Rick, Vicki and Jinnae

Halloween

2009-11-08T21:05:00.006-05:00

Jinnae was Little Red Riding Hood, Rick was the Big, Bad Wolf and lucky me, I got to be the grandma for Halloween. We had a great time. Grandma Pulaski made Jinnae's costume, and Rick made his. The Pulaski's are gifted in measuring and sewing. I bought mine at the Goodwill. :) Jinnae went to ten houses and then looked at us and said, All done. She had a great time and loved getting all the candy.

First Caramel Apple

2009-11-08T21:01:00.004-05:00

Jinnae enjoyed her first caramel apple this season. It was messy but she loved it!

Sasha's Wedding Shower

2009-11-08T20:47:00.007-05:00

Sisters forever - Katrina, Sasha, Jewel and Autumn

My sister, Sally, and her daughter, Sasha

My niece, Sasha, is getting married next month. I am so happy for her. She is getting married in Alabama and Jinnae will be the flower girl. We had a great time at her bridal shower and I was honored to do the devotions.

Ivy's Birthday

2009-10-11T17:29:00.006-05:00

Jinnae loves hanging out with her good friend, Ivy. Today was Ivy's birthday and she wanted to celebrate with Jinnae at the apartment. They played, opened gifts, and then we walked to the Dollar General and shopped. Afterwards, we walked to The Grand Coney and had hot dogs and fries. It was a fun celebration. Happy fourth birthday, Ivy!

So Sorry It Has Been So Long!!!!

2009-10-06T19:52:00.008-05:00

Nightly giggles before bed

Jinnae loves to pretend she's a beautician

Dinner at Fazoli's with Great Grandma Gerst

We moved!

So sorry I haven't posted in a long time. Here's what we have been up to.

We moved! We sold our house for full price (amazing in this economy) and our buyer wanted immediate possession. We had four days to get out. That was crazy. We don't have a new home yet, so we are temporarily living in an apartment in Allendale. Most of our belongings are in storage.
I also started teaching for the school year two days after the move. I love my job but the beginning of the year is always extra busy.

Then I wasn't feeling 100% but I am much better now.

Jinnae continues to bring us lots of laughs and we are enjoying every stage. She loves to be on the go every minute now. She especially likes to be chased and go down slides.

Jinnae's 2nd Birthday!

2009-08-09T20:53:00.010-05:00

Jinnae turns two this week. We had a small celebration. One of her favorite gifts was a microphone.

Summer Fun!

2009-08-09T20:05:00.018-05:00

Trip to Fort Wayne, Indiana to visit my best friend, Tanya

More fun with Quint

Six college credits DONE!

Alyssa's Birthday at the zoo

We have been busy. Here are a few of the activities we have been up to the end of July and early August.

First Krispy Kreme

2009-07-12T20:42:00.003-05:00

On the ride back home to Michigan, we stopped at Krispy Kreme for breakfast. Jinnae enjoyed every minute of her first Krispy Kreme donut.

On Top of the World

2009-07-12T20:24:00.007-05:00

We hiked to the highest point in the Smoky Mountains - Clingman's Dome. It was rainy and cloudy so we didn't get the best view but we still enjoyed the hike as a family. No, it's not a wildfire - the Smoky Mountains really look like they are smoking sometimes.

May I Go Swimming?

2009-07-12T20:18:00.003-05:00

Jinnae loved looking out the window at the pool below every day at the resort. She loved swimming and floating around in her crab boat.

Ripley's Believe It or Not Aquarium in Tennessee

2009-07-12T20:06:00.007-05:00

Jinnae loved visiting the aquarium in Tennessee. She would growl every time a shark swam by. She liked the jellyfish the best.

Fourth of July 2009

2009-07-12T19:42:00.011-05:00

We celebrated the Fourth of July in North Carolina. Grandma Pulaski made Jinnae's dress. Grandma also made Jinnae some more adorable outfits. Pictures of those will come soon. We visited family and watched the fireworks in Southport on the Atlantic Ocean. It was wonderful.

Summer Vacation 2009 North Carolina/Tennessee

2009-07-12T19:15:00.009-05:00

Good times at Monkey Joe's - Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Pulaski

I'll miss this view every morning. I gotta go back!

We had a wonderful two week vacation. We spent time in North Carolina visiting Rick's parents and family. Then we drove to Tennessee and spent a week at a resort in the mountains. We had a wonderful time swimming, hiking, shopping and hanging out. I didn't want to come back home to reality. Life is good.

Picnic with Friends

2009-06-29T19:18:00.007-05:00

We had a fun time at the park and having a picnic with friends tonight. We wish summer never had to end. We love having picnics, going to the park, bike riding, and visiting friends.

Telgenhoff Reunion

2009-06-29T12:23:00.008-05:00

Ailee's Birthday
Aunt Mary

We had a nice road trip up to Grayling, Michigan for the Telgenhoff Family Reunion. There was delicious food, tractor rides, swimming, games, and great visiting with family. Thank you Aunt Carol and Uncle Fred for hosting it. Sometimes black bears like to visit the house, fortunately none showed up for the reunion. :)

Binder Park Zoo in Kalamazoo

2009-06-20T19:56:00.011-05:00

Giraffe up close. Their tongues are black. Interesting.

Rick and Lovely dancing

Jinnae and Adeline

Marc and Shelby

Music time!

Jinnae and Elly

Jinnae and Billy (Goat)

We had a great time at Binder Park Zoo today with the Andreaes' family. Jinnae especially enjoyed feeding the giraffes. Rick's favorite was the snow leopard and my (Vicki's) favorite was the bulls. Their horns were huge! God's creation is amazing.

Bike Ride with Friends

2009-06-18T07:28:00.005-05:00

Jinnae and I went on a bike ride with my good friend, Jen and her son, Quint. We rode seven miles in the misty rain. It was fun!

