloudy, it is because they bear Jennalee's finger prints -- this is a fairly regular occurance after she has been taking pictures).

HAPPY EASTER

We haven't been blogging much lately. But here is a pic of the girls in their Easter dresses. They were, like always, made by Lee Ann's mother. Adeline, by picture time, had already torn out her hair bow.

KNOWING THYSELF

Today Jennalee ran up to Lee Ann and this is what she said...

Momma, I just fell and it hurt my knee, but I didn't cry!
I'm the coolest kid of all, but I'm sensitive.

It's a good thing she is so in touch with both her coolness and her sensitivity.

ADOPTION UPDATE

We have good news on the adoption front - two things really.

First, we just found out that the family that was before us (waiting on an infant girl from our orphanage) actually got their referral. This means that we are next in line!

And secondly, our paperwork, which has been complete for some time, is officially translated and sitting on someone's desk in Addis Ababa - the capitol city of Ethiopia. Let's hope our dossier is at the top of the stack.