Walters Family Blog

Face painting

2010-04-03T15:38:00.000-07:00

Raymie "I'm Batman" Walters

Lea "ladybug" Walters

JJ "Snakeman" Walters

Filipina Dragon Fly .....

2010-03-24T15:00:00.000-07:00

Lea has been learning all about sounds at school .... and the entire Junior School celebrated "f/ph" sound day .... so what did Lea want to go as? You got it ...a FILIPINO dragon FLY .....

With the help of a good friend i figured out how to make this happen .... was pretty happy with the results!

Raymie .... SMILE!!!!!

2010-03-24T14:58:00.000-07:00

Ah ..... Raymie is just having a Peanut Butter and Jam / Jelly sandwich .... and yes, even though it is a fake smile ..... he does enjoy them!

On the road...

2010-03-19T16:18:00.000-07:00

We found a dinosaur playground on the trip down to Victoria.....

Raymie is the sea monster king.

Lea was eaten by a Hippo but Raymie came to her rescue!

JMan's 3rd Birthday

2010-03-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

JJ's 3rd birthday and his first with us....

Raymie and Lea waiting for the cake!

JMan the Birthday Prince!

JJ's brithday....

2010-03-19T16:05:00.000-07:00

If you think I'm cool you should see my dad!....

Hmmm... on second thoughts Maybe I am more cool than Dad!

More Bathurst Sho

2010-03-19T15:59:00.000-07:00

Raymie,.... modelling Ben 10 hat... :-)

It was a big slide but Raymie the fearless just threw himself into it... Didn't get the pic but at one stage he ran down the first big blue section!

JJ aka JMan aka Mr Mischief!

Bathurst Show... the slide

2010-03-19T15:53:00.000-07:00

Lea being the great big sister she is waits for JJ at the top of the long climb...

The kids slide together......

Lea and the JMan

Bathurst Show

2010-03-19T15:48:00.000-07:00

We were at the Bathurst show... JJ was watching a big kids ride and pondering whether he should take it on.....

Adoption Weekend

2010-03-19T15:35:00.000-07:00

It was a wet weekend at Koala Shores.... thanks Mum for packing raincoats!

The lunch time show

2010-03-19T15:26:00.000-07:00

The Macarena.... filipina style!

Hunting Koalas

2010-03-19T15:16:00.000-07:00

At the wildlife reserve at Lemon Tree Passage.... JJ enjoyed lunch.

And we did actually spot a Koala too!

A Day at the Beach!

2010-01-10T02:28:00.000-08:00

So we decided to play hookie from church and go to the beach for the day .... it was just so hot and the beach seemed the right place to go! Had a blast!

Here are Scott and the kids towards the end of our time .... relaxed and having a ball!

2010-01-10T02:25:00.000-08:00

JJ's problem is that he is far too cute for his own good ..... he is a photo bunny and knows how to get cheesy for the camera! In these next shots he takes a solitary moment to contemplate his options and then goes for it!

2010-01-10T02:22:00.000-08:00

This first shot of Lea was a "must" .... had to get her looking like a dork!

But then we move on the ever typical "beach babe" shots of Lea having a great time ....
What's this! A Mermaid! No .... it's not .... it's a SANDmaid silly!

2010-01-10T02:18:00.000-08:00

So Daddy finally got Raymie out in the surf with him .... some rather funny moments to be had!

The kids

2010-01-09T13:45:00.000-08:00

The Walters kids.... favourite pic of the day.

2010-01-09T13:44:00.000-08:00

The croc at one end, JJ and Mummy at the other.... JJ growled at the croc..... think it was scared?

Family

2010-01-09T13:41:00.000-08:00

Just some family shots at the Featherdale Wildlife Park in Sydney.

The Koala

2010-01-09T13:33:00.000-08:00

The Koala we all got to pat. Note its actually bigger than JJ.

