The Smiths' "RAM" Page

Snow!

2012-01-16T11:04:00.000-08:00

This Saturday we decided to go find some snow. We headed up to the mountain and it was dumping snow the whole way. We found a little hill behind an old school house and it was perfect for tubing...for a 4-year-old and 1-year-old. We had a great time playing in the snow, tubing, building a snowman and throwing snowballs. Grady loved the snow and didn't complain at all about the cold (and neither did Kai...who hates the cold like I do:). It was the perfect start to the weekend and on Sunday when we came out of church there was snow on the ground here in Bham. And today we woke up to more snow...yay! This is pretty fun for our family since we haven't seen snow since Arctic Blast '08:)

6 Years

2012-01-08T08:57:00.000-08:00

This weekend we are celebrating six years of marriage. Six years of adventures. Six years of laughter. Six years of tears. Six years love. Six years of God's faithfulness. Six years of joy. I can't imagine a more perfect man for me. Tyson is exactly what I need-- God is so good!

I am so thankful for Tyson, for his strength, joy, love, faithfulness and wisdom. He is an amazing father to our sons, an encouraging husband to me, a loyal friend and above all, he loves the Lord more than anything. I don't have words to express how thankful I am he chose me.

A year ago I posted this. Our 5 year anniversary was spent in a run down hotel, in the jungle with a newborn screaming from the heat, our house flooded with sewer water, all of our luggage lost. Tyson was cleaning out the house everyday only to come back to the hotel to shower and put on the same gross clothes he had just been wearing. It. was. miserable. But he did it. He worked hard. He cleaned up all our stuff. He found us a new home. Through it all he looked to the Lord for strength to carry our family through. That is what makes him so strong!

Thank you Tyson for the last six amazing years....I look forward what the rest of our lives bring!

Winning

2012-01-03T18:14:00.000-08:00

I mentioned before about Kai's competitive nature lately. Here is a funny example:

Scene: Pulling up to the house from church.

Me: "Daddy beat us home...grrr."

Kai: "Mom, you have you be thankful."

Me: "Huh?" (I mean, this has been a theme we have been talking about a lot...but, huh?)

Kai: "You have to be thankful for what you have. I'm thankful for my toys, the sun, and that I win all the time."

Me: "Yes, its true, we should be thankful."

(We are at the door now and Kai has brought his nerf gun from the car)

Kai: "But I'm still going to shoot Daddy for beating us."

Kai

2011-12-31T16:14:00.000-08:00

Kai. Where do I start. This year we have watched you become a big brother, leave a country that had become your home, begin life again in the U.S, move yet again, start a new school, begin to learn to read...and a billion other things. And you have done amazing. You are amaze me, son. You make us laugh. All. The. Time. You say the funniest things (that I am committed to write down more). You are this perfect mix of sword-fighting, ball-throwing, crazy energetic boy with this touch of sweet, sensitive, thoughtfulness.

You love to sing. Always have. But not just any songs. You make up songs constantly. And almost always, they are filled with the name of Jesus. There is nothing sweeter. You sing out these songs filled with truths that amaze me. It makes my heart want to burst. In the best possible way.

You are such a good big brother. You love, you adore your little brother. When he started walking, you were so amazed. You kept saying, in a voice filled with awe "I can't believe Grady is walking." Just as amazed as we were that our baby was so big now. You are learning patience as Grady has become mobile and interested in your toys. You use your words and say things like, "Grady, you are frustrating me," when he wrecks your train tracks. Or you quickly find a different toy to give him when he wants yours. Your new favorite game is throwing a toy across the room and then racing Grady for it...you usually win because you trip him. Most of the time you are gentle, but sometimes you forget...we are working on it:)

You are very competitive lately. The other day you were in tears because "Grady beat you" during lunch. Apparently he ate faster then you (not that hard)...who knew every meal would be a competition!

Right now you love: school, friends, swords, pirates, StarWars (even though you have never seen it...it must be a 4-year-old boy thing), Legos, trains, your little brother, your Daddy and your Mama.

A few of my favorite things you say right now:

"Can I may have...."

"I would appreciate it if..."

"Mom, can you help me ___, I just thought you needed another job."

Oh, so many others I can't think of right now...but I am going to write them down more!

Below are a few pictures of your little (HUGE) personality:)

Carrying it "like the African women."

Grady

2011-12-31T15:24:00.000-08:00

Grady Grader-pants. This year has been a year of watching you grow from infant to little person, full of life. You are an absolute joy to us.

You started walking around 10 months. You are now really fast and have us all chasing you around. You are trying to talk (Dada, Mama, Bubba (Kai), and a few others on occasion). You love to make us laugh and it melts my heart. You are silly. You love any piece of clothing you can get your hands on...you put it on your head and walk around like that as long as I'll let you. I cannot fold laundry with you around! You love playing swords with your big brother and love putting hats on and taking them off again. Yet, you refuse to wear hats outside to keep you warm (or socks).

You are a wiggle worm! I thought when you were born maybe you would be my snuggler. I was wrong. Right now all you want is freedom to explore. I'm okay with that...sometimes you lay your head on my shoulder for 3.5 seconds. I treasure those seconds:) You are curious and focused. Boy, are you focused. Once you set your mind to something it is almost impossible to distract you from it. Stubborn, and focused. It is a challenge but I know the Lord can use those qualities in your life. You are also an observer. When in a new setting or large group, you sit back for a bit to take it all in before jumping in.

Also, since I don't keep a baby book (poor 2nd child), I should include some stats from your 1 year check-up.

Weight: 20 lbs

Height: (have to look up...ha)

yeah, these will have to be updated when I find the paper:)

Right now you love: Balls, cars, food, your big brother, your Daddy(!) and your Mama:)

Pictures below show you and all your little expressions. You make us smile!

Pouty (or contemplative) face

Smiley face

Blank stare face (the is the face he usually does when "observing")

Giggle face

Sweet, twinkle-in-the-eye face

Heck yes (celebration) face

Sad face

Chewy face (this kid is still putting everything in his mouth)

Yelling face (he knows how to get our attention)

Scrunchy, snorty face

Love every one of them:)

Christmas morning

2011-12-28T22:01:00.000-08:00

This year we had Christmas morning at our house as a family of four. It was fun and simple and special. Here are a few highlights.

Stockings (I sewed their stockings this year...that was fun!)

One of my favorite parts of Christmas was Kai getting to give gifts to Daddy and Grady. He was so sweet and had definite ideas. When I asked him what he wanted to get Daddy he said (right away):

"I think we should get him one of those horns on deer, that fall off when they die. Then he can hang them in his office."

So we didn't end up getting Daddy antlers. But, Kai and Grady did get Daddy a new coffee cup....but we wrapped it in a giant box to be tricky:)

Kai, also right away, wanted to get Grady a book. So sweet.

And Grady got Kai a little Matchbox airplane...I love how excited Kai was:)

Kai was excited for legos:)

And Grady finally got his baby blanket (only a year late...made quickly Christmas Eve eve).

The boys other gift was a box of dress up stuff.

Super hero masks made by Mom and Dad

Sword, shield, and armor

And pirate stuff...of course!

And Grady with his firemen's hat...which he loves to put on and quickly take off over and over again.

Special memories with our family:)

Projects

2011-12-26T15:04:00.000-08:00

One of my highlights this Christmas was being able to make some of the presents for our loved ones. Please note that none of these are my original ideas (thank you Pinterest!)...I take no credit for the creativity:)

For our little niece we made a picture puzzle so she could see her loved ones faces in a fun, toddler-friendly way. I found a puzzle at a second hand kids' store and mod-podged cute paper on the front and pictures under the pieces. I left the shapes original because I'm just not that good...too much precision to cover those:)

before

after

Grandparents received photo coasters. I found tiles for $.10 each at The Re-Store and printed photos on regular paper, mod-podged, clear-coat, and felt on the bottom. A way to protect your table and show off your grandkids...every grandparents dream.

