Favorite Photo Friday

Tacos anyone?

Adoption News

Sorry I confused some of you with the adoption time table at the top of the page. The ticker is actually counting up from when our official wait time began. Our paperwork was sent off to Ethiopia on January 18th and that is when we were officially added to the waiting list. It is a great milestone and I thought it would be fun to see it count up and know every day that we are closer to our baby girl. Also....I think this would be a good time to share the name that we have picked out for our daughter. Unless we totally fall in love with her Ethiopian name, we have chosen the name.....drum roll please.........

Ruby Katheryn

Ruby is a name that we both fell in love with and Katheryn was Robb's grandma's middle name . So there you have it......what do ya think?

A successful Walk

Once again we had a very successful Walk to Cure Diabetes. We had 23 family members and friends that came out and walked for Hunter's Team. What a blessing! Our team alone raised $4000 for diabetes research! That was our goal this year and because of the generosity of so many of our family and friends we were able to meet that goal. Hunter is very loved and we are truly blessed. There were 500 people at the mall walking in support of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. It is such an emotional event because we see first hand all of the families that deal with this disease daily, just like we do. We are definitely not alone in these challenges. JDRF is working very hard to make a cure a reality. It is going to happen and I feel very confident about that. Seventy thousand dollars was raised this weekend at the Sioux Falls Walk. How amazing is that? That money will definitely help with the research needed to find a cure for Type 1 diabetes.

Walk to Cure Diabetes

This is the letter I sent out to family and friends recently: Dear Family and Friends, We are once again preparing for the annual Walk to Cure Diabetes. This year’s walk will be held on Saturday, Feb. 2 at the Sioux Empire Mall in Sioux Falls. This is the fourth year we have had a team in the Walk. Hunter’s team raised almost $3000 last year and we had close to 30 people walking on our team! We are so thankful for all of the support you have given to us in Hunter’s honor. He has earned 1 plaque and 2 trophies for the money raised for his team! Last August we were invited to a Sioux Falls Canaries game and were awarded our team prizes there. Hunter is so proud of his trophies and keeps them right by his bed. He is already wondering if he will win another trophy this year and has the perfect spot picked out for it! J It has now been 5 ½ years since Hunter was diagnosed with diabetes and he is doing quite well. The insulin pump has been wonderful and we are now looking into what is called a Continuous Glucose sensor that would be attached to him and monitor his blood sugar continually, eliminating several finger pokes a day and giving us great peace of mind. This would be in addition to his insulin pump, which means 2 things attached to him, but the pros definitely outweigh the cons. Hopefully in the next couple months we will have him started on this. This sensor would allow him to go to sleep-over’s and it would eliminate the highs and lows. This is very exciting! We are very hopeful for a cure. There are so many kids who face the same daily challenges that Hunter does. We pray for great advances with all of the money that the Walks across the country raise. I feel very confident in the work being done by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. A cure is so close! If you would like to make a donation to our Walk, your check can be made out to JDRF and sent back to us by Jan. 30th. Also, if you are interested in walking with our team, please let me know. We all wear camouflage shirts and have a great time raising money for a great cause! Also, we are having a huge rummage/moving sale on Saturday, Jan. 26th at the farm with all money going toward our Walk. We hope for a great turnout! Thank you so very much! Robb, Teresa, Hunter, Brylie, and Gage If you are interested in donating to our Walk, you can donate here. If you want to walk with us, the walk starts at 10 am. Let me know and I'll have some extra camo shirts. :)

Adoption News

Our paperwork is now in Ethiopia and being reviewed by the Ethiopian government. I am very excited that everything made it and we are one step closer in this journey. Now we wait and probably won't hear anything until we get a referral, which is a match with an infant girl. Our adoption agent can't give us any time frame as things are always changing, but I am hoping that in 6 months we know who our daughter is. After receiving her picture and information we will still have to wait about 3 months before traveling to get her. Patience is going to be so much tougher the closer we get.

What's up at the Arnold home?

Hello all. The moving sale went wonderfully and we raised almost $600 for our Walk to Cure Diabetes! We were thrilled with the number of people who ventured out into the country. We got rid of a ton of stuff and I am especially excited about that! The rest is going to goodwill and then I need to start cleaning and getting ready to paint. Here are a few pictures of how the remodel is coming along.

The sheet rock is all put up! Robb and Rock made a beautiful archway for the upstairs. I just thought this picture of Gage "helping" was pretty cute!

