Cuento los dias...

We are counting the days until Jhonatan arrives for a holiday visit! He will be flying into Dulles airport on December 10th and staying with us through January 5th. While we know it is going to be so hard to let him go when he leaves, we are really looking forward to having him back in our house even if only for a few weeks. Stay tuned for updates from the visit. I'm sure we will be hearing a lot of "Que frio!!".

Medellin...The City of Eternal Spring

A few weeks ago, I was able to travel to Medellin to visit Jhonatan for his birthday. What an amazing trip! It was so great to see Jhonatan again and spend time with him in his country. Medellin is a beautiful city. It sits in a valley surrounded by mountains so no matter where you look, the views are awesome! Because of the spring-like weather all year, Medellin is full of green and beautiful flowers. The picture above doesn't do justice to the gorgeous views that abound in Medellin!

One of our first outings was to Parque Explora. It is basically a science museum run by the city. Outside is a large courtyard with physics exhibits. There were also buildings with an aquarium and geology exhibits. It was very well done with many helpful people at every exhibit. Here are some pictures of Jhonatan enjoying the physics exhibits....







I included this one just because he is so darn cute...

This is a park with a life-size model of a typical village outside of Medellin. I just love the flowers on the balconies, bright colors and tile roof.


Having lunch at Arepas con Todos. I have to say I miss the arepas but not as much as I miss this sweet boy...

The malls there were beautiful. Here is Jhonatan in front of a fountain that would spray all the way up to the third floor...

Our last day....

Spending time with Jhonatan in Medellin was amazing! I also loved getting to know the city and its people. I can't say enough about the lovely people of Medellin....so warm and friendly!

Painting Pottery and Playing at the Park

Jhonatan enjoyed painting pottery...he picked a little boy figurine. :)



I love how comfortable he is in all situations. He is never at a loss for words (or smiles)...



Jhonatan having fun at the playground!



Cassie and Jhonatan taking a ride together on the zip line.



I'll end this post with the quote I gave to Kidsave to help describe Jhonatan..."Jhonatan has an amazing zest for life. His enthusiasm for all that he does is infectious. Jhonatan makes friends easily and enjoys interacting with all kinds of people. Jhonatan loves to learn new things, and is especially interested in any kind of sport. It is a blessing having Jhonatan around, his smiling face and kind heart spread joy wherever he goes!" I can't believe he leaves in less than 2 weeks...

Charm City

The title of this blog can go two ways...our day trip to Baltimore and Jhonatan's adorable personality! :)



First stop...a visit to see my unbelievably precious new baby niece. Jhonatan is so loving with babies and younger children. Can you see him holding her cute little hand?



After snuggling with the new baby, Jhonatan went on a quick bike ride with my brother on his tandem bike. He loved it! Jhonatan enjoys trying new things.



Next stop...Port Discovery. This is him getting in character as "Mummy Jhonatan".



Three of our girls were out of town for a few days. It was nice for Tess and Jhonatan to spend some time together. They are close in age and really enjoy each other. At Port Discovery, they loved the Water Wonders room. This is Jhonatan and Tess trying to make a giant bubble.



After getting wet, they needed to dry off.



Jhonatan and Tess also enjoyed the "Widget Race" . At the time, only one side was counting the number of widgets. They were really great about taking turns on the working side. In the end...it was a tie! Speaking of coming to an end, Jhonatan's visit to the US comes to an end on Aug. 5th. Spread the word about this great kid..."it is not okay for children to grow up without families".

Gooooooooooaaal!

I think it is safe to say that Jhonatan "eats, breaths and sleeps soccer". I can't count how many times we have heard "Grito Mundial" by Daddy Yankee and "Waka Waka" by Shakira (the Spanish version, of course)...both songs about soccer. In fact, he took a few minutes to listen to both songs before leaving to play in our nephew's soccer game on Sunday. Jhonatan was really excited to play but was a little overwhelmed when he saw the huge expanse of soccer fields. Luckily, our brother-in-law (who is also from Medellin, Colombia) was there to help translate and ease Jhonatan's fears. The boys were extremely welcoming and there was no need for translation...they all spoke the international language of "futbol".



Jhonatan asked to start off as goalie and did a great job but when he made the switch to the field, he really showed his stuff!



It didn't take Jhonatan long to interact with the other players. Here he is asking if it is his turn to come off the field. I also saw him downplay another player's mistake with a pat on the back and "I've been there" smile and high five the player who assisted one of Jhonatan's two goals. Yes, he scored two goals and as he said, the first one was "muy elegante"!



Jhonatan with my nephew and his buddy after the game.

It's a Shore Thing

We took Jhonatan to the Eastern Shore for one night this past weekend. He loved playing and exploring near the water. As I have mentioned before Jhonatan loves to experience new things. He jumped in the kayak with me and my nephew and paddled through the water like he had been doing it his whole life. Later, he used one of our daughter's dip nets to try and catch minnows. I wish I had a picture of him in the kayak with binoculars (which he was wearing around his neck) in one hand and the dip net in the other...looking for "baby fishes". By far, the highlight was his first time fishing...



