Remembering...

We took the kids to the grave site for the first time. I'm sure it'll be the first of many times. This was a quick visit, but in the future we hope to be able to tell our kids all about their grandpa Bob and grandma Patty. Oh, how excited Bob & Patty would have been to meet their grandchildren! We're pretty sure they would have loved seeing Cosi run around to the different graves and try to pull up the flowers...

They would have loved Cosi's vibrant personality and how she shares the same skin color as her grandma. They would have been thrilled to welcome Trey and see him carry on the Edenfield name. Cosi was asking if she could cook today- we're sure Patty would have loved to teach her some Lebanese dishes. And we can only hope that Bob's fix-it ability (which seemed to run strong in the Edenfield line until it got to Rob) has skipped only one generation and will show up in Trey, so he can help his Mom and Dad around the house.

We could have told them about how Trey found his tongue this week. It makes us laugh so much. Or maybe we would have told them about how Cosi keeps saying "umm....ummm..." just like mommy and daddy unknowingly say it multiple times a day. It's really hard not to have them around. Rob wishes he could ask them for advice as he's learning to be a parent. I wish they were here to love our kids. It still feels like there's a void in our lives. I imagine it will always feel that way.

Nana came to visit!!!

May God bless my mother who braved jet lag and paid the big bucks to fly over and visit with her two newest grandkids (and us)! Her visit also allowed Rob to get a much needed break from taking care of his family. He was able to fly to another city in East Asia and participate in a seminary class, but more importantly he got 4 full nights of sleep and at least 3 uninterrupted meals a day. (the meal part being especially important after we realized Rob lost 20 lbs in the past month, apparently he was taking care of everyone but himself) So now I want to know - when do I get my break? :)

Here are some pictures from Nana's time in East Asia!














Every time someone came over to our apartment, Cosi would proudly say "Nana" to our guest. (as if to let them know that Nana is here) You may notice Cosi is sitting on a scale in the above picture. We've become inventive with ways to get her to sit still for pictures.




















Trey is always happy to have a good meal, so he welcomed Nana by giving her a chance to feed him. (Thank you mom for the pump!)















Cosi & Nana bought fruit together.

And - one of my favorite pictures :) Nana gave Trey a bath! Trey - what do you think of your first bath???



















No, really - what do you think???

That boy has some suspicious eyes. He trusts no one ;) Of course, he was in a rather vulnerable position...

Yay for Nana's visit! We wish she could have stayed longer!

Court Date- October 14th

This Thursday, October 14th, our adoption paperwork will officially be filed in a court in Ukraine. A few weeks after that, we will be given a travel date to meet and pick up our daughter.

Please pray that all would go well with the court date and that no unexpected problems come up.

Also, pray that the travel date would be EARLY. We've been told to expect late November/early December, but we're also hearing rumors it could be later. We're hoping for late November!

Remembering

Today would have been my dad's 60th birthday. I don't think I ever was able to imagine my parents in their 60's- they always seemed so young to me, more so as I grew older.

My father taught me the importance of childlike faith and the value of play. No one worked harder than my father did, but he also took every chance to laugh, relax, and enjoy every moment. He was always trying to figure out what would make someone smile, and I hope I've inherited that precious gift of making people comfortable.

As hard as it was to imagine my parents growing "old," it's been even harder to imagine my future without them. My children will never know them as grandparents. I won't have them to turn to when facing the compounding confusion of adulthood. Maybe most of my sadness is pretty selfish- maybe that's usually the case. I feel deprived of the future I expected. Even now I wonder what home-spun wisdom my father would have to say about all that (and what down-to-earth practical perspective my mom would give).


Happy Birthday, Dad.
We're celebrating in our own way here- a continent and a lifetime away.
Maybe we'll watch Oscar and eat popcorn with M&M's...
Love,
Rob and April