St. Louis!

It had been 13 years since the last time I crossed over the Missouri state line. The last time was when me and my rowdy rock band were touring the country and things were very, very different! Though I wasn't traveling with the band, I had another wild bunch with me as I traveled to St. Louis this weekend. It was a great great time! Check it out!

After traveling most of the day, we got to Aunt Ann and Uncle Tom'e house. Aunt Ann and Caeley quickly became close friends!

At the house, we were also excited to find Cousin Pat and his wife Marybeth! Here Elijah cuddles with Pat.

The next day we decided to go to the St. Louis Arch. Unfortunately, there is really no way to take a picture of it unless you are far away! Please check out the video to get a really good look at this amazing landmark! The kids were amazed at how big it was and had a great time running around it. The Arch is right near the Mississippi river, so we also saw paddle boats and helicopters giving people rides on the river. We went into the museum at the base of the arch, but it was a long wait to go up in it, so we decided we would wait until we bring mom next time to go up in it. Another great thing about the Arch is that it is made out of metal and is very shiny. This helps you take pics like this one, with awesome lighting!

And this one too!

Here is the video of us coming to St Louis and going to the Arch!

The next day was the main event. It was the big BBQ at the house. Unlike the East Coast, there are A LOT of Sullivans out here. Here we have cousins Tommy, Connie, and Pat.

Cousin Denny and Tommy are working with some of the other cousins to build Uncle Tom a ramp from the house to the driveway. Here Elijah supervises the measuring.

Cousin Pat and his grandson Miles!

"Now I was the one who played your dad his first Kiss record. You do know what records are don't ya?"

Cousin Tommy and Cales!

Mary Lou ( who is married to Cousin Mike, you are paying attention aren't you? There will be a test!) hanging with Cales.

Caeley and her cousin Marisa ( who is my cousin Jenny's daughter) being smiling hostesses!

These two played together all day. When I explained to Caeley that night that Marisa was her cousin and they were family, Caeley said "OH! Thank you Daddy! You're the best daddy in the whole world!" Glad I could help! haha!

Me and Cales with Cousins Connie and Pat ( son of the other Cousin Pat!)

Good pals!

Uncle Tom and I. Uncle Tom has been battling Parkinson's for quite awhile. He is a great man and I was really glad we had time to hang out with him and to show my kids what a cool guy he is!

Cousin Mike who is always in charge of the BBQ. This happens for two reasons. 1. He is a BBQ master and 2. He is a troublemaker! It is best to keep him occupied!

My cousins Julie and Bethany with their sons Miles and Max. Now who is Julie and Bethany's dad? (no cheating by scrolling back!)

a. Cousin Tommy

b. Cousin Denny

c. Cousin Pat

d. Uncle Tom

e. I am too confused and I am going on to the next picture!

Here are some fun videos! The first is Miles dancing and the second is Elijah getting rough with his big cousins!

Before we head off to the next set of pictures I just want to say that there were many more people there who are super important to us. We either didn't get a picture of them or we did and they are thanking us that we didn't put it up! It is sometimes hard to balance having such a great time with documenting it all. The bottom line is that I am so very grateful to have such an amazing bunch of people as my family and I was very happy to see my kids take to all of them so easily. It truly was an amazing time and I thank all of them for such a great day!

The next day we went to the St. Louis Zoo. This place was awesome!

Caeley and Elijah checking out the fossils! This is one of Caeley's favorite things to do. She loves to ask questions!

Zaboomafoo!

Taking a train ride through the Zoo!

A bunch of monkeys hanging with the Gorilla!

On our way home, the kids saw a sign for this place. It was Metropolis, Illinois, home of Superman! So we stopped and checked it out! It was a fun find!

"Really Lois, you need to back off, I'm married!"

They were repainting the Superman store and Elijah bumped into the wall. He was not happy to say the least.

"Don't laugh Elijah!"

A view of tiny Metropolis, Illinois.

Before we left Metropolis, we stopped for dinner which was ice cream at Dairy Queen! (before you all start saying that this is a "dad thing", I learned this from watching my beautiful wife do this one night, ok?)

Heading home and watching the beautiful sunset. I feel very blessed to have had such a great weekend and so many good memories! We love you St. Louis and we won't wait another 13 years to come back!

A VERY SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE SULLIVANS!!

Christie and I are happy to announce that after a lot of prayer and consideration, we have decided to adopt a 3 year old child with Down’s Syndrome from Hong Kong. We have been in the process for about a month now. We have gone through physicals, psych evals, and reams and reams of paperwork and we’re only just getting started! Most of you are probably still getting your jaw of the floor, so while you try to let this news sink in a bit, I will try to give you some of the answers to the questions that are floating around in your head.

