Cluster

Every Wednesday night, Edwin meets with a group of highschoolers to mentor them. :) They pray together, keep accountable, study the Bible, and encourage each other. I cook dinner and eat with them, then have to go hide out in my room! :) But, it is fun to see this group of guys come together. They goof off, eat a TON, and share their lives with each other, anticipating the Holy Spirit's work in their lives. :)

Cada miercoles en la noche, Edwin se reune con un grupo de bachilleres como su mentor. :) Ellos oran juntos, estudian la Biblia y se animan unos a otros. Yo cocino, como con ellos y luego me voy a esconder a mi cuarto! :) Es divertido ver este grupo de cheros juntos. Ellos se divierten, comen un MONTON y comparten sus vidas uno con otro, anticipando el trabajo del Espiritu Santo en ellos. :)

Family Fun . . .

Here Tory and I are enjoying wonderful times with Family in El Salvador. Tory loved getting in the pool, playing with any and all animals (dogs, birds, fish . . .) climbing up and down stairs, walking around and eating popsicles, and she absolutely LOVED getting to know her aunts, uncles, cousins, and grandparents all over again!

Aqui Tory y yo estamos disfrutando un tiempo maravilloso con familia en El Salvador. A Tory le encantaba meterse en la piscina, jugar con cualquier animal (perros, pajaros, peces . . .), subir y bajar gradas, caminar y comer paletas y le fascino volver a conocer a todos sus tias, tios, primos, primas y abuelitos otra vez!



































We were also privledged to celebrate Tory's first birthday with all our family! :) With fun music, funny clowns, lots of kids, delicious cake . . . even our own popsicle cart! . . . Tory dropped like a rock at the end of the day! :)

Tambien tuvimos el privilegio de celebrar el primer cumpleaños de Tory con nuestra familia. :) Con musica divertida, payasos divertidos, muchos niños, pastel delicioso . . . hasta nuestro propio carreton de paletas! . . . Tory durmio super bien esa noche! :)
























We were also able to run away to Guatemala to our traditional vacation spot . . . a place that started out as a special "hide-away" for missionaries owned by a mission agency where there are cabins you can rent out very reasonably and it is right on the edge of a lake that has three volcanoes around it. Here Tory had a blast trying out a paddle boat (yeah! since she didn't have to paddle! - it looks like I didn't either, but I actually took a turn at it!), and she had so much fun with her cousins! It was a great gift to visit everybody!! Thank you for housing and loving on us!! We miss you all tons!!

Tambien pudimos escaparnos a Guatemala a nuestro lugar de vacacion tradicional . . . donde se puede alquilar una cabaña a la orilla de un lago con tres volcanes alrededor. Los dueños es una mision y la idea del lugar empezo como un lugar donde misioneros podian ir a descansar asi que no es muy caro alli. Tory se divirtio en la bicicleta en agua (A si! porque no tuvo que pedalear!! - parece que yo tampoco tuve que, pero a mi tambien me toco hacerle) y se divirtio tanto con sus primos. Fue un gran regalo visitar a todos!! Gracias por alojarnos y amarnos! :) Los extrañamos mucho a todos!!

Monkey Face and Hairballs

Tory suddenly started making this funny face . . . and for some reason, it made me think of a monkey face... :) hee, hee And one day we went out and I scratched our cat, Zidane . . .Boy, did she shed that winter fur!! And still is, I'm sure.

Tory de pronto empezo a hacer esta cara chistosa . . . y por alguna razon, me recordo a un monito . . . :) ji, ji. Y un dia salimos afuera y rascamos a nuestra gata, Zidane . . . Como se le cayo ese pelo que acumulo un el invierno!! Y aun lo sigue haciendo, estoy segura.

Self-feeding Attempt #2

Note to self: at next attempt, only allow Tory to wear a diaper!

Nota para mi misma: en el próximo intento, sólo dejar que Tory use pañal!


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Share Photos - Free Video Hosting

Trip to Portland Zoo

So Edwin took Tory and I to Portland, OR for a fun weekend! On the way over, we took the Historic Road (I've always been curious about it when you drive by on HWY 84) and discovered a smaller waterfall than the Multunomah Falls, but it was nice because it was right there.... you didn't have to hike to get to it! :) hee, hee. We stayed with my Dad's brother and his wife and were able to visit the zoo all day on Saturday! Tory's favorite things were the butterflies, birds, and fish. It was neat to see Tory trying to follow the butterflies with her eyes as they quickly flew around her. We also were able to see birds flying over our heads during a presentation. We saw an eagle, a bald eagle, an owl, and a vulture. At the end you can see how conked out she was in the car. Awww...

