Another Arrow in Our Quiver

Two Choices

2012-02-04T15:00:00.000-08:00

Ande came home from school yesterday and told us that a boy in her class had taken her "hanitizer" (aka hand sanitizer) out of her backpack.

She apparently confronted him and asked him if he had taken it.

Of course, he denied it....most kids would.

At this point, Ande tells him....
"Well, you have two choices. You can either give it back or I can tell the teacher."

He gave it back.

Ha ha.....wonder where she heard that??

I probably say those same words to Ande & Kaci a couple of times a week.

What....you don't like what we're having for dinner?
Well, you have two choices....eat it or go hungry.

Boy oh boy.....I am really going to have to start watching what I say around them.

Sometimes your words come back to haunt you!

A Lesson in Patience

2012-01-26T16:29:00.000-08:00

Have you ever experienced a "God wink"?

Every once in a while....I do.

And one of those days was Tuesday.....Tuesday morning to be exact.

Monday night we had been out with a large group of other adoptive families at a local Chinese restaurant for dinner. The last thing we had before leaving was a fortune cookie. I never even bothered to look at my "fortune".....went straight for the cookie.

Hey....don't judge.

Anyways.....the next morning we were running very behind.

We had been out later than usual the night before and I overslept...by about 40 minutes.

We were rushing....well, I was rushing.

And I was pushing the girls to hurry up.

And I got a little loud and snappy with them.

Just about that time, I walked over to our kitchen table to grab something and noticed a slip of white paper on the table.....the "fortune" from a long gone cookie.

The words jumped out at me......

"A principle part of faith is patience."

God wink.

Okay God....I get it.

Don't have to hit this old gal along side the head....well, at least not twice.

I think God had a nice little chuckle compliments of me.

Ande's Big Day #6

2012-01-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

My oh my!

I say it all the time......time seems to fly by faster when you have children!

Why, it just seems like yesterday that Ande was teething and drooling all over the place......that she was grabbing on to furniture and pulling herself up......that she was making that "mommy face" of hers!

Our baby girl turned 6 years old.....6 years old! She has been looking forward to this day for weeks. We'd been planning her party and the food we would have. Planning what kind of cupcakes to make for her classmates at school. It's been so much fun to see her so excited for her special day.

We celebrated on Monday with a small party including my Mom and Ande's closest friend. Sadly, Ande's godparents were sick and unable to be here. We like to keep our celebrations small and personal, but we do our best to make the birthday girl feel extra special.

On her actual birthday, it was Ande's first day back to school after Christmas break. While most kids are bummed at having to return to school.....Ande was stoked! She was excited about hearing her name announced over the intercom at school, getting a birthday ribbon to wear for the day, and getting to share cupcakes and juice boxes with her classmates. Ahhh....the simple enjoyments! I treasure times like these. My prayer for Ande is that she always enjoys and treasures the simple things in life!

As with every passing birthday, my thoughts always turn to the woman who gave birth to our sweet daughter. I pray that her heart is at peace and that she knows how much Ande is loved. Her sacrifice has become one of my greatest joys.

This was Ande's 2nd birhday.....the very first birthday we celebrated together as a family.

Our adorable 6 year old!

Ande's cake....she requested yellow cake with chocolate icing. She even helped make it!

I totally forgot to pick up paper plates for the cake which is why we had to use left-over Elmo plates from Kaci's party.

One of the things Ande got for her birthday was a Barbie make-up kit......this is a result of her handiwork. Not bad at all.

Keith better be getting a stick ready to beat off all those suitors who are sure to be knocking at our door in a few years!

Happy, happy, happy birthday our sweet Ande.

You are loved more than you will ever know!

PLAN B?

2011-12-31T17:53:00.000-08:00

This post is sort of a follow-up to my previous post "God Said No" because the story doesn't end there.

All of these thoughts flooded me as I was completing the required seminar for Darci's adoption.

I had chosen a training seminar on talking openly with children about adoption.

There was a story about a parent telling their child they had decided to adopt when they were unable to have children of their own.

That story got me to thinking.

And then worrying.

How would I feel if my parents told me that?

"We adopted you because we couldn't have children of our own."

Children of our own.

It would be like telling them they were Plan B.

A second option

Second best.

Yuck.

Kinda makes me sick to my stomach.

I don't want my girls to EVER think they were Plan B.

They were Plan A.

I just didn't know it.

But God did.

And that's what I plan to tell my girls.

God Said No

2011-12-31T15:19:00.000-08:00

Today I was completing an online seminar that is required for our adoption.

Some of the reading material got me to thinking and remembering..........

Years ago, Keith and I were in our early-thirties and married about 10 years or so. We had been trying to start our family for years.....we had been very patient thinking that it would happen...eventually.

But it didn't.

Years passed.

No baby.

Finally we decided to seek professional help for our infertility.

Time continued to pass as we endured test after test, procedure after procedure.

All the while.....all of our close friends were having one child after another.

I vividly recall lying on the couch one evening after we had undergone what would be our last "procedure".

I laid there with my hand across my belly crying out to God......

"Please God, let this work......let us have a baby.

Just one baby.....that's all I ask."

But.....God said no.

And I was angry.

I was angry for a long time after that.

I decided that if God did not see fit to give me a baby it must be because He knew I wouldn't be a good mother.

Done.

End of Story.

Move on with my life.

But then......

Keith and I became born again and Jesus opened our eyes and our hearts to adoption.

What I didn't know then and what I just suddenly realized, is that.......

While God did say no to that prayer all those years ago,

it was not because I would not be a good mother

But because He had other plans for me!

As I look at my adorable daughters today.....oh how I thank God that He said no!

Have I told you lately how much I simply adore these two daughters of ours?

Thank you Lord for making us a family!

Thank you for unanswered prayer.

Charity at Home

2011-12-15T05:24:00.001-08:00

Okay....I'm going to get on my soap box again.

You have been warned!

We have noticed something that annoys us.....and hurts us.

A comment.

Perhaps made in ignorance.....perhaps not.

It started back in 2004 when we first began the process to adopt our precious Ande.

It continued with our precious Kaci's adoption.

And....we continue to hear it today.

What is it you ask??

This comment takes many different forms, but the meaning behind it is all the same.

"Charity begins at home."

"I believe we should take care of those in need here in the U.S. first."

"Aren't there any children available for adoption right here int he U.S.?"

We truly believe that we have been called by God to adopt.

We do not know why God has lead us to Chin@.

Why He continues to lead us there.

Believe me.....I do not look forward to all that is involved with an international adoption.

I am truly not looking forward to spending 15 hours cooped up on a cramped airplane.

I truly am not looking forward to being in a strange country for 2 weeks where few people speak english and the food is different.

I truly am not looking forward to the rock hard beds, the stares, and the smoking everywhere.

But I will go.

Out of obedience.

And because that is where our daughter is....that is where Darci is.

We searched God's word for an explanation.

Why us? Why Chin@?

And do you know what??

Not once does His word say.......

"Charity begins at home."

Honest! Not once....nadda.

It does say......

"Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy."

~ Psalm 82:3

"Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction and to keep himself unspotted from the world."

~ James 1:27

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." ~Matthew 25:40

We are all children of God.

Right here in the good old U.S. as well as those half way around the world in Russi@, Ugand@, Guatemal@ and Chin@.

What makes us more worthy of charity?

If you truly believe that charity begins at home.....I'd like for you to do me a favor.

You look in the eyes of those lonely, hurting children and you tell them that.

Tell them they are not worthy of our help because they were not fortunate enough to be born in the right country.

Tell them.

I can't.

I won't.

Something I have found to be curious though.......

Of all the people who have made this comment to us.....

Not one of them have ever adopted.

Not one of them have ever even been a foster parent or a mentor.

Not one.

Something that really bothers me.....something that hurts my heart more than anything else is this.....

I used to think the same way.

And probably even said "charity begins at home" more than once in my life time.

But....that was in my previous life... before I was born again.

Before I saw the light.

Before Jesus came in to my life and changed my heart.

Before I knew the enormity of the orphan population around the world.

Before I looked in to the eyes of those hurting children.

Don't get me wrong....I am by no means saying we don't need help right here in the U.S.

We do.

All I am saying is this.....

Open your eyes and your hearts to the plight of all children.....all over the world.

And if you still continue to feel that "charity begins at home"......please keep your opinion to yourself.

Don't condemn those of us who feel differently.

I would never want my children to hear those words and think that they were not worthy just because of the country they happened to be born in.

Darci....Our Starfish

2011-11-25T14:37:00.000-08:00

Legend of the Starfish

A vacationing businessman was walking along a beach when he saw a young boy. Along the beach were many starfish that had been washed up by the tide and were sure to die before the tide returned.

The boy slowly walked along the shore and occasionally reached down , picked up a starfish and tossed it back into the ocean.

The businessman hoping to teach the boy a little lesson in common sense, walked up to the boy and said, "I have been watching what you are doing son. You have a good heart and I know you mean well, but do you realize how many beaches there are around here and how many starfish are dying on every beach every day? Surely such an industrious and kind hearted boy such as yourself could find something better to do with your time. Do you really think that what you are doing is going to make a difference?"

The boy looked up at the man then looked down at a starfish lying by his feet.

He reached down, picked up the starfish and as he ever so gently tossed it back in to the ocean, he said,

"It makes a difference to that one."

Let The Fundraising Begin!

2011-11-16T18:24:00.001-08:00

We've actually already been busy doing some fundraisers.....we've had a yardsale, took a bunch of great stuff to the auction and had a Scentsy Candle fundraiser (which is still open by the way and make great Christmas gifts...hint, hint). We also had some very generous private donations. All in all, we raised right around $1,500.00 so far toward bringing Darci home!

Oh....and in case you didn't notice.....we've decided to name our newest treasure Darci.

Nice, huh?

Now we are having a raffle! We have decided to raffle off one of these bad boys....

A Keurig "Special Edition" Single Cup Coffee Maker!

We've had our Keurig for almost 5 years now and could not live without it! We love it! We actually had 4 of them....one at home, Keith has one at work, I have one at work and we had one in our camper until just recently.

They are not just for coffee though....you can make tea, hot cider, and hot cocoa! It can be used as a hot water dispenser too for making instant soup.

We love ours because it prevents so much waste....you brew one cup at a time (within seconds I might add).

It's perfect for company....one can have hot tea....another decaf coffee and yet another regular coffee!

We are selling raffle tickets for $2.00 each or 3 for $5.00. If interested, you can participate several ways....buy a chance (or two or three) or help us sell tickets.

To purchase a chance (or two).....you have several options. You can see either Keith or I. you can leave us a message & we can arrange for the money to be mailed, or you can just click on the link to the right to send your money via PayPal and I will enter your name in the drawing.

Am I forgetting anything?

Oh yeah.....we are going to hold the drawing on Saturday, December 17th.....just in time for Christmas!

I've joined forces with some very special godly woman who are helping us with our fundraising efforts. We've been brainstorming and have come up with some great ideas so stay tuned for more information on how you can help make a difference for Darci!!

Kaci Day!!

2011-10-28T15:59:00.000-07:00

It is so hard to believe! 2 years already!

This is the very first picture we saw of our girl.

Kaci joined our family on October 26, 2009 at the age of 27 months.

She was not impressed with us.....not at all!

She came to us kicking and screaming. Other than cry, she showed no emotion for days.

She was painfully thin.

We were beginning to wonder if Kaci had special needs other than those we already knew about. To say we were concerned is an understatement.

Keith & prayed and made the decision to trust God. We knew He did not bring us this far to give up on this little treasure.

Little by little, bit by bit.....she slowly began to open up to us.

Near the end of our two week trip, she finally smiled for us and began to show us glimpes of the sweet, ornery and energetic child within!

Turns out her only "special need" was that of a family to call her own!

Her bonding process was completely different than Ande's had been (possibly because Kaci was a year older than Ande had been)......but with each passing day we could see a difference.

Slowly, but surely she came to love and trust us.

We were just talking with some friends a few days ago and remembering what those early days had been like....we said that never in our wildest dreams would we have imagined that the shy, quiet, kicking and screaming, sickly child who was handed to us in Chin@ would become the giggling, energetic, happy, adorable, healthy child we are blessed to have today!

Kaci reminds me of that song from the 80's by Cindi Lauper....
"Girls Just Wanna Have Fun".

To me...that is Kaci in a nutshell!

She is just a happy go lucky little girl who always has a smile on her face! She is in constant motion....never staying still for very long.
She finds joy and humor in most everything.

She loves to sing & dance around the house....even delighting company with some of her talents!

We thank God everyday for bringing Kaci to us! We love you Kaci.....our little "ornery, shoes on the wrong feet, uncoordinated, singing, dancing, never stays still for a moment, huggable, happy go lucky baby girl".

You are one of a kind.....you are special!

To the moon and back! Forever, for always and no matter what!

Tooth Fairy Visits

2011-10-18T00:19:00.000-07:00

One evening last week Ande mentioned to me that one of her teeth on the bottom front, was loose. I checked and, sure enough, it was wiggling. Better yet.....I could actually see her new tooth pushing up behind the old one! Once Ande realized what was happening.....she could not leave that tooth alone. Every time I'd look at her I could tell she was using her tongue to wiggle it or she was using her fingers to wiggle it. I knew it wouldn't be long.

The very next day, at daycare, Ande mentioned to one of the teachers that her tooth was loose. The teacher asked to see it and next thing Ande knew, her teacher had popped the tooth right out! Keith was a little upset that the teacher didn't ask permission before she just popped out Ande's tooth.....plus I think he was looking forward to having that privledge. Personally.....I was just happy that it was out and I didn't have to do it!

We were quickly informed that the going rate for a tooth is now $5.00....whoa! Okay....maybe for the first tooth, but all those that follow are only worth a buck!

Much to Ande's delight and amazement, the tooth fairy did visit and even left her tooth as a souvenir.

Love & Loss

2011-10-16T18:24:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week we said good-bye to a member of our family......our beloved Zena. Zena was our 12 year old chihuahua mix. We called her Z Z for short and sometimes I'd call her "Zena Louisa". She was the sweetest dog......a real "lap" dog. The moment we sat down on the couch or in the recliner.....she was there! She just loved to be near us.

We adopted Zena just 6 weeks after we brought Hercules home. We had told the breeder we were interested in a female pup and asked her to give us a call if she had a female in her next litter. A few weeks later we got the call.....one female in a litter of 6. We went to see her and immediately fell in love.

Having no children at the time, our lives revolved around our dogs. They were our "children" and Zena was our first baby girl. While Zena was sweet, she was also a little mischievious! Hercules LOVED his blanket....he dragged it everywhere with him. Zena would go over and grab a corner of the blanket just to annoy Hercules. She'd pull in one direction & Hercules would pull in the other!

Sometimes I would catch Zena crawling under the blankets on our couch and next thing you knew, she was kicking and swirming under the blankets having a ball! As soon as she'd catch us watching her....she'd stop.

Zena was great with our girls.....even though she had not been around children hardly at all for the first 8 years of her life.....she accepted them in to our family and never once nipped at them.

A couple of months ago we noticed that Zena's health was starting to fail. She started having some spells where she would almost pass out on us. We watched her growing weaker. We prayed that the Lord would take her before it became necessary for us to make a difficult decision. We knew her time with us was coming to an end and we tried to make her final days as pleasant and comfortable as possible.

The house seems so different now....Hercules passed away last summer after a short illness and now Zena has gone. I find myself thinking that I need to feed Zena or take her out. Zena's favorite spot was on the back of the couch where she could see out the windows.....I can't walk by the couch without looking.....expecting to see her sitting there.

Tonight as I was tucking the girls in to bed, Ande said her prayers and they went somethign like this..... "And thank you for Zena. We love her very much. We miss her. We see her again in heaven."

Until we see you again sweet ZZ......

Crazy?

2011-09-19T18:12:00.001-07:00

Are we crazy?

Adopting again??!!

At our age??

With very little funds??!!

No.....no one has actually dared to say those words.......to our face.

Yet.

But, we can see those words written all over the faces of some of the folks we have told.

Some have surprised us.

Some have been super excited!

Many have been supportive.

Crazy?

Yes.

Crazy in love with our girls.

Crazy in love with our new daughter whom we've never met.

Crazy in love with our Savior.

