Summer Days

The hot days of summer are here. We conquered the purchase of a swim suit for our little girl ... and then decided to get her a little paddle pool so that she can cool off in the back yard. She had as much fun playing with it inside the house with no water as she did in the back yard with water. The presence of water kept her inside the pool as opposed to climbing in and out of it when it was empty!

Even her big sister Shalom thought a little paddle would be fun ... although the space was a little cramped!

Our Vegemite Kid

Being half Australian yet living in the US it is very important for Renatah to develop some Aussie 'roots' early. So we have introduced her to vegemite - and she can't get enough!!

We are proud of our little vegemite kid.

Domestic training has begun

Well not really! Renatah just enjoys being up and involved in life and the dishwasher is a favourite place to be. When it's open it's just the right height.

4th of July Highlight

We were invited to a fair put on by the company that friends of ours work for to celebrate the 4th of July. Renatah had a fabulous day - just hanging out.

The highlight of her day was a turn on the bouncy castle right before they packed it up - we convinced the person running it to let the little ones have a little 'bounce' for a few minutes. We were very glad we did ... she LOVED it. When bigger kids bounced around her sending her nose into the bump she pushed her head back up - laughed - and crawled towards 'more'.

Sisters are great

Renatah loves her big sister Sha-Sha. Its the beginning of a beautiful friendship we think!

Life with Gramps and Nonny

mowing the Sandy lawns with Gramps

coming in for a kiss

catching a nap in the bookstore

lunch after a Costco shopping trip

playing with Nonny

playing with Gramps

They're Here!

Gramps and Nonny have been here for almost two weeks already! Time has flown by so fast. We have had lots of fun doing life with them. They have had some special moments with Renatah and are tackling all facets of grandparent hood with joy! (even the nappy changes!)

Here is Renatah holding a welcome sign at the airport on Monday June 18th. We captured the first meeting on video - we will endeavour to upload it onto here soon!

9 More (night time) Sleeps...

...till I meet my Gramps for the first time and see my Nonnie again! The last time I saw Nonnie was the two weeks after I was born. She gave me lots of cuddles and took good care of mumma and me as we got used to life together! Mumma doesn't think I know that they are coming but I have figured it out by how excited she is.

I can't wait to give them hugs and kisses and show them my new tricks!

I'll give you a hint Nonnie and Gramps - I'm seeing the world differently these days - there are alot more things below me and I accessing my world at greater speed!

I love my Papa

I love hanging out with my Papa.

I love it when he throws me in the air - it makes me laugh and my laugh makes him laugh!

I love it when he tickles my feet.

I love to give him kisses - though he says I'm still perfecting that skill - they are rather sloppy.

I Love Elephants Too!

Auntie Di - Look - I'm wearing the funky Elephant booties you sent me. My favourite thing to do with them is to pull them right off my feet ... mumma plays this game with me for a little while - putting them back on my feet so I can pull them off again. But after a little while it's not so fun any more - so I just hold on to them and suck on their noses! mmmm good for my gums!

It's Over!

Renatah and I just returned from our trip to Ohio. We had a wonderful time visiting with Sarah and Benji and Sarah's family. Unfortunately I forgot to take the camera and their camera went out of action - so - no photos to share ... bummer!

Just before we left we had the interview for my green card. It was pretty much a non-event. Just a casual chat with the DHS guy, a browse through our photos and ... I got the stamp of approval. Because of the timing of it all - I am not getting a 'conditional' status as I thought was the case - but rather - I'm 'permanent'! Well - it is valid for 10 years.

So we praise the Lord for going ahead of us in all of this and for bringing us to the end! The card will arrive any day now and I can sit back and relax! Well - in terms of immigration hassles! There's always lots to do around here!

Thanks for journeying with us!
Naomi

Immigration Update

Hopefully there won't be too many more of these needed! On Thursday May 24th at 3pm I am secheduled for an interview for my green card. Tim and Renatah both have to be there with me along with many pieces of paper and what ever 'evidence' we have of our relationship!! Have you ever seen the movie 'Greencard' with Andie McDowell - I wonder what kind of an experience this will be! We haven't been 'studying' each other ... so we'll see how it goes!

The appointment is in Seattle (as our mailing address was Vancouver Washington for the past year or so) ... so it will be quite the adventure. I hope I will be posting news of celebration soon.

Oh - the day after the interview Renatah and I will be off on another practise plane ride to Ohio to visit my dear friend Sarah and her family for a week. We are so excited to see them again and for Renatah to meet them for the first time.

Thanks again for your continued prayer and support over the past 2 1/2 years - crazy isn't it!

Naomi

Exploring the world of FOOD!

Renatah is thoroughly enjoying dinner each night exploring the vegetable world. She is quite eager to 'feed herself' but is working on which end of the spoon achieves the best results!

Happy 6 month Birthday Renatah

On May 2nd we had a tiny celebration of Renatah's six month milestone. She loved sucking on her 'cake' - a granny smith apple with an unlit candle! Fun times!!!

Visits from Michelle

At the beginning of this month we had a visit from my friend from uni - Michelle. She was here the day Renatah was born so it was rather fun for her to see our little girl again six months later.


We love that Michelle's work brings her to the states and that she squeezes in a visit with us before returning to work in Hong Kong. Thanks Michelle!! We miss you.

This photo was taken at our favourite restaurant - PF Changs in down town Portland. Renatah has an odd expression because she has been sucking on a wedge of lemon!

Men at Work

The first project for our new house was to build a fence so that we could keep a dog in the back yard. Chuck, our next door neighbour, is a God-send! He's a 'you-name-it-I-can-do-it' kinda guy and absolutely loves doing things with his hands. With his knowledge and skills and Tim's muscle they put this beautiful fence up in two days. We are so blessed and grateful for God's provision of our handy and delightful nextdoor neighbour!

We've Moved

The past week and a bit has see us in the midst of moving out of the lovely Sandy Mansion into our very own duplex in SE Portland. As moves go this went very smoothly. We praise God for good 'moving weather' - it rained in the morning right up until we started loading up the truck. Then it started raining again when we returned the truck!! Talk about perfect timing!!

We are rather excited about being in our own place and being alot closer to 'life' here in Portland. Tim can now bike to work in 15mins!! (as opposed to an hour drive or an hour and a half on the buses).

We are living in between the two houses as we slowly move things over. We stay most nights at the new place though. When boxes and things are all put away we will take some pictures and put a little slide show up here for you!

I won't post our new details up here but keep an eye on your inbox over the next week or so - we'll send out a little 'moving announcement' with all the info.

Going to LA - Riding on an aeroplane!!

From March 28th til April 9th Renatah and Mumma went to LA to visit with Tim's sister Barb and Renatah's 5 cousins.

Barb is in the middle of chemo treatment for colon cancer. You could pray for her and the family as they journey through this treatment process and pray with us for a miracle of healing!

Renatah did very well on her first plane ride. It was a practice run for our planned trip to Australia at the end of the year - that will be a long one!!

First Easter

Renatah's first Easter was in LA with her cousins. It was a special weekend but we missed Pappa. Here she is in her little Easter outfit playing with her special 'easter bunny' from Aunt Judy!

Hunting for Eggs

A little too little to hunt herself so mumma helped Renatah find an egg in the bushes and put it in the grass for her to pick up. She was rather thrilled with the event and showed off her new skill of sitting by herself! Fun 'first Easter' memories. We were sad that her Pappa missed sharing the occasion with us though.