WE ARE ON US SOIL!!!!!!!

Well, we made it! We are on US soil! Snowy, Chicago soil, but US soil none the less. We are stuck in Chicago right now. We are set to leave here at 8:30 to go to Dallas, but will have to spend the night in Dallas. I just pray we get to Dallas!

I know I haven't posted in a while. We had to stay three extra days in country. The story is surreal! I will not post details as this is a public forum, and the details are not for the public. However, when I can process everything, I will post about what an awesome God we serve! We witnessed miracle after miracle to get our kids out!



Here is the first picture of Obadiah on American soil...eating his first Happy Meal! He had a bannana before that! :)

Pray we make it to Dallas! I just cried when I talked to Callie and told her we wouldn't be home tonight! I just wanted to see all my babies tonight! I miss Callie and Noah and Ava so much that my heart hurts!

On a side note, let me tell you what a stud I am married to! He was remarkable this week! He took on the battles when I was too weary or just needed to be mommy! The first part of our trip he was a perfect Mr. Mom! Obadiah was bonding to him way more than me because I was having to go to meetings and such, but he just did great! I am blessed to be Mrs. John Petree!

On the name thing....we may have to revisit it! We just can't seem to call him Toben....he is Obie! John hasn't said for sure we can keep it, but even he has a hard time calling him anythign but Obadiah. The kids even sang a song with his name. Everyone we met would remember his name and call him by name if we saw them again! It was pretty amazing. I don't know what God's plan is for the seven children we just brought home, but whatever it is, it is big enough to have sparked a huge battle for them to not come home!

I got to eat FuFu!!!!

I am not sure that I believe that I did this, but I have the picture AND video to show it! We went to the Children's Home today, and I saw Fufu....so I asked about it and they asked if I wanted to try it...I am feeling more and more at home here in Liberia, so I said sure! It was actually very good! But it is HOT!!!! I let our a Texas "yahoooo" and all the nannies laughed at me...they asked if it was hot, and I said it was way hot for this white girl! I gave them their laugh for the day!






We spent the day at the children's home...I had at least 20 hands on me at all times! I was in heaven! It was so fun to hear the children sing and hear their stories. They are doing so well! Reminds me why I do what I do!

We went to Golden Beach yesterday to have dinner. I was just what we needed. We got to eat on the beach and watch the sunset. This is why I love this country!



Toben and William had a blast running up and down a sand hill right by our table. They did it the whole time we waited for food. Both of them ended up with a head full of sand, but the sound of laughter is good medicine!

Isn't he precious??

Here are some pictures....they seem to be loading better today!

One more step down!

We made it through the visa appointment this morning. We are supposed to pick up the visas on Thursday....hopefully! If not, then Friday. I will not breath a sigh of relief until I have it in my hands and see it with my own eyes!


This afternoon was the first time I have really gotten to be mommy! Thank goodness John is here! There is no way I could have done it with out him! Tommorrow should be my last official business, so I should be able to be more mommy the rest of the week.

I haven't gotten to journal at all! By the time I have time to in the evenings, I am too exhausted to think enough to journal! I am going to try to get some things down tonight because with my horrible memory, I will have nothing to tell my poor son about his gotcha trip if I don't write it down.

Yesterday he had his first chicken fried rice! He ate nearly a full plate! He love peanut butter crackers....they are his favorite food right now! He also loves fruit! Finally, a kid to eat fruit with me! His favorite is the papaya. He also had his first pizza today. Strangely enough, the thing that he ate the least amount of was the Liberian chicken. He had his first Sprite, but wasn't too crazy about it...preferred to have his water!

He is starting to warm up more and more. He talks more and more, and I just love his accent!

We went to the Children's Home yesterday. It was wonderful and exhausting all at once. We measure, weighed and traced a foot of all the children. That took a long time! All three of us doing it were dripping in sweat. Then I got to love on the kids a little, but we will go back later this week so I can just play with the kids.

I have tried to post several pictures, but the one up there is the only one I can get to load...I will try again tomorrow!

Introducing.......

MR BEAR!!!!! He is no longer lonely! And I am one happy momma!!!!!



The trip went great! We got to the hotel and unloaded all EIGHTEEN bags! Then went to get the kids. We were about 2 minutes away from Pastor Wesley's house when the van we rented got a flat tire....how many Liberians and Americans does it take to change a flat tire??!!!

