In which Meron has some fun on the farm and Mama makes a heart felt, though possibly not wise, decision.

We had a fun day with Grandma and Grandpa again- I mean, who doesn't love to chase chickens? Sometimes I'm sad that Mer won't grow up on a farm like I did. It really is a pretty nice thing to walk out your door and see nothing but green. When she goes to the farm, she has chickens to chase, eggs to collect, kitties to chase and unlimited space to run around. She has a blast.

The pergola she is standing on is the one that my dad built for Nathan and I to stand on at our wedding. It is still in the same place, and it kind of shocked me to see Mer on it. Five years ago, when we were standing on that hill being married, I would never have imagined where our life was headed. How could I think up anything as good as Meron? Her language is really taking off lately. She is talking all the time and singing and repeating everything we say. Time to take the no swearing thing seriously, I guess. I mean, I always attempt, but I'm going to have to try harder.

In honor of my first mother's day (which I actually spent working) I got a tattoo. It is the amharic word for mother - enat and is written in the Ge'ez script. It is in a rather visible place... which kind of freaks me out. I got it in brown ink so that Mer and I would both have a little bit of brown, and I want her to know that I'm proud of my little bit of brown skin. Besides, I can always wear my hair down, and my Grandma will never know... oops... grandma reads my blog. Don't freak out Grandma.

Love that sunshine...

Mer's first swim suit experience. Pretty darn cute.

Today it is World Aids Orphan Day. After visiting Ethiopia, this has become an issue very dear to my heart. It is one thing to read the statistics, but another to see all of those faces that the statistics represent. Please take a moment to visit Erin's blog, (click here) read about HIV facts, and join her 'Tell Two" campaingn. Just tell two people what you have learned. You can also read about two of her children who were adopted from Ethiopia and are HIV+.

I can't wait until I can understand everything she says...

At the Zoo with Grandma and Grandpa

We went to the little zoo in a city near where we live for a little Grandma and Grandpa time. It was seriously fun. Those who know me well know that I actually hate zoos. I love to look at the animals, but I feel so bad for them. This zoo is worse than many because they try hard but don't have much room. The animals are a little bit cramped. It is interesting, though, because you can get SO close to the animals. Like, the Siberian tiger. There is just a small fence that i could easily climb over, about 3 feet of ground, and then the tiger's cage. If I wanted to, and was stupid, I could stick my fingers in and pet him. Plus, there are birds wandering all over the place. Mer had tons of fun chasing the ducks around a tree. Best of all, Meron got to see the penguins. She is known for her love of the movie "Happy Feet" and was SO EXCITED to see the penguins. You can see how close she was to them in the pictures. In the ones where she is hanging over the water, the penguins are just out of frame. Maybe 4 feet away from her, swimming around trying to get their lunch. After all of the excitement and Meron learning how to make a peacock sound, we had a picnic on the lawn in front of the zoo. I was a little stunned when I looked over at Meron and watched her eating an egg salad sandwich. I mean, just holding a sandwich and eating it. How did she get that big already? I didn't get many pictures, because while I did remember my camera, the batteries died on and off. Ooops.

Spring!!

Seriously, so much fun.

I am finally seeing the light of day, now that I have to wait for the next Twilight book. I'm a little stunned at my need to read these books. I mean, they were written for teenage girls and I'm... a little beyond that. They are, however, incredibly addictive and dangerously easy to read. I finished the second book in less than 24 hours. Luckily, I'm borrowing them from a friend and she didn't obsess about the third book as much as I obsessed about the second book... so she's not done with it yet. That means I'm forced to take a break. And, after 2 days of gloomy weather, (perfect for reading unaccountably appealing books) we spent all day after Mer's nap outside. We drew pictures, went for a walk, picked some flowers for her hair, practiced sitting on the step (well, I was pretty good at this one before, but M. practiced backing into it and sitting down) and hit things with sticks. I'm so excited for summer!