The Time of our Lives

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun!!!

2012-02-10T18:21:00.000-08:00

Many people would title this as Super Bowl post as that is what brought us

together that evening...

however, any female will tell that we like to get together to socialize while the

men watch their game and help the refs with the officiating.

Gabriella began screaming with excitement at 1:30 Sunday afternoon when she

found out Hannah, her mommy and daddy would be joining us that evening. I

believe I told her just before I left for the Y to go workout...her daddy thanked

me over and over for my timing on that one!

We ate yummy food, hot wings, BBQ wings, a fruit tray and dip, chili and a

yummy mandarin orange cake. I will be sharing recipes on some of those in the

near future as they really turned out great:)

Gabriella enjoyed dressing up in the lady bug costume.

Hannah made the cutest little Tinker Bell!!

Gabriella learned the word ABRA-CAD-ABRA and was waving her wand to make

each person disappear. Hannah didn't want her daddy to disappear!

We all had a wonderful evening, were thrilled the Giants won in Peyton's

(our) house, and can't wait until we can get together again!!

A Very Special Birthday!!!

2012-02-06T18:01:00.000-08:00

Gabriella was invited to Hannah's 4th birthday party!

The relationship between the girls and Hannah's family is very special to me.

I used to follow Hannah's blog while her mommy and daddy were anxiously

awaiting her arrival.

Even though we hadn't met them, they were a true inspiration to our family as we

began our own adoption journey to Gabriella.

A very special friend, Amy, introduced us. An instant friendship began between

Sarah and I...soon after we introduced our girls and hubby's.

While at Hanna's birthday party we were blessed to meet Lora, Aly and her family

who also brought home their baby girl from Taiwan! Hannah and Aly were in the

same orphnage in Taiwan...talk about a very special bond!

Sarah totally knows how to throw a little girls birthday party and thought of

everything! Decorating cupcakes, playing games, you name it! Hannah has one

awesome mama!!!

All the kids had a wonderful time decorating...and then eating the yummy

cupcakes!

Hannah, Aly and Gabriella examining the cupcake pinita:)

Then it was time to start the Grand Prize Game!!

A wonderful time was had by all!!! We feel so blessed to have Kevin, Sarah and

Hannah living so close to us and are truly enjoying spending time with them and

watching the girls as they are developing a great friendship!!

Pajama Day at Pre-School

2012-02-04T07:34:00.000-08:00

Thursday was pajama day at Gabriella's preschool and she had been looking

forward to this day as soon as she knew it was scheduled!

They made and ate pancakes with syrup, read stories by the fireplace among

several other things.

Gabriella and best little friend at pre-school, Meridith.

The girls have two awesome teachers and this is the beloved Mrs. Kara!

A great time was had by all and she couldn't wait to tell us all about her day

when she came home:)

Baby It's Cold Outside...

2012-01-15T15:36:00.000-08:00

Friday morning we woke up to the words every child loves to hear....

School is C - L - O - S - E - D!!!

I'm sure you could guess it was due to mother nature...

providing plenty of snow for us to play in!!

We made snow angles.

We giggled!

We had lots of fun! After playing in the snow we went inside for a warm cup of

hot-chocolate piled high with marshmellows!!

The Middles... and Their Hearts....

2012-01-11T07:32:00.000-08:00

When Jordan, our 18 year old, text Curtis and I saying, "I need to talk to you and

dad, together, tonight, it can make a parents heart skip a beat! When that same

teenage child, who is in his senior year of high school and has been excited for

years about his senior spring break trip with the guys tells you "I really want to

deepen my relationship with Christ and I would like to go serve God in Haiti with

our church youth group during my spring break trip"; that same heart that skipped

a beat, swelled with joy, excitement and pride!

Jordan is VERY excited to be traveling with 39 other wonderful people in our

church who are going to Haiti to work in three orphanages, help build and paint

buildings and share the message of Christ and His love! We couldn't be more

excited for the experience Jordan will have and how God will use him during this

time!

As I shared in our Christmas letter, Nicholas has transformed before our eyes

since moving home! This child has gone from a quiet child who enjoys golf and

hanging with a friend or two, to a social butterfly! He managed the middle school

football team and is managing the basketball team in an attempt to get to know

others. He has grown 6 inches in the last year! More than his social and physical

growth I'm excited about starting to see spiritual growth with him too! Nicholas

text me yesterday and it started out by saying "Mom I need you to do me a

favor". I'll be honest, I was thinking it was going to involve bringing him a turkey

sub from Subway as he had an away basketball that evening. When I went on to

read the text it said "will you pray for Andrews' mom because she is having a

really serious surgery and she needs our prayers". I was shocked! I was excited!

I immediately prayed for Andrews mom, their family and the medical team. We

couldn't be more proud of Nicholas and the young man he is becoming!

Yum! Cheesecake!

2012-01-06T07:00:00.000-08:00

We've had the cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory and it is delicious....

We had a delicious chocolate cheesecake during our China Playgroups New Years

Eve get together....

But everyone once in a while the simple homemade Jello brand cheesecake totally

hits the spot! And the smiles that come from licking the spatula...priceless!!!

Dressing "Dylish"

2012-01-04T07:56:00.000-08:00

Gabriella had been counting the days down until she was able to return to school,

quite a contrast to the boys who would have increased Christmas break

indefinitely! The night before returning to school she came up to me

and said "Mommy, we need to pick out a dylish outfit for me to wear to school

doo-morrow". I almost fell over!!! She was worried about dressing "dylish aka

stylish" at age 4!!!!

She asked for pictures after her coat was on however she did wear a very "dylish"

long black, pink and white sweater with a tie that her cousin Keenzie gave her for

Christmas. She chose to pair it with a black shirt underneath and her beloved

jeggings that she calls her "soft jeans" that she has five pairs of and wears

almost everyday! She topped it off with her new little Ugg boots and of course

the black headband and pink flower in her hair!

After school we had a girls day and went out for lunch at one of her favorite

places, Chick-Fil-A; then did what all girls do with Christmas money their

grandma gave them...we went shopping! Gabriella scored four new sweaters, four

shirts, 2 cute valentine day shirts, tights and socks! Gotta love the after

Christmas sales! Thank you so much Grandma "Joe" she enjoyed her shopping

trip very much!!

The 2011 Christmas Marathon...

2012-01-02T01:45:00.000-08:00

Nicholas carrying Gabriella down on Christmas morning is turning into a very

sweet tradition! The truth is Nicholas was up VERY early Christmas morning and

he couldn't wait to wake his sister up!