Having a big sister means you need to sacrifice

2010-01-09T13:22:00.000-08:00

Raymie learns that having a big sister means you sometime need to sacrifice your dignity.... hmmmm..... I think he's enjoying things tooooo much in the last picture.

The scooters

2009-12-27T02:22:00.000-08:00

Lea, Raymie and JJ all got Scooters from Nana and Pop.... Thanks Nana,... perfect presents. The kids all absolutely love them.

The tie

2009-12-27T01:42:00.001-08:00

Lea gave Daddy a nice Christmas tie... how cute! :-)

Christmas decorations

2009-12-27T01:40:00.001-08:00

Lea, Raymie and JJ all have a personal decoration for the tree.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-27T01:39:00.000-08:00

Family picture for Christmas 2009. The kids are in traditional Filipino outfits.

Oh Christmas Tree

2009-12-10T02:18:00.000-08:00

The Christmas Tree is decorated, the Parol is flashing.... its officially Christmas time in the walters household.

The Gingerbread house project

2009-12-10T01:45:00.000-08:00

The making of the gingerbread house was a family affair, Lea and Mummy made the gingerbread house but the boys helped with the taste testing.

Christmas Lights

2009-12-06T01:51:00.000-08:00

Dad and Raymie putting up the Christmas lights!

Putting the tree together.

2009-12-05T01:55:00.000-08:00

Kids are working hard!

Getting ready for Christmas

2009-12-05T01:47:00.000-08:00

Getting ready for Christmas decorating.... the walls are empty and the kids are getting toooooooo cute!

Style by Lea

2009-11-29T01:54:00.000-08:00

Lea prepares her brothers for their careers in music. Raymie is joining a boy-band but JJ is heading down the punk rock path!

OK, so we're all mad!

2009-11-18T02:12:00.000-08:00

OK, Dad's weird sand castle design has sent us all nuts!

Dad makes weird sand castles

2009-11-18T02:10:00.000-08:00

The boys discovered their Dad is into weird sand castles... Most sand castles are made of sand, and maybe some shells.... but oh no... our Dad's sand castles include pine cones, driftwood, strange sticks, rocks, shells and who knows what.... Dad says it stops kids from crunching the sand castle but I reckon we could work out how to destroy this one. :-)

Great Nana

2009-11-17T02:07:00.000-08:00

A prayer came true.... Lea has met her Great Nana many times but this was the first time for Raymie and JJ. Great Nana will turn 100 in June 2010.

Riding horses

2009-11-16T02:01:00.000-08:00

Raymie loved riding the horse.....

Really loved it.....

And JJ thought it was sooooo coool to!

Sitting by the dock of the bay...

2009-11-14T01:58:00.000-08:00

Watching the waves crash in, then watch them roll away again!

Ate Lea, Koya Raymie and Bunsa JJ sitting around at Filipino camp.

Watchout World.. The Walters Kids are here!

2009-11-11T02:15:00.000-08:00

Ready to take on the world!

2009-09-21T22:43:00.000-07:00

The kids all posing with Mum.

2009-09-21T22:42:00.000-07:00

Raymie takes the slide face first at Wentworth Falls.

2009-09-21T22:39:00.000-07:00

JMan feeds the ducks at Wentworth Falls lake!

2009-09-21T22:38:00.000-07:00

JJ explains to his mum the finer points of duck feeding.

A Few More Shots from Punto Miguel in Batangas

2009-09-10T15:07:00.000-07:00

Just couldn't resist adding these few shots that have been sent to us from our mate, Ingrid from Canada, who joined us on the trip. This was a gorgeous place .... with gorgeous memories of our amazing family. What a blessed gift they are to us. In true Filipino style we had an evening of Karoake with our friends .... yes, Scott is hiding behind JJ! And yes, even in the Philippines, we are able to get the obligatory beach babe shot of Lea .....

A few shots from the Philippines

2009-09-04T16:03:00.000-07:00

Okay .... so here are a few shots of everyone getting used to each other in the Philippines. I have just noticed there is none of me ... hmmmm ... that will come shortly I am sure.