This week the tape and texture guy is coming and he will also be painting the kitchen, dining room and master bedroom. Yay!

HUGE SALE

Are you looking for something to do this weekend? I am having a HUGE rummage/moving sale tomorrow from 9am-3pm at our farm house. There is SO MUCH stuff and I don't want ANYTHING left at the end of the day tomorrow. We have furniture, beds, lots and lots of Christmas decor, dishes, pictures, home decor of all sorts, clothes of all sizes, books for young and old, movies, toys, toys and more toys, bar stools, and so much more. The best part is all money goes toward our Walk to Cure Diabetes, which will be held next weekend in Sioux Falls. (more about that later) There have been several people who have donated items for the sale so the house is seriously overflowing. Email me for directions if you are interested in coming. :)

Our remodel progress

Well, we've been at the remodel for 1 week now and things are going quite well. Of course there has been a few bumps in the road, but overall we have gotten a lot accomplished. Here are some pictures of what has happened so far...

My mom, sister and I removed this lovely wallpaper in Brylie's room.

We then tackled the wallpaper in the master bedroom.

Then it was more wallpaper in the dining room. My mother-in-law LOVES wallpaper, can ya tell?

The walls got insulated.

This new beam was put up to replace 3 other smaller beams. (this baby weighs 700 pounds! It took 5 guys to bring it in the house) I'm thinkin' the ceiling won't be falling down anytime soon!

What do ya do when you discover 3 layers of wallpaper that are stuck on so well that trying to remove it is tearing the wall off? You just tear the wall down! (I was just happy I got out of some wallpaper work!)

Hunter and Brylie helping with the clean-up between jobs.

Gage thinks the shop vac is the coolest thing ever!

Hunter does an awesome job pulling out nails!

This weeks goals are to put up sheet rock, tape and texture, and of course, more wallpaper removal! I'll keep ya posted!

The remodel has begun.....

See you next week!

Friday's Favorite Photos

Thanks Grandma Pat for the new pajamas!

Uncle Tyler got the kids gift cards for Christmas and so we sent him this picture of their purchases. Hunter picked out a lightsaber and a Transformers game, Gage added to his Scooby collection and Brylie scored this beautiful dress up outfit. Thanks uncle Ty!

Kitchen remodel

Yep, that's what we have goin' on for the next couple months. We are still working on the layout and picking out cabinets, appliances, counter tops and flooring. Any suggestions? Robb and I are having a hard time picking out pretty much everything. It sure is a good idea we are not trying to build a house! Anyway, I love kitchens and really want a lovely space since I spend so much of my day in that room. Don't worry, I will get some before pictures up shortly. It is going to be a giant mess for awhile, but I can hardly wait for the end result!

Another year older

On December 23rd I turned 32. Turning 30, two years ago, was a little difficult for me, just because it seemed as though I was entering a completely different phase of my life and I didn't quite know how to approach it. Honestly I still felt 21 and wasn't sure if I was acting it too! :) After the initial adjustment into the thirties, it has been great. The girlfriends trip that Heidi Jo, Carrie and I took last summer to celebrate our thirties only made me feel younger. We laughed like we were teenagers and talked until the wee hours of the morning. Of course we came home to a house full of kids, which quickly set us back into reality. I know that this decade will be extremely busy with raising kids and such, but so many rewards go with that also. I don't know at what age I will feel 'old' but right now I am enjoying this stage of life and look forward to each year of my thirties!

Doin' the Happy Dance!

FINALLY! Today was the big day that we sent all of our adoption paperwork off. It is a huge relief to have everything done. I have been staring at these papers for months, making sure all I's were dotted and T's crossed. On Christmas Eve we received the final paper in the mail that we had been waiting for. We then had to send everything off to the state capitol to get state certified. We received the papers back today and I had to make 3 copies of everything and send the originals plus 2 copies to our agency. The agency puts the papers through what's called a bundling process and then every paper needs to go to Washington DC to be authenticated. All of this will take approximately 3 weeks and then off to Ethiopia they go! Yay! After that we just wait to be matched. We are told it could take any where from 2 to 9 months to get the referral. We're praying for God's perfect timing and can hardly hold back the excitement as we get closer to meeting our 4th child. We all went to town this afternoon to send the papers off UPS. When I got back in the car we said a prayer that the papers would safely, and without delay, make it to Ethiopia. Hopefully everything is done correctly and things will go smoothly from here on out. This in a huge step closer to our baby girl! This how my desk looked today as I was organizing all of the papers. This isn't even all of them! It's been a long process but all so worth it to be blessed with a child at the end of it all.