"By adopting a child and helping them reach their potential.....we reach ours. An adopted child is not an unwanted child.....to the contrary. They were searched for, prayed for, cried for, begged for, and received by arms that ached....making empty hearts full. Love is meant to be shared."

~ Author Unknown

Lesson from a Baby Squirrel - Part 2

2011-09-05T16:48:00.000-07:00

If you have not read Part 1 of this story....please do so before proceeding.

WHY?

Why, God, am I so upset over the death of a baby squirrel?

Why?

What lesson could I possibly learn from a baby squirrel?

It was in a quiet moment during the night when God spoke to my heart......

If I was this upset over an orphaned baby squirrel....

.....how much MORE upset should I be over an orphaned child?

A child of God.
A child without a home.
A child without a family.

Oh my.

There are millions of orphaned children around the world.

Millions!

Why am I not crying over them?

Why am I not losing sleep over them?

I should be.

We all should be.

Life is precious and delicate...all life.

Even the life of a little squirrel.

Tomorrow is promised to no one.

Make the most of today....make the most of every minute.

Don't just stand there.....DO SOMETHING!

Some of our close friends are aware of this.....

Keith and I have been praying and PRAYING over the possibility of adding another child to our family for months now.

We've been back and forth...weighing the pros and the cons.

Everytime we thought we knew what we should do.....

what God wanted us to do....

we allowed Satan to get his foot in the door and we stumbled.

We found excuses to put it off.

One measily excuse after another.

Well, watch out Satan because here we go again!!

On Labor day we took the first steps to make it happen.....we completed an application with our adoption agency.

Today we received the call that our application had been approved and we are cleared to proceed with another adoption!

Hallelujah!

What better time to start a "labor of love" than on Labor Day?

It's not going to be easy.

In order to make this happen we are going to have to fundraise practically the entire $32,000.00.

We have very little savings,

No 401(k),

No home equity,

No line of credit to fall back on this time.

We are trusting the Lord to provide.

We are stepping out in faith for the 3rd time.

Nutty Buddy did not die in vain.

His brief little life taught me a valuable lesson.

I still well up with tears when I think about him.

I still feel awful about losing him, but thanks to him and the lesson God taught me from having him in my life for those few brief hours...

A little orphaned child will know the love of a family

Will have a Mommy and Daddy and sisters

Will have a home......and

.....I will have no regrets.

Please rejoice with us!

Lesson from a Baby Squirrel - Part 1

2011-09-05T15:40:00.000-07:00

Last week we found an orphaned baby squirrel wandering around our building at work. It was amazing.....the little fellow ran right up to me and allowed me to pick him right up. Everyone at work, including my boss, fell in love with the little fellow. He was too cute....so tiny and had the biggest eyes and was so sweet & cuddly!

I offered to take him home with me because we know a lady in our area who raises baby squirrels....not as pets, but with the intention of returning them to the wild. So....baby squirrel came home with me. I drove all the way home with one hand while the other held the baby squirrel all curled up in a tight little ball sound asleep.

Needless to say, Keith and the girls fell instantly in love. The girls named him "Nutty Buddy". Keith got on the internet to do some research on squirrels and we called the lady about taking in our new little friend. She was not home so we left a message.

As bed time neared and we did not hear back from the lady, we worried about what to do. He nibbled on some acorns Keith got from our back yard. We found a box, put holes in the lid and put rags in there to make a little nest. When we went to bed we could hear him moving around in the box....he was not happy being in there alone, but since he was so tiny and also had fleas....we could not keep him in bed with us.

To our shock and disbelief.....Nutty Buddy did not survive the night. We were all heartbroken. I wept. I was so upset....I could not get that little fellow off my mind all day. I had so many regrets. I kept wishing we had done things differently. I wished that I had sat up all night holding him. I wished that we had known better what to do for him.

All day long.....all I could think about was that baby squirrel. I was quite literally sick to my stomach most of the day and everytime I would think about him I would well up with tears. I had trouble sleeping that night. Every time I'd close my eyes, I would see those big eyes and would get a lump in my throat and a empty feeling in pit of my stomach. I haven't had such a restless night in a very long time.

At one point during the night, I cried out to God.....WHY? Why am I so upset over an orphaned baby squirrel? Why am I sick to my stomach? Why can't I sleep? WHY? What lesson did God expect me to learn from a baby squirrel?

Then, in a quiet moment during that sleepless night.....God spoke to my heart and revealed something to me. Something that shook me to the core. Something BIG. Something that made me ashamed. Something that broke my heart. But, also something that got me excited. Something that has given me that little push I needed.

Stay tuned for Part 2.

My New Part-Time Job

2011-09-05T15:18:00.000-07:00

I have always used coupons....half the time I would forget to take them with me to the store or they would expire before I used them. But recently I have begun to take it more seriously. It was either that or find a part-time job to help make ends meet! Couponing is a way I can save our family some money and stay home while doing it (except for the shopping part).

Couponing can be a very time consuming endeavor and it very much like having a part-time job. You have to find and clip the coupons. Organize them and then before shopping you have to know where to go to get the best deals and make your lists. Not to mention the actual time spent shopping. It's not all fun & shopping....it takes time and organization! Having a network of friends to share coupons and shopping tips with is essential too!

I am really starting to rub off on my girls though....especially Ande! When she sees something in the store she wants, she will ask "Mommy....you have a coupon for that?".....before she even asks if she can have it. She has learned already that we do not buy anything unless it is on sale and/or we have a coupon for it!

By no means do I plan to extreme coupon like those folks you see on TV, but if I can save 30-50% on our food and household supplies.....it is well worth the effort. Not to mention that we are able to donate to our church's food pantry!

I have purchased a nice binder with a handle to hold all of my coupons and have them organized into sections like meat, dairy, cleaning supplies, toiletries, etc. Once you start finding some really good deals (like free stuff!).....it becomes very addictive!

Yesterday Ande took some of my sales circulars and started cutting out her own "coupons". She then asked for an old wallet I had so she could organize her coupons. Now when she and Kaci play "store".....their play also includes using coupons! It's too cute. I like to think I have planted the seeds for a lifetime of saving and spending money wisely!

So Long Irene!

2011-09-05T15:06:00.001-07:00

I posted a little over a week ago that we were bracing ourselves for the impending arrival of "Hurricane Irene". Well....she came and she went. Praise God, our area suffered no major damage. Other than being without electric for 20 hours, we only had just a few broken limbs on our trees. We were very blessed as we know many others along the east coast were not so fortunate!

As the end neared....we could actually see a line across the sky marking the end of the storm. After it passed, while it was still quite breezy, the rain stopped and the sun came out. It was quite a sight to behold!

Kaci....standing out in our drive way waving good-bye to Irene!

Night & Day

2011-09-02T15:17:00.000-07:00

Our girls are about as different as night and day.

Ande is our early bird.....always up bright and early. Seldom do I ever have to wake her up. She's been that way since day one. The moment she hears Keith or I moving around in the morning.....she is up.

Kaci on the other hand......night owl for sure! She will lay in bed for an hour or more after we tuck them in to bed singing and talking to herself. Ande is fast asleep next to her, but she is wide awake. And getting her up in the mornings? Whoa! Let's just say we are going to have our work cut out for us when this child becomes a teenager!

Ande is reserved. It's not that she's anti-social or shy.....she just holds back until she gets to know someone a little bit before she starts opening up to them. Kaci, however, smiles and waves and talks to anyone who looks her way. She'll climb right up in your lap within moments of meeting you.

Ande crunches her lifesavers.....Kaci will suck on hers until they are paper thin.

Ande is graceful and coordinated. Poor Kaci is lacking in the coordination department and has the bumps & bruises to show for it!

Ande is very "fashion conscious".....she always has to pick out her clothing for the day herself and it has to color coordinate. Kaci.....well, let's just say, Kaci has a lot to learn when it comes to color and pattern coordination. Following is an example of one of her outfits!

We only have to scold or punish Ande one time for something and she learns her lesson. With Kaci.....this strong-willed child gets punished over and over for the same offense.

Yes.....our girls are as different as night and day in many ways, but we love them just the way they are and wouldn't change a thing!

School Days!

2011-08-26T18:06:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday, Ande & Kaci started school.......Ande to Kindergarten & Kaci to senior Pre-K. They have begun what (we hope) will be at least 17 years of education! 17 years! 17! Sounds like a lot, but if the times goes by as quickly as these past 4 years........well, we will be attending college graduations before we know it!

div>

And.....I didn't even cry! Neither did Ande! Kaci did cry, but only because she and Ande will be separated for the first time. Ande was beyond excited......I can't even explain how happy she was to be starting school. She was looking forward to riding the school bus.....to packing her lunch.......and to carrying a backpack. I pray that she will always be excited to start school! It was a difficult decision for Keith and I to decide to send our girls to public school, but we are looking at it as a sort of "mission field". We cannot shield our girls from the world forever....better that they learn now to stand and defend themselves against the enemy and temptation. We will be extra diligent in making sure our girls are taught about our faith, our morales and values here at home and then pray that they rub off on the people around them (and not vice versa). We will lift our girls, their teachers and their school in prayer at every opportunity.

Keith and I took the girls to daycare.....This is where Kaci will attend Pre-K and where Ande will get on and off the school bus everyday. We waited with all the other parents for the bus to arrive and then, like paparazzi, we all began taking pictures! After the bus left, Keith and I stalked......I mean.....drove the few miles to Ande's school. I went in to talk to the school nurse and tell her about Ande's surgery on Monday and then we waited for the bus to arrive so we could get another picture of Ande getting off the bus. We were the only parents there. Sad...I know. I don't think we embarrassed Ande too badly.......poor child!

She did great! She loved her new teacher......she already knows a couple of the children in her class and the school librarian attends our church. I hope the next 17 years of "first day of school" go as well!

Priceless #2

2011-08-26T17:48:00.000-07:00

Envelope - 25 cents

Paper & Markers - $2.00

Love Note to Mommy - PRICELESS!

What a week!!

2011-08-26T17:25:00.000-07:00

What a week this has been....very unusual! We started out on Monday with Ande having surgery.....she had a tube put in her right ear and her adenoids removed. She made out extremely well...praise the Lord!

On Tuesday, a 5.8 earthquake struck our area of Maryland. I had been at a seminar on the Western Shore with two co-workers and we stopped at a Cracker Barrel for lunch on our way back to work. We had just paid our bill and were heading to the door when it struck. At first I thought I was sick......everything started moving and I felt like I was going to fall. Then I started hearing things falling off the shelves and the walls! I looked at my co-worker and she said....."Let's get out of here!" Fortunately we were right beside the doors and scooted on out. I held the door for an elderly lady and grabbed her arm to help her out....when I looked back, there was a mass of folks pushing their way to the doors to get out too.

My first thought was to call Keith as he had stayed home with Ande. My first words were...."Did you feel that?" and he quickly replied "Oh, yeah!". I knew then that it had to have been an earthquake since we were a good 45 minutes away from each other. Keith had been lying on the bed trying to take a nap with Ande. He woke up because he thought Ande was jumping on the bed and then he heard our armoire rattling. He yelled for Ande, but she was in the bathroom and hadn't felt a thing! Fortunately, there was no major damage and no major injuries reported.

On Wednesday, our baby started school! Ande is officially in Kindergarten! I'll say more about that in a separate post.

Today.....we are bracing ourselves for Hurricane Irene. We've stocked our cupboards, filled buckets with water, and "battened down the hatches"! All we can do now is wait and pray!

pLAY dATE

2011-08-26T17:11:00.000-07:00

Pictures speak a thousand words.....

Priceless

2011-08-26T16:59:00.000-07:00

1 Large Blue Bucket - $10.00

Water - Free

Extremely Happy Little Girls - PRICELESS!

Girls Day Out

2011-08-01T15:57:00.000-07:00

Our daycare center is closed for summer vacation this week. Keith and I are tag teaming.....I'm taking a couple of days off to stay home with the girls and so is he. We've planned a few day trips.....today was the day the girls and I went to Rehobeth Beach!

Ande has been to the beach several times before, but she doesn't really remember them. She was terrified of the water and would not go near it. This year was different. She was more than willing to go out in to the water, but not too far and only as long as I was holding her hand.

Today was actually the very first time Kaci has ever seen the ocean....she was not overly impressed. She was not quite as terrified of the water as Ande had been.....but she was very cautious. It took a lot of coaxing on my part to get her to even get her toes wet! She was too cute.....she would walk out a ways, but as soon as she saw the wave coming in she would take off running back toward dry sand!

Ande was greatly impressed by the sea of umbrellas as far as the eye could see along the beach! At one point as we were walking along the boardwalk, Ande said, "Mommy...this too much walking....why you not bring our stroller?" Ha ha....to wear you out my dear...to wear you out!

It was a good day....we waded in the water, built a sand castle, poured water on each other, walked on the boardwalk a ways and bought some Dolles Caramel Popcorn before heading home.

Happy Birthday Kaci!

2011-07-19T14:56:00.000-07:00

July 18th was Kaci 4th birthday! Happy Day! Unfortunately.....Kaci was sick. Not the way she (or we) expected to spend her special day! She started complaining her "belly hurt" on Saturday afternoon and shortly thereafter began running a fever. The fever continued through Sunday and finally broke on Monday. Other than complaining her belly hurt and the fever, she never experienced any other symptoms......except that she felt miserable. When Kaci feels bad, she gets real quiet and just wants to be held.....by Mommy.

We had planned a small get together for Sunday afternoon with some close friends and my Mom. Since Kaci's fever had been low grade and she had no other symptoms, we decided to proceed with the party. Lest you worry......we did warn our guests and left it up to them if they wanted to come and be exposed to whatever little germs Kaci was fighting. Everyone showed up. Everyone loves Kaci.

Even though she felt bad, you could tell she was so excited. She kept repeating...."It my birday!"

She ate a little food, opened her presents, played outside with her friends for a little while and had a little birthday cake. Good day all in all!

Unfortunately.....her temp started climbing shortly after all our guests went home and reached 103.2 Sunday evening! Even though her temp was back down to normal, we kept her home from "work" on Monday as a precaution. We had bought a huge Dora birthday cake for Kaci to share with her friends at work on Monday.......sadly, Kaci was not there to enjoy her own cake! Poor dear. But......the wonderful ladies at the daycare took a video clip of the kids singing happy birthday to Kaci and sent it to Keith's cell phone for her to hear.

Two years ago, in 2009, we had a party for Kaci at our home even though she was not yet with us. She was turning 2. This is a picture of her with the cake that we had arranged to be sent to her at her orphanage in China. She looked so lonely....so sad in those pictures. Two years later, she is smiling, happy and surrounded by people who love her dearly! God is good!

This is one year later.....in 2010

Kaci today! One happy girl!

Happy 4th Birthday Kaci bug! We love you girlie......forever, for always and no matter what!!

Fu Family Reunion 2011

2011-07-06T15:59:00.000-07:00

Just over 4 years ago 8 families, including ours, gathered together in a small room in Nanchang, China to receive a gift that we had been anxiously anticipating for years.....our daughters! All 8 baby girls came from the same province, Jiangxi, and were at some point in the young lives living in the Fuzhou orphanage. Ande was the oldest baby at 15 months and the youngest baby was just 9 months old. This 2 week adventure into parenthood bonded our families forever. Little did we know that we were gaining more than a daughter that day.....we gained family as well.

3 years ago, when our girls were just 2 years old, we had a reunion in TN over the 4th of July weekend. We talked about trying to have a reunion every other year, but it turned in to 3 years. Just this past weekend we met 6 of the other families in Kentucky for a 2011 reunion. Sadly, one family was unable to join us. Our families came from Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Maryland.

Our little treasures back in 2008

Our little treasures in 2011

We all rented cabins at a Campground in Cave City, KY. It was a nice place.....they had a swimming pool, playground, miniature golf and crafts for the kids. On July 4th they had a parade, including Yogi bear, and then fireworks which we could see right from our cabins.

I feel good that Ande had the opportunity to get reacquainted with her "Fu" sisters or "Gotcha" sisters as we also call them. She loves each and every one. Ande was a little shy at first, but quickly warmed up. Many wonderful memories were formed over the weekend.....we explored a cave, went on a chair lift ride up the side of a mountain, saw a fireworks display and went swimming. I think Ande enjoyed chasing fire flies the most. What a wonderful thing it was to see 7 little beauties running around trying to catch those shimmering bugs!

