Guangdong Girls!!

We visited Omaha a couple of weeks ago to attend the wedding of our niece, Atarah. We had a great time and it was a beautiful wedding!

One great thing about visiting Omaha was getting to visit two of the families from our travel group! The kids just went to playing like they had known each other for years and us adults got in some great conversation! Hannah W., Mandy Rose, and Grace O.....aren't they all just beautiful?! This visit lit the fire under us to have a reunion of our whole travel group! It is in the works for next summer in Colorado! We can't wait!

Memphis Vacation!!

Okay, sooooo, it has been a month since our vacation and I am just now getting to posting about it! Sheesh! What kind of blogger am I? .....A very busy, in school blogger! Oh well, better late than never!

We chose to go to Memphis for vacation this year. Actually, this is the first real family vacation we have taken since we came home with Mandy Rose. Somehow, China was NOT a vacation!! Although worth it!!! We took off from Wichita on the road to Memphis bright and early on Saturday morning. At a stop for lunch at Cracker Barrel, I got this cute pic of Mandy Rose! She has since decided that she wants to be a witch for Halloween. Gotta get going on finding a costume! Our first activity in Memphis was a trip to the Zoo! I had read that the Memphis Zoo was really terrific....had pandas too! So, it was high on our list! This is a rare shot of Gary (he hates the camera), but I thought it was really good!

The Memphis Zoo is really a fantastic one! It was incredibly hot, but the ability to see some of the animals up close and personal, like this male gorilla, were amazing!

In the China exhibit, we came across this Buddha statue. Photo op!!! Mandy Rose did NOT want to sit next to this guy, but forced a smile so Momma could get a pic! Gary thinks it looks like him! LOL!

The biggest draw to the Memphis Zoo was the fact that they had panda bears. This is the closest zoo to us that does! We had been talking about seeing them for weeks! Of course, Mei Mei and Le Le were both sound asleep for our visit! Mandy Rose watched them for about 30 seconds and then said, "Okay, let's go!" Ah well....best laid plans and all!

When we had lunch, we enjoyed the company of two Gibbons monkeys! They just watched us like, "What you eating? Anything good?" Then they cavorted and swung all over their ropes. It was a very entertaining show for lunch time! We actually had a great lunch (usually zoos have fried crap to choose from)! This one had the best fresh deli sandwiches! Very yummy!

After lunch, we hit the playground for awhile before venturing off to see the rest of the zoo!

One of the most enjoyable parts of the day was feeding the budgies! Mandy Rose was not the least bit intimidated by all the birds feeding just inches from her! There were hundreds of them in all different colors! So magical!

The trees were just loaded with these pretty little birds!

A magnificent bed of black-eyed susans also screamed "Photo Op"! This was the best one I could get though. Little Miss Mandy Rose was extremely hot and tired by this time!

Just minutes later she was crashed out in her carseat! We hadn't even made it out of the parking lot hardly!

Day Two in Memphis, we went to visit Mud Island along the Mississippi River. It has a geographical representation of the entire length of the river that we could wade through! Really nice on such a hot day!

Barefoot and water...what more could a little girl want?

Day Three, we visited the Children's Museum of Memphis! We got there just as it was opening, which was really quite nice. Mandy Rose almost had the run of the place. She loved pretending to fly in this REAL FedEx airplane cockpit!

She insisted on Momma being her co-pilot! There were buttons and switches everywhere! Amazing how pilots learn what each one does!

Another favorite at the museum was the grocery store. They had little carts and items you could choose to purchase.

The really cool part was checking out! Mandy Rose scanned her "purchases" just like at the real grocery store and then an actual receipt was printed out for her! She kept going back to shop for more!

Practicing her dental skills!

Ooooh.... a puzzle! Her favorite activity!

Next, she became a fire chief! She was even pretending to shift! Can't reach the pedals, but she has the concept down!

After all the kid-oriented activity, we spent the afternoon at the National Civil Rights Museum. With a four year old in tow, we couldn't devote as much time to reading all the placards as we would have liked but it was an extremely thought-provoking experience. They have an actual city bus in the museum with a statue of Rosa Parks. Of course, Mandy Rose is too young, but I still tried to explain to her a little about what these images meant. The museum is housed in the Lorraine Motel where Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in April 1968. It was moving to stand outside his room and view the balcony where he was shot.

The Lorraine Motel, Memphis.

The next day, we ventured out of Memphis and further east. We visited Corinth, MS and then went on to Shiloh. Shiloh is the site of a Civil War battle in April 1862. Gary has been several times. He took me there for the first time 10 years ago. While we were driving around, we came across Rhea Springs where I had taken some great pictures of Gary all those years ago. Only seemed appropriate to capture Mandy Rose in the same spot! Wow! How much life has changed for us!

Momma and Mandy Rose at Rhea Springs!

One experience that was new for all of us was hiking the trail to see the Indian Mounds. It had always been closed before.