New glasses for the New Year

On Friday night we discovered that Hunter wasn't seeing as well as he should be so we took him to the eye doctor on Saturday and discovered that he needs glasses. He was pretty sad at first, but is excited about his glasses now. We just picked them up today and he thinks he resembles Simon, the chipmunk, a little. He keeps quoting him and doing his moves. We've been laughing a lot! I think he looks pretty handsome, what do you think?

Favorite Photo Friday

While making Christmas cookies last week Hunter made this and said, "Hey look, I made the three wisemen following the Christmas star."

Christmas Highlights

Favorite Photo Friday

I had to capture the pure joy on Robb's face as he helped with the Christmas cookies. :-)

Christmas Programs

Brylie as a quiet Mary and Hunter as the vibrant Christmas Star!

Mary and Joseph The Christmas Star with the Wisemen The cute Christmas outfits under the costumes. :-)

Hunter's program at school. (he is in the 2nd row from the top, the 7th one in)

We are not compatible

As I was going through our adoption paperwork, I came across the results of the couple's personality test we had to do. It was a 300 question test we had to take to test our compatibility. It made me laugh once again. (some of you have maybe heard about it because Robb likes to share the results) Read on and you'll know why!

These two profiles show both similarities and differences in these individuals' personalities. Three of the scale scores are very similar and four are quite dissimilar. There is a considerable difference between their scores on the Nervous scale. The relationship may be adversely affected unless Teresa is able to counteract and reduce Robb's level of stress or tension. (WHAT?) Robb and Teresa have similar scores on the Active-Social scale. Compatibility on this scale is an important factor in the success of most relationships. The similarity in this couple's scores is a positive sign. (oh good!) The difference between their scores on the Sympathetic scale suggests that Robb may need more understanding and acceptance from Teresa. Improvement in this regard will enhance their compatibility. (are you kidding me?) The couple's scores differ on the Subjective scale, Robb is more objective, and Teresa's judgment and logic are somewhat more likely governed by feelings or emotional influences. (this is no surprise) Their scores on the Self-Disciplined scale are quite different. This difference suggests that Robb's tendencies to be more impulsive and disorganized than Teresa may cause serious problems in the relationship and may be difficult for Teresa to cope with. (I think I can handle it)

Well, there you have it. Aren't you all surprised that we have been married for 11 1/2 years and have no plans of separating? Luckily or social worker didn't take the results very seriously! I told her it was no surprise that Robb and I are VERY DIFFERENT. That doesn't mean that we aren't compatible. Obviously we have figured out how to live with each other. :-)

Merry Christmas from our family!

Happy Holidays! Once again the Christmas season is upon us and here at the Arnold house we are decorating, baking , shopping and anxiously awaiting the celebration of the birth of our Lord. Hunter is 6 and enjoys kindergarten. He goes all day every other day. At conferences his teacher told us he was at a second grade reading level. We are very proud of him! She also told he has a really hard time sitting quietly in class. We’re working on that one. He will tell you he really likes school he just wishes there wasn’t so many rules! :-) Right now he is really into inventing things. His latest invention is the ‘Mouse Trap 3000’. Hunter brought his drawing to his dad and asked him if he could build it, explaining exactly how it all works. His imagination is endless! Brylie is 4 ½ and is in preschool this year. This was a hard adjustment for her, because she is so shy, but absolutely loves school now. She does a great job writing her letters and is always making pictures for everyone in the family. Brylie loves everything girly and is quite a little mom to Gage. Gage is 2 ½ and is the busiest child I have ever known! He loves to climb and explore and test his boundaries. He is the silent, mischievous type. :-) Gage is the comedian of the family and often has us laughing hysterically. He is all boy and has no trouble keeping up with Hunter and his friends. We are anxiously awaiting the 4th addition to our family through adoption. Last April, after some prompting from the Lord, we decided to pursue an international adoption through China. After many months of being told the wait for a child from China could be increasing to as long as 5 years, we prayerfully considered another country. We have just finished switching our paperwork over to adopt an infant girl from Ethiopia. There are 4 million children in Ethiopia in need of forever families to love and care for them. If all goes well we should have our little girl by next Fall. The kids are thrilled to be getting a baby sister! Another big change in the Arnold family involves a move. We are very excited to be moving into the farm house that Robb grew up in. We love our home, but we simply have run out of room. The farm house is much bigger and it will be so convenient to live right at the farm. Before we move in we are going to completely remodel the kitchen, which we plan to start after Christmas. We should be moved in by spring planting time. (fingers crossed!) Robb had a very busy year on the farm and we were blessed with good crops. He stays busy with farm work, selling Golden Harvest seed, and being a really fun daddy! He always finds a little time to enjoy hunting. He will also be doing some refereeing for basketball this winter. Robb will put his handiwork to the test this winter with the remodel. With 2 kids in school this year, I do a lot of running. I take the kids to and from school, as I am not yet ready to send them on the bus. :-) I have also been going in during Hunter’s lunch and counting his carbohydrates and doing his insulin pump. It gives me peace of mind to do it myself and I love seeing him midday! I stay busy cooking for the farmers and delivering their meals to the field. I also did a little grain cart driving during harvest this year. The kids and I love helping out where needed. This letter is getting so long….I apologize. For some of you this is the only communication I get with you throughout the whole year. I pray that you are all happy and healthy and enjoying this blessed season where we get to celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior. Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year! Love, Robb, Teresa, Hunter, Brylie, and Gage

