2008 Summer Fun with my Family!

Elizabeth, Amie & Hannah doing our toes!

In the pool with cousins Kingston and Preston at Auntie Val's house on her birthday!

Cincy Zoo with Cousin Hannah!

Josh walked right up to Clifford and gave him a hug!

Daddy and Josh checking out the elephants as they drank from the lake.

We went to the zoo on a beautiful day...and really hot too! Little did we know, it was also 1/2 price day, so about 2/3 of Cincinnati decided to show up! It was crowded for sure, but so much fun with Hannah...she always makes it special for all 4 of us! Ok she does a lot of grunt work, too! We love her!

We also got to go back to the Zoo with just Amie, Hannah and Joshua the next month. Many less people there, much cooler and Josh was so much more into it! Josh really loved pushing Hannah in the stroller!

Our first month together!

Here's a look back at our first month together in Guatemala in March of 2007 (click on the slideshow to see the comments!). This little slideshow will give you a taste of the beautiful country and how much we enjoyed being together. We stayed in a bed & breakfast in Zone 10 which is one of the nicest and safest Zones in Guatemala City. The weather was really unbelievable and only rained one day (thankfully, we were not there during the rainy season). The trees drip with flowers there, literally. Such lush vegitation, but no Kentucky bluegrass! And they grow big spiders in Guatemala, too! Dwayne took his job of head spider killer quite seriously as Amie never saw one! Between visits to the Embassy to get our paperwork in order (the guards knew Dwayne by the time we left!) and going to the HyperPiez weekly (like a Super-Walmart...only smaller and almost everything is in Spanish!!) we went to the Hotel Zone which has 2 malls, much like American malls and fast food courts also! Our favorite place to eat was "Pollo Compero" which is Guatemalan's McDonalds, only a lot better and of course, only chicken! Awesome chicken which puts the Colonel to shame, honestly. We ate there probably 2x a week.



Although the stress of becoming parents for the first time was compounded with living in a different place without all the things you dreamed of and spent so much time organizing at home...not to mention feeling a bit trapped because your baby could not leave the country--well technically, we could have gone to Brazil or something, but serioulsy...we were waiting on Joshua's visa to get approved and ended up staying there 30 days. So, how often do you get to spend 30 uninterrupted days with your spouse and new baby? Stressful as it was, it was such a gift. God planned it perfectly. So all things work together for Good for those who love the Lord and are called according to his purpose. We were able to call our families at any time with our cell phone, had cable TV, yes mostly in Spanish with LOADS of Ricky Martin on every channel(who knew?), running water on MOST days and made friends who will be in our hearts forever!

Big Boy Bed

Well, Josh had his first try at a big boy bed at Auntie Teresa's house. As you can see, he was just on a mattress on the floor...surrounded by pillows, no doubt, just incase! But he crashed and didn't wake until the morning. Teresa bought him some "Teresa's House Jammies" in size 4T (yikes! He's so big!) and all was good because his good buddy, George, was there too. What would we do without George?
Maybe I'm a little biased, but I think he just the cutest thing EVER in red. So handsome!

Cook Out with The Waits Fam

Well, we have been having some fun around here! Nanal came to visit last week, we spent the night at Aunt Teresa & Uncle Billy's house and learned how to jump on a bed! Thanks Uncle Bill! It has been a typical summer of swimming, cooking around the campfire (with Nettie and Tim & fam), eating popsicles and loving the outdoors. I will try to post a video or two so you can see Josh in action!

Mi Primo, Christopher

Cousin Chris and his friend traveled through KY, headed south and spent the night with us at the Casa de Humphrey. It was so fun! Thanks for the awesome hugs, Chris!

Baking Cookies

Well we baked cookies today! Here is Joshua's first beater-batter lickin' experience. He loved it! You can hear him say "UMMMM!"

Daddy & Mommy Time

Dwayne and Amie went away for the night to a Bed & Breakfast this past weekend near Madison, Indiana! It is a nice old plantation house which has been remodeled. It was wonderful, quiet and romantic! Well, quiet except for the part about the hydroboats in the Ohio River at the Madison Regatta. The boats go about 200+ miles per hour....it was wild! Thanks Aunt Nettie for taking care of Joshie.

Table Time

Josh loves table time where we play with rice, playdough or sometimes shaving cream! He also is beginning to like using markers and crayons quite a bit. He draws some circles too!

Tech Savvy

Josh enjoys the computer a lot. He is not really allowed to touch it yet, but we will be working on the idea of how the mouse works very soon! He loves watching Elmo DVD or a podcast occasionally from Sesame Street!

A Day @ Home

Well we mostly just hung out at home today, enjoying the picture perfect weather and sunshine! Joshua made some bubbles with his bubble mower (thanks Waits gang!) while Daddy mowed the back yard. He also loved the pool (thanks Nanal) that Daddy put under the slide for some extra fun spashing. It has been so much fun having Dwayne at home this past month since he has been off work. We're so thankful for the time that the Lord has given to us to just be together.

We're also attempting to grow some tomatoes in those upside down pot things (see pic) and have just begun to eat a strawberry or two from the patch in the back.

Hope you enjoy the pics. Love y'all!

Josh's First Masterpiece

Here is Josh's first painting at the easel. You can tell he is hard at work, trying his best to figure out how it works. We were on the back porch.

Welcome!

Welcome to our little blog in cyberspace. We hope you will enjoy Joshie's little adventures and the general craziness of life at the Humphreys! Come back often to visit.