Edwin nos llevo a Tory y a mi a Portland, Oregon para un fin de semana divertido. En el camino nos desviamos de la carretera principal para ir en una calle historica y ahi encontramos una cascada bien bonita. Lo que mas me gusto fue que no tuvimos que trepar por la montaña para llegar a ella. :) Nos quedamos con el hermano de mi papá y su esposa y pudimos visitar el zológico todo el día sábado. Las partes favoritas de Tory fue ver las mariposas, los pericos y los pescados. Fue lindo ver a Tory tratar de seguir el vuelo de la mariposa con sus ojos. También pudimos ver unos pájaros volar sobre nuestras cabezas durante una presentación especial. Vimos una águila, un buho y un sopilote. Al final pueden ver lo agotada que quedo! :) Ahhhhh...

Fun toys!

I've been meaning to put this up for a while now, and just hadn't gotten around to it. But anyway... Tory has come to LOVE, really love stuffed animals and anything soft. When my parents were in Leavenworth, they got her this adorable, huge, cuddly bear, and as you can see, she hugs it real tight and just can't get enough of Teddy (of course). Another neat gift was the craddle/rocker. Mom had been wanting to get Tory some kind of a small rocking chair and they couldn't find anything, as much as they looked and looked. Then, one day, my dad took Tory out on a walk and happened upon a yard sale. They were selling this craddle/rocker that a Swedish friend had hand-made for their children! It is beautiful, and even today Tory will lead me over to it and try to climb up onto it by herself. She loves it when I seat her on it and rock her back and forth! :) (It even came with a bonus: a cabbage patch doll - ah, the memories!). The next set of toys we are borrowing came from Tammy! :) Tory is walking all over the place, but only if I hold her hands. Now, as you can see in the video, Tory can walk with the help of her walker/rider. She loves to push the button nose and hear the music. The other toy she goes bananas over is the little "bug" stroller. I took her to the grocery store in it on the day of the picture, and she had a great time but it was way too hot! I lathered her with sun block, gave her a hat and a bottle of water, which, as you can see, she promptly poured all over herself - at least it kept her cool!

He querido poner estas fotos por un buen rato ya, pero no lo habia hecho. Pero, de todos modos... aqui va! A Tory le ha empezado a ENCANTAR los animales y muñecas suaves y peludos. Cuando mis papas estaban aqui, le compraron un oso adorable, inmenso y super suave y como pueden ver, Tory lo abraza fuerte. Otro reglo nitido fue la mecedorcita con la cunita. Mi mami habia estado buscando una mecedora pequeña pero no habia podido encontrar nada. Un dia, mi papi salio con Tory a caminar y vieron una venta que la gente hace aqui donde sacan cosas que ya no usan y las venden ahi en su jardin. Pues, mi papá vió la cunita/mecedora que estaban vendiendo bien barato y un amido Sueco de la familia se los habian hecho a mano para sus hijas. Aun hoy Tory me llevo de la mano para donde estaba la mecedora y queria que yo la pusiera ahi y que la meciera. Otros regalos chivos se los hemos prestado a Tammy. Tory ya puede caminar por todos lados pero solo con la ayuda de mi mano y este juguete es fantastico porque ahora Tory ya puede caminar sola y le encante apretar el boton y oir la musica. El otro carrito es uno de sus favoritos tambien. Por toda la casa la hemos llevado - nunca se quiere bajar! El dia de las fotos la lleve hasta el supermercado pero el dia estaba BIEN caliente. Asi que le puse el bloqueador de sol, el sombrerito y le di un vasito con agua, lo cual, como pueden ver, lo echo en cima de ella. Por lo menos le alivio un poco del calor del sol!







Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Share Photos - Free Video Hosting

Playing with Daddy

Edwin came up with this fun game, and as you can see, she loves it!
Edwin inventó este juego, y como pueden ver, le encanta a Tory.


Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing - Share Photos

Trip to the zoo

While we were in Seattle, we were able to visit the zoo! As you can see, Tory had a lot of fun at the petting zoo, and meeting the giraffes up close was exciting, even for Grandpa and Mommy! We were especially impressed by the lions and the beautiful jaguar. Tory did really well for being at the zoo for four hours! She did konk out for about an hour of it, thankfully, but she had a great time!

Mientras estabamos en Seattle, pudimos visitar el zológico! Como pueden ver, Tory disfrutó el área donde pueden tocar a los animales, y conociendo a las girafas de cerca fué emocionante, hasta para Abuelito y Mamá. Fuimos especialmente impresionados por los leones y el bello jaguar. Aunque pasó cuatro horas en el zológico, lo pudo disfrutar mucho Tory, y menos mal que durmió una de esas horas.