Photos from our trip out to Tucson, Arizona May 4-7, 2007.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Hilton Head Island Vacation...
Here are a few photos from our recent vacation to Hilton Head, SC July 13-22, 2007. It was the first time we've been back to the beach since Miranda and Mark were about 16 months old so it was a new adventure for them! They love the sand, the surf, and of course, all of the family time. We were lucky enough to meet the Vecchio's & the Ossege's down there too which made our vacation even more exciting.
We spent hours and hours each day on the beach...make sand castles, swimming, snacking and having fun.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Visit Trip
Dear family & friends,
Okay, I arrived home very late on Sunday 8/5 from my 10 day trip to Guatemala to visit my kiddies. Although I didn't like being away from Mike, Miranda, Mark & the puppies for so long, it was an amazing trip and I'm so glad I visited for such a long time. I am exhausted and still not yet fully unpacked, but I wanted to send this out as soon as I could...
I was able to stay at the orphanage (Fundaninos) for the entire visit. They have a small 'cabin' on site that was currently not being used so they let me stay there and of course the kids wanted to stay with me too! And as I'm sure you can imagine, 10 days of being together pretty much all the time really helps you get to know each other!!!
The kids are wonderful, smart, loving, cuddly and funny! We bonded so well and I just could go on for days on all the things I like about each child, but I'll save that for another day...but they are terrific kids. They are also quite shy around new people (we had quite a lot of visitors during my stay from work teams and visiting mission teams and my three always 'hid' from the people instead of playing with them like many of the kids do!) But, I'm sure once they are home for a while and get to know everyone, you'll get to know their personalities as Mike & I do and grow to love them as much as we do! They are so great....(did I say that already?!)
Some of you may have gotten my email while I was in Guatemala saying that I had a conversation w/ the kids (through a translator of course!) letting them know that they were all old enough to decide what names that want once the adoption is final and they come home. We hadn't even considered changing their names since they were older but after having discussions with other families who adopted older children, we realized that the might WANT new names - so we offered them the option to pick any names they wanted and they ALL were very very quick to choose new names...and very sure of them once chosen. I made them think about it for almost a week, checking each day, and they were still very sure...and here they are!
(It's going to take me a while to get used to them as I'm sure it will be for them...but we'll probably use their first TWO names for a while to make the transition easier)
Gerson Noe: Max Harrison Noe Hanavan
(Maximilian, but will most likely go by just 'Max' and "Harrison" sounds very much like his current first name however he really wanted to 'Americanize' it)
Vanessa Lisbeth: Maria Vanessa Lisbeth Hanavan
Belsy Antonio: Matthew Antonio Belsy Hanavan
And, in case you didn't notice, yes...they are all "M" names....so we'll be the M, M, M, M, M, M & M family...or "The 7 'M' family" for short! Ha ha! We have Michael, Michelle, Max, Maria, Matthew, Miranda and Mark - phew!
As for when they'll be home, we still don't know. We are still holding out hope that somehow they'll be home by Christmas (this will take a lot of prayers...so please start/continue praying!!) but if not, we're hoping for early 2008. Please keep them and our case in your thoughts....
Below you'll find a link to a 4 ½ minute slide show of my trip - it's short and to the point and will give you a sense of the 10 day visit. Enjoy!
Also, you'll find a link to some of the photos of the other children there - it's a terrific orphanage but still it's not like having a family so the sooner they are home the better....
I'll be in touch...
TO VIEW PHOTOS:
To see the slideshow of me and my kiddies, click on 'view' on the VISIT album.
To see a slideshow of kids from Fundaninos (too cute!) click on the Fundaninos album.Then - click 'loop' to PLAY the slideshow. Turn on your SOUND as there is music attached to each. Thanks! Click the following link to view the collection: http://www.photodex.com/sharing/viewalbum.html?bm=136520
To email me - send one to: hanavanmichelle@hotmail.com
Okay, I arrived home very late on Sunday 8/5 from my 10 day trip to Guatemala to visit my kiddies. Although I didn't like being away from Mike, Miranda, Mark & the puppies for so long, it was an amazing trip and I'm so glad I visited for such a long time. I am exhausted and still not yet fully unpacked, but I wanted to send this out as soon as I could...
I was able to stay at the orphanage (Fundaninos) for the entire visit. They have a small 'cabin' on site that was currently not being used so they let me stay there and of course the kids wanted to stay with me too! And as I'm sure you can imagine, 10 days of being together pretty much all the time really helps you get to know each other!!!
The kids are wonderful, smart, loving, cuddly and funny! We bonded so well and I just could go on for days on all the things I like about each child, but I'll save that for another day...but they are terrific kids. They are also quite shy around new people (we had quite a lot of visitors during my stay from work teams and visiting mission teams and my three always 'hid' from the people instead of playing with them like many of the kids do!) But, I'm sure once they are home for a while and get to know everyone, you'll get to know their personalities as Mike & I do and grow to love them as much as we do! They are so great....(did I say that already?!)
Some of you may have gotten my email while I was in Guatemala saying that I had a conversation w/ the kids (through a translator of course!) letting them know that they were all old enough to decide what names that want once the adoption is final and they come home. We hadn't even considered changing their names since they were older but after having discussions with other families who adopted older children, we realized that the might WANT new names - so we offered them the option to pick any names they wanted and they ALL were very very quick to choose new names...and very sure of them once chosen. I made them think about it for almost a week, checking each day, and they were still very sure...and here they are!
(It's going to take me a while to get used to them as I'm sure it will be for them...but we'll probably use their first TWO names for a while to make the transition easier)
Gerson Noe: Max Harrison Noe Hanavan
(Maximilian, but will most likely go by just 'Max' and "Harrison" sounds very much like his current first name however he really wanted to 'Americanize' it)
Vanessa Lisbeth: Maria Vanessa Lisbeth Hanavan
Belsy Antonio: Matthew Antonio Belsy Hanavan
And, in case you didn't notice, yes...they are all "M" names....so we'll be the M, M, M, M, M, M & M family...or "The 7 'M' family" for short! Ha ha! We have Michael, Michelle, Max, Maria, Matthew, Miranda and Mark - phew!
As for when they'll be home, we still don't know. We are still holding out hope that somehow they'll be home by Christmas (this will take a lot of prayers...so please start/continue praying!!) but if not, we're hoping for early 2008. Please keep them and our case in your thoughts....
Below you'll find a link to a 4 ½ minute slide show of my trip - it's short and to the point and will give you a sense of the 10 day visit. Enjoy!
Also, you'll find a link to some of the photos of the other children there - it's a terrific orphanage but still it's not like having a family so the sooner they are home the better....
I'll be in touch...
TO VIEW PHOTOS:
To see the slideshow of me and my kiddies, click on 'view' on the VISIT album.
To see a slideshow of kids from Fundaninos (too cute!) click on the Fundaninos album.Then - click 'loop' to PLAY the slideshow. Turn on your SOUND as there is music attached to each. Thanks! Click the following link to view the collection: http://www.photodex.com/sharing/viewalbum.html?bm=136520
To email me - send one to: hanavanmichelle@hotmail.com
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