The native peoples built these mounds roughly 800 A.D. They carried the the dirt from surrounding areas. I guess, originally, the finished product was covered with a layer of red clay to really make them stand apart. The tops of the mounds were reserved for temples, ceremonial sites, and for the homes of the higher ranked members of the community. It was really cool to see!

All in all, it was a fabulous family vacation! Mandy Rose is still talking about all that we did a month later! I love creating memories with her like this!

"Gotcha Day"...Two Years Later!

Two years ago, Gary and I realized our dream. We became parents to the most amazing child! Mandy Rose stole our hearts in an instant. Each and every day since we have been awe-struck by the incredible blessing we were given when we were given this little girl.

I took the above picture just a few days after we returned home from China. On a whim, I plucked a Black-Eyed Susan from my garden and shot a few photos. Mandy Rose was so little, such a little angel!

Last year, when we returned home from our day of celebrating the anniversary of "Gotcha Day", I plucked another flower and shot some more pictures. I didn't realize until later that she was wearing overalls and a pink shirt like the year previous. She had grown and changed so much in that year!

This year, I must admit, I planned the pose on purpose. I decided I had a nice tradition going! I love overalls on Mandy Rose and made sure I had a pink shirt. Another Black-Eyed Susan and we were in business!

We celebrated our two year anniversary of "Gotcha Day" by going geocaching...one of our favorite family activities! We found some great "treasure" according to little Miss Mandy Rose! We ended the day by having supper with Mama Kitty, Papa, Uncle Matt, Aunt Reanna and Mandy Rose's cousins, Carlee and Waylon. What could be more perfect to celebrate the "birth" of a family than to spend it with family!!!

Mandy Rose has lost her baby looks....her little chubby cheeks and short hair are a memory. She is daily developing her personality and it is so fun to experience! She is so bright and funny and affectionate and precocious and.....I could go on and on. In a word, she is perfect! Happy "Gotcha Day" Mandy Rose! Momma and Daddy love you to the moon and back!

Mandy Rose-isms!!

Four year olds are fabulous! I love this age! We are really seeing Mandy Rose's personality develop and shine. She is naturally funny....and very bright! (I might be a little biased, but I'm her Momma. I'm supposed to be!) We wanted to record some of the many unique things that Mandy Rose says day to day; they exemplify her silly, exuberant personality!

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Where does Daddy work, Mandy Rose?...."At the hossypital!"

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One of her favorite movies lately is Finding Nemo. She has taken to getting in your face and quoting Dory's line, "Do you want a piece of me? Do ya? Do ya? Do ya?" If you ask her the same question, she will look you square in the eye and say, "Yes, I do!"

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Mandy Rose is very much into dinosaurs right now. She was describing herself the other day. "I'm pretty. I'm funny. And, I'm a T-Rex!"

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She has long been very interested in the moon. Now her interest is expanding to the stars. Daddy has been studying astronomy so he can tell her what the names of the stars are. She now confidently points out the planet Venus on the horizon in the evenings. Then, she will ask, "Where's Arcturus?" How many 4 year olds have that in their vocabulary?

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Mandy Rose spent a weekend with her Aunt Michi and Michi's boyfriend, who is a farmer. Ever since that weekend, she excitedly yells "Big round bales!" every time she sees any! She got to feed cattle with them and knows what they are for. When we are driving in the country, she will keep exclaiming at each appearance of more bales. Pretty soon, she says, "There EVERYWHERE!"

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Other common outbursts while driving include announcing places that she recognizes. She yells, "That's where Mrs. McClain works!" when we pass the school where she gets speech therapy. Or, "That's where we get steam buns!" when we pass our favorite Chinese restaurant. These announcements are made EVERY SINGLE TIME we pass these places! And, always with the same degree of exaggerated enthusiasm!

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This year in preschool, Mandy Rose learned how to write all the letters of her name. Now, you have to look at "the big picture" to see her name as they are not yet in a line. They are randomly dispersed all over the page...but they are all there. Whenever she sees an "M" on anything, she will say, "Up, down, up, down. That says Mandy Rose!" She gets a kick out of the Miracle Whip jar because it has a "M" and a "W" on the front. We tell her that means it is her bottle! Heehee!

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Lately, she has become very interested in praying at meal times. Sometimes, she forgets until midway through the meal and then she claps her hands together and says "I want to pray!" We must fold our hands together too. She prays first and then announces whose turn is next. We all have to say our individual prayers before the meal continues. I love her little heart and the fact that she is learning to express her gratitude to God. When she first started this habit, she wouldn't always get the "G" put on God. Her prayers would start, "Dear 'od...." So cute!!!

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Mandy Rose loves to help me cook! She drops everything when I announce we are going to make banana bread or cookies. She knows her role in these projects. She will tell me, "Momma, you measure. I dump!" Gary calls her the little "dumperumper!" She always giggles and tells him "That's punny!"

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Daddy plays another game with Mandy Rose regarding Delilah's name. Gary is NOT a dog person and the only reason we have a dog is because he ADORES his little girl and she desperately wanted one. He always refers to Delilah as "Mutt". Mandy Rose will argue.