Gabriella's Christmas list changed many times through the Christmas season,

which honestly I loved because she is a very happy and content little girl. The

"things" she wanted most were to bake cookies together, shop

together, wrap presents together, send Christmas cards out together (she's a

great envelope sealer:), spend time with Daniel who was in town from North

Carolina and visit with her family. However, one item that did get repeated on

her several list were a Dora kitchen and she was very excited when she opened it!

Nicholas on the other hand made it crystal clear in what he wanted for Christmas

and that was a new set of golf clubs. Nicholas has grown A - L - O - T the last

year and truly needed a new set of clubs.

He told Santa that he would like Taylor Made clubs and between Santa and

Grandma and Papa his wish came true!

He was a very happy boy!!

Alphie was another item that occasionally landed on Gabriella's list. She enjoys

learning and playing with him; which for our little I.T. girl who is a whiz on the

computer it's nice to see her playing with something a little

more simplistic:)

So this is something "Mrs Claus" saw on a midnight trip to the North Pole with

two of her elves, she thought that any little girl would LOVE to open this on

Christmas morning....and she happened to be right! The

princess barbies were a big hit!

Our favorite present under the tree was this one. Gabriella brought it home from

pre-school the last day beforeChristmas break and was SO, SO proud and excited

to put it under the tree for us!! Inside was the most beautiful handmade angle

you have ever seen!!

After opening gifts at our house we drove 2 hours south to Papa and Grandmas.

It was wonderful to see all my siblings there and we always have a great time

getting together!

Lovin their smiles in this pic:)

Daniel, Jordan and Papaw:)

The UGG tradition began the Christmas before we traveled to bring Gabriella

home from China. Papa and Grandma decided that Gabriella and mommy needed

matching UGGS. We both LOVE our UGGS however Gabriella grew out of hers

this year so they decided she needed a new pair and she LOVES them:)

After leaving Papa and Grandmas we then drove an hour east to Curtis parents

and had a very nice visit with them and our brother and sister in law! As we

simply tried to pack too much in during one day, most of the family had already

left for home. We then drove two hours north to return home. When we lived in

central IN it was easier to do everything on Christmas day, however we have now

learned that if we want to truly enjoy Christmas, and the meaning of the season,

and spend quality time with our families, a Christmas marathon is a definite

memory...and one that will need "adjusting" for the years to come. Praying you

all had a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Twas the Night Before Christmas...

2011-12-31T08:58:00.000-08:00

After a beautiful Christmas Eve service at our church, and our pastor having all

the children come up on stage so he could read them the Christmas story out of

the Bible, and an impromptu Chinese dinner with some friends we've known over

twenty years we headed home to prepare for Santa's arrival the next morning!

Last year Gabriella enjoyed the story The Night Before Christmas because it was

a story...this year, she was really into it as she "got it".

She loves her daddy reading her stories...especially this one!

She wanted to go check the tree one more time.

She was so excited!

After deciding things were just right...

and the presents were organized just so.

It was time to write the note to Santa, which was just precious, and put out the

cookies and milk!

Nicholas then was busy in the den tracking Santa on the computer and he found

that Santa had just arrived in the United States! It was off to bed and we didn't

hear another word the entire night!!

Baking Christmas Cookies...Princess Style!

2011-12-31T08:24:00.000-08:00

Gabriella was beyond excited to make Christmas cookies for Santa!

We rolled the dough out together and then began cutting out the cookies!

Love her little hands:)

Cutting out the little stars were her favorite! And I have to say they perfect size

little cookie if you just wanted a little bite of a Christmas cookie:)

The Princess Style comes into play here...notice how many pictures the wet paper

towel is close so she can continue to wipe off her hands...this little one does not

like to be dirty!

REAL happy as she is wiping off her hands!

Decorating with icing.

Licking the icing off her fingers.

One of her finished products...made with love:)

Santa loved his cookies!

And by the time we were done her shirt was off too as she had icing on her shirt!

I can't tell you how excited I am to get outside on a sunny day and take some

photos...the inside pictures, well, I'm sure you understand!

A Christmas Gift from Mei Mei...

2011-12-31T06:16:00.000-08:00

On December 24 the doorbell rang and it was the mail carrier. It took Gabriella

less than a minute to realize the package was for her.

She asked it who it was from and I told her Mei Mei Emily in Tennessee. She

began jumping up and down with excitement!

She began unwrapping her presents. First she unwrapped a 2012 pink calender

where she can color on the different pages. She has been spending a lot of time

with her markers and coloring the calender...she loves it!!

Then she opened a Barbie Zoo Doctor kit where she squealed with excitement!!

When you asked Emily and Gabriella what they want to be when they grow up

they will both tell you they want to be a doctor that takes care of animals.

Thank you very much Mei Mei Emily for the Christmas gifts! We have spoken

many times how interesting it would be if the girls who began their life together

in China, then both came home to their forever families in the United States,

ended up back together in college sharing a dorm room and majoring in the same

area of study! God has wonderful plans for each of their lives and we feel so

blessed that he has chosen our families to love and raise them!

Santa and the Reindeer Sighting...

2011-12-28T09:25:00.000-08:00

As I catch up on Christmas blog post I have to include the night we went to see

Santa and the reindeer.

The line was long but this year we were inside so we were at least warm and

cozy.

While Curtis and I waited inside with Gabriella, Nicholas went outside to check on

the reindeer. He told us that there were two big reindeer and a baby reindeer

and they were really cute! As soon as we saw Santa we would go see the

reindeer.

Santa was extremely nice and attentive and Gabriella didn't have a fear in the

world sitting and chatting with him!

After we saw Santa we went out to see the reindeer; it seems that we just

missed them as they had to fly back to the North Pole!

There were some nice girls who asked if we would take their picture and they

would in turn take ours...so we took them up on it! The following Sunday morning

after leaving our unbelievable Christmas program at our church, which included a

live camel among other animals, we were walking out to our car when a very nice

lady stopped us. She asked Gabriella if she would like to see something. She

opened the side door of her van and there was a tiny baby reindeer!!! We were

simply amazed!!! We later found out this is the same family that provides

reindeer to where we were the night before! The lady was very kind in allowing

us to see her reindeer and apologized that we missed them the evening

before! This is one thing I love about the city where we live; the spirit of

thoughtfulness and kindness is so prevalent here! Recently we were just voted

as the most optimistic city in America; I would have to say I totally agree and it's

a wonderful place to call home!

Brothers and Sisters...

2011-12-27T06:10:00.000-08:00

Gabriella has such a unique relationship with each of her brothers:)

Jordan spoils her and baby's her like none other! We had a meeting to attend

and even though Jordan wasn't feeling well he pulled out the cookie dough,

cookie cutters, decorations along with making icing so he and Gabriella could

decorate Christmas cookies together...like three weeks before Christmas!

