Love Each Child

Summer ‘08

by christy

Okay, so I said I would update everyone on our other summer trips and i have to say I am a bit late in doing so…. I seem to have needed a vacation from our vacations. We had a wonderful time during our travels, but with all the changes in my work schedule, long rides in the car, new toddler in the house, etc…. my body was screaming for me to take a break! So, I feel like I am able to take a deep breath again and I would love to share with you all that has been happening with us over the past month.

After our beach trip, we had a few days to prepare ourselves for another trip, and we managed to pack quite a lot of activity in this one!

First, we traveled to Chapel Hill, NC to see my cousin get married. She was quite the beautiful bride. It was an outdoor ceremony, very simple…. Hope Giver was able to sit through most of the ceremony. She began imitating words and letting her voice be heard—very loud and clear—so she took a little walk with Daddy. She is such an independent little girl, for which I am thrilled, and loved the nearby waterfall—actually any body of water, it doesn’t matter how large or small, is VERY appealing to her. I love it!

The next day, we traveled to Wake Forest, NC to meet with friends that we hadn’t seen in a few months. We visited the church that they attend and were able to fellowship with them for a few hours afterward, which was such a blessing to us! While we were there, Hope Giver made a few friends—no surprise there—she LOVES to be with other children. She was running, laughing, talking—and totally in her element. It was quite beautiful to watch.

After visiting with our friends, we left for Washington, DC. Once arriving, we settled into our hotel and planned our activities for the following day. Our plan was to try to find a few museums and maybe see a few other sights while we were there. We knew we wanted to plan a morning outing so that HG would be able to nap in the early afternoon. Washington DC is not an easy place to navigate! After, many trips around the city, we were able to find a parking spot and strolled toward the museums. First, we went to the Air and Space Museum and while Steve and JuJu (HG’s name for our son Dylan) watched a film, HG and I went to the Museum of the American Indian. By the time we left there, HG was falling asleep in her stroller. So, back to the hotel we traveled….

No, this is not our hotel….Can you believe this was taken from our car window?

That evening, we ate at an awesome restaurant in Alexandria, VA called Bistro Europa. We loved the town as well….we walked a few blocks, had coffee at Starbuck’s, ran through the rain….the smile on HG’s face said it all!

The next day, we went to the National Zoo. HG really loved the misters (not the male friends she made, but the water used to cool off the patrons–hehe) and could spot them a mile away. When she saw one, she would exclaim, “Waa-Waa!” and we would ride her stroller through as soon as we could get there, at least 10 times, maybe more, I lost count after 10. I think that was the highlight of the zoo for her…..although, she did love the animals and named them one by one.

In front of the mural at the National Zoo

After visiting at the zoo for a few hours, we were on the road again, this time on our way to Lancaster, PA to visit with family there. Let me say that HG is a wonderful traveler and even after being in the car for several hours, she arrived in PA with a smile and was ready to play again.

We stayed a few days in PA and had a great time catching up with family. The weather was wonderful for us to be outside, which is where HG wanted to be! She loves to be outside! We also took the time to go to the Strasburg Railroad and HG sat by the window almost the entire time.

Strasburg Railroad

After a few days of family, fun, food and fellowship….and we did have a great time there (I wish I could share more photos here), we began our journey home—it’s hard to believe that we accomplished all that I have written in just one week. No wonder we needed time to recuperate!

By the way, the adoption is not final yet, but hopefully we will hear something within the next month.

Thanks for reading…we’ll update again soon!

Christy