Sunshine in Saugatuck

2009-06-09T19:52:00.002-05:00

Rick surprised Jinnae and I by taking us to Saugatuck for a day. We enjoyed seeing the lake, shopping, eating lunch at Hercules Hotdogs (even though Jinnae and I got an omelet instead), shopping more, and getting an ice-cream cone for dessert. Thanks for the great family day, Rick. We loved it.

Zoo Time!

2009-06-07T07:33:00.013-05:00

We think Jinnae and Quint loved eating more than seeing the animals. :)

"Uh-oh, he just went to the bathroom."

Jen and Quint

Jinnae says, "I'm out of here."

Jinnae checking out the fish and Quint checking out Jinnae

Jinnae and I had a great time at the zoo on Saturday with my good friend, Jen, and her son, Quint. Jen and I teach together. Friday was our last day of school for this year and we were ready to celebrate with our children Saturday morning. It was a beautiful day and we loved every minute of it.

Memorial Day Weekend 2009

2009-05-25T18:19:00.014-05:00

The big boys wanted to play the Olympic games too. They used up all the water balloons so the big girls couldn't play or at least not participate in that part. Oh well!
Jinnae loves water balloons

Jonah

Conner and Logan

Logan and Evi

Brady

Andrea and Amaris

Tripp and Vic

Jinnae doing bubbles with Grandma Gerst

Great Grandma Gerst

Sally, Vicki, Dad

Rick

We remembered this weekend those who fought and gave their lives for us in the United States. We are thankful. We also had good times with family and friends. We participated in the "Rick Olympics", saw Grandpa Gerst preach, had a picnic with family and friends, and enjoyed a movie. We are thankful for our many blessings and freedoms.

Dress Up Time!

2009-05-17T11:20:00.006-05:00

Cheerleader for State (Sorry, Daddy)

Cow Girl

Flower Lady

Pretty Lady
I pulled out the box of dress up for Jinnae this week. She loves it! We had a lot of fun.

Happy Mother's Day 2009

2009-05-10T19:36:00.007-05:00

I am blessed to have such a wonderful mom, mother-in-law and beautiful daughter. I had a splendid celebration with family, homemade bananna bread, cinnamon rolls, gift cards, and going out to the movies. Rick treated me like a million bucks as always. It was a great weekend. Do I have to go back to real life tomorrow?!

Popcorn Thoughts

2009-05-03T19:45:00.004-05:00

Jinnae is in bed, Rick is getting groceries, and I just sat outside on the deck with a bowl of popcorn pondering life. As I looked around at my neighbor's homes I thought about how wonderful the people in the homes all are. The children here always say Hi to me. The adults walk, bike and run with me. They come by on the spur of the moment to watch a game, have a campfire, or just chat. They bring back my lawn funiture that blows in their yard. They help us build our seawall, spread woodchips, start the lawnmower, etc. My neighbors understand community and I love that.

I was also thinking about Rick and I's careers, what do we still want to do in life, how do we accomplish those things, where should we live, how can we teach Jinnae even more about God, how can we help others even more? Well, unfortunately, these questions do not have quick answers. So I will wait and listen closely for God's voice and try hard not to let my own desires and selfishness get in the way of His will.

(Maybe I shouldn't eat popcorn alone anymore - it makes me think too much!)

Jinnae's First Garden

2009-05-03T18:44:00.011-05:00

Jinnae has a little garden going. She has peas, kale, corn, watermelon, carrots and flowers. Right now the peas and kale have sprouts. Jinnae's favorite part is watering her garden. She waters it so much, I'm actually surprised anything is sprouting!

Jinnae also is enjoying her spring puzzle even though she doesn't always do it right. Sometimes she likes to stack the pieces and knock them down, or dump them all out and leave them all over. We are working on taking the pieces out and then putting them back in.

We are enjoying the nice weather, lots of wagon rides and playing in the backyard.

Adoption Day - April 24, 2008

2009-04-22T18:43:00.013-05:00

April 2009

April 2008

We celebrated Jinnae's Adoption day a couple of days early since we have other appointments on the actual day - April 24. Jinnae wore a traditional dress and we went out to eat at a local Chinese restaurant in Allendale. We had a great time as a family and laughed a lot as we discussed memories of being in China last year. Jinnae has brought us so much joy.

Imitating Dad

2009-04-22T18:37:00.005-05:00

Jinnae loves to imitate everyone now. She especially likes to copy her dad.

Fun with Aunt Rhonda and Cousins

2009-04-22T18:27:00.007-05:00

Isaiah

Alyssa

Kayden

Corianna

Jinnae's Aunt Rhonda and her cousins came over on Sunday for a movie. We had a good time enjoying pizza, snacks, visiting, and watching a movie. We hope to see them again soon.

He Has Risen!

2009-04-12T18:44:00.011-05:00

Jinnae's new smile for pictures - she squints her eyes and smiles when a camera is on her. She's not crying.

Grandma is always having fun!

He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Matthew 28:6

We attended Resurrection Life Church in Grandville today with my family. My niece, Katrina did an interpretive dance. Afterwards, we went to my sister's and had a wonderful lunch and fun Easter egg hunt.

Jinnae was also blessed with many baskets from friends and family this week. Rick and I want to teach her to be thankful for these kind gifts and most importantly to love God and others.

Race Number 4

2009-04-12T18:16:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday, Grandma!
Rick ran in his fourth 5K race on Saturday. His time was 23.54. The race was the Town Crier in Saugatuck. After that, he helped his sister move, then went to my grandma's birthday at Fricano's, (Grandma turned 88) and also helped me make the turkey for Easter by checking it at 2:00 and 4:00 am! He is amazing!

Easter Cooking

2009-04-11T10:50:00.007-05:00

For our family gathering tomorrow, I was put in charge of dessert and the turkey. I decided to make death by chocolate dessert. Jinnae loved licking all the spoons afterwards from the cake, pudding, and whipped cream. Good thing, Rick was gone running, he would not approve. He likes for Jinnae to eat neatly and to not have sugar. :)

Next, for the turkey. I am not so excited about this project. We will see how it turns out.