Holiday Home Tour

Heidi Jo is hosting a Holiday Home Extravaganza. Here are some pictures of our home decorated for the holidays.

I can hardly wait to get the tree up every year. (this year I didn't do very well, I put it up mid November) :) It is my favorite Christmas decoration. The kids always enjoy helping me decorate it. We have garland, lights, and candles on the entertainment center. Snowmen on top of the gun cabinet. My hutch with Christmas mugs, a gingerbread house, snowmen plates, and a beautiful hand painted Christmas plate I got from my mother-in-law last year. I got this lighted snowman in a barrel at a craft show last year and I absolutely LOVE him! I put him out in November and leave him out until the end of February.

Favorite Photo Friday

Blankie washing days are pretty tough around here!

Adoption Update

We are quickly getting all of our paperwork switched over to Ethiopia. So far it has been very little trouble, just a little extra time. The main paper we are waiting for now is the INS approval for Ethiopia. It took us 2 months to get this document approval for China but we have been assured the new approval should take a lot less time, since we have already been approved once. Our goal is to have everything done and sent to Ethiopia by the end of December. Our hope is to have a referral (be matched to a little girl) by summer and have the court date by September before the Ethiopian courts close for 2 months for 'vacation'. After receiving information about the girl we have been matched with, our agency takes care of getting the birth parent's rights relinquished through the courts. This court date has to take place before we get travel approval. If this is not done before the courts close in Sept. we have to wait until the first of December before they open again, pushing us back quite a bit. We have been praying for our baby so much lately, as we believe she is probably in the womb. I pray for peace for the mother who has to make the decision to give up her child so that she can have a life. I can only imagine how difficult the process is for her. Robb and I are preparing our hearts since we will have the opportunity to meet the birth parents, if they are still alive. This will be very difficult, but so necessary. They are blessing us with a priceless gift that we are forever grateful for. All of this to say that things are moving along, never quick enough for me, but we are making progress.

Let it Snow. Let it Snow. Let it Snow.

We got 6+ inches of white, fluffy snow on Saturday. It was so cold and windy that the kids just watched it from the window until at last, at about 4:00 the snow and wind stopped. I bundled everyone up and they had a blast jumping in the fresh, fallen snow. To kids there is nothin' better than the first good snow of the season.

Hunter was diving head first into the snow and loving every minute of it!

Brylie just ran around the yard laughing and giggling!

Gage spent most of the time in this position. The snow was so deep that his little legs had trouble trudging through it. :)

While the kids were sipping hot chocolate, I had to deal with this mess. Ugh!

New camera frustrations

Well, I got a new camera last week. It is nothing fancy. Our camera died on us and left me with great anxiety. Isn't it true that you find all of these great photo opportunities when you DON'T have a camera? We found a good, not great, camera at T*arget and so far I am happy with everything except getting the pictures onto the computer. I'm thinkin' I might need to read the book. Ugh! It is very similar to our old camera so I thought it would download the same....I was wrong. Oh, in case you are wondering, we got a Canon Powershot A720. It has 8.0 mega pixels and a 6X optical zoom. (whatever all of that means) Anyway, all of this to say that I have some great snow pictures that I was going to share with you, but they are stuck on my camera. :-( Hopefully I'll get them up sometime today. Hope you had a good weekend!