A Berry Good Day

Yum - strawberries!

Today Ian got his first taste of pick your own strawberries. I think he's a fan. I told the kids last night that as soon as everyone got up, we'd get dressed to go pick berries. We wouldn't have breakfast because we could eat berries in the field. They were pretty excited. Ian woke up first this morning a little before 6am, Cami was up a little while later. Ben was the last up a little after 7am. Shortly thereafter we were in the van and on our way to Berry Hill Farm on Old Sauk Road outside of Middleton.


We chose Berry Hill because it was the only one in the area that seemed to be open this weekend. Our normal stop, Carandale, is closed for ripening this weekend. Berry Hill is a smaller farm and only about 10 people were picking when we arrived. The kids were excited to get started. Ben and Cami were mildly helpful and Ian just started eating berries - which was perfect. (You can see Ian's handiwork in the picture above. I didn't have a camera in the patch, but I took this when we got home - notice the red on the shirt!) I was concerned he'd run all over the rows and get too busy to handle and we'd be leaving with a quart of berries.


We were doing fine until Cami annouced she had to go to the bathroom -- No. 2 at that. So we inquired about a bathroom and the attendant said he didn't know if one was available, but gestured toward the trees. I hope we didn't do any permanent damage to the trees.

After our bathroom break, we went back to our row and picked a little more. Cami was pretty much done, but Ben was still into it and Ian kept shoving berries into his little mouth. We ended up with a little over 8 lbs or 2/3 of a flat. I was satisfied considering I had three helpers with short attention spans.


All the picking wore out Ian and he was asleep shortly after we left the farm. On the way home, we stopped at the Farmer's Market on the square on the way home, got some snap peas and cheese curds, and went to the observation deck in the Capitol.


Cami passed out on the way home from the Farmer's Market. When we got home, Ben helped me make pancakes and that was our lunch - pancakes with berries. Later on we made a pie. The kids are excited to eat it tomorrow -- maybe even for breakfast. I just had a slice and it was delicious - a perfect end to a berry good day.

Court Date

Today in the mail we received our notice from Dane County Circuit Court regrading Ian's adoption. On Wednesday, July 9 at 9:20, we'll make everything official. Judge John Albert will be presiding. Anyone who would like to celebrate with us is welcome to join us at the Dane County Courthouse, Courtroom 4A, 215 S Hamilton St, Madison, WI 53703.

This means Dana's last day of work until the snow flies is sometime before July 9th. She'll start her five months of adoption leave on the day the adoption is official. That means she'll have Thanksgiving off, but we don't know what Christmas will bring. Who know what the airline industry will look like in five months. But for now, we'll enjoy the time off.

Rain Rain Go Away!!

Cami playing basketball with Ben.

Ian helping mommy plant flowers.

The kids having a picnic on Friday. Ben is worried that there might be more rain.

I think we have had enough rain to last us a while. Roads are shut down, basements are flooding (not ours thankfully), and there are large puddles and ponds everywhere. The rain has been coming down for several days now and it is time for it to stop. Thankfully we had a nice, yet muggy, day here today. The kids were getting a little stir crazy being in doors for so many days. They understand the seriousness of the heavy rains as the news showed houses in the Wisconsin Dells area being washed away whole and sinking and another house being split in two by the floods. They were a little scared, but Ben stated that he was thankful that God kept the people from being washed away with the houses. What a smart and thoughtful little boy.

This weekend we had a garage sale with our friends Stacy. Her son Hank and our kids enjoyed playing while we sat and waited for people to come. Despite the downpours on Friday, we actually had quite a few people come in between the rain storms. We all enjoyed having a picnic lunch with free food from Potbelly Sandwiches (free food on Thursday with donations given to Habitat for Humanity).

Ian made his way down the steps today crawling and pushing his way down on his tummy. It is the first time he has made it all the way down. He is really growing up! He has 4 teeth coming in all at the same time, climbing on everything. Babbling all the time, trying so hard to communicate his wants and needs, and learning so many new things. I LOVE this stage and dislike this stage all at the same time. I mostly love it because it is fun to watch your child learn so many new things and see the excitement in their eyes and on their face from the most simple things, like bending over and seeing someone upside down (Ian got a HUGE kick out of that). The part I dislike is the frustration they get when they are trying to communicate throught whining and grunting and me having to try to figure out what the need or want is before a major meltdown occurs. I often reflect on the amazing changes that occur everyday with my kids and thank God that I have the opportunity to see them grow everyday. I feel blessed to be home with my kids running around playing tag and having picnics during the day. I know this time will go fast and soon they will be in school and our carefree days will be lost to school and activities.

