Pictures!

This last picture (sorry it's horizontal) is Grant helping Daddy put up Nia's curtains. He likes to put the pen behind his ear, just like dad.

Pictures From Our Weekend

Fall Festivities

Our weekend was fairly lowkey but nontheless we got quite a bit of things in. I am really trying hard to remember what we did Friday night and sadly I cannot come up with anything! How can that be? By the time I'm 4o I won't even know my name!

Saturday we got up and headed to Clinton for the Pork and Apple Festival. Now, for those of you unfamiliar with Clinton, there is NOTHING there. But boy, when this festival comes about it is crazy how many people show up! No one wants to miss out on the junk, uh, flea market or carni food. It was very hot and the lines to get food were ridiculous. Grant and Mark were in line for 10 minutes just for kettle corn! Grant carried the enormous bag of corn everywhere. He got to go on a pony ride and afterwards I asked him if he had fun. His response? Where is the popcorn mom? We also feasted on corn on the cob, pork on a stick, apple cider, a corn dog and a funnel cake (my favorite!) We stayed for about two and half hours and then headed home for nap time. Everyone slept and I ran errands. It is amazing how many stores I can hit when I am by myself! That evening we went to our friend's the Gosch's house for pizza. It was fun to get to hang out because we don't see them too often anymore. Grant was cracking everyone up due to the fact that he refused to take off his bike helmet. Now, you must know, he didn't ride his bike at all that day. He just wanted to wear the helmet. Mark used to tease me that I would have out kids in helmets in their carseats (I'm a little bit of a safety geek). Well, I guess he was right. Grant was playing tag and running around with it on. He wanted to wear it during dinner but I drew the line there! He and Alex are always entertaining us!

Sunday was church and hanging around the house. I found curtains for Nia's room and a really cute curtain rod (too much time on my hands?) Her room is almost done. Her furniture will hopefully be delivered this week and I just have to get a new light fixture. Now all we need is a referal! That evening Mark and I went to our church small group. That was our weekend. Nothing too exciting for the rest of the week. Saturday we are having a family cookout so that will be fun. That's all for now!

Finally Friday

Friday is here! Another school day for Grant. I am so happy that he looks forward to going! Today he reported that they painted (as evidenced by the purple paint on his shirt :), played outside, sang songs and played with cars and trucks. Sounds like a good day to me! Alex and I took a walk and ran errands. Tomorrow we are going to the big town of Clinton, Illinois for the apple and pork festival. There should be lots of junk for sale and lots of junk to eat! Have a great weekend to all of you out there!

New Salem State Park

So these are some of our pictures from our day at New Salem. I tried numerous times to get a picture with both boys looking but it proved to be impossible. Alex was quite intriqued by the big cooking pot! And next is the demonstration of how to skin a raccoon. Ugh! The man doing the demonstration assured everyone this raccoon had been hit by a car. Who cares how it died?! I stepped out on this one! And then there is Grant and Mark at the tavern. They just can't stay away!! And both kids were asleep before we even got out of the park! A fun day!

More Pictures

What is this you ask? It is what happens when I leave our children with Daddy! Alex is now a pirate and Grant got an airplane painted on his arm. This was at our Fall Picnic at church.

Attempt At Posting Pictures

Alex is so hard to get to eat, but occasionally he decides he'll use a spoon and then the meal ends with a bath!

A Few Blog Changes

So, I have managed to make some changes and I definatley think the background is much cuter! It wasn't too hard although Mark did have to help me a little. The website I got the background from is: thecutestblogontheblock

Today is yet another beautiful day! Although, I would prefer it to be a little cooler. I am weary of 80 degrees!

This morning Mark took Grant golfing and then they went and checked out all the job sites and came home. Mark is busy! He is building quite a few homes which of course, is time consuming, but we are SO grateful to the Lord for providing these jobs. It's not exactly the best time to be in the building/reality business but God has been gracious and continues to give us all that we need! As Mark headed back to work, I took the boys to the park where we met up with friends to play. Then it was time for lunch and a nap. Very exciting, I know! The open house at Grant's school last night went well. It was fun to see him in that environment and have him showing us around. There was also a book fair so he had a good time picking out books to buy. That's it for us! Have a great day!