Spring Break 2009

2009-04-11T08:37:00.006-05:00

I have been on Spring Break this week and we decided to stay in town. We have been having a great time together as a family. We have taken walks, gone out to eat, shopped, garage saled, attended a funeral of a family friend in Baldwin, taken care of the neighbor's dog, went to an Easter Egg hunt, spent quality time with family and friends, and even built and organized shelves in our basement. It has been a wonderful week and as always has gone way too quickly. We look forward to a birthday dinner with Jinnae's great grandma this evening.

Thank you, Jesus

2009-04-10T19:16:00.005-05:00

Today is Good Friday. Thank you Jesus for all you have done for me. Life is a journey. There are ups and downs, and sometimes there are things I do not understand. What I do know, is that you gave your life for me, rose again, and love me with an everlasting love. I know you celebrate with me in my joys and cry with me in my pain. Thank you for who you are. You are my Savior and friend. Help me to always be a witness for you in what I say and what I do. I love you.

Shelby's House

2009-03-29T21:15:00.009-05:00

Shelby and Vicki

Adeline

Lovely

Elly

Ivy

Jonah

Jinnae and I had a great time hanging out at my good friend Shelby's house. Jinnae loves playing with all six of Shelby's children. Connor was at a Pistons game with his dad but everyone else was home and entertained Jinnae. The kids play nice and Shelby and I can visit over a diet coke. Thanks for inviting us over, we look forward to coming again soon.

Sasha's Ring

2009-03-29T21:03:00.008-05:00

Sasha was home recently on Spring Break so I had to see the ring. Here is a picture of it. Jay did well. We had a nice time visiting with Sasha and we are excited that she will be able to take some classes in Grand Rapids this summer so she can be home before she gets married. Yea!

Friday was the First Day of Spring!

2009-03-22T18:27:00.011-05:00

Friday was the first day of Spring. Yea! We are enjoying the nicer weather! We all seem to have more energy.

The Irish Jig Race 2009

2009-03-21T16:12:00.007-05:00

John and Michael

Alex, our neighbor

Rick, my hubby

Rick was in his third race today. He did well, his time was 24.50. His goal is 23.00. Our neighbor, Alex and our friends, John and Cynthia Shyne, along with their daughters ran too. Their son, Michael, (who is also my student :))hung out with Jinnae and I. We tried to get some candy at a candy shop while we waited but the line was too long and we didn't want to miss our families cross the finish line. It was very cold yet fun. Great job, everyone!

Where Did She Learn This?

2009-03-21T16:07:00.002-05:00

Jinnae was playing the other day and then she comes up to me and does this. I'm guessing she learned it at daycare or from her dad. :)

Our Little Shamrock

2009-03-17T21:07:00.002-05:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Train Her Young

2009-03-16T20:33:00.006-05:00

Jinnae is in the imitation stage. It has been fun. The other day she saw me dusting and found a dust rag to help. She also enjoyed vacuuming with her vacuum. She actually does keep things pretty neat and tidy which is nice. Hopefully this habit stays.

Race Number 2

2009-03-08T18:02:00.003-05:00

Rick was in another 5k yesterday. It was the Black River Rat Race in Holland. Rather than ice and snow this time, he got rain. He did improve his time. He ran it in 24.41. His next race will be the Irish Jig in two weeks. We are hoping for good weather. Go Rick!

Booties

2009-03-08T17:44:00.004-05:00

My Aunt Carol's friend made Jinnae some booties that are bigger and still fit her. Jinnae always takes off her shoes and socks and runs around barefoot. Recently though, she wants to have these booties on and leaves them on! She gets upset when we take them off at night to put her pajamas on with feet in them. I'm glad they are getting good use.

Adoption from China

2009-03-08T17:27:00.004-05:00

I heard these from a friend and thought they were humorous.

You may have adopted from China if:

*You know I-600 and I-171 are not highways.

*Your home study is followed by a number. (#1, #2, #3, #4...)

*You paid for three citizenships before bringing anyone into the United States.

*You have been fingerprinted 4 times but never committed a crime.

*When you speak of that time of the month you are talking about the China Center of Adoption Affairs updates.

*You love someone with all your heart that you have never met before. :)

Met Through Pictures First

2009-03-08T17:12:00.005-05:00

On Tuesday, we remembered how we received Jinnae's pictures a year earlier. We will never forget that day. We had waited three years for those pictures. I was at work and checked my

e-mail at lunch. Our agency e-mailed that they thought they might receive our baby's pictures in the mail that day but they might not, and they would call if they did. It was difficult to teach after that since I kept waiting for my phone to ring but tried not to get too excited in case it didn't. I did get a call around 2:00 pm from my agency. My students happened to be in computer class at the time so I could concentrate well. :) Rick and I were so happy!

Fun in the Snow!

2009-02-23T16:33:00.004-05:00

Jinnae had a great time being pulled around in the sled by Grandpa Gerst. She looked like the little boy from The Christmas Story all bundled up and barely being able to walk!

Chop Stick Training

2009-02-22T13:25:00.007-05:00

My friend from work, Linda DeVries, bought Jinnae these training chop sticks. She loves them! She enjoyed trying to eat her corn with them. Thanks Linda! Hopefully, Jinnae does better than her mother. A waiter in China was so bothered by my chop stick skills he came over and said, I think you need this, and handed me a fork. I actually thought I was doing well too. :)

Sasha's Engaged!

