Our 2009 Halloween Pumpkins

These were our attempts at carving pumpkins this year....... the first one was Mark's and mine. It is suppossed to be the Chinese symbol for love, but it was a bit more intricate than we originally thought once we got started. There is even a whole section missing in the bottom of the symbol, but I figure not bad for a couple of novices! LOL! The second one is LuLu's. We gave her a marker and told her to draw what she wanted daddy to cut. What you see is what you get! We about fell over laughing, but she is one proud little girl! I wish I could have cartured the smile on her face when Mark took her out to see them lit on the front porch...it was priceless! Hope everyone had a safe and Happy Halloween!

Fun with the Cousins

Ebert's Pumpkin Farm - Oconomowoc

This past week we traveled to Oconomowoc, WI to visit my family, and introduce them to the newest member of our brood, Miss Vivi Grace. The usual 7 1/2 hr trip from Columbus became 10+ hours with a 3 month old tagging along! LOL! We have hit 2 malls, been swimming, had Vivienne's first visit to the pumpkin farm, and spent many wonderful hours with family and friends. I must say that I never see joy radiate on my daughter Lucy's face like it does when she is with her cousins. There is a connection there, a bond, that I can see she truly shares with them. I am fortunate that no matter what family dynamics I may have with my family.....she still has this.

Vivi has also done well! The first few days she slept little at night (making for a TIRED mommy and daddy!) but the rest of the week she has slept like a trooper. My mom has really enjoyed her time with her, although I know my brothers are both a bit uncomfortable with the fact that she is AA. I knew all along in the adoption that this might be the case, but I had hoped deep down that when they finally met her, that all that would be washed away. That she would be accepted like any other member of our family. That she would capture their hearts with her cute little smile. But, it is what it is, and fortunately I have some time left to work on them before she becomes aware.

We head home tomorrow, and Thursday is Trick or Treat, so I hope to have some more pics posted soon!

Don't Ask...Long Hard Day

And yes, this is how she falls asleep EVERY time..........

Vivi Grace at 2 months

Our sweet girl is now two months old. I can hardly believe that it was 8 weeks ago today that our social worker called with the good (um GREAT!) news!

She is growing like a weed! We haven't weighed her in the last 2 weeks, but at 6 weeks she was already 10.2 pounds. She now has the cutest chubby cheeks and double chin!! I cannot wait to hear what her Dr says at her 2 week check up next Monday.

She is all but done with the colic (AMEN!) and has still been sleeping 5-6 hours at night. We seem to have a routine. I stay up and give her the last feeding at night (or AM! LOL!) and Mark gives her a bottle before he leaves for work, allowing Lucy and I a chance to sleep in a bit.

This girl LOVES her baths! Put her in the warm water and she smiles, giggles and kicks everytime, no matter how tired she may be.

We still cuddle every evening/night, and I have been accussed on more than one occassion of spoiling the little bugger. Um, I DON'T THINK SO! LOL!

Lucy continues to rock the big sister thing, and has shown NO SIGNS of jealousy. I am so proud of her !! If a diaper needs changed, she is right there to help, if Vivi is fussing, she plugs the binky in before I can make a move! And, she is SOO proud of herself!

I am sorry if you think I am sugar coating things...I really am not. If I could have 20 more of Vivi, I would....... If we knew Lucy would have handled it this well (honestly, we were worried!) we would have been on the next adoption sooner!! God has truly blessed us with the BEST baby and BIG SISTER, and to HIM we are eternally grateful!

CCAI #1168 Reunion in Cincinnati Aug 7-9, 2009

Saturday we visited the Newport Aquarium

And then the kids played in the pool....

Lucy & her new crush Zach

Sunday we said goodbye

We had another sucessful and wonderful reunion with our China travel group. Because we all adopted off of the SN list, our travel group was quite small...only 4 families total. (One family has been unable to join us for the past two meetings..) This gave us a chance, I believe to become much closer as a group. I love that when we meet now, it feels like seeing family again. We all just seem to pick up where we left off, and the kids (siblings included!) play together SO WELL!! It truly is a joy to be able to meet up with them every time!! Thank you Miller and Debono families for another great weekend! We wish we could have spent more time with you all!! A special THANK YOU to Ron who has taken the time these past 2 yrs to plan these weekends, and to both families for coming to Ohio so that we could be a part of it! We love and miss you guys!

Sweet Vivi Grace

Baby girl,
Do you know how much you are loved? You are loved many times over. You are loved to the moon and back. You are loved to infinity.
At night, when it is just you and I, I get lost in in our snuggles. I drink in your sweet baby smell, and I hold you tight. It is in these moments that I am in awe that you are another's flesh and blood...that you were carried in someone elses womb. That she loved you SO MUCH, that she gave you to me. ME! To love you, to cherish you, to raise you as my own. To her, your first mom, I am forever grateful. You could not fit into our lives more perfectly. You could not fit into the crook of my arm more gently, and you could not fit in my heart more profoundly.
You, Vivienne Grace, are our answer to prayer. You are our miracle. Our sweet baby girl, our daughter!
I love you,
Mom

CCAI Travel Group #1168 Reunion 2009

The Three Amigos- Phoebe, Josh & Lucy together again!

Vivienne Grace is 1 Month Old!!!!

Our baby girl is one month old today! She still rocks the bottles, and enjoys sleeping, but unfortunately (and expectedly) we have hit some colic. It flares up late evening, and continues until about 1-2 AM. Not every night thank goodness, but 3-4 nights a week is enough for me!