This is a terrible picture...but a cute project. Sisters received necklace holders this year. Vintage knobs on a strip of wood...I love how they turned out and I love that this was a totally joint effort. I provided the idea and supplies and Tys took care of the construction:)

Candy Trains

2011-12-23T19:10:00.000-08:00

I remembering doing candy trains one Christmas when I was little and thought this was the perfect year to do one with Kai. He is pretty into trains right now AND it didn't require the construction skills a gingerbread house might...yes, please! Activities are always more fun with friends so we invited our neighbors over. Craftiness with candy...it was a hit:)

Jesse Tree Advent

2011-12-20T16:19:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite things we did this year was the Jesse Tree Advent. This will for sure happen every year although I will try to find a more age appropriate devotional. Kai loved reading the verses and putting an ornament on the tree each night. There are many variations of trees/ornaments...but I didn't have a lot of time (i.e. I put this together the night before) so I found these easy (yet not too cheesy) print outs (aholyexperience.com) and glued them on cardstock. It was a perfect way to stay focused on the Son this Christmas season!

Bathtime!

2011-12-14T19:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas Tree

2011-12-07T16:24:00.000-08:00

This year we went to get our tree with the Mauss family...perhaps the beginning of a new tradition (Tradition!)

Here is the hunt...

The celebration at the find

And the cutting

And we even decorated it the same day...

Happy Birthday Grady!

2011-12-05T17:33:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful time celebrating Grady's first birthday. I can't believe my baby is one! Here are some pictures of the day:)

Thanksgiving

2011-12-02T15:53:00.000-08:00

We spent Thanksgiving down in Sequim at Tyson's uncle's. It was a great time as always. Tons of food, lots of movie watching, and the best...catching up with family.

The crowd gathering around the turkey to get a taste. I have found this is the Smith/McKellar way...always, always they are sneaking bites:) Love it!

Lots of chasing this little one up the stairs...

A lot of pirating (?) with Auntie T

Cousins!

Family visit

2011-12-02T15:49:00.000-08:00

Vicky, Marc and Jaylee came to visit us for a few days before Thanksgiving. It was so wonderful to see them and we LOVED our time! Hung out, played games, showed them a bit of Bham...it was great! I was bad about taking pictures but here are a couple of Kai getting to do a project with Auntie Vicky. She's a teacher so of course she brought a craft to do...love it!

Let's face it....

2011-12-01T16:45:00.000-08:00

I am not going to catch up on my blogging. I keep putting off adding new until I catch up on the old...because I am kind of like that. But, not going to happen. We have had so many changes in our family since September...so here is a quick overview:)

Labor Day weekend we had a visit from our Callie girl....so wonderful to see her and enjoy

Rodeo weekend in Ellensburg with her:)

Enjoyed some end

of the summer activities...like swimming and fishing with Boppa:)

WE MOVED! to Bellingham where we get to enjoy views like this

And my little super hero gets to play on a porch like this (more on our new home later).

Kai started preschool (below) and loves going to church to learn and play with his friends.

My baby boy turned 10 months, then 11 months and then ONE YEAR (and started waking and talking...more later).

Preschool

2011-12-01T16:31:00.000-08:00

Kai started preschool after we moved to Bellingham. We feel blessed that we found one with an opening that we love! It is a Christian school that also has preschool so he gets the benefits of a school like a library and gym. He loves it...can you see the excitement on his face his first day?

It has been fun for me to go on field trips with his class too. Here is his class at the apple farm/pumpkin patch.

And here he is with some of his friends enjoying the Marine Life Center...touching sea creatures...so much fun for little boys! Did I mention his class has 10 boys and only 2 girls:)

His school had a Fun Run where they raised money for different activities. I thought it would be more of a fun walk...but no, Kai ran the whole time...8 laps. I was so proud of him!

We are happy with our decision to send him to preschool...he loves it!

Grady is 9 months

2011-09-06T13:42:00.000-07:00

Grady, you are 9 months old and all over the place. Crawling so fast everywhere! You are starting to stand on your own but when you want to get somewhere you crawl...because that is how to get there fast:) You also started waving a couple days ago. You are such a joy buddy and we love you!

Kai's Lip

2011-09-06T10:13:00.000-07:00

Kai's lip....long story, but not one I wanted to forget. It was kind of a big deal for this little 4-year-old. In February (while still living in Peru), Kai came home from school with a little bump on this lip. At first I just thought it was a bug bite (because those are common there), but it never went away. And, eventually it got bigger and vascular. After going to the doctor a couple times (in Peru and the States) and being told it was nothing to worry about and would go away on its own...it started bleeding.

We went to the doctor again and got a referral to a dermatologist but it started bleeding again and wasn't stopping very easy. At that point the doctor told us the best thing to do was to take him to the emergency room at Seattle Children's Hospital. We left right away and headed over to Seattle. Can I just say...best move ever. Seattle Children's was awesome. It was a long, long day. But they were awesome. Because we had been in Peru, they brought in an Infectious Disease Team. It was sort of freaky, but they thought it might be a parasite from a sand fly. If this was the case it was very serious and would involve a lengthy, in depth treatment. They wanted to do a biopsy and asked if we thought Kai would stay still for it. At this point he was basically flailing around in the hospital bed because he hadn't eaten or slept all day. Let's just say, I was skeptical. Tyson on the other hand didn't hesitate in his answ

er. Absolutely. He could do it. So, we came back the next day, preparing Kai the whole way...YOU HAVE TO STAY STILL! They put a little numbing medicine on before hand so he wouldn't feel the shots and then they needed to shave off the lesion. Here he is after the numbing medicine and before the procedure..all smiles.

Grady and I headed to the hall so that we wouldn't be a distraction for Kai or the doctors....we ate lots of Cherrios to stay quiet:)

The doctors came out a few minutes later and said "your son is a rockstar". We have adults that move more and make more of a fuss. I was so proud of him. Daddy was in there with him and was incredibly proud as well. He was numb but good and we left to wait for the results of the biopsy.

Less than a week later it began to grow back. Even bigger. We got the initial results back and the diagnosis was pyogenic granuloma...basically excessive healing tissue.

In the end we scheduled surgery with a plastic surgeon to remove the growth. This time he would have to be put under and they would have to go much deeper to get all of it. Here is Kai saying goodbye to his granuloma....he named it Joshua 1:9. Maybe because he knew he needed to be strong and courageous. I have no idea what made him come up with that name...but it was adorable.

And here he is after the surgery. He did great and was very brave. Love this kid. And love those doctors. It is no fun to have a kid in need of a hospital. And I can't even imagine being there for some of the serious things so many of those kiddos were there for. But we are thankful for Seattle Children's and the staff. We are especially thankful for the Lord and his timing and his hand on this whole situation. Kai's insurance began the day we had to take him to the emergency room. Don't know what we would have done had this happened a couple months earlier. Praise the Lord for his provision! And thank you Lord for our sweet boy Kai. He constantly amazes me and makes me such a proud mama.

Black Butte

2011-08-15T10:20:00.000-07:00

We spent a few days in Black Butte with family and friends. Tyson's family vacationed when they were kids with three other families. The families are still close and have restarted the tradition with kids having their own kids now. We weren't able to be there the whole week but they days we were there were awesome. Kai loved playing with his friends Ava and Seth who are also 4 and Grady met a couple sweet baby girls his age. We spent time biking, golfing, bocce balling, swimming, eating together and hanging out. It was perfect:)

Grady is 8 months

2011-08-04T20:46:00.000-07:00

You are eight months old buddy! You continue to grow and change. This month you are moving all over the place. I have stopped trying to keep you off the tile...you are just too quick and too curious. Your knees are getting tough and so it your head, but nothing can stop you. One of your favorite things is balls (especially the one in the pictures below). You love holding them, rolling them, and chasing them! You also love Cherrios. You are eating a few different finger foods now but Cherrios are the go to food. Food is only thing that keeps you still and quiet. Speaking of quiet...you are NOT that. This month you are really, really loud. You scream a lot. Sometimes you are just happy, sometimes (often) you want more food, all sorts of things...but all very loud and very similar screams. Happy or sad, you have no problem expressing yourself:) A couple weeks ago you got one top tooth...so far, no sign of the other. You also have a great tan happening. I promise, no baby spray tan here, and we aren't even in the sun that much, but you are a tan little baby. And getting taller all the time! Grady, I love your squeals, giggles and yes, even the screams. You have a smile that melts our hearts and your sweet little personality brings us so much joy! We love you sweet boy!