Lonely Bear and Mamma were both very sad that the meeting was delayed.......


But when it happened, it was great! We went into Pastor Wesley's house and they were all in a room asleep. So sleepy children came out one by one to teary eyed parents! He even reached for me!!!!


Now he is in his pj's and we are all ready for bed! A big day!!!! Thank you for all your prayers, so far, this has been a perfect trip…flat tire and all!

Lonely bear's journey to Toben....

Lonely Bear is ready to see Toben! Here he is in Dallas......
















And in Brussels.....

















Next stop...Liberia!!!!!!

Made it to Brussels!

All the families made it to Brussels! We are here!!!! We will meet our babies in less than 12 hours! We have 3 hours before we leave, so we are going to go walk around and stretch our legs!

See you in Liberia!

On our way....

We are in Dallas! God blessed us this morning and we did not have to pay for our extra suitcase or the TWO that were overweight! We have 5 suitcases, one weighs 70 pounds and one 60. I had my credit card out ready to pay, and she said, it went through, so we will just call it good! Praise God! That should have been a $210 charge.

But then we get to Dallas and one of the bags we gate checked didn't come up! So we didn't even make it one flight with out losing a bag.....well not really losing it, John had to go out and get it out fo baggage claim and come back through security....just thankful it was there!

So now we are waiting three more hours to go to New York....we only have 2 hours there, so probably will not be able to update again until possibly Brussels!

The Lonely Bear is sitting next to me....won't be lonely for much longer!!!!!

On a side note, when I get home, I am going to have to post pictures of Toben's album I made him. It is done like the books that repeat themselves. It starts out with "We will traveling a long long way on a plane to bring you to the street where you will live. (with a pic of our street) To the house on the street where you will live (with a pic of our housre)...etc. It turned out really cool if I do say so myself and will show him pics of everything to make him more familiar before he gets there!

I'll post again when I can!

It's Time!

I am still not packed! :) John just went to Ross to try and find a cheap suitcase. This will make number 5 and they are all maxed out at 50 pounds! No, it is not all our stuff! Lots of stuff for the kids at the home.

I am so tired! I am ready to get on the plane! We will leave the house at 4:30, plane takes off at 6:05! I am still pretty numb as far as the adoption stuff, but today I really started thinking about bringing him home and got emotional! Then my sweet friend Emily came by, I will post later about the cool connections, but she said, "In two days Toben will not be alone anymore", that brougth the tears! All his friends and brother are home with their family, but he is still there...not for long!!!

Next time I post I will be on my way to Liberia! Thank you for your prayers! Pray our luggage all makes it, pray for rest, pray for our children we are leaving here, pray for diving appointments along the way (I can look back and see where I missed ministry oportunities in my last trips, I don't want to do that this time!), and pray that I am where I need to be meeting with the people I need to while in Liberia...I wants God agenda not mine!

Off to pack that new suitcase and go to bed for a few hours!

See you in Liberia!!!!!!! Toben, Mommy is coming!!!! woohooo!!!!!!

Time is short...

....and the lists are long! I can't believe that in less than 48 hours I will have said good bye to three of my children to go in pursuit of the one! Wow! The last three weeks have flown! I want time to SLOW down once I get on that plane! I want to savor every moment of Liberia.....have I mentioned lately that I LOVE Liberia?! I do! I am excited to get to go back!

The packing is just about done.
I have Toben's stuff almost all packed, my clothes almost all packed and all that is really left are the snacks that I am taking and the paper work. I will do that tonight.

I was shopping for last minute items yesterday and found some knit short clearanced for $1 each. I grabbed all the toddler sizes they had to take to the children's home. We can't get them that cheap in Liberia! I also picked up a little something else!
I just couldn't pass it up! It is my favorite color scheme (blue and brown) and I could just picture him sweetly looking up at me with those words on his chest....so you can bet that will be the first shirt he wears when I get to dress him!

