Sunday and Monday....

We learned another valuable lesson yesterday...day long trips turn into very, very long bath/bed times.

On Sunday we went to this really, really nice park called Panaca where they have all sorts of animals, we're talking horses, cows, bulls, dogs, pigs, etc., it was just amazing how cool this place was. They had horse shows and dog shows and a BUNCH of activities where the kids could interact with the animals. I tried to take as many pictures as I could but it's pretty difficult to hold a 6 year hold child (Carol insisted on being carried because she didn't want to step in poop with her new lighted sneakers!) and take pictures at the same time.

Jhon-Fredy and Anji got into the action by taking a pony ride (Jhon-Fredy went twice). Here's Jhon-Fredy on the horse after his second ride when he was refusing to dismount:

They also had an area where they make brown sugar - it has a different name but I can remember it at the moment. But they made these candies that were of course pure sugar and we let the kids have some.

And finally here's a couple of pictures from the horse show. They really do it up big.

The kids did great on the outing and it really felt good to go out. Although bedtime was a bit trying and yielded a lot of tears we did FINALLY get settled in. Today we just chilled out here at the hotel and really had a nice day all of us together.

Here's the latest on each of the kids and how they are doing.

Carol is really becoming very loving and is hugging us a lot lately. She has been EXTREMELY helpful with Anji and Jhon-Fredy. Her and I have kind of gotten the hang of communicating with each other. It's pretty funny because she will talk so fast and when you ask her to slow down she repeats what she said but so slowly it sounds like her batteries are running low. One of the best phrases I learned in Spanish is to ask "¿Cuál es éste?" ("What is this?"). Carol seems to really enjoy teaching me when I ask her what something is and I think she appreciates that we are trying our best to understand her. Her meltdowns are becoming shorter but they are still heartwrenching because it is very apparent that there is more to the meltdowns than the immediate issue of Jhon-Fredy annoying her or that she's not getting her way. She truly is a strong little girl. At night Donna and I let her fall asleep in our bed. We figure we spend a lot of time during the day taking care of Jhon-Fredy and Anji because they are younger. So we spend a little time with after we get the other two down. She seems to really enjoy the one-on-two quiet time with Mami and Papi. And oh man - tonight she fell asleep with her head on my chest. That felt so awesome.

Jhon-Fredy is still pretty easy going. He can entertain himself with whatever is on hand. Although you can tell that ANYTHING he plays with (unless it's a ball) becomes a truck or a car. Today he and Carol were coloring with markers and when he got bored with coloring he started 'zooming' the markers around the table top and crashing them into each other. But man does he love sports. I'm seriously not just saying that because of wishful thinking. From 4:30 till 6 he and I literally just kicked soccer balls against a brick wall in the courtyard. He just kept doing it over and over...and I must say that I was extremely proud when he took an inadvertent hit from the soccer ball straight to the face and kept going - didn't even skip a beat. However tell him "no" or "no mas" (no more) when he is doing something he shouldn't and he breaks into crying immediately. Today he also started to learn how to throw an American football. It was funny because when I first brought the ball out he put it on the ground and started to kick it - a la soccer - and he couldn't figure out why it was bouncing so funny. A couple minutes of showing him how to catch and throw and he is now on the road to the Steeler's 2024 training camp.

Anji has taken to streaking. Whenever we are in the hotel room she immediately strips down - diaper and all. After her bath she allows you to put a new diaper on and put her pajamas on. Then when you put her in her crib...she strips down. What's even worse is that she insists on re-dressing herself and cannot re-diaper herself and she gets very frustrated but again will not accept help. Donna was getting pretty tired of the clothes on/clothes off routine this afternoon so we spent the afternoon hanging out in the common area downstairs because Anji only seems to do this in the hotel room and hasn't undressed in public...yet. But it is pretty funny to see this tiny little kid running around the room naked with her arms flailing above her head screaming at the top of her lungs. The sad thing is that she is soooo independent. It's like when we go to help her she thinks we are going to take something away from her or do something to her. But I'll tell you what she is looking healthier by the day. She is eating non-stop.

Well, sorry this was such a long one - I just can't get over how blessed Donna and I are to have these three in our lives. I guess I just want to share it with everyone.

Have a great night and thanks for all the great feedback on the blog - we really wanted to make everyone a part of this as much as possible.

later,
Scott