Boating

2011-07-31T21:08:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we spent a few sweet days on this:

Scooting around like so

Finding island adventures

Putting our feet in the water

Dreaming of freedom

Watching the wildlife...geese, bald eagles, sea lions, (and shrimp, crabs and orcas that deserve posts of their own:)

This guy ate A LOT, A LOT of cherrios...the only thing that keeps him still and quiet

We saw sunsets like this

And woke up to this

It was wonderful, amazing, perfect.

Orcas!

2011-07-31T19:42:00.000-07:00

See this face. This is the face of a little boy rejoicing. This is the face of a little boy whose prayers were answered. His sweet, childlike prayers. Prayers to see orcas. That's right. He has been obsessed with orcas for the last couple months. Asking us every time we are in Seattle where the orcas are. So this boat trip, this was the time, if any, to see some. He prayed. I prayed. And the very first day we saw them. And he was so happy, and excited. Thank you Lord for teaching him you hear our prayers.

Crabs

2011-07-31T19:35:00.000-07:00

Crabbing is one of my favorite things about boating. One of them. We caught a lot, and ate a lot. Kai loved it. He would poke them while in the bucket and says things like "Do you want me to eat you?", in a high pitched baby voice. It was hilarious. And he loved it. Crabbing is lots of fun. And delicious.

Shrimp

2011-07-31T18:55:00.000-07:00

We met up with Tyson's parents in Friday Harbor so we were there for the first night. At night when you look in the water with a light the little shrimpies swim to the top. And if you have a net, you can catch them pretty easy. Kai had a great time catching shrimp all night, and he was pretty cute doing it.

My Boys

2011-07-31T18:45:00.000-07:00

Standing

2011-07-10T23:36:00.000-07:00

He very quickly went from this...

To this.

Doesn't he look a little tiny to be doing this. He is. And he shouldn't. I wish this picture was a one time thing, but he is constantly doing this, and lots of bonks on the head are happening around here. Sweet, stubborn boy. Can't you stay my baby a little longer?

4th of July weekend with friends

2011-07-07T10:15:00.000-07:00

We had a great time 4th of July weekend with our friends Levi and Stephanie and their girls. We went up to their cabin for a night and had fun swimming in the community pool. We had s'mores and finished off our time with a movie...Cars 2. The next day was 4th of July and we went over to their house for a BBQ, fireworks and more s'mores:) It was a wonderful weekend with friends who we are so thankful for! Thanks Teasleys!

Independent

2011-07-06T19:26:00.000-07:00

Grady has not wanted to take a bottle but now he finally is! But, he has to do it himself:)

Grady is 7 Months

2011-07-04T23:25:00.000-07:00

Grady you are 7 months old and your personality is coming out! You are a bit impatient, focused on what you want, very persistent, constantly moving and always have a smile for anyone who gives you a bit of attention. I saw your first fit when I didn't shovel food into your mouth fast enough:) I see your focus and persistence now that you are mobile...I can direct you other ways over and over, but you do not forget what you were wanting to get at. You catch my eye across the room and give the biggest, sweetest smile. You adore your brother, and he adores you. He is in your face and it would drive me crazy, but you are all smiles and giggles when it comes to Kai. I love you sweet boy (and feel free to stop moving so much. At. Any. Time.)

Who's that baby in the mirror??

2011-07-01T21:07:00.000-07:00

Chowing down

2011-07-01T20:46:00.000-07:00

Crawling

2011-07-01T09:12:00.000-07:00

I thought for sure I could keep him immobile. I was sure if I didn't encourage or teach him, he would stay still longer than Kai did. I was wrong. Dead. Wrong. He is not yet 7 months and he is crawling. Like really crawling. Fast. Curious. In. To. Everything. Crawling. I should be happy, right? Proud? I am. A little. But mostly, I'm tired. Way to go kid:)

Two Wheeling

2011-06-26T15:11:00.000-07:00

Papa had given us money to get a bike. We finally found time to go as a family and get one. Tyson was in the house grabbing a belt before teaching Kai to ride. I watched as Kai got on the bike and began fiddling with the pedals. I figured he was just playing, but all the sudden he took off and was riding all on his own! I yelled to Tyson and we cheered for Kai. It happened so fast I didn't even get his helmet on him! I do have to say he had a bike with training wheels in Puerto so he got used to that. Then when we were down in Oregon he used our friends' Strider bike that has no pedals and teaches them to balance. I think the two were a great combo! Now he is bike riding all the time and love it! Thanks Papa for the bike!

Roomie Reunion!

2011-06-25T22:29:00.000-07:00

Right after our week full of family we had a week full of friends. I lived with Erin, Jeannie and Miriam for a year 8 years ago and they are still my dearest friends. We have been in each others weddings, stayed in touch while spread out across the country...and countries and I am blessed so much by each of these ladies. We had not all been together in three years so we planned a roomie reunion while Mir was on the West Coast. Erin opened her home and we all (by all, I mean husbands and kids as well) stayed at her house. It was lots of people and lots of fun! It was so fun to meet Miriam's daughter Mabel and get to see how much Erin's daughter, Hazel has grown since I saw her a year ago. We had a Father's Day BBQ, went to the beach, chased after and dogs, ate lots of food, had good talks, a few tears and lots of laughs. I can't describe how special this time was. Thank you ladies, I love you all dearly!

FAMILY!

2011-06-17T21:46:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful week full of family! Troy and Kari came to visit and we got to meet little Alaina. Alaina and Grady are only a few weeks apart and it is going to be so fun to see these cousins grow up:) She is adorable! While they were here Uncle Kent and Aunt Peggy came with their grandson, Kaden. So, more cousin fun! It was a great week and Kai, especially, loved having cousins. He absolutely adores his cousin Alaina! Thank you all for such a precious time!

Fishing

2011-06-12T09:09:00.000-07:00

There was free fishing weekend in Washington (no license required) and also a fishing derby. Daddy took Kai fishing the day before in a boat and they caught some fish. The next day Pa and I took Kai to the same lake for the fishing derby and we struck out. Not even a bite. Oh well, we had a great time and by the end of the morning Kai was casting all by himself!

There were also some great climbing trees and we took advantage. Yes, we. I loved climbing as a kid and apparently still do. It was fun to pass that on to Kai:)

Grady is 6 months old!

2011-06-03T16:02:00.000-07:00

My sweet Grady Zane. You are six months old and you are growing and changing so fast. This month has brought lots of changes for us coming home to the States. You have adjusted to cold weather, car seats a new home and met lots of family. We have been all over Washington, down to Oregon and flown to California. It has been a crazy, wonderful month. You are rolling all over the place and are able to direct yourself to get across the room to exactly where you want to be. You are sitting up pretty well now...but I still put a few pillows behind you:) You also got your first two teeth this month and began eating solids the day before you turned 6 months. I lost most of our photos from this month so no great shots but here are a few of what you've been up to...

You and brother in car seats when we got picked up from the airport. There were lots of tears from both of you, but after a month you are doing much better:)

We went to see Boppa2 (your great-grandma) after we got off the airplane too

Playing with your big brother...

We love you sweet boy!

First Food

2011-06-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

Well, I had been putting off giving Grady solids...mostly because it is way more work for me:) But, he was for sure ready...and since he is turning 6 months old tomorrow, I figured it was time to give it a try. He loved it and had no problem figuring it out! Good job buddy!

