Expanding the Family

Then The Man of the House and I first got married I told him 2 things up front. Just something I knew in my heart of hearts. We will adopt a child and we will have teenagers other than our own in our home. He gave this strange look like I had lost my mind and said "okay sure." I knew what he was really thinking but that was okay I knew I was right. After 5 years of marriage we started to foster with CPS. After about two and a half years we ended up adopting our little Boo. I told him "well I guess I was right on that one." He just smiled and nodded.

This past summer a friend told us about hosting foreign exchange students. My sister and her family have hosted in the past and really enjoyed their experience. We have not had the room or the ability to host until now. After talking about the opportunity with each other and the kids, we thought we would start the process and look into it.

The Man of the House and I looked at this opportunity the same way we did fostering. Once we know that the kids are coming they are ours. They are part of our family and we love them the same as our own kids. We joke and laugh and cry with them the same as we do our kids. They ARE our kids.
Once we decided this was what we were being called to do, we had our interview, filled out the papers and were picking our student with in a week. And we were so blessed with our new Koren daughter. Ba bo houng, joined our family in August of 2010. She came to us ready to try just about any new adventure. She fit is so well with our family.


Her only real bump along the way was finding school a bit more challenging than she expected as far as her English skills were concerned. Yet she has succeeded with great pride and accomplishment. Each time she brings me progress reports and report cards I just look at her, laugh and say "well I am going to have to ground you AGAIN. You are not studying enough. Your grades are all 97 and above!" I think her lowest grade has been a 90 and that was in her English class. Well duh English is not her first language. If it were literature and essay writing in Koren she would be fine.

Ba bo houng is an accomplished piano player. She joined the jazz band at school and has had so much fun with all they do. She has been to Florida and preformed at Disney. They spent the whole week there enjoying Disney and they preformed a total of 3 times.
Thaly joined up in January. My Brazilian daughter was another blessing. She is shy but once you get to know her she is funny, sweet, and so much fun. She is interested in fashion. She is always wanting to go shopping. She can shop me into the ground! But I must admit she always goes for the sale racks. She will look at everything more than once and find the best deal.

She went along to help with the equipment when the band went to Disney. She had a great time. Thaly has decided to stay one more semester, however we have already picked our our kiddos for next year. We can only have 2 at a time. She can't stay with us! I am so bummed. She will be living close with in 5-7 minutes but still not with us, so sad!

Next year we will host a girl and a boy. It will be interesting to have a boy. My snoopy is just 7 so a teen boy is a new experience. Our boy is from Norway and is 16. He enjoys football, of course that is soccer here in the US. He is defiantly wants to play here, but he is also looking forward to trying American rules football.

Our girl is from Thailand. She is 15, She enjoys taking pictures and spending time with friends. The really cool part is she is a Girl Guide in Thailand. She really is looking forward to continuing her Scouting experience in the US.

We are looking forward to next year.

Tasty Tuesday

We had meatloaf last night one of Dad's favorite dinners. Homemade garlic mashed potatoes, salad, steamed corn and green beans, with rolls.

Daddy's favorite Meatloaf

1.5 pounds of ground beef
handful of breadcrumbs
one egg
1 tbs of capers
1/4 cup of shredded Cheddar cheese
fresh sage
fresh rosemary
fresh thyme
one small chopped onion
1 tsp minced garlic
3/4 cup of ketchup
1/4 cup of ketchup
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients in large bowl, except ketchup. Once everything is well mixed add 3/4 cup of ketchup. Then drizzle remaining ketchup on the top. Place in 450 degree oven until cooked all the way through.

Introducing!

I am hoping to start adding new readers to my blog. Maybe some who do not know us personally. So I thought I should take a few minutes and tell you who we are.

The RainDrop family was established in 1993.


First off I am Croppermom. I am a wife, mother, sister, aunt, friend, Girl Scout leader, my kids teacher, and most of all a daughter of my Heavenly Father. When we are not doing school work, Girl Scouts, doctor's appointments, or running teenagers to their events, I love to read. I have not had an opportunity, or time in a GREAT while to scrapbook, but I love to take pictures for the future when I do have time again.

My knight in shining armor and the love of my life is known as the Man of the House. He is a wonderful provider and an awesome Dad. He is the IT director for a concrete construction company. He loves to read and play on the computer.

Our little RainDrops are growing in stature and in number.

Pooh Bear or Bit as her daddy calls her is 13, going on 30, as the the old adage goes. She loves to read, and science is her favorite subject, along with art and art appreciation. She is looking forward to taking classes on baby sitting and first aid.

Boo is almost 10 and a real tom boy at heart. She loves monkeys and despises pink. She loves to draw, and paint, even on things that are going to get her in trouble. She believes she can improve anything with paint.

Snoopy is 8 and pure boy! He is loud and rough. He is a mom's boy at heart though. He is turning in to his dad's mini me. He loves to play computers and has his daddy's ease at school subjects. School seems to come easy to him.

Our number are growing as we are a host family with Pacific Intercultural Exchange. Yes even homeschooolers can host students.

This past August we welcomed Ba bo houng (her nick name from school last year) to our family. She is from South Korea. She turned Sweet 16 while living with us! She loves Hello Kitty and wants to be a surgeon when she grows up. Ba bo houng will be leaving us in July. It will be a sad day, but we are thanking God and her family for giving us one more month!

Thaly came from Brazil in January. She fit right in with our growing family. We are so excited that she will be able to do one more semester here in the USA. We are terribly sad that the decision was made after we had already picked our two kids for next year. We are not allowed to have 3! I swear she will find sleeping while hanging from a nail real comfortable.

Next fall we will have a young lady who is 15 from Thailand.

As well as a young man from Norway
As soon as I know their nickname I will introduce them formally!

I will blog soon about our experience of being a host family. Let me just say this much. It is so very worth it!

Bridging Creek Side Girl Scouts

After a busy day we had a wonderful evening of fellowship and celebration as our girls bridged from one program level to the next. It is so hard to believe that I no longer have a Brownie. Just before the Brownies bridged they welcomed to bridging Daisies to Brownies.


Boo was so proud as she walked across the bridge. She never likes to be the center of attention in large crowds. But there was a hint of a smile. Boo and her fellow new Junior Girl Scouts are ready to move up and take more responsibilities while learning new skills.


I was the master of ceremonies at today's event as well as a proud mommy. Not only did Boo bridge but our Exchange Students bridged as well. Ba bo houng bridged to Ambassadors and Thaly bridged to adult Girl Scouts. I was a beaming mother. Dad got roped into taking pictures as the official photographer, so the photos of me actually bridging the big girls will have to wait.

This evening brought back many fond memories for me as I was a Girl Scout myself. I love being a leader and giving the girls the opportunities to learn and grow that I had.