These first two shots show how well Lea and Raymie are becoming brother and sister. They get along really well ....

Here is a shot from the Filipino style resort we stayed at for a week. This was one of the best bonding times we had .... small cottage rooms (a/c) with bath and toilet just outside. As our family loves camping, this was a great way to start spending time together. It was comfy for the boys as they heard the sights and sounds of their native culture .... but with us included. And the beach was, well, AMAZING! and the boys loved it ..... more of those shots to come .... promise!

A few Daddy and Kids shots ....

the first is at the hotel in Manila .... having banana's and daddy time .....

First day with the boys .... they have already started taking to Daddy. It has been wonderful for Scott to have these boys so attached to him ... to say "scott has his boys" would be the understatement of the century!

Things we did well (and would recommend to others)

2009-09-03T17:05:00.000-07:00

Hong Kong is awesome. Disney is great for the kids even in wet weather. Next time we'll do Hong Kong for a lot longer and hit the markets, harbour and other tourist bits.

Next, taking a week at Batangas at one of the beach resorts there. We chose Punto Miguel http://www.puntomiguel.com/ which was great. Warning is to take in everything you want (eg food, mosquito repelant, water, etc.) as thats not provided. We had a great time. The resort organised the trip back to Manila, cost was 4,000 peso's.

Next, the stay in Manila at Fernandina 88 suites was good but wouldn't have stayed for a week in hindsite. Advice is to get across the street into the malls. The farmers market mall is very filipino and not expensive. The SM is an up-market department store with a supermarket in the basement. Shopwise is very good value for groceries and the like. Gateway is an award winning mall, I didn't get it, seemed to be all these up-market shops that were out of place. Top floor of Ali Mall is a good food court with a mix of filipino and american style fast food. Oh, and between the malls were lots of starbucks etc.

Best thing we did in Manila was spend some money and do a private tour with Rhea Mari (silverfoxtravelandtours@yahoo.com). Rhea is an ex-social worker and knows what small kids can take. We got to see some of the history of the Philippines as well as the Mall of Asia (enormous!)

Finally, leaving Manila and feeling very tense we were at the airport and approached by a hostess to use the facilities at Club Manila. Cost was 650peso per person but we negotiated 1,950 for the 5 of us considering the kids weren't a major burden. It was relaxed, food, drink and internet was complimentary, we had use of a clean toilet. It was less than 5 minutes to get to the departure gate. This was probably the best sanity break we did and I think made the flight home a lot better.

Thats it.

Scott.

Together at last

2009-08-29T14:21:00.000-07:00

We finally have the whole family together. This pic at Fort Santiago built in 1571.

Batangas

2009-08-29T14:13:00.000-07:00

JJ, Lea, Raymie and Mum, Dad, and Ingrid had a great time at the Puerto Miguel resort in Batangas about 3 hrs south of Manila.

Last musings on Hong Kong

2009-08-13T08:26:00.000-07:00

We tried to experience a bit more of the culture today. Had a two day pass to Disney -- so did a couple of things we missed out on and then went on to other things.

Went to the markets. WAY COOL!!!!!!!!!
I never though Hong Kong was a place i would like to visit. But after just over 48 hours here and i find this to be a truly amazing culture with so many interesting facets that i would like to explore.
Found Starbucks!!!!! Oh Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Had a traditional chinese dinner tonight. lots of fun and very confusing. I've been very proud of my hubby for trying new things!
We saw the lazer light show on HK Harbour tonight. Not much truly .... but after you've seen New Year's eve fireworks on Sydney Harbour .... well. But it was still fun and interesting.
Lea has been missing home ... but is a trooper. I am still expecting the wheels to fall off once we hit the Philippines .... but we'll cross that bridge when we get there.

Scott said tonight that in two days we'll be having our first dinner with our boys .... and that he is terrified. So am I. But that's okay. It'll all come together!