Determination

2011-06-01T21:59:00.000-07:00

I was so proud as I watched Kai at the park. He was trying so hard to do the monkey bars. He would go about two bars, fall and climb back up and do it again. He worked at it for a long time. I LOVE seeing his determination.

Family Time

2011-06-01T16:32:00.000-07:00

At the end of May we were so excited to get to visit my family in California. Tyson wasn't able to go but the boys and I were able to spend a few days with my parents and then went down to Chico to spend a few days with my sister. It was precious time as my family was able to be together, meet Grady and make up for lost time with Kai!

Kai and Papa working in the yard

Grady getting snuggles from Grandma

Uncle Marc kept Kai busy in the yard too

The boys with Auntie Vicky

Grady with Cousin Jaylee.

Can I just say, I love this girl and feel like she was Grady's size not so very long ago. She is smart, beautiful, sweet and talented and I am a proud Aunt!

Love you guys, thank you for a wonderful week!

Climate Change

2011-05-08T16:13:00.000-07:00

We have undergone quite the change in climate in the last week. Here is a picture of Grady one week ago in Puerto....in an air conditioned hotel room. Can anyone say sweaty boy?

And yesterday out on a walk here in Washington...all bundled up!

Grady is 5 Months

2011-05-04T22:53:00.000-07:00

Oh sweet Grady boy. This month has been crazy but you have taken it in stride. You are all smiles and don't know a stranger. You turned 5 months the same day we got on a plane to leave Peru. Mommy has lots to process with that but hasn't had time yet. You won't remember our life there, but is where you were born and your brother and Daddy and I will always share our stories with you, so you will know and remember how faithful and gracious our Lord was to us during our time in Peru. Grady you melt my heart. Kai sometimes calls you Grady Charmer. I don't know where he came up with it but it fits. Everyone that sees you and your sweet smile falls in love with you. I love you sweet boy. Here are a few pictures that don't capture you very well...but they do capture what you are up to:)

Smiling...most of the time.

Fingers in the mouth. All. The. Time. With lots and lots of drool. No teeth yet, but they must be coming.

You are trying to sit up.

But we're still working on it:)

2011-05-01T16:01:00.000-07:00

Being a Mommy in Peru….

2011-04-21T23:10:00.000-07:00

So many things about having a baby here that are different …I just don’t want to forget...

about constantly having my baby on me…I don’t have to think about what I wear (not that I ever did) because I am always wearing Grady. And he's cute. Oh, did I mention the heat…right, I thought I was hot before. Every time I take him off of me the front of my shirt is soaked through with my/his sweat and drool.

that fact that Grady has never been in a car seat…and that whole wearing him all the time thing is the best safety device I’ve got.

how Grady loves the sound of the motorcar and is instantly content or asleep as soon as Tyson starts it up. The other day I made motorcycle sounds (and being a girl, very poor ones), instead of sweet hushes…this worked way better to calm him.

how it takes FOREVER to get an errand done because EVERYONE stops to kiss/squeeze/google over the little white baby with blue eyes.

how I get stared at for covering up when feeding him. And how women and children sometimes lift that cover to see what’s happening underneath.

how if he makes a peep in church I have ladies telling me to feed him…because obviously any little peep means he’s about to die of hunger.

the advice, oh the advice. Cover his head or he will get diarrhea. DO NOT sleep with a fan in the room. He should never, ever have bare feet (even in 90 degree weather) because that is how sickness enters. I almost never put socks on him, and I get lectures All. The. Time. From Strangers. Did I mention most women ride on the back of motorcycles holding (often breastfeeding) their infants…but I am putting my child in major danger by putting socks on him:)

Kai Says...

2011-04-21T22:53:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things Kai says to Grady when he says goodbye… “Take care of yourself, Grady.”

Kai in the bath tonight: "My butt is talking and it’s saying it needs to go on the toilet!"

Scene: Kai playing on the hard (lets face it--really dirty) tile floor.
Tyson: Kai, you are going to love playing on carpet in the States!
Kai: I’m a big boy, I don’t need carpit.
Tyson: Kai, do you know what carpet is?
Kai: Yes, a car-pit is the seat in the car that you are stuck in.
Tyson: No, that is a car seat.
The fact that our son doesn’t know what carpet is or what car seats are called is a good reminder of how much there will be to get used to in the States.

Grady's Checkup

2011-04-15T07:37:00.000-07:00

We had Grady’s 4 month checkup and immunizations today. We are a couple weeks late due to the fact that we have all been sick the last week and a half. Grady had bronchitis and a throat infection. Both led to him to not wanting to eat very much. I'm thinking this is the reason for his lack of weight gain. They were also concerned about his belly button. He has an outie (well, a halfie) and they suggested I put a piece of tape over it and pull the skin around it together--kind of like if you were to do a "butterfly bandage". I am never sure of what to think here. I don't know if it is an actual medical concern or just custom. They also said I should be feeding him "cada rato". Basically women here are breast feeding all the time. Every time the baby makes a noise they put them to the breast. They said this would help with his weight gain and with my milk supply. However, when I feed him off of our routine he eats for only a little, then falls asleep and doesn't eat that much the next. Basically he never gets full feedings...only enough to satisfy or put him to sleep. So, in my mind, he is not eating as much or getting as good of milk and my body's production is lower because it thinks he only wants a little. I think what I am doing is right but sometimes you begin to question yourself when everyone around you is telling you different. Anyway, needless to say I look forward to taking both of the boys to a pediatrician when we get back to the States:)

Grady's stats:
Weight-- 13lbs 11oz -- 18%
Length-- 24 1/2 " -- 28%

Mommy holding Kai when he was a baby...

2011-04-14T07:31:00.000-07:00

He insisted I take a picture of his "letters" too:)

Kai's 4th Birthday

2011-04-03T19:10:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Kai's 4th birthday Saturday. His requests were a Toy Story party and chocolate cake. He had been anticipating this birthday...since February, so we wanted to make it special. We had a fun party with friends from the church and his school. Tyson barbequed hamburgers for everyone and they were delish. I made a homemade chocolate cake, Tyson sketched the Toy Story logo on it and I filled it in...a great team effort:) We played a few games, including Pin the Tail on Bullseye, and of course, the piñata. It was a fun day, nothing over the top, but Kai had a really fun time and felt loved and special. He was ecstatic with his one gift and the Woody doll from his piñata. We are thankful for our team, friends and brothers and sisters in the church who have loved Kai and invested in him. It was a blessing to celebrate his birthday with them!

Grady is 4 months old

2011-04-03T08:45:00.000-07:00

Our little Graders. You are 4 months old today and you are:

rolling over from stomach to back

waking yourself up (and me) by rolling over and not being able to go back to sleep on your back

still not sleeping through the night (anytime buddy, hint, hint)

noticing your hands

grabbing anything within reach

putting that anything (and everything) in your mouth

drooling like crazy

sweating like crazy

smiling and cooing all the time

bringing all of us lots of happiness

You are sick today (hence the serious face in the pictures) but even when I was putting homemade saline drops in your nose, you still gave me sweets smiles and noises. It wasn't until the suction bulb came out that you started screaming. Have I mentioned you have quite the scream? You do. It can come on quickly and unexpectedly and it sort of sounds like the world ending. But, it can go away just as quickly. I have also found that the concept of crying yourselft to sleep is totally lost on you once you start that "the world is ending" cry. Thankfully your smiles out weigh the tears most days:) We love you Grady!

4 years. 4 months.

2011-04-03T07:59:00.000-07:00

4

2011-04-02T19:08:00.000-07:00

Today you are 4 and I am praising the Lord for the last 4 years and all the ways you have made me smile, cry, laugh, pull my hair out, grow, learn, pray, love...I am blessed to be your mommy! You are smart, funny, creative, loving, tough, sensitive, honest, thoughtful, adventurous and amazing. You make me proud. You are a sweet son, a caring big brother and a generous friend. I love you, Kai. Happy Birthday.

