I Heart Lilah....

It's hard to believe that our little Lilah turned one on July 24th. Where has this year gone?! We waited for Rick to come home from Africa to have her big celebration. First birthdays in Brazil are HUGE! (More for the adults, than the birthday girl if you ask me). This is one of the only photos I have of Lilah looking at the camera with a big smile....of course, it had to be during the prayer!We used the big room downstairs to host the party. I really enjoyed making all the heart center pieces and the hanging fabric flags....it had been a while since I have been able to sit down at the sewing machine and be creative. It felt great!Our friend and neighbor Debora made the most delicious cake....strawberry white chocolate! The crowd was wanting seconds and thirds........we had to beat them away with a broom stick. Okay, not really but it was that good. She also made these darling cupcakes........did I tell you she is a professional chef? How lucky am I?!Chocolate covered marshmallows and Oreos were a hit along with the chocolate-chip cookie cakes.......are you getting hungry yet??
Lilah and Gianna will likely grow up together here in Brazil.........they both have American mothers and Brazilian fathers and are only two months apart.
This is not something typical here....................an American grill. ( You were thinking the fellow in the heart apron, right?) Rick and I found this here in an import store with a greatly reduced price, so we snatched it up. I made Hawaiian chicken kebabs and Felipe happily grilled them for us. He had so much fun playing with this grill that when the kebabs were all gone, he ran upstairs and grabbed a box of hamburger patties to grill. Brazilians have only seen these grills in the movies and Felipe was dying to try a hamburger made on one of these things! By the way, I made these aprons as presents for all the helpers....12 in all! I could not have done an event like this without their help. Thank you dear friends!

The birthday girl showing off a great smile and those red shoes.......there's no place like home, there's no place like home!
Another shot of the cake table.The kids are lining up underneath Brazil's version of the pinata! It's filled with candy and ready for an adult to pop it with something sharp, in this case......a used kebab stick.

And the candy rains down.......the children scramble."Hey buddy, what did you get?"

Lilah getting caught red-handed trying to sneak a cupcake.

Mommy and her girl......."Rockin' red" a friend said.

Although it appears to be clawing, Lilah was attempting to give a kiss to her friend Sofia.

We didn't see James most of the party. He spent his time on the veranda kicking the soccer ball with his friends.


Here is Debora the cake maker I told you about earlier. I like this photo of the two of them.After the party, we sat down and uploaded our photos and were shocked to find this one. Rick had wondered why the candle had gone out during the singing of the happy birthday song.....he quickly re-lit it for Lilah to blow out. We later discovered that this rascal sneaked in between us and blew out the candle!Lilah opened her gifts upstairs later that night.............I'm not sure why Brazilians don't open gifts at parties. Hmm..............
Lilah's loot! Overall, it was a fun time visiting with friends (our Brazilian family). We wanted to give thanks to the Lord and celebrate the one year of life he has given our baby girl. To HIM be the glory!

Trip to the States

We got home last week after spending 3 wonderful (quick) weeks in the states. We enjoyed spending time with family and friends, a wedding, a pool party, visiting two of our churches, a July 4th firework show, a zoo and so much more!
It's always hard for me to find time to do email and keep up with my blog in the States. So I'm sorry for the delay. Now, that the kiddos are back in a routine and our lives are getting back to normal, it's time to post some photos..... Tiago, our manager at Fiel, came to the states with us. He and Ricky had the opportunity to visit a Pastor in Michigan. The day we arrived in Miami, Tiago casually informed us that it was his birthday. So later that night.......my parents took us all to Carrabas. What a treat!!James was so excited to ride his Jeep again. It was all he would talk about in the weeks leading up to our trip. So my parents made sure that the battery was charged and ready to go when he got here. Just two days after we arrived, my mom, the kids and I went to Nashville for my college friend's wedding. My sister flew it to meet us and we made a short weekend out of it. Here is mom and Lilah at the Nashville Zoo. James insisted on taking a photo on top of the Lion's head at the zoo. He gave the camera the biggest smile.
I had the opportunity to meet up with some college friends at the famous Pancake Pantry. I hadn't seen these girls in 7 years! I was happy that they finally got to meet my kiddos too.
After breakfast, we drove over to the hospital to see Ginny and baby Scarlett who safely arrived the day before. Unfortunately, I don't have any photos of her as the nurse carried her off as soon as we got there. :(My sister Carol is the fun-loving auntie to Lilah and James. We said our goodbyes at the airport and Carol headed home to Raleigh, and mom, the kids and I flew on to Florida.We got home around 11pm and the kids were zonked out in the car seats. They didn't even budge when I slid their pajamas on and gentle put them in bed.