2009-02-15T21:24:00.005-05:00

My niece, Sasha, is engaged! She is a junior at Oral Roberts University and will be getting her Master's in Social Work. She is engaged to Jay and they met at ORU. He came home with her at Christmas. We all love him. The way he proposed was dreamy. He took Sasha out for lunch, next to a spa for a manicure, pedicure and massage, then for a helicoptor ride over Tulsa, Oklahoma. He proposed to her in the helicopter! Lastly, they went out for a nice dinner. I'm so happy for her. The plan is they are going to get married on the beach in Alabama at Christmas. I am looking forward to this, Christmas Break in a warm place - ya-hoo!! Congratulations Sasha and Jay!

Race and Family Time

2009-02-15T20:57:00.009-05:00

Rick ran in the Heart and Sole race yesterday. It was a 5K. He has only been training for a month and a half. His time was 26:26 on snow and ice. I am very proud of him. He has been very dedicated to eating right and working out.

In the evening, we went out as a family to The Cottage in Grand Rapids. They are known for having the best burgers. We had a great meal and Jinnae entertained everyone around us by shouting out, Wow! when our food was brought.

Jinnae enjoyed her first Valentine treat - a chocolate bowl with candy hearts. We had a great day!

Happy Early Valentine's Day

2009-02-08T15:03:00.006-05:00

Here's Jinnae in the new outfit Grandma and Grandpa Gerst bought her for Valentine's Day. The horse is a gift from Great Grandma Gerst. Thank you everyone!

Q-tips Are More Fun Than Toys

2009-02-08T14:43:00.006-05:00

Jinnae always plays with her toys in my bathroom while I get ready. I guess the toys are too boring when there are Q-tips around! She was a good little helper trying to help me pick them all back up.

Go Steelers!

2009-02-08T14:36:00.002-05:00

So last Sunday, Rick had a Super Bowl party in our basement with tons of friends while I was upstairs in the bedroom puking! NO FAIR! I don't remember the last time I was that sick. Nine times I threw up and lost 7 pounds, craziness! Well, I'm glad the Steelers won so I can wear the special shirt I made another time!

It's One Degree Outside

2009-01-25T22:15:00.006-05:00

Jinnae wanted to go outside but it is only 1 degree!

1 degree, how ridiculous. I am really tempted to move to a warmer state.

Another Christmas Celebration

2009-01-25T21:55:00.011-05:00

Last weekend, we had another Christmas celebration. They have all been fun and it's been great visiting with family on both sides the last couple months.

This gathering was for the Gerst side and at my cousin Shelley's. Thank you Shelly for opening your beautiful home for the get together. We had a wonderful time. Jinnae especially liked playing on Reese's indoor slide.

The newest baby in the family is Madeline. She is seven months and beautiful. Jinnae liked looking at her.

Four Generations

2009-01-25T21:44:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday, Melissa!

2009-01-11T21:55:00.005-05:00

My good friend, Melissa, had a 30th birthday party on Saturday evening. Her friends from college gave her a party. We all had a lot of fun. One friend, even made her a cake that looked like a castle.

Christmas Get Together

2009-01-11T21:36:00.006-05:00

Since we were in North Carolina over Christmas we got together with Rick's brother, Jason, and sister, Rhonda, on Saturday for a late Christmas get together. We had a nice lunch and visited. We missed Rick's younger brother, Jerome. He wasn't able to make it. Jinnae had fun playing with all her cousins.

After we left, we went and bought a used weight bench for Rick. While Rick was taking the bench apart to fit in the car, I went and visited my best friend from high school, Lynda, who lived nearby where we bought the bench. We had a great, short visit. I look forward to getting together and chatting more soon, Lynders!

Fun Friday!

2009-01-04T14:51:00.009-05:00

On Friday, Rick went to work and Jinnae and I played. We started the day by visiting Chloe. Chloe's mom, Trish, and I met while we were both waiting for our daughters. We encouraged each other during the long adoption process. We chatted about how last year at this time neither of us knew exactly when we would pick up our girls. What a difference a year makes! Trish also has a beautiful daughter, Lia. Jinnae had fun playing with Chloe and Lia. Chloe is 12 months.

After visiting Chloe, we went to my sister's for lunch. Then, we went to Naked Plates. Jinnae received a Christmas gift to get her hand prints done on a plate. This was an adventure! Jinnae did great, but I had trouble writing Jinnae's name and date on the plate with paint. My sister and I were cracking up laughing. Neither of us are very artistic. I kept clogging up the paint pen. I think the workers were getting annoyed with me. Oh well! They need some better pens. :)

Next, we went shopping at the mall. After that we came home, and Jinnae went to a babysitter's while Rick and I went out with our good friends, John and Carole. It was a fun Friday!!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T23:23:00.002-05:00

Happy New Year!

Sundress and Short Sleeve Christmas

2009-01-01T22:37:00.013-05:00

We spent Christmas Eve, Christmas Day (and the days following) in North Carolina with Rick's parents. It was wonderful. Jinnae travelled very well. We left on Tuesday, Dec. 23 about

3:00 pm. At 10:30 pm, we had not got as far as we would have liked due to the weather. It was a crazy winter storm that never let up. We literally saw about 100 cars in the ditch. At 10:00 pm the expressway we were on in Ohio was shut down due to an accident. We decided to call it a night and stayed in a hotel. The next day was much better for driving. Maybe too good, since Rick was driving 81 through the mountains of Virginia. Jinnae got car sick on this roller coaster ride and threw up twice. We cleaned her up both times and found out from Rick's mom that ginger snaps help with car sickness. On the way home, Jinnae didn't have any problems.

When we arrived in North Carolina, Rick's parents had a hot meal and delicious chocolate fudge dessert waiting for us. This was the first Christmas that we could wear short sleeves, sundresses and shorts. I even could lay out for a tan.

Grandma Pulaski made Jinnae a cute poncho and stocking. We also visited her work one day and Jinnae helped out with the typing.

We were able to visit aunts, uncles and cousins as well.

We had a great visit, shopped, played games and ate way too much. Thanks mom and dad for all the delicious meals and fun. We love and miss you.