First Day of School

2011-03-07T08:14:00.001-08:00

Kai had his first day of school today. He was 50/50 on wanting to go. We have been talking about it a lot this last week and he would sometimes say he wanted to go, and other times say he didn't. In the end he cried but did fine after a bit. I couldn't go because Grady had a doctor appointment. But, Tyson took him and sat in his class for a while to help him get used to it. What is great is that he is at the same school as last year and his teacher moved up with the class. It makes a huge difference that he knows the school, the staff, his teacher and the other kids in the class. When we picked him up today he was happy and had fun and told me he wanted to go back tomorrow. So, all in all, a great first day of school!

Check Up

2011-03-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

Grady has his 3 month check up this morning. And, since he has no baby book I am recording the stats here:)

Weight: 13 lbs (40%)
Length: 23 1/2 inches (34%)

Healthy. Happy. Adorable.

Grady is 3 Months Old!

2011-03-06T13:32:00.000-08:00

Sweet Grady Zane. You turned 3 months old this past week. You are growing so fast and are such a happy baby. If you are ever fussy it is almost always for a reason…the main one being that you want attention. You could be fussy but then as soon as one of us walks over and looks down at you, you give a giant smile. And with that I am happy to stay and stop what I am doing to be with you. You are talking/cooing/singing/gurgling so much now and I love hearing your sweet little voice. You melt my heart sweet boy!

You are also entertained by the little lion Kai got you for Christmas…for a while there you were as happy with him as you were with me…but now are beginning to prefer actual people:)

What else? You eat (what seems to be) all the time but are sleeping well too. You will, however, only sleep on your stomach (and I have given in … its the least dangerous thing we do in a day here), or attached to Mommy bouncing around like crazy in a moto…or while eating:)

You adore your big brother and he adores you. At this point I see that most of the time he doesn’t stay still long enough for you to actually focus on him. So, you are mostly seeing flashes and blurs of him coming in and out of your sight, giving your kisses and hugs or staring you in the eyes ½ inch from your face before running off again. You handle it all well:) And, when he does slow down enough you give him big smiles and laughs. Today I watched him sing to you and talk to you softly (for him) for a whole 5 minutes. You were crying and his singing made you stop. It was very sweet. I know he can’t wait for you to be bigger so there will be two flashes and blurs running around!

You make lots of different faces and we love them all!

From the mouths of babes...

2011-02-26T07:25:00.001-08:00

Kai to his baby brother this morning: (intense with his hands on Grady's cheeks the whole time)

"Grady, you have to don’t run away from God. And you run away from God, just go back to God. Okay Grady? Understand? You have to be with God, little Grady! And you want to be with Jesus, you always be with him all the time. Understand? God’s in our hearts. Every time you want to be with him, Jesus will be in your heart, anytime you want. Understand? Every time Jesus wants to be with you! Understand? God wants to be with you in our hearts. I know you can do this Grady, you have to be with God, don’t run away from God! Understand?"

2011-02-22T18:46:00.000-08:00

Sweet Smiles...

2011-02-21T19:36:00.000-08:00

I have had the hardest time capturing one of Grady's smiles on camera. He is smiling so much now and is such a happy baby...however, when I take a picture it doesn't do it justice. This kid just melts my heart! Here are a few...

"Mom, your hilarious" face.

Silly face:)

This one is my favorite and is the closest to the real thing I could get:)

Quote, Unquote

2011-02-07T19:38:00.000-08:00

At the market Kai was enthralled at watching the butcher chop into the skull of a cow head...this rather disgusting site was made considerably more innocent when Kai began singing Old McDonald Had a Cow, Eeay eeay O.

Callie and I were talking about how Elisa says she sees heaven when she looks in Grady’s eyes (they are not used to blue eyes here). I look over and Kai is squatted down looking at Grady really hard. I asked him what he was doing and he looked up and said “I don’t see any heaven in there.”

During church service Kai was coloring in the back with some of the kids. He came and showed us his picture which he had colored really well and he had written his name on the top and bottom. The bottom one was really neat and so we asked him if he had done it himself or if Pastora had written it. He said “She didn’t write it, what, are you crazy? I wrote it.”

Tonight driving home Kai fell out of the motorcar. That’s right. Fell out. We have construction all over where we live and had to take a terrible route to get to the house. We were going over a bump and jolted the taxi pretty hard. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Kai get jerked out of this seat and out of the moto. He fell onto his back (thankfully missed his head) and flipped backwards into a ditch. My heart dropped and I started to get out to grab him but realized I had Grady in my arms. Tyson jumped off the moto, picked him up, asked him if he was okay and told him to run across the street to the house. He ran across the street and waited on the sidewalk for us. We parked and he looked at us and said “Now I have to take a shower.” So, praise the Lord he was just dirty and not hurt at all! He said he wasn’t scared and Tyson said it was scary for us. Kai replied “Well, it was scary for you but it wasn’t scary for me.” Putting him to bed tonight he said “I am not glad that I fell in that mud tonight.” I told him I wasn’t glad either, but I was glad he didn’t get hurt. “Yeah”, he said “that was so not stinking awesome!” I am pretty sure I would have freaked out if that happened to me…I am thankful for such a take it in stride kid!

Grady is 2 months old!

2011-02-04T21:41:00.000-08:00

Hey little buddy. I can’t believe you are two months old. Time is flying and you are getting so big. You love to eat and sleep and your size shows it. The ladies here in Peru tell me you are “grandote”. We took you to the doctor today and these were the results:
Weight- 11 lbs 13oz, 50%
Length- 23 inches, 40%
So, you may be big to the ladies here in Peru, but in the States you would be pretty normal:)

You are getting your own little personality now. You have been smiling for a while, but now we get to see them more often. I also notice that you smile with your eyes like your Daddy. So, sometimes you may not be smiling with your mouth but I see that little sparkle in your eye. I love it and wish I knew what you were thinking:) You have beautiful blue eyes that are getting bluer every day. I love your hair. It is a golden brown color but must have a red tint to it because it always looks red in pictures. My favorite is when it is wet or sweaty because you get these great little curls. You are beginning to coo and talk more now, although all and all you are still pretty quiet. Unless you are hungry, or tired or in need of a diaper change, that is. Then we all hear plenty from you! There’s no messing around with you, when it’s time to eat, it’s time to eat! You love your big brother and put up with him smothering you and kissing you and poking you constantly. I would not describe you as a fragile infant anymore so I am a little less protective now…you are holding your own pretty well. Grady, you are so strong! You hold your head up so well and love being on your belly. You scoot around a lot on your belly too, constantly moving your legs. You always want to be standing. When you are in the front pack and I am sitting you always stand on my legs so your head bobs up and down. You love riding in the mototaxi, as soon as it starts up you are quiet and looking around or asleep right away. It is quite a bumpy ride, but you don’t seem to mind a bit! You are sleeping at night about 7 or 8 hours straight which I am happy about. You are still eating every 3 hours during the day. People love to check you out wherever we go. You are always getting strangers kissing you or wanting to hold you and giving Mommy advice on how to care for you (blog post coming soon). Our team loves you and there is always someone to hold you when they are around:)

There's that look...seriously, what are you thinking?

You have brought us so much joy in just these two short months. We love you so much Grady Zane!

My boys...

2011-02-02T14:33:00.000-08:00

love them!

Bathtime!

2011-01-31T06:15:00.000-08:00

I realized I had yet to take a picture of bathtime. That is probably due to the fact that until last week he had not really had a normal bath. Due to us not being settled, we did not have a baby bath yet...were mostly doing sponge baths or in the shower or really awkward (slippery!) sink bathes. Here is a picture of our little chunk in the bath last night.

And all bundled up afterwards! I love he way his hair gets curls when it is wet (or sweaty). His hair always looks super red in pictures but in real life it is more of a golden color.

A few pics...

2011-01-28T05:54:00.000-08:00

I'm still trying to catch a smile...