A Disney kind of day

2009-08-13T03:44:00.000-07:00

Is any Disney experience complete without having your picture taken with Minnie?????

Our Princess

2009-08-13T03:41:00.000-07:00

I Love this shot -- at the crazy tiki's. An amazing experience for children.

Random Shot ..... Outside Disney

2009-08-13T03:38:00.000-07:00

Lea surfing just Mickey Mouse!

Musings on Hong Kong

2009-08-12T04:42:00.000-07:00

Well, we've landed after a VERY LONG 10 hour journey from Sydney to Hong Kong .... have seen the sights and sounds of this amazing city for 24 hours and I am enamoured with the place. Given that my brain is in mush mode .... i thought i would try and share a few thoughts while there are still a few brain cells left that work (see, my brain really is mush... that didn't make any sense at all!) ....

I wish that anyone who had traveled here recently would've reminded me about the swealtering .... nay, stifling humidity. I am thankful to have this time to adjust before heading out to the Philippines ... were it will be even worse!
Love the self flushing toilets!
Hong Kong is a city of night. It is about 7:45 and shortly we will be going out to have dinner and then hit the markets
CityRail could learn something from how the MTR works here .... it is amazing. safe, clean and it all makes sense .... even in a different language.
Disney translates to any language i believe. Lea has been having a blast (albiet she has despised waiting in lines)
The ability to build things very, very high blows me away.
The Chinese, culturally, seem to be a pushy people and i found that very irritating (sorry if that offends .... it is more that we found this a struggle to adjust to)
The rains is a constant.
There is a huge constrast between the old and the new .... and yet somehow they manage to live side by side .... the 22nd century technology along side the junk fishing boats.

Tomorrow we may or may not do Disney again .... probably for a few short hours -- we'll see. Always in the back of our minds are the boys .... even as we enjoy and relish these last few days as the three of us. Lea is starting to feel it a bit too ... i think she is starting to understand that when there are the boys .... it's not all about her. Clever girl .... she'll adjust!

Don't know if i'll post again. Sorry there are no pics.

Maggie

Eureka! I think we're off!

2009-07-31T21:55:00.000-07:00

Looks like we will be traveling the week of August 10th. Medicals reports are done and dusted. We are expecting that we will hear the visa's are completed early next week and then we can finalise travel arrangements. Pray for us for:

ongoing health. we've all been sick in one way or another, flu bugs, etc. and are on the mend now, but need to kick the final hurdles to be completely healthy.
for final clearance of visa's QUICKLY
for travel arrangements. Hotels, where we stay, what we do .... and for those little bits to come together.
for our boys .... that they will begin the process of bonding to us quickly.
for Lea as she has the opportunity to reconnect with her roots and birth family
and for Scott and I! that we are flexible and keep our expectations low!

A Few more pics ... closer go goin!

2009-07-10T14:50:00.000-07:00

Okay. So here is where we are up to. We were told by DoCS that the boys had their medicals on the 30th of June. We might be traveling by the end of July / early August! WOW!!!!!!!

We have made tentative arrangements to go on the 3rd of August .... we'll see how that all goes. We have to have official word that hte boys have passed their medicals first .... but that should be by the end of next week at the worst!

And in the meantime, a few more pics to tied you over. And us! Someone we know recently traveled to the home and sent a few more shots through to us. We are overwhelmed and blown away!

Ate Lea ....

2009-06-19T19:10:00.000-07:00

We have this set of books called "my mum" "my dad" and even a "my big sister ..... So we all read them and sent them to the boys as part of the package from us .... here is the video from Ate Lea!

Why are we waiting!

2009-06-19T18:54:00.000-07:00

SO we are about six weeks into waiting to go and pick up the boys .... we are all getting very excited and it is ever so hard to wait! It is so good to know though that they are getting wonderful care while they are waiting for us to come and bring them home.

Recently a family that is doing some short term mission work at the home took a bunch of photo's of the kids and put them on their blog .... and i found a picture of Raymark! He is in the orange shirt waiting to go into preschool.

