Needless to say....

Meredith's having a great time! Just look at her!!!
Meredith and Alex...
Jenna's smooth moves...

They could do a Toyota commercial!

The shampoo fight!

Meredith's First Trip to America alone (kind of)

I am always amazed at how God has blessed us with such wonderful people in our lives! We have been doubly blessed by several people in the last few weeks and I just had to share it with you on our blog. Some dear friends, Paul and Sherry, offered to pay for Meredith to fly back to the states for a month long visit just so she would have something to do during our long, hot summer. We knew we couldn't let her fly alone but didn't know if we could find anyone coming to the states for just one month.....there was no way we could let her go any longer!:) Meredith's sweet teacher said she was going for that length of time and would be happy to have Meredith as her flying buddy. We are so thankful for her and her servant spirit she always shows! Thanks Miss Allison for all you do!!! :) Thanks Paul and Sherry for being who you are...we love you and miss you everyday....you too, Jenna and Alex! :)A few tears were shed... Our baby is growing up into a beautiful young woman!
Paul snapped a shot as soon as she arrived. I can't believe how big these three girls are now...it seems like they were just playing dress up (in the famous purple pants) just a few days ago!
First stop: Cracker Barrel for some chicken, greens and fried ocra! A southern girl's dream!:)
Safe and sound with one of her best buds...too sweet.
Since arriving back to the states, Meredith has gone to the beach, tubed and knee boarded on a lake (with Jason...thanks, sohobna), eaten at Sonic and Cracker Barrel, and word has it that she is going to her first Youth group tonight!

More Vacation Pics...

I found a few more vacation pics to share. This first one cracks me up! The hotel where we stayed hosts a boy's orphanage once a year for two days at their hotel. These boys joined us in the pool for several hours of our stay. This boat picture makes me laugh! :)


The girl can jump! Such a daddy's girl

Bathing Beauties :)

Red Sea Vacation 2009

Warning: Many pictures to follow! We had a fun and relaxing time at the Red Sea this year. We only had about 3 days to squeeze in the middle of all of the craziness but it was well worth it! We played, swam, banana boated in the Sea, and just hung out with each other and some of our friends. I had a hard time picking which pictures to post so I posted most of them!:)

We always take a family picture while on vacation. This year we decided to have a little fun with it! Not many people know this side of us...for those that do...thanks for loving us anyway!

Matthew Ray and Cohen....they are best buds! I love how you can see the water pouring in this pic:
Matthew Ray, Cohen and Cairo....a boy's dreamland!
We decided to be a little more serious with this one :) Matthew Ray had a hard time reaching his knees and looking up...too cute!
Another favorite boy passtime. They loved playing in the grass that is so rare here. I love Matthew Ray's soccer concentration face:
The more adventurous ones took a banana boat ride in the Red Sea! What would the Israelites think!?
Quite the young lady these days....beautiful inside and out!
Oh Madison....I tell ya, she's gonna be a leader of some kind one of these days. Look at how natural she looks at giving orders!:) Madison really has become a fish this year. She is a great swimmer!
Buds again...they really are sweet together. We are so thankful for friends!

Gangsta and Bethlehem

Summer vacation..."Mom, what is there to do?" "Be creative...go play....that's enough t.v. and Wii."

Here is what they came back with. Oh, to understand the minds of my children!





Make sure you pay attention to the birth of baby Jesus;)

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Great Birthday Party...Wrong Month...Bitter sweetness...

We have discovered that there are many emotional ups and downs that come with living overseas. One of the exciting things is meeting so many new people and really becoming family with many of them. Living in another culture can feel overwhelming at times with so many different sounds, sights, words and customs. So, when we find a few other Americans to socialize with we find a place of familiarity that just feels "normal." But one of the sad things about this "familiar family" is that it is full of many good-byes.
One of those families that we have grown to love is leaving soon. They have four precious children and two of them are right around Madison's age. She has been so sad thinking that they would not be able to come to her birthday party in November. So, tonight we planned a sleepover birthday party at the last minute...when I say last minute, I mean we came up with the idea, decorated, made 2 Barbie cakes and wrapped presents in a little over an hour! Madison was so surprised! We had a great time getting it all set up and the girls had a ton of fun!

Another Year Down...Such Gifted Girls

Another year of school is now behind us! Meredith and Madison had their last day of school today...completing 6th grade and kindergarten. Today their school held an award's ceremony and talent show. We are so proud of how God has gifted each one of them. We pray that their lives will always glorify HIM!

Meredith received the Bible award for her class. Her teacher said that not only was she a super bible verse memorizer but that her WALK with Christ was amazing and showed in how she lived. I think it was the best award of the day! :)


Madison getting ready to receive her art award...she was SO excited! We have discovered that Madison is our "creative/artistic" child.


Madison and her teacher who invested so much special time with Madison:


Madison came home from school yesterday with her drawing book. She opened it and showed us this picture and stated that she drew it all by herself! We were shocked and a little concerned that she might not be telling the truth. But as it turns out..her teacher told us today that she did draw it all alone. Her teacher had a drawing like this on her white board and Madison drew one herself. We may have a future artist on our hands! :)

A BIG SECRET REVEALED.....

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Matthew Ray is a Graduate...

Matthew Ray graduated from his Egyptian hadonna (preschool) this past weekend. Some of our friends from the States came and helped with the program. He was so proud to be a graduate and we were so proud of him! Matthew Ray and his teachers:
He was so excited! He kept calling his gown his graduation costume....
Our friends from the States...they are so cool and Matthew Ray is their big bud!