He gets real serious when the camera comes out

Do I need to say what he is doing here?

Kai was very excited to help give Grady his first bottle...and I was very excited he took it no problem:)

Kai says...

2011-01-20T12:47:00.000-08:00

Some cute things about his little brother...below are a few quotes.

"Grady is soooo cute, he is the best baby in the world."

"Grady is crying because he is afraid of monsters. Don't cry Grady, there's no monsters."

"Grady says he wants to sleep with me."

"Grady is crying because he wants a piece of chocolate...chocolate temptation."

"Stop faking it, Grady."

"Baby. Grady. Zane."

"Poor Baby Grady. Grady is a poor baby. They chopped your wee wee." (when Kai was watching me change Grady's diaper after his circumcision.)

There are lots more but these a few off the top of my head:)

6 weeks

2011-01-14T12:51:00.000-08:00

One Month

2011-01-04T13:07:00.000-08:00

Grady turned one month old yesterday...boy does time fly! This last month has been an amazing one. Adding another boy to our family has truly been a joy and while I could use a little more sleep, this boy is definately a keeper:) Although Grady is still pretty laid back, he is getting more demanding and knows what he wants...like, he wants to be held in order to sleep. I have learned, however, that he instantly goes to sleep if put on his stomach. I know this is a no no in the "how to put your baby to sleep" book, so we will see what we do with that bit of info. He is eating and sleeping pretty much on a 3 hour schedule right now and is growing like crazy. I have already had to set clothes aside that he has grown out of. I am glad his is growing and all but seriously, so quickly? He is very strong and is lifting his head really well. On his tummy he can lift it up and more it from side to side. Kai is still in love and can't resist kissing and touching Grady. Seriously. Even if we ask him not to it is like there is a magnet that makes Kai's face be right in Grady's. He is still gentle though so that is great.

As I said, Grady turned one month yesterday...he also had his first airplane ride and applied for his U.S. passport. We also learned that he has to have a Peruvian passport as well in order to leave Peru so we got that today. He will have duel citizenship for the rest of his life. Here's to our little peruvian *cheers*.

Kai, Grady and I about to board Grady's first flight

Below are a few shots I snapped this morning.

New Years

2011-01-01T12:39:00.000-08:00

Happy New Years! We celebrated New Years with some of our Extreme friends. Tyler and Amy are cluster support for Cusco but were in Arequipa for New Years with Amy's sister, Kim. We also had Mike, who will be working with short term teams, join us. We played some games and enjoyed some fireworks. Fireworks are a pretty big deal during Christmas and New Years here. There aren't the huge displays put on by the city like we do for the 4th of July. Instead individuals have them and so the entire city sky is lit up with fireworks...some right next to us that our neighbors were lighting off. We watched them from the roof 5 stories up and it was awesome.

Here we are doing some sparklers before Kai went to bed

Grady was in the New Years spirit too (apparently it was 20011...time flies!)

Here's our group up on the roof

Another way Peruvians celebrate the New Year is with yellow underwear. I have no idea why but there are New Years yellows for sale all over the streets. Amy and Tyler bought Kai a pair and he loved them. He wouldn't take them off for 2 days and since then has been asking for "the yellows" ever since...thanks guys:)

Kai proudly showing off "his yellows"

Happy New Years!

2010-12-31T12:30:00.000-08:00

Being 3...

2010-12-30T12:08:00.000-08:00

This kind of captures Kai right now. Well, not really. He is an absolute joy, creative, full of life, loving and hilarious. He is also stubborn. He is pretty good at being 3 right now. Mealtimes are painful. Every. Single. Bite. Bedtime is WWIII. Naptime. Nighttime. Scoot over closer to us? No? Another struggle? Funny kid. But stubborn. And this captures that side of him:)

Bye Bye Boppa

2010-12-30T12:04:00.000-08:00

We had to say goodbye to Boppa a couple days ago. Kai had such a great time with her and misses her a ton already. We all miss her and are so grateful for our time together. Here are a few pics of Boppa and the fam...

We love you Boppa!

Christmas!

2010-12-30T11:54:00.000-08:00

Christmas was a wonderful, relaxing day. Kai experienced the joy of Christmas morning and was so excited to finally open presents.

He also experienced the joy of giving...here he is after giving Grady his gift.

We had a delicious traditional dinner with most all of the fixings us Americans love. Here is Georganne finding a little suprise that they throw in with the turkey's here in Peru:)

We had our friends Alison, Vince and Wellington over for dinner. After dinner the boys had fun with sparklers. Here in Peru fireworks are a huge part of Christmas...at midnight Christmas eve there are tons of them!

In all it was a wonderful Christmas. My favorite part is that this year Kai really understood that we were celebrating the birth of Christ. He helped us sing songs and listened to the Christmas story. I think it helped that I was just pregnant and Grady is an infant. He is better able to understand the coming of a baby. He has been acting out the Christmas story as well in the last few days. He likes being Mary and "has to get to Bethlehem". Very cute:)

I love this boy

2010-12-24T11:37:00.000-08:00

Alpacas

2010-12-24T11:30:00.000-08:00

Kai had fun feeding Alpacas with his friends Ella and Thomas (Puno cluster support family).

His face is telling me he is pretty excited...

And the fact that this alpaca is on his head tells me he has very little fear of them...

Christmas Cookies

2010-12-23T11:34:00.000-08:00

Another great way to get in the Christmas spirit (and put on those Christmas pounds:)

Snuggle Time with my boys...

2010-12-22T11:32:00.000-08:00

Love it!

Christmas Tree

2010-12-22T08:22:00.000-08:00

We were very excited to have a Christmas tree this year...Kai especially! He loves Christmas trees and is at the age where it is very fun for him. Boppa brought a bunch of crafts to do so our whole tree was homemade. It was very special and was hours of entertainment for Kai:)

Here we are finishing up the last of the ornaments

Kai and Tyson putting lights on the tree

This pretty much sums up Kai's excitement the night we put it up...

Grady was excited too I think, he just shows it differently:)

It definately helped it feel a lot more like Christmas:)

Merman?

2010-12-21T08:36:00.000-08:00

So I wanted to get a picture of Grady in a cute little stocking since he is sort of a Christmas baby and all. I gave it a shot but Kai pointed out that he looked like a fish. Yes, I agree...he looks way more like a merman than a baby in a stocking:)

Happy Birthday Boppa!

2010-12-21T08:26:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Georganne's birthday on Thursday. This is the second birthday she has celebrated in Peru with us! We started the day at Starbucks...yes, they now have a Starbucks in Arequipa..very exciting.

Grady and I relaxing in Starbucks

In the afternoon we went and visited the Founder's Mansion outside of Arequipa. It was a really cool place with lots of history.

Kai and Boppa outside of the chapel of the mansion....yes, Kai is doing some Spiderman moves

For dinner we went out to a cool crepe place. We had yummy dinner crepes and then dessert. The place was perfect for us since there were board games and books for kids while we lounged on comfy couches...I highly recommend Crepisimo for any who visit Arequipa:) Happy Birthday Boppa!

Grady Zane Smith Smith

2010-12-19T21:49:00.000-08:00

We didn't know for sure what we would name him when Grady was born. Grady was one of a few names we liked but we were not set on any and we really hadn't thought of a middle name for a boy. We wanted to wait and see what name we felt like fit him. So, we still had our book of baby names out late into the night of his birth. We wanted a name we liked, of course, but we wanted a name with meaning as well. We finally settled on Grady. It means noble. We chose his middle name for it's meaning. Zane means "God is gracious". We have felt the Lord's grace in the past 9 months. He protected Grady when we really weren't sure in those first few months if we would ever get to meet him. We also felt the Lord's grace over and over in difficult circumstances we faced in the months I was pregnant. From tons of travels to losing some of our team to the death of my brother, God has made is presence known and has walked with us through it all. We have felt his grace!

