Happy Gotcha Day, Emma!!

Tuesday, August 13 was the 6th anniversary of the day we became parents to our first daughter, Emma Grace. What an amazing six years, and what an amazing little girl! We are so blessed to be her family. She is outgoing, smart, loves her family, and love Jesus. We can't wait to see what the future holds for this little girl. Here she is, still wearing the same outfit she had on when she was handed to us on that great day 6 years ago!! s

Kings Dominion

The youth group went to Kings Dominion on Friday, so we thought we would tag along with the little girls. Boy - did they have a good time!!! They rode and rode and rode and rode some more!! They didn't even want to take a time out for lunch!!

Great Fun in the Sun - Myrtle Beach on Vacation

We have been at the beach just over a week, and will be here through July 4th. We have been having a great time!! The girls love to swim!!

Happy Chinese New Year's!!!

Today, our local Families with Children from China group celebrated Chinese New Year's - so wonderful to see all the children, and even some new since our last get together! So exciting that God has put this wonderful thing called adoption in so many hearts. Such beautiful children, and every child deserves to have a family!!

Happy Birthday Emma and Alyssa!!

I can't believe how quickly our girls are growing up!! Emma was 7 on January 24, and Alyssa will be 10 on February 16 - one week from today. We did a combined birthday party for them last weekend, and the girls had a great time! They had a Princess Spa party, complete with sparkling strawberry and lemonade, sparkle make-up, had their nails and hair done, and just got to be the girley-girls they are - except Allie - I had to make her participate - she's not the girlie-girl!! They had friends included in their special day, and we had cupcakes and a bouncy house for the afternoon. Everyone had a really great time!

Happy Sweet 16!!

On January 20, LiYang was 16 years old! I can't believe she's 16 already! She is registering for her junior year in high school, makes straight A's, and is going to be taking some dual enrollment courses! She is a beautiful young lady, and has come so far in the past 2 years. She has made some great friends, both at school and at church, is working at a local Chinese restaurant a couple hours a week, and loves making her own money. She still misses China, her friends, and "family", and we hope to be able to take her back to visit in a couple of years. We are looking forward to what God has in store for this special young lady, and, we are blessed to be her parents, and to be able to share in her life. LiYang, we love you, and are very proud of you!

Belated Happy Gotcha Day LiYang!!

With the holidays, and sickness in the house, I am late in posting this one. December 19 was 2 years since meeting our oldest daughter in China. The time is passing so quickly, and she is such an amazing young lady. I can't believe that in less than a month, she will be 16 years old!! She is so smart, funny, so talented, and is a blessing to our family. Her younger sisters love and look up to her too. She has made some great friends, both at school, and at church, and is even working a couple hours a week at a local Chinese restaurant. She likes to have her own money. She is beautiful, smart, so talented in her artwork, and, is also the maker of the best Chinese dumplings you've ever had!! Definitely, adopting an older child is a difficult thing, and her adjustment has been a long process, but she is so amazing! Everything she had known for almost 14 years changed - the people she had known and loved, the school where she was at the top of her class, the traditions, language, and everything else you can think of. She had taken some English, and just talking conversationally was not so hard, but comprehension with school and around a group was difficult. She used a translator, dictionary, and worked with an ESL teacher at school, and is such a bright young lady that she's not had to take one single exam since she's been home - she is a straight A student, but does have to work diligently to do it. If she's got a lower grade than an A, she asks for extra credit - she is very motivated to do well. We are very blessed to be parents to this young lady. It is still difficult for her at times, and she misses China and the people in her past. We have let her call her "grandmother" the lady who raised her for 13 years, and she emails friends once in a while; but it is tough. I know it's harder for her than she sometimes lets on, and we are so proud of her for the effort she makes every single day. We love you, LiYang, and pray that God will work in your heart in the days, weeks, months and years to come, so you will know that this was the right decision for your future. WE are so proud of you and your accomplishments, and can't wait to see what God has in store for you! Here she is in a few pics - first one, in the clothes she was wearing the day we met...some from the holidays, one she has on make-up, a picture of the yummy dumplngs she makes - better than any you get at a Chinese restaurant! She's such a talented young lady!! The last one is with our cat, Lizzy, that she loves.