enjoying America

We had a great time at a public park with really cool water fountains in it- near Seattle with the Bs...




So fun to see Isaiah forming a fast friendship with my dear friend's big boy.


John is getting more and more lively and interested in the faces and voices around him. Have we mentioned that we are absolutely in love with this sweet little guy!? And he's not so little at all anymore... at 2.5 months, he comfortably fits in 6-9 month clothes.

stateside!

We're here now... landed in Seattle after a surprsinginly, wonderfully smooth 11 hour flight (3 seats for the 5 of us turned into 4 seats plus a bassinet for John). For the first few days we had a great visit with the B's there and now we're getting to see lots of friends in So Cal this week. Today we'll be at a LLU reunion and will also get to see the S's, dear friends of my mom and mine since my baby years. What a huge encouragement and JOY to reconnect with such precious friends!

Last week we got our whole home packed into one little moving truck. We had maybe 2 weeks notice that if we got rid of a third of our stuff, we would just have one truck's worth to move and store and would save a lot of cash. It was a happy motivation for us to clear out our possessions and it's left both Matt and I feeling much freer. So our home belongings are in storage and we're on the road with two suitcases for our family and one more of gifts to share with people. Feels so good to travel light.

Living out of suitcases and trying to stay together with our three little ones doesn't leave me feeling very organized but once I get my camera cord together with my computer, I'll be glad to share some fun shots with you.... hopefully soon!

We love you friends!

Photos from Qinghai Lake

Matt's road trip with five guy friends last week went really well- for the travelers and the for kids and I at home. What a blessing to have him home now though!! Isaiah and Marian both jumped (more like launched) into their papa's arms when he came through the door and I just stood- watching, tearing up, laughing. We are a much happier crew with our man home with us!

This was the first trip- kind of a survey/ trial run- for the company that Matt is hoping to start up here: Silk Road Ecotours. Eco-tourism fits really well with our hearts to benefit the local people and environment and responsibly-humbly enjoy the local culture, environment and history. We earnestly hope that this will be a good work we can do here for many years to come and we hope to bring travelers in who will really want to help and show kindness to locals too.

Here are some of the beautiful things they saw and some of their memorable moments. These photos were all taken by one of the guys Matt travelled with. Thanks for letting us enjoy your sweet talent, LH!

Here's the first few photos I've been able to upload... I'll try to post more soon (once our moving schedule allows!) Sorry I can't figure out why a few photos of Isaiah's first bday are being included here.

sweet baby John

Our little guy is smiling. It's so fun to see more expressions from him. We are sure delighted with our boy!

a good afternoon of play

Warning:  The story below contains a bit of potty talk.

Yesterday afternoon in our home turned out to be a really sweet time of playing together for Isaiah and Marian.  I was cooking in the kitchen when I heard Isaiah tell Marian, "Come on, we can poop together.  Let's hold hands."

I was so glad they were willing to repeat the pose for me once I had grabbed the camera.  And then they were so taken with my excitement for them that they wanted to hold hands for jumping off the couch (a daily routine at our place) and running too.  

Sadly, this sweetness is not the exclusive way of things in our home.  Just a few hours earlier Marian received a good bite on her arm from her loving big brother... and that was the second this week.  (These are the only two times we've known him to bite, and we hope he is well convinced now of the unworthiness of the activity!)

riding around

Where my little baby go?

For the title, Marian's grammar comes easiest to mind to express my utter disbelief that our one month old is this big already! Honest- he was skinny at birth! Happy (1 month) Birthday "Little" John!

At the one month mark John had grown 6 cm (2.4 inches) and gained 1.7 kg (3.5 pounds- on top of 7.2 lb birhtweight!)

Isaiah really loves snuggling John.  He often goes out of his way to stop and give John a kiss or pat his head and tell him "it's ok baby John,"  or "I love you baby John."  Its really special for us to get to see and celebrate this tender side in our all-boy boy.

And here's some of what we've been busy with at our house lately (along with enjoying lots of sweet visitors)....  Potty training for us involves LOTS of reading on the pot.  And it's a family affair at this point.  Marian was a little slow at the get-go for the light to come on with the whole potty training process, but now that it's on- it seems to be a brighter future for the whole K Fam and the carpet is back down in the living room now.  She's now fully convinced of the worth-whileness of getting to read "Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See?"(almost always her first pick) and get a chocolate (half an M-n-M) every time she goes.... and she's even been right on target- going in the potty- when we've been at friends' houses and haven't had the book or the chocolate on hand.  Phew!!

More photos coming soon... for now, here's just one of our littlest love.