And as for the Smith Smith. Well, when we went in to get his birth certificate we were told we had to give him both mine and Tyson's last name because that is how they do it in Peru. Women don't take their husbands' name here and the children have the names of both their parents. So Grady Zane Smith Smith it is:) (We're hoping we can fix that when we go to the US Embassy in January)

Oh, funny story. When Kai first met Grady we told him Grady's name since we didn't know it ahead of time. We repeated Grady a few times and then Kai said "Gradiator Springs" (Like Radiator Springs from Cars). So, that is how he remembered Grady's name for the first few days of his life...we had to remind him it was like Cars:) He still gets called Gradiator once in a while...it might be a nickname that sticks:)

Grady is...

2010-12-19T21:30:00.000-08:00

...an absolute sweetheart. We are all just in love. He has such a great temperment and is really easy going. He likes his pacifier but it is not a necessity...he has also found his fingers...

His favorite place to be is on our chest...he is content for hours in that position.

He is eating well and sleeping pretty well. He gained 4oz his first week and another 5oz his second week so that is wonderful. He does prefer to be held but then again, I prefer to hold him right now. I was much more about getting Kai on a schedule and making sure I didn't hold him so much he had to be held all the time. With Grady I am realizing how quickly he will grow so I am treasuring every minute and not worrying as much about that stuff. He is awake more and more lately and I love looking into his sweet little eyes. I can't wait to see more and more his little personality come out. Another side note about our little Grady. This kid has pooped on me more in the first two weeks of his life then I thought possible. He goes almost every time I take off his diaper....it's ridiculous!

Finger prick

2010-12-19T21:25:00.000-08:00

So we had to get Grady's blood drawn the other day and instead of taking it from his heal they took it from his tiny, itsy bitsy finger. He was tough and didn't cry as much I would have thought...but seriously, the finger? We also had to get him two vaccinations last week and they gave one to him in the arm. That's right, his tiny little arm. AND, we got him circumsised yesterday and they gave him general anesthesia...that was really nerve racking. In the end he has been fine through all of it. Again, I haven't wanted to be the pain in the butt American mom, but in my head I'm thinking there is a reason they take blood from the heal/only give shots in the thighs/only use local anesthesia on infants in the states. So, we just praise the Lord for protecting Grady through everything...He is so faithful!

Grady showing off his bandage from the finger prick...

The day he was born...

2010-12-19T21:20:00.000-08:00

We arrived in Arequipa on the night of Thanksgiving. I was so relieved just to be here and no longer have to think about the possiblilty of having the baby in Puerto...huge relief! The morning of his birth I went in for an appointment. I had been in twice already since I had arrived in Arequipa (a week earlier). My doctor felt I was going to have the baby early and "didn't want to be suprised". They monitored me and she checked me and said I was having contractions (but I didn't feel them) and that I was 1 cm. I walked back to meet up with Tyson and Kai (we were staying only about 6 blocks from the hospital). We went to lunch and while Kai was playing I began to feel what I thought were contractions. They were different from before because they hurt a little (but really only a little) and were somewhat consistent. After a while I got out my phone to time them and they seemed to be about 2 minutes apart. But, I couldn't possibly be in labor because they didn't really hurt (is what I was thinking). This was around 1pm. We went back to the apartment and ended up talking to both our parents, eating lunch and doing some cleaning. Around 3 I decided maybe I should time my contractions again...they seemed to be coming often but they weren't that intense. They were 1 1/2 apart so I tried calling my doctor. No answer. On any of the 3 numbers I had. So, I told Tyson I would just walk down to the clinic and see if she was in, and I'd call him if I was actually in labor. Right as I was about to leave I felt like my water was leaking. My contractions almost immediately felt more intense. I told Tyson we needed to go and we should just take Kai and have someone meet us at the hospital. I was suddenly feeling like we needed to get there fast. We grabbed our stuff and headed out. Tyson asked me if we should walk or catch a taxi...I quickly opted for taxi. The funny thing was that Tyson passed up the first taxi that stopped because they wouldn't give him the price he wanted. It drove away and he looked at me and said "maybe now's not the time to bargin for prices." Yeah, not the time. It was funny and just goes to show you how bargining is ingrained in us here:) We arrived at the hospital around 3:30pm and my doctor's office was closed. We headed down to the emergency room because that is what she had told me to do is she wasn't there. They informed me there that there were no rooms and I had to go talk to someone on the 2nd floor. At the 2nd floor I talked to someone else who just repeated that they didn't have any rooms. I was starting to feel a bit paniced at this point. "I think I'm in labor , what are my options?" I asked. By then Tys had gotten ahold of my doctor and she was on her way so we just waited for her. When she came she took me to her office and I was 4cm and yes, my water had broken. We went down to the emergency room...there was a bit of arguing about getting me a bed or something but at this point I was pretty much focused on the contractions. I was a little concerned I was going to have to give birth there but they assured me there was a delivery room. They got me changed and an IV in me and my doctor checked me again...6cm. They put me on a gourney to take me to the delivery room. The wheeled me up a ramp because the elevator was broken (at this point the contractions were EXTREMELY intense) and we arrived at the delivery room. They got me on the table...this is less then 10 minutes after she last checked me...and she checked me again and told me to push. I was shocked it was already time for that but at least pushing would help get the pain over with quickly. Tyson was in another room changing into scrubs and ran in with half of them on when he heard someone screaming (apparently that was me). I pushed for about 7 minutes and out he came at 4:25pm. It all went so fast...which is a good thing since I didn't have time for any help with pain:)
After all the months of wondering..."It's a boy" were wonderful words to hear. In the end it didn't matter either way and I really didn't have a strong feeling that he was a boy or girl...I was just open and ready to know. I had sort of thought he was a girl throughout my pregnancy but I only dreamed 4 times and every time he was a boy. So, apparently my instincts were wrong but my dreams were right:) I was just overjoyed when I finally got to hold him!

In the delivery room with our doctor...

Tyson sporting scrubs and looking good doing it...

There were no rooms in the maternity ward so we stayed the night in the emergency observation area. It was a tiny little room with the bathroom out around the corner but it was quiet and the nurse was sweet. Here is a little look at it...

Once we were down there Tyson asked he he could hold Grady since he hadn't held him yet. I was shocked they hadn't offered him to his Daddy earlier...a major difference from the States. He did get to cut the cord though.
We did have to convince them to let him stay in our room .Usually they take the babies to the nursery for the first 4-6 hours to observe them but they let us keep him with us. A nurse did come down late in the evening and tell me she was taking him for the night. I politely but firmly insisted he stay with me...she wanted to give him a bottle because "he would scream from hunger" but I convinced her he would be fine with me. She also thought he would be too cold in our room...he looks pretty cold doesn't he:) In the end he stayed with me all night and did not scream or freeze:)

The next day we were back at the house by noon. It was a crazy fast delivery and time at the hospital. I'm sure it was different from the States in many ways but it all went so quickly I really didn't have time to think about it. I felt like they were flexible with me and I tried my best to not be the pain in the butt American:) In the end I am just so thankful for a healthy baby boy. The Lord has been so faithful throughout this pregnancy and we praise him for the life of our new son! Thank you to all of you who prayed for us...we felt His hand on us every step of the way!

Brothers

2010-12-14T16:29:00.000-08:00

Kai is just in love with Grady. He talked so much about the baby when I was pregnant and was so excited but I wasn't sure how he would actually adjust when the time came. He adores Grady and the biggest issue is that he wants to smother him with kisses all the time. He is really gentle, wants to hold him all the time and is always saying "he's so cute". Having Boppa here has helped with the transistion, I am sure...he doesn't really notice my attention being elsewhere as he would rather play with Boppa anyway. A huge blessing:)

Boppa and the boys...

2010-12-14T16:28:00.000-08:00

Tyson's mom arrived last week and it has been such a blessing. Kai is in heaven having his Boppa to play with and I am in heaven having her help with cooking, cleaning, entertaining a 3 year old, soothing an infant and just hanging out. Seriously wonderful to have her here and we are excited we get to celebrate Christmas together! Yay for Boppa!