She had a great time eating the icing and decorating the cookies with her big bro!

Their finished product:)

As many of you know Gabriella and Nicholas spent a lot of time working through

their new positions within the family. Namely, Nicholas had been the baby for

over twelve years prior to Gabriella coming home from China. I can happily say

that this dynamic duo has come a l-o-n-g way and realized there is plenty of love

to go around for each one!

Daniel and Gabriella prove that personalities can be very similar even if you

happen to come from two totally different parts of the world! When they first

met Daniel had to try really hard to get on her good side...let's say he

had definitely met his match! Now she squeals with excitement any time she

knows she will talk to him, see him or be able to spend time together. She loves

each of her brothers unconditionally and I can say that they all feel

the same about her. They have all said they can't imagine their life without her

and God definitely knew who the perfect little sister would be for each of them!

Merry Christmas From Our Family to Yours!

2011-12-24T13:39:00.000-08:00

Praying you all have a very Merry Christmas and Blessed New Year!!!

Ho Ho Ho Merry Christmas!!

2011-12-19T15:43:00.000-08:00

Gabriella could hardly contain herself this weekend when we told her we were

going to see Santa!

She made sure she told him everything that was on her mind and was ecstatic

after seeing him!! We're counting down the days until he arrives!

Favorite Photo Friday "Our Little Flower Girl"

2011-12-16T02:38:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we spent a few days in "the windy city" AKA Chicago for my sisters

wedding. The wedding was beautiful and we had a wonderful time but this

mama was totally excited as she had all four of her kiddos together for the first

time since Labor Day! Daniel flew in from North Carolina and it was wonderful to

see him and spend time together!

We just finished getting our little flower girl ready! Those of you with a beloved

little Asian princess I can share with you that you need LOTS of setting and hair

spray if you want curls in their hair:)

We were downstairs waiting for the limo to pick us up and take us to the

wedding. I knew it had been a busy semester but when I look at this photo...let's

just say I'm excited to have a few weeks off for some R & R and to get

reacquainted with the gym!

The limo has arrived!

Sitting with Aunt Tiana in the really big car!!

We arrived and the first place Gabriella wanted to go was to check on Aunt Kris,

the beautiful bride!

Too cute!

Hanging out with papa and grandma before the wedding:)

She has her flowers...

we were all wondering if she would drop them down the isle??

First we had to check out the "twirl factor" of the dress...thankfully this one

passed:)

Then a quick photo shoot with the ring bearer...yes, Jack, Kris and Kevin's dog

drove in all the way from New York to serve as the ring bearer...he even shared a

few words during the ceremony!

Here we go....

And she's doing it!!!

She did great until she saw where I was sitting...

Then quickly ran to me to join us towards the front. Great job baby girl!!!

Kris being escorted down the isle with dad:)

Mr and Mrs Kevin Mano!!!!

Peeking to check out what's for dinner.

The girl LOVES the smell of roses.

Gavin is an INCREDIBLE cousin to Gabriella and Gabriella loves him to pieces!!

He is soooo very patient with her! You can tell he is used to being a big brother

and he is wonderful with younger kiddos:)

Our oldest "baby" boy who just turned 21! Doesn't he look great in purple!

Our little princess LOVES and I mean LOVES to dance. I'm totally convinced she

is praying as she "patiently" waits for the dance floor to open up and she can

finally begin to dance!

And it did! Enjoy yourself baby girl! You did an awesome job and we couldn't be

more proud of you!!!

Gingerbread Houses with the Chinese Playgroup!

2011-12-03T06:32:00.000-08:00

Friday evening was a very special night! It wasn't just the fact that it was

Gabriella's first time decorating a gingerbread house or that it was some quality

mother daughter time..

Or the fact that we were able to play with icing and have a few bites of sugary

candy:)

It was special because of who we were able to do it with! We were invited to our

local China Family Playgroup and we couldn't have had a better time!!

We were with several other mom's and daughters who looked just

like us! We don't want to leave out a very cute little boy with his mama too!

I can't even begin to describe what a wonderful feeling it was to be surrounded

with other mom's who have "BTDT" and are doing it now! Mom's of young

children, elementary school children and even some beautiful high school girls!

The bond with other families who have also adopted from China is simply

instant. We all love to hear each others stories of how God hand picked each

child for our families and all the events that lead up to our precious little ones

being placed in our arms half the world away. We can talk openly, ask questions

learn and support each other on this amazing journey that God has called each of

us on!

Gabriella was so sweet! After decorating gingerbread houses several of us went

out to a new Chinese Habachi buffet that wasn't only wonderful ,but very

reasonably priced; and when you have teenage boys that is a great

option! While there she wanted to make sure she included some of her adopted

friends so she asked for my phone and began showing pictures of she and Emme,

her first dear little friend in our home town that she met when she came home

from China and she misses greatly! After Emme she showed pictures of

"mei, mei" Emily, her sweet foster sister in China who now lives just a few hours

away and of Hannah, her newest friend where we live now! We feel so fortunate

that God has filled our lives with so many families who

have been blessed through adoption!

Guess Who's Birthday it Is???

2011-11-30T17:17:00.000-08:00

Twenty -one years ago today we gave birth to our first beautiful baby boy!!! He

had the biggest blue eyes and longest blond eyelashes you have ever seen! I'm

convinced the nurses even passed this on in report because as soon as a

new nurse came in she said "let me see the gorgeous little guy who has the long

blond eyelashes".

We are very proud of Daniel! He is independent, confident, and a very hard

worker!! He is also currently living 700 miles away from us in North Carolina

and....

we get to see him in nine days!!! I will give you one guess on who is VERY

excited to see her big brother next week! You guessed it! Gabriella is currently

drawing pictures for Daniel and writing the "words" stating "I love

Daniel" and "I miss Daniel". I believe she speaks for all of us!! Happy Birthday

to our very special baby boy!!!

Thanksgving...Gabriella Style!

2011-11-27T17:04:00.000-08:00

I have to confess, being a parent to a toddler/pre-schooler again in my early 40's

is absolutely AWESOME!!! I wondered how I may handle the sleepless nights, the

potty training, and all the time that goes into raising a child and the truth is...I

would do it again in a heartbeat!

When Gabriella came home with her little hand-print made into a turkey it really

took me back to thinking about when the boys were little and did something

similar. What was really neat...was when I began to read what she

was thankful for!

In case you can't make it out she loves and is thankful for Jordan as they give

each other hugs. She also loves Daniel and he lives "away" (aka in North

Carolina). She loves mommy and she likes to take pictures of her...she

nailed that one! She loves daddy and that he helps her draw and she loves

Nicholas as well as playing hide and seek with him.