Lucy continues to do well. She loves holding Vivi, getting her diapers ready, and replacing her binky when needed. It doesn't hurt that I have also pulled out all the baby toys again that have been packed away. I think Lucy is playing with them more now than she did back then!

My mom came in last week when Mark went back to work full time, and gave me some much needed help. The house was still in a bit of chaos, and it was nice to finish organizing things and catch up on some sleep. It was also nice to spend some time with my mom, and to allow her some time to bond with my newest daughter. We also did some shopping, and all of us girls got some new clothes.

The social worker comes tomorrow for our one month post placement. I need to have a birthmom letter and pictures ready. I bought the birthmom a card a few weeks ago, but have yet to write it. So many things have been running through my head. There are SO MANY things I want to say to her..to convey to her...but I just don't know how to put it in words so that she can "feel" the emotion I am trying to share. I wish I could just meet her for 2 minutes.......

I pray in time this may happen.

I am just taking my time and enjoying my family. God is good!

Jazz & Rib Fest 2009

Sorry for the delay

It has been 2 weeks since our sweet daughter was placed in our arms! She remains a champion eater (at her check-up last Friday she had already gained a pound and grown an inch!!) and a pretty good sleeper (although I am still pooped!!). She fits our family like a glove, and we couldn't imagine not having her around! Don't get me wrong...things have DEFINATELY changed, but I am trying to relax and not put to much pressure on myself. Two kids are A LOT different than one! Lucy continues to embrace her role as a big sister. She is helpful and attentive, and her tantrums have become less frequent. Her biggest fault is wanting to hold her all the time...not bad I am thinking.........

We figured it would be an all or nothing thing with her, and are JOYOUS she seems to have chosen the more positive route. I pray it is NOT just a novelty thing and that she will continue to mature as her sister gets older.

Vivi's skin continues to darken and become more beautiful, and she has a STUNNING head of curls. I must admit I am a bit afraid of her hair......dealing with African American hair is all new to me, and there are so many cute styles I will be able to do....it will just be a challenge trying to learn them all! I am fortunate to have a bloggy friend (this is a shout out to you Stacy!) willing to show me the ropes, and I am eager to speak with her soon!

Thanks again to all of you who have been thinking and praying for us! Thanks also for all the sweet comments. I am sorry I haven't been able to post much on yours, but I AM able to read them late at night while cuddling, and I have been thinking of you all, it is just hard to type one handed (hence my all undercase posts to some of you..lol!)!

Hugs, Me

Vivienne's bedroom...almost finished!

Vivi meets the Adamo's

Today we went to UA to visit good friends of mine. T and Eileen are the sweetest girls and have been such a help to me over the years. Lucy and I have always loved to spend time with them! It was only fitting that they meet the newest member of our group.......... They invited us up to visit, and spend the afternoon with their family.

They also spoiled us with all this! Lucy got a slip and slide, Vivi got 2 outfits, a blanket and hairbows. And me....I got over 2 dozen roses and a bunch of balloons! They treated us like rockstars! THANK YOU ADAMO FAMILY! We really enjoyed our afternoon!

One Week Gotcha Day!

A Morning of Pampering

My best friend Emily and her daughter Becca came back to Ohio to see us and meet Miss Vivi the week after she was born. We had a free morning to ourselves (Mark was home for Vivi) so we decided to go pamper ourselves and the older girls with their first pedicures. They loved it, and we had a chance to spend some time together and catch up. Afterward, we met up with some other friends for lunch at O' Charley's* .

and then onto lunch w/more friends

Lucy & Dustin

Friends meet Vivi

My best friend Em and her daughter Becca drove in today to see the newest addition to our family. Em's old neighbor, and our friend Betty invited us all to her house for dinner. I was SO excited to see Em, and Lucy was overjoyed to see Becca again. Miss Vivi soaked up the love and was more than happy to be passed around!! Afterwards, the girls and I made our way up to GG's (my grandma's) house to have some cake for her 82nd birthday. Unfortunately we missed dinner at Hunan House with her, but wanted to make it up to her in the end! Happy 82nd Bithday GG! We love you!

Friends Forever!

It was also Grandma's B-Day!

First Bath at Home/ Low Key 4th of July

About Vivi Grace

About sweet Vivi....... I am waiting for the other shoe to drop, but God has gifted us with the BEST baby! She is SO ALERT, and seems to go with the flow. We have only had her 9 hours, and she has been awake over 3 of them. She eats like a champ, and loves to be cuddled. The nurses were sad to see her go, because they said she was such a joy to be around these past three days.
As for the birth mom. She had been adament from the point of giving birth that she didn't want to know anything about us, or us about her. That has been hard for me to stomach these past 2 days because I really want my daughter to have some sense of who her bio parents were. I have prayed and asked others to pray, and this morning called Dina (social worker) to tearfully tell her at parental termination to please convey to birthmom that if she changes her mind, we would embace her. Dina came back and told us did not only did birthmom allow a picture of herself to be taken for us, but took our picture as well. She also said that someday when she gets settled, she may contact our agency and ask for all our photo and letter updates. I will take that! Please continue to pray for peace for her. My joy is her pain, and that thought is never far from my mind.
Time for me to try to sneek in some sleep! Enjoy some more Vivi cuteness!

Vivienne Grace