Jhonatan actually laughed out loud while reeling in the fish.



Jhonatan caught a nice size fish! He was very pleased with his first catch.



We explained that his lovely catch was a little too small to keep but Jhonatan wanted "un mas photo, please" before throwing it back.



Jhonatan looking for "baby fishes".



It is so much fun having Jhonatan around. He can be energic and playful at one moment and sweet and caring in the next. From rough and tumble soccer games with Ginny and Cassie, to jumping rope with Tess, and even playing kitchen with "Chef Eva"...Jhonatan definitely enjoys life to the fullest!

A Boy and His Bike

Well...a boy and Cassie's bike. Cassie has graciously been letting Jhonatan borrow her bike while he is here. He LOVES to ride a bike. Aside from "futbol", this is definitely his favorite activity.



Jhonatan has spent a lot of time on the bike. He rides around and around our circle. He also ridden with Greg up to the park (about 2 miles) to kick around the soccer ball and back to our house and to the pool. This week, I just have Jhonatan and Tess for a few days and I'm thinking about taking them biking into Harper's Ferry.



"Nothing compares to the simple pleasures of a bike ride." -John F. Kennedy

Game, Set, Match

Jhonatan spent a day at the neighborhood tennis camp today with Eva. He went with me on Friday to pick Eva up and said he wanted to go. So...today he went. He was very excited last night to pick out what he was going to wear to camp and pack up his backpack.



Camp had already started when we got there and Jhonatan walked right out there and joined the group. I love his confidence and enthusiam for new experiences!



Coach Brad doesn't speak Spanish but did a great job welcoming Jhonatan into the camp. (Thanks Coach Brad!) This is Jhonatan getting ready to practice his serve!

When Jhonatan told me he wanted to go to tennis camp, he said only ONE day. He had so much fun that he wants to go THREE days next week. I really didn't intend to send him to many camps but he seems to really want to experience as much as he can while visiting the US. More later....

Getting to Know Jhonatan

He is dramatic...we hear lots of "que frio"s, "muy rico"s and "wow"s with Jhonatan in the house! He loves to help out whenever he can. He helped me cook arroz con pollo which elicited one of the aforementioned "muy rico"s as he stirred the pot and used his hand to waft the smells to his nose. :) He loves to feed our dog, Cowgirl and get her fresh water and he likes to set the table. He is also really good at entertaining our 5-year-old, Eva.



Jhonatan loves to play card games and board games. So far, we have played chess, shut the box, pictureaka and Blink. He is a great sport and a quick-learner. He and Tess have planned a Monopoly game for tomorrow.



Jhonatan loves all sports and I mean ALL sports. He is a great little soccer and basketball player but also likes baseball, played lacrosse with the neighborhood kids and wants to spend a day at the local tennis camp. Jhonatan does not get frustrated when faced with an unknown skill. He actually seeks out help from the other kids so he can learn. I'll save his most favorite activity for my next post...stay tuned!!!

Spread the word. Jhonatan is only here for 4 more weeks and there is no way I'm sending this amazing kid home without a forever family!!

Homemade Ice Cream and Ping Pong

Greg made ice cream with the kids on Monday since he had the day off...they voted for chocolate. Jhonatan announced that is was "muy rico"!!


Jhonatan and Greg played some ping pong after the ice cream (evident by the chocolate on Jhonatan's shirt). Ginny kept track of their longest rallies on the chalkboard. Here they are taking a break...

Dia de Independencia!

We had a low key 4th of July at the Mason house. We slept in, ate a big breakfast, spent some time at the pool and went to a cook out at a neighbor's house. Jhonatan loves the pool but he doesn't know how to swim yet (and points this out every time we go). He prefers to stay in the shallow area but will spend the entire kid's swim (45 minutes) practicing his kicking and is actually starting to swim on his own. He is very proud of his "poquito swimming", as he says.



Jhonatan and the girls got ice cream at the pool. Jhonatan picked the Choco Taco...I only wish I had an audio recording of him saying it because it's hilarious (and he knows it)!

Kidsave Weekend Event...July 3rd

This first weekend event was a great opportunity for the kids to get together, play and speak Spanish freely. It is obvious that the kids find comfort in spending time with one another. It also a great time for the host families to get together and share experiences, ask for advice and utilize the translators face-to-face! Jhonatan had a blast at the weekend event. We learned from a fellow host family that within the group, Jhonatan is the "funny one". When everyone is bored and Jhonatan walks in the room...the fun begins!!! He is so happy and enthusiastic...it really is refreshing.


We had Paula, our amazing host child from Summer Miracles 2008, over for the afternoon and evening on Friday. Jhonatan and Paula really hit it off and by the end of the night, Jhonatan was looking for Paula to translate everything that was said. Paula was a HUGE help as translator and to think she was in the same position as Jhonatan just two short years ago. She also attended the weekend event and Jhonatan (and the Mason girls) were so happy to see her there.

More pictures from the Airport