It's a Brand New Car!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, new to us anyway. Thanks to generous donations from Those-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named we were able to purchase a more fuel-efficient(50m/gal) car when we got back from furlough. Say hello to Henry, our Diesel Ford Focus.

Beach Pictures!!!!!!!!!!!

Billy, Karolina, Bailey and Zuza

Karolina's new puppy Zuza (It's Polish for: I'm the cutest puppy ever!)

I thought I would join the bandwagon and post pictures of our trip to the beach this summer! Nevermind that it took us only 15 minutes to get there, that it was 75 degrees, that there were men wearing Speedos (Seriously? I think Clinton and Stacy need to come do a What Not to Wear to the Beach episode), and that we only stayed for an hour and a half because I got cold sitting in the sand. Good times.

What To Do When Davis Is At Camp 101

Make Jane new clothes,

rub-a-dub-dub, Ashlyn in a tub,

make cookies, lick the beaters,

take silly pictures.

Party Like It's 1776

Rice Krispy Treats? Check.

Chocolate chip cookies? Check.

Balloons and streamers? Check.

Europeans outnumbering Americans? Check.

Pretty girls? Check.

Old Glory fruit pizza? Check.

Happy Birthday America!!!!

Is that you Betty Jo Crocker?

Do these ruffles make our bums look big?

The Smiths Returned!!!

Waiting...

...worth the wait!

Rewind

 

Oh, FPL, how I miss thee!

Yesterday, I was missing the good ol' Fayetteville Public Library and their automated self-check out stations. The annonimity, of say, checking out a certain vampire movie and not having anyone judge your selection, would be handy. Not that I did that,of course.

What's today again?

Whew, we made it! As of this moment, all four of us are awake and mostly coherent. Wednesday, I think, we arrived in Dublin around 7:30 AM into the arms of Craig, Merschon, and Jo. We were all so excited to see each other! There may have been a few tears on my part, but I blame it on the sleep deprivation. In the car, Merschon whipped out some awesome chocolate chip cookies and we were on our way to readjusting to this time zone. After the Christmas-morning-like unpacking extravaganza, my head hit the pillow around noon and I didn't wake up until 4:30. Some time during that, Scott went to sleep, Bailey found her bed, and Davis took a 2 hour nap and was already playing outside with Billy, Alan, Zach, and Cassius. Around 5, Chris Holloway and Viktor came by to see us and Scott convinced them to play a little catch on the front green. At 8:30 PM I finally convinced Scott to go buy milk at Lidl where he saw Adam and Justina. I think the manager had to kick him out so they could close at 9! After more unpacking and general jetlag, we got the kids to bed at 11 and we nodded off at 12:30. A lot can happen in 17 hours!

A Very Irish Birthday

The Sunday before we left Dublin, we hosted worship at our house and had a birthday party of sorts for Davis. Snickerdoodle pie was the order for the day. Viktor provided the trick candles.

The French Invasion

Today on the way home from dance class, Bailey and I spied 5 or 6 men in identical, black berets walking ahead of us toward the Dart. Bailey said, 'Hey Mom! French guys.' Me: 'Bailey, you can't stereotype based on hat choice.' Low and behold, as we came alongside them, they were speaking FRENCH! Then, when we got on the Dart, we sat down by a couple. Yep, they were speaking French, too. I was rehearsing what I would say if they asked me a question. It wouldn't have been a very long conversation! Thanks to Jola, Bailey and I will be fluent any day now.

Happy 45th Scott!

Making Viktor and Shay watch Bon Qui Qui. Don't ask.

Blowing out the candle on the massive PB pie failure of '12. Last time too much sugar, this time not enough.

Denise's little helper.

Photos by Ashlyn