We are thankful to God and that he has blessed our family with the most precious

little girl in the entire world and she has captured a place in each of our hearts

that no one else could fill!

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2011-11-24T23:42:00.000-08:00

Praying that everyone has a blessed Thanksgiving Day with their families and

loved ones!

We Found the Culprit

2011-11-21T04:30:00.000-08:00

The last few days our little princess has not been acting so "princessey" to put it

mildly. She does have a sinus infection she is being treated for but we were

feeling like the antibiotic she was on was more like a huge dose of

steroids!! As we were reviewing her diet over the past few days we were trying

to think of anything that may be different causing her to be a little "hyper" shall

we say. Last night she asked for tea with her dinner. Gabriella has drank tea

since the day she came to us in China.

Last week I found a great deal on Lipton tea bags at Sam's Club and didn't

even think about the fact they had caffeine as normally we mix half

Lipton decaffeinated tea with fruit flavored tea bags that we purchase at

Fresh Market. It is a yummy combination. Well, we finally put "two and two"

together last night and realized our busy little girl arrived at the same time we

switched to tea bags with caffiene. The first errand this morning, to the

grocery store for a BIG box of decaffeinated tea!!

Guess What We're Doing This Weekend???

2011-11-18T16:30:00.000-08:00

You guessed it!! We are putting up our Christmas tree!!! Curtis and I had to

giggle when we looked at the pictures above and realized that under where

Gabriella is sitting on the box it says "Made in China". Though many "things" are

made in China one of the biggest blessings of our life was created in China, by

God, especially for our family and we are eternally thankful!!

This is the first time we have ever put our tree up before Thanksgiving as I like a

definite separation between the two holidays...but as this year Jordan and

Nicholas are both on their individual school basketball teams, let's just say our

schedule is just a little bit beyond crazy the next few months...and I

wouldn't trade it for the world!

Christmas Came Early!!!

2011-11-10T17:33:00.000-08:00

Have you ever wished soooo much for something that you wish you could have or

redo? Last week as we set our clocks back one hour for daylight savings time I

asked my friends if you could re-live one hour in your entire life what would it

be? The answers all varied and they were all very sentimental.

I knew in my heart if I could re-live one hour out of my entire life it would be the

hour that Gabriella was placed in our arms. One reason is that it all happened so

fast and I wish I could have taken in each and every moment.

The second reason is because we only have one very blurry picture of the

moment she was placed in our arms.

Last week I was going through all of her paper work and I found something

tucked in one of her files. It was a miniature c.d. It said Sun Wen Hao, her

Chinese name. I truly didn't have a clue what was on this little c.d., if we

even had anything to open it, play it etc. Curtis put it in the computer to see

what would happen.

When it opened this is what we saw....

a clear picture of the moment she was placed in our arms!!! I cried!! I couldn't

believe we had a real picture of the moment our baby girl was handed to us!!!!!

And then...there were more! More pictures that our guide took and tucked in our

file that some how we never ran across until last week!!!

Back at the Civil Affairs office after our first night together:)

We're preparing to sign the official paper work to make Sun Wen Hao,

Gabriella Grace Hao.

It must be ok with Gabriella as she has already started her paper-work:)

Curtis preparing to officially be a daddy...to his little girl!

Preparing to make it all official...

I have completed hundreds of foot prints for babies when they are born...this is

my favorite hand print I have ever done!!

Gabriella officially has her family...and we couldn't be happier or feel more

blessed!!

Outside the orphanage steps. Gabriella was in foster care but this was

the orphanage she was initially taken to in Taiyuan.

One of the children celebrated a birthday while we were there...she wasn't quite

in the party mood that afternoon...but it was her very first birthday party that we

attended together:)

This was Susan our guide...words can't even describe how wonderful this woman

was! Gabriella had a lot of grieving for a few days as she had very loving

foster grandparents whom she had lived with since two weeks of age. Susan was

incredible!!!

This was priceless...there are times its convenient to have a mom as a

nurse...there are times that it isn't. Once our little princess was fast asleep we

had to check her over from head to toe. I was totally convinced she had

surgery on her belly button as it looked like tiny sutures or maybe scars...well I

learned that this was simply how Asian belly buttons may look as they have a lot

more melanin in their skin...lesson learned:)

The red couch photo.

The rose garden:)

We had really wondered how the food might be in China...we were very pleasantly

surprised, especially Curtis. I will try almost anything...he is more of a meat and

potatoes guy. The food was some of the most fresh

food we have ever had. It was delicious...and the fruit...was amazing!!!!

We were starting to see smiles of our precious baby girl!

We were blessed to meet and travel with some wonderful families from all over

the US. It's amazing how God's hand was in each adoption as every child seemed

to be the perfect fit for every single family! I can truly say Christmas came early

this year as I can't even begin to put into words how special it is to have a

picture of the very moment our baby girl was placed in our arms...half way around

the world!!!

A Spooktacular Night...Halloween 2011!

2011-11-03T12:41:00.000-07:00

Our little ladybug couldn't wait to begin trick or treating!

If you ask anyone who knows Gabriella they will tell she's a hugger! She even

hugs the pumpkins!

Nicholas completed his masterpiece...poor baby his eyes were half closed!

Curtis was nominated to scoop out the guts...he didn't seem to mind too bad:)

Nicholas creating his next pumpkin!

Jordan working on his pumpkin.

Princess riding her bike as everyone else is carving:)

There is a tradition that daddy gives the kids their first piece of Halloween

candy. Gabriella thought this was pretty cool!!

She loves the camera...

Let the trick or treating begin!!!

She loved running to each of the neighbors houses!

By the end of the evening we had one very tired little ladybug. We started a

tradition years ago where we bring the bon-fire pit out onto the driveway and

cook hot dogs, smores etc on Halloween evening. I walk around with

the kiddos and Curtis stays and passes out candy. We love it as many of the

neighbors end up around the bon-fire and it makes for a very memorable

evening:)

As Gabriella had a fall party at pre-school the following morning we found these

adorable treat bags at Mommy's Kitchen. She has LOTS of yummy recipes and

many creative ideas for treats.

As I was putting the bags together for Gabriella's pre-school class I then decided

to put a few more together for clinical nursing students that I had the next day.

I'm not sure who enjoyed them more, the pre-school students or my college

students:) They are a definite repeat for next year!!

Happy Halloween!!

2011-10-31T19:17:00.000-07:00

Hope you all had a safe trick or treat and a very Happy Halloween!!! We have

lots of pics of our little ladybug that we will post later this week!

