Monthly Archives: October 2009

Daniel Fraol’s Birthday

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Daniel Fraol Averill, Age 9

Daniel Fraol Averill, Age 9

Fraol officially turned nine years old today – and what a day it has been!  The boys slept in a bit (because they couldn’t get to sleep last night).  When they awoke, Fraol opened a couple gifts and they came out to watch a movie (The Incredibles).  For breakfast they had their first taste of Eggos.  Then we went on a long bicycle ride from Orting toward South Prairie.  We returned to Orting, had a picnic lunch, and the boys played in the park.  Following that, we returned to Puyallup and our neighborhood park, where the boys continued riding bicycles.  Sarah, Kyle and Ilaria met us there, as did Sarah’s friend Stella and her kids.  What a blessing!

The boys explained that they celebrate the first birthday in Ethiopia, but not really any others.  We don’t know if that applies just to them or if that is the cultural practice.

We had a low key day as birthdays go.  We’ll have a gathering at the park on Sunday to celebrate both boys’ birthdays, since Behayelu turns seven on Monday.  But we all had a great time doing the things that Fraol likes best.  And, of course, we took a few pictures.  Click on the one shown to see more photos.

Life With Boys

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Daniel Fraol and David Behayelu continue to fit in well to the Averill household.  They love to talk and they don’t really care that it takes a while to overcome language barriers.  Since we love to share stories with them, it has been great in that regard.

Biking along the Puyallup River

They also love to ride bicycles (which is rather fun, especially considering they both learned how within the last two weeks).  Behayelu learned two days after Fraol did.  We were visting their cousins Mason and MacKenzie.  Mason was a great motivator and then they (Mason & MacKenzie) loaned us some bicycles.  I think the boys would ride their bikes for hours every day if we let them.  We take them to a local park practically every day and we’ve ventured onto the bigger bicycle trails twice.  They are getting used to riding with other bicycles, scooters, pedestrians, dogs, etc.  (Click here to see pictures of our visit at Julie’s)

At the park with the Titus family

They’ve played with the neighorhood kids and make friends wherever they go.  Nobody can resist their smiles and happy attitude.  We continue to introduce them to friends and family as opportunities arise.  We don’t want to overwhelm with new people every day, but it’s been great for them to meet Margie & Ruli, Mike & Mary, the Titus family, Rebecca and many others.  At Margie & Ruli’s they enjoyed looking at Margie’s photo album and doing jigsaw puzzles.  At Mike & Mary’s they consumed a number of cows (might be exaggerating here) and roasted marshmallows on the back patio (their first bonfire).  We had a great time at the park with Jason, Katie and the kids, as well as Rebecca. 

Their energy level is through the roof, as are their appetites!  They can pack away the protein, whether it’s salmon, beef, pork, chicken or eggs.  Peas and cheese are not favorites at this time, and they’re somewhat picky about fruit juices.  They did share that “In Ethiopia, no full!” meaning they never seemed to have enough food.  “Good morning… eat.  Good afternoon… eat.  Good night… no eat.”

They had their first ever dentist appointment.  They did very well in terms of sitting still, opening their mouths, etc.  As you might imagine, they needed a lot of cleaning but neither had a cavity, which surprised us.  Behayelu needs some baby teeth (and fragments) removed and they both need sealants.  Not bad!

They had school pictures taken and it is clear from that short visit that they will need much more adjustment before they are ready to join in regular school.  They work with Sary-Jo (Momschool) practically every day and they really enjoy learning!  They also started attending the children’s program at Bible Study Fellowship on Mondays (with Randy) and they love it!  One of the leaders said that their first night attending was his best night in over 20 years of BSF!!!  They enjoy memorizing their verse even though they cannot really understand or complete the lesson.  They frequently ask if “Bible Study tonight?  No?  Tomorrow? Tomorrow-tomorrow???”  They love it!

One day as we drove by the fairgrounds they got very excited.  We received some free passes so we took them for a couple hours on the final day of the fair this year.  They rode on a few rides, petted some animals and had a hot dog for lunch.  They seemed to enjoy it a lot and have asked when they get to go again.  We cannot seem to convey that it’s closed until Spring. (Click here to see pictures at the fair)

The kittens just climbed up on the desk to remind us to write about them.  They are adjusting to a noisy household quite nicely.  They love people now (they seemed a bit terrified by us for a couple days) and they are extremely cute.  The boys like the cats now and enjoy holding them and petting them.  The boys laugh like crazy when the cats run through the house at 87.3 miles per hour.  Click on the picture to see more pictures of the cats.

Things continue to progress quite well.  The house and the blog are falling behind as the boys (and the cats) seem to consume a lot of time and energy.  But that’s the way it works with active kids at home.

Priceless Ice Cream Cone

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We took the boys to a number of stores shopping for clothes and shoes.  They were absolute troopers and we decided to give them a treat at Baskin Robbins.  They, in turn, gave us a treat that we really were not prepared for – they shared stories from Ethiopia that we did not know.  In fact, we still marvel at how they were able to communicate so clearly with such a light grasp of the English language.  We had hoped that we would hear their accounts of early childhood over the coming months and years – essentially as soon as they were able to share and comfortable with us.  We did not expect to get so much so soon.  Here’s a brief summary:

  • We asked them how they knew so much Spanish.  Over the previous few days they had used some Spanish expressions and we were curious how they knew them.  At first we thought maybe they picked it up from “Dora The Explorer” but they’d only seen a couple episodes, if that.  That might explain “hola” or “buenos dias” but not “un poquito” used in proper context.
  • They proceeded to tell us that, prior to going to “Tezera’s House” (Widows & Orphans’ Home), they were at another “house” (and they told us the name of the woman who ran it).  At that house, many families came from Spain and the “babies go” to Spain.  The families from Spain would speak to them and teach them Spanish.
  • They also told us that “BIG” (meaning many – not a reference to size) babies get families in Spain, but no family for Fraol and Behayelu.  They told us that they and their sister were sad at this.  (note: We knew that the boys were in a previous orphanage that the government closed, but we did not know the connection with Spain.)
  • They continued, telling us that after they went to Tezera’s, “Joy (Joy Casey, from the Adoption Ministry of YWAM) came, took photos and then… We have family!!!” (huge gestures and amazing smiles)  “Everybody happy!!!”
  • They also told us of other “family members” and we’re trying to learn the nature of those relationships.  Our intent is to help the boys process their memories as they grow older and as they develop better English comprehension. 

We were incredibly blessed and blown away by their (especially Fraol’s) ability to communicate fairly complex subject matter AND by their comfort in sharing this with us.  And we thank God for making us available to hear this.  What a treat (and it was worth a long time sitting with two of us per chair)!