A Gotcha Day Remembered

Thinking about meeting Toben has brought back all kinds of memories of a very long day in June 2005. I had waited 4 days in Freetown, Sierra Leone to meet the little girl I had been trying to adopt for over a year. We were told every day that they would bring the children to us at the hotel. But one excuse after another came...and the days passed with out the children. Finally, we were on our way. We (me and the other two adoptive families) agreed to go to the "orphanage" to stay with the kids as that was familiar for them. (It turned out there never was an orphanage and the kids were not staying there, but with their bio families!). We were told it would be a 2 hour trip. Our only agency rep had gotten on a plane before we left the hotel....we were on our own! Looking back now, I know we weren't very smart in agreeing to go to the orphanage and leaving Freetown. But we were adoptive parents desperate to see our children! We thought this was what was best for them, so we agreed. We ended up picking up one child on the other side of Freetown. When we pulled up to the side of the road, the little girl was standing there with her bio mother and Victor, Eden's bio father. I knew it was him because he only has one leg. After a long time in the car and the men talking about plans...and finally we were back in the car.

We drove for about an hour and a half and then turned onto a side road. We thought this must be where the orphanage is. I got out of the car I was in and walked around the car. Then the man in charge said, "HollyAnn, this is the house of Freshnatu (Eden's African name)." I had no warning...I looked up and there she was! Just standing there looking at me and holding the hand of her Grandma. I don't remember anyone else standing there, but know from the picture that there was a whole crowd!
She stared at me cautiously and they all pushed her at me saying, "This is your mamma" I said it is ok! Just let her get used to me and I showed her the baby I had for her. She looked it over and then took it from me! We stared at each other for a minute, then they asked me if I wanted to see Addy's grave. So we walked over to a piece of tin and they moved it to reveal a mound of fresh dirt. I broke down....my other baby girl would forever rest in that place...I never held her, but loved her with all my heart!

We all piled back in the cars.....I had no idea where she was.....had I really met her? Was I dreaming? We drove for 3 more hours! By this time it was dark. We, the families, were all crammed into one taxi and we "thought" the guys from the NGO and the kids were behind us. Our driver would not speak to us. He would pull over on the side of the road at a village. It is darker than dark and he would get out of the car..not tell us where we were, where he was going, or when/if he would be back! All of us white folks were just sitting there...no one would say what we all wondered...was he going to get his buddies to help knock us off so he could take our money and passports? We never did know what he was doing, but each time he stopped the car, we were swarmed by kids and adults screaming "appatu!!" (white man!!). That is the only time in my life that I truly thought I was going to die. We would drive and drive in the pitch black. All the sudden there would be a police check point and you would see men with machine guns. We would all for a split second think we were ok...then it would hit us..this is not America and police doesn't mean safety here! I tried to call John with my cell phone, but there was no reception. When I did finally get a hold of him, I calmly told him where we were, to call the Embassy and to let everyone know in case he didn't hear from me again.

God granted us safety and we did eventually make it to the "orphanage", but the kids were not there and were not behind us. I didn't get to see Eden again until about 4:30 the next day. And only then after I got really ugly with the head guy and asked where she was! When she finally arrived with her bio dad, she walked into the room and just looked at me....I picked her up and sat her in my lap. They were watching TV (a movie called "Rich in the Lord" - that is a post for another day!). She just sat there.....then I reazlied that she had a tear running down her face....broke my heart! She was scared...too scared to move! So I took her into the room where I was staying and got some of the candy I had brought. She unrolled a roll of smarties and put it in a baggie with a bouncy ball I had brought for her. We went back into the room where the TV was. Little by little she warmed up. At one point, her hand was resting on my arm, I just remember looking down and seeing her dark hand on my fair arm and thinking, this is odd! Here she is! The fulfillment of my dream....right here in my lap! By the next day, she was bonded. She would come to me for whatever she needed. She would hold my hand on her own. She would play and look to see if I was watching. When we went back to Freetown, to the hotel, she didn't stay with me. When they would bring her to me, she would break away from them as soon as she saw me and run into my arms. The other two children being adopted never really got to that point. The little boy was scared to death the whole time, and the other little girl warmed up, but didn't bond exactly the way Eden did. What a precious little girl! What a precious time!

The last time I saw her, she was sick. So pitiful!
She didn't want anyone to hold her but me, and I gladly obliged! We just sat in the lobby of the hotel until it was time to board the helicopter to go to Dakar where we had prayed we would get her visa and be back in three days to get her. When it came time to get on the helicopter, she would not let go of me, she clung to me as if her life depended on it! Sheku took her from me, having to pull her intwined fingers off my neck. She was screaming, I was crying and the helicopter was buzzing. I told her I would be back, kissed the top of her head and headed to the helicopter. I didn't look back...I couldn't! Now, those last words I said to my little girl haunt me! I didn't go back! They didn't issue the visa, so I didn't go back. She bonded, trusted, and I deserted. No, it wasn't of my own will, but she doesn't know that! It hurts so bad to know I let down my daugther....I know, it wasn't me that made the decision, but in her eyes, I deserted her.

