Knock, knock...

Gotta love a comic with his own rim shot.

And not to be outdone...

 I'm sure this is how it all started for Jerry Seinfeld...

Officially On the Clock!

I just found out today that our Article 5 letter arrived all safe and sound in Beijing and has been submitted to the appropriate people.  Sooo...we are officially on the clock waiting for our Travel Approval to make its way from Beijing to our agency's office. Could take a couple weeks, could take longer. But once it arrives we are free to go meet our sweet Lily!

Woo hoo!

Busted

Last night, while talking on the phone to a family member (who shall remain nameless per their request), it was brought to my attention that some interesting pictures had been posted on my daughter's blog.

I hadn't checked her blog for a while but don't ya know I surely did before I even hung up the phone.

Here's what I saw going on in my own home, right under my own nose (or more accurately, right over my own head) without me having the slightest clue:

Does it surprise anyone that he made this jump with no pillows or any safety netting whatsover below him?

Looks like if I decided to sell them to the circus, they might make a career out of it.

Crazy kids.

Packing Up Party

Tonight the kids packed up their shoe boxes for Samaritan's Purse.  One each for a boy or girl in their age range.  We piled up all the goodies that had been purchased, popped popcorn, partook in some peppermint bark (a bit too much peppermint bark, I'm afraid) and sipped on some cider.

(I had hoped to have some pictures of them working but all hands were needed on deck so there were none free for the camera.  Phooey.)

The sweetest part was reading the letters they composed for the children that would receive the boxes.  We are all excited about the ability to track the boxes and see where they end up.

This is the last weekend to participate!  For more info go here:  Samaritan's Purse

What I wouldn't give to be there to see their faces....

The Surprise

"Mommy, DON'T come into the kitchen.  I have a suhpwize for you!"

And what a surprise it was...

While perusing the cabinets this morning, he had come across an empty spray bottle, filled it, and then (dressed in the appropriate attire~or lack thereof) he had decided to "clean" my kitchen windows by squirting them with water.

And squirting, and squirting, and squirting them with water.

My, those windows haven't been that clean in quite some time.

After finishing that job, he took his work outside...per my request :)...and tried to invigorate some life into our dying basil plant.  Unfortunately, to no avail.  I miss my basil.

There is simply no lack of entertainment around here.

Sharing the Cuteness

Today our agency received several Travel Approvals which means lots of families are packing up to go get their kids.  We're still waiting on one more document before we will receive our TA but hopefully ours will be in the next batch that come from China.  Hopefully.

Today I felt like looking at some video of Lily that our agency captured while they were in China doing one of their camps for the kids they are trying to place in families.  I have about 5 or 6 little snippets and while this one is more "random" than most, it is my favorite.

There's something about her facial expressions, her smile, and the way she interacts with the interviewer that just melts my heart.  I think she is just adorable.

And I thought it would be just plain selfish to keep all that cuteness to myself.

Enjoy.

He's Making A List...

...and checking it twice.

Only it's not a list of things he wants to get for Christmas.  It's what he wants to give.

And the little stinker wrote it in secret code too so no one could figure it out.  Then tucked it away in a safe spot until it was time to go shopping.

That's my Alex.

Update!

Today we got an update on Lily!  I had asked for measurements so I would have some idea of what size she was.  As it turns out, she's pretty tall.  Only 2 1/2  inches shorter than Caroline who is almost one year older.  In addition, we received 11 new (and I must say extremely adorable) pictures of her.  The picture resolution is pretty poor so I can't enlarge them without blurriness.

But if you could see that smile, it would just about melt your heart.

Trust me.

Thankful Thursday

One cozy fire.
Two cute kids.
A gazillion Uno cards.
And 15 glorious minutes of uninterrupted "Mommy" time.
For that I am thankful.  :)

Closer still...

Today we received our letter from the National Visa Center saying they received our approval from USCIS.  All our information has been forwarded to the appropriate visa-issuing post in China.

Now we wait for our Article 5 letter to be issued.  I think that's the letter that says we met all the adoption requirements we were supposed to meet.  That takes maybe 2 weeks to be issued? (I'm sure you sense my complete and thorough understanding of this process).

Then, I think a few weeks after China gets the Article 5, they can then say "well why don't y'all come on over and get this sweet thang" (more formally known as Travel Approval).  And once we have TA and an appointment at the US Consulate to pick up her visa, well, then, for all intents and purposes...

We're outta here.

And on our way to....

Alexander the Great

Today was the day.

The day that my future Hall of Famer read his first book.

Cover to cover.  Word by carefully sounded out word.  

And to celebrate, as is family tradition, we will be dining at the restaurant of his choosing one night this week.

Look out world.  Here he comes!

Going, going...

...GONE!

Alex's first loose tooth, that is.

It had been wiggly for quite some time. Thanks to a little wrestling match with his older brother, the painful days of having it "hanging by a thread" have been avoided.

He was quite proud of this milestone. Can you tell?

A Belated Boo

Last Saturday was a "boo-tiful" day and the kids enjoyed their time outside (even with a little chill in the air) carving their pumpkins...

The finished results....

Michael's haunted house

Lauren's scary face

Caroline's dragon

Alex's jolly roger

And Lia's kitty cat

Everyone was pleased as punch how their pumpkins turned out...

Then Sunday was the big day for our ladybug...

...and Jedi warrior

Once Lia got the hang of what was actually going on, she would march right up to the door with Alex saying "I knocky door.  Knock, knock, knock!"

Afterwards, the littles were more than happy to share a few pieces with the big kids who graciously held down the fort while we were walking around the neighborhood...

And a good night was had by all...

How High The Heavens

For as high as the heavens are above the earth...




so great is His steadfast love toward those who fear Him...Psalm 103:11

His fixed, unchanging, steady, firmly loyal, constant, unswerving love.