WHY??: For many years, Christie and I have been seriously considering adopting a child with Down’s. We felt and still feel that not many other couples could be better equipped to love a child with this special need more than us. We met while working in a group home for mentally disabled adults, I have two sisters who have Down’s and one of them is adopted. When we initially looked into it we were shocked to find out that there was a waiting list of up to 2 YEARS! So we just continued on with life, with med school, with having more kids, with moving to Nashville and residency.

WHY NOW??? After we settled down in Nashville, the whole adoption thing started popping up in our lives everywhere we turned. Meeting people who were adopting, seeing stuff about it, and more importantly, Christie really felt like it was something we were supposed to do. I wasn’t too sure about the timing. We had a lot on our plate and I didn’t want to overextend ourselves. But then over the last number of months, God really changed my heart. Here we were, two kids, one going to Kindergarten full time, the other in preschool in the morning 3 days a week. Christie’s schedule is starting to become more sane and so things were getting a lot more comfortable, with a whole lot more of that coming as Christie finished her residency. We had signed up to get newsletters from a christian adoption agency and would occasionally look at it. But one day, we opened it up and saw our future son staring back at us. We both were so clearly sure of this. But this was going to mean giving up that new found comfort in a hurry. This would mean that we would probably never have an empty nest as one of our little ones might never fly the coop or not as quickly as the others. This would mean lots of physical therapy appointments and doctor’s visits. This would mean a grueling adoption process and a big financial commitment when we are living on a resident’s salary. But all of this doesn’t matter to us. We truly feel God has given us a gift, a set of skills that would make us perfect for the boy staring back at us from the pages of that newsletter. And why wouldn’t we? Because of comfort? Because of financial security? Because of people thinking we are crazy? All of these things seem insignificant when you think that there is a child on the other side of the world who God has given you a passion for and has given you the experience and skill set to love him the way he needs to be loved. I am so so happy to say that both of us are ready for whatever comes our way. We feel God has placed this on our hearts and everytime we have followed what we feel God has wanted for us, we have NEVER been disappointed. I’m not saying it won’t be tough, but I am saying that when you allow God to lead you, life is never boring and it is when you feel most alive.

WHAT’S THE TIMELINE?- We are in the beginning stages, so it will probably be mid summer to fall of next year when we will bring him home.

DO THE KIDS KNOW? - They do and they are super excited! Cales is excited to have another little brother and to have to be a big helper to mom and dad. Elijah is excited to be a big brother! We have his picture on our fridge and we talk about him and pray for him regularly.

WE WANT TO SEE PICTURES!!- We would love to share them, but there are strict rules on not posting pics of kids until they are fully adopted. So sorry, but no pictures right now. But believe me, as soon as we can, we will!

WHAT CAN WE DO?? - The best thing you can do for us right now is PRAY FOR US!! Pray that the process will go smoothly, that there won’t be too much red tape. Pray for our boy in Hong Kong, that he is happy and well taken care of. Pray for strength for all of us as try to navigate this adoption process in the middle of our regular life. Pray for our kids that they will continue to be excited about meeting their new brother. Just pray for God’s will in our lives and this situation. And now that our little secret is out, keep an eye out for updates through this blog!

OKTOBERFEST IN NASHVILLE!!!

Well it is Oktoberfest time all over the place, including Nashville! So me and the kids headed downtown to see how they do it here in Music City! Check it out!

Heading out!

Elijah hanging with the Harleys

Right when we got there, the german band was taking a break. How do you pass the time then at a Nashville Oktoberfest? By eating pretzels with lemonade and listening to a banjo and piano player playing a song called "Home Grown Tomaters" that's how! These guys were really good! You know when you get a Nashville crowd hollering for your banjo playing, you're pretty good!

This couple is HARDCORE!

As usual, if there is a dog in the vicinity, these two will find them and pet them!

Standing in front of a replica of a German police car from the 1970's

Barely got away from being roped into taking home another cat! The shelter had a booth at the festival and the kids loved these two. Their mother was pregnant with them during the flood and was found in the midst of it.

We finally headed back to the big band that had taken their break. And the party got started!

This guy ain't kidding around!

And neither is this guy! Both the kids were dancing machines at both musical performances. The crowds loved them almost as much as the acts themselves! These kids love to get down!

And finally, I couldn't resist putting this picture up. The meeting of the two cultures captured in a picture. Auf Wiedersehen Y'all!!!