Family Reunion Weekend!

I have to admit that I was super camera lazy this weekend. There were so many cameras out that I rested on my laurels and let others do the documenting. If you were here with us this last weekend and got some good photos of Ellie, can you e-mail them to us?

Here's Ellie with Aunt Elaine (visiting from FL). They're looking at the "Ellie" book -- something she never tires of reading.

I love this photo. We gave family reports in the evenings, usually accompanied by slides of digital photos which Els enjoyed viewing too. This is a rare moment where she's relaxing into her PaPa (she's usually on the go!). I particularly like how she's holding on to his hand. Precious!

Here's Ellie with her 2nd cousin, also named Ellie, who was back in the States with her family this summer for a few weeks' break from Mali, W. Africa!

Els' latest accomplishment has been grabbing virtually any cup she sees and trying it's contents. Here Dad came to the rescue to make sure there were no spills. I caught her last week drinking bathtub water out of the cup I use for rinsing shampoo out of her hair!

In other Ellie news, last week saw her drink out of straw for the first time and pull herself up onto the top of the coffee table and couch! She's getting much smoother and faster with cruising, pulling to a stand, and transitioning from a stand back to the floor. She wants so much to walk!

Oh! And I nearly forgot!!! The 'Red Cup' is HISTORY! We're going on 4 consecutive days of eating off a spoon. Hallelujah! Now we can work on brushing teeth!

News Articles/Links of Interest

New York Times (6/9/07)

Mission Network News -- First Lady Laura Bush to visit Christian Ministry in Albania

Making History...

This weekend Albania is expecting a prominant visitor from the U.S.! Albanians do a fantastic job of hosting visitors so I can easily imagine the excitement in the air described in this article:
http://www.birn.eu.com/en/86/10/3168/ ("Eurphoric Welcome Awaits Bush")

My mom also happens to be in Tirana right now and provided the companion photo (above) to this account. During our visit in December we were told that Albania has the highest approval rating of the US of any country in the world (this article offers some enlightening explanations, primarily that Pres Woodrow Wilson saved Albania from partition after WWI), so I'm not too surprised that they're pulling out all the stops to greet our president. On a personal note, I'm also glad that we can tell Ellie that her old country and new country have enjoyed such a good relationship.

Last summer we happened to be in Budapest the same time President Bush made a visit and needless to say, it crimped our plans a bit one particular day, but it was cool to ride around town and see the stars and stripes hanging next to the Hungarian flag over a number of intersections downtown. We didn't try to be anywhere around where his motorcade planned to travel though, and settled for watching the hoopla on the TV. In this Sunday's case, residents of Tirana have been told their cell phones will encounter a blackout.

While I'm posting links, I want to encourage anyone who has ever flown into Rinas (Albania's airport) to link to my parents' blog to see photos (June 4 post) of the new airport. All I can say is, "Wow." It's hard to believe it's the same place we were 5 months ago!

an afternoon at the park

(above) She's that excited about the slide...

Thought you might like to see how the hair keeps growin'! These are from Sunday afternoon's trip to the park!

Our little girl continues to get stronger -- seemingly more every day. Tonight we caught her trying to climb on the couch (she had one leg up and would have had it but her arms just weren't strong enough). She's also expanding her vocal ranges and sounds. All in all, we have much to be thankful for as we watch her grow!

birthplace

Ellie's Grandma Van is in Albania again and sent us these photos today of the hospital where Ellie was born! We had wanted to visit this place and get our own photographs last winter, but a combination of factors (lack of time & Ellie's fear of car rides) prevented us. It's probably more appropriate to see it in the light of the June afternoon sun because this is probably how it looked when Ellie came into the world nearly 2 years ago! There are very few places in this world where Ellie has been that I have not, and this is one of them. As the place where she spent the first two months of her life, it's good to know how to better shape my mental images of her earliest days.

Audio link

For an audio "slice of life" regarding the Edi Rama's ongoing project to address trash pick up and recycling in Albania's capital, Tirana, listen to this story (3 1/2 minutes) which aired on NPR on May 29...

For more of Albania in the news, don't forget to check the news feed on the lower right-hand margin of this blog. Also, keep your eyes open in the next few days and weeks for news stories on President Bush's upcoming visit on June 10.

family photos part 2

part one posted 5/17/07

The Waggoners

Here are some photos from last week...

Nonna, PaPa, and the grandkids
The Waggoner siblings

Ellie & Aunt Rebecca