Exploring the cave was a real highlight for Keith & I. What a testimony to God! It was amazing and beautiful down there! We could not believe the drop in temperature. Outside it was a very humid 89 degrees, but inside the cave it was 52 degrees and stays that way year round! We were blessed and delighted when one of our Fu families decided to test the acoustics of the cave....they sang a beautiful song. "Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow; Praise Him, all creatures here below; Praise Him above, ye heavenly host; Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen." Gave me goose bumps! Everyone in the cave stopped and it got very quiet. When they finished singing people started clapping and someone from farther up yelled...."Sing it again!" I am so happy we were there to experience that!

Another highlight was the morning we all got together for an impromptu breakfast. Keith and I had brought some scrapple with us from Maryland for everyone to try. For those of you who don't know what scrapple is.....it is a breakfast meat that is made here in Maryland. As far as I know, there are only 2 companies who make it. As Keith likes to tell people when they ask what it is....."it's everything but the oink"!

Anyway.....we fried up the scrapple, someone baked a delicious french toast casserole and someone else made scrambled eggs. All the girls ate and went outside to play while the older kids went out to keep an eye on them. That gave us parents time to sit around and chat for a while. It was so nice to have adult conversation and to have an opportunity to get to know these fine folks just a little better. We laughed and laughed! It was great!

And little Miss Kaci bug just fit right in. She won everyone over with that smile of hers and they fell right in love with her. The girls all welcomed her in to their little group with open arms!

One of the other mothers made a comment that really spoke to me.....she said, "I love all of these girls and feel a bond with all of them because I know that any one of them could have been my daughter if things had been different in that room the day they were matching us with our babies." I had never thought of it like that but it is so true. One thing I know for sure....God's hand was in it. He helped to match each of these little treasures with just the right family. Each one is a perfect fit with their family!

We were all sad for our time in Kentucky to come to an end, but are already making plans for our next reunion! We miss you all!

Miracle Motherhood

2011-05-09T16:12:00.000-07:00

Be still my heart. This is my 5th Mother's Day. For years I hated Mother's Day. I would cringe when all the Mothers at church were asked to stand up. I grieved for the children I thought I would never have. For years I wanted to be a Mommy, but it just didn't happen and I lost hope. But God! God had different plans for me. I have a sign hanging in my kitchen that reads...."However motherhood comes.....it's a miracle!". Amen! Today I am the proud Momma of two adorable little girls who have utterly and completely captured my heart. I can honestly say that I cannot imagine loving these girls any more than I do....biological or not. They are my daughters!!

This year, my Mother's day started out in a hotel room in Pennsylvania. We left early and arrived home before noon. Ande was concerned that she did not have a card for me and I told her that I would rather have a card that she made herself than any store bought card. So....she ushered me off to take a nap (a great sacrifice on my part) while she and Kaci got out their markers and started working on their creations. They were so proud of themselves when they presented the cards to me. I think they are beautiful! Ande did her card all on her own...Keith had to tell her how to spell a couple of words, but she wrote it all on her own. Keith did have to help Kaci a little with hers.

Later in the day we went out for dinner at a local steak house and I when we got home I thanked them for taking me out to dinner. Keith made an off handed comment about them paying for dinner. As soon as we got home Ande ran to her room and came out carrying her piggy bank. She asked me to open it for her and when I asked why....she said so she could help pay for my dinner. Bless her heart. She's such a sweetie!

They insisted on wearing bands in their hair.....adorable aren't they?

I thank God every day for these 2 little miracles of mine. They made me a Momma. Have I told you lately how much I adore them??

Trip to Elmo World!

2011-05-08T14:13:00.000-07:00

We've been talking about it for a couple of years and finally decided the girls were old enough to both enjoy a trip to Sesame Place. It's located in a part of Pennsylvania where neither Keith or I have ever traveled so we were in new territory. All I can say is....thank God for GPS!

You will notice in this picture that Keith and I are standing next to Elmo....the girls refused. Throughout the day there were many Sesame Street characters walking throughout the park and the girls were happy to wave at them from a distance, but would not go close to them at all!

We could not have picked a better weekend....the weather was absolutely gorgeous! Sunshine....blue skies....not too cool or too hot....perfect! Friday was one of the first week days Sesame Place was open this year and it worked out wonderfully for us. The park was not crowded at all. We did not have to wait in line for anything! The girls rode every ride in the park (with the exception of the water rides).....and many of them two and three times! Ande actually rode the roller coaster a total of 8 times. Because there was no one waiting in line, they let Keith and Ande along with another family keep riding until they had enough! The parade at the end of the day was like icing on a cake.....singing, dancing and all the Sesame Street characters.....it was great!

Saturday was a slightly different story.....weather was still good, but the park was much, much more crowded! We were told, however, that it was still no where near as crowded as it gets during the summer so I guess we still had it good.

Much to our surprise, the water rides were all open on Saturday and many parents were allowing their children to play there, but it was still just a little chilly for me. It looked fun though and we hope to be able to take the girls back when they will be able to enjoy that area of the park as well. We did allow the girls to take off their shoes and wade in the wading pool for a few minutes and they were satisfied with that, but the water was COLD!

Ande was fearless.....she was eager to try all the rides. Kaci was a little hesitant and would sometimes wait for Ande to go first and would then decide it was okay. She did eventually ride everything at least once, but there were a few rides she refused to go on again. Of all things, one of Ande's very favorite things was "Cookie Mountain"......a big blue "mountain" that the kids climb up in their bare feet and then let go and slide back down. She loved it! Ande quickly became an expert climber and could get to the top lightening fast!

I loved seeing the excitement and joy on the faces of our girls. Priceless. Never realized how happy it would make ME to see our girls having so much fun!

All in all we had a wonderul trip and we may even go again later this year since our package included season passes to the park. Sesame Place was great. I highly recommend it for young children between the ages of 3-7. The park was very clean and the majority of the staff were friendly and helpful. The rides were adult friendly too, but some of them were a tight fit! The shows and parade were well done and full of energy. I think the girls will have wonderful memories of this trip!

Illness, Easter & Kindergarten

2011-04-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

Got a lot of catching up to do. I don't post as often as I used to.....a combination of thinking I don't have anything post worthy and just plain old not having the time to do it!

The girls just got over some sort of nasty virus.....high fever & cough. Ande was feeling better in just a few days (although the cough lingered for at least a week). Kaci, on the other hand, was sick for well over a week. Because of her history of pneumonia and her heart condition, we like to take extra precautions....which included one trip to the pediatrician on Thursday and then a trip to our local convenient care center on Sunday. Her fever reached a high of 104.9 one night...I was one worried Momma. For several days all she did was sleep & cough. She was finally diagnosed with bronchitis and after just a day or two of meds....she was feeling better. Poor baby had no appetite and lost a pound that week.....something this little skinny minnie cannot afford to do. No fear though.....her appetite has returned in full force and she has regained the pound plus some!

I have to give Vicks VaporRub a plug here.....if you put it on your feet and cover it with socks.....it does absolute wonders for coughing at night. I think we went through an entire jar during the girl's recent illness. Sounds crazy....but it does work!

Poor baby fell asleep with a sucker in her mouth!

A trip to Kaci's ear doctor yesterday confirmed that she has some mild hearing loss. They feel that the hearing loss is most likely linked to the fluid behind her ear drums.....so, looks like we will be heading back to the operating room for another set of ear tubes in the near future.

Fortunately, the girls were well in time for Easter. They looked adorable in their new spring dresses! Easter Bunny was very good to them this year....he brought them a trampoline! I know what you are thinking......are they crazy??? Especially since Kaci girl is so accident prone! But.....it's just a small one and it has netting all the way around. We are actually hoping that it will help Kaci's coordination.....time will tell. The girls love it and look forward to playing on it in the evenings when they come home from "work".

We have finally reached another milestone with Ande......we enrolled her in Kindergarten at our local elementary school last week. How can my baby girl possibly be old enough to be starting school?? She is excited and can't wait until we go to buy school supplies.....especially a back pack. I'm thinking one of those cute ones from ThirtyOne would be nice and durable.

Kaci will continue to attend the Pre-K program at her current daycare center. She is making such wonderful progress....especially with her speech.....and we want to keep her in familiar surroundings so that she can continue to florish. Her speech therapist, Ms. Denise, made me feel so good the other day.....she said Kaci was her "star pupil" and that she braggs about her all the time. She even has a picture of Kaci hanging up in her office.

Cute story....I was ironing clothes one day recently and Kaci was standing nearby watching. We were chatting back & forth and I asked her if she loved her Momma....she responded, "Yes, and Daddy and Ande and Uncle Dennis & Aunt Sanny..." I then asked if she loved Nappy Cat and she quickly shouted...."No Way!" Poor Nappy Cat is definitely not on Kaci's list of favorites!

Summer is almost upon us and we do have some plans in the works.....a trip to Sesame Place, camping trips, and a trip to Kentucky in July for a reunion with our travel group from Ande's adoption. Check back for the updates on those adventures!

Future Evangelist

2011-04-18T18:19:00.001-07:00

Keith and I have tried our best to raise our girls to know and love the Lord. Ande asked Jesus in to her heart over a year ago and Kaci will often say she has Jesus in her heart too (although I am not convinced that she understands exactly what that means yet). It is not at all uncommon to hear them spontaneously singing praise songs or hymns......songs like "Trust in the Lord" or "Blessed be the Name". Warms this Momma's heart!

Whenever Kaci is misbehaving Ande will give me a knowing look and say, "That cause she not have Jesus in her heart yet." :-D

Not long ago Ande told me....."I love you Mommy, but you know who I love best?.....Jesus!" As it should be baby.....as it should be!

Yesterday, Ande and I went to church alone as Kaci was home sick with her Daddy. As we drove Ande and I talked. I'm not sure how we got on the subject, but Ande made the comment that none of the other kids at "work" have Jesus in their heart. "Just me", she said. I told her that maybe she could talk to the other children about Jesus and she said she had. Apparently a boy named John was hurt and crying. "I tell him to ask Jesus to help him". Did he? I asked. "No....he just keep on crying". Bless her heart...she tried. And I pray she keeps on trying!

My Little Leprechauns

2011-03-19T14:42:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patrick's day! Keith and I both have Irish blood flowing through our veins....although by this time it's pretty deluted. But, we still enjoy celebrating in a small way and our girls were anxious to get in on the act this year!

In case you are wondering......the little stickers on their shirts read,
"Born in China, but Irish at Heart!"

Here's an old Irish proverb that I love.....

"Bricks and mortar make a house, but the laughter of children makes a home."

True....oh so true!

The Things They Say

2011-03-16T18:29:00.000-07:00

Our girls are 5 and 3 right now and there are so many things I absolutely love about this age......especially the things they say and the way their little minds work!

Ande loves to come in the bathroom with me at night as I prepare for bed.....washing my face and brushing my teeth. One night recently, I had a red "spot" on my cheek. Ande asked what it was and I explained that it was a pimple. She asked "what a pimple?" So....I tried to explain what it was. Ande listened intently, then looked up at me and said, "Mommy.....you need Proactive!" Ha!! I laughed so hard......and was thankful she hadn't said, "you need botox"! ;-)

Just last night, Keith was teasing Ande and she had had enough....she looked at Keith and said....."Stop it Daddy....I am serious!"

A few nights ago, Kaci fell and banged the back of her head and was crying (yes, again). I was holding her, loving on her and trying to console her. I could hear Ande in the bedroom with her Daddy explaining to him that she was jealous because Kaci was getting attention. At least she is honest!

Last Sunday morning as we were preparing to go to church, I handed Ande a dollar to put in her Sunday School offering basket. You should know that our church has designated our Sunday School offerings for the months of February and March to go to one of our young ladies who is preparing to take a mission trip to Thailand soon. Upon seeing the dollar, Ande asked for more, but that was all I had. She was upset and told me she wanted to give more. I suggested if she wanted to give more, maybe she should go pull some money out of her piggy bank. Well....that's just what she did! She ran and got her piggy bank and pulled out a 5 dollar bill. My heart nearly exploded.....I was so proud of my baby girl! She has such a big heart! (Oh, and in case you are wondering....yes, I will put that $5 back in her bank).

The other night, Ande and I were talking about something and I said something about "birthday suit". Ande asked what that was and I said it meant, being naked....because that's how we are born. She looked at me and said, "Nu uh Mommy.....I not born naked, I born in China!".

A few weeks ago, Kaci was refusing to play with Ande and Ande was upset about it. Of course, she ran to her Daddy and complained that Kaci would not play with her. Keith told her that Kaci did not have to play if she didn't want to. At that, Ande replys....."But, that why you bought her for me!" Oh my....yes she did. Well.....we had to have a long talk with Ande and explain that we did not "buy" Kaci for her. Bless her heart.

Kaci's speech is coming along very well, but she is still a little difficult to understand. However....some things she can say clear as a bell. Like when she tells her Daddy...."I not talk you....I talk Mommy".

Whenever I pick her up....she says "uppy daisy". Her standard answer to most any question is "cuz". Kaci, why did you do that? "Cuz". Kaci, why didn't you eat all your dinner? "Cuz".

Oh....and Kaci LOVES to perform for company. She is not shy at all about dragging out their toy microphone and belting out her version of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star".....then she always hits the button to applaud herself. She's quite a little ham!

Our Kaci girl loves sweets, but it can sometimes be a challenge to get her to finish her dinner. She is an extremely slow eater and is always the last one to leave the table. Our rule is that you must eat most (not necessarily all, but most) of your dinner in order to have a snack before bed. It only took missing one snack for Kaci to learn this lesson......now, she will say, "All done....I get snack?"

At bedtime, Kaci often volunteers to say prayers. She is so cute and one of these days, I am going to try to tape record her. Because of her speech, some of what she says is not understandable, but we are able to make out names. It goes something like this...."Dear God, Mommy........Daddy........Ande......Dennis.....Sanny (Aunt Sandy).....Mom-Mom....Jesus....Amen!!"

Oh....and little Miss Kaci is definitely our strong willed child. She has had more time outs in the past year than Ande has had in four! We can't help but chuckle at her though....when I have to punish her, she will sit in time out and cry for Daddy. When she's mad at Daddy, she cries for Mommy and when she is mad at both of us, she will cry for "Uncle Dennis".

Up until just recently, if you asked Kaci how to spell her name, she would shout "K C I"!

Oh how I adore these girls of ours! What joy....what life....what laughter.....what love they have brought in to our lives!

New Friends

2011-03-16T18:19:00.000-07:00

Every couple of years our church hosts a touring chorus group from a college in Pennsylvania....Baptist Bible College. The last two times they have visited, our family has hosted several of the college students in our home overnight. I must admit....as the date approaches I begin to wonder why in the world we signed up to do it......I grumble about it......expecially when I am scrambling like a madman to get my house cleaned and ready!

But......afterwards, I am always so happy that we did it! We have always been so blessed by the students we have hosted and this year was no exception! Gretchen and Carol were two of the sweetest and down to earth girls we have ever had the pleasure of getting to know. Our girls loved them to pieces and were all over them the entire time they were here! After they left, we found the nicest thank you note from them. They were here just a few short hours and then were off to finish the rest of their 10 day tour. Funny how you can miss someone you've only known for a few hours. Safe travels girls!!

Over Protective?

2011-01-22T03:09:00.000-08:00

Confession time. I admit it......I am an over protective parent. When you come to my house you will not see children running in the house, jumping on the bed, or climbing up on the top bunk.....at least you had better not. :-) They are not allowed to play outside unless Keith or I are with them. A friend from work tells me I am a "fun sucker". I can't help it.....I can't stand to see my girls hurt and crying. I want to protect them from harm, but am I going too far??

The other night they were each enjoying one of the dum dum suckers and all kinds of things started running through my head..."what if they fall or run in to something with it in their mouths??"......I had to refrain myself from making them sit in a chair and not move until they were done. It was hard to watch. But....they survived unscrathed from that close brush with injury.

Despite all of our efforts, somehow my girls still seem to find creative ways to injure themselves. Both girls have had stitches now and more bumps and bruises than I can count.