A Fun Weekend

So, I still don't have pictures that I can post but we did have a fun weekend. Friday night we enjoyed dinner with our friends the Rice's. They have three children so all the kids had fun playing together. Their youngest, Maren was dedicated at church the same day Grant was and now they are in the same class at school. They have quite amazing stories as they lived in Indonesia for 2 years with Wycliffe Bible Translators. They were telling us how there are over 7ooo languages spoken in the world!! In many of the villages in impoverished countries, many of the people speak a language but have no written language. So, through a very detailed and long process the translators work to develop a written form and then write a Bible in that language. They were saying that in one of the areas they were in, a Bible is just now going to print. From when the process started to print has been 20 years!! It is an amazing ministry. And it was neat to see their pictures and hear about their experiences!

Saturday we had our Lifelink (adoption agency) picnic. Or so I thought!! Here comes a major blunder on my part! So I had really been looking forward to this picnic to have the opportunity to talk with the other families who have or are in the process of adopting . I make all the food I need, pack the car the night before, fill the diaper bags with all the necessities and we head out. It was about an hour and a half drive. We finally get there and stangely enough, no one was there. It was at that point that Mark looked at the paper that the agency had sent with all the details. In bold print at the top was the date for the picnic. September 13th!!!! Oh no! My first thought was, "how fast can I get out of this van!!" Thankfully, Mark laughed and shook his head at me. This happens often. At least it was at a place where there are things to do. It is called New Salem and it is an old village from the 1800's. The kids had fun running around and looking at all of the buildings and shops. The highlight was getting to see how they skinned raccoons. I took that time to go the restroom! So, even despite my mistake we had a fun family day.

Sunday was pretty low key. Mark had to show some homes so after church I got the kids down for nap and I did some things around the house. That evening Mark and I went to our small group and then went to the grocery store. Not much of a date but time alone just the two us is always nice!

Yesterday was laundry day and we had a friend over to play and in the evening I went to my women's Bible Study. We are doing a study by Priscilla Shirer. It is on learning how to hear from God. Two weeks in and it is a great study. I am praying that I will be diligent to get my daily homework done and not do the entire thing Sunday night!

Today is a school day so after taking Grant to school, Alex and I went for a walk and then to the children's second hand shop. I love when I get things so cheap and they are like new! No guilt shopping is great! Tonight is an open house at Grant's school. I'm looking forward to him showing us everything he has done. That's it for now!

Sorry, No Pics

Ok, so I was planning on posting some new pictures but I can't seem to get it to work. I'll have to work on it and try again tomorrow. Sorry about that, I know the pictures are what we all really care about!

Busy Days!

Well, sorry about the lapse! We have had several busy days! Friday was a fun night, taking Grant to the circus! It is always fun to be able to do activities with the boys one on one. The circus was good and we ate a ton of junk food. Let's see, popcorn, pizza, grande nachos, a hotdog, giant pretzel, soda and a must have, cotton candy. Mark had never been to a circus and he enjoyed it although I tried to tell him it was nothing compared to the three ring circuses I grew up going to.

Saturday I made a lasagna for a family in our church that had a baby, and got the house cleaned up. That evening our very good friends the Dietz's came to visit. They are such dear friends and it is wonderful when we get together because we just order pizza and hang out. No worrying about trying to make a fancy meal. I didn't even give them real plates, just paper. The kids had fun playing and wrestling. Between our two families we have 5 boys! Where are all the girls? Hopefully we will have ours soon! (We are going to get you one Jennell, whatever it takes :)

Sunday we continued to deal with the ongoing rain. We went to church and then later went back for the annual Fall Festival. They had to move everything inside but it was alot of fun. There were tons of games, crafts, balloon animals, face painting and food. We all had a fun time! Grant got a plane painted on his arm and Alex got a pirate patch, although it looked more like he had gotten into a bar fight by the time I saw him, pictures to follow! Monday I tried to get onto the computer but I couldn't seem to get it to turn on. I don't know what the problem was but it is working now.