Speaking of activities, Ben has just started soccer and will have his first game this coming Monday. He is enjoying it so far. Ben and Cami both are finishing up their swim classes. Cami had her last one on Wednesday and Ben's had to be rescheduled due to the rain, hail, and tornados on Thursday. He will finish up next week. They love swimming, but are looking forward to taking a break this summer and starting back up in the fall. We look forward to a limited scheduled summer, leaving most days for playtime and play dates and zoo trips with friends.

We hope to hear about Ian's official adoption court date soon. We are expecting a July court date right now. We can't wait until everything is official! We are so excited!

Clean Sweep

Cami in an outfit Grandma Bonnie made for mommy when she was a little girl.

Helping Paul and Stephanie pack up to move from Germantown, WI to Mason, OH

Playdate with friend, Morgan.

Ben's last day of school.

Ian helping daddy mow the lawn

Cami practicing her backfloat at swim lessons.


Ben and Cami are up at Grandma and Grandpa's house up north for the weekend while Justin and I, with the help of Ian, while Justin spends time trying to fix the kids bathroom floor from mold, etc and Dana work hard on trying to get the office in workable condition. With 3 kids, cleaning and organizing has not been at the top of the list. As days go on, we feel like the house is closing in on us. The STUFF is taking over! Hopefully we will be able to take care of some of it this weekend. It will feel good to downsize. Here are a few pictures from the last 2 weeks.

Work

Needless to say, life has been a little busy at the Marthaler house. I am back to work and working a lot. I have not worked this many hours in a month in years! It feels good to be working, but there is still the struggle of working vs. being home. Thankfully I am able to do both. I am tired a lot, but I know there is a light at the end of the tunnel since I will have 5 months off once Ian is officially adopted. Since the leave is completely unpaid, I am trying to work a lot now so that it does not hurt as much financially when I go off work.
We promise to post more and post more pictures in the near future. Bear with us during this transition!

First Haircut

We loved the long flowing hair on Ian, but it came time to get it cut and make him look more like a little man. On Saturday, April 19, we headed over to Next Generation salon on the west side of Madison before going to Korean class. He was a little shy at first, but once we sat him down in the yellow cab chair, he was happy! He enjoyed steering while the lady cut his hair. Ben and Cami enjoyed watching the movie playing while Ian got his hair cut. We were very proud of him for being so brave. He was actually happy the whole time, no tears.

Happy Birthday Benjamin!

Ben is 5 years old today. I can't believe that time has flown by and he is a little boy about to enter kindergarten in the fall. I remember him being Ian's size and exploring his surroundings and being a mommy's boy. In a blink of an eye the kids are grown. I know that is what you are told over and over again, but times like this, it hits home.

Daddy made Ben breakfast this morning...eggs over easy, while they all waited for mommy to get home from work. By 7:30 am, mom was home and dad was ready to take Cami to school. Ben enjoyed a fun morning playing with his new toys from his birthday party on Saturday. He invited several friends to go swimming at Kittleson Swim School. It was a perfect party for a boy who LOVES to swim. Now that he can swim by himself without a lifevest, it makes it even more fun for him. The pirate birthday cake, made by Grandma Sandy and pirate decorations hand made by their very talented cousin Renee, was quickly devoured and then presents torn open. Everyone had a great time.

Justin's parents and Keri, Joe, and Natalie came down for the weekend to make his birthday even more fun. Grandma and Grandpa took Ben and Cami to the hotel on Saturday night for a short getaway. They enjoyed more swimming there.

Today Ben enjoyed a birthday meal at New Seoul restaurant, one of his favorite places to eat. He has been wanting Kimbop since Ian's Tol party. We picked up Justin for lunch and headed to the restaurant. Ben was excited to be able to order a whole plate of Kimbop for himself. We came home and napped and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening playing outside. Ben is enjoying his new Razor scooter from mom and dad, something he has been asking for since early last summer when we visited Mike and Allison in California and he was able to ride his cousin, Austin's Razor.

My baby is growing up. While it is exciting to see the changes in him emotionally, physically, and especially intellectually, it is also hard knowing that he is no longer my little baby. At least he still needs me to sing him songs every night in order to help him fall asleep, something I enjoy doing at home while we cuddle or singing over the phone to him when I am at work.

Happy Birthday Ben! Mommy and Daddy love you so much and are very proud of our 5 year old!