Gerst Family Christmas

2009-01-01T22:20:00.008-05:00

We all had a wonderful Christmas with Vicki's family. We laughed a lot and were very appreciative of the gifts. Vicki's mom has made her and her siblings gifts look like something since Vicki was eight. This year their gift looked like a gas tank. Mom is so creative, she never runs out of ideas, even though Vicki is now 37!

Daycare Christmas Party

2009-01-01T22:08:00.004-05:00

Jinnae goes to Miss Ella's daycare each day of the work week. Miss Ella is awesome. Jinnae is taken very well care of and loved very much.

Jinnae had her first Christmas party with her daycare friends. She was supposed to bring a dollar gift for a girl and did. I was expecting that she would have a small dollar gift when I picked her up.

Instead, she had a bucket of gifts! She had a gift from a friend and many gifts from Miss Ella. There was even a blanket with our name stitched on it. I was overwhelmed by the generousity. Thank you Miss Ella for being so wonderful.

As a mom, I feel so much more relaxed at work knowing Jinnae is in good hands.

Blessings

2008-12-16T16:43:00.004-05:00

Jinnae is blessed with a great dad and I am blessed with a great husband.

We came home to this note and beautiful flowers.

What a good life we have.

The Bad and the Good

2008-12-14T21:50:00.004-05:00

The Bad News:

My throat has killed for the last week and teaching has been difficult. This morning, I decided to go to a med stop. I have strep throat.

I had to miss Chloe's baptism today.

The Good News:

I have medicine now to help my very, sore throat.

I had a Christmas staff party at my house on Saturday and it was a great time. I am fortunate to work with such wonderful people.

Jinnae had her first sleep over at Grandma and Grandpa Gerst's. She was spoiled like crazy and loved every minute of it.

It is almost Christmas!

I have a wonderful husband, beautiful daughter, and super friends.

Jesus is my best friend.

Doing My Own Photo Shoot?!

2008-11-30T21:03:00.012-05:00

Ok, so I thought rather than getting Jinnae's first Christmas pictures professionally done, I would do my own photo shoot.

Well, having a one year old cooperate for posed pictures is nearly impossible. This is why I teach fifth graders. I say, stand still and smile and they do. My own daughter, on the other hand, a different story. I love Jinnae like crazy and even though these shots are not professional, they are still fun. Enjoy!

Cutting Down the Christmas Tree

2008-11-30T20:47:00.006-05:00

On Saturday, we went out to cut down a Christmas tree. It is Rick and I's tradition to make homemade hot chocolate, put it in a thermos, and bring it with us to cut down a tree. Once we pick out a tree, we pour the hot chocolate, and toast the tree a few times and thank it for giving us oxygen, providing a home for animals, sequestering the carbon in the atmosphere, etc. (the last one was Rick's, of course. :))

Jinnae was happy to join in on this tradition too. She enjoyed the hot chocolate in her sippy cup.

Jinnae's First Steps

2008-11-30T20:35:00.004-05:00

On Thanksgiving morning, Jinnae took her first unassisted steps. It was two steps and we as parents were so proud. She now stands, takes two steps and falls. It won't be long before she is running all over the place.

Our friend, Tara , ordered her daughter, Vania, some Nike shoes on the Internet. When they came, they were baby shoes. Vania was kind and instead of sending them back, let Jinnae purchase them. Jinnae is now able to wear these shoes and loves them for walking in. Thanks, Vania!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T20:12:00.010-05:00

Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, His love endures forever.

We had a wonderful day with family today. We spent lunch with Vicki's side of the family. Great Grandma Gerst enjoyed holding and feeding Jinnae pie and her aunts, uncles and cousins doted on her.

We then had dinner at Rick's sister, Rhonda's. We enjoyed more great food and a fun game of Swap. The boys also had a great time wrestling with Uncle Rick.

We are thankful for our many blessings.

Generous Giving

2008-11-23T09:52:00.005-05:00

We have been less busy this weekend which is nice. We had a great church service on Friday night where we discussed and came up with a plan to help others in need this holiday season. There is a website called Other People Matter where you can find needs in your community and help. We also have begun focusing on the Jewish perspective and background of Jesus.

Jinnae is close to being able to walk and is a very happy girl. I look forward to the coming short work week - only 2 1/2 days until Thanksgiving Break! We also are excited to start some new and continue some old family traditions with Jinnae.

This is a picture of Jinnae waiting to go to daycare. Rick is wonderful about getting her ready each morning. He gets her up, changed, dressed, and even does her hair. Here she is waiting patiently on the couch while Rick puts his shoes on. She is very happy in the mornings. I have the privilege of picking Jinnae up in the evening. I cannot resist trying to help out in the morning though and Rick has to remind me that the morning is his time. :)

Presidential Election Party- 2008

2008-11-16T10:20:00.004-05:00

I know it's a little late, but I didn't want to forget to mention about our election party. We had a great time with friends and neighbors who stopped by. We would all drink red kool-aid when a red state won, and blue kool-aid when a blue state won. We had great discussions and laughs. Rick was waiting for a green state to pop up but it never happened.

Jinnae had fun playing with her friends Taylor and Sydney. Here she is with Taylor.

Happy Birthday, Vicki!

2008-11-16T09:38:00.007-05:00

It was my birthday this past week. I am thankful for all the cards and gifts yet most thankful to have God in my life, a loving husband, beautiful baby, awesome family and great friends.

I was sick and had parent teacher conferences on my birthday. I knew I wasn't doing well when I didn't want to eat all the chocolate my friends brought me at work but I am doing much better now.

Jinnae gave me flowers, Rick made me a homemade chocolate lava cake, and surprised me with a hot tub. He found this hot tub brand new on Craig's list for a very low, low price. Craig's list is an awesome place to shop if you have not discovered it yet.

I am thankful for the life God has blessed me with. I hope to live for him each day by caring for the poor, helping the disadvantaged, and restoring the world to what he would have it be.