I am not sure where this fear comes from......I cringe now when I think of all the things I did as a child. I climbed as high as I could go in trees. I would climb up on the roof of the sheds on my grandparents farm just to jump off. We would play on the farm equipment (that one really scares me!). And....yikes, we even rode bikes without helmets and didn't even know what a seat belt was! I remember at age 6 riding my bike from our house to my grandparents house all by myself...a good 2 mile bike ride. And yet.....I survived with only the memory of one broken bone and some faint scars here and there......but, oh, the wonderful memories I have of those carefree days!!

Am I sucking the fun out of activities for my girls? Am I being too over protective? Will my fears somehow affect them for life? Chime in here....I need some advice. Should I lighten up?

I have to tell ya though.....there are some things I am just not going to give in on. Nope. Nadda. Today's culture calls for safety measures that were not necessary when I was a child......know what I mean?

Addendum.....I started this post several weeks ago. Since then, Kaci has suffered several more minor bumps and bruises and one bloody nose. I think I am out numbered. Accidents will happen despite our best efforts to prevent them. I can't wrap my girls in bubble wrap. Part of growin up is learning from our mistakes.

Just want to know.....why oh why does it have to be so hard on the Momma???

Scenes from Ande's 5th Birthday

2011-01-03T15:20:00.001-08:00

This is the cake Ande chose for her "at home" party which we had on Sunday afternoon.

Ande loves to dress up and this is the dress to chose to wear to church and then insisted on wearing it the rest of the day!

Enjoying some food at her party.

Ande received a "Hair Stylist" costume and a "Doctor" costume.....she was sweet enough to share them with her little sister. I highly recommend these costumes by Melissa & Doug....they are made very well and the girls love them!

Opening some new earrings for her newly pierced ears!

The remaining pictures are from her party at "work". She picked out a separate cake to share with her friends there. She was so excited to go back to "work" after their Christmas break and show them her new haircut, her newly pierced ears and to celebrate her 5th birthday!

Happy Birthday Ande!

2011-01-03T11:25:00.000-08:00

Dear Ande,

Today you are turning 5 years old!! You are one of the sweetest, most compassionate, gentle little girls I have ever known. While we were waiting for you to come home, I often prayed that you would have a heart of compassion....a heart for others and boy has that prayer been answered!! You are such a little caregiver. When I am not feeling well, you always cheer me up with a hug and tell me you hope I feel better soon. You always remember those who are sick in your bedtime prayers. You comfort your little sister when she is sad or sick. That is such a special and unusual quality to find in a young girl these days. I am so very proud of you!

Your daddy and I prayed for many years for a little girl.....you, my little Ande, were an answer to those prayers! The day God made us a family is forever etched in my memory because it was one of the happiest days of my life! Although we have always been open and honest with you about your adoption.....I don't think that you have yet come to fully understand what that means. Someday you will have questions and I pray that I am able to answer those questions in such a way that you will understand....you are special! You are unique! You are wanted! You are loved! No....I did not carry you for nine months.....I carried you for years in my heart. I knew the moment I looked in to your dark brown eyes that you were my daughter.

On this day, my thoughts turn to the woman who carried you those nine months. I know without a doubt that her decision had to be an agonizing one. I am sure that she made the decisions she did out of love for you and her desire for you to have a better life than she could have provided. I will be forever grateful to her for giving you life. I pray that someday you will come to love her and be as thankful to her as I am.

I know I am not a perfect mother....before you are fully grown, I am sure I will make a lot of mistakes, but I want you to know how very much I love you. I pray everyday that God will help me to be the kind of Momma you deserve.

Love you to the moon and back! Always, forever and no matter what!

Your Momma

So long 2010....Hello 2011!

2011-01-01T03:30:00.000-08:00

We certainly can't complain about 2010......it was a good year for the Callahans!

This was our first full year with Kaci girl. In 2010 she began talking, she can recite her ABCs, count to at least 10, and knows her colors and some shapes. She has blossomed into the most adorable little girl. She is full of spunk....we call her our "happy go lucky" girl because she almost always has a grin on her face! She loves to sing and will break out dancing spontaneously whenever any music comes on with a beat. And....after a slow start, Kaci finally got the hang of the potty training thing and has not looked back!

If you read this blog you know that Kaci is a little challenged in the coordination department.....poor child falls down at least once a day! She's had so many bumps, scrapes, and bruises that we have lost count! 2010 was also the year Kaci had her first stitches.....6 shiny staples in the back of her head after one of her falls. Can't keep this child down though.....the very same day that she got the stitches, she put her chair on top of their little princess table and was climbing up to sit in the chair when Keith caught her! Later that night she was doing somersaults on the living room floor! She's a hoot!

Ande.....what can I say about Ande? She started a pre-K program at her daycare center and is doing amazingly well. She has such a good memory....she amazes us sometimes! We have found that we really have to be careful what we say and the promises we make to Ande because she does not forget and our words often come back to haunt us! Ande is such a little caretaker.....I have fallen asleep in the recliner before and woke up to find myself all covered up with baby blankets!

I suspected that Ande would be a wonderful big sister, but she has blown us away! She is so loving and patient with Kaci. It is not unusual to see them hugging, kissing, and holding hands. They sit in the recliner all snuggled up together and watch TV. If Kaci gets sick or is hurt, Ande worries about her. She will rub her back and tell her, "It be okay, baby". She often helps Kaci (when Kaci will allow it) to get dressed, put on her shoes, or put on her coat. Such a sweet girl!

Our New Year's eve started with dinner at our favorite local steakhouse. Since it was so close to Ande's birthday, we told our waitress and she returned to the table with some of her friends to announce Ande's birthday and let her sit on the saddle while everyone shouted "yee haw!". Ande looked like she was scared to pieces, but giggled about it afterward!

Here's a little "God wink" story for you......as we were on our way to the restaurant Keith asked me if I brought our camera....I hadn't, but thought I would just use the camera on my cell phone. Nope.....the memory was full! I was so disappointed that we would not have any photos of our night out. Then....a very nice gentleman sitting at the table next to ours offered to go out to his car, get his camera and take a couple pictures for us! Not only that, but while talking with him he told us his grandson was adopted from China as well! God is good!

Since it was a special occasion, we decided to let the girls "camp out" on the living room floor with their new sleeping bags...quite an adventure for them. I'd like to say that we laughed and giggled in the New Year, but we were all fast asleep long before the clock struck twelve! Yeah...we're pitiful.

Wishing everyone a wonderful and exciting New Year full of adventures and pleasant surprises with our Savior at the center of it all!!

A Whole Lotta Changing Going On!

2010-12-31T11:16:00.000-08:00

We have always adored Ande's hair.....especially the color. Other than a few trims here and there over the past 4 years, we have just let it grow.....and grow! Lately it had become difficult to manage and was getting in to everything......her food, glue, and even the potty! However, I firmly believe that it is her hair and her decision so about a month ago I planted the seeds that maybe she would want to consider getting some cut off at our next hair appointment. She surprised me by agreeing and finally settled on getting about 6 inches cut.

The big day finally arrived yesterday! However, when we told our beautician that Ande wanted to cut off 6 inches, she told us if she went another 2 inches they could donate it to Locks for Love. Again, Ande surprised me by quickly agreeing! She never waivered! Me....on the other hand, was having second thoughts and actually had to turn away when Tanya began cutting off the pony tail. Oh how I hated to see all that lovely hair go!

But......Ande absolutely loves her new do! She is tickled to pieces and looks at herself in the mirror constantly! She even asked me last night before she went to bed if her hair would still be short when she woke up! When I told her it would be she shouted, "yippee!".

Here are some before & after pictures:

Another change came today. Over the past 4 years we've often been asked when we were going to get Ande's ears pierced. My response was always that they were her ears and it was her decision. I've always told her, when and if she ever wanted to get her ears pierced, we would take her somewhere to get it done.

About 3 weeks ago, Ande started talking about what she wanted for her birthday and I mentioned getting her ears pierced as a possibility. She asked me if it hurt and I told her it did....just like a mosquito bite. She thought about it for a second and then said, "okay!". Surprised me again! I fully expected her to change her mind before the big day arrived, but she never waivered! She has actually worried us to pieces about it for the past 3 weeks!

Today was the big day! She sat on my lap during the entire procedure and never flinched....never cried!! Keith and I were very pleasantly surprised and pleased! We let her pick out her own earrings and she chose her birthstones in a flower shape.....so cute! Our baby girl is growing up so fast!!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-26T02:12:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas! Happy Birthday Jesus! What a whirlwind the past few days have been!

After delivering a few gifts to family Christmas Eve afternoon, we came back home for dinner, gave the girls their baths and settled down to watch The Little Drummer Boy. I was worried I would be up half the night waiting for the girls to settled down and go to sleep, but I shouldn't have worried.......they were out like a light within minutes! I think the excitement of the past few days finally took it's toll on them!

This is Ande & Kaci on Christmas Eve morning.....chilling out on our bed watching Ni Hao Kai Lan.

Making sugar cookies!

Here the girls are later that day spreading magic reindeer food on the front yard.

I have to tell you this.......a few days ago Keith and Ande were talking as they were on their way home from daycare and Keith asked Ande what she liked best about Christmas, she replied that she liked that we celebrate Jesus' birthday and that we spend time with family!!! Our hearts were about to burst! We have been trying so hard to keep Christ at the center of our Christmas festivities and it is good to know we are getting through!

Christmas morning, Keith & I were up at 4:00 a.m. getting our showers and getting ready for the day. My mother got here at 4:30 a.m.! We turned on the Christmas lights, lit candles, had Christmas music playing softly in the background, readied our cameras.......and made coffee! At about 5:30 a.m. we went in and got the girls........they had all of their gifts torn open in about 18 minutes flat!! We then spent the majority of the rest of the day trying to get them out of their packaging and figure out how they work! Of course, every gift they received as now been opened and played with! Ande only had 3 things on her wish list this year......a fishy, a bed for her baby doll, and a camera (like Mommy's).......she was blessed with all 3 (plus some) and boy, was she happy!! She has named her little fish, "Jonah". Ande and Kaci each got new baby dolls that look Asian.....they were ticked pink!

Before the 2 little whirlwinds named Ande & Kaci came through!

Hanging out in their new chairs.

Ande has been entertaining us all day with her new stage microphone. It's pretty cool.....it has lights, a drum roll and applause.....and it's very loud!

Kaci surrounded by some of her tresures.

Ande with her new baby whom she has named Molly after one of her Gotcha sisters.

Kaci.....winding down for the day.

Now we are trying very patiently to teach the girls to put one toy away before they pull out another......we are not having much success at this point and may have to resort to more drastic measures! At one point during the day (while Momma was trying to take a nap).....they had practically every toy strewn out on the living room floor......there was not even a path to walk! How can 2 such sweet little girls make such a huge mess??!!

Keith & I joined forces and made our annual big Christmas breakfast of sausage gravy with biscuits, bacon, eggs, and hashbrown potatoes. Keith makes the best sausage gravy! After the biscuits got out of the oven, the turkey went in for our dinner. Later that morning, as I was preparing some of the food for dinner, I looked out the window and it was snowing like crazy! It did not snow enough to accumulate, but to see the snow falling for those few minutes sure did add to the Christmas mood!

We had some friends and family stop by during the day and then my Mom came back over to enjoy dinner with us. The Lord truly blessed us with a very nice day!

May you have the gift of FAITH
the blessing of HOPE and the
PEACE of His love at Christmas
and always!

MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!!

Making Memories

2010-12-19T03:15:00.000-08:00

We've been busy making Christmas memories with the girls this past week. Unfortunately, my brain was not functioning at full capacity & I didn't think to grab the camera for some of the things we did. But one thing is for sure.......we are having a great time making the memories! If you read my last post.....I am feeling better. The Lord is doing a work in me, but that's another post for another day! Right now, I'd rather blog about my girls!!

Last weekend we made a batch of Christmas cookies and some other goodies, like chocolate fudge, butter pecan fudge (loved it!), peppermint bark, spiced pecans, and peanut brittle. The girls helped as much as they could......especially when it came to crushing the candy canes for the peppermint bark!

We went out to dinner one night at one of our favorite local restaurants, Kay's Kitchen (or as Ande calls it, Kitchen Kays), and then we rode around looking at all of the beautiful Christmas lights while listening to one of our favorite Christmas CDs. We decided to rate the houses we saw on a scale from 1 to 10. The girls were much more generous with their rating than Keith & I.....they were happy with just a few lights.....which is a good thing since we only managed to get a few lights up at our own house!

We've had our Christmas tree up for about 2 weeks, but just got around to decorating it last Sunday afternoon. The girls have not gotten the knack yet of spreading around the ornaments and balancing out the tree.....so most of the decorations were focused in a few spots at the bottom of the tree. It was too cute! They will get the hang of it some day, but for now, I just want to remember them like this!

One evening this week, Keith decided to break out his train set.....the girls were so excited! I gave them baths while he got it set up and the girls kept saying, "hurry up Mommy!" This is from girls who usually like to stay in the tub and play until the water gets cold! They loved watching the train go round and round and hearing the whistle blow! Daddy even let them take turns at running the controls!

On Thursday, we got about 4-5 inches of snow here in Maryland. The girls were jumping up and down with excitement and begging to go out and play in it after they got home from daycare. Our first instinct had been to say "no" because Keith and I were both tired from working all day....we had supper to fix.....baths to take......laundry to do......not to mention it was cold out there! But.....we thought about it and decided all that stuff could wait......we needed to have a little fun, so we bundled up, pulled on our boots, and grabbed the sled! We only stayed out about 30 minutes before it started getting dark, but the girls had a blast!! (and so did Mom & Dad)!!

We finished off the week by going to a drive thru live nativity at an area church on Friday night.......it was so touching and we all enjoyed seeing the actors and live animals. There were about 7 different stations to slow down and view with music and some even had narrations describing the scenes. It ended with Jesus on the cross and being risen from the tomb. As cars were exiting, Santa and Mrs. Claus were shaking hands and passing out candy canes. Up until now, Ande would not even look in Santa's direction when we go to the mall, but this time she reached out and shook hands with him! A break through! Kaci, on the other hand, is still not ready to get anywhere near him!

After the live nativity, we headed to a fast food place.....you know, the one with the cow. We enjoyed dinner with some good friends who met us there. A perfect ending to the week!

Life's no fun

2010-12-13T15:27:00.001-08:00

Anybody out there remember these song lyrics?

"I'm in a hurry to get things done
Oh I rush and rush until life's no fun
All I really gotta do is live and die
But I'm in a hurry and don't know why"

These words perfectly describe how I am feeling these days.

I feel like I am rushing all the time.

I feel like I am swimming against the current.

I find myself short tempered....impatient.....and just generally grumpy.

I don't like myself when I am like this......and I'm pretty sure my family doesn't like it much either.

Something's gotta give.

Pray for me if you think about it.

Pray the Lord will lead me to or send me a passage that will speak directly to my heart.

Pray for my family too......I'm not much fun to live with these days.

Twinkle Twinkle

2010-12-01T15:50:00.000-08:00

The girls love to sing and perform for us. I filmed this during the Thanksgiving holiday. The lighting is not so great, but the girls are just so darn cute! Notice Kaci's belly.....I think maybe I need to buy the child some new shirts!

Oh....and don't forget to go to the bottom of this page and turn off my music before starting the video.

Picture Update

2010-12-01T15:27:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pictures we've taken over the past few months. Enjoy!

Kaci looking serious while "talking" on her cell phone.

Sisters.....they get along so well (well....the majority of the time anyway)!!

I'd hadn't been feeling well for a few days and Ande presented me with these flowers one day when I came home from work.....such a sweetie pie!

We took these pictures of the girls in their costumes shortly before we left to go to our Church's Harvest Festival I'm not biased or anything, but aren't they just adorable???

Our little pilgrims posing in the hats they made at "work"......can you feel the love??

Oh So Thankful!

2010-11-26T14:49:00.000-08:00

We have oh so very much to be thankful for! I am thankful for a loving and forgiving God who loves me despite all of my faults. I am thankful for my little family....thankful that God chose me to be Mommy for the two bestest, brightest, cutest little girls in the world. Thankful for a loving husband who is handy around the house and a wonderful Daddy. Thankful for my family. Thankful for our church family who is always there when we need them. Thankful for our friends,.....our health....for good food.....our home.....our jobs......and on and on and on!

