Father & Sons

This was supposed to be posted yesterday, but I haven't had internet access since beginning our trip to La Paz and Copacabana. Now I've finished writing it at an internet cafe and... 

In honor of Father's Day......

 Jake & Sons: a formidable team in the making!!

 A special message for daddy on our Bolivian Father's Day (March 19)

Busy making Father's Day cards (also March 19)

We found a youtube video for making these cute shirt cards and the boys picked up how to do it very quickly! Joel still remembers all the many folds.

Bike riding is one of the FAVORITE activities of all four! They spend hours exploring the city from the nearby bike trail. (This picture is from Pedestrian Day in April, which is why Jake isn't on a bike. He walked with me and the baby!)

Love this picture of the mud splatters :)

In one of our planning sessions before the boys arrived, Jake and I came up with a chore and award system that has as it's foundation the system the boys already used in Casa de Amor II, but adding our own flair. For example, instead of a Friday night movie being the prize, it's money!

The first day of the month is always exciting as the boys calculate their award earnings - as well as any deductions - from the previous month!

The cups I bought for "Daddy's bank"! 

The boys have learned to set aside tithe, spending money, and savings. We encourage them to save as much as possible. Jake has not given them the go-ahead to spend this yet (on parent approved purchases), but that time might be coming and the boys have big plans... Stay tuned!!

 Pay Day!

With the little bit of spending money usually left over, the boys happily buy little treats at the local tiendas (stores) or various toys and trinkets from Saturday market. 

Poor guys! Jake spends hours fixing cheap Bolivian toys. This evening, the water gun was unfortunately beyond repair.

Becoming parents to 4 kids all in the span of 10 weeks time is kind of like being thrown in the deep end of the pool...and living there! In a remarkably short period of time, Jake went from abiding in a peaceful cabin in the woods to living in an apartment, in a city, with lots of noisy people. It's been quite the shock at times, but considering the contrast for him, I'm impressed with how well he tolerates it! And, of course how he embraces fatherhood.

Each day and week we grow closer as a family. When we stop and think about it, it's hard to believe that the boys haven't even been with us half a year yet! We've all come a long way and still have quite the journey ahead. I'm so glad for Jake's wisdom as we deal with different situations in our family. He might laugh at this, but he's also my stabilizer. His humor keeps me sane after long days (and nights)!

All four of our kids are either just like Jake, or Jake wannabes. Jake puts up a little protest every time I say this, but he knows it's true!! :-)

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!

...to my Dad, too. Thanks for always being such a great provider and supporter of our dreams! :)