Four Years Ago...

Four years ago, I received these pictures of Sophie at her last doctor's appointment in Guatemala. I remember opening that e-mail with such anticipation and excitement! Then... that ugly cry... joy at seeing her beautiful little face and wearing an outfit I had left down there with her mixed with tears of anguish, frustration and sadness that I was watching my daughter grow bigger and more beautiful with each passing day in a country far away. My arms ached... they were so empty without her in them. For those of you in the Guatemala adoption world... we were waiting on PINK to be able to go and pick her up. It seems like those last hurdles were the absolute hardest days of the wait.

Four years ago, I waited for this child... four years ago, I felt such despair that these final stages seemed to go so slowly. Four years ago, I had no idea how much my life would really change with this precious child coming into our family. Four years ago... our family faithfully prayed for our tiny blessing to come home.

My, how four short years have flown by. I Love You, Sophie~Bug!!

Favorite Foto Friday #103

Hey guys... I am still here... things are still very unsettled. But, all the fabulous support you have given me this week has me coming back for another FFF. I will continue to host them as long as you keep stopping by! I have hardly taken any photos at all... so, I am posting some favorite pictures from this summer of my two girls... this was at Morgan's senior portrait session. I asked Morgan to pose with her baby sister for a few and they all turned out fabulously. She will be able to look back at these someday and see just how little her baby sister was the year before she left to go away on her own. Such a bittersweet time for me...




Here is MckLinky!



Let's continue to keep the themes open for a while! I love everybody's creativity! Sorry if I have not commented lately... but I do read and check them out. I hope I am back up to speed very soon! Love you all!

My Little Firefighter

Sophie and I made it to St. Louis this weekend to attend Guatfest (a picnic for families with children from Guatemala)! We had such a great weekend spent with wonderful friends! Since I do not have permission to post pictures of all the other kids... I thought I would share a couple pictures of my little Fire Bug!! She LOVED it when the fire truck and ambulance showed up and got to be the first one in the drivers seat!!


Thanks for all the well wishes and prayers. They are definitely needed and very much appreciated!! I love all the wonderful people I have met through blogging!

Favorite Foto Friday #102

I really thought I was ready to get back to blogging but some uncertainty has come up in my life at the moment and I feel I must extend my blogging break until the crisis is averted. I have not taken pictures of my kids in a couple weeks, so you know that something is consuming much more of my time and energy.

I may even have to take the blog private, which is something I have considered doing for a while. I don't feel comfortable putting my private life out there when difficulties arise not knowing who may be reading it. I know we all must struggle with this at times and I wish blogger allowed the option to password protect posts so that I could be open with those that I want to share our private details with. But... sigh... not really sure what to do.

I feel like I have fallen off the bandwagon of chronicling my family's life and am a little overwhelmed with how to make up for the lack of posts. Maybe that is what is really bothering me. I, like most of you, blog to create a keepsake for your kids someday. I had hoped that this too would be the same thing for us. But, I don't know how to start back up.

So, for this week... I am off the theme that was chosen last week... I really need to take pictures of the kids back to school, but they have already been back for a couple weeks. So, I will post a picture I did take recently of Grant and Sophie enjoying some time on the front porch last weekend. The mutual adoration of these two is simply amazing. I have no idea who could love each other more...

One thing that has not changed is how much I love my kids... they are the ones who keep me going day in and day out.

Here is MckLinky!



I would like to hear from you if you would like to keep Favorite Foto Friday going... maybe that will be my motivation to at least pop in here once a week until things settle back into a rhythm.

Love you guys!

Lookie what Sophie is getting!

A fellow blogger adoptive momma and I "met" a few years ago through CaringBridge. We used to e-mail prior to her adoption journey about the blessings of adding to our family with the children that are so amazingly meant to be ours through God's perfect timing. I love to follow her journey and life with her two beautiful baby girls and her zest for life! Melanie is one of the most energetic, loving, talented, crazy fun people I have ever known! And, did I mention TALENTED!?!?

Not only does she run a pediatric physical therapy practice, scrapbook, make beautiful jewelry, raise two baby girls, build houses, Shake for Jake, go on fabulously fun trips with her family and friends... she also finds time to paint some beautiful canvases. I e-mailed her less than two weeks ago about a canvas for Sophie... without much from me to go on, she created this beautiful canvas for my little Bug!


Look at this beautiful little detail that she so perfectly surprised me with... because "she looks like a "Sophie Bug"... PERFECT! I love it!



I can't wait to get it and hang it up in Sophie's room! Thank you so much Mo for the sneak peek tonight on your blog!!

Love you!

Favorite Foto Friday #101 - FRIENDS!

If I can be thankful for nothing else, I am most thankful for my friends. They have become my family and I am extremely blessed!! It has been so sweet watching my youngest learn what friendship is about... I would have to say that she is also very blessed!!!

Most recently, we had a cruise on a local Paddlewheel Steamboat with some of our friends with other Guat Tots... Sophie had a blast dancing and playing with her friends... old and new...

Sophie~Bug, Ella and Sophia

Sophia, Kate, Sophie and Ella

Proud to be Guatemalan Americans!

Come on Sophia, let's dance!!

Let's ride off into the sunset on my faithful pony, Ella!!

Here is Mcklinky!! Can't wait to see your FRIENDS pictures!!



Since many of us have kids that have gone back to school recently, next week's theme is BACKPACKS!!

FFF Winner!

I am so thrilled that we have returned to Favorite Foto Friday! Welcome back!

Sorry to have been so secretive about the prize... but the prize is a beautiful custom picture frame like the one modeled here by the beautiful Sophie~Bug!!


I ordered ours and fell in love with it... handcrafted by another blogging mommy, Kelley! She has an etsy shop called Shorty Bananas, that you can link to here.

The winner can choose the frame or anything else from her etsy shop.


I just love her sayings that are engraved into the frames... and the winner can choose which saying and choose the colors for the frame.

So, without further delay... the winner, determined by random.org is the 14th commenter, Kerri!! I think Kerri may just be ordering two for her beautiful girls, Medina and Ruby! Congratulations Kerri and thanks for always being a loyal FFF participant!!