Our Cutest Lil' Pumpkin

2011-10-30T09:18:00.000-07:00

Happy Fall Y'all!!!!

I'm Ready....

2011-10-25T17:33:00.000-07:00

I'm more than ready to have all of my kiddos together again! Daniel moved to

North Carolina in September...I have pictures but each time I tried to post about

it I began to cry so I didn't do the post. He is missing his little sister and his

little sister is missing him! We're hoping he can come home for Thanksgiving but

if not then, he will be home for almost an entire week over Christmas!!! We

couldn't be more proud of him for wanting to spread his wings and try something

new out on his own...but we just wish he was a little closer to home:)

We're Still Here...

2011-10-20T04:23:00.000-07:00

It's been a crazy couple of weeks but we are still here! I'm hoping to take some

fall pictures of our little princess and maybe even the boys if they are up for it

and post them in the next few days! We are currently on the "hunt"

for the perfect little Lady Bug costume for Gabriella. If you all know of any cute

ones please feel free to let us know where we could find one:)

Thank you for all the kind comments on our last post of "Are You My Mommy":)

We are so blessed to "know" other families who have BTDT and I can't thank you

enough for all your support!

Are You My Mommy...

2011-10-09T14:19:00.000-07:00

I knew the question would come...one day. I just didn't expect it when she

just turned four. It was during bath time. We were playing and talking and

then out of the blue she looked up at me with those beautiful brown eyes and

said "are you my mommy"? I paused, just for a second out of complete shock

and then my mind raced for the right answer; I thought back and remembered

how James Dobson always suggest you answer the question they ask...if they

want to know more they will continue to ask more. I looked her right in the

eyes and said "yes, I AM your mommy".

"Did I come out of your tummy like Daniel, Jordan and Nick"? I replied, "No,

you were born in China and came out of your beautiful birth mommy's tummy;

she is a woman that we will always love and pray for..she gave mommy the

most precious blessing in the entire world...you". Gabriella smiled and said

"You love me"?

I said "I love you with my whole heart...all the way to China and back"!

Gabriella giggled, hugged me and said "Good mama, cause I wuv you too,

this much" and held her arms out as wide as they could go.

I don't know if I gave her the "right" answer according to all the experts on

the subject of adoption but I gave the answer that God put in my heart and

mind to say when she asked...and based off her response I believe

she understood and knows without a doubt that, yes, I AM

her real mommy!

Blessed Beyond Measure!!

2011-10-07T14:23:00.000-07:00

Though I only work about eight months out of the year as a nursing professor,

some of my weeks can be super busy...and this has been one of those

weeks! Last night on our drive back from being out of town for a couple of

appointments I heard little sniffles from the back seat....I turned around to

see Gabriella crying...it was obvious she had been crying for a little bit as she

had tears running down her little cheeks. When she first came home from

China we called it "silent tears" as she was trying to be so brave about

something but her emotions would take over...just like anyone.

When I saw the tears I broke every law known to man and jumped in the back

seat while Curtis continued to drive in an attempt to comfort Gabriella and

find out what was wrong. She looked at me and said "I don't want Mommy go

to work tomorrow, I want Mommy to stay with me"...and she then began to

really cry! This is NOT like her! I comforted her and was able to get her to

calm down. Then, I told her that Mommy has to teach in the morning just for

a little while... BUT when I have to go to work tomorrow evening, for a

dedication ceremony for our nursing students she needs to come to work with

mommy....and did her little eyes ever light up!

Once we arrived home she immediately chose the outfit she wants to wear

and is VERY excited to go to work with mommy! Curtis was going to drive

down with me anyway so she can sit with him during the ceremony and can

then hang with mom during the reception part with our students and

faculty...who will LOVE having the opportunity to meet her.

I am soooooooo incredibly blessed to be able to serve at a Christian university

that understands the importance of family, adoption and will welcome

Gabriella with open arms! Our university is dedicated to being a world changer

and we are in the beginning stages of possibly partnering with a nursing

school in China and I am beyond excited about the opportunity! Curtis...is a

little nervous that we may be taking a trip over and that it may lead to filling

out a little more paper work in the future...only God knows what great plans

He may have for our family...but for now I'm feeling blessed beyond measure

with my family, serving where I do and enjoying this incredible life that God

has blessed us with!

Friday Favorite....Finally Free!!!!

2011-10-01T05:21:00.000-07:00

I absolutely LOVE this picture of Jordan and Nicholas. Nicholas thoroughly

enjoys boating, tubing and simply being at the lake!

For Jordan, I feel it represents that he is finally

free...free from all the negative things

and bullying that went on at his last school. Free to be the incredible person

that God made him to be; a

considerate, strong, loving, respectful young man who knows exactly what he

wants to do with his life and is

on track to do just that! Since moving home Jordan has gained 12 pounds!

He has reconnected with old friends and has made TONS of new friends at

school, on the basketball

team, at church and youth activities; he has returned to being the natural

leader that he is. I'm also proud that

Jordan is utilizing the difficult time he went through to encourage and

help others who

have or may be walking in his shoes; this is part of the healing process and

we couldn't be more proud of him

for doing this! I'm proud of him for being truthful, for not participating in

things that he knew he shouldn't

have, for standing his ground, even when those who should have been setting

a good example, chose not to.

I've very thankful that we are home, surrounded with friends and family who

are supportive, know and love

us and we feel the same about them! While we had an awesome church

where we lived, I can't even begin

to describe how good it feels to return to our home church and our incredible

pastor who is so very gifted in

teaching.

As usual I'm including a picture of princess in here too! We were invited to

spend the day with some dear

friends at their lake and it was a day full of laughter, talking and pure R & R!!

We had a wonderful time!

Gabriella enjoyed getting in the hammock with their son, who she refers to as

the "nice Jake" and loves it as

he and his family always enjoy loving on her and spoiling her; it's funny, she

has almost everyone we know

wrapped around her little finger..and I believe that's exactly how she likes it:)

Fall Festival...

2011-09-24T17:27:00.000-07:00

Gabriella was very excited to take her first hay ride that was pulled by

horses!!!

A family left their farm to the city as a dream for others to enjoy after they

were gone. What our city has done with it is simply amazing!!

Gabriella and I were both fascinated with horses!

The horses were nice but someone was BEYOND excited to go see the MOOOO

cow...

When the cow moved close enough for Gabriella to pet it she could hardly

contain herself...this girl loved the cow!!

As the cow walked away it began to moooooo...and someone thought this was

very funny!!

Love this picture of my girl!!!

An old fashioned tractor from way back....

The search for the pumpkin began...

and for some reason she felt she needed a gourd too!

