Straight from Africa, Just for Us

(Thanks Becky, they love the animals. My computer and camera have a been acting up so sorry for the late evidence)

We came home from our trip to Utah a few weeks ago exhausted and with super whiny, tired kids who fell asleep in the car on the way home from the airport.

How lucky then, were we, to have a package with these fun animals waiting for us in our kitchen? The kids perked right up and were even agreeable and fun after getting a new friends that evening. Becky, our greatest friend in Africa (actually, our only friend in Africa but still our greatest) sent these to the kids via her man in New York, Ymir, who went to visit her a few weeks ago. They traveled all over Botswana and saw so many freaking animals that me and the kids couldn't even begin to keep up. We've been supplementing our lives with a daily dose of African animals supplied by Becky's blog for the past few months.

Our kids were in heaven with their new friends and Ava quickly adopted each one and added them to her "auction" that we get to attend most afternoons. But we've never been able to bid on a gazelle before, that's for sure.

Nathan decided the giraffe was cool cause it had a long neck that could double as gun, as does every other toy in our house currently. BOOM - his super loud sound effects go with each shot scaring poor Lias half to death.

And Becky even got Lias the right gift. She ought to be happy to know this is only Lias' second stuffed animal he can claim as his own (poor third kid) and our first stuffed hippo in the Genho household, if you don't count Lias himself. He was way more interested in eating all the paper tags that came on the animals, but Ava has adopted his hippo for safe keeping till he's old enough to carry it around himself.

Becky doesn't know this, but all those cool pictures of animals on her blog has created quite the stir over here between John and me too. One late night after blog reading I ended up on hers and had the crazy whim to look up airline tickets to Botswana. I came to bed that night with the thrilling idea that I should go visit Becky in Africa this summer. What are my chances of ever knowing someone in Africa again that would show me around and I'd have a blast with? So what that I have a nursing baby - I'll take him along. $2000 bucks?... A small amount to pay for that kind of adventure. It's dangerous in Africa and I shouldn't travel alone? Then I'll bring you along too, John. Geesh, just let me dream for a little while ok!?

But none of this really won him over so here I sit, watching my kids play with cool stuffed animals and daydreaming about elephants, hippos, lions, and giraffes.

But if one day I post a blog from Botswana, you'll know what happened. Thanks for inspiring us Becky. Keep up the good work.