2009-05-20T00:46:00.000-07:00

Exciting news as our family of three becomes 5 .... with the recent allocation of our little boys! We will prayerfully go and pick them up some time in August/September.

That means that this blog will no longer continue in it's current form -- as we have to little boys that need to be covered as well! But please feel free to view the ongoing musings of our family blog ... the Walters Tribe .....

And 3 become 5

2009-05-20T00:27:00.000-07:00

Wow .... after 18+ mths of waiting we have been blessed with two beautiful boys. Their journey to us is even more special as they come from the same orphanage that Lea comes from .... Rehoboth Children's Home. So we know that until we are cleared to go and get them, they are being well cared for.

Raymark has just turned 4 and Jhunel turned 2 in February. Aren't they just the most gorgeous boys around?

More to come .... but this is the start of bringing them home. Lea's blog will now cease as we are the Walters tribe now .... a family of FIVE!

Welcome to the Walters Tribe

2009-04-08T18:42:00.000-07:00

So for now its just Lea, Maggie and Scott but the Walters Tribe will hopefully soon grow by another kid or 3 so lets move to more inclusive blog instead of just Lea.

2009-03-10T19:48:00.000-07:00

Filipino Adoption Camp Weekend

The girls gang .... these girls are great mates!

Lea has her own bike, but found riding with Andrea was a lot more fun!

Lea and Andrea had great fun together.

Our camp site ... testing out the new tent.

Lea and Daddy playing in the water. She is becoming a real fish.

2009-03-10T19:35:00.000-07:00

A Study in Laughter! :)

2009-02-13T22:16:00.000-08:00

A LOVELY GERROA WEEKEND!!!

We had a chance to catch up with our friends the Nauta's who brought home their three "little boys" from the Philippines October 2008. We had a blast!

Everyone! Left to Right: Scott, Maggie, Lea, Andy, Donna (behind), Robbie, Russel and Ron.

Lea and Andy on the jumping pillow.

The obligatory "beach babe" photo.

Lea truly discovered her capacity to be a big sister! ( or Ate as they say in the PI). Here she is trying to comfort little Russel .... Andy isn't quite sure what to make of someone else doing his job ... so he decides to cuddle up and help Lea out!

I love this shot .... Robbie, Russel, Lea and Andy.

A true "Ate" pose!

Lea in her tree climbing shot!

2009-02-02T17:21:00.000-08:00

My First Day at Big School!

Mum and Dad say I need to eat a good breakfast before going to school. I got to use my new plates to celebrate starting big school!

My first day uniform. Hat, shoes, backpack .... can you tell I'm ready to go????

Mum loves this shot. Not sure why .... just do!

And here I am at school! I even have a name tag next to the peg i get to hang my back pack on! I'm a big girl now!

2009-01-18T02:50:00.000-08:00

Feeling just a little worried about standing next to a flower the size of my head! How big are the bee's going to be that pollinate this thing.

2009-01-18T02:37:00.000-08:00

Angel.

2009-01-18T02:30:00.000-08:00

Yay Christmas 2008.

Dad got polar bear poo... Nuts in white chocolate.

And I got this great T-Shirt and heaps of other stuff too.

To say I like opening presents is probably a little bit of an understatement.

2009-01-17T23:47:00.000-08:00

Dad was a bit ticked when the tree limb went in a wind storm, buckled the facia on the roof and everything...

2008-11-16T16:53:00.000-08:00

Camping / Music and Water Time!

We went camping with some other families and Lea had a grand time!

Okay ... so the guitar is just a little bit too big ... but she is already showing her natural abilities!

Never let it be said that Lea doesn't absolutely LOVE the water! This is her almost "jamaica man" shot . Mum is ever so proud of her braids!

A rare and quiet contemplative moment away from the crowd ...

2008-09-30T03:47:00.000-07:00

Some pictures of our day out bushwalking .....