We spent Thanksgiving at home this year. I cooked.....and cooked and cooked! My mother and neice and 2 nephews (and one girlfriend) came as well. We enjoyed the time to catch up on each others lives. Ande and Kaci enjoyed pestering their cousin, Destany! And everyone went home with really full tummies! I was so busy, I forgot to take many pictures, but I do have a couple really cute ones of the girls I will post as soon as I download them.

Praying that those of you who follow our blog and read this had a blessed Thanksgiving as well!

Celebrating our Forever Family

2010-10-27T12:14:00.001-07:00

Keith and I took the day off today and we kept the girls out of daycare. We wanted to spend Kaci's Family day together....as a family. Today is the one year anniversary of the day Kaci became a Callahan.....her adoption day.....the day it became official.

We have been wanting to have a new family photo done...one that included Kaci girl and this seemed like the perfect time to get it done. So, off we went to the Mall! Here are a couple of the pictures we had done....pretty nice, huh?

Later this evening we are meeting Ande & Kaci's god-parents at a local Chinese restaurant for dinner. The girls love Dennis & Sandy and enjoy spending time with them....they have been looking forward to it all day! Perfect ending to a perfect day!

Then and Now

2010-10-26T19:28:00.001-07:00

Kaci Then - Gotcha Day 10/26/2009

Kaci Now!

Letter to Kaci

2010-10-26T18:57:00.000-07:00

Our Sweet Kaci Girl....

Exactly one year ago today we met you for the very first time. You came to us kicking and screaming. You were not at all as happy to meet us as we were to meet you. You mourned the loss of your friends and caretakers greatly for many days, but slowly you began to understand that we loved you and wanted to make you a part of our family.....to make you our daughter. It pained us to watch you grieve, but we knew that it was a good thing....we knew that, as hard as it was, you were showing us that you did have the capacity to trust and to love. We knew that with time and patience, you would also come to trust and love us. Gradually you did begin showing us glimpses of the "real you".....the happy, mischievious, energetic little girl within!

Over the past year, it has been our privilege and honor to watch you blossom! You have endless energy and an infectious giggle. You light up a room with your smiles! Your hugs and kisses have become second nature. It was always my prayer that you and Ande would be more than sisters.....that you would be best friends and confidants and I see that prayer being answered before my very eyes. You love your big sister and she adores you!

Your daddy and I are so very happy and honored to call you our daughter. You truly are a gift from God. You are an amazing little girl.....ornery, mischievious, funny, and quick witted! You have so many facial expressions and we love to just sit and watch you.....laughing at your antics!

You have come so far this past year. You have overcome so many obstacles. You have made so much progress and have learned so much. Your favorite things are singing and dancing....just turn on some music and you will start to move to the beat and try to sing along. So sweet.

You don't know this, but sometimes I sneek in your bedroom while you are sleeping and just sit by your bed staring at you.....stroking your soft cheek. Tears fill my eyes and my heart feels like it is about to burst with the love that fills it. I feel so blessed....so very blessed. I wonder if you know how much you are loved our little Kaci girl.....I pray that you do....I pray that you always will.

Forever, For Always and No Matter What!

Much Love,

Your Momma

Pumpkins & Such

2010-10-08T15:49:00.000-07:00

This is my weekend to work, so after work today we took the girls to a local pumpkin patch that advertised "pick your own pumpkins". Well.....it wasn't exactly what we had expected. The pumpkins had already been cut and were scattered about a huge field......you just walked around and picked the ones you wanted. Kind of funny! We found out later that the original pumpkin patch had been destroyed by an infestation of stink bugs and they had to bring pumpkins in from another farm. Oh well.....the girls didn't know the difference. They still had fun picking out their own pumpkins.

Last year this time we were busy preparing for our trip to China to bring Kaci girl home and we were actually in China during Halloween so we didn't bother decorating for fall or even buying any pumpkins. We are so happy to be a family of four celebrating the fall season this year....it's always been our favorite time of the year. God has been so good to us.....we are so very blessed. Happy fall, y'all!

Success!

2010-09-26T03:53:00.000-07:00

Kaci has finally gotten the hang of it!!.....potty training that is! We had been working on Kaci's potty training for over 3 months. I was trying very hard to be patient, but last Friday was very frustrating and I lost it a little. *sigh* In my frustration, I looked at Kaci and said, "Kaci, I just don't know what else to do.....we've tried candy, we've tried stickers, we've tried praising you, we've bought you your very own big girl panties.....but it's not working and I'm really frustrated. I know you know when you have to go.....you've proven that to me. Now YOU need to tell me what I need to do. Do I just need to be more patient?" Kaci nodded her head "yes". "Do I just need to keep loving on you?" She again nodded her head "yes". I said, "OK...I can do that." and I scooped her up for a big hug.

The very next day, it was as though a switch had been flipped.....she began coming to us on her own saying "potty" when she needed to go (and sometimes even when she didn't). I decided to give her big girl panties a try again since we were planning to be home most of the day. She only had one accident all day! Saturday evening she even got a little upset at bedtime when I put her pull-up on her, but I quickly explained that it was only for night time.

The next few days were much of the same.....only a couple of accidents. I am very happy to report though, that the last 4 days have been accident free! By george, I think she's got it!! She's so cute......as soon as she goes potty she says, "sticker"! Kaci loves her stickers!

She's still working on her night time training, but 4 of that last 7 mornings, she has woken with a dry pull-up! I can deal with that! It was so nice to go to S@m's Club yesterday and not have to purchase that $30.00 honkin' box of pull-ups!

Ande's Prayer

2010-09-09T14:58:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago, Ande finally got to the point where she feels comfortable saying her bed time prayers out loud.....so precious! It goes something like this:

Dear God,
Thank you for my mommy
Thank you for my daddy
Thank you for my mom-mom
Thank you for my sister
Thank you for my church family
Thank you for my work family
Thank you for Jesus
Amen

I pray God is smiling.....I am!

Pre-School & Potty Training Blues

2010-08-26T15:00:00.000-07:00

Changes are happenin' here in the Callahan household.....some too quickly.....some not quite quickly enough!

Ande officially started pre-school this week. Our girl is growing up so fast. As one of our other travel families said...."Weren't we just in Chin@??" Certainly seems that way!

Ande is super excited about this new phase of her life. She's smart as a whip and soaks up information like a big ole sponge. We could have sent her to our local elemenary school for their 1/2 day pre-k program, but since our daycare center offers a pre-k program, we opted for that to avoid having to send Ande out on the school bus every day and to keep her with her little sis who is still becoming adjusted to daycare. She's growing up much too quickly.....too quickly I say!

Now for the change that is not happening quite as quickly as I would like.....potty training Kaci. Compared to Ande (who potty trained pretty much overnight).....Kaci is proving to be much, much more of a challenge!

We've tried positive reinforcements including M&Ms and stickers. We've let her pick out her very own brand new big girl panties (Elmo of course). We've praised her and done the potty dance. Problem is that she does use the potty....when she feels like it. She is not consistent at all.

Most recently she has become quite the little potty inspector. Every where we go, she suddenly has to use the potty, but only about 10% of the time does she ever actually go.

We were on vacation a few weeks ago as our daycare center was closed and I was home with the girls for a couple of days. I thought it would be the perfect time to really work with Kaci on potty training. Not. We tried letting her wear her new big girl panties....that worked...about one time. After that....not so much. We tried letting her run about without any bottoms on at all. That also worked...about once. After that I had to break out the steam cleaner.

The only thing that came out of that experience was that Kaci's Momma now has a couple more gray hairs....or a few less hairs from pulling them out!!

Last week she told me she had to go potty....I sat her on the potty and she sat and sat....nothing. After 10 minutes or so, I took her off. I checked her pull-up about 5 minutes later and it was soaking wet....still warm! Little stinker. I'm one frustrated Momma.

I trying real hard to be patient....I'm praying about it. She's just not ready. The problem is....I am and so is our pocket book. We're spending probably $75.00 a month on pull-ups.

She'll get there I know. Just pray it is before I have a complete nervous breakdown!

One More Less Orphan...PTL!

2010-08-22T10:33:00.000-07:00

Praise the Lord.....there is going to be one more less orphan thanks to a wonderful family, The Johnsons, who have an amazingly strong faith and an equally amazing heart for orphans. Click here to go to their webiste "One More Ladybug" or click the link on my sidebar entitled "Here We Grow Again".

This family is in the process of adopting their 9th....yes, I said 9th child. 6 of the 9 will have been adopted from Chin@!

We have come to know the Johnson family through the adoption community. They were actually in Chin@ completing their 2nd adoption at the same exact time we were there adopting Ande in April 2007, but we did not have an opportunity to meet them on that trip as we adopted from different provinces.

When I was feeling the tug to adopt for a 2nd time, but was struggling with the decision, I e-mailed Connie for advice. She was kind enough to take the time to e-mail back to me offering words of support and encouragement. She was instrumental in our decision to pursue our adoption of Kaci.

Then.....the Lord led us all back to Chin@ again last year and our adoptions happened in the very same province. They were there to adopt not 1, but 2 children! A 13 year old boy and a 2 year old girl! We had the priviledge of meeting them in person and shared lunch with them one day. What a truly amazing family they are.....I have no words to describe their incredible faith and commitment to the orphan. After that, we ran in to them during the remainder of our trip......seeing them at the Medical Clinic in Guangzhou....at the US Consulate during our swearing in ceremony.....and at the airport as we were leaving to come home.

While I would absolutely love to adopt again.....and believe me, it's been crossing my mind quite a lot lately.....I don't think that's where God is leading me at this time and I am saddened by that. However.....I can still help these precious children by financially supporting a family who is adopting and you can too! The Johnsons are a very worthy family and after having completed 5 adoptions in 4 years.....they can surely use the support. Won't you please consider helping them in their fundraising efforts? Please pray about it!!

Ut oh! Too Much Info!

2010-08-20T17:21:00.000-07:00

I am starting to really regret something......I regret allowing Ande to watch Baby Story on TLC. She loves babies and loves to watch or read anything that includes babies. I really thought that allowing her to watch Baby Story wouldn't be that big of a deal....until yesterday.

Yesterday as I was preparing dinner, Ande & Kaci were playing with their dolls in the living room. I could hear them talking back and forth and was half listening to them as I was working. At one point I hear Ande tell Kaci...."You be the mommy with a baby in her tummy." Kaci agrees. Then Ande says, "It's time to go to hospital....over here Kaci.....this is the hospital.....lay down". At this point, my ears really perk up and I start paying closer attention.

I look and Kaci is laying on the floor and Ande is standing at her feet. Ande then says, "Push Kaci, push!". Well.....I have to admit, a combination of emotions hit me......anger at myself, shock, and.....humor.

I didn't want to make a big deal of it......cause making a big deal in my opinion would just raise their curiousity. So.....I quickly diverted their attention and got them interested in something a little less.....adult.

My girl is growing up way too fast as it is.......I'm not going to do anything else that speeds up the process. No more Baby Story for my baby!

We're officially Campers!!

2010-08-14T11:59:00.001-07:00

Years ago......before children......Keith and I had a small pop-up camper and we loved it. We never went far......just within the Delmarva area, but we really enjoyed it. We sold it when we first started thinking about pursuing adoption many years ago and often dreamed of the day we would buy another camper and introduce our children to the adventures of camping. Well, that day has finally come!

About 6 weeks ago, we decided to start looking for a gently used travel trailer and finally found just the right one. It needed a little work and some TLC, but after a couple of weeks of working on it as we had the time (and energy) we were finally ready to set out on our first adventure. The girls were super excited.....all Ande talked about for days was making smores!

Friends of ours rent a cottage at a campground in Pennsylvani@ every August and we thought it would be the perfect place for our maiden voyage......spending a few days in Amish country with good friends....perfect! We knew that if we were able to manuever the camper up and down those hills and along those narrow, winding roads.....we could handle just about anything. I have to admit that there were moments when I felt we were recreating scenes from the Lucy & Ricky movie....."The Long, Long Trailer"!! But, other than one close call with a curb as we tried to turn in to a parking lot.....all went well!!

The campground was very nice.....a store, laundry, game room, dance hall, 2 swimming pools, playground, miniature golf course, and decent bath houses. Lots to do! Not to mention the many places to visit and eat in the surrounding Lancaster county area. We certainly did not lack for anything to do nor did we go hungry! Oh....and of course, we made smores around the campfire our last night there!

There were just 2 small problems.....Ande complained the entire trip about her mouth hurting and I feared it was the tooth that we had scheduled to have crowned the following week. I kept putting @nbesol on it and giving her tylen@l. As soon as we got back home I called the dentist and he was able to fit us in the very next morning. Fortunately, her tooth was just fine! The problem was a large ulcer at the very back of her mouth under her tongue....poor baby! Good thing was that because of the weather that morning (a terrible thunderstorm hit the area), the dentist had a cancellation and was able to go ahead with crowning Ande's tooth while we were there to save us a trip back the next week! God is good!

The 2nd problem was our little accident prone 3 year old!! We had only been at the campground for about 10 minutes when Kaci tipped over her fold-up chair and fell to the ground....scraping her forehead and biting through her bottom lip. Only this child could fall from a chair 5 inches off the ground and hurt herself! But....she's one tough cookie and didn't let it slow her down one bit!

We are hoping to squeeze in one or two more camping trips this year before the season is over. Who knows where we will end up next year!

Here we are getting the camper ready.

Here is what the girls were doing while we were busy working on the camper....fun in the sprinkler!

This was Kaci during the 3 hour trip....our energizer bunny!

And....this was Ande. Sound asleep....looks uncomfortable, huh?

Here are some other miscellaneous pictures from our trip:

HAPPY TRAILS!!

A Hoot!

2010-07-29T17:02:00.000-07:00

My girls are a hoot....both of them!! I don't think a day goes by that one or the other of them doesn't do or say something that causes me to either burst out laughing or shake my head in amazement!

Kaci has recently developed a habit of asking, "What doin', Mommy?" She must ask me that question 20 times a day.....no joke! Sometimes...especially when we are in the car going somewhere and Keith and I are deep in conversation.....she will start yelling.....Mom....Mom.....Mom.....Mommy.......Mommeeeeeeee! Getting louder each time. We are trying to teach her not to interrupt. When I finally ask her what she wants, she will say....."Ummmmm, ummmmm, ummmmmm....." She never has anything to say....she just wants my attention....little stinker.

Kaci is also a tad bit.....how shall I say it?.......clumbsy! She is an accident waiting to happen. In the past 8 months she has fallen off the bed, off the couch (several times) and down the steps. She trips over her own feet just walking across the floor and has bumped her head so many times I've lost count.....several bumps have been pretty bad too! One time she fell and caused a rug burn on her nose. The other night she and Ande were rough housing and Kaci ended up with a bloody nose. I don't think we need worry about her being a dancer or having any occupation that requires coordination. She's just like her Momma.....poor dear!

And Ande.....you just never know what is going to come out of this child's mouth!! The other night we were at a stop light and Ande was trying to ask me a question....but little sis Kaci was not cooperating and kept interrupting her. At one point Ande had had enough and she yelled....."Kaci, you want a piece of me?" Well needless to say....I was no good!!

Last week Ande was sick with a stomach virus. That first morning, I had just gotten out of the shower and see Ande standing there....I could tell by the look on her face something was up....
Me: "What's wrong, baby?"
Ande: "I fro up"
Me: "You did? Where?"
Ande: "In my underwear"

If she wasn't feeling so bad....I would have laughed out loud. Poor baby.

And speaking of hoot.....I had the opportunity to see Paul@ Deen at the Delaware State Fair last Friday night. She is truly a hoot.....quite a colorful and talented lady. I enjoyed seeing her immensely and.....even better....I got to spend the evening with 5 of the nicest and funniest ladies around! We had a wonderful Girls Night Out!

Happy Day....What a Difference!

2010-07-18T14:26:00.000-07:00

Wow!! What a difference a year makes (or almost 9 months with her forever family)! The following pictures were taken last July while Kaci was still in the orphanage. We arranged to have a birthday cake sent to the orphanage for Kaci along with some small gifts.

