So blessed.

Sunshine

Oh these days.

Full of colorful dresses,

Imaginations running wild,

Stuffed animals,

flowers and rocks,

and puppy dogs.

Perfect.

Easter pictures

Easter morning.

Thought we might be out of town but at the last minute we weren't.

So we got dressed and went to church in the pouring rain.

After Church the rain stopped.

Perfect time for pictures!  Now we need a perfect spot.

That bank parking lot looks good.

May I present....

Easter pics 2013:

Such a sweet smile!

Why yes, I'd  be happy to pose.

IT's TOO BRIGHT TO OPEN MY EYES!

That's better.

Now for a sister shot:

Good.

But I think we can do better.

Um.  Okay.

Could you maybe just try to open your eyes a teeny bit for a tiny second?

Yes!  Like that.

Now if I could just see your smile..

Yes.  Your grimacing smile.

I'll take it!

Our Son.

Everyone has moments in their life that happen and change their life significantly in just one second.

  We had one recently.  It was a phone call.

We knew we were going to get the phone call.

  Brad came home for lunch just to be there when our adoption agency was supposed to call.

  It was a scheduled call to talk about our next few steps in our adoption journey.

  It went well.  Lots of questions and lots of answers.

Then, everything changed.

We weren't expecting it and looking back, I'm not sure we were prepared.

They introduced us to our son.

Our precious, beautiful, baby boy.

We saw pictures and read his file.

It was overwhelming how little we knew about him.

I wanted to know EVERYTHING about him.  Every tiny detail.

Adoption is hard.  It hurts my heart not to know so much and to know I've missed so much.

Yet we were tremendously blessed that our own social worker has SEEN him and held him.

Our awesome agency sends teams of staff and UAB doctors to visit partnership orphanages each year.

She described him as curious and active.  I told her to tell me everything she could about him.

Then we got to talk with the doctor from UAB who had seen and assessed him.

She, too, remembered him being curious and interested in everything around him.

We had other questions for her and she had lots to tell us.

Brad and I talked and prayed.  And prayed.  And prayed.

And then we knew, without a doubt, that he was our son.

Once we knew, I have never known such a peace about something.

That's not true.  I had the same peace when I said yes to Brad's marriage proposal.

Almost eleven wonderful years later, I pray this peace will be as successful.

When I look at my son's picture, I am overcome with how blessed and how thankful I am.

James

We are in love.

Happiest Days

"When Spring came, even the false Spring, there were no problems except where to be happiest."

- Ernest Hemingway

We have days this week of "false Spring" where for a few hours in the afternoon, the sun has warmed up the day enough to feel like Spring.  It's been just warm enough to give us hope that Spring is almost here.

I can't wait for warm days.

I can't wait for playing outside days.

I can't wait for going to the park days.

I really can't wait for 'no problems except where to be happiest days."

DTC!

WE ARE DTC!

DTC?

Darling Tapping Cats?

Deeply Thoughtful Cookies?

Dark Tan Coats?

No!

DANCING TOWARDS CHINA!!

just kidding.

Last Monday night we celebrated another big step in the adoption of our son...

being Dossier To China (or DTC).

It means that all our paperwork (our Dossier), being certified and authenticated, was finally sent to China to be reviewed and approved.  YAY!  What's next?  Well, once approved, we are logged in to their system as being eligible to being matched with a child. 

 Then we wait (some more) to be matched with our son.

Once we are matched, it takes about 4-6 months for more paperwork to be completed and then we travel to China to bring him home.  Hooray!  So right now we can estimate that he will be home this Fall but no more specific than that.

We appreciate all the support, prayers, questions, and encouragement

 we've received from family and friends!

It's hard to believe we started this long process nearly a year ago.

  And we want to keep you informed and involved as we continue this wonderful journey

 to begin life with our son.

At this time, we'd be very grateful for your prayers for us as we wait.

We have had such a peace during this entire process even when we've faced unexpected delays, knowing that it was all part of our story and part of God's timing.  I know the waiting will be much harder once we've seen his sweet face and know who it is that is waiting for us too.

Please also pray for him, our son, and his heart.  We pray each night that we would know that he is loved deeply and that his heart is being prepared to be loved by us.  We also pray that he is being loved, right now, by his orphanage nannies and that he is experiencing love and joy each day. 

I can't wait to tell him one day about all the prayers and all the love that he received before he was even known to us.  

Thank you!

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.  In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will to the praise of his glorious grace, which he freely gives us in the One he loves. Ephesians 1:4-6

2012 Review

I have no reason why I stopped blogging.

I just did.

After six years I guess I needed a break.

But I've really missed it.

Especially the sense of chronically our life.  

All the little stuff.  The mundane.  The details.

They all add up to be our life and I want to look back and remember it when I can't.

So I regret taking 2012 off and want to re-cap.

We had a busy year.

Lots of change and lots of growth.

  Lots of laughs and lots of tears.

Lots of excitement and lots of fear. (hey, that rhymed!)

Lillianna finished kindergarten and started first grade.

We started the process to adopt our son from China!!

Brad and I celebrated 10 years of wedded bliss in California.

We moved from Tennessee to Arkansas.

Brad started a new job.

We said goodbye to old friends and said hello to new ones.

We started the adoption process over in Arkansas.

Lillianna turned 7 and Ellenie turned 5.

We went to the mountains for Easter and the beach for summer vacation.

Ellenie started pre-k two days a week and has loved it. (most of the time)

L lost her front tooth and learned to ride a bicycle and to read.

We settled in to our new house and new community.

We've enjoyed visits from family and friends.

We celebrated the holidays in our new home.

We played in the big snow.

It was a great year.

We are blessed:

So here's to 2012

and Cheers to 2013!

We are starting this year with high hopes and big plans

 for another blessed year full of memories and love.