2008-09-30T03:45:00.000-07:00

This is the fairy castle that I discovered on our walk .... pretty cool!

2008-09-30T03:44:00.000-07:00

Mum thinks I have a brilliant mind ... if only she really knew what was going on in there!

2008-09-30T03:43:00.000-07:00

This is one of the reasons they call the area we live in the Blue Mountains .... the ecucalypt trees give off this funky blue haze .....

2008-09-30T03:42:00.000-07:00

.... just enjoying the distractions on our bushwalk!

2008-09-30T03:41:00.000-07:00

Yah .... and what's your excuse?????

2008-09-30T03:40:00.000-07:00

I love running! (and mum and dad think it's a good way to burn off all my energy too!)

2008-09-30T03:38:00.000-07:00

You can tell Spring is here .... Lea is out and decorating the driveway again!

2008-07-21T21:18:00.000-07:00

This is the story of our recent holiday. We drove up and after spending a night with nana and pop, we went to Brisbane where we went to Southbank and then visited a friend of mine from Rehoboth.

Daring Feet #1 .... i conned my mum and dad into letting me go on a bungee trampoline .... hmmmm. not having second thoughts.... but wondering if it is going to be as fun as i hope it will be!

2008-07-21T21:16:00.000-07:00

Bouncing this way ....

2008-07-21T21:15:00.000-07:00

... and bouncing that way!

2008-07-21T21:14:00.001-07:00

This is fun!

2008-07-21T21:14:00.000-07:00

Wow! I did it! An arial summersault!

2008-07-21T21:13:00.000-07:00

Tada! Am I good or what! That was cool .... can we do it again?

2008-07-21T21:11:00.000-07:00

Eeekkkkk! We were hiding in the clothes but you found us!

2008-07-21T21:10:00.000-07:00

I'm very focused on my donut!

2008-07-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

Daring act #2 .... climbing up to the top of this verticle rope course .... it's a tough job, but someone has to do it! (that's my mate Hannah following close behind!)

2008-07-21T21:07:00.000-07:00

I'm King of the Castle!

2008-07-21T21:06:00.000-07:00

I've climbed to the top of this thing .... now how do i get down! HELP DADDY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-07-21T21:05:00.000-07:00

So part of our trip was going to Australia Zoo .... the original home of Steve Irwin (deceased), original wildlife warrior and environmentalist. Environmental stewardship is something i know that my parents are strongly committed too .... God gave us all these animals and we need to learn about them, respect them and appreciate the role they play in our world.

2008-07-21T20:59:00.000-07:00

About as close as you'll get me to a crocodile thank you very much!

2008-07-21T20:58:00.001-07:00

If mummy would've snapped this shot a second earlier she would have caught the elephant taking the banana right out of my hand! Way Cool!

2008-07-21T20:58:00.000-07:00

I don't know ... can you tell me where the elephants are?

2008-07-21T20:56:00.000-07:00

There were lots of snakes at the show.

2008-07-21T20:55:00.000-07:00

One of those special moments with mum .....

2008-07-21T20:54:00.000-07:00

Part of the Wildlife Warrior show was all these gorgeous birds flying everywhere .... it was really cool!

2008-07-21T20:53:00.000-07:00

.... another gorgeous bird!

2008-07-21T20:51:00.000-07:00

This was Murray the crocodile ... one of the highlights at the Croc-oseum!

2008-07-21T20:50:00.000-07:00

Feeding him a rat for morning tea ...... hmmm ... i think he might want something a bit more tasty!

2008-07-21T20:49:00.000-07:00

BTW: HE IS A HUGE CROCODILE!

2008-07-21T20:48:00.000-07:00

Here I am sharing all my vast knowledge about kangaroos with an interested spectator .... because you see, I think Kangaroos are way cool.

2008-07-21T20:47:00.000-07:00

BTW: have I said that I love kangaroos?

2008-07-21T20:45:00.000-07:00

This is an Ibis .....