Such a sad, sad face.......you would think she would have been excited....to have cake....which was a very special treat, but poor baby girl just looks so lost, alone and afraid. Hurts my heart to think of her having to go through that.

Here at home, we were also having a party with some friends to remember Kaci on her special day and lift her up in prayer. Although we did not know it at the time, we were just 3 months away from meeting her.

This year was different.

On Friday, we took a big Elmo birthday cake (she is really "in" to Elmo right now) to Kaci's daycare for her to share with all the other children there. I wish you could have seen her little face when we showed her the cake....pure joy! When I arrived to pick her up, she was sitting at the table all by herself....still eating her cake! The staff said she was really taking her time and enjoying every last morsel of her cake.....she had been sitting there for over 30 minutes! Bless her little heart!

Here are some pictures they took for us. She still looks kind of lost and sad in these pictures doesn't she?

But I tell ya....she may be shy & quiet at daycare, but this child comes to life at home!! Constant giggles and chatter.....constant movement....that's our Kaci girl!

We had been planning to have some friends over on Saturday for a little birthday celebration/cook-out, but....wouldn't ya know it.....I came down with something and we decided to postpone the party. I knew the way I was feeling I would never have the enery to get my house cleaned & prepare all the food for the party....nor did I want to chance spreading my germs!

So....we just had a quiet little celebration here at home with our own little cookout. presents and an ice cream cake from D@iry Queen. Yum yum. Of course, Elmo was the theme of the day! Take a peek at these pics.....happy girl, huh?? That's our Kaci.

Think About It

2010-07-01T04:45:00.000-07:00

I hinted in a recent post about some things someone said to me that really bothered me. I'm sure she didn't mean to offend me....she probably isn't even aware that she did. One of these days.....I am very nicely going to enlighten her.

I'm trying real hard not to be judgmental....I struggle with that. But, first I have to pull the telephone pole out of my own eye. It breaks my heart to say this, but it could have been me saying these words 10 years ago....before I had Jesus in my heart....before someone enlightened me. Jesus changes things.....He changes people.....He changed me!! I thank God everyday for it! And because He changed me, there are 2 less orphans in the world today. Praise the Lord!

A few weeks ago, this person and I were having a conversation and she was asking me about our adoptions. She asked if I would adopt again.....and I told her that right now I feel our family is complete, but that if God laid another adoption on my heart, then....yes, absolutely, I would consider adopting again. At this point, she said....."You should really reconsider that.....2 children is plenty. Just wait a couple of years when your 2 are involved in sports and clubs and you are running all over the place with them....you'll have enough to do with the 2 you've got." That comment has really bothered me......it made me sad.

Does she not realize that there are MILLIONS of children out there sitting alone and scared in an orphanage with no family to love them??

Sorry kid.....we have the room, we have the funds.....we just don't have the time to fool with you because we are too busy spoiling the kids we already have!!?? Something's not right with this picture. Sounds a tad bit selfish to my ears. Am I wrong? Is there something I don't know.....is it a rule that kids must be involved in every sport....every activity out there or their childhood will be ruined? Would our children be deprived....scarred for life if we cut back on some of their extra activities so that we could adopt another child who has no home.....no family?

To think for even one milli-second that a child is not worth making some self sacrifice...well, it makes my heart hurt....really hurt. Really sad part is that I know she is not the only person out there who feels this way. Double sad. :-(

And then.....a few days ago we were having a conversation about the extravagance of celebrities.....like the $350,000.00 car a certain celeb purchased for his 16 year old son's birthday. I commented about how many children that money could have helped and then she started going on about how celebrities need to help out people here "at home" before they started going to other countries spending millions helping people there when we have people right here in our own country that need help. Guess she forgot we adopted from China, huh?

Explain to me just what makes the people here at home more deserving of someone's generosity. Aren't we all flesh and blood? Aren't we all God's children regardless of where we happen to reside in this big ole world? Doesn't matter whether they are across the street or across the world....if they need help....help them if you can! I'm not saying we don't have plenty of people right here in the good ole USA that need help right now, but we are far from being a Third World Country. You do not hear of thousands of people dying daily from starvation or a lack of basic medical care here.

Think about it......$350,000.00 could have helped at least 12 families adopt 12 children. Look at it this way.....12 orphans could have a family....12 children could have a soft, warm, comfortable bed to sleep in.....would have a tummy full of nutritious food.....would have someone to kiss their hurts.....would have someone to comfort them when they are scared or sick.....would have someone tell them a bed time story....would have someone to hug and hold them...would have someone to love and be loved by. Think. About. It.

Okay....I'm done....I'm stepping off my soap box...for now.

One boring week.....please!!

2010-06-28T18:25:00.000-07:00

This past week has been quite a wild ride.....crazy actually! Vacation Bible School......our doggie Hercules passing away.....work......traveling for work.....dentist appointment.....doctor's appointment.....Keith's dad being hospitalized....potty training.....and top it off with Kaci taking a dive head first off our front porch steps this morning. Get the picture? Crazy.

Last week we helped with and attended VBS at our church.....the girls had a blast and could not wait to get back there every night. Kaci made a liar out of me. I just knew that she would stick to Keith & I like glue all week and scream if we got out of her sight, but after just a few hours that first night.....she was off and running! She'd walk by me with her pre-school group.....look up at me....smile and say, "Hi Mommy!"....and keep right on walking with her group!!

Both she and Ande LOVED the music! During the opening & closing of VBS each night, they would sing songs and do little hand motions to them. Both girls caught on very quickly. They were still singing the songs even today...so cute!

Then there was this morning.......just as we were leaving the house to take Kaci to her ear doctor appointment, she took a spill head first down the cement steps of our front porch bumping her head on an old antique wrought iron pot we have sitting out there. Usually she stands at the top of the steps and waits for me to hold her hand to steady her as she goes down, but lately, she's been testing her independence and this morning was one of those times. I saw her lose her balance and start to fall but I just could not react fast enought to stop her. I just scooped her up and held her close. Amazingly, she really didn't cry too much. When I finally pulled her away from me to take a look......the first thing I saw was the big old bump on her forehead. Scared this Momma silly! I ran with her in to the house and got an ice pack out of the freezer. If you have little kids.....those ice packs are a necessity!

I thought briefly about calling to cancel our doctor's appointment, but then thought....what better place to take her?? The doctor did tell me to keep an eye on her through out the day and if she started vomiting, lost her appetite or became lethargic....to get her to the ER right away. Fortunately, none of those symptoms appeared and she was back to being her giggling, silly self this evening!

I did check her over real good in the bath tub tonight and she does not appear to have a single bruise or scratch anywhere else on her entire body.....just her poor little face. I thank God it was not any worse. It makes me right sick to think about how much worse it could have been. God was certainly looking out for us this morning!

Don't know about you, but I am praying the Lord blesses us with a quiet, down-right boring week. We could just a break!

Good-bye Hercules

2010-06-24T17:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we lost a member of our family.....one of our beloved dogs, Hercules. We adopted Hercules in September of 1999 as a 8 week old pup. He and I shared the same birthday, July 11th. He would have been 11 years old in just a few weeks.....fairly old for a chihuahua.

We named him Hercules because we wanted our little pup to have a BIG name.....and it got laughs from many people to hear us call his name and see a little dog come trotting out!

Hercules was our "baby boy"....he was such a sweetie. He was not a cuddly lap dog....although he loved to be loved on. He was a bit hyper and never stayed still for long. When he was excited, he would run laps around our living room couch.....racing faster and faster around and around!

I often say that we should have named him "Linus" after the Charlie Brown character who carried around his blanket because ever since Hercules was a pup, he carried around a blanket. He would drag that blanket everywhere....it was his constant companion! He actually had 2.....one I would give him while I washed the other. He preferred the green one and you could tell by the looks of it that it was well loved! He would jump up on our couch and pull that blanket up there with him and then he would "nurse" on the blanket often falling asleep with it still in his mouth! He was a character....that was our "Herkie". Keith buried him with his blanket....just as it should be.

We love you baby boy. You are missed. Good-bye Herkie.

Touched

2010-06-18T15:18:00.000-07:00

I found this animated video on the blog of a fellow adoptive parent and just felt the need to share it. It's about 4 minutes long. I hope you will take the time to watch it all. More than that....I hope it touches your heart as it did mine....so much so that you will feel burdened to do something.

**Before starting the video, please go to the bottom of this page and turn off the music player.

Hope is Fading from Allan Rosenow on Vimeo.

There are over 140 million orphans around the world. I know that not every family is capable or willing to adopt, but everyone IS CAPABLE of helping in some way.....small way....large way....doesn't matter....just help them. Foster a child....donate to someone's adoption fund (even if you don't know them....gasp!!).....donate funds to an orphanage....donate needed items to an orphanage......donate to an adoption assistance organization.....sponsor a child.....help pay for a child's medical procedure....pray for the orphans.....the list goes on & on. With so many ways to help.....everyone is capable to doing something....anything to help these dear children.

Below I have compiled a list and links to organizations who offer adoption assistance and a link to organizations who support orphans by offering assistance for their needs. Take a peek at a few of them.....I dare you. I pray your heart will be touched and that you will be burdened to help in some way. Some of the links have more links to even more organizations.

I've had something else laying heavy on my heart lately too......some things that were said to me by someone I know. They were said out of ignorance, but that did not lessen the sting....the hurt...the sadness. I will share it with you soon.

Adoption Assistance:
A Child Waits
James Fund
Gift of Adoption
Sea of Faces
Abba Fund

Organizations Assisting Orphans
An Orphan's Wish
Love Without Boundaries
Christian Alliance for Orphans
Morning Star Foundation
World Vision

Graduation!!

2010-06-08T11:57:00.000-07:00

Graduation! Today, I had a small glimpse in to the future.....and I didn't like it much. My girls are growing up WAY to fast! Today they had a graduation ceremony at their daycare center.....complete with paper graduation hats! Ande graduated up to the Pre-School class and Kaci will be moving to the 3 year old class. I am so proud of our girls! I could tell Ande was excited.....Kaci? Not so much. Just moments before they called her name, she started to cry....crying for her Momma. Broke my heart. Kaci is a child of routine....if anything happens to throw her off her routine.....like seeing Momma at daycare in the middle of the day....it throws her off kilter and she is done. Fortunately, she settles back down quickly if you can get her mind on to something else.

Progress Report

2010-06-03T18:14:00.000-07:00

It's been just over 7 months since Kaci came home. Hard to believe....isn't it?? She has made so much progress these past few months.......leaps and bounds. Just a few months ago, we tested out as being developmentally at 24 months, but I know if they tested her again today, she would be right on target or even better!

She is saying new words every day and while we still have some trouble in understanding her....it's getting better and she always manages to get her point across. Just last night her Daddy was teasing her about something and she told him, "not nice!".....clear as could be! Oh....and when you call her name, she yells out "what?". She is having some trouble saying "Ande"....it comes out sounding more like "Nah Nah", but we are used to it now and I even find myself referring to Ande as Nah Nah.

We are right in the midst of potty training right now too and have made some big strides over the past few weeks. I can see that Kaci is going to be much different than the experience we had with Ande. Ande basically made up her mind to start using the potty one day and that was it....she never looked back. Kaci, on the other hand, is proving to be a little more challenging, but she'll get the hang of it soon!

Kaci is able to run, go up and down steps on her own and ride her tricyle. She jumps up and down, spins around and climbs up on everything (the bunk bed, our bed, the stools in the kitchen). She is fearless.....well, of most things.....she still won't get "in" the sand box and she doe not like the foam soap someone gave them for Christmas. She will actually scream and cry if you try to put it on her!

The girl has rhythm too! Whenever she hears music that has a "beat", she will start to bob her head and move to the beat of the music. It's too cute!

She loves to sing and do the motions to the little songs they have learned at "work". One of these days I will figure out how to load video so you can see how cute Ande and Kaci are when they perform some of their little songs for us....simply adorable!

Last week we had a small flat mole on Kaci's upper arm evaluated by a dermatologist at the recommendation of our pediatrician. It's called a congenital nevus. Fortunately, due to it's small size, the chances are low that it will ever develop into anything....so we are just going to wait and watch.

Tomorrow we have a follow-up appointment with the pediatric cardiologist. I'm anxious to see if there has been any change. Quite honestly....I forget that the child even has a heart condition.....she seems so healthy and eats very well! Despite her very healthy appetite, she has not really gained all that much weight since we've been home. She is still pretty small for her age. She be 3 next month and is still wearing 24 month clothes.....and some of the bottoms, I have to use a safety pin to keep them from falling down. My nick name for her is "Little Bit".

She is our little night owl. She will lay awake in bed for 30-45 minutes after we put her to bed. We can hear her in there talking and singing. She can also delay getting up in the morning with the best of any teenager! She's quite a little grump first thing in the morning, but thankfully it doesn't last long and she is her cheerful, happy little self.

Kaci is such a happy little girl....usually has a smile on her face. She is quite ornery and has such a playful, happy go lucky personality. Everywhere we go, people tell us how adorable she is. Funny thing is.....most people don't even notice the scar on her lip.....they are just drawn in by the huge grin on her face and that impish little giggle she has!

Just last week, Kaci spontaneously leaned over and gave me a kiss on the cheek for the very first time....it was such a sweet, memorable moment. She is doing it more and more now and she will also repeat "Wuv you" after we say it to her.

We are so very happy that we answered God's call to adopt again and that we took a giant leap of faith in adopting a child with special needs. We feel so very blessed!

Kaci baby....you've come a long way!!

Our Girlies

2010-05-31T13:48:00.000-07:00

I took a lot of pictures this weekend and managed to get a few of each of the girls that captured their individual "cuteness".

Ande has a quiet beauty. She is a sensitive child with tender feelings and a heart of gold!

When Kaci smiles, she lights up a room! You don't notice the scar on her lip or her crooked teeth.....you are drawn in by her playful personality!

We thank God every day for our darling daughters.....who are adorable inside and out!

P.S. Pay no mind to the mark on the end of Kaci's nose....she took a spill on the carpet a few days ago & got rug burn. :-)

Memorial Day Fun!

2010-05-31T13:20:00.000-07:00

I hope and pray that everyone reading this had a safe and happy Memorial Day weekend. Us.....we stuck close to home and let the girls enjoy their new playset. They would have spent every waking moment out there had we let them!

This is how Kaci sits in the swing.....with half her backside hanging out the back....but, the girl loves to swing and the higher, the better!

Mmmm....enjoying a cold summertime treat.....an ice pop!

Fun on the tire swing!

A view from above.

Fun in the sandbox!

Notice that Kaci is not actually "in" the sandbox.....she refuses....doesn't like the feel of the sand on her feet!

I don't get it.

2010-05-23T16:37:00.000-07:00

Maybe this wasn't a big deal when I was growing up.......or maybe I'm just too old to remember it being a big deal. ;-) In any event.....what is the big deal with always "being first"? I don't get it.

Ande and Kaci usually get along wonderfully.....well, as wonderfully as any toddler and 4 year old who was an only child up until 7 months ago. But lately......they've had this thing about being first. Over the past few weeks there have been arguments, tears and an enormous amount of bottom lip poking pouting because someone was not "first". For the most part, this problem seems to occur primarily at bed and bath time.....they both want to be first. I've tried alternating....one first one night....the other first the next, but somehow I seem to forget whose turn it is and no matter.....one of them always ends up with hurt feelings anyway. I don't get it.

I've even tried some of that "reverse psychology" stuff, but it hasn't worked so far. I've tried reasoning with them....nadda. I'm hoping and praying this is a phase they will soon outgrow. They'll soon learn that being first ain't all it's cracked up to be!

It's Here!!

2010-05-22T07:40:00.000-07:00

It's here! It's here! It's finally here!! Can you guess what it is?? We've only been waiting 6 weeks....3 weeks longer than we expected. Ande would ask when it was coming every few days. The girls are tickled pink! Still wondering what it is? Then scroll on down and check out the pictures!!!

They arrived bright and early this morning......6:30 a.m. to be exact! They drove all the way from Pennsylvania this morning. They had it set up and were pulling out of our yard by 8:10 a.m. We did not tell the girls it was coming today.....for two reasons. We had already gotten their hopes up several times before and it didn't happen. Plus.....we just wanted to see the look of surprise on their faces!