4 days...

2010-12-09T11:08:00.000-08:00

It's a BOY!

2010-12-07T08:07:00.000-08:00

Introducing...
Grady Zane Smith
December 3, 2010 4:25pm
7lbs, 19 1/2 inches

Kai's first school play

2010-11-25T14:28:00.000-08:00

Kai was in his first school play the night before we left for Arequipa. I was a bit stressed that week as we were preparing to leave for 5 weeks which meant get our house ready to leave, pack everything we would need, prepare everything the 40/40s would need while we were gone on top of all our normal stuff. Then, Kai has a play in which he needs a costume. In my head I thought I should make the costume...so I was trying to think of how to make a pajarito (little bird) but kept putting it off. Finally I decided I would just rent a costume...even if it was expensive...it was worth being done with one more thing on the list. I went and checked it out and it ended up being about $4 to rent it...way less than I could of made one for. And, on the night of the play I saw that everyone else had rented theirs too...I was pretty happy I wasn't the gringa mom that had glued some feathers to a baseball cap:)

My second area of concern was Kai actually doing it. This kid is an entertainer and loves to make us laugh, etc, however, he is not always prone to do it on cue. We let him wear his costume around the house the night before and he practiced being a little bird. The night of the play he did awesome and we were so proud of him! The play was about the 3 little birds that couldn't fly. Kai was one of the 3 little birds and there were also lions and butterflies. This was also his last day of school so he said good bye to his teacher. We have been super happy with the school and have watched Kai learn a lot in the past months. Below are some pics of the big night!

Kai picked out flowers to give his teacher...

Kai as a pajarito

He class on stage...

This was my favorite. The teacher was narrating the story and she said "there were 3 little birds who couldn't fly..." Kai raised his hand and said "Yo puedo volar!" (I can fly)..

Then he proceeded to show everyone:)

We are proud of you buddy...he makes a cute little bird:)

Fun in the Pool

2010-11-20T14:20:00.000-08:00

We found this pool for Kai and he has been loving it on hot days! Below is a mini "pool party" he had with his buddies Daniel, Eliaser and Prisilla (Pastor Freddy's kids).

Ridin' my moto

2010-11-19T14:22:00.000-08:00

Kai has recently really caught on to riding the bike he got last Christmas. He calls it his "moto". He has become very independent riding up and down our road and one time he got really confident and road it across the field to Pastor Freddy's house. I gave him a big talking to about how he can't do that without telling me where he is going...however, I was secretly a little proud of his independence:)

28 weeks!

2010-09-28T09:30:00.000-07:00

I am 28 weeks now and everything is going really well. It is hot, of course, but it is hot even if you are not pregant! The baby is moving so much. I thought Kai moved a ton but this one seems to be even more active (or I just don't remember:) I am super thankful and appreciate all the prayers and the continued prayers that everything would continue on the right track. We leave in 2 months for Arequipa to have the baby and I will be 36 weeks and a few days. I am praying the baby does not decide to make an early appearance. I am already a bit nervous about having the baby in Peru but I REALLY don't want to do it in the hospitals here:) Kai is getting excited but has no idea what is really coming. But, he does think of the baby often and lets me know the baby needs a bed and a toilet (he does not think we should let the baby use diapers...the baby needs to learn to use the toilet!) The other day he hugged me and then looked up and said "I love the baby". It is super cute and I know he will be a great big brother...although I know it will be quite a transition for him:) All in all things are going well, just thought I should post a little update with some pics of 28 weeks!

Sick

2010-09-28T09:21:00.000-07:00

Kai woke up really sick last Tuesday morning with a high fever and diarrhea. It was the sickest I have seen him. Usually if he is sick he is still bouncing about or talking and I have to sort of remind him to rest. Not this time. He stayed in our bed the entire day sleeping or just laying there. The poor little guy was just lethargic. He fever got as high as 103 and at one point he was throwing up as well. Other than our bed he spent a lot of time on the toilet. So much that at one point I walked in and found him like this…and although he looked miserable I couldn’t pass up a picture.

He was obviously worn out. After his nap he was still really lethargic so we took him into the doctor. Wouldn’t you know it…while we were in the waiting room he began to perk right up. We think he had a case of food poisoning and after some medicine was back to himself. The next day he woke up with lots of energy and words….I asked Tyson if he was always like this or if he was just making up for yesterday:) Either way we were happy to see our boy back and healthy. We have praised the Lord many times for the way he has protected us here in Peru. Kai has been sick just a few times…I would expect more even living in the states, but here, there are so many things we don’t deal with in the US that I would have imagined we would have dealt with more. I know the Lord has been protecting Kai and I praise him for that!

Lights Out

2010-09-28T09:19:00.000-07:00

Last week we had power outages 7 out of 9 days. These were never shorter than 5 hours and were sometimes as long as 12-18 hours. I used to love power outages as a kid…and even an adult in the US. Here, all I can think of is the fact that there will be no fans. It seems like this happens when it is so incredibly hot. There were multiple days that with humidity it was about 110. Either way we made the best of it and praise the Lord, it came on every night by 11pm so we could at least sleep with a fan:) and Kai loved it…candles, flashlights…all fun for a boy of 3. One night we pulled our mattresses into the living room and hung the mosquito net from the ceiling fan (since it wouldn’t be working) and had a family sleep over. Other nights we and sat on the floor (the coolest place to be) and did puzzles. All in all I am happy to say the power had been back on this week and I am so thankful!

And what puzzle did we work on you might ask. Well, Kai really likes his new "finger" puzzle as he calls it. Apparently they count on their fingers a little differently here in Peru...

Suspension Bridge-Round 2

2010-09-28T09:16:00.002-07:00

Sometimes you just want to dance in the rain!

2010-09-28T09:13:00.001-07:00

Cusco

2010-09-20T09:01:00.000-07:00

We had a great time in Cusco last month. Here are a few pictures non ministry related...

Kai loves animals and had a great time an animal reserve we went to. His favorite was probably the little monkey. He so desperately wanted it to climb on him. I, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with it but tried to help Kai be in the right place to get the monkey on him. It worked. Unfortunately for me I was too close by and so had the gross thing climbing on me immediately after. I did not post a picture of this due to the ridiculous facial expressions Tyson caught on camera:)

Kai is also a fan of almost all forms of transportation and will take every opportunity to jump in the drivers seat:) Here he is on the bus we took. You have to understand buses and even just normal cars are exciting forms of transportation to a boy whose family car is a mototaxi:)

McDonalds!

2010-08-23T07:40:00.000-07:00

Kai (and I) got a treat while in Cusco and went to McDonalds (or McDongals to him). He kept telling me "Mom, this is the best hamburger and french fries in the world!" How does he know kids like McDonalds...there wasn't even a play area but he kept telling me how fun it was:)

20 weeks

2010-08-12T14:15:00.000-07:00

I am 21...almost 22 weeks now and things are going well. We had an ultrasound yesterday and things look great which is a huge praise! This would have been when we find out the sex of the baby but since we are being suprised and all, we didn't. Let me tell you...it is killing me but I know Tyson loves it:) I am feeling much larger then I remember feeling with Kai but maybe that is normal with #2. Kai loves kissing my belly and talking to the baby and it makes me excited for him (and all of us!) to finally meet this little one!

Here are a couple pictures from 20 weeks.....

Super Kai!

2010-08-12T14:14:00.000-07:00

This was the only present from us to Kai the Christmas before we left Peru. He found it again the other day and was loving it...underwear and all...love it!

Peruvian style....

2010-08-12T13:57:00.000-07:00

Kai figured out a way to carry his mountain of beanie babies Peruvian style:)

Suspension Bridge....

2010-07-31T09:04:00.000-07:00

One of the many reasons Daddy is so much more fun to play with than Mommy!

I love this face!

2010-07-31T08:59:00.000-07:00