movin' down the road

Yes. We are all alive. And even, I might add, well.

We arrived at my sis' house on Monday night... laaaaatte... because we were able to meet one of my dearest friends, Lisa, in Nashville. She and her family are in the process of moving across the country as well and we happened to cross paths in Nashville, at a certain delicious bbq spot. With our families, the total at our little two family table? 16. Good thing it was a family restaurant. The waiter was incredibly kind, if a bit overwhelmed. When I asked him for some balloons for the kids he asked, "How many? 100?"

We've since been hanging out here, winding down from the craziness of life on the road. That and visiting with the manufacturer and printer of Wild Olive tees (and preparing to release a brand new tee in a week)... it has been such a trip!

And we've all been revving up for a mini vacation with my sister and her family that, by the grace of God, we managed to squeeze in (time and money wise) before we have to be up in the Northeast to close on our new home.

This will be the first time Isabelle, Sophie, Jude and Shepherd have ever seen the ocean.

No, we don't vacation much. So to say we're excited would be a bit of an understatement.

Watch out Atlantic Ocean, here we come!! I hope to get lots of pics taken and added to the blog (for my sanity's sake b/c these pics might never make it into albums)... should be an amazingly craaaazy good time!

News on An Orphan's Wish

Here is a current list of clothing needed by An Orphan's Wish...

Sizes needed most right now are:

Girls:

Summer onesies in the following sizes:

21.5 cm (8.5 inches)

27 cm (10.5 inches)
*(onesies are measured by folding in half, down the front from the neck to the crotch where the snaps begin)

3T & 4T - T-shirts and shorts or skorts (shorts and skirt over the top)

Summer pyjamas or stained onesies in those sizes too.

onesies and clothing are recycled as pyjamas – but because there aren't enough in some sizes, they don’t have pj’s.

Boys:

Summer onesies in the following sizes:

21.5cm (8.5 inches)

27 cm (10.5 inches)

Summer pyjamas or stained onesies in those sizes and:

32 cm (12.5 inches)

35 cm (13.5 inches)

If you would like to send donations directly to China, you can do that as well. If you do, you need to send them ONLY through the regular US Postal System, not priority mail. When you fill out the declaration form to send with the package, be sure to put the value of the contents at “Zero”, otherwise a fee will have to be paid in order to pick up any packages.

Please email me at chrisnstefanie@gmail.com for their China address. They would be so grateful for any support you can provide!! Or you can mail any supplies and or donations to their Colorado address:

An Orphan’s Wish
Attn: Donations
P.O. Box 271772
Fort Collins, CO 80527-1772

The new clubfoot casting unit is now underway!! Expect news on the little ones at An Orphan's Wish to be forthcoming soon :)

Ol' Smoky

Okay, we weren't really up on Ol' Smoky, but I can't remember the actual name of the mountain we climbed. So Ol' Smoky it will be.


It was a beautiful day, nice and cool. Which equals good for doing something that might cause sweating. 'Cuz I don't like to sweat any more than absolutely necessary.



We were well prepared, as you can see by Tori's footwear. We really did decide on the fly to pursue a mountaintop adventure on this day. That's just how this family of 10 rolls, Yo.



Isabelle stopped to show off her new best friend. Meet "Rocky".



Photographic proof that we all did, indeed, make it to the top. Sandals, rocks, and all.



Zach finally relented and let this badgering mama take his picture.



Isabelle decided along the way that Tori was the perfect partner, since she was willing to offer her hip for part of the trip up the mountain.



Yes. More flowers. Can one have too many pictures of flowers?



Chris paused to pose for a quick pic with his littlest on the way down the mountain.



Then Jude, with his bare hands, stopped a huge boulder from crushing us all.

Just kidding.



At the end of the trail. Concrete was a blessed sight.

Flip flops: ideal footwear for mountain climbing.

Hiking boots are for sissies.

day at the lake

Another day in the mountains. Another day to bring along the camera. We ventured to a local lake, that is surrounded by a beautiful hiking trail.


As we made our way around the lake, I stopped to take pictures of things that struck my fancy. After all, it was my birthday and all.


If I can't jump on a jet and head to Europe for a shopping trip on my big day, I may as well be able to take pictures of things I think are beautiful.



Yes. More pictures of this flower.
My name is Stefanie and I am addicted to taking pictures of flowers.



My oldest and my (current) youngest. I am one blessed mama.



Claire and the other little ones hit the beach. I would have, but I didn't want to frighten the little children away in tears.

Years of avoiding the sun and laying off the treadmill makes for an... ahem, scary combination.


Asher, ready to pounce on an unsuspecting tadpole.



Making (or unmaking) sandcastles.



And what good is a day at the lake without some watermelon??

Happy 4th of July :)

41 today. The end.

nature walk

canoeing:

the sport or activity of traveling in or paddling a canoe.

the mountains

Our time in Nashville was followed by another road trip. This time up to the beautiful mountains of North Carolina. My best friend since childhood, Connie, has a cottage retreat and, amazingly, invited our entire clan to descend upon her little vacation abode.

What was supposed to be a quick 5 hour trip turned out to be 7. But, we made it safely to our destination. Upon our arrival, the kids poured out of the car, crazed and ready for some fresh air and wide open spaces. Same could be said for our dogs.


It's been several years since we've all been together. Connie's daughters, Caroline and Claire, suddenly seem so grown up. And they are getting more beautiful by the day.


Seamus couldn't believe his good fortune. Tons of kids. Tons of space. And no fences.


Part of Connie's posse and part of mine. All ready to rip.


And here is the little guest cottage where Chris and I rest our heads at night, along with the troublemakers littlest in our family: Jude, Shepherd and Isabelle. Now you see why Connie is my best friend. She not only allows us to come stay with her on vacation, but takes care of my kids, too.

Dude. We might stay awhile.

a day in music city

We spent one full day in Nashville. One very full day. We met one of my best buddies, Amie, and her incredibly beautiful family for lunch. Table for 19? Anyone?

Later, Amie and I met at the Oatsvall's fundraising concert to help out before the doors opened.

It was awesome to hang out with so many who are passionate about orphans.
We had a great seat, right behind this awesome family with the cutest caboose named J-man...

And about this close to the stage. Point of Grace was off the chizz-ain.

And so were the peeps who were in attendance. My friend Laine made the drive in for the concert, how I loved seeing her and her beautiful family.

And I loved getting a chance to meet bunch of other adoptive blogging mamas. From all over the US, coming together help bring a little man home from Uganda.

Only through His grace.

on the road to nashville

I admit it. I was bored. In fact, I was so bored, I pulled my camera out and started snapping pictures. Since I was following, I didn't have to look out for road signs and the trip was almost all highway, so it made this level of multi-tasking possible.

The drive took a total of 14 hours. It was supposed to take 11. There's something about our family that just increases, exponentially, the amount of time it takes to get from point A to point B.

There were three drivers: myself, Chris and Tori. I was awfully grateful I wasn't the one who had to drive the big yellow moving truck. I think Tori was too.

We drove through St. Louis, our old stomping grounds. We stopped by our old house.

And our favorite eatery. Since it was Chris' birthday, we indulged him and ordered his favorites. To go.

Tori likes Chevy's too.

Shep liked the M&M's better.

As the day drug on, I found myself getting more and more exhausted. And more and more in need of something to take my mind off the road.

So I gave Zach a quick course in manual photography. He took this night shot.

Amazing what you can do when you have the time and the inclination.