I really can't wrap my mind around the fact that when I see Toben, it will be forever! If he bonds immediatly like she did, there will be no leaving to come back. Yet, can I be positive of that until I am actually on the plane with him? The adoption director in my says, yes, you can! But the adoptive mom in me says, I can't go there just yet! Maybe when I see a visa with his picture and name, but as much as I try, I can't make myself go there just yet!

My prayer is that just as I know God, for whatever reason, allowed Eden to fully trust me, Toben will do the same! Noah turned his head to follow my voice around the room after being with us only 12 hours. My mother in law is the one that noticed it and said, "Look, God must have put your voice in his ears so he knows you are his momma!" I love that! So, God, put my voice in Toben's ears so he knows I am his Mamma! Let him know by my smell, my touch, my voice that he is safe now!

A Lonely Teddy Bear

In just one week from now, the bear will no longer be lonely, but be in the arms of my baby boy! I bought this teddy bear to have in hand when I meet Toben the first time...something to offer him that is soft and reassuring, well to me anyway. Not sure that a little boy from a village in Africa has the same notions about a cuddly teddy bear!

I have stared at this little bear many times trying to imagine the moment I hand it over to Toben. I have already missed so much of this journey because of my fears from Eden's adoption. I checked out, and I'm not totally sure how to re-engage. I have been listening to Steven Curtis Chapman's "Miracle of the Moment" a lot lately.
So breathe it in and breathe it out
Listen to your heartbeat
There's a wonder in the here and now
It's right there in front of you
And I don't want you to miss
The miracle of the moment

....I don't want to miss the miracle of the moment I see him for the first time, the moment I get to hold him for the first time. Yes, I have fears! Will he warm up to us right away? Will he be happy to see the Mamma and Pappa he has heard about was coming? Or will he just be scared? When I hug him for the first time, will he fall in my arms, or stiffen at my touch? So the song goes on....

There's only One who knows
What's really out there waiting
In all the moments yet to be
And all we need to know
Is He's out there waiting
To Him the future's history
And He has given us
a treasure called right now
And this is the only moment we can do anything about

And if it brings you tears
Then taste them as they fall
Let them soften your heart
And if it brings you laughter
then throw your head back
And let it go, let it go
You gotta let it go
Listen to your heartbeat....


So that is my prayer! That I can let it go, if the first moments of meeting him don't go like the perfect reunnion story all adoptive parents hope for, then I want to taste the tears and let them soften my heart...after all, in just a few days from that moment, this little boy will be ripped from everything he knows and taken to a whole new world! So maybe if tears fall, it is to give me a glimps in my own heart of what he will experience on a much grander scale in the transition of the adoption. And if it all goes wonderful and he hugs me back, then I want to soak it in! Throw my head back and laugh! Whatever happens, I don't want to miss a moment!

Ava's Anticks

My precious little Ava is a very sweet and obedient little child, but she is very curious and thus very distructive! I was answering some e-mails today and realized I hadn't heard from her in a while....this is always a little scary. When I went to look for her, this is what I found....





She had emptied a new tube of bright red liptsick on her pants, shirt, face and my tile! But with a face like that, I couldn't stay mad too long...as John said, good thing you she is so cute!

Panick attack!

I was just packing Toben's clothes for the trip, and had a panick attack that all the clothes are too small! It is just so darn hard to know what to pack when you have no idea how big they are! And it isn't like you can run to Wal-Mart and pick up a few clothes! I guess if they are too small, then a local merchant will be having a good day when I get there! :)

