Happy Halloween

We had our 4th annual play group Halloween party today. I love Halloween - the silly decorations, the costumes, etc. All of our kids are still young enough to look cute and happy instead of scary or gory. Soon enough we will be working with fake blood & guts. So for now I will be happy to see cuddly animals, fairy princesses and sweet literary characters. 

I found some photos from 2006 that I thought were hilarious by comparison. 

B (18 mo old) as Donald posing with a mini Donald

Thing 1 & Thing 2 posing with the Cat in the Hat

Thing 1 & Donald posing

Now fast forward 3 years. We have another Disney themed costume in our house. Thing 1 & Thing 2 have jumped from the literary world of Dr. Suess to Broadway. Here we find Mickey with his best buddy, Anne & her dog, Sandy. (Notice it's the same fire place).

G is a member of the younger siblings group - our subset of play group. They range in age from 19 to 11 months. Notice she is the only girl amongst this gathering of cuties. Today they were sweet enough to pose for photos, as their older siblings have done for the past several years. The older kids got to work on crafts and we didn't even attempt to get them all to pose. Maybe next year the 4 year olds can get the toddlers to hang out long enough to get a group shot, but I doubt it. 

Photo Montage

When we gaze at our ever changing little girl, it is hard to remember just how tiny she was during her first few months of life. So, here are some shots that give us all a little reminder...

Referral Photo 

12-2007 (less than 2 months old)

Hanging out at the care center 

Approx March 2008 - less than 5 months old

April 2008 - 6 months old

May 2008 - 7 months old

June 2008 - 8 months old

July 2008 - 9 months old

August 2008 - 10 months old

September 2008 - 11 months old

October 2008 - 1 year

Happiest Birthday Wishes

We are having the big shindig on Saturday, but wanted to make sure we marked G's actual birthday with cake (hostess cupcake) and a candle. She approached this new process as she does all new things...a bit skeptical...then makes a preliminary investigation...then shows her approval.

Despite her general skepticism of all table food, she did put a bit of cupcake into her mouth without spitting it out. 

T and I are both in awe that our baby is a year already. Despite what the blog is titled, we don't have plans to expand our family, so these milestones can be a bit bittersweet. We do know, however, that each and every year the experiences with our children get better and better. We are one very blessed family! 

Photos

As most of you know, B is a ham. Loves a camera. Will pose for anyone. Whatever. G - not so much. She may flash a quick smile, but it is difficult to catch on a regular basis. I will snap 30-50 frames to get one good one. Not that she doesn't look pretty, but just a bit serious. That, or she looks so happy and excited, but stops as soon as the shutter snaps. We had our family portrait done this weekend, including shots for her 1 year official portrait. I wasn't a huge fan of the photographer and neither was she. I can't post the photos for copyright reasons, but it was like pulling teeth. B's frames took 30 seconds. G - well she'd give a half smile. 

But today I finally got it. Here it is. My beautiful little princess. Both teeth showing. Happy. Chubby. Perfect. What's a mama to do but brag about this face?!?

Sibling Love

People keep asking how these two are getting along. Though a bit fuzzy, I think the images below tell you about 90% of their time together. (The other 10% involves B upset by: G not listening to him, G touching one of his toys, or G getting some attention from an adult and B being jealous.) I love the look of adoration on her face. Believe me, it is mirrored. 

Paperwork

Saturday marked the 6 month anniversary of our arrival home and the creation of our Forever Family. It also marked the arrival of G's COC - Certificate of Citizenship. This little piece of paper is the LAST piece of paper that is necessary to prove to EVERYONE that G is our daughter, and a citizen of our country, FOREVER. We had been warned that it may take a year for the COC to be issued. I can hardly believe it only took 2 months (less, actually, since I took a few months to file with our local court, etc.). Seriously. Though the steps are many, we've had it easy when it comes to government paperwork. 

Can't say the same for our insurance company. 6+ phone calls, several faxes and they can't understand G's name change. I am not sure how difficult it is to drop her middle name, move her first name over to her middle name, add a new first name. Apparently, this is a very difficult task. Her coverage has been dropped and reinstated. They thought we had twins for a few days - same DOB, one with original name, one with new name. We've been issued 2 new sets of cards - neither have her name correct. I called to confirm the name change - again. Seemed to have it all set. Got the cards - middle name is wrong. There is a reason that I have only given her first legal name to insurance and the doctor. NO ONE ELSE. Not even the local rec center. Not Social Security. NO ONE. My gut was right. This concept is too much. 

