Thursday, December 30, 2010

Christmas Gift

When adding a child to your family you work hard to bond and build attachment with your child. Each day brings progress as you see hints of their personality emerge. Often your child will initially be solemn and guarded in their interactions.

Many friends have spoken of the "light switch" moment, when their child finally let go of their hesitance and smiles, giggles, and laughter emerge...well you could say our greatest Christmas present this year was our "light switch" moment.

It was something as simple as a pair of socks from her Korean grandma to bring on the best belly laughter we've heard from her...


We hope you all had a holiday season full of laughter and joy!

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Return from my blogging vacation!

Hello to all my fellow bloggers...sorry for the break with no updates. There are several reasons...one being how much I loved my last post...it was just right for the time. The other reason surrounds going from a family of two kids to three kids...life is crazy busy and we have had a sick clan on and off for a month now...we are all now mostly on the mend and hoping to be healthy going into the new year.

Updates on our girl:

  • She now has 8 teeth, 4 on top and 4 on bottom
  • She loves to eat and only cries tears when she can't have another cookie or has to wait til lunch or dinner instead of snacking away
  • She loves her brothers and likes to be in the middle of everything they're doing
  • Sadly she is no longer using Korean words, but is now using many English words
    • Momma
    • Dada
    • Butter (Brother)
    • I-yah (Isaiah)
    • Bottle or baba
    • Ball
    • Puppy
    • Pup (Cup)
    • Juice
    • Hello
    • Hi-ya
    • and her newest word tonight - Jesus
  • She can have quite a temper and melt your heart all at the same time
  • She melts into us when we pick her up for a hug
  • She loves Patty-cake, itsy-bitsy spider, and ride-a-horsey
  • We see more smiles and giggles as the weeks pass at home
  • She still hugs her FF picture when we show it to her and listens closely when we play the recorded message from them
  • Our girl now loves a pacifier...especially at bedtime
  • She has completed our family and we are so blessed to have her home

Our two boys have also been busy, growing and changing...

Ethan just finished up the first half of fourth grade and is doing great! He is such a smart boy and loves to read! He also just submitted a book through a publishing program with the school to publish his story on "My Trip to Korea". He did such a wonderful job documenting our trip and I can't wait to share it once we have a copy home!

Isaiah has transitioned from baby to boy before our eyes. He has finally lost his baby fat and this is the stage that just breaks my heart. Don't get me wrong...I love to see my kids grow and thrive..but I don't cry the day they start school, instead for me it is the time I see that change to growing out of "Mommy's Baby".

I have returned to work, which is going well, however, this time it was hard to return. Not because I don't want to work, because I need to be busy and like to be out accomplishing things, but I have been in my current job 5 years and I am having a hard time finding the zeal I had 5 years ago. I am hoping the 11 day break that starts tomorrow will be enough time to put some inspiration into my worklife!

We have our 2nd post placement visit on January 11th. It is hard to believe we have been home for almost three months! Life is finally beginning to settle into our new normal and we enjoy each day learning about each other and growing closer as a family.

Now for what you are really waiting for...PICTURES:

The First Month Home:








Our First Placement Visit:

Birthdays:





Baby Dedication at Church:





Christmas Time:









 Our Traditional Christmas Tree:

 The Tree We Won at the Festival of Trees:

 Annalee's Tree:

 Ethan & Isaiah's Tree:

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!