Sleeping Habits

Yeah, we found James sleeping like this one morning. This is not a common scene at our house. In fact, this is the first time that she has fallen asleep in her chair. Poor thing, she wore herself out.
We often play hide-and-seek with the kids as it is James' favorite game. We divided up into teams: Mommy and Lilah vs. Daddy and James. The boys hid in my closet and gave us a scare when I opened the door.

Lilah is always making friends. She had a fun night celebrating Johann's 3rd birthday.

James and his friends enjoy his new table we bought for him to use for homeschooling. The neighbors love to come over and play too.
Another care package from Nana arrived....wow, are we spoiled now!
James liked the piggy bank Lilah received.......his alligator squirt gun was a real hit too. Thanks Nana for thinking of us........we know how much you miss us.


A fun photo of Lilah watching the kids play soccer at our neighborhood park.

A photo from last month of our nephew Adam and college friend Mark having lunch with us.
We took Lilah's play center toy next door for little Vinicius to use.
"Sharing is fun.....but I think I want it back Mommy".
Loving on V.
Sweet photo of Li-Li.

Lilah Colors!

Here is a mini video of Lilah coloring for the first time at Sunday school. Her little friend's name is Ana Julia. Lilah will be 11 months in one more week. Enjoy!

Slacker!

Yes, that's right...I am the Blogger slacker. But you already knew that. Sorry, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends. My apologies. Where should I start? Hmmm..... Finally, a tooth has come in for Lilah. The Brazilians say that a tooth has "been born." (nasceu) She had 4 fussy days before it finally broke the surface. Double-click the photo to see "toothers."
I really like this photo. It is so sweet to see James and Lilah start to play with one another. She loves watching him and following him around the house. And I love the mornings when Lilah wakes up first, I get her out of her crib and together we go to wake brother. I let her climb all over him and she squeals with happiness. James wakes with a smile on his face too.
This is the position that James usually carries Lilah around the house. I hated him picking her up at first but he is strong and she loves it.

Here Lilah is posing with neighbors Raissa, Marina and baby Vinicius. Lilah loves being over at their apartment. Usually, when I open our front door, she bolts to the neighbors door. I need to get it on video....I am sure she is the fastest crawler in the mundo!
I took this photo to show you how sweaty Lilah gets when sleeping. It is winter right now in Brazil but our winters are very mild.....usually sunny and warm during the day and then cold at night. So it is hard to know how to dress her because it is hot when she goes to bed but then cools off later in the night. It's kinda a pain to wake her up and put more clothes on her before I go to bed.
Here are my two "goobers" playing nicely on their little sofa.

There is no doubt in my mind that Lilah will be walking within a month. She is always cruising around the place, holding on to the coffee table or cabinets. She likes to pull herself up while hanging on to my pants while I am cooking or washing dishes. (James didn't start walking until he was 14 months old.)

A care package from Nana arrived........Yahoo! It's like Christmas around here when we get a little "love" from home. (books in English, small toys, Cheetos, and other goodies.) Thanks mom, it was a lot of fun! (especially, the dinosaur egg that hatched in water....the excitement lasted for days!)
Lilah was playing more with the box than it's contents.
For over a month now, I have been hanging out in the nursery during the morning service at church. Lilah cries like crazy when I try to leave. Normally, I would let her cry it out but the Brazilians can't handle the crying..............they get nervous and come and get me. So hopefully this phase will pass soon.Lilah and Sofia coloring. So cute to see her sitting in a big chair....it didn't last long.
James covered in ice cream. He loves ice cream as much as his parents do!
Another photo of Li-Li and V. If the Lord allows, his little family will return with us to the states in November for two months ( just to vacation) Vinicius' father works at Fiel with Rick and can still work on design while there........just like Rick.