Both sides of the coin

In my Bible study this morning, the question was posed, "Does a 'no' from God mean He doesn't love your or that you aren't acceptable to Him?" I started writing out my answer that the TRUTH is that a no from Him doesn't mean those things, but I struggle with that. I started writing that when God doesn't act according to my behavior (ie: I walk in obedience so He makes everything go just as I planned!), I feel unloved....but as I wrote those words, I heard in the back of my head, "Do you really want God to act according to your behavior?!" Ok, I know I am a slow learner! And this attitude reflects pride in my life, obviously! But my truth is that I want God to act according to my behavior when I step out in faith and do the big things he asks...like adopt a child from Africa, or walk with friends through tough times, but when I fail in my daily struggles..turn to ice cream instead of Him when I am overwhelmed with trip preparations, I don't want Him to add the extra pounds to my body that my choice would bring! So basically, I want it to be one sided...God I want your grace when I fail, but when I do the right thing, You "owe" it to me to work it all out for my good! That is obviously an issue I need to work on! God just doesn't work that way, and I am so glad He doesn't because then He couldn't be God!

But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. Romans 6:17-18

It arrived!

I know...three posts in one day is a little much, but I had to post about this!!!





John's passport with his Liberia visa arrived today! So now we are both cleared to enter Liberia! The only visa I will be more excited to see is Toben's US visa on his Liberian passport!

Our Day!

Well here are some clips from our day! We started off by playing a new game that Callie got for her birthday from her new "cousins" (that will have to be explained in another post), Alex, AJ and Hannah. It is a Caranium game and we loved it! We had to play twice of course so both kids could win one! They hadn't even gotten dressed yet as you can tell by the pictures! We also ate breakfast while we played...hence the plates in the picture!



Then we went to McDonald's to pick up our food to take to the park. I know for those of you who read my healthy eating blog a few days ago, McD's is not healthy eating! Give me a break today....the kids got to pick! It was their day! I had a sad moment at McD's: my baby girl (my oldest child) no longer wants to play on the playground....she is too big! And my true baby girl (my youngest) is now a McD's play ground addict! She is big enough now to want to play on the equipment and enters the toddler play ground like she owns it. It was one of those moments when you realize that time is flying by! One is no longer intersted, and the others will be there before I know it. John would say that I think WAY too much if I got all that out of playing on the McD's playground while waiting for food!

Then we took our McNuggets and fries to the park. I thought it was another nice day like yesterday, so Callie and I were in capris and short sleeves. Evidently a cold front moved in (at least a cold front by West Texas perspectives) and we froze while we ate! But we scarfed it down then went to the playground where we had a blast! Callie and Noah dug their way under one piece of equipment.....




...Callie climbed a mountain and Noah climbed on the outside of the equipment (at least until I saw him and had a fit as I had visions of broken bones and an ER trip!)...




...Ava went down the slide, since our last trip to the park she has lost all fear and went down all by herself. I wasn't quite prepared for that so I didn't catch her at the bottom. I missed the perfect picture as she came off the slide, planted her feet in the sand and fell face first all in one motion! I was so proud of her because she didn't cry! Very unusual for my little screamer! Note the McD's cup in her hand.....she slid, rode the swing and climbed with out missing a beat with the cup in her hand!



Callie also went down a slide and stopped for a picture. Noah and I died laughing because her hair was standing straight up from the static. After that, every bar she touched gave her a pretty good shock!





Then we went to the neighborhood branch of the public library. We have lived here two years and didn't have library cards! I don't know what I was thinking, it is a great little library and the kids loved it! Ava love it alittle too much. Her favorite past time is to take all the books off our shelves, so she thought she had died and gone to heaven with all those books! I couldn't move fast enough to keep her little fingers off all the books. I got pretty good at reshelving!

I even got a couple of books for myself to take with me to Liberia. I love to read on the plane! I love to read, but don't get to much these days. So it is wonderful to know I will be on a plane with no children for many hours...I read, sleep, read, sleep....yep, sounds like heaven! Anyway, I was going to buy a couple of books, but they had them at the library, so I just checked them out. Don't tell! I am pretty sure there is some rule about taking library books out of the country, but I will take good care of them! :)

Over all we had a great day and I enjoyed spending some fun time with my children! Now tomorrow it is bag to the rat race! I am not looking forward to that, but am looking forward to being forced back into a schedule! We all do so much better that way!

Last day of vacation....

Today is the last day for my kids to be off of school. So today, I am planning to put aside work and trip preparations and just enjoy my kids! I don't do that enough! I can't say that I am not ready for them to go back because it is really hard to get my work done when they are all home, especially since John was home that whole time too, but it does make me a little sad to see them go back! I have enjoyed this vacation more than most and am learning to just enjoy my children! I know that sounds weird coming from a mother of four, but I have not alwasy enjoyed my kids because of the baggage in my life that kept me from seeing the full joy of being a mother! God is transforming that part of me and I love it!