Ande was up and I was ironing our clothes for the day. I looked out and saw the truck arriving. I called out to Keith that they were here and Ande looked out the front windows. It took her just a second to realize what it was and then she started squealing.....playground. It's a playground. My playground is here!! Needless to say.....she is still smiling!!

Kaci was still sleeping and is quite a little grump until she has been up for at least an hour, so it took a little while for her to get excited.

As soon as they were done the installations, we went right outside and both girls ran to their favorite things.....Ande to the tire swing and Kaci to the regular swing. There are so many parts and pieces to this set....they keep running from one thing to another!

The smiles on their little faces are simply priceless. Definitely money well spent!

Mother's Day - 2010

2010-05-11T07:03:00.000-07:00

Praise God.....this was my very first Mother's Day as a momma to TWO!! Sometimes I still have to pinch myself.....just a few years ago, I had resigned myself to the idea of never having chidren and today I have 2 of the most adorable daughters anyone could ask for! Blessed.....yes, truly blessed I am!!

We had a very low key and quiet Mother's Day this year as we were hosting a missionary to Chin@ in our home for the weekend (see post below).

We went out for lunch/dinner on Saturday afternoon....my choice.....well, kinda my choice. When you have children.....when is it ever really "your choice" anymore? Ande had her heart set on Chinese food again and I could not disappoint her....of course, I like it too, but it was not my first choice!

Sunday afternoon, we came home after church and I fixed a nice homecooked meal for us and our guest......Ranch Chicken (check out the recipe here at Pioneer Woman......it's good!), Mac & Cheese, pasta salad with fresh veggies, fresh tender asparagus, corn, homemade sweet tea, and, of course, dessert! Our guest made me feel very good when he complimented my Mac & Cheese saying it was just about the best he'd ever eaten!

As always.....on this day my mind always turns to the women who gave my daughters life....the women who carried them for 9 months.....the women who (I like to believe) loved my daughters so much, they sacrificed their own feelings so these girls could have a better life. Who ever you are.....where ever you are.....thank you from the very bottom of my heart! Thank you for choosing life. Thank you for helping to make me a mommy!

Our Special Visitor

2010-05-11T06:35:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago I was checking out the Missionary list at our church. The congregation is asked to volunteer to host missionaries who visit our church throughout the year. The first one I spotted was a Missionary to Chin@! How could we not open our home to him and his family?? We had to!

His name is Eric and he and his family are currently on deputation trying to raise their support. They've been on the road for about a year and a half already. Their goal is to leave for Chin@ early next year. Unfortunately, due to illness, Eric had to come to Maryland alone. He arrived at our home Saturday evening and it took virtually no time at all for the girls to warm up to him! Before we knew it they were sitting on his lap and "doing" his hair for him. He was a real trouper! Fortunately, Eric has 2 daughters of his own and has "been there, done that!".

His visit blessed our family immensely and made us want to continue to open our home to those who serve the Lord. We pray that Eric and his family are able to raise their support in record time and get to Chin@ quickly to begin ministering to the people there. As you know....Chin@ and the people there have a special place in our hearts! You can read more about Eric and his family and their work HERE.

Remembering Easter

2010-04-26T15:33:00.001-07:00

The girls in their Easter dresses....one week later. They were sick on Easter Sunday and we missed church that day.

Kaci with her very first Easter basket. She got the hang of it very quickly!

Ande with her basket...she was excited about the doll she could take in the tub with her!

This is Kaci went she first gets up in the morning....definitely NOT a morning person...bless her heart!

Easter baskets.....I tried not to concentrate so much on candy this year and included other things like books, small toys, bath toys and flash cards.

Having fun dying Easter eggs for the very first time!

Our littest ladybug!

Remembering the Zoo

2010-04-26T14:58:00.000-07:00

Back on Ande's Gotcha Day anniversary, we spent part of the day at our local zoo. Following are some of the pictures we took that day. Oh and to set the record straight.....Keith did not hide the cameras....apparently I hid them from myself!! Someone please tell me I am not the only one who does stuff like that!!

Kaci girl peeking out the window of a "boat"

Aren't our girls just the cutest???

Kaci was not too thrilled to go down the slide....can you tell?

Something has their attention, but I can't seem to recall exactly what it was!

Our adorable, full of energy little night owl!

Ande absolutely LOVED the tire swing at the playground. We recently ordered a new playset for the girls for our backyard and the one thing Ande requested and we had to special order....was a tire swing!

6 Months & Funny Stuff!

2010-04-20T04:53:00.001-07:00

Just a few days from now, we will be celebrating our 1/2 year "Gotcha Day" with Kaci.....yes, it's been 6 months since this adorable little bundle of energy joined our family! What a transformation Kaci has made in just 6 months. She went from a emotionless, sad, grieving toddler with a variety of developmental delays to a happy, healthy, smiling, ornery toddler who is quickly catching up developmentally....so much so that we expect her to surpass others in her age group (if she hasn't already). She is one smart little cookie!

Just the other night, as we were sitting at the kitchen table, Keith started reciting the alphabet and encouraged Kaci to repeat after him.....she started out repeating after him, but then totally surprised us by actually saying the next letter instead. For instance, Keith would say "E" and Kaci would say "F". We were blown away! She is only 33 months old!

Last Saturday morning was a busy day for us. We had a 7:00 a.m. appointment scheduled with a nurse from our insurance agency for a mini-physical in order to increase our life insurance coverage. Then at 10:00 a.m. we had an appointment with our agency Social Worker so that she could complete our 6 month post placement home visit.

Funny little story I have to share......Ande woke up while the nurse was here. After she left, Ande wanted breakfast. I offered her oatmeal, cereal and scrambled eggs.....all of which she refused. She wanted Sausage, but unfortunately, we had none in the house. She then spotted her Daddy eating some mini donuts and joined him eating a few. After I woke Kaci up, I decided to fix her some scrambled eggs. I asked Ande....."I'm fixing scrambled eggs for Kaci...would you like some too?". She said no, so I proceeded to fix Kaci's eggs and clean up the dishes. As I was sitting down to help Kaci eat, Ande pipes up....."I want some too". Huh??? Didn't I just ask her if she wanted some? Didn't she refuse them? I don't like games and I don't like to encourage my children to be "wishy washy".....so, I told Ande "sorry, but I asked you and you said no.....you'll have to wait for snack time to get something else to eat". Well....she pouted and went crying to her Daddy. Fortunately, he backed me up.

Stay with me here.....I am getting to the funny part. Can you see it coming?

Then the Social Worker arrives to complete our post placement interview. We are all sitting around the kitchen table.....Kaci is on my lap, Ande is on Keith's. Out of the blue.....Ande loudly announces, "My mommy not fix me any breakfast!" Yes. She did.

Keith and I couldn't help but start laughing. Of all times, on all the days for this child to make a comment like that!! Well.....I quickly explained the entire incident to the SW and she laughed. She is a mother too. She understands!

The rest of the interview went well. The SW was impressed and pleased with Kaci's progress and thought she was adorable.

Oh.....and I'll add some new pictures later.....as soon as I find out where my hubby hid the cameras.

Gotcha!

2010-04-04T16:04:00.000-07:00

Ande has been a member of our family for 3 years now! On Friday, April 2nd it was 3 years to the day since Ande was handed over to us in that little room in Chin@. Ande has been so excited about her "Gotcha Day"....we really play it up big and try to make her feel extra special. She had been looking forward to "her" day for weeks and was under the misguided impression that her "Gotcha Day" was a national holiday and everyone was celebrating! Bless her heart!

Fortunately, since it was also Good Friday, both Keith and I had the day off. We started out by having breakfast at a local restaurant and then we headed off to the Salisbury Zoo where the girls played on the playground for a while and then we meandered around the zoo. The girls each got a little gift in the gift shop....Ande chose a stuffed animal squirrel which she promptly named "Nutty". After a short shopping stop to pick up some supplies, we headed home and I did something Ande absolutely loves.....I painted her toenails! This girl is easy to please. I had actually planned to surprise her and have her nails professionally painted at a little place in the mall, but Ande started crying "no" when we walked in the door....so much for my surprise!

We let Ande choose where she wanted to go have dinner and she chose "Chinese people food" (actually, her first choice had been McDon@lds). So....later that evening we met Ande's god-parents at a local Chinese buffet for dinner. Ande had a wonderful time and the food was very good.

When we came home, our little family all got in to our pajamas, piled in to our bed and watched Ande's gotcha video. The room was filled with 8 excited and anxious families....many were nervously pacing the room. Then suddenly...they were there and we were all trying to find our daughters among the babies filing in to the room. We were the first family in our travel group to receive our child....Ande was the oldest baby and the biggest....she was also the quietest! She only whimpered a couple of times during that initial meeting. She did let loose when we got back to the hotel though! Ande loves to watch her video and asks a million questions.....some of which we can easily answer and some which we cannot....and many that we may never be able to answer.

These past 3 years have been simply amazing. God has blessed us beyond anything we could have ever imagined. Although I have never had biological children.....I can honestly say that I cannot even fathom loving any other child any more than I love these 2 girls of mine. They may not be flesh of my flesh, but they are MY daughters. I did not carry them for nine months in my womb, but they were born in my heart and will love them forever, for always and no matter what!

Happy Gotcha Day baby girl.....we love you so very much!

Angels are Rejoicing!

2010-03-14T18:21:00.000-07:00

"In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents." ~ Luke 15:10.

Today, March 14, 2010.....angels in heaven are rejoicing! Our precious daughter, Ande, asked Jesus in to her heart today! We are so proud of her....we are about to bust at the seams with happiness! I've been praying since before we even held Ande in our arms that she would come to an early saving knowledge of Jesus....and she did!

I had heard Ande say several times over the past couple of days that Jesus lives in your heart. Today, while we were eating lunch, she said it again and I took the opportunity to say....."well, Jesus only lives in your heart if you ask him to". At this point, Keith jumped in and asked Ande if she wanted Jesus to come in to her heart and she said yes. So....Keith held her on his lap and led her through the sinner's prayer. She acknowledged that she was a sinner. She acknowledged that Jesus was God's son. She acknowledged that Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose again. And she asked him to come live in her heart. Keith and I were grinning from ear to ear!

Since Ande is just 4 years old....I wanted to be sure that she understood so I asked our youth pastor to talk with Ande tonight at church if he got a chance. I saw him talking with Ande and shortly afterwards he came over to me smiling....he said, "She's got it!" He then told me that he had asked Ande if she were going to go to heaven when she died and Ande replied....."Yes....but not today!" He talked some more and then told her that she would be in heaven someday with her Mommy & Daddy to which she again replied...."Yes.....but not today!". So sweet.

We are so happy for Ande. We told her that next she should be baptized, but since she's never seen a baptism, she is a little hesitant. I told her that there was no rush....when she is ready, we will call the Pastor and get it arranged for her and we'll have a party afterwards. I also told her that the next time someone at church got baptized, I would bring her in so she could watch and see that there was nothing to be afraid of.

I think I shall go to sleep tonight with a smile on my face.

Catch Up

2010-03-14T18:08:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday morning, a couple of ladies from our local department of social services came out to our house to visit Kaci. One of the ladies was a speech therapist. They evaulated Kaci to see whether or not she would qualify for free speech therapy through our county's Infants & Toddler program.

They completed a series of simple little tests like asking her to point at various pictures on a page.....asking her to name certain items......getting her to put puzzles together and play with building blocks. They determined that Kaci is developmentally at about 24 months right now......that's only about 6 months behind. Not bad at all, I'd say, considering the fact that when we first came home from Chin@ 4 months ago, Kaci was barely able to walk steadily!

Thankfully, she does qualify for speech therapy and will be seen every other week for a while. They also gave us some simple exercises that we can do right here at home to help Kaci with her speech. We have no doubt that Kaci will catch up developmentally by the end of summer. We see changes on a daily basis with this child....she amazes us how quickly she catches on! She is able to say kitty kat, Mommy, Daddy, bye-bye, thank you, and look just to name a few. She talks almost constantly, but much of it is garbled and not understandable. Right now she makes her wants and needs known by a combination of words and gestures. I have noticed a really big improvement in her speech just in the last 2 weeks. Yep....she'll catch up in no time!

Ahhh...That Lovin' Feeling

2010-03-05T16:04:00.000-08:00

Our Kaci girl has come such a long, long, long way over the past 4 months.....sometimes it's hard to believe that she is still the same child we were handed in Chin@!

Our sad, grieving little girl in the days following Gotcha.

Just over the past month Kaci has made some amazing progress with bonding. With the exception of daycare, she screams and I mean.....SCREAMS horribly whenever I leave the house. To some this may not seem like much, but in the world of adoption....it's huge! It shows me that she does not want me to leave....that she had bonded to me and actually likes having me around!

She also comes running to me for comfort when she hurts herself....more progress! She knows I am her Momma and that I am her source of comfort.

And the best???......when I pick her up from the church nursery on Sunday mornings or when I get home from work in the afternoon....she comes running to me squealing with happiness.....she wraps her arms around my neck and squeezes sooooo tight.....like she never wants to let go. Feels so good. Feels real good. Is there anything any better than that?? I don't think so.

Our Kaci girl now.....all smiles. She can feel the love!!

Oh....and sometimes she will come over to me for no apparent reason and just grab a hold of my leg and squeeze really tight. She does not like to be alone....not for one second. She is our little shadow.....following us from room to room.

I love this kid......I love both my kids. Thank you Father for these wonderful, precious children that I have the priviledge of calling my daughters.

Better Late Than Never??

2010-03-05T15:21:00.000-08:00

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR!
I know I am a little late.....okay, okay.....a lot late. I digress. What can I say.....I'm a busy lady these days! :-)

We met about 12 other local families at a Chinese Buffet in our area for dinner on Chinese New Year and the girls had a great time. There were crafts for the kids....good food....and fellowship with fellow adoptive families. Nice. One family had been home with their little bundle of joy for less than 2 weeks!

After dinner we enjoyed a little slide show from an adoptive Mom who recently came back from a trip to China with her 17 year old son. He's the one I told you about back in the summer....the young man who discovered that he had not been abandoned as he believed, but had been lost while at a bus station with his father. His Mom was able to locate his birth parents and they traveled back to China for an emotional reunion. You can read more about it here. Julia showed us video clips and footage of their trip. It was great to hear the information first hand.

Here the girls are concentrating intently on their craft projects.

Crowded restaurant

Ande actually took this photo of Kaci & I.....not too shabby!

It is our hope to maintain a relationship with these families so that our girls will have a way....albeit a small way....of holding on to a bit of their heritage.

23 Years and Counting!

2010-02-13T14:46:00.000-08:00

Sunday is not only Valentine's Day.....it is our 23rd Anniversary! Yes.....that's right....23 years! I know....I know......we don't look anywhere near old enough to have been married that long....right?? Humor us....please! Unfortunately, my scanner in not working so I cannot post any of our wedding pictures (well....maybe that's not so unfortunate!). However....I did manage to find this photo of Keith and I that was taken way back in 1989 while we were on vacation in Aruba. Just two crazy kids without a care in the world....no clue as to how much or lives would change (and improve) over the next 21 years!

And we certainly had no idea that we would ever travel half way around the world to find our two daughters!

Keith and I have certainly had our share of ups and downs over the past 23 years. We've weathered many things together.....infertility, job loss, deaths of loved ones, illnesses, addictions, financial problems, and emotional problems just to name a few. When we got married we knew it was for better or worse....when we recited our wedding vows we meant them. We did not give up when the going got tough. Our love for each other has grown and changed but it is still a strong love we share. This guy is my best friend. He is the first person I want to call when I have good news.....or bad news. He is the person I count on. He is my helper. He is so many things to me. And.....shame on me.....I don't tell him nearly enough how much he means to me.

Keith....I am still crazy for you.... here's to 23 more years together!

Blizzard of 2010

2010-02-07T06:13:00.001-08:00

This picture was taken a few hours after the snowfall started.

This picture was taken the following morning!

During the storm!

Taken this morning after the storm. The snow looks beautiful glistening in the sun!

This is a small pine tree in our back yard....poor thing is giving way under the weight of the snow!

Never Boring!

