Adoption Day and All Saints Day
Today we celebrated our Family Day, a day that we plan to celebrate each year to honor our sons joining our family. Marcus and Will both have blessed us in so many ways and they will never know all the hearts that they have touched. So, let's celebrate!
While we were in Guatemala, we got several gifts for our kids and plan to give them one each year on Family Day. This year the gift was rather unexciting for them but they were still happy to show off how cute they looked in their new shirts.
Next event was a short photo shoot so we could do this cute little thing that follows to show how our boys have grown:
Marcus and Hopkin Green Frog the first day at home 11/3/06:
Marcus a year later 10/14/07:
Marcus today (I told him to look at Mommy and smile and he actually did!)
Will and Hopkin Blue Frog on his first day home 11-22-07:
Will today:
Then it was time for the real fun to begin. We were off to The Children's Museum in Pittsburgh! I have never been there unless you count the time I was there in third grade for a field trip and it was a planetarium at the time. I have heard great things about the place so it was about time that we checked it out.
First stop was the cafeteria. It was snack time when we arrived. Then we were off to Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. We got there when the place was opening so there weren't too many other kids there for awhile. Marcus and I decided to climb around inside the wall.
Then we headed to the second floor where all the activities were geared towards infants and toddlers. I was enjoying it too...
Then off to the third floor to play in water! I came prepared and brought extra shoes for the kids and decided they could just go without pants. (The raincoats are provided by the museum.)
After about 45 minutes of splashing around, it was lunchtime and Marcus headed towards the elevators proclaiming, "Something else!" Back to the cafeteria we went.
There was still lots more to see on the first floor after lunch, and it was some really cool stuff. Prior to lunch the kids were having a lot of fun but since they were way more interested in Mr. Rogers and pouring water from one cup to another, there were times when Greg and I were the ones ready to move on to something else. The rest of the first floor was a lot of fun for everyone. We ended up spending about 4 hours at the museum. We might have even stayed longer but Will was making it very clear to every single guest at the museum that he was completely done.
The day was not over though. November 1 not only was Family Day this year, but it also happens to be All Saints Day. Here is a brief note on All Saints Day that I adapted from Guatadopt.
"If one wants to celebrate Guatemala's holiday it should be "All Saints Day" (Dia de Todosantos), which is celebrated on Nov. 1.
Guatemalans from Guate City and other urban areas prepare "fiambre". Fiambre is the central element of Nov. 1st, and people talk about "celebrating fiambre" or ask "where will you eat fiambre." All Guatemalans visit the cemetery, clean their loved ones' tombs, give them a fresh coat of paint, decorate them, put flowers and have a meal right there.
That is when the kite flying happens (except Santiago Sacatepequez where the kite flying is an event by itself). The air is very festive and children participate in the celebration. Everywhere people prepare special meals to eat with their dead.
Todosantos is a wonderful example of how Guatemalans keep close ties with their dead. Visiting the cemetery constitutes a normal outing and Nov. 1st is the most important day of the year to visit and honor loved ones. Eating a meal at the cemetery is a sign of these close ties and the fact that the "frontier" between the living and the dead is more fluid than in other cultures."
That being said, the next stop after the Children's Museum was, of course, the cemetery. The kids and Greg took a nap during the car ride to rest up. I don't think I ever realized just how big the cemetery here is. It is huge. I hadn't been there in years and I warned Greg it might take me a bit to find our family plots. Greg was quite impressed with the massive size of the cemetery having never been there. Only a few minutes into the search and I did locate my father's side of the family. Very close to their plot is a headstone shaped like a dog. I always used to visit it when I was a kid. The story (don't know if it is true or not but still a fun story) is that someone wanted to be buried with their dog but the cemetery didn't allow it so they put up a statue instead. The boys liked the dog and gave him some hugs.
On our way back to the car, Greg spotted this gravestone. (FYI, my maiden name was Wylie.)
Don't get scared but apparently I have been dead since 1878.
Next stop was to my grandparents' plot on my mom's side of the family. Not sure if this is true or just some story I made up, but I think their plot is right by the point of highest elevation in the town. Even if I am wrong, the view is still a great one.
Even though on All Saints Day, people generally eat in the cemetery, it really wasn't our plan. However, it was snack time, there was a bench, and I had some snacks. So...
We didn't have anything else planned for the day since I never got around to seeing if I could find some kites to fly, so we were headed to the mall to do some window shopping. Greg spotted a deer on our way out of the cemetery so we went to visit him. The deer in the cemetery are really friendly since I guess dead people aren't much of a threat. (Yes, I know that was probably not very PC but it was kinda funny.) We pulled up right next to this little guy and put the windows down. He came up to us for a closer look but decided that the grass he was munching on was way more interesting than we were.
In closing, Happy Family Day!! Marcus has now been with us for two years and we are coming up on the one year anniversary of Will joining our family. I look at my kids sometimes and I think of all the miracles in life that brought them to me. With adoption, there is just so much left up to chance or fate or God, depending on what you believe. All those tiny little choices - what agency to use, what country to adopt from, when to sign those papers, and what child ultimately gets referred to you - somehow lead you down exactly the right road to have the perfect child for your family in your family. Thank you, God.
