Our family Christmas present…..

well......we paid off our 2nd adoption loan.  We now have nothing more hanging over our heads to do for the adoption.  We're waiting on the certificate of citizenship, but at least it's been paid for and tpaperwork completed.  It feels so good to be completely out of process and just be plain old mom.

Thanks Dad!!!

Christmas Picture Overload!!

Enjoy.....we did.  (Check back for the dance pictures.  Chase and Cole got a Disney dance cd from Grandma H. and Chase, Kaelin, Chelsi and Grandma had a great time dancing it the kitchen and I DO have pictures of it....including Grandma.....Bunny Hop and all.)

Checkin' it all out!

Chelsi loves to draw.



The girls got chairs from Grandpa.

Mom and Chelsi




M and Chelsi



Kaelin, A, M, Dad, Chelsi and Chase



AWE!  We love Christmas morning.



Various pics





Peace and joy to your family.  평 그ㄹㅣ고 기 쁨.

I think she’s beginning to open up and trust

I think most people, outside adoption or maybe even just beginning, assume that when you adopt you fall in love with the baby and the baby falls in love with you immediately.  Not true.  It can happen different ways.  I've heard of some parents not attaching right away, some kids not attaching right away and some where both attach immediately. 

Chelsi did not attach right away.  Think about all these kids have been through.  The people they loved are not able to be with them any longer and they're no longer sure who they are to love or trust.  How scary.  Chelsi, let us hold her, but not much.  She'd rather have been on the floor playing.  Some would perceive that as a great baby who just likes to play and is independent.  I worried.  I knew that's not the way her big sister was.  Kaelin grieved right away and grieving for the family unit you lost is important.

We held her and cuddled as much as possible.  We left her on the bottle longer than any of the four older kids.  Bottle time was bonding time.  Everything we did with her was eye level.  She never necessarily "mommy shopped" like some kids do, but she wasn't trusting us totally.  Now I can see such a change coming about.  She goes to daycare and is okay being there.  Not overly happy like "mommy get", but happy to play and then come back home when the day's over.  We play every night together on the floor and she crawls up and lays her head on me and pats me while saying "ahhh mommy".  Melt your heart!

She's starting to laugh more and she's really quite the little clown.  I love her personality.  It's the sweetest.  I'm so glad she's allowing us in her life.  She's opened the door.  

I bonded and became attached to each of my kids immediately.  With the boys I was attached the first time I saw the pink lines.  With the girls as soon as we had a name at referral.  I didn't have to have a picture or know much about them, just that they were on this Earth and I knew.

I'm so thankful for the problems we experienced and the blessings God gave us for trusting Him.  We have four unbelievably, wonderful blessings in our lives that I couldn't imagine ever not knowing. 

Watching your children begin to trust you and the transition they go through after such a big trauma is nothing short of a miracle.  I'm so thankful that God helped them through it.

Hug your kids tonight.  They're a true miracle.

Mailed off the application for certificate of citizenship today!

The VERY last step in an international adoption process.  Hopefully in a few months we'll have that certificate in-hand and we'll be completely complete.  I'm just hoping USCIS actually mails us the certificate as requested and per their manual.  It says they can in an adoption, but whether they'll do it or not is another story.  I know, from talking to others, some satellite offices do and some don't.  I pray my letter can persuade them to.  We'll see.

Our Snow Job 2006 :)

We're not supposed to get this kind of snow on December 1st, but we did.  My husband said it's about 14 inches in our driveway.

Here are some pics.

    

So, of course, while dad spent the early morning shoveling so MAYBE we can get up our big hill later, the kids played.  Chelsi got to experience her first snow and REALLY liked it.  Boy was she mad when I took her inside.

Kaelin actually liked it this year.  All the other years she hated it and wouldn't stand in the snow for more than 2 seconds.  Of course, in years past we haven't had this much.  We haven't had this much in quite a long time.

Chase and Kaelin doing some tromping around.

 

Cole pretending to work. :)

Chelsi LOVED it!!!!