2010-02-07T05:22:00.000-08:00

Life around here is never boring anymore! There is always something to be done or somewhere to go! This week was no exception.....except that maybe it was just a little more chaotic than normal. Here's what we were up to.....

We had a pretty good snow storm here in Maryland last weekend....we got about 6-8 inches. Businesses were closed, church services were cancelled and schools were closed. We got ourselves dug out and first thing Monday morning we headed to the Outpatient Surgical center so that Kaci could have the PE tubes put in her ears. The procedure went very well and very quickly....they took her back at about 8:15 a.m. and we were on our way back home by 9:30 a.m. By that afternoon, you would never have known that Kaci had undergone a surgical procedure earlier in the day....she was running around laughing and playing like normal.....what resilience!

Monday evening I got a call from my mother that she was in the hospital....she was having some cardiac problems and they were keeping her overnight.

It snowed again Tuesday night....another 4 inches of the white stuff. Wednesday I got another phone call from my mother telling me that they had done a cardiac cath and replaced a stent, but her heart rate continued to be abnormally low. As a result, they were planning to insert a pacemaker on Friday. We headed to the hospital that evening to visit with her and since we had been hearing that a major snow storm was headed our way again, we decided to make a pit stop at the grocery store to stock up on some essentials before coming home.

On Friday morning, I went to work planning to leave at 11:00 a.m. so that I would make it to the hospital in plenty of time for my mother's 1:00 p.m. procedure....but, I got a call from her at 10:30 a.m. telling me that the doctor had some cancellations and they would be taking her down for surgery within the next half hour. Needless to say....I quickly cleaned off my desk and headed out the door! Before I reached the hospital the snow fall had started.....forecasters were predicting anywhere from 6 to 30 inches in our area with blizzard like conditions. I was praying for two things.....that my mother would do well with ther surgery and that I would get home before the roads got too bad! Both of my prayers were answered!

Mom made out very well.....she was back up to her room and eating lunch by 12:45 p.m. I stayed until about 2:00 p.m. and then headed home. It was snowing like crazy but since the temps were hoving at about 33-35 degrees....it wasn't sticking to the roads. I made it home without a problem! God is so good! Shortly after arriving home, however, the temperatures dropped and the winds picked up.

We all took baths and filled our tub and some containers with water in the event that we lost electricity....I am glad we did! We lost electric at around 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning. By the time we got up on Saturday, there was close to 10 inches of snow on the ground and the winds were gusting. We dressed the girls in layers of clothes and hunkered down for the day. At about 3:15 p.m. our electic finally came back on (it was down to about 54 degrees in our house by this time). We wasted no time in getting prepared in case we lost electric again.....we turned up the heat to get the house nice & warm.....we took baths again.....we filled the tub and sinks and containers with water. The snow finally stopped at around 7:00 p.m. Saturday evening. Keith calculates we got close to 24 inches! This is the most snow we have seen in a very long time!

Fortunately....as of right now, we have not lost electric again, but we got word that my sister, who lives just 3 miles away, has not had electric since about the time ours came back on. There are snow drifts of 6-7 feet blocking the roads and the temperatures are down in to the teens.....not good! We did learn a few things through all of this and have made ourselves a list of helpful tips for the next time we are facing a major storm. Things like....stock up on batteries for the radio and flashlights.....buy foods that don't require heating....purchase some propane tanks for the camp stove.....possibly even buy a generator! We need to keep our girls warm!

Top this all off with the fact that I have been sick all week with some kind of sinus/bronchitis thing.....coughing, sneezing, coughing, sneezing....not pretty! But despite all of this.....we are counting our blessings! Kaci is doing well.....Mom is doing well.....it's stopped snowing (for now).....we are safe.....we have electric....we have heat.....we have food...praises to God!

Here are a few pictures of the girls taken over the last week.

Two Reasons To Celebrate!

2010-02-02T15:05:00.000-08:00

Today, I have two reasons to celebrate! First......it was exactly 3 years ago today that we saw this sweet face for the very first time....

I had received "the call" the day before while I was at work telling me that we had a daughter. I was so nervous.....my hands were shaking.....I was crying.....I was laughing....it was surreal! I was waiting anxiously because I knew that our agency had received a batch of referrals and I was 99% sure that our log in date was included in the batch. I had already worked it out with my office mate and coworker, Alice, that when the call came, she would call Keith on my cell phone so that he could hear what was going on. Wouldn't you know it.....Alice was out of the office when the call came and by the time she got her nervous fingers (she was almost as excited as I was)to dial the phone to reach Keith, I was just about done the call. The rest is just a blur......I remember sharing the information with Keith and then running around the facility where I work telling anyone who would listen that I had a daughter!

Keith and I both took off work the following day because we knew the Fed Ex stork would be delivering our referral package with the pictures of our precious daughter. But....before Fed Ex arrived, we got a call from the local rep at our adoption agency offering to e-mail us a picture. We both gathered around the computer and opened the e-mail.....when her picture came up, Keith couldn't believe it....he said, "Is that her?". She was so precious....so adorable....we just could not believe this beautiful child was our daughter! We laughed....we cried....we rejoiced!! We spent the rest of the day riding around sharing our pictures with family and friends! It was truly a day that will be etched in our memories forever!

The second reason I have to celebrate today is that 7 years ago today....in 2003.....I accepted Jesus Christ into my heart as my Lord and Savior! I am so thankful for all of the people who planted seeds in me.....who were brave enough to tell me the truth.....who didn't give up on me. Thank you Pastor Dave Stewart for allowing God to use you to deliver a message that spoke to me that day 7 years ago! How happy....how thankful I am to be a child of God!

My Girls!

2010-01-23T13:53:00.001-08:00

My Daring Duo....up to no good...no doubt!

My Ande...what a charmer!

We were trying out a new hair style with Kaci....her hair has finally grown just long enough to get some of it in a band.

Kaci had just bumped her head on the cabinet knob....she does that alot!

The girls still have on their name tags from my Weight Watchers meeting!

I am so in love with my girls!! They are different in so many ways and yet so similar! Most nights when I tuck them in to bed I pray with them and one of the things I pray is that they will be more than sisters.....I pray that they will be best friends....confidants.....and that they love, respect and depend on each other all the days of their lives. They are off to a good start!

Wednesday Weigh In

2010-01-23T13:40:00.000-08:00

Okay.....I know I am a couple of days late with this post. Nothing new.....I seem to run late for everything these days....coming from someone who used to be (prior to becomming a Mommy) a very punctual person!

I did it....I dropped 2 pounds! In case you can't read it because of the glare....it says 182.2! I'm off to a good start, but I must be honest......I did not meet my goals. I probably did manage to drink at least 3 bottles of water most days, but I did not journal regularly nor did I get in any walking at all! I know these are things I must do if I intend to continue loosing these extra pounds to make my goal weight. I'll try to do better, but perhaps I should lower my weekly goals even lower and work my way up. Yeah....I like that plan!

Wednesday Weigh In

2010-01-13T18:19:00.000-08:00

Here I go! Oh my!!...worse than I thought! Aren't my socks adorable?...soft too! Okay, back to the subject....this is my way of getting back on track with my weight.....I do much better if I am held accountable and if I know that I will be reporting on my progress here each week, it will help me to keep myself in check!! My ultimate goal is to get back down to my goal weight of 165 pounds by May.

I was just thinking the other day about how much better I felt.....how much more energy I had.....when I had my eating under control. When I was eating healthier. When I was getting regular exercise. Why do we let those nasty old habits get their foot back in our door?? No excuses.

Here's my inital plan.....I will start to journal my eating habits on a daily basis. I will drink more water (at least 3 bottles a day to start). I will walk at least one mile on my treadmill at least 3 times a week (to start). Next week, I will revise my plan and make a few changes to up the pace and keep it interesting. I do plan to attend my local Weight Watchers meeting at least once a month too....I miss my leader....she's the best!

Check back next week to see if I've made any progress. I really need to fit back in to the two new pair of slacks Keith just gave me for Christmas......they've gotten a little snug already! Yikes!

More Ande-isms & Quotable Quotes

2010-01-08T15:48:00.000-08:00

Our girl Ande is quite a character....yes indeed! The stuff she comes up with either makes us cringe......or laugh out loud....mostly the latter thank the Lord! Here are a few of the things she has come up with just recently.....

Just this morning.....we had snow last night and the ground was covered with about 3 inches of beautiful white. The sun was just beginning to come up and I told Ande to look outside to see the snow. She went to the window & looked out and then asked excitedly...."It Christmas??"

A few weeks ago, a very dear lady from our church passed away and Keith was asked to be a pall bearer. Ande was very curious about this and Keith took a great deal of time to try to explain what a pall bearer does. He thought she understood until she asked him the next morning...."Daddy, you going to be pooh bear today?"

Whenever I have to leave to go somewhere, Ande will inevitably ask me, "Mommy...when you come home?" and I will tell her that I'll be home as soon as I can. She then looks at me and says, "No, what number?".....meaning what time.

We have some very good friends who have been like second parents to Keith and are now like grand-parents to our girls. Their last name is Asmussen (pronounced As-muss-in). Ande pronounces it "As Mom-Mom".....they love it!

Every night I iron the girls clothes for the next day and I usually ask Ande what she wants to wear and most of the time she will tell me, "I want wear something beautiful". She's my girly girl....she loves to look pretty!

She often gets the words "yesterday", "today" and "tomorrow" confused. It's so funny trying to have a conversation with her.....I end up being the one who is confused (not hard to do I might add!).

Ande also has a very sensitive nose and is not shy about asking, "What dat mell?" It's okay most of the time, but has caused me a couple of embarrassing moments when we've been out shopping......

Ande is a very curious child and always has to know "why"....."Mommy, why you do dat?", "Mommy, why dat green?", "Mommy, why dat up dere?", "Mommy, why dat look like dat?", "Mommy, what you doing", "Mommy, where you going?", "Mommy, when is dinner?", "Mommy, what for dinner?".....why, why, where, when. I love her curiosity and I don't ever want to dampen it, but the constant questions can be a little exasperating after a while....know what I mean??

Now we have Kaci to look forward to and I'm sure she is bound to come up with a few doozies of her own. Gotta love it!

Don't Blink!

2010-01-03T13:55:00.000-08:00

Don't blink my friends....cause, before you know it your kiddos will be grown and spreading their wings!

Our baby Ande turned 4 years old today. Four! How can this be?? She was just a baby yesterday! She was just teething and learning to walk....learning to talk.....potty training. Now she is quick to tell you "I a widdle girl" if you slip and call her "baby"!

God I love this child. She is such a sweet heart! She has such a heart of compassion and gets worried when she sees someone upset. She is the first to run to comfort another child in nursery or at daycare who is crying. She is cute as a button and smart too! She has been reciting the entire alphabet for months now and can write her name very well. She has almost gotten down the spelling of her last name too. Much to our disdain....she has a great memory and often reminds us of things we have said to her. For instance, she asked me for a drink of my hot tea one evening and I told her no. She was quick to respond....."You need to share." Be careful what you say.....stuff will come back to haunt you! ;-)

Ande is such a brave little girl. When I told her she would be moving to a new daycare (which she refers to as "work"), she told me "I might cry". I explained to her that it was okay to cry....to be afraid of new things, but that her Daddy & I would not place her somewhere that we did not know was safe. She was such a trooper....not a single tear!

Although just turning 4 years old, Ande does have plenty of what I call "teen tude". She does occasionally roll her eyes at us and back talk.....but not often. She is a very well behaved little girl most of the time......just the typical toddler behaviors.....running and yelling in the house, refusal to share, and being a bit bossy to her little sister.

Speaking of.....Ande continues to be an amazing big sister to Kaci. She is always looking out for her and worried about her. Whenever we go out to eat, Ande MUST always sit next to Kaci so that she can look out for her. Today at church, Ande got her birthday candy bar and the first thing she said was, "I share with Kaci". How sweet was that?

On this very special day, I cannot help but think of the woman who gave birth to this amazing, sweet, sensitive, adorable little girl. I wonder about the circumstances she must have found herself in. I wonder why she did what she did. But most of all.....I thank her from the bottom of my heart for what she did....for giving me the most precious gift....a daughter. Ande is my child.....my daughter. Not flesh of my flesh, but undeniably she is a part of my heart. God used her as a vessel to bring me my daughter. Never in a million years would I have ever thought I would be the mother of 2 little girls adopted from half way around the world. I am so glad that God's thoughts are higher than mine!!

Happy Birthday my sweet Ande.....our little Skeeter Bug. We love you so very much. Forever. For Always. No matter what!

The Birthday Princess

Kaci enjoying some of big sister's birthday cake!

Birthday girl!

Birthday celebration with her best friend, Lydia.

Ande's Princess Cupcake Cake....We had been planning a "Dora" party, but when Ande saw this Princess cake, she just had to have it! There are Princess rings on top of each of the cupcakes.

Good-bye 2009!

2009-12-31T18:26:00.001-08:00

2009....what a year it was! Ande turned 3 years old....we said good-bye to a few loved ones including my step-father.....I lost my job of 19 years......then God blessed me with an even better job.....we accepted the referral of our new daughter.....by the grace of God, we raised an enormous amount of money (in a short amount of time) in order to get our girl home......we traveled to China to bring Kaci girl home to her forever family.....and we celebrated Thanksgiving and Christmas as a family of 4! A good year I'd say!

As has become the habit for our family....we are spending a quiet evening home. It's just after 9:30 p.m. and I am the only one awake. The girls are tucked in to their brand new bunk bed.....this is their first night.....this is the first night Ande has slept in her own room in over a year (she wasn't excited about it either). We don't feel comfortable with Ande sleeping on the top bunk yet, so both girls are snoozing in the lower bunk. We'll probably keep that sleeping arrangment for the next year until either we or Ande feels she is ready for the top bunk.

Just a few minutes ago....as I sat here on the computer, I could hear Kaci in her bed....babbling up a storm. What a long way that child has come in 2 months!! It is hard to believe sometimes that she is even the same scared, kicking and screaming child we were handed just a short time ago! Even her appearance has changed....she was cute before, but she is even cuter now.....she is filling out (she has that cute little "toddler belly" now and her complexion is much healthier looking. Her hair is starting to grow. Not only that, but our love for this child has grown too.....she is a quite a little character and she brings us all such joy! It warms my heart and brings tears to my eyes to see her and Ande giggling and playing together. They are 2 peas in a pod.....they look out for each other....they help each other and sometimes......they fight and tattle on each other. Sisters!

Speaking of Ande.....our baby girl turns 4 years old this Sunday. Four.years.old. How did that happen??? She was just a baby yesterday. God I love that child. She is so sweet....always wants to help.....always wants to be near me. Precious. What did I ever do to deserve such amazing daughters? God is so good to me!!

2010 promises to be a good year too. I don't like resolutions, but I do like to make goals. We have a family goal this year. Our entire church family is starting a project to read through the entire Bible in 3 years....reading one chapter a day. We have taken this on as a family project and plan to sit down together as a family each night and read the designated chapter together. I also received a one year daily devotion book for Christmas too and it is my goal to read this daily as well. I want 2010 to be a year of changes.....I want to change.....I want to have a closer relationship with the Lord. I want to know Him better.

Another goal I have is to get our household paperwork in order and filed away (again)....but not only that.....I have a goal of trying to keep up with it every month and not let it get away from me!! I've got about 9 months of paperwork to sort and file......ugh! Not exactly how I like to spend my free time!

My final goal is to get my weight back under control. Since returning from China, I have had no time to get to my Weight W@tchers meetings and I have not been diligent about what I eat or getting any exercise. Consequently.....I am about 15 pounds over my goal weight. Problem is.....I don't really have the time or the money to go to my weekly WW meetings every week anymore. A girl on one of the blogs I follow has started what she calls, "Weigh In Wednesday" and she actually takes a picture of her scale each week and posts it on her blog so that her friends and family can help keep her accountable and motivated. I like it! So....I hope she doesn't mind if I borrow her idea. Starting soon I am going to begin my own "Weigh In Wednesday" and supplement it with occasional visits to my WW meetings. My goal is to be back down to my goal weight by May 1st. More on that later.....

Praying that all of you are safe and healthy on this New Year's Eve! I'll be back with more next year!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

2009-12-25T15:12:00.000-08:00