The Leonard Family: February Love....

No, your eyes aren't playing tricks on you...this is not a picture of Ariana :) Pictured here is the child we sponsor in Uganda...her name is Molly. We were excited this month to get more correspondence from Molly! You can see in the picture that in one hand, she is holding up the Leonard family photograph that we sent her, and in the other hand she is holding up some artwork Molly did for us, that we received with this photograph and letter. They are just moving into their school "vacation" for three months and we received a copy of Molly's report card from Sabina Primary School, the boarding school that she attends in Uganda. Her grades were not as good as they should be and it was noted that she needs to "apply herself" more. We'll crack the Leonard whip and hope to see better marks next school term! :) She seems to be a delightful child regardless, having overcome a lot of adversity in her life - her father died of HIV, her mother abandoned her, and she is being raised by an aunt with many children of her own. I'm reading a book about an Ugandan missionary right now, trying to understand more about the wars in Uganda, the refugees, the HIV crisis, and the resulting rise in orphaned children. We hope the little we give each month to provide Molly with school supplies and tuition, and the letters we write back and forth with her will be one small contribution that will make a small difference, and as she grows, will teach Ariana the importance of giving, especially when we are so fortunate to have so much.

Two new precious babies born this month! Grayson Ilich, born to Mark & Emily - cute as a button, we can't wait to arrange a visit! John would be so elated for them - and we sure share that excitement!

Also, later this month, Rex Carpenter, #3 for Chris and Stefanie, who are presently stationed in Ft. Benning, GA. Proud big sister Morgan, and big brother Gavin, must be so proud!

Grayson Ilich, born to Emily & Mark

Rex Carpenter, shown with siblings Morgan & Gavin, born to Stef & Chris

Ariana had a great Valentines Day this year! She enjoyed exchanging valentines with all her friends at daycare (whose names she is now able to recite at your request....) She also received great presents and cards from her family. She is seen below, showing excitement over the lottery ticket she received from her Great Aunt Ticia & Great Uncle Ken...although it was not a winner, is it good luck that the first three numbers were 4-13-12?! The date of her birthday this year?! Good choice, guys!

How did Mike & I spend the holiday, you ask? Well, let's see...our family dinner was interrupted by Ariana making "the face", which caused me to quickly whisk her off to the potty, and then clean up the poop. Going back to finish our meal after that.....not happening. Aaah, the romance.

A week ago, we had a visit by my good friend Sara, and her two little ones, Noah and Hannah. If you remember, Ariana and Hannah are birthday buddies, as their birthdays are less than a week apart! The girls (and Noah) enjoyed playing together, sharing their baby dolls, dancing to early 90s hip hop, and jumping in the ball pit.We also dressed them in their matching UMW shirts that we bought together on campus at our ten year reunion last June!

To top the month off, we took a long weekend drive to Morgantown, West Virginia, to visit with Jes (or as Ariana refers to her, "AJ"). We got on the road at 7pm Friday night, and Ariana, dressed in her pajamas, slept in the carseat all the way there. We planned on keeping her asleep when we arrived and just sliding her into the pack n' play at Jes' house. However, upon our arrival, we opened the car doors, the lights came on, and Ariana immediately woke out of a deep sleep, and said, "AJ's house?!" She sometimes amazes me!

The weekend was lots of fun! We met Jes' new boyfriend, Casey, who we all took to right away, especially Ariana! We knew he was a keeper, when shortly after her nap, Ariana puked all over her pack n' play, and without even being asked, Casey helped Mike clean up all the puke! Clearly a team effort, as Jes washed Ariana's beloved stuffed kitty cat, and I attended to Ariana herself. Given some time, Ariana seemed to be feeling all right, so we continued on with our plan to head over to the coliseum to attend the WVU vs. DePaul womens' basketball game. Jes had it all planned out, with jerseys for us to wear, and a special WVU shirt for Ariana, and WVU bows to put in her pigtails! The game was a blast....even though Ariana's stellar dance moves did not make it on the big screen, we knew she was the cutest baby there! :)