While driving home Friday afternoon after teaching at the hospital I saw two

beautiful horses pulling a red wagon full of people down a huge country side

hill. I truly didn't know what was going on but I knew I wanted to find out.

Signs said that a farm was having their fall festival. Today I asked Curtis if

he would like to go check it out with me and he, Nicholas, Gabriella and I all

went. When we pulled in we expected to have to pay for parking, pay for hay

rides etc, well, come to find out the entire event was free! The previous

owners of the farm restored the farm so people can come and enjoy what farm

life used to be like and enjoy different activities through out the year!

Favorite Friday Photo...a Little Early

2011-09-22T17:29:00.000-07:00

Gabriella was totally in the mood to have her picture taken today and I of

course loved every moment of it!!! I love her eyes in this photo:)

I have an early morning tomorrow so I'm posting my Friday favorite a little

early!

Hope everyone has a

great weekend!!!

Wordless Wednesday...

2011-09-21T06:03:00.000-07:00

A Surprise Party for Jordan!!!

2011-09-20T18:45:00.000-07:00

When Jordan turned 18 in May life was beyond a little busy!! We had just

moved home and we were all going in what felt like a million different

directions. We took Jordan out for dinner and gave a him gifts

however we didn't really celebrate his 18th birthday like this mama wanted

to. Soooo, this past weekend we had a surprise birthday party for him and

had a wonderful time!!! Jake and Nicholas were wonderful in

keeping Jordan occupied on the golf course while we went into action at home

preparing for his party! We prepared taco meats and all the fixings for

nachos, tacos, chips, salsa and yummy white queso dip! We

added drinks and Jordan's favorite raspberry cake from Halls and had a perfect

Sunday afternoon celebration!

Black and White Wednesday...Her First Teacher's Note

2011-09-14T10:38:00.000-07:00

Gabriella is absolutely LOVING preschool! The first note home from her

teachers stated "Gabriella seemed

to love her first day of preschool. She smiled all day while trying all of the

stations. She likes painting a lot!

She is an excellent listener and talked to the teachers and students often".

Favorite Friday Photo...

2011-09-09T00:24:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if I love the photo more or the memories of the photo shoot. I'm going to do a post in the near

future of "Bloopers" and this particular photo op had several photos that I will include; this however was a

cute one of the family:) Daniel had a beard for a while and everyone he saw asked him where his horse and

buggy were parked as they felt he looked Amish...poor kiddo!

Gabriella's First Day of Preschool!!

2011-09-08T18:28:00.000-07:00

The night before preschool she chose the perfect outfit, including the shoes!

The Dora backpack was packed with her family picture for show and tell...

Lovin the confident smile and her hair blowing in the breeze...

She was certain she wanted daddy to join us on her first morning of preschool!

And mommy wouldn't miss it for the world!!

I was soooo proud of our baby girl!!

She had an incredible first day at preschool and enjoyed every bit of it! We love it that she is attending the same preschool that Nicholas did as it is an incredible school!!! Her teachers are very nice and it is very obvious they love what they do; which makes it much easier to leave our precious baby girl in their experienced and loving hands!

She Did It!!!

2011-09-04T18:41:00.000-07:00

It's taken over a year to get to this point...

Gabriella had absolutely NO desire to get her hair trimmed...

then, she realized maybe this wasn't so bad!

Natalie has done my hair for years and was so very, very patient with our baby girl!!

and by the time she was finished

we had one very happy, happy little girl!!

Thank you sooooo much Natalie for giving Gabriella her first official hair cut! She has been telling everyone about you and that "it didn't hurt....I sooooo happy"!!!

Wordless Wednesday...

2011-08-30T18:35:00.001-07:00

A Family Beach Wedding...

2011-08-27T03:26:00.000-07:00

Let's just say when our family gets together there is never a dull moment...fun is the operative word!

And when we are all in Florida together that takes it to a whole new level!!

Gabriella has daddy exactly where she wants him...all to herself!!

This was priceless...it took princess about two seconds to realize a picture was being taken of papaw and the boys...and it DIDN'T include her....

We joke that the women in our family have some serious control issues....

Let's just say she quickly remedied the situation and she had everything under control....

And boy was she happy with the end result...now she has papaw all to herself!

Yes, daddy has adapted very well to having a little girl...he even paints toe nails! Gabriella is doing everything she can to stay awake...

Once her pedicure was complete she was ready for a serious nap!

Papa and Grandma before the wedding. They started this tradition of beach weddings 17 years ago!

Gabriella and soon to be uncle Kevin...that wedding will be brought to you from Chicago in December:)

My brother Clint and Lori right before the wedding! I love this photo of them:)

The beautiful bride....Tiana!

Our new sister in law, Tiana, our precious new nephew Landon!

Walking down the long isle!

Can you feel the excitement?? Totally loved it!!

Filling the jar of sand, representing the blending of two lives and families into one.

If the big people can play in the sand...sounds great to us we will join right in!

Husband and Wife!

A new family!!

Landon and Gabriella...I believe they have met their match! Gavin does a wonderful job at keeping them both under control!

I'm not sure how this happens....

when my sweet baby girl is around, and even though I'm supposed to be shooting wedding photos...

I end up taking pictures of her!! Sorry, it's just that mama love thing!

Two brothers beginning a new journey together:)

And a family who just grew in love, memories and the addition of more family members! We love you all and are looking forward to many wonderful times together:)

A Party for a Princess...

2011-08-25T08:44:00.000-07:00

As many of you know we were traveling during the month of July and though

we had a wonderful time, it made this mama a little sad that we couldn't

have our little princesses birthday party until August. However, when we have

a party we enjoy planning every single detail...and the menu is always fun!

We had miniature strawberry pie tart lets, homemade chicken salad crescents,

marinated and BBQ chicken kabobs, deviled eggs....

hot dogs, strawberries, grapes, fresh fruit bouquets and baked beans:)

We chose foods that Gabriella loved and that is how our menu came about:)

I have to say the fruit bouquets were fun to make however they took a while

put together...yet the end result was cute:)

Gabriella and Jordan worked together alternating pink and purple plates and

napkins and were so cute working together:)

Our little princess chose a princess theme which by all means meant a

raspberry and white princess cake from the best bakery in town!!!

Did you notice the little candles with hearts on the top? I found these at a

party store and thought they were just too cute!!

We can't believe she is four already!!!!

She was a little bashful while everyone was singing happy birthday and I just

love some of her expressions...

Daddy helped her blow out her candles....

We made her birthday list while flying to Florida in July...at the top of her list

was a pink piggy bank...grandma made sure she received it...thank you

grandma!!

Morgan and Cassidy came to the party too...Gabriella introduced Morgan to

Papaw as her "best est friend"...

