Lots of vacation pictures!

A few weeks ago, we took a mini-vacation to Malta. Our internet has been down, so I'm a little late. Things don't get fixed very quickly here. Everything is done at a much slower pace!!

Malta is only about a 30 minute plane ride from Sicily. It's a Southern European island in the Mediterranean Sea. Honestly, I had never heard of Malta before moving to Italy. If you read in Acts, it's where Apostle Paul spent three months after being ship wrecked. There's so much history on this beautiful island. We had an amazing time, and the weather was sunny and in the mid 70s. Pretty nice for the middle of November. I only have a short time before the boys wake up from their naps and before DJ gets home from school, so I'll stop writing and post pictures.

Here's the public bus we took into the city of Valletta, Malta.

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Buying some snacks.

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Noah chased the pigeons.

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Taxi ride back to the hotel.

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Lunch time

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This is where we had lunch in Valletta.

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Which one is DJ?

DJ and the driver are riding up front. We took a carriage ride through the city.

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DJ had a good view sitting up front.

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Trying to get some shots of Lincoln and Noah sitting in the horse carriage.

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This was the best I could do.

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Outside of St. John's Co-Cathedral

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See the guy in all black in the background? He pushes this cart through the city, shaking a bell, giving candy to kids, and playing his marionette puppets.

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Then the kids drop money into his basket.

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They even have a Burger King on Malta! We didn't eat here, but it's fun to be in a foreign country and see places we recognize!

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We took a tour through St. John's Co-Cathedral.

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Waiting for Tom and Noah to get back from the bathroom. There was a guy standing outside of the bathrooms and he hands you a tiny bit of toilet paper in exchange for a little money.

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Double decker bus tour of the island.

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Pictures we took from our seat on the top of the bus.

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Blue Grotto

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Hagar Qim Ancient Temple on Unesco World Heritage List.

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Eating lunch at St. Paul's Bay.

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Playing together while we wait for our taxi.

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Overlooking St. Paul's Bay and Island where shipwrecked.

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Dessert time. DJ and Noah picked doughnuts. The lady gave a cone to Lincoln.

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Close in shot of island and statue of St. Paul.

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Happy 8th Birthday, DJ!

Our oldest son DJ turned 8 years old last week! He wanted to celebrate his birthday at Funny Island. It's the same place Noah went to for his birthday a few months ago. We had a fun night. I don't have any pictures to share from Funny Island because they all have shots of his friends, and I haven't had a chance to ask their parents if they mind me posting them. Here are some pictures of the birthday boy.

DJ's birth mom loved him so much. He was born in Portland, Oregon.

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DJ's first birthday. What a cutie! DJ's Grandma Loree and Grandpa Larry took such good care of him. They are a very special part of his life.

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Such a happy boy! DJ has lived with us since he was 4 years old. We believe God pieced together our family and blessed us with such a special kid.

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We have a little tradition of looking at the birthday boy's baby books and photo albums.

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DJ is showing his baby pictures to Noah.

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The Commissary made a pretty nice jet cake! We should've gone out in town, but our kids aren't too crazy about Italian pastries.

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Thanks to all our family for the thoughtful birthday gifts. DJ is working on his Thank You cards in between all of his homework!

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Happy Birthday, DJ! We love you!!!

Video games

If homework is done, dinner is eaten, baths and teeth checked off the list, the boys get 30 minutes of video game time. Everything in moderation, right? Most school nights are left with no time for video games. Weekends are usually the exception. Last night, Friday, the boys played Wii. Ok, so DJ played Wii and Noah focused his energy on getting Lincoln away from the video game.

Career Day at school.

DJ worked all week getting ready for his 5 minute presentation to his 2nd grade class. It was Career Day. DJ talked about wanting to be a pilot when he grows up. His teacher said he did a great job, and he was very well prepared! I wish I had video of it, but parents weren't invited. His teacher sent out pictures to the parents.

While DJ is at school . . .

*video clip*

Roasting chestnuts and hiking at Mt. Etna.

On Saturday we went on a trip to Mt. Etna. We took a bus with several other families from base. We stopped for coffee and hot chocolate at a cafe along the way. Then we collected chestnuts and roasted them. It's a holiday tradition in Sicily. We went on a guided hike and then had a barbque. It was such a nice family day.

No school!

This past Thursday DJ didn't have school so my new friend, Linda, and I took our combined 7 kids under the age of eight to Taormina for a picnic at an old Greek stadium. I guess you could say we're brave, but really, it was surprisingly pretty easy and fun. Despite Noah's temper tantrum that stopped all traffic down one of Taormina's beautiful, romantic streets, everything went well. Here are some fun pictures of our afternoon.