AIDS Packages

2008-11-09T16:22:00.008-05:00

Once a month our home church visits a homeless shelter in Grand Rapids. We visit the residents and play Bingo with them. We buy prizes for them to win that they can use. Prizes they really enjoy are homemade treats, hats, gloves, shoes, etc. We always have a good time. This time we brought medical supplies for the residents to put AIDS packages together. These packages will be sent to Africa to help give basic care to those suffering with AIDS. We formed an assembly line and put twenty-five kits together. The residents were proud that they could help people in need since they receive so much help themselves. It was a good evening.

Let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. I John 3:18

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-01T20:49:00.008-05:00

Jinnae loved her first Halloween. Jinnae was a giraffe, Rick was a gangsta rapper, and I was a pirate. It only took two houses for Jinnae to get the hang of holding out her bucket for treats. The bucket was getting heavy and she would not let go of it, she knew what was in it. :) After trick or treating we went to our friends Marc and Shelby's for a party.

By the way, we are loving our sewing machine (you can laugh). We whip up all sorts of things. We were able to sew my pirate skirt in a hour and it only costs $2.00!! This machine is a lot better than the old fashioned thing I had in my 8th grade sewing class. :)

Teacher's Convention

2008-10-26T09:31:00.006-05:00

Each year, my school has the teachers attend a teacher's convention. It is always informative and a lot of fun. This year it was held in South Bend, Indiana on Thursday and Friday. I was very relaxed and had a good time. I knew Jinnae was in good hands with Miss Ella and her Dad. I did wonder why Jinnae seemed so tired when I picked her up on Friday. I found out later that Rick let her stay up until 10:30 pm! He said she was playing nice and didn't want to go to bed. :)

At the convention, my friends and I laughed a lot, ate too much and were creative. We decided that it was crowded for two people to sleep in a full size bed so we pushed the beds together. This worked out well. We all had more room.

My friend, Vonnie drove all seven of us in her minivan. Her husband didn't think that we could do it. He thought, as women, we would not have room for all the luggage. Well, we did it! All the luggage fit in the back nicely.

I would share more but some things that happen at the convention, stay at the convention. :)

Pictures in the Park by Cassie

2008-10-19T18:53:00.007-05:00

Here are a few of my favorite pictures that Cassie took last week.

Six Month Agency Visit

2008-10-19T18:03:00.006-05:00

October 11, 2008

Six months ago

On Thursday, we had our six month check up as adoptive parents. We will have one more when we have had Jinnae for one year. It is hard to believe that it has already been close to six months. We first held Jinnae on April 24, 2008. October 24 will be six months. Well, I had no worries about this check up ahead of time. I was pretty confident it would go well.
Here is what happened:
I picked Jinnae up from daycare at 4:30 pm.
We went to Family Fare and bought some heat up coookies so the house would smell good when the social worker was there. We also bought some chicken and macaroni and cheese from the deli for dinner.
We arrived home and picked up the house and then had dinner. Halfway through dinner, Jinnae pushed her plate away (anyone who has ate with Jinnae knows this doesn't happen. She never leaves even a crumb)
So, I say, what is wrong Jinnae? She looks horrible all of a sudden. I get her out of the high chair and she begins to fall asleep in my arms. Her lips turn purple, she begins shaking and feels like an ice cube. I freak out and call Rick. I can't get a hold of him. I call my sister, I can't get a hold of her. I decide I cannot keep making phone calls, I need to take care of Jinnae so I wrap her up in two blankets and hold her. She looks like she is going to throw up. Then she has bad diarrhea. It was everywhere. All over her and me. Next, I gave her a bath. She seemed to do a lot better after that. I look at the time at the social worker should be arriving in five minutes. No time to cancel the appointment now. I quick change, Rick walks in the door, and the doorbell rings. The meeting did go well, except for Jinnae being sick, the house smelling unpleasant and they documented a mark by Jinnae's lip from when she fell on her toy box earlier in the week. Hopefully, the next check up goes better. Jinnae has been fine since but I will be talking to my doctor tom. We still have the cookies. We will heat them up another day. Also, Rick was late because he was getting me an early birthday present. I will post about how awesome he is another day. :)

Typical Tuesday Turned Terrific

2008-10-14T19:49:00.005-05:00

Jinnae was happily surprised when Grandma and Grandpa Gerst stopped by this evening. We all went out for Chinese. Afterwards, we came home, and Grandpa helped Jinnae practice walking. Rick says if Jinnae isn't walking by Halloween she won't be able to go trick or treating. So, she practiced hard. It was a typical Tuesday, turned terrific.

Pumpkin Patch and Ivy's Birthday

2008-10-12T20:50:00.013-05:00

Jinnae was invited to her good friend Ivy's birthday celebration this weekend. In the morning, both Ivy's family and Jinnae had their pictures taken at a local park by Cassie. Cassie is a teacher who does photography on the side. She was very kind and took some great shots. Then we all went to lunch together. After that, we went to Post Family Farms pumpkin patch. We went on a hayride, looked at the animals, and bought pumpkin donuts. We then enjoyed pumpkin donuts and cupcakes for Ivy's birthday. Ivy liked the bandana, shirt and princess wand that Jinnae picked out for her. It was a great afternoon!

In the evening, our good friends, Dave and Vicky, came over. Jinnae loved meeting them and liked showing them the frog she got at the birthday party. She holds onto this frog all the time. I think she is fascinated by its eyes.

Sasha's Fall Break

2008-10-12T20:38:00.006-05:00

Jinnae's cousin, Sasha, is home on a Fall break from college. Sasha attends Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma. Jinnae and Sasha spent a lot of time together this summer. Jinnae was so excited to see her again. She started giggling and jumping when we met Sasha at Wendy's for lunch on Saturday. We look forward to having dinner with Sasha later this week before she has to go back.