Monday was not too exciting but that was ok because we needed to have a catch up day. Today was a school day for Grant and we all went out to breakfast. After dropping off Grant, Alex and I headed to the gym. So far, I am doing good with getting there on Tuesday and Friday. And so far Alex still screams like crazy when I leave him in the childcare area. This evening Mark took me out to dinner for my 25th birthday :) O.K. maybe not 25 but close enough right? We went to Logan's Steakhouse and then to Coldstone Creamery for ice cream. I am very blessed to have so many family and friends who called and sent cards to wish me a Happy Birthday! I am a very lucky girl! Thanks to all of you!

Another Beautiful Day!

Not much to report for today. Grant has been a little challenging due to the fact that he is fighting a cold. His behavior has been like a wild animal! He may be in bed by 7:00 tonight! We have an all school picnic later so we are looking forward to that. (Especially since it is one less meal to plan and make and clean up!)

Still waiting for that phone to ring and see our social worker's name on caller I.D. I anticipate it everytime the phone rings. The NRA has called several times (how they got our number is beyond me) and I finally picked up so they would stop calling. There is one less time for the phone to ring and be disappointed. But we really are doing well and can't complain about the wait. I am so blessed to have two beautiful, busy boys and one hunky husband to keep me entertained. :)

A Beautiful Day!

So, the weather today has much improved! It is beautiful out! And Grant had school this morning so Mark, Alex, Grant and me all went and had breakfast at the airport and then drove to school. Alex and I hit the gym and then ran errands before heading back to pick up Grant and our little friend Jack who comes home with us for the day. All three of them are sleeping so the house is quiet. For now!! Mark is planning to take Grant fishing later and Alex and I will do some more errands. Poor Alex! That's it for us!

Rainy Day

Well, as you can see I have figured out how to get the pictures posted, I just can't seem to figure out how to get them to go where I want or how to turn them! And I tried to put a caption under each but I couldn't get that to work either. Oh well! Here's a little blurb about each picture.

Starting from the top: Grant and Mommy at the Magic House, Grant's first time golfing (with Daddy of course), Grant's first day of preschool, Alex enjoying ice cream, Grant helping Grampy paint our hallway, Grant and his moth he caught ("Mothy" was our new friend, he went up to bed with Grant and the next day he ran errands with us :)), Grant at "his farm", Grant's Farm in St. Louis, swimming at the pool in St. Louis, Grant jumping off the dock at Grandma and Grandpa Lipic's House and last but not least Alex at G and G Lipic's House, waiting to get into the water.

So today we have had rain all day and it is dark and cool. I think fall is upon us. At least it feels that way. But we have managed to have a fun day. Grant's little buddy Derrick came over and they wore each other out chasing each other and wrestling. Grant and Alex are sleeping which is why I am able to get on the computer.

Some of you have been asking about the adoption progress so the word is: wait! We have been told we are next on the list for a referal but the girl referals don't always come quickly. I think it will be this month but I guess we will just have to wait and see. I will be sure to post as soon as we hear anything!

I am off to tend to the piles of laundry screaming my name.

Our St. Louis Trip

Above are some pictures from our trip to St. Louis. We ate at Lou Boccardi's on "The Hill" which is the Italian district. They have the best thin crust pizza! They ship it all over the United States! Then we headed to The Magic House. Grant and Alex had a blast! Then back to hotel for swimming and the next day we went to Grant's farm. Our Grant kept saying, "my farm, my farm!" And we of course we had to hit Ted Drewe's for some frozen custard. It was a fun weekend as a family!!

Welcome To Our Blog

Welcome to the Lipic Family Blog! We have started this to keep our family and friends up to date on our growing boys and the adoption of our daughter in South Korea. You'll have to bear with us as we work to learn all of the blogging technology. But thanks to our good friends the Taylor's we now can upload pictures! Thanks Steve!