While we were in Guatemala, we got several gifts for our kids and plan to give them one each year on Family Day. This year the gift was rather unexciting for them but they were still happy to show off how cute they looked in their new shirts.
Next event was a short photo shoot so we could do this cute little thing that follows to show how our boys have grown:
Marcus and Hopkin Green Frog the first day at home 11/3/06:
Marcus a year later 10/14/07:
Marcus today (I told him to look at Mommy and smile and he actually did!)
Will and Hopkin Blue Frog on his first day home 11-22-07:
Will today:
Then it was time for the real fun to begin. We were off to The Children's Museum in Pittsburgh! I have never been there unless you count the time I was there in third grade for a field trip and it was a planetarium at the time. I have heard great things about the place so it was about time that we checked it out.
First stop was the cafeteria. It was snack time when we arrived. Then we were off to Mr. Roger's Neighborhood. We got there when the place was opening so there weren't too many other kids there for awhile. Marcus and I decided to climb around inside the wall.
Then we headed to the second floor where all the activities were geared towards infants and toddlers. I was enjoying it too...
Then off to the third floor to play in water! I came prepared and brought extra shoes for the kids and decided they could just go without pants. (The raincoats are provided by the museum.)
After about 45 minutes of splashing around, it was lunchtime and Marcus headed towards the elevators proclaiming, "Something else!" Back to the cafeteria we went.
There was still lots more to see on the first floor after lunch, and it was some really cool stuff. Prior to lunch the kids were having a lot of fun but since they were way more interested in Mr. Rogers and pouring water from one cup to another, there were times when Greg and I were the ones ready to move on to something else. The rest of the first floor was a lot of fun for everyone. We ended up spending about 4 hours at the museum. We might have even stayed longer but Will was making it very clear to every single guest at the museum that he was completely done.
The day was not over though. November 1 not only was Family Day this year, but it also happens to be All Saints Day. Here is a brief note on All Saints Day that I adapted from Guatadopt.
"If one wants to celebrate Guatemala's holiday it should be "All Saints Day" (Dia de Todosantos), which is celebrated on Nov. 1.
Guatemalans from Guate City and other urban areas prepare "fiambre". Fiambre is the central element of Nov. 1st, and people talk about "celebrating fiambre" or ask "where will you eat fiambre." All Guatemalans visit the cemetery, clean their loved ones' tombs, give them a fresh coat of paint, decorate them, put flowers and have a meal right there.
That is when the kite flying happens (except Santiago Sacatepequez where the kite flying is an event by itself). The air is very festive and children participate in the celebration. Everywhere people prepare special meals to eat with their dead.
Todosantos is a wonderful example of how Guatemalans keep close ties with their dead. Visiting the cemetery constitutes a normal outing and Nov. 1st is the most important day of the year to visit and honor loved ones. Eating a meal at the cemetery is a sign of these close ties and the fact that the "frontier" between the living and the dead is more fluid than in other cultures."
That being said, the next stop after the Children's Museum was, of course, the cemetery. The kids and Greg took a nap during the car ride to rest up. I don't think I ever realized just how big the cemetery here is. It is huge. I hadn't been there in years and I warned Greg it might take me a bit to find our family plots. Greg was quite impressed with the massive size of the cemetery having never been there. Only a few minutes into the search and I did locate my father's side of the family. Very close to their plot is a headstone shaped like a dog. I always used to visit it when I was a kid. The story (don't know if it is true or not but still a fun story) is that someone wanted to be buried with their dog but the cemetery didn't allow it so they put up a statue instead. The boys liked the dog and gave him some hugs.
On our way back to the car, Greg spotted this gravestone. (FYI, my maiden name was Wylie.)
Don't get scared but apparently I have been dead since 1878.
Next stop was to my grandparents' plot on my mom's side of the family. Not sure if this is true or just some story I made up, but I think their plot is right by the point of highest elevation in the town. Even if I am wrong, the view is still a great one.
Even though on All Saints Day, people generally eat in the cemetery, it really wasn't our plan. However, it was snack time, there was a bench, and I had some snacks. So...
We didn't have anything else planned for the day since I never got around to seeing if I could find some kites to fly, so we were headed to the mall to do some window shopping. Greg spotted a deer on our way out of the cemetery so we went to visit him. The deer in the cemetery are really friendly since I guess dead people aren't much of a threat. (Yes, I know that was probably not very PC but it was kinda funny.) We pulled up right next to this little guy and put the windows down. He came up to us for a closer look but decided that the grass he was munching on was way more interesting than we were.
In closing, Happy Family Day!! Marcus has now been with us for two years and we are coming up on the one year anniversary of Will joining our family. I look at my kids sometimes and I think of all the miracles in life that brought them to me. With adoption, there is just so much left up to chance or fate or God, depending on what you believe. All those tiny little choices - what agency to use, what country to adopt from, when to sign those papers, and what child ultimately gets referred to you - somehow lead you down exactly the right road to have the perfect child for your family in your family. Thank you, God.
posted by Annie and Greg @ 7:59 PM
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