Neck Tie Tuesday

Well Hello Again ~
We have now successfully completed day 2 of Spirit Week @ Lipscomb Elementary.  And I must say these photos really say it all!  The boys version of how mama wanted the photo taken followed by mama's version of the photo!

Boys will be boys!

Mama's compliant photo

So there you have it another day in the books and now we move on to Wednesday!  Which means the week is halfway complete!!  

Marvelous Mustache Monday ~

Greetings Friends ~
I hope that you had a super awesome weekend!  We here at the Hammons house were busy bees with soccer, and mama working and our ever fabulous Marilyn home for a visit from UT.

This week is spirit week at the boys school.  And of course our fabulous PTO has put together a different dress code for each day.  Now with my limited knowledge I know that my 2 Ethiopian boys are very black and white not sure how spirit week goes in other homes but - get out of the norm and it get's questionable so I was thrilled to see that this week we really will only have 2 days that will require ALOT of explaining behind these crazy American traditions.  Fortunately today was NOT one of them.  The boys went out with their dad last night while I was at bible study to pick out their mustaches for today.  Who knew mustaches came in blue and yellow! So from Tariku and Teddy they wish you a Marvelous Mustache Monday!

Tomorrow is Tie Tuesday!  

1st day of school

Greetings ~
Well this year the first day of school looked a little different at the Hammons house!  There is no cute pinterest worthy photo of the boys.  There were no tears shed as the boys headed to the bus to start 1st and 2nd grade.  Nope not this year ~ GOD had different plans for this mama and boy did he stretch me this year!  You see I am still working in Addis Ababa Ethiopia some 7,300 miles away from the 1st day of school.  And yet I wouldn't change a moment of it for anything - not for me or for the boys.  So alright the outfits they wore were surely chosen by them, and no I didn't pack their lunch (but I did take them to buy lunch boxes before I left!!!) Instead their dad and their papa had this moment with them and for that I am eternally grateful.  The boys ADORE their papa to the ends of the earth and had I not been away he would not have been there for their 1st day of school.  And thanks to modern technology I am blessed to follow their day via email, facebook and twitter.  Their most amazing nanny (who leaves for college this Friday) posts photos and videos of them after school.  Their teachers email me and I facetime with the boys ~ so no the 1st day of school was not a traditional one but it was also not one to soon be forgotten!  Hello 2013/2014 we are soooo excited to see you and cannot wait for all that is in store with Ms. Clark and Ms. Gatlin this year!

A Letter To Our Marilyn

To our sweet sweet Marilyn ~

We knew the time was coming ~ we knew we would only have you for a year ~ and what a most AMAZING year it has been.  There will never be enough words that this mama could say that would thank you enough for all you did.  You came into our lives and poured your love into the boys every single day. From soccer practice, to basketball, to speech and beyond you were there every step of the way.

Your grace and patience with both of them taught them to be patient

Your smile was something the boys ran to at the end of each school day

Your sign language skills helped me understand my sweet deaf son a bit more every day

Your knowledge as a sibling of a deaf sister helped Tariku understand his place in the world a bit better

Your passion for the LORD gave them a passion to follow

But above all things was and is your LOVE for them and their LOVE for you.  We are so proud of you and your heart for Ethiopia.  We could not of made this past year had you not been a part of it and while my mama heart is sad I know this journey with you does not end just because you move on to UT.  The boys and I will visit often and I am sure we will find a Ethiopian restaurant in Knoxville to share your love of tibs fir fir with Tariku and Teddy.

So as I prepare to fly off to Addis know that I love you and that I cannot wait to see you soon!  I love you to Ethiopia and back sweet girl and remember this quote ~

Joshua 1:9 - “…Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

New School Year Begins!

WOW oh WOW!  Where did this summer go?  So many things to write about and so much was seen and done and yet there are no posts!!  Leave it to me to keep a list but never actually post!  Sorry about that friends I really do want to be better.  So here is it Aug 17th and the boys have officially been back in school for 1 week!!!  They love school and were so excited to start back - Tariku is getting use to the idea that his classroom friends are different and Teddy is adjusting to a new teacher, new interperter and new hearing teacher!  No homework yet but we are busy with soccer and swimming and of course trips to see Nana and Papa!  Here is a quick photo of the boys in their new classrooms on the 1st day of school!  Enjoy

Wishing you a most MAGICAL Day ~
Courtney