Off to School I Go!

I started going to pre-school this week. Every Tuesday and Thursdays from 8:30 AM to 11:30 AM I hang out with 20 others kids. We sing, dance, play, and learn a few things too! I've been happy to go so far. Perhaps I'll start getting a bit more apprehensive as time goes but so far Miss Karen says I'm doing good. Miss Tanya said to mommy that I'm a good dancer. I got some cool moves!

Parker is now 11 months and seems to go everywhere I go. He hasn't mastered the art of walking but he can sure crawl at a good speed. I do get annoyed when he takes my monster truck away from me. I tell him, "That's mine!". He sometimes starts crying so than I give it back to him. Mommy and daddy says it's fun to share. I'm not too sure about that. Parker is now wearing his boots and bars only at night. You can tell he is happy about that!

One more thing...I have 4 more pounds to gain and than I'll weigh 40lbs! It's great to be James Monrovia Epp!

The Boys' First Christmas

We spent our first Christmas as a family with the Epp's in Fiske, Saskatchewan. All 32 of us where there; which included 5 new grand-kids in 2007! It was full of excitement. James loved every second of it and Parker was overwhelmed by it all. The weather was perfect for James to experience his first toboggan and ski-doo ride! He called the ski-doo the 'boat' and loved going for rides with Grandpa. Next year he'll be ready to skate as walking on the ice was too boring for him especially seeing his little cousins zooming by him. Our flight back home on New Year's Eve day was seamless until the last 2o minutes where Parker decided he had enough. 2007 was a magical year for us and we hope that the magic will continue to sprinkle into our lives in 2008. Happy moments to you all in 2008.

Blessings,

Joanne, Michael, James and Baby Parker

Just Hangin' Out

James has a new hairdo!

As new parents of our African son, we or should I say I, decided that it was time to get James' hair twisted. I brought James to see Gill who owns the African Braids and Beauty Shop in Kelowna. Armed with a portable DVD player (thanks Simone!) and treats to entertain James during the two hour process we arrived at the salon. Twenty minutes into the twisting James begins to cry and I try to tell him it's okay and to keep watching Happy Feet and eating his treat. But the bribery tricks weren't working, he kept crying and saying, "All done." I wanted to tell him that hair is painful at times. What little girl hasn't screamed blue murder when their mommy did their hair? I wanted to explain to him that it's part of his heritage but I knew that none of that would sink in to a crying little boy. So I look at Gill and say, "What do I do? Should we cut his hair?" She blurts out quickly, "No! You don't cut his hair!". So Gill gave me a quick tutorial on how-to-twist our son's hair and we packed up the portable DVD, bought some wax for the twisting and went home. Once at home Michael and I took turns twisting and two hours later we were done. James was a trooper allowing us to complete the project and now seems to like it...I think!