The neighbor girls and their families came over to join in as well...it was

wonderful having them here...Gabriella definitely missed Emme and Mei Mei..

Gabriella gave instructions on how to play put the heart on the necklace and...

she even let Nicholas join in on the fun!!!

The party was a lot of fun and everyone had a great time! At future party's

though I need to do a much better job of taking photos of all the people who

came to help us celebrate!

We had a full house and a wonderful afternoon

celebrating this beautiful little girl that God chose to bless our family with!

Happy fourth birthday Gabriella Grace Hao...we love you to the moon and

back!!!!

Family Time...

2011-08-22T01:03:00.000-07:00

After a busy several weeks our family was able to spend some very simple but wonderful family time together over the weekend. The high school football season kicked off Friday night and our team won their opening game 53 to 47 on the road. As we moved home this spring it seems like every time we turn around we are running into old friends which feels great! We spent part of the game catching up with other families while cheering our team onto victory. Saturday evening we enjoyed having some friends over for a bon fire. God was so good as he allowed the rain to stop right at 7:00 pm when our outdoor activities were to begin. We had a wonderful evening laughing, talking, cooking hot dogs and smores over the open fire and just simply enjoying time with friends:) Sunday we went back to our home church here that we used to attend; for variety of reasons we felt we should check out other churches since we had been away for several years; I have to tell you Curtis and I both felt like we were really home after leaving a wonderful Sunday morning service there...and it was awesome!!!! Sunday evening was gorgeous and we took the kids, including the four legged one, over to the park to enjoy a nice evening. I haven't been using my fixed lens while shooting much this summer so I decided to pull it out and get reacquainted with it...lets say you can tell it's been a while but I'm ready to get back into the swing of things and start working with it again:)

Lovin' on Mei Mei....

2011-08-17T13:26:00.000-07:00

Someone is missin' her mei mei......

First Day of School!!!!

2011-08-15T05:26:00.000-07:00

Today is back to school day in our home! Nicholas will be starting his eighth grade year and today is the first day of Jordan's senior year! Where has the time gone? The boys began their morning with french toast, bacon and fresh fruit; Jordan couldn't wait to go and Nicholas would be happy to stay at home and be home schooled; I believe once he meets some new friends he may have different feelings:) We're praying he has an easy transition into his new school:)

I do find it "interesting" that when I first began taking pictures of the boys this morning they were less than excited about it; however when the neighbor girls came over as they were riding together it was amazing how those smiles went from "just to please mom" to the day just became a little more interesting!

Our baby girl is four!!!

2011-08-12T05:46:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we will be celebrating Gabriella's fourth birthday with family and friends! It truly doesn't seem like our baby girl should be four already; and the truth is she turned four last month when we were on our way back from Myrtle Beach! As things were "just a little" on the busy side in the month of July this mama didn't want to just throw together a party for her baby girl so we opted to wait until August when we could all get together and celebrate:)

When we reflect on the last 17 months with one of the greatest blessings of our entire life we can't even imagine our life without Gabriella. The joy this little one has brought to our, as well as our extended family, can't even be put into words. We love you Gabriella Grace Hao and we can't wait to celebrate with you tomorrow!

Black and White Wednesday...Hide and Seek Behind a Palm Tree

2011-08-10T07:02:00.000-07:00

Mary captured this picture when we were down at the beach while I was taking another picture...I just love this one of the girls! They had been running and chasing each other all over the pool area and it was just precious!

Myrtle Beach...

2011-08-07T19:25:00.000-07:00

I truly feel that we have been on the go so much that I'm totally behind in blogging! So, in an attempt to get caught up I've posted many of my favs' from our Myrtle Beach vacation. We enjoyed the trip with a total of 28 of us and had an incredible time:)

Each evening the condos we stayed in had turtle races for the kiddos...Gabbie's turtle won the third race of the evening and she and Hadley were so cute cheering their turtles on! We also had dinner at Margeritiville one evening which is down on the board walk and we had a great time! Daniel and Josh look as if they were solving the worlds problems for standing in line. The boys met in kindergarten and are now both 20! Where has the time gone?

We took lots of pics on the beach and it was WINDY to say the least! Nicholas invited Logan to go on vacation with us; I'm telling you I would take that kiddo any where with us ~ he is one terrific kiddo!! The poor little guy was stung by a jelly fish while we were at the ocean; we learned if this happens to pack the area that was stung in wet sand as the salt water helps it and then after packed to spray him with vinegar; the life gaurds were all over it and we were amazed how much better he was in just 30 minutes! Each year someone is suprised with the "kiss" picture and as it was Logans first year with us he was the one who received the surpise!

Jamie and Jordan also started kindergarten together and they are entering their senior year!! I'm happy to say they will graduate together since we have moved home:) I have lots of pics of them together and as we get closer to graduation I will scan the photos in and post them...way too cute!!!

Hope you all have a blessed and wonderful week!!

Black and White Wednesday...Brothers

2011-08-03T19:23:00.000-07:00

Do you happen to notice how well Daniel and Jordan are holding Gabriella's

hands?

Can you feel the love between Nicholas and Daniel when it comes to holding

"hands"? Boys...gotta love 'em!

Family Fun in Florida...

2011-08-01T05:53:00.000-07:00

We are all in Florida celebrating an amazing family wedding; to say we are having a good time is an understatement! We will be back later this week and will post more pics! Have a great day:)

Black and White Wednesday...

2011-07-27T06:35:00.001-07:00

A Princess Birthday...

2011-07-26T21:22:00.000-07:00

We are busy planning a very special birthday party and I will give you one guess who the princess party may be for...you are right ~ it is princess Gabriella! I created and ordered the invitations tonight and will pick the invites up tomorrow! It looks like they will be mailed from the beach as our entire family is flying to Florida to celebrate as my brother and future sister-in-law will be married on an island! As we are all going in so many different directions it will be wonderful having the family together for a few days, in Florida none the less! Thank you Papa and Grandma:) Gabriella has been busy packing her Dora suitcase for items she feels are a must for our trip! I have to say that Curtis and I would both travel all the way around the world with this little princess as she is truly one of the best four year old travelers you have ever met!

**Heather, I have tried to contact you however when I click on your blog link it only shows your profile page; I can't even access your blog:( Please feel free to email me how I can contact you and I would love to chat!**

Surgery was a success!!!