Problem Solving

2008-10-05T10:22:00.004-05:00

As I was doing dishes and Jinnae was playing with her toys, I turned to see this. Jinnae had problem solved on how to reach the toys in her toy box better. Notice the little toy pan that she is standing on. :)

Jinnae's Grandma Gerst's Birthday

2008-10-05T09:21:00.015-05:00

This weekend we celebrated my mom's birthday. We had a nice homemade lunch together, my mom opened gifts, and then we went to Rick's work to see his new office. Rick's company moved all their offices together into a building downtown. It is on Granville Ave. His office is on the third floor. The office building is beautiful. It is very modern in design. Rick is able to look out at the city of Grand Rapids landscape each day.

It was a beautiful day and Jinnae was glad to see her Grandma and Grandpa Gerst, Aunt Sally, Uncle Mark, Uncle Brian and cousins - Katrina, Autumn and Jewel.

Just Get Information

2008-09-28T11:18:00.005-05:00

Rick and I have a home church called, Restore. It has been going well for two years. Our church is very passionate about adoption and other social justice causes. Many of the couples in our church have adopted, are in the process, or want to support those who adopt. We visit other churches and give presentations. Our program is called MOJO (Michigan Orphan Justice Operative). I visited an adoption presentation on Friday night to see how others present adoption and to encourage them. I came home excited to adopt again. Rick said I was supposed to just get information not jump in with both feet! :)

Caramel Apples, Pumpkins and Cousins

2008-09-28T11:00:00.007-05:00

Jinnae was happily surprised Saturday morning when after she awoke from her morning nap her Aunt Rhonda was looking at her in her crib. (she wants to take this nap - can you believe it?! She smiles when I lay her down, and always sleeps for one hour) When we brought her downstairs, she was really excited to see her cousins, Corianna, Alyssa, Isaiah and Kayden. They played, had caramel apples together and laughed. Corianna wants Rick and I to go on dates every Friday night so she can watch Jinnae. We definitely are blessed with many babysitters. It was a fun morning.

I'll Miss My Grandpa

2008-09-18T20:47:00.003-05:00

My Grandpa passed away on Sunday morning. He was 88 years old. My Grandpa was one of the nicest and kindest people I ever knew. He was quiet and smiled often. I never heard him say a negative word about anyone. He loved my Grandma very much. He served in World War II and drove a jeep around with my Grandma's name on it, Wilma. I think that's cool. He got together with his Army buddies monthly. They would meet for breakfast. He just met for breakfast with them last month. My grandparents lived behind me when I was growing up. I remember running through a short woods to their home often. I loved visiting them. I also remember my grandparents coming to our home to play cards with my parents. They would play hearts and spades. My Grandpa would let me sit on his lap and see his cards. He was a musician and played both the guitar and harmonica. He played the harmonica every Christmas Eve. I will miss that. I will miss him. I love you Grandpa, and I look forward to seeing you again in heaven someday.

-Vicki

Jinnae's First Haircut

2008-09-13T07:26:00.005-05:00

As you all know, Jinnae was blessed with a lot of hair. We have had fun putting in hair pretties each day. She used to be good about keeping them in, now she takes them all out (including the rubber band) and her hair looks a little crazy, so we decided to get a hairstyle. She did very well during her first haircut. The stylist, Sarah, did an awesome job. Jinnae was happy as long as she could shake the mini hairspray bottle. Sarah gave her a clip to play with but Jinnae wanted to be helpful and put the clip in her hair while Sarah was styling it, so we went back to the hairspray bottle. Of course, I grabbed some of the hair off the floor to save. Her first hair appointment went very well! That's good, since she will have many more in her lifetime.

Back to Work for Vicki

2008-09-02T12:28:00.004-05:00

Well, today was my first day back teaching since I became a mom. I have a great class yet it was hard leaving Jinnae at daycare. Our daycare is awesome. It is our neighbor who has a daycare center in her home. Miss Ella is wonderful and Jinnae really likes her.

I felt good when I picked her up to hear that she had a good day and she was very happy when we got home.

I'm glad to work with moms who have experienced or are experiencing the same feelings. We will see how it goes.

Jinnae's Acting Debut

2008-08-28T19:45:00.006-05:00

Jinnae was asked by Bethany Christian Services to be in a promotional video. The film company was able to film at the Grand Rapids airport. Jinnae was with all professional actors. It was a re-enactment of Jinnae coming to America and meeting family and friends. Here are some pics of her pretend parents, grandparents and sister. I think her pretend sister will be the next Dakota Fanning. The film changed part of the story and added a sister. In real life, Jinnae does not have a sister in case some of you reading this thought you missed something. :) Jinnae was even paid for her acting. Rick is happy that she is finally making a contribution to the family. :) At one time, between shoots the director called Jinnae and I over. I thought he needed her in another scene. He said he just wanted to see her a minute because she was so cute and that really she had a 10 minute break. Everyone on the set treated her like she was a princess.

I realized how much work goes into making a film. Everyone works hard on their different jobs and only the actors and directors usually get the attention. I am going to pay attention to credits for now on.

It was an interesting and fun day.

Why take the long way?

2008-08-21T16:35:00.003-05:00

Jinnae discovered that she can crawl through her obstacles rather than go around them. I called Jinnae to come to dinner and this is what I saw. Her crawling through the buffet table to get to her height chair. Good times. :)

Birthday Cake - Yum!

2008-08-10T08:02:00.009-05:00

Rick and I decided to have a simple birthday celebration for Jinnae's first birthday. We just invited her grandparents. Rick's parents live in North Carolina and sent a gift with their love. My parents came over for lunch and birthday treats. Jinnae received a cool music CD from her Grandma and Grandpa Pulaski. The songs say her name in them. She loves it! Grandma and Grandpa Gerst bought her a toy boat that she can sit in and a walker/scooter combo toy. First, my parents couldn't wait for her to crawl. Now, they can't wait for her to walk. I just want her to stay my little baby. No reason to rush things. :) My parents also wore the shirts that we bought them in China. They say grandma and grandpa in Chinese. We had a fun afternoon.