So I am off to play games with my kids! Candy Land, here I come!!!!

"He must look like his daddy"

So I answer the door this afternoon to a singing door to door salesman! Noah got to the door before I did and died laughing! When I got there I knew why! The guy was singing and dancing. After talking to him, I think he was little "happier" than the average bear because he had some "happy juice" earlier...breath smelt awful! Anyway, he was telling me all about his product and in the midst of it asked if Noah (my beutiful brown little boy who is at least 1/4 black) was my son. I said, "Yes!". The salesman was black, so I knew where this was going! His response was, "Well he must look like his daddy because he doesn't look like his momma!" I just laughed! If he only knew! I sure was hoping that Callie or Ava would walk up so he would REALLY wonder! If Toben was home we would have realy got him to going! It's strange how other African Americans recognize that he is at least part AA, but other people just think he is our bio child. I nearly said, he is adopted, but stopped myself! He is defined by that enough because of the work I do! He is my son and that is all a stranger needed to know! Who cares who he looks like! He is mine, all mine! Besides he is way too cute to look like his momma! :)

The party is over....well not quite!

It is 11:42 pm and I am still awake! There are three little girls still giggling in a room next door. I give them 15 more minutes before the giggles must quiet so I can get some shut eye!

We had a blast with Callies friends! She really is blessed with a great, fun group of kids as friends ~ both boys and girls! John and I really enjoy having all her friends over. It gets a little wild and crazy some times, but we love it!

My oldest child, my first born...bless her heart! As John, a fellow oldest child, always tells her, she has the yucky job of being our parenting experiment! I don't know that I would put it in quite those words, but I guess that is kind of the truth. She is the one who has been through my fits of insecurities, my scrambled days of not knowing how to be a stay-at-home mother, my emotional break downs of learning how to really step out in faith and follow God, and she has felt the largest brunt of John and my journey to figure out this thing called marrage! She is a very sensitive child, a very spiritual child! She understood more about the spiritual nature of things at 5 than I did at 25! She has always been very in tune with God and the things of His nature. She is not perfect by any means, in fact, I already see the major battles that the enemy will nail her with in her life, yet she has a desire to fight and follow God in a way that I don't see in too many 8 year olds!

She is a wonderful song writer with lyrics full of wisdom beyong her years! She has already declared that she will not birth children! Way too painful! LOL! IF she has children, they will be adopted. The only reason she wants to go to college is so she can run the adoption agency when I retire. She has a heart for orphans....all over the world, not just Africa! I can't wait to see what God does with her!

Callie, my princess, I love you so much! It is an honor to be your mother! There are many times I have and will fail you as a mother, but I love you more than life itself! Happy Birthday, Gracie!

Can't have a slumber party with out painted nails and tatoos!

Party Preparations!

Callie will turn 8 on January 25...John and I will be in Liberia! That is a tough one! So we are having her party before we go! So today we have a full day of getting ready for her part tonight. We will have games and pizza while the boys are here (Callie has been blest with some wonderful little boys who are as close of friends as her girl friends!). But then they will leave and the girls will have a spa sleep over...complete with painting nails, High School Musical, and I am sure lots of giggles and screams! This is our first big sleep over! Pray for us! hee!hee!

We have it!!!!!

Pastor Wesley called this morning and he has the case history! He is really coming home!!! Immediatly, I felt myself relax and knew that I could really prepare now! I had a mini break down and allowed myself a few tears of joy knowing that all papers are ready, the Embassy has said yes, and there is nothing standing in our way except a few thousand miles!

In just 16 days I will be kissing these sweet cheeks! Thanks for all the prayers!

A few Pics of a Petree Christmas

I figure before I say good bye to 2007, I should put some pictures of our Christmas up...at least of the kids!
This is a picture of our traditional matching pajamas! Noah isn't fond of this tradition, but liked it better this year since the pjs were not purple!











The excitement of Christmas morning! Coming in to see what the man in red left!














Callie and her ginger bread house that they made at school. It was a fun experience to see all the creativity in that group of second graders! I am pretty sure there were several building materials that found their way into tummies also!