Where oh Where have the Canestraro's Been!

We have been on the go much of March, thankfully it has been for fun. See if you can guess where.

First Olivia and I went for 3+ days for her choir concert. She practices for 3 days and then had an amazing concert! It was so indescribable how these kids from 4th grade up through High school can come together after practicing on their own for 3 months, practice together for 3 days and sound so beautiful, just beautiful. Since it was just her and I, I got to have some precious time to myself to read and take some walks, it was a great get away for us. The only downside was the weather. Here is a picture of Olivia the last night we were there( and yes the white dots are snow!)

It was in the 30s that night with wind chill of 22 degrees. Can you guess where we were? Chicago? No. Boston? No. It was DALLAS. DALLAS TEXAS! Can you believe it. We thought we were going to get a little tan while we were there but it was warmer back home most of the time we were there. And they did get 1" of snow that night.

Once we returned, I had a day in a half to unpack, do laundry and pack everyone again for Spring Break. Thankfully this trip was a little warmer. This should be an easy guess:

The Wonderful World of Disney! We had both a great and utterly frustrating time all at the same time. Those who have been there can understand, especially with younger kids. We had a great time, but then there was the tired factor, which for most was ok. Get a little food, sit down and rest while you eat - then raring to go again. However, 3 year olds don't work that way, especially ones that you can't just put in a stroller and let then dozzz. Micah can only sleep when there are NO DISTRACTION AT ALL. Which required retreating to the room, and trying to make it as pitch black as possible. We knew naps were required but the problem was the timing. As each day passed(because of less sleep each day), he needed his nap earlier and earlier. So once his mean obstinate streak would kick in, we knew it was time for one of us to go back to the room. After the first day, he was never back to his normal self until we were home about 4 days. Needless to say, this kids works soooo much better on a schedule.

But back to the good part. It was so fun to be there and share all the memories of the times we have visited in the past, either as kids ourselves or when we went as a family 6 years ago(which only Olivia really remembers). They do a great job of making things pleasant for you. The workers are just so nice and helpful and understanding( especially with a screaming 3 yo) and they really do try to make everything magical. And as Russ likes to says, they do an amazing job of making your money magically disappear too!

So we are now back to reality but thankfully the warm weather followed us home and we can spend time outside playing, which is a great vacation from being cooped up most of the winter. Here is a picture of a tree in our backyard that is blooming:

This is the same tree, if you scan down, that I took a picture of when we had a major snow, fog, frost day. Isn't it stunning how God can make beauty out whatever the circumstance. I just need to remember that each day.

One more thing before I go. We did get our I-800A approval on Friday. Unfortunately, it was too late for me to get all the authentications done that day. So on Monday I will be making a trip downtown and to the FedEx store. If everything works smoothly( which is a big IF in the adoption world), we should have our DTC(Dossier to China) on April 20th! Here's praying that my best laid plans match with God's. I will let you know.

Here is a good bye picture of my boys with Mickey: