Feliz Cumpleanos, Hija

Happy First Birthday, Daughter! We are truly missing you today and pray that your day is happy and that you are being celebrated where you are! It's hard to celebrate such a moment from here, but we're trying. We trust God's plan and timing for all of our lives and we know there is a reason that you're not with us just yet.

I received this from the babycenter newsletter today:
Your baby has hit the 1-year mark: Happy birthday! Many view the first birthday as the toddler turning point. Others consider your baby a toddler as soon as she starts walking — or, as the case may be, taking her first tentative steps. However and whenever she crosses the line into toddlerhood, it's a bittersweet transition — you miss your little baby even as you delight in your amazing child.
Yes...we miss our little baby. We cannot wait to delight in our amazing child!!
We love you Carrie... more than you could know!

Vacation Fun!

After 9 days and 8 nights playing in Disney theme parks, we're home! Thought we'd share some pictures with you of the highlights. The trip began with a 4am journey to the airport! But it was very exciting to see some our Air Force troops returning HOME from Iraq. I cried as we reached Florida and we watched one young soldier meeting his baby daughter for the first time. She was a gorgeous Latina and it reminded me of Drew's homecoming and made me yearn even more for Carrie's! One soldier gave Drew one of the flag patches that they velcro to their uniforms. It was a special thing and I will proudly sew it on Drew's quilt. It comes at an interesting time since Drew will finally be a US citizen next month!!!

We walked, ate, swam and rode on most everything (NOT the teacups! and not the rollercoaster with the Yeti) Disney had to offer. Still there's so much we did not have time to do! Amazing! Drew's favorite ride is Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin (we all love it!) and this year he rode the "big boy" rides for the first time. Space Mountain was one we thought we would hold off on.... but Drew did it twice and LOVED it. I let Dan take him for the second ride as once was enough for me this year!

Other highlights? We met a family who is also using our adoption agency for their son (who will be home very soon!). We enjoyed a crazy lunch with them at our resort. The kids got up twice to ride wooden horses around the restaurant and the wait staff yell & scream often!

We also enjoyed dining with characters for two of our meals. Watching the glow on Drew's face as he was greeted, kissed and hugged by Mickey & friends was extremely enjoyable! Watching Drew enjoy fireworks and other shows (like the UNBELIEVABLE Finding Nemo the Musical show at Animal Kingdom A+++) made the whole trip worthwhile! It was fun to be able to go on rides together and have our last vacation as a threesome! We're very thankful we could go!!

First Day Was A Success!!

There he is... on his way to K-garten with his shiny new backpack and handsome new clothes! (Although he felt like he was "dressed for church" and really fought me on the khaki pants... he's not allowed to wear jeans to school now!) When he got dressed he looked at me and said, "I can be very careful to keep my clothes clean on the playground!" My fashionisto! Anyway, he came home with stained knees, but he really enjoyed school!

The teacher said Drew is a good listener! SHOCK...what happens at home??? A chart came home with him today about obeying Mommy & Daddy the FIRST time they say something. After 20 boxes are checked he can wear this little badge... I wonder if he'll be able to wear it by December!! ;)

Carrie, I had hoped I'd be filling these mornings playing with you! I know I will be soon enough... but for now I'm missing two of you every day. Come home soon!

September Praise & Prayer Requests

Hello! September is here and tomorrow Drew starts K-garten! We can hardly believe our boy is growing so quickly! His best buddy, Liam (pictured), and two of his cousins, Abby & Luke, all start K-garten today. They're all growing up!

Yesterday we got a wonderful video of Carrie! It was taken the same time as our most recent photos and showed such a better picture of her! Her sweet face has me completely melting!! She has 8 teeth and is getting a few more. She is a good sleeper! She is still on formula, but is eating cooked fruits and vegetables and chicken. Carrie is still serious, but apparently will laugh and smile when something is funny enough. That's good news!! Her hair looks so much smoother than in the photos, too! And then there's the walking attempts. Her foster mother holds her hands and little Cat stands and shuffles her feet to walk! It's so cute and she looks so proud of herself. That was our favorite part of the video! She's going to be moving around the house so much more than Drew did when he came home. I could leave him in one spot and know that he wasn't going to get more than a foot away from that spot.... she's going to be a different story!!! :)

Prayer Requests:

1) An OUT from PGN this month, that is the news we're really hoping to hear!

2) A ready and willing escort at the time that Carrie's documents are finalized so that we don't have to wait longer!

3) Safety for Carrie as she continues to grow and develop! Things are a little crazy down there right now and our foster mothers aren't always safe while venturing out with our children. Pray for that situation in general as well as the election taking place in G. on 9/9 (I believe that's the date).

3) Safety for us as we vacation in Disney. We need the break and the family time! Dan hasn't had any real time off since last October.

4) A positive experience for Drew in Kindergarten: that he'll be kind with his words and gentle with his hands!

Thanks, friends! We are so grateful for you!! Please let us know that you visited and share your prayer requests with us!!