2011-07-24T19:45:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for your prayers, text, emails and messages concerning Gabriella! God answered our prayers and our baby girl sailed through her surgical procedure! We knew when Beth, our nurse, took us back to our pre-op room, smiled and said I have two adopted daughters from China who are 10 and 14 that our day was going to go well! Beth understood our fears of this being the first time Gabriella had been separated from us and went above and beyond to make sure everything went as smooth as possible:) The boys and grandma were all allowed to come back to pre and post op even though we are only supposed to have two family members with the patient; our anesthesiologist who was Asian was very reassuring and wonderful with Gabriella as well as Curtis and I. Versed is also a wonderful drug which helped her to relax prior to surgery; at one point she told me I had five eyes and five noses! The surgeon/pediatric dentist and his team were simply AMAZING!!! The word had been passed along about how important it was for us to be with our baby girl when she woke up; he came out after surgery, gave us an excellent report and then said "I heard you want to be with your daughter in recovery before she even gets to post op...she is still sleeping, come with me and I will take you to her" and off we went to find our precious baby girl hooked up to an IV and monitors yet sleeping very peacefully! We peeked in her mouth, rubbed her hair and the nurse brought 2 extra tall stools so Curtis and I could sit right there with her until she awoke. They had educated us that little ones don't always come out of anesthesia well and it could be a rough couple of hours; nope God had other plans! Gabriella coughed, opened her eyes, looked at us and said "mama, dada, all over, can we go home now"? We were so thankful to see that she handled the anesthesia well and our baby girl was awake and talking! As soon as her brothers and grandma heard she was awake they all joined us in the post op room built for a patient plus two...it was ok as we were all back there watching over our princess and couldn't have been happier with how well she did!

The final report was that she had three fillings and four crowns placed, two in her back molars and two on her front two teeth; they were very unsure if she could keep her front teeth however they were able to by placing the crowns; we were prepared if the tooth fairy needed to visit Riley:) Gabriella's back crowns are silver; it sort of made this mama sad however they said the chances of her keeping them on until her permanent teeth came in were much higher with the silver ones ~ and ~ grandma instantly made me smile when she said "Gabriella, show us your bling that's in your mouth" and she opened her mouth and just smiled! Soooo, we have put a happy spin on the silver crowns and our baby girl now has her "bling" on every single day! One thing that surprised us all was that when we were preparing to take her back prior to her surgery she said she wanted to sit with her brothers for a little while; as they were all three lined up Curtis carried her over there and said "which one do you want"...we were all surprised by who she chose as Daniel and Jordan spoil her rotten; yep, she wanted Nicholas! I believe there is hope for this dynamic duo!

Thank you again for all your prayers!!! One thing we have to take away from Gabriella's diet is anything chewy...so far so good but this baby girl loves her starburst, taffy and bubble gum....if anyone has any idea for some great substitutes I'd love to hear your suggestions!!!

Prayers for Gabriella...

2011-07-21T01:59:00.000-07:00

Today our little princess will be heading into surgery. A couple of months ago Gabriella stated that her teeth hurt when she was eating ice cream...and as this little one loves ice cream we went ahead and made an appointment with the pediatric dentist. I was thinking a couple of fillings and we would be on our way...well, it was a little more complicated than that. My "idea" of a couple of fillings, in the dental office, turned into the "reality" of the dentist telling us she had 6-7 cavities, four of which will needed to be crowns. Then he calmly stated "I feel it will be in her best interest to take her to surgery to complete all of this as it will be easier on her to do it all in an hour and a half verses five to six dental appointments". For some reason I was in nursing mode during our conversation and it all made sense; the next morning I awoke in total mom mode...this wasn't one of the hundreds of babies I had taken care of that was going to surgery, on a ventilator etc, this was my baby girl! After phone calls to the office, a few times, prayer and support from family, friends and those who have "been there done that" with their little ones I did realize it made sense to take her to surgery and get everything done at one time.

I also reached out to Sienna's mom as she has been there done that with her beautiful Sienna. The email she sent me was so encouraging and I truly appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. We "ran into" Sienna and her family at Lucy's on Shaman Island when we were both in China adopting the girls. I also found out while visiting their blog that Sienna will be having dental surgery today as well...so, if you would like to say a prayer for both of our girls we would greatly appreciate it.

Providing we don't have to stay all night in the hospital, and they have given us a 50/50 on that, I'm thinking we will be taking our sweet baby girl to her favorite authentic Chinese restaurant for dinner tonight where she can have her egg drop soup, pot stickers and rice that she so dearly loves:)

Our Beach Girls...

2011-07-18T14:37:00.000-07:00

I have always wanted to take pictures of Gabriella is a white dress on the beach and I've searched for the "perfect" dress for months...yet couldn't seem to find it. Once we found out that Emily and her family would be joining us I then became obsessed with finding two identical white dresses...and the search began and intensified...and still I couldn't find what I was looking for...until, the day before Emily and her family were to arrive at the beach...there they were...two dresses in the perfect sizes!!! No wonder I couldn't find the dresses in IN they were at a store in South Carolina!! It sort of reminds me of God's timing...how sometimes when want things in our time yet God's timing is truly what is perfect:)

I couldn't choose which pictures to post so I chose lots that I love for different reasons:) I received an email from Mary, Emily's mom, this morning and she stated that another adoptive family stated how many families who adopt children from China and travel as a group share a special bond but we have "so much more". I'm not minimizing at all how close families become who share this common bond however I do feel that God gave our families double the blessings with Emily, Gabriella, the bond they shared as sisters in China and now the love and connection that both of our families share:)

Dannie Rain...Some of you May Remember...

2011-07-14T21:45:00.000-07:00

Two years ago when we were on our Myrtle Beach vacation two ladies came running over asking if anyone was a nurse as there was a baby drowning in one of the pools. Lora and I ran over to the other pool where we found a blue baby girl who was starting to cough and spit up large amounts of water and was being held by a hysterical mother. While Lora who is VP of a bank and has excellent customer service and management skills calmed everyone down around us and kept things under control, I utilized all the CPR and nursing skills that I could until the ambulance finally arrived. As they were walking towards the pool I looked up to see a security officer and my husband talking...Curtis, my husband, who had CPR training years previously was the one who jumped in the pool and pulled Dannie Rain from her floatie that she had turned upside down in...unbeknownst to me until then... he laid her on the cement and performed CPR on her as she was not breathing and did not have a pulse.

We had always wondered how this precious little girl was doing as her parents were so distraught they left from their vacation early and we didn't see them again...that is until last week. They "just happened" to be back to the same vacation spot again...the exact same week we were there and swimming at the same pool, out of five, that we chose to swim at that day! Dannie Rain looked wonderful!!! She is happy, very happy and very healthy!! She did spend all of her time in the pool with her life vest on and having an excellent time!! Isn't awesome how God sometimes answers questions that there is no way you would ever have known the answer to without his amazing intervention?