The Tooth Situation

Here's a picture to update you on Megann's teeth. One of her top front teeth is just about to come through the gum (we think that was the reason for one very sleepless night last night), so her mouth won't look like this for much longer. It does make for a very cute and ornery grin! Funny enough, Brenna's teeth also came in this order, so it doesn't seem too out of the ordinary.

Addie turns 5!

It's hard to believe that the little two-year-old girl with blonde curls that we brought to India turned 5 this month!

Addie celebrated her birthday with four friends (and her sisters) by having a Princess Pizza Party. Everyone dressed up, and we went out to our favorite pizza place in town (okay, so it's the only pizza place in town). We played games, ate pizza (veg only, of course), played more games, opened presents, ate brownies and ice cream, and sang songs in the car on the way home (what else do you do when the car is loaded with girls!?!). It was such a fun night for all of us to celebrate a little girl who brings so much life to our family - Happy Birthday, Addie!

6 princesses and one "drama-queen" (ha!)

** As a side note, I just had to add these two pictures to give you a better understanding of our life here. When we go into town, people stare at us. When go into town with with Megann, people stop and giggle and stare at us (and pull out their cell phones to take pictures). But when we go into town with Megann and 7 girls dressed like princesses, people stop, stare, giggle, pull out their cameras, and eat their pizza while taking pictures of us eating ours. I have to say, it's little weird and a bit awkward.

All this to say that these two pictures are neither weird or awkward, it's just what happens whenever we go to this restaurant - the waiters take care of Meg (and occasionally pass her on to other customers). It's cool. It's normal. This is our life.

Sweet Meggie-girl

Megann is crawling!! Unfortunately, our home is not safe for a crawling baby, so we have to watch her very closely. We have dirty fireplaces, concrete floors, steps and ledges. This, coupled with Megann's insatiable desire to chew on dirty shoes, is going to make for an interesting few months.

This is what happens when your big sisters get nail stickers from Grandma and run out of nails to stick them on - you get a faux nose ring!

Pure sweetness

Brown Eyed Girl

Brenna - this month you turned 10! From the time you were born, we knew you were special. You had crazy hair and big brown eyes. You started crawling before you could sit up, and you started walking well before your first birthday. You loved to wear tutus and rain boots, and you could often be seen parading around our yard carrying the neighbor's cat like a sack of potatoes.

You are an amazing mix of confidence and reserve. I have learned not to be concerned when you lock yourself in your room or when you want to play with friends (or by yourself) for hours on end. You love reading biographies about people like Anne Frank, Mother Teresa, Winston Churchill and Bethany Hamilton but you also love the fanciful world of imagination. You are introspective and yet dramatic, and you are deeply affected by suffering around you. You continue amaze me in the way that make and keep friends so easily, and the way that you bring out the best in others.

Don't worry, I promise not to freak out when you tell me that you're dropping out of college and moving to a slum to help the poor and needy, or when you decide that you're not going to have any children or get married. But I also know you well enough that I'd better expect just the opposite, because you're predictably unpredictable. More than anything I want you to know that I love you and I'm so proud of who you are and who you're becoming. And I'm so glad that I get to be your mom.

Addie. Oh, Addie...

This is Addie at home watching movies on Christmas Eve after she threw up in the car on our way to a big party with our friends.

This is Addie on Brenna's birthday. She had thrown up earlier in the day in the dining room when we were trying to decide where to go for lunch.

Last Friday Addie came down with a fever and what she said were "mosquito bites". Well, it definitely wasn't mosquito bites, but rather a mild case of chicken pox! And how fitting since this Friday is Addie's 5th birthday. Thankfully, she is feeling much better (hopefully it will last for a little while longer).

A day in the life...

When we were in Bangalore visiting with some good friends last month, we ate a traditional biryani meal in their home. Biryani is a very special food - kind of like an Indian version of fried rice with pieces of chicken in it that is served at weddings and on holidays. Our friends had tried not to make it too spicy, but I still wasn't too sure that the girls would manage very well. They eat Indian food for lunch at school, but it's really difficult to get them to eat it any other time. Our friends offered to make the girls noodles, but I thought it would be best for the girls to at least try.

Anyway, what ensued was something I will not forget for a long time. Lauren, Brenna and Addie tried the biryani with smiles on their faces, and kept asking for more pieces of chicken and more servings of rice. They were quick to say please and thank you, and when they were full (after having at least 3-4 servings each!) they graciously said, "I think I'm full, but the food was very good," folded their banana leaves in half ('cause that's what you do), and went to wash their hands.

Honestly, I was a bit shocked, but so so SO PROUD! I was so proud of them for trying something that they weren't sure they were going to like, for having good attitudes and gracious manners, and for being genuinely appreciative of our friends' hospitality. I was also struck by how much they had grown and matured since we first moved to India, and it gave me a fresh desire to be a more patient and "present" mom - knowing that the years ahead will go by so quickly.

As for Megann - she seems to prefer Indians over westerners, she loves spicy food, and she doesn't mind getting pinched on the cheek for good luck.

Don't you just hate days like this!?