Ethiopia on My Mind

As we approach G's first birthday, I am thinking more and more about her birth country. Partially, I finally had a little time to start sorting our photos from our trip to Ethiopia. (Honestly, every time I sit down to work on this project I only get a few minutes into it and get very sad.) Partially, because as the seasons change, I wonder who is thinking about her. 

When you live in a mud hut (and probably don't own any items with words written on them, let alone a western calendar), I can only assume that the passage of time is mostly felt through the changing of the seasons. So, as we approach G's birthday, I wonder who, if anyone, is thinking of this beautiful little creature and of the day she was born. It seems to be human nature to become a bit reflective upon an anniversary or a birthday. 

For many adoptive families, birthdays are bitter sweet. Yes, it's a day to celebrate. However,  it is probably a day when another family, many times half-way around the world, is especially sad, thinking of the little person they no longer have the opportunity to hug each morning and tuck into bed each night. As our children age, it's a time for them to wonder, "Do they miss me?" 

Often times adoptive parents only talk to friends and extended family about the happy side of adoption. For now, the reason G came into care is a private story, since she isn't able to pick and choose how to share it. Honestly, is there ever a happy beginning to these stories? Probably not. Someone had to make the most gut wrenching decision of their life. Had to put their child's fate into the hands of strangers and pray for a good outcome. Yes, often times, the outcome is good. Their children are living with families who love and adore them. Food on the table. House. Clothing. Education. Opportunity. However, no matter how permanent this separation may be in the eyes of the law, no one forgets their birth child. I hope that G's birth family, if they are reflecting on this day, feel a sense of peace. I hope they know that, even though their loss is great, we are ever grateful to them for their sacrifice.

Budapest

I don't think I mentioned that our journey away was to Budapest. T had a meeting and I got to tag along. Regardless of the destination, it was nice to have a week of not worrying about anyone else going to the bathroom, eating or sleeping!! I brought my computer and a couple of books, but barely touched them. I would have read more, but decided to veg out watching movies when I had a little spare time. I didn't have much, though. Spent lots of time walking around the city, taking in the sights. Lots of spouses went along (and some other family members) so there was always someone to hang out with while T had to work. We had group dinners each night - dinner in Budapest took 2+ hours each night - sometimes 4. The weather was perfect - clear and cool to warm. Not hot. Not wet. We spent Friday afternoon at a local hot spring/spa and got to relax with a 20 minute foot massage before our journey home. Ahhhhhh.  

Here are a few travel photos - T took most of them. 

The view from our room. Gellert hill - famous landmark. Tribute to St. Gellert is the point in the middle. You can't see the waterfall that comes down from the columns, just below that statue. Top left is the Citadel. We hiked down that hill and back up one afternoon. 

Parliament. Largest building in Hungary. We got a good book about it - didn't take the tour and turned out to be a good decision (from the commentary of our group). 

The Royal Palace - now holds the National Gallery and National Museum. Spent lots of time walking around the outside on Monday (most museums are closed on Mondays - oops). J got to return later in the week and went up to the top of the tower - great view. Unfortunately the inside just feels like a museum - no longer a Palace. 

Sunset behind the Royal Palace - from our river cruise on the Danube on Wednesday night. 

St. Stephen's Church. Most beautiful spot we visited. Could have stayed inside for hours. 

Another view from our hotel room. The hotel (Marriott) was nice. Apparently the place to hold meetings. Chinese Embassy (with Police Motorcade) one night. Nigerian Embassy. Prime Minister of Turkey. Lots of men in dark suits and ear pieces roaming the building. 

The Chain Bridge, with St. Stephen's Church & Gresham Palace (Four Seasons Hotel) behind it, looking down from the Royal Palace. 

Happy Homecoming

Sad that I must bribe them with Wii controllers to get them to sit still. What's a mama to do when the papa is on the road and she still battling jet lag (though just a bit)? Thought our adoring fans would rather see these two first. 

All four grandparents had a hand in keeping these two beauties happy while we were away. Nice to come home to happy kids.