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Daddy, "Mutt!"

Mandy Rose, "Delilah!"

Daddy, "Mutt!"

Mandy Rose, "Delilah!"

Daddy, "Mutt!"

Mandy Rose, "Delilah!"

Daddy, "Delilah!"

Mandy Rose, "Mutt!" :)

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Last, but not least, Mandy Rose has problems making the "f" sound. She mispronounces the word "fish" and everyone thinks it is hilarious!! She says "b*tch" instead. When we were playing in the pool one day, she was using her noodle to "fish" for me. I had hold of one end and she had the other end trying to "reel" me in. I kept saying, "I don't wanna get caught!" Finally, she said, "Out of the water, b*tch!" I thought my sister was gonna choke she was laughing so hard!!

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Well, there you have it! A glimpse into the world and mind of little miss Mandy Rose!

Going to the Zoo!!

So, it is summertime in Kansas! We have been keeping very busy! Mandy Rose has been going to swim lessons for 3 weeks now and is doing fabulously! She loves the water and is performing all the tasks put to her by her instructor. She delights in going all the way under the water and retrieving toys from the bottom of the pool! I am very proud of her achievements! We have also been swimming with the Dresher's, went to a Wingnuts baseball game (again with our favorite people, the Dresher's), gone geocaching a few times, grilled out alot, and have been making regular trips to the zoo.

We are extremely fortunate that our local zoo is such a nice one. They keep adding new things and new habitats for the animals. The zoo has really cool gorilla, tiger, lion, chimpanzee, and penguin exhibits. They are in the process of developing a new elephant habitat too! We have a family pass, so we don't have to feel like doing the whole zoo each time. We can pick and choose which animals we are interested in that day. During this visit, the giraffe feeding station was open! Mandy Rose had so much fun feeding cottonwood leaves to the giraffes. She had no fear of them at all...getting very close to feed them each leaf. It was really amazing to watch her and so fun for her to have this experience! We got to be so close to these beautiful creatures!

Their muzzles were so soft!

Mandy Rose insisted on taking the obligatory picture with the gorilla statue. Of course, she was tired of it by the time Momma got the pose she wanted! LOL!

Another posed picture, but I thought it was so cute! The first time she buried her face in the flower and got covered with pollen! Fortunately, she doesn't seem to have any allergies!

I love this picture! This is from another trip to the zoo. We were watching the gorillas being fed and Mandy Rose was mesmerized! You can see the reflection of her eyes in the glass.

Our cheesy-smiling girl!! Having lots of summertime fun!

Happy "Half" Birthday!!!

Okay, so we are indulgent parents! Do I think that is a bad thing? Um, no! Mandy Rose is an incredibly wonderful blessing in our lives and any way we can make her life special, day-to-day, is worth it. We don't know if her life was ever celebrated in the first two and half years she lived. So, we make it a point to celebrate it now! Tomorrow Mandy Rose will be exactly 4 1/2 years old so we had an impromptu "half" birthday party for her today.

She got one candle blown out!

Yea, I did it!!!

What's a birthday party without presents? Daddy picked out a "Polly Pockets" set for her. She loves it....but I'm wondering how long before these little pieces are missing or Delilah eats them!!

Our happy 4 1/2 year old girl!!

She's been playing with her present for the last hour...I think it was worth it! We love you sooooo much baby girl!! Happy "Half" Birthday!!

Ahhhh, Summer!!

I think summer has officially started here at the Wenzl household! I have spent the last two weeks doing a pre-session class which is basically cramming a whole semester into 9 days! Whew, I would not want to do that again! I was in class for 4 1/2 hours each day and doing about 3 hours of homework each night after Mandy Rose went to bed. But...it's done and I have the rest of the summer free to play with my sweet baby girl!

Last summer, we had purchased a wading pool for Mandy Rose that required blowing up. That was fine last year, but this year it had developed a slow leak and Momma was getting uber tired of blowing the silly thing back up! So, we got a molded plastic one complete with a built in slide! Mandy Rose used this new pool for the first time this afternoon. She played for about an hour and half, only getting out when I made her due to the goosebumps and it being supper time! She said she was "trapped" here and I had to save her! She is such a silly little girl!

I just adore the joy on my daughter's face! She is a kid having all the fun in the world and that is as it should be. Gary and I enjoyed lounging in our camp chairs and just watching her. I don't know how to put it into words, but watching her enjoying her childhood brings me such a feeling of peace and contentment. I don't want this to ever end! I know she is going to grow up...but I wish she would stay 4 years old! It is such a wonderful age!

We enjoyed a nice summery meal complete with corn on the cob to top off the evening! Gary and I treated ourselves to a bbq grill for our Mother's/Father's Day present! We used it for the first time tonight. Had burgers, homemade cole slaw, and fresh corn on the cob! Can't get more summery than that...at least until watermelon comes in season!