Jinnae's Birthday

2008-08-07T18:59:00.003-05:00

Jinnae's birthday is August 12, 2008. She will be one year old. Our lives have changed for the better since we picked her up on April 24, 2008. She is so precious to us. Thank you Lord for blessing us with a happy and healthy baby.
We love you, Jinnae!
Love,
DaDa and Mama

Happy Birthday, Jinnae!

2008-08-07T18:54:00.001-05:00

Happy Birthday, Rick!

2008-08-07T12:42:00.006-05:00

While we were on vacation in Mackinaw City we celebrated Rick's birthday. We went out for his favorite meal of pizza and favorite dessert, ice cream. Jinnae and I bought him a chain guard and new seat for his bike.

I bought him some nice wine made in Michigan.

We had a great time celebrating.

Vacation Time!

2008-08-07T10:54:00.013-05:00

We had a wonderful vacation last week camping in Mackinaw City and visiting Mackinaw Island. I was worried about how camping would go with a baby but I am happy to say it went extremely well. We had no water or electricity and slept in a tent. The weather was great which was helpful. The campground had nice bathrooms and showers, a heated pool, a beach on Lake Huron and a beautiful view of the Mackinaw Bridge. I would definitely camp there again. Jinnae loved being outdoors all the time. Jinnae did get up every night and began to whimper but all I had to say was, mama is right here and then she settled back down.

One night we took a ride on a fire truck that drove around the campground. That was fun!

We biked the eight miles around Mackinaw Island and it was beautiful. We enjoyed lots of good food and fudge of course.

It was hard to come back home to the real world.

Now that Rick and I have conquered three weeks in China, daily life with a baby and camping, I say we can conquer anything and should adopt four more children.

Rick's response - Hold up, let's just enjoy Jinnae right now.

He'll come around. :)

Great Uncle Mike and Aunt Beth

2008-07-28T22:00:00.005-05:00

Jinnae had the privilege of meeting her Great Uncle Mike and Aunt Beth tonight.

We had a nice dinner at a local restaurant in Allendale. Jinnae loved all the attention. She even received an early birthday present from them. We had a nice time together.

Campground Visit

2008-07-28T21:42:00.006-05:00

We visited my sister at a campground she was staying at last week. Jinnae loved swimming in the lake and playing in the camper. She especially enjoyed looking at me through the screen. We had a fun day. One of our favorite activities was playing Fat Man Tennis. We also had some delicious barbeque chicken cooked by my brother in law, Mark.

I accidentally left my camera there. I see that my sister took the liberty to use it. Here is a pic she took of my brother in law with a fish he caught.

Beach Bash Baby Shower

2008-07-23T22:23:00.016-05:00

Tonight Jinnae had her last baby shower. It was given by our home church, Restore. The theme was Beach Bash. It was the perfect evening for it. We had Mexican food and lots of different choices of chocolate for dessert - yummy. After eating, Jinnae and her friends hung out on the beach and in the water. Then, Jinnae was blessed with many nice gifts. One of the gifts was a sprinkler beach ball. We are looking forward to cooling off with that.

We had a special prayer of blessing over Jinnae. Rick and I waited three years for Jinnae and God knew all along that she was the right baby for us. We are so thankful.

Behold the Popsicle

2008-07-13T21:40:00.004-05:00

Jinnae had her first popsicle. She really enjoyed it. I thought she was going to need a bath afterwards. She surprised me by actually being very careful. She held onto the stick correctly and laid it down on her tray when she was done. She didn't eat all of it. I think she might be a neat freak like her mom.

Baby Shower Given By Charity

2008-07-13T21:17:00.007-05:00

My good friend, Charity, had a baby shower for Jinnae this past weekend. It was good to see many friends from the past. We laughed, ate good food, and enjoyed catching up with each other. Jinnae enjoyed playing with all the children. Jinnae also met babies that were younger than her for the first time. She met precious Jaely and Sophia.

Thanks Charity! It was a lot of fun!

A Visit From My Best Friend, Tanya

2008-07-13T16:55:00.013-05:00

My best friend from college, Tanya, came to visit with her family this week. We have done well with getting together each year since graduation. It has already been 14 years! We still look the same though! (or so I like to think).

We had fun hanging out at Millenium Park, Hidden Lake, and then a local park in Allendale. Tanya and her husband, Jeff, have three beautiful children. Jinnae loved playing with them. We had a hard time getting the picture of all the children together, yet finally did.

We had a nice two days together. It was hard to say good-bye and we look forward to seeing them again this fall.

First Bike Ride

2008-07-06T16:16:00.004-05:00

Jinnae had her first bike ride today and loved it! She probably felt like she was in her home country of China. Everyone bikes there. We biked to the grocery store and then to the park. She enjoyed swinging in the baby swing at the park, then we biked home. It was fun!

The Babysitter?!

2008-07-06T10:19:00.002-05:00

Yesterday in Wal-Mart a nice mother and daughter behind us in line were making over Jinnae. They asked me if I was the babysitter. I have been asked many questions but never that. I said, No, I'm her mom. They were surprised. I am taking it as a compliment that I must have looked too young to be her mom. :) (make-up is a good thing - helps cover the wrinkles!)

The Pink Ball

2008-07-06T09:56:00.008-05:00

Jinnae's Grandma and Grandpa Pulaski bought her a pink ball a month ago. It is now her favorite toy. She loves to bang it, roll it, crawl after it (yes, she knows how to crawl now, I did not encourage it, I am more busy now moving things out of her reach) and sometimes chew it!

Since she loves it so much, maybe she will be a baseball player like her dad or a basketball and soccer player like her mom. We'll see! Actually, I think she may be a gymnast. I am amazed by her flexibility.